Aug. 27—SHENANDOAH — Darryl Ponicsan is perhaps best known for his novels "The Last Detail" and "Cinderella Liberty," both of which were made into movies featuring major Hollywood stars.
But at an open house Sunday in the new Darryl Ponicsan Room at the Shenandoah Area Historical Society, it was the author and screenwriter's coal region stories that were the subject of conversation.
In "Andoshen, Pa.," Ponicsan immortalized local personalities like "Spooky the Cop," "K.O. Mackey" and "Eggshell," a confessed murderer.
In "Andoshen," a pseudonym for Shenandoah, Ponicsan followed in the footsteps of John O'Hara, who dubbed his hometown of Pottsville "Gibbsville" in his short stories.
Thumbing through "Andoshen, Pa.," Al Bindi came across a Ponicsan story in which he played a peripheral real-life role.
In 1959, Bindi had taken his girlfriend home to Lost Creek and was returning to Shenandoah when he saw a man bumming a ride. He drove by and, later, found out that the man had just killed two members of his family.
"He told police that if someone had picked him up, he would have killed them and driven their car to California," recalled Bindi, a retired intelligence operative who lives in Shenandoah.
Bindi knows the real-life names of the Ponicsan characters, but preferred not to reveal them.
Andy Ulicny, president of the historical society, said the organization had a VIP opening of the new Ponicsan display Saturday. The public was invited to tour the room from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday.
Ponicsan was born in Shenandoah, the son of Frank and Anne Ponicsan, in 1938. His parents ran an auto parts store in the borough.
The family moved to Ringtown when he was 4, but "Shenandoah has claimed him," Ulicny said.
Ponicsan, 85, lives in California. He last visited Shenandoah in 2016, when he was grand marshal of the borough's sesquicentennial parade.
After serving aboard the USS Monrovia and USS Intrepid, 1962-65, Ponicsan taught school in Los Angeles and wrote novels on the side.
In 1973, when Jack Nicholson starred in "The Last Detail," Ponicsan wrote "Cinderella Liberty." It, too, was made into a movie, with James Caan and Marsha Mason.
Ponicsan was unable to attend the dedication of his exhibit at the historical society, but he donated generously to it. His typewriter, a Hermes portable, is there, along with a display of his books and movie posters.
Ponicsan originally wrote in pencil, Ulicny said, and the author asked that a Muhlenberg College mug he donated be filled with sharpened pencils.