Thursday, October 15, 2026

10/11/1956

 EAST FAREWELL NEWS


Thursday, October 11, 1956   Vol. C679


LOCAL NEWS


THE CIRCUS IS BACK IN TOWN


East Farewell – The “New and Improved” Greatest Show on Earth rolled into town on Sunday with its traditional march down Main Street. The wonderful spectacle was loud with the newly added brass band, majestic with the cages of wild animals and a little silly with all the clowns, clown cars, jugglers and sideshow acts marching in a long line that moved down Main turned on Lakeshore Drive and moved on up to the Fairgrounds were they set up shop. The train sidings that run beside the fairgrounds are where the Circus ‘parked their railcars during the show. The Circus has been traveling by rail for the last 20 years so the easy access to the fairgrounds made East Farewell a natural stop on the circuit. Many people have asked why this is only the fifth year the Circus has made the visit. Both town and Circus management have declined to elaborate but they would only say they are happy that they are here now and look forward to making East Farewell a yearly stop on their tour.

            The Circus will be in town all week with shows every day opening at 10:00AM and every evening until 10:00PM with a matinee next Saturday and an evening extravaganza on Saturday night. The show draws many people from all over the area and the Midway is almost always packed the entire time. Ringmaster Dwight Bigalowe is enjoying his twelfth year as Ringmaster and is known for mixing with the audience and many times in between shows can be found out on the Midway greeting Circus goers and even signing autographs for some. “I love to come to East Farewell, everyone is so nice and we are always welcome with open arms. Even the animals seem to enjoy stopping here. They know they are going to get some great local food from the farms around here and I think they really know when we pull in, they seem happier,” Bigalowe said when interviewed by this paper.

            In addition to the in house 10 piece brass band a trapeze act has been added to the show this year. The High Flying Verkalanda Family is originally from Romania and has been performing as a family for over three generations. Along with the patriarch, Boris, the family is made of two daughters, Katrina and Sylvia, and two sons, Boris II and Raul. They perform a high wire act and an amazing trapeze act that has to be seen to be appreciated. Along with the animal trainers, the bare-back horse riders, the jugglers and of course the clowns the show is indeed the Greatest Show on Earth.

High Flying Verkalandas in action


 SPORTS


COUGARS MEET A TOUGH MINERS TEAM 


On the football field, sometimes beauty is in the eye of whichever sideline you’re standing on. On Friday, the Riverview Wildcats Kevin Hankins and Region High Cougar’s Pat McKean clashed like titans, but the coaching staffs could not agree on a winner. Hankins is a 6-foot-4, 278-pound two-way dump truck committed to State. McKean is a 6-foot, 210-pound defensive end built for speed.   Truth be told, both bested each other plenty. McKean and the Cougars, however, got the last laugh.   Thanks to McKean’s three sacks — and “Tank” Brown’s and “Merc” McMaster offensive spark — the Cougars held off the Wildcats, 21-14, at the Regional High Field.

 McKean finished the game with a sack of Hankin’s brother, Joe, who nearly rallied the Wildcats from a 21-6 deficit in the second half.   It was McKean’s first half, however, that was the subject of debate.   Early on, the Riverview sideline could be heard telling the State-bound Hankins that McKean was “eating his lunch.”

 Meanwhile, the Cougars coaches told a different story.   “I was missing a lot of tackles in the first half,” McKean said. “I was getting yelled at for it. But my coaches kept lifting me up and telling me to forget about it, and keep playing. And that’s what I did.”

McKean, a senior who has earned mostly smaller school looks, consistently penetrated past the Wildcats line but couldn’t finish plays with tackles.   “No. 72 [Haskins] is a player, man,” McKean said. “That’s the best guy I ever played in my life. Wow. I really had to dig deep for this one. I can barely walk right now.”

 Fortunately for the Cougars (2-0), Brown and Wilson were dynamic early. Brown finished 17 of 29 for 245 yards and 2 touchdowns. McMaster finished with seven catches for 143 yards and one touchdown.   “Those guys fight for us all day,” McKean said. “I just want to stay with them. I don’t want to get left behind, so it’s always a competition. Even though I wasn’t doing my thing in the first half, I saw Merc just scorching the defense and I wanted to be like that.”

 But it was the Cougars defense that got scorched in the second half.   For Riverview (1-1), Frankie Doyle (10 carries for 100 and one score) and Joe Hankins (17 carries for 68 yards) carved through the Cougars’ poor tackling.  Hankins even scurried for three first downs after low snaps bounced on the turf.   That is, until McKean notched a huge third-down sack in the fourth and another to end regulation.

  “All the adrenaline was just surging,” he said. “I was like, ‘This is the one, this is the one.’ If I want to be a leader on this team — even I have the role of captain — my first-half play wasn’t the caliber of a captain. So, I had to step it up and make a big play for my team.”

The Cougars are now 2-0 on the early season and face a tough run in next few weeks as they go up against the strongest teams in the league, Corning next week and the Slate Mountain Canaries (north side of the mountain), both of whom are also undefeated. Next week game is in Corning on Saturday beginning at 2:00PM.


 NATIONAL NEWS


ISRAEL WILL FIGHT – ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL – ELVIS IN THE NEWS


Premier David Ben-Gurion says Israel is not eager for battle with the Arabs, but “If we are attacked we shall fight with all our strength to the end - and that means until victory.”  Secretary of State Dulles declares that the United States will help the Arab kingdom of Jordan if Israel strikes that country.  Prime Minister Eden appoints a new Defense Minister following reports that Britain’s armed forces were unable to strike at once when the Suez crisis first broke in July. Gone is Sir Walter Monckton he is replaced by Antony Head.

On the campaign trail - From the Twin Cities in Minnesota - the President heads to Los Angeles, where the Hollywood Bowl flowed to overcrowd to hear President Eisenhower speak. Vice-President Nixon says he thinks the kind of investigations of Communist activity formerly conducted by Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy are no longer needed. Nixon, at a nationally televised CBS news conference with student editors, gives credit to Eisenhower administration security policies for taking “this issue... out of the political arena.”

 A Baptist minister throws-away his sermon after a teenage gang asked him for an opinion on Elvis Presley. He said Elvis is on his way out. “Presley is on top today, but in one of two years, he will be far less popular.” The Rev. Edward Hales continued, saying that Presley is an expression of the “subconscious nature of modern youth in a time of turmoil.”  “But this is not anything new. We went thought the stages of the Charleston, the Big Apple and the swooning of teenagers over Frank Sinatra.” “I feel the emotional nature of young people has produced Elvis Presley. Part of adolescence is change. We are living in a world where it’s pretty hard even for adults to remain emotionally stable.”

Elvis Presley is arrested after getting in a Memphis fistfight, but is later found blameless. His two opponents were fined for assault and battery. It all started when Presley, home from a tour, stopped at a gas station and asked manager Ed Hopper to check the gas tank for leaks. The singer drew a crowd with his $10,000 car and traffic was blocked. Mr. Hopper asked Presley to leave so the station could get back to normal. A witness said Mr. Presley had agreed to move on, but autograph fans delayed him Hopper then slapped the singer on the back of the head, in which Mr. Presley leaped from the car and punched him, opening a gash on his eye.  An assistant of Mr. Hopper’s then joined the fray and also caught a punch from the singer. A policeman and bystander broke up the fight.


Many, many thanks to www.mrpopculture.com for contributing to this section of the East Farewell News.


 

Thursday, October 8, 2026

10-4-1956

 

EAST FAREWELL NEWS


Thursday, October 4, 1956 Vol. C678


LOCAL NEWS


NAGY PERFECT TO END TRAVELERS SEASON


East Farewell - On September 29, 1956, at the peak of his baseball career, Joe Nagy took the mound against fellow lefty Bob Murray of the Albany Senators, and a pitcher’s duel for the ages ensued. Nagy has had an excellent season racking up a 20-5 season, but this game, a perfect game, will standout not only in the record books but in town history. Nagy faced the minimum 27 batters and threw his final fastball as fast as his first.  The Travelers came to finish of the season on a strong note with no chance of moving up in the standings but with a loss possibly moving down into third place. The win cemented their second place finish but the last game was a splendid history making gem that will be remembered for a long time. There has been only one other perfect game pitched in the league and that was back in 1930, long before any current player was even in the league. Nagy has pitched a no hitter back in 1952 but this was his masterpiece. The Senators were held scoreless, while the Travelers scored just one run, in the fifth inning. Traveler Dale Dunham walked to lead off the inning, and then advanced to second on a sacrifice. He stole third and then scored when the Senators catcher fumbled one of Murray’s throws. As it turned out, one run was all Nagy needed to bring home the victory. His fastballs, which seemed to rise as they reached the plate, whizzed past batters. His curveball was typically devastating, buckling batters at the knees, almost always crossing the plate as a strike after following its parabolic path. As he closed in on a perfect game, Nagy faced the middle of the Senators order. He struck out Chuck Thompson and Bob Franks in the eighth before striking out the side in the ninth to secure his first perfect game.

            The only unfortunate side of this stellar accomplishment would be that the attendance for the game was not the usual sellout crowd that the Travelers have enjoyed almost all season. Due to the conflicting schedule with the opening of the Regional High School football Cougars the attendance was only about half of the usual crowd, too bad for the football crowd. This game will go down in Travelers history and in a few years everyone in town will probably say they were in the stands.

Joe Nagy delivers


SPORTS


COUGARS START SEASON WITH TOUGH WIN


East Farewell – The Cougars opened their season against their arch rival Slate Mountain on Saturday with a win, 27-24. The Cougars had a couple of new faces this year, most prominently at QB, Bill Dolan, who played behind Jimmy O’Conner for two years and took the reins this year. The rest of the backfield is intact, just a year older and a year more experienced. Reilly, Wilson and Brown are all back and they came to the game ready to play. The only other new face was kicker, Dave Galloway, a freshman trying to fill the huge shoes of the legendary Charlie Cox who holds every record for kicking in the school’s history.

The sold out crowd was evenly divided between Miners and the Cougars and the noise was constant. Whenever either team approached the line a roar erupted from the stands and several times both quarterbacks had to back away from the line and regroup before calling the play. The Cougars tried to go to a quick call offense in the third quarter but abandoned that after two quick illegal procedure calls cost them ten precious yards.  The Miners came out in the first half showing an aggressive run oriented offense that focused on fullback, James Docket, who carried the ball fifteen times and scored two touchdowns. Miners quarterback, Morton Quigley, only took to the air six times in the first half but was able to complete four, all to end Frank Luccassi. In a complete contrast the Cougars came out throwing the ball and focusing on senior wide receiver Mitch “Merc” McMaster who was running long routes and making his trademark catches on the edge of the field. The Cougars were able to score two also but freshman kicker David Galloway missed his second extra point attempt. The first half ended, Miners 14 Cougars 13.

            The second half started with a bang as Cougars returned the kickoff back to the Miner’s 23. Junior running back Doyle Richardson ran 100 yards back and forth across the field, evading Miners, back tracking and sprinting forward finally getting corralled by three Miners and brought down at the 23. That set up another Dolan to McMaster connection for a quick score with a straight down and out with McMaster leaping for the completion in the end zone. The Cougars set up for an extra point but pulled a trick play and centered the ball to speedy halfback, Joey Brown, who scampered in for the two points.

            The Miners came right back and marched down the field on the back of Docket with a time consuming drive that ended with a Docket center plunge for a score. The drive ate up almost seven minutes and most of the third quarter. With the score tied and the fourth quarter beginning Dolan took to the air again but this time focused on sophomore tight end, Richie McGee. Dolan worked the middle of the field while the Miners tried to double team McMaster. McGee is new to the team this year but has been quickly accepted and put on the first team thanks to his 5’11” frame and 165 lbs weight not to mention his magnetic hands. He was able to haul in five quick passes and move the team down the field to the 18. Dolan then changed things up and sent “Tank” Brown through the middle twice ending with a five yard run in for the score. Young kicker, Galloway, kicked his second extra point starting a new streak. He has a long way to go to break the one the former kicker Charlie Cox set with a total of 68 extra points in a row over three years. The Miners were not going to go down easyily though. After a strong Galloway kickoff the Miners marched down the field and were in position to score again but senior defensive end, Pat McKean stopped Docket in the backfield that forced the Miners to try a 30 yard field goal. Miner’s kicker, Al Cappelli, booted a beautiful kick, straight and true. The Miners hoped they would be able to get the ball back for another try but the Cougars stayed on the ground and ate up the remaining clock with runs by Brown, Wilson and Reilly.  

            The fans did not learn of Nagy’s perfect game until after the football game ended and there were some mixed emotions. “Wow, I am sorry I missed that, it was historic. Oh well, I had to see the Cougars on opening day, it’s what I do,” said sports fan Tim Harrison after he got the news.

            The stay at home next week and face the Riverview Wildcats on Saturday. They will meet on the High School field beginning at 1:45.


 NATIONAL NEWS


IKE & ADLAI CAMPAIGN – COUSTEAU WARNS YOUNGSTERS – PRINCE CHARLES HAIR BIG NEWS IN BRITAIN


President Eisenhower is hailed by big crowds in Pittsburgh. In Seattle, Adlai Stevenson tells his audience that the “undue delegation of responsibility and authority by the President” is hazardous” in this Atomic Age and “diminishes the office of the presidency.”

Vice President Nixon says that insofar as his campaign schedule permits, he intends to “nail personally on the spot every distortion and every misrepresentation of the Eisenhower record” by Adlai Stevenson.

President Eisenhower defines the central issue of the 1956 campaign as “the management of America’s affairs at home.” He said foreign policy has not become a basic issue. In lighter news October 14 - the President’s birthday is “National Ike Day” and will be climaxed by a TV show. He’ll be 66.

Capt Jacques-Yves Cousteau, the French undersea explorer who helped set off a world-wide wave of enthusiasm for skin diving by co-inventing the aqua lung and by writing the new film “The Silent World,” warns youngsters against buying diving gear and going under water without instruction. “Silent World” is a film covering the undersea explorations of Cousteau’s oceanographic expeditions aboard the converted French minesweeper Calypso. It won the highest honor at the 1956 Cannes film festival.

British papers are having a field day with Prince Charles’ haircut, which now includes bangs. The Daily Express remarked “the Prince’s hair was even closer to his eyebrows than usual.” The young Prince, who is (7), gets his hair cut from a barber named Crisp, who calls every two weeks at Buckingham Palace. Price is four shillings sixpence (62 cents).


Many, many thanks to www.mrpopculture.com for contributing to this section of the East Farewell News.


 

Thursday, October 1, 2026

9/27/1956

 

EAST FAREWELL NEWS


Thursday, September 27, 1956   Vol. C677


LOCAL NEWS


COUGARS FOOTBALL READY TO POUNCE ON SATURDAY


East Farewell – Regional High School will host their arch-rival, Slate Mountain, in the opening football game of the 1956 football season Saturday. The Cougars have a strong returning backfield with Junior halfback Billy Reilly and Seniors at fullback and running back, Will “Tank” Brown and Davey Wilson, respectively. Also returning this year are wide receiver, Mitch “Merc” McMaster and defensive end, Pat McKean, both seniors. This year the Cougars will have a new QB trying to fill the record setting shoes of Jimmy O’Conner. Bill Dolan is a junior and has played behind O’Conner for two years learning from him and learning the game. Coach Burcowitz is confident that Dolan is ready to take on the starting position. “Young Bill may just be a junior and may not have a lot of playing time under his belt but he has played on the practice team for two years and that is kind of like being Ginger Rodgers to Fred Astaire. He was running the offense against the first line defense for a couple of years now. I think we can expect to see some very good things from this kid,” said Burcowitz in a news conference earlier in the week.

            The Slate Mountain Miners have a new defensive line, all juniors with the exception of right tackle, Joe Doyle who is a senior and team captain. Last year the Miners finished in third place only one game behind the Cougars having lost the opener to the Cougars in a tough fought battle. This year’s game will certainly be a showcase of two of the best teams in the league if not the two top teams in the league. The game will be played Saturday on the High School field starting at 3:00.

1956 Cougars Football Team


SPORTS


TRAVELERS WIN A CLOSE ONE


East Farewell – The Travelers won their next to last game of the season over the Monticello Vikings, 2-1 on Saturday. The game was a slow paced, casual affair that seemed like neither side was really interested in winning. The Travelers went hitless for the first four innings and didn’t score until the eighth. On the other side the Vikings were able to get several hits in the early innings but were not able to score until the ninth and then they were held to only one. It was up to the Travelers Johnny Cloos and Ralph Dimero to combine to score the walk off score to end the boredom and finish the game. The only bright spots on the Travelers side were the fact that they won and the other being they clinched second place in the league standings due to an odd statistical quirk that will drop either Slate Mountain or CGW to third place as they finish off the season playing each other in the final game. One will win the title and the other will end up in third place.

            The last game of the season will be at home beginning at 1:30. Attendance is expected to be light due to the Cougars football opening on the High School Field at 3:00.


 NATIONAL NEWS


ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL – KENNEDY TREATED LIKE ELVIS – SABIN HAS NEW ORAL VACCINE – IKE AT THE WORLD SERIES – BING NOT AS ENTHUSIASTIC


On the campaign trail - President Eisenhower announces expanded campaign plans to visit Minnesota, the Pacific Northwest and California.  Adlai E. Stevenson confronted by a pushing, yelling crowd at Yale University, criticized Vice President Nixon for using “threadbare shouts” about Socialism.  Vice President Nixon appeals to American voters to re-elect President Eisenhower, not because he is a Republican, but because he is the man best qualified in either party to lead the nation to its destiny.

Senator John F. Kennedy stops by Ursuline College in Louisville and is greeted by female students who shouted he was “better than Elvis.” He had to fight his way to a waiting automobile after a speech. As he got under way, girls lined the driveway clear across the campus and stopped the car frequently to ask for his autograph.

Dr. Albert B. Sabin – the University of Cincinnati scientist announces he has developed a new polio vaccine to be taken by mouth which is expected to produce long term - perhaps lifetime immunity against the dread disease.

President Eisenhower attends game 1 of the World Series.  He flew up to Ebbets Field and lobbed out the first pitch of the series. Brooklyn beat the Yanks 6-3 with Sal Maglie getting the win for the Dodgers.  In World Series game 2, the slugging of Gil Hodges and Duke Snider places the Yankees behind the in World Series action. 

Bing Crosby writes a letter to a column in England’s Daily Express.  The column recently did a treatise on the 52-year-old crooner, asking, “Is Bing Crosby Going Out - Or Has He Gone?”  Bing replied that he just didn’t sing as well as he use to. “I’m just not as enthusiastic as I used to be, the feel for a song isn’t there, the desire to sing, to be in action - and when this is absent, so is that style.” “I don’t think increasing age has got anything to do with it or that the pipes are getting rusty, because I believe voice quality has very little to do with public acceptance of a popular singer. It’s the style and mood they create that put them over.” Crosby says he’ll still record here and there.


Many, many thanks to www.mrpopculture.com for contributing to this section of the East Farewell News.