22 FEBRUARY 7, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
Rolling the bowling ball down Memory Lane
BY THE OLD TIMER
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
Despite the eff orts of bowlers
who had campaigned to keep
Glendale’s Woodhaven Lanes
open, the facility closed in May 2008,
aft er nearly a half-century of operation.
It marked the end of bowling in
the neighborhood.
Woodhaven Lanes opened in 1959
as a state-of-the-art bowling center,
featuring 60 shimmering lanes and
“telescore” screens which helped bowlers
keep track of their performances
without relying on pencil and paper.
The bowling alley at the corner of
Metropolitan Avenue and Woodhaven
Boulevard was a smash hit from the
start; the Daily News reported that a
crowd of 5,000 celebrated its opening
at a time when bowling was one of the
nation’s most popular pastimes.
Over the years, Woodhaven Lanes
became a popular destination for
league bowlers, couples on date
nights, youth programs and gatherings
among friends and family. It even
secured a place in television history.
Shortly after opening in 1959,
Woodhaven Lanes was the set for
Crews tearing up the bowling alleys at Woodhaven Lanes in the spring of 2008
the NBC game show “Jackpot Bowling,”
hosted by none other than Mel
Allen, the famed New York Yankees
broadcaster. Jackpot Bowling’s run
at Woodhaven Lanes was short-lived,
however, filming just 15 episodes
before production was relocated to
California.
The Brunswick Corporation, the
bowling conglomerate which opened
Woodhaven Lanes, announced in
April 2008 that it would not renew
Woodhaven Lanes’ lease. Residents
and bowlers protested, hoping against
hope that someone would step in, assume
control of the bowling alley’s
Photos from Ridgewood Times archives
operation and keep the ball rolling. In
the end, however, the protests weren’t
enough; the fi nal strikes and spares
were rolled the following month, and
the alley faded into history.
For local bowlers, the closing of
Woodhaven Lanes amounted to the
fi nish of a one-two punch. A few weeks
Some of the protesters outside Woodhaven Lanes in April 2008
link
/WWW.QNS.COM
link
