By Barb King

I'll tell you what.

Since local resident Marianne Johnstone invited a group of us "older" women to her home for a Murder Mystery Party on December 31, 2008, I'll never be the same.

What a thrill it was to arrive partly dressed and made-up as characters in a play called "Bullets 'N Barbecue."

We were given extra "props" such as hats, vests, feathers, gloves, garters, canes, guns, shawls, cards, and a parasol, medicine bag, cigar, wig and book, as well as our scripts.

Our characters were a Mexican bandit, a gambler, a doctor, an English lady, a school marm and an entertainer, as well as an Indian, a cowboy narrator, a town drunk and an extra cowpoke.

We were enacting an event in the year 1872 in the tiny town of Drygulch on the Western Frontier.

Our goal was to solve the mystery of "who-dun-it", after the sheriff was found dead of a gunshot wound.

Jasper, the narrator, laid the ground work for the plot and in the First Act, each character questioned each of the other characters with accusations as to why "he" could be the killer.

The accused would reply with excuses as to why he was not the one who shot the sheriff.

(This was the fun part because we had to ad-lib many of our replies.)

We would "gasp" and "groan" as clues and evidence were presented, just like in the old-time melodramas.

Before starting Act Two, as we were sitting around a large table, it was time for the first course of our meal.

We had apple cider, popcorn and pork rinds.

Our honored guest was 101 year old Margaret Caldwell, (Maggy), otherwise known as "The Old Crone" in a Mesquite newspaper, where she writes about her life's journals.

In this play she was Miss Patience, and what a wonderful job she did re-creating a sweet, prim and proper school marm who had once been engaged to the sheriff.

Preceding each act, the narrator helped make the plot thicken and each character continued to accuse the other of wrong-doing.

At the end of Act Two, it was time for the next portion of the meal, which included chicken and dumplings, chicken pot pie, barbecued chicken and cornbread.

As we entered into the final Third Act, we found that the murderer could have been any one of us.

As we took a hand vote of who we thought was guilty, most of us locals received votes, especially Juan Bandito (a Mexican Bandit), played by Ruth Cox, Bibi Gunn (the entertainer at the Paradise Saloon), played by Barb King and Sally Forth (an English lady and mail-order bride), played by Sha Odell.

Sha is the 76 year old daughter of Margaret Caldwell.

Sha (with her great English accent), and her mother (with her sweet little innocent way), both showed their penchant for acting skills.

Margaret continues to amaze everyone who meets her with her wonderful humor and fabulous abilities with story-telling.

It was a funny twist when the characters Miss Patience and Bibi teamed up to run a brothel in the town.

Local Willie Holbrook played the old-fashioned town doctor.

Other participants in the play from the Salt Lake City area were Rowdy Azell (a gambler), played by Connie Corrado, Jasper McCoy (the cowboy narrator), played by Caleen Brown, Suzie Souse (the town drunk), played by Margaret Wallace and Hokoponus (an Indian maiden), played by Ann Stevenson.

Deputy Dan (the dead sheriff's deputy), was played by Marianne Johnstone.

Oh, were we surprised when it was revealed by Jasper that the English lady, who had arrived as a mail-order bride for the sheriff, was the culprit !

To top off this event, pumpkin pie was served as dessert.

As the clock neared midnight, everyone was supplied with hats and head bands, leis, horns and champagne to ring in the New Year.

We watched the TV broadcast and joined in with the countdown.

I can't wait until 2010 to see which of her many plays Marianne chooses for next year's tradition and I'll get to meet more new friends.

Four of Marianne's friends from Utah came here just to be in another one of these enjoyable plays.

Marianne keeps pictures of all of her plays in albums over the years.

Now I have word that the local Mesquite Senior Center is aiming to put on one of these plays here for Valentine's Day.

Yea!

Here we go again.

Everyone out there, let us know of your interest.

We also have planned a surprise to celebrate Margaret Caldwell's 102nd birthday which is coming up on Feb. 1.

We are having Willard Scott tell about her on the Today Show shown on national TV just previous to her birthday.

Please watch for it.