Tucson Press Club

In order to create an e-text of The Bar Is Open, I need to get permission. Jim Cooper passed away shortly before the book was published. To make a long story, or at least a story that took two weeks, the Daily Star's Bonnie Henry contacted J.C. Martin, a retired journalist for the Citizen who called me with a few names of men who knew Jim Cooper. J.C. was a tremendous several years back when I was trying to gather information another unique Tucson group, the Mountain Oyster Club. I called one of the men on her list and this gentleman told me that Jim's son, Joe, is an actor at the Gaslight Theater. I called the Theater, left a message for Joe and he called on Monday morning.

The bonus is that Joe's father also wrote a book called Places in the Sun, a look at the buildings that architect Lew Place designed on the UA campus and in Tucson. Lew Place is one of Tucson's most renowned architects. Joe Cooper gave permission to digitize both books. We should being developing this site soon. Tyler St. Mark, our friend in Beverly Hills who got all this started by sharing his copies of The Hellbox, has purchased a copy of The Bar Is Open and it is on its way as I type. The Internet and the Web certainly bring us an enormous amount of social capital. With all the negative hype that accompanies media discussions of the 'Net, it's good remember all the good that has resulted from the serendipity of Googling a topic and making virtual connections.