Saturday, May 02, 2020

Fifty Years Ago This Week in West Rome - 5/4/1970 to 5/10/1970

Debbie Shelnutt was chosen as Miss West Rome Senior High and David Watkins was chosen as Mr. West Rome Senior High at the 1970 production of Chieftain Acts, directed by Mrs. Clara Ellison. Lisa Stephenson was selected as Miss West Rome Junior High, while Gary Investor was a tapped as Mr. West Rome Junior High.

West Rome placed several Student Council officers in positions of authority at the Georgia Association of Student Councils, including Tommy Muse, convention chairman; Jessica Gittins, corresponding secretary; Nancy Corlew, treasurer; Annie Diprima, recording secretary; and Tom Glad, co-treasurer.

A pair of check forgers were arrested after trying to pass a fraudulent check at the Big Apple grocery store in West Rome. The pair had broken into a Cave Spring wood processing facility and stolen blank checks, which they were trying to pass in various stores in Rome before an alert grocery store manager noticed something odd.

A shootout between two neighbors on Division Street left one man dead and one man hospitalized. The survivor, Bobby McGahee, refused to say what started the altercation that left Albert Simpkins dead.

Sheriff Joe Adams said that he was holding off on further arrests at the West Rome Big K for violation of Sunday blue law ordinances until the court rules on the initial case and arrest from March of 1970. While he had originally said he would make a new case every Sunday, Sheriff Adams said "there is no sense in making cases against all these businessmen if the big managers continue to opinion Sunday anyway."

Rome unemployment inched up slightly in May of 1970, climbing from 3.5% to 3.9%. Georgia Labor Commissioner Sam Caldwell blamed the federal government's Job Corps program for the increase, saying that it had failed to create jobs, but had eaten up a lot of money that had previously gone to subsidize new hires.

Romans eager for a Southwestern vacation could travel to Arizona and Mexico for three days and three nights for only $79.95 each including hotels, air fair, tours, and more. Vacationers would leave Rome for Tucson, Arizona, where they would spend one day and one night; they would go on to Nogales, Mexico for the second day and night; and then they would return to Tucson for the final day and night before flying back to Atlanta on the morning of the fourth day. The $79.95 per person covered air fare, transportation from Rome to the airport, sightseeing fees, accommodations, meals, and more.

The West Rome pizza war between Village Inn and Pizza Inn heated up with Pizza Inn's addition of a lunch buffet for only $1.15, which included all the salad and pizza you could eat; drinks were 25¢ extra.

Piggly Wiggly had beef liver for 59¢ a pound, tomatoes for 29¢ a pound, and medium eggs for 29¢ a dozen. Kroger had sirloin steak for $1.08 a pound, strawberries for 29¢ a pint, and Morton frozen dinners for 32¢ each. A&P had Swiss steak for 85¢ a pound, peaches for 33¢ a pound, and Nabisco vanilla wafers for 23¢ a box. Big Apple had leg o' lamb for 89¢ a pound, Parkay margarine for 39¢ a pound, and cabbage for 9¢ a pound. Couch's had pork roast for 59¢ a pound, Aristocrat ice milk for 39¢ a half-gallon, and yellow corn for a dime an ear.

The cinematic week began with Marooned (starring Gregory Peck) at the DeSoto Theatre, The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County (starring Dan Blocker) at the First Avenue, Midnight Cowboy (starring Dustin Hoffman & Jon Voight) at the Village Theatre, and On Her Majesty's Secret Service (starring George Lazenby in his one and only feature appearance as James Bond) at the West Rome Drive-In. The midweek switch out brought Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (starring Robert Redford) to the DeSoto, What Do You Say to a Naked Lady (a Candid Camera feature film hosted by Alan Funt) to the First Avenue, The Lawyer (starring Barry Newman) to the Village, and DeSade (starring Keir Dullea) to the West Rome Drive-In.

The Guess Who held on to the number one slot this week in 1966 with "American Woman." Other top ten hits included "ABC" by the Jackson 5 (#2); "Vehicle" by the Ides of March (#3); "Let It Be" by the Beatles (#4); "Cecilia" by Simon & Garfunkel (#5); "Spirit in the Sky" by Norman Greenbaum (#6); "Everything Is Beautiful" by Ray Stevens (#7); "Turn Back the Hands of Time" by Tyrone Davis (#8); "Up Around the Bend" by Creedence Clearwater Revival (#9); and "Reflections of My Life" by the Marmalade (#10).

Why a week this was for albums. The number one album this week in 1970 was Deja Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Other top ten albums included Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel (#2); McCartney by Paul McCartney (#3); Hey Jude (also known as The Beatles Again) by the Beatles (#4); Band of Gypsys by Jimi Hendrix the Band of Gypsys (#5); Chicago II by Chicago (#6); Steppenwolf Live by Steppenwolf (#7); It Ain't Easy by Three Dog Night (#8); American Woman by the Guess Who (#9); and Here Comes Bobby by Bobby Sherman (#10... well, they can't all be winners!).

Let It Be, the final Beatles album prior to the group's breakup, was released this week in 1970.

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