Reflections of Ismael (Ish) Nazario from 1957 to 1961 at Baker High

FRESHMAN YEAR

I started Baker High School in September 1957 as a freshman.  We had just returned from Puerto Rico as my father returned from a tour of U.S. Army duty in Korea.  I was in the homeroom class of Mrs. Griner, because it was nothing but Home Economics paraphernalia around.  I remember seeing my classmates from South Columbus Elementary School where I attended the 5^th, 6^th and 7^th grade.  I remember seeing Libby Norris, Johnny Radney, Robert Major, David Kirk, Elizabeth Smith, James and Freddy Sue Elliott, (brother & sister), Wanda Gill, Linda Oakley, Joy Cofer, Arnold Robinson and I am sure several others. 

During my first class of Physical Education, coach Ed Wolf and coach Jennings Thomley noticed that I was a big freshman and invited me to come out for the Freshman B Team football.  I told them that I have never played football before.  They asked, “What sports did I play?”.  I said basketball, soft ball, volley ball and putt putt golf.  They asked about baseball since I was Puerto Rican and they are known to be real good baseball players.  I told them, “I used to play but quit because, I got hit on the head with too many wild curves”.  Coach Jennings Thomley said, “In football we have helmets so I won’t get hit on the bare head that I will have protection”.  I found out in later years, as coordinating the luncheons, “Lunch with Lions” that those helmets were the original leather helmets that the first football team at Baker were issued and that was in 1945.  Not knowing any better, I loved them especially because they did not have a face mask to obstruct my sight. 

That day, after school, I met Coach Wolf in the gymnasium/auditorium, on the stage to fit me into a football uniform.  He had to show me where all of the pads went on the pants, how to wear shoulder pads and all of it. 

On the practice field, and at that time it was located behind the school by the railroad tracks it was awkward as the coaches tried to teach me how to get in a football stance.  We started hitting and I realized that I liked hitting other football players.  I progressed rapidly and at time I would practice with the varsity team.  I remember meeting Arnold (Tank) White ’59.  I thought that he was the biggest guy in the world, but, I also remember that he was very nice to me.  A good role model.  I knew that I wanted to be as big and good as “Tank” White.

Another incident in my freshman year was when, after PE, while changing into or out of my gym shorts and tennis shoes, there were some guys up on top of the lockers looking through hole in the wall, where a steam pipe went from the boy’s locker room through a wall and into the girl’s locker room.  The line was too long and I did not get to look at the girls or at least, not that time.

As far as girl friend, I don’t know that I had a steady girl.  I remember that Billie Brooks was the Baker pin up girl at that time because, of her large boobs.  In the gymnasium, she would lean against the wall that supports the upstairs section while the boys upstairs would look down her dress.  Some of them leaned so far that I fail to see how some of those boys did not fall down from the upstairs.

Scholastically, my wood shop teacher, Mr. Jere Richardson, tried to teach me wood workings.  I liked him as he was very respectful to all of us.  In the last four years or so, we have become good friends.  I can not remember who my world history teacher was but, I didn’t like her because she made me study and actually, I made my best grades there along with PE.  I thank her to this day for that effort of making me study.  For English I think, I had Mr. Register and I like him a lot only in my freshman year.  His classroom was by Dr. Kirby’s office.  In study hall, I think that Miss Nell Owens was the teacher or librarian, at some point in time I must have caused a distraction or most likely, an annoyance, because, she sent to Mr. Boyle’s office and I am sure for misbehaving.  I remember Mr. Boyles sentencing me to licks and he also told me, “This is going to hurt me more than it will you”.  I think that he lied to and I feel certain that many of the former male students at Baker will attest that he lied to them also.  I do remember all of my teachers urging me to study because I had the capabilities.  I was having too much fun playing sports, talking to the girls and skipping school.  

SOPHOMORE YEAR

Mrs. Griner, again, was my homeroom teacher and she was so kind not only to me but everyone else.  I think that while in the PE boy’s locker room, I finally got on top of the lockers and looked towards the girls locker-room and liked what I saw.  I can’t remember who it was that I had seen, as I never got to look above the neck.  I was still playing football with the B team and at times practiced with the varsity.  While in PE class one of the male PE teachers was seen going into one of the changing rooms on the stage.  Later a female PE teacher was seen going into the same room.  We heard some banging and groaning going on, so I could only imagine the activity between the two.

I remember my biology teacher, Mrs. Radecki.  After dissecting a frog she told me that the legs fried are good eating.  I was in my fifty’s when I tried to eat frog legs and could not help thinking about that poor frog that I had dissected.  When I hear of frog legs, I think that instance in Mrs. Radecki biology room.

I can not remember my typing teachers’ name.  She was good looking and I am glad that she worked with me on my typing as it would be beneficial in my later years.

Somewhere along the line I must had misbehaved again because I wind up going to Mr. Boyle’s office and again he told me, “Son, this is going to hurt me worse than you”.  Again all of my teachers were urging me to study as equally the effort that I placed on sports and other activities.

I remember the sock hops well and playing our kind of fifties and sixties music.  I recall Libby Norris, Elizabeth Smith and other girls trying to teach me how to dance but, I just could just not learn until later while in the Army.

My stay at Baker during my sophomore year was short.  It happened that following  Christmas Holidays, while at Mr. Register room,  he taught English and I thought that, we were good friends while in my freshman year, he really got to be a butt hole during the sophomore year.  He started the year as a real tough teacher, he did not weigh over 120 lbs. soak and wet, and anyway he was chewing some of my female friends from South Columbus Elementary.  I think that it was Elizabeth Smith, and made her cry.  I stood up and holler at him, “Mr. Register, I think that you have said enough to her”.  He then, got in my face and I knocked him out before even thinking.  I was a big kid.  I think as a sophomore I weighed around two hundred and twenty five or so pounds.  I proceeded to carry him to Mrs. Atkinson room, our first aid room.  Then instead of returning to the room, I went to Mr. Boyle’s office.  He was standing outside his office and asked me, “Son, where are going?”  I said, “To see you”.  He asked “Why”.  Step into my office.”  Then he asked me, “What did you do?”.  I told him that I had knocked Mr. Register out.  He said and I will never forget it, “Damn, I did not like the S.O.B. either but you did not have to knock him out”.  I went to Jordan High School for six months until the end of my sophomore year.

JUNIOR CLASS

My junior year was more productive scholastically but not much more than before.  Scholastically I had Mr. Jere Richardson for metal shop.  I have always respected him and still do.  I tried to make some kind of a lamp out of metal.  He spent lots of time breaking up fights between David (Big Red) Roberson and myself.  “Big Red” to this date is a dear, a very dear friend.  Coach Ball was the head football coach and during PE one time, Ken Wessner was on top of the lockers on the boy’s locker room looking at the girl’s locker room and Coach Ball and Coach Weekley came in and they, the coaches and the boys, stood and watch Ken W. just make a fool out of himself by jumping up and down on top of the locker all excited and yelling about who and what he is seeing.  When he stopped, looked down and seen all of us looking at him, coach Ball said, “Wessner, give me 10 laps around the school building”.  That was so funny.

 For my Junior & Senior prom a group of us boys had a bet as to who will take the prettiest girl to the Junior/Senior prom.  I had asked this very good looking and attractive girl from Pacelli High School. I met her at Lake Bottom, while on the track team meet or practice.  Mr. Sam Roberts was the track coach at that time.  She agreed to go with me until the week before the prom, as her grand father died.  All of the other girls were already asked.  One of my football buddies Eddie Bowen ’62, mention that his sister Marilyn Bowen. did not have a date.  I called her, Marilyn Bowen and asked her to go to the prom with me and she and her parents agreed and we had the best time and she was just absolutely gorgeous that evening and still is today. We double dated with a couple that I wish I could remember their names because Marilyn and I just had a ball.  We left the prom before it was over and went to Ida Cason’s and played music and she tried to teach how to dance.  It was the best time and every one of us enjoyed it. 

I used to play some piano of which I learned at the service club in Ft. Benning, at that time, by Bryant Wells’s field House.  I remember during PE that I was showing off by playing some boogy boogy on the piano and there was a talent contest coming up at Baker and Audrey Sharples said, “Ish, I did not know that you could play the piano?”  She asked me, “Do you know the song Blue Moon”?  I said, “sure that is easy”.  I must explain that I knew only 4 songs in the piano, 1. Begin the Beguine, Boogy Boogy, Blue Moon and Fascination.  I practiced extra hard so I would look natural the evening of the contest.  The night of the contest in the gym, it was a full house and I got nervous but, Audrey won and Liberace would have been so proud of me.  I loved to listen to him play the piano on TV.

I had Foster Watkins for geometry and his room was on the upper level above Dr. Kirby’s office.  He really and honestly tried very hard to teach me geometry to the point, that I will never forget what he asked me during a class, “What was the closest distance between two points”?  I was thinking real hard for the answer and he then proceeded to draw a football play where he had a running back running a sweep play and I am on the weak side of the defense and I said “I would tackle him by going straight at an angle”.  In my Geometry class, Ken Wessner always made a bird sound by whistling between his teeth.  Coach Watkins always thought that it was me doing it because I could not keep a straight face.  He would send me home for lunch early since lunch was our next period.  During football spring practice we have two new coaches, Foster Watkins from Georgia Tech and Jeff Weekley from the 1957 Auburn undefeated team.  Both Coaches were linemen and played guard at their respective colleges.  I remember very well coach Weekley during the first day of practice asking me if I thought that I could move him holding the dummy.  I said, “Sure I can”.  I was a big and very strong kid at 225 lbs. and a little cocky also.  I get down on my stance. Coach Watkins blows the whistle and guess what?  I did not move Coach Weekley at all.  I could not believe that.  I thought that he tricked me or something but I was in shock.  Coach then said, “Ish you hold the dummy and do you think that I could move you”.  I said, “Coach, you can’t move me”.  Guess what again, he moved me quite a ways.  I was so mad at myself for letting him move me around and I could see Coach Watkins with a grin and that made me just madder.  Then Coach Weekley said, “Ish, now that we have you undivided attention, would you let us teach you the correct technique in blocking and tackling and you can be one of the best if not the best blocker in the Southeast”?  I was all ears and Coach Watkins went so far as to go heads up with me, without pads,  trying to motivate me and all he had on was a helmet. Toward the end of this reflection I will tell how far in football the teachings of the Coach Watkins and Weekley helped me.       

Before the football season, on post, the “Doughboys”, Ft Benning football team, I got to know some of the players.  The players let me work out with them where I got to meet the Doughboys coach and they would at times let me practice with them but not in pads.  I gain much size and strength by working with them.  The Doughboys team manager, Sgt. Mallick, while at one time at Bryant Well Field House said to me, “Ish, come with me to handball court.  I will teach this game and it will help you in your football as to reaction and condition”.  Was he ever right?  I picked up the game of handball so fast that after football season he wanted me to be his partner because of my quickness and accuracy.  Some of the Doughboys linemen were huge guys and big time weight lifters.  I worked out with them where I can remember as a junior I could bench 275 lbs with ease, I could squat 400 lbs. with some ease.  Also, I think his name was Sgt. Smith a football player for the Doughboys and an All Army boxer middleweight taught me boxing.  He worked me rigorously.  Frank Holbrook, at the time he was just skinny and trying real hard to build him self up for football, joined me in boxing.  In basketball, I played on the post leagues with the big boys.  They were good and rough under the basket.  I tried to play on the Baker B team but, the coach of the B-Team of which I can not remember his name told me that I could not play basketball because I looked muscle bound.  I told him that I could play against him and he said that I would never play basketball for him.  I think that he was somewhat prejudiced.  I never told Coach Ball or any of the coaches.  That coach did not last long at Baker.  I kept playing on post teams and was a regular forward especially in rebounding.

In the 1960 football season, we were a defeated team all season instead of undefeated.  We lost every game but we were one of the most feared teams as us linemen managed to put one or two out for the season of the opposing team.  I recall an article in the paper where we were getting to play Valdosta, GA and their coach was been interviewed as they were undefeated as usual.  The interviewer was suggesting that the game against Baker High should be an easy game for them, but the Valdosta coach said that he was more afraid of us than the other teams that they play because we, Baker, always managed to put some player out for the season.  We were bigger than them and we beat them on the field but they beat us on the score board where it counts.

The following spring practice was a usual spring practice and new football players get to try out for the football team.  In one instance we were doing tacking drills where a player lays down on his back between two dummies and the runner about ten yards back and when the coach blows the whistle, the runner commences to run between the dummies and the one that is laying down, jumps up to his feet and faces the runner and try to tackle him to preventing of running past the dummies.  Well coach Ball had the linemen running the ball and the new guys tackling.  I am sure that it was to see the ability to tackle from the new players.  When coach lined us all and I looked to see who is going to tackle me, I turned around and told “Big Red”, “Look who is going to try to tackle me.  “Big Red” said, “Don’t hurt the boy and I said that I wouldn’t”.  I ran to him and just barely touched him and he fell on his back and I chewed him out saying, “Newt you can’t fight on your back son and you can’t let me intimidate you because of my size.  You have to learn how to stand and fight”.  I was trying to instill confidence on this person.  Little did I know that he would be the House Speaker of the United States, the Honorable Newt Gingrich?  The last time I personally saw him was at a 1994 fund raiser where he and some of us school mates met with him in private as well as in a conference with top European officials.

SENIOR YEAR

My senior year actually started in June of 1960.  That was when the Ft. Benning Doughboys started football practice and I practiced with them.  By that time I was much bigger and stronger than my junior year.  Thanks to the linemen whom I worked out with weights.  I think that, I was benching 315 to 350 lbs. and squat around 400 to 450 lbs.  The head coach let me dress in pads this time.  They followed Baker High football very close and were not happy that we had lost every game the year before.  That summer, the Green Bay Packers, were going to play the Washington Redskins at Memorial Stadium as an exhibition game.  The Washington Redskins practiced at Memorial Stadium and the Packers practiced at Doughboy Stadium at Ft. Benning.  When I shook Vince Lombardi’s hand I thought I was shaking God’s hand.  I remember him asking me, how old was I and what school did I go to and how many  High Schools were in this area?  I told him that I went to the best school in the state, Baker High.  He said that I seemed proud of that school and I said, “Yes sir, very much”.  He said that since it is on the way to Memorial Stadium he might swing by.  I am sure that I had told some of my friends of meeting coach Lombardi and that he might stop by the school football field.  It was on a Saturday and some of us were either running laps or playing tag and then this 1957 Chevrolet, Army green staff car drives by and stops and I recognized Coach Lombardi.  The others in the care were some of his staff. The rest of the team was on a chartered Greyhound bus in route to Memorial Stadium.  Meeting those players and coaches was such an impressionable  time.  I also got to meet some of the Redskins players and coaches.  For the Packers, I remember Ray Nitchsky, Bart Starr, Jim Taylor, Paul Horning, Jim Otto and other linemen.  For the Redskins, I remember the quarterback, a small fellow name Eddie Leberon, Tackle Andy Stanchula and others.  I remember Coach Lombardi asking me about my High School and I told him how we loved our school that we had an assistant principal that keep us all in line.  Coach Lombardi said, “He must be a good man”.  I said, “You are absolutely correct”.  I told him also about our two line coaches, Foster Watkins and Jeff Weekley, where they played for two major colleges in Georgia Tech and Auburn.  He said that he was very familiar with both of the school football programs.

Our football season was much better than previous year.  I think that we won 5 games and should have won all of them.  I recall it last game was when I realized that I would not be playing High School football anymore.  I was feeling sad not only for myself but for us seniors.  Whenever we came into the field I always looked towards the north end where my dad and my sister Loary sat and the majorettes such as Sherry Miller, Linda Oakley, Judy Edge, Maybell Ball and others because they had their legs exposed and I thought they all had good looking legs.

Scholastically I already had enough credits to graduate as my parents had sent me to summer school ever since my 5^th grade.  I made A’s and B’s in summer school.  My two best teachers were Mr. Bryson Carson, Columbus High School principal and Mr. Taliaferro, Jordan High School principal.

My senior English teacher at Baker was Mrs. Owens and she was great.  Her room was located in Dr. Kirby’s wing upstairs.  In the beginning of the year we boys sat in the back and the girls in the front.  Some how, Mrs. Owens got us boys interested in her English class where I was making A’s & B’s.  She also got us involved in a play, Macbeth and the girls got upset with us and we started seating up front and the girls in the back.  We memorized the play.  Her husband was transferred after Christmas and some of us cried when she left.  Her teaching talents were where we wanted to study and study hard to succeed.

For some kind of History Class we had Coach “Pig” Davis.  I don’t remember learning a whole lot as we would always ask him about his playing days at Alabama.  You can guess what we talk about for the rest of the period.  I recall one time that we were going over some test grades that I had made and I disagreed with him on the grade that he gave me and he said, “What do you think you made on that test”.   I told him a B.  I think that I really made a C or D.  He was very respectful of his players and students.

I took ROTC and I liked it.  I forgot who was my officer and he was little guy and was afraid to give me a command because he thought that I would whip him after school.  I remember him calling the platoon, that I was in, to attention and he was looking at me and I had to tell him what do want us to do, a right face or left or what?  Later on in the year someone picked on him and bruised him some and I was told about it and I took care of the guy that bruised him.  I became his good buddy.  

I had Mrs. Dubose for science as a senior.  I had science in earlier years and needed to take something easy because I already had enough credits.  I liked her a lot and she probably sent me to Mr. Boyle’s office more often than any other teacher.  I need to explain this.  In her class we had some other boys that were not as smart as I was, if that tells you how dumb they were.  I remember Tom Schumpert, Terry Curtis, Ken Wessner I think and one or two more.  We also had several pretty girls and most of the girls were pranksters.  There was this time where we had water pistol fights before, during and after class.  I finally got me a water pistol and the girl behind me and the one behind her would shoot me often in the head and back.  The girl behind me did not know that I had a water pistol this particular day.  I cautiously, with my left arm, reached to the bottom of the seat where we stored our books, while I was looking towards the front and Mrs. Dubose was writing on the board, I twisted my left arm and pointed the water pistol backwards to the girl behind me and she let a loud scream, Mrs. Dubose turned and seen me grinning as well as the other boys and we got sent to Mr. Boyles office.  I squirt the girl behind me between her legs.  Later on my senior year, I was asked by Barbara Roberts if I would go to the freshman dance with her and to her surprise, I agreed.  It was at the Navy Reserve building on Victory Drive and Mrs. Dubose was one of the chaperones.   I finally could slow dance and Barbara, like other girls, tried to teach me to jitter bug.  I could, by this time, slow dance.  Mrs. Dubose was also tending the punch at a snack table.  I have always like Mrs. Dubose and she knew that, so while approaching the table for some punch for Barbara and myself, I asked Mrs. Dubose, “Is this punch spiked or on the rocks”?  She, with the kind smile that she always had, said, “No Ish I am afraid that it is on the rocks”.  While conversing with her, I jokingly asked her, “Mrs. Dubose, If I were to ask you to dance with me would you pass me”?   She agreed.  While slow dancing, we were conversing and I told her how much fun her class was that, I apologized for all the times that I misbehaved.  When I was certain that she was serious about passing me, I danced again with her to make certain that she would pass me and repeated my apologies again to her satisfaction.  I told to Terry Curtis what I had done and he immediately went to where the punch was and asked Mrs. Dubose the same and she agreed to pass him.  Then, Terry and I went to Tom Schumpert and he criticized Terry and me for dancing with her.  Hi words were that, “She is nothing to look at”.   I said, “who cares”.  You are nothing to look at either just dance with her and she will pass you.  He said, “I wouldn’t dance with that old bag if my life depended on it”.  When we got our final grade, Terry and I passed and Tom flunked.

We also had a talent show one night and many were competing from dancing, singing and whatever else.  Some one and I think that it was Ken Wessner knew the people that were organizing it and mentioned to them to have an Ugly Man Contest.  The found some jars, three of them and they placed Ken Wessner name on one, my name on the second and Tom O’Connor on the third.  Whoever got the most pennies would win.  Tom O’Connor got three pennies, Ken Wessner go one penny and my jar was full.

I remember our senior class party at the Harmony Club and we had fun but we were all somewhat sad.  Graduation night at the Civic Center was great when they handed me my diploma.  My parents were so proud.  When we were marching at the end there were some hugs and tears shed.

RECAP of my high school years.  As you can well see that scholastically was not really in my interest at all only except for a very few instances.  I turned down some football offers that were there for me and the main reason was scholastically.  I looked for a job after high school and could not find any so I joined the Army.  I was assigned to the 101 ST ABN Division at Ft. Campbell, KY.  I played football for the “Screaming Eagles” which afforded me the opportunity to try and play for a little bit with the New York Giants.  I owed that to the Bake High Coaches, Foster Watkins and Jeff Weekley.  Later I married and went into the insurance business in which a requirement was that I take and go to an Insurance school, LUTC and I graduated at top of my class against other college graduates.  If I would have failed the class, I would have lost my job so the incentive was clear.  I was somewhat successful in the insurance business.  Then, I went into the manufacturing business with ALCOA Aluminum as a production worker.  Two years into my employment, I wondered if I could have ever made it through college so at age thirty I enrolled into a community college which was a branch of the University of Kentucky.  I accomplished my associate degree with a 3.86 average.  I then applied for an apprenticeship in the electrical department and several years later I started my own electrical contracting business in which we specialized in Industrial automation, commercial and residential.  In that spectrum of time I made contact with Terry Curtis, who was dumber than I in high school. He was the head electrical engineer for a big Electronic Corporation in North Carolina.  While in business, I personally lobbied for small electrical companies at state level and at Washington, DC.  I also coached Pop Warner, middle school and High School and I used the same techniques shown to my by Foster Watkins and Jeff Weekley.   I guess I could go on and on but some might think that I am tooting my horn.  In closing, what it all boils to, is that, had not been for the teachers and coaches’ influence at Baker High, my outcome would have been different.  I wish I had been much more serious scholastically but then, I would not have the fun that I had and the friends that I still have from dear Baker High School.  I know that there are more stories similar to my, we from Baker High folks.  I know that there is Medal of Honor winner, Full Army Colonels and probably generals, College professors, Deans, College Administrators, Ministers, Catholic Priests, Accountants, movie star, nurses, Lawyers, Doctors, letter carriers, Teachers, Principals, Bankers, Business Owners, HVAC, Electricians, plumbers, mechanics, carpenters and even House Speaker of the United States and I am sure much more.  Perhaps a future President of the U.S.  For all of us dumb Baker Folks, we did not do badly at all.  We all represented her well and now they are bringing the ole girl down.  The fire could not bring her down because she was tough.  She made us all tough.

I love you man!

Ford

Thanks for your kind words.

Ish

Great stories Ish.  Loved them all.

Marilyn's brother Allen, was my best friend.  He died on his 40th birthday and I was one of the pall bearers.  Hardest thing I ever did.

Hi Roy:

Are you talking about Marilyn Bowen?

Ish

Ish thank you for sharing your story. i really enjoyed it.

Marilyn Bowen was Allen and Eddie's sister.  The one you took to prom.

Hi Marion:

I had no idea that there was another brother.  Thanks for the information.  What year did you graduate?

Ish