I’m in Joel and Pam Jancko’s “Our Backyard Museum” studying their Opus 1616. I note that this theater organ was manufactured by the Wurlitzer Company in 1927.
It’s almost a hundred years old and I think, “That name rings a bell. Wurlitzer—a name from my past.”
“I got it! It was that South Fallsburg restaurant, right next to the bridge, the waterfalls and where the roads crossed—The Crossways. A culinary establishment that housed a Wurlitzer jukebox. In those days juke boxes were in every bar, lounge and in most restaurants. They were money makers.
The Crossways’ Wurlitzer was a beauty– glowing neon in red, yellow, blue, green and orange. This musical rainbow machine was framed in glistening chrome. Just looking at it made you happy. Touching this electronic work of art warmed your heart.
Back in the Sixties, Joel, Pam and I loved Crossway’s pizzas, Cokes and our favorite Beatles tunes playing on the Wurlitzer.
The Crossways’ pizza’s: tomato sauce tasted so sweet; the mozzarella cheese or was it provolone dripped warm oil down our chins; and the crust had just the right amount crunch and chewiness.
Washing a mouth full of Crossways pizza down with an ice-cold Coke made teenage life almost perfect or a least almost bearable.
The only thing missing at the Crossways was Arthur Fonzarelli tapping on the Wurlitzer and getting a free play. Those were our “Happy Days.”
Happy days where we studied the jukebox’s selection of the newest hits. (This activity required much discussion. Life was much more difficult in the Sixties.) Then, we memorized the letter/number combination to play our selections and dropped a quarter in the machine—this fact is still hard to believe— for which we got three songs.
Then we pushed in the combination of buttons and not only did we get rock & roll music, we got to watch the robotic arm select the record, lift it up and lay it on the record deck. The Wurlitzer way too cool.
Well on April 13, 2019, at Our Backyard Museum, there will be no Cokes, no pizzas, no Fonzie. But the South Florida Theater Organ Society has a Wurlitzer theater organ and has paid a lot more than a hand full of quarters to hire the United Kingdom’s most renowned theater organist, Simon Gledhill to play the Opus 1616.
In 1997, Simon won the ATOS Organist of the Year Award.
Simon’s first experience with a theater organ was when he heard the “Mighty Wurlitzer” at Blackpool’s Tower Ballroom.
This concert will be a sold out.
So if you what to relive your “Happy Days” and warm your heart become a member and reserve your seat for the April 13th Simon Gledhill concert. Contact events@sftos.org for more information.
This blog is dedicated to the memory of Daniel Tuchklaper, our President Susie and Marvin’s beloved son.
