OK, lastresort -- It's time to...

[Al Alven]

... tell us about the story of the hole in the ceiling at the Oceanic Motel.

I realize that the memory of this is very painful for you to revisit, but you must tell us. The anticipation has been consuming me for some time now.

(Yes, I realize that this topic is completely random... but, what the hey...)

[thelastresort]

Hmm, Al, is this a joke? I can't believe the board is that slow these days? I don't need to start one of my infamous "rock bottom" posts, now do I??

Re "the hole", well, it was this 6 x 20 foot cutout in the ceiling right above the bar, and it had an old black iron railing around it on the upper level. And there was a narrow spiral staircase to get to the upper level, and grungy shag carpet everywhere. So if there was a band, they usually squeezed them in by the bar right next to the door, so the music would fill up both floors. And when it got packed, you could go upstairs and still see the band. And when things got nuts, people would yell up and down through the hole, etc.

This was probably the only bar that had this type of arrangement, and trust me, I've been to alot of bars in the last 25 years or so (back then, the drinking age was 18 in most states surrounding PA -- except PA of course, which was 21, but it was pretty much a joke since they just had those easily tradeable/alterable paper licenses)


And now it's gone! they closed up the hole before the summer of '05 and put up this fruity Martini bar upstairs, and took out the spiral staircase. What a drag.

[Al Alven]

Thanks, buddy! ;D

Yeah, I was gonna wait until the offseason to revisit this topic, but I was working late last night and decided to go for it.

This thing sounded really cool... too bad I never got to experience the "glory years" of the Oceanic from the inside...

[thelastresort]

yeah, and the place was and still is a dump by most accounts, but a fun dump at that. I would never stay there, but it was a great place to party.

[Al Alven]

thelastresort said:

yeah, and the place was and still is a dump by most accounts, but a fun dump at that. I would never stay there, but it was a great place to party.

The best of both worlds, eh?

[nance]

Uh, I hate to say this but many many years ago, I stayed at the Oceanic. It wasn't the BEST place to stay but I really can't remember it being THAT bad. Maybe it had different management then?

[thelastresort]

nance said:

Uh, I hate to say this but many many years ago, I stayed at the Oceanic. It wasn't the BEST place to stay but I really can't remember it being THAT bad. Maybe it had different management then?

Hmm, I just remember the "lobby" that you entered off of ocean ave always looked pretty crummy and smelled like bad greasy food, because it got the direct fumes from the bar's kitchen underneath. I only went into the lobby because they had the men's room which they allowed bar patrons to use when the place was packed. I just always remember thinking the place was awful. Never saw any of the rooms though, just assumed by extension that they were as bad as the rest of the place. But maybe they weren't?

[jet]

The Oceanic Barefoot Bar.
Wow what memories, always had to ride the donkey in front of the Rio in the wee hours of the morning heading back to the motel. Did you sign the celling?

[thelastresort]

jet said:

The Oceanic Barefoot Bar.
Wow what memories, always had to ride the donkey in front of the Rio in the wee hours of the morning heading back to the motel. Did you sign the celling?

nah, never had a chance to sign the ceiling, and was never there when they spun the "Don't Panic at the Oceanic" wheel. I wonder what happend to that? It seems like the bar is no longer owned by the Oceanic motel, they even moved the sign last summer.

[nance]

I never was in the bar but I do recall the smell of greasy food like you said.