Larry Davis Delaney passed away peacefully on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015 at his home in Whitefish, Mont., surrounded by family. He was born Sept. 24, 1938, in Little Rock, Ark., to Evelyn P. Morgan and Charles Mims.
For those who knew him, Delaney was “the most interesting man alive,” raised by a Marine during WWII, traveling from Midway Island to the Carolinas and settling in Orange County. After high school, he enlisted in the Navy, drove submarines and was a UTD frogman, a precursor to the Navy SEALS.
During his 20s, Delaney was a deputy for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, trained K-9s, married and had daughter, Deborah. He worked for the Olympic Committee during the Mexico Olympics before moving to Los Angeles in the mid ‘60s to pursue writing at an entertainment trade journal.
Eventually becoming the magazine’s editor, he was courted by Capitol Records where he became head of press relations, working intimately with The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Glen Campbell, among others. Earning the camaraderie of The Beatles, he became integral in helping them launch their independent label Apple Records.
In the ‘70s, Delaney’s savvy PR skills were noticed by the White House and he successfully helped spearhead Richard Nixon’s re-election campaign.
Returning to the entertainment industry as an actor, he starred in such television shows and films as “Brian’s Song,” “West World,” “Gunsmoke,” “Six Million Dollar Man,” and “Mayberry RFD” where Delaney met and married TV star Arlene Golonka. His most prominent role was as Jay Livingston on the iconic soap opera “Days of our Lives.”
Delaney penned New York Times bestselling novels “Blood Red Wine,” “Triton Ultimatum,” “Sea Ranch,” “Blood Harvest,” as well as “No Sympathy for the Devil” under the pseudonym Fredrick Snow.
In 1978 he rekindled an old romance with Mary Louise Hart, who he had briefly dated in Capitol Records days. She resided in Laguna Beach when she became pregnant, giving birth to a son and deciding to give up city life. In 1981, they moved to Whitefish, Mont.
In Montana, he worked for Big Mountain Ski Resort’s marketing department teaming with Doug Betters of Miami Dolphins and forming the Doug Betters Winter Classic. He worked with other local innovative companies AIS, Cyber Port, and Integrated Materials.
His twilight years were spent beekeeping, writing and mentoring his son Morgan in the art of storytelling.
Delaney was preceded in death by his wife of 31 years, Mary Louise Hart Delaney, in 2013. He is survived by brother Bill Mims, of Santa Monica; daughters Deb Puckett, of Weldon, Calif., Kim DeGeer, of Vancouver BC., Elizabeth Phillips, of Laguna Beach, Jennifer Clemente, of Austin, Tex., and Laura Newman, of Florence, Italy; son Morgan Hart Delaney, of Los Angeles; and grandchildren, Ruby and Sterling Phillips, Meghan, Kristen and Jenna Lee Walker, Matteo and Gianmarco Orlandi; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Delaney’s celebration of life was attended by many at the Bohemian Grange Hall in Whitefish, Mont., Sunday, Oct. 18, officiated by family friend Alan Secher, known as “Mont
