I wonder how many families in America actually celebrate the Fourth of July with a picnic and fireworks? That’s been the tradition in my home as far back as I can remember. My folks used to take us to the community park for a full day of family activities, with a parade, pie eating contest, arcade games and concerts on an outdoor stage – followed by a half hour show of fireworks as it got dark. Of course, my granddad often performed on stage with the local bands on their request. I was always so proud of him to see him take the stage and play the piano and sing along with whatever music they chose to play. He could wing it if he had never heard the tune before and he was always happiest playing the piano.

Shakey’s used to have pizza parlors all over the country. Where I lived in the Washington DC area there were a couple dozen, back in the 60′s – 80′s. Sometime in the late 1980′s they started closing their restaurants. I don’t know why. They were really popular with families because they had a great variety of pizzas on a buffet and everyone could eat as much as they wanted of their favorite toppings. Plus they had great music entertainment at night, with rag time or Dixie bands playing songs that everyone knew and could sing along. Sometimes my grandfather would play there as a last-minute fill in for some one when they were in need. Entire baseball and softball teams would come in to their closest Shakey’s after a game and eat pizza, drink beer or soda and have a lot of fun. We had our baseball team party at Shakey’s every year. There’s nothing like them around here anymore. Miss them and the great family entertainment.