I went to junior college at Forest Park Community College in St. Louis for two years to get general studies out of the way before heading off to a "real" college. That was 1974-1976.
At the time, I was running with a group of geeks and into "recreational" drugs at the time almost every night. I was not part of what brought these people together in the first place, but most of these guys (and a few girls) had been through the "Gifted" program in the St. Louis Public Schools. That's accelerated classes for the super smart starting in grade school and continuing through high school. Some of these kids were taking Calculus and English Literature in grade school. It was an amazing group to be a part of - and looking back, we did some really stupid stuff. The kinds of things that, yes, we could have been arrested for a lot of it, but fortunately most of that group was never "caught" in the act - so we felt like we really got away with something.
One member of the group was considered a moocher. His family was poor and he was always looking for angles to get something for free. Mooching was just a part of his personality.
It was 1975 in St. Louis, and this "genius" stole a maid's master key at The Chase Park Plaze Hotel. Yes, the famous Chase Park Plaza Hotel. He considered it a way to always have a place he and his girlfriend could go to makeout.
Then he got the idea to make a movie.
So the group would go in to the Chase through the parking garage to avoid staff, then climb up the stairs to the top floors where the suites were. Sometimes we'd find a suite that was loaded with stuff like food and alcohol and I must admit that it was "fun" at the time.
I later found out it was also extremely dangerous and stupid.
One night the group of us had found a two story suite on the top floors. This place was posh. Very nice. So for about 4 hours we partied and basically trashed the place. There was some construction going at the time in the suite, so I don't think we actually harmed anybody's personal suite. But still....
Sometimes the staff would get noise complaints and we'd make a quick exit, running down the stairs and out of the parking garage.
Then that night in the two story suite, hotel security showed up at the doors on both levels. Holy cow! What to do?
We tried to be quiet while they tried to force open the doors and we headed out onto the balcony at the very top of The Chase Park Plaza. The moocher checked out a neighboring suite by climbing across the balconies. He came back and said there were two guys sleeping upstairs, but he thought we could get out through the lower level without being caught. So the group of us, mostly guys and a couple of girls, climbed precariously across the stone balconies. We went through some open doors of the suite next door and checked out the hallway. Security had either gone back for reinforcements, or they were in the suite that we had been occupying.
We made it to the to the stairwell and ran as fast as we could to get out of there.
We did not get caught that night, but it was close, and I never went back.
The moocher was using a Super 8 camera and a film editor he borrowed from me to make his big movie in The Chase Park Plaza.
Eventually he and his girlfriend got caught by hotel security and they turned them over to the police. But while they were being questioned by hotel security, there were a few times he said they stuck the barrel of a gun into his mouth to get answers, because that's how PO'ed they were. I mean we had been going into those suites for most of the summer of 1975, and it must have frustrated hotel security to not be able to catch us.
The police went to the moocher's house and found all of the film he had been shooting. But when they asked him who the other people were, he never disclosed anyone else's name. I lost the camera and film editor - but didn't get caught, even though police had film of all us in those hotel suites in the summer of 1975 at The Chase Park Plaza.
Looking back at that time now, I can't believe I was actually part of that. And as David Letterman would say, "Kids,don't try this at home!" Oh to be young and stupid. Wow.
But life is good. Carpe diem.
So it goes.
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