1966 PBA Toledo Open

[@mikedonzero2692]

Absolutely golden film footage. Thank you so much.

[@TommyRockKW]

Love these old vids ! I watched them all starting in 1966 !

[@leopoldmozart1449]

Oh, by the way, this is probably boring, but when I was 17 my father took us to Vegas, and I got to watch the qualifying rounds of the 1978 Showboat tournament. At the end of the day my brother and I talked with some of the pros, and they were all so kind, so gracious to us. They had a culture of sportsmanship and kindness, really amazing. Anyway, at that time my favorite bowler was Dave Davis, so we visited him and asked him a bunch of questions. He spent about 10 minutes with us, it was so special, such an unforgettable time for my brother and I. I've never forgotten his kindness that day. He is a great bowler and a great man.

[@Revs300]

leopold mozart I think we all have memories of the pba growing up i used to go almost every year to windsor locks its sad what the tour has become nowadays

[@sk8ersbus1]

Mike Ware Yes it is sad what the PBA has become the past decade and a half; I don't even bother to watch anymore . With that said, THANKS for uploading all these historic ABC telecasts! The BEST ones ever made!!! Chris Schenkel and Bo especially!! Also good to see historic footage of Ducat's Imperial lanes.

[@chasbari]

+leopold mozart I remember going to the Firestone T of C in 1979. I skipped school, it was my senior year and a friend and I went up to the early rounds. I had a program with just about all the guys' autographs. Can't find it to this day but there wasn't a one of them who wouldn't talk to you even if just for a minute. Dick Weber, Palmer Fallgren, Teata Semiz are just a few I remember speaking to specifically. I was a big Tommy Hudson fan ( I was throwing a Brunswick Tommy Hudson LT-48 back then when I wasn't throwing a yellow dot.) Thought I was going to join them on tour some day. Nice stroll down memory lane here. Our Saturday junior league we would have the PBA Tour on the TV down in the Nursery because that's where the TV was back in the old days. We would run down there to watch between frames. Nothing better than when you were on the high end of the house because you didn't have to run very far to see the show.

[@Mr4stringer]

chasbari, The Tommy Hudson ball back then was called the LT-51. It was blue. The LT-48 was the Johnny Petraglia and was a black soft rubber ball. I had several of them.

[@carlgannon4835]

There was a Green poly LT48 that was a Hudson signature...

[@Dr_Paul_Proteus]

That "stop-action" technology is amazing.

[@altfactor]

When I heard "Bugler's Dream" at the 59 minute point of this clip, I thought it was going to be an announcement voiced by Jim McKay saying that ABC had obtained exclusive United States TV rights to the 1968 Winter and Summer Olympics, and that the network would broadcast them via satellite in color, with some events live and the rest shown just a few hours after they take place.

[@danhaley9393]

It’s amazing this was on tv lol

[@BowlingOldies]

It's so funny to watch this. It's as if Billy Welu had not yet learned that his job was to say something after every shot. Instead, on several shots, he just remained silent. You'd never hear that today. (Some would argue that this was better, but as a career broadcaster, I can promise you it wasn't the director's intent.)

[@dcbandnerd]

He definitely came into his own as the series developed - he seemed to let his knowledgeable, gregarious, but unassuming personality come out. It's a real shame he died so young and so suddenly.

[@leopoldmozart1449]

Amazing upload, Mike! Thank you very much for this. It's cool to see Dave Davis and Pete Tountas so young. Also, I really love the old round robin format. You're probably tired of people making requests for PBA posts, but please hear this one out. When I was 15 years old, I watched in real time the 1976 Monroe-matic tournament in Toledo Ohio where Billy Hardwick won his last tournament, and won the only tournament of his come-back. The full roller legend, with his non-functioning ring finger, the obvious rheumatoid arthritis that was already starting to ravage his body (and the steroids he had to take made his face and body puffy) was back to show the new generation what a 1950's style bowler could do. It was as if Bruce Lee had suddenly showed up at an MMA Ultimate Fighting tournament. The courage and hopefulness of Hardwick inspires me now as I face my own age problems, my own decline phase. That tournament is the holy grail of bowling tournaments for me. If you have it, could you please post it? Thank you.

[@Revs300]

leopold mozart I wish i did have that show alot of people are asking about it

[@Revs300]

leopold mozart No im not tired of requests..its all good really:)

[@tirmyta]

Thanks, Mike!

[@altfactor]

If my memory serves me correct, 1966 was the last year that (most) of ABC's Pro Bowlers Tour broadcasts were in black-and-white. I thought that the 1966 Firestone was the first PBA event ABC broadcast in color, and that they televised all their PBA events in color starting in January of 1967.

[@TimothyBukowskiApologist]

+altfactor I believe it was '68 when they fully switched to color.

[@8avexp]

+altfactor During the 1991 Tournament of Champions, there was a bomb threat and to kill time before everyone was allowed to go back inside, they showed most of Jack Biondolillo's 300 game in 1967 - in color. You even heard the famous, "We are live and in color," from the host (it wasn't Schenkel).

[@michaelschweizer4772]

The contestants bowled well in the 1966 Toledo open on Alleys 21& 22.

[@MrRemark21]

Aired on ABC Saturday, March 19, 1966.

[@Crankerny58]

WoW! Vintage Dave Davis!

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

It's a shame they don't come to town anymore, not since they torn down this place. :-(

[@railroadskater2896]

I agree. Though again, pro bowling in general just isn't what it once was. The respectability of the game has gone extinct. Won't even waste my time watching anything from the last 15 years. That's why I only watch older shows like this.

[@ChristopherSobieniak]

@@railroadskater2896 True.

[@kevinjohnson4599]

@@railroadskater2896 Same here pal because this was when bowling was bowling. Like the NFL, the Pro Bowlers Tour is now CRAP too & isn't worth watching anymore either.

[@Heath-Gallagher]

@@railroadskater2896 agreed ,back in the days of this broadcast you had to actually "aim" and be accurate for a strike,it wasnt given to you on a platter like today,the spare shooting and split conversions were better back then too,and i cant ever remember the F word being said also,it was a ladies and gentlemans game,no more.

[@crawford586]

Imperial Lanes: 1963 - 2009.

[@mrb43605]

Great place!

[@BaseFury]

5:14 - THAT'S an old-school split!!!

[@dougcooper5204]

Mike, great upload! Would you happen to have the 1966 Mobile-Sertoma Open? I would love to see that show!

[@Revs300]

Doug Cooper Wish i did:(

[@williamdunphy352]

Commentators: Chris Schenkel & Billy Welu.

[@trivet1970]

commercials are also priceless

[@kentdickinson5957]

Just ran the numbers on "inflation calculator" -- $5,000 in 1966 is equal to $36,777 in 2015.

[@TimothyBukowskiApologist]

+Kent Dickinson I was wondering that, thanks!

[@weevie833]

It is notable that the fetish for incessantly showing the bowlers' wives goes this far back.

[@Dr_Paul_Proteus]

Mrs. Tucker from Los Angeles got more screentime than her husband.

[@talkcat10]

I always enjoyed seeing the wives!

[@mikedonzero2692]

Gene Rhoda was one of the best.

[@PointyTailofSatan]

Little known fact: the bowling balls are made from stone, because they hadn't invented plastic yet. THat's why they bowl so slow. The balls weigh 30 pounds. lol

[@Mark-sj3xb]

Was Fred Flintstone in this tournament?

[@joeambrose3260]

122:15 Tucker's got the flu. Where is his mask ?

[@reinnegroni8462]

That wasn't even exist way before the pandemic begin. People smoke cigarettes inside a bowling alley back then.

[@joeambrose3260]

@@reinnegroni8462 U gotta b shittin' me bro

[@reinnegroni8462]

@@joeambrose3260 No shit lol. Back in the days when people allowed to smoke in a bowling alley. And whoever says that Chris Shenckel smokes along with Billy Welu during a play by play commentary, you ain’t seen nothing yet. 😆