howthingswerebackthen

Won't it be great to get together again and remember those days.

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Richard Clark

Flat top haircuts were the thing back in those days, but it had to be very flat.  Richard set the standard for flatness.

"HHS Memories" by Richard Clark

HELLO 1959 Greyhounds!  Do you remember . . .

[ Click Here to Read More ]

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 Linda (Wheeler) Duncan

"How Things Were" by Linda (Wheeler) Duncan

     I only went to Handley for two years, but did I ever learn a lot.  I had come from a school that only had 10 or 12 classmates.  Boy!  To have 80 something in the class; well, I thought I would never remember who everybody was.  The groups had already formed with their own members.  Fitting in wasn't easy.  I guess I coped by being a little dumb and not paying much attention, but going merrily on my way--then I met Jamey the next year, my senior year.  We dated that year and were married a year after graduation.  It will be 48 years come the 5th of August since we married.  We are looking forward to all of the activities involved in preparing for this reunion.

     [Webmaster:  One of the perks of being webmaster is getting to do things like this:  I really know how Linda felt, when I got there it seemd as though all of the girls were already spoken for (just as well, I would have been much too timid anyway); but, back to Linda.  Linda was a great person back then, one of the nicest I knew.  I was back in Fort Worth after being gone many years and stopped by to say hello.  I'm not sure that I had time to say a single word before getting a great big hug--now that's my idea of a wonderful person, one that I'm truly glad to have known, and one that I still count as a very dear friend.  People don't really change very much as far as virtues.  What you see in Linda now, her very endearing qualities, are those she always had.  For many of us, I fear, we were so self-absorbed that we (me as much as anyone) failed to fully see and appreciate the beautiful people all around us.]

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Remember going to the drive-in theater?

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 Bill Rennels

"Remembering Luther T" by Bill Rennels

     When we were in Mrs. Ballard's Spanish class, about once a month, Mrs. Ballard would accompany all of us to the Mexican Inn for lunch.  We always invited Mr. Scarborough, and he always went with us.  Several of us guys always rode with him to save our gas.  

     All of us knew that he smoked cigars.  After lunch, several of us would chip in and buy him the biggest cigar we could find.  He would drive us all over Handley and the surronding areas until he finished his cigar before taking us back to school.

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"Remembering Journalism Class" by Bill Rennels

     During our senior year in journalism, Clyde Brewer,Diane Hudgens and I were in carge of advertising for the "Handley Hi - Light."  On a Monday morning, Mrs. Priddy gave us a pass to go sell ads for the pper.  We got the pass signed by Mr. Scarborough, and we drove out on the west side of Fort Worth to channel 11 on the West Freeway.

     Diane's car had a flat with no spare.  My car was low on gas and I had no money.  We took Clyde's car.  It was a '49 Ford convertible and the top was literally in ribbos.  We parked on the street in front of the TV studio.  When we came out about 30 minutes later there was a torrntial rain.  We got soaked to the skin in Clyde's car.  By the time we returned to the school, the sun was out, and we were completely dry.  No one ever believed that we were late because of the rain.

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Doris (Richardson) Raymond

"More Rememberances" by Doris (Richardson) Raymond

     I remember attending some great slumber parties including one at Joyce Collet's house and one at Margaret Bargsley's house.  

     I also remember our whole senior typing class playing a trick on Miss Bedell and walking out of the building for a short while.  (I had never skipped school in my life.)

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 Jane (Garrison) Bratcher

"How We Dressed" by Jane (Garrison) Bratcher

     Big felt skirts, thick bobby sox folded over, fun to go to school, always in a skirt at school (never pants).

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 Ann (Briley) Weiss

"Graduation Night Memories" by Ann (Briley) Weiss

     On graduation night Jerry, Jane, Clayton, and I celebrated the big event by going to Lake Arlington, renting a row boat, and just drifting around in the lake for a long time.  I don't remember us doing anything in particular...just sitting and floating along.  Maybe we drank cokes and probably Jerry smoked a cigar.

     Now the really strange thing is....just last week Jane told me she and Clayton don't even like boats!  And I don't either!  If you remember, Lake Arlington was brand new then, so it was full of stumps and mud, not pretty at all.  What were we thinking?  Must have been Jerry's idea!

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"What Was I Thinking" by David McConnell

     My date for prom was Marsha, Richard's girlfriend.  Yep!  She was his girlfriend at that very time.  Whoa there fellow!  What were you thinking?  Me?  About what?  In due time, my friend, in due time.  If you want to hear my story you're going to have to exercise some patience and let me tell it my way.

     Richard, it seems felt he had an obligation to his fellow classmates to take a senior to the prom, not someone several grades removed from senior status.  Well, Marsha was my friend, and I didn't want to see her left out.  So I invited her to go with me, but not forgetting for a second that she was Richard's girl.

     Well, I wanted the time to be memorable to Marsha, but having as your date the girlfriend of a very close friend does present certain logistical, ethical, spiritual, moral, religious, economic, social, humanistic, psychological, ethnic, legal, and metaphysical dilemmas even before you walk out her front door heading for the car.  However, time and space doesn't permit me to address these things at the moment.

     I felt somewhat like a baseball player who had two strikes against him, bases loaded, in a world series tie game, and with the pitcher having already thrown a curve ball that was headed right through the strike zone.  I couldn't just take her home right after the prom.  What am I gonna do?  It had to be memorable.  Don't forget she's Richard's girl.  Time's running out...gotta do something.

     We were just passing Rose Hill cemetery.  Memorial...I mean memorable, it needed to be.  That's it!  Before I had time to fully think things through we had driven up into Rose Hill cemetery.  Finding us in the cemetery, I tried to give her a little fright by surreptitiously grabbing the back of my neck coupled with a scary sound as we drove through the cemetery to make it even more memorable.

     All in all, it was not only memorable to me, it was also instructive.  Next time, don't take a friend's girlfriend (or, his wife, mother, sister, sister-in-law, stepmother, grandmother, seventh cousin, or girlfriend's mother) on a date.

     You have to be a lot smarter than I am to make it work.  Ok, so now you know what I was thinking, and, as a bonus, you know what I presently think as well.

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Tommy Gwin

"How I Became Drum Major" by Tommy Gwin

     It was all a matter of politics.  I was voted in a drum major by the popular vote of the band.  My election followed a party line manner of voting, more or less.  All of the boys voted for me, and all of the girls voted for Linda Meisner.  There were more boys than girls in the band.  So you can readily see that the best man won.

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"Fine Arts on Parade at Handley High"

 by Ann (Briley) Weiss

     At the Handley High School Football Banquet our senior year we had very unusual entertainment.  We anticipated accomplished ballet dancers because we could hear the lovely classical music coming from behind us.  However, when the "dancers" came out we were surprised to see, not the classical ballet dancers we expected, but big ole football players dressed in white t-shirts, white gym shorts (I think), and colorful net tutus!  They certainly were entertaining, though I can't say they were too graceful.

     While our fellas may have ruled the football field...all the way to District Championship playoffs, as I recall, they were not quite as spectacular on their tippy toes!  Nevertheless, we laughed until our faces hurt that night.  Sweet memories of the simple pleasures of Handley High School in 1959.

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