Santa paid a visit to Rome on Monday night, December 2nd, to lead the annual Christmas Parade. The parade, which began at 6pm, started at Barron Stadium, headed down Second Avenue, then up Broad Street. More than 20,000 people showed up for the parade,
Workers began moving the overpass structure near the Marine Corps Armory this week in 1968. Plans called for the removal and lane widening to take approximately three months. When completed, lanes would be widened from 9 feet per lane to 12 feet per lane, and a third lane would be added for traffic heading into town from West Rome; this lane would channel traffic onto North Second Avenue, past Barron Stadium, and into the downtown area.
West Rome had another bout of snow flurries on December 3rd, the second of the year. Once again, though, the little bit of snow wasn't enough have any impact on local travel, and school remained in session.
Local election runoffs made history for Rome as three Republicans won positions on the City Council for the first time in history. The Republican wins took place in North, South, and East Rome; West Rome remained solidly Democrat into the 70s.
Burglars did their Christmas shopping early on Monday night. First, they broke into the Central Plaza Super Discount store, where they stole about $130 worth of merchandise. Then thieves broke into Blanton Plow Company, but they found nothing they wanted, so they left empty-handed. The same night, thieves broke into the Holiday Laundromat, where they stole some change and a few packs of crackers from a cracker machine. On Tuesday night, armed men tried to carry out an armed robbery at Hogan's Service Station, but the station owner turned on the robbers and pummeled them until one of them hit the owner in the head with the butt of his pistol, then fled. On Thursday night, burglars broke into Glidden Paint company and stole $163 in cash; Dari-Chief, where they were unsuccessful their attempts to open the safe; Horton's Laundry, where a small amount of change was stolen; and East Rome High School, where a snack machine was ransacked and the offices were trashed.
Piggly Wiggly had sirloin steak for $1.09 a pound, Maxwell House instant coffee for 79¢ a jar, and Coca-Cola/Tab/Sprite for 33¢ a carton plus deposit. Kroger had chuck roast for 35¢ a pound, Del Monte pickles for 29¢ a quart, and Double Cola for 99¢ a case plus deposit. A&P had pork roast for 55¢ a pound, d'Anjou pears for 19¢ a pound, and a two-pound fruitcake for $1.79. Big Apple had fresh whole fryers for 25¢ pound, Chicken of the Sea tuna for 33¢ a can, and bananas for a dime a pound. Couch's had lamb shoulder roast for 49¢ a pound, Van Camp's chili for 33¢ a can, and tangerines for 49¢ a dozen.
The cinematic week began with Coogan's Bluff (starring Clint Eastwood) at the DeSoto Theatre, Live a Little, Love a Little (starring Elvis Presley) at the First Avenue, and The Boston Strangler (starring Tony Curtis) at the West Rome Drive-In. The midweek switchout brought The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (starring Alan Arkin) to the DeSoto Theatre, For Love of Ivy (starring Sidney Poitier) to the First Avenue, and The Boba (starring Peter Sellers) to the West Rome Drive-In.
Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" climbed to number one this week in 1968. Other top ten hits included "Love Child" by Diana Ross & the Supremes (32); "For Once in My Life" by Stevie Wonder (#3); "Abraham, Martin, & John" by Dion (#4); "Hey Jude" by the Beatles (#5); "Who's Making Love" by Johnnie Taylor (#6); "Wichita Lineman" by Glen Campbell (#7); "Stormy" by the Classic IV Featuring Dennis Yost (#8); "I Love How You Love Me" by Bobby Vinton (#9); and "Magic Capet Ride" by Steppenwolf (#10).
A big week for album releases, with the Monkees' quirky LP Head, the Rolling Stones' powerful Beggar's Banquet, James Taylor's eponymous Apple debut album, and Stevie Wonder's For Once in My Life all released during this week in 1968. Big album releases like these, so late in the year, made it a bit easier for many of us to put together Christmas lists for our parents...
Elvis Presley's career-remaking television special Elvis (known to many as the 1968 Comeback Special) aired on NBC on December 3rd; it marked Elvis's return to live performances after seven years of stressing movies over music. The special was so popular that it launched the second wave of Elvis's music career.
Dark Shadows made its jump from television soap opera to comic books this week in 1968 with the release of Gold Key's Dark Shadows #1. This was also the week that Jim Steranko's final Captain America story arc began in Captain America #111; Steranko's bold graphic design sense and fast-paced storytelling made him a fan favorite.
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