Next week's edition goes to press on Veteran's Day. What better time to remember all of our Veteran Classmates and the spouses of Veterans. Or, if you have some memories of your Veteran parents that you would like to share with us, then send them so that we can all celebrate the sacrifices of those who gave so much for our Freedom! Photos would also be very nice, if you can scan them and e-mail them to me. |
Do You Remember... "Carter's Skateland"? by Tommy Towery Carter's Skateland is the very essence of my puberty. All my hopes and dreams started and ended there. I walked there more in the early years and had a back way of crossing the creek behind it to get there. My heart was broken way too many times by girls who never knew my feelings. When I think about it, I remember people like Sherry Adcock, Pam Grooms, Barbara Seeley, Carolyn McCutcheon. I have special memories of Dianne Hughey and Ginger Cagle who I spent most of my time there with. I remember Mike Thompson from Huntsville Jr. High who was one of my earliest friends there. I remember Mack Yates, who insisted on calling me "Butterball" when I wanted to be called "Fireball" after seeing the Mickey Rooney movie "The Fireball" about a roller derby speed-skater. I also remember one of my brother's friends, Gene Bailes and another classmate Linda Pell. If I recall correctly, I remember Kenneth Burkett, who would sometimes give me a ride home so I didn't have to walk. After all these years I have a confession. My heart was broken there one New Year's Eve when Barbara Seeley jumped and hugged my best friend when the clock struck 12 and I wanted her to hug me instead. That was when we were 13, I think. Most of the girls I got crushes on were met at the skating rink. I wonder how many of you remember the ritual of "going outside" with someone. This usually happened right before the last skate, and the outside took you to the side or the back of the building for good-night kisses. Sometimes you could hardly find a spot against the wall because so many couples were making out there. It was also heart-breaking to have someone you had a crush on go outside with someone else. How about the black silhouette cutouts of skaters that lined the walls? For music, I remember "Down Yonder" and "Theme From Dixie" which I used to love to two-step to. I can still do that, but I think we Huntsvillians were the only ones who did that skate and the only ones who did it like we did it. For the slow dance, the song had to be "Young Love". I remember having Dean Hanks give me a man-to-man talk about how to get and keep a girl. Dean was dating Carolyn and was much older than me (at least three years and a college man)! I remember short-shorts and white blouses and skating skirts. I had a pair of precision skates given to me by Gene, and I had pink and black shoelaces on them. Carter's was the subject of many memories in my book. I will share the more profound with you: It was at Carter's Skateland in Huntsville that one day I finally became more interested in girls than in the physical act of skating. It took a while for that all to come about. While trying to get up the nerve to approach the girls, I learned to skate rather well. In the beginning, I used the "couple's skate" time to sit and rest or play the baseball machine at the rink. It was the old five-cent machine where you pressed a button for either a fast, slow, or curve ball and pressed a different button to swing the bat. If you hit the ball right you got a single, double, or triple. Miss the ball and you got a strike. Hit it bad and you made an out. The baseball game at the skating rink soon fell to the side when I found that girls would skate with me if I asked them. As I got braver, I asked more girls. Sometimes I knew them, sometimes I didn't. Sometimes I still struck out. It became a grand accomplishment to take off the skates at ten o'clock having skated every skate, except for the "Ladies Only." Of course there were the odd nights when a particular move on the floor or a foreign object lying there brought me tumbling down in an embarrassing thump. Then there were the times when that less than graceful move resulted in the seat of my pants splitting wide open exposing the white of the jockey shorts underneath. That usually cut the rest of the evening short and made contact with the girls less desirable. December 26, 1963 Carter's Skateland, on Traylor Island, was a good place in the past for meeting girls. Unfortunately, most of the girls my age had also given up skating for other activities, so I spent the evening rolling around in circles and thinking of the past. I remembered Barbara, Sherry, Pam, Carolyn, Dianne, and Ginger. I remembered the other nameless girls who wouldn't skate with me when I asked. I watched the ten and eleven-year-old boys and girls and knew what they had ahead of them. Yet, whether it is in search of lost youth, old friends, or who knows what, we seem compelled to return to those places which hold fond memories of our past. It's like the dogs we read about who cross several states to return to their old homes and masters. Whatever steers them must affect humans too. A voice keeps calling us back, but when we arrive, the voice belongs to a stranger. In reality, the stranger is not the stranger, but we are. We are strangers in an unstrange land. The places are the same. The people are there and they all seem to know each other. They are having a good time. We are the ones who don't seem to belong. A strange timewarp seems to have us trapped, keeping us from returning to the fun we once knew. The strange force drew me back to the skating rink. That force is a constant in the changing universe, and it is strong. The force draws us back to the good times of our lives and makes us remember when things were not quite as complicated and worries were not as big. That force is our own memory. Wednesday, May 27, 1964 (The week before Graduation) That night, I was concerned about another possession. It was time to retrieve my skates from Carter's Skateland. That act was another acceptance of the upcoming move. The skates had been safely stored at the skating rink for over four years. Each night that I needed them, I walked up to the counter and asked the girl or boy behind it and they retrieved them for me. After that night, that would no longer be possible. They would be packed up and shipped off to Memphis with the rest of my life. Skating in Huntsville was over. The skating rink was becoming a part of my past. It would be only memories after that night. It would be memories of Barbara, Pam, Sherry, Ginger, Dianne, and Carolyn. It would be memories of broken hearts and moments of pleasure, of triumphs and failures. It would be memories of Mike and me trying to cross the creek and of our wet tennis shoes when we failed. I would leave it behind. I would pass it along to another shy boy who would have to learn how to skate and how to ask girls to skate. I had had my final skate. Other Classmates Share Their Memories Subject: Ah, Carter's Skateland, Traylor Island Date: Sun, 28 Oct 2001 11:24:09 -0600 From: "Linda Walker" <lbwalker@usit.net> My one remaining memory of Carter's Skateland occurred about a year after graduation. I was dating a young man that was stationed at Redstone Arsenal, and he worked part-time at Carter's Skateland. We had a date one Saturday night and I was at the skating rink, just sitting around, waiting for his breaks and closing time, so we could go out. Anyway, a girl that I had graduated with, I think her first name was Jane, came in and we exchanged greetings and then she said, "See that guy out there with the blue jacket on?" pointing to my date, and I said yes, to which she replied, "I come here every weekend just to see him. I think he is so cute and I would love to go out with him." I don't know why, unless the devil made me do it, but I didn't comment. I just waited until his next break, when he came over and sat down by me and put his arm around me, and then I just sat there and smiled at her. We shy people do have out moments!! Was that tacky of me or what? Linda (Beal) Walker '66 Subject: Carters Skateland Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 11:58:31 -0600 From: "Potts, Aaron E CHAS" <AEPotts@corp.olin.com> I guess I will never forget Jack and Betty Carter. The Skateland was the most favorite place to hang out every Friday and Saturday night and for some of us there was Sunday afternoon. I will never forget it because that is where I met the infamous Sally Black. Sally and I dated for three years and that had to be the most memorable three years of my life. There was such a great bunch of kids there. If I had to pick the three years of my life to relive, it would have to be those three years. Clayton Travis and the clown suit. The King Brothers, the flashlight skates, the sweetheart waltz, the two step (that I never learned) Linda Butler, Rosemary Mc Lemore, Jerry Fanning, Don Medlin (now deceased), Sherry Adcock, Linda Barksdale (deceased) Janice Weidman, Jerry Dotson (aka Benny Carl) and many more that will be forever etched in my memory. I am just thankful that God allowed me to have the opportunity to cross path's with these people because without them my childhood would have been pretty bland. I enjoy the web page and the interesting notes posted. God bless you all and take care. Strangely enough, I still think of those years and miss them so very much. Aaron Potts 423-336-4671 Subject: Carter's Skateland Date: Thu, 01 Nov 2001 10:04:26 -0600 From: "JOY MORRIS" <MORRIJA@ATHENS.EDU> I started going to Carter's Skateland when I was thirteen and skated there for four or five years. The songs I closely relate to Carter's are Brenda Lee's "I'm Sorry" and the theme from "A Summer Place". I remember meeting two of the boys I went with at Carter's. We would leave the skating rink and walk over to the bowling alley. There we would order seven up, and french fries with lots of ketchup and talk. We would sometimes go over to the Go Cart area and ride the go carts. Then we would return to the skating rink to skate the last song. One event I dearly remember was being asked to "go steady" at the skating rink. That was where we had met and it seemed fitting at the time that was where we starting officially going together as a couple. I remember dating one of the guys who wore a whistle and skated around the rink to make sure skaters were not going too fast or causing problems for other skaters? I don't know what they were called and I can't even remember what his name was. I also remember drinking "suicide" drinks, requesting special songs to be played, and being a part of the Hokey-Pokey circle. Every now and then when I pass through that area, I miss seeing Traylor Island and the skating rink. Joy Rubins Morris From "GRIFFITH,MIKE (HP-USA,ex1)" <m_griffith@hp.com> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 3:52 pm To "'ttowery@memphis.edu'" <ttowery@memphis.edu> Subject Carter's Skateland Hi Tommy, Especially in the 7th and 8th grades I spent many a Friday night at Carter's Skateland. I remember that Mrs. Carter stayed mostly behind the glass enclosure as you came in the door; she took the admission money and played the songs on a 45rpm record changer. Mr. Carter was the "enforcer" and whistled at anyone that he thought was acting in an inappropriate manner. I used to look though the glass and read the title of the 45rpm record that was on top of the pile. That would signal when they would clear the floor and call "couples only, two-step!" By knowing when this was coming, it was easier to maneuver close to the girl that you wanted to ask to skate with during couples only. I have fond remembrances of many a fine (as I remember them) young ladies from this experience. One, which I will identify only as JoAnn, put the definition in short-shorts for me ... by the way, the song was "Runaround Sue." Best ... Mike Griffith (class of '66) From "Terry 'Moses' Preston" <mosespreston@earthlink.net> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 7:16 pm To ttowery@memphis.edu Subject Carter's Skateland, and other things I got a kick out of Lehman's Halloween letter. He can't remember a thing about the Halloween of our senior year - not even what year it was. It was 1963, dude! And Mike Smith's recollection of the time that he and C.E. Wynn dressed up as girls on Halloween. I thought that they looked good, and should have continued the practice! I remember Carter's Skateland as a safe, fun place to be. It was a great place to meet girls and other friends while managing to stay out of trouble. My most prominent memories: 1) Persons - The late Jack Barkley (who worked there and was a great dancer on skates), and some of Lee High's cutest girls. 2) Event - Many nights watching the girls go around like they were on display, then hitting on the ones that were the most appealing. I especially enjoyed watching the girls in skating skirts gliding toward me backwards. That memory still makes me tingle. 3) Song - "In My Room" by the Beach Boys. At the time I thought that the lyrics were awfully sissy, but the mood and beat were perfect for a skating rink. A second thought was: 1) Person(s) - Pat Worley and Carol Broadway 2) Event - I had asked Pat for a date and she had accepted, then called me and canceled, telling me that she had to go to her grandmother's or something. (The real reason was that she was concerned that Carol would get mad at her if she went out with me). I showed up at Carter's, she saw me come in, and she ran and hid in the girl's rest room. An hour or so later one of her friends rescued her by coming to me and telling me the truth. I told her to tell Pat that I wasn't mad at her, and Pat finally came out and started skating again. Of course I stood and watched her gliding around the rink backwards. That memory makes me tingle, too. 3) Song - "Turn Around, Look At Me". 'Nuff said. Terry "Moses" Preston Class of '64 From "Sherry White" <smawhite3@home.com> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 8:47 pm To "Tommy Towery" <ttowery@memphis.edu> Subject Carter's Skateland Okay, Tommy, here are a few thoughts about Carter's Skateland. I spent many happy hours there! If you see any major flaws, please correct them! Carter's Skateland was a big part of my teenage life. I loved it. I skated Friday nights (except during football season), Saturday nights, Sunday afternoons and sometimes on Wednesday nights. I could hardly wait to get in the door, pay my money get that little red ticket, and get out on that wooden skate floor. Jack and Betty Carter owned the rink and they watched out for the ones of us who skated regularly. My mother took me to Carter's quite often and Jack and Betty were always watching to make sure the person taking me home was "authorized" to do so. If not, they had no qualms about tattling. I remember the pom-poms we made for our skates (after cleaning and polishing them first of course), the skate cases, the skating skirts, the hours Carol Jean and I spent getting ready, the falls, the bruises, the two-step, the hokey pokey, the congo - things I haven't thought of in years. We even had a few dances at Carter's. They were called "Sock Hops" back then. I always felt safe there. Never thought about anything bad happening. Before I got my driver's license, I practiced driving round and round Traylor's Island. As I recall now, there was also a bowling alley there. I don't remember going bowling, I just wanted to skate. As a matter of fact, I still have those skates. They're buried out in the garage in my old blue skate case. The socks are probably still in there too! Sherry Adcock White (Editor's Note: I want to thank Sherry for her contribution to these memories, even though I had to bribe her into contributing. We need more participation from the silent majority. In truth, Sherry is one of the first people that came to my mind when I started thinking about Carter's. Some day I'll share a personal story I remember with you, Sherry.) From Our Mailbag... Subject: Larry Byrom Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2001 16:46:13 -0600 From: Butch Cryder <BCryder@acincorp.com> Tommy did you know that Larry had a younger brother named Mike[deceased] who was also a dynamite musician. Larry still has family in the Huntsville area... cousins Brenda and Marvin Byrom also LEE HIGH alumni.My cousins too but on the other side of the family.I am told that Larry is so respected in Nashville that everybody asks for him as their session guitarist . Keep up the good work I enjoy it . This is my first stop every Mondaymorning Your Friend Butch Cryder Subject: Memories Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 14:07:46 -0500 From: "jscholter" <jscholter@fqsuites.com> In response to Linda's question about was Mr. Jenkins always the choir teacher. The answer is "Oh No". I'm sure everyone will remember Mrs. Graham. She started with the choir from the time I can remember 7th grade through 9th I believe. My most vivid memory of her was the way she would get so angry if we weren't paying attention and stomp her feet. Jasper Jenkins took over around 9th grade somewhere. I was in the choir all the way through the 12th grade and always stood beside Jackie Haley. (Editor's Note: I remember Mrs. Graham from Central Presbyterian Church, where she played the organ for us.) Subject: Lee High School Memories Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 14:59:56 -0500 From: Julius.Smoak@sba.gov Thanks for all the hard work. Most people do not realize how much work goes into maintaining a site like this. Someone mentioned not realizing how much you were into when you were attending Lee. Actually most of us were into more than we ourselves realized at the time, but we were all so busy going to school and having a good time that it did not matter then. However, it is now the source of so many memories--some good and some bad. Fortunately, time diminishes the impact of the bad things and we mostly remember the good. We did not know how good we had it at the time. How many would like to go back and repeat those days? Although I only attended Lee for the '64-'65 school year, I have a lot of memories of those days. Keep them coming classmates. Chip Smoak (Class of '66 if I had not moved before school started in the fall of '65.) Subject: The Website Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2001 14:06:02 -0500 From: "Yolanda Lee" <thescot@rabbitbrush.com> Hi Tommy- I found your "writings" fun. So many people/events lost in antiquity/remembered. I think that it's great that someone took the time to "Romance" our era. "If" my memory serves me correctly we shared 9th grade homeroom.Yes, it was Mrs. Parks for me too. I turned 13 yrs old that year. What a mess for me. I had already skipped the 4th grade - then when I came to H'sville - they put me in the 9th & 11th at the same time - I was in no way prepared 4 it. But, I managed to survive it. Your life story is quite interesting. As for jumping out of a perfectly good airplane & freefalling 13,000 ft. - I'll just have to pass on that one - however, I can see it was perfectly wonderful for you. And I think it's great that you have that much courage. Take Care & Congratulations on your New Love. Bye For Now Yolanda Lee Subject: Regna Warren Date: Thu, 1 Nov 2001 21:07:39 -0600 From: "Sherry White" <smawhite3@home.com> Hi Tommy, At one time, you had Regna Warren's email address. However, it was incorrect. I thought she might send in a new address but I've never seen it. Do you have an address for Regna? I appreciate the work you put into this web site. Thanks, Sherry Adcock White Class of '64 (Editor's note: I had to remove Regna from the list because her mail kept being sent back to me as being a bad e-mail address. Regena or anyone who knows her current e-mail address, please contact Sherry.) ____________________________________________________________________ |
Est. March 31, 2000 17,455 Previous Hits November 5, 2001 Editor:Tommy Towery http://www.leealumni.com Class of 1964 Page Hits This Issue e-mail ttowery@memphis.edu Staff Writer : Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly Cost: Your own memories! Staff Photographers: Fred & Lynn Sanders |
E-mail us your memories about: For Next Week's Edition |
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Est. March 31, 2000 17,455 Previous Hits November 5, 2001 Editor:Tommy Towery http://www.leealumni.com Class of 1964 Page Hits This Issue e-mail ttowery@memphis.edu Staff Writer : Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly Cost: Your own memories! Staff Photographers: Fred & Lynn Sanders |
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Do You Remember... "Carter's Skateland"? by Tommy Towery Carter's Skateland is the very essence of my puberty. All my hopes and dreams started and ended there. I walked there more in the early years and had a back way of crossing the creek behind it to get there. My heart was broken way too many times by girls who never knew my feelings. When I think about it, I remember people like Sherry Adcock, Pam Grooms, Barbara Seeley, Carolyn McCutcheon. I have special memories of Dianne Hughey and Ginger Cagle who I spent most of my time there with. I remember Mike Thompson from Huntsville Jr. High who was one of my earliest friends there. I remember Mack Yates, who insisted on calling me "Butterball" when I wanted to be called "Fireball" after seeing the Mickey Rooney movie "The Fireball" about a roller derby speed-skater. I also remember one of my brother's friends, Gene Bailes and another classmate Linda Pell. If I recall correctly, I remember Kenneth Burkett, who would sometimes give me a ride home so I didn't have to walk. After all these years I have a confession. My heart was broken there one New Year's Eve when Barbara Seeley jumped and hugged my best friend when the clock struck 12 and I wanted her to hug me instead. That was when we were 13, I think. Most of the girls I got crushes on were met at the skating rink. I wonder how many of you remember the ritual of "going outside" with someone. This usually happened right before the last skate, and the outside took you to the side or the back of the building for good-night kisses. Sometimes you could hardly find a spot against the wall because so many couples were making out there. It was also heart-breaking to have someone you had a crush on go outside with someone else. How about the black silhouette cutouts of skaters that lined the walls? For music, I remember "Down Yonder" and "Theme From Dixie" which I used to love to two-step to. I can still do that, but I think we Huntsvillians were the only ones who did that skate and the only ones who did it like we did it. For the slow dance, the song had to be "Young Love". I remember having Dean Hanks give me a man-to-man talk about how to get and keep a girl. Dean was dating Carolyn and was much older than me (at least three years and a college man)! I remember short-shorts and white blouses and skating skirts. I had a pair of precision skates given to me by Gene, and I had pink and black shoelaces on them. Carter's was the subject of many memories in my book. I will share the more profound with you: It was at Carter's Skateland in Huntsville that one day I finally became more interested in girls than in the physical act of skating. It took a while for that all to come about. While trying to get up the nerve to approach the girls, I learned to skate rather well. In the beginning, I used the "couple's skate" time to sit and rest or play the baseball machine at the rink. It was the old five-cent machine where you pressed a button for either a fast, slow, or curve ball and pressed a different button to swing the bat. If you hit the ball right you got a single, double, or triple. Miss the ball and you got a strike. Hit it bad and you made an out. The baseball game at the skating rink soon fell to the side when I found that girls would skate with me if I asked them. As I got braver, I asked more girls. Sometimes I knew them, sometimes I didn't. Sometimes I still struck out. It became a grand accomplishment to take off the skates at ten o'clock having skated every skate, except for the "Ladies Only." Of course there were the odd nights when a particular move on the floor or a foreign object lying there brought me tumbling down in an embarrassing thump. Then there were the times when that less than graceful move resulted in the seat of my pants splitting wide open exposing the white of the jockey shorts underneath. That usually cut the rest of the evening short and made contact with the girls less desirable. December 26, 1963 Carter's Skateland, on Traylor Island, was a good place in the past for meeting girls. Unfortunately, most of the girls my age had also given up skating for other activities, so I spent the evening rolling around in circles and thinking of the past. I remembered Barbara, Sherry, Pam, Carolyn, Dianne, and Ginger. I remembered the other nameless girls who wouldn't skate with me when I asked. I watched the ten and eleven-year-old boys and girls and knew what they had ahead of them. Yet, whether it is in search of lost youth, old friends, or who knows what, we seem compelled to return to those places which hold fond memories of our past. It's like the dogs we read about who cross several states to return to their old homes and masters. Whatever steers them must affect humans too. A voice keeps calling us back, but when we arrive, the voice belongs to a stranger. In reality, the stranger is not the stranger, but we are. We are strangers in an unstrange land. The places are the same. The people are there and they all seem to know each other. They are having a good time. We are the ones who don't seem to belong. A strange timewarp seems to have us trapped, keeping us from returning to the fun we once knew. The strange force drew me back to the skating rink. That force is a constant in the changing universe, and it is strong. The force draws us back to the good times of our lives and makes us remember when things were not quite as complicated and worries were not as big. That force is our own memory. Wednesday, May 27, 1964 (The week before Graduation) That night, I was concerned about another possession. It was time to retrieve my skates from Carter's Skateland. That act was another acceptance of the upcoming move. The skates had been safely stored at the skating rink for over four years. Each night that I needed them, I walked up to the counter and asked the girl or boy behind it and they retrieved them for me. After that night, that would no longer be possible. They would be packed up and shipped off to Memphis with the rest of my life. Skating in Huntsville was over. The skating rink was becoming a part of my past. It would be only memories after that night. It would be memories of Barbara, Pam, Sherry, Ginger, Dianne, and Carolyn. It would be memories of broken hearts and moments of pleasure, of triumphs and failures. It would be memories of Mike and me trying to cross the creek and of our wet tennis shoes when we failed. I would leave it behind. I would pass it along to another shy boy who would have to learn how to skate and how to ask girls to skate. I had had my final skate. Other Classmates Share Their Memories Subject: Ah, Carter's Skateland, Traylor Island Date: Sun, 28 Oct 2001 11:24:09 -0600 From: "Linda Walker" <lbwalker@usit.net> My one remaining memory of Carter's Skateland occurred about a year after graduation. I was dating a young man that was stationed at Redstone Arsenal, and he worked part-time at Carter's Skateland. We had a date one Saturday night and I was at the skating rink, just sitting around, waiting for his breaks and closing time, so we could go out. Anyway, a girl that I had graduated with, I think her first name was Jane, came in and we exchanged greetings and then she said, "See that guy out there with the blue jacket on?" pointing to my date, and I said yes, to which she replied, "I come here every weekend just to see him. I think he is so cute and I would love to go out with him." I don't know why, unless the devil made me do it, but I didn't comment. I just waited until his next break, when he came over and sat down by me and put his arm around me, and then I just sat there and smiled at her. We shy people do have out moments!! Was that tacky of me or what? Linda (Beal) Walker '66 Subject: Carters Skateland Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 11:58:31 -0600 From: "Potts, Aaron E CHAS" <AEPotts@corp.olin.com> I guess I will never forget Jack and Betty Carter. The Skateland was the most favorite place to hang out every Friday and Saturday night and for some of us there was Sunday afternoon. I will never forget it because that is where I met the infamous Sally Black. Sally and I dated for three years and that had to be the most memorable three years of my life. There was such a great bunch of kids there. If I had to pick the three years of my life to relive, it would have to be those three years. Clayton Travis and the clown suit. The King Brothers, the flashlight skates, the sweetheart waltz, the two step (that I never learned) Linda Butler, Rosemary Mc Lemore, Jerry Fanning, Don Medlin (now deceased), Sherry Adcock, Linda Barksdale (deceased) Janice Weidman, Jerry Dotson (aka Benny Carl) and many more that will be forever etched in my memory. I am just thankful that God allowed me to have the opportunity to cross path's with these people because without them my childhood would have been pretty bland. I enjoy the web page and the interesting notes posted. God bless you all and take care. Strangely enough, I still think of those years and miss them so very much. Aaron Potts 423-336-4671 Subject: Carter's Skateland Date: Thu, 01 Nov 2001 10:04:26 -0600 From: "JOY MORRIS" <MORRIJA@ATHENS.EDU> I started going to Carter's Skateland when I was thirteen and skated there for four or five years. The songs I closely relate to Carter's are Brenda Lee's "I'm Sorry" and the theme from "A Summer Place". I remember meeting two of the boys I went with at Carter's. We would leave the skating rink and walk over to the bowling alley. There we would order seven up, and french fries with lots of ketchup and talk. We would sometimes go over to the Go Cart area and ride the go carts. Then we would return to the skating rink to skate the last song. One event I dearly remember was being asked to "go steady" at the skating rink. That was where we had met and it seemed fitting at the time that was where we starting officially going together as a couple. I remember dating one of the guys who wore a whistle and skated around the rink to make sure skaters were not going too fast or causing problems for other skaters? I don't know what they were called and I can't even remember what his name was. I also remember drinking "suicide" drinks, requesting special songs to be played, and being a part of the Hokey-Pokey circle. Every now and then when I pass through that area, I miss seeing Traylor Island and the skating rink. Joy Rubins Morris From "GRIFFITH,MIKE (HP-USA,ex1)" <m_griffith@hp.com> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 3:52 pm To "'ttowery@memphis.edu'" <ttowery@memphis.edu> Subject Carter's Skateland Hi Tommy, Especially in the 7th and 8th grades I spent many a Friday night at Carter's Skateland. I remember that Mrs. Carter stayed mostly behind the glass enclosure as you came in the door; she took the admission money and played the songs on a 45rpm record changer. Mr. Carter was the "enforcer" and whistled at anyone that he thought was acting in an inappropriate manner. I used to look though the glass and read the title of the 45rpm record that was on top of the pile. That would signal when they would clear the floor and call "couples only, two-step!" By knowing when this was coming, it was easier to maneuver close to the girl that you wanted to ask to skate with during couples only. I have fond remembrances of many a fine (as I remember them) young ladies from this experience. One, which I will identify only as JoAnn, put the definition in short-shorts for me ... by the way, the song was "Runaround Sue." Best ... Mike Griffith (class of '66) From "Terry 'Moses' Preston" <mosespreston@earthlink.net> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 7:16 pm To ttowery@memphis.edu Subject Carter's Skateland, and other things I got a kick out of Lehman's Halloween letter. He can't remember a thing about the Halloween of our senior year - not even what year it was. It was 1963, dude! And Mike Smith's recollection of the time that he and C.E. Wynn dressed up as girls on Halloween. I thought that they looked good, and should have continued the practice! I remember Carter's Skateland as a safe, fun place to be. It was a great place to meet girls and other friends while managing to stay out of trouble. My most prominent memories: 1) Persons - The late Jack Barkley (who worked there and was a great dancer on skates), and some of Lee High's cutest girls. 2) Event - Many nights watching the girls go around like they were on display, then hitting on the ones that were the most appealing. I especially enjoyed watching the girls in skating skirts gliding toward me backwards. That memory still makes me tingle. 3) Song - "In My Room" by the Beach Boys. At the time I thought that the lyrics were awfully sissy, but the mood and beat were perfect for a skating rink. A second thought was: 1) Person(s) - Pat Worley and Carol Broadway 2) Event - I had asked Pat for a date and she had accepted, then called me and canceled, telling me that she had to go to her grandmother's or something. (The real reason was that she was concerned that Carol would get mad at her if she went out with me). I showed up at Carter's, she saw me come in, and she ran and hid in the girl's rest room. An hour or so later one of her friends rescued her by coming to me and telling me the truth. I told her to tell Pat that I wasn't mad at her, and Pat finally came out and started skating again. Of course I stood and watched her gliding around the rink backwards. That memory makes me tingle, too. 3) Song - "Turn Around, Look At Me". 'Nuff said. Terry "Moses" Preston Class of '64 From "Sherry White" <smawhite3@home.com> Date Friday, November 2, 2001 8:47 pm To "Tommy Towery" <ttowery@memphis.edu> Subject Carter's Skateland Okay, Tommy, here are a few thoughts about Carter's Skateland. I spent many happy hours there! If you see any major flaws, please correct them! Carter's Skateland was a big part of my teenage life. I loved it. I skated Friday nights (except during football season), Saturday nights, Sunday afternoons and sometimes on Wednesday nights. I could hardly wait to get in the door, pay my money get that little red ticket, and get out on that wooden skate floor. Jack and Betty Carter owned the rink and they watched out for the ones of us who skated regularly. My mother took me to Carter's quite often and Jack and Betty were always watching to make sure the person taking me home was "authorized" to do so. If not, they had no qualms about tattling. I remember the pom-poms we made for our skates (after cleaning and polishing them first of course), the skate cases, the skating skirts, the hours Carol Jean and I spent getting ready, the falls, the bruises, the two-step, the hokey pokey, the congo - things I haven't thought of in years. We even had a few dances at Carter's. They were called "Sock Hops" back then. I always felt safe there. Never thought about anything bad happening. Before I got my driver's license, I practiced driving round and round Traylor's Island. As I recall now, there was also a bowling alley there. I don't remember going bowling, I just wanted to skate. As a matter of fact, I still have those skates. They're buried out in the garage in my old blue skate case. The socks are probably still in there too! Sherry Adcock White (Editor's Note: I want to thank Sherry for her contribution to these memories, even though I had to bribe her into contributing. We need more participation from the silent majority. In truth, Sherry is one of the first people that came to my mind when I started thinking about Carter's. Some day I'll share a personal story I remember with you, Sherry.) From Our Mailbag... Subject: Larry Byrom Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2001 16:46:13 -0600 From: Butch Cryder <BCryder@acincorp.com> Tommy did you know that Larry had a younger brother named Mike[deceased] who was also a dynamite musician. Larry still has family in the Huntsville area... cousins Brenda and Marvin Byrom also LEE HIGH alumni.My cousins too but on the other side of the family.I am told that Larry is so respected in Nashville that everybody asks for him as their session guitarist . Keep up the good work I enjoy it . This is my first stop every Mondaymorning Your Friend Butch Cryder Subject: Memories Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 14:07:46 -0500 From: "jscholter" <jscholter@fqsuites.com> In response to Linda's question about was Mr. Jenkins always the choir teacher. The answer is "Oh No". I'm sure everyone will remember Mrs. Graham. She started with the choir from the time I can remember 7th grade through 9th I believe. My most vivid memory of her was the way she would get so angry if we weren't paying attention and stomp her feet. Jasper Jenkins took over around 9th grade somewhere. I was in the choir all the way through the 12th grade and always stood beside Jackie Haley. (Editor's Note: I remember Mrs. Graham from Central Presbyterian Church, where she played the organ for us.) Subject: Lee High School Memories Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2001 14:59:56 -0500 From: Julius.Smoak@sba.gov Thanks for all the hard work. Most people do not realize how much work goes into maintaining a site like this. Someone mentioned not realizing how much you were into when you were attending Lee. Actually most of us were into more than we ourselves realized at the time, but we were all so busy going to school and having a good time that it did not matter then. However, it is now the source of so many memories--some good and some bad. Fortunately, time diminishes the impact of the bad things and we mostly remember the good. We did not know how good we had it at the time. How many would like to go back and repeat those days? Although I only attended Lee for the '64-'65 school year, I have a lot of memories of those days. Keep them coming classmates. Chip Smoak (Class of '66 if I had not moved before school started in the fall of '65.) Subject: The Website Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2001 14:06:02 -0500 From: "Yolanda Lee" <thescot@rabbitbrush.com> Hi Tommy- I found your "writings" fun. So many people/events lost in antiquity/remembered. I think that it's great that someone took the time to "Romance" our era. "If" my memory serves me correctly we shared 9th grade homeroom.Yes, it was Mrs. Parks for me too. I turned 13 yrs old that year. What a mess for me. I had already skipped the 4th grade - then when I came to H'sville - they put me in the 9th & 11th at the same time - I was in no way prepared 4 it. But, I managed to survive it. Your life story is quite interesting. As for jumping out of a perfectly good airplane & freefalling 13,000 ft. - I'll just have to pass on that one - however, I can see it was perfectly wonderful for you. And I think it's great that you have that much courage. Take Care & Congratulations on your New Love. Bye For Now Yolanda Lee Subject: Regna Warren Date: Thu, 1 Nov 2001 21:07:39 -0600 From: "Sherry White" <smawhite3@home.com> Hi Tommy, At one time, you had Regna Warren's email address. However, it was incorrect. I thought she might send in a new address but I've never seen it. Do you have an address for Regna? I appreciate the work you put into this web site. Thanks, Sherry Adcock White Class of '64 (Editor's note: I had to remove Regna from the list because her mail kept being sent back to me as being a bad e-mail address. Regena or anyone who knows her current e-mail address, please contact Sherry.) ____________________________________________________________________ |
BAD E-MAIL ADDRESSES orlich2@home.com tjhpuma@hiwaay.net Apparently Marshall Space Flight Center is monitoring e-mails and not allowing my noticies to go through. I got the following message from their mail server. The following recipients did not receive your message: Patricia.P.Edwards@msfc.nasa.gov Dwight.Clark@msfc.nasa.gov sheila.jandebeur@msfc.nasa.gov So, Patricia, Dwight, and Sheila, please send me another e-mail that I can use so that you can get our updates and notices. _______________________________ |
Next week's edition goes to press on Veteran's Day. What better time to remember all of our Veteran Classmates and the spouses of Veterans. Or, if you have some memories of your Veteran parents that you would like to share with us, then send them so that we can all celebrate the sacrifices of those who gave so much for our Freedom! Photos would also be very nice, if you can scan them and e-mail them to me. |
Barbara (Wilkerson) Donnelly Class of '64 Accepts Writing Challenge After many efforts on my part and a strong contract negotiation stage, I have finally convinced Barbara to accept the title of Staff Writer for the website. She has been a strong supporter of the ongoing efforts to promote this site and a fluent contributor to many of the past topics we have covered. Barbara was feeling bad because she was sending so much stuff that she threatened to slow down and it was then that I decided that I really needed her input and offered her a "title" so that she would continue to contribute to the efforts. I would love to add some others of you to the list. Many thanks to all of you that contribute weekly to the memories. This week's memories has drawn the best response ever. Since the site started over a year ago, many have asked what they could do to help. Fred and Lynn Sanders have served well as my Huntsville photographers. Barbara is the first one to "officially" volunteer to becme a Staff Writer. There are many more of you who I would make a similiar offer to. If you want your names listed I would be happy to work out a contract with you. The pay is nothing to start with and later on it may grow to where you have to help pay to keep the site going. I could start with some names, but maybe I just need to e-mail my recruitment offers to you. If you want your name added to the list, then e-mail me. _______________________________ The "Moses" Riddle by Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly Here are the answers I promised to the multiple choice quiz regarding how Terry Preston got the nickname "Moses." FYI, choices are in bold italics. It started with Answer "B." (He started using it because it was easier for people to remember than "Terry.") There was this sweet old lady who was the mother-in-law of a guy that Terry had met, and she could never remember his name. So one evening, when she asked him again "What is your name?" Terry (being Terry) replied "It's Moses. You've probably read about me somewhere." (And you must admit that this was quick thinking on Terry's part. What if he'd just blurted "It's Dracula," or "It's Charlie Manson," or "It's Bozo?") She blushed, her daughter and son-in-law died laughing, and from that day forward, she would say, "Oh, look! It's Moses!" whenever she saw him coming. (Much nicer than what some people were heard to say!) Well, this story was repeated at work, and some of Terry's subordinates said that he was prone to act like Moses (I think they meant throwing large stones at people!), so Answer "A" (It was given to him by subordinates on the job because of his management style.") was also a contributor to the nickname. "Moses" really became like, his name, when he performed in Atlanta on the same bill as another performer named Terri. He suggested that they call him "Moses" instead, since very few people there actually knew him anyhow. (I think it was easier to tell them apart after this, since they tended to dress alike on Wednesdays and Fridays, except that she preferred the color orange!) The name has since stuck like glue, and people are fond of saying that he parted the waters with his performance. So Answer "D" (It is his stage name.) is also true. Answer "C" (It was given to him for standing drunk and naked beside a Daytona Beach motel swimming pool, trying to part the waters.) is just a humorous rumor with no basis in truth. (I happen to know for a fact that Terry never stayed at a motel in Daytona Beach!) Answer "E" (Lehman Williams gave it to him for being such a know-it-all smart ass!) likewise has no basis in truth. (Lehman probably called Terry many choice things during our LHS careers, but I doubt that he would think of "Moses!" Nevertheless, I must admit that Answers C and E rank right up there as my favorites - true or not -- especially the "smart ass" part!) So, there you have it. Terry "Moses" Preston, my buddy, in a nutshell. If you found the parenthetical editorializing funny, I thank you. If not, Tommy wrote them! Hope you guys enjoyed the little quiz. |
