“Old ballpark memories bring this one back to me,” says Kenner’s Peter Dassey.
“While at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1973, we were sent to summer camp from July to November, before we were allowed outside the gates to roam the streets and bars of Long Island.
“This meant no social interaction with people of the opposite sex (the first female cadets joined in 1974). But I had a wonderful plan. There was have a tryout for the cheerleading squad for fall football.
“Name a better way to meet the stars than that — meeting every afternoon for practice and weekends for sports! Bazinga!
I wondered who our ‘sister’ college was.
“Actually, there was no sister college. It was an all-male cheerleading squad, and once you signed up, there was no dropout.
“I was given a school sweater with a telephone and megaphone embroidered on it, as well as weekly insults at football games from the student body.
“‘Elevators, elevators, I got a barrel!'”
The paper chase
Ginger Williamson says, “Back in the 1980s I went to every LSU men’s basketball game. See the article : Photo: Philadelphia Eagles cheerleaders.
“When the opposing team was announced, a section of the students would sit there with newspapers open in front of their faces so all you saw was a sea of newspapers. (I’m sure the Attorney General he loved that!)
“Now after the opposition group was introduced, they all carried their newspapers and threw them in the court, and a few kids ran around and took all the newspapers.
“My husband said it all started because of a newspaper article about how big one opposition group was, or something like that. Can you tell me what how did that start?”
(I can’t, but I bet an avid column reader can.)
Boxing days
Lee Faucette remembers the time in the 1960s when New Orleans fighters caused a great stir in the boxing world. This may interest you : Proviso East cheerleaders earn All-America honors at camp.
Lee says, “I was reminded of Jim Skelly’s boxing story of my friendship with Willie Pastrano, a classmate of mine at Warren Easton High School, in the class of 1954. Our senior team went voted Willie ‘He’s likely to succeed.’
“Before, I shared a room at home with Pastrano’s future wife, Faye Finn.
“Willie was a good student and a talented professional. His best friend, Ralph Dupas (light middleweight world champion in 1963), started training at St. Mary’s Italian Gym, on Chartres Street in the French Quarter.
“Pastrano, who weighed more than 250 pounds, decided to start working out with his friend Ralph. When Willie lost weight, he noticed two things. First, he loved boxing; second, he hated being beaten.
“So, he developed a style of boxing where he didn’t get hit, and tried not to hurt his opponent.
“Pastrano’s record was 83 fights, 62 wins (14 by KO), 8 draws, 13 losses. He held the world heavyweight title from 1963 to 1965 .”
Special People Dept.
Grin and bare it
Lee Blotner, of Metairie, has a “runaway kids” story for our collection: Read also : Photo: One hand! Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb catches a one-handed catch against the Giants.
“Many years ago, someone who used to play with my young daughter, who lived across the street, got mad at her mother and said she was going to live at the Millers’ house. (us).
“His mother said it’s okay with him, but he will have to go the way he came.
“When Kim asked her what that meant, her mother simply replied, ‘She’s naked like a jaybird!’
“I think Kim changed her mind, because she never came home.
His mother and I had a good laugh about that.
Email Smiley at Smiley@theadvocate.com. He can also be reached by mail at P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821. Follow Smiley Anders on Twitter, @SmileyAndersAdv.
