Alumni Bulletin - Winter 2009 - (Page 27)

television, the legendary comedian would use substitute phrases like Mother of Pearls or Godfrey Daniels. The latter fit since Fry was searching for a name that sounded like a pub, and it also had an element of vaudeville—another passion of his. Since the club was unable to sell liquor, a unique situation was created. Performers who did not play bars were drawn to Godfrey’s. “It gave us an audience that was willing to listen,” Fry says. “Children could attend sometimes nice to stay with someone, have dinner, conversation, and develop friendships,” Mater says. Although Mater and Fry knew each other at Lehigh, they became lifelong friends after Fry asked him to produce the artwork for the Godfrey’s membership newsletters—hand-lettered at the time, and filled with amusing caricatures of the coming acts. They also shared a similar free-spirited nature. Realizing he didn’t fit into the corporate world, Mater’s degree in government was put to use as a political cartoonist before he established himself as a national artist and entertainer. with parents, too. We’ve already had four generations in the audience. That’s really special.” The venue quickly earned a good reputation among traveling performers. Those passing through from New York City on their way to Philadelphia would include Godfrey’s as one of their performance stops. “Godfrey’s became known as the nice place in the country—Bethlehem wasn’t very built up then—where you could get a great audience, a home-cooked meal, and come off the road,” Fry says. As its reputation spread, Mater and other Godfrey’s volunteers even started allowing musicians to stay at their homes. “When you’re on the road a lot, it’s “The ’60s had an impact for many of us to not take the traditional path,” he says. Fry, meanwhile, continued to hone his skills as a musician and even took up acting. He got involved with a summer street theater project through Touchstone Theater, located just a few blocks from Godfrey’s and two blocks from Lehigh. He later toured Mexico in the 1980s with Touchstone. “I sometimes count myself more as a performer than a musician,” Fry says. “I’ve learned from watching people at Godfrey’s that there are many ways to connect with an audience.” Through Touchstone, Fry was introduced to the art of family entertainment. With silly songs and audience participation, he kept adults and children engaged. Gorka brought his family to see Fry perform one of his kids’ shows, and says “he was great. That same sense of delight and performing that he brings to adults he brought to the kids’ show. Dave doesn’t talk down to kids. He treats them as fully human.” Fry, who works with preschool children through the Bethlehem-based program PASELA (Promoting and Supporting Early Literacy through the Arts), has also developed several children’s shows that he performs at elementary and middle school assemblies and festivals throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Just Imagine, A Hip Hooray for the USA!, and Early Childhood Music are solo shows for elementary and preschool ages. Fry incorporates acoustic and electric guitar, mandolin, and banjo into fun songs that keep young energy high, attention spans strong, and highlight his hallmark audience participation. He has three solo albums to his credit: Pearls features folk, blues, swing, and Celtic music, while I Like Peanut Butter and Shake It! are his award-winning children’s albums. RockRoots, a school assembly program that features Fry in a four-piece band setting, is a fast-paced chronological history lesson tracing the development of American music from its early roots to modern hip-hop. “Now it has become a very smooth, sophisticated show that still has spontaneity,” Fry says. “The guys are there to play great, and my job is to control the madness and keep the focus on education.” For more than two decades, Fry balanced a career as a folksinger and children’s entertainer while booking most of the acts at Godfrey’s. But several years ago, a career opportunity opened up in Connecticut for Fry’s wife, Kim, so they and their two children—Rosalie, 18, and Jaimie, 16—relocated. Fry is still on the board at Godfrey’s and continues to work and perform in the Lehigh Valley regularly. He is also one of the only performers to have played at every Musikfest since it started. Fry is also forging a path in Connecticut, taking his children’s entertainment shows to happy faces in new places. During a visit to Godfrey’s, Fry strums his signature Godfrey Daniels Martin guitar and reflects on a career that has spanned more than 30 years. He flashes a smile, and says simply: “I really love what I do.” LU winter 2009 27

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Alumni Bulletin - Winter 2009

Lehigh Bulletin - Winter 2009 Contents From the President's Desk Mailbox On Campus Research Arts & Culture Sports Teaming Up to Tackle Global Challenges Positively 4th Street A Sweet Job From the Publisher's Desk Alumni News

Alumni Bulletin - Winter 2009

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.