Gary Marshall passes away

Gray Marshall, who entertained so many for years, has passed away at the age of 81.
Marshall is responsible for some of the greatest TV shows of my time. Shows such as “Happy Days,” “The Odd Couple,” “Laverne and Shirley” and “Mork and Mindy”.

Marshall biggest box office hit was Pretty Woman with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. Marshall's other feature films included “The Flamingo Kid,” starring Matt Dillon, “Beaches” starring Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey and many other films.

One of my favorite Marshall films, which only achieved moderate success, was "The Other Sister". It starred Juliette Lewis a mentally challenged young woman who finds love. It was a very touching film.

Marshall has worked with the biggest names in Hollywood. The film "Nothing in common" had two big names in the form of Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason. The film only achieved moderate success because of it's jarring tone.

Tom Hanks post the following on Facebook:

 

Yes, Marshall will be missed. He provided me with entertainment from my youth all the way up to an aging adult.
RIP Gary Marshall.

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Boat Sinks In Cannon Creek Lake

©2016, Thomas Marcum

Several people were fishing today at Cannon Creek lake in Middlesboro, Ky but for two men the day did not go so well. The two unidentified men backed down the boat ramp and launched their small John boat. One man, gets back in their  truck to go park it. Man number 2 is in the boat waiting and the boat began to take on water, lots of water.  Eventually, the small boat capsized but near by fishermen or I should say fisherwoman jumped in to lend a hand.

The boat, which was totally submerged, was recovered and pulled to the shoreline. Some of the content of the boat was also recovered. A trolling motor, cooler and what appeared to be a tackle box was all recovered. It appeared several other items were lost, which may have been fishing poles and the trolling motor battery and other items. It is thought the boat had too much weight in the back end, resulting in it taking on water, but this was not confirmed.

The two men, with help from people near by, were able to reload the boat onto the back of their truck. It appeared no one was injured, and the two men left the lake.

For those who may not know, the Cannon Creek Lake water is normally pretty cold in the summer, but in March the water very frigid. In the end,thanks to some fast acting and helpful fishermen (woman), everything turned out okay, with the exception of a lost of some fishing gear.

Cannon Creek Lake is a 243-acre reservoir in Bell County, Kentucky. It was built in 1972.

Another picture of the recovery.

©2016, Thomas Marcum

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Mismanagement and Budgets cuts, effect lake

  Mismanagement and Budgets cuts, effect lake

by Thomas Marcum

The Martins Fork lake is a 340 acre reservoir located in Harlan county, KY. As a teenager in the late 1980s, I can remember the lake being a gathering spot for family and friends. Often times the swimming area was packed with people soaking up the sun. Martins Fork lake was a place where you
could rent paddle boats, fishing poles, water floats and more. The lake has long been a beautiful place for fishing, camping and grilling out.

But if you make a trip to the lake now, you will be very disappointed. The lake water level is down to it's lowest level ever, with parts of the lake being reduced to nothing more that a small creek. The once robust waterways now have islands in the middle of them. The normal buoyed off swimming area is nothing but dry land. There is no places there to rent paddle boats, buy bait, or grab a snack.  On top of that the banks are littered with trash.

My, how things have changed.

According to an official, there is currently only two people employed to maintain the lake. A grounds keeper and a secretary.  Another official comes through about every three months to monitor water output and water temperature. Information suggest that budget cuts are to blame for the poor quality of the lake.

It is sad to see the lake mismanaged in this fashion. Here in Southeastern Kentucky, there is a growing desire to become a tourism hot spot. Harlan county has done very well as a tourism area but there seems to be a lost opportunity with Martins Fork Lake, for whatever reasons. It is my understanding,the lake is managed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and that there is cost sharing with the county. Now, I do not know if Harlan county can actually step in and help this problem or even if it has the means to do so, but something needs done.

There is tremendous opportunity to make Martins Fork Lake a tourism stopping point. The lake, does still get a lot of visitors, there were about 19 fishing boats on it just a few days ago. But the question must be ask, with the lake in such bad shape, will any of those people be making a return visit? It seems doubtful.

I would like to see Martins Fork Lake thriving again. The potential is there for fishing tournaments, concerts and other fun activities but something has to change. The lake could be a good source of income for the area, if properly managed.

Lets hope better days are ahead for martins fork lake and Southeastern Kentucky.

Here is another photo comparison.

Water levels have further degraded in the last two weeks. This area of the lake is much more narrow now.

Hopefully, by summer, water levels will return to normal.

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