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I remember how surprised I was when the late Joe Barrett told me he was a regular at "the Leopard." Barrett had been a tremendous three-sport star at old Ridley Park High and later a highly respected president of the Delco Baseball League.
But, as "Indian Joe" once told me, in his younger days he rarely missed an opportunity to show his stuff at the roller rinks.
There were other rinks, of course, but until receiving a letter from Jack Roden, they had faded from memory.
Roden wanted to know the location of a rink called the Rendezvous. He had a bet on its location. I don't ordinarily try to settle such wagers, but this was serious stuff. For, as Roden wrote, "There's 10 bucks riding on this."
With serious money at stake, how could I refuse?
A request for information reaped a jackpot.
First, there was an e-mail (addressed to the office, naturally) from William "Chip" Chipman. "Chip," a Sun Valley High graduate, lives in Brookhaven and is a teacher at P.S. duPont in Wilmington.
His mother not only knows where the Rendezvous was, she even named the place!
Mrs. Chipman was Myrtle Pyott back then, living with her parents at Ninth and Crosby streets, and attending Chester High School (Class of '39). She rarely missed a session at the Rendezvous, which, she says, was located at Fifth and Water streets. Young Bill Chipman (CHS, Class of '37) was her constant companion.
"The owners held a contest to name the rink," Mrs. Chipman recalled, and I came up with the name 'Rendezvous' which roughly translates as 'meeting place.' I won and my prize was a free pass for an entire year."
I thought Roden was referring to a place called the Chez Vous. Wrong, and Frank Grade of Linwood set the score straight.
"The Chez Vous was in 69th Street, near the terminal," he wrote. "It was operated by Vi Weir. They used to have bands come in Friday and Saturday nights. The rest of the time, they had roller skating. In fact, I taught there from 1970 to 1973."
Grande never laced on a pair of skates until he was 20, unlike his former Fronefield Avenue neighbor, the late, great Billy Kilby. Kilby was national runner-up when he was about 10, the first year he skated. Despite the late start, Grande became an excellent competition skater.
"The Rendezvous operated from the mid to late '30s," Grande continued. "That was before Jack Dalton's Great Leopard came on the scene. Later, Jack Coopersmith took it over. My wife (the former Ida Barber) and I taught there from '63 to '67. Another rink, the Manor in Prospect Park, was a converted movie theater.
"Ida and I taught there in '69 and '70, but it was destroyed by fire.
"The only local rink I can think of today is the C&N on old Concord Road in Aston. But it's strictly a fun rink. No competition skaters."
Grande laments that "skating as I knew it is gone forever.
"I can still hear the beautiful organ music, as played by artists like Shirley McFadden, "Sonny" Maresco and David Paden. When they played, it seemed your wheels had wings. You almost floated around the rink.
"What a pleasure to the ear. Not like the noise that passes for music today."
I have to admit a special nostalgic fascination for the roller skating days of old. I still remember the young Billy Kilby and his skating partner, Betty Sweeney. I was amazed that someone my age could skate so splendidly.
My mother and father were regulars at the Leopard. Dad was a "floor guard," one of those guys who skated backwards and kept the young bucks from knocking everyone down as they zoomed around the floor. Unfortunately, none of it rubbed off on me.
So to Jack Roden, thanks for writing; and thanks too, to Myrtle Chipman and Frank Grande for reviving such pleasant memories.
By the way, Jack, did you win the 10-spot?
Ed Gebhart is a retired public relations executive. His column appears Friday and Sunday.
