Recently, I did Cape Coral down on the west coast of Florida.
At the show's end this young guy, who looked vaguely familiar, stopped at my booth. He looked at it real carefully. Eye-balled my 10-foot wide aluminum trusses.
He smiled. He said, "Wow! An original Newton's Port-Booth."
His father was Jim Newton who made these revolutionary canopies way back in 1985. This was in Ft. Myers.
Clyde Butcher, long off the circuit and well-known as the "Ansel Adams" of swamp photography in Florida, had first commissioned Jim to make him a custom canopy.
It was a free-standing unit. Eight metal panels linked together (mesh with white covers over them) all held together with four trusses that fit on top of the panels. Good zippered sides. A zipper on front and rear for additional canopy cover. Sturdy, able to withstand winds up to 40 mph.
I bought the third one in 1986. Best investment in art I ever made. Still got it.
Here is the story of how I came to get it.
It involves old KD canopies, a wee little woman and a vicious wind storm at an art show in Miami Beach.
Read on. It is a funny story.
EARLY CANOPIES
In the good old days (like the 1970's) everybody had their own homemade canopies. There were no commercial versions yet.
I came back, fresh from Hawaii in 1979, and started doing outdoor shows.
I had pegboard panels nailed together with 1x3s. Even had an orange tarp for the roof. Gave all my photos that sepia-toned look. Even the color ones.
I remember coming back from the Gainesville show in the spring of 1985. I was cruising home in my Datsun station wagon. My racks were fastened on my roof. Or so I thought.
I happened to look in my rear view mirror and noticed cars behind me were juking all over the interstate--trying to avoid my panels that had flown off the roof.
Naturally, they were smashed to smithereens. The panels, thank God! not the cars.
Well, being a smart guy I built some more of them--even used 1x4s this time--and stronger bungee cords.
This was the time of the KD canopy.
They were revolutionary for us. Instant shelters. Went up in a minute. Didn't cost a lot
and we looked like professionals.
Off course there was a major down side to them as we all quickly found out.
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