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I've said this before and I'll say it again. The Scrapbook is something I am proud of. Many great people have sent in their memories to be archived on this site. Thanks one and all.

email from Richard "Vz"

Your site is great! It brought back a lot of old memories. I dug out a few old photos, scanned 'em & cleaned 'em up as best I could. I graduated high school in 1960 and agree with your interpretation -- the fifties lasted into the first half of the sixties. I see some great car shots on your site. My dad was always the steady down-to-earth type and he drove nothing but Nashs and Hudsons. I've included a shot of me with his '57 Hudson in the background. Luckily, I didn't take too much heat for my Dad's taste in cars -- almost everyone's Dad had some idiosyncrasy that their kids tried to ignore.

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I grew up in a small central Ohio town and during summers we would have street dances every Friday night. We'd gather on a side street, really an alley, between the Methodist Church and Welsh's Grocery, spread a bag or two of corn meal on the pavement and dance for 3 or 4 hours. The Aladdin Restaurant was only a few doors away so we could get refreshments as needed. I believe these street dances went on for six or seven years.

What I remember most about the fifties is the optimism, the innocence and the naivete, and most of all the faith and comfort in our future. I really do not remember "duck and cover". I remember some apprehension over Sputnik but not paranoia. I remember the fifties as some of the happiest times of my life. It really was a time of white sport coats and pink carnations (albeit mine was red).

Richard "Vz"

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I'm still in the 50's, loved your page, hope you can use pics of my vehicles for people to enjoy. My wife Bonnie & I go to a lot of cruise ins and shows and we can't think of a better way to relax and have a lot of fun! This is my "Too Pink" 50 merc it is low and lower. I like to think of it as the Ultimate cruiser.

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This is pic of my 57 GMC Pickup. It is named "One Bad Boy", it is a 355 supercharged sneaky pete, as I have kept hood intact with out revealing what is underneath. it.

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Pic of my 57 chevy. It is a 468 big block powered built to TAKE NO PRISONERS. I call it "See ya later Alligator!!"

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Thanks again Don hope you got pics ok and hope people get to have a uplift in spirits and get to recall when the good times will never be forgotten.

Bob

Thanks for the Photos Bob. Wanna sell the Merc?     01/26/99

"In 1954 I was in the 9th grade, I was 6 foot 4 inches tall and 200 pounds, I was the biggest kid in school, I put the word out, if anyone "Pants" me I would beat them up."

Little Jim

Jim was the "Tom Thumb" of the ninth grade. Actually, he looked like he belonged in grade school, standing barely five feet and weighing no more then 90 pounds. This was a terrible disadvantage in 1954, a time when, if you failed to look like "Elvis" your social life was dead.

The "Elvis" look, consisted of an expensive black jacket with white leather sleeves, a shirt with its collar turned upward, the mandatory eight once of Brylcreme to hold your "Duck tail" in place, and a thin white belt. The belt was used to accent the perilous placement of your jeans, which were worn far below the hip bone, in a region around the rump and complete revelation. This strategic placement caused the actual seat of your jeans to dangle somewhere in the area of the back of your knees. This look once achieved, guaranteed you a elevated position in the circle of "Cool cats."

I liked to torment Jim, and on several occasions made his life miserable. But Mother nature has a way of keeping every thing in balance. On the one hand, she had short changed Jim in the height and weight department, but she had seen fit to bestow on Jim an agile, scheming and deviant mind. His mind was more then a match for my brawn, and he proved it on a beautiful spring day with me as his victim.

We all rode the bus home together. It was an opportunity to flirt with the girls in the back of the bus. I normally took up my customary position next to the back bench seats, which were brimming with "Cool girls." I like to hang on to the overhead rail with one hand and assume an incredibly "Cool" stance, which without a doubt, must have really impressed the girls. Jim always sat on the fringe of the "Cool" group, right next to the back door of the bus.

On May 18, 1954, Jim put his masterpiece of retaliation into effect. I was in my usual position, looking very cool, and Jim was standing near the back doors, because his stop was next.

In one moment, I became uncool. During that moment, the four girls I was talking to, stopped giggling in mid giggle. Their mouths dropped open, I felt a distinct draft, as the bus doors opened, Jim vanished. Then it hit me, I realized that my jeans, accompanied by my shorts, were now around my ankles, I just stood there, then a fraction of a second later, I dived for cover into a seat, sending my books flying. Two seconds later, the bus was filled with gales of uncontrollable laugher.

I thought of 10,000 ways to kill Jim, over the next couple of weeks, murderous thoughts sprung to mind, every time someone referred to Jim's coup as a David and Goliath tale. Jim rode to school with his mother for the next two weeks. No doubt about it, the kid was smart.

The next time Jim was on the same bus, he sat next to an open window. He didn't get off at his usual stop. My stop was next, so I quickly decided that as soon as I got off, I would reach through the window and smack him along side of his head.

I stepped off the bus, turned, as I reached in to hit him, he grabbed my arm and bent it downward, just as the bus started to move. He held it firmly. The bus picked up speed, and as I ran backwards, along side the bus, I was screaming at Jim to let go of my arm. I was no longer cool, and as I watch the approaching parked cars come nearer and nearer, I didn't care if I was ever cool again. The bus driver heard my screaming , he put his foot on the brakes, at that moment, Jim let go of my arm, and I bounced off a 1950 De Soto, with a entirely new view of life.

Thanks for the memories... here's a thought... maybe in some ways by
publishing this tale you finally got the upper hand...
and Jim, if you're out there... you know who you are!!!
02/15/99

email and photo from jbirdie...check out the fuzzy dice!

My 51 Poncho...Shaved, decked, frenched, electric doors/trunk, power windows/antenna, late model drivetrain, a/c, cruise, red-light finder, and Alpine sound. Drove this from Dallas to SF...turned lots of heads.

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Thanks jbirdie... cool ride... 02/15/99

This email from Carol

I was doing some searching for goodies when I found your wonderful "Rewind the 50s" page at http://www.loti.com/page1.html. Being a product of the 50s myself (graduated high school in '56) I appreciate this stuff more than you know.

Question...may I link to your site? I maintain the Far Rockaway (NY) High School Alumni Online Database and do their Online Newsletter and we have over 2,300 online members. I already have a link to the 50s & 60s site called "Heartbeats One & Two" at http://www.web-access.net/~elliott/ and would love to feature your site as well in our newsletter. If you'd like to see my FRHS pages, they are all listed below this letter.

Thanks so much for providing this GREAT site.