New book chronicles remarkable life of Charles Fraser

Polymath...someone who is interested and involved and exhibits expertise about a variety of different things.

Pamela Ovens, from the very beginning, always had a stack of fascinating projects on her mind. Happily for many of us, she pursued most of them.

A polymath, really, she continues to be involved in a variety of creative interests.

You can expect that her drawing board is filled to the brim with new ideas and potential projects and activities - theatrical director, actor, artist, art administrator, musician, dancer, writer, broadcast journalist, voice over maven, culinary innovator and entrepreneur.

One of her recent, good ideas came about as she worked in the literary field.

She is celebrating, this week, the release of “My Life with Charles Fraser,” a book written by Charlie Ryan, edited by Jamie Vidich, with the cover design by Douglas Singer, cover art by Linda Warner Constantino and published by Ovens through her Single Star , a division of Ovens Onboard, Ltd.

The book is stunning, telling the story of this exceptional visionary, all enhanced by a section of historically significant photographs.

Pamela Ovens, publisher.

Pamela Ovens, who came to Hilton Head in 1979, and Charlie Ryan, who arrived in 2010, were working together on a book project when they stumbled into a meaningful conversation about Charles Fraser, the iconic developer of Hilton Head known for his concepts of land planning and design principles that changed the face of seaside resorts. Both knew him well, from their earliest Hilton Head days, and were staggered by his death in an accident in 2002.

The two began to create a listing of Fraser’s family, friends, business associates, celebrities, and important people whose lives were changed or impacted as a result of their own associations with Fraser.

“Our collaboration came about in a kind of low key way,” said Ovens. “But once we began to define our concept and the players who we’d call upon to offer narratives about Charles, we were totally on our way down a path to publishing through an amazing collaboration, not at all low key.”

Ovens and Ryan carefully listed some important early islanders and began to direct their attentions to family, friends, Sea Pines Plantation professionals, architects, landscapers, golfers, tennis players, those in the arts, and those in education and naturalists whom they felt they could involve in the preparation of the book.

“The list grew in spite of ourselves,” said Ovens. “In just a few days time, we had a long list of friends and associates of Charles, who supported our concept and agreed to join us in this amazing project, and which, in the final analysis, would be a kind of tribute to Charles Fraser and to the Lowcountry.”

Once they carefully defined the project and more than 40 contributors, they were able to complete their book - filled with personal narratives, which were introduced by Ryan, and either written directly, by the contributor, a family member or taken from a lecture or presentation - in just over a year’s time.

Early Ovens and Ryan

Ovens, who was raised in Ohio by parents who were actors and theater administrators, was encouraged to pursue all creative activities. She attended Morris-Harvey College, where she earned a degree in theater arts.

“My parents were in the theater, and their enthusiasm for things creative drew me in creative directions,” said Ovens.

“ I came along out of college at a good time,” she went to say “Remember this was the later 70’s, and women didn’t often take the lead in matters of business. I worked at a radio station, then moved on to television. Actually, by a strange set of circumstances, I think I must have been twenty-something, when I actually interviewed Julia Child on television.”

Ryan, who graduated from West Virginia University, is a journalist. He has, in more than 50 years of reporting and public relations counseling, interviewed presidents, U.S. senators, governors and countless news makers. His background provided the duo with just the kind of spin they needed to bring about this important collaboration.

“We had worked together on one of Charlie’s books, “The Pullman Hilton, a Christmas Mystery,’ said Ovens. “So I won’t surprise you when I tell you that when we shared this new book idea over a cup of coffee ... our plan not only evolved, but grew to this important outcome.”

“My Life with Charles Fraser” is now available at Island Bookstores and www.singlestar.us.

This story was originally published May 11, 2016 at 12:56 PM with the headline "New book chronicles remarkable life of Charles Fraser."