Article Archives: Bumps in the Night

Bill Justice brought characters to life

August 25, 2022 | by Al Hunter

This column originally appeared in May 2009. Al is finishing a major project. Walt Disney animator and engineer William “Bill” Justice was born on Feb. 9, 1914, in Dayton, Ohio but grew up in Greenfield, Ind. His family moved to Indianapolis and after Bill graduated from Arsenal Technical High School … Read More

Ebbets Field — 100 Years Ago

August 18, 2022 | by Al Hunter

This column originally appeared in April 2013. Al is finishing writing a book. I’m an anniversary guy. Nothing gets me to daydreaming faster than when I find out that something important happened on this date however many years ago. This month, we passed another anniversary that I really didn’t hear … Read More

The Treasure Hunter

August 11, 2022 | by Al Hunter

This column first appeared in August 2012. Rhonda, my long-suffering wife honored me recently on the occasion of my 50th birthday with two fantastic gifts. The first was an exact replica of President John F. Kennedy’s “Carolina Rocker” rocking chair purchased from the Kennedy Museum in Massachusetts. The chair was … Read More

The 1963 State Fairground Explosion

August 4, 2022 | by Al Hunter

This column appeared in July 2011. It was another rainy Halloween in Indianapolis, Oct. 31, 1963. Some 4,400 people decided the “Holiday on Ice” show scheduled that night at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum was the better alternative to the prospect of cold, wet children toting bags of soggy candy … Read More

Dancing Harry, Robota the Witch, and Colonel Super Fly, Part 2

July 28, 2022 | by Al Hunter

For Game 5, the Nuggets brought out a mascot of their own: “Robota The Wicked Witch of the West.” Robota’s job? To counteract Dancing Harry hexes, Nuggets team president Carl Scheer decided to bring in a witch to put a hex of their own on the Pacers. Dressed entirely in … Read More