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SEEING DOUBLE
 Ruth Edvalson and Beth Dorny (The Observer/PHIL BULLOCK). By Jeff Petersen Observer Staff Writer Wanted: Actual USO Show veterans to perform for community-wide 1940s USO Show & Dance Saturday. No problem. Sure, the dates are a little off, but identical twins Beth Dorny and Ruth Edvalson were on a USO tour to the Orient in 1962. Otherwise, they fit the bill perfectly. The local USO Show version, beginning at 7 p.m. at the National Guard Armory on 12th Street, includes the twins singing "Summertime," which they also sang on the 1962 tour. Other soloists are Mary Helen Garoutte and Norm Shrumm. Band members are Hank Hudson, Rosemarie McCabe, Harold Poeling, Keith Van Vickle and Jeri Van Vickle. Beth, of La Grande, and Ruth, of Union, not only provide identical harmonizing but they have a sweet personality to boot. The highlight of their USO tour, the now-62-year-old twins said, was a visit to the demilitarized zone in Korea. "All the soldiers were on red alert all the time," Ruth said, "and we were a very wholesome act. We reminded them of their sisters and mothers." It was not long before most of them were in tears. The Combs twins, as they were then known, were part of a seven-week adventure with Curtain Time U.S.A., a musical variety show presented by Brigham Young University that included stops in Korea, Japan, Okinawa, Guam, the Philippines, Midway and Hawaii. According to the June 13, 1962, Observer, Beth and Ruth "not only sing but play string bass, cello, percussion, piano, violin and viola." The twins attended Eastern Oregon College before transferring to BYU and were part of an EOC band tour that included visits to Travis and Hamilton Air Force bases in California. Ruth was an EOC rally squad leader, and Beth was the 1960 homecoming queen. At BYU the Combs were part of the Identicals quartet, which featured two sets of identical twins, including Larry and Gary Phair of Klamath Falls. The Identicals won first place in the mixed division at the Cougar Days jazz festival, among other honors. Many people around La Grande may remember the twins' father, Nephi Combs, who was known locally as "the Bird Man" for his skill at school assemblies in whistling in birds. Both twins had a chance to record for Capitol Records in Los Angeles. "But it weas time to have families," Ruth recalled. Both lived out of the area for about 20 years, raising families, Ruth in Utah and Beth in California. But they did take time to record a cassette, "Too!" The cassette was mixed in 1987 at Audio Vision Studios in Lindon, Utah, with songs from "Even the Candles are Crying" to "Summertime." Ruth and Beth have been singing since they can remember. "It does say in the baby book that I can carry a tune at 24 months," Ruth said. Being twins is an advantage to singing in harmony, and a disadvantage. "If we miss a word, we miss the very same word," Ruth said. "We'll forget the very same thing at the same time," Beth chips in. Mostly Beth takes the top half of a note and Ruth takes the bottom half of a note as they sing their favorites, soft jazz tunes. Their quiet, smooth sounds presents a challenge when playing with a big band for a USO show. But the twins conquer it with characteristic aplomb. Music is their main interest, but not their only interest. They're also known as the "Huckleberry Queens" the berries providing a big reason for coming back to the Grande Ronde Valley. The twins are also enthusiatic about researching genealogy. The highlight there is they come from four generations of twins. Their mother, Leone Baxter Combs, was a twin; Beth has five children, including two sets of twins, and one of those twins has a set of twin boys. Both teach voice in the valley, and sing at funerals, baptisms and weddings. But for having a soft, gentle voice they do have an unusual claim to fame. Let Ruth tell it: "We did the original rap in 1962 about twins. I believe nothing anything like it existed at the time." |
