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'The Story of Jonsey'

 
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Mr. Linsky
BusTalk's Offical Welcoming Committee



Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 5071
Location: BRENTWOOD, CA. - WOODMERE, N.Y.

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2007 4:13 pm    Post subject: 'The Story of Jonsey' Reply with quote

The Story of Jonsey’

Most bus companies have had their share of characters behind the wheel, and Green Bus Lines of Jamaica, New York was no exception!

There was one fellow whose name I never knew but who we dubbed as ‘The Duke’.

The Duke would arrive for work each day in a custom fitted and leather trimmed uniform and hat along with an elegant overcoat, white silk scarf and a pair of form fitting cowhide driving gloves (oh, I forgot the ‘spit’ shinned black shoes!).

His first task was to disinfect the seat, wheel and anything else that he might touch and then, with his own hangar, he would neatly place his coat and scarf on the hook that was provided for this purpose behind the driver’s seat in the GM ‘Old Looks’ (the Duke was now ready to go to work!).

Then there was Jonesy; I never knew his first name and presumed his last to be Jones but he didn’t mind being called Jonsey.

Jonsey was the ‘Jackie Robinson’ of Green Line being the first and, for the longest time, the only African American chauffeur, and came to the company sometime during World War II. He had a perfect attendance record, always on time and never was there any complaint lodged against him.

However, unbeknownst to the company, Jonsey had one idiosyncrasy which was his fear of death and anything having to do with the dead which was almost his downfall!

It was sometime in the mid fifties that Jonsey’s seniority earned him the right to pick a prestigious and sought after A.M. run on the Q60 Queens Boulevard line.

All of a sudden the office began to get complaints that there was a driver on Queens Boulevard who was veering to the express lanes as he passed the Calvary Cemetery south bound to Jamaica.

Of course, it was Jonsey who refused to drive by the burial ground in the service lane!

This didn’t sit too well with either Mike Weinstein (the then Chief Dispatcher) or Sol Levine (the then Road Boss) but they had compassion and understanding and reassigned Jonsey to a ‘split shift’ on the Q10 Lefferts Boulevard route.

A split shift in those days meant handling the A.M. rush and then returning in mid afternoon to do either a John Adams or Woodrow Wilson school run followed by attending to the homebound commute.

Everything was fine until one evening when Jonsey pulled away from Penn Drug (the ‘landmark’ terminus at Queens Boulevard), and headed up 80th. Rd. to Austin Street.

As he approached the intersection in his fully loaded antique ‘CT’ Mack, screams were heard from the rear of the bus where a passenger had suddenly keeled over and died (can you get this picture so far?).

To make a long story short, Jonsey disappeared for over a month but again compassion ruled and he returned to finish out his career and retired with honors in the mid sixties.

By the way; that Mack model ‘CT’ was one bus that Jonsey refused to ever step foot in again!

Mr. Linsky
“The Green Hornet”
Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica & Rockaway, NY
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Q65A



Age: 66
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 1764
Location: Central NJ

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2007 8:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Great story, Mr. L!
Even in a big-time big-city operation such as GBL there was still plenty of room for the human side of bus operation.
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Q101 EAST MIDTOWN 2 AV




Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 30

PostPosted: Thu Aug 02, 2007 8:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's a little surprising, that despite the treatment toward blacks, Jonsey managed to stay there for a while. He must have been one of Green Lines' best employees
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Mr. Linsky
BusTalk's Offical Welcoming Committee



Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 5071
Location: BRENTWOOD, CA. - WOODMERE, N.Y.

PostPosted: Thu Aug 02, 2007 3:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Q101 EAST MIDTOWN 2 AV wrote:
It's a little surprising, that despite the treatment toward blacks, Jonsey managed to stay there for a while. He must have been one of Green Lines' best employees


Q101,

I can't say that I remember any bias at Green Line, and, at the time I drove, there were already a number of African Americans working both behind the wheel and in the shops.

It may be that Jonsey was readily accepted for employment because there weren't great numbers of applicants during the war.

However, Green Line's 'top brass' were mostly Jewish, and Jews in general were much more receptive to equal rights even in those days merely because they were the subject of discrimination themselves!

This is a personal opinion by the writer, and is not meant to be offensive.

Mr. Linsky
"The Green Hornet"
Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, & Rockaway, NY
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Pipe



Age: 82
Joined: 16 Apr 2007
Posts: 78
Location: Tobyhanna PA

PostPosted: Sun Aug 05, 2007 12:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mr. Linsky. Nice story about Jonsey. "Pipe"
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