The news from the western end of the province in the Charlottetown Guardian from this date 75 years ago had an enticing and sparkly dose of Hollywood magic sprinkled over it.
Thanks to the Internet Archive, I found the July 1949 issue of Modern Screen magazine and the adorable photo of Gus and Miss Stanwyck. I love that Stanwyck looks to be genuinely laughing, and Gus, then in his early sixties, seemed to be quite amused as well.
I’ve snooped around a bit on Ancestry, the PEI Public Archives, and Libraries and Archives Canada to develop the following quick rough sketch of Gus Peters, friend to the stars:
Gus was born Augustus Morris Peters in Summerside sometime between 1886 and 1889, depending on the records. He signed up for service in the First World War on May 13, 1915 in Fredericton, NB, telling them that his birthday was May 28, 1887.
He was assigned to the 2nd Canadian Divisional Ammunition Column, regimental number 180, and was on the SS Caledonia on June 13, 1915 headed for England. Gus was knocked down by a horse in August 1915, broke his left wrist and spent 24 days in the hospital at Shorncliffe army camp.
He was sent to France on September 16, 1915, serving as part of the Second Division of the Canadian Expeditionary Force in England and France, and received his discharge in Halifax, NS on May 25, 1919.
When he signed up for service, he gave his trade as cowboy, and he also referred to himself as a rancher, not really a PEI kind of occupation to have. It seems he worked for a while in North Dakota, and his demob papers said he was headed to Hot Springs, Montana after the war.
At some point Gus moved to California and married Hattie Seligman, born in Missouri around 1886, on July 7, 1928 in Los Angeles, California.
According to the 1930 US Census records, Gus gave his birthplace as New York, for some reason, and reported that he was employed as a stage hand in moving picture. By the 1940 census, Hattie and Gus were living in a home they owned at 5431 Fulton Avenue, Van Nuys, a few minutes drive from the Paramount Studios lot where the photo with Stanwyck was likely taken.
In the 1950 census, he gave his age as 63 and said he was still working as a stage grip at a film studio. As could likely be expected in a company town like LA, also on his census sheet were silent movie actor George Burton and Citizen Kane art director Perry Ferguson.
Gus died October 16, 1957, possibly after being hit by a car, and was buried at San Fernando Mission Cemetery in LA, his obituary giving his age as 71.
I had a hunch, and Ancestry confirmed it, that Gus was the uncle of my cousin’s husband (because of course he was), and his relatives still live in the Summerside area.