I remembering now that Jeff and I used to carpool to the PVP for rehearsals of R&J (summer of 1977?). He drove some big red boat, hunched over the wheel like a little old lady, blinding the oncoming cars with his highbeams and offering a running commentary on....everything.

He used to recite verbatim some campy Bette Midler routine about perfoming "in The Brown Room high atop Swingo's Celebrity Motor Lodge". I have yet to track down the actual thing, but his eclectic fascination with the Divine Miss M seemed way ahead of the usual HS pursuits.

Likewise his out of the blue comment that he wished he was related to Tina Turner, so that he could hang out on tour with her, see the world and watch her dance on her fantastic legs.

He was so sincere in his esoteric interests that none of it seemed calculated. And it broadened my view of the world beyond just following the late 70's Steeler dynasty.

From Barb (Fazio) Harrold

Here are some High Arrow pictures and articles. You can click on them to enlarge them, or download them. Jeff really was a huge talent and mature beyond his years. Thanks so much for sharing these, Barb.

From Ian Gallanar

"And may I dine at journey's end
With Landor and with Donne"

-Yeats

From Barb (Fazio) Harrold

Jeff Davis, gifted actor, writer and friend.

I first met Jeff in 6th grade when we moved to Indiana. I remember his peculiar fascination with the Titanic, which at 30 years prior to the blockbuster movie, was not exactly in vogue. Even then, he was ahead of his time.

I enjoyed acting with him in "Books and Crooks" in junior high, then "Ah, Wilderness!" at IHS where he had the lead role... Richard, the rebellious youth, searching for the meaning of life in 1906 Connecticut. But, of course his crowning IHS achievement, and my very favorite show, was "The Importance of Being Earnest", where he played Algernon Moncrieff. He had such a natural ability to get completely into character, a stage maturity beyond his years.

I was also privileged to work with Jeff on the High Arrow newspaper staff, where he expressed his creative intellect in the written word. He had his own "column", so to speak. In other words, while everyone else wrote about student council, clubs, sports, etc. he wrote about whatever he chose in his unique, humorous style. When I look back over my High Arrows, I notice how Jeff's witty, off-beat articles stand head and shoulders above all the other typical high school fluff. ( I am sending some scanned samples of his stories, hopefully they are readable).

Though Jeff is known for his scathing (yet humorous) sarcasm and I-don't-care-what-anyone-thinks-of-me demeanor, I know I caught glimpses of a sensitive and caring soul underneath. I am sorry we fell out of touch. But over the years, thoughts of him have come to mind. A sardonic or wry comment will remind me of something he may have said, and of course I'll think back on it with a smile.

Barb (Fazio) Harrold

From B.J. Hill

The Jeff I Loved

I met Jeff Davis in junior high school. He became an inseparable companion in those years. There was no one in Indiana Junior High that didn’t expect Jeff to become the next Faulkner, Eliot, or Hemingway. Many people have gifts, but some people have extraordinary talent and potential and Jeff was clearly in that class. This is a kid who was writing novels in 8^th grade and reading books that were not understood by area college students. Yep, he was smart. But it wasn’t his brains that made him my friend; it was his killer sense of humor. He was so quick witted that to be around him was to take a ride into hysteria. Nothing was off limits to Jeff…everyone could be made fun of!!

Jeff remains on my list of the 20 most influential people of my life. Time spent with Jeff was not typical. We did crazy things. Like going to Flagstaff outdoor Theatre and tipping over the park benches while sitting in them – just to see how others would react. We looked for books at the IUP library to explain who we were. I talked on the phone for hours with his alter ego – a worn out stuffed animal named Lassie – who swore and made sexual innuendos. Of course there were other women in Jeff’s life….there was Melanie and her roller skate key, Janis and her Bobbie Magee, and Bette who knew you had to have friends.

Like many gifted and artistic characters, Jeff did not suffer fools easily. Sometimes his humor turned dark, and he didn’t trust that others cared for him. I don’t know why life is harder for some people, and why the promise of potential is not always realized…..is it the nearness of brilliance and anxiety? Over the years I was able to recognize less and less of the Jeff I used to know, though Jeff’s sensitivity and heart remained. It pains me that Jeff suffered and I am comforted that he is free.

I am thankful for the years of innocence that are junior high school, and the chance meeting that made Jeff my friend. Jeff was kind to me. He made me mix tapes, walked to the mall with me, and made fun of people who were mean. He loved me and I loved him.

From Louise Cord

I remember Jeff vividly. He was my first junior high school crush. He was in my English class and was such a serious and earnest student that I felt I could relate to him. He may never have known how much I liked him, although I always felt it was obvious. It saddens me a lot to learn of his death. He was such a creative and good person - the world will miss him.

The perfect Algernon Moncrieff

Jeff was an utterly natural actor. One even gets a sense of his fluidity in still photos. He forever defined my memory of Oscar Wilde and high English comedy. Of the fun of "Theatre" really.

But it was his searing wit and self-effacing sarcasm that I remember best. He was one of those ageless, perpetually mature people who was just fun to watch. Pitch perfect sense of humor and timing and quietly unconcerned about what others thought about him. So he had a confidence beyond his years and, in the awkwardness of HS, that impressed me alot.

The Importance of Being Earnest

Because of the Blizzards of 1977, we rehearsed for months (the show kept being postponed), and it was fun the whole time, with Jeff leading the way in clever backstage repartee.

Earnest

I never actually met Jeff. He was a friend of a lot of my friends, so I heard a lot of stories about him. He was funny. He was articulate. He was smart. He didn't suffer fools lightly. He was held in the highest regard by his friends.

In high school he was legendary among those of us that did plays for his performance in THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING ERNEST. It was still talked about when I was a senior, four years later.

After he died, I found out he taught at Winchester Thurston, a prep school two blocks from where I work. I wish I'd known.

Jeffrey T. Davis (1958-2006)

We are saddened to have lost our friend Jeff Davis, but wish to celebrate his life. If you'd like to post a memory, thought or photo of Jeff, please do so.