HISTORY?
HISTORY? MAYBE IT'S OF A PRESIDENT OR OTHER ICONIC
FIGURE?
WELL FOR OUR VERY
OWN KRIS RADCLIFFE,
THAT QUESTION WAS
EASY TO ANSWER.
BUT WHAT DOES IT
HAVE TO DO WITH
CENTRAL TEXAS?
HERE'S KRIS AND "THE
KISS."
KISS."
KISS." RADCLIFFE:
RADCLIFFE: "WELCOME TO MY HOME OFFICE.
THIS
PHOTOGRAPH
THIS PHOTOGRAPH MEANS SO MUCH
TO ME BECAUSE
OF HOW
AMERICANA IT IS
AND MY WIFE
KNOWS THAT AND
GAVE THIS TO ME
AS AN
ANNIVERSARY
PRESENT.
ANNIVERSARY PRESENT. SO YOU COULD
IMAGINE MY
EXCITMENT WHEN
I FOUND OUT THAT
THAT THERE WAS
SOMEONE IN
CENTRAL TEXAS
THAT HAD A TIE TO
THIS FAMOUS
THIS FAMOUS
PHOTOGRAPH! RADCLIFFE: MEET SHIRLEY SUITS,
THE WIDOW OF
FRANK SUITS, THE
SAILOR WITH THE
HUGE SMILE JUST
TO THE LEFT OF
THE KISS IN
ALFRED
EISENSTAEDT'S
ALFRED EISENSTAEDT'S ICONIC PHOTO.
FRANK WAS IN
TIME'S SQUARE
THAT DAY, SHOWN
PROMINANTLY IN 2
PHOTOS, HIS
LEGS ARE
CROSSED IN ONE
AS HE WAS
DANCING A JIG AT
THAT MOMENT, IN
THE OTHER A
HUGE SMILE! BUT
THE MOMENT AND
THE MAGIC
CAPTURED BY THE
LIFE MAGAZINE
PHOTOGRAPHER
WAS THE
FURTHEST THING
FROM HIS MIND
ON V-J DAY!
SHIRLEY SUITS:
"ABOUT NOT
HAVING TO GO TO
JAPAN."
RADCLIFFE: AND
HERE'S THE
AMAZING PART,
SUITS DIDN'T
KNOW HE WAS IN
THAT PHOTO
UNTIL LIFE
MAGAZINE
PUBLISHED ALL 4
OF THE PHOTOS
IN 1980 IN THE
35TH
ANNIVERSARY
35TH ANNIVERSARY PUBLICATION AND
A FRIEND SAW IT.
MRS.
SUITS "TALKING
ABOUT HOW HE
FOUND OUT."
RADCLIFFE:
ALFRED
RADCLIFFE: ALFRED EISENSTAEDT
ALFRED EISENSTAEDT DIED IN 1995 BUT
DESCRIBED WHY 1
OF THE FOUR
PHOTOS HE
SNAPPED OF THAT
SCENE OVER A 3
SECOND PERIOD
WAS SO PERFECT.
FULL PAGE:
HE SAID QUOTE,
"ONLY ONE IS
RIGHT, ON
ACCOUNT OF THE
BALANCE.
IN THE OTHERS
THE EMPHASIS IS
WRONG.
THE SAILOR ON
THE LEFT SIDE IS
EITHER TOO
SMALL OR TOO
TALL.
AND JUST LOOK
AT THAT SMILE ON
FRANK....
SHIRLEY SUITS " "
TODAY SHIRLEY
LIVES IN WACO
NEAR HER
DAUGHTER
TRACEY AND
GRANDCHILDREN.
SHE AND FRANK
WERE MARRIED
FOR 42 YEARS
AND CALLED
FLORIDA AND
CALIFORNIA
HOME.
CALIFORNIA HOME. SHIRLEY SUITS " "
HOLLYWOOD AND
POP CULTURE
HAVE REALLY
HELPED TO KEEP
FRANK'S 15
MINUTES OF FAME
ALIVE, FROM THE
SIMPSONS TO
NIGHT AT THE
MUSEUM BATTLE
OF THE
SMITHSONIAN AND
MANY OTHERS.....
SHIRLEY SUITS " "
RADCLIFFE SO
THIS MEMORIAL
DAY WE
REMEMBER THE
STARS OF THE
KISS, GRETA
ZIMMER
FRIEDMAN, WHO
DIED IN AUGUST
OF 2016, AND
GEORGE
MENDONSA WHO
JUST PASSED THIS
FEBRAURY 2 DAYS
SHY
SHY OF
SHY OF HIS 96TH BIRTHDAY, BUT WE ALSO
REMEMBER
SHIRLEY SUITS
WONDERFUL
SAILOR FRANK,
WHO DIED IN
DECEMBER OF
2009.
"SHIRLEY SUITS
QUOTE"."HE WAS
WONDERFUL I
WISH HE WAS
STILL HERE."......
A MAN WHO
NEVER NEEDED
OR WANTED ANY
FANFARE, BUT
HAD HIS OWN
DATE WITH
DESTINY, AND
WHO WAS CENTER
STAGE ON WHAT
WAS ARGUABBLY
THE MOST
JOYOUS DAY IN
AMERICAN
HISTORY.
AMERICAN HISTORY. REPORTING IN
WACO, KRIS
RADCLIFFE,
CHANNEL 6
NEWS.....
NEWS.....
NEWS..... UNLIKE THE
UNLIKE THE EISENSTAEDT
EISENSTAEDT
PHOTOGRAPH, THIS PHOTO IS ANOTHER
ANGLE
ANGLE AT
ANGLE AT THE SAME TIME-- IT'S A NAVY
PHOTOGRAPH AND IS
IN THE PUBLIC
DOMAIN, SINCE A
GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEE TOOK IT.
WHILE THE ANGLE
OF THE PHOTOGRAPH
MAY BE LESS
INTERESTING,
FRANK'S HAND AND
LEGS CAN BE SEEN
RIGHT BEHIND THE
KISS...
AND THIS ANGLE
SHOWS THE
CHEMICAL BANK AND
TRUST BUILDING,
WITH THE
WALGREENS
PHARMACY SIGNAGE
VISIBLE IN THE
BACKGROUND THERE
IN TIMES SQUARE.
FOR MORE ON THE
KISS PHOTO, VISIT
OUR WEBSITE
KCENTV.COM.
KCENTV.COM.