The Snowdropper (1977) with Peter Sallis

RickAns

RickAns

Dedicated Member
A thriller movie based on a play and taking place in Wales with Peter Sallis, Peter Vaughan and Fiona Walker. Saw it show up on Classic British Telly from the You Tube thingy.

I've not seen it yet, but from the Wiki page it seems to be a different Peter Sallis than we are used to in LotSW. Had to look up the definition of 'snowdropper' - slang for someone that steals ladies underwear from clothes lines. Maybe I am being too literal but cannot fathom hanging clothes out to dry if it is cold enough to snow, especially underwear!

 
RickAns said:
Maybe I am being too literal but cannot fathom hanging clothes out to dry if it is cold enough to snow, especially underwear!

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Oh, you're so young, and probably urban! When I was growing up on a farm in south central upstate New York from 1944-1965, laundry was always hung out unless it was raining stair rods. In winter it "freeze-dried", and required some force to fold it to fit in the laundry basket. Always washed and dried on Mondays, because that was the day that the farmers refrained from spreading manure, so the area smelled better.

Never before heard the term "Snowdropper", but there was one of those characters living in the neighborhood where I owned my first house. Pre-teen; his parents notion of discipline was to pick him up and throw him off the front porch, so no wonder he was turning out badly. He not only stole from clotheslines, he would sneak into unlocked houses and rifle through dresser drawers. As far as I know, he's still in prison for far worse offenses.
 
Nah, an old geezer from small town 'burbs / rural-ish, I guess. Not big farm land and not big city either, a nice medium in between. Some neighbor friends had room enough for a few horses and further down the road other friends that had small farm lands. Not near the scale I imagine yours was. I remember plenty of patches of 'small' corn fields dotted around the area. We had clothes lines in our backyards. Most people I knew did. As a kid I enjoyed helping my mom hanging clothes on the line since I was already outside playing or building something anyway.

Even have a make shift clothes line in my backyard currently. Breeze dried towels and shirts are great. Never saw my mom (or anyone) hang clothes outside when near cold enough for freezing though. String up a line in the basement with a fire going dries the clothes and warms the house.

In the past I've left shop / garage towels outside when wet that have frozen stiff. I do admit they were not on a clothes line at the time. My 'guy sense' way of thinking says bringing something frozen wet inside is gonna leave a puddle on the floor when it thaws. Maybe Ohio winters were different back then than those in NY. Yours were colder and longer lasting I bet. ;)
 
Yes, I remember my mother hanging out clothes, cloth diapers, sheets, towels, etc. On one very warm and breezy day, by the time she got the last item hung on the line, everything was dry!
 
Marianna said:
..You want different, you need to head up into the Adirondacks.
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As pretty as it is up there, not sure I want that harsh a winter. I know it is not the same place, I remember seeing pictures and slides my dad took (still have them) when he lived in Michigan and the Upper Peninsula and going to college up that way. Shoveling several feet of fresh snow off the rooftops of their houses. The huge snow sculpture contests some of the colleges did up there were amazingly impressive.
 
That must have been very frustrating for your mom, Adanor. Were you near a coal town or something? Hopefully not Wally's pigeons!
 
RickAns said:
As pretty as it is up there, not sure I want that harsh a winter. I know it is not the same place, I remember seeing pictures and slides my dad took (still have them) when he lived in Michigan and the Upper Peninsula and going to college up that way. Shoveling several feet of fresh snow off the rooftops of their houses. The huge snow sculpture contests some of the colleges did up there were amazingly impressive.
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I've been there only in summer. Wouldn't attempt a winter visit. My maternal grandfather grew up in the southern foothills of that mountain range. We visited "up home" the second Sunday in August each year for the family reunion, but never at any other time.
 
It's always worth watching our heroes in an unfamiliar situation proving they really can act when you consider the difference in roles. Another nice one to spot is an an early Brian Wilde in the film Rattle of a Simple Man. It also has as a particularly welcome bonus Thora Hird in in it too!
 
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