Kit Carson

I wonder how many Goldonians will remember Kit Carson? I shared a dormitory with him and 6 other lads, all around 15 years. He was a little on the small side, but he was tough, wiry, and handsome. With regard to the latter virtue(?) there is a photo of him standing next to the actress Jean Kent, while she signs an autograph book. It was during the filming of The Browning Version and the curious thing is that she seems to have eyes only for our Kit. I think Len Brotherwood who is standing on her other side looks green with envy!

In those days we had coggie sets, at least some of us did, and we often annoyed the non-coggie-ites used to get mad at us for laughing loudly at some humorous element on the radio, with which they couldn’t take part.

Kit Carson had the added virtue that he was also a very good boxer. One night we settled down, and some of us continued to scratch the cat’s whisker and enjoy the radio. Kit went off to sleep, but before doing so he gave me strict instructions to wake him up when his favourite programme came on. Which I obediently did. I hopped out of bed, walked to his bed and shook his shoulder. “Kit, Kit, the programme’s on.” He jumped up, landed me a punch on the face, and shouted, “Don’t you ever wake me up when I’m asleep,” and sank down into his sleep.

Needless to say, I was mightily aggrieved by his action, and told him so in the morning. He was apologetic, but I assured I would never attempt to wake him up again.

If my memory serves me well, he was called home by his family, who by now were living in Canada, and he left us to join them. The last thing I heard of Kit was that he was on an ocean liner en voyage and had just eaten a five-course meal.

coggie sets: personal radio made by some boys out of a quartz crystal and bits of wire and headset.

For some more information on the Browning Version click here
memories of the Browning version by Jack Johnstone click here

Bill Cotton has written of his time in Barnardo's. The book starts with him finding his mother who never knows it's her son who is showing some interest in her life. His book is titled "They would have come looking for me. Wouldn't they?" which is the fifth of a series of Barnardo Biographies published by Badgerwood Publications LLP, www.badgerwood.co.uk