[John Rogers]

I was born in 1945 and things were really different then as opposed to today. Some of the tings I remember very well was always listening to the radio and then we got our first TV set, shows had NO commercials and it was on the air for about 4 hours a day! Then commercials started and were funny now it seems. Walt Disney's show in the beginning never had any commercials but did have an intermission so the kids could go to the bathroom!

The black people lived in their "own" part of town, no integration at all and I used to walk to the river that ran through town to catch fish and stop and give them to a real old and over weight black lady who had no shoes. She was always so happy and one day I met her husband who was a "chicken catcher" at the huge local chicken processing plant. He said the fish many times kept them from going hungry!

I remember in 1957 or '58 when the schools in Delaware were integrated and my mother made me stay home for a couple days as she was afraid I would "catch something" from the new folks! The track and football teams found out quickly how good of an athlete those guys were!

I remember never missing an American Bandstand show and how all of us in school would try to have the same hair do as those guys from Philly! Came on just as school was letting out.

In 1963 we skipped school for several days and drove to Daytona Beach for the Daytona 500. Saw Richard Petty and his pit crew, in their stock car come into the drive-in to eat at the same time we were there, man was that car loud. We had never heard of a guy named Tiny Lund but he was huge! We actually met Dan Gurney and later at his American Eagle shop near LA I met him again at a Porsche event and fun run. I mentioned the Daytona race but he didn't remember me!!!! Also got a free ride in a Cobra which scared the hell out me on the banking!

Yeah, things are a lot different today.......