tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post6528349032618287124..comments2024-03-19T02:28:22.065-05:00Comments on Pleasant Family Shopping: A Farewell to Mr. PaperbackDavehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07788722183424550052noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-29179960147112725932022-10-06T08:08:40.892-05:002022-10-06T08:08:40.892-05:00Thank you for posting this. I have the best memori...Thank you for posting this. I have the best memories of Mr. paper back, we would drive from Long Island, New York Up to Maine every summer and my favorite stop was always Mr. paper back. I would buy boxcar children, goosebumps, babysitters club, or other books as I got older. <br /><br />There is nothing like physical books. Did it all is not the same. I collect old books now.<br /><br />There is nothing to me better than a musty paper back!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-16544384814343590602022-09-24T21:00:43.044-05:002022-09-24T21:00:43.044-05:00Vacationing in Maine as a kid from New Brunswick b...Vacationing in Maine as a kid from New Brunswick back in the 90s, Mr. Paperback was a highlight of every trip. It was right up there with stopping in Bangor and hitting up Miller's Restaurant for the all-you-can-eat buffet ;-)Freddie Beachnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-42347577960535824202012-07-07T18:49:34.818-05:002012-07-07T18:49:34.818-05:00This was almost painful to read as it brought back...This was almost painful to read as it brought back memories of my childhood bookstore- Waldenbooks. They closed in a similar fashion several years ago- and I didn't realize they were going out of business- so needless to say it was a sad day when I saw that the store had closed. It was the end of an era. I'm glad you were able to salvage some keepsakes to remember your beloved Mr. Paperback by!Shanonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-83814564570372142572012-06-28T15:07:57.963-05:002012-06-28T15:07:57.963-05:00Great post - thanks for sharing a part of your lif...Great post - thanks for sharing a part of your life.<br />I agree that nothing can replace the physical book, record or store for that matter. Although I [obviously] use computers as a tool, they are just that; a tool. They cannot provide the same feelings as holding a good heavy book in your hands, flipping pages at will and setting it down for a minute being able to pick right back up where you left. Same thing for a record album [and CDs dont cut it there, either], or any other material manifestation of goods. No one will ever have happy memories of sitting at their desktop downloading an mp3... And the world is a much poorer place for it. The current generic mass marketers will not be lamented upon their passing as they have no style, no substance, no...class. They just "are". Regrettably, due to gross societal shifts and changes, the times of shopping and enjoying it, as well as brand and store loyalty are mostly gone, never to return.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-55905558069365967092012-06-20T14:07:41.829-05:002012-06-20T14:07:41.829-05:00Retail stores that we grew up hold near and dear m...Retail stores that we grew up hold near and dear memories for many of us, regardless of age or generation.<br /><br />Buying that first 45 rpm with your own money, that first paperback novel (I could only afford remainder paperback bookstores which sold books with the front covers torn) and other stuff are cherished moments in each of our life stories. <br /><br />Nothing stays for ever. The retail leaders of today will also either evolve or fade away.<br />The countless department and discount chains, supermarkets, record shops, book shops, etc. are the past, and since history seems to repeat itself, will we miss Pennys or Costco just as much as we miss those other merchants we supported and shopped. Only time will tell.ANDY PAGEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00436351263940733528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-69983826406925550132012-06-10T13:17:52.754-05:002012-06-10T13:17:52.754-05:00Apologies for the significantly late reply -- I...Apologies for the significantly late reply -- I've been working at an archaeological site in the Machias Bay region for the last week or so, and my internet access is rather limited! I'm very glad that you were able to read this piece...it was a pleasure for me to write, and I hope that it serves, and will continue to serve, as an at-least-adequate eulogy for a business that, I think, affected many lives, at least in some small way, over its 40-plus years of existence. Thank you so much for reading, and for your very kind comment!Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-45386849329818216652012-06-03T19:30:42.231-05:002012-06-03T19:30:42.231-05:00I remember you coming into the store frequently an...I remember you coming into the store frequently and I am the one who sold you all of the displayers, signs, and the old table. You happened to have been one of my favorite customers. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-48960641021067184172012-05-25T19:46:04.213-05:002012-05-25T19:46:04.213-05:00Thank you -- and I am glad that the "empty Fr...Thank you -- and I am glad that the "empty Freese's" memory is not one that I am alone in having. I remember Laverdiere's to some extent; I know that I went in the Broadway one (now the Salvation Army Family Store, I believe) at least a handful of times as a kid, and I seem to recall them having a handful (or maybe just one) of coin-up video games in their vestibule (Pac-Man? I think there was a big name there). Rite-Aid seemed drab and boring when they first came on the local scene, and they still do. I remember Wellby Super Drug (owned by Hannaford, if memory serves) as well; I think Rite Aid took over some of their locations (Third and Union)? <br /><br />I was given a Laverdiere's plastic bag at Marden's once a few years ago; I don't recall whether or not I saved it. I hope I did.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-1029922078831724502012-05-25T19:40:44.462-05:002012-05-25T19:40:44.462-05:00I'm not sure either, Patrick. There are a few ...I'm not sure either, Patrick. There are a few actual "stores" inside the mall portion, but not a whole lot...the interior is now comprised only of Radio Shack, the pet store, Maine Smoke Shop, Country Hearts (a craft-type store), Gazebo Sports and Gifts, Rent-a-Center, an Asian nail place, Kokopelli's (the "for tobacco use only" store), and the DMV office. The mall entrance to Ocean State Job Lot (formerly Woolco/Rich's) is now blocked off, though the mall entrance to Fashion Bug (formerly the Freese's entrance) remains open. Honestly, if it weren't for the DMV, and the fact that the anchors do so well, I would certainly consider the Airport Mall a dying mall. Perhaps, despite this, it still is, and has been for quite some time.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-32604501678596616052012-05-23T23:54:58.956-05:002012-05-23T23:54:58.956-05:00Great posting, Kendra! Chains come and go, but som...Great posting, Kendra! Chains come and go, but some of them ingratiate themselves into your psyche and just won't let go, even after their physical presence gives up the ghost. I, too, was haunted by that empty Freeses storefront at the Airport Mall.<br /><br />My most-missed chain is LaVerdiere's Super Drug Stores, which had just about anything a growing boy could want, including seemingly every "as-seen-on-TV" item ever made and was open on Sundays (their niche before Maine's Blue Laws were abolished, sealing their fate.) Even now I can remember the high-pitched hiss from their flourescent lighting and stacked-to-the-rafters merchandising (or maybe it just seemed that way because I was shorter then.) Rite Aid, to which the LaVerdiere family sold their chain in 1994, was a big letdown by comparison.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-32866840960787810552012-05-20T21:54:59.205-05:002012-05-20T21:54:59.205-05:00Mr.Paperback closing is strange. I always remembe...Mr.Paperback closing is strange. I always remembered seeing these stores here and there across Maine. They withstood the test of time. It felt as if this local chain has its own niche market. <br /><br />Borders Books, B. Dalton, Waldenbooks closed but Mr.Paperback somehow survived after all these years, and without the bells and whistles of big chains. So I'm not sure if the Airport Mall can be called a Mall anymore...Patrickhttp://sites.google.com/site/zayre88noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-17358338827599920672012-05-20T20:45:13.423-05:002012-05-20T20:45:13.423-05:00Thanks for your comment, Greg, and for sharing you...Thanks for your comment, Greg, and for sharing your memories of these commercials (I'd love to see one!). Eddie Driscoll (and Mason Mutt) actually came up in conversation today with my father, uncle, and grandmother!<br /><br />Your impression of the Airport Mall in the '70s is a very interesting one -- I was always under the impression that it was a "happening place" until the larger Bangor Mall opened in 1978, but I wasn't born until '81, so my knowledge of the mall's first decade is strictly limited to recollections from others like yourself. <br /><br />Thank you for sharing your memories and your feelings...and a shout-out to Nova Scotia, from which my great-grandfather came in the early 20th century (Parrsboro, specifically). A beautiful province, and one that I hope to visit again in the coming years.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-24729974363664230212012-05-20T17:42:46.539-05:002012-05-20T17:42:46.539-05:00I had a much longer comment written but the new co...I had a much longer comment written but the new comment system ate it. <br /><br />I remember Mr. Paperback from the ads carried on WLBZ and other Bangor TV stations we received here in Nova Scotia in the '70s and '80s, and especially associate it with the voice of WLBZ's legendary announcer Eddie Driscoll, who did the voice-overs for many of the commercials they aired at that time. I vaguely remember visiting one of their stores during a vacation trip to Maine and also recall the Airport Mall when visiting Bangor with my parents in the '70s. Even then, it struck me as a troubled mall.<br /><br />Just like when a friend leaves or even worse, passes away, it is tough to lose a store for which you have fond memories. Time marches on, and not always is that a good thing.Greg Beaulieuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14893379910151507738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-10608614730521594452012-05-18T20:30:15.226-05:002012-05-18T20:30:15.226-05:00I was able to visit the Maine Coast Mall store a f...I was able to visit the Maine Coast Mall store a final time in late March; I thought I had taken a photo of it, but I just reviewed my files from around that time, and I unfortunately was mistaken. While I am not exceptionally well-versed on the Maine Coast Mall (I spent a few years working at a supermarket in the Ellsworth Shopping Center in the late 2000s; otherwise, my time spent in Ellsworth was limited largely to family trips in the summmertime), I know that it has undergone significant changes as well, and the loss of Mr. Paperback will, like in the case of the Airport Mall, make it even less recognizable from its state in decades long passed.<br /><br />My final trip to Mr. Paperback was an unexpected visit to the Waterville store in early April; I have a photo of that store's exterior facade here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mightykendar/7224471578/<br /><br />Thanks for your comment -- I hope that, every time you look at any of the books that you purchased at Mr. Paperback, you remember it fondly.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-31607203944212741842012-05-18T20:05:29.338-05:002012-05-18T20:05:29.338-05:00Thank you, Rob! That does sound similar to the Air...Thank you, Rob! That does sound similar to the Airport Mall/Mr. Paperback story, almost eerily so. A Google search showed that the Morris County Mall "remains" are now known as the Cedar Knolls Plaza (if I am not mistaken); my husband is actually from North Jersey (he grew up in Sussex County), so maybe next time that we are down there, we can swing by and check it out if there's anything left to see. Thanks for commenting!Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-76904136392259602332012-05-18T18:25:14.599-05:002012-05-18T18:25:14.599-05:00Thank you so much for this article.
I'm 43 ye...Thank you so much for this article.<br /><br />I'm 43 years old. Some of the most significant books of my childhood were purchased at the Mr. Paperback at the Maine Coast Mall in Ellsworth in the 1970's. What a special that was to me. I still have some of the books that I purchased there over the years, and I'm sad to think that when I'm next in Ellsworth, Mr. Paperback will no longer be there...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-61979221865784158412012-05-18T13:49:58.207-05:002012-05-18T13:49:58.207-05:00Great post. It hits very close to home.
I assume...Great post. It hits very close to home.<br /><br />I assume your Airport Mall is/was like my Morris County Mall in Cedar Knolls, NJ. Likely an early 70's building that featured two anchor stores separated by an indoor mall that featured a McDonalds, arcade, shoe store, Radio Shack and small bookstore called the Happy Booker. Over the years (I had moved to the area in 1984) the stores inside the mall changed/closed by Happy Booker managed to survive. It was probably the last to leave before the indoor part of the mall was reconfigured with a new McDonalds and Radio Shack, although the plans for the interior were eventually slashed because of lack of tenants and the space replaced with a TJ Maxx. I believe the store relocated to a (somewhat) nearby strip mall but didn't survive the onslaught of Barnes & Nables and Borders.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-32849807961767266602012-05-16T20:48:01.390-05:002012-05-16T20:48:01.390-05:00The honor is mine, Kendra. Thanks for sharing this...The honor is mine, Kendra. Thanks for sharing this with all of us!Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07788722183424550052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-48239813708151558472012-05-16T20:46:48.527-05:002012-05-16T20:46:48.527-05:00Skee Ball all the way, Kendra! I used to be pretty...Skee Ball all the way, Kendra! I used to be pretty good at it, but am sorely in need of practice! ;)Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07788722183424550052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-20228709053871560582012-05-16T20:08:00.675-05:002012-05-16T20:08:00.675-05:00Thank you! I will always be reminded of Mr. Paperb...Thank you! I will always be reminded of Mr. Paperback when I look at the signs that I was able to purchase (for $0.50 apiece; a very fair price!)...I'm glad that you have souvenirs of some of the places that are important to you; often times we don't realize the value of these places until they are no longer in existence.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-66016091626266092962012-05-16T20:04:56.987-05:002012-05-16T20:04:56.987-05:00Thank you, Didi -- I'm glad that you enjoyed i...Thank you, Didi -- I'm glad that you enjoyed it!Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-1162203210731677882012-05-16T20:04:23.936-05:002012-05-16T20:04:23.936-05:00Thanks, Rebecca! Yes, I too remember the mall bein...Thanks, Rebecca! Yes, I too remember the mall being an "event"; I recall my grandmother taking me to York Steak House at the Bangor Mall, and spending the day shopping. I was fascinated by York's sliding cafeteria-style trays -- little kids are captivated by the strangest things, I guess!<br /><br />My brother and I were very fond of Dream Machine; there was at least one other in Maine (the Maine Mall in South Portland), which lasted well into the late 90s, if memory serves. It might have been around into the early 2000s, in fact; I remember playing some pretty 'modern' games there. That said, it was only similar to my beloved, tiny Airport Mall arcade in name; that place exists only in faint memories.<br /><br />Skee Ball was my game; I remember the machines being in the rear right-hand corner of the small arcade space. I still play Skee Ball whenever I get the chance!Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-79225847600588258212012-05-16T19:59:27.140-05:002012-05-16T19:59:27.140-05:00The atmosphere certainly has a lot to do with it.....The atmosphere certainly has a lot to do with it...no giant store can replicate that. Thank you for sharing your tale of a long-defunct bookstore; it's through communicating our memories of these places that they remain "alive," in a sense.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-64511914867915503172012-05-16T19:56:25.978-05:002012-05-16T19:56:25.978-05:00I haven't yet succumbed to the temptation of e...I haven't yet succumbed to the temptation of endless text portability, though I have welcomed the use of books in .pdf form for academic research. I read all my news, etc., online; it is less wasteful, as you point out, and it saves money! I'm not sure, however, that I can ever visualize a day in which I stop buying physical books altogether.<br /><br />Paperback Books sounds like it was an awesome store; though it is long gone, I'm glad you are able to maintain such distinct and beloved memories in regard to it.Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1033289293807518844.post-38962406489283456682012-05-16T19:51:39.037-05:002012-05-16T19:51:39.037-05:00I loved the Rescue Rangers and DuckTales as well.....I loved the Rescue Rangers and DuckTales as well...the post-Darkwing Duck Disney Afternoon, however, began to lose my interest. I'd like to get all of those series on DVD eventually.<br /><br />I am just getting into Star Trek (TNG) myself; my husband is a big fan, and (because we love obsolete formats around here!) he has almost the entire series on VHS tape!Kendra Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02278869427623387215noreply@blogger.com