Entertainment Choices – Feb. 1961

Well, it’s Friday at last. To close out the week here on the blog, here’s a look back at some of the entertainment ads found in the Lorain Journal on Friday, February 17, 1961 – sixty-one years ago.

The subjects of several of the ads were featured on this blog over the years.

Over at the Lorain Arena, there was skating that night from 8:00 pm to 10:45 pm.

The Gypsy Fiddle Inn, successor to the Pueblo, was promoting its Flame Room (which eventually did go up in flames).

Over in Elyria on Lake Avenue, Carey’s Villa was touting its special Lenten meals, including fish, crab, shrimp and lobster. Jack Sikora and the Blue Jays provided the dance music.

Closer to home, there was dancing at the Lincoln Park Nite Club, which featured Billy “Wolf” and the Townsmen.

There was also dancing to the Kenny Lorence Trio at the Colony Lounge, located at the corner of Colorado and Kansas Avenues. (I had the pleasure of being in a big band orchestra with Kenny Lorence about 25 years after this ad.) I don’t see any seafood listed in the ad, but they had Chinese egg rolls!

If you weren’t looking for dancing, there was a social party at the Italian-American Veterans Center, located in the former Lorain Theatre at 3020 Pearl Avenue.

And lastly, if you felt like driving into Cleveland, you could take in the 25th Birthday Edition of the Ice Follies at the Cleveland Arena.

I wonder if the Skate Bunny shown in the ad convinced some males to hop in the car and drive to Cleveland to see the show?

Beatle Mania Comes to Lorain – Feb. 1964

Three days after the Beatles made their first live television appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on Feb. 9, 1964, the ad above was printed in the Lorain Journal.

The Feb. 12, 1964 ad – featuring our old pal Ed (currently appearing in Ed Tomko Chrysler Jeep Dodge ads) – advertises Beatle wigs and records for sale in the Patio Room adjacent to the Colony bar, located at the intersection of Kansas Avenue and Colorado Ave.

(I’ve written about the Colony a few times, including how the bar was the successor to Gus Atthanasoff’s Showboat restaurant, which had been destroyed in a fire. I also posted a 1963 St. Paddy’s Day ad, and another ad noting that you could purchase Cleveland Indians tickets there.)

Anyway, you have to admit that it’s pretty impressive to be selling Beatles stuff only a couple days after the Fab Four exploded into the nation’s consciousness. I’d sure like to see what one of those wigs looked like.

But what I can’t figure out is why the artist who designed the ad didn’t retouch the art so that Ed was wearing one!

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I wrote about how the Beatles affected the Brady family back here, including how each of my siblings and I each had a favorite member of the group.

Somehow, “my” Beatle ended up being Ringo – the goofy one (at least in those TV cartoons we watched).

Get Yer Cleveland Indians Tickets at Colony Bar – April 1963

Tomorrow is the Home Opener for the Cleveland Indians, so it's a good time for this post.

During the 1940s and 50s in Lorain, it seems that Richman Brothers was the place to go to purchase tickets to Cleveland sporting events, including the Indians, Browns and Barons. I'm not sure why.

I've posted several of those vintage Richman Brothers ads here over the years.

But something changed in the early 1960s. Suddenly, Gus Atthanasoff's Colony Bar became the local outlet to purchase Cleveland Indians tickets, as seen in the above ad that ran in the Lorain Journal on April 2, 1963.

Gee, seeing Chief Wahoo's smiling face in this ad reminded me that he's been banished to the reservation. The Chief has been a regular topic here on the blog since 2009.

1963 Colony Bar St. Patrick's Day Ad

Here's another St. Patrick's Day-themed ad for a well-known east side Lorain business of yesteryear: the Colony Bar. It ran on March 15, 1963 in the Lorain Journal.

It's kind of an interesting ad. I wonder what the "surprize" was for the men - aside from the spelling of that word? (I do give them credit for spelling 'corned beef' corrrectly, though. I still see ads for CORN BEEF around St. Patrick's Day each year!)

Anyway, the Colony Bar opened around summer of 1958. It was operated by Gust Atthanasoff, the former owner of the Showboat Restaurant and Lounge on Broadway until it was gutted by fire.

Fifty years later the building still houses a tavern. It was Denny's Place throughout the 1980s, and The Office for many years after that until it became Pali's Night Club Bar & Grill. And just recently it became Off Shore Pub & Grub (below).