Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

Filming provided memories

Editor’s note: Cotty Chubb, a producer of the “Believe In Me” movie filmed in eastern New Mexico this fall, recorded a few fragments of his memories of our part of the world. In his words:

• The girls showing up on set complaining of soreness. Too much training? No, they’d been riding the mechanical bull at Clovis City Limits.

• The lashing rains while we tried to film a show set in a drought. The barbecue from Ben’s (no knock on the Rib Crib, who were so nice and who helped feed our championship crowds so well).

• The mystery and quietness of the Norman Petty Studio on Seventh, where Buddy Holly created a personal rock and roll that defies understanding and repays close attention.

• The patience and good humor of so many people bent on a specific goal, a nutty one — getting a satellite dish antenna installed temporarily at the La Quinta for Bruce Dern.

• The quiet generosity of the Farwell farmer, probably too self-effacing to want me to use his name, who volunteered to bring in 60 acres of his cotton crop early, mostly because his wife had taught high school Spanish to one of the Lady Cyclones and they just wanted to help, and the stunning sunset that day in the cotton field.

• A memorable burger at Kelly’s.

• The calm anger of the woman who’d lost her bridal shop business.

• The noisy enthusiastic persistence of the crowds who turned out to cheer the Lady Cyclones to the state championship, Oklahoma, circa 1964, who had no idea that we were going to shoot so late and still stuck with us. It wasn’t just the car we were giving away that kept them there; it was the love they were showing us.

• The long night drive back from Elida under a new moon when I pulled over just to see the Milky Way and the great bowl of the universe as it had never been shown to me before.

• Thanks to you all for all of that, and for the connections we made, and the kindnesses shown, that will never be forgotten.