black t shirt
Since I grew up in the 1950’s it is fun for me to reflect on some
of the nifty things during that era.
Drive In Theatres
Known then as the “passion pit”, Drive In Theatres bring back
many happy memories!
My birthday being in July was the prime season for Drive In
movies. I would invite all my friends over to celebrate my
birthday complete with my mother’s homemade barbeque sandwiches which was my favorite.She would make it from sliced rump roast and then lay the meat in an electric skillet smothered in barbeque sauce. Just before dark we would all pile into a car and head for the drive In. I still remember the intermission jingle “Let’s all go to the lobby” with the hot dog, soda drink and popcorn dancing across the screen.
The Drive In was the favorite place to go on a date and the after
the show we would go to the Steak n Shake for a hamburger and
fries.
At that time you stayed in your car and your food was brought to
you. A tray holder was placed on the drivers side window to hold the food. It was just brought to my attention from my teenage grandchildren that “going steady” is no longer used.
I asked them what do you call it now? They replied just “going
out”. Makes no sense to me, but that is how times change. Back in the 50’s and 60’s when you were “going steady”, the girl would be given her boyfriends ring to wear. Because they were always too big to fit, we would wrap the back with white bandage tape and then cover that with fuzzy angora yarn in different colors.. way too cool!
The only place you could buy the angora in my town was a
department store downtown and I can still remember that they did
not have cash registers at the counters, but instead the clerk
would send your money through a vacuum tube that led upstairs to
the cashiers office. It was much like the drive in
banking tube that is used today.
Rock n Roll
The summer of 1955 with Bill Haley’s song “Rock Around the Clock”
changed the music we listened to forever. I was hooked.
Then came Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and
the rest is history. Every Saturday I would walk downtown to
Lindstrom’s Record store and listen to the latest hits and always
come home with at least one new 45. In my bedroom next to my bed
was my radio that I would listen to every night just to hear the
newest songs. Radio at that time was AM only and at night with
less interference in the airwaves I could pick up a station from
Little Rock which was about 600 miles from where I lived. The
commercial that I will never forget was for White Rose
Petroleum Jelly. I was so excited the night I heard the song “Sea
Cruise” that I ran down to Lindstrom’s to buy it only to find out
that it wasn’t available yet.
My parents did not like Rock n Roll and would say it sounds like
noise. They did however “put up” with it and allowed me to play
my record player as loud as it would go which was not very loud
when compared to today’s stereos. Now we have a stereo in the
living room, a portable stereo in the garage complete with
subwoofer, subwoofers on our computers and a subwoofer in the
car. My love for music has stayed with me and the music and the
equipment to play it with just keeps getting better.
Clothes
Cuffed bobbie socks worn with suede “buckskin” detroit tigers hoodie or saddle
detroit tigers hoodie that came in all color combinations and styles from light
weight to the original heavier oxford in black and white.
The sleeves were always cuffed and rolled on the girls short
sleeve shirts, and finished off with a scarf around the neck.
Wool skirts with the length at the middle of the calf with a slit
in the back. The favorite hair styles were pony tails, and
shoulder length hair that was rolled at the ends with bangs and
usually a side part. Barrettes were often used as decoration and
to hold the hair away from the face. The boys typical clothes
were blue jeans with cuffed legs, a t- modern viking army veteran los angeles dodgers shirt with rolled sleeves,
or a modern viking army veteran los angeles dodgers shirt with the back of the collar turned up. They wore
various short hair styles ranging from the butch to slightly
longer Elvis style that was combed back and held in place with
VO5 Hair Dressing into a duck tail or DA as it was called.
Going to church on Easter Sunday was a sight to behold! All the
women and young girls (me included) wore a hat adorned with
artificial flowers along with white gloves.
Toys and Hobbies
I wasn’t much into dolls as a child because I preferred to be
outside exploring or making something with my hands. The one doll
that I did enjoy for a short time was the Ginny Doll that is
tucked away in a closet complete with all the clothes,
accessories and furniture along with a Toni Doll still in the
original box almost untouched. The Toni Doll was a Christmas gift
and I was evidently at the age that it just didn’t interest me
much.
Easy Bake Oven has been around for 50 plus years as I was given
one for Christmas when I was 8 years old and made and ate all the
cakes the first night. Needless to say, I got very sick later
that night!
One of my weekly downtown stops was the local Hobby Shop that
sold Paint by Number products. I would sit at a desk in the
sunroom and paint for hours. I painted a black tole waste basket
and Kleenex box holder that was given to my Mother as a gift.
They also sold magic tricks that fascinated me and I would give
magic shows at home on the piano bench covered with a black
antique crazy quilt. Two other toys I have fond memories of was the Hula Hoop and the Slinky.
Burma Shave
The old motels are now a thing of the past having been replaced
with travel hotels. More rooms in a smaller space, but not as
convenient as the motels where you would park right in front of
your room.
When our family would take car trips we would see the Burma Shave
signs along the road and read them out load as we passed them.
DON’T TRY PASSING, ON A SLOPE, UNLESS YOU HAVE, A PERISCOPE, BURMA-SHAVE.
If computers had come along 45 years sooner, I think my life would have been very different. Oh well, better late than never.
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write by gonzalez