Old Calgary stuff you miss...(The Nostalgia thread)

[Draug]

Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed

Confetti Ice Cream near Edmonton Trail in the NE.

Serving Calgary for 50 years, then all of a sudden, gone.

Yep, it was a favorite of mine. They also had a booth at the Stampede each year. To this day, I think its the best Ice Cream I've had.

Has anyone mentioned the old cinema at North Hill mall? It opened in the late 60's, and when I started going to movies in the 80's it was definately the place to see an explosive summer block buster. It was designed as a 70mm Cinerama theater - the screen was huge and the auditorium was also huge. I am guessing (from my faulty memory) that it had about 600 or 700 seats. When DTS sound first came out, I think North Hill was the first to adopt it. I saw Apollo 13 there and was really amazed. By the time it closed in 1999 (for the mall renovation), it was showing Star Wars Episode I all summer. I saw that there, and it was clear the cinema was almost dead. No serious maintanence had been done in years, and nothing updated for equally as long because it was slated to be closed down. It was almost like going to a funeral.... oh the memories.

How about the bowling alley underneath it? I think it was called Fairview bowling ... something like 30 lanes of 1970's 5 pin bowling glory!

[Nuje]

Forgot to mention, when Midnapore mall had...anything. They used to have a Library, and several stores...a Save On Foods.

A side note for any Winnipegers reading....the running water heater billboard!!

[NinePack]

Anyone else remember the old spinning GSL chev city sign? or old BS corner on saturday nights? Car related again but when i was a kid it was rare to see a super car ferrari or a lambo, i would brag to the friends in school if i saw one. Now i see 3 -6 a day.

oh yea doing it right at dooie stevens, and one more i can think of. There was the army water tank reserve on the side of glenmore by 37th st.

[NinePack]

Thought of more, What about when wintergreen was called lyon mountain, cop was paskapoo, to bad have to fortress to that list now.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Pinner

We only had AM for top 40, try and comprehend that.

107 was the first top 40 fm or top 107 (I think) dusty in here, cof cof

Wiki,

As always, when something stupid happens in the broadcasting industry, you can blame the CRTC for that one. They used to have something called the Gold to Hits Ratio (or something like that), which meant only a limited percentage of an FM station's schedule could be "Hit" music, which meant it was virtually impossible to program a true "Top 40" station on FM. This is why the FM stations were Classic Rock and Album Oriented Rock and other formats other than Top 40.

It was an artificial and arbitrary thing designed to protect AM music stations from becoming obsolete.

The rule was relaxed/repealed in the mid-90s, which paved the way for Power 107 to come to Calgary.


There also used to be a weird "spoken word" requirement for FM stations, which is why Sex with Sue was originally created. Other stations would throw a talk show or something on the air Sunday nights at 11pm (the spoken word requirement had to be met between 6am and midnight). Country 105 used to run the "Country 105 Comedy Hour", where they'd play old comedy albums from guys like Bill Cosby and Bob Newhart. It was actually pretty good.

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by Draug

Has anyone mentioned the old cinema at North Hill mall? It opened in the late 60's, and when I started going to movies in the 80's it was definately the place to see an explosive summer block buster. It was designed as a 70mm Cinerama theater - the screen was huge and the auditorium was also huge. I am guessing (from my faulty memory) that it had about 600 or 700 seats.

I saw Ghandi there with my HS social studies class. Field trip and everything.

[ricosuave]

tiki tiki?

[pylon]

Originally Posted by fotze

Cinematica Video in Oakridge.

Your favorite part of that store was the area behind the creaky saloon doors. Wasn't it?

[Aeneas]

Not sure if it's been mentioned but I fondly remember having Hart brothers come into our Junior high as substitute teachers. Bruce and Keith if I recall correctly.

[Aeneas]

Originally Posted by pylon

Your favorite part of that store was the area behind the creaky saloon doors. Wasn't it?

Those doors would no longer swing apart after a Fotze visit.

[Roast Beef]

Originally Posted by Draug

Yep, it was a favorite of mine. They also had a booth at the Stampede each year. To this day, I think its the best Ice Cream I've had.

Has anyone mentioned the old cinema at North Hill mall? It opened in the late 60's, and when I started going to movies in the 80's it was definately the place to see an explosive summer block buster. It was designed as a 70mm Cinerama theater - the screen was huge and the auditorium was also huge. I am guessing (from my faulty memory) that it had about 600 or 700 seats. When DTS sound first came out, I think North Hill was the first to adopt it. I saw Apollo 13 there and was really amazed. By the time it closed in 1999 (for the mall renovation), it was showing Star Wars Episode I all summer. I saw that there, and it was clear the cinema was almost dead. No serious maintanence had been done in years, and nothing updated for equally as long because it was slated to be closed down. It was almost like going to a funeral.... oh the memories.

How about the bowling alley underneath it? I think it was called Fairview bowling ... something like 30 lanes of 1970's 5 pin bowling glory!

Mentioned it earlier. I watched so many movies there. I saw all 3 Star Wars re-releases on that screen. I also first watched the Phantom Menace there on May 23, 1999. On the way home I heard on the radio about Owen Hart's death. That theater will always hold good and bad memories for me.

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by Aeneas

Those doors would no longer swing apart after a Fotze visit.

They would stay half open after too many visits?

[Hevishot]

Originally Posted by browna

North Centre Inn - Peepers

Provincial Liquor stores...closed early Saturday (Mall hours) and Sunday meant had to properly plan for weekend binges. One was in Southcentre where Chili's is.

The beer store at the old brewery on 9th Ave.

Crazy Crazy Electronics...somwhere on Edmonton Trail?

Back to the Superman 3, it was GCS that Richard Prior slid off of, landing on 9th Ave.

Also, in the official trailer, the car that hits the fire hydrant is on 2nd St just past 7th Ave.

No elementry school year was complete without a visit to the Energieum.

CFAC had an "encore" channel.

Civic channel, which showed City Council proceedings, then the rest of the day was filled with crude graphics (think the +15 logo) that refreshed every few minutes, talking about city events or notices.

The real estate channel and the auto trader tv.

When channels that you didn't pay for on your converter box were in weird scrambled format...TSN, Superchannel.

The owner of Crazy Crazys still exists. Same location just called Base Electronics now. He was thinking of opening it up again but a Glass Shop moved in and wizzed on his plans.

[Galakanokis]

Originally Posted by Buff

I remember a restaurant called Mother's. I think it was a Spaghetti place, at least I always remember getting spaghetti and a root beer float. I believe the place was in the NE, and there may have been a 2nd one in the south. It had also had a self playing piano. I moved from Calgary in 1986, so I don't know when it closed down, but I'm pretty sure it isn't around anymore.

I still remember this place, I think... Didn't it have all sorts of old instruments and stuff on the walls? Always went there for our hockey wrap up parties.

[Ruttiger]

Originally Posted by NinePack

Thought of more, What about when wintergreen was called lyon mountain, cop was paskapoo, to bad have to fortress to that list now.

thank you - thank you - THANK YOU!!!!!!! I've been wracking my brain for what seems like about 5 years now trying to remember what Wintergreen used to be called. It got stuck in my head and I couldn't move on. Whew - what a relief.

[Dentoman]

Not sure if posted already, but the go cart track by the airport .... those had some decent speed on a decent track.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Very random and I don't think I've read it yet on the thread.

Does anyone remember a park or something in the South where you could go and build a fort / treehouse kinda thing and stay in it? This memory is really vague so I apologize if it's not much to go on.


To ninepack: the jingle is still in my head: GSL chev city, on the trail beside the bow....

[Crispy's Critter]

Late to this thread, so haven't read the whole thing, so forgive me if this has already been mentioned.

I seem to remember as a really little kid in the early '70's that you had to walk over a swinging bridge to get into the Calgary Zoo. I could be remembering it wrong and thinking of another zoo, but pretty sure it was Calgary. I also remember they used to let you sit on the dinosaur sculptures in the park there and get your picture taken. A few years later when my brother got old enough to go you couldn't touch the sculptures anymore, and the last time I went (about '99 or so) to take my little cousin the swinging bridge was no longer there.(if it ever was. getting old is a biotch)

[Iceman90]

There was a swinging bridge at the Calgary Zoo, I remember that.

[puffnstuff]

Oh yeah that was the Calgary Zoo I remember that swinging bridge too

Shakeys Pizza, i remember that was THE place to have a birthday party or hockey wind up...you could watch them make the pizza!

Mothers Pizza down south was great too...I remember in high school going there for Tuesdays at lunch...all you could eat for 5 bucks

and Malarkeys in the Hospitality Inn, great bar for a 16 year ol...ummm 18 year old to go too