Some more thoughts from the Driller . Always appreciate when he sends a thought or two, cause he was there.
Listen my children....
"If South Peoria was the Restless Ribbon, and it certainly was, then
Pennington's Drive In was Ground Zero. If you went to a movie at the
Brook Theater, you drove up to Pennington's after the movie for a coke
and fries. If you went to a high school football game at Skelly
Stadium, you drove to Pennington's after the game.
During the early and
mid-sixties Hale, Edison, Memorial, Central, and Rogers all played
their football games at Skelly Stadium. Two teams would play on Thursday
night, two on Friday night, one team would play out of town, and TU
would play on Saturday afternoon or evening. At that time the stadium
only seated 20,000. There would be
14,000 fans for the Edison/Rogers rivalry or the Hale/Rogers rivalry
games. Back to Pennington's. After a basketball game or wrestling
match at Edison, you went to Pennington's. All summer long, you went to
Pennington's. For Edison students of the sixties, Pennington's was not
only Ground Zero for the "Ribbon", it was the epi-center of our social
life outside of school.
There was a place though that you would take that "special" date after a concert
or a movie. On the back side of Ranch Acres shopping center, tucked in
the corner, was St. Michael's Alley. The interior
was like a rustic English Pub. It was waaay upscale from
Pennington's. If you went on a date that called for a sport coat, then
St. Michael's Alley was going to be your last stop of the evening,
before taking your date home. One last thing about the mid-sixties was
the dress code for dates. Don't laugh, this is serious stuff. If you
were invited to a party and the invitation said "casual", that meant
slacks, collared shirt, and a sweater (weather permitting). If the
invitation stated semi-formal, that indicated sport coat and tie.
Formal wear meant suit and tie, or a tux. Only if someone invited you
and said "wear your grubs" did you show up in jeans and t-shirt or
polo.
That's all I've got for now.
Later"
Looks like this couple might be headed for St. Michael's Alley...
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