Davy Crockett a.k.a Fess Parker

 

 

Decker Way and I have fond memories of the legendary Davy Crockett, and both of us owned Davy Crockett hats and on my 7^th birthday I even got a Davy Crockett cake. Today if Davy Crockett was on TV PETA would probably force the king of the wild frontier to wear a fun fur hat. Of course he was the man "that don't know fear" so PETA might have had a fight on its hands.

 

 

Decker Way

It's 1954, and you're sitting in front of a mostly snowy TV screen watching the first episode of the ABC show "Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier" starring Fess Parker. Little did you know that by the end of that first episode you would be hooked, as "Davy Crockett the Indian Fighter" was a genuine Indian fighten', 'bar wrastlen', 'badassed' Tennessee mountain man.

 

Decker, Tennessee  is still 'badassed' as you can buy both firearms and fireworks 24 hours a day- 365 days a year and they are  still 'bar wrastlen' as far as I know.

 

Ron Cheek

Nice writeup, Decker. I sure remember the Davy Crockett craze. What an assault on the raccoon population! This has to be an enormous business opportunity if the Davy Crockett coonskin hat ever makes a comeback. Think of the road kill that could be recycled for profit! 

 

 

 

My nomination for the kid that “dont know fear” like Davy Crockett would be CHS student Dickie Miner. Miner not only had a Davy Crockett hat he wore to school but he did things most of us would never do.

One spring day in Grade 4 Dickie came to school late and was accompanied by a very concerned father. Even though the day was sunny and warm Dickie had a plaid Elmer Fudd hat on his head.

 

His father put Dickie’s bookbag down and took off his son’s hat, like a waiter removing a silver serving cover. When the hat was removed the whole class gasped as Dickie, who had natural flaming red hair, was now sporting a Mohawk like his idol wrestler Little Beaver.

 

Recess came and everyone crowded around Dickie touching his head, while marveling that he would have the nerve to do such a thing. Did anyone laugh at him and make small talk behind his back? For some reason no one ever did because he was the "King of the CHS wild frontier".

 

 

 

 

Great Balls Of Fire - you have to admit there was a whole lot of shakin' going on with the Heroes Memorial student body keeping up with the teen fads. So I suggested we might start a Facebook thread about the trends and the comments rolled in.

 

 

At 4:22 Pm Audrey Bromby says:

Hmmm...can't really think of any crazy fads..

(American Idol must have been on and Audrey was preoccupied! :) Go Audrey!)

 

Carole Beattie

 

Pennies in our loafers was the thing I remember most. On the weekends when we didn't have to wear our tunics, huge diaper pins (or were they Scottish kilt pins?) on the cuffs of our jeans with a big hole in one knee. Of course there were poodle hooped skirts with pom-poms and yes, bobby socks and saddle shoes.

 

Paul Cournoyer

Crew cuts!

Audrey Bromby remembers!!

I remember my older sister in pin curls, or a pony tail and wearing bobby socks.

Grannie glasses, hippie beads, desert boots, and cardigan sweaters buttoned up the back.

 

Ironing our hair - those of us girls with long hair used to iron it to make it straight.

How about those empty orange juice cans we used to set our hair on Audrey?

 

 

 

 

Bob Bromby

 

The girls in 1964 would put their hair up and "plaque" it for the dance. One of the ladies will have to explain the process but the hair was hard as a motorcycle helmet and could likely have served as such had the law required one to ride on your Honda/Suzuki/Yamaha bikes that were starting to hit the streets.

 

Hair Spray and Dippity Doo (green or pink) was the national secret Bob!

 

Decker Way

The Hula Hoop

Bell bottoms, big hair, Elvis haircuts, shirt collars turned up, black leather jackets, motorcycle boots with chains.

 

I bet Mr. Douglas loved those outfits Decker!

 

 

Audrey Bromby

The perfect cool dude at a 1964 CHS dance. The shirt collar turned up and a white t-shirt underneath worn backwards-kinda James Dean-ish. The Beatle haircut and Beatle boots however identified you as a supporter of the British Invasion of pop music that’s suddenly all over the AM radio top 40.

You can't get in the gym without running shoes Mon-Fri but but you can scuff the floor with your Beatle boots dancing to Twist n Shout at the CHS dance on Friday nights.

 

 

 

John Farrell

Well, The Beatles arrived in North America while we were in high school so I guess longer hair for the guys was something that was different for the time.

 

 

John, my grandfather said everyone just looked plain dirty with that hair and shook his head!

 

 

 

 

Claudia Allen

I remember seersucker fabric being the rage and of course, mini and micro mini skirts to go with the go-go boots! You had white ones if you were lucky.

 

 

Ask me Claudia how I kept fishnet stockings, garter belt and a seersucker gingham mini skirt together without flashing the whole school at one dance. I swear I cried when The Continental Store sold pantyhose for the first time at a whopping 98 cents a pair.

 

Bob Bromby

GO-Go boots....drool!...Nancy Sinatra walkin' all over me...ouch!

 

 

 

I played that song on the juke box at Le Patio restaurant at least twice a day! Remember 'les patates frites avec sauce" and trying to nurse that glass of Coke slowly so you could sit in the booth for a few hours? I don't know how they put up with us all!

 

 

 

 

Audrey Bromby

Does anyone remember putting streamers on our bicycle handles or folded cardboard in our spikes with a clothes pin to make it sound like a motor bike?

 

 

 

 

Decker Way

 

Now that I think about it I had 2 bikes, the decked-out going to town 3 speed with 26" wheels from Handy Andy & an old reliable CCM single speed with 28" wheels no fenders for general day use.

Oh yeah streamers, cardboard in spokes, bell. horn, dual mirrors, extra lights & as piece de resistance, a continental bumper with pickup hubcap & mirror.

 

We wouldn't be caught dead wearing a helmet either---however unlike the lycra nerds, we had respect for the rules of the road.

 

 

Everyone remember Homer Sargent's bicycle shop on North Street? CCM approved!

Bob Bromby

Wonder what one of the latte sippin', granola munchin' lycra fitted cyclist of today would think of the decked out 3 speeds of yore. Don't forget the whip antenna and the jean jacket with the self installed studs you got from the shoemaker. We were so cool!

Those little pocket transistor radios made their 1st appearance around 57-58, and remember how great the sound was?.....NOT!

 

I remember the day my father was carrying on a conversation with the owner of the Cowansville Bus Depot restaurant on South Street and he was showing him my transistor radio.

The man looked at it and said,

 

“Arthur, this think is going to put the juke box out of business”

My father looked at him and said,

“Are you kidding me? They will never be popular!”

 

 

I went home and put the little beige radio under my pillow and while I listened to music I thought if if the transistor radio went out of business it might be The End of the World .

 

But it wasn't!

 

Linda Knight-Seccaspina

Cowansville High School

1957-1967

 

5th in a series of -"6 seconds of Cowansville High School"

 

Don't forget the CHS Reunion at Big Brome Fair in the Eastern Townships

 

Those Darn Kids from Cowansville High School Facebook group

 

 

 

 

 

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