SHOE SHINE BOY IN THE NEWS...

[shoeshineboy]

well sort of...this guy says he put a shine on a brick...

Dead link removed.

good story....enjoy...

mark the shoeshine boy.....

 

[jamespowers]

well sort of...this guy says he put a shine on a brick...

Dead link removed

good story....enjoy...

mark the shoeshine boy.....

Darn! The link isn't working for me. I want to see a brick shine.

Regards,

J

 

[shoeshineboy]

LET'S TRY IT THIS WAY...

GO TO

WWW.STLTODAY.COM AND SEARCH "SHOESHINE ARTIST" IT WORKS REAL GOOD THIS WAY....

MARK THE SHOESHINE BOY

 

[jamespowers]

This article?:

Shoeshine artists are proud of profession
By Steve Giegerich
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
11/27/2006


Tyreese Hogue revealed his real name and quickly disowned it, explaining, "Blue is my shine name, that's what everybody calls me."

"Tyreese? That's your real name?" asked Chris Wilkins. "I didn't know that, and I've been working here half my life."

Not quite, but close. At 19, Wilkins has been shining shoes professionally for seven years.

"You can just call me Chris," said Wilkins. He doesn't have a shine name. Advertisement

Hogue got into the business 23 years ago. He was 10 when he drew his first paycheck from Jerry Hendree, who, starting in 1957, owned and operated the House of Good Care at several locations around the city, the last being 4683 St. Louis Avenue, near Marcus Avenue.

In July 2004, Dorothy Jones bought the business and attached her name to it. "Put your best foot forward" is the Jones House of Shining Stars' motto.

Jones House of Shining Stars is a throwback, a trip back to the middle of the last century and before; a time when shoes were shoes and not $130 sneakers bearing names of NBA legends.

The House of Shining Stars' interior color scheme is an unlikely combination of blue, yellow and red. The aromas of shoe creme, leather and polish fill the air.

The walls are lined with 20 elevated chairs, sheathed in red and blue Naugahyde, a pair of cast iron foot rests — known in the business as shoe pigs — positioned before each one.

The atmosphere is genteel, relaxed.

"No cursing," said Butch McAlpine, a comparative rookie with two years tenure under his belt. "Well, OK, there's cursing sometimes when it's just the guys here. But when the ladies step in we have nothing but respect."

Through the years politicians, cops and firefighters — jobs that demand a good shine on the shoes — have strolled through the door. Nelly, the area hip-hop artist and entrepreneur, shot a video there, "Midwest Swing."

Jeff Hudson of St. Louis has been stepping up and sitting down at the shop for 10 years. He always asks for Blue.

"I don't even ask, Blue knows what to do," said Hudson, as Hogue applied a sheen of sole dressing to the lower rim of Hudson's black boots. "When Blue gets done, your shoes look like glass, baby. And that's the first thing women look at, your shoes."

To hear Blue and Wilkins tell it, their employer represents the pinnacle of the business. Giving the Florsheims a quick once over on the way to the gate at the airport is all well and good, said Blue, careful not to offend relatives who work the Lambert Field concession. "But it ain't like the House of Shining Stars."

Shining a shoe the proper way is a skill passed from one generation to the next. Blue learned from his dad, as did Wilkins, whose father has been shining "35 or 40 years."

If Wilkins fails to pass the torch, or rag, to the next generation, it won't be for a lack of affection for the craft.

"It's not as popular as it was in the day," said Wilkins. "People aren't dressing up like they used to. Men used to dress up for women. Now they wear sneakers or Timberlands."

Blue, there Tuesday through Sunday, is not above a bit of self-promotion:

"You need to look neat down by the feet when you hit the street," he says. "Come on in. Ask for Blue."

Regards,

J

 

[shoeshineboy]

thanks...i was trying to get the link to work so you all could see the pics...i was in heaven with all of those shoes and boots and stands...wow.....:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Here is the picture