Showbiz Pizza

I spent a lot of my earliest birthdays at Showbiz Pizza on Fairview in Boise, Idaho. This commercial makes me want to have the Rock-a-Fire Explosion play at my birthday tonight.

March 30, 1979

My 11th birthday. Modesto, Ca. March 30, 1979, originally uploaded by JOn's ~=:-) view.

This is a picture taken on March 30, 1979, the date of my birth. I don't know Jon but I liked it was a birthday photo and my date of birth.

March 30, 1979
Modesto, California

Howard Johnson's Wishes You a Happy Birthday

The back of the card reads:
All children 12 years of age or under are invited to be our guest on their birthday.
To honor this occasion you may select a birthday dinner from our Children's Menu and of course your special Birthday Cake baked by the Pieman.
Present this card to the restaurant of your choice fro your Birthday Party with the compliments of Howard Johnson's.

"Educational" Films #12: Goofy - How To Play Baseball

In keeping up with the baseball theme this week, I decided to share an "educational" film from Walt Disney starring Goofy entitled "How To Baseball."

Krinkles The Clown Will Eat Your Soul While You Eat Your Cereal

A 1955 ad for Krinkles Cereal by Post Cereal

Motel Monday: Chicago

What better way to combine a week of posts about Chicago and the weekly Monday feature? These are motels from Chicago and the greater Chicago area.

50th on the Lake Motel

Shore Drive Motel

Acres Motel

Los Angeles Angels, 1964

Art Fowler -  Pitcher
Barry Latman - Pitcher
Buck Rodgers - Catcher
March 28, 1964
Angel Stadium

Charles Cushman's Chicago

These photos were taken over a number of years of Mr. Cushman's many trips to Chicago. These photos aren't so much of the building and streets of Chicago, but are of the people (mainly girls) in the parks on the beaches of Lake Michigan. Clicking on the images will take you back to my flickstream with a full description.

Some information on Charles Cushman from the UI website:
Charles W. Cushman, who graduated from Indiana University in 1917, bequeathed to the university some of his photographic equipment, his notebooks, and his entire collection of photographs, shot between 1917 and 1969. Upon Mr. Cushman's death in 1972, most of his photographs were sent to the University Archives and placed in storage. Mr. Cushman's widow, Elizabeth, donated to the University in 1989 additional photographic equipment and some photographs shot in the late 1960s. The Indiana University Foundation gave them to the School of Journalism, where they remained until fall 1999, when they were reunited with the rest of the collection at the University Archives.

See the entire Charles Cushman collection (with thousands of archived photos) here.

Classic Postcards of Chicago, Illinois: Food and Drink Edition

Here are a baker's dozen of classic Chicago postcards. This time we are focusing on the cocktail lounges and restaurants of Chicago. Clicking on the images will take you back to my flickr stream with a description of the restaurant.

Kon-Tiki Ports at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel

The Coq d'Or Cocktail Lounge at the Drake Hotel

Naka-No-Ya Tea House

The Traders at the Palmer House

Classic Postcards from Chicago, Illinois

A few postcards, from my collection, of sights around the Windy City. Clicking on the images will lead you back to my flickr site with information from the back of the postcard.

Michigan Avenue

State Street

State Street at Night

Rush Street at Night

Ted Cassidy - "The Lurch"

This song has been in my head all day. I highly recommend watching this video; it's pretty amazing.

Ball-Band Red Ball - September 1958

Here we have another issue of the Ball-Band Red Ball newsletter. This one,  from September 1958, tells you all about the evils of Socialism, wages versus productivity, the Old Timers' Holiday and the 1958 Fishing Contest.

Educational Films #11: How to Be Well Groomed (1949)

The description of the film from the original uploader Shaggylocks:
This film details the grooming rituals of brother "Don" and sister "Sue". Both are incredibly neat; in fact, grooming seems to occupy their entire day, while their evenings are spent ironing outfits and polishing shoes. The work load is so heavy it requires two narrators! Features some excellent voice over lines, including:

"Sue avoids red nail polish since it would call attention to her stubby hands."
"Mother too keeps up a good appearance even around the house, for that keeps up her spirits."
"Their good grooming habits help them in friendships and business. For your success depends a great deal on how you look."

Harry Ekman

Harry Ekman (1923-1999) was a graphic artist. Ekman studied at the American Academy of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. He is best remembered for his pin-up and advertising work. By 1960, Ekman was making a transition from commercial illustration and pin-up art to portraiture. The rest of his career was devoted to gallery works and portraits.

The Dala Horse Talks About Swedish Art-Handicraft

A strange pamphlet supposedly written by the Dala Horse under the employ of Falu Hemslöjd Ab of Falun, Sweden from the 1950s.
This was distributed by Falu Homesloyd Corporation at 208 N. Wells St. Chicago 6, Illinois.

Motel Monday: Capri

This week's Motel Monday takes a trip to the Island of Capri; where Italian in Capri pants roam the countryside as far as the eye can see. Ok. We aren't actually going there. We are going to take a trip around the United States and see some motels with Capri in the title. Some of these motels tried to conjure up the Italian island, some used the color (a color halfway between azure and cyan) as their inspiration. Either way, there are some cool looking motels in this set.

Motel Capri - Redding, California

Capri Lodge - Yakima, Washington

Capri Motel - Santa Clara, California

Welcome Postmaster

This is a 1961 letter and brochure from the National Association of Postmasters of the United States (Napus). This was given to incoming postmasters and it is full of helpful information on what a postmaster's job entails and how to be on the proper course to success. See the entire brochure after the jump.

Wish You Were Hear: Honolulu No-Nos

Mailed from Honoulu, Hawaii to Clarence J. Steckel of Elkhart, Indiana on  July 7, 1972:

We had a nice lunch here today. Met people on Holiday Isle Tour. They say it was wonderful. Ours sure is botched up for us. No City tour of Honolulu, No Pearl Harbor Cruise and perhaps no Luau. If Les calls - let him know. Out guide is fine and doing his best to help. Love, Marie

Algemac's Restaurant Postcard Menu - Glendale, California

An oddly-shaped postcard menu from Algemac's Restaurant in Glendale, California. Not sure of the date but it is probably from the 1950s or early 1960s. Here's what the outside looked like and article about Algemac's in 2008, and here's what happened to it.

Tony & Shirley, Los Angeles – 1956

Tony & Shirley, Los Angeles – 1956, originally uploaded by ElectroSpark.

From the wonderful Electrospark collection.

10 TV Guide Covers From the 1950s

These particular TV Guides are from the New England area and are all from my collection.

Grace Kelly - April 14-20, 1956

Dobie Gillis Cast - December 5-11, 1959

Groucho Marx - March 19-25, 1954

Groucho Marx - August 27-September 2, 1955

Frank Sinatra - April 14-20, 1954

Howdy Doody & Bob Smith - June 25-July 1, 1954

Fred Astaire and Barrie Chase - October 11-17, 1958

Jay North as Dennis The Menace - October 24-30, 1959

Edie Adams and Janet Blair - August 23-29, 1958

Janis Paige - January 28-February 3, 1956