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Fond Memories of Charlie Hoffman
by Sharon Gates
Charlie and I were great friends ever since we met in 7th grade at
Roosevelt.
When we were 15, at the beginning of our junior year at Charleston High, he
asked me to attend
a dance his fraternity, Sigma Mu, was sponsoring at what we called the
Coonskin Armory.
My mother quickly flew into action and had me an appointment at Moore's
House of Beauty on East Washington Street. Okey Moore fixed me up with
an "updo" and our neighbor across the street gave me a semi-formal
green
knee-length dress, with spaghetti straps.
Mother let me get "shoes dyed to match" which were very popular at
that time
(do I need to tell you "girls" that? Right! I'm just
letting the "boys" know!)
The shoes had high heels (about two inches, I think.)
Well, when John Wilhoit, Charlie's "Big Brother" drove Charlie to
my house
and I walked into the living room, Charlie's face fell, for I was now taller
than he
with the heels and hair! I had never thought of that!
Charlie, of course, grew very much taller as his teen years went on,
and I had already stopped growing at 14--so, we got a lot of laughs about
that later in high school and college and when we would reminisce at class
reunions.
We didn't do much dancing that night, but we listened to lots of
music-for the band was no less than the notorious Doug Clark and the Hot
Nuts! I
was embarrassed by the lyrics, but Charlie was not!
I have MANY other memories that I will chuckle about until I, too, die,
I'm sure. Another is when Charlie and David (Towery) would tell me about
the
infamous "Triangle District." Of course, I had heard of it, but
they told me
certain stories I couldn't believe. One day at the Coffee Shop, where we
ate
lunch (four vegetables and a hot roll with water for 50 cents) EVERY day our
senior
year, they offered to take me there if I didn't believe them, just to drive
by.
Well, I wanted to go and see this place so David and Charlie came to my
house to get me in David's Daddy's turquoise car (was it a Pontiac, David? I
know it was brand new!)
Then, just after dark, we drove to what was called "Fry's Alley",
but I thought
it was Christopher Street. When David parked the car and the doors were
securely
locked, they pointed to a window where a woman was sitting there, one leg
bent
with her foot on the sill and with a red light on. As I sat there and
looked I began
to weep in sadness and pity for the woman and what had transpired in her life
to
have her reduced to this.
David and Charlie got mad at me and said, "we never would have brought
you
here, Pearl, if we would have known you would act like this!" They were
indignant and maybe a little chagrined themselves, for I don't think they had
ever thought of it that way, but only as a lark, daring to drive through
such infamous quarters! David and Charlie both called me "Pearl" for
Pearly Gates.
I learned that night, to be more careful with my "adventures" and I
never
told Mama and Daddy.
Following so closely to Daddy's death, I find myself ambushed with tears
often.
May our dear friend Charlie RIP.
~Sharon
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