Category: Miscellaneous

The stories below are incomplete and may have names confused.

Snakes.  An unnamed person in the neighborhood decided that there really was a purpose for the garter snakes that appeared in the spring.  Combine that with a discarded paint can that still had a little paint in the bottom and you’ve got a good prank.  Put the snake in the caan, take it out and nail it to someone’s door.

Patsey Seskey owned an older Studebaker that was looking a little long in the tooth.  I believe it was one of her brothers who decided he could re-paint it on the cheap.  All it took was a can of Kemtone paint and a couple of friends.  Kemtone worked very well on drywall or plaster, but on steel?  Oops!

DIY Convertible   Everyone likes a convertible, but not everyone can afford to buy one.  But, thought Bobbie  Auggilia, if you  have an old station wagon you can turn it into a convertible.  All you need is a couple of hacksaws, some friends and enough time  to cut off the roof.  He and his friends spent hours, maybe days, and achieved their goal.  Unfortunately, they didn’t take into consideration that convertibles have roofs to keep the occupants dry when it rains.  It does rain in Pittsburgh.

Low Mileage  Low mileage is a mark of a good used car.  The odometers in the older cars  in the 50’s were mechanically driven,. connected to the drive shaft by way of a speedometer cable. The cable was a thick solid steel wire inside of  a metal shield that rotated  as the drive shaft turned  A mechanism in the dashboard indicated the speed and the distance driven.  If the direction of the cable’s rotation were reversed, the speedometer read zero, bur the odometer went backward.  Joe an Charlie Saar decided to take a few miles off Charlie’s odometer.  Because it takes about a thousand rotations to indicate one mile driven, it is not so easy to turn the odometer back far.  However, you can use an electric drill clamped to the drive wire to speed things up. Joe and Charle rigged it up somehow,  as they took turns lying under the car holding the drill.  They were able to plug the drill in somewhere using multiple extension cords.   How much mileage they succeeded  to remove is unknown.

Urban Rodeo  There was a pig sty on Gershon Street.  Not only could you look at and smell the pigs,  you could pretend you were a rodeo star.  On occasion one ore more of the boys would climb over the low fence and ride a pig.  Although the pigs weren’t broncos or bucking bulls, they could get quite upset when someone jumped on their back.  More than one of us went home with muddy and smelly clothes, and no trophy.

Catholic School Discipline .  Anyone who went to a Catholic school back then knows that the nuns applied corporal punishment to miscreants.  One nun, Sister Ottilia, was known for her slaps on the knuckles with a ruler.  Often the boys would talk about their tolerance for pain, and that they could hold out until Sister Ottilia gave up.  It was either Russell Seskey or Sip (Philip) Saar who tried to prove his masculinity, he cracked before the good Sister reached 20 slaps.

Emergency Room.  Sooner or later, many kids end up in the emergency room with minor injuries.  Rusty got hurt a little in one of the pick-up football games.  He took himself to the Allegheny General Hospital’s emergency room.  He noticed the number of people and , from somewhere fo a hold of an arrow.  He sat in one of the waiting room chairs holding the arrow in his crotch as if he had been shot.  When the nurse came out to bring in the nest patient, he asked “Is it my turn yet?”

 

 

Quick Links to the Posts Below

Pranks and Dumb Things in the Neighborhood
Sledding and Biking
Neighbors
Sixty-Six
Lyceum
MIscellaneous Topics
Sayings and Admonishments We All Heard

 

Last updated April 13 2020

Sled Riding.  We had more than one good sled riding trails.  First, we could start at the top of Bly Street and sled ride down to Royal Street.  The advantage to this little traffic, and a nice hill, and about 200 feet long  The disadvantage was possible cross traffic on  Royal Street or not stopping and running into the curb or building at the end of Bly Street.  For the more  distance and adventures., you could go to the top of Royal Street then up Nettie.  The toral distance was about a quarter of a mile.  There were three possible hazards.  Cinders at the corner of Bly Street and Gershon Street. and a terminus at East Street.  Another good run was down Gershon Street, another quarter mile or so depending on how far up you wanted to go. It also terminated at Royal Street

Biking.  Royal and Gershon streets were not only good for sledding, but also biking  But sometimes not so good .  Rusty recalled the Joe Heinzs’, our policeman neighbor,  son riding his English racing bike from the top of Royal Street. A great ride on blacktop until  the corner of Royal Street and Bly Street, Royal street went from smooth to cobble stones. He went end over end and the bike was trashed.  Another time, George Driver was riding his bike down Gershon Street when the chain broke.  He ended up crashing  into the front door of the Wagner house at the end of Gershon and across Royal Street.

During the summer, we would often ride our bikes to North Park to go swimming.  We would leave in the morning and not be back home until dinner.

Last updated April 5 . 2020

Life at 30 Bly Street would not have been the same without our neighbors.  As mentioned in another post, we were a neighborhood of working families.  These stories may have to be taken with a grain of salt.

Sesky.  One of the most interesting families was the Sesky family.  There were at least four boys and one girl.  Starting with the oldest boys were Chuck, Donny, Richie and Russell.  The girl Patsy,  was either the oldest or second oldest sibling.  The Seskys’ were hunters.  During deer season they would hang a gutted deer from one of the branches of a tree in their front yard.  After the deer was cured they would, among other things, make deer burgers and sell them in bulk to the Lyceum.

When Russell Sesky and Rusty were in the eighth grade Ritchie, age 16, was also there.  Although it hasn’t been confirmed, Sister Ottilia gave him a passing grade so that he would at least have a grade school diploma.

Chuck was the first boy to have a car, a Studebaker.  The car wasn’t new, and looked like it could use a paint job.  He gave it one using Kemtone.  Kemtone was an indoor paint and didn’t fare well in the outdoors.

Rusty was  over at the Sesky house and Richie wanted to try and shoot the ball of the top of flag pole,  about 225 feet away.  He got his dad’s shotgun and fired at the pole from the second floor of his house out the window.   He then dared us to shoot at the pole.   He was complaining about his shoulder and was daring us  to try.  Russell Sesky then got the shotgun and backed up to the far wall in the house. He put the stock of the shotgun on wall so he wouldn’t hurt his shoulder,  pulled the trigger and blew out the upstairs window.  Whoopings were plentiful

Saar. There were two boys and a girl in the Saar family.  The girl, who’s name I don’t, was the oldest.  Charlie and Philip (Sip) filled out the kids in the family.  In the late fifties or very early sixties Mr. Saar collapsed in front of the Hartmann’s next door neighbors, the Hirmers’.

At around age 18, Charlie was able to buy a new car.  It was a purple and white Plymouth Fury.  Definitely the coolest car on Bly Street.  Imagine the car shown in purple and white.

Sip Saar was quite a character.  When riding in a car during one of the street car strikes,  he’d approach  girls walking down the street with.  “Hey girls, streetcas are on strike, wanna ride”.  Another of his memorable quotes is: “”I shot the fuckin bird in the fuckin tree with my fuckin bb gun.”

Hirmer.  Andy and Cunigunda Hirmer were our nextdoor neighbors.  Because of their accents, I believe that they were immigrants.  We could often hear “Cunigunda , bring me another beer.”  Lest you think Cunigunda was a teetotaler, because she never sat on the front porch with Andy drinking beer, you’re wrong.  She would drink her beer behind her house.

Rosmueller.  When Sal Rossmueller wasn’t making teeth, he was often drinking beer at the one of the six branches of the WBU (The Workingmen’s Beneficial Union was a German Cultural and Union Organization). Patricia and Brother  (Bruzzi)were the kids of the family. Bruzi probably had a real first name, it might have been Sylvester .  It was rumored that they “borrowed” electricity from their nex door neighbor, the Straubs.

Last updated March 19, 2020

The most popular game played at 30 Bly Street was Sixty-Six.  Everybody played it at one time or another. Grandma, Dad, Mom, Bob, Joe, Bill, Rich, Linda, Terri, Jimmy,Ozzie, Mary, Marge, Judi Joanne, Tom and Charlotte.  The game had been a tradition in the Hartmann and Pint families for as anyone could remember. Grandpa Pint (Pup) taught his kids to play.  It is assumed that Grandpa Hartmann did the same.

The games were played for almost any occasion, or no occasion.  Someone would clear off the kitchen, or later, dining room table and bring out the cards.  Partners were chosen.  If husband and wife, or boyfriend and girlfriend were present, they would be a team.  The games were always team against team.  If there were extra people available they would take the losing team’s place for the next game.  A fifth person might be swapped in at the beginning of a new game or even in the middle.  The adults, except Grandma and Mom, often had adult beverages, thus livening the game.  The games were played for a small amount of money, but that was not the purpose.  The games were sometimes raucous, but never subdued.

During the game you might here phrases such as “No talking overboard”, “That’s not the way Pup taught us how to play”.  “I got 4 9’s, redeal”.

Sixty-six at the Hartmann house was played just a little differently from the official rules found on Bicyclecards.com.  The A, 10, K, Q, J, 9  from a half deck of Pinochle cards was used. This was probably a holdout from the frugality of the families in the early 20th century.  The ranking of the cards was: A (high), 10, K, Q, J, 9,  Six cards are dealt clockwise to each player, beginning with the player on the dealer’s left.

The goal is to score 66 points as follows:
Each ace (taken in on tricks) 11
Each ten (taken in on tricks) 10
Each king (taken in on tricks) 4
Each queen (taken in on tricks) 3
Each jack (taken in on tricks) 2

The player on the dealer’s left leads which declares is declared trump.  Each succeeding player in turn not only must follow suit but must win the trick if possible. If the player cannot follow suit, he must trump or top the previous trump if he can.  Occasionally someone would be dealt four nines.  This resulted in a misdeal.

 

Last updated December 10, 2019

Who can forget St. Boniface’s Lyceum?  Pennsylvania liquor laws did not allow for the serving of alcohol on  Sundays except at private clubs.  The Lyceum was such a club run by the church and only members of the parish could be members.  The club had a beer bar (no wine or spirits) and two bowling  lanes.  The club was open seven days a week, and if I remember correctly, after 5 PM on weekdays and noon on Saturdays and as soon as the last Mass was over on Sundays.  Many men were at that Mass standing in the back of the church, near the sacristy, across from the door to the club.  As soon as the priest declared the Mass over, the rush began.

The bowling alleys, which were used mostly for league play could also be used when available by other patrons.  There were travelling and home leagues including mixed (male and female) leagues.  The pins, both standard 10-pins and Duck pins, were set up manually by two boys unless only one was available. The first four Hartmann boys were among those able to make a little extra cash.  Not only did the pin setters get paid by the number of bowlers, but often when a bowler  had a good day , a couple of coins would be would put in the holes.

Sep was often the bartender and clean-up man at the Lyceum, especially during the steel strikes.

 

Use the miscellaneous category when you want to post something that is not specific to any person.  This can include people, places or things.  Short memories, such as the ration coupons can be edited into this page.

Last updated March 6, 2021

Zenith TV.  I remember the Zenith TV with the 12 inch round screen.  I don’t think it was purchased new because they cost several hundred dollars. It had a feature called Phonevision that had not been activated in Pittsburgh.  According to Wikipedia: “Phonevision was a project by Zenith Radio Company to create the world’s first pay television system.  It was developed and first launched in Chicago, followed by further trials in New York City and Hartford, Connecticut “.  It was this TV set that taught Bill a little bit about electronics and electromagnetism.  One of the vacuum tubes needed replaced, and when he reached into the set to pull the tube without discharging the Cathode Ray Tube’s  magnet to ground, he got a shock that sent a screw driver he was holding across the room.

Take-out Food.

We didn’t have much take-out food in our family.  However, donuts was a different matter. Mr Thomas made donuts at his house on Royal for delivery to local restaurants.  Often one of the boys would be sent out to pick up donuts from Thomas donuts.   It was probably about eleven or twelve at night when we were dispatched to pick up a dozen.  We’d go to the back door of Mr. Thomas’ house and enter where Mr. Thomas was busy frying large batches for early morning delivery.  Really fresh donuts, what a treat.

There was a small hamburger restaurant on East Street, long before McDonalds made the scene.  The hamburgers cost less than those of White Castle.  On occasion, Mom would spring for burgers.  I think they were 15 cents a piece.  One of the boys would go head out and pick up one for each of us. Dad was not at home, probably working a swing shift.

Movies.

Saturday afternoons were often taken up by a trip to the movies.  Mom would send us off with enough money for the ticket and sometimes an extra nickel for candy.  There were four theaters on the North Side; the Century (a.k.a the Boom-Boom), the Sky, the Kenyon and the Garden, they were not first-run theaters.

We most often went to the Boom-Boom because it was the cheapest, 15 cents except when it was on sale for 12 cents..  On Saturdays the  Boom-Boom  would  play a Double Feature, a single episode of a serial movie (known to us as a chapter) and two or three cartoons.  The double feature usually consisted of two westerns (cowboy movies), two horror movies  or two slapstick comedies. The favorite cowboys were Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Gene Autry, Tom Mix and John Wayne; while the favorite horror movie star was bela lugosi, and our favorite comedy team was Laurel and Hardy.

If we didn’t like what was playing at the Boom-Boom, we’d check out what was playing at the Sky , also 15 cents).  Typically they also would have double features, but no serial episodes.  An interesting thing about the Sky was that its ceiling contained a large number of pin lights to make it look like the night sky.

If a special movie, one which had been at first run theaters, was playing and we could convince Mom that it was worth it, we could go to the Kenyon or the Garden. It would be 22 cents well spent.  Also, on special occasions such as Easter Monday, the Kenyon or Garden would have 22 Cartoons, sometimes with a feature movie.

Shopping.

• Kids.  Most of the grocery shopping was done at the neighborhood stores. Gritmans, Meyerels, and Schneider’s Bakery.  Often one of the kids would be sent shopping with a “store note”.  Sometimes the kids would be sent to the A&P on Stockton Ave, about a mile away, to buy coffee;  Eight O’Clock coffee, not Bokar (“That’s too strong”).
• Mom and Dad did the major shopping.  One of their favorite places was the Pittsburgh Mercantile.  Pittsburgh Mercantile Company ran a general purpose store at its South Side Flats location, including groceries, , hardware, drygoods, clothing and home furnishings. Though Pennsylvania had laws in place to keep industrial firms from owning company stores directly, these laws were easily evaded by having a separate corporation own the store; such was the case with J&L Steel and the Pittsburgh Mercantile Company. (The original officers of the Pittsburgh Mercantile Company were the same as the officers of J&L.)   Employees of J&L could have their purchases deducted directly from their  paychecks.  Although they had to travel pretty far, I think Mom preferred it because she new she wouldn’t run out of money before the next payday.

 

• Happy Tooth.  Pittsburgh had a dental health program that had a person go to the local schools and give a presentation on proper dental hygiene.  The person used a toy dog or hand puppet to talk to the kids.  They also used a red dye that they some how put on the kids teeth. They then had the kids brush to see if they brushed properly.  If the dye didn’t stick they would issue a Happy Tooth patch.  I’m not sure what they did if you didn’t do a good job.

Haircuts.  Every summer Bob, Joe, and Bill would get a “Bundy” haircut.

Ration coupons. We could take our grease to Staabs soap factory and exchange it for ration coupons or red coins.

 

Dance Floor.  When the family moved to 109 Merwood Drive one of the first things dad did was to cover the hardwood floors in the living room with carpeting,  He didn’t want Linda and Terri to scratch the floors while dancing.

Slaughter House and Pig Sty.  Not many city kids have the opportunity to watch the activities in a slaughter house.  There was slaughter house on  Royal Street.  We could watch the cows being herded from the trucks  into the building, then stunned, throats sliced and hung and skinned.

There was a pig sty on Gershon Street. Because no one was watching, kids would climb over the fence and ride the pigs.  Yes, it was dangerous and dirty but boys will be boys.

 

We all heard a lot of things from our parents, friends and friends’ parents.  Some were useful, others no so much.  I’ve put a few of them here.  Please feel free to add more.

Last updated  December 27 2020

Don’t sit on the cement in months with an “r” in them, you’ll get piles.

Change your underwear before you go out.  You might get hit by a streetcar and end up in the hospital with dirty underwear.

Go home when the pole lights come on.

Don’t drink milk and eat fish at the same meal.

No talking overboard (in a 66 game).

We have to cut back because there wll be a strike,  This started shortly after the most recent strike was nded.