(Story and photos courtesy of Fred Scruton)

For over 50 years Ron Manolio cheerfully hand-painted the (real) eggshells for Betty Manolio’s Eggshelland graph paper designs.  I’ve truly never met a person who exuded such giddy delight over bringing pleasure to other people.

The immense regional following that Eggshelland has earned no doubt brought Ron great, and well-deserved satisfaction.  During the couple of weeks the annual display lasts, there is a constant stream of visitors, and Easter Sunday brings hundreds and hundreds of often generational admirers.  Ron and Betty made me feel like just another member of their big Italian-American family from the (unannounced) first moment I showed up with my big camera at their suburban Cleveland front yard in 2005.  According to the articles below, Betty intends there to be one final goodbye display for Easter 2013.

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/08/ronald_manolio_creator_of_lynd.html

http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/local_news/oh_cuyahoga/eggshelland-creator-ron-manolio-of-lyndhurst-dies-from-blood-infection

(above)  Ron taking pictures of visiting posers .         (below)  Ron and Betty in 2010.

Eggshelland 2012:

Eggshelland 2011:

Eggshelland 2012 installation:

Thank you Ron, Betty, and the Manolio family.