William J. Obanhein (October 19, 1924 – September 11, 1994), also known as Officer Obie, was the chief of police for the town of Stockbridge, Massachusetts. He was a member of the police force there for 34 years, 1951 to 1985. He is fairly well known for his appearances in popular culture.
Obanhein was the "Officer Obie" mentioned in Arlo Guthrie's 1967 talking blues song "Alice's Restaurant". Obanhein later said that some of the details in the song were not completely true; he said he had not handcuffed Guthrie during the arrest and said they removed the seat from the toilet in Guthrie's cell to prevent theft, not to prevent suicide.[1] Obanhein later would note that he would not have arrested Guthrie had the amount of garbage been smaller (he would have picked up the garbage himself)[2] and that he meant to use the arrest and subsequent media circus as an example to deter any further large-scale littering incidents.
Obanhein accepted an offer from another Stockbridge resident, Arthur Penn, to appear as himself in the 1969 film adaptation of Alice's Restaurant Penn was directing and co-writing.[3] Obanhein told Newsweek magazine (September 29, 1969, where his photo appears) that making himself look like a fool was preferable to having somebody else make him look like a fool.[4] Working on the film caused Obanhein to develop greater respect for Guthrie, and afterward, the two remained friends for the rest of Obanhein's life.[5]
Obanhein posed for Norman Rockwell (himself a resident of Stockbridge) for a handful of sketches, including the 1959 black-and-white sketch Policeman With Boys, which was used in nationwide advertisements for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual).[6] He was also one of the models in Rockwell's iconic The Problem We All Live With, though his face is not seen.[7] Obanhein also served as a model for Rockwell's illustration of the inauguration of John F. Kennedy for a 1961 cover of The Saturday Evening Post.[8] He is sometimes mistaken (including on Guthrie's website) for the officer who posed for Rockwell's painting The Runaway, which appeared on a 1958 cover of The Saturday Evening Post; this was not Obanhein but Massachusetts state trooper Richard Clemens,[9] and the painting was instead set at Joe's Diner in Lee, Massachusetts, not in Stockbridge.[10]
Personal lifeedit
Obanhein was married to Dorothy Anderson; they had four children.[11] Obanhein died September 11, 1994, apparently from a heart attack.[2]
Referencesedit
^Saul Braun, "Alice & Ray & Yesterday's Flowers", in Playboy's Music Scene, Chicago, IL, 1972, pp. 122-125. Online copy
^ abWilliam J. Obanhein; 'Alice's Restaurant' Lawman, 69. The New York Times (September 14, 1994). Retrieved October 29, 2015.
^Cummings, Paula (November 21, 2017). Interview: Arlo Guthrie Carries On Thanksgiving Traditions And Fulfills Family Legacy. NYS Music. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
^Gentile, Derek. Arlo Guthrie marks 50th at scene of 'Alice's Restaurant Massacree'. Berkshire Eagle. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
^Berry, Lois. "Norman Rockwell – A Sense of Déjà vu" Accessed March 1, 2009. July 23, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
^Carson, Tom (19 February 2020). "The true story of the awakening of Norman Rockwell". Vox. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
^DiAngelo, Bob (2022-11-29). "Arlo Guthrie, woman who inspired 'Alice's Restaurant' hold 1st Thanksgiving together since 1965". KIRO 7 News Seattle. Retrieved 2022-12-01.
^Boyd, Jim. "Rockwell Illustration 'The Runaway' Turns 50", TheBostonChannel.com / WCVB-TV, September 19, 2008.
^Larry Cultrera, Classic Diners of Massachusetts (2011), p. 112.
Stockbridge Police Department – displaying a licensed version of Norman Rockwell's Policeman with Boys
William J. Obanhein; 'Alice's Restaurant' Lawman, 69. The New York Times. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
April 12, 2024
william, obanhein, william, obanhein, october, 1924, september, 1994, also, known, officer, obie, chief, police, town, stockbridge, massachusetts, member, police, force, there, years, 1951, 1985, fairly, well, known, appearances, popular, culture, obanhein, of. William J Obanhein October 19 1924 September 11 1994 also known as Officer Obie was the chief of police for the town of Stockbridge Massachusetts He was a member of the police force there for 34 years 1951 to 1985 He is fairly well known for his appearances in popular culture Obanhein was the Officer Obie mentioned in Arlo Guthrie s 1967 talking blues song Alice s Restaurant Obanhein later said that some of the details in the song were not completely true he said he had not handcuffed Guthrie during the arrest and said they removed the seat from the toilet in Guthrie s cell to prevent theft not to prevent suicide 1 Obanhein later would note that he would not have arrested Guthrie had the amount of garbage been smaller he would have picked up the garbage himself 2 and that he meant to use the arrest and subsequent media circus as an example to deter any further large scale littering incidents Obanhein accepted an offer from another Stockbridge resident Arthur Penn to appear as himself in the 1969 film adaptation of Alice s Restaurant Penn was directing and co writing 3 Obanhein told Newsweek magazine September 29 1969 where his photo appears that making himself look like a fool was preferable to having somebody else make him look like a fool 4 Working on the film caused Obanhein to develop greater respect for Guthrie and afterward the two remained friends for the rest of Obanhein s life 5 Obanhein posed for Norman Rockwell himself a resident of Stockbridge for a handful of sketches including the 1959 black and white sketch Policeman With Boys which was used in nationwide advertisements for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company MassMutual 6 He was also one of the models in Rockwell s iconic The Problem We All Live With though his face is not seen 7 Obanhein also served as a model for Rockwell s illustration of the inauguration of John F Kennedy for a 1961 cover of The Saturday Evening Post 8 He is sometimes mistaken including on Guthrie s website for the officer who posed for Rockwell s painting The Runaway which appeared on a 1958 cover of The Saturday Evening Post this was not Obanhein but Massachusetts state trooper Richard Clemens 9 and the painting was instead set at Joe s Diner in Lee Massachusetts not in Stockbridge 10 Personal life editObanhein was married to Dorothy Anderson they had four children 11 Obanhein died September 11 1994 apparently from a heart attack 2 References edit Saul Braun Alice amp Ray amp Yesterday s Flowers in Playboy s Music Scene Chicago IL 1972 pp 122 125 Online copy a b William J Obanhein Alice s Restaurant Lawman 69 The New York Times September 14 1994 Retrieved October 29 2015 Cummings Paula November 21 2017 Interview Arlo Guthrie Carries On Thanksgiving Traditions And Fulfills Family Legacy NYS Music Retrieved October 25 2018 Zimmerman Paul D September 29 1969 Alice s Restaurant s Children Newsweek page 103 Gentile Derek Arlo Guthrie marks 50th at scene of Alice s Restaurant Massacree Berkshire Eagle Retrieved November 26 2015 Berry Lois Norman Rockwell A Sense of Deja vu Accessed March 1 2009 Archived July 23 2008 at the Wayback Machine Carson Tom 19 February 2020 The true story of the awakening of Norman Rockwell Vox Retrieved 27 November 2020 DiAngelo Bob 2022 11 29 Arlo Guthrie woman who inspired Alice s Restaurant hold 1st Thanksgiving together since 1965 KIRO 7 News Seattle Retrieved 2022 12 01 Boyd Jim Rockwell Illustration The Runaway Turns 50 TheBostonChannel com WCVB TV September 19 2008 Larry Cultrera Classic Diners of Massachusetts 2011 p 112 https www findagrave com memorial 150512904 william j obanhein William J Officer Obie Obanhein Findagrave com September 19 2008 External links editWilliam Obanhein at IMDb Stockbridge Police Department displaying a licensed version of Norman Rockwell s Policeman with Boys William J Obanhein Alice s Restaurant Lawman 69 The New York Times Retrieved October 29 2015 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William Obanhein amp oldid 1216265594, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
