This Christmas, how about a stroll (well, actually a drive) down Traverse City’s “memory lane” and other streets? Who recalls the likes of Captain Jack’s, Fox Haus, and Mr. Steak? They were Traverse City institutions in the 1970s and 80s, and an online video is a vivid trip back to 1982.

Glenn Rice of Frankfort captured 46 vintage minutes with an RCA VHS camcorder. “It (the video camera) was the rave of the day. I was just having fun,” he told The Ticker via email.

The YouTube video, entitled Traverse City 1982 A Look Back, includes the text “Gas is 84 cents a Gallon, Clinch Park Zoo Clinch Park Train Looking Good. The Sights And Sounds of A Time Gone. Also A Run Through Beulah and A home on Herring Lake We Almost Bought.”

Much of it was shot from a car driving in and around town. The first 3-4 minutes show some downtown neighborhood streets like Sixth, with not too many changes evident. But stay tuned…

You’ll see brands no longer with us: NBD, Empire and Old Kent banks, and Amoco, United and Gulf gas stations.  Some things remain the same: the Civic Center, local institutions like Doug Murdick’s Fudge, Robertson’s Barber Shop and Paesano’s Pizza.

But wow, the differences --  it’ll be fun for locals to see long-gone entities such as Hoop’s on Union Street, Captain Jack’s, Roma restaurant, , the Fox Haus, Mr. Steak, Giantway (now Tom’s East Bay), and Arne’s Funland, bustling with tourists. Amidst the traffic of Ford Fairmonts, Chevy Monzas and Renault Alliances, spot Traverse Bay Woolen Co., Waterfront Inn, and Clock Fine Food. Downtown, pay a visit to the Clinch Park Zoo and its wolves and elk near the waterfront. And speaking of the waterfront, note today’s Open Space was the 1980s’ coal-burning power plant, right on Grand Traverse Bay. Residents today will also notice a lot more trees and small homes along US-31 between downtown and Acme.

What’s conspicuously not in the video? NMC’s Dennos Museum and its entire redeveloped Great Lakes Campus and Hagerty Center, as well as the many apartment, condo, bank and office buildings scattered in and around downtown.

Rice said he got into shooting video as he found it more engaging and “real” than still images. When he first recorded the video and posted it on YouTube, it had the soundtrack of Huey Lewis music, but copyright laws caused the sound to be removed.

Rice is succinct in his response when asked what he thinks of the changes the area has gone through. “I miss the zoo and there’s way too much traffic now.”