Lorain vs. Elyria Ad – November 12, 1954

November 14, 2014, 3:09 am

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It's Friday night, and that means high school football games. So here's a full-page ad with sponsors promoting the Lorain vs Elyria game that ran in the Lorain Journal on November 12, 1954 – 60 years ago this week.

As usual, the sponsors include some long-gone companies (like Kline's and Kutza's). But this ad collection is unusual, because many of the companies are still around. These include Crystal Clear Dry Cleaners, Lorain Telephone (now part of CenturyLink), Ohio Edison, First Federal Savings of Lorain, and Lorain Banking Company (now Lorain National). Does that mean it pays to advertise?

The ads themselves have some clever wordplay tying in their company's specialty with sports terminology. But what's funny is how some of the advertisers blatantly pull for Lorain to win, while others either just offer tepid encouragement, or play the middle of the road entirely.

I guess when you're a public utility you can't play favorites.

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Isaly's Dairy Store Opening Ad – November 16, 1949

November 17, 2014, 3:18 am

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Opening Ad Published in the Lorain Journal on November 16, 1949

Mention the name of Isaly's today, and you might think of the great Isaly's chipped chopped ham that you get at your local grocery's deli counter. But did you know that Lorain once had its very own Isaly's convenience store?

Isaly's roots go back to when its founder settled in Monroe County, Ohio in 1833. The family business was originally making cheese, before expanding to dairy farming and eventually home delivery of milk. The Isaly family later branched out by opening a chain of retail stores in Ohio and western Pennsylvania.

Courtesy Brian Butko from his book Klondikes, Chipped Ham & Skyscraper Cones: The Story of Isaly's

The Isaly dairy stores not only became famous for their uniquely shaped "skyscraper" cone (shown above), but also for the Klondike Bar – an Isaly's creation.

Anyway, the Lorain Isaly's dairy store and restaurant held its formal opening on November 17, 1949 at 735 Broadway. At the time, it was announced that the Lorain store was the most modern of the chain's 413 retail outlets.

The store was erected by John Dandrea, according an article in the Lorain Journal at the time. The sales room was more than 3,200 square feet in size, with 100 feet of counter space and seating for 107. The store sold fountain products, ice cream, grocery and deli items in addition to full-course lunches and dinners.

Robert Terrel of Elyria was in charge of the outlet's 25 employees. Lawrence Radick of Lorain was assistant manager.

Vintage Isaly's Sign

The Isaly's store concept apparently didn't work out in Lorain, unfortunately. Maybe it was ahead of its time, or the location wasn't conducive to walk-in business. Possibly there were just too many other places to get an ice cream cone. But at any rate, the 735 Broadway location was listed as vacant by the time of the 1958 directory.

Around 1960, the 735 Broadway address became the longtime home to City Loan & Savings Company. That company remained there until the late 1970s. (Although the 735 Broadway address is not in use today, the closest location seems to be the 737 Broadway address of the Lorain Arts Council.)

To find out more about Isaly's, click here to visit their website. And if you're a really big Isaly's fan, click here for information about a book about the company's history, written by author Brian Butko.

Probst Corners Ad – November 27, 1954

November 18, 2014, 3:25 am

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From Isaly's, we turn our attention to another ice cream shoppe, this time a locally owned one: Probst's.

Here's a nutty ad (above) for Probst Corners featuring a cute squirrel illustration that ran in the Lorain Journal on November 27, 1954.

A confectionery store run by Herman and Violet Probst first appeared in the Lorain City Directory in the mid-1940s or so. It was located at 226 8th Street (below).

226 Eighth Street today

A second Probst location was opened in the new O'Neil - Sheffield Center (below).

Photo courtesy of the Lorain County Historical Society

The Probst listings seemed to disappear from the city directories in the late 1950s.

The Eighth Street location was briefly taken over by a deli called Handy Pantry. Then, in late October 1959 the location became the well-known home of DeLuca Bakery.

I'm not sure if the Probst stores are well-remembered by Lorainites or not. If you have a memory of the stores, be sure to leave a comment!

ABC Realty Sales Ad – November 23, 1963

November 19, 2014, 3:22 am

≫ Next: Gary Motors Sales Rambler Ad – Nov. 24, 1954

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Here's a realty ad for ABC Realty announcing the Grand Opening of a model home out in South Lorain. The ad appeared in the Journal on November 23, 1963.

The house has a lot of nice features according to the ad. As a Sheffield Laker, I'm impressed that it has those newfangled storm sewers  – and sidewalks no less!

Of course, the real reason I'm posting the ad is because it features our old pal, the little clip art man in the current Ed Tomko car ads. (Here's a link to all of my posts about him.)

Anyway, it was fairly easy to find the model house on a Bing maps aerial view of the area (below). It sits on a spacious corner lot.

From there, I found the house on the Lorain County Auditor website. The house is located at 4523 Palm Avenue. A few structural modifications have been made, but it's still a nice looking house.

Courtesy Lorain County Auditor website

The little map in the ad is a little outdated, though. Homewood School was demolished back in 2008.

Gary Motors Sales Rambler Ad – Nov. 24, 1954

November 20, 2014, 3:21 am

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Here's something that might have caught the attention of someone perusing car ads in the Lorain Journal back in the mid-1950s: an ad for Gary Motor Sales featuring beloved Disney character Jiminy Cricket promoting the 1955 Ramblers. It ran in the Lorain Journal on November 24, 1954.

It all makes sense when you realize that Walt Disney himself served as a pitchman for the Nash Rambler in TV commercials back in 1954. (You can read more about it here.)

What's really interesting (to animation fanatics like myself) is that Walt Disney's interest in making TV commercials with his beloved characters led him to engage his designer Tom Oreb to create modern, stylized versions of them. The results are quite unusual in some cases.

Here's a stylish Nash Rambler commercial featuring the characters from Song of the South: Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear.

And here are two more Nash Rambler commercials with a (gasp) redesigned, pointy-nosed Mickey Mouse. Pluto Pup, Minnie Mouse and (gasp again) two mousey offsprings of unknown parentage are in there too.

If you'd like to see more of Tom Oreb's redesigns of classic Disney characters, click here to visit the Cartoon Brew website.

Courtesy Cartoonbrew.com

Monroe House Move – November 1960

November 21, 2014, 3:22 am

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Houses that were moved from one location to another have been a favorite topic on this blog for some time now. Here's another one – this time from Oberlin (although it would probably be more at home on the Oberlin In The Past Facebook page). 

The article below is from the November 23, 1960 Lorain Journal and it tells the story of the "Old Monroe House" located in Oberlin, Ohio. (Click on it for a readable version.) The historic Italian Villa-type Century home was moved about 300 feet to make way for what was then the new Conservatory of Music. The house was the former home of James Monroe, who had quite a career in politics, as well as being a member of the Oberlin College faculty.

Today, the Monroe House is totally restored and part of the Oberlin Heritage Center and is open for tours. Click here for more information.

Courtesy touring-ohio.com

N. Ridge Road Neighbors: Robert Taylor Insurance and Clearview Hobby

November 24, 2014, 3:16 am

≫ Next: Bendix Ad – 1954 Lorain County Farm & Rural Directory

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A few weeks ago, I did a post about the Harmon-Nielsen Company, formerly located at 2063 N. Ridge Road. Looking back now, I can see that my post was a little sloppy and light on information about the firm at that address today, as well as its neighbor to the west.

So please allow me to clarify things a little bit about the two companies that have the lunchtime pleasure of being located right across from Ilene's Dog 'n Suds.

First, the 2063 N. Ridge Road address belongs to Robert Taylor Insurance (click here to visit the company website and read about its history). As one person noted in a comment on my Harmon-Nielsen post, the insurance firm has done a terrific job of retrofitting the old sign (below) for its use. It really looks wonderful.

Meanwhile, the firm immediately to the west in its own building is Clearview Hobby / Futuretronics at 2055 N. Ridge Road. And despite what you might have thought after reading my post, it's still very much in business.

I stopped in recently on a Saturday morning to enjoy a friendly chat with Wayne Pakan, the owner.

First off, he clarified just how long his company has been at that location: 20 years. He also told me a little about his hobby store's specialty.

"Slot cars are now my core business," he informed me. Mr. Pakan is, in fact, the largest slot car dealer in Ohio, a claim that also appears in his ad that regularly runs in Cruisin' Times magazine (below).

For years, as Mr. Pakan explained, his business used to be 90% mail order and 10% walk-in. Surprisingly, he pointed out to me that those ratios have reversed in recent years – which is great, since that means that more people are visiting his store.

But despite the presence of a huge slot car track in the middle of it, the store is still an old-time hobby store. Walking around the tidy store was like going back in time. There's lots of Lionel trains, rockets, airplanes and plastic model kits. There's even an old Pac-Man machine for sale.

As you can see, Mr. Pakan's cat Chessie patrols the store, greeting slot car and hobby enthusiasts.

Click here to visit Clearview Hobby's Facebook page – and don't forget to visit the store too! It's open Monday and Thursday from 3 to 8, Saturday from 10 to 5 and Sunday from 10 to 2 (although it is suggested that you call first to make sure it's open).

You can call the store at (440) 277-8004.

Bendix Ad – 1954 Lorain County Farm & Rural Directory

November 25, 2014, 3:28 am

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With all the hubbub recently about Bendix possibly moving its World Headquarters to another city (which you can read about here in the Chronicle-Telegram in case you missed it), I thought I'd post this ad. It appeared in the 1954 Lorain County Farm & Rural Directory.

The company has been at that location since 1941. (Click here to see a historical timeline.)

The directory ad is interesting to me from a graphic design and marketing viewpoint, because it includes the company's former name and logo, as well as a product logo that looks fairly modern.

But the main interest of the ad of course is the aerial photo, showing the headquarters and plant looking very much all alone on Cleveland Street. Quite a difference from this Bing Maps aerial (below) showing all the development that occurred over the last 60 years.

I've had the opportunity to visit the Bendix headquarters once or twice, as the company is a longtime client of my employer. It's a cool-looking building from the outside, but I can understand why the company feels the need to have a modern, new building to attract the best and the brightest.

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Thanksgiving Ads – November 1954

November 26, 2014, 3:10 am

≫ Next: Thanksgiving at the Castle – 1954

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Here are a couple 1954 Thanksgiving ads that feature a realistically drawn turkey.

The first ad – for Ande's– appeared in the Lorain Journal on November 22, 1954. As the ad noted, Ande's was located at the O'Neil – Sheffield Center, and at the time was Lorain County's only drive-in beverage store.

The second ad is for Avon Lake Food Center, located at Stop 65 in the Avon Lake Shopping Center. The ad ran in the Lorain Journal on the same day as the first ad, and features the very same great turkey art.

But let's talk turkey about that turkey. Despite the turkey's perky expression, he's fairly ugly, with wattles and a snood.

What's that? You don't know what those things are? Better head over to this website so you can see photos of the (ugh) real thing and read an informative explanation.

Just don't let it spoil your appetite for the big day tomorrow.

Thanksgiving at the Castle – 1954

November 27, 2014, 3:27 am

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Eating Thanksgiving dinner out at a fine restaurant is not a new concept. Back in 1954, many Lorainites undoubtedly enjoyed their holiday meal that day at the Castle.

Photo circa 1953

(The Castle has been featured on this blog many times, including as the subject of a three-part history (here, here and here), a 1952 Sixth Anniversary ad, a 1958 Halloween ad, a 1967 ad, and a 1975 Bill Scrivo article.)

And what sort of sumptuous fare did the iconic Lorain restaurant serve on that Thanksgiving 60 years ago today?

According to the above ad, which ran in the Lorain Journal on November 24, 1954, it was quite a feast. For appetizers: oysters on the half shell, fresh jumbo shrimp cocktail, tangbrosia fruit cup and a choice of chicken noodle soup or tomato juice. After a salad (with roquefort dressing) was the main course: roast young tom turkey (with Theresa's Special Dressing), cranberry sauce, whipped hubbard squash, candied yams and a choice of buttered green peas or whipped potatoes. Finally, for dessert, patrons enjoyed country fresh apple cider, fresh pumpkin pie (with apple butter and whipped cream), hot mince pie (with brandy sauce) followed by Pierre's French Ice Cream or Sherbet.

Oh, I almost forgot the after-dinner mints.

Happy Thanksgiving!

That Bee Looks Familiar

November 28, 2014, 3:30 am

≫ Next: 3 Suns and 4 Aces at O'Neil Sheffield Shopping Center– November 1954

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Bee-lieve it or not, the above ad for PM Blended Whiskey – which ran in the Lorain Journal on November 16, 1949 – caught my eye. I'll explain why in a little bit – but first, a little background.

The ad was a black and white version of a full color ad that was part of a full series of wonderful magazine ads for PM Blended Whiskey. Here's the color version (below), as well as others that appeared as part of the "Clear, Clean Taste" campaign .

The product was bottled by National Distillers Products in Cincinnati, Ohio (and in case you're wondering, the "PM" originally stood for Penn Maryland). The PM brand – which seemed to be very popular in the 1940s and 50s – seems to be dormant now, and its parent company was guzzled up by Jim Beam Company in the late 1980s.

Even thought the whisky is no longer around, that great-looking bee in the ad is still around – which is why the ad caught my attention.

Today, he apparently serves as the advertising mascot of the Tropical Blossom Honey Company, advertised as Florida's Finest Honey. Here he is (below) as he appeared in the book Character Trademarks (1990) by John Mendenhall, which is why I recognized him in the first place. The logo is circa 1951, a couple years after the PM Blended Whiskey ad. He's traded his flower for an orange!

And here he is in full glorious color (below) as he appears today on the Tropical Blossom Honey Company website, which you can visit by clicking here. The company is in its eighth decade of business and has an online store.

I have no idea which company was the first to use that distinctive bee for their mascot.

Did you know this bee also has a cousin who lives in the Great White North? 

A greatly simplified and appealing version of him in this same pose (below) served as an early mascot for Billy Bee Honey, the number one honey in Canada. The company has been around since 1958.

The above artwork was reproduced from a label on vintage Billy Bee jar that I found in the spouse's Canadian grandmother's garage during one of our annual visits to her home in North Bay, Ontario.

Here's a similar jar and label that I found on the internet (below).

Courtesy Etsy

The Billy Bee mascot's design has been modified through the years. He eventually lost his gloves – as well as his arms! Here he is on a set of collectible glasses with a sports theme that often pop up on Ebay.

The spouse's grandmother would only buy Billy Bee Honey – the creamed, spreadable version – and she saved all her empty Billy Bee plastic tubs to store her leftovers in. The empty containers looked exactly like this (below).

After many years of trips to North Bay, we got hooked on the spreadable honey as well, and today it's the only kind of honey the spouse will eat, which is not too surprising since she's still a Green Card-carrying Maple Leafer. We bring some Billy Bee home from Canada whenever we go there. For a couple years, we could even get it at the Sheffield Lake Apples grocery store in a smaller container for the American market (below), but it seems to have disappeared from its shelves. I guess most Americans didn't know what to make of the sticky stuff.

We haven't been up to Canada for a little over a year, and have had to resort to buying some online from the Canadian Favouriteswebsite. Strangely enough, on the latest packaging (below), Billy Bee has grown his arms back!

Anyway, click here to visit the Billy Bee Honey website.

3 Suns and 4 Aces at O'Neil Sheffield Shopping Center– November 1954

December 1, 2014, 3:31 am

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Like me, you might still be enjoying some tasty Thanksgiving leftovers. So along those lines, I guess I'll start off my month of December blogs with some "leftovers" from November that I didn't quite get posted.

First up this week are some full page ads from November 1954 for O'Neil Sheffield Shopping Center that promote well-known musical guests and local celebrities appearing there on consecutive weekends as part of a Grand Opening celebration.

The musical time period of these ads is interesting. It's not quite the Rock and Roll era yet (but pretty close), so the acts are fairly wholesome and tame.

The first ad (below) ran in the Lorain Journal on November 4, 1954 and highlights the appearance of RCA Victor Recording Stars the Three Suns. Also scheduled to appear were local radio personality Johnny Andrews of WTAM radio, and Cleveland TV personality Uncle Joe Bova of station WNBK.

On the same day the ad appeared, The Journal included an article (with the photo at left) about the Three Suns, which told a little about their history. It stated, "Al and Morty Nevins, and their cousin Artie Dunn, originally formed their unique combination for an engagement in the Circus Room of the Hotel Piccadilly in New York City. Al Nevins, the guitar player with the group was formerly a symphonic musician, and his brother Morty studied piano seriously before taking up the accordion for his work with the group. Artie Dunn plays a Hammond Organ specially made for him, to provide the unusual effects for which the group is famous.

The article noted, "The Three Suns first gained national attention for the radio broadcasts which they made from the Hotel Piccadilly. They made a recording of their famous theme, "Twilight Time"– (one of their own compositions) – for Majestic records, and it became such a hit that it led to their present association with RCA Victor. Since they became Victor recording artists, they have made more albums than any other artists on the label."

Here's a little sample of what the O'Neil Shopping Center crowd might have seen that day, courtesy of youtube.

A week later on November 11, 1954, an ad appeared for other big name group appearing at the shopping center that would close out the Grand Opening festivities. This time it was the Four Aces. Also appearing that day was Capt. Glenn Rowell, host of a children's show on WNBK (one of the predecessors of Channel 3 in Cleveland).

As the Journal noted in an article that ran in the same edition, "The vocal group that has thrilled American with dozens of top recordings – the Four Aces  – appear in person for the grand finale weekend of the great opening celebrations now in progress at the O'Neil Sheffield Shopping Center."

Courtesy theAuctionfloor.com

"The Four Aces, who will appear twice on Friday and twice on Saturday originally started out as an instrumental group, and the story of their success is really a show business Cinderella story. Two of the Aces, Al Alberts and Dave Mahoney, met while in the service. Al was a singer, and before the war had sung with Elliott Lawrence and Jan Savitt.

"His service hitch interrupted his journalistic studies at Temple University. Dave had been studying music at the Philadelphia Conservatory of Music, and was a good man on trumpet and sax. When the two men decided to form an instrumental group, they asked Sod Voccaro to join them as a trumpet player, and Lou Silvestri on drums completed the outfit."

The article went on to say that when they recorded the tune, "Sin," they had decided to use an organ background and just sing. The tune was so successful that it put the Four Aces at the top of many popularity polls, and they abandoned the instruments  – becoming a purely vocal group.

Here's the Four Aces performing their big hit, "Sin."

All in all, it was a pretty impressive promotion put on by the shopping center's owners.

A Sign of the Apocalypse?

December 2, 2014, 3:45 am

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Here's a disturbing sight that greeted U. S. Route 6 motorists over the weekend: a wrecked Chris' Restaurant sign. That's it, lying on the ground in front of the remaining poles.

It's quite an apocalyptic vision compared to the usual scene (below).

I called the restaurant on Sunday to ask what had happened. They confirmed my guess that the destruction had been the result of one of the recent storms.

Note how a portion of the original Howard Johnson neon sign (that spells out RESTAURANT) is exposed. On the ground, you can also see what looks like some of the original Hojo blue sign peeking out from under the layers of paint of previous Chris' Restaurant logo designs.

Here's a classic Hojo sign (although it's for a motor lodge) with a similar 'RESTAURANT' component (below).

Here's hoping the restaurant has a good insurance policy – signs are expensive. But out of calamity comes opportunity. Perhaps a new sign – maybe even a classic neon one – can be designed to reflect the popular restaurant's heritage and longevity, and draw in even new customers.

In Search of Ol' Lanky Long Part 1

December 3, 2014, 3:41 am

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Here's a memorable gift-with-purchase promotion from 1954 that some Lorainites might remember – or may possibly still be discussing with their psychoanalyst 60 years later.

Back in early November of that year, Wissman's Jewelers of Lorain was giving away Ol' Lanky Long, a 45 inch rag doll, with any purchase of $19.95 or more. The above ad appeared in the Lorain Journal on November 4, 1954.

Wissman's Jewelers was in one of the storefronts at the southern end of the Palace theater building fronting on Broadway. It appears to have been there from the mid to late 1940s (it was preceded there by Reith's Jewelry Store) until it disappeared in the 1963 Lorain City Directory.

But let's get back to the Ol' Lanky Long ad.

I'm not sure what's more disturbing – the ad's suggestion that you abuse him (Throw him! Drop him! Toss him!) or that you might "fall in love with him" and use him as a dance partner. Neither sounds like a good idea.

Anyway, half the fun of old ads depicting some product is seeing if there is any information about it online. In this case, I scoured the internet trying to find a photo, another ad or even a mere mention of Ol' Lanky Long, but I came up, er, short. I couldn't even find one on Ebay, despite describing him in a variety of ways in the 'Search' box. (That's not that surprising, though. How would you describe him? He's not really a Christmas elf or pixie. He's a tall guy with a pointy hat and a big bow tie.)

But then – a couple days before I was going to post this – I finally found one on Ebay.

So how did the Ebay listing describe him and what kind of shape was he in? Stop back here tomorrow to find out!

In Search of Ol' Lanky Long Part 2

December 4, 2014, 2:50 am

≫ Next: National Pharmacy Ad – November 15, 1954

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I mentioned yesterday how I was having a hard time finding a Lanky Long doll on Ebay (as pictured in the above ad that ran in the Journal on November 4, 1954).

I described him in all sorts of ways in the Ebay Search box (a rag doll, a pixie, an elf, a vintage rag doll, etc.) but all I could come up were those ubiquitous 1950s Christmas elves with the bendable legs and arms.

But then I had an inspiration – and added the word "dance" to my description. That's when I came up with a listing for a Pinocchio Dance With Me Doll – but it's unmistakably Ol' Lanky Long himself.

Here are the photos, courtesy of Ebay.

Looking at the ad and the photos, I think Ol' Lanky Long is just a wee bit creepy, with his frozen, "eager to please" grin and unblinking eyes. It's easy to imagine this doll figuring prominently (and menacingly) in a Twilight Zone episode.

Here's the link to the Lanky Long doll on Ebay, if you're in the market for a doll to use as a punching bag/dance partner.

Once I began to search online for him as a Pinocchio doll, they seemed to start coming out of the woodwork. There was hatless one on Etsy (below), but he was sold.

There was also one on Worthpoint.com (below). Someone even went to the trouble to make him a Disneyfied Pinocchio hat – but we all know what's really supposed to be on his noggin.

I don't think very many Lanky Long dolls survive to this day. Maybe that's because more children chose to abuse him rather than fall in love with him – and he wasn't as unbreakable as originally thought.

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Not interested in a faux-Pinocchio doll as a dance partner? How about an ersatz Bugs Bunny-lookalike?

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National Pharmacy Ad – November 15, 1954

December 5, 2014, 3:30 am

≫ Next: UAW Local 425 Union Hall Dedication – December 1963

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Here's probably the most un-Christmas-like ad I've ever seen for a Lorain store's Christmas promotion.

The ad is for National Pharmacy, and ran in the Lorain Journal on November 15, 1954. It announces the start of the drug store's Christmas contest, in which people were invited to stop in and register to win a variety of prizes.

Courtesy Ebay

Prizes included a Mix Master, a Black Angus Giant Rotisserie, a Handy Hannah hair dryer (at left), a Brownie camera, 5 cartons of cigarettes, a cigarette lighter, an electric waffle iron, an electric toaster, gift certificates and many more.

What's amusing (to me at least) is the lack of any Christmas icons – no Santa Claus, holly, snow men, etc. Just... an organ grinder's monkey, tipping his hat.

UAW Local 425 Union Hall Dedication – December 1963

December 8, 2014, 3:38 am

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Although no one in my family ever worked for Ford, several of my high school buddies' fathers did, as well as several of our neighbors on Skyline Drive while I was growing up.

The Ford plant was a huge part of Lorain's heritage. Together with the steel mill, the shipyards, Thew Shovel, and various other industries, it defined Lorain as a working man's town. That's why it's still so distressing to drive down Baumhart and look over the closed plant (although it's enjoying some success being redeveloped as an industrial park).

Nevertheless, the former UAW Local 425 Union Hall still sits across from the former plant. It's the subject of today's vintage Journal ad from November 30, 1963 announcing its grand opening dedication (below).

Today the hall serves the United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America Local 2192. Here is the link to its Facebook page.

Here's my shot of the hall from over the weekend.

1954 Sears Wish Book Ad

December 9, 2014, 3:35 am

≫ Next: Santa Makes the Front Page of the Lorain Journal – Dec. 9, 1926

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Remember the Sears Wish Book?

That's the subject of today's ad, which in the Lorain Journal on November 4, 1954. It's interesting seeing that the cover was a charming illustration, instead of the photos that we Baby Boomers were used to seeing on the catalog cover in the 1960s.

Here's a color photo of the 1954 Sears catalog depicted in the ad.

Courtesy Ebay

Picking out things that we wanted in the Sears Christmas catalog was an annual ritual in the Brady household during the 1960s. It never occurred to me to question why Santa Claus preferred us to do it that way.

Here's another Wish Book cover, this time from 1968 – one that I'm sure we looked at.

It's funny thinking back about thumbing through the Wish Books. There was such an amazing array of stuff that you could spend hours just soaking it all in.

Courtesy airplanesandrockets.com

There were always several pages devoted to the Peanuts gang (such as the 1969 page at left), with plenty of books containing reprints of the comic strips. Remember, Peanuts wasn't carried in the Journal in the 1960s, so our only exposure to Snoopy and Charlie Brown besides those paperbacks were the couple of TV specials that were broadcast once a year. (Come to think of it, one of the early specials – Charlie Brown's All-Stars– is never repeated at all.)

One year, my brothers and I all received Sears pajamas for Christmas with Snoopy on them. My Mom has a particularly sappy Christmas shot of the three of us wearing them (which I won't reproduce here – sorry).

The Sears catalog had a lot of exclusive things. I remember that for years Sears had the rights to produce Winnie-the-Pooh products (of which I had many, being a fan of the Disney cartoon). But the book was also filled with all sorts of strange toys that we'd never heard of. I remember seeing a photo of  Jimmy Nelson's Danny O'Day ventriloquist doll and wondering who he was.

Sadly, Sears no longer produces the Wish Book, having ceased in 1993 (click here to read an article about the book's passing.)

If you'd like to relive the memory of flipping through the pages of a Wish Book, though, visit this website. (Someone has gone to the trouble of scanning entire Sears catalogs through the years, so get a glass of milk and some cookies and do some wishin' just like in the old days.)

Finally, click here to visit a page on the Sears Archives website to learn about the history of the Wish Book.

Santa Makes the Front Page of the Lorain Journal – Dec. 9, 1926

December 10, 2014, 2:33 am

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If you ever had any doubt about the existence of Santa Claus, this portion of the front page of the December 9, 1926 Lorain Journal–  published 88 years ago yesterday – might convince you otherwise.

Right there on the front page, the paper included a large photo of the beloved icon, with this caption: "Our photographer journeyed all way to Arctic to get exclusive pictures of Santa Claus. The closeup of most popular old gentleman in world, shows he is in good health and ready for a busy Christmas."

The photo is credited to Underwood and Underwood, pioneers in the field of news bureau photography according to this Wiki page.

Anyway, as usual – the other items on the front page are just as interesting as the item being spotlighted. There's a grisly murder in Conneaut (that in the article is compared to a notorious murder earlier that year in Troy, Ohio), as well as a humorous account of paying a traffic ticket "cafeteria-style" in Elyria.

But what about the article with the title, "SHEP DRINKS NITRO; BOOM! IT'S ALL OVER"?

All right (sigh), here it is. It took place on an oil field in Irvine, Kentucky. A dog drank about a pint of nitroglycerin. The oil men tried, but were unable to catch him. So the workers cleared out of the area, and the owner of the dog (fearing that he would come home, I guess) removed his wife and ten children from their home.

The dog ended up chasing a rabbit over a fifty foot precipice. He fell and…well, you know the rest.

They should have erected a monument to that rabbit.

Jingles and the Other "Not Forgotten Box" Mascots Part 1

December 11, 2014, 2:28 am

≫ Next: Jingles and the Other "Not Forgotten Box" Mascots Part 2

≪ Previous: Santa Makes the Front Page of the Lorain Journal – Dec. 9, 1926

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Jingles (Photo Courtesy Chronicle-Telegram)

Anyone who reads the Chronicle-Telegram is familiar with newspaper's long-running Not Forgotten Box campaign, which begins right after Thanksgiving each year. For more than 50 years, the C-T has stationed the Not Forgotten Box in its lobby to collect new toys and food to benefit local families and ensure that no child is forgotten on Christmas Day.

According to the official history, it all began back in 1956 when a former C-T business manager, C. Russell Stokely, began a toy collection for children at Green Acres Children's Home in Oberlin. At that time, the box was named the "Santa Box." By 1957 (according to my research and contrary to the 1958 date commonly given), the box had acquired its more familiar name.

The official mascot for the Not Forgotten Box is Jingles, a huge stuffed bear. For decades, Jingles has kept an eye on the donation box, and posed for photos with the generous donors who drop by the C-T offices.

But Jingles wasn't always the mascot, according to my research.

In the early years, there didn't seem to be any mascot associated with the campaign. But according to the December 4, 1965 Chronicle-Telegram, a stuffed king of the jungle maintained a vigil next to the toy box that year.

The paper stated, "Joey Denes, 2, wasn't really lion-hunting when he visited the C-T lobby the other day, rifle in hand, with his mother, Mrs. Rudy Denes of RD 1, Diagonal Road, LaGrange. It was a friendly safari, he assured Lloyd, lion mascot of the Not-Forgotten toy box."

Here's the cute photo of Joey and Lloyd that ran with the article (below).

The article also stated, "Lloyd is lonely. Also worried. Lloyd, you recall, is that large lovable plush lion who is serving as mascot this year of the Not Forgotten Box campaign for toys. His post is beside the box in The Chronicle-Telegram lobby where he can welcome all the generous people who bring toys for Christmas giving to children in needy families. Lloyd loves children and wishes a lot of youngsters would come in with their gifts of toys, to meet him and perhaps give him a hug."

Lloyd was featured throughout the campaign that year. Here's another photo and caption (below), that appeared in the paper on December 15, 1965.

I'm not sure how long Lloyd was king of the toy box, but by 1967 some monkey business was underway – along with a new mascot.

He was unveiled in the November 29, 1967 edition of the Chronicle-Telegram in an article written by Connie Davis. 

"Looking for action? Then come over to the lobby of The Chronicle-Telegram. Things are really jumping here now and a big toy monkey with the shiniest brown eyes you ever saw is responsible. He's Jumpin' Jack, mascot for the Not Forgotten toy collection campaign this year. Jack is on loan to us from the Elyria Furniture Company through the courtesy of Myron Averbook. He's going to help us in the big task of collecting about 2,000 toys so that every needy child in the Elyria area will be happy on Christmas morning.

"Jack is a joyous volunteer with a great big smile on his simian face. He loves kids. Whenever he sees a child bringing a toy for the Not Forgotten box he jumps with joy. And how he jumps! His red- and-white checked shirt balloons out, his arms wave up and down. Jack wants every boy and girl in this area to come and see him jump."   

Here's the photo that ran with the article (below).

But when did Jingles make his very first appearance? For that, you'll have to wait until Part 2 of this story is posted tomorrow!

I'll bet you can bearly wait.

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Don't forget– Saturday is the last day for donations at the Not Forgotten Box in the Chronicle-Telegram lobby. Click here to visit the C-T website for all the details, as well as a great gallery of photos of donors posing with Jingles.