PALMDALE BLVD

Volume I No: 7 “Where every story is a positive story.” April 2018

HARVEY LOWRY
Where the Magic of Filmmaking Comes Together
Story Page 3

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Robert E. Alvarado continues to work hard to provide current and future

customers with the highest quality water at the lowest possible cost.
Serving Palmdale Water District since 2011.
2 PALMDALE BLVD
PALMDALE BLVD
“Where every story is a positive story.”
Hobalong@adelphia.net
661.618.3301
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
Larry Hobson
661.618.3301
Publisher Assistant
Amanda Hobson
Office Manager
Ashleigh Hobson
Managing Editor & Copy Editor
Thomas Fitzgerald
S t a f f Wr i t e r
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Advertising
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Distribution Manager
Kelsey Hobson
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we do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed,
color, national origin, ancestry, religion or lack of,
sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orienta-
tion(s) or veteran status in our employment.
Palmdale Blvd has not investigated any service or
product advertised in this newspaper and publica-
tion of advertising does not imply endorsement of
any product or service by this newspaper.
Palmdale Blvd is a free newspaper published
monthly and is distributed to Palmdale residents ,
businesses and public school district staff.
Kids Fishing Derby Scheduled at
Palmdale Fin & Feather Club
The Palmdale Fin and Feather Club has been very
busy. The Fishing has been very good. Over 17,000
fish caught since February 3rd.
We have our Kids derby on April 7th. We typically
see about 150 kids out to fish and everyone leaves with
a prize. Our biggest fish has been about 12 lbs.
We are still expecting new members. If you have any
questions or would like information please contact our
office at 661.947.2884.
Spring Attendance Awareness
Campaign Underway
By LANCASTER SCHOOL DISTRICT
Contributed
Lancaster School District is launching our Spring Atten-
dance Awareness Campaign beginning April 2nd.
We know that attendance is one of the most critical build-
ing blocks for school success for all students, but it is
especially important for our littlest learners, children ages
3 through 8.
Did You Know (adapted from AttendanceWorks.org):
Starting in kindergarten, too many absences can cause
children to fall behind in school.
Students can still fall behind if they miss just one or two
days of school every few weeks.
Studies found that students who missed 18 days of school
or more in kindergarten and first grade were far less like-
ly to read proficiently at the end of 3rd grade or be held
back.
The negative impact when students miss that much school
is the same whether the absence is excused or unexcused.
When students improve their attendance rates, they im-
prove their academic prospects and chances for graduat-
ing.
Tackling poor attendance is not impossible but we can’t
do it alone. We are asking families and community mem-
bers to partner with us in prioritizing school attendance.
Speaking with your child about the importance of “Show-
ing Up” to school is a great first step in teaching them
good attendance habits.
Setting regularly scheduled bedtimes and ensuring that
they get enough rest makes it easier for your child to be
ready for the school day.
Schedule appointments for after the school day whenever
possible.
We know that together we can reduce the problem of
chronic absenteeism and truancy. Developing good at-
tendance habits and understanding the importance of be-
ing on time is not only a school skill but an important
life skill that often serves as an indicator for success in
college and careers.
So though our days are getting longer and the weather is
getting warmer, remember school attendance matters.
Every day is still important and every day still counts!
Be there!
Fore Play
By PAUL MATTSON
Contributing Writer
Arnold Palmer’s connection with the fans - his Army
- gave him an edge wherever he played, but never more
so than at Augusta National
By now the results are in and it was another awesome
event! In 1958 he was hurt deeply when he overheard
Ben Hogan ask another player, “How the hell did Palm-
er get an invitation to the Masters?”
Palmer could have confronted Hogan but instead went
over and won the tournament. And the rest is history.
Talk about synchronicity. The divine nature of time
was felt by generations of the past, present and future
in an instant!
Palmer attracted legions of adoring fans crossing the
Hogan Bridge as he played in his 50th and final Masters
in 2004.
Rest in Peace to, “THE KING OF GOLF.”
Property Tax Hurts Seniors
on Fixed Incomes
By LARRY HOBSON
Publisher
Seniors reaching 70 tears old shouldn’t have to pay
any more property taxes at all. Ever.
Here is my suggestion on the way a bill should be writ-
ten. Legislation ought to be titled, The Senior Valuation
Protection Option.
It would freeze the property valuation of residential
homeowners who are 65 years of age or older. If you
are older than 65, your property value would be that of
when you turned 65 years old. If the property tax at any
time drops below that of what it was at the age of 65,
then that will become the new valuation to be taxed for.
Who would qualify? To qualify, you must meet the
following criteria: Property owner must be 65 years of
age or older. Property must be the primary residence
and the owner(s) must have resided at the residence for
at least 10 years.
Property owner(s) annual income must be under
$40,000 per year unless you still have kids living at
home, then this amount should be raised and the home
must be worth less than one million dollars.
State Senator Responds to Property Tax Proposal
Thank you for contacting my office with your request
for legislation regarding seniors and property taxes.
Unfortunately, the deadline to draft bills for introduc-
tion in this legislative session has already passed. In the
meantime, we will research your idea.
I will likely still have the opportunity to vote on bills in
this subject area as they come through committees and to
the Senate Floor.
I will keep your thoughts in mind as I approach any
legislation germane to the topic.
I am very optimistic for the rest of the legislative session
and will strive to help make California better day by day.
Thank you for being proactive about addressing Cali-
fornia’s problems.
My staff and I are available if you have any additional
questions on this matter or any other state issue.
Please contact my office at 661.729.6232.
Sincerely, Senator Scott Wilk
21st Senate District
 APRIL 2018 3

Harvey Lowry: Where the Magic of Filmmaking Comes Together

By THOMAS FITZGERALD
Staff Writer
“Why not? Why not give it a try?” – These are the fa-
mous first words spoken by a young Harvey Lowry to
himself, aloud, before enrolling in an acting class.
That first step led to a remarkable and successful career
appearing in, directing and producing film, television,
music videos and commercials.
Canyon Country, California, native Harvey Lowry
spoke with Palmdale Blvd about his life in the entertain-
ment world, both on camera and behind the scene.
Interest in acting occurred while in high school the
1980s when a long-haired Lowry had a few friends that
acted in music videos and TV commercials.
Novice in the trade, Lowry enrolled at what was then
an acting school called Beverly Hills Academy where he
learned and gained skills beyond acting, such as how to
audition.
Lowry soon landed a bit part in the background story of
an Aerosmith music video, providing him his, “first taste
of acting.”
“A lot of the music videos back then, they told a little bit
of a story and then they would cut back and forth between
the band playing on stage,” said Lowry. “A couple times
I was in the story. Like the Aerosmith video where Alicia
Silverstone is getting pierced. I was the guy behind the
counter.”
The experienced fueled Lowry’s interest and he grew,
“intrigued,” with the entertainment world and today, he
has over 150 credits to his name.
The road to success for the Southern California native
did not run through his geographic backyard, the world’s
entertainment epicenter, but required relocating across
the country near the Atlantic Ocean on a non-related en-
deavor to get the break he needed.
“I didn’t have too much success out here on the West
Coast because there’s a billion other aspiring actors. It
was really competitive,” said Lowry.
Intent on getting a college degree, Lowry moved to Flor-
ida and studied medicine. But, as fate had it, performance
art opportunities in the Sunshine State were too plentiful
to ignore.
“Out there I actually got a lot more work than I did out
here,” said Lowry. “Out here I was a small fish in a big
pond, and out there it was the other way around – a big
fish in a small pond.”
To Lowry’s surprise, he discovered Florida was home to
a robust, foreign movie filming industry, and he landed
bit parts in a few Italian movies.
Gaining credits and experience, Lowry soon found him-
self appearing in the television series Moon Over Miami,
the 1990s Rom-Com movie Miami Rhapsody, and the
mid-90s action film Fair Game.
“I made some money at it, and I had fun with it,” said
Lowry, adding his primary purpose for being in Florida
was college, not acting.
Lowry said he decided not to follow through and be-
assistant in a make-up effects studio called Captive Au-
dience Productions – a highly sought after job, unbe-
knownst to Lowry at the time, a fact, in retrospect, he
said he should have realized by seeing over 30 other ap-
plicants show up for the job interview.
“Somehow I impressed the owner and got the job,” said
Lowry. “They called me later that same afternoon. I was
surprised.”
Working at the studio created an interest in the make-up
effects business, so he began learning everything he could
about the trade.
The difference between make-up effects and make-up
is the former includes prosthetics – “things that are glued
to an actor to alter their appearance,” explained Lowry.
“That could be anything from blood and gore type of
stuff, it could be age make-up.”
One of the first movies Lowry worked as a make-up ef-
fects specialist was the original Blade – the 1998 vampire
superhero film.
Lowry worked his way up the company ladder fairly
quickly to become the director of operations overseeing
the majority of the company.
‘Why not? Why not give it a try?’
“It was something I really enjoyed,” said Lowry. “I got
to work with a lot of famous people that I really admired,
I got mentored by a lot of great people.”
Pressed to name-drop, Lowry mentioned Wayans Broth-
ers, Kurt Russell, Brad Pitt, Ron Howard, Tom Cruise,
Jamie Foxx and then added, “The list goes on.”
Lowry’s movie credits include Bicentennial Man, The
Insider, Beautiful Mind, The Passion of the Christ, Pi-
rates of the Caribbean, Collateral, White Chicks, The
Curious Case of Benjamin Butler, Watchmen, Night at the
Museum, the Scary Movie franchise and the Big Momma’s
House franchise.
In 2006, Lowry had an opportunity to purchase the com-
pany, which he did. Over the next four years under his
ownership, Captive Audience Productions opened a stu-
dio in Moscow, Russia, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
With plans to expand into Mumbai, India, and Canada,
Lowry realized his attention and focus was, “shifting,”
after another one of his, “moments of clarity.”
“I sort of hit the pinnacle in the make-up effects world
and I had started producing my own things and realized
that was something much more appealing for me,” said
Lowry. “To be able to create films from their inception
all the way to their delivery was seemingly much more
appealing than doing a small part in somebody else’s
movie.”
Lowry listed his company for sale, sold it, and then in
2010 opened a new company called Ascension Media.
Since then, Lowry’s company has produced 35 projects
– movies, music videos and television shows.
“I make sure that I’m always hiring the right people for
the right jobs,” said Lowry. “I don’t have to completely
micromanage every little thing.”
scene to scene,” said Lowry. “You never film a movie in
a linear fashion. You never start at the beginning and go
all the way through the end. But there are rare exceptions
to everything.”
‘I didn’t have too much suc-
cess out here on the West
Coast because there’s a billion
other aspiring actors. It was
really competitive.’
Lowry decides if he’s interested in directing a film by
first asking himself if the film is, “compelling and inter-
esting, and something I would want to see.”
“I’m careful with what I take on,” said Lowry. “Espe-
cially with what I direct.”
When that question is settled, Lowry must decide which
part within the script gets filmed first. A schedule is then
developed after close consultation with the First Assistant
Director (AD), and Line Producer.
Among the multitude of different factors considered be-
fore deciding upon a schedule and a movie’s shooting se-
quence are an actor’s and a location’s availability.
It is not uncommon for actors to be hired to shoot on spe-
cific days. Lowry recently worked on a Christmas movie
about two teens and their separate lives together.
The two stars interacted together in the same scene for
only a few scenes, so Lowry hired one actor for the first
half of the shoot and the other actor for the second half,
and in the middle was were the twain did meet to film
their scenes together.
The first movie Lowry directed came about after an
old friend gave him a script called Cassidy Way – a sto-
ry, “mostly based on true events surrounding a fracking
company allegedly poisoning ground water with their
chemicals, causing a town to not have clean water,” ex-
plained Lowry.
Though the movie, “turned really dark towards the end,”
Lowry found the story, “compelling,” and agreed to di-
rect.
Budgeting for Cassidy Way was under $300,000, but
since filming was done in December, it made production
less expensive.
“I remember it being really cold,” Lowry reminisced.
Continued on Page 4
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come a doctor after he had a, “moment of clarity.” Lowry said his interest in directing was a, “natural evo-
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4 PALMDALE BLVD
Harvey Lowry: Where the Magic of Filmmaking Comes Together
Continued From Page 3
“Not a lot of films are done in December, so if you choose
to film your movie in that month you can usually get the
cream of the crop at a discounted rate.”
For other than independent filmmakers, February is a
favorite month to film, because this is when television
studios begin shooting pilots.
Lowry decides if he’s interest-
ed in directing a film by first
asking himself if the film is,
‘compelling and interesting,
and something I would want
to see.’
For lower budget, independent filmmakers, this means
actors you wish to cast may not be available until after
April when pilot season ends.
“A lot of the actors you want to cast…are trying to do
television series,” said Lowry. “Because if they’re able
to do that, those actors are working the next year on that
series. It’s a very steady income, a lot of exposure, it’s a
great deal for them. So those actors are reluctant to sign on
to a smaller budget, independent film during that time.”
February is ideal for outdoor filming due to mild-
er weather and the sun’s slow, gradual rise at an angle
fairly parallel with the horizon, providing ambient light
– “magic hour” in the film industry according to Lowry
– as opposed to spring and summer months when the sun
rises more perpendicular.
On occasions when midday filming is required, the cin-
ematographer will order a giant overhead screen that is
held over the actor’s head, off-camera. This prevents a,
“hot spot” from the sun’s glow appearing on the actor’s
face when viewed through the lens.
“I tend to critique films quite a bit,” said Lowry. “Being
in this business, it really gets difficult to actually go out
and just enjoy a movie because you’re always critiquing.
You’re always looking at things.”
Lowry said he had to do six takes of a scene in Cassidy
Way where his four lead characters were talking while
sitting in a gazebo outside of a house beside a lake.
The scene required, “coverage,” or single close-ups on
each actor delivering their lines. The weather that Decem-
ber day was breezy with clouds moving in.
“Half the shots the actors are in some pretty bright
light and the other half they’re a little toned down be-
cause clouds have moved in,” said Lowry. “That al-
ways drove me insane, especially when I see it in big-
ger budget movies when they should be able to plan for
those sort of things.”
Lowry relied on a post-production process called, “color
timing,” to balance light exposure and contrast.
Lowry’s recent directing credits include romantic-com-
edy The Competition, and Christmas in the Heartland,
starring Bo Derek and Shelly Long, and the Civil War
movie, Union Bound.
Union Bound is the true story of Union soldier Joseph
Hoover, who wrote two diaries during the war, both which
survive today. Hoover was captured by the Confederate
Army in 1864 at the Battle of Wilderness.
He spent four months at the infamous Andersonville
POW camp before taken to a different camp in South Car-
olina where he escaped with two friends, one not making
it after being shot.
Together, the two escapees are aided by slaves along
the Underground Railroad as they travel over 600 miles
making their way north.
Union Bound was shown on the festival circuit and won
best film at many of its showings and earned Lowry sev-
eral nominations for best director.
Union Bound required 3,000 extras for the movie’s
opening sequence battle scene. Soldiers were played by
professional Civil War reenactors all having period gear,
uniforms, rifles, tents and equipment.
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“They’re really interesting people,” said Lowry. “A lot
of them do what they call, ‘campaigning.’ They live their
character for three four days at a time. Just like the Civ-
il War soldiers did. They eat meals straight from a pot
cooking over an open fire and sleep in the grass.”
The shoot was done entirely outdoors over 22 days and
included on-location shots at genuine slave quarters and
plantations.
Lowry kept artistic license to a minimum and stuck to
authenticity by having Hoover’s descendants on set as
consultants. They were accompanied by historical schol-
ars and period experts.
“We kept it 100 percent real as possible,” said Lowry.
“The whole shoot was very intense. There is a bit of sat-
isfaction knowing I’m creating something that actually
happened.”
Union Bound was shown on the
festival circuit and won best film at
many of its showings and earned
Lowry several nominations for
best director.
Though successful with an historical docudrama, Low-
ry’s favorite genre of film is horror because he finds it ap-
pealing to, “do something the audience doesn’t expect.”
“I love doing thrillers where I can surprise the audience,
or fool the audience,” said Lowry. “I did a thriller where
the big hook at the end was that you find out all the char-
acters you’ve been watching throughout this entire movie
are actually dead, and they just don’t know it.”
The film’s title was not divulged because it is still being
marketed for sale.
Lowry’s production credits in the horror genre include
Deadly Sanctuary, Night of the Demons and Gothic Har-
vest – a dark thriller shot in New Orleans.
Lowry said he also enjoyed working on comedies and
heartstring pullers because he liked to make people laugh
Continued on Page 5

Harvey Lowry: Where the Magic of Filmmaking Comes Together
Continued From Page 3
and feel strong emotions.
After Union Bound, Lowry worked on
a movie called, A Play on Words – a sto-
ry taking place entirely in a classroom;
a, “dramatic version of Breakfast Club,”
said Lowry.
The movie is about a teacher teaching
anthropology to students, but, “Because
they were sitting in a classroom the whole
time, I had to figure out a way to shoot it
where I wouldn’t get bored if I was watch-
ing it,” said Lowry.
Working with a cinematographer, they
decided on a shooting style where the
camera was always moving and steadily
gliding.
‘The Chinese market
has always been a little
difficult to get into be-
cause they have very
strict regulation on
what people view. They
don’t want anything
overtly religious. They
don’t want anything that
makes Chinese people
look like criminals or
victims. They want their
people to be shown in a
good light.’
“So we shot the whole movie on sliders,
and dollies, and Steadicams,” said Lowry.
“As you’re focusing on somebody talking,
the background behind them is subtly
APRIL 2018
shifting the entire time. It really came out
mesmerizing and something I was really
proud of.”
A Play on Words has been picked up by
Lifetime Television.
He recently presided over the WeLink
New York City International Film Festi-
val – an event predominantly put on by a
Chinese group and designed to promote
collaboration in the creative arts between
Americans and Chinese.
“The Chinese market has always been
a little difficult to get into because they
have very strict regulation on what people
view,” said Lowry. “They don’t want any-
thing overtly religious. They don’t want
anything that makes Chinese people look
like criminals or victims. They want their
people to be shown in a good light.”
As an example, Lowry cited the remake
of the 1980s Cold War classic, Red Dawn.
In the original, the US mainland was in-
vaded by the now defunct Soviet Union.
In the remake, the US is invaded by Chi-
na, something unacceptable to the Chinese
if the film were to be distributed in their
country.
“They spent a tremendous amount of
money in post-production to change all
the symbols and uniforms from Chinese to
North Korean,” said Lowry. “The Chinese
film market is the number two market in
the world. A substantial amount of reve-
nue from any film can come from China
if they get Chinese distribution. On a film
like that [US producers] wanted Chinese
distribution, so they bit the bullet and paid
for the visual effects changes in order to
show that movie in China.”
What’s up next for Lowry? He’s produc-
ing his next film, called Blood Pageant
– a dark thriller with comedic elements
worked in and a romantic thriller called
Soulmates.
“Ironically, it’s also got a bit of a Faith-
based element to it also,” said Lowry. “It’s
a good script about a television variety
competition show in the vein of Ameri-
can Idol where somebody starts killing off
the contestants and they have to unravel this
whole mystery and find out who’s doing it.
Soulmates is about two people who pass
away at the same time and meet in the af-
terlife. When they’re both resuscitated and
brought back to their bodies, they have to
find each other. It’s kind of like Ghost meets
Sleepless in Seattle.”
‘I love doing thrillers
where I can surprise
the audience, or fool
the audience. I did a
thriller where the big
hook at the end was
that you find out the
characters you’ve been
watching throughout
this entire movie are
actually dead, and they
just don’t know it.
So how did a local kid growing up in
Canyon Country manage to become a suc-
cessful actor, Hollywood producer and di-
rector?
All because of a few famous first words:
“Why not? Why not give it a try?” This
followed by effort and gumption to follow
through.
5
A Tamer Form of
Dessert Fauna
By MARILYN DALRYMPLE
Contributing Writer
During a hike through the Antelope
Valley, you may be fortunate enough to
encounter a husk and/or form of one of
the desert’s least threatening creatures:
the Lepus Californicus or Black-tailed
Jackrabbit.
A husk is simply a group of jackrab-
bits, and the form is an indentation dug
in the earth’s surface most often under
creosote bushes.
For herbivores the desert flora provide
food, shade, and protection.
The hares derive moisture from succu-
lent cactus. They are nocturnal and sol-
itary animals and can live from one to
five years in the wild.
The jackrabbit is buff-gray or sandy
colored, peppered with black above and
white below.
Their black-tipped ears can be five
inches long and allow for keen hearing
and cool the jackrabbit by radiating heat
from the hare’s body.
Hares weigh four to eight pounds and
can run up to 40 miles per hour. They
can leap up to ten feet. As many as four
litters may be produced in a year, with
up to eight young in a litter.
When chased by a predator, the hares
run diagonally, changing direction
while flashing the white underside of
their tail.
The strategy confuses and startles the
enemy.
They thump the ground with strong
hind legs to warn other hares danger is
near.
In the late 1800s, a popular activity in
the southern Mojave Desert was a rabbit
hunt.
This was necessary because the killing
of coyotes by man allowed the over-pop-
ulation of rabbits and jackrabbits.
Over-population is no longer a prob-
lem as man’s encroachment of the desert
causes food and water shortages for the
wildlife and the animals perish.
If you want
your message
to get out,
mark it
“Secret.”
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6 PALMDALE BLVD
Gary O’Neal: An American Warrior in the Highest Sioux Tradition
By THOMAS FITZGERALD
Staff Writer
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This story lacks details and
is purposely vague due to the sensitive nature of Gary
O’Neal’s military service to the United States.
Over a four decade period spanning Vietnam to Nicara-
gua, Gary O’Neal has been shot, stabbed and riddled with
shrapnel while in service to this country.
He has not been awarded the Purple Heart for being
wounded in combat because he’s refused to accept it.
“In my view the Purple Heart is an award in the enemy’s
favor,” said O’Neal, an award in his view signified he,
“had been had by the enemy.”
Retired Special Forces Chief Warrant Officer Gary
O’Neal spoke with Palmdale Blvd newspaper about his
extraordinary life – a life dedicated to serving this nation
as one of its most distinguished warriors.
As a child growing up in the “Kansas, Nebraska and
South Dakota area,” O’Neal did not fit in well. He didn’t
like school and desired only to be outside tracking, ranch-
ing and horseback riding.
‘I got tired of people calling
me stupid. And I knew I wasn’t
stupid. I could drive a tractor at
8 years old, I could milk a cow
when I was 5. I was riding hors-
es in rodeos, and I’m roping
and I’m doing all kinds of stuff.
Tearing engines apart, putting
them back together. Planting
wheat and planting corn. At a
young age I was doing a man’s
job. I wasn’t stupid.’
“I was always doing things. I was a daredevil,” said
O’Neal. “There wasn’t too much I wouldn’t do.”
O’Neal participated in 4H, young rodeo, loved sports
and excelled at running. “I liked the country life. I like
cowboying,” said O’Neal. “I wasn’t big on cities.”
His Irish-American father was a rancher and farmer who
taught O’Neal mechanics at a young age.
His paternal grandfather taught him Blacksmith skills
and how to care for and handle horses – from shoeing to
riding.
“When I was 13, I was doing a man’s job on the ranch,”
said O’Neal. “I was like a ranch foreman.”
O’Neal’s mother was Sioux First Nation and growing
up being mixed race presented challenges for a young
O’Neal.
“Whites didn’t want anything to do with me because I
was Indian, and Indians didn’t want nothing to do with
me because I was white,” said O’Neal. “I didn’t like no-
body.”
Though O’Neal didn’t grow up on a Reservation, he did
spend time visiting his maternal grandparents on Reser-
vation and was taught about his native culture.
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O’Neal’s lineage has warrior ancestors on both his moth-
er and father’s side, but culturally and spiritually he has
always been driven toward his mother’s.
“I’ve had Chiefs from other tribes that would drag me
out and show me things because they knew the mixed
blood I had and the way my demeanor was on the native
side,” said O’Neal.
Spirituality is central to native lore, explained O’Neal.
“You never did anything that you didn’t give back. You
didn’t pick up a stone without replacing it with some-
thing.”
As a child, his father taught
him how to handle guns and
O’Neal often played with his
dad’s weapons.
Prior to every hunt there was prayer, dance and a feast.
When the hunting party returned, they were greeted by a,
“thank you ceremony, prayer to the creator thanking Him
for food, and thanking animals for supplying us with food
and warmth of clothes made from them. Everything was
in prayer,” said O’Neal.
O’Neal successfully completed the Sundance – a four
day, four night dance event purifying the mind, body and
spirit through medicines and sweat lodges.
The Sioux warrior tradition is to protect children and
secure their future by also protecting the elderly who pass
down knowledge.
“You dance all day in the sun without food or water,”
said O’Neal. “The warriors dance for the people, and it’s
all in prayer. It’s so the people don’t have to suffer. They
don’t have to go through pain. They don’t have to go
through hunger. The warriors take that away from them.”
O’Neal’s four day Vision Quest took place on the same
hallowed ground as done by Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse,
Fool’s Crow and Black Elk – the historic and legendary
warrior chiefs of the Sioux Nation.
O’Neal said he took the, “old school” native cultural
teachings, which included the Native American warrior
aspect, and put that together with the, “warrior aspect of
the Irish, because the Irish always fought. The English
always used the Irish.”
O’Neal’s warrior heritage on his father’s side of the
family can be traced back to the home country and “Irish
Rangers” in the time of William Wallace days in the late
13th century.
O’Neal said his great grandfathers at the fourth and fifth
generation back served in the Frontier Rangers – the old-
est U.S. military unit.
“My fifth great grandfather and his two sons signed the
oath of allegiance and fought in the Revolutionary War
and the War of 1812,” said O’Neal. “So I’ve had a rela-
tion on my dad’s side, all the way down to me, serve in
different wars that America has been in since the creation
of America in 1776.”
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As a child, his father taught him how to handle guns
and O’Neal often played with his dad’s weapons. “At 5,
I had my first 410 shotgun and a .22 pump rifle. They’d
give me rounds to go out and I’d get a squirrel or a rab-
bit.” said O’Neal. “When I brought it back, that’s what
we ate.”
O’Neal is a founding member of the pentagon’s first
antiterrorist team, was a member of the Golden Knights
Parachuting Team and was inducted into the U.S. Army
Ranger Hall of Fame at Fort Benning, Georgia.
He has authored a book – American Warrior: The True
Story of a Legendary Ranger.
“When I was in Central America, South America, work-
ing down there we had our enemies we was fighting,” be-
gan O’Neal. “They gave me that name, ‘Guerrero Ameri-
cano,’ which means, ‘American Warrior.’ So that’s where
I got that nickname. It kind of stuck with me.”
In his book, O’Neal tells about the time when still too
young to join the military without parental consent, at 16
years old he “borrowed” an older cousin’s birth certifi-
cate – unbeknownst to his cousin – to legally enlist in the
Army.
O’Neal was eventually caught when the Army noticed
two soldiers with the same identification number receiv-
ing pay.
‘To me, there’s no difference
between Democrats and Re-
publicans. They’re all hogs
that eat out of the same hog
trough – and that’s feeding off
taxpayers’ dollars. We need to
cleanse our government.’
“I just wanted to be in the Army to get away from where
I grew up,” said O’Neal. “I just basically ran away from
home. I saw a target of opportunity.”
Growing up with dyslexia caused O’Neal difficulty in
school. This during the late ‘50s and early to mid ‘60s
and long before the affliction was recognized by schools
as a possible root cause for poor performance.
“I had problems reading and I had problems spelling.
The math. I’d get things mixed up. Back then, they al-
ways called me ‘stupid’ because I couldn’t read,” said
O’Neal. “I got tired of being called ‘stupid.’”
Reading, writing and arithmetic were O’Neal’s self-ad-
mitted, “Achilles heel,” his weak points, which led to dis-
respectful taunting and ridicule by ignorant classmates,
often followed by a school yard fight and O’Neal getting
in trouble.
“I got tired of people calling me stupid,” said O’Neal.
And I knew I wasn’t stupid. I could drive a tractor at 8
years old, I could milk a cow when I was 5. I was riding
horses in rodeos, and I’m roping and I’m doing all kinds
of stuff. Tearing engines apart, putting them back togeth-
er. Planting wheat and planting corn. At a young age I
was doing a man’s job. I wasn’t stupid.”
The military method of teaching – explanation, demon-
Continued on Page 7
 APRIL 2018 7

Gary O’Neal: An American Warrior in the Highest Sioux Tradition

more.” good stuff. I was in some of the toughest “I only had four minutes and I think I was
Continued From Page 6
Once O’Neal became attracted to martial units in the military. I’ve served with Navy up there 12 or 15 minutes,” said O’Neal.
stration, practical application (explain- arts, he trained with an understanding rec- SEALS. I’ve worked with indigenous “I was wondering why I’m not getting a
see-do) – though supported with basic ognizing the superior power of the mind forces as a UW (unconventional warfare) signal [to stop] but Trump wanted to hear
written material suited O’Neal well with over the strength of the physical. expert and learned their language.” what I had to say.”
his talent, or “gift” for having the aptitude “I always trained my subconscious,” said These days, O’Neal said he can read a lot He got the gig through a friend, but as a
for seeing something done then being able O’Neal. “I’m a conscious being. I’ll tell better but relies mainly upon audio books pre-condition, O’Neal insisted he be able
to do it himself. you the secret that I did. I trained my mind and video instructions – a formula that to spend time with Trump before agreeing
“The handouts and books were confusing first, before I did the action. It’s just like helped him get through college. to deliver the keynote and introduction.
to me,” said O’Neal. “The training in the watching a video. I would see it and then A society without warriors to protect it is
military fit my disabilities. I seen it and I I would repeat it in my head a lot. Then I not a society for long. O’Neal – An Ameri- ‘Whites didn’t want
did it. Just like mimicking. It was really could do it and I just went out and did it.” can Warrior in the Highest Sioux Tradition anything to do with
easy for me.” This talent proved invaluable as a dys- – selflessly served the nation overseas for
In the Army training to work with dem- lexic SF demolition expert with a back- decades.
me because I was
olitions as an infantryman, O’Neal was ground as a poorly performing student He served a nation respectful of plu- Indian, and Indians
required to calculate a mathematical for- when studying in a formal, civilian edu- ralism and the right to strident dissent, didn’t want nothing to
mula to do his job. cation setting who is now required to use including the right to protest against not do with me because I
“I had to do formula. I had to do alge- math to do his job. only the war but their nation’s soldiers
bra and trigonometry,” said O’Neal, who “I got over on that – as to the [math] for- fighting the war. was white. I didn’t like
credited, “good instructors” in the Army, mula – I could look at the steel, I could Palmdale Blvd asked O’Neal for his nobody.’
one who in particular noticed and ap- look at whatever we just happened to need thoughts on those Americans opposing
proached him about his dyslexia. to build or destroy, I pretty much knew the nation’s involvement in Vietnam – a His purpose was to talk with the candi-
“One of the instructors said, ‘Gary, you what the formula was going to do and war he was risking his life to prosecute – date, man to man, and learn his views in-
got dyslexia?’ and I said, ‘What’s that?’ how much I needed,” said O’Neal. “After including the conscientious objector, the stead of relying on reports in the media.
and he said, ‘Let’s check that out,’” said memorizing the formulas, I could look at “draft dodger,” the draft card burner, and “I like him,” said O’Neal of the current
O’Neal. “So I went to the doctor and they something and see the formula in my head those who vented their rage against U.S. president. “He brash, but he doesn’t su-
checked it out and said, ‘Yeah, you got and transcribe in my head, and then plant service personnel like himself upon their garcoat anything. He’s not politically cor-
dyslexia.’” the charges, or whatever I was building.” return home. rect and he don’t give a shit. He tells it like
Fortunately for O’Neal, the US Army O’Neal credits his ability to visualize a “I don’t take issue with them because it is. That’s why I spoke with him.”
and the nation, properly training and de- task and then perform the task with sav- there’s a place for everybody,” began O’Neal made clear he’s not a partisan
ploying dyslexic demolition experts for ing his life and the lives of men under his O’Neal. “We’re not all warriors. We’re not or political party loyalist and shared his
battle in Vietnam was as simple as en- command. all doctors. We’re not all lawyers. We’re dislike for politicians in general, whether
suring recruits had dyslexic demolition not all plumbers, or educators or whatever. Democrat or Republican.
instructors. Prior to every hunt The pacifist and stuff like that, I never had “To me, there’s no difference between
“One of my instructors had dyslexia there was prayer, a problem with them. I believe in individ- Democrats and Republicans,” said O’Ne-
too,” said O’Neal. “And he showed me uality. I believe in everybody has an opin- al. “They’re all hogs that eat out of the
how he did it. With one eye. Before this, dance and a feast. ion. I believe in Freedom. I believe in the same hog trough – and that’s feeding off
I’d look at a paragraph, and most peo- When the hunting Constitution, every man is created equal. taxpayers’ dollars. We need to cleanse our
ple if they saw what I saw would get sea party returned, they I never see skin color. Yellow or brown government.”
sick.” man. I’ve never seen that.”
Being treated better by the military – “the
were greeted by a, O’Neal’s libertarian views stem from Gary O’Neal is represented by Bruce
only color that matters is O.D. Green,” thank you ceremony, both his military experience and his up- Merrin’s Celebrity Speakers Bureau. Book
said O’Neal – than his peers in civilian prayer to the creator bringing. O’Neal to speak at your event by calling
life made military culture one that O’Neal thanking Him for food, “My dad and my grandparents, they Merrin at 702.367.0331.
found attractive in comparison. taught me that,” said O’Neal. “They read
His first deployment to Southwest Asia
and thanking animals it in the scriptures. You always give every-
was an assignment to the 173rd Airborne for supplying us with body a chance. There are bad people in all
Brigade (infantry), where he served at food and warmth of races and there are good people in all rac-
Battalion Recon, then Long Range Re- clothes made from es. You just got to weed the bad people out
connaissance Patrol (LRRP – pronounced and hang out with the good people.”
“lurp”), and then on to Rangers. them. Everything was In January 2016, during the presiden-
O’Neal served with the Rangers for the in prayer. tial primary season, O’Neal was keynote
duration of the Vietnam War until he came speaker and introduced then-GOP prima-
back stateside to help form Ranger battal- “I was able to solve a lot of problems like ry candidate Donald Trump at a campaign
ions. that,” said O’Neal. “In combat, the tactics, rally before 10,000 people in Pensacola,
He accomplished all this before becom- I could see what was going on so I knew Florida.
ing a combat engineer in Special Forces where I needed to move, I knew where I
(SF) sometime in the 1970s. needed to go, I knew where I could take Rasmussen Insurance Agency
Applying for SF was a decision he de- my guys. I just knew it. I took my natural Farmers Insurance
layed for many years based upon an erro- ability and perfected it and adapted it.” Opening a new business today
neous assumption he did not possess the His talents caught the eye of military takes hard work and a big invest-
right qualities and experience. brass and O’Neal was often selected to ment. You need to make sure all
“I wanted to be SF in Vietnam but I didn’t participate in research and development your assets are protected and
have enough education in the woods to do projects like designing parachutes. give you the ability to get back to
what they was doing in Vietnam,” said “I could see something and make it tac- business in case of unforeseen
O’Neal. “Come to find out that I did a lot tical,” said O’Neal. “I got to do a lot of problems. We’re here to help
8 PALMDALE BLVD

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Palmdale School District Shows 5th Graders Our Middle Schools

By PALMDALE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Contributed
The Palmdale School District has initiated a program to acquaint all 5th grade students
with each of our middle schools and academies offered at each. The 5th grade students
are taken to the middle to visit and see which programs are offered at each school.
The students can submit applications to go to any of our middle schools that has seats
over and above those students that decide to attend the middle school as their home
school because of designated boundaries. Our middle schools have students in the 6th
– 8th grades.
CACTUS MIDDLE SCHOOL: Medical Health Pathway focusing on pre-medical and
preventive health concepts collaborating with the Health Careers Academy at Palmdale
High School. The students receive CERTS training, Red Cross first aid and CPR train-
ing, Upcoming Medical Professionals (guest speakers, field trips to medical facilities)
and community service projects, anatomy and sports medicine. Technology Pathway
is where students explore technology and engineering in robotics. Computer science,
environmental and other STEM-related topics. Humanities has a variety of non-tech-
nical classes in debate, theater, art, foreign languages, journalism, home economics and
AVID. Students involved in AVID all the way through middle school and high school
have an 85% better chance of being admitted to college and being successful.
DAVID G MILLEN MIDDLE SCHOOL: Law and Government skills needed for
professions such as attorneys, government careers, politicians, and first responders.
This program is coordinated with the Law and Government academy at Highland High
School. Classes include foreign language, civics and the constitution, speech and de-
bate, legal careers, environmental law, model United Nations. Visual and Performing
Arts has traditional arts (music, art, dance and drama) and learn digital photography and
design, video editing, and blog design. Students will use these skills to develop brand
identities and learn how to market themselves. AVID is also offered to all grade levels.
DESERT WILLOW MIDDLE SCHOOL: Fine Arts, Science and Technology
(FAST). Fine arts include drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, graphic
design, photography, 2-D art, 3-D media and digital media, studying art history and
aesthetics. Performing Arts including beginning chorus, choir, band, strings, digital
music theory/composition, dance, drama and musical theater. AVID is also offered at
Desert Willow.
SAGE ACADEMY: Focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math.
Students take classes in civil air patrol, Lego robotics, Engineering and design, Paxton
Patterson STEM lab, aviation and flight. The fine arts are also available with classes
in band, strings, speech, journalism and art. AVID is also offered at SAGE Academy.
SHADOW HILLS MIDDLE SCHOOL: Academy of Engineering and Design. The
STEAM curriculum at Shadow Hills is where Science, Technology, Engineering and
Design are taught through inquiry, Project Based Learning and hands on exploration.
Beginning, intermediate and advanced LEGO Robotics, beginning, intermediate and
advanced VEX Robotics, Computer programming, Game Design, Advanced Game
Design, Geometric Design, Graphic Design, Multimedia I, II and 3-D, Web Design,
Business Computers and Business Marketing. Visual and Performing Arts Academy.
Band, Orchestra, Mariachi Band, Digital Recording, Song Writing, Art, Photography
and Spanish. Shadow Hills Middle School also offers AVID.
Parents are invited to call PSD or make an appointment and tour our middle schools.