Tag: Austin

1980s, College, Culture, Funny, History, Humor, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas

Witness To A Wedgie

kerbey
credit: Pam MacDonald, 1987 Cactus

Intent on Jehovah-knows-what, Miss Radley performs one of her duties as a member of Bevo’s Babes, a group of gals who served the men’s and women’s swim team. One job was to “boost the spirit of the swimmers.” Said the secretary of Bevo’s Babes, “We don’t want the girls who just want to look at guys in Speedos.” Personally, I’ve never met a girl who enjoyed that sight in the least. But to each her own.

The Babes also hosted and timed the National Collegiate Athletic Association swim meets, which lent some legitimacy to the organization. However, we all know the term “babe” is highly offensive in modern times and would not fly in 2018. While we’re at it, DJ’s should stop playing “I Got You, Babe” and Styxx’s “Babe,” and hurl the LP’s atop the pile of recent radio victim “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” It’s a dirty four-letter-word now, problematic and sexist, so–as you can well imagine, the group is now defunct, babe.

1900s, Fashion, History, Nature, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Style, Texas, Vintage

Here Comes The Rain Again

kerbey
Century of Change, 1910 swimsuit

And the precip keep a’falling in the greater Austin area today. I’m thanking God I’m in the suburbs, as all of Austin is under a mandatory water boil notice, after the historic hill country flooding. Our lakes look like Nestle Quik.

http://www.texastribune.org

Several of my friends’ lakeside homes have been destroyed. Many don’t have flood insurance because we’re lucky to get two drops of rain per year. This is a drought city. We go several months at 100 plus temps and not a drop of rain. Nearly every dang summer. It’s feast or famine.

And now it’s feasting time. You don’t realize how important clean water is until you need it. We have a whole house filter in our home, as well as a reverse osmosis on our fridge water, because I HATE the taste of nasty water. And our non-Austin, unfathomably overpriced city water tastes nasty. We’ve all been in restaurants with that chlorine-y water or at a relative’s house who serves ice that’s been sitting in her freezer for three months. Gross.

But Austinites would be happy for that nasty tap water today. All the local Starbucks are closed (though you’d think if any place could boil water, it’d be them), grocery stores have tossed all produce that was sprayed with city water, most eateries are closed (save the few that have workers coming in early to boil massive quantities of water to wash vegetables and clean dishes, while serving canned drinks), and no schoolchildren can drink from faucets. Needless to say, all of the plastic bottles have flown off the shells. Not a great time for such an environmentally-aware city.

And how are folks bathing? You’ve got me. They say it could last up to 14 days. Things could be worse, of course. But let’s never take clean water for granted.

infograph.venngage.com

The website cited above states that 99% of earth’s water is not drinkable. Most of you right now have a glass of water, or a mug of tea or coffee (made with clean water) adjacent to your keyboard. We are blessed, folks. The fortunate ones.

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1940s, College, Culture, Fun, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Vintage

Cast Your Vote For The Lanky Lad With Scoliosis

kerbey

Evidently, Elam was a pelvis-forward kind of man. I can’t say as I ever voted for an editor in college. The best I mustered was my first presidential vote.

But college politics have always been a big deal. Selig was willing to endanger his own life by sitting on the hood of this here jalopy.

Others simply strolled with signs.

Lovely signs, I’ll give them that. Both Brown and Ferguson remind me of civil rights cases. 

Folks sure showed enthusiasm for Sterling Steve. I hope he took it by a landslide. 

1930s, Beauty, Culture, Fashion, High School, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Style, Texas, Vintage

When Helen Was A Popular Name

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In days of yore, both high school and university yearbooks included many pages of the campus’s most attractive dames. The 1933 Austin High School Comet was no exception. Let’s start with the freshman.

How equestrian! How polished! How elegant!

Now on to the sophomores.

Check out the razzle-dazzle art deco framing their pics. I guess most high school girls owned riding crops. Now we see the juniors, both named Helen.

And there are no 12A or B favorites, oddly. Just Essie Mae Wentworth, Queen of the Spring Festival.

1930s, Culture, Fashion, Fun, High School, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Style, Texas, Vintage

When Everyone Dresses Like Criminal Bonnie Parker

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Comet33--004
1933 Comet

Pictured above are the Austin High School 1933 Girl Reserves. I wasn’t clear what exactly “girl reserves” were (what came to mind was not pleasant), so I searched for clarity. According to the yearbook, their “aim” was to “find and give the best.” Their flower is listed as the “phlox” and their colors as “blue and white.” Seems like a lot of wasted information to me. Perhaps they were reserving the truth?

Below is the group of Sodalitas Latina. Motto: Esse quam videri. I am guessing the boys up front are freshmen, as they hardly look a day older than 14.

Along with the German Club, the Motion Picture Club (motion pictures being about the same age as the teachers), and TWO Nature Science Clubs, there was also this Golden R Readers Club, with one happy boy and several angry girls. Ralph appears to be mid-prank.

Not to be outdone by R’s, I present the Order of the Golden A, comprised of those who have achieved non-athletic interscholastic victory.

This one is a hoot. The front row middle girl is being held hostage by the iron fists of the Dead Center. Then we have Messy Martha, second from the left, who is not only scowling through lenses, but clutching her handbag protectively. Further to the right is that amazing three button dress.

Lastly, I share the Austin High Student Council–in two pieces, so you can really climb in there and check them out. Those pockets! That ruffle! What kind of Depression was this?

This shot is really just to appreciate Angry Eyebrows and Odd-Stance McCrary there, both in the front row (or as they called it, the FIFTH row, since the Top Row was in the back and there was no Front Row). If one thing is certain, it’s that those two aren’t dating.

 

 

1930s, Culture, High School, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas, Vintage

1933 Austin High School Tumbling Team

kerbey

The AHS girls’ tumbling team consisted of these five ladies: Henderson, Remund, Silberstein, Piper, and McGill. Remund clearly was distracted.

For anyone familiar with Austin, you will recognize the capitol in the background, before the skyline was a jagged, crowded hodgepodge of skyscrapers.

I love the juxtaposition of the upside-down girls against the vintage cars, but it also raises many questions. Personally, I recall the discomfort of doing Jane Fonda aerobics in my high school cafeteria, especially when the boys walked past us during pelvic raises. One can only surmise how many citizens observed these antics as they passed by in the days prior to registered sex offenders, and how vulnerable these gals may have felt, limbs akimbo. Also, it looks quite painful! What are your thoughts?

1940s, History, Music, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas, Uncategorized, Vintage

Nummy In The Know

kerbey
Jimmy Nummy 1950
Jimmy Nummy 1950

Austin KNOW radio announcer Jimmy Nummy appears to be barraged by microphones here. One is even propped against his noggin. In 1927, KNOW became Austin’s first commercial radio station, but had signed off by 1989. Did you know that broadcast call letters in the USA begin with either “K” or “W”, with “K” usually west of the Mississippi River and “W” usually east of it? Does that apply to your city? Maybe not, if you live in Louisiana or Minnesota, who go rogue and don’t always follow the dividing line. Here’s a KNOW ad from 70 years ago.

1947 ad
http://fadedsignals.com

While Nummy’s name may not live in infamy, one itsy bitsy reference is made to him in the memoirs of Ray Campi (aka “The King of Rockabilly”). It’s such a fun read, I thought  I’d share it.

It was a great thrill to witness my first recording session in 1950 and to meet ‘Cactus’ Pryor who was to become a family friend to this day. I had already heard one of his records on the radio called Jackass Caravan which was a funny parody of Frankie Laine’s Mule Train, also a hit by Tennessee Ernie, a record my dad bought at Woolworth’s. “That sure was a funny record Cactus has out,” I remarked to my friends. “I hope someday I can make a record.”

…One of my first completed audio discs was a song I wrote called Disc Jockey Cactus. I took this demo record to Mrs. Macy Henry of Macy’s Records in Houston along with a few other original tunes, hoping for my first record release. The lady patiently listened to my painful playing and high-pitched singing and wisely rejected me as Macy’s Records’ new singing sensation. “Come back in about ten years after your voice has developed and I’ll give you another listen. You might have something there in that disc jockey song,” she said encouragingly…

On that interesting afternoon in the KTBC studio, records were being recorded for 4 Star…I heard the band rehearse and get ‘takes’ of Flying Saucer Mama, and Rag Mop. Jesse’s rendition of the latter tune was a ‘cover’ version of Johnny Lee Wills’ hit on Bullet Records. I recall that all the musicians went into another room to listen to the original hit and came out practicing the lyric “do-di-lee-da-da-loo-di” over and over. The music and singing were all cut together with the band singing off-mike where they were standing. I seem to recall that Jesse did Flying Saucer Mama that day and last up was Cactus with his tune which was Hog Calling Champ Of Arkansas. He requested a double bass on this one and a call was made to Hub Sutter who had finished his radio show at nearby KVET. His bass player, Joe Ramon, who had been a member of Jesse’s band previously, entered the studio cradling his instrument. This tune was somewhat complicated as it contained a key change in the middle when Turkey In The Straw had to be played during the hog calling sequence. A staff announcer named Jim Nummy and Hub Sutter had an interchange with Cactus. (www.bear-family.de)

So there you go! It’s not exactly 15 minutes of fame, and it’s not exactly exciting. But it’s better than calling him “Ol’ What’s-His-Name!” And if you’d like to take a listen to “Hog Calling Champion of Arkansas,” click here.

https://www.bear-family.de/campi-ray-the-rollin-rock-recordings-vol.2-cd.html
https://www.bear-family.de/campi-ray-the-rollin-rock-recordings-vol.2-cd.html

It’ll be stuck in your head all day!

 

1970s, Culture, Fun, Funny, History, Humor, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas

Where My Middle-Aged Drinkers At?

kerbey
Texas Ex Scholtz's Reunion in Houston at Rice game
Texas Ex Scholtz’s Reunion in Houston at Rice game

Oh, there they are–in full force, ready for game day, celebrating the ol’ alma mater.

In 1979, the legal drinking age in Texas was 18, having been lowered from 21 in 1973 due to anti-war protesters, which meant every single student at the University of Texas could freely partake of ale. And some started honing their hoarding tendencies early. “Two. Cans. For Ev. Ery. Girrrrrrl…”

cactus79-kiteflight

The blonde in the sheepskin coat has Mackenzie Phillips’s mouth. I’m just saying.

AUGUST 11: Actress Mackenzie Phillips acts in a scene from the movie "American Graffiti" which was released on August 11, 1973. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
AUGUST 11: Actress Mackenzie Phillips acts in a scene from the movie “American Graffiti” which was released on August 11, 1973. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Did you ever watch her on One Day At A Time? She was the bad daughter of the divorced mom, and Valerie Bertinelli was the good one. Valerie looks AMAZING now as the judge on Food Network’s Kid’s Baking Championship. She’s so kind and encouraging. I want to hang out with her. What are we talking about again?

Aha! Drinking in 1979! And what do you suppose happened here?

cactus79-kiteday

Methinks a visored lady (named Virginia?) suddenly appeared on the back of his motorcycle, offering a koozie-chilled beer to the driver. Yes, Virginia, he’s flummoxed.

It’s probably for the best that it’s age 21 now. By the way, 21 is the highest minimum drinking age that exists. Here’s the MDA worldwide.

http://drinkingage.procon.org/
http://drinkingage.procon.org/

I didn’t realize 16 countries banned drinking altogether: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Iran, Kuwait, Libya, Maldives, Mauritania, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. I had no idea! Have you ever visited a country with no drinking age (like Bolivia or China) or a complete restriction?