The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Players reminisce about ‘Perfect Summer’ of 1955

Jerry Lucas puts together a reunion at Sunset Park to help him with a film idea.

Jerry Lucas, right, tells a story about the Middletown High School basketball team of days past during a reunion of the players from the 1950s at Sunset Park in Middletown on Saturday July 25, 2009.

Staff photo by Pat Auckerman Jerry Lucas, right, tells a story about the Middletown High School basketball team of days past during a reunion of the players from the 1950s at Sunset Park in Middletown on Saturday July 25, 2009.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Votto leads NL in home runs
12:21 a.m.
Ochocinco and T.O. never short on work
12:15 a.m.
T.O. misses flight to Bengals camp
2:05 p.m.
Bengals report for camp, TO to follow
10:17 a.m.
Bengals sign draft picks Dunlap, Shipley
10:17 a.m.
> More sports headlines

E-mail this page

By Skip Weaver, Staff Writer 4:25 AM Sunday, July 26, 2009

MIDDLETOWN — The intersection of Miami and Bellemonte streets is a place that has as much history about Middletown athletics as Barnitz Stadium and Wade E. Miller Gym.

Sunset Park was the place to be in the summers of the 1950s, especially “The Perfect Summer” of 1955.

Jerry Lucas, one of Middletown’s greatest sons, is working on a idea for a film about that summer, and he came to town Saturday, July 25, for a Sunset Park reunion to enlist the help of his former basketball teammates and other Middie basketball greats.

TV Middletown’s Ty Thomas was on hand to film past players telling stories from that era. Some of the stories told are not printable, and others were probably embellished, but the message of the gathering was loud and clear.

“It’s going to take some time, but I love the idea,” said Bob Cole, who played with Lucas at Sunset and for the Middies. “It should have been done a long time ago. It’s a great story.”

As the story goes, the summer of 1955 was between Lucas’ ninth- and 10th-grade year. Teams from all over the state would come to Sunset Park to play Lucas and the others, and thousands of people would be on hand sitting in lawn chairs watching the games from sun up to sun down.

They didn’t realize at the time how huge that time would become.

“We were just kids playing and having fun,” Cole said.

Of course, most people know that the Middies of 1956-58 won two state championships and won 76 consecutive games.

It was arguably the best era for Middie basketball.

When Lucas got the idea for the reunion a few months ago, he called his buddy Don “Woody” Withrow.

“Woody got real excited about it,” Lucas said. “I told him I was going to be in town this weekend, and it has been everything I hoped it would be.

“I see this movie as a cross of ‘Hoosiers’ and ‘Remember the Titans,’ ” he added. “Life was so neat in the ’50s, and this place was a beehive of activity. It’s really a unique place.”

Lucas hopes his connections in the filming industry will help him to tell this story.

“The competition here was incredible back then,” Lucas said. “We had players from UD (University of Dayton) and UC (University of Cincinnati), and even the Cincinnati Royals (former NBA team) coming here to play.

“It was a phenomenal experience, and I was only 14 years old,” he continued. “It was the perfect summer for me that led to a perfect season in 1955-56.”

Share this article

ADD COMMENT

Comments feed

sounds great...and as a kid back there back then...they were the good ole days...

r harris
11:24 PM, 7/26/2009

REPORT ABUSE

As a resident of the Sunset Park area, I agree that it used to be a place of good times. I don't think alot of people realize what is happening to our park. With all of the rentals and section 8 housing going up in our area, we have witnessed several drug deals and how frequent these people visit the park, especially late at night. The side of the park with the tennis courts are extremely dark, allowing this to go on. Let's get our park back to the day of good times.

Andi C
1:21 PM, 7/26/2009

REPORT ABUSE

I remember it well! What good times, or I guess you could say, those were the good ole days!

c.rau
12:09 PM, 7/26/2009

REPORT ABUSE

We welcome your comments. Please remember this is a public forum and behave appropriately. Your comments must conform to our visitor's agreement.