Memory Lane Concept Works for Small Alley

When Bob Berger bought the Montrose Bowl in 1983, he wasn’t motivated by a love of the sport. In fact, he laughingly says, “stupidity” made him buy it.

“I wanted to have something to do at nighttime,” said Berger, 64, who at the time was a general foreman at a company that made magnetic tape heads in Glendale.

So he plunked down $140,000 for the business, not counting the building or the pin-setting machines, and tried to keep the tiny eight-lane alley in the black.

What he soon discovered was that the Montrose Bowl--which opened in 1936--was one of a dying breed.

“This alley was too small to make it with open bowling,” he said. “And the place was run down. Often at night I would have to sit in the back because the machines would break down. So I’d be back there fixing them to reset the pins.”

Today, Montrose Bowl still looks a little frayed at the edges, like a slice out of the past--but that’s intentional.

“Montrose Bowl really is a dinosaur of a bygone era,” said Al Sabo, managing editor of the California, Western and Utah Bowling News publications. “But people like to get involved in nostalgic things. I think that’s why bowling has made a rebound with the kids. They want to do something that other people used to do.”

The fascination with all things retro has been good news for the German-born Berger, who now only opens his bowling alley for private parties and three nights of league bowling (although on occasion, someone walking in off the street might be able to get in for a game).

And through mostly word-of-mouth promotion, Berger has managed to stay very busy.

“In 1987, I started getting requests to hold private parties here, and pretty soon I was cutting back on league nights and open bowling, and parties became the standard,” he said. “To hold the business open so that only four or six people could bowl wasn’t worth my while.”

Although Berger wouldn’t say what his annual revenue is, his prices to rent the place range from $160 for two hours on a weekday afternoon to $600 for six hours on a Friday or Saturday night. And business is coming in in the form of birthday parties for children and adults, corporate parties and 1950s-themed parties. “I get quite a few company parties through here,” he said. “Especially law firms.”

The entire month of December is already booked, and most weekends book several weeks, if not months, in advance.

“I really spend no money on advertising other than putting an ad in the yellow pages,” he said. “I once advertised in the local newspapers and saw nothing from it.”

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Business has been good enough for him to buy the building last year and pick up new pin-setting machines three years ago at $18,000 apiece. The one thing he hasn’t invested in is automatic scoring equipment, which most bowling alleys now offer.

“He does have a little gold mine,” Bowling News’ Sabo said, “but I’m surprised he hasn’t put in the automatic scoring. Revenue has gone up considerably at other lanes after they put in the equipment. When you’re out bowling with friends, who wants to bother with keeping score?”

Berger isn’t worried, though, saying he has little competition for the service he offers. “The one thing I could use now is more daytime parties,” he said.

He’s also considering cutting back one of his league bowling nights in the fall and offering rock ‘n’ roll bowling instead, in which the lights go down and the music gets turned up.

“We’ll turn the lights off and get the mirror ball going. It’s really a lot of fun.”

Fun is apparently the key ingredient, as anywhere from 20 to 70 people file through the doors for each private party (the alley can hold 95), oftentimes dressed in poodle skirts and bobby socks.

Inside they find worn red-leather booths, a soda bar (where food, soft drinks, wine and beer are served for an extra fee), a jukebox (although there is also a stereo system) and the old-style wooden bowling lanes.

Party-goers also have the option of bringing their own food.

Berger has four part-time employees, and he and his wife, Maria, also staff the business when needed. His son, Robert Jr., is also involved.

“I retired last year, but I still come in two to three hours a day to handle the phones and make reservations,” Berger said.

The intimacy and old-style charm of the building, which is only 55 feet by 155 feet, has also attracted the attention of Hollywood production companies.

So far, two movies--”Frankie and Johnny” and “Pleasantville” (the latter rented the alley for a month)--and several commercials have been shot there. And over the years, celebrities including Dustin Hoffman, Janet Jackson and Eddie Van Halen have bowled there at private parties.

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Berger says his biggest worries these days have to do with parking.

He has no parking lot, and Montrose, once a quiet little commercial enclave with an abundance of parking, is starting to fill up with cars for such events as Thursday night farmers’ markets and ongoing weekend craft fairs.

“We’re mostly dark on Thursday nights because of the farmers’ markets,” he said. “But I’m going to try the rock ‘n’ roll bowling starting at 9 p.m. on Thursdays in the fall.”

And, as the owner of a bowling alley, has his fascination for the sport increased over the years?

“I began bowling once a week after I bought the business,” he said. “But what I really like is golf.”