SIX GUN MATINEE MEMORIES!

  SUNDAY JANUARY 6TH., 2019
 SIX GUN MATINEE MEMORIES!

   My wife and I passed an historic
movie theater in the small Schuylkill
County community of Pine Grove on
Saturday. The place has been around
since 1910 and I was pleased to see a
listing for a current feature on the
marque!
     Most towns, even small ones, had
at least one neighborhood theater back
in the 40's and 50's when I was a little
kid. And many of my Saturdays were
spent in theaters like those watching
the heroes of those years on the huge
silver screen. Most of those heroes
were Cowboys!
       Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Johnny
Mac Brown, Lash La Rue, and a host
of others.
        When we got home we played
cowboys! And most of the boys I knew
had a trusty six gun! Of course much
like the guns we saw on screen our
six guns fired a lot more than six shots!
         Our ammunition was provided by
a roll of caps which provided, probably,
30 or 30 shots before we had to reload.
         Those were the days before
Red caps! Not the Red caps who carry
your luggage to the cab from the bus
station or cruise docks. I'm referring
to the Red caps that are now placed on
the tip of the barrel of cap guns to show
they are toys!
         Society hadn't reached the
point where we needed them in those
days! Thankfully!
         It was more than the sight of
that old theater that revived my
memories. We visited an Antique
Market in Strasburg where several
"shooting irons: like the ones I played
with were on display.
        One looked especially like one
I owned. It was selling for $40. Back
in the day $40 would have purchased
the gun and about 6 months worth of
caps! Guess I should have held on to
mine!
        Hope you kept yours and that
all your NEWS is good!