Frank Melton
also written Frank in the book
Biography
Floyd's good friend and coworker. Stood up with Ethel and Floyd at their wedding with Elva. Frank and Elva had four unnamed children. Insists Bernard's reported I.Q. of 149 is simply not possible. Occupation also recorded as “Former copywriter at FCB” (Bernie's Chapter). From a family with twelve kids. Moved in with the narrator in 1983. An avid reader, especially of science fiction, a talented writer, and a computer enthusiast. Described as a stay-at-home kind of guy. Occupation also recorded as “Floyd's work associate” (History of the Guild Family). Nicknamed Floyd 'Casey.' Stood up for Floyd and Ethel at their wedding with Elva. The couples remained lifelong friends.
Timeline
November 6, 1928
Ethel and Floyd marry in Moline
Elva and Frank Melton stood up with them. The four went out for dinner and a movie after the wedding; Ethel and Floyd did not go on a honeymoon.
Carol's ChapterNovember 6, 1928
Floyd and Ethel's wedding
Married by a Justice of the Peace with Frank and Elva standing up for them. All went to a movie afterward.
History of the Guild Family1983
Frank moves in with Bernard
Frank moved in after attending art school.
Bernie's Chapter1994
Art museum visits in Italy
Visited art museums; expressed a wish to see art in Paris next, not a completed Paris trip.
Bernie's Chapterdate not given
Floyd and Frank Melton work together
They were coworkers and good friends.
Carol's Chapterdate not given
Larry introduces Bernard to Frank
Larry had known Frank in Florida.
Bernie's Chapterfor a while
Advertising collaboration at FCB
Frank worked as a copywriter at FCB and teamed with Bernard on several accounts.
Bernie's Chapterdate not given
Producing C and H Sugar commercials in Hawaii
Frank wrote and Bernard art directed two commercials. They resisted the director’s proposed rewrites and were pleased with the results.
Bernie's ChapterAt the time of the narrative
Frank pursues computing studies
Pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree and studying web design.
Bernie's Chapter
Stories mentioning Frank
- A Roller-Skating Beginning and a Legacy of CareMary Hill arranged Ethel and Floyd's blind date, and they went roller-skating. They married in Moline on November 6, 1928, with Elva and Frank Melton standing up with them, then celebrated with dinner and a movie rather than a honeymoon. Carol remembers their independent household responsibilities, relentless work in the Forties, kindness to neighbors, and family values demonstrated through everyday actions.
- High School Honors, Art, and a Touch of RebellionBernard recalls academic and artistic successes, including a poetry prize, an art award, six plays, and graduating in the top 10 of 300 just after turning seventeen. Frank disputes his reported I.Q. of 149. Alongside these achievements, Bernard remembers pretending to be a “Hood,” buying a switchblade, and keeping misbehavior from his parents. High school introduced him to differences in wealth; he also remembers struggling in PE and being relieved that he was too young for the Korean War draft.
- A Shared Home, Art, and Lively ArgumentsLarry introduced Bernard to Frank, who moved in with him in 1983 after art school. Bernard describes Frank’s large family, love of reading and computers, writing talent, and studies toward a Bachelor of Science degree and web design. Their shared interests, humor, and candid arguments make them intellectually well matched.
- Two Sweet Advertising Triumphs in HawaiiWhile working together at FCB, Bernard art directed advertisements and commercials written by Frank. Two C and H Sugar commercials were particular career highlights: a boy paying for a cookie with a marble at Lanoa’s store, and a child trading a wagon of puppies for sugar cane. They traveled to Hawaii to produce the commercials and successfully resisted their South African director’s attempts to rewrite them.
- An Appetite for Art in ItalyBernard and Frank traveled to Italy in 1994 and visited every art museum they could. They hoped to see the art in Paris next.
- Floyd and Ethel: Dancing, Work, and Seven ChildrenFloyd and Ethel met on a roller-skating blind date, courted through dancing and picnics, and married in Moline in 1928 with Frank Melton and Elva as attendants. They raised seven children. The passage says Floyd worked his entire life for John Deere, while also recording a roughly year-long Depression layoff when Lloyd helped him obtain WPA truck-driving work. Remembered as hardworking, playful, outspoken, and devoted to family, Floyd died of acute kidney failure in 1968 after an earlier severe stroke and is buried beside Ethel.
Referenced in
Family corrections
Notes sent in by the family and approved on review. They sit alongside the original record — the book's wording is never changed.
No corrections on file for this record yet.
Suggest a correction