Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly , Joy Rubins Morris, Paula Spencer Kephart,
Rainer Klauss, Bobby Cochran, Collins (CE) Wynn, Eddie Sykes, Cherri Polly
Massey
Staff Photographers: Fred & Lynn Sanders
Contributers: The Members of Lee High School Classes of 64-65-66
Okay, before I get to carried away and forget it, I need to answer a question from last week. I may have mentioned it before that I have a collection of over 2,500 45rpm records. That's way too many for a record holder. Most of my collection came from yard sales and Goodwill or Salvation Army type stores. In looking through literally thousands of records, it seems that the most common way of marking records in our teenage years was not a Magic Marker. The most common way was red fingernail polish. It was bright, easy to read, and permanent. Now that I've said that, does it make anyone remember marking your records that way?
This week in honor of Valentine's Day, we start on a sweet journey back to the days of our youth, and the candy that we all loved back then. The plans are to move though various families of types of candies, starting this week with the old fashioned penny candy.
T. Tommy
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Last Week's
Lee-Bay Mystery Item
See, we're not all getting "old-timers" disease. A lot of you were able to identify last week's item.
Johnny Sharp, Class of '64
This week's Lee-Bay Mystery item appears to be an old 45rpm record rack. I think I still have one of them stuck back on a closet shelf somewhere here in the house. It's still filled with some of my less popular records of the times. Our website, all of our old friends writing down their memories and our occassional mini reunions really mean a lot to me. I'll always cherish the friendship and closeness that we've been privileged
to share with all our classmates for all these years. I'm especially proud of all of you who work so hard on the website to keep the innocent memories of youth eternal!
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Barb Biggs Knott, Class of '66
Wow, I see you found my 45 rpm record holder!! I had several of those, and they were great!
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Cecilia LeVan Watson, Class of '68
The mystery item is a rack that held all of our 45 records. It was awkward when you had to carry them to a party and they all rolled out of their little slots.
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Eddie Burton, Class of '66
I'm not sure but I think the item for this week is a record rack. They made several different kinds. Some for 45's some for albums. I know mine was filled with great old 45's. By the way the kind of music sharing we did back then and the kind of wholesale theft that happens everyday now are two different things. That was a great article.
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Judy Fedrowisch Kincaid, Class of '66
The item this week is a 45 RPM record rack. I don't know what they're asking for it on E-Bay, but I see several every year at garage sales for $1.00 or so.
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Linda Beal Walker, Class of '66
Ah, the old record holder, 45s that is. It was a must have for easy selection of what to play next. Would you believe I have had people make fun of me because I still have my collection of 45s. Yet when music is needed for graduation parties, who gets the calls to tape the music? Do you think this could be used to store CD's?
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Woody Beck, Class of '65
We thought it was for storing 45 rpm records but now its obvious that it was a prototype for filing yet-to-be-invented CD's.
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Annette McCraney Class of '64
The Mystery item is a record holder. The one in the pic seems to be the one for 45's, and there was a slightly larger one for albums I believe.
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Rick Simmons, Class of '64
This is a record rack for 45's or LPs. I had one very much like the one pictured.
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Subject:Other Notes
Barb Biggs Knott
Class of '66
I was sorry to here about Caroyln's passing. Although I didn't know her personally, it is always sad to here about the death of any of the Lee family.
I enjoy reading all the great contributing stories in the Traveller. Eddie Sykes is a terrific contributor....who would have thunk! (I'm sorry, every time I think of Eddie, I remember the football players in Coach Sullins Gov. class and have to chuckle.) Those were the days, my friend.
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Subject: Notes on a couple of subjects
Annette McCraney
Class of '64
Again, we have to type through the tears. Richard and Carolyn were both among the sweetest people I ever knew at Lee. I'm so sorry to hear about their deaths..
Coke bottles--'Member putting a pack of Planter's peanuts in a bottle of Coke? The trick was to get a drink of Coke and a taste of peanuts without eating all the peanuts before the Coke ran out, and not to leave a single peanut stuck to the bottom of the bottle.
I remember me and Kirby and a couple of friends making some posters
about the launch of the first American satellite and going downtown to the west side of the square to a rally attended by Werner VanBraun and Major George C Marshall. (might have rank wrong). After the speeches we were standing by the stairs of the platform and tried to get Marshall's autograph and he refused to sign our signs and deferred to WVB who also refused to give us an autograph. Big bummer, but I don't recall feeling anything but pride over the US accomplishment.
Note to C.E. Wynn--I remember your Dad with much respect and fondness. He was always very pleasant and always had time to shoot the bull with silly highschoolers. Dad and he got acquainted when Dad was with the Civil Defense Police so I always had to be on my best behavior in his presence.
Concerts at the Arena--I think the first concert I went to the new Arena to see was "The Kingsman" (Louis Louis, Oh Baby, We Gotta Go-YaYa Ya Ya Ya Ya) " Someone called in a bomb threat and we all had to leave Arena and mill around outside. Funny thing is, I don't remember hearing the band play, but I do remember the James Brown Concert. I sat in the third row and thoroughly enjoyed every minute and I remember crying when he knelt on the floor sobbing and his propman very respectfully walked on stage and wrapped his satin cape around his shoulders for comfort.---I was soooo afraid that "Tiny", a 500 lb backup singer and soloist ,took to the stage. I was sure she was going to crash through the floor of fall off the stage but boy could she belt out that soul music....I also remember Peter,Paul and Mary there. Am I deluded? Maybe it was somewhere else, but my few remaining intact brain cells remember the Arena.
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Subject: Carolyn and Richard
Johnny Sharp
Class of '64
Edna and I were so saddened to hear about the loss of Richard Flurnoy and Carolyn McCutheon Hanks. I'll always remember Richard as being a gentle giant. He was a very quiet, soft spoken person who always greeted you with a warm smile. I'll always remember Carolyn as being a genuinely warm, friendly person to everyone. She never let her popularity go to her head which made her an even more beautiful person to everyone. Richard and Carolyn each had a heart kindness which no one who knew them will ever forget!
Stay healthy, happy and keep on smiling!
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Subject: 1968 Year book
Gregory Gentle
<ggentle@mail.clearviewcatv.net>
Where can I find a year book for 68? Got drafted in '69 and ended up doing five years, most of it out of the US. A lot of my personal stuff I left at home got lost.
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Subject: Message
Terry Davis
Class of '64
Hey folks...seems like every month goes by and someone passes away from us..I wonder if anyone remembers a place in Lakewood that most of us congrigated to enjoy this ones back yard..it had a basketball court and short place to play tennis..the basketball court was asphalted and goals on each end..most of the guys that lived in our area up there eventually ended up there to play basketball..I remember parties there also..do any of you remember who lived there? also one Halloween night a lot of us met at our house to go to the Schiffs to roll their yard..and if memory serves me right we ended up at this place later..Huntsville police was in the area also that night too..haha!
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Subject: A note
Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly
Class of '64
I was very saddened to hear of Richard's and Carolyn's passing. Richard and I carpooled together at LHS and later at the UAH, along with Kay Carroll. He was a really kind and caring person.
Carolyn was as you described her - to a T! She was always so sweet to everyone, and was always so pretty. Just as you said, I never saw anything to indicate that she knew how pretty she was. I enjoyed the article you wrote on Carolyn very much.
My sympathies go out to Richard's and Carolyn's families and friends.
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Subject: Carolyn aka My Mom
Joey (Hanks) Byrd
<Joey@chrisandjoey.com>
Hello,
My name is Joey (Hanks) Byrd. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciated everything you wrote about mom. Joyce let me know about the web-site and told me to check it out. I'm sure mom loved it. ( I believe she'll be with us forever, to keep us straight !) Though we've never met, mom told many stories of the great times you guys had. I will be letting dad see it soon, I think he'll be able to handle it now. He's hanging in there, but it's going to be tough. ( on all of us) Once again thank you for caring so much. Mom will be missed.
Sincerely, Joey
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Click here to add text.
by Joy Rubins Morris
Class of 1964
The recollection of penny candy began when we lived on Triana Boulevard (just behind old Butler High School). On Sunday mornings my sister and I would walk to church. Mom would always give us money for the (offering) collection plate. However, being innovative mathematicians, we figured out that we could put some of the money in the collection plate (so as not to offend the big guy) and spend the rest on candy. There was a small grocery store near the church and we would stop by there to buy our candy. I remember buying the gum that had the multi-striped gum wrappers. As soon as the flavor was gone we would chew another one. I loved jaw breakers, licorice sticks, and the straws that held different flavors of what I thought was the Jello mix. I also remember the wax lips and the little wax bottles that had some form of liquid in them. I remember the hard stick candy in different flavors, Tootsie Rolls, Tootsie Pops and bubblegum. I can’t remember how many times Mom would warn us not to fall asleep with gum in our mouths because it would wind up in our hair. Never did learn! Don’t know why I didn’t become bald because the only way Mom could get the gum out of my hair was by snipping it out. Of course, that was dangerous--by the time she got the scissors, she was in no mood to really care what my hair might look like after she got through. Probably was why the bedpost became a favorite spot for everyone to put their gum before they fell asleep at night.
A few years ago I met my sister in Martinsburg, West Virginia for a mini family reunion. There was a small store on one of the side streets in Martinsburg that had a sign “Penny Candy”. We immediately went in thinking wow what luck. However, much to our dismay, all the “penny” candy was well over one cent. It seemed the rate of inflation had hit and the sign was just an illusion of a bygone era. It worked though because we did buy some candy (licorice). Now a days I have to be careful—jaw breakers and licorice sticks have given way to crowns and fillings. Just another sign of vintage 21st century.
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Ain't Nothing Like the "Real" Thing, Baby!
by Barbara Wilkerson Donnelly
Class of '64
I really enjoyed reading Tommy's "Coke" article a lot, and once again, he proved what an amazing memory he possesses. It was very thought-provoking as are all his articles. I remember all the commercials touting Coke as the "real" thing, but we already knew that, didn't we? I had always heard the urban legends about items that had been found in the Coke bottles, too. Then came the day I found one of them myself. The bottles travelled down the conveyor belt and stopped to be filled and capped. I had one of the long "fillers" which apparently broke loose from its fitting and was capped up in the bottle. It was a steel(?) pipe, approximately six inches or so in length. It took up most of the height of the bottle, which was the next size up from the small bottles. I didn't examine it closely, because I never opened the bottle.
My son, Chris, had acquired a Coke bottle from the early 80's with Bear Bryant's picture and scores from the year's games imprinted upon it. I think it may have been a national championship, possibly '82 or '83. Anyone know? I still have the bottle, but can't put my hands on it right now with all the moving preparations. I think I still have one from the Clemson national championship, also. Seems like they played Nebraska or Oklahoma, and I'm pretty sure it was '81.
I remember returning the Coke bottles to a local grocery store to collect the deposit. Then, of course, penny candy was purchased. I especially loved Mary Janes, the little package with 4 individually-wrapped candies. These were either chocolate, strawberry or peanut butter, which was my favorite. I used to pour Coke on the top of a vanilla Dixie-cup ice cream (the kind you ate with a little wooden spoon). It tasted just like a Coke float from the drugstore then. We also used to poke holes in top of Coke bottle caps with an ice-pick and then shake and drink the Cokes. (I don't know why!) This female remembers target-shooting at coke bottles with my 22 rifle, but I NEVER used a Coke bottle to root a plant. (Tommy, Tommy, Tommy!) I remember being the sickest I've ever been from rum and Coke. To this day, I maintain that nothing should ever be mixed with a coke. Why mess with perfection? On second thought, there would be only one acceptable item, and that would be a Zesto's dip-dog slathered in mustard! I don't care whether it is on-the-side or in the bottle.
The music-sharing article Tommy wrote was equally interesting. I started thinking about the record store he mentioned that was located close to the Grand Newsstand. I think it was either next-door to the Grand or a couple of doors up towards the drugstore on the corner. (What is the name of that street? It's the same one that the Grand Theater is on. Could it be Franklin?) I used to buy records there, also. I remember buying the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" about four or five days after declaring it the worst song I'd ever heard! I also remember buying records at Hornbuckles'. What was the name of the record store near the newsstand? Anyone? I can see the entire store so clearly in my mind. Just can't find the name.
I was just about to send Tommy a note asking where he'd found my old 45 holder (the Lee-Bay Mystery item), when I received the e-mail from Johnny Sharp about the same item. I remember carrying the 45's with my finger through the holes, also. I had a changer for my record player that would hold a stack of about 7 of them at a time, so you could prepare the "mood" in advance. HA!HA! That's assuming that the changer let one drop every time, of course. I remember marking 45's with my initials using a
laundry marker or ball-point pen, but I also used address labels. Now I'm really curious about what everyone else used! Did I miss something? Perish the thought!
In retrospect, there was nothing like putting a stack of 45's on the changer while drinking a small Coke . . . unless, of course, it was using the empty bottle for a game of spin-the-bottle. I am with you there! Here's drinking (a Coke, of course) to all our old Lee buddies, particularly those who also loved spin-the-bottle. There really ain't nothing like the "real" thing, baby.
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This Week's Mystery Items
We're looking for the common name of these pieces of nostalgic candy. I remember them coming in a box, and buying them at The Grand Theater. Any takers?
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Remembering
Richard Flournoy
By Collins (CE) Wynn
Class of ‘64
My, oh my, we are sure losing our friends at a rapid rate. Whether passing acquaintance or close friend, the loss of each is a tragedy for us all since with each passing little pieces of our world gradually slip away.
As they say, I want to take a moment and rise to speak on behalf of Richard Flournoy. Richard and I went to school together for many years and had several classes together at Lee although I would not say I knew him well from the classroom. My appreciation for Richard came from athletics. You see, he was a valued and dedicated member of the Lee High School Football team during the five years I was a member of it. Richard was a big guy and played either tackle or end. Even today I can still see him standing there in his dirty, dusty, and ragged practice uniform with his hands on his hips breathing heavy on a hot and dry practice afternoon. During all the difficult days of practice over those five years I never once heard him complain. This says even more about his character when you consider that Richard was not a “starter”; he didn’t play the game for glory because there was none for him – he played for the companionship. I am proud to have been his teammate.
I lost touch with Richard after graduation. Sometimes the oddest things occur. Many years later (mid 80s) during my military career I was working a troop deployment to Italy from the Birmingham airport. It was our habit to stage our cargo on the aircraft taxi ramps sometime around midnight so we could load the aircraft when they arrived and depart around daybreak. (For the military folks – mostly 141s; once a C5; and sometimes 130s depending on the destination.) Because of the early hours my folks would contract with a local restaurant for a hot breakfast and coffee to be served mobile there near the runway so we could eat while we worked.
During this particular night it was around 2am and dark, cold, and rainy as we worked to prepare the cargo and load the aircraft. The breakfast vendor had set up his serving area some distance away from where the aircraft were working so I walked over looking for some hot coffee. After drawing up my coffee I looked up and, to my great surprise, I saw Richard Flournoy behind the serving line. We stood and talked for a few moments and I came to learn he was the manager of the restaurant that had our food contract. With everything else going on I couldn’t remain long but had to hurry off. We shook hands and wished each other well. That was the last time I saw Richard --- I still wish him well. Hearing of his passing I felt I had to write this brief memorial - as inadequate as it is. Richard was a good, hard working guy.
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Penny B-B-Bats
Hit A Home Run
by Tommy Towery
Class of '64
Most folks won’t even stop and pick up pennies they see on the ground today. A penny meant a lot more to those of us who grew up in the ‘50s and ‘60s. You could get a sugar high on a penny back then.
Penny candy was called penny candy long before we entered the scene, but thank goodness that it was still around when we were kids. I don’t think it could exist today, even if it were not an economic issue of never being able to make a profit on something that sold for just a penny. I don’t think the health department and the consumer protection people would dare let penny candy, as we knew it, be sold today. While many of the sweets were individually wrapped, I remember just as many that were not. They were in boxes, or big lid glass jars, all just sitting there for any dirty-fingered kid to reach into and mill through until he or she had the right one with the right color or size. Sometimes you were given a small brown bag to put them in, and many times you laid them down on the counter were everyone else had laid money or sat dirty diapered babies or all the lint out of their pockets while they looked for the correct change. It didn’t matter. When you bought it you crammed it down into the pockets of your dirty jeans until you got a chance to eat it.
When I think of where I remember penny candy being sold, my first thought is at Brown’s grocery in West Huntsville. Brown’s was caddy-cornered from the Center Theater. That was because I was often given money by my grandmother that worked at the Rebel Inn, also at that intersection, to go buy myself some candy. Downtown I think of Woolworth’s, Kresses, McLellan's and W.T. Grants. On East Clinton, Mrs. Grimes grocery in her house had lots of penny candy as well. Back in the first grade when I went to Rison, I stopped in that little store that we have talked about in the past but which slips my memory right now, that was on the present Andrew Jackson way. It was on the east side of the street, and was a tiny place. There was another store way down in West Huntsville, near West Huntsville Cafe, across from the old Merrimack Mill in that little strip mall. I don’t remember Kroger or Piggley Wiggley having a penny candy area, but they must have had some close to the cash registers somewhere. Most cafes had a few things near the register to make you spend your odd pennies you got in change. I think the Grand Newstand did that too.
What kind of candy do I remember, you ask? The easiest to remember are B-B-Bats, Mary Janes, and Atomic Fireballs and jaw breakers. If you put gum in the same candy category, I remember Double-Bubble, Bazooka, and Joe Palooka gum. I also still can get saliva glands working just thinking about the banana flavored taffy which I think were called Banana Bikes or something similiar. There were some other chocolate and strawberry taffy type candy that came individually wrapped, and then grouped into a cellophane wrap of four for a penny. I think they were called Kits. There was also the wax Nik-L-Nip type bottles that we would bite the top off of, suck out the sweet syrup, and then chew up the bottle. Growl! I’m mean…I can eat a bottle! And many of you have to remember the wax lips that fit into that same species.
There were others too, like Tootsie Roll Pops, and miniature Tootie Rolls. There was one that I remember that was a small ice cream cone filled with a marshmallow topping that made it look like ice cream. There were individual Bit-O-Honey pieces too. And how many times did we choke when we tried to breath through our mouths just about the time we tore the end off of a Pixy Stix and started pouring the power down our throats? I never liked licorice sticks, but many did and many bought them with their pennies. There were suckers called Dum-Dums and other stick candy and multi-flavored suckers that never seemed to have a commercial name but were just in the jars.
There are many others that I know will come to mind over the next few weeks, but the Traveller staff wants you to share in the memories, so we’ll let you send in your own favorite “penny candy” brands.
Next week we’ll move forward into the world of nickel candy like we bought at the picture shows…the type that was too expensive for those of us who just had a few pennies to spend.
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Resignation
Submitted by Cherri Polly Massey
Class of '66
I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an eight year-old again.
I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four star restaurant.
I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and
make a sidewalk with rocks.
I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.
I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.
I want to return to a time when life was simple, when all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
I want to think the world is fair.
That everyone is honest and good.
I want to believe that anything is possible.
I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
I want to live simple again.
I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and loss of loved ones.
I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.
So . . . here's my checkbook and my car keys, my credit card bills and my 401K statements. I am officially resigning from adulthood.
And if you want to discuss this further, you'll have to catch me first, 'cause....."Tag! You're it."
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The Perks of Being 50+
Submitted by Gary Kinkle
Class of '64
1. Kidnappers are not very interested in you.
2. In a hostage situation you are likely to be released first.
3. No one expects you to run - anywhere.
4. People call at 9 P.M. & ask, "Did I wake you?"
5. People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.
6. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.
7. Things you buy now won't wear out.
8. You can eat dinner at 4 P.M.
9. You enjoy hearing about other peoples' operations.
10. You get into heated arguments about pension plans.
11. You have a party & the neighbors don't even realize it.
12. You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.
13. You quit trying to hold your stomach in, no matter who walks into the room.
14. You sing along with elevator music.
15. Your eyes won't get much worse.
16. Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to pay off.
17. Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service.
18. Your secrets are safe with your friends, because they can't remember them either.
19. Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.
20. You can't remember if you've already read this list.
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Forty years ago, on Sunday February 9, 1964, at 8 p.m., the Beatles made their first American TV debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. The Beatles sang All My Loving, Till There Was You, She Loves You, I Saw Her Standing There and I Want To Hold Your Hand.
