It’s one of those Mega Millions drawing nights, so it seems appropriate to take a look back at picking another winner — a 50/50 Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair winner.
So, the Retro Pic of the Day honors the picking of a winner … a fair winner … in a fair way.
In this shot, the guys are giving the tickets a tumble, poised to dig in, fetch and announce the number that will match up with the person holding the stub.
The set-up of the 50/50 Booth was similar yet a bit different back in the day. That would be Jim Butler doing something there to help and a bunch of onlookers drinking beers and hoping to get lucky … with their numbers.
Can anyone wager a guess as to how high the 50/50 has gone or did go in those days, which were likely the early 1970s? And who was the biggest winner — before the days of the Super 50/50?
Not only is Wednesday night Firemen’s Night at the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair, it’s also Olympian night this year.
Connor Jaeger, who recently won the silver medal in the 1,500-meter freestyle swim in the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, is back home and set to meet, greet and do some selfies with hometown friends and fans. He will be appearing at the fair, in front of the firehouse, from 7 to 9 p.m..
He said it himself on Instagram …
“This Wednesday 8/31 from 7-9pm please come and meet me at Fair Haven’s Fireman’s Fair for a selfie booth. Please come to meet me and give me an opportunity to thank you all for the unbelievable support you have shown me.”
There was talk of a parade, which is what transpired when Jaeger came in sixth in the same Olympic event in 2012. However, officials decided to wait and see what was most amenable to Jaeger.
So, selfies and socializing at the fair it is.
“We hope to see you tomorrow night,” Councilwoman Susan Sorensen said in a Facebook post after thanking officials, including Connor Jaeger’s father, Eric, a fellow councilman, for coordinating the “meet-and-greet.”
Sally Van Develde selling balloons at the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair Grab Bag Booth
Retro Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair stock room days in the 1970s
Photo/FHFD booklet
Sometimes I can still smell the lingering scent of funnel cake in my mother’s hair. I can still see her blue-striped Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair apron draped over the kitchen chair. I can see her tying those apron strings. I can see her checking her hair and lipstick in the mirror by the door. I can hear her voice calling to me upstairs to hurry up as I tried to get my pigtails even and the puffy yarn bows tied just right. I’m always late.
And sometimes I can still see us walking down the street, her scurrying, brushing her hair to the side, still yelling back to me to hurry up.
Chris Brenner serving hot dogs at the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair Photo/courtesy of Chris Brenner
The following is an opinion piece, a tribute, about the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair by Fair Haven resident, Rumson native and 1983 RFH grad Chris Brenner …
In late August of 1965, I came into the world at Riverview Hospital. We lived in Rumson; and, no doubt, on my first ride home in our blue VW Beetle, I went right by the Fair Haven firehouse, which surely was hosting the annual Fireman’s Fair at the time. I sadly didn’t make that ’65 fair. Too busy learning to breathe and see, and all of that.
We have a winner at the 2015 Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair Photo/Elaine Van Develde
Yup, it’s Friday night. It’ll soon be time for that Mega Millions drawing.
Yes, of course, everyone wants to be a winner!
So, in honor of those lucky winners and the idea that the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair is coming soon, the Retro Pic of the Day honors both with a shot from last year of one of the first, very surprised and elated, 50/50 winners at the fair.
Cheers to the winners! The look on his face just says it all!
It was 50/50 announcing business as usual for John Riley on the last night of the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair. It was also his 69th birthday.
Someone got a hold of the mic that’s usually always in Riley’s hands and announced that the birthday on Saturday.
So, Monday’s Retro Pic(s) of the Day is dedicated to Riley.
Riley is pretty modest. And he looks exactly the same as he did back in the early 1970s when this editor first met him during her childhood.
Riley has been a lifetime Fair Havenite and a decades-long member of the Fair Haven Fire Department. He also worked in the borough’s Department of Public Works seemingly forever.
He always has a smile on his face. He wears his modest, gentle demeanor and love of hometown on his sleeve and in his eyes.
Happy Birthday, John Riley! Thank you for all you’ve done for the love of Fair Haven!
As Yogi Berra said, “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.”
That’s sort of how it goes when the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair ends after it’s traditional end-of-summer week-long stint — because it’s never really over.
The fair never really ends. And most of the people running it are still around year-round.
So are the fairgoers in the area. It’s called community. And it’s something that may culminate annually at the fair, but is a mainstay of life in the Rumson-Fair Haven area.
But there is that annual closing night. There are also some fair traditions that have not ensued over the years. Do you know what they are?
We do.
Did you know? …
• that there used to be a high wire act on closing night? It dates back to the mid- to late- 60s and early 70s. I think Batman may have actually been there, too.
• There also used to be a band playing nightly on the front balcony of the firehouse. The bands King James and His Court and Pete Galatro’s Orchestra were staples. And, in later years, there was carnival music piped onto the grounds. Notice that there is no longer any music?
• Candy apples, a longtime fair treat, are no longer made and sold at the fair.
• There used to be a booth where you could win Kewpie dolls and many of them served as toilet paper covers, with embroidered skirts to cover the roll.
• There was also a booth where television sets and other smaller appliances were prizes.
• There was no super 50/50. There was a car raffle.
• There was a carousel ride.
• The Zipper has been a fair ride since the dawn of time.
Generations of Fair Haven Fire Department people have worked the fair for decades. Tradition. Some things never change. It ain’t over.
As closing time for the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair came, yet another old picture popped up, and there was a little chat on the fair grounds with a present co-chairman of the fair and the stockroom guy of more recent years — Andy Schrank and Frank Leslie.
Frank Leslie and Andy Schrank on the last night of the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair. Photo/Elaine Van Develde
Schrank, now one of three co-chairs, took us back in time a bit. He reminded us of the times when there was only one chairman. Before there were the present three, Gary Verwilt, former longtime Knollwood School teacher, had the job. Back in the day, though, from the late 1960s to the late 80s, that guy was James Acker.
So, the Retro Pic of the day features a photo of Acker peering out of the stockroom at fair time somewhere in the middle of those years.
What does the chairman do? Well, it’s what it sounds like. He has to make sure that everything is up and running right, son Bill said.
There’s some haggling that goes on over purchases, rentals and state operation licenses.
In then end, though, it’s all boils down to just making sure things are always running smoothly. And they always have.
James Acker, or Jimmy, as my dad called him, always had a sincere smile on his face and twinkle in his eyes, especially when talking about the fire company. He always looked people straight in the eyes when talking to them, too. He was just a nice guy who, his son reminds us, was stubbornly dedicated when it came time to chair that fair — but always a friend.
“I remember going to New York to Conelle’s to buy stuff (prizes) for the fair and rent the tents,” Bill said. “When Dad and Mr. Conelle got together, it was like watching two dogs fight over a bone. But when it was done, Mr. Conelle and Dad were like old friends again.”
Yes, James Acker was loyal. He loved his fire company and his friends. A perfect example of his extreme loyalty was his helicopter dad manner when protecting the fair’s famous clam chowder secret.
He had the secret recipe to the much sought-after soup. He got it from an old Fair Haven friend. He made that chowder with that recipe, Acker kids getting things cooking beside him, for decades.
As promised, Bill said, the recipe went to the grave with him. He had promised the hander-down of the hush-hush concoction that it would never be shared with another soul. It wasn’t.
It was a measure of commitment to the best for Jim Acker, loved his fellow firemen — enough to make sure he got the fair the best chowder around. And it was bowl-licking good.
Oh, the new recipe is good, too, but he and some others would have to argue that the secret recipe version had a bit of an edge.
A 1983 story from the Red Bank Register archives on the fair has Jim Acker quoted. He said that the fair drew about 5,000 people a night then. He also said that it took about 225 people a night to operate it. Don’t forget, there was no internet purchasing then. He said he started going into New York and buying $25,000 worth of prizes in January (from Mr. Conelle, whose first name escapes Bill) for the 15 games of chance.
The big prize in 1983 was a Dodge 400 convertible, rather than the present super 50/50.
Oh, and among the prizes purchased were cartons of cigarettes for the Big Six tent, now the Money Wheel.
Step right up for a spin on the fair memory wheel! Game of chance? No. It’s a sure bet that there are many more where it came from.
RIP James Acker. Thanks for the memories … oh, and the chowder!
It’s the night of the Fair Haven Firemen’s Fair when firemen, first aid squad members, police officers — really, all first responders — from all around the country are welcomed to the fair to join their brothers and sisters, honor one another, be treated to some food and drink and just get together and have a good time.
That night was — always is — Wednesday. Tradition. The fair grounds were packed with the people who show up when you dial 9-1-1.
This year, responders showed up from as near as Rumson to as far as Alexandria, VA. True story.
Also on the grounds were reps from: Tinton Falls, Middletown, Shrewsbury, Morganville, Sea Bright, Eatontown, Manalapan, Colts Neck, Ramtown, Freehold (East, Borough and Township), Englishtown, Long Branch, Allenhurst, Brielle and Holmdel.
Oh, and milling around giving thanks to the firemen, showing support for his Fair Haven neighbors and enjoying the festivities with wife Lolly was Rumson Mayor John Ekdahl.
Take a look at the above slideshow for a glimpse into the evening of tradition and thanks. (Don’t forget to click on the lower right icon to enlarge!)
You must be logged in to post a comment.