Les Jones

Perhaps he was having lunch. Miss Olivia's is just around the corner from the house where he grew up. Zesto, the Dwarf, and Noah's Ark are long gone. Maybe he wanted something a step up from Kay's down the street.

-- a Murvl native and "graduate" of Mrs. Alexander's Ruth St. Nursery School and Kindergarten, 1955-1958

After posting my first comment I remembered that my niece had a similar "brush with greatness" in Blount County. I think it was the early 80's when she stopped in one day for lunch at the Wendy's across from the airport. In walked Jimmy Carter, and, I believe, his mother Lillian (plus Secret Service).

As for me, while changing planes in the Boston airport in 1981 I saw Tip O'Neill coming out of the men's room.

He was definitely having lunch. Where's the house he grew up in? I always liked that neighborhood.

Zesto, Dwarf, and Noah's Ark, huh? Before my time, I guess. I just barely remember the Blue Circle across the street from the high school. Where were they?

I forgot the question about Lamar's home on S. Ruth. If you turn onto S. Ruth from W. Broadway, it is the last house facing S. Ruth on your right before you get to Oak Park.

Here is Lamar's Maryville address before the 1996 Presidential Campaign in which he talks about walking the four blocks from Ruth St. to MHS (I would assume he went out Oak Park, to Magnolia to White Ave. to S. Cedar).

http://www.4president.org/speeches/alexander1996announcement.htm

I hope you got the comment I posted just prior to my last post on October 24. In that comment (which it said would be reviewed by you first), I gave some info on the 3 restaurants you asked about as well as URL's for info about them. I can send again if you did not get it.

Apparently my post early on October 25 got lost. Here is some info on the 3 restaurants.

Noah's Ark was in a building in the triangle of land east of New Providence Presbyterian formed by Morganton Rd (now Lamar Alexandar Parkway) and W. Broadway. Search Google or Ebay (there is a postcard currently on sale there) for "Noah's Ark Maryville".

The Dwarf was adjacent to New Providence. This is probably what you are thinking of as Blue Circle. I don't recall what it might have been (if anything) after its time as the Dwarf. Here is a post about the "Snow White" and "Dwarf" restaurants by the owner's daughter. Scroll down to the Oct. 2006 comments.

http://www.swankpad.org/blather/2006/08/10/dwarf-restaurant-and-tate-motel-really-found/

Zesto was a drive-in a block west of MHS which later became a produce market. Its primary item was soft serve ice cream. There are still some left around the country. Here is a link to the ones in Atlanta.

http://www.zestoatlanta.com/

Oh, OK. So Zesto was where the Horn of Plenty is now. That makes sense.

My brother is 13 years older than me and also went to Maryville High. He said there used to be a ton of restaurants around the high school because you could leave school for lunch. Once the school changed their policy those restaurants slowly went away.