John Henry Kurtz

The warm memories of John Henry recur, like the sound of distant drums.

Oh my, what a loss. I met John in Vail. I was the asst. mgr. of the Holiday Inn in the seventies. He was one of about three entertainers, that captured not only the vacationers, but locals alike. The last time I saw him, the 40th year anniversary of Vail, he still had his famous smile, laugh, and looks. He is one of the many special memories that my wife and I had, in our 33 years in Vail. God's speed, my friend.

I employed the VO services of John Henry at Court TV in the early 90s. I remember him as a very engaging and friendly fellow. I'll never forget his kindness and how he consistently offered me an invitation to lunch. He sure loved to talk and did it very well. I am surprised to hear of his passing. Condolences and best wishes to all his friends and family.

I met John Kurtz in Vail in 1969 -1970 ski season. He was travelling with the band "Country Coalition". What a talented group. I met up with John again in Manhattan Beach, CA. and saw the many aspects the group went through to produce an album. I met alot of John's friends along the way. I saw him again in New York at Elaines and we shared a good laughs as he regailed my fellow classmates of stories we had in California. We, my husband Frank and I, caught up with John when we were cruising...

Was anyone ever richer in friends than John Henry Kurtz?

He made that happen.

He did it by cramming more living into his 22,781 days than most people ever do in a long lifetime. He made every hour count.

Friend, brother, uncle, son...and historian, singer, wit, voiceover artist, musician, traveler, skier, gourmand, storyteller, Anglophile, fisherman, philanthropist, collector, sailor, actor, domestic enthusiast, mimic, swimmer, reenactor, chef, dialectician, marksman,...

I'll miss seeing John Henry on the beach, conversing with Tommy D in his bathing suit. Hang in there, Yogi.

I met John Henry back in 1985 at a session. We just hit it off instantly. He used to live about a block away from my wife and I in NYC and we'd see him every once in a while while we were walking with the kids and do this "Hi neighbor" as a greeting. People would look at us like we were crazy, and we loved it. We'd talk about the business, talk about life, his house down in Cape May. He's the one who turned me on to the civil war reenactments. It was certainly on of his loves of his life....

I met John Henry first when he was in the cast and I was the musical director of the musical "Marlowe" in 1981. In fact, I think he was the one who came up with the buttons saying "I've been 'marred'." Anyway we became fast friends and played many gigs and sessions together. He was one of the best singers I knew, and one of the ones who made me laugh the most, especially his imitations of Willie Nelson and Leon Russell singing. Plus he had impeccable taste in music. I especially enjoyed...