Morning announcements (detail from W.T. Armstrong)
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Don Wright's original arrangement for orchestra of the Beck song
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I LOVE THE SUNSHINE OF YOUR SMILE |
1950's 1960's Traditional songs sung in Beck auditoriums
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Mr. Bartley: "Is that so!"
'Mr. Ant'
'My mother thought my grades nine and ten math teacher's name was Mr. Ant
until she went to an open house and met Miss Durrant.'
‘I remember going up the north stairs and down the south
but I was just following the herd. That should have been my first clue
that I was not destined to be a leader. Never registered that it was a rule.
They say that ignorance is bliss … ‘
Harvey Stewart
'Harvey Stewart was one of my favorite teachers. Harvey truly enjoyed teaching.
His classes were great. Everyone had
fear in their hearts if he stopped
to talk to you in the hall or had the wrong answer in his Geography class.
Maybe fear is a little too strong. Perhaps dread would be better.
I remember Danny White and Glenn Conkright were in front of me,
waiting in line to the cafeteria.They both had toothpicks in their mouth
and Mr. Stewart stopped to lecture them on the fact that the slivers from the wood
would eventually get into their appendix and they would be rushed to the hospital.
On many occasions when it was raining and we would be sitting in the gym after
lunch, he would
come in and perform amazing gymnastics on the horse or swing ropes.
My favorite memories were his comments, if you ever yawned in class.
One he frequently used on me was "Ginsberg, I've seen steam shovels try to make holes that big.
That will be 5". I then had to stand
for 5 minutes looking out the window in the corner of the room.'
Buckle down, Beck Collegiate
Buckle down
You can win, Beck Collegiate
If you knuckle down
If you break their necks
If you make them wrecks
You can break the hex,
So buckle down
Make 'em yell Beck Collegiate, make 'em yell.
You can win, Beck Collegiate
If you give 'em hell
It you don't give in take it on the chin
You are bound to win, it you will only buckle down,
If you fight you'll chuckle at defeat.
If you fight your luck'll not retreat
Knuckle down Beck Collegiate
Knuckle down.
You can win, Beck Collegiate
If you buckle down
If you mow them down
If you go to town
You can wear the crown
If you will only buckle down.
The Buckle Down song was taken from a 1941 hit Broadway play.
Doubtless, Mr. Chapman knew this. But the students did not. Anyway, it was a rousing song to sing at pep rallies.
- A Business on the Side -
"The funniest thing that I remember about Abe Bartley was the time he got so excited
about teaching French that he grabbed the intercom cord and,
pretending it was a telephone, made this great call << Ici M. Montfleury et Compagnie >>."
We all certainly thought it went out over the intercom.
Tuesday, May 10, 1955
The grade 11's went to Toronto to visit the museum and
everyone bought butterfies. They sang all the way home
on the bus.
Grade 11 diary.
"Heart Of My Heart", I love that melody
"Heart Of My Heart" brings back a memory
When we were kids on the corner of the street
We were rough 'n ready guys
But oh, how we could harmonize
"Heart Of My Heart" meant friends were dearer then
Too bad we had to part
I know a tear would glisten
If once more I could listen
To that gang that sang "Heart Of My Heart"
Words & Music by Ben Ryan, 1926
The Four Aces, 1953
Can butterflies sing?
Harvey Stewart meets Harold Dickins
'Both my Dad and my uncle attended Beck in the early thirties, and when I showed up
at Beck in 1957 Mr. Langford, Miss Dolan and Mr. Stewart all remembered
teaching them! My Mom had attended South Collegiate and she had Mr. Armstrong for science.
He even remembered at which table in the science lab she sat!
I remember Mr. Stewart asking me that first day in September,
"Are you Ivan's (my Dad) or Harold's (my uncle)?" Shaking a little,
'cause you remember how intimidating Mr. Stewart could be
to a Grade Nine kid, I replied, "Ivan's." He kinda smirked, as only he could,
and said, "That's a good thing!"
My uncle was a bit of a rascal, I gathered; he was the elder brother.
I was somewhat relieved, and my Dad laughed and laughed when he heard that.
I wish my Dad were still alive; it would be so great to attend these reunions with him.'
It has nothing to do with academics, but everything to do with education.
It says a great deal about Mr. Stewart.
Exiting the cubicle and washing my hands, I looked up into the mirror
and was shocked to see Mr. Stewart standing there.
The look on his face is hard to describe, but I remember it clearly.
It was part smile and part -- um -- chagrin.
Instead, Mr. Stewart apologized to me. He apologized to ME. In front of the whole class.
I was the classic under-achiever and of no great importance to him or the class.
There was no need for him to apologize to me. But he did.
we commonly referred to him by his first name?
O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?
"I remember Miss Lewis in English class,
playing all the roles in the Shakespeare play of the moment.
My favourite was her rendition of Romeo and Juliet
as she went from her desk top to the floor in playing both in the balcony scene."
The school was known as Sir Adam Beck Secondary School
from 1962 until its closure in 1982.
(TVDSB website)
CHEERLEADERS: Is everybody happy?
FANS; Well I guess.
CHEERLEADERS: Is anybody sad?
FANS: Well no I guess.
EVERYONE: Well if everybody's happy
And nobody's sad,
Let's beat this team,
And beat 'em, bad.
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The passage of time.
Male student's wind-up watch. The watch was worn at Beck in the 50's.
The student's father kept the broken watch for 42 years.
The watch was repaired by a jeweler and presented to the student in his 60'th year.
1950's - 1960's Recapture the mood. Times changed in society and people changed.
Times changed at Beck. What was Beck like in your time? Write a descriptive or narrative story for the story page.
Send your story to ralph.pritchard@rogers.com