Mobile Phones 1950s Style

[andybrennan]

Any one else bar myself use these,
They were a couple of tin cans with copper wire strung through the bottoms and you would talk into the open end while the other party had their can stuck to their ear I think it worked or may be you could hear the person talking from the other end of the camp ahh for the days of improvisation and a child's imagination

[shamtheman]

Hi Andy,
I remember the 'tin can walkie-talkies' well, except we just used twine instead of copper wire! As the 'piece of string' was always short, I never could figure out whether we were hearing the other person down the line or was it because they were within earshot.

I was in Mullaghmore in Sligo last weekend, and in the bar of the hotel we were staying in was an old payphone, black with buttons A and B. I had great fun explaining its workings to my 13 year old son, who found it all quite fascinating. I remember every Thursday evening, after Bible Club, myself, Ger Tobin, Murt Quinlan, Eddie Caffrey, Kevin Foley and others would always ring the girls we would have met the previous summer at Bible summer camp. Most of them went to Wesley College in Dublin, so there would have been a few of them also. You'd always be begging the operator to give you a few extra mintes free, and in fairness to them, most of them did! I remember saving up the pennies all week to fund the phone call, but it was part of the weekly ritual and something we looked forward to all week.

Isn't it strange that back then letter writing was the usual way of staying in contact with people, and then the mobile phone took over. The only thing most of s write now is a Christmas Card. Until Matthew came to our rescue, that is. I see a new thread commenced acknowledging Matthew's ingenuity, and I add my thanks here as well! Good on you, Mac!

Sham

[gercollinsfurlong]

Hi Andy
I also remember the tin cans but as sham said with the twine and only worked within ear shot range. I can also rem putting the twine through them and using them for walking many a grazed knee i had from that but hours of fun.Can also rem the the drinks cans when you stuck it to the heel of your shoe and walked around making one hell of a racket how the simplest of things kept us happy for hours

Geraldine

[andybrennan]

Hi Ger,
now that you mention the drinks cans think I may have done that but then again it could have been my children.

Heard a little story about Danny R.I.P Joe Coughlin and the driver.
your dad and Joe had a wicked sense of humour.
while the 3 mentioned above were taking a vehicle to Kildare Bks they decided to give a jockey a lift when he was settled in your dad took a knife from his pocket and proceeded to attack Joe with it the poor jockey got such a fright he jumped from the car and was seeing scuttling as fast as his legs would allow and the boys had a great laugh out of that one.

I have to say while readind the postings of all on the forum it jogs my memory in lots that I thought long gone, names of people events and places keep it coming

Andy

[gercollinsfurlong]

Hi Andy
Often heard my father and Joe telling that story when they got together and many others i don't know how they got away with half the stuff they did.There was also another joker in that rat pack jimmy Leonard and between the three of them they had some stories. heard my dad telling a story once about filling a landrover with turf one night and getting caught but they blagged their way out of that one as they always did.I think a lot of their generation has a tale or two to tell about the three of them because when the rat pack were together there was something happening.

GERALDINE

[andybrennan]

Hi Ger at least that confirms the authenticity of the tale as for Jimmy Leonard I have only good memories of him the man with the permanent smile.
Andy

[afcmoore]

Hi Andy.
I never knew you knew jimmy Leonard .Well Joe Coughlin and Stacker Furlong and Jimmy Leonard always that wick glint in their eyes and that knowing smile and always game for a laugh.Hell you never knew what was going to happen next and when you asked them about the Prank which it was rumoured they had pulled the face of innocence .
Joe was driving a car to the dance hall in Athy with four lads in the car he threw the steering wheel in the back and asked who would steer as he continued to drive.Then he took the steering wheel back and said ah i might as well steer myself.There was another member of this group and i think his name was John Dalton not sure about the Christian name?
Mind you there was always something happening and never a dull day we never took life too serious.I got a bottle here and i filled it with the Curragh spirit when i was there and Ive kept
it with me always.The band maestro that night in Athy was Brendan Boyer and i think the dance hall was called Dreamland? not sure?
Cheers
Anthony

[andybrennan]

hi Tony.
Yes Knew them all But Danny Was Danny to me as Stackers was Jimmy who was cook sergeant ceannt for many a year. Joe Choughlan a gas man as were the whole family some great names there . the auld vice grips was a good replacement for the steering wheel as that item was usually passed to the lads in the back seat .

your right Brendan Boyer and the Royal were big then and they were in Dreamland in Athy I may have been there myself as it was one of my many haunts
Andy

[afcmoore]

Hi Andy.
Thanks for confirming that i was right about Dreamland and wasn't dreaming.Danny Furlong I'm sure is the chap I'm talking about.I can picture him in my mind before the mobile phone the phone in plunkett guard was used by him through the window bars to talk to his girlfriend in Dublin every night.Danny had fair hair and i met his younger Brother in Harlow in Essex at an Irish dance hall over 30yrs ago.
The priests at the time reckoned the devil was in dreamland and i think he was right and quite a few of them used to travel from the Curragh by car myself included but we weren't fallen Angels!!.more like hells Angels.
The days of the dance halls are finished which is sad Larry Cunningham has brought out a book about the end of the era of The Irish Dance Hall.
Cheers
Anthony

[andybrennan]

Tony,
Dreamland was reputed to have been occupied by the Divil, some girl was dancing with the guy of her dreams and while walking off the floor after a dance with him she was behind and looked down to see his cloven / hoof feet.

Well thats the story as I remember it but I am sure that the only Divils there were us lot delivered by Hal Conway's Bus.

Cheers

[afcmoore]

Hi Andy.
Thanks that's the story i hear too but just unable to clear the fog from the old grey matter.I knew the devil came into to it some place so i added my own version .I'm sure she must have used a powerful hair spray or some thing stronger and he must have been able to do a hell of a tap dance been such a hoofer.
Regards.
Anthony