1961

I have just had a most joyful Christmas Eve celebrating with my family like so many of you, who are reading this article, do each year. It is late that night; the sounds of laughter and mirth have faded away, the wrapping paper is in the trash, the dishes had been washed and put away, and the house is still and hushed. Sitting in my favorite chair, I take a few moments to look at our Christmas tree with all of its sparkling lights and beautiful ornaments, - some very old, dating back to my childhood days; -others reflecting my life as a husband, a teacher, and father of two. However, the one ornament that catches my eye, was specially-made to symbolize the newest addition to the Rowlands family, - my first grandchild, Jane. Her name is magical to me because my daughter, Brittainney, named her after my mother.

Earlier in the evening, when I held Jane in my arms, and gazed into her smiling face; I was suddenly flooded with memories of Christmas’ long ago when my parents made Christmas the most special day of the year. In an instant, my mind rewinds time back to my youth, when I was full of life, adventure, and great promise. My tomorrows are many, my dreams abound, and for an instant I let my mind transport me back to my sophomore year at Colonel White High school. The year is 1961-1962, - a time to remember!

To continue my theme of recanting tales of my football narrative, I take you, my reader, back to my first encounter with varsity football. New coaches, new expectations, new friends and new realizations awaited me and my classmates of 1964. When I stepped on the practice field for the first time, a sea of humanity filled my eyes. There must have been over 100 players trying out for the team. I thought to myself, what chance did I have of making the varsity squad? However, my football innocence was short lived, when on my first day of football practice Coach Eby called all of the quarterbacks and centers together to practice taking snaps. There were about six of us centers and I could tell I was dead last on the depth chart. Matter of fact, after a few quarterback center exchanges; I saw one of my new coaches smile at me; and while shaking his head he began to chuckle. Nick, the quarterback I was working with, patted me on my helmet and said “not to worry about it, coach was probably laughing at him.”

On the second day of practice, there had been a sudden transformation. I had moved up to number three on the depth chart - (and so had my new quarterback friend.) I was both ecstatic and at the same time, mystified! Later that day our starting varsity quarterback took me aside and told me, with a huge smile on his face, why I had been moved up on the depth chart so quickly.

He explained that all the quarterbacks had approached coach Eby after the first practice and pointed out to the coach, that they liked taking snaps from me, rather than any other center. Upon hearing that, I naturally became full of myself, until, he unveiled the truth behind the mysterious promotion. He whispered, “all the other centers wore protective cups and that hurt the QB’s fingers each time they took a snap.” Protective cup I thought! What’s a cup? I was so clueless. Well that sobering news sure brought me down to earth, as only “good old Charlie Brown” would understand. Obviously, I was still learning the finer nuances of football.

I now asked myself, what would come next and at what price? The answer to that question came rather quickly. My front teeth! Remember, I was a lowly scrub sophomore, and naturally, I received the worst equipment.

So when it came time to suit up, I was given a choice of helmets - either a white freshman helmet with a protective cage or a golden varsity helmet with one bar for a face mask. Da! I choose the varsity one. When the coaches called for defensive practice, I thought to myself (at a mire 137 pounds,) I’d better try out for a safety or cornerback position. However, my line coach had other vastly different ideas. He called my name to practice with the defensive line. What! What did my ears hear? Defensive line! There had to be a mistake! No there was no mistake. I was now a 137 pound defensive lineman. I am sure my coaches wanted to see if I had the guts and determination to be a football player. During one of the notorious tackling drills, (called the meat grinder or hamburger drill), I was given the football and told to run at a 220 pound defensive tackle … and thus I became a live tackling dummy. As the whistle screamed, I found myself facing my moment of truth. Did I have the heart to be a varsity warrior? This giant “Shrek”- like lineman picked me up and slammed me to the ground with a picture perfect tackle. His thundering presence had separated both, me from the football, and my two front teeth from my smile. As “Shrek” helped me up, he said, “Hey Rowlands, welcome to Varsity Football!” But what I remember the most was my line coach turning to the other players and in a loud voice saying, “Rowlands may be small, but, he has the heart and guts we want to see in all our players.” The coach then smiled and sent me to see the manager. Those few words put to rest any doubts or fears; I had about wanting to play football. Everyone slapped me on the shoulder pads and congratulated me. I had made a few more friends that day even though I would be on a liquid diet for the next week.

As the manager wiped off the blood, sweat, dirt, and yes tears, he ever so gently pulled my two front teeth back into position, “I thought to myself, a lot of good that facemask did!” I now had my smile back, but it hurt too much to smile. Ironically, the next day, I had a new facemask and to my surprise, mouth guards were issued soon after. Just call me “Lucky!”

As two-a-day practices mercifully ended, it was time for school to begin. It was now September 1961. Little did our sophomore class realize that we would be on the threshold of one of the most turbulent decades in American History? As one author puts it, “the times they were a changing.” But, like all teenagers, we were self-absorbed with our school life at Colonel White, rather than the troubling events of 1961-1962. We looked forward to Friday night football games, socializing at the White House, dances, hanging out at Parkmoor with our friends and a myriad of other school functions.

1961 – 1962 A time of innocence and a lifetime of memories

Events of 1961 – 1962 / How many do you remember?

Major Events of 1961

John F. Kennedy becomes the 35th President
U.S. B-52 bomber carrying two nuclear weapons crashes in North Carolina
Beatles perform for the first time
US commitment to Vietnam
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Freedom Riders attacked in Birmingham, Alabama
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Ernest Hemingway commits suicide
CHARLIE Brown successfully flies his Kite
Construction of the Berlin Wall begins
First grey alien is reported
Roger Maris hits 61 home runs
Yankees beat the Reds in the World Series
Celtics destroy the St. Louis Harks for the NBA championship
Ohio State goes 8-0-1
Erie Davis wins the Heisman Trophy

Popular Songs

“Pony Time” Chubby Checker
“Surrender” Elvis Presley
“Blue Moon” The Marcles
“Runaway” Del Shannon
“Mother-in-Law” Ernie K-Doe
“Travelin Man” Ricky Nelson

Popular Movies

The Guns of Navarone
The Absent-Minded Professor
The Parent Trap
Swiss Family Robinson
Exodus
Alamo
101 Dalmations

Academy Awards

Best Picture: “West Side Story”
Best Actor: Maximilian Schell … “Judgment at Nuremberg”
Best Actress: Sophia Loren … “Two Women”

Grammy Awards

Song of the Year: “Moon River” Henry Mancini
Male Vocalist: Jack Jones … “Lollipops and Roses”
Female Vocalists: Judy Garland

Most Popular Television Shows

1. Wagon Train (NBC)
2. Bonanza (NBC)
3. Gunsmoke (CBS)
4. Perry Mason (CBS)
5. The Red Skelton Show (CBS)
6. The Andy Griffith Show (CBS)
7. The Danny Thomas Show (NBC)
8. Dr. Kildare (NBC)
9. Candid Camera (CBS)

Cost of Living 1961- 1962

Yearly Inflation Rate 1.07%
Average Cost of a new house $12,500.00
Average Income $5,315.00
Average Cost of a gallon of gas 27 cents
Average Cost of a new car $2,850.00
45 rpm record $1.00
Loaf of bread 20 cents
Minimum hourly wage $1.25
Pound of ground beef 35 cents
Fast food hamburger 20 cents
You need today $586 to buy what $100.00 would buy you in 1961 - 1962