Vaiden,

Mississippi

Memories of a Mississippi Childhood

PART 1

Click On The YELLOW Links To Go To A Bookmark Or To Open A File.

We’ve traveled a long road since the old days. . . Oh, the lazy days; the warm, still country twilight. . . the golden warmth and security of those days. . . Gone With The Wind.

I should’a seen it comin.’ I wrote The War of the Mighty Treehouse years ago, but lost the file somewhere. In August 2000, I decided to write the Treehouse story again. Doing so brought back so many fond memories of my childhood that I decided to create this Nostalgia Page. Well, as life goes, on Sunday, May 20, 2001, while looking through some things at my mom’s house at Vaiden, I ran across the original story. I’ve included it on the treehouse page.

This nostalgia page is a work that will be ongoing for quite some time, and will cover the things I remember in my childhood years from 1955 – 1976 (and more), divided into different topics. This is a HUGE page, which will (possibly) be divided into several smaller, faster-loading pages at a later date. If you know of anything you’d like to see included on this page during this era in Mississippi, please feel free to Contact Me.

And…when you’re through visiting here, be sure to take a look at the Sixties Toys and all the wonderful links at Wes Clark’s Avocado Memories site. You’ll be glad you did !

Subjects

THE MIGHTY TREEHOUSE

FOOD & CEREAL DRINKS MODELS COMICS

CANDY GUM MOVIES TELEVISION

BICYCLES MOTORCYCLES TOYS & GAMES

READING MATERIALS MUSIC

ICONS

HOME PRODUCTS & PERSONAL CARE

ASSORTED TRIVIA

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES PART 2

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES PART 3

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES PART 4

BLAST FROM THE PAST

Movies

In the early 1960s, Disney introduced a new hero to the screen. It was Dr. Syn, alias the Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. Based in 1736 in England during the reign of King George III, Dr. Syn, played by Patrick McGoohan, was a Vicar (pastor) by day, and a smuggler by night. He and his two henchmen (rectors of Dr. Syn’s church, Dymchurch), Hellspite and Curlew, robbed from the King, who unjustly taxed the farmers of Romney Marsh, and gave the loot back to the poor. Later, Disney released Dr, Syn, Alias the Scarecrow on videotape, but the movie has since gone out of print. The novel by Vic Crume, of the movie Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow, described the Scarecrow as follows: " The Scarecrow ! His name struck fear in the hearts of the king's soldiers. Dressed in tattered clothes and straw, he prowled the countryside with his band of 'Gentlemen'. To the rich, he was a smuggler and a villain. But to the poor, he was a hero ! Only his trusted aides, like John Banks, the judge's son, knew his real identity. In the dark of night, from the marshes to the coast, his men would ride. Amidst thundering hooves, all England would hear the fiendish yell of - The Scarecrow ! " Although this story originally appeared on Disneyland (as it was originally called before Disney changed the name to The Wonderful World of Color and then to The Wonderful World of Disney), I will list it under the MOVIES heading, since it was also released on videotape. UPDATE: Thanks to two of my friends who taped it for me from the Disney Channel, on March 11, 2001, my boys and I were able to see The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh. Thanks to my friends, I now have a copy of a great Disney classic. Here’s my short story about the Scarecrow:

I was in the 4^th Grade in 1964 – in Vaiden, Mississippi – when the SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH was on Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. I would invite my friends, and we’d sit in our living room on those Sunday nights, glued to the tube – an old Zenith 25” color TV – and we’d be totally oblivious to anything else until the show was over. Shortly thereafter, I would meet with one of my henchmen (who just happened to be the son of our Baptist preacher), during recess behind the school buses and decide who our next “recruit” would be. One of the boys in our class seemed to resist membership, so the preacher’s son and I donned our Scarecrow garb after school and “terrorized” him by making a quick trip to his house and “torturing” him into submission. From that day forth, he was an ever-faithful servant of the Scarecrow. Our lair was created at the preacher’s house, by entering a “secret door” in the back of the chicken coop, which is where we stashed our garb until our rides for justice throughout the town of Vaiden, Mississippi. We were ready to fight the wrongs of the world and fight against the oppression of the masses. The Scarecrow was a true hero to us and an enemy to the “over-taxed” society. Now that I’m in my 40s and pay way too much tax every year, I call out to the Scarecrow for justice. Maybe one day, he’ll ride from the jaws of Hell once again.

Want to hear the Scarecrow theme ? It’s available in 3 different versions. Download the longer zipped file HERE (Version 1), or HERE (Version 2) or listen to a shorter one (Version 3) HERE. The lyrics are below. For more Scarecrow images, click on the following:

Image 1 – Image 2 – Image 3 – Image 4 – Image 5 – Image 6 – Image 7

Scarecrow Comics 1 -- Scarecrow Comics 2 -- Scarecrow Comics 3

Scarecrow Comics 4 -- Scarecrow 45rpm Record

Scarecrow Wanted Poster -- Scarecrow Movie Poster

Scarecrow Children’s Costume

NEW ! Scarecrow of Romney Marsh Trailer (5 Mb)

THE SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH

Scarecrow, Scarecrow

The Soldiers of the King feared his name

On the southern Coast of England

There's a legend people tell

Of days long ago when the great Scarecrow

Would ride from the jaws of Hell

And laugh – with a fiendish yell

With his clothes all torn and tattered

Through the black of night he'd ride

From the marsh to the coast

Like a demon ghost He'd rob the rich, then hide

And he'd laugh - ‘till he split his side

Scarecrow, Scarecrow

The Soldiers of the King feared his name

Scarecrow, Scarecrow

The country folks all loved him just the same

Scarecrow

He would always help the farmers

When there was no gold to bring

He'd find a way for the poor to pay

The taxes of the King

"Scarecrow" -- every man would sing

So the king told all his soldiers

“Hang him high or hang him low

But never return 'till the day I learn

He's gone in flames below

Or you'll hang -- with the great Scarecrow”

Scarecrow, Scarecrow

The Soldiers of the King feared his name

Scarecrow, Scarecrow

The country folks all loved him just the same

Scarecrow…

Scarecrow…

Scarecrow !!!

Patrick McGoohan – Rest In Peace

March 19, 1926 – January 13, 2009

HORROR OF PARTY BEACH

Perhaps one of the cheesiest, corniest horror movies made, it’s still a cult classic. I saw this movie when it was released in 1964 at the Winona Theater. Directed by Del Tenney, this movie cost only $60,000 to make. The “monsters” are clearly men in a rubber suit, designed to closely resemble the Creature from the Black Lagoon. A magazine (1) was published for a short time, and the movie was also released on video. Regardless of its “B” rating, I’ll still buy a copy, if I find one. UPDATE: On March 15, 2001, I received my copy of The Horror of Party Beach. It’s 72 minutes in Black and White, and is truly as corny a movie as can be made. However, it’s a “must have” classic. Here’s a scan of the front and back of the tape box. It’s also considered to be the “first monster musical,” with the Del-Aires playing “The Zombie Stomp” (“Oh, Everybody do the Zombie Stomp, You plant your foot down with an awful clomp…”).

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

This has to be one of my favorite movies of all time. Based on Harper Lee’s novel, Atticus Finch, played by Gregory Peck, struggles to see that justice is served. Now available on DVD, this 1962 movie is surely one for any avid movie fan to have.

STAND BY ME

Although this move is more recent than 1976, it still brings back many memories of childhood. Be sure to see the “Barf-A-Rama” scene. You can read the Barf-A-Rama portion of the actual movie script HERE. This is another one for the movie collector, and is also available on DVD.

Other Movies

Christmas Story, Dracula Has Risen From The Grave, Frosty the Snowman, Gone With The Wind, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, It’s a Wonderful Life, Journey To The Center Of The Earth, King Kong vs. Godzilla (1), Krakatoa: East Of Java (Krakatoa is actually west of Java), Little Drummer Boy, Marooned, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Night Of The Living Dead, Porky’s, Psycho, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, SSSSSSS, The Day The Earth Stood Still (“Klaatu Barada Nikto

” .wav file) (poster) (Gort Robot) - The Exorcist, The Goonies, The Oblong Box, The War, The Year Without a Santa Claus (remember Snow Miser and Heat Miser ?), Three Days of the Condor, War of the Worlds, Witness for the Prosecution, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Man in the Iron Mask, Plan 9 From Outer Space, House of Dark Shadows, House of Seven Gables, The Monkey’s Paw, The Thing, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Abdominable Dr. Phibes, Dr. Phibes Rises Again, Planet of the Apes, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Battle for the Planet of the Apes, Vanishing Point, The Van, When Worlds Collide, The Gnome Mobile, Summer Magic, Andromeda Strain, Tale of Two Cities, Absent Minded Professor, Son of Flubber, The Three Lives of Thomasina, Old Yeller, Savage Sam, P.T. 109, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, Gargoyles, First Men in the Moon, The Blob, Ode to Billy Joe, Earth vs. Flying Saucers, It Came From Outer Space, Phantom of the Opera, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, House that Dripped Blood, The Shining, Killdozer (which was also released as a comic book), By Dawn’s Early Light, Clash of the Titans, Jason and the Argonauts – James Bond Series – Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, Ghost & Mr. Chicken – No Time For Sergeants – Tales of Terror – Barbarella – Easy Rider – The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly – They Call Me Trinity – Trinity Is Still My Name – Darby O’Gill and the Little People – Peter Pan (with Mary Martin) – The Love Bug – The Wizard of Oz – Rosemary’s Baby – Race With the Devil – Billy Jack – Texas Chainsaw Massacre – Night of the Grizzly – Davy Crockett – Davy Crockett and the River Pirates – Grease – Jaws – Salem’s Lot – Walking Tall – Cannonball Run – Cannonball Run II – Smokey and the Bandit – Smokey and the Bandit II – Smokey and the Bandit III – Daniel Boone – Jewel of the Nile – Romancing the Stone – 2001, A Space Odyssey – Star Wars – The Empire Strikes Back – Return of the Jedi – Fright Night – Close Encounters of the Third Kind – Scanners – The Fury – The Omen – The Howling – An American Werewolf in London – Saturday Night Fever – Halloween – Friday the 13^th – Saturday the 14^th – Nightmare on Elm Street – The Fog – Excalibur – Legend of Boggy Creek – Night of the Creeps – Something Wicked This Way Comes – Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark – Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom – Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade - E.T. – Forbidden Planet (poster) – Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory – My Favorite Martian – At the Earth’s Core

Television, Including Cartoons

R.I.P. Adam West – 09/19/1928 – 06/09/2017

The ONLY Batman to me

R.I.P., Old Chum

Batman TV Show Theme Song

*******

R.I.P. Tony Dow (Wally Cleaver from Leave It to Beaver)

04/13/1945 – 07/27/2022

BONANZA THEME

(sung by Lorne Greene)

[Lorne Greene speaking: “Welcome to the Ponderosa, my friends, for an evening of songs and stories about the American West…a land of legend, of romance, of friendship and courage…a motherlode of remembrance…a true Bonanza.”]

Bonanza

We chased Lady Luck, ‘till we finally struck

Bonanza

With a gun and a rope and a hatful of hope,

We planted our family tree

We got a hold of a pot full of gold,

Bonanza

With a horse and a saddle, and a range full of cattle,

How rich can a fellow be?

On this land we put our brand, Cartwright is the name

Fortune smiled, the day we filed the Ponderosa claim.

Here in the West, we’re livin’ in the best,

Bonanza

If anyone fights any one of us, he’s got a fight with me !

[music]

Bonanza

[music]

Bonanza

Hoss and Joe and Adam know every rock and pine

No one works, fights, or eats, like those boys of mine

Here we stand in the middle of a grand

Bonanza

With a gun and a rope and a hatful of hope,

we planted our family tree

We got a hold of a pot full of gold,

Bonanza

With a houseful of friends where the rainbow ends,

How rich can a fellow be ?

On this land we put our brand, Cartwright is the name

Fortune smiled the day we filed the Ponderosa claim

Here in the West we’re livin’ in the best