Basement Project in Michigan

Laura and her family in Clarkston, MI gave their basement a retro makeover and it is fabulous!

Laura writes: “Here are pictures of our basement project. I have had so much pleasure showing people and letting my girls enjoy it. The booths and barstools, signs and other accessories you helped me purchase really put it all together. I hope you see that in the photos. Thanks so much for your help and guidance. We love it!”

Laura chose our most popular booth set, the “V-Back”, in Zodiac Burgundy and Silver vinyl with Red Glacier Boomerang laminate tabletops. The Black and White tile flooring and retro lighting finishes off her “retro theme”.

Laura and her family can dance the night away under the Disco Ball, then pull up a seat and take a break in comfort on their V-Back Bar Stools in Zodiac Burgundy and Silver to match their diner booths. Love the glass block inserts!

 

Laura’s keen sense of style and design sparkle with this fountain service bar. From the vintage style Payphone and Coca-Cola Double Neon Clock to the White Canister Set and Red Toaster Oven, the attention to detail is outstanding. She purchased our Red Ebony Boomerang laminate sheets and grooved aluminum trim to create custom countertops to complete her bar. Red, Black, White and Silver accessories are perfect for keeping with the color scheme.

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

World News & the American Experience:

1971 - Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida opened.

1974 - Watergate cover-up trial opened in Washington DC.

1975 - Bill authorizes admission of women to military academies.

Movies & TV:

1949 - “My Friend Irma” is the first of 12 films starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis.

1951 - “The Red Skelton Show” debuted on NBC-TV.

1953 - “Make Room for Daddy,” starring Danny Thomas, premiered on ABC-TV.

1954 - “A Star is Born” starring Judy Garland & James Mason premiered at theaters.

1954 - “Father Knows Best” debuted on TV.

1955 - “Honeymooners” premiered on television.

1955 - “Mickey Mouse Club” debuted.

1957 - “Leave It to Beaver,” debuted on CBS.

1959 - Rod Serling’s “Twilight Zone” premiered on CBS-TV.

1960 - “My Three Sons,” starring Fred MacMurray, premiered on ABC-TV for the first time.

1960 - Flintstones premiered as the first prime-time animation show on TV.

1961 - “Doctor Kildare,” debuted on NBC-TV.

1961 - “Dick Van Dyke Show” premiered on CBS-TV

1961 - “Mr. Ed” premiered this week.

1962 - “Roy Rogers & Dale Evans Show,” debuted on ABC-TV.

1962 - Johnny Carson hosted his first “Tonight Show” with Joan Crawford as the guest.

1963 - “Judy Garland Show,” debuted on CBS-TV.

1963 - “My Favorite Martian,” starring Ray Walston, premiered on CBS-TV.

1976 - “Alice,” debuted on CBS-TV.

1982 - “Cheers” premiered on NBC-TV.

1985 - “MacGyver,” starring Richard Dean Anderson, debuted on ABC-TV.

Music & Radio:

1935 - “The Adventures of Dick Tracy” was heard for the first time on the Mutual Radio Network.

1939 - “Captain Midnight” was broadcast for the first time on the Mutual Radio Network.

1940 – The radio quiz show, “Double or Nothing,” was first heard on the Mutual Radio Network.

1946 - “Adventures of Sam Spade” debuted on CBS Radio.

1957 - “Honeycomb,” by Jimmie Rodgers hit #1.

1962 - Barbra Streisand signs her first recording contract with Columbia.

1963 - “Little Deuce Coupe” by The Beach Boys peaked at #15.

1963 – The Rolling Stones started their first big UK tour as the opening act for Bo Diddley & Everly Brothers.

1967 - Pink Floyd’s first US tour began.

1968 – “Hey Jude” by the Beatles was #1 on the charts for nine weeks.

1973 - “We’re An American Band” by Grand Funk reached #1.

1974 - “Rock Me Gently” by Andy Kim peaked at #1.

The Arts:

1950 – The first strip of Charlie Brown, called “Li’l Folks,” (later “Peanuts”) was printed in 9 papers.

1962 - “My Fair Lady” closed after a run of 6½ years on Broadway, breaking the record for the longest-running musical of all time.

1983 - “A Chorus Line” became longest running Broadway show at 3,389 performances.

Celebrity Headlines:

1930 – Bing Crosby married Dixie Lee.

1955 – James Dean died of injuries suffered in a car crash. He was 24 when the fatal crash took place in Cholame, CA at the intersection of Routes 46 and 41.

1968 - Janis Joplin announced she was leaving “Big Brother & Holding Co.”

1976 - Jerry Lee Lewis, attempting to shoot soda bottles, hit his bass player Norman Owens twice in the chest. He survived.

Sports:

1955 – The World Series was broadcast in color for the first time on NBC. The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the New York Yankees 4-3.

1960 – Baseball legend Ted Williams hit his final homer #521 on his last at bat.

1971 - Billie Jean King became the first female athlete to win $100,000.

1977 - Muhammad Ali beat Ernie Shavers to win the Heavyweight Boxing Championship. It was broadcast from Madison Square Garden and was the most-watched fight in television history.

Technology & Inventions:

1950 – The Telephone Answering Machine was created by Bell Laboratories. It was not made available to the public for many years.

Famous Birthdays:

1934 - Brigitte Bardot, actress

1935 - Jerry Lee Lewis, musician

1938 - Ben E. King, musician

1941 - Chubby Checker, singer

1954 - Barry Williams, actor (Greg-Brady Bunch)

1954 - Stevie Ray Vaughan, musician

Bozo, The World’s Most Famous Clown

Bozo the Clown is one of the most beloved characters in America’s history. Unbeknownst to many, Bozo was originally a character in a “read-along” book. In 1946, Alan Livingston at Capitol Records came up with the idea to market a book with a record included. The idea was that children would read along and listen to the record as the narrator, Bozo The Clown, read the book out loud. On these records, the voice of Bozo was provided by Pinto Colvig, a former circus clown who had been doing character voices for Walt Disney. He was best known for the voice of Goofy, but he also did Pluto’s bark and two of Snow White’s dwarfs. The read-along books were a hugely successful venture, and over a million copies of the book, “Bozo at the Circus,” were sold. Fifteen more books were published over the years with similar success.

In 1949, Pinto Colvig became the first person to appear on television as Bozo The Clown. He appeared on KTTV in Los Angeles on “Bozo’s Circus” with a tamer version of Bozo’s now-famous look of red hair, white face, and blue suit. Due to the growing popularity of Bozo the Clown, there was a huge demand for personal appearances. To keep up with the demand, Capitol Records’ Alan Livingston hired more actors to do promotional Bozo appearances in different cities across the country.

One of the actors, Larry Harmon, was interested in much more than just doing Bozo appearances. In the late 1950s, with a group of investors, he bought the licensing rights to the Bozo the Clown character from Capitol Records. And so began the process that made “Bozo” a household name and brought the clown into livingrooms across the country, and the world.

Harmon started his clever marketing strategy by changing the name from “Bozo the Capitol Clown” to “Bozo, The World’s Most Famous Clown.” Next, he altered Bozo’s appearance by creating the orange-red shock of hair that stuck out from both sides of the clown’s head. He also started an animation studio that produced “Bozo, The World’s Most Famous Clown” cartoons, for which he did the voice-over. His next step, in the early 1960s, was to sell Bozo the Clown franchises to local television shows across the country. This allowed each station to choose its own Bozo the Clown, and to tailor the show to fit its unique audience. There were even shows in Mexico and Brazil! In the late 1960s, Larry Harmon thought that creating a national show would be profitable, so he used Boston’s WHDH-TV “Bozo’s Big Top” for syndication. Harmon’s national show was not as successful, since most stations preferred to produce their own local show.

The most successful Bozo show was based in Chicago at WGN-TV, and was called “Bozo’s Circus.” It debuted on June 20, 1960 with Bob Bell as Bozo in a live half-hour show that ran weekdays at noon. The show was so popular that it changed to an hour-long and moved to an early morning time-slot. It went national in 1978 via cable and satellite, and did very well, lasting until 1994. (Joey D’Auria replaced Bell in 1984.) At this time, competition from national and syndicated children’s shows caused WGN to move Bozo to Sunday where it was called “The Bozo Super Sunday Show.” The last episode taped was the “Bozo: 40 Years of Fun!” special, which ran in July of 2001.

Although Bozo the Clown is only seen today on re-runs, specials, and DVDs, he will forever be a part of American television history. His laugh, his face, and especially his hair are immediately recognizable by generations of children who grew up watching the funny clown. Bozo merchandise is still available in many forms, and some have become collector’s items. Check out our website for Bozo the Clown Toys, and relive happy childhood memories as you share the fun of Bozo with your children.

New York City Coca-Cola Sign

 

I ran across pictures of this great old Coca-Cola neon sign and thermometer in a 1943 “Red Barrel” magazine. The sign was located in New York City at Columbus Circle on the roof of the American Circle Building. The sign overlooked the statue of Christopher Columbus, erected in 1892 in commemoration of his voyage to the Americas. The Trump International Hotel and Towers are now in the location where the sign once stood.

 

The original sign read’ “Drink Coca-Cola, The Pause That Refreshes”. It also posted “Tomorrow’s Weather”. It was made up of a half-mile of neon tubing and 3,000 incandescent lamps. All that and five miles of wire were contained in a sign that measured 80 feet wide x 55 feet high.

Because the first incarnation of the sign gave a weather forecast, it was changed during WWII so as not to give any information to the enemy, according to the article. The US Government considered this information to be a military secret, so the sign was changed to a giant thermometer with the tag line, “Thirst Knows No Season”.

 

The beautiful and much loved sign is now most likely gone forever. It was taken down on August 20, 1965 when the American Circle Building was to be replaced by the Gulf and Western Building, which in turn was replaced by the Trump International Hotel and Towers.

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

World News & the American Experience:

1981 – Sandra Day O’Connor became the first female Justice on the Supreme Court.

1982 – A United Nations resolution established The International Day of Peace in 1981 and it was first celebrated in 1982.

Movies & TV:

1948 – “The Texaco Star Theater” announced that Milton Berle would be the permanent host. Later, the show became known as “The Milton Berle Show.”

1954 – “The Tonight Show” debuted on NBC-TV with Steve Allen as the host.

1957 – “Perry Mason” with Raymond Burr premiered on CBS-TV.  The show was first a series of novels, and then became a radio show before going on to television.

1962 – “The Jetsons” was ABC’s 1st color TV series.

1962 - “The Beverly Hillbillies” debuted on CBS-TV.

1964 - “Gilligan’s Island” premiered on CBS-TV.

1968 – “60 Minutes” premiered on CBS-TV with two correspondents, Mike Wallace and Harry Reasoner.

1970 – “Monday Night Football” with Don Meredith and Keith Jackson debuted on ABC-TV. Browns 31, Jets 21.

1970 – “The Original Amateur Hour” last episode was shown on CBS-TV.

1977 – “The Love Boat” was first broadcast on ABC-TV.

Music & Radio:

1956 – Bill Haley had 5 songs in the top 30, including “(We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock” and “See You Later Alligator.”

1957 - “That’ll Be The Day” by Buddy Holly & Crickets reached #1.

1967 – “The Letter” by the Box Tops was #1 this week. Lead singer Alex Chilton was only 16 years old.

1969 - The Beatles’ record “Abbey Road” zoomed quickly to the #1 spot on the charts and stayed there for 11 weeks.

1974 - Barry White hit number 1 on the U.S. singles chart in “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe.”

The Arts:

1953 – Liberace made his debut at Carnegie Hall before a sellout audience.

1957 - “West Side Story” opened in New York, ran for 734 performances.

1964 - “Fiddler on the Roof” opened at Imperial Theater in New York City for 3242 performances.

1976 - “Oh! Calcutta!” opens at Edison Theater in New York City for 5,959 performances.

1979 - “Evita” opened on Broadway to rave reviews.  The show lasted for 1,568 performances.

Celebrity Headlines:

1966 - Jimmy Hendrix changed the spelling of his name to Jimi.

Sports:

1934 – Babe Ruth played his final game with the Yankees at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees lost to the Boston Red Sox, 5-0.

1955 - Rocky Marciano KOs Archie Moore for heavyweight boxing title.

1961 - Antonio Abertondo swam the English Channel both ways. (44 miles) He did it nonstop in 43 hours and 10 minutes.

Technology & Inventions:

1930 - Johann Ostermeyer patented the flashbulb.

Famous Birthdays:

1931 - Barbara Walters, newscaster

1936 - Jim Henson, muppeteer

1938 – Ben E. King

1948 - Olivia Newton-John, singer, actress

1949 - Bruce Springsteen

1950 - Bill Murray, actor

1952 - Christopher Reeve, actor

1958 - Shaun Cassidy, singer/actor

1959 - Lita Ford, musician

1960 - Joan Jett, singer

NuGrape Soda

“A Flavor You Can’t Forget”

The NuGrape Company of America was started in 1921 in Atlanta, Georgia. It was managed by O. R. Randall. The company was unique for the time, since they made and bottled soft drinks. Other companies did one or the other, but not both. Many claim the NuGrape soda has the truest grape-flavor of all grape soft drinks on the market. NuGrape soda was very popular, and by 1937, there were 600 NuGrape bottlers in the US.

By the 1950’s the name was changed to the National NuGrape Company. In 1967, Moxie bought the National NuGrape Co. and formed the Moxie-Monarch-NuGrape Company of Doraville, Georgia in 1968. Today NuGrape is distributed by the Monarch Company in Atlanta.

The NuGrape Company of America
168-170 Peters Street
Atlanta, Georgia

NuGrape soda isn’t that easy to find today. Are you a NuGrape fan?

Sinclair Oil Corporation’s Dino

Sinclair Oil Corporation has one of the most recognizable mascots in the country; a large green Brontosaurus (Apatosaurus) dinosaur named Dino.  Dino has been the advertising character for Sinclair since the mid-1930s.  Dino was born out of a desire to express the fact that Sinclair oil came from Pennsylvania crude oil, which was millions of years old, and had been around since the age of the dinosaurs.  Sinclair Oil believed that the oldest crude oils make the best refined oils, and they felt that a dinosaur would get this point across to the public.

The only thing was – which dinosaur would be used?  The first round of advertisements showed a variety of dinosaurs from the frightening Tyrannosaurus Rex to the mild mannered Brontosaurus.  The campaign was very successful, and generated a lot of interest.  The peaceful giant Brontosaurus appealed to the public and garnered the most interest.  People thought that the Brontosaurus represented power, endurance, and stamina, which are the qualities that Sinclair Oil Corporation wanted people to associate with their products.

Dino the dinosaur became the mascot for Sinclair Oils in 1932 when he was registered as a corporate trademark.  He was extremely popular, and as Dino’s popularity grew, so did the number of places he was seen.  He appeared on the Sinclair gas station globes and signs, and even the name of the gasoline was called Dino or Dino Supreme.  Dino started to appear on oilcans and maps, along with print advertisements.  In 1933, there was a very popular dinosaur exhibit at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair sponsored by Sinclair Oil Corporation.  In 1935, Sinclair issued stamp books that could be filled with Dino stamps given out weekly at the Sinclair service stations.

The largest promotional event for Sinclair happened in 1964.  The company sailed nine inflatable dinosaurs down the Hudson River to the New York World’s Fair.  Sinclair had 10 million visitors walk through the pavilion to see the exhibit.  A wax model of Dino that popped out of a machine was given as a souvenir.

Although in the present day most of Sinclair Oil Corporation’s promotional events take place in the Rocky Mountain and Plains States, he will forever be a part of American advertising history, and will remain a popular collector’s item throughout the whole country.  Ever since Dino was introduced to the public, there have been collectibles and merchandise available for sale, such as coin banks, Dino inflatables, action figures, and even a green bar of soap shaped like the loveable dinosaur.  For more Sinclair Dino collectibles, check out our website.  We have Sinclair Dino metal signs, bullet trashcans, oilcans, and even gas pump globes!

Headlines & Tidbits from the 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s & 80s

World News & the American Experience:

1938 - Graf Zeppelin II, the world’s largest airship, made its maiden flight.

1947 - The U.S. Air Force, an independent military service, was established by the National Security Act.  The Air Force had previously been a part of the US Army.

1985 - The Farm Aid concert, organized by Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Neil Young, was held to raise money for farmers in America.  Farm Aid is now an organization to increase awareness of the importance of our farms, and the concert is put on annually.

Movies & TV:

1948 - Milton Berle began his TV career on “Texaco Star Theater.”

1949 - “Lone Ranger” premiered on ABC-TV.

1955 – The “Toast of the Town” became “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

1963 - “Outer Limits” debuted on ABC-TV.

1964 - “Shindig” premiered on ABC-TV.

1964 - “Bewitched” first episode was broadcast on ABC TV.

1965 - “The Dean Martin Show” debuted on NBC-TV.

1965 – The first episode of “Green Acres” was shown on CBS-TV.

1965 - “Lost in Space” premiered on TV.

1965 – “Hogan’s Heroes” debuted.

1967 - “Mission Impossible” premiered on CBS-TV.

1968 - “The Andy Griffith Show” was broadcast for the final time on CBS-TV.

1968 - “60 Minutes” debuted on CBS-TV.

1970 - “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” debuted on CBS-TV.

1971 - First broadcast of “Columbo” premiered on NBC-TV.

1972 – The TV show “Waltons” premiered.

1972 - “M*A*S*H,” premiered on NBC TV.

1978 – “Mork & Mindy” debuted on ABC-TV.

1981 – “Entertainment Tonight” debuted on TV.

1981 - First broadcast of “Miami Vice” was shown on NBC-TV.

1984 – The first MTV Awards premiered, hosted by Bette Midler and Dan Aykroyd host.

1984  - “The Cosby Show” debuted on NBC-TV.

1986 - First broadcast of “LA Law” premiered on NBC-TV.

Music & Radio:

1935 - “Just Plain Bill” was first broadcast on CBS radio.

1960 - Chubby Checker’s “Twist” hit #1.

1963 - “She Loves You”, by The Beatles, was released in the U.S.  It was the first record to be recorded by them, but the second #1 hit.

1969 - “Sugar, Sugar”, by The Archies, hit number one in “Billboard”.

1977 - Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumors” is #1 for 19th straight week.

The Arts:

1951 - “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” closed at Ziegfeld in New York City after 740 performances.

1982 - “USA Today” was published for the first time.  Its fast-reading format was criticized at first, but has now been imitated by others trying to appeal to readers in a fast-paced technology-oriented world.

Celebrity Headlines:

1970 – Jimi Hendrix died.  The circumstances surrounding his passing are still hazy today.

1982 - Princess Grace of Monaco (Grace Kelly, actress) died in a tragic car accident.

Sports:

1947 - Jackie Robinson named 1947 “Rookie of Year.”

1973 – Billie Jean King beat Bobby Riggs in 3 sets in the tennis match “Battle of the Sexes.”

1978 - Muhammad Ali beat Leon Spinks for Heavyweight Boxing Title.

1979 - Theodore Coombs completed 5,193 mile roller skate from LA to NYC & back to Yates Center, KS.

1981 - Boxer ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard knocked out Thomas ‘The Hit Man’ Hearns for the Welterweight Boxing Championship.  It was also the largest payday in boxing history.

1988 - Greg Louganis wins Olympic gold medal in Springboard Diving.

Technology & Inventions:

1931 – RCA Victor demonstrated an early version of the LP (Long Playing) 33-1/3 RPM Record.

Automobile News:

1947 - John Cobb set the automobile Land Speed World Record at 394.2 MPH. He was driving the piston engined, wheel driven Railton Special.

Famous Birthdays:

1925 - B.B. (Riley B.) King, musician

1931 - Anne Bancroft, actress

1934 - 1934 - Sophia Loren, Award-Winning actress

1938 - Walter Koenig, actor

1940 - Frankie (Frances) Avalon (Avellone), singer, actor

1941 - ‘Mama’ Cass Elliott (Ellen Naomi Cohen), singer The Mamas & The Papas

1946 - Oliver Stone, director

1947 - Chuck Panozzo, John Panozzo, rockers (Styx)

1949 - Ed Begley Jr. actor

1949 - Twiggy (Leslie Hornby), fashion model

1952 - Dee Dee Ramone, musician

1956 - Mickey Rourke, actor

Mobil’s Pegasus

In Greek mythology, the Pegasus was an immortal creature. As the story goes, the Pegasus sprung from Medusa’s neck when the Greek hero, Perseus, cut off her head. The flying horse was tamed and given his name by Athena, the goddess of wisdom. Athena presented Pegasus to the Muses, where he was placed at the service of the poets. Legend has it that the Pegasus struck the ground on Mount Helicon with his hoof, and a spring sprouted from that location, giving inspiration to those who drank its waters.

The Pegasus symbol was used by the Standard Oil Company of New York in the earliest days of oil refineries and filling stations. The logo first appeared on their gas pumps and petroleum products in 1911. When the Standard Oil Trust was broken up by the Supreme Court in 1911, two of its divisions, Standard Oil Company of New York and the Vacuum Oil Company merged. The former brought with it the Pegasus logo, the latter brought the Mobilgas name.

The Pegasus appeared on Mobilgas products beginning in 1911, but it was in 1931 with the forming of Socony-Vacuum that it was officially adopted as a trademark. The flying horse was first colored red by an artist at the Mobil Sekiyu division in Japan. A major makeover was done in the 1930s by the commercial illustrator Robert “Rex” Elmer. Not only was it given a cleaner and more graphic appearance, but the horse now flew from left to right, as opposed to from right to left. Through the years there have been gradual changes made to the rendering of the red horse, but the symbol itself has stood strong. The Pegasus symbol is still used today by ExxonMobil, symbolizing imagination, power and speed.

There is an array of Pegasus and Mobilgas reproduction signs, filling station photos and other items available for you to purchase at Retroplanet.com. Take a few minutes to take a look and consider adding a bit of nostalgia to your garage, home or office.

Planters’ Mr. Peanut

In the early 1900’s an Italian immigrant named Antonio Obici opened a fruit stand in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. To make his fruit stand different from the others, he spent $4.50 on a peanut roaster and sold the roasted nuts along with his fruit. Back then, the roaster had to be continuously turned by hand to avoid burning the peanuts. Obici devised a way to keep his roaster turning all by itself so that he could attend to his customers.

A few years of great sales on the peanuts and a growing popularity for the roasted nuts convinced Obici to stop selling fruit and concentrate on selling only the peanuts. Obici and his brother-in-law, Mario Peruzzi, formed a partnership and called their new company Planters Nut and Chocolate Company.

In 1916, Planters held a contest to see who could come up with a character that would be used as the company mascot and trademark. A 14-year old Virginia schoolboy named Antonio Gentile won the contest with his sketch of Mr. Peanut. Planters hired a commercial artist to make Mr. Peanut ready for commercial advertising. He added a monocle, top hat and a cane to suggest good taste.

In 1918, Planters debuted their mascot, Mr. Peanut, in a full page spread in the “Saturday Evening Post.” Planters’ peanuts were the first salted nuts nationally advertised. Mr. Peanut’s advertising jobs have not slowed down since he was introduced to the public in 1916.

In 1937 Mr. Peanut graced the face of a billboard in Times Square, and he went on from there to more print advertisements and television commercials. In 1961 he was even featured as an attraction at the New York’s World Fair! He was in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1997, and when Planters became the “official snack nut of Nascar,” Mr. Peanut appeared in the “Nut” Mobile, a car that resembles a peanut. In 2004, he was given a star on Madison Avenue’s Advertising Walk of Fame!

Mr. Peanut is so popular that “The Peanut Pals,” a group that collects Mr. Peanut memorabilia, was formed in 1978, and is still growing today with more than 900 members. There is a huge assortment of Mr. Peanut collectibles and merchandise, ranging from vintage bobble heads and figurines to tennis balls and umbrellas.

Mr. Peanut is over 90 years old, and still going strong. A legend in the advertising field, he has become a favorite character of people all around the world. It’s hard to separate an icon like Mr. Peanut from the product it sells, and it looks like Mr. Peanut’s face will be the one associated with peanuts for a very long time.

If you want to own a part of American advertising history, be sure to check out our website for the beautiful reproduction Mr. Peanut Porcelain Sign.