Remember when... (Charleston, Summerville, Andrews: Valentine's day, hotels, university)

[SCBeaches]

That's funny...I just read the drive-in movie group page on Facebook, and I taught some of those kids. They would crack up if I wrote a comment on there, wondering why the heck I was even there! LOL

Facebook has been a fun way to reconnect with high school and college friends and lots of family members I haven't seen in years.... (and it's not just for kids as I originally thought!)

[suec61]

Sears was on Calhoun street and had escalatorsChicora high schoolCross County Road was dirtThe only IHOP in town was on Savannah Hwy

[meks]

Originally Posted by suec61

Sears was on Calhoun street and had escalatorsChicora high schoolCross County Road was dirtThe only IHOP in town was on Savannah Hwy

wow I had completely forgotten about that old Sears...

Roper and St.Francis were our only two hospitals, and St.Francis was a catholic hospital downtown on calhoun as well

[Charleston Class]

Originally Posted by suec61

Sears was on Calhoun street and had escalatorsChicora high schoolCross County Road was dirtThe only IHOP in town was on Savannah Hwy

Wow, Sears on Calhoun? That must have been before my time.

[fqtravlr]

Originally Posted by Charleston Class

Wow, Sears on Calhoun? That must have been before my time.

Sears backed up to the Francis Marion Hotel and sat on the corner of Calhoun and St Philip. The building and parking lot took up half the block not occupied by the FM Hotel. Not surprisingly, the property is now owned by the College of Chuck. (As with MUSC, if the COC wants a downtown property, they just ask Joe and he arranges it)

[ZUMAN]

Sears on Calhoun was The Place to go shopping when I was growing up. The place I think had 3 levels and they sold everything. My dad would always take me there to buy my Easter clothes. Loved riding up and down the escalators too - only store in Chas. that had 'em.

[Pluffmud Henry]

I grew up West Ash and we also had Rocky Horror at Ultravision. I recall the term "North Area". The African American kids I grew up around called North Chuck the "Big Nasty" because of the Westvaco rendering plant. The process has been changed due to EPA reg's, but part of the process could not be de-stinked. So it's about 1/3 of the time when that last phase must vent in open air, lest employess get sick.

I also recall that the Pinehaven Cinemas rarely "carded" you for an R-rated movie, so all my friends and I would get parent to drop us off there "for the PG-movie" and we'd go see the R. A lot of the local kids would make a game of daring eachother to sit closer to the front of a horror movie until something F'k'd up happend, then they'd go running up the aisle whooping of devils....and gradually "sneak" back to the front, untill the killer/demon/monster with the chainsaw/axe/powers of hell struck again. This was additional entertianment to us, but now would be completely annoying.

[jetsfan16]

I remember the very last days of the Ultravision, when it closed around 1998-99. I never went to a movie there, but I do remember the distinctive facade it had, and it anchored that shopping center (which had a W.T. Grant in the 1960s).

Rocky Horror also played at the South Windermere till it closed last year. Sears was very distinctive, as it was where those parking lots are now at Calhoun and Coming, I believe. I remember going into Condon's during it's last days, also, in 1997.

[meks]

Originally Posted by jetsfan16

I remember the very last days of the Ultravision, when it closed around 1998-99. I never went to a movie there, but I do remember the distinctive facade it had, and it anchored that shopping center (which had a W.T. Grant in the 1960s).

Rocky Horror also played at the South Windermere till it closed last year. Sears was very distinctive, as it was where those parking lots are now at Calhoun and Coming, I believe. I remember going into Condon's during it's last days, also, in 1997.

I remember when they opened the Ultravision, went to a movie there their very first week...

Condon's used to be downtown too, with a crosswalk over Calhoun... it later moved to the "new" Ashley Plaza Mall in '70 if I remember right?

[jetsfan16]

I remember when Citadel Mall did not have a food court, and when JCPenney was in their original location, where Target is now.

Kerrison's also is a store I vaguely remember, but I clearly remember going to Woolworth's back when they were closing, around '96 or '97. A lot of stores closed around those few years, including Krawcheck's Haberdashery, Sonny Goldberg's, and the only Krystals in town.

I also remember a time, not that long ago, when the only newscasts were at 6 and 11, with a Noon cast on channel 5, and maybe 30 minutes-1 hour in the morning on the three channels.

Now, you have 2 1/2 hours on 5 just in the evening, and even 4 has an hour in the evening, and all 3 have 2 hour morning shows, which was unheard of ten years ago.