Friday, September 26, 2008

Placerville and Thomas Kinkade

I went to high school in Placerville at the same time Thomas Kinkade did. We weren't in the same class, and I did not know him. I found his picture in one of my yearbooks, and also his wife's picture. She was a year behind him. His yearbook picture is shown below:

He painted a series of houses that are located in Placerville, California. These are homes I have admired all of my life, and at some points we had driven by them nearly every day. I managed to find a few old pictures I had taken about 32 years ago:
The one shown in two pictures , which was painted green with white trim at the time, is the Combellack Blair House. I had a Combellack and a Blair in my high school class - I DID know them. I took these pictures on the day of a home tour, we were so excited to go inside! Here is the same house below, as he depicted it - gorgeous. It's a Bed & Breakfast now, so you could go inside if you wanted, too!
And the plate below shows the home in the lower left of the four photos. I was lucky enough to go inside that one once, also - my sister's friend Julie Smith used to live there:
Sorry my little photos are so funky, I am no better at photography now than I was then, but in the top right picture you see a portion of this house, below. See the little diamond shaped window centered below the top eave? My memories of this house aren't quite as pleasant. The only time I was inside of this one was when we went to talk to Daddy's doctor after he died. The doctor tried to explain to us what had happened with his heart. I think we were in a daze, and I never did fully grasp exactly what had happened to him.
My sisters and brothers-in-law surprised me on my birthday in 1991 with a signed and numbered lithograph of the Combellack Blair house. I was thrilled! I have to say that I don't particularly care for all of the "stuff" that's out there now featuring his artwork - figurines, candles- almost anything you can think of - overkill, to say the very least. But buying these Bradford Exchange plates when they came out was the least expensive way I could get the Placerville houses on something that was easily displayable.
And, on a slightly different subject, I just had to share with you his depiction of Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland. I snapped a picture of it when it was on display at the (now defunct) Disney Gallery. Sorry for the glare, but I think it's just beautiful!
Here's a better view of it!

5 comments:

Tina Dawn said...

Great post. I am going to want to scan copies of your great photos. I loved the Combellack house when it was painted green. My memory of daddy's Dr. differs from yours. I remember that we met with his Dr. before he died. It was while he was in the hospital after his heart attack. The Dr. wanted us to know that his future looked grim because he had more wrong with him than just the heart attack. His gall bladder was one and I am fuzzy on the others. So he wanted us to know he had a hard fight ahead of him so that we would be ready in case he didn't make it. Unfortunately that was the case, way too young at 53 years. Anyway, loved this post. Also, the "Great Songs of the Sky" Donovan tribute by Lucy D'Mott last night at the Carl Borelli theatre at El Dorado High in Placerville was really great. I won the raffle, but I donated the money back. Love T

Anonymous said...

What a great story! I suppose bittersweet in some ways with the memories of your father. What LOVELY homes. To think, people actually get to live in them...eat their cornflakes, laze around on the couch, and look out those windows.

Twyla and Lindsey said...

I have the plate of the house your friend lived in. I feel like you do, that his painting adaptations on Everything, somehow cheapens it. Love his artwork though. Twyla

Emily said...

What beautiful homes!!!

Anonymous said...

I am sorry to hear that the Disney Gallery is no longer around. I thought that was really cool.