424 Florence Court

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  1. Now named “Collier Avenue”
  2.  Charles Craig
    1.  Suffered some brain damage at birth
    2. Would walk along rapdily whistling and pumping his arms vigorously
    3. Wore helmet and shoulder pads even in our touch football games.
    4. In high school he was jokingly called “Coach Craig” by many and enjoyed it since he did not seem to recognize that it was meant to be a joke
    5. His father was “Blackie” Craig, based on the color of his hair. He was graying and nearly bald when I knew him.
  3. Richard Conwill
    1. Only child, store manager for JC Penny in Huntsville. Left just before my getting here in January 19892. Had a game called Caroms that was much like pool using wooden Os for balls
    2. Had a Harley Davidson Hummer motorcycle.
    3. Frank Stack wrecked his motor scooter about 30 yards from Richard’s house.
  4. Hershell “Butch” Moody
    1. Only child
    2. Had a football game that consisted of a lighted pane on which you placed acetate “plays” for offense and defense. The defensive play was placed on the pane first and they the offensive play was slid onto the pane with the blocks and path of the runner being revealed.
  5. Headleys
    1. Richard Lee
      1. in band till senior year when he became football tackle. Chant of 1,2,3 we want Richard Lee
    2.  Tommy
      1. Became an engineer
  6. Hills ‘
    1. Father was “Old Man Jimmy”
    2. Scott
      1. Retired from the Navy or Air Force after working with computers
    3. Lee
      1. Daughter, Older-Ann??
    4. Mr. Hill was bird hunting partner of my father
      1. Also watched baseball games on tv religiously
      2. Had mint growing around outdoor faucet where we got drinks of water in the summer. I can still recall the odor.
      3. Had bird dogs: Bob, Frank, and ? which ran loose.
    5. Wrights
      1. Nick
        1. Left handed
        2. Good candidate for serial killer, enjoyed torturing insects, frogs, etc
        3.  “They really throw the food to you.”
        4. Went to a small college on a track scholarship.
        5. Ran into him in Hoover at the State Wrestling meet where his son was a participant, as was Tom.
      2. Younger brother, Phil
    6.  Bosleys
      1. Tommy-Older
      2. Peggy-My age. A bit like Rizzo in Grease
      3. Relatives of Mrs. McDonald
    7.  Sandersons
      1. Wimp Sanderson lived nearby, let us use his basketball court and ball
      2. Later Alabama’s basketball coach and very successful at the job.
    8.  Billy Bob Bullard
    9. Will John Rowe
      1. Played Army by himself almost all the time
    10. Virginia “Bitsy” Kingsley
      1. Spent all her time riding horses
      2. Sent a card when Jody was killed saying how much she enjoyed the exercise class they were in together
    11. House behind the backstop for the baseball field used by FSTC
      1. Good supply of lost baseballs in our shrubbery
      2. Someone (Nick Wright?) started up a road packer (motorized steamroller) and it began to head for a house, repeatedly all but climbing the curb before slipping down and starting the climb all over again. Someone arrived in time to turn off motor.
      3. Corkball was played with some even making a record of HRs, etc.
      4. Used thermos cork wrapped in adhesive tape with broom stick for bat
      5. Cork would curve severely
      6. With a flick of the fingers, you could make the cork flutter and rise
      7. Similar to stick ball
      8. Had to bat left handed every ninth time, to simulate the pitcher batting 
      9. Standard equip for the summer was knife, basebai! glove, and slingshot
        1. Knife for playing: Splits, Chicken, and Mumbley Peg
        2. Splits were sometimes called “Stretch” with object being to make a knife stick in the ground beyond the reach of your opponent’s foot. The starting point was with your feet together. You could only increase the stretch a foot at a time. I the knife did not stick there was no requirement to stretch any further.
        3. Chicken was splits in reverse. You started out with feet as far apart as possible and brought them in as the knife was stuck in the ground. Eventually one person will move a foot to avoid being stabbed and that person loses for being chicken.
        4. Mumbley Peg involves sticking a knife in the ground from various positions such as from each finger, wrist, elbow, shoulder, chin, nose, forehead, top of head and then jumping the creek. Jumping the creek involved sticking the knife in the ground and then slapping it upward so that it left the ground and stuck several feet away as it left the air.
        5. Slingshot – Hard to find red rubber inner tubes which are far superior to black rubber inner tubes; used shoe tongue for slingshot pocket
      10. Match Guns
        1. Made from clothes pin
        2. Used spring to propel/strike non-safety matches which would be struck by the impact of the spring
        3. Matches would tend to stick on someone if they hit clothing
      11. Movie Theaters
        1. Air conditioning came first to movie theaters
        2. At intermission, would take up money for March of Dimes. Theme song was You Will Never Walk Alone.
        3. Had balcony sections. In some cases, one for blacks and one for whites. In some cases, the balcony was the sole seating area for blacks.
        4. Princess Theater
          1. Showed weekly cowboy and Superman serials in addition to the main feature. Lash LaRue and Hopalong Cassidy were among the cowboy serials.
          2. Jody and I were dropped off by my mother with 20 cents (normal admission was 10 cents for children)
          3. Was told it cost a quarter. I thought it was a quater total for the two of us. Ran to car and got another nickle. Went back to ticket booth and found it was a quarter EACH. By then, no mother in sight. Very distraught. Could not imagine she would expect me to need to return for more money a second time.
          4. Elderly black lady passing by took pity on us and was fishing in her purse and a tied up handkerchief for money to help us when my mother came back around the block to check on us one last time.
        5. Majestic Theater
          1. Known for its rats running across the stage in front of the screen
        6. Shoals Theater
          1. Watched Operation Pacific, a WWII submarine movie there some 4 or 5 times
        7.  Norwood Theater
          1.  Built during ending of WWII and was supposed to be a grocery store since building materials were in short supply.
          2. Dan Davis said to have lied to get it built since the “grocery store” had a slanted floor.
          3. Tim Scott was Davis’s newphew and worked as an usher there.
          4. Watched Old Yeller there at least 5 times
          5. Watched Winchester 76 there with my father.

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