Remembrances...
The Road to Our 55th Reunion
For fun, we tried testing Artificial Intelligence (AI) to trace our path from Amherst Junior High School through to the present day - our 55th Reunion Celebration Weekend. Below were the initial results...
"The Amherst High School Class of 1968 is preparing to celebrate its 55th reunion. The class of 1968 was born in the midst of the Cold War and grew up during a time of great social change. The world was changing rapidly, and the students of Amherst High School were at the forefront of that change. In 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. The crisis was resolved peacefully, but it was a stark reminder of the dangers of the Cold War. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. His death shocked the nation and the world.
The 1960s were a time of great social change in America. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, and Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, which outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
The Vietnam War dominated American politics and culture throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. The war was deeply unpopular with many Americans, and protests against it were common. In 1970, four students were killed by National Guardsmen during a protest at Kent State University in Ohio.
In more recent years, we've seen significant events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the September 11 attacks in 2001, and the COVID-19 pandemic that began in late 2019. These events have shaped our world and certainly our class of 1968 in significant ways."
Next, we tried expanding on the above inquiry to also include developments in the world of music, culture and business. Below are those results...
This is a brief overview of some of the major news, music, cultural and business events that have occurred between the 1960s and the current day:
In the 1960s, our class witnessed the Cold War, the Vietnam War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the civil rights movement, the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., the rise of counterculture and rock music, the moon landing, and the creation of OPEC.
In the 1970s, we experienced the Watergate scandal, the end of the Vietnam War, the oil crisis, the Iranian Revolution, the Camp David Accords, the emergence of disco and punk music, the birth of environmentalism and feminism, and the introduction of personal computers.
In the 1980s, the world saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Iran-Iraq War, the AIDS epidemic, the Challenger disaster, the Iran-Contra affair, the rise of MTV and pop music, the development of cable TV and video games, and the emergence of globalization and neoliberalism.
In the 1990s, each of us witnessed the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Gulf War, the Rwandan genocide, the end of apartheid in South Africa, the Oslo Accords, the rise of the Internet and e-commerce, the emergence of grunge and hip hop music, and the advent of digital media and mobile phones.
In the 2000s, we experienced the 9/11 attacks, the War on Terror, the Iraq War, the global financial crisis, the Arab Spring, the rise of social media and smartphones, the emergence of streaming services and online platforms, and the popularity of pop culture franchises such as Harry Potter and Marvel.
In the 2010s, the world saw the Syrian civil war, Brexit, Trump’s presidency and impeachment trials. The COVID-19 pandemic began in late 2019. We witnessed social movements such as Black Lives Matter and Me Too. The world also experienced technological innovations such as artificial intelligence and enjoyed diverse musical genres such as K-pop and EDM.
These events have affected our Amherst classmates in so many ways depending on their personal backgrounds. For example: Some may have served in or protested against wars; Others participated in or opposed civil rights struggles; Many of us either benefited from or suffered under a variety of economic changes; while others embraced or resisted the cultural shifts that have occurred, and many have either adopted or rejected new technologies that have emerged.
Submitted by: Jeff Rausch
(left wondering how things might have been different if we had the Internet and AI to use back at ACHS!)
"The Amherst High School Class of 1968 is preparing to celebrate its 55th reunion. The class of 1968 was born in the midst of the Cold War and grew up during a time of great social change. The world was changing rapidly, and the students of Amherst High School were at the forefront of that change. In 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. The crisis was resolved peacefully, but it was a stark reminder of the dangers of the Cold War. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. His death shocked the nation and the world.
The 1960s were a time of great social change in America. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, and Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, which outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
The Vietnam War dominated American politics and culture throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. The war was deeply unpopular with many Americans, and protests against it were common. In 1970, four students were killed by National Guardsmen during a protest at Kent State University in Ohio.
In more recent years, we've seen significant events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the September 11 attacks in 2001, and the COVID-19 pandemic that began in late 2019. These events have shaped our world and certainly our class of 1968 in significant ways."
Next, we tried expanding on the above inquiry to also include developments in the world of music, culture and business. Below are those results...
This is a brief overview of some of the major news, music, cultural and business events that have occurred between the 1960s and the current day:
In the 1960s, our class witnessed the Cold War, the Vietnam War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the civil rights movement, the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., the rise of counterculture and rock music, the moon landing, and the creation of OPEC.
In the 1970s, we experienced the Watergate scandal, the end of the Vietnam War, the oil crisis, the Iranian Revolution, the Camp David Accords, the emergence of disco and punk music, the birth of environmentalism and feminism, and the introduction of personal computers.
In the 1980s, the world saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Iran-Iraq War, the AIDS epidemic, the Challenger disaster, the Iran-Contra affair, the rise of MTV and pop music, the development of cable TV and video games, and the emergence of globalization and neoliberalism.
In the 1990s, each of us witnessed the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Gulf War, the Rwandan genocide, the end of apartheid in South Africa, the Oslo Accords, the rise of the Internet and e-commerce, the emergence of grunge and hip hop music, and the advent of digital media and mobile phones.
In the 2000s, we experienced the 9/11 attacks, the War on Terror, the Iraq War, the global financial crisis, the Arab Spring, the rise of social media and smartphones, the emergence of streaming services and online platforms, and the popularity of pop culture franchises such as Harry Potter and Marvel.
In the 2010s, the world saw the Syrian civil war, Brexit, Trump’s presidency and impeachment trials. The COVID-19 pandemic began in late 2019. We witnessed social movements such as Black Lives Matter and Me Too. The world also experienced technological innovations such as artificial intelligence and enjoyed diverse musical genres such as K-pop and EDM.
These events have affected our Amherst classmates in so many ways depending on their personal backgrounds. For example: Some may have served in or protested against wars; Others participated in or opposed civil rights struggles; Many of us either benefited from or suffered under a variety of economic changes; while others embraced or resisted the cultural shifts that have occurred, and many have either adopted or rejected new technologies that have emerged.
Submitted by: Jeff Rausch
(left wondering how things might have been different if we had the Internet and AI to use back at ACHS!)
Wilmer and the Dukes
When we were in school, the first Wednesday in September was the first day of school every year. Many years ago Clay Pasternack did a newsletter highlighting the music that was popular the first day we were at the Junior High School. This is a short, brief review of our last week of school in June of 1968 as we were taking exams to finish our school year.
One of the many bright spots of local scene in Buffalo was Wilmer Alexander Jr. and the Dukes. On June 15, the top 10 chart at WKBW looked like this:
Wilmer and the Dukes’ song Give Me One More Chance peaked at #2 on the KB top 30 survey that week. In addition to their #2 position, the song was #1 song on the two other Top 40 format stations in Buffalo, WYSL 1400 and WNIA 1230. This record sold over 50,000 copies in the Buffalo Rochester Syracuse area alone! (legit sales numbers, no hype!). Click here for a listen!
One of the many bright spots of local scene in Buffalo was Wilmer Alexander Jr. and the Dukes. On June 15, the top 10 chart at WKBW looked like this:
- Herb Alpert - This Guy's In Love With You
- Wilmer And The Dukes - Give Me One More Chance
- The Ohio Express - Yummy Yummy Yummy
- Hugo Montenegro - The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
- Fever Tree - San Francisco Girls (Return Of The Native)
- Archie Bell & The Drells - Tighten Up
- Simon & Garfunkel - Mrs. Robinson
- Richard Harris - MacArthur Park
- Bobby Vee - My Girl/Hey Girl
- Engelbert Humperdinck - A Man Without Love
Wilmer and the Dukes’ song Give Me One More Chance peaked at #2 on the KB top 30 survey that week. In addition to their #2 position, the song was #1 song on the two other Top 40 format stations in Buffalo, WYSL 1400 and WNIA 1230. This record sold over 50,000 copies in the Buffalo Rochester Syracuse area alone! (legit sales numbers, no hype!). Click here for a listen!
November 22, 1963
It was Friday and most of us were at the Amherst Junior High School that day. We were 8th graders, and we were in 7th period that day, on the short schedule as there was a Friday assembly at the end of the school day. I was in Math class with Mrs. Olsen in Room 139, right by the stairwell in the middile of the long first floor classroom hall. I was sitting in the corner facing toward the door with my classmates Tad ORourke, Tom Kenney, Doug Parker, Marly Wexler, and I think Ron Mc Callister. About 10 minutes of 2 I heard a commotion in the hallway, as Paul Oldach was running down the hallway, very fast, yelling at the top of his lungs "The President's been shot!! The President's been shot!" No less than 30 seconds after hearing this, the P. A. system in the school began to broadcast the newscast of President Kennedy's fatal shooting in Dallas. The world seemed to just stand still at that point. Many of us did not know what to say. I have no recollection of what was said at the assembly, and I think we may have been sent home a bit early that day. I remember walking into my house, my mother crying, saying "He never had a chance!"
That night I was to attend a bar mitzvah at Temple Beth Am and the pall of the activities of that day hung over everyone in attendance. I felt really bad for the guy who was to have his most important day of his life (to that point) be the day that President Kennedy was assassinated. As the weekend continued, all radio and television programming was cancelled and all media coverage was focused on the aftermath of the shooting and the capture of the alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. The world was to witness the murder of Oswald live on TV the following day at the hands of Jack Ruby
Being bored and restless that weekend, as many of were at that age, I decided to take my transistor radio and spin the dials in desperation to find a radio station playing Top 40 music somewhere. Being on the border of Canada, I was lucky to find a station in Toronto CKEY (560 or 570 - help me Steve Stevens!) that was playing Top 40. Well, I found a home for that period of time, and stuck with it. Not only were they playing the hits of our day (see below) but also heard a number of songs that never seemed to make the WKBW playlist, such as "Waiting for the Evening Train" by the Anita Kerr Singers and "Alley Alley Oxen Free" by the Kingston Trio. Well, I was hooked! Starting right after Thanksgiving I became a very loyal listener to this station. What I did not know is that my discovery of this new source of music will give me a glimpse of what we all were to find out about right after
Christmas.
Once the programming of TV and Radio returned to "normal" on Tuesday 11/26/63, had you tuned in to WKBW, you would hear Rod Roddy, Stan Roberts, Fred Klestine, Danny Nevearth, and the classic Joey Reynolds play the following (in order that they appeared on the KB Top 30 survey of the week):
1. Dominique - The Singing Nun
2. Everybody - Tommy Roe
3. Forget Him - Bobby Rydell
4. Sugar Shack - Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs
5. It's All Right - The Impressions
6. Louie Louie - the Kingsmen
7. Be True to Your School - the Beach Boys
8. Popsicles and Icicles - The Murmaids (song written by David Gates, later the
leader of Bread)
9. Since I Fell for You - Lenny Welch
10. That Boy John - the Raindrops
KBIG Pick of the Week: Hooka Tooka - Chubby Checker
If I listed the remaining 20 songs, you would totally understand the American music listeners were ripe for the taking. Two weeks later, December 6, on CHUM and CKEY in Toronto, the pick hit of the week was "She Loves You" by The Beatles. If you were one of the lucky ones to have found the Canadian top 40 stations you would have been hearing the Beatles weeks before everyone else. I heard the song a few times on CKEY and thought it was good but it
was not what I was into at the time (primarly Surf and Drag racing songs were my thing that month).
As the world coasted through Thanksgiving and into the holiday season in 1963, the world seemed to be in chaos. The aftermath of November 22, 1963 seemed to cast a pall on the entire holiday season. Even the one thing that I always counted on to get me through anything (the music I heard on the radio) seemed to be in the doldrums. Enter December 26, 1963 - to be continued that day 50 years later!!!
If you would like to share your thoughts on what you remember about November 22, 1963, please send them to me. I will be glad to post them on the ACHS 1968 web site. I am sure all of us remember who we were with, what class we were in and how we felt that day. I WILL be sending out the continuation of the story above on December 26, 2013. "Oh What a Night, late December 1963" was a very important moment in all of our lives - the first real US exposure to Beatlemania!!!! I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Submitted by: Clay Pasternack
That night I was to attend a bar mitzvah at Temple Beth Am and the pall of the activities of that day hung over everyone in attendance. I felt really bad for the guy who was to have his most important day of his life (to that point) be the day that President Kennedy was assassinated. As the weekend continued, all radio and television programming was cancelled and all media coverage was focused on the aftermath of the shooting and the capture of the alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. The world was to witness the murder of Oswald live on TV the following day at the hands of Jack Ruby
Being bored and restless that weekend, as many of were at that age, I decided to take my transistor radio and spin the dials in desperation to find a radio station playing Top 40 music somewhere. Being on the border of Canada, I was lucky to find a station in Toronto CKEY (560 or 570 - help me Steve Stevens!) that was playing Top 40. Well, I found a home for that period of time, and stuck with it. Not only were they playing the hits of our day (see below) but also heard a number of songs that never seemed to make the WKBW playlist, such as "Waiting for the Evening Train" by the Anita Kerr Singers and "Alley Alley Oxen Free" by the Kingston Trio. Well, I was hooked! Starting right after Thanksgiving I became a very loyal listener to this station. What I did not know is that my discovery of this new source of music will give me a glimpse of what we all were to find out about right after
Christmas.
Once the programming of TV and Radio returned to "normal" on Tuesday 11/26/63, had you tuned in to WKBW, you would hear Rod Roddy, Stan Roberts, Fred Klestine, Danny Nevearth, and the classic Joey Reynolds play the following (in order that they appeared on the KB Top 30 survey of the week):
1. Dominique - The Singing Nun
2. Everybody - Tommy Roe
3. Forget Him - Bobby Rydell
4. Sugar Shack - Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs
5. It's All Right - The Impressions
6. Louie Louie - the Kingsmen
7. Be True to Your School - the Beach Boys
8. Popsicles and Icicles - The Murmaids (song written by David Gates, later the
leader of Bread)
9. Since I Fell for You - Lenny Welch
10. That Boy John - the Raindrops
KBIG Pick of the Week: Hooka Tooka - Chubby Checker
If I listed the remaining 20 songs, you would totally understand the American music listeners were ripe for the taking. Two weeks later, December 6, on CHUM and CKEY in Toronto, the pick hit of the week was "She Loves You" by The Beatles. If you were one of the lucky ones to have found the Canadian top 40 stations you would have been hearing the Beatles weeks before everyone else. I heard the song a few times on CKEY and thought it was good but it
was not what I was into at the time (primarly Surf and Drag racing songs were my thing that month).
As the world coasted through Thanksgiving and into the holiday season in 1963, the world seemed to be in chaos. The aftermath of November 22, 1963 seemed to cast a pall on the entire holiday season. Even the one thing that I always counted on to get me through anything (the music I heard on the radio) seemed to be in the doldrums. Enter December 26, 1963 - to be continued that day 50 years later!!!
If you would like to share your thoughts on what you remember about November 22, 1963, please send them to me. I will be glad to post them on the ACHS 1968 web site. I am sure all of us remember who we were with, what class we were in and how we felt that day. I WILL be sending out the continuation of the story above on December 26, 2013. "Oh What a Night, late December 1963" was a very important moment in all of our lives - the first real US exposure to Beatlemania!!!! I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Submitted by: Clay Pasternack
Beatlemania!
December 26, 2013 is the 50th anniversary of the release (by Capitol Records) of The Beatles first Capitol Records single "I Want to Hold Your Hand" b/w "I Saw Her Standing There". I won't give you all the history of how this came to be, but at this time, Capitol Records budgeted over $50,000.00 for the promotion and exploitation of this single, which was at that time, unheard of in the music business.
If you recall, in my last email blast, Canadian radio had already discovered the Beatles and were playing "She Loves You", which was the 4th UK single issued (previously, there was "Love Me Do", "Please, Please Me", and "From Me to You" - these were reissued in the US and two of these songs were on the same record). "She Loves You' debuted at #42 at CHUM 1050 Toronto on 12/3/63, and eventually became #1 in late January of 1964. For those of us who were scanning the radio dials in those days (like Steve Stevens and CHUM devotee Joe Gudelsky), we heard the Beatles, but somehow, it did not seem to register on me or probably everyone else. However that was all about to change.
On Friday December 27, 1963, WKBW's pick hit of the week was none other than "I Want to Hold Your Hand". For those of you who may remember, drive-time DJ Danny Neavereth would count down the KB Top 30 as fast as he could at 6 PM every Friday night. I was there, with my tape recorder, getting dressed to go to Temple Beth Am, as that night was my Bar Mitzvah! But there was no way I would miss hearing the Top 30 countdown (anyone who knew me knew this was serious!). After playing the # 1 record, "There I've Said It Again" by Bobby Vinton, Danny played the pick hit of the week. I remember hearing that song and all I could say was "Wow!" I obviously had other things on my mind that night,so I let it pass until the next day. On Saturday December 28, while the Buffalo Bills were losing a playoff game to the (then) Boston Patriots (who then got pounded by the San Diego Chargers in the AFL Championship game and it still makes me happy!), I was having my Bar Mitzvah party at the Sheridan Lanes (thank you Marjorie Wallens and family!).
I heard the Beatles song on the way to and from the party, and again that night. All of the following week while we were on Christmas vacation, both WKBW and WGR (who was at that time a Top 40 station with their night time DJ Tom Shannon) were constantly playing the Beatles record. On Friday night January 2, 1964, Jack Paar, then the host of the Tonight show, ran a video tape of a performance by the Beatles. My dad, who was a huge Jack Paar fan and a night owl like me, called me into the room and told me there may be something on the show I may want to watch. Well, after I saw them that night, my dad asked me if I thought they would be a success. I told my dad, after all the airplay I heard that week, well it looked like they would be big. That was certainly an understatement!!!
Of course, this email would not be complete without what was the top 10 at WKBW the week of December 27, 1963:
1, There I've Said it Again - Bobby Vinton
2. Since I Fell for You - Lenny Welch
3. Forget Him - Bobby Rydell
4. Wives and Lovers - Jack Jones
5. In My Room/Be True to Your School - The Beach Boys
6. Pretty Paper - Roy Orbison
7. Louie Louie - The Kingsmen
8. Drag City - Jan & Dean
9. Hooka Tooka - Chubby Checker
10. Dominique - The Singing Nun
As I said in the last email blast, looking at the list above, America was ready for the taking by The British Invasion!
I am sure that you will be seeing and hearing a lot in the next few weeks regarding the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania. I know each of you have your memories and thoughts about it, and I encourage you to share them. I will be much more prompt in sending and posting your thoughts on this round of emails. Some of you have already discussed this with me on the phone or in person as the impact of what happened at that time changed so many things in our lives, and also impacted some of us who were in music, records, radio or other performing arts. I do recall that Ilene Rosenblat Gelber has a Dave Clark 5 story because her father worked (as I did later on) for Buffalo recording industry mogul Leonard Silver, and his company distributed Epic Records, the label of the Dave Clark 5.
As we round third and head home for 2013, I would like to personally thank all of you for taking the time to read the newletter emails that I send as they are fun to write and really make my memory work on overtime. Also a very big thanks to the Reunion Committee who did another incredible job on the 45th reunion. And I want to thank you all for being part of our class, the best class of all the ACHS alumni!!! Happy 2014 to you all!
Submitted by: Clay Pasternack
If you recall, in my last email blast, Canadian radio had already discovered the Beatles and were playing "She Loves You", which was the 4th UK single issued (previously, there was "Love Me Do", "Please, Please Me", and "From Me to You" - these were reissued in the US and two of these songs were on the same record). "She Loves You' debuted at #42 at CHUM 1050 Toronto on 12/3/63, and eventually became #1 in late January of 1964. For those of us who were scanning the radio dials in those days (like Steve Stevens and CHUM devotee Joe Gudelsky), we heard the Beatles, but somehow, it did not seem to register on me or probably everyone else. However that was all about to change.
On Friday December 27, 1963, WKBW's pick hit of the week was none other than "I Want to Hold Your Hand". For those of you who may remember, drive-time DJ Danny Neavereth would count down the KB Top 30 as fast as he could at 6 PM every Friday night. I was there, with my tape recorder, getting dressed to go to Temple Beth Am, as that night was my Bar Mitzvah! But there was no way I would miss hearing the Top 30 countdown (anyone who knew me knew this was serious!). After playing the # 1 record, "There I've Said It Again" by Bobby Vinton, Danny played the pick hit of the week. I remember hearing that song and all I could say was "Wow!" I obviously had other things on my mind that night,so I let it pass until the next day. On Saturday December 28, while the Buffalo Bills were losing a playoff game to the (then) Boston Patriots (who then got pounded by the San Diego Chargers in the AFL Championship game and it still makes me happy!), I was having my Bar Mitzvah party at the Sheridan Lanes (thank you Marjorie Wallens and family!).
I heard the Beatles song on the way to and from the party, and again that night. All of the following week while we were on Christmas vacation, both WKBW and WGR (who was at that time a Top 40 station with their night time DJ Tom Shannon) were constantly playing the Beatles record. On Friday night January 2, 1964, Jack Paar, then the host of the Tonight show, ran a video tape of a performance by the Beatles. My dad, who was a huge Jack Paar fan and a night owl like me, called me into the room and told me there may be something on the show I may want to watch. Well, after I saw them that night, my dad asked me if I thought they would be a success. I told my dad, after all the airplay I heard that week, well it looked like they would be big. That was certainly an understatement!!!
Of course, this email would not be complete without what was the top 10 at WKBW the week of December 27, 1963:
1, There I've Said it Again - Bobby Vinton
2. Since I Fell for You - Lenny Welch
3. Forget Him - Bobby Rydell
4. Wives and Lovers - Jack Jones
5. In My Room/Be True to Your School - The Beach Boys
6. Pretty Paper - Roy Orbison
7. Louie Louie - The Kingsmen
8. Drag City - Jan & Dean
9. Hooka Tooka - Chubby Checker
10. Dominique - The Singing Nun
As I said in the last email blast, looking at the list above, America was ready for the taking by The British Invasion!
I am sure that you will be seeing and hearing a lot in the next few weeks regarding the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania. I know each of you have your memories and thoughts about it, and I encourage you to share them. I will be much more prompt in sending and posting your thoughts on this round of emails. Some of you have already discussed this with me on the phone or in person as the impact of what happened at that time changed so many things in our lives, and also impacted some of us who were in music, records, radio or other performing arts. I do recall that Ilene Rosenblat Gelber has a Dave Clark 5 story because her father worked (as I did later on) for Buffalo recording industry mogul Leonard Silver, and his company distributed Epic Records, the label of the Dave Clark 5.
As we round third and head home for 2013, I would like to personally thank all of you for taking the time to read the newletter emails that I send as they are fun to write and really make my memory work on overtime. Also a very big thanks to the Reunion Committee who did another incredible job on the 45th reunion. And I want to thank you all for being part of our class, the best class of all the ACHS alumni!!! Happy 2014 to you all!
Submitted by: Clay Pasternack
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