Thunder Bowl (Demolished)
Beechwood, NJ Photo courtesy Paul Bauke
Here’s the Thunder Bowl along busy Route 9 in Beachwood. The bowling alley offered something to do on those rainy Jersey Shore days when the beach was out of the question. Its large roadside lettering was easy enough to spot while cruising past the Beachwood Shopping Center. 10-05
The alley opened in the early 1960s as Berkeley Lanes and was also known as Joe Gasser’s Lanes before becoming Thunder Bowl. At its peak, the center offered 32 lanes, a pool hall, and a small pizza parlor.
Thunder Bowl shared the plaza with Woolworth’s, Food Fair, and Thrift Drug. After the stores and bowling alley closed, the entire shopping center sat abandoned for years with weeds growing through the pavement and roofs beginning to collapse. It was eventually called the “Saddest Strip Mall in New Jersey.” Really?
UPDATE: Thunder Bowl and the abandoned Beachwood Shopping Center were demolished in 2015. The bowling alley signs were removed with the buildings, and the Route 9 property is being redeveloped for new retail businesses. 08-26
Dixie Bowling
Elmira, NY Photo courtesy Mark Hackett
The brick storefront of Dixie Bowling Alleys looks like a throwback to the pre-war years. It is easy to imagine a soldier stopping here to kiss his sweetheart goodbye. Okay, maybe that’s one movie too many. 11-00
Dixie opened on August 13, 1938. Founder Mary Andrews actively welcomed women bowlers and even provided them with a private lounge. She also operated the neighboring Dixie BBQ with car-hop service. Really?
Automatic pinsetters arrived in 1956, replacing the alley’s pinboys. Today the center is known as Southport Dixie Lanes and remains active with league, youth, and open bowling.
UPDATE: Southport Dixie Lanes remains open on Broadway Street in Elmira. Its vintage exterior signage still survives. 08-26
Malden Square Bowladrome (Demolished)
Malden, MA Photo courtesy DJ Panda
This is the current location of Ryan Family Amusements, located around the corner from Santaro's and a few other shops and restaurants on Charles St. The place originally was Malden Square Bowladrome, as the sign shows. Ryan Family Amusements is actually a chain of family entertainment centers with various locations throughout the Massachusetts area. The Malden affiliate moved into the Bowladrome location in the early part of this decade after spending years in a less favorable location in an alley off Main Street. The Bowladrome was still open and in business when Ryan Family Amusements bought the location and moved in. This location actually still has the game room from the old Bowladrome intact, complete with coin-op games from the 50's to the 90's. The rest of the Bowladrome was renovated after Ryan Family Amusements moved in. Many thanks to DJ Panda for info. 05-08
The old neon sign at Malden Square Bowladrome advertised candlepin bowling with a tall, skinny pin running up the side. Even after Ryan Family Amusements took over, the original Bowladrome name remained on the sign. The Charles Street center offered 23 candlepin lanes and a large pool hall with about 20 tables. Before automatic scoring, bowlers kept score on transparent sheets projected above the lanes. Really? Ryan Family Amusements purchased the Bowladrome in 1994 and operated it until 2017.
UPDATE: The building was demolished after closing. The vertical candlepin sign was saved and sold to a private collector. 08-26
Town Line Ten Pin (Rem.)
Malden, MA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Here’s Town Line Ten Pin along Route 99 in Malden. The big roadside sign advertised bowling, billiards, and an arcade, all in one stop. With 48 lanes waiting inside, Town Line was no little neighborhood bowling alley. 08-08
The center has long been a ten-pin stronghold in an area better known for candlepin bowling. That alone made it a little different from the older bowling centers scattered around the Boston area. Town Line offered plenty of space for leagues, open bowling, and large groups.
Friday and Saturday nights brought “Atomic Bowling” with black lights, glowing lanes, loud music, and a high-tech sound system. Not exactly the quiet bowling night remembered from years ago. Really?
Town Line Ten Pin
Malden, MA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Town Line has continued to grow into a full entertainment complex. The bowling is joined by a billiards room, prize arcade, the Luxury Boxx Sports Bar, and the Mixx 360 nightclub. You could bowl a few games, shoot some pool, and then stay out much later than originally planned.
UPDATE: Now known as Town Line Luxury Lanes, the center remains open. The old Town Line Ten Pin roadside sign has been replaced by a modern illuminated sign. 08-26
Kings Bowl (Rem.)
Boston, MA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
You certainly couldn’t miss Kings Bowl while passing through Boston’s Back Bay. The entrance sports a wild mix of bright red, yellow, blue, and green panels with a large bowling pin worked into the design. It looks a little like a bowling alley crossed with an old television game show set. 08-08
Kings opened on Dalton Street in 2002 inside the cavernous space of a former movie theater. The 24,000-square-foot center offers 16 full-sized ten-pin lanes, making it another break from the candlepin bowling traditionally found around Boston.
Kings Bowl
Boston, MA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
This isn’t exactly the old-fashioned bowling alley with plastic seats and a snack counter. Kings was designed as an upscale bowling lounge with dim lighting, retro furnishings, cocktails, and a full restaurant. The hallway even displays customized bowling pins autographed by visiting celebrities, musicians, and athletes. Really?
The original Kings proved successful enough to grow into a chain with locations well beyond Boston. The company later changed its name from Kings Bowl to Kings Dining & Entertainment, a better fit for all the food, drinks, games, and nightlife now sharing space with the lanes.
UPDATE: Kings Dining & Entertainment remains open at 50 Dalton Street in Back Bay. The colorful entrance and illuminated bowling sign still survive. 08-26
Thunder Bowl (Demolished)
Malden Square Bowladrome (Demolished)
Town Line Ten Pin (Rem.)
Town Line Ten Pin
Kings Bowl (Rem.)
Kings Bowl
