Ann Kip Kelleher

In preparation for a family reunion in 2000, Ann wrote the short
autobiography below.
In Ann's own words:
I was born in Springfield, Massachusetts on my father's 30th birthday,
February 10, 1943. Dad always said "I got half a cake, a green sweater and
you"
I have three sisters and a brother. I was a Brownie and a Girl Scout and
spent part of several summers at camp. My favorite was Longacres. They
had horses!
We had lots of pets…cats, dogs, rabbits, turtles, a squirrel, a cockatiel,
parakeets, a parrot, a duck and even a goose…but I wanted a horse! My
heroes were Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy…and I was crazy about
Ricky Nelson.
I made it through high school and received an AA in junior college. I
majored in theatre…and went into theatre – where I worked in wardrobe. In
1962 I moved to New York City…where I had five roommates! All at one
time!
I met Charles Joseph Kelleher and we got married on May 29, 1971. Joe
tended bar at the Tripple Inn. I worked in theatre, mostly off Broadway, and
in costume shops.
In 1974 I went to work at Great Adventure Amusement Park in Jackson,
New Jersey. I've always wanted to be a cowboy, so my favorite part was
the western show.
Sadly, Joe and I couldn't make our marriage work. In 1977 I moved on to
Los Angeles, California and continued to work in the theatre.
In 1989 I began volunteering at the Autry Museum of Western Heritage and
I've been a museum docent since 1990. In 1989 I won a trip to the US
Open. I began playing golf, which I really enjoy. I've always been a Dodger
fan going all the way back to when they played in Brooklyn, NY. I've gotten
to sing the national anthem five times at Dodger Stadium with the casts and
crews of "Phantom of the Opera" and "Beauty and the Beast". And I got to
meet most of my favorite Dodgers.
For five years, I was business representative of the IATSE Wardrobe Union
Local 768.
Continuing Ann's story –
Ann had joined the local Union (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage
Employees) in June of 1978 and she retired in 2024! She was a local 768
union member for 46 years! For 22 of those years she was the business
agent and along with other duties she negotiated contracts for the
members. The other years she was a traveling wardrobe supervisor, a
head of the department, an assistant wardrobe supervisor, a dresser and
the dresser for the star.
Before moving to California, Ann had worked at the 1964 New York World's
Fair. She worked in wardrobe for the "it's a small world" attraction which
debuted at the Pepsi pavilion before being moved to Disneyland when the
Fair ended.
Ann got her first experiences in theater while still in high school when
Theater in the Round came to West Springfield, Massachusetts and
Storrowton Music Fair opened. After about a week of working as an usher,
Ann quickly realized she had to be one of the unpaid apprentices who
worked behind the scenes in wardrobe. And she never looked back!
Ann was predeceased by her parents Robert S. Goodlatte and Doris M.
Goodlatte and her sister, Dorie G. Walmsley and brother-in-law, David
Walmsley. She leaves her sisters, Carroll Zeuli of Kissimmee, Florida and
Barbara Steinheimer and her husband, Max, of Sacramento, California,
and her brother, Bob Goodlatte and his wife, Maryellen, of Roanoke,
Virginia. She also leaves many nieces and nephews and great nieces and
great nephews.
Ann will be laid to rest in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts where her
parents and other relatives are interred. She will be remembered by her
family and by her many, many friends with great love and through the
wonderful stories she told of her life.
Memorial contributions may be made to:
Los Angeles Regional Food Bank https://www.lafoodbank.org/
Friends of Griffith Park https://friendsofgriffithpark.org/join-renewdonate/
Autry Museum of the American West https://theautry.org/join-give/support