Muzac For Munsters

[Cousin Strawberry]

Cool! Where exactly was that?

[Megaterio Llamas]

Cool! Where exactly was that?

Right next to that empty lot where the junkies have their garden on Hastings across from the Army and Navy.

Something called the Portland Hotel is there now and a fringe of red bricks from the Pantages can still be seen on it's west side corner..

[Cousin Strawberry]

Ok. That area was the original downtown core.

[Megaterio Llamas]

Ok. That area was the original downtown core.

The original one yes. By the sixties it was being challenged by Granville. Eaton's was the first to make the move and gradually everything followed. It kind of seems like the city actually planned to turn it into skid row. Back then the skid was to the north on Cordova and Powell especially around Gastown, but they turned that into a tourist area. There was already some hard drugs around then but not out in the open like today. it was mostly winos.

But the center of downtown was the corner of Main and Hastings and the whole strip was lit up with pretty neon signs. It was awesome.

[Chef Boi RD]

Ok. That area was the original downtown core.

The original one yes. By the sixties it was being challenged by Granville. Eaton's was the first to make the move and gradually everything followed. It kind of seems like the city actually planned to turn it into skid row. Back then the skid was to the north on Cordova and Powell especially around Gastown, but they turned that into a tourist area. There was already some hard drugs around then but not out in the open like today. it was mostly winos.

But the center of downtown was the corner of Main and Hastings and the whole strip was lit up with pretty neon signs. It was awesome.

Yup regarding Pantages Theatre. My Noni used to work there. Main and Hastings was the hub of the city once,
at one point. It was my Dad, his Dads and his Dads Dads neighbourhood, otherwise known as Strathcona. Nono owned a hotel/pub at Main and Powell from 1940 - 1970, and an uncle owned a hotel/pub at Main And Hastings the same amount of time. I have a lot of sentimental values in that neighbourhood, it’s a complete shit show now, because the DTES Society wants it that way, they’ve built an economy off the down and outters backs.

[Megaterio Llamas]

We remember it this way Chef Boi RD

[Cornuck]

This is all just a little before my time. We had the rare family dinner downtown in the 60s (Granville St White Spot, Terminal City Club come to mind) - but I didn't start heading down there often until the late 70s.

I would have loved to have seen it in its heyday.

[Blob Mckenzie]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

[Chef Boi RD]

We remember it this way Chef Boi RD

Yup

My Nono, had an infamous scrap at the Main and Hastings intersection. He was on his way to deposit cash from the previous days sales at the Melbourne Hotel walking to the bank at the corner of Main and Hastings with a loot of cash when some thug tried to rob him, apparently the guy had been planning it, fortunately back then guns really didn’t exist. The scrap went about 30 minutes. There was a crowd of over 100 people watching, the intersection was shut down, people got out of their cars to watch, the police from the station
came down to watch and were controlling the crowd during the scrap while they watched. Nono was a well known street fighter back then with a Mike Tyson like knock out punch. The thug was a boxer and put up a good scrap and knew about Nono’s clobber and avoided it pretty good, the thugs one move was he kept spitting in Nono’s face but eventually Nono tagged him, sent him to the hospital. The thug was flat out in a coma for a week, came by the Melbourne after he got out and says to Nono, “Gilly you didn’t have to hit me so hard”. Nono bought him drinks on the house. I just love how shit was settled back then, by gones be by gones. Today’s it’s all guns and gang bangs and carried grudges

[Cousin Strawberry]

Thats a bad ass story Chef!

[Chef Boi RD]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

Fond memories at Oppenheimer as a kid. There was a fast pitch league for all the stripper bars. The Fives home field was Oppenheimer park, watched countless many games there as a kid, that was my enjoyment as a kid, watch a bunch of drunk bar men play ball at Oppenheimer, once watched a drunken native lady attack my Mom there once. I wonder if that was SKYO’s Mom. Remember the Marr Hotel across the street? They were in the league. It’s a total shit hole now.

[Megaterio Llamas]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

Fond memories at Oppenheimer as a kid. There was a fast pitch league for all the stripper bars. The Fives home field was Oppenheimer park, watched countless many games there as a kid, that was my enjoyment as a kid, watch a bunch of drunk bar men play ball at Oppenheimer, once watched a drunken native lady attack my Mom there once. I wonder if that was SKYO’s Mom. Remember the Marr Hotel across the street? They were in the league. It’s a total shit hole now.

Yeah I think it's a tent city squat these days.

Geez your granddad was quite a scrapper back in the day eh. Wow.

I don't really know anything about the old culture around there, I grew up way out in Crescent Beach/White Rock.

[Chef Boi RD]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

Fond memories at Oppenheimer as a kid. There was a fast pitch league for all the stripper bars. The Fives home field was Oppenheimer park, watched countless many games there as a kid, that was my enjoyment as a kid, watch a bunch of drunk bar men play ball at Oppenheimer, once watched a drunken native lady attack my Mom there once. I wonder if that was SKYO’s Mom. Remember the Marr Hotel across the street? They were in the league. It’s a total shit hole now.

Yeah I think it's a tent city squat these days.

Geez your granddad was quite a scrapper back in the day eh. Wow.

I don't really know anything about the old culture around there, I grew up way out in Crescent Beach/White Rock.

It’s a shame seeing the current state of DTES these days. The opioid crisis is a serious problem and nobody in government has the balls to do anything about it

[Blob Mckenzie]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

Fond memories at Oppenheimer as a kid. There was a fast pitch league for all the stripper bars. The Fives home field was Oppenheimer park, watched countless many games there as a kid, that was my enjoyment as a kid, watch a bunch of drunk bar men play ball at Oppenheimer, once watched a drunken native lady attack my Mom there once. I wonder if that was SKYO’s Mom. Remember the Marr Hotel across the street? They were in the league. It’s a total shit hole now.

The Marr Hotel had a Senior B Fastpitch team back in the day, like mid to late 80s. I’m assuming those guys were remnants of the booze slugs that you saw. At a decent level you can’t booze up during the game... it ain’t Slow Pitch ...after the game all bets are off. I played a tournament for the Marr back in 86 as 16 year old. What a fucking eye opener. It wasn’t booze ball Dude, but the fans were inebriated drinking whatever they could get their hands on. Scared the fuck out out of me. The Marr team had come out to Telosky in Maple Ridge where out Midget team was playing in a tournament and got me and another guy out for their league tourney in Van. I can’t believe my dad would sign off on that shit. There were people drinking mouthwash and aqua valva in the bleachers.

[Chef Boi RD]

Its not a racial slight its too many fuckin people all squabbling over average homes.

I'm glqd i got to grow up there and enjoy what it was before it became this.

Hey Chef did u used to go for hangover breaky at the totem? Or De Dutch Pannekoek at the end of hastings?

I’m a north shore guy, Brown. My old man was East Van. We did the Tomahawk off Marine Drive and the De Dutch where Marine meets 3rd street beside the Oasis Car Wash

Do you prefer Oppenheimer Park or Mahon Park?

Fond memories at Oppenheimer as a kid. There was a fast pitch league for all the stripper bars. The Fives home field was Oppenheimer park, watched countless many games there as a kid, that was my enjoyment as a kid, watch a bunch of drunk bar men play ball at Oppenheimer, once watched a drunken native lady attack my Mom there once. I wonder if that was SKYO’s Mom. Remember the Marr Hotel across the street? They were in the league. It’s a total shit hole now.

The Marr Hotel had a Senior B Fastpitch team back in the day, like mid to late 80s. I’m assuming those guys were remnants of the booze slugs that you saw. At a decent level you can’t booze up during the game... it ain’t Slow Pitch ...after the game all bets are off. I played a tournament for the Marr back in 86 as 16 year old. What a fucking eye opener. It wasn’t booze ball Dude, but the fans were inebriated drinking whatever they could get their hands on. Scared the fuck out out of me. The Marr team had come out to Telosky in Maple Ridge where out Midget team was playing in a tournament and got me and another guy out for their league tourney in Van. I can’t believe my dad would sign off on that shit. There were people drinking mouthwash and aqua valva in the bleachers.

Ha! Awesome story, Doyle. The Marr was the Fives arched enemy from what I remember. My old man was an avid baseball player, he got an invite to the St. Louis of the MLB’s training camp along with another guy from Vancouver back in the 50’s. I don’t think they were called the cardinals at the the time.