When talking with Daryle, you really get a sense of his vast knowledge and experience. He seems to have an anecdote for most topics and has great delivery as a storyteller.
Daryle, who sometimes goes by Bob, was born in Hayward, CA to a Mormon family. His father, Wilford Thomas Webb Jr., was a Bishop in the Mormon church. Wilford, who was a hodgepodge of nationalities, but mostly English, was a history buff and very smart. He would have done well had he been given the opportunity to go to college. Daryle’s father was also a chicken rancher who raised Cornish game hens, and due to the wartime beef shortage, business flourished. Wilford even invented a new method of raising chickens on the wire instead of on the ground. His parents made good money in the chicken business.
Daryle’s mother, Margaret Leona, was of Czech descent. Daryle was a product of eugenics, a method developed with the intention of improving the human race. As a result of this, his mother was sterilized and never able to have more children, something she often made him feel responsible for. Daryle and his mother didn’t get along and he was afraid of her. They disagreed regularly about his future path and religion. At 15 he decided he no longer wanted to be a part of the Mormon church. Even though his mother was 300 pounds, that woman could run and she would chase him down. According to Daryle, the last time she chased him down he was 16 and outran her, only to be saved by a pig!
Even with her faults, Daryle has good memories of her cooking. She made one heck of an apple pie and even owned a restaurant for one year. Daryle recalls trips he would take to Playland in San Francisco. He could get there for 10 cents. He will never forget Dolly the Mechanical Doll, who would welcome you to the park, and he recalls different attractions with great glee.
After he finished high school Daryle attended San Jose State, where he graduated in 1951, the same year he married Barbara. The marriage didn’t go well, as it was not a good match. In an attempt to get away, Daryle volunteered for the military in 1952. By 1957 they were divorced. Daryle’s father thought the Germans would take over after the war, so while in high school Daryle was encouraged to study German. This came in very handy when he met his second wife, Doris, in Germany. They went on to have two sons before they divorced. Later, he met his third and final wife Carol and had one more son. Carol was a jewelry maker who was known worldwide.