Benjamin Henry Masselink, D.D.S, L.D.S (GEN 8)
Son of Harmen Masselink (1842 GB 7)
1881 Dec 11 (1881 MI 8); * 1881 Dec 11 Overisel (Oakland), MI; Father Harmen (1842)
1888? Future wife Gertrude Beyer born, Orange City, IA.
1908 Dr. Masselink graduates from University of Michigan with a doctorate (DDS degree)
1909 Licentiate in Dental Surgery; Royal College of Surgeons of England
19?? Marries Gertrude Beyer; Two Children (GEN 9): Children Eugene and Benjamin Jr (See below)
1910 Feb 10 Arrives Pretoria, South Africa with his wife Gertrude to practice dentistry.
1910 SEP 5 Eugene's mother Gertrude gives birth to Eugene in Cape Town, South Africa and becomes very ill. Father Benjamin has to leave them in the Cape Town hospital and continues on to Pretoria where he had made a commitment to start a dental practice. After a few weeks, his mother gains enough strength to travel with Eugene. After boarding the train to the interior, Gertrude discovers that the baby's luggage was missing. His bottles, diapers, clothing, and food was left on the platform in Cape Town. Their fellow passengers provided the necessary supplies until they reached Petoria. The family remains in Pretoria a few years before returning to Grand Rapids, Michigan.
http://books.google.com/booksid=XLJy6OeCCS0C&pg=PA121&lpg=PA121&dq=cape+town+south+africa+masselink&source=bl&ots=Ta1nQYLLi&sig=Sy4LVtuVlxFbYq3CdMGj2YMQ3e8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hL_2Us7uHfPlsASP_YLgAw&ved=0CCkQ6AEw AQ#v=onepage&q=cape%20town%20south%20africa%20masselink&f=false
1910 Writes an article, "The Advent of Painless Dentistry", in a professional medical journal published in 1910 in Cape Town, South Africa. This article is also published in the same year in the Texas Dental Journal.
http://books.google.com/books?id=tfU1AQAAMAAJ&pg=RA8-PA30&lpg=RA8-PA30&dq= cape+town +south+africa+ masselink&source=bl&ots=IrMRHhQdgT&sig=ruCMeN3otJizeAH62BBAAIdrSXo&hl=en&sa=X&ei=FMD2UrH4DomFkQfSl
4FQ&ved=0CE0Q6AEwCw#v=onepage&q=cape%20town%20south%20africa%20masselink&f=false
1911 Oct 26 Registers with the US Consul in Johannesburg South Africa; Lives with wife Gertrude and son Eugene in Pretoria, South Africa; States that father Harmen (1842) resides in Zeeland, MI.
1912 Dec 31 Registers with the US Consul in Johannesburg, South Africa. Lives with wife Gertrude and son Eugene in Pretoria, South Africa; States that father Harmen (1842) resides in Zeeland, MI.
1914 Professor of dentistry in the University of Transvaal, Pretoria, South Africa.
1914 Benjamin, Gertrude and Eugene all return to Grand Rapids from South Africa via South Hampton, England; Arrive in New York on the ship Oceanic on 1914 Jun 3; Eugene is 3 1/2; Wrote "Life and Travels in South Africa" and often lectured about South Africa after his return to the United States.
1914 Poisoning the Pecks of Grand Rapids: The Scandalous 1916 Murder Plot; Dr. Masselink is quoted in this book as having worked with Dr. Arthur Warren Wate in Durban, South Africa before Dr. Wate returned to Grand Rapids in 1914. Dr. Waite planned to murder five members of the Peck (Drug Store) family in a devious get-rich-quick scheme.
1919 NOV 13 Son Benjamin Jr born Grand Rapids, MI
1926 Candidate for Michigan State Senate, 6th District; Lost election.
1929 Lives with wife Gertrude at 129 Lafayette Ave NE in Grand Rapids; Dental practice is located at 8 1/2 Monroe Ave, Grand Rapids; Eugene is a student.
1930 Lives in Grand Rapids with wife Gertrude, sons Eugene and Ben Jr and servant Jennie Kostering; Occupation: Dentist.
1941 Dental office is at One Monument Square, Grand Rapids, MI; Son Ben Jr is a student living at home at 129 Lafayette prior to his enlistment in the Marine Corps.
1942/1944 Republican primary candidate for U.S. Representative from the 5th District in 1942 and 1944; Lost all known elections in which he ran; Author Thomas Masselink has a matchbook cover from Benjamin's 1944 campaign.
1948 Ben and wife live in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.
1973 Oct 14 Dies in Broward County, FL
1888? Future wife Gertrude Beyer born, Orange City, IA.
1908 Dr. Masselink graduates from University of Michigan with a doctorate (DDS degree)
1909 Licentiate in Dental Surgery; Royal College of Surgeons of England
19?? Marries Gertrude Beyer; Two Children (GEN 9): Children Eugene and Benjamin Jr (See below)
1910 Feb 10 Arrives Pretoria, South Africa with his wife Gertrude to practice dentistry.
1910 SEP 5 Eugene's mother Gertrude gives birth to Eugene in Cape Town, South Africa and becomes very ill. Father Benjamin has to leave them in the Cape Town hospital and continues on to Pretoria where he had made a commitment to start a dental practice. After a few weeks, his mother gains enough strength to travel with Eugene. After boarding the train to the interior, Gertrude discovers that the baby's luggage was missing. His bottles, diapers, clothing, and food was left on the platform in Cape Town. Their fellow passengers provided the necessary supplies until they reached Petoria. The family remains in Pretoria a few years before returning to Grand Rapids, Michigan.
http://books.google.com/booksid=XLJy6OeCCS0C&pg=PA121&lpg=PA121&dq=cape+town+south+africa+masselink&source=bl&ots=Ta1nQYLLi&sig=Sy4LVtuVlxFbYq3CdMGj2YMQ3e8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hL_2Us7uHfPlsASP_YLgAw&ved=0CCkQ6AEw AQ#v=onepage&q=cape%20town%20south%20africa%20masselink&f=false
1910 Writes an article, "The Advent of Painless Dentistry", in a professional medical journal published in 1910 in Cape Town, South Africa. This article is also published in the same year in the Texas Dental Journal.
http://books.google.com/books?id=tfU1AQAAMAAJ&pg=RA8-PA30&lpg=RA8-PA30&dq= cape+town +south+africa+ masselink&source=bl&ots=IrMRHhQdgT&sig=ruCMeN3otJizeAH62BBAAIdrSXo&hl=en&sa=X&ei=FMD2UrH4DomFkQfSl
4FQ&ved=0CE0Q6AEwCw#v=onepage&q=cape%20town%20south%20africa%20masselink&f=false
1911 Oct 26 Registers with the US Consul in Johannesburg South Africa; Lives with wife Gertrude and son Eugene in Pretoria, South Africa; States that father Harmen (1842) resides in Zeeland, MI.
1912 Dec 31 Registers with the US Consul in Johannesburg, South Africa. Lives with wife Gertrude and son Eugene in Pretoria, South Africa; States that father Harmen (1842) resides in Zeeland, MI.
1914 Professor of dentistry in the University of Transvaal, Pretoria, South Africa.
1914 Benjamin, Gertrude and Eugene all return to Grand Rapids from South Africa via South Hampton, England; Arrive in New York on the ship Oceanic on 1914 Jun 3; Eugene is 3 1/2; Wrote "Life and Travels in South Africa" and often lectured about South Africa after his return to the United States.
1914 Poisoning the Pecks of Grand Rapids: The Scandalous 1916 Murder Plot; Dr. Masselink is quoted in this book as having worked with Dr. Arthur Warren Wate in Durban, South Africa before Dr. Wate returned to Grand Rapids in 1914. Dr. Waite planned to murder five members of the Peck (Drug Store) family in a devious get-rich-quick scheme.
1919 NOV 13 Son Benjamin Jr born Grand Rapids, MI
1926 Candidate for Michigan State Senate, 6th District; Lost election.
1929 Lives with wife Gertrude at 129 Lafayette Ave NE in Grand Rapids; Dental practice is located at 8 1/2 Monroe Ave, Grand Rapids; Eugene is a student.
1930 Lives in Grand Rapids with wife Gertrude, sons Eugene and Ben Jr and servant Jennie Kostering; Occupation: Dentist.
1941 Dental office is at One Monument Square, Grand Rapids, MI; Son Ben Jr is a student living at home at 129 Lafayette prior to his enlistment in the Marine Corps.
1942/1944 Republican primary candidate for U.S. Representative from the 5th District in 1942 and 1944; Lost all known elections in which he ran; Author Thomas Masselink has a matchbook cover from Benjamin's 1944 campaign.
1948 Ben and wife live in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.
1973 Oct 14 Dies in Broward County, FL
EUGENE (GENE) BEYER MASSELINK (GEN 9)
First Child of Dr. Benjamin H. Masselink
"If you needed to get down to brass tacks with Frank Lloyd Wright, you went through Eugene Masselink. Even if you were Frank Lloyd Wright".
In 1933, an eager young man joined the Taliesin Fellowship and quickly made himself invaluable to its founder, Frank Lloyd Wright. Eugene Masselink, known as Gene to generations of Wright clients and people affiliated with Taliesin, became secretary to Wright, easing the path of a man who was notably casual about life's practicalities. He has been described as "one of the three pillars of Taliesin", with William Wesley Peters and John H. Howe being the others. Eugene Masselink was born September 5, 1910 in Capetown, South Africa, soon moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he grew up. He showed talent early; his abstract paintings were shown in local art museum exhibits when he was still a teenager. His college years were spent at Ohio State, where he received his degree in 1933, the year he met Frank Lloyd Wright at a lecture Wright gave at the university. Wright's invitation to join the Taliesin Fellowship came immediately after his graduation, and Gene accepted; he would remain at Taliesin for the rest of his life.
For three decades, Gene Masselink was the person who selflessly devoted himself to imposing order on Wright's affairs. Masselink was the one who attended to Wright's correspondence, writing the letters (with hunt and peck typing) that accepted students, soothed clients, and answered press questions. He was entrusted with the most private and sensitive of Wright's letter-writing, including Wright's famous exchanges with Lewis Mumford. Not all his duties were on this plane; Masselink was also the man who fetched visitors from bus stations and airports. He was organizer of many of Wright's parties and events at both Taliesin's, and originated the custom of referring to the ever-changing plethora of Taliesin apprentices as "the boys".
But there was another side to Gene Masselink's contributions at Taliesin, as well - that of designer. Masselink had an extraordinary talent for creating decorative elements, and many Wright structures have Masselink's work in them. The Price House in Bartlesville, OK has Masselink-designed mural screens and the Price Tower has murals in red, copper, turquoise and gold that are his work. Many of the graphics on Taliesin literature were his designs, as well. In 1956, Gene was asked to handle important elements of a commission from one of the best-known arbiters of modernism in America, Elizabeth Gordon. Editor of House Beautiful, Gordon wanted a Wright-designed remodeling of the master bedroom in her Dobbs Ferry, NY estate. Masselink contributed most of the decorative elements to the project, including a mural screen with a stylized leaf motif, and an Edward Fields rug which continued the motif onto the floor.
Masselink continued designing for Wright until the end, and beyond. At the time of Frank Lloyd Wright's death in 1959, Wright had been working on several projects, including the Annunciation Greek Church in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin; Masselink once again filled in details for a Wright design. The icons in the church are Masselink's, and such was his thoroughness that he studied iconography extensively before beginning to draw. Masselink's final direct act of service to Wright was at Wright's funeral; Masselink was one of several associates who helped load Wright's coffin onto the simple horse-drawn wagon that was used to take it to the chapel where the service was held. Masselink and William Wesley Peters were the drivers. Sadly, Eugene Masselink outlived Frank Lloyd Wright by only a few brief years. In the middle of an ordinary work day at Taliesin, on July 15, 1962, he suffered a heart attack, dying in a local hospital later that day, not having quite reached his fifty-second birthday.
Today, his work for Wright is gaining recognition of its own, separate from its use in Wright projects. Masselink's talent for subordinating his contributions to the overall concept of a Wright project is becoming recognized as the finely honed skill it actually was. Whether Wright was basing a work on squares, or circles, or leaf shapes, Eugene Masselink was able to come up with exactly the right decorative theme for it, perfectly aligned with Wright's ideas. Masselink pieces are now very much in demand; his mural screens and rug for Elizabeth Gordon's bedroom auctioned for $26,000. Not bad for a gentle talent who rarely shone in his own light during his lifetime.
1910 SEP 5 Born Cape Town, South Africa; No known spouse or children.
1914 Travels with parents to Grand Rapids, MI; Later attends Central High School and in the summer studies painting in Saugatuck.
1933 Graduates from Ohio State University and eagerly joins Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesan Fellowship in Spruce Green, WI as a graphic designer and assistant to Wright; Known as Gene to his colleagues and Wright clients, he quickly makes himself invaluable to its founder, Frank Lloyd Wright; Becomes one of Wright's most trusted protégés and one of the significant talents in the Wright office, producing decorative designs for interiors of many Wright commissions; As secretary to Wright, he eases the path of a man who was notably casual about life's practicalities; In the winter when the school moved to Arizona, taught a special art course at the University of Arizona at Tempe; His early work in painting developed into an architectural expression from his study of nature forms and the straight line abstract designs of Wright.
1938 AUG 17 One of the four original Taliesan fellows who works and studies at Wright's estate in Spruce Green, WI.
1956 Asked to handle important elements of a commission from one of the best-known arbiters of modernism in America, Elizabeth Gordon. Editor of House Beautiful, Gordon wanted a Wright-designed remodeling of the master bedroom in her Dobbs Ferry, NY estate. Gene contributed most of the decorative elements to the project, including a mural screen with a stylized leaf motif and an Edward Fields rug which continued the motif onto the floor.
1957 Visits Grand Rapids and is a guest lecturer in the Friends of Art lecture series.
1959 Stays at Taliesan after Wright's death in 1959; Secretary-Treasurer of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation established to instruct architectural discipline of Wright.
1962 As an artist and sculptor, was working on icons (images) for the Greek Orthodox Church in Milwaukee, and had completed 12 of 24 of the icons at the time of his death.
1962 Jul 15 Has a heart attack at Taliesin West when he is 52 and dies the next day on July 15; Buried at Taliesin, Unity Chapel Cemetery, Wyoming, Iowa City, WI; His father Ben Sr (Age 80, FT Lauderdale, FL) and brother Ben Jr (Santa Monica, CA) survive him.
1977 SEP 12 A 19XX? letter by Gene Masselink read by Effi Casey on you tube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Qe5hzoIRY8
Pictures of Eugene and an example of his artwork are below. Some of his designs can be purchased at:
http://www.taliesinpreservation.org/catalogsearch/result/index/?mode=list&q=masselink
http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2008/11/grand_rapids_art_museum_new_sh.html
Information about the mural at the lower right can be found at:
http://www.prairiemod.com/prairiemod/2014/03/masselink-meet-up.html
In 1933, an eager young man joined the Taliesin Fellowship and quickly made himself invaluable to its founder, Frank Lloyd Wright. Eugene Masselink, known as Gene to generations of Wright clients and people affiliated with Taliesin, became secretary to Wright, easing the path of a man who was notably casual about life's practicalities. He has been described as "one of the three pillars of Taliesin", with William Wesley Peters and John H. Howe being the others. Eugene Masselink was born September 5, 1910 in Capetown, South Africa, soon moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he grew up. He showed talent early; his abstract paintings were shown in local art museum exhibits when he was still a teenager. His college years were spent at Ohio State, where he received his degree in 1933, the year he met Frank Lloyd Wright at a lecture Wright gave at the university. Wright's invitation to join the Taliesin Fellowship came immediately after his graduation, and Gene accepted; he would remain at Taliesin for the rest of his life.
For three decades, Gene Masselink was the person who selflessly devoted himself to imposing order on Wright's affairs. Masselink was the one who attended to Wright's correspondence, writing the letters (with hunt and peck typing) that accepted students, soothed clients, and answered press questions. He was entrusted with the most private and sensitive of Wright's letter-writing, including Wright's famous exchanges with Lewis Mumford. Not all his duties were on this plane; Masselink was also the man who fetched visitors from bus stations and airports. He was organizer of many of Wright's parties and events at both Taliesin's, and originated the custom of referring to the ever-changing plethora of Taliesin apprentices as "the boys".
But there was another side to Gene Masselink's contributions at Taliesin, as well - that of designer. Masselink had an extraordinary talent for creating decorative elements, and many Wright structures have Masselink's work in them. The Price House in Bartlesville, OK has Masselink-designed mural screens and the Price Tower has murals in red, copper, turquoise and gold that are his work. Many of the graphics on Taliesin literature were his designs, as well. In 1956, Gene was asked to handle important elements of a commission from one of the best-known arbiters of modernism in America, Elizabeth Gordon. Editor of House Beautiful, Gordon wanted a Wright-designed remodeling of the master bedroom in her Dobbs Ferry, NY estate. Masselink contributed most of the decorative elements to the project, including a mural screen with a stylized leaf motif, and an Edward Fields rug which continued the motif onto the floor.
Masselink continued designing for Wright until the end, and beyond. At the time of Frank Lloyd Wright's death in 1959, Wright had been working on several projects, including the Annunciation Greek Church in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin; Masselink once again filled in details for a Wright design. The icons in the church are Masselink's, and such was his thoroughness that he studied iconography extensively before beginning to draw. Masselink's final direct act of service to Wright was at Wright's funeral; Masselink was one of several associates who helped load Wright's coffin onto the simple horse-drawn wagon that was used to take it to the chapel where the service was held. Masselink and William Wesley Peters were the drivers. Sadly, Eugene Masselink outlived Frank Lloyd Wright by only a few brief years. In the middle of an ordinary work day at Taliesin, on July 15, 1962, he suffered a heart attack, dying in a local hospital later that day, not having quite reached his fifty-second birthday.
Today, his work for Wright is gaining recognition of its own, separate from its use in Wright projects. Masselink's talent for subordinating his contributions to the overall concept of a Wright project is becoming recognized as the finely honed skill it actually was. Whether Wright was basing a work on squares, or circles, or leaf shapes, Eugene Masselink was able to come up with exactly the right decorative theme for it, perfectly aligned with Wright's ideas. Masselink pieces are now very much in demand; his mural screens and rug for Elizabeth Gordon's bedroom auctioned for $26,000. Not bad for a gentle talent who rarely shone in his own light during his lifetime.
1910 SEP 5 Born Cape Town, South Africa; No known spouse or children.
1914 Travels with parents to Grand Rapids, MI; Later attends Central High School and in the summer studies painting in Saugatuck.
1933 Graduates from Ohio State University and eagerly joins Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesan Fellowship in Spruce Green, WI as a graphic designer and assistant to Wright; Known as Gene to his colleagues and Wright clients, he quickly makes himself invaluable to its founder, Frank Lloyd Wright; Becomes one of Wright's most trusted protégés and one of the significant talents in the Wright office, producing decorative designs for interiors of many Wright commissions; As secretary to Wright, he eases the path of a man who was notably casual about life's practicalities; In the winter when the school moved to Arizona, taught a special art course at the University of Arizona at Tempe; His early work in painting developed into an architectural expression from his study of nature forms and the straight line abstract designs of Wright.
1938 AUG 17 One of the four original Taliesan fellows who works and studies at Wright's estate in Spruce Green, WI.
1956 Asked to handle important elements of a commission from one of the best-known arbiters of modernism in America, Elizabeth Gordon. Editor of House Beautiful, Gordon wanted a Wright-designed remodeling of the master bedroom in her Dobbs Ferry, NY estate. Gene contributed most of the decorative elements to the project, including a mural screen with a stylized leaf motif and an Edward Fields rug which continued the motif onto the floor.
1957 Visits Grand Rapids and is a guest lecturer in the Friends of Art lecture series.
1959 Stays at Taliesan after Wright's death in 1959; Secretary-Treasurer of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation established to instruct architectural discipline of Wright.
1962 As an artist and sculptor, was working on icons (images) for the Greek Orthodox Church in Milwaukee, and had completed 12 of 24 of the icons at the time of his death.
1962 Jul 15 Has a heart attack at Taliesin West when he is 52 and dies the next day on July 15; Buried at Taliesin, Unity Chapel Cemetery, Wyoming, Iowa City, WI; His father Ben Sr (Age 80, FT Lauderdale, FL) and brother Ben Jr (Santa Monica, CA) survive him.
1977 SEP 12 A 19XX? letter by Gene Masselink read by Effi Casey on you tube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Qe5hzoIRY8
Pictures of Eugene and an example of his artwork are below. Some of his designs can be purchased at:
http://www.taliesinpreservation.org/catalogsearch/result/index/?mode=list&q=masselink
http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2008/11/grand_rapids_art_museum_new_sh.html
Information about the mural at the lower right can be found at:
http://www.prairiemod.com/prairiemod/2014/03/masselink-meet-up.html
BENJAMIN (BEN) HENRY MASSELINK, Jr. (GEN 9)
Second Child of Dr. Benjamin H. Masselink
"I have always been writing something-mash notes, telegrams for money, etc." That is the short story of his life. Benjamin "Ben" Masselink wrote novels, scripts for classic television series and most recently a column called "Tales of an Ancient Beachcomber," His recent column was for the Daily Breeze of Torrance, but Masselink's musings also appeared in The Times, TV Guide, Playboy, the Saturday Evening Post, Ladies' Home Journal, Collier's, Cosmopolitan and Modern Maturity. He also taught creative writing for 20 years at USC and lived in Santa Monica, CA.
Ben became a tile setter's helper after the war while working diligently at the first of his many vintage typewriters every night until he could support himself with his stories. He first sold "slick fiction" to Collier's and other magazines, and then wrote a series of books including "Partly Submerged," "The Crackerjack Marines," "The Danger Islands," "The Deadliest Weapon" and "Green." From the 1960s, Masselink began concentrating on television scripts, churning out material for such shows as "Dr. Kildare," "Marcus Welby, M.D.," "Barnaby Jones," "Hawaii Five-O" and "Starsky and Hutch." He also wrote the 1979 television movie, "Portrait of a Stripper." He also worked on projects for producers Roy Disney, Robert Greenwalt, and Aaron Spelling. Ben always seemed a contented man when surrounded by his Underwood, Royal, and various other vintage manual typewriters in his cluttered office. He never once considered converting to a computer and giving up his loyalty to the manual typewriters he had written on since WWII. Reams of finished work were stacked in boxes along the walls that reached halfway to the ceiling. He claimed that all the boxes were organized with his unique personal system and that he could find any document that he had ever written.
A longtime resident of Pacific Palisades, Ben loved the sea, people and traveling - He wrote frequently about all three. Ben was tall and thin, and easily recognizable as he strolled through the village wearing his walking shorts, flip-flops, and his signature red ascot tied haphazardly around his neck. He always had a string that was visible above the collar line of his pull-over shirt. A short pencil was attached to the string under his shirt for note-taking in case someone said something that triggered an idea he liked. In his back pocket he carried a folded, often slightly damp (from his morning swim) index card. He had a warm and charismatic personality, and his humor and genuine kind-heartedness attracted people of all ages. The 6' 3" former Marine was an avid swimmer, body surfer, and fisherman whose decades of outdoor beach life inspired his writing.
1919 Nov 13 Born Grand Rapids, MI; Primary schooling is in Grand Rapids including Central High School; Three years at DePauw University, IN and a year with the Frank Lloyd Wright Fellowship (Brother Eugene Masselink is Wright's secretary and right-hand man); No known children.
1941 Student living with his parents at 129 Lafayette in Grand Rapids; Enlists in the Marine Corps; First post is in Washington, D.C. Marine Public Relations and then two plus years as a Combat Correspondent in the South Pacific; Participates in the Marshall Island and Okinawa campaigns and became a sergeant; Learns to love the islands when the bullets stop; Founding editor of the Corps' "Pendleton Scout"; Somewhere in the South Pacific he decided writing was what he wanted to do.
1945? Reconnects with the noted fashion designer and artist Jo Lathwood, whom he had met before he went overseas and began a long relationship that lasted more than two decades. They lived together in her apartment in Santa Monica Canyon; Ben works as a helper for a "kind old tile setter by day and writes free lance stories by night. Years later, at one particular party, Ben was rather surprised to find himself engaged in conversation with actor Clark Gable who asked what he did for a living. Ben told him he was a tile-setter and proceeded to show Gable his work in the bathroom of the studio. Gable seemed fascinated with the skill and wanted Ben to teach him tile work. Ben never mentioned to Gable that he was also a writer.
1953 The former Marine combat correspondent gives up employment as a tile-setter's helper to write full time. He finds it a happy profession: "Jo, my wife, and I love islands and for three months out of the year we spend time on one island or another. So far, the Bahamas and other West Indian islands, Hawaii, Tahiti, the Samoa and Fiji. We spear our fish and grab our own lobsters and cook them on a charcoal fire".
1954 Mar 5 Short Story: "Best Bait in Florida" in Colliers Magazine.
Mid 1950's Ben was swimming in the ocean at State Beach in Santa Monica when he literally swam into a young woman named Dee who would eventually become his wife. Dee Humphrey was a beautiful and petite ballet dancer who was then married and had an infant daughter. Their meeting blossomed into a friendship spanning many years, and when Ben received word that Dee had separated from her husband, he wrote her a long letter declaring his undying love for her. They eventually moved to Venice, CA and married and Ben became a second father to Dee’s young daughter Heather.
1957 Novel: "Partly Submerged, Stories of the Sea and the Beach"; Ben was a storyteller whose very source and inspiration for writing was the sea itself.
1959 Novel: "The Crackerjack Marines"; On looking back on the book, Ben's only comment is "I still get all choked up when I see a Marine"; book is dedicated to his wife, Jo.
1964 Apr 17 Ben's two-part Dr. Kildare script wins a TV Guide Award in which TV Guide readers voted on the nominees and winners. The awards were handed out on the second half of a Bob Hope comedy special. The special was televised on a Friday night at 8:30 pm eastern time and just about every nominee showed up. It was a prestige event. "Tyger, Tyger”, a two part episode of “Dr. Kildare written by Ben Masselink”, won for best special. Richard Chamberlain, Raymond Massey and guest star Yvette Mimieux walked to the stage to accept the award. Apparently Yvette tripped going up the stairs, but Chamberlain caught her. Hope said the doctor had quick hands.
http://www.richardchamberlain.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=728&Itemid=37
Part of the Dr. Kildare episode is on you tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbFgdBhoRtM
1964 Novel: "The Danger Islands"; This tale of piracy and pearl diving in the South Seas called upon Ben's own superb skills in swimming, surfing, and scuba diving to show how these skills can enabler their user to survive under most dangerous conditions.
1965 Novel: "The Deadliest Weapon"; Autobiographical account of his experiences as a Marine in WWII; Book is dedicated to his father; Title of the book comes from a quote by General Pershing: "The deadliest weapon in the world is a United States Marine and his rifle."
1969 When he was 50, Ben realized with glee that he no longer had to write the "great American novel," climb Mt. Everest, learn to water ski or drive in the Indy 500. "He didn't", he wrote, "have to do much of anything anymore."
1969 Novel: "Green, The story of a Caribbean turtle's struggle for survival"; His travels to Mexico and the Florida Keys leads to an intense interest in the conservation of the green turtle of the Caribbean.
1970 Jul Parody: "Everything About TV" on page 117 of Playboy Magazine,
1979 At 60, he found out he was a senior citizen who could park for free at the beach. He went every day. Of course, he went to the beach every day most of his life. And decades past 50, he never learned to do nothing. He kept right on enjoying life--and writing about it to the delight of his readers, until the end.
1981 He wrote frequently--usually with tongue planted firmly in cheek--as illustrated by his 1981 account for The Times of an accidental encounter with a couple of nude young women on his beach
1983 Paperback Novel, "Are We Alone?"
1989 Nov 13 Ben always loved people, the sea, and travel. However, on the day he turned 70, he declared in his newspaper column that there were no longer any excuses necessary in turning down an invitation to a social gathering. He wrote that a simple: “I don’t want to go” should now suffice. Ben decided he had officially become a ‘curmudgeon.’ He considered this new option one of the few advantages of getting old.
2000 Jan 12 dies on a Wednesday in Los Angeles of prostate cancer at the age of 80; Survived by his wife of more than 30 years, Dionyse "Dee" Humphrey; His ashes were scattered in the emerald-green Pacific waters less than a half-mile from his home at a modest memorial service at Will Rogers State Beach in Pacific Palisades, CA.
Some, but not all, of Ben Masselink's TV and Movie Script Credits:
Dr. Kildare (1961–1966); Episodes: Tyger, Tyger: Part 1 and Tyger, Tyger: Part 2 (1964); Yvette Mimieux as Pat Holmes cannot let her petit mal seizures keep her from surfing and she returns to the ocean. Dr. Kildare follows her to stop her, but he is too late. She suffers a seizure while surfing and drowns; Writer: Benjamin Masselink; Stars: Richard Chamberlain, Raymond Massey; this two-part Dr. Kildare script wins a TV Guide Award as the best show of the year 1964; to this day, Thomas's wife Sue Masselink still remembers these episodes that she saw as a ten year old in 1964.
http://www.richardchamberlain.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=728&Itemid=37
Portrait of a Stripper (1979 TV Movie)
Valley of the Dinosaurs (1974– )
The Virginian (1962–1971); Episode: A Love to Remember (1969)
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (1954–1992); Episode: Call It Courage (1973) was filmed for television with a teleplay by Benjamin Masselink and a narration by Don Ho, and appeared on Disney for the first time on 1 April 1973.
The Name of the Game (1968–1971); Episode: Cynthia Is Alive and Living in Avalon (1970); Ben hits one rocky shoal when, along with producers, he was sued by the Friends of the Earth for defamation over a segment he wrote for the series "The Name of the Game." But in 1976, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury decided the segment about environmentalists, titled "Cynthia Hampton Is Alive and Living in Avalon," was not slanderous.
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Dark Homecoming (1974)
S.W.A.T. (1975–1976); Episode: Deadly Tide: Part 1 (1975)
S.W.A.T. (1975–1976); Episode: Deadly Tide: Part 2 (1975)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Death Leap (1973)
Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980); Episode: For Old Times Sake (1980)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Gillian (1976)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Little Girl Lost (1976)
Matt Lincoln (1970–1971); Episode: Lori (1970)
The Bold Ones: The Protectors (1969–1970); Episode: Memo from the Class of '76 (1970)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Murder in the Doll's House (1973)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Murder on Stage 17 (1977)
The Incredible Hulk (1978–1982); Episode: No Escape (1979); Thomas Masselink (GEN 11) has an original copy of the draft script; Universal Studios required over five typewriter re-writes of this script.
Adventures in Paradise (1959–1962); Episode: Open for Diving (1960)
The Immortal (1969–1971); Episode: Paradise Bay (1970)
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963–1967); Episode: Runaway Boy (1966)
Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969–1976); Episode: Sea of Security (1970)
Then Came Bronson (1969–1970); Episode: Still Waters (1970)
Then Came Bronson (1969–1970); Episode: That Undiscovered Country... (1970)
The F.B.I. (1965–1974); Episode: The Deadly Gift (1971)
The F.B.I. (1965–1974); Episode: The Franklin Papers (1972)
Nichols (1971–1972); Episode: The Marrying Fool (1971)
Nichols (1971–1972); Episode: The Unholy Alliance (1972)
The Outsider (1968–1969); Episode: Through a Stained Glass Window (1969)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980);Episode: To Catch a Dead Man (1973)
The Six Million Dollar Man (1974–1978); Episode: Vulture of the Andes (1976)
Pictures of Ben Masselink
Ben became a tile setter's helper after the war while working diligently at the first of his many vintage typewriters every night until he could support himself with his stories. He first sold "slick fiction" to Collier's and other magazines, and then wrote a series of books including "Partly Submerged," "The Crackerjack Marines," "The Danger Islands," "The Deadliest Weapon" and "Green." From the 1960s, Masselink began concentrating on television scripts, churning out material for such shows as "Dr. Kildare," "Marcus Welby, M.D.," "Barnaby Jones," "Hawaii Five-O" and "Starsky and Hutch." He also wrote the 1979 television movie, "Portrait of a Stripper." He also worked on projects for producers Roy Disney, Robert Greenwalt, and Aaron Spelling. Ben always seemed a contented man when surrounded by his Underwood, Royal, and various other vintage manual typewriters in his cluttered office. He never once considered converting to a computer and giving up his loyalty to the manual typewriters he had written on since WWII. Reams of finished work were stacked in boxes along the walls that reached halfway to the ceiling. He claimed that all the boxes were organized with his unique personal system and that he could find any document that he had ever written.
A longtime resident of Pacific Palisades, Ben loved the sea, people and traveling - He wrote frequently about all three. Ben was tall and thin, and easily recognizable as he strolled through the village wearing his walking shorts, flip-flops, and his signature red ascot tied haphazardly around his neck. He always had a string that was visible above the collar line of his pull-over shirt. A short pencil was attached to the string under his shirt for note-taking in case someone said something that triggered an idea he liked. In his back pocket he carried a folded, often slightly damp (from his morning swim) index card. He had a warm and charismatic personality, and his humor and genuine kind-heartedness attracted people of all ages. The 6' 3" former Marine was an avid swimmer, body surfer, and fisherman whose decades of outdoor beach life inspired his writing.
1919 Nov 13 Born Grand Rapids, MI; Primary schooling is in Grand Rapids including Central High School; Three years at DePauw University, IN and a year with the Frank Lloyd Wright Fellowship (Brother Eugene Masselink is Wright's secretary and right-hand man); No known children.
1941 Student living with his parents at 129 Lafayette in Grand Rapids; Enlists in the Marine Corps; First post is in Washington, D.C. Marine Public Relations and then two plus years as a Combat Correspondent in the South Pacific; Participates in the Marshall Island and Okinawa campaigns and became a sergeant; Learns to love the islands when the bullets stop; Founding editor of the Corps' "Pendleton Scout"; Somewhere in the South Pacific he decided writing was what he wanted to do.
1945? Reconnects with the noted fashion designer and artist Jo Lathwood, whom he had met before he went overseas and began a long relationship that lasted more than two decades. They lived together in her apartment in Santa Monica Canyon; Ben works as a helper for a "kind old tile setter by day and writes free lance stories by night. Years later, at one particular party, Ben was rather surprised to find himself engaged in conversation with actor Clark Gable who asked what he did for a living. Ben told him he was a tile-setter and proceeded to show Gable his work in the bathroom of the studio. Gable seemed fascinated with the skill and wanted Ben to teach him tile work. Ben never mentioned to Gable that he was also a writer.
1953 The former Marine combat correspondent gives up employment as a tile-setter's helper to write full time. He finds it a happy profession: "Jo, my wife, and I love islands and for three months out of the year we spend time on one island or another. So far, the Bahamas and other West Indian islands, Hawaii, Tahiti, the Samoa and Fiji. We spear our fish and grab our own lobsters and cook them on a charcoal fire".
1954 Mar 5 Short Story: "Best Bait in Florida" in Colliers Magazine.
Mid 1950's Ben was swimming in the ocean at State Beach in Santa Monica when he literally swam into a young woman named Dee who would eventually become his wife. Dee Humphrey was a beautiful and petite ballet dancer who was then married and had an infant daughter. Their meeting blossomed into a friendship spanning many years, and when Ben received word that Dee had separated from her husband, he wrote her a long letter declaring his undying love for her. They eventually moved to Venice, CA and married and Ben became a second father to Dee’s young daughter Heather.
1957 Novel: "Partly Submerged, Stories of the Sea and the Beach"; Ben was a storyteller whose very source and inspiration for writing was the sea itself.
1959 Novel: "The Crackerjack Marines"; On looking back on the book, Ben's only comment is "I still get all choked up when I see a Marine"; book is dedicated to his wife, Jo.
1964 Apr 17 Ben's two-part Dr. Kildare script wins a TV Guide Award in which TV Guide readers voted on the nominees and winners. The awards were handed out on the second half of a Bob Hope comedy special. The special was televised on a Friday night at 8:30 pm eastern time and just about every nominee showed up. It was a prestige event. "Tyger, Tyger”, a two part episode of “Dr. Kildare written by Ben Masselink”, won for best special. Richard Chamberlain, Raymond Massey and guest star Yvette Mimieux walked to the stage to accept the award. Apparently Yvette tripped going up the stairs, but Chamberlain caught her. Hope said the doctor had quick hands.
http://www.richardchamberlain.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=728&Itemid=37
Part of the Dr. Kildare episode is on you tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbFgdBhoRtM
1964 Novel: "The Danger Islands"; This tale of piracy and pearl diving in the South Seas called upon Ben's own superb skills in swimming, surfing, and scuba diving to show how these skills can enabler their user to survive under most dangerous conditions.
1965 Novel: "The Deadliest Weapon"; Autobiographical account of his experiences as a Marine in WWII; Book is dedicated to his father; Title of the book comes from a quote by General Pershing: "The deadliest weapon in the world is a United States Marine and his rifle."
1969 When he was 50, Ben realized with glee that he no longer had to write the "great American novel," climb Mt. Everest, learn to water ski or drive in the Indy 500. "He didn't", he wrote, "have to do much of anything anymore."
1969 Novel: "Green, The story of a Caribbean turtle's struggle for survival"; His travels to Mexico and the Florida Keys leads to an intense interest in the conservation of the green turtle of the Caribbean.
1970 Jul Parody: "Everything About TV" on page 117 of Playboy Magazine,
1979 At 60, he found out he was a senior citizen who could park for free at the beach. He went every day. Of course, he went to the beach every day most of his life. And decades past 50, he never learned to do nothing. He kept right on enjoying life--and writing about it to the delight of his readers, until the end.
1981 He wrote frequently--usually with tongue planted firmly in cheek--as illustrated by his 1981 account for The Times of an accidental encounter with a couple of nude young women on his beach
1983 Paperback Novel, "Are We Alone?"
1989 Nov 13 Ben always loved people, the sea, and travel. However, on the day he turned 70, he declared in his newspaper column that there were no longer any excuses necessary in turning down an invitation to a social gathering. He wrote that a simple: “I don’t want to go” should now suffice. Ben decided he had officially become a ‘curmudgeon.’ He considered this new option one of the few advantages of getting old.
2000 Jan 12 dies on a Wednesday in Los Angeles of prostate cancer at the age of 80; Survived by his wife of more than 30 years, Dionyse "Dee" Humphrey; His ashes were scattered in the emerald-green Pacific waters less than a half-mile from his home at a modest memorial service at Will Rogers State Beach in Pacific Palisades, CA.
Some, but not all, of Ben Masselink's TV and Movie Script Credits:
Dr. Kildare (1961–1966); Episodes: Tyger, Tyger: Part 1 and Tyger, Tyger: Part 2 (1964); Yvette Mimieux as Pat Holmes cannot let her petit mal seizures keep her from surfing and she returns to the ocean. Dr. Kildare follows her to stop her, but he is too late. She suffers a seizure while surfing and drowns; Writer: Benjamin Masselink; Stars: Richard Chamberlain, Raymond Massey; this two-part Dr. Kildare script wins a TV Guide Award as the best show of the year 1964; to this day, Thomas's wife Sue Masselink still remembers these episodes that she saw as a ten year old in 1964.
http://www.richardchamberlain.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=728&Itemid=37
Portrait of a Stripper (1979 TV Movie)
Valley of the Dinosaurs (1974– )
The Virginian (1962–1971); Episode: A Love to Remember (1969)
Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color (1954–1992); Episode: Call It Courage (1973) was filmed for television with a teleplay by Benjamin Masselink and a narration by Don Ho, and appeared on Disney for the first time on 1 April 1973.
The Name of the Game (1968–1971); Episode: Cynthia Is Alive and Living in Avalon (1970); Ben hits one rocky shoal when, along with producers, he was sued by the Friends of the Earth for defamation over a segment he wrote for the series "The Name of the Game." But in 1976, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury decided the segment about environmentalists, titled "Cynthia Hampton Is Alive and Living in Avalon," was not slanderous.
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Dark Homecoming (1974)
S.W.A.T. (1975–1976); Episode: Deadly Tide: Part 1 (1975)
S.W.A.T. (1975–1976); Episode: Deadly Tide: Part 2 (1975)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Death Leap (1973)
Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980); Episode: For Old Times Sake (1980)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Gillian (1976)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Little Girl Lost (1976)
Matt Lincoln (1970–1971); Episode: Lori (1970)
The Bold Ones: The Protectors (1969–1970); Episode: Memo from the Class of '76 (1970)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980); Episode: Murder in the Doll's House (1973)
Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Episode: Murder on Stage 17 (1977)
The Incredible Hulk (1978–1982); Episode: No Escape (1979); Thomas Masselink (GEN 11) has an original copy of the draft script; Universal Studios required over five typewriter re-writes of this script.
Adventures in Paradise (1959–1962); Episode: Open for Diving (1960)
The Immortal (1969–1971); Episode: Paradise Bay (1970)
Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1963–1967); Episode: Runaway Boy (1966)
Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969–1976); Episode: Sea of Security (1970)
Then Came Bronson (1969–1970); Episode: Still Waters (1970)
Then Came Bronson (1969–1970); Episode: That Undiscovered Country... (1970)
The F.B.I. (1965–1974); Episode: The Deadly Gift (1971)
The F.B.I. (1965–1974); Episode: The Franklin Papers (1972)
Nichols (1971–1972); Episode: The Marrying Fool (1971)
Nichols (1971–1972); Episode: The Unholy Alliance (1972)
The Outsider (1968–1969); Episode: Through a Stained Glass Window (1969)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980);Episode: To Catch a Dead Man (1973)
The Six Million Dollar Man (1974–1978); Episode: Vulture of the Andes (1976)
Pictures of Ben Masselink