During the '50s and into the '60s, Gulfport's booming downtown was unmatched in the state, while its vibrant waterfront nightlife kept the coast rocking long after other small towns were fast asleep. Those who lived in Gulfport during that golden age have warm memories of high school bonfires on the beach, submarine races at the Rock Pile and parties at the Fiesta. After a day splashing in the Gulf, there were Wheel Burgers at Spiders, ice cream cones at Stone's, cold beers at Elsie's and snowballs at the Pop Corn King. This nostalgic look at boomer-era Gulfport is the surest way to step on back to the glory years.
John Cuevas was born and raised in Gulfport and has been researching coast history since the 1950s. His family is one of the oldest pioneer families between Mobile and New Orleans. As creative director of his own advertising firm in Atlanta for more than twenty-five years, he worked with some of the nation's top companies, wining gold awards in radio, television and print advertising. Cuevas has written articles and books about the coast. His book Cat Island (McFarland, 2011) is considered to be the definitive history of that Gulf Coast barrier island. His latest book, Discovering Cat Island: Photographs and History (University Press of Mississippi, 2018), is a coffee-table photographic guide to the historic sites of the island.