Sun Tower, one of the oldest remaining hotels on Fort Lauderdale sands

 

 

Sun Tower Hotel & Suites

2030 N. Ocean Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, FL

954-565-5700

By Jane Feehan

The Sun Tower remains one of the few hotels in Fort Lauderdale that can claim the beach lies literally out the back door. With a deck and restaurant only feet off the sand, it draws locals and repeat visitors from afar.

It’s been around since about 1959 when original owner George A. Zarekas filed a fictitious name or intent to do business as “Sun Tower Apartments.” Architect of the 22-unit building was Gamble, Pownell and Gilroy Company. According to The Miami Herald that year, a $235,000 contract was “let to W. Edward Seese” to build; D.E. Britt served as engineer.

Zarekas came to Florida from Carbondale, Pennsylvania in 1955 where he and wife Marjorie owned and operated the Waymart Hotel and Restaurant. In Fort Lauderdale they also owned the Carib and North Shore motels. The seven-floor Sun Tower was known by several different names over the years. Some referred to it as the Sun Tower Motel or Hotel. It was not pretentious. In fact, the Zarekas would advertise for a couple to run the place while they were away for the summer.

Today it operates as Sun Tower Hotel and Suites. Zarekas, a World War II veteran who fought at Normandy, died in 2021 at age 98. His wife died in 2022. Current owners are listed as Sun Tower Investments with a mailing address in New York City.

The small hotel was upgraded during the COVID pandemic. Not enough can be said about its very casual restaurant, Sand Bar and Grill (or Sand Bar Grill), which serves a tasty breakfast, lunch and dinner on the deck or in a small adjacent room. It’s all about the beach … 

Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

Sources

The Miami Herald, Sept. 20, 1059

Fort Lauderdale News Oct. 23, 1959

Fort Lauderdale News, May 6, 1965

Fort Lauderdale News, April 9, 1973

South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Nov. 19, 2021

Legacy.com

 

 Tags: Fort Lauderdale hotel history, Fort Lauderdale beach hotels, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, George A. Zarekas, Sun Tower Hotel & Suites

Fort Lauderdale, Fazio's Fireside Steak Ranch and his House of Prime Ribs

By Jane Feehan

Fort Lauderdale was booming in the 1950s and 60s. The boom included new restaurants opened to meet the demand of a fast-growing population. Many residents from “up North” filled the eateries, seeking the taste—and sophistication—of their home states.   

One of the new places, the Fireside Steak Ranch, was lauded for its beef and Maine lobsters. Former Milwaukee nightclub owner Jimmy Fazio advertised in 1959 that his restaurant operated at two locations – Fort Lauderdale at 901 Las Olas Blvd. and Deerfield Beach on US 1. Lunch went for 85 cents and complete dinners for $1.75-2.95.  For a time, children who were dining were gifted cowboy hats “compliments of host Jimmy Fazio.” He also promoted entertainment to attract the late-night crowd; his restaurant was open until 2 a.m. Customers frequented Fireside Steak Ranch for both its food and vibrant nightlife highlighted by quality jazz, other music and even comedy acts.

Fireside Steak Ranch

The curtain came down on Fireside Steak Ranch in 1963 when a large fire, reportedly caused by an electrical problem in the kitchen, shuttered the restaurant. The Deerfield location came under new ownership in February 1964 with a new name, Johnny’s Fireside Steak Ranch.

Undaunted—and with a legacy of good food and entertainment—Fazio opened House of Prime Ribs at 3485 N. Federal Highway in 1964. According to Fort Lauderdale News nightclub editor, Pat Brown, the new place was known as the “hottest new spot” by May 1964.

Interestingly, Pat Brown tapped Fazio to write a guest column while she was away in 1968. In it, Fazio wrote about his nightclub in Milwaukee and his hope to revive his supper club idea in Fort Lauderdale at the Fireside. But he determined the concept was no longer popular. In opening the House of Prime Ribs, he had to decide on a food or entertainment focus. Food was the choice and it proved to be a good one.

His new place was great and a spot to be seen or to see who was out for the night. My sisters and I accompanied entertainer Red Buttons and his agent there for a meal; they were impressed with the food and ambiance—and our choice.

Fazio’s House of Prime Ribs was shuttered during 1974 or 1975. Mr. Pip’s, a nightclub, opened in its place about 1976. A string of restaurants has opened in the same location since.

The beat, albeit a different one, goes on …

 Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 9, 1959

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 17, 1959

Fort Lauderdale News, May 11, 1961

Fort Lauderdale News, June 2, 1962

Fort Lauderdale News, July 8, 1963

Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 5, 1964

Fort Lauderdale News, May 29, 1964

Fort Lauderdale News, May 29, 1964

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 30, 1964

Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 13, 1968

Fort Lauderdale News, March 3, 1976

Tags: Fort Lauderdale history, Fort Lauderdale history, House of Prime Ribs, Fazio's Fireside Steak Ranch, Jimmy Fazio, Mr. Pip's, Fort Lauderdale restaurant history, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, Fort Lauderdale in the 1960s, Fort Lauderdale in the 1970s, Fort Lauderdale restaurant history, Restaurants

Fort Lauderdale and Jay Mar Cottages - from church suppers to hordes of spring breakers

515 Seabreeze Blvd. Closed

Fort Lauderdale, FL

By Jane Feehan

Jay-Mar  Cottages started out as a pleasant, low-profile, no-frills seaside motel along Fort Lauderdale beach. A different image emerged during the 1960s and 70s.

Sitting on the south side of D.C. Alexander Park and extending to Seabreeze Boulevard, Jay-Mar was probably built during the early 1950s, when it was first mentioned in the Fort Lauderdale News. 

In May 1954 a Baptist Church held a “covered supper” event for 34 attendees. In 1961 “Mrs. Georgia Smith, owner of Jay-Mar” was recognized for hosting her fifth-annual party for her college student guests. She fed and entertained 60-70 visitors “without incident." 

But three months later, the motel became a target of mischief. Jay-Mar was hit by a women’s bathing suit thief: five suits were swiped from clotheslines there and at the nearby Merriweather Motel (still operating as of this post) at 115 N. Atlantic Avenue.

Missing bathing suits was nothing compared to what the ensuing tidal wave of visitors brought to Fort Lauderdale beach.

The movie, Where the Boys Are, was released in 1960, placing Fort Lauderdale on the national radar of places for college students to enjoy their spring bacchanal. There wasn’t much good news for Jay-Mar Apartments (or cottages) in the decades that followed. It was besieged by college kids, as was the entire beach area. 

Student-hosted impromptu parties attracted crowds of underaged locals and college visitors looking to score alcohol— or more—and to meet up with like-minded friends.

Jay-Mar lost its luster as a cute motel by the beach and became a cheap place for the down and out to rent a room. By 1976 it was called an abandoned eyesore by the Fort Lauderdale Beach Advisory Board. The property then was worth about $1 million. Emmett McTigue, owner and spokesperson for the Las Olas Development Company (owners then of the property?) refused to comment on the call to demolish the building.

Jay-Mar remained standing until at least May 1976 when some complained it was a “gutted hulk.” There are no news stories about its demolishment; the name of the motel receded into memory. Instead, the beach-side parcel became the lure and lore of profitable land deals.

Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, May 24, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, April 4, 1961

Fort Lauderdale News, July 9, 1961

Fort Lauderdale News, April 13, 1976

Fort Lauderdale News, May 25, 1976

Tags: Jay-Mar Cottages, Jay-Mar Motel, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, Fort Lauderdale in the 1960s. Fort Lauderdale history, Fort Lauderdale Spring Break  

Jolly Roger Hotel and a pirate flag debate

Jolly Roger Hotel 1953,
State Archives of Florida

Pirate flag, Åland Maritime Museum
* See below for more 

By Jane Feehan

A flag controversy at the opening of the Jolly Roger Hotel in 1953 sparked outrage—and a tradition.

The public was invited to opening night festivities at the 50-room, pirate-themed hotel, which included a display of treasure recovered from a Spanish galleon sunken off the Florida Keys. And what would a hotel named Jolly Roger be without a pirate flag, a jolly roger flag? Owner Bob Gill displayed the skull and crossbones pennant on a 75-foot mast along with the flag of the United States.

The July 29 festivities appeared on WFTL-TV. Soon after, calls, many from boaters, came into the station and to the Fort Lauderdale News about flag placement order. It appeared the pirate flag was placed in prominence over the U.S flag. Not only that, but some also said the flag should not be flown at night.

Gill was prepared, though the controversy didn’t end right away. The U.S flag can be flown at night if it was well illuminated, the hotelier said; lights were ablaze. Many said the two flags should not have been displayed together.

On the order of placement, hotel management cited the 1949 edition of Charles F. Chapman’s Piloting, Seamanship and Small Boat Handling. “Honor for national colors on land is as follows: on a straight mast, at the gaff.” The hotel mast had a gaff or yardarm. (At sea, a chaplain’s flag may be flown over the US flag only during services conducted by a Navy chaplain.)

Maybe it was the excitement of the festivities, the romance of piracy or the illumination of both flags, but overnight July 29-30, the skull and crossbones disappeared. Another pirate flag was on display a few days later; it was the first of many flag thefts and replacements. The pirate flag was grabbed again in 1955. Hotel management said the worst part of that incident was the car displaying it while cruising A-1-A in front of the Jolly Roger Hotel.

Fort Lauderdale News wrote that the pirate flag “seems to catch the eye of tourists who get the urge to bring it back home as a souvenir.”

It wasn’t just tourists who wanted that flag. Making off with it became a rite of passage for some kids. Many who grew up in 1950s and 60s Fort Lauderdale know of at least one jokester who stole the iconic flag. Known as the Sea Club Resort today, the hotel maintains a pirate theme, especially in the lobby. The hotel was given a historic designation by the city of Fort Lauderdale in 2009.

For some fun, let’s bring that flag back.

Pirate flag background
The jolly roger flag, so named by the British, is a skull and crossbones pennant first used in the early 1700s. Hoisted by pirates as an identifier in skirmishes or display of bravery or swagger, the traditional pirate flag was also raised by the British Royal Navy during World War II to indicate successful completion of a mission.

Sea Club today

* Picture of flag above:

Pirate flag at the Åland Maritime Museum, one of two pirate flags that are considered authentic. The flag is about 200 years old and came to Åland from the North African Mediterranean coast, where piracy occurred right into the 19th century. It is made of cotton and was once dark brown. Now it is faded by the ravages of time, weather and wind. This photo has been color corrected to try to show the flag as it originally appeared.

For more on the Jolly Roger Hotel, see index or a search on this blog. 

Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, July 29, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, July 30, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 1, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 4, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 22, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 17, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 22, 1958

Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 29, 2009

Wikipedia

Tags: Jolly Roger Hotel, Fort Lauderdale History, History of Fort Lauderdale, Jolly Roger flag, Bob Gill, Gill hotels, Fort Lauderdale during the 1950s

Fort Lauderdale's Croissant Park and its colorful developer Frank Croissant - of Rolls Royces, diamonds and a solid gold dinner service

 

Croissant Park Administration Building
 at 1421 South Andrews Avenue 

By Jane Feehan

Many may know of or grew up in Croissant Park, one of the oldest neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale. Few are familiar with its namesake, Frank Croissant, and his colorful life.

Born in Brooklyn in 1887, the hugely successful real estate developer (self-described “World’s Greatest Salesman), pursued business opportunities across the U.S. After operating in Ohio and moving to Detroit where he was associated with Henry Ford in real estate, Croissant relocated to Fort Lauderdale in January 1925.

He bought about 1,200 acres in an area south of the New River and Las Olas Boulevard on the west side of Andrews Avenue. The Croissant Park Administration Building, site of his sales office, still sits on South Andrews Avenue and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. Sales at Croissant Park were brisk; those were the boom days. Today asking prices for a few houses in that neighborhood are close to $500,000.

Croissant’s plans for his subdivision included a hotel, the Croissantania (also the name of a local baseball team he may have promoted). Designed by architect John M. Peterman, and built by DeCato Construction Co., the 125-room hotel failed to become a reality. Though started in late 1925, the cost of labor and shortage of materials first slowed or delayed the hotel project; it was then halted by the 1926 hurricane. By the end of 1926 and several years after, G. Frank Croissant Co. was reported by the Fort Lauderdale News as defendant in several lawsuits over mismanagement of money and other disputes.

Some news accounts reported Croissant was worth $30 million resulting from all his real estate endeavors, but it was said he lost most of it in the 1929 stock market crash. He probably lost a significant portion of that fortune beforehand, in the South Florida land bust following that hurricane.

Reversal of fortune did not slow down Croissant nor sour him on Fort Lauderdale. He bought tracts of land in Northern New Jersey (Teaneck, West Englewood, Bergenfield) for development. He opened offices in Europe, including London, Paris, Madrid and Mallorca, where he often talked up Fort Lauderdale, referred to then as “the Friendly City.” Croissant could claim 56 offices with 1,200 salesmen in 11 states and seven countries.

Some say he was involved in the launch or promotion of New York’s radio station WNYC. The station was established in 1924 but his involvement is unconfirmed. 

He, wife Harriet and son moved to Mallorca, Spain in 1933 or 1934 where he reportedly sold more than 8,000 lots in assorted projects. Included in those lots was one he sold to actress Claudette Colbert, another to Hollywood heartthrob Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.

Croissant’s 13-year-old son died in a mountain climbing accident in Spain and a civil war erupted there in 1936—both spurring the developer’s return to Fort Lauderdale. 

On his return, he was involved in the constructions of Port Everglades, in promoting Hialeah Park racing and operating a stable of 110 horses. He also had his sights set on a project in North Palm Beach near today’s Donald Ross Road. It was abandoned after his death. Ever the entrepreneur, he returned in 1952 from a business trip to Colombia where he landed a few dog track concessions.

A high-profile resident, Croissant remained in local headlines about his business and civic activities and frequent lawsuits. In 1950 he was charged by the federal government with participation in a $2 million international lottery ring. Charges were dropped due to lack of evidence.

In 1954, Fort Lauderdale News columnist Wesley W. Stout provided a list of items and activities that distinguished Croissant as one of the town’s most colorful characters:

• Won more horse races than all other racetrack notables in 1925-26
• Owned a 154-ft yacht, the Jemima F
• Owned three Rolls Royce cars simultaneously
• Owned a Lockheed Vega aircraft piloted by world famous Clarence Chamberlain
• Given a 476 solid gold dinner service set by his sales team (stored in a Dania bank vault)
• Gave his wife a 31- carat diamond pendant and a 22 carat stone
• “Put out of business” by the Spanish Civil War

Frank Croissant died at his Fort Lauderdale home on Andrews Avenue December 5, 1956, of a brain hemorrhage. Left to his wife, his estate was worth about $10 million.

He was, indeed, a colorful character …

For more on Frank Croissant, see index: Fort Lauderdale communities, Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods 

Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

 Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 9, 1925

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 5, 1925

Fort Lauderdale News, May 22, 1926

Fort Lauderdale News, July 2, 1926

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 9, 1925

Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 10, 1939

Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 10, 1950

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 28, 1951

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 6, 1952

Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 12, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 6, 1956

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 7, 1956

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 24, 1956

Tags: Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods, Croissant Park, Fort Lauderdale in the 1920s, Fort Lauderdale developers, history of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale history, Fort Lauderdale communities

Mid-century modern masterpiece - Sea Tower of Fort Lauderdale

Sea Tower 2023, rear

Sea Tower 
2840 North Ocean Drive
Fort Lauderdale

By Jane Feehan

Fort Lauderdale first saw high-rise apartments go up in the late 1950s. One, the Sea Tower, was announced in 1956 and completed in November 1957. 

News accounts claimed it was one of two of the city’s first high rises. The other was Spring Tide at 345 Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard. Both built by Col. T.J. Murrell (Palm Springs Corporation), they stand at 11 stories. Today they would be described as mid rises. (For more high-rise history, see index.)

This post focuses on the Sea Tower, an elegant building designed by noted Miami architect, Igor Polevitzky (1911-1978). He also designed Sunrise Tower on Intracoastal Drive in Fort Lauderdale, Hotel Habana Riviera in Cuba, once owned by mob figure Meyer Lansky  (See index for Meyer Lansky), the Albion in Miami, and several beautiful residences (Tropotype style). including the Birdcage house in Miami. The Sea Tower is described as a “masterpiece of mid-century modern architecture.”  

Sea Tower 1959 
State Archives of Florida

Sea Tower was reportedly built for $2.02 million. I’m not sure if it was launched as a rental before it was recognized as a co-op, but in late 1957, news items reported it as the “tallest co-op in Fort Lauderdale.” Accounts vary as to number of units, 84, 83 or 81 apartments. Carports appeared to be an afterthought as construction began on them in 1958, after opening.

Advertised as sitting in the North Beach neighborhood, Sea Tower could also claim a city park as a nearby feature leading to the ocean. In 1957, its board announced a contribution of $4,900 to the city of Fort Lauderdale for its Vista Park, which remains. The park today refers to the beach and its parking lot steps away.

Park at rear of Sea Tower
steps from beach
 

Ads announced initial sale prices for a one-bedroom unit at $21,000-$25,000. Two-bedrooms sold for $27,000-$39,000. Early ads indicated prices for penthouses were “available upon request.” A Fort Lauderdale News article in 1957 reported a penthouse for sale for $300,000—a hefty price tag in those days.

In 1958 real estate news waxed enthusiastic about Sea Tower’s unique offerings: kitchens with a “food preparation center,” a built-in combination food mixer, blender and knife sharpener.  Also, an opt-in membership was available for services such as car washes, laundry, food and beverage delivery, travel reservations, swimming and skin-diving instructions, beach cabanas, boat trips—even hair appointments. La de dah …

A glance at board member occupations during these early days may point to perceived justification for such services: a senior vice president of Gulf Oil, president of General Elevator Co., vice president of Retail Credit Co.; vice president of Remington Arms, a subsidiary of DuPont Co.; research engineer for the U.S. Navy and consultant to General Electric Co.

In March of 1958, news accounts reported that 25 liens for nearly $227,600 were filed against the builder, Palm Springs Company, Holland Construction and Engineering and others for unpaid bills. A court transferred the liens to corporate surety bond deposits.

Today, Sea Tower retains its elegance in this quiet beachside neighborhood. Many houses in the area, once averaging $25,000, have been replaced by mansions running for a million dollars at the low end and a few topping $20 million.

As of this post, a one-bedroom Sea Tower apartment sells for $549,000, a two-bedroom for $620,000. Bargains, considering Galt Ocean Mile condo prices.

 Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

 Sources:

 Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 10, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 9, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 2, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, March 26, 1958

Fort Lauderdale News, May 24, 1958

Fort Lauderdale News, June 21, 1958

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 2, 1958

Fort Lauderdale News, March 5, 1963

Fort Lauderdale News, May 16, 1965

Sea Tower

Tags: Fort Lauderdale high-rises, Sea Tower, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, Igor Polevitzky

Build a hospital, they will come: the Holy Cross Hospital story

Holy Cross Hospital in 1996: expanded since this photo
State Archives of Florida

Holy Cross Hospital
4725 N. Federal Highway,
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308

954-771-8000

https://www.holy-cross.com/

By Jane Feehan

With its population boom during the late 1940s and '50s, Fort Lauderdale faced the need to expand its medical facilities. The roster of hospitals at that time included Broward General, Las Olas Clinic, the West Broward Emergency Hospital, and Provident Hospital (for the Black community).

No hospitals were available in the city’s north, a relatively desolate area, but as early as 1951 needs were anticipated.

In March of 1952, community leaders gathered to develop a plan for a new hospital. In December that year, land was made available by Arthur T. Galt to the Diocese of St. Augustine (all Florida Catholics fell under its jurisdiction until 1952). That land, 22 acres on North Federal Highway near Floranada, was described as “high and natural rather than filled in.” It would be easily accessible to residents of north Broward County as well as those in Fort Lauderdale.

The public, about 4,000 Fort Lauderdale residents, raised half the required funds for the 200-bed, $2,217,000 hospital. Pledges came in for real estate, stocks, bonds and cash. The diocese contributed the remainder. Ground was broken on Nov. 29, 1953. Six leaders of the Holy Cross Hospital Fund drive were on hand for the ceremony: William H. Maus, James S. Hunt*, J.D. Camp, Most Rev. Joseph P. Hurley of the Archdiocese of St. Augustine, Msgr. John O’Looney, pastor of St. Anthony Church in Fort Lauderdale, and Robert H. Gore.

Gust K. Newberg Construction Co. was tapped to build the structure and architects Steward and Skinner designed the five-story, E-shape building. Both companies were from Miami. Msgr. Rowan T. Rastatter served as hospital administrator and the Sisters of St. Joseph chosen to run the facility.

Holy Cross Hospital was completed ahead of schedule and opened Dec. 8, 1955. Fifty beds were available that day with capacity to increase to 300 as community needs grew. A mass and dedication were held that morning. An hour later, Fort Lauderdale resident Charles H. Horberg was admitted as the hospital’s first patient for diagnosis and observation.

Classified ads soon appeared with real estate possibilities for a flower shop and other businesses ancillary to hospital operations. Swanky Frank’s, a drive-in restaurant already open several years, publicized its address as “at Holy Cross Hospital.” (A few years later, Burger King opened nearby and later moved to Commercial Boulevard.) That east-west artery soon became a major hub of residential and business development in Fort Lauderdale.

Today, a much larger Holy Cross Hospital houses 557 beds, provides outpatient facilities throughout Broward and Palm Beach counties, has established Holy Cross Urgent Care Centers, Holy Cross Medical Group Practices and the Holy Cross HealthPlex for hospital outpatients. It operates as Holy Cross Health with Michigan-based Trinity Health as parent company.

* James H. Hunt chaired the group after J. D. Camp became ill. For his successful efforts, Hunt was awarded the first Fort Lauderdale Daily News and WFTL-TV Citizens Medal of Honor in 1954.

 
Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 22, 1952

Fort Lauderdale News, April 23, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 30, 1953

Fort Lauderdale News, March 13, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, April 22, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, June 6, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 15, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 23, 1954

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 4, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 8, 1955

 https://www.holy-cross.com/

 

 Tags: Fort Lauderdale history, Fort Lauderdale hospitals, Holy Cross Hospital, Holy Cross Health

Porky's, the man, the bar and ... that movie

Props used in film, Porky's, Miami 1982
State Archives of Florida

By Jane Feehan

Stories abound about the man, Donald K. Baines and his South Florida bar, Porky’s Hide Away. They can’t all be told here.

The man and his bar probably helped stoke the party image of Fort Lauderdale. The first mention found about Ohio native Baines, known as Porky to his friends, patrons, and law enforcement, was a legal notice posted in the Fort Lauderdale News, March 4,1955 to “engage in business under the name Jean and Porky’s Hide Away Restaurant.” It was no family restaurant, though Jean, or Wilma Jean, was his wife. The business was located at the 3900 block of North Federal Highway in Oakland Park, adjacent to Fort Lauderdale (now site of LA Fitness).

Three weeks later, Porky’s Hide Away (with or without the hyphen) was advertising Sunday jam sessions starting at 4 pm. A month later the ads included liquor offerings: beer at 45 cents, whiskey for 60 and cocktails at 75 cents. The 300-seat venue featured an open-air, screened-in dance floor. Endearing himself to the party crowd, Porky offered to buy the first barrel of beer for patrons arriving early. He was guided either by hope or really knew his patrons.   

By 1956 and 1957, Porky’s was frequently mentioned in Fort Lauderdale News entertainment columns. Baines lined up famous acts one after the other. The Hurricanes, an all-Black dance band from Las Vegas headlined for a few nights. Famous dance orchestra leader Johnny Long made it there as did Flip Wilson, Jackie Wilson, Freddy Bell and the Bell Boys, Don Ho and world-famous jazz drummer Gene Krupa.

It was the age of classic rock ‘n roll. From 4 pm to 4 am, Baines featured Twist contests (a popular dance then), limbo competitions and probably the area’s first bikini contests—prefiguring those at Fort Lauderdale’s beach bars like the Candy Store and others a decade or two later. In 1961 Porky opened Calypso Village behind or replaced Porky’s Hideaway.

Just as ubiquitous as advertisements for Porky’s enterprises were stories about his scrapes with the law. The first incident, though not a run in with the law, was about an after-hours robbery at the bar in 1957. Porky, with the assistance or guard of the Oakland Park Police, had moved a drawer with $1,500 cash and traveler’s checks to an upstairs apartment. He then went for coffee with friends and returned 15 minutes later to discover a break in and the $1,500 missing.  

The files on Donald Porky Baines offer much more, including:

1960 – Baines was accused in 1960 and acquitted in 1961 of forging a traveler’s check.

1965 – A patron sued Baines for having been beaten up by two others at Porky’s. The matter was settled out of court.

1965 – Baines was accused of alleged tax evasion

1966 – Porky allegedly involved in several incidents of assault

1967 – He was accused and acquitted of receiving stolen property, an adding machine and electric typewriter stolen from Fort Lauderdale City Hall.

1968 – Baines was sentenced to five years in prison for six charges of excise tax evasion. He was released on appeal and was told to sell his business by October 1 that year or lose his liquor license and to never again use the name, “Porky’s.”  He opened another club, the Palace.

1968 - While out on appeal for tax evasion charges, Baines, 42, was found behind Porky’s with an apparent self-inflicted gun shot to the head in June. He recovered.

1968 – Baines was also accused of allegedly showing pornographic movies and allegedly employing a convicted felon (liquor license provision).

Donald Baines, who kept a “pet” lion in a cage behind Porky’s and drove a pink car, closed Porky’s in 1967. He opened again under the name “The Palace” to the chagrin of Kings Park Condominium, next door, who registered multiple complaints about noise from Porky’s.  

Porky Baines had beaten all raps through legal technicalities and loopholes. But his luck ran out in 1972 when he was convicted of robbery conspiracy on a home in Coconut Isle on the Las Olas Isles.  

His appeal was denied and he was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Porky’s home at the 5700 block of 19^th Avenue (Fort Lauderdale?) was seized by the government for a tax bill. 

While working as handyman for his attorney, Arthur B. Parkhurst, Baines committed suicide in a truck after leaving a note reading: “I can’t make it anymore.”  He was about 47. Quite a fall from the big-name acts, pet lion and pink car. Some said it was a stormy life. It was one with a big impact on Fort Lauderdale’s party reputation.

About the movie, Porky’s

The 1982 film, Porky's, was written and directed by Bob Clark and loosely based on Porky or his bar. Clark’s inspiration was reportedly his high school antics at Boca Ciega High School in Gulfport, Florida and at Fort Lauderdale High School. It was filmed in Miami at Miami Senior High and at Greynolds Park.

Porky’s, marketed as a “lowbrow coming of age story,” was the fifth highest grossing film that year. Perhaps the huge success of Animal House, similar in genre and released in 1978, set high expectations. Reviews were more positive after its release than they are today.  However, film critics Siskel and Ebert ranked it as one of the worst movies that year. Sequels Porky’s II and Revenge of Porky were not as successful.      

 Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, March 4, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, March 19, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, April 22, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 24, 1956

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 6, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 22, 1959

Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 5, 1960

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 14, 1961

Fort Lauderdale News, March 2, 1961

Fort Lauderdale News, June 23, 1962

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 25, 1965

Fort Lauderdale News, April 6, 1967

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 29, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 10, 1966

Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 18, 1967

Fort Lauderdale News, March 8, 1968

Fort Lauderdale News, March 29, 1968

Fort Lauderdale News, June 2, 1968

Fort Lauderdale News, September 20, 1972

Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 30, 2013

Wikipedia

IMDB.org

 

Tags: Porky's Hide Away, Porky's Hide-Away, Fort Lauderdale clubs in the 1960s, Oakland Park history, Oakland Park clubs, Donald K. Baines, Porky Baines, Porky's movie, Fort Lauderdale history

Fort Lauderdale's Harbor Beach: exclusive then and now

 

Harbor Beach circa 1980
Florida State Archives/Florida Memory/Steinmetz

By Jane Feehan

According to some news accounts, the first Fort Lauderdale development after the boom years of the 1920s was Harbor Beach.

The Harbor Beach Company, formed by George W. English, purchased land south of the U.S. Coast Station in 1940 from Fort Lauderdale pioneer Tom M. Bryan for $1000 per acre for 200 acres.

Development commenced with permitting for infrastructure, and a wall, gate and “field office” designed by Miami architect Russell T. Pancoast (grandson of Miami Beach developer John A. Collins the same of Collins Avenue).

The first 73 lots were presented for sale by the Harbor Beach Co. in January 1942. The development was advertised as Fort Lauderdale’s newest oceanfront real estate development, the “only restricted residential beach property in South Florida.” 

Other ads claimed the building requirements provided for “substantial though not necessarily pretentious homes” with sweeping vistas of the ocean, a lake (near today’s Lago Mar) and the Intracoastal. Some inland waterway lots would accommodate 110-foot boat dockage. 

An entrance to the new neighborhood was built as an extension of Atlantic Avenue (now A1A) but the development would be isolated from traffic. Lot prices were not available in early ads, but by 1945 some lots started at $4,200. In 1946 prices rose to $4500 (as comparison, lots in Croissant Park sold for about $1,000). 

Plans were in place by the mid-1940s for a private beach club (today’s Surf Club). All 73 lots in the initial “unit” were sold by 1946 when another unit (number of those lots unknown to this writer) were placed on the market. It was followed by a third unit in the 1950s. Sales must have been fairly brisk by the mid-1950s; lots then generally started at $10,000.

One house went on the market in 1955 for $37,500 with three bedrooms, two baths and maid’s quarters. Today, the walled community is home to 592 residents (according to niche.com). Singer/actor David Cassidy (The Partridge Family) once called the community home until his death in 2010. His house was placed on sale later that year for $3.9 million.

Houses today (2022) range from about $4 million to nearly $24 million. It remains one of the city’s most exclusive neighborhoods but is not immune to Fort Lauderdale’s super-charged development woes. Residents complain about difficulties exiting the community to merge onto jammed A1A during certain times of the day or when the bridge at the 17th Street Causeway opens for boat traffic.

Copyright © 2020, 2022. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

Sources:

Weidling, Philip and Burghard, August. Checkered Sunshine. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1966.

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 18, 1941

Fort Lauderdale News, Sept. 25, 1945

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 17, 1942

Fort Lauderdale News Jan. 31, 1946

Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 19, 1946

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 15, 1947

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 9, 1955

Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 3, 1955

Realtor.com

For current demographics, see:

https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/n/harbor-beach-fort-lauderdale-fl/

Tags: Fort Lauderdale communities, Fort Lauderdale developments, Fort Lauderdale in the 1940s, Fort Lauderdale history, history of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale architects

Bahia Mar: "more business, publicity to Fort Lauderdale than any other man-made attraction"

 

Bahia Mar circa 1960s,
Florida State Archives/Florida Memory

Bahia Mar
801 Seabreeze Boulevard
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316

By Jane Feehan

The following about Bahia Mar does not serve as an historical account of the business transactions that have shaped it over the years, though some will be mentioned. In 1949, the Miami News claimed Bahia Mar was the only land in Broward County that had not been privately owned; that may explain its complicated history.

Some would say its history began in the 1870s.

The United States government built a string of five Houses of Refuge in 1876 in Florida from Cape Florida to the Indian River to provide shelter for the shipwrecked. One refuge, New River House No. 4 was moved in 1891 from its first site near Hugh Birch State Park (Bonnet House) to the beach across from today’s Bahia Mar where the third Fort Lauderdale was built.

The United States Coast Guard operated from the site, a gathering place for social activities into the early 1900s. It served as Coast Guard Station No. 6 during World War I. From the inland waterway—today’s Bahia Mar—the base played an active role in World War II defense activities in South Florida. 

After the war in 1946, the federal government declared the site as surplus, placing it in the public domain.

Bahia Mar 1951
Florida State Archives/
Florida Memory

The city of Fort Lauderdale purchased the property for $600,000 but did not have enough funds for its development.

Private investors, led by Ohioan and developer William E. Schantz* raised funds to build a yacht basin that opened in December 1949. It offered 450 boat slips, shopping, a restaurant with cocktail lounge (Patricia Murphy’s Candlelight Restaurant did not open there until 1959) and 650 parking spaces.

Newspapers lauded the $2.5 million project. Some claimed the marina, with “three miles of docks," brought more publicity, recognition and business "than any other man-made attraction” to Fort Lauderdale. It led to declaration by city boosters that Fort Lauderdale was the “yachting capital of the world.” One news account reported Bahia Mar was the first yacht basin in the nation to be listed on Coast Guard navigation charts.

Not long after opening, the developers declared bankruptcy and the site reverted to the city. The city leased it back to the private sector in 1959 (yes, it’s complicated). Since 1959, Bahia Mar has served as home to the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show featuring some of the most spectacular luxury yachts seen anywhere. 

About 100,000 pay to see the display in late October, early November each year. Today the yacht basin holds 250 boat slips (some land now operated by the adjacent International Swimming Hall of Fame houses 40 slips), the Double Tree Hotel, yacht brokers, shopping and restaurants and other amenities.

Bahia Mar now faces a major transition. Value of the 38.65-acre Bahia Mar property is estimated (in 2022) at $256 million as Fort Lauderdale oceanfront land has fallen piece by piece to developers. The city signed an initial 50-year lease in 2022 with Jimmy and Kenny Tate of Rahn Bahia Mar Hotel. It could be extended another 50 years (status of this arrangement unclear).Their $1 billion plan for Bahia Mar includes, at this point, replacing the current 296-room hotel with a new one and building condos and commercial space. Developers plan to share revenue with the city derived from operations (hotel, marina, condos).

Plans were approved by the city  commission in 2023 for a hotel and three condo towers as controversy swirls around the project's scope.

Resident support is mixed. Some fear the project’s impact on beach traffic and its impact on the boat show; others welcome the needed revamp. Stay tuned …

  Copyright © 2022. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.

Bahia Mar 1968
Florida State Archives/ Florida Memory

Sources:

Weidling, Philip and Burghard, August. Checkered Sunshine. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1966. 

Gillis, Susan. Fort Lauderdale: The Venice of America. Charleston: Acadia Publishing, 2004.

Fort Lauderdale News, March 7, 1949

Miami News, Sept 1, 1949

Fort Lauderdale News, Dec. 3, 1949

Fort Lauderdale News, April 10, 1955

New York Daily News, Jan. 27, 1957

New York Daily News, June 15, 1958

Sun-Sentinel, March 30, 2022

Real Deal, April 6, 2022

https://www.marinalife.com/marina?slug=bahia-mar-resort-and-yachting-center

https://bahiamaryachtingcenter.com/?utm_source=gmb&utm_medium=yext

For more on William E. Schantz* use search box

Copyright © 2022 All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

Tags: Bahia Mar Marina, Fort Lauderdale in the 1940s, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, yachting capital of the world. Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, Fort Lauderdale history

Fort Lauderdale's War Memorial Auditorium: tribute to the fallen transformed

 

War Memorial Auditorium 1967
Florida State Archives

War Memorial Auditorium
800 NE 8th Street
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33304
https://www.fortlauderdale.gov

Owned and operated by Fort Lauderdale, the War Memorial Auditorium opened January 14, 1950. The building seated 2,100 and served as a venue for wrestling matches, exhibits, shows, graduations, dances and more.

Miami News columnist William McHale, Jr. wrote about the memorial building, constructed for $450,000, shortly after it opened:

In the summer of 1946 civic groups began talking about a suitable commemoration for men
and women of Fort Lauderdale who had served in the recent war.

Ideas on what that memorial should be were plentiful, but Fort Lauderdale was in the swirl of a rapid growing period, and the need for a big gathering spot was pretty apparent. So the plan to
build an auditorium was approved by the civic organizations and work began in a hurry -
Miami News, Feb. 23, 1950

The War Memorial Auditorium is located at the 86-acre Holiday Park, which opened in 1947.

In 1948, some residents thought the auditorium would be too big for a small city the size of Fort Lauderdale. When it opened, others said it was not only a tribute to those who died in war but also a symbol of what the living could accomplish.

Today, the War Memorial Auditorium is seen as too small for this growing city. It is undergoing a major transformation.

The city of Fort Lauderdale and the Florida Panthers hockey team entered into agreement in June 2019 to renovate the facility. The Panthers are providing $45 million to build a public skating rink and a team training rink. The city will contribute $800,000 and lease its seven acres for $1 per year for 50 years to the Florida Panthers. The project should be completed summer of 2022.

Under renovation 2020

It is expected the facility will serve as a new family destination. Skaters can cool off in the rink. It will also seat 4,000 for a variety of performances or shows. A 5,000 sq ft restaurant will overlook the park, which will be newly landscaped with additional trees. Lots of excitement to come--and frustration with traffic.

Let us not forget the reason the War Memorial Auditorium was built.

For what's to come see:  https://ftlwarmemorial.com

Copyright © 2022 All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

____

Sources:

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 24, 1948

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 14, 1950

Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 26, 2018

Sun-Sentinel, Oct. 18, 2019

Sun-Sentinel, March 3, 2022

Tags: Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, War Memorial Auditorium, Florida Panthers, 

Fort Lauderdale history

The Chemist Shop on Las Olas Boulevard - once "America's most unusual drugstore"

Florida State Archives/
Dept. of Commerce

 By Jane Feehan

 A quiet drug store on Las Olas served as the unofficial hub of that boulevard long before trendy restaurants and nightspots opened their doors to the beau monde of Fort Lauderdale.

Werner Betz and his wife Marge opened the Chemist Shop Nov. 19, 1956, at 817 E. Las Olas Blvd.  It wasn’t long before the drugstore and its 40-seat restaurant drew nation-wide attention. Only months after the Chemist Shop opened, industry publication Drug Topic, called it “America’s most unusual drugstore.” More on the why after some background.

Wisconsin born Betz, son of a Methodist minister and educated as an industrial engineer at Cornell University, lost his job during the depression and followed it with a successful sales career. He was living in New Jersey (some accounts say New York) when three Florida friends, Al Watson, Ed Beyhan and William Maus (a familiar name to many of us in town), convinced Betz to open a business in Fort Lauderdale. He worked at a pharmacy in New Jersey without a salary for nearly a year to become familiar with the business. It paid off.

With wheels in motion for his own business, Betz moved to Fort Lauderdale in 1955. Acquaintance Welles Squires, a designer of futuristic cars for General Motors, sketched a design for the store. Robert Jahelka served as architect for the project and brought it into reality with an Old English motif storefront and interior.

Florida State Archives/
Dept. of Commerce

 Betz approached the business with a winning philosophy: “offer more variety and a wider range of prices than any other store.” And so, he did. The Chemist Shop offered an array of difficult-to-find products: special soap for latex swimsuits, bees wax candles, French perfume, German cologne; a torsion balance to measure thickness of lipstick, soap from Spain, Egyptian pewter-washed copper, Droste chocolate from Holland; rhinestone dog collars and dog perfume. They also sold magnetic hurricane tracking charts and fresh flowers … one-stop excellence for the discerning shopper. (A Texan offered Betz a $1000 a month to oversee the development of a Chemist Shop in the Lone Star State but Betz turned it down).

Another feature of the Chemist Shop, perhaps as popular as the merchandise, was its 40-seat restaurant, Fantasy Fountain. Betz later said he often counted as many as 60 waiting to get a table. Lunch was served during most of the day until 4:30 and it could be a shrimp salad plate for $4.95, the Las Olas Sandwich (chicken, bacon, tomato and Roquefort dressing on toast) for $3.95, clam chowder for $1.25 and an array of ice cream sodas with house-made syrups. Prices were above average for the day.

Movers and shakers about town, including former Mayor Virginia Young, met at the Fountain daily. With tables set unofficially aside for power broker breakfasts, the Chemist Shop became the “hub of Las Olas Boulevard.”

Werner Betz ran the store with his brother Gerhardt until 1980. (Gerhardt purchased Gore Nursery at N.W. 9^th Ave. where his two sons, Bob and Frederick worked, another family business). In its early days, the Chemist Shop employed 29 during the season and 17 during summers.

Bernard Schuster, one of three Chemist Shop pharmacists, bought the store through a stock transaction in August 1980, making him sole owner. Werner died just months later, in October that year in North Carolina. Gerhardt Betz died January 8, 2008.

The business climate changed during the 1980s and 90s. The Las Olas Merchant Association wanted to elevate the types of stores, clientele and shopping experience on the Boulevard. Bernie and wife Virginia (Ginger) were asked to remodel the Chemist Shop and keep it open until 9 p.m. According to the Sun-Sentinel, rent was raised to $11,000 for its 6,000 square feet, making it unaffordable to operate. Bernie and Ginger closed that location in 1997. They moved the Chemist Shop to the Nations Bank Building on S.E. 3^rd Avenue where they rented 1,980 square feet. Business dropped off by half at the store and restaurant; the breakfast club moved to Café La Bonne Crepe (which remains on Las Olas).  

Bernie and Ginger sold the pharmacy in 1999 to Eckerd Corporation (a store sat nearby) where they kept Chemist Shop employees with their seniority and pay. Bernie, a Fort Lauderdale High School grad, died in 2008. I haven’t found anything more on Ginger.

The Chemist Shop, once emblematic of successful Fort Lauderdale family-owned businesses thus closed but remains fondly in the memories of many. Werner and Marge Betz, and later Bernie and Ginger Schuster, ran a unique and much-loved store, one seldom see anywhere today.  

Note: Another Chemist Shop is open on Las Olas at the 1100 block but bears no resemblance or connection to the original.

 Copyright © 2021, 2022. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 26, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, July 21, 1957

Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 18, 1979

Fort Lauderdale News, Aug. 7, 1980

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 26, 1980

Fort Lauderdale News, March 5, 1984

Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 16, 1988

Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 9, 1992

Sun-Sentinel, July 23, 1997

Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 6, 1999

Sun-Sentinel, Nov. 21, 2008

Tags: Chemist Shop, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s, Fort Lauderdale in the 1990s, Fort Lauderdale history, history of Fort Lauderdale, Jane Feehan

Bahia Mar Yacht Basin - cabbage palm logs and historical relics?

Bahia Mar 1951
Florida State Archives/Florida Memories

By Jane Feehan

Bahia Mar, once home to the third fort built during the Seminole Wars and named for Maj. William Lauderdale was also the site of a House of Refuge in 1876 and later a U.S. Coast Guard station. Today, boats of all sizes from around the world berth at the scenic spot. The boat basin project, wending through the vagaries of city politics and developers' woes through the years is now recognized as a world class yachting center. Few remember that a museum was once planned as part of the first Bahia Mar project.

One of the original developers, Ohioan William E. Schantz of Universal Construction Company (of Ohio and Fort Lauderdale), formed the Bahia Mar Corporation to build the marina in the late 1940s. An article about Schantz from the Miami News, Sept. 1, 1949, details plans he had to build a replica of the old fort across from the yacht basin “…using cabbage palm logs as did the Indian-fighters on the same spot on the high ground near the beach. This fort will become a museum housing old documents and relics of the early days of South Florida.”

The museum remained a pipe dream. Bahia Mar Corporation defaulted on payments to the city two years after completion of the marina in 1949 and the city eventually took control of the property. For more on the history of Bahia Mar, see index or use search box.

https://janeshistorynook.blogspot.com/2022/09/bahia-mar-more-business-publicity-to.html?m=1

Copyright © 2021, 2024. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan
_____
Sources:
Weidling, Philip J., Burghard, August. Checkered Sunshine. Gainesville: University of Florida Press (1966).
Miami News, Sept. 1, 1949.

Tags: Bahia Mar history, Fort Lauderdale history, Florida history, history of Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s - only 37,000 residents ... and today?

 

Fort Lauderdale 1955
 Florida State Archives/Florida Memory

By Jane Feehan


In the 1950s*, gasoline was 24 cents a gallon, Thanksgiving dinner was $3 at Fort Lauderdale’s Governors Club Hotel and there were only three high schools in Broward County. 

Five commissioners governed the county and its first elected representative, Dwight Rogers Sr., went to Washington. Florida’s turnpike was built, and Broward expanded west with the founding of Pembroke Pines, Plantation and six other municipalities. In 1950, Broward had only 83,000 residents while Fort Lauderdale was home to 37,000. By the end of the decade, Florida’s population grew by nearly 79 percent.

Fast forward to the 21st century and the picture is quite different.

Broward County is now the second largest in the state with a population of nearly two million in 2020 (up from 1.7 million in 2011). It’s run by nine commissioners, with districts spanning 31 municipalities and 25 unincorporated areas. The county’s school district, the sixth largest in the U.S and the only fully accredited public school district in the nation, now includes 33 high schools. Fort Lauderdale, Broward’s largest city, has a population of about 183,000 -- up from 165,521 in 2011.

Fort Lauderdale Beach 1955
Florida State Archive

*For more on Florida population of the 1950s, see:

https://janeshistorynook.blogspot.com/2020/07/floridas-population-explosion-in-1950s.html


Copyright © 2020. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan
Sources:
The Fabulous ‘50s by Jane Feehan, Sun-Sentinel (www.sun-sentinel.com), Aug. 21, 2002.
www.broward.org
www.browardschools.com
www.wikipedia.com

Tags: Broward County history, Fort Lauderdale in the 1950s , Fort Lauderdale in the 50s, Fort Lauderdale history