2- 1966 Jan: Bone-Chilling Cold, Claire de Lune, HS Homecoming, Report Cards, My Fair Lady, Everybody’s sick!
My diary entries from 1966 substantiate the current events headlines of the day of record-setting cold along the entire Eastern US from New York to the southern states. As an eighth grader in the middle of the school year, I annotated issues surrounding me, my family and friends in what seemed to be a fairly ordinary beginning of a new year. The mention of “Peyton Place” about mid way through this post reminds me that primetime TV episodes that mirrored soap-opera types of story-telling began to appear more frequently.
Current events from mid January to late January: (My sources for the below events are Wikipedia and a site called “On the Day.”) LBJ selected the first African-American (Robert C. Weaver) for a presidential cabinet post, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; India elected Indira Ghandi as fourth prime minister.
A brutal snowstorm in the northeast killed 165 people. Record breaking cold hit the southeast. Mississippi recorded -19 degrees Fahrenheit. Alabama experienced -27 degrees !
USSR launched the Luna 9 rocket towards the moon. Martin Luther King, Jr. opened a campaign in Chicago. Peggy Fleming won the US female figure skating championship.
Friends mentioned in this post: Sally Jo, Ken, Lawrence (high schoolers) , Bill T, Wanda (8th grade classmates)
Mrs. Davis (8th grade History teacher), Mr. Clegg (Junior High principal), Dr. Pugh (only doctor for our small town of 2000 residents), Mr. McKinney (8th grade Science teacher & assistant junior high coach)
Family: my brother Adie, my Mom and Dad, Uncle Rody & Aunt Gladys; Uncle George & Aunt Irene
“17 Jan 1966, Monday (8th grade), I had to stay with the first graders for 30 minutes today. We had a History semester test. Got out of school at 2:00. 18 Jan 1966, Had a Math semester test today. I made a 97. I had a pretty good music lesson. My recital piece this year is Claire de Lune. Got out of school at 2:00 again due to semester test schedule. 19 Jan 1966, Had a Science test. I made a 98. The Geography test turned out 98 2/3. Adie is spending the night at Ken’s. Daddy is sick. 20 Jan 1966, I went to school, as usual. We’ll be studying Georgia History this semester. Got the book today. Mrs. Davis is such a great teacher. I’m stuffed up with a terrible cold. 21 Jan 1966, No tests today! Today is Friday. Adie, Mom, Dad and I went to the high school homecoming basketball game. Sally Jo is our homecoming queen.”
The 3rd week of the new year offered one test after another and the kick-off of beginning a new venture in History with the study of our state’s history. I think the theme of studying one’s state history hasn’t changed in timing in the curriculum in over 50 years.
Thank goodness for music, art and sports as means of supplementing and offering moments of respite from the academics coming full steam at us during mid January. I absolutely loved the piano piece Claire De Lune. It was one of my most challenging selections up to this point in my piano instruction. As the year went along, I practiced madly on mastering it and memorizing it for the upcoming springtime recital. This piece came from the music book pictured above. That music book contained 28 selections of classical pieces and only cost $1.50!
Sally Jo was a senior in high school and lived in my neighborhood just up the street. I felt very happy for her, all dressed up with a court of other lovely girls with their escorts lining the bleachers at our school gymnasium. The homecoming court seemed quite spectacular to me as an eighth grader.
“22 Jan 1966, I went to see Doctor Pugh this morning. Got a shot of penicillin. Bad sore throat. Aunt Irene and Uncle George from Nashville called to cancel their trip to come see us because of snow. 23 Jan 1966, I didn’t go to Sunday School or Church. I’m still sick. My two cousins came over for awhile. I think Mama has caught my cold.”
The cold snap seems to have ushered in everyone catching colds or fending off flu bugs. Around every corner could be heard a sneeze or cough. Classrooms needed several boxes of tissues within easy reach of all.
The US southeast was experiencing some of the coldest weather ever on record regionally. Obviously from the current events mentioned above, the other parts of the country were in a deep freeze, too.
“24 Jan 1966, Monday, I had a Literature semester test. The heat was off at school, so we had most of our classes in the auditorium or gym. Ken is spending the night with Adie. 25 Jan 1966, Mrs. Davis is still sick. Uncle George and Aunt Irene did make it to Georgia. They are visiting us a few days. Aunt Gladys and Uncle Rody joined us for supper. 26 Jan 1966, Mr. Clegg came into our math classroom, just as I said something and he made me write a 200 word composition as punishment. Today is Mama’s 52nd birthday. Got my report card. All A’s.”
Remember the days, when any change from the norm at school offered an adventure! Even if we had to be bundled up in our coats and gloves, we enjoyed the change of venue of classes in the gym. Sitting on bleachers allowed for more casual interchange among us students, even though we knew the teachers felt a little more stressed in handling the situation.
The visit from my Uncle George (my mom’s brother from Nashville) and sharing of dinner with Uncle Rody’s family (her brother who lived locally) were lead-ins to my mother’s 52nd birthday on January 26. I turned 52 myself in the year 2004. As a child, I do remember thinking, “I’ll be in my mom’s current age range after the year 2000!” So many many years away!
I was happy to be able to share a good school report card with her on her birthday, but a bit dismayed to be writing a ‘punishment essay’ for mouthing off inappropriately at school! As I alluded to in an earlier story, I did not feel Mr. Clegg liked me very much and the feelings or lack thereof were mutual.
“27 Jan 1966, We had classes again in the auditorium. I have three tests tomorrow. Mom and I watched the Peyton Place TV show tonight. Norman and Rita got married. Bill T called me about homework assignments. 28 Jan 1966, Had Georgia History, Math and Science tests today. I do like my Science teacher. He’s very good with students, a good teacher in general, but at times he acts kind of strange. Don’t always know what to make of him. Had a music lesson. Practiced so hard on that Claire de Lune piece.”
I am somewhat amused that my mom and I watched Peyton Place together. I recall that show being a bit radical for this era in broadcast TV. We had lived through an era of Father Knows Best, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Donna Reed and Leave It to Beaver. Most of us familiar with those shows know how different Peyton Place was from that genre.
I don’t remember so much about Mr. McKinney, specifically. From annotations in my diary, I think most of us students responded very favorably to him. To this day, I always enjoy subjects and topics related to any type of Science. I enjoy reading Science-based current events. I think that positiveness towards the field was likely etched in my own psyche from some of these early academic exposures. My immediate family members are Science hounds, too, so that keeps the interest fostered and nourished.
“29 Jan 1966, Saturday, Dad, Adie and I went to Columbus. We got out of the house to let Mama host her bridge club. 30 Jan 1966, No church today. We went to Columbus to see the movie My Fair Lady. It was kind of ulky. [new word?] Stopped by Uncle Rody’s to wish him happy birthday; He’s 57. Temperature outside is 2 degrees!! SO COLD. 31 Jan 1966, I made 97 on my Science test. Mr. McKinney was all stuffed up with a cold today. It’s been pretty cold here last few days. Wanda broke up with Lawrence.”
My mom really enjoyed her weekly bridge card game. The time was a very welcomed social gathering, when she could enjoy time off from work to chat with friends and engage in some friendly competition. My aunt Gladys was an avid bridge player. A couple of my school friend’s mothers enjoyed the game.
I find it interesting, the comment of My Fair Lady not being such a hit with 13 year old Donna. I have always had very positive memories of the movie and would never have associated not liking it much when it first premiered. I obviously liked the music, since I had bought the sheet music for several of the songs. I love that picture above of the sheet music which captures the movie poster and stars of the big screen production. The play had appeared on Broadway some years earlier with Julie Andrews in the starring role, whereas Audrey Hepburn had the role in the Hollywood film version.
Sobering for my 60-something self is the notion that my mom, dad, uncles and aunts were all younger in this timeframe than I am today. Also comes the reflection that death came for most of them in their 50's and 60’s. Average life spans have definitely increased. We now hear folks say of someone who passes away at 68 or 70, “Oh, he/she was quite young.”
I hope this step back in time has been fun. I always enjoy finding the parallels with current times. Junior high-aged young adults continue to enjoy school events, participate in music and extra curricular activities, and go to movies with family and friends. Watching TV or nowadays engaging in some social media occupies leisure time. Schools issue grade reports of student progress and teachers influence so many directions young people take. Students take tests and do homework. Early visits with family and their interactions in young lives provide other anchors and shapers of whom we become and the value we place on family as our journey in life unfolds.
