for all the oldschoolers

for all the ones that were teenagers in the late 50s early 60s
when did the crusing hanging out at diners drives in
racing 1950s culture die off my guess is 1965
does movies like amercian graffiti and hollywood knights
give people an idea of what went on during that time
people tell me i am crazy i should have been a teenagers late 50s early 60s how much fun it probably was
i try to live the 50s the best way i can by dressing like a greaser and hanging out at 1950s places oklahoma city ok
dont have many

Well cruisings heyday was gone by the early 60's, that what Ron Howard was trying to catch in his movie American Graffiti. It was supposed to be a new style of documentary about the life of several high school grads in socal in the early 60's.

Whats that they say, its not about trying to relive history, its about making it.

Thanks for the memories. I think that sort of thing still exists at least after Friday night football games (H.S.), but the conditions that are different were caused then by the number of thirty's cars that were kept running for transportation during WWII and then suddenly made available when new cars became available again in 1946. Now there is just a steady economic trickle-down of older cars to H.S. students for first cars. I am replying mainly because my family had a '55 station wagon for a number of years and I helped my Dad replace a Y-block which I think was a 272. The funny thing is that he forgot to tag the ignition wires and even though we put long-to-long and short-to-short plug wires it took a long time to get the plug wires right! That was a major lesson in tagging wires before removal. I guess a 292 or 312 Y-block would swap in and the exhaust manifolds were convenient on top for the 272. What are you running under the hood?

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

I was born in the mid fifty's and I wasn't into cars untill the late '60's but in our town it was an innocent time when everything was different. Hotrodding was still popular but there where alot of strong muscle cars. I too would have liked to be there in the old '30's iron days.:D

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Originally posted by Don Shillady
Thanks for the memories. I think that sort of thing still exists at least after Friday night football games (H.S.), but the conditions that are different were caused then by the number of thirty's cars that were kept running for transportation during WWII and then suddenly made available when new cars became available again in 1946. Now there is just a steady economic trickle-down of older cars to H.S. students for first cars. I am replying mainly because my family had a '55 station wagon for a number of years and I helped my Dad replace a Y-block which I think was a 272. The funny thing is that he forgot to tag the ignition wires and even though we put long-to-long and short-to-short plug wires it took a long time to get the plug wires right! That was a major lesson in tagging wires before removal. I guess a 292 or 312 Y-block would swap in and the exhaust manifolds were convenient on top for the 272. Whaqt are you running under the hood?

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

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351 cleveland out of a 72mach I

now days the cruise seen is still strong 90 percent ricers
i know its still cars but the ricers in oklahoma city ok
have messed a lot of traditional muscle car and street rod stuff
when the streed rod nationals comes to okc we would have a big cruise after the fast and the furious cameout
the ricers got crazy and made more cops comeout
and ran all the rodders off

We don't have a big city and there was never any really crusing except on the weekends looking for girls, but I still like to go downtown and relive the old times of 40 years ago and still catch the looks fo younger girls but of course I don't take my wife with me on those nights.

Well, I was still cruising during the 70's.......but the heyday of true cruising was the late 60's......I remember car hops just like in AG....and that was also the time when we had 3,4 live bands playing around the area ,,none of this record spinning by dj's........I grew up in the best area for that.the birthplace of the "garage" bands.........like the Wailers, Sonics, Merrilee Rush, the Fleetwoods, Paul Revere and the Raiders..and many others including the Ventures........the guys from WA and OR will know what I'm talking about.

I started getting into cars in the mid 60's and from my experience it depended on where you were at and if you were into the street scene at that time. In the late 60 (67-70) factory muscle cars wre almost a right of passage for kids in there mid to late teens and 20's. Those that were like me and couldn't affold something new were building are own to go head to head with the guys with new iron.

My junior/Sr year in HS we had a place about 2 miles out of town (on a state highway) with new asphalt that we would run on.

When I moved to St Louis in 70 the industrial park was the hot bed for racing.

When I got back to the states in 74-77 Lawton OK was pretty lively.

The one-ways in Davenport Iowa was also a pretty interesting place.

The cars during those times were pretty representative of what was in Hollywood Knights. As were the activities (although what was shown as 1 night in 90 minuets of movie would take place over 6 months or a years period of time.

Where I was there was always a local hangout where the car people (I beleive we were called hoodlums on a good night) would hang out and swap lies. Sometimes it was a drive-in (A1 in St Louis, Rocket drive-in or McDonalds in Lawton, the city park in other places.

Overall if you looked hard enough it was well into the 70's before it died out.

Well there is a fine line here having to do with adolescence, hormones and, in the U.S., an automobile license is almost a rite of passage. Sadly, cruising has been banned in Virginia Beach and also in Richmond, but we also have a new Dragway in Dinwiddie county so maybe that is the way NHRA would say it should be. Just two blocks from my suburban home a 16 year-old girl was killed the same day she got her license after a football game in a 280-Z her father gave her. Also I had to take each of my three kids to a required county presentation of accident scenes as each of them got their license. Ron Howard got it right in American Grafitti. The urge for independence and the fascination of the machines all combine into a lifelong obsession as some of us know. Now we have a different group with asian cars who don't fit the old mold but the hormones are the same. I thought I had it figured out with a Pontiac Sunfire ('98) convt. only to find a 120 H.P. 4 cyl is just a sewing machine, so now it is back to old memories in building a '29 Ford roadster. Hormones take many forms, but that is what is behind it! Maybe that is what it is, each generation goes through the "hormone haze" and adapts to the technology of the time and I was just on the end of the flat head V8 era with the appearance of OHV engines and the images of older cars are stuck in my head. Today young people are grappeling with higher gas prices and maybe some of us have not realized that the auto industry is now global requiring metric as well as SAE tools. So just pick out an image that pleases you and stick with it and refine it but don't be surprised if someone else has a different image. If only the parts I have on order would arrive I would be in my garage building instead of blabbing here!

Best Wishes,
Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Every once in a while I go out crusing. Mostly one of my neighbors wants to go out on the town. I dont know why, but a lot of women seem to look my way. Something about an Olds small block and chrome in the nightime...:LOL: I know its just not the same as an open top, a Big Block and Catless dual exhaust, but its nice to hear the rumble of a V8 bounce off the buildings. Ah, to be born 40 years Earlier.

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Originally posted by 55ranchwagon
now days the cruise seen is still strong 90 percent ricers
i know its still cars but the ricers in oklahoma city ok
have messed a lot of traditional muscle car and street rod stuff
when the streed rod nationals comes to okc we would have a big cruise after the fast and the furious cameout
the ricers got crazy and made more cops comeout
and ran all the rodders off

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Do they still shut down meridian to let the rodders cruise when the big show comes to town? I used to work in the industrial complex behind what used to be sheplers western wear and the motel 6 near 1-44. After work we'd walk out by the shepler's parking lot and watch the rods go by. After that it was off to Bennigans for some southwest eggrolls.

Abe

Uh, i may be older than your target question, but cruising never ended here.

Jerry's Curb Service has been around since 1942, recently remodeled and expanded - still have carhops although they now use wirelss palm pilots to take you order!

I went there in the 70s to see the cars. Across the river is Hanks - mexican food and (regular) ice cream. No carhops, but no interior tables either.

Cruising is big now,but more car show than the 70s stuff i remember.

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Originally posted by The F.N.G.
Do they still shut down meridian to let the rodders cruise when the big show comes to town? I used to work in the industrial complex behind what used to be sheplers western wear and the motel 6 near 1-44. After work we'd walk out by the shepler's parking lot and watch the rods go by. After that it was off to Bennigans for some southwest eggrolls.

Abe

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they still shutdown meridian but its not the way it was years ago
less and less rodders everyear this year was ok
but past years have been great
the cops shut it down like at 930 now
years ago you could use until 1am
times change and the ricers ruined the cruise
like a month ago some teenage kids in honda civics
were racing down nw 50th and council
at 130 in the afternoon and two were killed
as they hit the curb ever since then the cops
at nw 39th and and northwest expressway
have been bad thats the cruise spot not
people also cruise 12th in moore still

Well, even though the cruisin' scene isn't like it used to be, I still have fun, and enjoy gettin' out whenever I can.

I guess it just makes cruisin' during the car shows more fun, since you can haunt the main drag with all the other rodders...:cool:

Things can't always stay the same, but there's nothing wrong with trying to hold onto the things we love...that's probably why we are all crazy about our cars here at CHR! :p

Cruisin still goes on. My best memories are back in Panama City when every weekend, we'd meet up at a Chick Fil' A and everyone would bring their wheels and have a good time. Wives used to dress up like diner girls, a live band would play and the kids would have a great time winning in the raffle. Seems like now though, ricers are taking over and that cruising scene is getting smaller, but it's still there. Out here in Colo. Spngs., we have a car show at a grocery store every Sat. evening and man, it's still fun. Everyone crusies in, shares their stories, pop their hoods, cruise around and have a good time. The ricers are getting a lot worse now and have thankfully taken the cop attention off people who want have a good time. Besides, stop light racing in this town is like 300' runs, the ricers love it so let em' have it. Cruise on, it's not dead and ain't illeagal.

I still wish I had been born "Back in the day". Eh, what are you gonna do. However, my next ride should prove things interesting. Cutlass with a vinyl top, opera lights, The mags off my other Cutlass, other choice parts ;) and a diesil. Diesels draw a crowd. Oh, and BTW, I already have good head studs on the way for my 350N, so the blown head gaskets are NOT gonna be a problem :). This will be a great cruiser!

i need some parts for a 1971 buick sky lark gs can anyone help me out

the cruising seen in oklahoma city ok
is still huge but most ricers muscle sometimes
30s to 60s rods hardly ever except me and my friends

We have a cruise night once a month during the summer. They block off main drag & side streets for the cars. Around 600 show up.

Well, the SoCal scene in the early to late '60's was a lot like what Lucas depicted in AG. Van Nuys Blvd and Bob's Big Boy, Toluca Lake Bob's Big Boy, Hollywood Blvd, and to a lesser degree, Ventura Blvd in the Woodland Hills. All spots where we'd hang out at the burger stand, and cruise up and down the blvd just burnin' dead dinosaurs. Well, maybe a little "speed contest" promotion now and then!:eek: :3dSMILE:

A four year "interuption" involving khaki, camo, and combat took me away from the scene except for an occasional visit on leave. The cruising remainded until around 1969. After that it changed. Hollywood Blvd got overpopulated with "weirdos", and Van Nuys, along with the others, just didn't have the same allure.

What has come to pass in recent years is less of a cruise and more of a park in. And once it turns dark most folks seem to clear out. Back "in the day", we were just gettin' started when the sun went down. (rampaging geezertude??) I suppose that the street racin' thing got too far out of hand, and the irresponsible parking and blocking of local businesses led to the impossition of most of the anti-cruise ordinances of the '70's and '80's.

It was a neat slice of history in a nation bound to the automobile. A right of passage, a tribute to the emerging boomerness, a cultural "phenomenon" of an age gone bye. Whatever vain attempt to recreate it we attempt will only be a tribute, noble nonetheless, but still only stoking memories of a lighter time.

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Originally posted by Bob Parmenter
Whatever vain attempt to recreate it we attempt will only be a tribute, noble nonetheless, but still only stoking memories of a lighter time.

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You have quite the way with words, you know Bob? :CRY:
That's OK, I guess I'd rather pay tribute to days gone by than sit around and not cruise at all! :toocool:

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Originally posted by Bob Parmenter
Well, the SoCal scene in the early to late '60's was a lot like what Lucas depicted in AG. Van Nuys Blvd and Bob's Big Boy, Toluca Lake Bob's Big Boy, Hollywood Blvd, and to a lesser degree, Ventura Blvd in the Woodland Hills. All spots where we'd hang out at the burger stand, and cruise up and down the blvd just burnin' dead dinosaurs. Well, maybe a little "speed contest" promotion now and then!:eek: :3dSMILE:

A four year "interuption" involving khaki, camo, and combat took me away from the scene except for an occasional visit on leave. The cruising remainded until around 1969. After that it changed. Hollywood Blvd got overpopulated with "weirdos", and Van Nuys, along with the others, just didn't have the same allure.

What has come to pass in recent years is less of a cruise and more of a park in. And once it turns dark most folks seem to clear out. Back "in the day", we were just gettin' started when the sun went down. (rampaging geezertude??) I suppose that the street racin' thing got too far out of hand, and the irresponsible parking and blocking of local businesses led to the impossition of most of the anti-cruise ordinances of the '70's and '80's.

It was a neat slice of history in a nation bound to the automobile. A right of passage, a tribute to the emerging boomerness, a cultural "phenomenon" of an age gone bye. Whatever vain attempt to recreate it we attempt will only be a tribute, noble nonetheless, but still only stoking memories of a lighter time.

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maybe it is a tribute me and my buddy try to enjoy a 1950s type
lifestyle yes we do dress like greasers people look at us like we are crazy i cant help it that just the way i am nothing it quite like the smell of fresh pomade in the morning
makes me think of better times not the crazy times we live in now
i am 20 anc still cruise mostly teens do it but it something i like to do cruise on a summer saturday night setback look at some sweet rides in okc there is a decent amount of rockabilly type
people we try to keep the spirit of the late 50s early 60s alive

I could probably write a book about how it was. Here is a brief (GD lawyer talk) of the times of Bentwings:

I grew up (????) some in the 50,60,70 era. This was a time of car clubs, rods, muscle cars, customs, viet nam, college, trade school, and wondering what the world was comming to.
Car clubs were 20-30 guys with a small rented garage to work on cars and hang out. Have meetings, plan happenings, and just be around each other, no girls allowed. Our club was one of the more outspoken ones and did a lot of community service like helping stranded motorists. We often relived our adventures doing this. Today if you stop you get "get the h..l away, I'm calling the cops you f...diviate". Wonder why nobody stops to help with a flat anymore???
We had a wide range of rods from flathead 32 Ford coupe to 62 Corvette and other hot cars between. I gravitated to dragsters and Funny cars later) another story.
We did car shows and drag racing big time and won our share. None of us were wealthy..we made our own way, we all pitched in on what ever project or event we got into.
We played a lot of sports and competitions with other clubs, often traveling in a group (rod run) to the events. It was always fun playing hockey or broom ball with the cops. Cop cars lined up on one side ot the rink and rods on the other.:eek:
Football was tackle only and got really rough. I don't recall anyone getting seriouly hurt but there were plenty of bumps and bruises. I don't think any game be it football, baseball, hockey or broomball that turned in to a blow out. It was always fun and developed a lot of mutual respect. We even socialized after the games.
There were only the very first of the drive ins ..no Mac's or Sonics. Dairy Queen and A&W I think were the first Then Porkys. We did the cruising thing as traditionally depicted. Drive in movies lasted untill the 70's. They were ok but too d... many mosquitoes for love making :LOL:
We all had our dress style. Slick hair to crew cuts. :cool: Cruising was time to get cleaned up.. We rarely went about in greasy stuff. Girls wouldn't get near us:eek: We even had a shower and bathroom in our garage! It's hard to imagine how we got cleaned up in this place. Other than the air powered plunger for the toilet I don't think the place ever got cleaned. :eek: :eek:
We had our wild parties. The local constable was paid off and we went about our thing. Nobody did drugs, getting really screwed up was not really acceptable. Sounds staight lace but somehow it seemed that our survival was based on being able stay out of harms way. I think there was a good deal of personal responsibility each of us had for ourselves and others. We felt there was some purpose for being around, we didn't know what it was but we believed in the future and it would appear there.
The age group of our club spanned a couple of 13-14 brothers to 30 heros. I think the influence of the older guys really helped keep us youger guys in line. They had already been in Korea, a couple were back from early VN and a couple college boys. So we had a great mix. There were a few hard core players (me) who just couldn't get enough speed shifting and always had to get the last lick in sports. I think the older guys helped by at least keeping us from hurting others and ourselves. We never had a crash in the club from racing or wild driving.
Sounds a bit boring I guess by todays standards. Remember you didn't get sued for walking across somebody's yard, If you backed into sombody's car you paid no question asked. Disputes got settled by discussion first then the fist, then a handshake. No parent sued because Jonny came home with a black eye :eek: . We didn't carry guns only tools to fix our cars.
We would help other club guys even if they were arch rivals :eek: maybe giving the age old sign as we parted just to remind each other of our social positions.**) :LOL:
It is fun to relive the car thing but this was only a small part of growing up (???) in the 50-60. I doubt that any of us ever really grew up. When ever we run across each other now it is " remember the time we......" or " What are y'all driving now??". "Got a real job yet??"

Times are different today, values have changed, attitudes have changed, respect is gone.
I'm on my 3rd family now with 14 and 16 boys. 6 boys..2 in each of 3 generations. My dad didn't have a personal lawyer, first name basis with the county DA., didn't know all 4 junivile judges beyond the golf course, I didn't have to leave a full name, address, parents names and phone numbers every time I left the yard, I didn't have no contact orders, I didn't have curfew, daily drug tests, personal searches, room searches, periodic visits from Officer....... or Officer.... wondering if so and so has been around. "How are the boys doing???" " Nice to see you again Officer... thank you for your concern, would you like to have a practice run of our house by your drug dog?? ". "I used to train them you know, maybe I can help you. " (you may help me too without knowing)At this point my own attitude changes and I drift away from rods, so it is time to end. Sorry it is on a sour note. Part of today's world. Thankfully rods are still as timeless as they were back then and they are alive and well today.



bentwings

someday I'll get time to add some pic of my 41Willys

its good hearing from all you oldschoolers i will still continue
to do what i do to keep the spirit of the 50s and 60s alive