Ladies State Chili Championship of Texas

Heloise Bowles Cruse

1919 - 1977

The Original Heloise

Born in Fort Worth, Texas on May 4, 1919, Eloise Bowles and identical sister Louise were born on their mother’s birthday, who incidentally was also an identical twin.

She graduated from Felt and Tarrent Business College and Draughn’s Business College in 1939.

In 1946 she married Captain Marshal (Mike) Holman Cruse. As an Air Force wife, Heloise followed her husband to Nanking, China and then back to the States, and while in Waco, Texas daughter Poncë Kiah Marchelle Cruse was born in 1951.

Further deployments took the family to Arlington, Virginia, and in 1958, Hawaii. While there she decided that the local newspaper needed a column targeted to housewives. She pitched her idea to the editor of the Honolulu Advertiser, even offering to work for free for a month to see if it would catch on. The editor took a chance, and "The Readers’ Exchange" column was first published in February, 1959. It was such a success that by 1961 that Time magazine did an article on The Island Wonder which caught the attention of publishing syndication conglomerate, King Features. The column was renamed "Hints from Heloise", the H being added to her name for its alliterative effect, and by 1964 the column was appearing in nearly 600 newspapers around the world.

An irrepressible personality, described by her daughter as a cross between Auntie Mame and Lucille Ball, she was known to give telephone repairmen bottles of Scotch in exchange for extra equipment, blew cigarette smoke at her doctors' warnings, and generally "bribed, battered, or batted her eyelashes" through any opposition.

At the age of 58, Heloise died on December 28, 1977 and her daughter took over the column which is still in syndication. Her tombstone reads simply, "Heloise, Every Housewife’s Friend."

HER BOOKS

Heloise’s Housekeeping Hints, 1962

Heloise’s Kitchen Hints, 1963

Heloise All Around the House, 1965

Hints For Working Women, 1966

Heloise’s Work and Money Savers, 1967

Interesting Trivia

SOME CLASSIC SUMMER TIME

HINTS FROM HELOISE

Natural insect repellent

Mix 2 drops of oil of peppermint or lavender with 2 teaspoons of almond or sweet oil and dab on the skin.

Pest-Free Picnic Table

Add 5 drops of lavender essential oil to 32 ounces of water. Pour into a spray bottle and wipe down the table and chairs.

Bug-Free Room

Put a few drops of lavender or peppermint essential oil on a cool light bulb to help repel bugs. Place several drops of oil of lavender or peppermint on a cotton ball or two. Put them into a small jar or margarine container. Poke a few holes in the lid and cover. Put around the room.

Underground Journalism:

San Antonio's surprising dead celebrities

Between 1962 and 1977, Texas-born Heloise Bowles Cruse was better known to most American housewives simply as "Heloise," a gal with countless helpful household ideas. She moved to San Antonio from Hawaii when her syndicated newspaper column, "Hints from Heloise," was published in almost 600 newspapers.

Heloise died in 1977. Her tombstone at San Jose Burial Park is as simple as her ideas. All it says is: "Heloise, Every Housewife's Friend." And at the bottom is a "-30-" — newspaper code for "The End."