The Independent

Posted on October 2, 2014 by RL CRABB

Back in 1980, a feisty little crew of local yokels seized the means of production at The Nevada City Independent. Cartoonist Dan O’Neill, fresh from his battles with the Disney Corporation and the United States Supreme Court, was installed as editor. Along with Bob Lickter, Terry Pittsford, David Parker, Pam Wood, Dave Carter, John Bonner, and yours truly, the little weekly set out to conquer the media world of western Nevada County. It only lasted two years before going bankrupt, but in that time we did manage to shake things up a bit, and even managed to stop a major development (Champion Trails) from transforming the very character of Nevada City.

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9 Responses to The Independent

George Boardman says:

October 2, 2014 at 8:43 am

Too bad The Independent came along before the paywall was invented. For example, The Union can get some people to pay $2 to read a press release that’s available free of charge at YubaNet.

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San French says:

October 2, 2014 at 10:43 am

Those were some fine times indeed. The wild western county of nevada was buckin’ and snortin’; fueled by substance and substances galore. Thank you for keepin’ a close eye on things Bob…for those of us who are having some memory issues these almost 35 years on. Keep ’em comin’.

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Dave Carter says:

October 2, 2014 at 4:57 pm

The Defeat of Champion Trails… A favorite among all the news stories I’ve ever written.

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Terry says:

October 3, 2014 at 10:35 am

Those were the days my friend. I’ll never forget the first “paycheck” I ever got at The Independent. It consisted, quite literally, of a brown paper sack of quarters Dave Fluke managed to scrape together from the paper boxes. I’m not not sure if he was making the statement that I was a two-bit reporter but it was much appreciated. We were all really poor but on another occasion Pam Wood donated her entire paycheck to help me pay my rent. Thanks again Pam and everybody else at the little weekly for memories that won’t soon be forgotten. Who can forget “Editor’s Rock” down on Little Deer Creek?

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Chris Peterson says:

October 3, 2014 at 12:32 pm

We have a picture on our mantle that ran in the paper of our daughter Darcy when she was about 5. She was putting a quarter in the parking meter where Edsel Cross had parked his horse while he had a quick beer at Frams. The meter maid was about to give the horse a ticket, but Darcy beat her to the meter and John Bonner came running from the paper’s office across the street to capture the moment.

And Terry, you were worth every penny they paid you.

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- Terry says:
  
  October 6, 2014 at 6:24 pm
  
  I’m not sure how to take that but just in case it was a compliment, thanks.
  
  Reply
rlcrabb says:

October 3, 2014 at 3:16 pm

Hey gang – It appears that some of my cartoons have been included in Dan O’Neill’s archive at the Bancroft Library in Berkeley.
http://beta.worldcat.org/archivegrid/collection/data/858950587

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- Chris Peterson says:
  
  October 4, 2014 at 7:07 am
  
  Interesting that they recognize you as two different entities: Crabman and RLCrabb. And how wise to have drawn under both names, knowing that the one gets you to the head of the line.But you can always move up a notch by drawing a few under the name Bob Crabb; the name I met you all under.
  
  May I suggest you get ahead of the call for your own works and issue a chronological collection of all your drawings called, As We See It; a compilation of the artist RL Crabb.
  
  I’d buy that without hesitation.
  
  Reply
Johnny Cub says:

October 7, 2014 at 5:20 am

Those were some daze…the spirit among everyone involved was infectious…some of the best people I ever worked with and had the pleasure to call friends…as I recall, the horse looked better the most cars parked next to it that day…and certainly looked better than Edsel after emerging from Frams…thanks for the memories from a former, proud MLF (no, not that, it was O’Neil’s… Mouse Liberation Front) card holder.

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