Brief Days

        Autumn in Oak Cliff is breathtaking. I adore those few beautiful days when the leaves suddenly burst into a rainbow of reds and oranges. Branches are laden with fiery red color that trembles in the breeze. A sudden gust of chilly wind sends a multitude of leaves fluttering down to earth in a flurry of orange. As it turns out, I'm not the only one who cherishes these brief days before the icy winter kicks in.

     "This is the season when most of the people who live in Oak Cliff aren't worrying too much about things. Autumn touches the woods of Kessler and Colorado and little streets like Appian Way especially gently. It'll be enough to get in the car and just ride with the falling leaves and the first chill of the winter and the sharp, sweet scent of the season."  -The Dallas Morning News, 1949

Green Pet

         At the site of the Green Pet, 413 North Bishop, was a dance studio. The instructor, Judith McCarthy, started performing at an early age, when, in 1922, she won the Dallas Perfect Baby contest. Ms. McCarthy loved Spanish dance and would travel to California to study under famous instructors. She taught acrobatic dance, personality singing, and even dance for business girls.  

Hunky's

         321 North Bishop, where Hunky's is now, was originally a fruit stand. Since then, it has been home to other things. For years it was the Balcom Radio Company. In, 1941, they sold screen grid radios for $179. Today that would be over $2,000! Later it became Genie's Bishop Grill until 2005. This greasy spoon restaurant was known for its chicken fried steak, yeast rolls and peanut butter pie.            

400 Bishop Avenue

                         400 North Bishop, now home to Vera Cruz, was the Goodier Cosmetics Company which produce over 300 different cosmetics like the after-shaves Breezo and Pompadour. Goodier produced cosmetics for Mary Kay and eventually became a part of Mary Kay.

                         Where Decanter is located, was the original home of what eventually became the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce, a group started by Martin Weiss. There were many civic meetings in this spot over the years. Lots of events happened here such as miniature garden exhibits, plant swaps, pie sales, and a Robert Browning poetry club. In 1927, aviation cadets learned how to build their own planes here. In '34 there was a meeting there to discuss how to deal with Clyde Barrow, now dubbed, the “super criminal.”   

Big, Roomy, Clean and Happy

If you were to visit the site of The Soda Gallery in 1925, you would find the Clarence Saunders Grocery Store. At the store, advertised as a “big, roomy, clean, happy store,” you could buy a roast for 18 cents a pound and pickled pig's feet for 5 cents.  Later, Winniford Machine Shop took it's place. As an accountant for the IRS, Mr. Winniford needed a hobby, so he turned to model trains, which he claimed changed his life. Soon after, he quit his job and started a machine shop in which he made small parts for planes and worked on small inventions, like a gadget to keep minnows alive.  

                   

410 North Bishop

 In 1919, the Rialto Theater was located in Artisan's Collective Gallery (410 North Bishop). For ten years it showed silent movies, which were a huge draw before television. Then, beginning in 1929, when sound was added to movies, it showed “talkies.” 

.           Later it became the Astor Theater, which bragged about its “air seats” and “scientific acoustical arrangements.” If you go inside Artisan's Collective Gallery, you will see, just inside the door, a photo of the Astor Theater

                   Soon after the new theater opened, the Oak Cliff Little Theater started performing in the building. The Little Theater movement was started to provide young people with a chance to learn about acting. The one that met on Bishop was one of the best Little Theaters in the Southwest and people came from all over North Texas to see them.

Step into the alley beside the building. After passing more murals, also done by high school students, you will see a bricked-in door high above the ground. When the Astor Theater was in business, there were steps leading up to the door and a sign hung above it that read “colored entrance.” African-Americans were not allowed to enter through the same door as the whites, and they had to take the highest seats. Since this was before air conditioning, the highest seats would, no doubt, be the hottest.

Hell's Kitchen

A Westinghouse Refrigerator

 On the corner of Bishop and Seventh, you will find a restaurant by the name of Hattie's. This building was the home of Rick's Furniture for many years. In 1938 they advertised a demonstration called “Hell's Kitchen” to prove the effectiveness of Westinghouse refrigerators. They made a kitchen in the store that was 120 degrees, but the refrigerators still kept the food at a safe 40 degrees.

In '52 there was a huge fire that destroyed the back half where the refrigerators were kept. The fire could be seen from four miles away.