This topic may have a limited appeal but at least a few others such as Gary Patton will relate. I delivered the Tempe Daily News. I had the largest route in the city at the time. 140 papers. Just with the regular paper my canvas bags on my handle bars were stuffed. When the route truck delivered the dreaded inserts ( the advertisements) that we had to insert it would take a good extra hour or more before I could even start my route. On big holidays and Sundays it was crazy. There was a concrete irrigation stand at the station (next to Kelly Moeur's house). This was my first act of protest against the establishment. I could not take another Sears insert. Or JC Penny's or Goldwaters. I took all of the bundles and tossed them in the stand pipe reasoning that they would be flushed away by the irrigation. And then I could go and deliver the newspaper by itself. I will never know how they figured me out. Maybe the manager for Goldwater's was on my route. But rats, I was caught and duly informed that If I did it again I would be fired. Shortly after I sold ( or pawned off ) my route to Gary and the route was broken in to.
I had a TDN route in 6th and 7th grade that went from 1st St. to 8th, the tracks to Roosevelt. Seems like I had 85 papers. I picked my papers up behind the TDN office on Mill. The one time that we got inserts, I put them in my bags and figured I'd put them in as I went. I did about three and then dumped them in an irrigation ditch hidden under trees that ran along Farmer between 1st and 2nd. Bent minds think alike. I was never caught, though.
I actually had a lot of experience with TDN over several years. I started out with a route from 1st to 8th & from Priest to Hardy. After a few months someone quit and my route expanded to Roosevelt. I picked up my papers at the 7-11 on 8th just East of Priest. As far as ditching inserts, I don't remember if I ever did but if I did, I had a lot of apartment complexes on my route and I'm sure their dumpsters came in handy for that.
After 2 or 3 years, I moved to the TDN office and did the mail route. There were about 150-200 papers being mailed at that time so it paid pretty good compared to a regular route. I would also fill in for 2 or 3 guys on vacation duty in the 8th to 13th & Mill to Hardy area.(picked up papers at DQ on Mill) After the temp work dried up I took a route from 8th to 13th & Priest to Hardy after doing the mail route. This was a good route since I lived on 9th St.
When late baseball practices in High School became a problem I went back to the Republic and the early mornings.
It was fun (except for collecting) and I liked having my own money. It's a shame that it's not safe for kids today to deliver papers on their bikes like we did. Tempe truly WAS a great place to grow up.
I had a route for a while with an afternoon paper. I cannot remember the name of the paper though. It was a brand new one that eventually went out of business. I also don’t remember the exact route, but it was around my own neighborhood on West 12th Street. I was lucky in that the papers were dropped off right at my house. I lived just east of Hardy and west of Roosevelt. It was okay, except for collecting. It was amazing how many people would get behind in their payments. I guess, 50 cents a week was just too much for some folks back then. Most customers would pay with 50 cent pieces so that shows you how long ago it was. I think it was around 6th and 7th grade. Now that I’m writing this, I seem to remember Don Peterson also having a route with this paper. Maybe not though. Ring any bells, Don?
I delivered the Phoenix Gazette, not 'The Wiper,' as the Tempe Daily News was called. On Sunday's we delivered the big Arizona Republic. My route went from Broadway to University and from Mill to Rural. Sunday's meant at least three trips back to the paper drop off at Broadway and College. It was dark as hell at 0500 on Sunday.
My older brother had a Republic route that went from 1st to 8th, the tracks to Forest, and I'd help him in the summer. We stupidly got deceived by Gary Swanson ('68) who told us that the truck facing the alley in Mr. Palich's (Tempe High drafting teacher) backyard was headed for the dump, and it was okay to break the windows out of it. It was something like a '49 Ford. We got caught and for a consequence my dad did consequence #253 which meant we couldn't use our bikes. So, we delivered the route on a cart we'd made that had soap box derby wheels gotten from Rod Standich in a trade. One good push would roll that thing half a block. All the papers went in a big carboard box and we took turns pushing each other around downtown Tempe in the early morning. Much better than being on bikes.
A little later my brother did another trade that brought in a 2-1/2 horse Briggs & Stratton with a belt pulley on the shaft. Almost no compression so you could start it by taking the pulley in your hand and giving it a quick turn. Some magic had been worked in our favor because the pulley fit perfectly over the top of a soap box derby wheel. We nailed the engine to the cart, which then went about 15 mph with no one pushing . . . and no brakes.
Would I let my son do anything like that? Just needs an engine . . .
Hats off to all of you paperboys! You worked hard and what you didn't get paid in coin, you banked in other ways. You deserve all the success you have in life. And to think it all started with the Tempe Daily Wipe....
I too was a proud representative of the Tempe Daily News. My route was Broadmor, Concorda, Terrace and Bonardan Drives east of Rural. It was a small route, that paid me $9.00 every 2 weeks. Most of the McKemy boys will remember, but I passed Andrea Moan's house everyday, and If I was lucky she would be outside, and I could stop and charm her with my sophisticated paperboy ways. More important than the route, was the 'Wiper' itself. It was truly a hometown paper, reporting on school, church and civic activities in Tempe. If you just went to school everyday, and joined the boy or girl scouts, or a sports team, you were pretty much assured of getting your picture or name in the paper a couple of times a year. Sometimes they were published upside down, or with all the names wrong, but that didn't matter. I'm sure that every newspaper photo on Looking Back and Class Museum came from the TDN. Brent's posting of the famous track picture, luckily censored, became legend in TDN lore. Even when I was little, I read it every day. Plus it was the only paper in the valley that had Mr. Tweedy and the Jackson Twins on its comics page.
Ok, Ill jump in. I had 2 different 'Wiper' routes. The ist was around Mitchell School. The second was Brent's old route. It was bigger, so that meant it paid better. It was too big and too damn far from home! I quit and took a Republic route over from Bob Erickson ('68) around Mitchell (my younger brother Stan had my old TDN route). The Pattons had a horizontal monopoly in the 'hood. My brother was named TDN carrier of the year 2 or 3 years in a row. I added another ajoining route and carried 130+/- papers until after graduation. The money was good for the times and I was trying for an R&G scholarship. No luck there, but another THS '69er, Rick Schumn did get a 4yr. R&G scholarship. I learned alot about business, service, discipline, responsibility and money from those experiences. I also learned that staying up all night was hazardous. I went from closing shift at Burger Chef to Dunkin Donuts (Paulette worked there -- what a hottie!) and then to Dairy Queen (my paper station). I usually drove the route in my truck, but occaisionally rode my bike. After 3 hours of delivering those huge Sunday papers I was so tired I'd fall asleep on the bike -- I ran into parked cars twice!! After I sold the truck, I had a VW with a ragtop sunroof. After work at Burger Chef, sometimes Bob Johnson who workeds with me, would help me deliver papers. We took turns throwing, standing thru the sunroof. (It worked well for oranges and fire extinguishers, too)
OK boys! Here is a hoot for you! I had a paper route too. It started out Punky Greenliee's 'cause girls couldn't have paperroutes. It was the AZ Republic and the route was in my neighborhood around Dailey Park. Ventura, Vista del Cerro, etc. I lasted a few months then my Mom made me quit because strange people were talking to me in the AMs. I can't remember which grade I was in maybe a freshman. I was trying to earn money to buy a horse!
Too funny looking back. I hadn't thought of it in years until I saw this posted today. I just remember it being cold and dark. God bless you guys that stuck it out!!! Look how sucessful you are now.
Wow, paper routes...what a blast that was, Mike Elkins and I served up the 'Rag', (Republic) never delivered the 'Wiper', it was too skinny and didn't fly right... It doesn't surprise me that you Vicki, had a paper route, I remember the farm house on University and the trampoline in the yard and of course that green hair of yours from never leaving the swimming pool! I also remember giving that 'Hottie', Paulette, a ride home on the handle bars of my bike more than once from the Lab School...those were the days, for sure. Man, I have tons of memories about the paper route and would love to see Mike Elkins jump in here too, route captains for the rag, we sorted and folded papers in front of Mike's house in the wee hours now known as O-dark-early!
I know why they don't have routes anymore thinking about some of the crazy things that happened back then; my route was from the river bottom to Broadway---Mill Ave to Priest...anybody remember the bar called the 'Hut'? Seems like the beatniks and mathematicians hung out there and lots of weirdos to hastle paper boys early in the morning...geezz mister wizard, they sure loved to scare me half to death. Well, I made it to the first reunion, perhaps I can make the 40th the next one. Hi to all...gotta go for now, Tarzan Cazan
I also had a TDN route from about 5th or 6th grade up to entering high school. My route was from Beck Ave to just west of Priest, and from University to 1st Street. As I recall, it was about 140 or so papers, and we used to pick up the papers at Lee's Market on University and Priest. It was good money for those days, but I hated collecting, because at $0.75 a month, everyone used to put me off and have me come back when they had the money! I also used to help Mike Bailey (Class of 1968) with his Republic route on weekends occasionally, then we would go down to the cafe on the corner of University and Mill (don't remember the name, but it had a Sun Devil out front) to eat pancakes...
John, I think it was called The Huddle. It had large action cutout photographs of ASU football, basketball, and I think track players and of course Frank Kush and Ned Wulk. The walls were painted maroon and gold.
I was a Gazette paperboy probabaly 5th through freshman year, I can't remember exactly. My route was east of Beck to Priest and University to 5th St. and for some reason the houses along University to Hardy. Often my father would go with me on Sunday mornings and allow me to drive my grandfather's '55 Chevy 3 speed on the column. Delivering papers was a great learning experience. Yes, collecting was a pain. There were the dead beats that would not answer the door or ask me to come back week after week. I also met some wonderful people. One customer would eventually give me a recomendation for a job years later. For Christmas some customers would give me a card with cash, but many gave me a box of chocolate covered cherries. Yuck.
That spot on the corner of University & Mill -- I think there's a Chili's there now -- has had about five buildings on it. The first I remember was the one that had the Sun Devil and the covered drive up area out back with the speakers you could order from. Seems like it was called the Sun Devil Drive-in?
There was a Good Earth on the spot in the 80's. That's where I met my wife.
That spot on the corner of University & Mill -- I think there's a Chili's there now -- has had about five buildings on it. The first I remember was the one that had the Sun Devil and the covered drive up area out back with the speakers you could order from. Seems like it was called the Sun Devil Drive-in?
There was a Good Earth on the spot in the 80's. That's where I met my wife.
Yeah Larry, it was also the North Bank Restaurant, some of you might remember both of my sister's working there as hostesses; Elizabeth then Barbara, hard to figure why more guys remember them then me? :)=
Any of you guys ever have one of those Paper Boy Specials that Schwinn made? Would love to have one of those things now. How about Stingrays? The Republic used to offer Stingrays as prizes to their guys.
Larry, I got a Schwin Paperboy Special for Christmas in 6th grade. Nice heavy duty bike. Rode it until I got my first car Junior year at THS. My folks bought it at a police auction of stolen bikes that were never claimed. My dad fixed it up, painted it black. It sure wasn't the fastest bike on the block, but it outlasted all those Western Flyers and stingrays.
My bike was just a stripped down version, no fenders, lights or reflectors...I had the high rise 'goose neck' style handlebars initially, then switched to the wider style that the paper bags fit on better...seems like every time I took the alley behind Jack Hunters house over to get my papers, I'd get a flat...but I was a hard learner (went through several tubes before I got smart). Thanks for the responses on the eatery...seems funny that Tempe Center is almost completely torn down now, as is the arches...I guess that's progress.
Speaking of bikes, my brother Ray was the bike wizard of our family. He modified one by removing the fork, gooseneck & handlebars, turning the frame upside down, and reinstalling that assembly. This placed the pedals higher up. He then built a tubular box-frame that supported a banana (sting-ray) seat so that it hovered above the (now higher) pedals. You had to get on it from a low wall or chair, but once moving, it worked great, and you were the tallest kid around on two wheels. Ray now works up at Utah State University in Logan.
John Blue's bike description sounded like mine -- it wasn't A Schwinn, but I used a lot of their parts: springer front fork, riser with box handle bars, cut down fenders, the big 'paper boy special' seat and a generator driven light.
Peterson and I would hit the House of Pancakes on Sunday mornings sometimes, too. We financed those pancake breakfasts by selling our extras or cleaning out the paper machine at Ryan Evans with one dime, then selling the papers in front of the restaurant for a nickel less than the going rate . Not very honest, but I loved the blueberry syrup!!
Had to join in re what sat on the SE corner of Mill and University, or what I remember anyway from my first years in Tempe.
In 1962 there was a coffeeshop there called Buddy's. It had a huge coffee cup on top of the building. Anybody else remember it? I know it was gone by the early 70s. I also remember going into the place in the late 70s and early 80s and having the signature iced tea of the restaurant. It was one of several places up and down Mill Ave. that catered to the 'Natural' crowd. Earthen Joy on E. 5th St. was another one, and that Eastern Indian restaurant on Mill that served the most delicious food was there at that time as well. The Golden _____ - just cannot remember what it was called.
On another note of 'little known facts of little interest' I have some bottles with the actual essential oils from Lotions & Potions with the original address on the label. It was practically next door to that Indian restaurant.
How have you been, Bonnie? I have often wondered about you - I think we last saw each other about 20 years ago when you lived in that great old house on E. Southern in Phoenix. You can e-mail me privately if you want.
Bonnie! I hope you check back and see this, I was thinking about you and decided to do a search; I found this post. I hope you see it and email me, I would LOVE to catch up with you : )
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