When Maureen Martin asked me to accompany her to meet friends visiting from Ohio in the United States, I was happy to accept but didn’t expect to meet two delightful men with extraordinary stories to tell over tea in a china cup in their beautiful little house in Co Down.
James Dalton was brought up in Carrickfergus, went to Belfast High School and had two passions in life: fashion and dogs. For his twelfth birthday he was given a smooth Dachshund. He showed Rolf at local events and at 14 he won his first ‘best in show’ in Ireland - and so a lifelong passion for breeding and exhibiting dogs was born.
Today James owns 15 French bulldogs and a 200lb English mastiff named Georgina and enjoys an exceptional career in America.
He’s a world renowned breeder of French bulldogs, having bred over 200 champions and winning many best in show awards, including best of breed at Crufts in England and at Westminster Kennel Club in New York City.
James is a much sought after American Kennel Club professional judge who has travelled the world. All this requires confidence and presentation and that’s not lacking in James - he has always been one for making a statement, including when, as a teenager, he dyed his hair electric blue.
When Princess Diana visited the Art College in Belfast no wonder she stopped and they talked for ages; he remembers her as a “beautiful woman with amazing sapphire blue eyes”.
Charm Offensive
After gaining a degree in fashion design at the University of Ulster it was on to the Royal College of Art in London where he studied under designer Betty Jackson and created a collection for Harrods.
At his graduation service, the guest was the famous Russian artist and theatre designer Erté, revered for his Art Deco creations. Where others gazed at the great man, James Dalton, master of design, approached him to sign his diploma and ended up chatting about all things artistic.
It was also at college that he worked on a team designing sportswear for Reebok; this led to a job offer from Chris Brasher and such were his skills the USA parent company wanted him.
“Two weeks later I was on my hands and knees in Heathrow airport designing my first tennis collection as I waited to be called for the flight. I had to hit the ground running so with only £500, a suitcase and my diploma I got going,” he tells me.
“That meant travelling round the international tennis and golf circuits presenting new designs, each distinguished with various fabrics and always having to be functional.”
In 1991 he became Reebok designer of the year; he had arrived. He mentions working with Venus and Serena Williams, Greg Norman and John Daly, even Madonna for a celebrity endorsement.
All changed at an intimate dinner party in Boston 31 years ago when James met John Turjoman: “I was told a ballet dancer was joining us.”
At that time John had just begun studying in medical school. James laughs: “I didn’t know what to expect - a dancer pirouetting in with a stethoscope round his neck maybe...”
However the two formed a friendship which developed into a partnership and eventually marriage.
Realising Limitations
John grew up in Saudi Arabia where his parents exposed him to the arts and when the family moved to Tucson, Arizona he was just 10 and a mix of music and ballet had become important to him; at 17 he moved to New York to study dance. He was a natural, so much so that leading choreographer Sir Kenneth MacMillan invited him to dance Romeo in the Romeo and Juliet ballet.
“Music, dance and acting - I was delighted,” recalls John.
“One memorable night during the show the audience began laughing and we didn’t know why; I’d thrown my cloak behind me and apparently a cleaning lady with her mop and bucket walked across the stage, looked at the cloak lying there, obviously considered tidying it away but instead shrugged her shoulders and walked off.”
His career with the American Ballet Theatre took him round the world and visitors to his dressing room were famous, Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor amongst them.
Although John danced in major capitals he began to wonder what the future held and eventually, aged 23, decided to pursue his second choice of career - medicine. Today he is a leading paediatric specialist in private practice whilst working in other areas of medicine as well.
Sitting with these two in their delightful Irish vacation home in Co Down, it was obvious they enjoy separate work lives and a very loving home life. What a fascinating morning, especially catching up with a man from Northern Ireland who has carved out an outstanding career in America but has never forgotten his home place.
