Lee High School - Huntsville Alabama Alumni

My First Car

by George "Lehman" Williams

Class of '64

My first car was a 1964 Malibu SS. I had worked in my father's restaurants and at Williams Texaco Service Station on Andrew Jackson Way since I was 13 without being paid. He promised to buy me a new car when I graduated from Lee. He had a heart attach in March 1964 and was released from the hospital after about 10 days – he went to the chevy dealer and bought me the car.

Those of you who remember that Burgandy, black interior, 4-speed, 283 cid (which I blew-up with about 2,000 miles on it and replaced it with a 327 cid), I drove the wheels off of it. It has been referred to as “The Lehman Express” during my days at FSU (later to be UNA).

I wish I still had it so that I could verify that it had a GPS and remote control system that activated when I had too much to drink, which was quite often, and drove itself home or to Dwight Tuck's house. Most of the time it was me, Gary Kinkle and Dwight riding around drinking a few cold ones and trying to find some trouble to get into – and we were successful on many occasions.

I did not realize it at the time – but – how great it was to be 17 – a senior in high school – and have a new car at the start of the muscle car era. There are many stories involving this car, those who rode in it, those who drove it, those who borrowed it. I am just thankful that most of us survived.

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"Where the Action Is!"

by Tommy Towery

Class of '64

If you are able to click on the photo above please do and watch past the title to see The Knickerbockers singing "Wild Thing" for the TV show "Where the Action Is" that was filmed at the Big Spring Park. I would love to hear for anyone who actually went to the filming of this show and hear you comments about it. I also need to know if they filmed in Huntsville on more than one occasion, since at least three shows in a couple of months featured clips filmed in Huntsville.

I am trying very hard to document via personal observations a lot of things that I remember from Huntsville and would appreciate all the help I can get. At the time this was filmed on Thursday, September 1, 1966, I was living in Memphis so I was not there, but it was still an important happening.

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Some of the Responses to

Huntsville Memories

Dianne Hughey McClure

Class of '64

I was born at Huntsville Hospital August 5 1946 I am now a pediatric nurse at Huntsville Hospital. Do you think that means I have come "full circle"?

The old madison county court house

Downtown Huntsville (ex. Grants, Woolworths, Lyric Theater, Grand Theater, Fountain Room)

Lee High School

East Clinton School

Woody's Drive-In

Monte Sano

Mullin's Restaurant

Bon Aire Restaurant

Pin Palace Bowling Lanes

.Carter's Skateland

11.

Big Spring Park

12.

Jerry's Drive Inn

13.

Shoney's Drive Cross on the moutain at Burritt Museumn

Sorry I could not stop at ten and could probably go on with a little thought this may not be what you want but this is want came to my mind.

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Jeff Fussell

Class of '66

1. Monte Sano Park

2. Big Spring Pool (Brrr)

3. Slot Car racing at Art’s Hobby Shop

4. Cruising Shoney’s and Jerry’s Drive In

5. Pizza from Terry’s on North Parkway

6. Mullins’ Drive In on Stevens and Andrew Jackson

7. Bill’s Men’s Wear and Chief’s Sportswear for Bucks

8. Lyric & Martin Theaters

9. Woody’s Drive-In movie

10.

The Epoch (not “Epic”) at 5 Points

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Bruce W. Fowler

Class of '66

1. Bon Air Restaurant (for eating, especially the rolls - recipe on line)

2. Carnegie Library (the old Huntsville public library on the square)

3. Star Market (my mother bought animal protein there)

4. Doyle's and Corder Music stores (the latter was a spinoff of the former)

5. Gibson BBQ (The one on south parkway about where the Krispy Kreme is now.)

6. Hardee's down US 72 at Memorial Parkway (remember the Huskee? After school hangout for Lakewood bunch)

7. The 'official' school book store (This was a place down on the square, south side I believe near the hardware store and the surplus store, where you went to buy school books back before they were provided. You went when school started and there was no air conditioning so the temperature was high and tempers were short and people were surly.)

8. Big Spring Park (When I was a small child went there to feed ducks; in high school I would go to the recreation center every Saturday to watch my younger brother play basketball for some children's league.)

9. A&P grocery store (where my mother bought her other foodstuffs.)

10. Huntsville High School auditorium (there was some sort of Christmas program there every year; I recall my parents dropping me off there before I could dirve and myself driving afterwards every year for several years.)

11. S&H Green Stamp redemption store (I recall my mother making a trip to this place every year to redeem her green stamps, which she got at the A&P.)

12. UAH Morton Hall (I recall going there on Saturdays to take ACT/SAT tests and to use the library. This was back when Morton was the only building on campus.)

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Subject:Dance Club at Five Points

Michael Griffith

Class of ‘66

The club at Five Points was named “The Epoch.” Outside of Shoney’s or Jerry’s, it was the best place to meet girls from Huntsville High or Butler. There were dances, with live bands, on Friday and Saturday evenings, and sometimes on Sunday afternoons.

I have forgotten how much it cost to get in, but I do remember that when we paid they would stamp our hand with a “random” date from one of those old business stamps with a changeable date, so we could come in and go out whenever we wanted. Not saying how I know, but I believe that it was possible for a group of guys to have one of these easily found stamps, with a simple ink pad, in the glove compartment of their car. Money could be pooled for one person to pay the entrance fee and have their hand stamped. This person could then go back outside and share the “random date” with the others (would have been easier with cell phones) … this may have been one of the reasons that they went out of business?!?

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Subject:Dance Club

George Vail

Class of '66

The name of the teen club in Five Points was the "Epoch". Not sure I have the spelling correct, but that was it. If you played the "Epoch" you were somethin'.

I was so excited that after some time The"IN" played the "Epoch". I remember a very attractive young woman ran the club. I remember hangin' out there too and seeing "Ivey Joe and the Snowballs" and several others. Huntsville also had a teen club downtown for awhile, the "Camelot" and there was the "Hullaballoo" in the old legion lodge on S.Parkway. Also, there was a teen club on Mastin Lake Rd in a strip-center. I think it was called "Charlie Browns".

I have memories of "Bradley's" too. My first time there I saw "The Rocks" with Randy Duck(lead vocals)Skip Atkins(bass), Jackie Tiller(lead guitar)and Lee's own Larry Byrum on keyboard. I looked up to a lot of the musicians in my youth and many of that we all admired, Jerry Brewer, and so many more from that era. Later in life I befriended the late Ray Sanderson (drummer for The"Highboys") what a good guy, he would give you the shirt of his back. In fact many of the guys that were in competing groups became friends of mine in my early adult career.

I can remember them dropping by at any one of the clubs I played at in 70's. I guess if I tried I could pump out a little novelette about the music scene in Huntsville from the 60's to 90's anyway. Hey Eddie, what a memorable time at The Fort Raymond Jones Armory backing Ronnie Dove. Those were "the good 'ole days". Ronnie played the "Plush Horse" in the summer of '73. I was drumming for "The Mike Lynn Band" at the time and Ronnie and his guitar player remembered me from the Armory gig.

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Subject:Last Week's Mystery Ink Cartridges

Chip Smoak

Class of '66

Hi to all of the Fami-LEE,

I well remember the ink cartridges for fountain pens.

They were the cutting edge of technology when they came out. One no longer had to keep up with a bottle of ink, what a bother.

However, the memory that comes to mind most is that more than one of my shirts was ruined when the things leaked.

Perhaps I used the wrong kind since I never had a pen that used the cartridge with the metal ring at one end.

Although the ball point pens are the predominant writing instrument now, pens add something to one's penmanship that is missing from the product of ball points.

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Subject:Hello

Susan Galloway Singleton

From: Orcas Isalnd, WA

Email: azo@rockisland.com

Year of Graduation: 1966

Well, actually I did not graduate from Lee High. My family moved home to Seattle for my senior year..but I have great memories of the time I spent in Hunsville and the years and friends at Lee HS Thanks for your work on this site. I will try to put together some short memories.

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