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

[zyzz]

Tee to green. Driving range and mini golf. Down the Shawnessy area. It's and overpass now.

[Violator]

The lack off mini golf and pinball in this town is sad.

[Dion]

Mitzi Dupree- The queen of ping pong

How a ping-pong ball act excited both Western Canadian bar patrons and the RCMP

Some 35-years after the fact, the name Mitzi Dupree still resonates with many in Western Canada.

Back then, in a decidedly-risque novelty act that left jaws hanging and the local constabularies rushing over en masse to “investigate,” Dupree went from little-known stripper to scandalous celebrity sensation in a cross-province tour that had to been seen to believed.

And according to the owner of the bar where it all started, they saw — everybody saw.

“There were tables full of lawyers, bank managers, businessmen, suits and so many women. Anybody and everybody you can think of was there, watching,” he says.

As the newspapers put it back in 1981, “patrons packed the house daily to see (Dupree) — utilizing parts of her anatomy other than her mouth or hands — perform stunts such as play the flute, smoke a cigarette and popping pong balls into the audience.”

Yes, Mitzi Dupree, forever after known as the “Queen of Ping-Pong” had somehow mastered her own domain, so to speak, and it’s said she could fire a volley of ping-pong balls from the stage into patrons’ pints of beer with remarkable, if slightly cringe-worthy, accuracy.

Unless you were the Kamloops RCMP of course, in which case, ping-pong balls were suddenly very serious business.

In October 1981, after a local newspaper reporter broke the story of the ping-pong ball sensation at the Bar-K, police filed charges against Dupree under her real name (Michelle Pradia), claiming the 22-year-old American dancer had violated local obscenity laws.

Of course, a phalanx of cops had been forced to watch the entire show in Thompson’s sold-out bar to reach this conclusion, and so on Jan. 12, Dupree went to trial to explain herself and her unusual talents to a judge.

Thompson himself was a character witness: “She’s not a drinker, she doesn’t do drugs. All she does is dance and shoot ping pong balls and send half her money home to her mother who has cerebral palsy,” he told the court.

Perhaps he was a fan of table tennis, or just considered the RCMP painfully prudish, but the judge acquitted Dupree.

The dancer reportedly thanked the journalist who’d tipped the cops afterwards, saying his story had increased her booking fee from $500 a week to $5,000.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2016/09/24...s-and-the-rcmp

[KevanGuy]

Originally Posted by Violator

The lack off mini golf and pinball in this town is sad.

We just went to the mini golf in Okotoks at Crystal Ridge or whatever it's called. We had a Groupon so it was cheap. And it was fun. Worth the drive from the south anyway. Monster Mini golf in the NE is awesome, especially if you're taking kids. Kind of like mini Scandia in Kelowna.

[JiriHrdina]

Originally Posted by zyzz

Tee to green. Driving range and mini golf. Down the Shawnessy area. It's and overpass now.

Oh man that one was really good too!

[calf]

There was a decent driving range/ mini golf course just off Nose Hill Drive and Stoney Trail NW. It suspended operations but was left in tact while the interchange was constructed, giving me hope it would re-open. Saw them taking it all down last week.

Left me pondering how much it would cost to buy that land and put something fun there.

Sent from my LG-D852 using Tapatalk

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by calf

There was a decent driving range/ mini golf course just off Nose Hill Drive and Stoney Trail NW. It suspended operations but was left in tact while the interchange was constructed, giving me hope it would re-open. Saw them taking it all down last week.

Left me pondering how much it would cost to buy that land and put something fun there.

Sent from my LG-D852 using Tapatalk

Is this the one that was bought by a Calgary home builder? Pretty sure homes are going there.

[calf]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

Is this the one that was bought by a Calgary home builder? Pretty sure homes are going there.

Could be...I wasn't aware of that. There goes that dream.

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by calf

Could be...I wasn't aware of that. There goes that dream.

I could be wrong. I think the place I was thinking of was an actual golf course not a mini golf course come to think about it.

[JiriHrdina]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

I could be wrong. I think the place I was thinking of was an actual golf course not a mini golf course come to think about it.

Both. It was a 9 hole course but in front was a pretty rippin' little mini golf course.

[undercoverbrother]

Not a Calgary old stuff, but I think this would do really well in Calgary:

http://topgolf.com/us/centennial/

We went when we were in Denver this summer

[Lubicon]

Originally Posted by calf

There was a decent driving range/ mini golf course just off Nose Hill Drive and Stoney Trail NW. It suspended operations but was left in tact while the interchange was constructed, giving me hope it would re-open. Saw them taking it all down last week.

Left me pondering how much it would cost to buy that land and put something fun there.

Sent from my LG-D852 using Tapatalk

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

Is this the one that was bought by a Calgary home builder? Pretty sure homes are going there.

No, you're thinking of the one deep south. Shawnee Slopes or something along those lines. This one was built on land owned by the Provincial government and they took it over when they built the Nose Hill interchange on Stoney. I had hoped it would re-open as well but saw the same thing over the weekend, it is almost gone now. Bummer because there are no driving ranges in the NW so it's a trek for me to go hit balls now.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by Lubicon

No, you're thinking of the one deep south. Shawnee Slopes or something along those lines. This one was built on land owned by the Provincial government and they took it over when they built the Nose Hill interchange on Stoney. I had hoped it would re-open as well but saw the same thing over the weekend, it is almost gone now. Bummer because there are no driving ranges in the NW so it's a trek for me to go hit balls now.

It sucks that the driving range/mini golf course couldn't be re-opened. It was a great location and the mini golf always seemed busy. The lack of facilities in the NW really sucks. The only non-course driving ranges that I know of are near Country Hills/Harvest Hills.

Speaking of golf and the NW, the City of Calgary should really consider building a new municipal course in the far north. Maybe near the Symon's valley market or at the end of Center street or something.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by calgarygeologist

It sucks that the driving range/mini golf course couldn't be re-opened. It was a great location and the mini golf always seemed busy. The lack of facilities in the NW really sucks. The only non-course driving ranges that I know of are near Country Hills/Harvest Hills.

Speaking of golf and the NW, the City of Calgary should really consider building a new municipal course in the far north. Maybe near the Symon's valley market or at the end of Center street or something.

Harvest Hills would have been perfect to just purchase, especially for a public course.

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Harvest Hills would have been perfect to just purchase, especially for a public course.

Yeah but that was only a nine hole facility. A new 18 hole course in the far north would be great. I don't think the city wants to invest in courses anymore though. I don't know if they actually make any profit from the city owned courses.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by calgarygeologist

Yeah but that was only a nine hole facility. A new 18 hole course in the far north would be great. I don't think the city wants to invest in courses anymore though. I don't know if they actually make any profit from the city owned courses.

I see your point. However to be fair, I think alot of people view City courses as getting in a quick 9, and most casual golfers probably wouldn't mind going around the same 9 twice. It comes down to volume and booking management though, which, to your point, would be a bit of a nightmare especially with online bookings.

[socktape]

Originally Posted by calf

There was a decent driving range/ mini golf course just off Nose Hill Drive and Stoney Trail NW. It suspended operations but was left in tact while the interchange was constructed, giving me hope it would re-open. Saw them taking it all down last week.

Left me pondering how much it would cost to buy that land and put something fun there.

Sent from my LG-D852 using Tapatalk

I have heard that the owners of the range own one down south. Might be Oasis but I could be wrong on that.... Either way, the word is that they are trying to re-open it but there is just so much red tape do go through that it is taking forever if they get to at all. Will all things provincial government these days, things take even longer cause no one knows what they are doing.

[CaptainCrunch]

There was an arcade in South Center when I was growing up, and I would skip school with a handful of quarters and go and play games all afternoon.

I miss arcades, as great as gaming and computer games are now, there was something about clustering around a machine that had an ashtray screwed into the side of it, watching some guy or girl racking up the high score.

[TurdFerguson]

and the god like figures that commanded these

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

There was an arcade in South Center when I was growing up, and I would skip school with a handful of quarters and go and play games all afternoon.

I miss arcades, as great as gaming and computer games are now, there was something about clustering around a machine that had an ashtray screwed into the side of it, watching some guy or girl racking up the high score.

Wizards Castle! And the one in TD Square (the Core) was amazing as well.

Anyone remember Laser Illusions?