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Wednesday, January 30, 2013

The Kingston Trio - What a nice bunch of Folk'n Artists!

I grew up when there were still Belafonte Calypso, Weaver, and The Kingston Trio albums stacked by the record player in my parents house. It was the music my parents listened to. To me they all looked glossy and  posed and clean-cut (except for Bob Dylan. I don't know why I thought that or cared - but this was when buying an album meant buying a record sleeve that had a poster on one side and a book of text on the back. You could see the band and then read about how and why they had formed and written and published and toured.
I found this thin Random House book on the group at a sale last week, and, like the album I had seen in my parents record pile, I had no desire to buy it, but I did look inside...
Hello! Now I'm interested... Are those actual signatures? or just some scribblins from the kids in the house? Well, I was hooked and dropped a dollar to learn more about these three.


Deeper into the book are three more signatures, each matching pretty close the style and pen of the first. Are they the actual autographs...I don't know. Does it matter? It caused me to look more into the bio of this band of 3. Wikipedia has a good rundown of their meteoric rise to fame almost right from college and then the usual trials of success and too many nights on stage.  Read all about it here.

Or, take a look at this TV appearance:

Sure they had their critics, and their have been many official incantations of the same trio with new members, in fact there may be one coming to your town soon. Here's a final look at another page in the book - they were sought by many advertisers...

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Ad Quiz # 25 Guess this and clean up!

Here is a vivid ad and a familiar face from commercial breaks from the 1960's. Are you old enough to guess the product?  Can you guess who she looks like from advertising today?  I can.


Okay, if you guessed (either to yourself) or like the commentators below you may have been waiting for  confirmation...well, here it is.
If you can get enough of Josaphine, here is a similarity I noticed (and alluded to above) to another well known spokesperson.

I think both of them are creepy and over the top, but that's really the idea of advertising isn't it? If it doesn't get your attention it won't sell the product. Odd but both are successful brands.
Whoops! Left the Comet covered up on the right side...oh well, Its correct up above. Did you guess correctly?

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

A Choco-holic's Cookie Quiz (SOLVED)

Yes, I definitely need more Choco-hol. Can you identify these cookies? Some are still around...some, sadly, are not.  How many can you name?
Yes, I left the Nabisco logo there as a hint. 

OK, I'm a little late with the solution, my scanner is acting a little squirrely. In the top spot (or left to right) is my favorite cookie and still made:
A close 2nd, though no longer made (can you find me some?) Pinwheels are basically the same as Mallowmars except they have a hole and a chocolate cookie. Except that there are so few in a box, I could have really spent some good 1964 money on these...
Next up are an old standard. they are still around but were possibly kidnapped by the Keebler Elves. After they got through with them, they lost their sparkle for me.
These next ones are basically rip-offs of Moonpies, which are still around, however, Big Dippers are not. If I really wanted one of these I could just cram 2 Mallowmars together, not that I know anything about that...
Finally, we have these mysterious Ideal peanut bars, which involve coconut somehow. Not sure how they might have tasted, but you could put chocolate on a newspaper and I'd give it a try.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Who was Cigar Band Collector Louis Rubin?

In a box of old papers I found what looked like a Cigar Band. However, this one was either oversized or the wrapper of one massive stogie. 
Louis Rubin Cigar Band
Don't call it a stogie, or even a cheroot. Those terms originally referred to a cheap cigar. Cigar band collecting has been going on since cigar makers started wrapping them to fend off counterfeiters in the mid 19th century.  How? By having a fine artist combine with the technology of lithography to create something no other maker could copy. 
Here are some early 20th century bands:
These come courtesy of the Ephemera Society

The only thing I can find for Louis Rubin is that he was world renowned for his cigar band collection and when he died he requested that it be displayed in a museum.  

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Do you have insurance? German American Insurance?

The German American Insurance Company was founded in 1872. I founded this card (which could be a top from a calendar) in folder of papers saved for me by my friend Justin who owns "Just In Antiques" in New Milford. 
In 1918 the Changed their name (due to anti-German sentiment) to The Great American Insurance company.



They were located in New York in a building that looked very much like the Flat Iron Building. Here it is in 1908.
Sadly, this has since been demolished.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

2 US Pins I've Never Seen Before...Have You?

I'm still digging through the "finds" from a Danbury, CT clean-out. Inside an old suitcase was a small flat of jewelry items. Mostly bits and pieces and all moldy and mildly corroded. Several simple pieces were mens monogramed items, but a couple, or at least one was military - and the other was just patriotic, but finely detailed and tiny. Take a look.
 The back is affixed permanently. I am not aware of the name for this. It is not clutch-back or pin back. Any ideas? The age of both of these items is likely early 20th century, but my research ends there.
 I almost missed this flag pin in the box. It is tiny. There are 8 stars and no other markings that I can see without an electron microscope.
The back of the flag is a pin or clutch back but I am too afraid to yank it for fear of snapping it off.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Beware of Highway Hypnosis!

We take communication for granted these days because there are so many ways to deliver a message. In the late 1950's if you wanted to warn drivers from falling asleep at the wheel....how would you do it?  ANswer: The magic of the pamphlet.  (Which I assume is the compact version of the full sized "pamph?")

I can't tell if they're hypnotized or nauseous...

Maybe you recognize this fellow from other self-help pamphlets such as, "Larry the lead foot" or "Tailgating's No Party!"

"Listen to the radio!?" In 1957 depending on the hour you might be stuck with "The Crop Report" zzzzzzzZZZZzzzzzZZZZzzzz!!!
Just remember...Let's be safe out there.