Events of 1953

Jan 1 Rose Bowl Game: USC-7, Wisconsin-0

Jan 8 Elvis Presley turns 18

Jan 17 Chevrolet Corvette introduced by GM at Motorama in NYC

Jan 20 Dwight Eisenhower inaugurated President at age 62.3

Jan 20 George Burns (Nathan Birnbaum) turns 57

Feb 1 20th Century Fox announces Cinemascope wide-screen process

Feb 14 Jack Benny (Benny Kubelski) turns 59

Feb 16 Edgar Bergen (Bergren) turns 50

Feb 18 movie “Bwana Devil” premiers -- first in 3-D

Mar 5 Stalin dies

Mar 18 Mickey Mantle hits record distance home run of 585 feet.

Mar 27 IBM installs the first 701 computer; it uses vacuum tubes and a few germanium diodes.

Apr 23 movie “Shane” premiers

May 15 Percy Faith’s “Song of Moulin Rouge” is #1.

May 29 Leslie Townes “Bob” Hope turns 50

May 29 Edmund Hillary (37, of N.Z.) and Tenzing Norgay (of Nepal) reach summit of Mt Everest.

May 30 Indy 500 winning speed is 128mph; one driver dies from heat exhaustion

June 2 Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation

June 6 world shotput record of 59ft 2-1/8inch set at USC.

June 18 Downey Union High School Graduation at Burbeck Field.

July 9 Rosenbergs executed as spies.

July 15 movie “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” premiers with Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell.

July 18 Richard “Red” Skelton turns 40

July 27 Korean conflict armistice signed; casualties noted at over 25,000.

Aug 5 movie “From Here to Eternity” premiers

Aug 11 Les Paul & Mary Ford’s “Vaya Con Dios” is #1

Aug 18 McDonald’s opens in Downey selling hamburgers for 15-cents.

Sept 8 US Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson dies

Oct 5 World Series won by NY-Yankees for 5-th straight time on home run by Billy Martin

Oct 5 California Governor Earl Warren takes oath as Chief Justice; Goodwin J. Knight succeeds.

Oct 30 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to George C. Marshall for his “Marshall Plan” to rebuild Europe.

Nov 11 Polio virus isolated; vaccine follows later.

Nov 13 Shari Lewis debuts with her puppets

Nov 20 Scott Crossfield pilots a rocket plane to Mach-2 = 1327mph.

Nov 30 Winston Churchill turns 79

Dec 1 AT&T announces the trans-Atlantic telephone cable project

Dec 12 John Landy set record for the mile at 4:02 -- broken in ‘54 by Bannister at 3:59.4;

Dec 29 Color TV announced

Costs in 1953: gal.gasoline: $0.22, bread-loaf: 0.16; pack-cigarettes: 0.21, letters: 0.03;

postcards: 0.01; min-wage 0.75; doz.eggs: 0.70; qt.milk: 0.23; autos: $1850.00; homes: 17,500; annual income: 4011.00; D-J-average: 280.90.

Other: Life expectancy: 68.8; #1 TV show:”I Love Lucy”; homes with TV: 55%; DNA identified; Boston Braves move to Milwaukee; Mercury trunk lock covers prized for reworking as belt buckles.

Thoughts about “our” time -- and the times since.

When we were young...

According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 60's and 70's probably shouldn't have survived, because...

Our baby cots were covered with brightly coloured lead‑based paint, which was promptly chewed and licked.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, or latches on doors or cabinets and it was fine to play with pans.

When we rode our bikes, we wore no helmets, just flip flops and fluorescent 'clackers' on our wheels.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags. Riding in the passenger seat was a treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle ‑ tasted the same.

We ate dripping sandwiches, bread and butter pudding and drank fizzy pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing.

We shared one drink with four friends, from one bottle or can and no one actually died from this.

We would spend hours building go‑carts out of scraps and then went top speed down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes.

After running into stinging nettles a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back before it got dark. No one was able to reach us all day and no one minded.

We did not have Playstations or X‑Boxes, no video games at all. No 299 channels on TV, no videotape movies or DVDs, no surround sound, no mobile phones, no personal computers, no Internet chat rooms.

We had friends................ we just went outside and found them.

We played elastics and street rounders, and sometimes that ball really hurt.

We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits. They were accidents.

We learnt not to do the same thing again.

We had fights, punched each other hard and got black and blue we learned to get over it.

We walked to friend's homes.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate live stuff, and although we were told it would happen, we did not have very many eyes out, nor did the live stuff live inside us forever.

We rode bikes in packs of 7 and wore our coats by only the hood.

Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected.

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of;

they actually sided with the law. Imagine that!

This generation has produced some of the best risk‑takers and problem solvers and inventors, ever.

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.

And you're one of them. Congratulations!

An Obituary ..

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend by the name of Common Sense who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in

bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valued lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm and that life isn't always fair.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge).

His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six‑year‑old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch, and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student only worsened his condition. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Finally, Common sense lost the will to live as the Ten commandments became contraband, churches became businesses and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, spilled it in her lap, and was awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers; My Rights and Ima Whiner.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG ---

1. Throw out non-essential numbers. This includes age, weight and height.

Let the doctor worry about them. That is why you pay him/her.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever.

Never let the brain idle.

"An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long, and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on.

The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. BE ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it.

If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country,

but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,

but by the moments that take our breath away.

‑‑ Lee Iacocca ‑‑ on Teaching___

"In a completely rational society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less, because passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and the highest responsibility anyone could have."

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson on SUCCESS___

To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. Surely we’ve all succeeded in our own way.

Senior citizens are constantly being criticized for every conceivable deficiency of the modern world, real or imaginary. We know we take responsibility for all we have done and do not blame others. HOWEVER, upon reflection, we would like to point out that it was NOT the senior citizens who took: The melody out of music, The pride out of appearance, The courtesy out of driving, The romance out of love, The commitment out of marriage, The responsibility out of parenthood, The togetherness out of the family, The learning out of education, The service out of patriotism, The Golden Rule from rulers, The nativity scene out of cities, The civility out of behavior, The refinement out of language, The dedication out of employment, The prudence out of spending, The ambition out of achievement, or, God out of government and school.

And we certainly are NOT the ones who eliminated patience and tolerance from personal relationships and interactions with others!! And, we do understand the meaning of patriotism, and remember those who have fought and died for our country.

At his point text was copied by permission from a DUHS’52 page.

DUHS- 1953

Keeping in Touch in the Future

Finding everybody for THIS reunion was a long and arduous task begun five(5) years ago, in the prior millennium, specifically in 1998, involving multiple search operations and even RE-finding some who moved and forgot to keep in touch.

Such searches will NOT be done in the future, if you get “lost” from the committee’s “Radar Screen” after this event, then you will just simply miss out on any future events.

In order to keep track of everybody for the future,

PLEASE keep the committee updated of any change of name, address, telephone number, area-code, or E-Mail by forwarding all of that information to ALL of the following ...

1. - Alumni Records

Downey High School

11040 Brookshire Ave,

Downey, Calif. 90241

2. - Hugh T. Hoskins

8324 Noren St.

Downey, Calif. 90240-3216

(if he moves, at least the School above and email below will likely survive)

3. - email => hthoskins@earthlink.net

Also please keep in mind that a lot of likely significant information about the School, the class, and the future will be linked from the page at ...

http://downey.dusd.net/~dhsalumni53/

Anyone who does not currently have InterNet access and E-Mail capability, is strongly urged to come into the 3-rd Millennium; when you do, then please update us as above. Your kids or grandkids can likely help you.

Please File This with your Reunion Materials for Future Reference

Adamson/Clark, Janis June

Agnew, Marvin Wm. 'Bud'

#Agnew, Jr., William Green

Aguilar, Joe

\ Aldrich, Stanley George

Allen, William Lee

Altig, Richard

Angelo, Nicholas Joseph

Arnold/Baird, Arlis Ray

Arthurs, Clyde L.

#Auerbach, William Thomas

Auslander, Herman Kyle

Avila, David

Axford, Raymond Morgan

Baird/Hein, Bonnie

#Baird, David

\ Baker, Robert Thomas

#Balfour, Ronald Eugene

#Ball/Rolfe, Mary Lelia

#Ball, Virginia Mae

\ Barra, Theresa

Bartlett, Leonard Anthony

#Baugh/Privett, Joan Elaine

\ Beach/Hargis, Shirley Maxine

Beck, Richard Verner

Beesley/Nordstrom, Dorothy Lavo

Beito/Conn, Charlene

Bell/Jennings, Gloria Ann

Berg, John W.

Berge/Kruger, Jacklyn Joann

Bergman/Segall, Shirley

Berry/Bruce, Nadyne Margaret

Bierbower, Don A.

Bierbower/Stewart, Phyllis

Binder/Roza, Adelle Anne 'Bonni

Bixler/Finnegan, Jo Anne

Blackmore, Thomas David

\ Braun, Donna Jean (doris?)

Brossmer, Fred Allan

Brown, Elva Pauline

Brown/Mannino, Patricia C.

\ Brown, William Frederick

#Brust, Robert Arthur

Budlong/Watson, Barbara Ann

#Burton/Bower, Sheila

#Butts, Floyd Ray

#Calkins, James

Call, John Philip

Cannon/Fergus, Peggy Margaret

Carhart/Costa, Felicia

Carlson/Camp, Cora Ann

Chontos/Cureton, Betty

Clark/Thornton, Dorothy Muriel

\ Clark/Morris?, Judith

Clark, Ples

\ Collins, Dixon

Collins, Norman Hugh

Collins, Wilber Bruce

Comisaroff/Robin, Bertha Ethel

Conte/Jervis, Darlene A.

Copeland, Kenneth

Coulter/Brydson, Verna Yvonne

Covey/Carpenter, Nancy Lee

Cox, Preston David

Craig/Newton, Joan Ann

Crist, Irvin Eugene

#Cubberly/Rosser, Marie Elizabeth

Culwell/Bates, Irsyl Fay

\ Curtis, Fredella Kay

Dahlem, David Harrison

Dawson, John Ward

#Day/Mandrey, Barbara Ann

#Deasey, Melvin Dean

Deaton/Steele, Patsy Sue

Dellsite/Olinger, Jacqueline M.

Dever/Fuller, Sarabelle "Sally"

Dubois, Hugh Bruce

#Dunn, Fred T.

Durham/Maude, Connie

Edquist/Cook, Shirley Grace

#Edwards, Emmett Charles

Ehinger/Lindberg, Sally Ann

Eide, Merle Wendall

Eli/Dawson, Shirley Rae

\ Evans, Mary Rosanne

\ Fay, Bruce Alvin

Felling, David Rudolph

Fisk, Gary Oliver

Foster/Spencer, Reta Gay

#Frazier/Hall, Martha Ann

#Fredrickson, Roger Gay

\ Freeman, Patsy Marie

Fricke/Hayman, Dolores

Fuller, George "Bud "

Gallagher/Robinson, LaVerne Jan

Gano/Perry, Barbara

Ganser, Kenneth Ray

#Gardea, Frank David

Gardner, Roland B.

Garrett, Gary Meriwether

Garrison, John Paul

Genow/Tassone, Barbara Helen

George, Jr., Alvin L.

Gibbens, Barbara Jean

Glass/Chambers, Roberta

Gobel/Casey, Mary Jo

#Grantham, Neil Allen

\ Greenslade, Carol Ann

#Grove, David Lemert

Gusel/Harris, Faye Antoinette

Gussow/Goss, Ruth L.

\ Halberg, Sharal June

#Hall, Wanda E.

Hall, William Edward

\ Hargis/Meek, Nelva Evora

\ Harman, Joanne Gladys

#Harris/Winters, Margaret "Peggy"

Harris/Lawson, Sally Jo

\ Hartzler/Rassmussen, Carolyn An

#Haslip, Richard L.

Havet, Winston Edward

\ Heath, Patsy Ann

Henney/Barnes, Eva Marie

\ Hill/Davidson, Barbara Lee

Himmelfarb/Bauer, Joan Marcia

Himmelfarb/Ramalho, Sandra Barb

Hocker, Donald Louis

Hoffeld/White, Marion Lorraine

#Holland, Jerome T.

Hollingsworth, Ralph W.

#Hollis, William Thomas

\ Holly, Barbara Ann

Horn, Jim Arnold

#Horton, Jim F.

\ Horwitz, Marian

Hoskins, Hugh Thomas

Howe, John Augustus

Howe, Thomas E.

Huff/Krebs, Elizabeth Ann

\ Humphrey, Loyce Diane

Hunt, William Sheridan

Jennings/Duncan, Dixie Clark

Jennings/Borri, Sheelaugh Lorna

Jerome, Richard

Jobe/Brown, Marcia Louise

Johnson, Raymond Elmer

Kaiser, Donald

Kaiser/Jennings, Donna

\ Kaltenthaler, Chuck

Kardinal, Carl Gustav

Karnes/Ruf, Liane

Katanjian, George

Kauffman/Ferrante, Betty Louise

Kearns, Michael Charles

#Kemp, Robert Erwin

#Kepplinger, Albert Richard

Kessloff/Bowman, Verna Lee

Kibler, Neil S.

\ Kinzey, Barbara Louise

Knudsen, Bernard Henry

Kruger, Fredrick Arthur

Krumwied, Richard Lee

Lang/Gillespie, Mary Margaret

\ Lasater, Martha

Laubach/Kennedy, Marilyn

Lee, Robert Michael

Lemberger/Harms, Laverne Mary

#Lennox, James Edward

\ Linaberg, John Walter

#Lindquist, Bruce Gordon

Little, Beverly Josephine

Lowman/Acquistapace, Judy Ann

Lozano/Chavez, Bertha

Mac Isaac/Cuthbert, Anita Mary

Mac Isaac/Edmiston, Sally Jane

Malchow/Fitch, Una Carol

\ Malderey, Dorothy Lee

#Mannino, Guy Joseph

Mansfield, Donald Ray

Manuel, James Clifford

#Marcus, Ernest Andre

Martin, Richard Harold

Marxmiller, John G.

Matthews/Meggs, Gwendolyn Charm

Maynard, Dixie

#Mc Calman, Victor M.

Mc Clusky, Daryl Allen

Mc Connell/Jensen, Shirley Jean

Mc Fetridge, Bill

Mc Graw/Heath, Barbara Ann

Mc Guire/Mackey, Martha LaJean

Mc Guire, Richard

Mercer/Norsworthy, Alyce Dianne

#Merchant/Guardomondo, Martha Lee

Merritt/Dunlap, Bonnie Louise

Meyer, Donald Joseph

Miller, Richard Glenn

Miller, Richard Ward

Miner/Holtkamp, Jill Marie

Mitchell/Shandley, Donna Joy

Mitchell, Henry Orlan

#Moore, Bill Eugene

Moore/Brown, Loretta

Morrow/Smith, Margaret

#Moses/Kearns, Cecelia

#Mullin/Lux, Correne Louise

Murray/Martin, Myra L.

Myers/King, Carol Sue

#Myers, Janet

Myers, Robert M.

Nagami/Doi, Jayne Fumi

\ Nibarger, Clarence David

Nichols, Buddy Eugene

#Norberg, Kenneth John

\ Norvell, Don Wayne

Norvell/Smith, Ellen Marie

\ O' Neil, Lawrence Myron

\ O' Reilly, Dennis J.

Oleen/Smith, Sherlyn Joyce

Palazzolo/Davis, Florence Provi

Parker/Fulmer, Virginia Ruth

Parvin/Mc Gee, Donna

Pasqua, Robert Ange

\ Patterson, Patsy May

Pearce, Callas W.

Pearson/Blackmore, Jo Anne

Peck, James Eugene

Petersen/Taylor, Lois M.

Petrie, Alex E.

Petterson/Ewing, Bobbie

Phillips, Douglas

Pineira/Rodriguez, Sally France

Ply, James F.

#Potapov, Jack R.

Potter, Dwight Lowell

Powell, Kenneth Allen

\ Prahm, Bill

#Prosser, Lloyd V.

Quigley, Lanny Earl

\ Raasch, Claudia J.

\ Raffeld, Paul C.

\ Ramirez, Dora

Ramirez/Rosin, Helen

Ramirez, Lupe

Rapier/Kuno, Nancy Lee

#Rarick/Hirshfield, Donna Marie

\ Reese, Norman Doyle

\ Reese, William J.

#Rehn, Patricia

Rice, Betty Lynn

Riley/Agnew, Carolyn Sue

Roberts, Roudney L.

#Robinson/Whipple, Gail Romaine

\ Roesch/Hall, Margie Elenore

Rogers, Ben Elton

Ross, Irving Maurice

Rowe/Blair, Roberta Ruth

\ Rucks, Kathleen

Rudd, Wayne Charles

Sabala, Frank

Sand/Peterson, Althea Grace

\ Sawyer, Claudia Mavis

\ Schmidt, Donald H.

Schmiedeke, Ronald Carl

#Schroeder, GeorgAnne

\ Severson, Thomas Paul

Sexton, Frances Marion

Sexton, William James

#Shafer, Jack D.

#Shandley, David Lee

\ Sharkey/Pecora, Barbara

\ Sharp, Jim Dean

Shaw, Jack LeRoy

Sheffield/Allen, Sharon Michell

Siemann, Robert F.

Sims/Langknecht, Joan Carolyn

\ Smith, Donnie Stahl

\ Smith, Monte

Smith, Richard Ebert 'Dick'

\ Smith/Chester, Rochelle Vern

Smith‑Hochgurtel, Joseph C.

Spalsbury/Faldetta, Marlyce Ann

Steere/Poulsen, Patrica

#Steinmiller, Robert Lee

Stelzer, Mike Conrad

Stokes, William Patrick

Stumpf/Newport, Leah Rae

\ Taff, Ruth Virginia

Thomsen/Snelling, Joan Phyllis

Tibert/Powell, Jacqueline

Timpke, Howard Arthur

#Tisor/Berggren, Darlene Louise

Tobia, Anthony Gordon

#Trachsel, Pat Arlene

Trageser, Jack Arthur

Tribolet/Pearce, Ellene Frances

\ Turnbull/Neikerk, LouElla Mae

\ Turner, Catherine

Turner/Touby, Delorus Ruth

Van Couvering, Ray

Varela/O' Hair, Mary Margaret

Voge/Lennox, Alta Marie

Volmer, Ronald Lloyd

Wallace, Caron P.

Wallar/Fisher, Margaret Jean

\ Walsh, Noelee E.

\ Walton, Jack Edgar

Watt/Hoskinson, Carol Ann

Watts/Monahan, Mary Ann

Weber/Bennett, Barbara Jean

Welch, Ronnie E.

Whalan, Oran Richard

White, Wayne C.

\ Whitmore, Barbara

\ Wilkerson, Robert Neil

Wilks, William 'Bill' Isaac

Williams/Fox, Beryl

Wilms/Covelli, Doris Elaine

\ Wingard/Weir, June

Wintermute/Vickers, Joan Marie

Wissler, Francis Edwin

#Witke, Kenneth Russell

\ Woods, Darlene Marie

Wortham, Alton Homer

\ Wright, Gay Martin

#Wright, Victor Kay

Young/Lahey, Roberta Raye

Zeuthen, Axel Frederick

# Deceased 53

\ Lost 58

Found 217

TOTAL 328

6 September 2003

Downey High School

Downey Union High School -- Class of 1953

E-Mail 123