Streetplay Discussions
I loved the game “cracktop”….
I grew up in the South Bronx…
I grew up in the South Bronx in the 60’s and we used to call this game “skellzies”. We spent many hot summer days avoiding the cars while we laid on the ground trying to calculate each shot carefully. We used whatever we could get our hands on be it soda bottle caps and liquor bottle caps which seemed to be plentiful on some streets back then. We also used to trim the top rim of the soda bottles by gradually scraping it on the sidewalk curb. These glass pieces worked great because they seemed to glide such a long distance instead of the cumbersome caps we used to use. Yet, “skellzies” also had a killer instinct quality to the game. You see the only way to stop someone from beating you, if you could help it, was to blast their pieces into kingdom come. This was easily acomplished when someone in my class brought a bottle opener to school and proceeded to fiddle around with the metal bottom glide of a school desk. When he succeeded, we ran out of the classroom, out of the building and followed him around the block. He immediately sat on the curb and pulled out of his pocket a popsicle stick. Then he began to dig deep into the tar on the street. He filled his metal glide piece with the tar. Once completed, he challenged us to a game of “skellzies”. We all gathered together in anticipation of what this “new” challenger piece could do. As we began play, it became evident what this metal glide piece could do. It could slide long distances like the glass pieces yet it was durable. But most of all it was dominating. He sent all of the challenger’s pieces into kingdom come. They went flying across the street and under parked cars. As for the glass pieces, you guessed it! They were smashed into smithereens. I mean it was ugly!!! The replacement bottle caps did not fare well either. The “Dominator” was born!!! Of course, you all know the rest of the story. Shortly after the “Dominator victory”, all the desks at school had no metal glide bottoms. This caused such a scandal that the whole school had detention for a week. Ahhh, but it was worth it!! The sight of game pieces flying all about as we challenged our neighbors in “skeelzies” and coming away with the spoils of war, was and still is a glorious memory today. Thanks for bringing your website to us all.
What about eating dry Kool-Aid…
Any Brooklyn girls recall…
I can’t believe I found…
I can’t believe I found this site. Last weekend my boyfriend and I taught his kids to play skelly. That is what we called it in Sheepshead Bay in the late 60’s) I made the court in the driveway, but couldn’t remember the rules, and didn’t quite know what to do to become a killer. But we had a heck of a time. Next time will be even better.
Grew up in Sayville NY….
Grew up in Sayville NY. That’s on the South Shore of Suffolk COunty Always on my Pogo Stick. I used to hop to school on my Pogo Stick. That was 1/4 a mile from the house. No trick stuff, just basic hopping. We use to challenge each other to see who could have the most number of hops or the longer jump. One time I hopped 5,000 times without stopping. I thought I’d make it into the Guinness Book of REcords I probably was 9 or 10. My pogo stick had a ball on top of the pole so no one would get hurt
I loved Spit. Let me get…
I loved Spit. Let me get my cards and try to remember how to play. OK, each player gets half the deck. Each lays out 5 piles of cards, top card turned up. Under each pack of cards like solitaire are cards facing down. 0 cards – 4 cards. Each player puts a card in the middle (2 piles in the middle). Either player can then add one of the cards from their solitaire hand on top of either middle pile if their card is 1 higher or lower than the top card. When nothing could be done on either hand by either person, you still had cards left and you’d say “Spit” and each would turn a card from your deck into the middle and try again. Is that it? Do you have to alternate colors? How do you open up a closed hand. In solitaire you can only move a king off a pile. Can any card be moved off in Spit?
I remember those, but my…
i played with a stickball…
i played with a stickball bat i used to buy at “welcome” store on johnson avenue in riverdale circa 1960-61. used tennis ball also. i bought one years later on the “island”- i was married and my son was maybe 12-he’s now 27-and had it until a few years ago. i think some statinary stores may still sell them.