Back in the day — the black-and-white, 3-channel day — things were different.
Broad swaths of Americans watched the same shows, at the same time. And together, they laughed gently (or uproariously) at human foibles.
“Candid Camera” was one of those popular, family-friendly offerings. From 1948 through 1970s, ordinary Americans fell for practical jokes — a car with a hidden extra gas tank, say — while host Allen Funt narrated.
“Smile — you’re on ‘Candid Camera!'” became a national catchphrase.
In the fall of 1961 the show came to the Westport Lanes bowling alley, on State Street (now Post Road) East. (After several iterations, the space is now BevMax.)
The joke was that certain bowlers — no matter how poor — would always roll a strike.
The last 2 lanes were rigged so that thin piano wires ran under the pins. The lanes’ owners — the Backiel family — would assign those lanes to customers who seemed likely to not bowl many strikes.
“The guy would bowl his regular score, but every time the woman got up, a mechanic in back would pull a lever,” Jack Backiel told “06880” in 2012.
“The poor guy out on a date would bowl his 125 game. His date would roll a 288. The hidden camera focused on his expression as she got strike after strike after strike.”
That anecdote was part of a longer “06880” story, about Westport Lanes in general. But it did not link to that “Candid Camera” episode.
The other day, alert “06880” reader Bill Dedman sent us that show. More than 60 years later, it’s still pretty funny.
It’s still remembered too, by now-aged fans. The comments section of the YouTube video is filled with folks who call it the funniest “Candid Camera” prank ever. Click here or below to see and read.
Meanwhile — because this is “06880,” where Westport meets the world: Do oyou recognize any of the bowlers? Are you actually one of them?
If so, click “Comments” below. That would really “strike” home!
(Friday Flashback is one of “06880”‘s many regular features. If you enjoy this — or anything else on our website — please consider a tax-deductible contribution. Just click here. Thank you!)
In the 1960s and ’70s — before strict building codes, and regular inspections and enforcement by the Fire Department — there were spectacular fires at Westport businesses.
Carousel Toy Store burned twice: in Compo Acres Shopping Center (along with Franklin Simon and others), then again in Sconset Square (at the time, called Sherwood Square; the Paint Bucket next door burned to the ground too).
The furniture store opposite Brooks Corner went up in a memorable winter blaze in 1976; it was a midweek afternoon, and downtown was thronged.
Several years earlier, the Westport Lanes bowling alley caught fire in the middle of the night. Unlike Carousel or the furniture store (now The Gap), it was rebuilt.
Another large fire took out the entire block between Taylor Place and the entrance to the Jesup Green parking lot, across from what was then the Westport Library (today it’s the downtown Starbucks, and others).
On the evening of Saturday, November 10, 1974, the businesses — Muriel’s Diner at one end, Klaff’s Lighting at the other, and a jewelry store, smoke shop, shoe repair, plus 2nd-floor offices and apartments — caught fire.
The aftermath of the “Klaff’s fire.” (Photo courtesy of Gail Comden)
The blaze did at least $1 million in damage, and cut power to much of downtown.
The block was rebuilt, and Klaff’s returned. (The space is now South Moon Under.)
But a historic block — housing the very first, pre-Morris Jesup library, among others) — was gone.
(Friday Flashback is a regular “06880” feature. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Also last night: The annual “Stand up for Homes with Hope” benefit.
A full crowd packed Fairfield University’s Quick Center to laugh uproariously with Roy Wood Jr., and raise much-needed funds for Westport’s supportive shelter and food pantry non-profit.
Laughter and homelessness don’t often go together. But the star of the night — and Helen McAlinden and the many board and staff members who make Homes with Hope a local treasure — made sure attendees understood that connections between all of us are the most important thing in life.
Flooding is a major issue in Westport. As climate change worsens, it too will became even more prevalent.
The Flood & Erosion Control Board meets November 1. On the agenda:
Prioritize and assist the Department of Public Works in the approval and implementation of flood related projects involving watersheds in Westport.
Work with the Representative Town Meeting to revise regulations, allowing the board to review large projects if required, and educate the RTM about public input related to flooding.
Dedicate a minimum of 2 public discussion meetings per year to discuss updates on flood projects.
Develop and implement a campaign to help educate the public about flood and erosion issues in Westport.
Develop and implement a plan to educate the community on ways to help mitigate the impact of flooding and erosion on private and public properties.
Advocate for supporting the town mitigation efforts by sharing the board’s perspective with the Board of Finance, state legislative leaders, and Department of Energy & Environmental Protection officials.
The meeting will be held virtually. Click here for the Zoom link. The meeting ID is 892 4707 8896; the passcode is 900470.
Grove Point flooding, from a December storm. (Photo/John Kantor)
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Saranda and Al Strazza are very involved with Veterans of Foreign Wars Joseph J. Clinton Post 399. Al — a retired combat Marine who served in the first Gulf War — is now vice commander of the local VFW. Saranda helped obtain a $100,000 gift, to pay for river dredging in the area.
This Friday (October 20, 6 p.m.), the VFW hosts a Chili Cook-off. The participation fee is $15. Funds raised will benefit Westport’s Police and Fire Departments, and Emergency Medical Services.
There are prizes, a 50/50 raffle — and of course chili.
While participating in the Citizen Police Academy, Saranda and Al were surprised to learn that the local K-9 unit is completely funded by donations.
They vowed to help raise funds for a new bite jacket, medical costs, food, equipment supplies and training toys.
A booth at the Chili Cook-off will sell plush toys for sale, and collect donations.
For more information, call 203-227-6796, or email vfw399ct@gmail.com.
October is both Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Fire Safety Month.
So — of course! — on Friday the Westport Fire Department brought fire trucks and pink fire boots to Kings Highway Elementary school, for an all-school event.
Fire Marshal Terry Dunn spoke to students about fire safety. Meanwhile, his fellow firefighters collected donations from students for the American Cancer Society. Students filled the pink boots with more than $475.
After listening to the fire safety speech, students, teachers and administrators explored a vintage fire truck. ‘
They also placed pink ribbons in the back of the school, as a symbol of support for those impacted by breast cancer.
Kings Highway Elementary School administrators, in a vintage fire truck. From front to back: principal Tracey Carbone, assistant principals Catherine Carmona and Jame’el Lawrence.
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Also on Friday, the Norwalk Housing Authority brought students to the Westport Community Gardens for after-school art enrichment.
Creativity “bloomed,” as NHS and WCG adults watched with pride.
The Westport Woman’s Club’s annual Clothing Tag Sale runs this Friday and Saturday (October 20-21) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday (October 22) from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the WWC’s historic clubhouse (44 Imperial Avenue).
Gently used women’s, men’s and children’s clothing and accessories are featured, with a wide variety of suits, dresses, pants, blouses, gowns, coats, scarves, shoes, jewelry, handbags and hats.
Funds raised help support the town’s food closet, many charities throughout Fairfield County, and student scholarships.
Rolling Stone magazine just listed their 250 best guitarists of all time.
There at #7 — behind Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, Jimmy Page, Eddie Van Halen, Jeff Beck and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, but ahead of artists like BB King and Duane Allman — is Westport’s own Nile Rodgers.
The story begins:
There’s “influential,” then there’s “massively influential,” then there’s Nile Rodgers. The story of pop music over the past 50 years is basically the story of Rodgers’ guitar.
The manic-staccato funk jangle he invented with Chic, in Seventies disco hits like “Le Freak” and “Good Times” — that’s been the heartbeat of global pop ever since.
His warp-speed guitar on the 1980 Diana Ross classic “I’m Coming Out” was still the toughest sound on the radio almost two decades later, when Biggie turned it into “Mo Money Mo Problems.” Now that’s staying power.
Jack Backiel is a frequent commenter on “06880.” He no longer lives here, but he has fond memories of the years his family owned Westport Lanes — the bowling alley located where BevMax is today.
Jack’s son John recently added a small display about the Lanes in his dining room. It includes newspaper clippings, stationery, and a photo of opening day (with professional bowlers, sent by Brunswick).
John lives in the Washington area, and is vice president of finance and accounting at the Heritage Foundation.
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High on the cell tower behind Walgreens, Johanna Keyser Rossi counted 20 turkey vultures. And a few crows.
It takes an eagle eye to sport them. But they’re all part of “Westport … Naturally.”
And finally … let’s hear it for our neighbor Nile Rodgers, the 7th greatest guitarist in the world! (See story above …)
(From floods and the Fire Department to Nile Rodgers and Keith Richards, we’ve got 06880 [and 06883] covered. Please click here to support local journalism. Thank you!)
Michael Gilbertie was busy on Facebook’s Westport pages recently. He posted photos of major fires from our past. There were 2 in the same Sconset Square (then called Sherwood Square) shopping center.
One was the Carousel Toy Store:
The other was the Paint Bucket:
(Photos courtesy of Michael Gilbertie)
Remarkably, it was the 2nd fire for Carousel. It had relocated to Sherwood Square after burning to the ground in Compo Acres Shopping Center (where Solidcore is now).
Those were not the only big blazes in local history. Others included the Klaff’s block on the Post Road (across from the downtown Starbucks); Westport Lanes bowling alley (today it’s BevMax), Long Lots Junior High School, and the furniture store on Main Street (now The Gap).
The worst fire in the past decade or so was the 2011 fire at Saugatuck Congregational Church. Heroic work by the Westport Fire Department, and neighboring towns — plus fireproofing, done a few years earlier — saved the building, where Westport’s town charter was born.
In fact, it’s the Fire Department’s ongoing work, including inspections and education — that have kept our town so safe since the 1970s.
In 1917 John S. Backiel bought 7 acres of land on the dirt-filled Post Road, near Maple Avenue. He paid $5,000.
The Backiels farmed the property until 1954. That year his sons John and Stanley, and the young men’s brother-in-law, opened up Westport Golf Range. There was a driving range, and miniature golf course. (Today it’s the site of Regent’s Park condominiums.)
According to Jack Backiel, his grandfather — John S. — said that selling a bucket of golf balls was just like selling a basket of tomatoes. Except you got both the basket and the tomatoes back, to sell them again the next day.
Jack was just 7 years old in September 1954, but he remembers opening day. Trick shot artist Paul Hahn wrapped a club (actually a hose) around his body, then swung it and hit a ball off the mouth of his wife, as she lay on the ground.
The golf range “was my whole life as a kid,” Jack recalls.
In October 1958, the Backiels opened a bowling alley — only the 2nd 10-pin alley in the state. Economics favored recreation over farming.
John, Adolph and Stanley Backiel, inside Westport Lanes.
There were 8 owners: John S. Backiel’s children. Daily management was the responsibility of 3: John, Stanley and Adolf. The site is what is now Pier 1.
Business boomed. With lines out the door, the original 16 lanes soon expanded to 32. Soon, the Backiels added a pool room downstairs, and the Club 300 bar.
In the early years John Hersey — author of Hiroshima, and a former member of Westport’s Board of Education — bowled there several times a week.
Next door, when Mickey Rooney — acting at the Westport Country Playhouse — would hit buckets of balls at the golf range. Then he’d hang around for a couple of hours, talking to women and giving impromptu “golf lessons” to whoever listened.
Those recollections — and many more — come from Jack Backiel, John’s son and John S.’s grandson.
Jack says, “Our family was definitely on the cutting edge of bowling, as the new wave of family recreation began in the United States.” Bowling leagues thrived, from 1960 through the mid-’80s. Local businesses sponsored teams, advertising their names on the back of shirts.
The bowling alley stationery showed the building’s 1950’s-style facade.
In the fall of 1961, Westport Lanes was on “Candid Camera.” The last 2 lanes were rigged so that thin piano wires ran under the pins. When a couple came to bowl, they were assigned those lanes.
“The guy would bowl his regular score, but every time the woman got up, a mechanic in back would pull a lever. The piano wires moved just enough so all the pins fell down, no matter where she threw the ball.
“The poor guy out on a date would bowl his 125 game,” Jack continues. “His date would roll a 288. The hidden camera focused on his expression as she got strike after strike after strike.”
Paul Gambaccini — the “Professor of Pop,” and one of the most famous radio and TV music personalities in the UK — grew up not far from Westport Lanes. Earlier this year, in a Financial Times profile, he related the pinpoint accuracy of bowling to his precision cuing record.
And he recalled his earliest bowling days.
It was that period of the suburbanisation of America when an indispensible part of every new town was the bowling alley. It’s broken my heart to see bowling go downhill. Now it’s a sort of retro, kitsch thing. Nixon, for all his faults, was a bowler. He had a bowling alley in the basement of the White House.
One night in 1972, while the lanes were being refinished with a flammable coat of lacquer, they went up in flames. The cause was spontaneous combustion, Jack says, and the intense heat twisted steel.
A year later, the rebuilt Westport Lanes opened again.
Frances Lee at the Westport Golf Range, next door to Westport Lanes.
The bowling alley remained a kingpin of local recreation until 1984. Jack’s father — the youngest owner — was already in his 60s. The property was their nest egg. They sold the lanes and adjacent golf range for $6.8 million.
Two of the original owners are still alive. One aunt is 95; the other just turned 101.
“There wasn’t much entertainment in Westport back then, especially for kids,” Jack recalls. “We were it.”
That entertainment resonated with countless people. To this day, Jack says — even in retirement in Florida — when someone hears he’s from Westport, and that his family owned the bowling alley and golf range, they remember it.
And then they tell him stories about their favorite times there.
(Jack Backiel would love to hear more memories of the golf range and bowling alley. Click “Comments,” or email him: jjbackiel@aol.com.)
No matter how many references to the past I toss out on “06880,” alert readers always offer more. They dredge up memories buried deeper than the old town dump upon which the Westport Library now sits.
The other day, for example, I mentioned the former Vigilant Firehouse. It’s that slender structure on Wilton Road, in the parking lot behind the Inn at National Hall.
The Vigilant Firehouse, circa 1977. (Photo/Norwalk Hour, Bramac Studios)
The story was about 2 new restaurants moving to the area, but Doug Bond pounced on the building. Though he now lives in San Francisco, the story brought him back to his 1970s childhood on Edge Hill Road.
That’s the street that runs between Wilton Road and North Kings Highway. (It’s a fantastic little shortcut, though folks who live there always fume when I mention it publicly. So I won’t.)
A firehouse siren, Doug reminded me, blared every day at 5 p.m. It also sounded for every big fire, summoning volunteers to help fight the blaze.
How did they know where to go? A series of short and long blasts indicated exactly where in town it was. The number of times the signal was repeated indicated the seriousness of each fire.
The code, Doug says, was also published in the phone book. (I never knew that.) (If you don’t know what a “phone book” is, ask your parents.)
He remembers the terror he felt when 4 consecutive blasts — the signal for his part of town — rang out.
That code was also used by other firehouses in town. One night, home from college, I was awakened by a series of blasts. Things were ominous. I forget how I knew out the code, but I got up and drove a short distance from High Point to the Post Road.
Sure enough, the bowling alley — now Pier 1, near V Restaurant — was ablaze. You haven’t seen a real fire until you’ve seen bowling pins — sparked by the lacquered lanes — fly out through what used to be a roof.
I guess if you grew up in Westport, listening to fire sirens was a ritual we all shared.
Today, Doug notes, we find out where the fire is by checking our tweets.
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