TLC #17: June 16, 2001
Dear Hearts and Gentle People:
Hugh Hunt, Jane Ann '56 Whitney's husband, wrote that he
can die happy, since he had been quoted in TLC. Now, I suppose, he can die ecstatic.
In response to
Joyce Gueguen '55 Ramsey's request, we have received a few responses from people
near flood-ravaged Houston. They're fine, but I suppose we should be concerned
about the ones we did not hear back from.
From
Jerry '56 Mischon:
As of late Tuesday, 06/12,
approximately 30,000 homes have been
identified as flood damaged in
Houston. The expectation is for more to be identified in coming
days. The death toll as of 06/11 was 20.
The flooding occurred
without any real notice and while many people were asleep. It's
ugly.
Fortunately, I (nor my family) suffered any flood damage. FYI, the
record for rainfall in one location during a 24-hour period in Texas was 43
inches at Alvin, Texas (just south of Houston) some 15 years
ago.
From Janet Cross '55
Bertz:
6/14/01 Just spoke to my youngest kid in
Angleton, TX. She is sitting it out, waiting for her husband (who is
putting in 12-hr. days trying to get the water pumped out of sub-basement and
basement) to get the power back on in the building where they both work - Baylor
School of Medicine. They have only emergency power as yet, but anticipate being
up and running by Monday, 6/18. The most serious damage seems to have been
in Downtown Houston, seems
the areas outside Houston faired much better than
the 80 miles of the "concrete city" circle. Those of you who are
at least familiar with how Houston is built around the bayou's (that are all
concrete spillways) know that a lot less rain than 25-34 inches of rain can
overflow the bayou's in a heartbeat. The clincher was that all that rain fell
within a phenomenally short period of time; a matter of hours 4(?). All
the people that I know in the area are fine, not even property damage for my
gang.
From Barbara Tabb Jarman:
I
just got Joyce's e-mail asking about how we in Houston fared
during the
flood. I am happy to say that we escaped any high water in our
neighborhood; but, that was a real gully-washer that left Houston looking like
an ocean filled with islands. I am very grateful that we got by without having
the house flooded. And, thanks for asking, Joyce.
I'm glad that Jim O'Malley aptly
cleared up my wrong impressions of
the old pool hall. (I am happy that
he did not defend 10th Street,
however). I think it all shows just how
'sheltered' we were in those
days, and how we grew up with certain notions
because of that. But, that was the impression that a lot of us had about the
pool hall - that it was no place for ladies, and thus no lady ever found out the
difference.
Is that fair enough? I thank
Jim for the history lesson on it, and
enjoyed it very much. No beer or liquor
in there - really? I learned
something today. I do remember
all those names, except for "Turk"
Terrell. "Toad"
lived up the street from me, and I had always heard he was pretty good at
billiards. I do know it was a very busy place on
Saturday nights, but at
other times, too. There was also a bowling
alley for a while, next to
Pat's Army Store, I believe, or maybe in that
building - but, it was another
place that seemed to be 'off limits' to
ladies. And, yes, let's hear
some more info on Block 42. Like it or
not, we were famous all over the
state for a few things other than the
Battle of Lexington. When I went to
work at Hallmark Cards, a girl asked to see my class ring; and, when she saw the
Minuteman on it, laughed and said, "Oh, I thought there might be a red
lantern on there." True story. I didn't appreciate it, so I set
her straight in a hurry.
Very few names have been mentioned in
recollections that I don't
recognize and remember. I still refer to that one
building as
"Liebo's". And, I think we all regret seeing the
old Mainstreet Theater
go. I saved an old article from the
Advertiser-News, and the ad on the
back of it said that Kitty Wells was to be
the featured star at a
stageshow that week. That was from back in the '50s.
They knew how to get to us kids, too, with those serials that left the hero on
the brink of death each week - what a hook! You just had to go back and
see how they got out of it the next weekend. My favorite was Nyoka, Queen
of the Jungle - it was usually a gorilla that was about to dispatch her. (My favorite was Spider
Woman, but I seem to be the only one who remembers it! -
Ed.)
What was it about
gorillas? King Kong scared the bejabbers out of me
when I saw it at the Eagle
Theater. That old Mainstreet Theater held
many memories, and I'm sorry it was
torn down. I could write a book on it. Remember Alice Page going up and
down those aisles with her
flashlight and stern look when things got too
noisy? We were as afraid of her as we were of Mose Butler, even if he
never gave us any reason to be scared. Alice did - she could throw us out of
'the show'. Maybe 'respect' would be a better word for Mose. All we needed
in those days was one Mose Butler. That was a far cry from the 4 (count
them - 4) squad cars with flashing lights that pulled me and my brother over
last fall when we were brash enough to drive through Lexington at night, in a
car with a Texas license plate. And, trust me, we had broken no traffic laws
whatsoever. I seriously doubt that Lexington has enough crime to warrant
that kind of welcome. Funny thing, though - I even thought of Mose while it was
happening. I also thought of Barney Fife from Mayberry; contrast, you know. LOL
(That's 'laughing out loud' for those who don't chat on the internet). Ah
- for the days of good ol' Mose! I'm getting carried away again, so will
back off and let somebody else have a go at it. I don't know why all drug stores
had a soda fountain, but do know that lemon ice cream from The Odessa was the
best I ever ate - bar none. Hope we get an answer on the soda fountain
question. (Someplace for customers to sit while waiting for prescriptions
to be filled, and a way to make money at the same time???- my
guess.)
And, I'll throw out a few words to
tease memories: Central School;
Arnold School; "Monkey Joe";
"Annie", with her buggy; sleighriding on
those great hills;
homecoming rallies at the Courthouse steps; 'kick the can'; 'the drive-in';
actually walking to and from school. Keep 'em
coming,
folks!
P.S. I don't have a webpage of my
own, but a friend of mine did one on me as part of her Seniors' Talent Showcase,
for a bunch of us who have become good friends through the Internet. I
just include this for those who know me well enough to want to go look at some
of my 'piddling', as I call it - just things I've done over more recent years to
indulge in my hobbies and love for being 'creative'. I may eventually get around
to doing a webpage of my own - but, so much still to learn in this electronic
age, and I haven't gotten around to that yet, or even seen a real need for
it. In the meantime, this includes a recent pic of me and part of my
family, taken last Christmas. Thanks for your indulgence, those of you who
couldn't be less interested. LOL. The URL is: http://www.geocities.com/seniors_pages/showme/showme.html
Ed.
- Prepare to be knocked out by the quality of her
work!
Mary Pat
Gueguen '58 Miller:
Susan, this
is so much fun! I'm having to print off each one: just too
much
to read in one sitting. From the size of THE LEXINGTON NEWS, you get the
feeling that things really ARE happening in our "little town by the
river". Got a kick out of the "Glance at the Past" column again
today: 1951 "Montgomery Ward Store was advertising cotton twill pedal
pushers for misses at $1.98 per pair and ladies blouses at $1.77."
What a deal!! Love, MP
And they are back in
fashion too! Mary Pat's last letter addressed a note to John Cross, regarding
Prom adventures. And here is the
response:
Ouch!! Some people just can't let a
sleeping dog lie. (Yawn)
Mary Pat, I'm sorry to see your memory
failing you so. I would had to have been a total jerk to have asked you to
the prom the day before. I'm almost certain it was two days before,
...maybe even three.
But our
recollections coincide in that it was a fun time.
Do you remember the
frantic preparations for the prom? It was an oriental theme, with a
small, arching bridge in the center and a crooked little tree with
blossoms. (Belated thanks and apologies to an unsuspecting farmer in the
area.) The decorations committee had strung a wire grid over the entire
room at the height of the basketball rims, and rolled 2-foot wide dark-blue
crepe paper over it, creating a false ceiling, in effect. Richard Seaton, Bob
Ball, I believe, and one or two others were painstakingly running electrical
wire and soldering connections for the dozens of Chinese lanterns hanging
beneath the ceiling. The wiring took much longer than anticipated, and
they were just finishing when the first guests started to arrive. Mr.
Lloyd may have insisted on the soldered connections, for fear we would burn the
place down. To the undying credit of everyone who worked on it, it looked less
like a gym that evening than at any other time I ever saw it. Almost a
night-club ambiance.
Glad to hear things are well with you, Mary
Pat. I was wondering when the class of '58 would start kicking up a little
dust in the TLC. Most of the missives have been from the oldsters who
preceded us at LHS (including our respective, verbose
siblings).
And thanks
for all the times you joined me in the walk to school. I
enjoyed
them. By the way, you can stop spreading the rumor that I was smart.
It obviously got blown way out of proportion. Sorry I ever started
it.
Regards to all. John (Going back to
sleep now.)
From Liz Anne White '57
Kramer
Hi Scribe-
What
wonderful memories these newsletters and messages from the
"old-timers" bring back. For some reason it popped in my mind when one
of the first TVs came to town. CJ and Jean Landrum owned the Davis Paint
Store-close to the corner of 10th and Main. On Saturday nights they would
close the store and we would all sit in the dark and watch test patterns for
awhile-then wonderful Gorgeous George show, Ted Mack, etc. At my age I thought
the test patterns were the best. It was always so funny to look out the big old
picture window and see all the faces looking in. Oh for the good old
days.
Keep these wonderful newsletters coming-luv them
all.
I
remember my first time: (seeing TV, that is) - at Mary Lou Ely's house at 20th
& Main. We also watched the test pattern! And then we saw Howdy Doody. I
was, I think, 9, maybe 10, and what an event that was! -
Ed.
The
Odessa Ice Cream Parlor recollections seem to be fading now - and the new topic
is the Pool Hall. Bob Warner worked there as a young kid, and he has many
stories which he will tell but not write. I suppose he's concerned about
incrimination or something. Anyone else work there?
What surprises your scribe is that no one
yet has mentioned perhaps the most famous (possibly notorious) location from our
youth. Extra issues to the first one who names
it!!!
From Charlotte Skelton
Guiberson:
I have
really enjoyed every issue from you and hearing all about people in Lexington.
It is wonderful that we all have such fond memories of growing up in a
small town. It makes me wonder if all small towns were as memorable as
ours.
I
doubt it.
Your devoted scribe,
Susan
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