Since this site is mostly about the old days, I thought this little post I blatantly stole off of anther message board might be of interest...
You remember when Bell Road (especially thorough Glendale) was the
considered edge of civilization. There was nothing there but
tumbleweeds and prairie dogs. Now, it's where you go to run all your
errands. Or if you were traveling eastbound on Bell Rd. the sign that
said 'Scottsdale- 21 miles'
Your parents took you to Legend City. The only theme park Phoenix had.
Mornings were spent watching 'The Wallace and Ladmo Show'. When it
was over, it was time to leave for school. 'Ladmo Bags'.
You remember when Beardsley Road was a seldom traveled, two-lane
blacktop. Now, it's the eastbound frontage road for the 101 freeway.
Before there was Target, there was Gemco. Now, most of the old Gemco
stores are Targets.
You watched Star Wars at the original Cine Capri.
You remember stores like Yellow Front, Woolco, Newberry's, McCrory's,
TG&Y, Fedmart, Sprouse Reitz, Wards and Yates.
You remember when Metrocenter had a below-grade ice skating rink.
Watching skaters from the overlook above was the best way to escape
the summer heat.
Also at Metrocenter was a Farrell's ice cream parlor. No Farrell's
trip was complete without getting to see two waiters run though the
restaurant with a sundae resting on a stretcher, while lights and
sirens whirred in the background. Sometimes, the ice cream would fall
off the stretcher. Don't forget the trip thru their candy store.
You were bummed when Farrell's closed. The space was later occupied
by 'Round the Corner, a burger and sandwich place similar to Red
Robin.
You saw a concert at Compton Terrace. When it was attached to Legend
City.
Your dad subscribed to the Phoenix Gazette(afternoon paper) and the
Arizona Republic on Sunday.
You remember when the Brass Armadillo antique mall was Angel's--a
building supply warehouse similar to Home Depot.
You remember when you got your building supplies from O'Malley's,
Entz-White or Payless Cashways.
You remember when the Phoenix Suns were the only professional sports
team in the state, and they played their games at Phoenix Memorial
Coliseum.
Your groceries came from Alpha Beta, AJ Bayless, Lucky's, Neb's
Market or Smitty's. Smitty's even had a little coffee shop attached
to it.
A night out consisted of family dinner at the Lunt Avenue Marble
Club. Their deep fried mushrooms were the best.
You remember when eastbound I-10 ended at Dysart Road. In order to
continue east, you had to take McDowell or Thomas Road 15 miles to I-
17 and head south. I-10 started up again somewhere east of downtown.
You ate breakfast at Sambo's or Bob's Big Boy.
You drove to Central and Thomas to have Strawberry Pie at Big Boy's
because it was a car hop and they brought it to your car.
You remember when houses were built with carports instead of garages.
Roofs were covered with wood shakes or asphalt shingles instead of
concrete tiles.
You remember home builder's billboards that advertised interest rates
of 11%
Your aspirin and cough syrup came from Skagg's, Revco, Thrifty's, or
Drug Emporium.
Your shoes came from Buster Brown.
You remember when CBS was on channel 10...ABC was on channel 3...and
channels 5 and 15 were independent. Now, CBS is on channel 5...FOX is
on channel 10...ABC is on channel 15...and channel 3 no longer has a
network affiliation. NBC and PBS are the only ones that stayed on
their original stations (channel 12 and 8, respectively).
You remember when channel 15 broadcast pay-tv at night (It was called
ON-TV).
You spent hours watching early music videos on UHF channel 61. Due to
the limited number of videos at the time, songs like 'Down Under', 'I
Ran', and 'Come on, Eileen' were repeated quite often. You were lucky
if you could get decent reception.
You accompanied your dad to the True Value Hardware store in Westown
in hopes of getting to stop at Baskin Robbins afterwards.
You shopped at Valley West Mall before it became a ghost town, and
was ultimately torn down.
You shopped at Phoenix Spectrum Mall when it was known as Chris-Town.
You woke up to Bruce Kelly in the morning on KZZP. Before that -
Jonathon Brandmeier and his 'loons'!
You remember the only real rock and roll stations were KRIZ and KRUX
in the 60's.
You rode the 'Tico' to Park Central.
You remember quality local programming like Open House with Rita
Davenport or Sun Spots with Jan DiAtri.
You accompanied your dad to the LaBelle's catalog showroom to buy
your mom's Christmas present.
Before he was governor, you remember Evan Mecham as the owner of a
Pontiac dealership in Glendale.
You remember when Castles 'n' Coasters was known as Golf 'n' Stuff.
You remember when the entire state of Arizona only had one area code.
Now, there are three in the Phoenix area alone.
You remember when your phone number that started with '959' and it
was changed to '840' and you never knew why.
You remember when Scottsdale Fashion Square was an outdoor mall with
Goldwater's, Bullocks and Lenord's luggage being the only stores.
You remember when Goldwater's was bought out by Robinson May who was
then bought out by Macy's.
You remember when Diamonds was bought out by Dillards.
You remember when Diamonds ticket box-was the only place to buy
concert tickets.
You remember when it hit 99* and that was considered HOT.
You remember when Big Surf was the place to go to bet the heat. Then
hitting the drive inn to see movie across the street.
You remember when best ice cream was found at Thrifty's Drug Store,
where .85 would get you three scoops.
You remember when you wrote all your information down on a piece of
paper and then your drivers license was mailed to you. It was very
easy to change the 1968 to 1965 (because it was still in your hand
writing) so that you could go to Devil House drinking because the
drinking age was 19 years old.
You remember when you could go to Devil House for dancing 'after
hours' which was from 1am -3am.
You remember going to see 'Rocky Horror Picture Show' at midnight on
Mill Ave.
You remember when 44th Street and Thomas was 'Thomas Mall'.
You remember when 40th Street and Thomas was 'Tower Plaza'. And there
was a few people that climb to the top and threaten to jump.
You remember when there was a canal at 48th.
You remember when driving up Pima Rd and you could see for miles &
miles because there was nothing east or north of Shea Rd. And it was
very dark and scary.
You remember when the only way to get to Shea Rd was thru 'Dreamy
Park' and there weren't any streetlights? Squaw Peak was only a name
of a mountain. Not a highway.
You remember when you saw a concert at Graham Central Station,
because the band was not popular enough to fill Mesa Amphitheater.
you remember the knothole gang at ASU football games, the Nasty Brothers on Wallace and Ladmo, TV signed off at midnight with 'Blessed is the Nation who's God is the Lord', Blakely's on the hill gave free glass tumblers with any gas purchase, and S&H Green stamps. Ah, what a life. :0)
The most I remember as well, Listening to the radio AM for the Lone Ranger, Shadow stories, Watching Wallace and Ladmo, Mr. Wizard, Popeye and Olive Oil, Science Fiction Theatre in Black and White. The Boston shoe store on Mill downtown Tempe ( bought our shoes there they were very good people), Tempe Sales , Safeway in the strip center on Mill including the barbershop there, the Frosty Queen as well across the street for I thought were the best fish and fries and cones, The A&W on Apache Blvd (drive in), The Brand New Tri city Mall (one of my first jobs working together with Al Gonzales) owned by the Maloof Bros., Keds tennis shoes were the most appreciated and best to have, Western Flyer, The Co-op in Phoenix for building materials before all the others, using the bell phone wired up, and our phone number started with WO, for whatever it stood for, not much on TV except the farm report at 6am in the mornings. Much as changed, I think I am remembering the best of times.
The most I remember as well, Listening to the radio AM for the Lone Ranger, Shadow stories, Watching Wallace and Ladmo, Mr. Wizard, Popeye and Olive Oil, Science Fiction Theatre in Black and White. The Boston shoe store on Mill downtown Tempe ( bought our shoes there they were very good people), Tempe Sales , Safeway in the strip center on Mill including the barbershop there, the Frosty Queen as well across the street for I thought were the best fish and fries and cones, The A&W on Apache Blvd (drive in), The Brand New Tri city Mall (one of my first jobs working together with Al Gonzales) owned by the Maloof Bros., Keds tennis shoes were the most appreciated and best to have, Western Flyer, The Co-op in Phoenix for building materials before all the others, using the bell phone wired up, and our phone number started with WO, for whatever it stood for, not much on TV except the farm report at 6am in the mornings. Much as changed, I think I am remembering the best of times.
Bob
WO stood for Woodland. Our # was a WO also. Party line that had a little mexican lady that would answer everyones calls and all she would say is 'bueno,bueno..... :0)
I remember most, if not all, of the changes listed. I worked at the original Farrell's on Indian School Road in Scottsdale (now a Hamburger place??) - my first job (I know that is another discussion)....eventually, I worked at all the Farrells, including the one in Tempe which has become a Native New Yorker (beer vs ice cream and college students - guess who had a better business plan.) I met my husband of 36 years at Scottsdale Farrells. I believe that Jean Davis's brother, Charlie, also worked there. The 'ZOO' served 10 people and cost $8.50 in 1970. Ahhh, those were the days. When we moved back to Tempe from a short time in Phoenix, we found Swenson's Ice Cream Parlor on the corner of Baseline and Price....not, as fun but it served up lots of after concert ice cream to our Fuller Elementary School kids in the 80s.
you remember the knothole gang at ASU football games, the Nasty Brothers on Wallace and Ladmo, TV signed off at midnight with 'Blessed is the Nation who's God is the Lord', Blakely's on the hill gave free glass tumblers with any gas purchase, and S&H Green stamps. Ah, what a life. :0)
Remberber the hole in the fence at asu football games where we all snuck in.
I-17 Beginning/ending at the Durango curve
Driving to Canyon Lake down Apache Trail for what seemed like hours and now its ½ hour down the 60
Picking cotton at what is now Arizona Mills Mall for 50 cents a pound
The great dust storms coming up from the south
Shooting my 22 in what is now central Ahwatukee
I must say, I am amazed at your recall, and the detail you describe from so long ago. I'm with with you on about 50% of the stuff. My world was so small back then, I hardly crossed over the railroad tracks that bordered my neighborhood to the west.
I remember:
- sneaking down to the ditch that borderd the railroad tracks, catching guppies and trying to keep them alive and giving them names
- when Mill Ave. was 2 lanes
- walking to Dr. Fuller's office (Gari Ann's Dad) from Broadmor, by myself for a root canal when I was 8yrs. old and not being afraid of anything
- the Vet on University making a 'home visit' when our dog 'Spookey' got hit by a car and putting him to sleep (saddest day of my childhood)
- when we moved from Ill. we got a dog, 'Wimpy' when we bought the house
- riding on the bus to the Chandler games and passing acres and acres of farmland
- College Ave. when it went all the way through (just like Phyllis)
- the Ellingson's huge home on the corner of College and University
- my Uncle Leon's toy store, the House of Toys on Mill just north of University
- watching the Scottsdale boys drag race way out on Shea Blvd.
- my Dad taking his Boy Scouts hiking at Pinnacle Peak which was far, far away
- playing jacks in the breezeway at Broadmor school
- riding my bike to school and not having to lock it up
- shopping at the Boston Store and getting our PE clothes each year at Joe Selleh's
- going home with Linda Rogers several times after school; she lived at the ASU farm that practically bordered McKemy; we fed the chickens, collected eggs, and fed her horse 'Done More'; he had that name because 'done more' damage on the farm than any other animal, she said
- picnics (and parking) at South Mt. park with Jerry, Nancy, and Ed, when I think Baseline was a deadend to the west
- having sunrise breakfast with Kalai Theta Club from THS at the highest ramada at Papago Park, celebrating Good Friday, several years in a row
- catching scorpions and taking them to Dr. Stankey at ASU to make anit-venom, for 10 cents a piece, I think
- going to a 3 Dog Night concert with Hutch one summer, all the way into Phx. at the Colliseum
- sitting on the curb of Broadway Rd., playing 'cars' with my friends
- tours through Hayden Flour mill and getting a cute little 1 or 2 lb. bag of flour
- wanting to make sure I looked cute and was outside when the cute paperboys delivered the TDN
- my parents allowing me to put an add in the TDN for my parakeet when his cage fell and he flew away. They also paid $50 to have stitches put in under his wings when the cat go a hold of him.
- hiking 'T' mountain and changing it back to a 'T' after McClintock made it into an 'M'
As you can see, my memories were much 'closer to home'.
- The old Tempe Hotel on Mill Ave. (where my Dad lived for a couple of months before we found a house)
- The Qwonset huts on the ASU campus used for housing (located at present Gammage site)
- Boarding a plane outdoors
- Joe Caldwell, Art Becker, Tony Cerkvenik, Dennis Dairman, Lionel Hollins, Fat Lever, Byron Scott...
- The sign on the old Tempe bridge crossing the Salt River reading 'Moor No Vessels'
- Father McCready (still Irish after all those years...)
- Finding those steel spheres used for ballast along the RR tracks behind Farmer Ave.
- Camp Geronimo
- Swamp coolers
- Tempe City Cyclery
- Tempe City Hall grand opening designed by M. & K. Goodwin (1971)
- The Wigwam motel on Apache
- Driving the speed limit in Mesa
W.T. Grants
Gallencamps Shoes
TeePee of Toys
Campus Men's Store
Bobby's Flowers
After high school I worked at Kent Cleaners, owned by Fed Mart
Pyllis, 10th St. also went through and crossed College where the fountain
is now
Woolco and the great slot car track next to it
Tandy's Leather
The Fifth Estate
Gary Peter Klahr's head shop on Mill and the waterbed store across Mill
Terros (the free drug clinic in Tempe)
Dash Inn
El Cerritos in Mesa
Broadway didn't turn into a freeway, but made a bend at T Butte, going by
Langhi's house
Doug, I shot my .22 behind South Mountain, too. Hunted quail there with
Dennis Kimberlin there, too.
Loretta, Jean's older brother Charlie did work at Farrell's
Gold Bond Stamps (we ALWAYS got roller skates with them)
Cost Plus Ten
My mom bought our grocerys at Food City in south Phoenix because they
give stamps and were cheap.
You're right about 10th St. - I had forgotten that!
And how about the Kentucky Fried Chicken barn on Apache? The A.J. Bayless store nearby? And I believe there was a green stamp store on Apache also, but across the street. My mom used to save her stamps and buy small appliances there. Pasting those sheets of stamps in the books was one of my chores.
There also used to be a janitorial supply house on Apache, but just west of Terrace, across from Chico's. I remember buying a string mop there. I still have the handle... and it still works.
There was also Leather Smith and Lace on Mill.
Seattle Pilots Ball Field So. of the T-Butte. Lots of Concerts there. I saw Janis Joplin, Strawberry Alarm, Crosby Stills & Nash.
My Parents sold their house, because of the Concerts. This made me laugh.
Shooting my 16 gauge in the field accross from Holdeman. It was Legal.
Going to The Underground Movies at Valley Art.
My first Pair of Beatle Boots, and listening to KRIZ on my Transistor Radio.
My Brotherinlaw getting his tool box stolen at Food City So. Phx.
Larry getting back from Vacation.
Larry-Bashas owns Food City and they went Chapter 11 last week, I think they are closing 7 or all of the Food Citys. You live in Seattle.
Tempe, Chandler, Mesa, Gilbert, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Glendale, etc etc, were all actual cities, separated by farm ground. You knew when you left one and entered another.
A trip to Phoenix for us meant going up 56th St (Priest) through Guadalupe to Baseline then west to Central.
For 'real shopping', it was a day outing to Park Central Mall.
Don't forget the lion in the cage at the KFC on Apache. (Really Harmons, wasn't it?)
High Jolly further east in AJ with the alligator farm.
You could send the kids to the State Fair ..ALONE..and not worry about them!
Metro Center was SOOOO far north of town and SOOO new.
The Air Force bone yard in Goodyear with acres and acres of scrap military planes.
Lots of drive-in theaters to choose from.
Seeing the block busters ie Ben Hur, King of Kings, Laurence of Arabia, Sound of Music, Ten Commandments, How the West Was Won, etc etc in Wide Screen at the Vista on Central.
There was no carnival at the Maricopa County Fair.
They were building a Zoo in Phoenix in the middle of the desert!
Nakatsu's veggie market on University. A real farmers market.
I wanted to say something about Wallace and Ladmo in the afternoon, but didn't trust my memory. I remember watching them after school around 4:00. Allowed 1 hour of TV, then it was outside to play, or piano practice. Then the evening chores of course.
Rick, Your list is fabulous - it fills in the gaps the rest of us left. Your memory is pretty darn good!
When you wrote about the zoo being in the desert, I immediately wanted to post of the story of what sat on that land before the zoo. I must sound like I know everyting about everything, but I don't. It's just that when I started doing family history, I got interested in the whole Valley. My dad (the redneck)is actually the one who told me about the land where the zoo sat.
He said it was a fish hatchery during the 20s and 30s. He was a boy in Phoenix then, and he often would point to a spot and tell me his relationship with that place. I remember most of what he said, but I wish I'd paid better attention. He said that when the system of dams was built, they diverted some of the canal water there and built the hatcheries. They would then haul the fish upriver to various lakes and rivers around the state. They chose that spot because of its unique geographical properties and natural water being nearby.
The part of the zoo near the alligator area is where the hatcheries were.
I miss the Arizona of our earlier days. We felt so modern, with our cars and Circle Ks on lots of corners and pay telephones, and now that type of lifestyle is as quaint and old-fashioned as we thought the model T era was.
We used to swim in the upper lagoon in Papago Park, part of the hatchery. One of the trees hung over the water and was great for jumping from.
The zoo was built by the Maytag family (how weird is that?)
You could rent motorcycles under 250cc without a license at the gas station on the west side of Apache about two blocks east of College. Seems like it was $1.35/hr.
University was 8th St.
Rick, there was also a Fox Theater next to Pennys on Washington in Phoenix (my parents took us to Pennys once a year for clothes, usually the end of August).
Korricks department store was across Washington from the Fox (the theater, not Pam Urschel, Louie). I was with my mom and grandmother in Korricks when Kennedy was shot.
When we got too much rain, they'd release water down the Salt. A big deal! We found a pond next to the river, down at the end of Priest, after one of the floods, and it was full of fish!
Phyllis, this thread is taking on the dimensions of The Luckiest Guy thread -- proof that we all have great memories of growing up in that particular time in Tempe.
there was also a Fox Theater next to Pennys on Washington in Phoenix
I remember, I think in was 1964, that my brother and a few others on my street and I rode our bicycles to the Fox Theater to see the new Beatles movie, 'A Hard Day's Night'. Now that was a long bike ride.
Yes, it was a long bike ride, but you were young and ambitious and obviously no judge of distance!
Larry,
I agree that we all have precious memories of Arizona. This is why I want to get that book started. It's a way to preserve our memories. I will contact Kelly Moeur this week - maybe he's back from Thailand by now. He and I could do a mockup (we we used to call them) and bring it to 1 of the reunion functions.
Yes, it was a long bike ride, but you were young and ambitious and obviously no judge of distance!
Very true! LOL It was probably in the summer when we had lots of free time with nothing much else to do. I can't imagine making that ride today, especially in the summer. I guess anything under 110 degrees didn't even faze us back then. Oh, to be young and stupid again.
I agree. Hooray for young and stupid! Without those types running around most of the inventions would never have happened and mankind would never have made it to the moon. Of course young and stupid was conquered by older and wiser... over time, that is.
My world was very small also when I was young, but I do remember riding my bike to the library and piano lessons, etc. without any concerns (except crossing the tracks). What a difference from today's world.
I remember:
Our lawn being irrigated by flooding it every few weeks. My dad always had to open the gate at night and shut it when the yard had enough water. Then I remember the trucks that came down the streets at night and sprayed DDT or whatever to kill all the mosquitos (probably from all the standing water in our yards) and we stood outside playing hide and seek and breathed in all that poisonous spray. We didn't have a clue...kind of like baking our skin in the sun.
The fabric store, next to El Rancho grocery store, always made my eyes sting the moment I walked in. I guess it was from the dyes/chemicals in the fabric.
Before the malls, we always Christmas shopped in downtown Phx. and someone had to run back to the car every few hours to feed the meters.
Going to Bill Johnson's Big Apple for a special occasion and seeing sawdust on the floor and waitresses in full cowgirl attire with 6 shooters on their hips.
Crossing Tempe Bridge with muddy water roaring underneath it.
Feeling the cool air leaving Tempe to go to Phx. or Mesa when we drove past all the irrigated, farmland.
We were so amazed when they built Thomas Mall and all the stores were under one roof for 'cool' and convenient shopping.
Seeing 'The Fly'? amd other great movies at the Valley Art on Saturdays, for 25 cents I think.
The Orange Packing plant on 5th street before you came to Mill Ave. Also, the date orchards on 5th St., down by Roosevelt where I lived. My mom bought dates for Christmas gifts, and we always played in the orchards. It seemed like I was afraid of scorpions there, but can't remember ever seeing one.
WO7 phone numbers and party lines, walking to school, swimming at Tempe Beach and catching tadpoles on the walk home to put into tree wells and watch them grow into frogs, carports, Wallace and Ladmo....and playing with neighbor kids.
I'm trying to remember the name of the vet who had an office right next to the Seventh Day Adventist medical clinic on 8th near Mill. The guy was a pistol, and was one of the first vets for the Maytag zoo. He told us that our dog Skipper was one of the few dogs he was afraid of (Skipper was part Chow Chow). The guy smoked while he worked.
Thinking through memories of Tempe, I have painful memories of those 'bullhead' stickers that seemed to grow everywhere in the summertime.
I too remember the Big Apple and how fun it was, including the sawdust on the floors. We'd go there after the basketball games. I also remember my eyes burning in the fabric store next to El Rancho too.
Larry,
I could see the Vet's face that I think you're talking about, but couldn't remember his name either. I called my Mom and she remembered. Dr. Howell Hood. He had dark hair with a beard and mustache. Is that the one? He's the one that made the house call when our dog, Spooky got hit by a car. I think I remember him being one of the Vet's at the Zoo too. Was that the guy you were thinking of?
Diane, he's the guy. Very personable in a gruff sort of no-nonsense way. Freckles and always looked like he'd been outdoors. Our dog was smart and knew that when we took him to Hood, he was going to get a shot. An intense mutual hatred developed . . .
Dr. Hood was our 1st vet in Tempe. My mom adored him and his knowledge of animals. His children also went to THS. Steve '66 and Debbie '70 are the ones i remember. I knew he'd died but didn't know what took him. He lived on Hardy and about 11th St., corner house, west side of street.
