Annie Laurie McDowell as a gracious, vivacious (and terribly funny!) lady who came to Los Angeles in the mid to late 1940s from Colorado to "become an actress". She studied and performed at The Pasadena Playhouse, was "discovered" and became the nightly personality on KTLA Channel 5, our oldest, earliest television station. It was her job to introduce the nightly guests and present the commercials. The station felt her name was too 'stilted', so they changed it to Candy McDowell. She and her producer fell in love and eventually married, with Candy 'retiring' to raise their family. She had quite a few fun, interesting stories about her years at Channel 5, with Dean filling in from his forty years at NBC. After retiring, they moved to Chatsworth, buying a condo adjacent to Chatsworth Park South and discovered The Homestead Acre there. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnie_Hill_Palmer_House She, and her wonderful husband, Dean, joined the Historical Society and took on the restoration of the gardens at "The Acre", as their retirement project. It was there, I met them in 1983 at one of their open gardens, which were held monthly. Rather quickly, they had me joining them, volunteering at The Huntington Library in their rose gardens. My earliest 'funny colored roses' came through Candy, primarily from Peter Schneider (American Rose Rambler editor) who imported many and dedicated his rose, Eden Ellen, in remembrance of their daughter who was killed by a drunk driver. John MacGregor, Clair Martin's predecessor at The Huntington, donated a number of old and rare roses to help jump start the garden restoration. Several were already growing in the garden when Candy and Dean began their efforts. The Acre hosted an annual Rose Festival, featuring old, rare and unusual roses Annie Laurie propagated. It wasn't long until their festivals also included roses which had passed through my Newhall garden which were decent roses, but not exactly what I had thought, or hoped they would be, with cutting grown and seedling roses added to the mix. They spent "winter" here in the San Fernando Valley, escaping the summer heat at her grandfather's "cabin" in Beulah, Colorado. Each return brought something new and exciting for the garden from their summer exploits. The rose, 'Pike's Peak' was one find. The Pike's Peak seedling, 'Beulah Belle' was my 'thank you' to the member of The Belles who supplied the cuttings. The Beulah Belles was their ladies civic organization, though the self proclaimed purpose was to "get together monthly to celebrate birthdays and get sloshed". R. Arkansana "Peppermint", the stippled Arkansana, was another. Many came from Denver Botanical and most still grace my garden. There were many shared dinners, garden tours and visits and much local exploration over the years. Roses and a lot of laughter were the main themes. I'll let the entry in Comments section I posted to Help Me Find pick it up here. A number of years ago, Mel Hulse, of the San Jose Heritage Rose Garden, along with others from that garden, visited my garden in Southern California to obtain cuttings of my collection for their garden. One rose Mel was particularly struck by was Annie Laurie McDowell. At that time, it was simply referred to as Renae Seedling. Mel and others in San Jose began referring to it as "Super Renae" and Mel continued singing its praises. Along the way, I lost the original seedling to flat head apple borers. Mel maintained Annie Laurie McDowell and two or three other Renae seedlings he had collected from my garden. I wanted to name a rose for a very dear friend who was responsible for introducing me to The Huntington Gardens and Library and encouraging me to become a volunteer there. Super Renae was the obvious choice. I emailed Mel and asked if he could bring me as many cuttings and bloom spires as possible as we were to meet in Visalia at Sequoia Nursery to film a documentary about Ralph Moore. Being the kind gentleman he was and the loyal friend I'd grown to love, he not only brought me cuttings, but a large, foam ice chest FULL of blooming material! All were carefully wrapped and placed in ice to maintain them for the four days it would require before they could be taken to their potential namesake. We spent the time at Sequoia and accomplished our mission. I brought the ice chest home and called my dear friend, who invited me to join her for breakfast the following morning. I brought the ice chest and spent well over an hour cleaning and recutting the stems under water while she prepared our breakfast. When all stems were finished, I'd filled a large antique water pitcher with many dozens of bloom clusters in prime condition. The pitcher was her grandfather's, and we placed it on her grandfather's secretary desk. He was a doctor and the case was full of his instruments and medical books. We enjoyed our breakfast while admiring the pitcher full of Annie Laurie McDowell sitting on her grandfather's desk. At that time, Annie Laurie was about 71, so you have an idea of the age of the desk, equipment, books and pitcher and water bowl. Annie Laurie had sought the old Hybrid Tea, Annie Laurie, for years. It was an early Twentieth Century sport of Ophelia. The rose is extinct. Had it not been for the keen eye, dedication and kindness of this fine gentleman and loyal friend, Annie Laurie McDowell would have become extinct years before finally accepting the name of my dear friend. And, Annie Laurie wouldn't have had a rose she loved bear her name in her last years of life. I sincerely miss them both.

Congrats, Sheila! I share your excitement and agree that Burling is terrific. Just remember, Annie Laurie McDowell takes a looooong time to climb. If you enjoy her graceful leaves and pretty blooms every step of the way, you will have patience. I disbud her to encourage her to grow, but her buds tend to get away from me when my back is turned. I don't mind letting her bloom every once in awhile. Bonnie

I'm so glad for you. Everyone else who has one has seemed to do fine with it except for my poor straggler of a plant that has sat there for some years. However, this year I do believe it grew an inch or two and may be getting ready to make a growth leap. I'll keep my fingers crossed for yours if you'll do the same for mine. The absence of thorns or prickly leaves is such a treat and that's why I've hung in there with this midget that just did not want to grow. I wish you great luck with yours.

Congratulations, Kim! Does this mean that you are a proud father? :-) That's a beautiful rose. Medium shrub, few prickles and has enough of a sense of herself to keep you waiting a full week for the unveiling: I like her! As Ingrid noted, she does resemble MFK. I have always been a MFK admirer, but I know some do not like the fact she is prone to vegetative centers. You may have hit on the perfect solution! The bloom color is lovely shade of mellow sunrise, and the burgundy stems are a perfect foil! Carol