(Editor's Note: Last week I featured my own response to an article submitted by Terry Preston. After a little hunting, I found the original article (published in early 2002) that Terry submitted. We lost Terry later that year on Dec. 14, 2002. Here is a reprint of that story.)

1961 - The Year That Was

Terry ‘Moses’ Preston

LHS '64

I was recently asked, “If you had to pick one year out of your life, and call it your best ever, which year would it be?”  Of course, my response was, “The next one!”  When that didn’t work I tried, “There was something special about all of them.”  That was viewed as a cop-out.  Being hesitant to isolate only one of my great adult years to the exclusion of many others, I offered to answer the question as it pertained only to my childhood and adolescence.  That was easy.  It was 1961.

Ah, 1961!  The last year where it didn't make a difference if you read the year upside down until 6119.  1961 was a year with good news and bad news on the national and international front, but just good at Lee Junior High and Lee High School.

What a year it was!  The U.S.-backed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba flopped, the trial of Adolf Eichmann for the murder of millions of Jews took place, Yuri Gagarin (a Russian) became the first man in space, construction of the Berlin Wall (8/13/61 – 11/9/89 R.I.P.!) was begun, murderous dictator Patrice Lumumba of the Congo was (guess what?) murdered, and Chico Marx (member of the Marx Brothers) died.  On the other hand, JFK was inaugurated president of the United States, Roger Maris hit 61 Home Runs, South Africa declared its independence from Britain, Allen Rex Sandage at the Mt Palomar observatory discovered the first Quasar, Alabama won the National Championship of the NCAA, and Wayne Gretzky, Princess Diana, and Lee High School were born!

Calendar year 1961 began with us attending Lee Junior High and finished with us attending Lee High School.  It began to the soothing strands of Bert Kaempfert’s Wonderland By Night and ended with the tones of the Token’s The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

In between we danced and listened to Billboard Number 1 hits Will You Love Me Tomorrow, Calcutta, Pony Time, Surrender, Blue Moon, Runaway, Mother-In-Law, Travelin’ Man, Running Scared, Moody River, Quarter to Three, Tossin’ and Turnin’, Wooden Heart, Michael, Take Good Care of My Baby, Hit the Road Jack, Runaround Sue, Big Bad John, & Please Mister Postman, and dozens of great songs that didn’t make it to Number 1.  On the Country stations we heard Walk on By, San Antonio Rose, Big Bad John, Don’t Worry (a model for future synthesized sound recordings), Hello Walls, North to Alaska, I Fall to Pieces, Sea of Heartbreak, Tender Years, and Foolin’ Around.

In the spring the 1961 Lee Junior High baseball team went undefeated, won the county championship, and was dubbed “the best team I ever had” by coach Hub Myhand.  Attendance at the games was impressive, as Optimist Park was the fun place to be when the Generals were playing.  I can still hear the strands of I've Told Every Little Star floating from the stands, sung harmoniously by more than a dozen Lee Girls as the Generals were taking care of business on the field. 

Lee Junior High’s final spring was fun away from the field, too.  Socializing while strolling the halls at Lee became an art form,  ‘going steady’ and Slam Books were in, as were white dress shirts, Lee jeans, and penny loafers with white socks for the boys.  The girls were required to wear modest dresses that sometimes inadvertently gave the boys a show, but this was really quite rare.  (The Lee girls were ladies first and foremost).  And it seemed that there was a party every weekend hosted by Barbara Wilkerson, Dianne Wilbourn, Mary Ann Bond, Barbara Rousseau, or Marquietta Hunt.  

The fall of 1961 gave birth to Lee High School, as the class of ’64 began our sophomore year.  For the second consecutive year we were the ‘seniors’ of the school (which would happen for another two years after that).   And we came onto the high school scene with a splash!  The first Lee High football team went undefeated and untied, extending the 1961 Generals' unbeaten streak through two sports.  

The soundtrack album for "Blue Hawaii" entered the Billboard chart in October for a year-and-a-half run, staying at number one for 20 weeks (second only to "GI Blues" as the biggest album of Elvis's career) on the Billboard charts. It also yielded a number two single that was destined to become an Elvis classic, Can't Help Falling in Love.  The movie "Blue Hawaii" opened nationally and got to number two on the box office charts, becoming the top-grossing film of Elvis's career to that date.  Meanwhile, we were wearing out the jukebox at Mullins with Dion’s Runaround Sue.

At school we were back to the socializing that had characterized the previous spring, building upon friendships that were to last a lifetime!  Our band was really good, our cheerleaders were talented and pretty, and going to school was something that I looked forward to every day.  There was pure joy in the hallways of Lee, and all seemed well as we said so long to one another and broke for the Christmas holidays.  

Was 1961 as great as I remember it having been?  Probably not.  The reality is probably more like Barbara Streisand sang years later:  “Can it be that things were so different then, or has time rewritten every line?"

The Wayback Machine

Tommy Towery

LHS '64

I asked The Wayback Machine to play a song mentioned by Terry in his story. Here is the result.

"Runaround Sue" is a rock and roll song (in a modified doo-wop style), originally a US No. 1 Hot 100 hit (No. 4 on the Hot R&B chart) for the singer Dion during 1961, after he split with the Belmonts. It was written by Dion with Ernie Maresca, and tells the story of a disloyal lover. The song ranked No. 351 on the Rolling Stone list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

In 2002, Dion was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for "Runaround Sue".

Dion said this about the video above: "I recorded Runaround Sue with “The Del-Satins” and black musicians from the Apollo theater, Buddy Lucas on Sax, Sticks Evans on drums, Panama Francis on percussion, Teacho Wilshire on piano, Milt Hinton on bass, and Mickey “Guitar” Baker.  When Hollywood filmed this rendition they used all white actors playing musicians behind me, knowing the film wouldn't get played in the South at that time.

There was not a large number of classmates who said they wanted me to continue THe Wayback Machine songs, but everyone who did reply voted in favor of "YES" to keep the songs. Based on those responses we will continue with the songs of our past for a while longer.

I am still having some health issues but the doctor is almost ready to come up with a plan of attack on how to deal with the problem.

So, we now have looked back to 1960 and 1961. Does anyone want to write a short story about 1962 or later?  It would be nice to have someone share those memories.

Last Week's Questions, Answers, and Comments

Dianne Hughey McClure, LHS ‘64,  "I really enjoyed the column you wrote about your 1960 experience. Brought back a lot of positive memories."

Jim McBride, LHS ‘65, "Etta James singing "At Last" is the bomb. When Jeanne hears it playing on her I-phone, she knows it's me calling. It's "our' story and has become "our" song.