LAST EDITED ON Jul-02-09 AT 01:04PM (MST)[p]Well, I guess someone "older than dirt" needs to chime in here.
Early in my adult life, I was quite involved in the firearms/fishing tackle industry, both on the retail and wholesale side of the business.
In 1968, I went to work as a gun salesman at the Jewel Box, which was located in downtown Phoenix on 1st Ave., between Washington and Jefferson. At the time, in addition to being a pawn shop, the JB was the biggest gun dealer in the West for both new and used guns. We sold thousands of guns through the mail. I also was in charge of the expansive reloading department. I think the JB is still in business on Central Ave. about where the downtown PO used to be.
A year later, I became the manager of the sporting goods department at the JC Penney store at Tower Plaza Mall, right around the corner from one of the Yates stores. That was back when JCP had full-blown sporting goods departments, complete with handgun and long-gun sales. We even stocked Weatherby rifles and JCP had its own brand of inexpensive firearms under the "Foremost" name. As a result of my experience with reloading equipment and components, my department was the ONLY one in the U.S. that carried a full-line of reloading gear. Over a span of two years, I took that department from $300K in sales to over $1 million per year, a pretty substancial amount at that time.
Then Woolco, the K-Mart-like division of Woolworth's, came to town. Somehow the mgr. of one due to open on Thunderbird & 7th St. had heard about me. He called me at home and asked if I would be interested in setting up the sporting goods department at the new store, offering twice the yearly salary I was making at Penny's. Naturally, I accepted but only with the understanding I could bring along my asst. mgr. -- a once part-time gal that I had trained from scratch. He said no problem. After I left, she became the personnel mgr. at that store.
During the stints at JCP and Woolco, to stay competitive, we often "price shopped" both Yates and Yellowfront. As mentioned, Yates actually had two stores, one on 12th or 16th St. and one near Tower Plaza at 36th and Thomas. The stores, often referred to as Yate's Army & Navy Surplus, existed for about 30 years.
There is now a hiking trail in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve named after the owner -- L.V. Yates. He was very active in bringing the preserve to fruition. Not sure if he is still alive today, but he and his wife celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in 2006.
The Yellowfront stores were all over the valley and AZ. There were at least 20 or more in the state, and until about a decade ago, some still existed including one on Glendale Ave., near 35th Ave., a few doors down the strip mall from Bob's Sporting Goods.
As most of you no doubt know, Bob Hirsch, who was a sort of spokesman for Yellowfront for many years, died about two years ago, and his wife Mary passed away about a year ago. Bob also had been a personal friend of mine since the early 1970s.
After about a year at the Woolco gig circa 1974, a job opened with American Wholesale Hardware -- one of the wholesale firearms/fishing tackle distributors out of Long Beach, CA. This outfit competed with the likes of Mallco and Arizona Hardware, the two biggest wholesale gun distributors in AZ at the time. I applied and got the job, and my territory was AZ, as well.
The owner of AWH had basically financed Bill Ruger's start into the firearms manufacturing business. As a result, AWH was the largest Ruger distributer in the country, but we also sold lots & lots of S&Ws, Colts, Winchesters and Remingtons, along with several of the lesser brands.
My job as a rep with AWH entailed selling to about every gun and fishing tackle retailer in the state. It was during this time I first met the Del Re brothers -- Mickey, ED and AL. The latter ran the store on S. Central, which is now operated by his sons. They opened another at 7th St. and Dunlap that eventually moved to the corner of 12th St. and Northern. At that time, it was a full-scale operation and even had a shoe repair shop on premises. They eventually closed that store and opened the scaled-down version on 16th St., south of Indian School Rd.
Mickey and I became close friends. We hunted together in Colorado and Texas and often fished together here in AZ. After I left AWH to buy a resort at Vallecito Lake near Durango, CO, he would visit every June to fish for northern pike with his good friend, Chester Hansen, the founder of Hansen's Mortuary.
Many people consider the Del Re brothers as the ones who started the bass fishing club/tournament stuff here in AZ. I have photos of some of the early club tournaments at Roosevelt and Bartlett Lakes. Both Ed and Mickey died quite a few years ago.
This is the LAST SHOT column I wrote for AZ Hunter & Angler the month after Mickey died.
REMEMBER MICKEY
I can't recall the exact year, but it was sometime in the early 1970s, probably about 1972. I had just begun working as a sales rep for a hunting and fishing gear wholesaler out of Long Beach, California. My territory was the entire state of Arizona.
On day one of my new job, my first stop was a shop on 12th St. and Northern. I walked into the store with my huge catalog in tow, ready to start that day with a bang. Instead, when I introduced myself to the dark-haired fellow standing behind the counter, I was greeted with a frown and gravely-voiced retort. It went something along the lines of, ?Another stinkin? peddler, huh? We don't need anything.?
Now with my tail tucked firmly between my legs, I merely replied, ?Okay, I'll check back again in a week or so. Maybe you'll need something then. ?
The guy smiled then. ?I doubt it. But now that you're here, you want some coffee or a drink??
That was the first time I had met and spoken to Mickey Del Re. Fortunately, it wasn?t the last. In fact, over the few years after that, Del Re?s store was one of my best accounts. More importantly, Mickey and I eventually became good friends and had remained such for nearly 25 years.
Perhaps many of you reading this column never even heard of Mickey. It's understandable if you're less than 25 or 30 years old. In contrast, those who have been around for a several decades know about his legacy and pioneering efforts in regards to fishing.
Mickey arrived in Arizona in the late 1940s as part of the Air National Guard. He decided to stay rather than return to his home in West Virginia. Then in 1954, Mickey?s dad, Pat and his brothers -- Al Sr. and Ed -- opened the first Del Re store on S. Central in Phoenix. In 1958, Ed and Mickey joined up and opened the second store at 7th St. and Dunlap, where they stayed until they opened the shop on northern in 1968. When Ed retired in 1980, Mickey relocated to a smaller shop on 16th St., just south of Indian School Rd. He eventually retired in 1986 and resolved to do what he loved best -- go fishing.
Fishing was a major part of Mick?s life long before I had met him. Folks who knew him in the 1950s and 1960s often related stories about his prowess with rod and reel. At a time when $20,000 bassboats crammed with electronic gear were still years off, Mickey caught fish -- lots of them.
He was one of the first fishermen to actively promote tournament fishing and help get it organized. His early endeavors helped form the Arizona Bass Club. But those who look fondly back on those early days, remember the social gatherings Mickey and Ed promoted even more.
Mickey?s nephew, Al Jr., is one of those who remember. ?Almost every Sunday, my uncles would have a bunch of guys just meet at Bartlett Lake at noon, and no one cared who fished with whom. They spent the afternoon on the lake, and if they caught a mess of fish, they would have one big fish fry on the shore that night.?
In the mid-1970s, I moved to Vallecito Lake, Colorado, and Mickey became a frequent visitor. He loved catching the big northern pike that prowled the high- country lake (See COLORADO?S PREMIER PIKE HOLE). Sometimes he would bring his son, Michael, or one of his friends such as Chet Hansen or Duke Tartalio. No matter who was there, though, you can bet Mickey always had fun.
Duke eventually bought a summer home on Alaska?s Kenai, so over the last few years, Mickey spent many weeks there pursuing his favorite pastime. He continued to do it even after he was diagnosed with lung cancer a couple years ago and had one lung removed. Of course, anyone who knew him wouldn't expect him to do anything else. He went again this summer, too.
In October, my wife and I were eating dinner, and for some reason Mickey came to mind. Out of the blue, I blurted, ?You know, I haven't talked to Mickey in a few months. I need to call him and see how he's getting along.?
A half-hour later, I had a long talk with him. He didn't sound good. I asked if he was still living in the same apartment because I wanted to come over the next week and visit with him a bit. He told me he had moved a bit north and gave me the new address.
A few days later, my mom called and asked if I knew that my friend Mickey had passed away. I was stunned, probably because I immediately wondered why only days earlier he had come to mind out of the blue. Premonition? Maybe.
I was also very sad. I never did pay that last visit, but at least I had spoken to him on the telephone.
And now that I've had time to think about it more, I've also realized his death at 72 was sort of like the passing of an era. Mickey is gone, as are many of the other of the state?s well-known outdoorsmen who lived during his time. But I guarantee none of Mickey?s friends will forget him or what he did during his years with us.
TONY MANDILE
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