1930'S AND 1940'S: SCENES FROM TOM GLOVER'S CHILDHOOD

Never to be forgotten!

1937: ETTA KETT PAPER DOLL FROM THE "NOSTALGIA" FOLDER

"I'm gonna buy a paper doll that I can call my own,

A doll that other fellows cannot steal,

And then those flirty flirty guys with their flirty flirty eyes,

Will have to flirt with dollies that are real.

When I get home at night she'll be there waiting,

She'll be the truest doll in all the world,

I'd rather have a paper doll that I could call my own,

Than have a fickle minded real live girl"

Yeah, I've sung that one at a number of my music programs. As It was a hit back in the 1940's when the "Ink Spots" sang it back during the big band era, which just happens to be the era along with the 1950's that I prefer. There were no "wardrobe malfunctions" or "twerking teenagers" just singers of dreamy songs. The music had uplifting, wholesome and melodic character. Not that there weren't songs that were "borderline" insofar as social acceptability was concerned. I remember when Mom Glover heard that bawdy 1940's song, "Take it off, take it off cried the boys in the rear...." (Queenie the cutey of the burlesque show") She was sure the country was rapidly becoming Sodom and Gomorrah. As to the Etta Kett paper doll, I remember my sister had a collection of them and traded them with her friend Dolores Slabicki just like I traded many of my baseball and war cards.

1988: "DO YOU RMEMBER THESE?"

I wrote this column nearly 30 years ago recalling things that came to my mind as I did a mental inventory of the persons, places and things I recall that are no longer part of our daily lives. After some Monday morning quarterbacking, I realized that I should have entitled it, "I REMEMBER THESE."

NOSTALGIA: IT'S REALLY FUN TO REMEMBER

I have been writing for the local press for 31 years. Basically, I retell the story of growing up in a relatively poor family and how we and MANY families during the era of the Great Depression and a few year after struggled to "make ends meet." Those 30 plus years are a testament not to my personal talents as a writer, but rather a testament to the fact that most people, young and old alike are interesting in things past. The April meeting of the Hamilton Historical Society will be devoted to NOSTALGIA. Above is an example of the nostalgic subjects I often write about. Naturally, the older (or should I say more mature) the reader, the more the content will be quite relevant.

1940's and 50's: Time for a Nostalgia Break!

 

That girl in the photo above is probably listening to "Meet Corliss Archer" or "A Date With Judy" as she does her homework in her rolled up jeans and Bobbysox. It is typical of those lovely girls I grew up with back before the advent of TV and the increasing exploitation of women that followed. The lovely example of true femininity in the photo below, brings back precious memories of a Sunday afternoon with my then girl friend Judy as we drove out to dinner at the Old Heidelberg, or perhaps Landwehr's or the Glendale for dinner in my 1952 Willys "Aerolark.". My dear wife Judy was a fashion plate back during those years. White gloves, a crinoline skirt, and sheer wholesome female beauty.

1988:FOR THOSE OF US WHO REMEMBER THE DISTANT PAST!

My "DO YOU REMEMBER THESE?" columns have proved to be quite popular with the more "senior" senior citizens among us. Here's a listing of a few unforgettable items which I dug out of the deep recesses of my aging gray matter. See how many you remember!

1930's - 1940's: WHEN MUSIC WAS MUSIC

Listenable and singable music: It was with us right up to around the last quarter of the 20th century when America's musical taste yielded to the younger generation who, even though they retained a number of easy listening "Barry Manilow" songs,  opted for the more modern, perhaps a bit noiser music. My 30 year crusade to keep that music alive resulted in my many appearances at local senior citizen clubs as we sang along to the great music of the eras from the 1930's to the early 1950's, before "Be-Bop," " Rock 'n Roll," "Acid Rock," non melodic "Rap," which is rhythmic poetry minus musical accompaniment. The above graphic shows a young Bing Crosby in 1933., and again in the WWII musical "Here Come the Waves."

VINTAGE ADS FOR VINTAGE VISITORS

My Mom used "Chipso;" also "Duz" (Duz does everything), "LUX,"  "RINSO" and before we got an electric washer, "OCTAGON" brown soap and that old reliable corrugated wash board to get out those really deep dirt stains on our clothes. There are many memories in that graphic from my "NOSTALGIA" folder; from "Cuticura" soap to Knickers to battery operated auto fans with the rubber fan blades that was aimed at the windshield of our 1930's automobiles.

1948: TO THOSE OF US WHO WERE MODEL BUILDERS

What wonderfully nostalgic memories the above graphic brings to an 80 year old looking back 70 or even 65 years at one of the inexpensive joys we shared as model airplane builders! Only those of us who recognize "LePage's" and "Testors" will relate to this ad from one of the few "AIR TRAILS" magazines in my collection. My best friend Don Slabicki and I spent hours in the Glover Hartley Avenue basement pinning the plans of a model we were to build. My older brother Bud and his two buddies Bill and Elmer Peters inspired us with the beautiful models they were building on the other end of the bench. We pinned them to a board of soft "Homasote" wall board, and began laying those 1/16" inch "stringers to the upper and lower levels of the fuselage on the plane we were building. You can safely call yourself a balsa wood, rubber band propelled model builder if you recall the kit names like "Comet" and "Guillows."

THE DINING ROOM TABLE: NOT JUST FOR DINNER

For many in my generation, the dining room was our "rec room." It was here that we found the old and very heavy and sturdy dining room table. Along the wall was the "sideboard" of equally sturdy and heave wood,  and in the Glover home, an old piano that my father bought from Henry Liedtka for 3 dollars as I recall the story,  back during the depression. It was here that I and my brothers and sister did our homework, played rummy, catch five, snap, war and countless other card games while listening to the old Gulbranson Radio over in the far corner. Here too that we sat around the table while Pop Glover regaled us with the popular songs of the day. Mom Glover always asked me to sing "When Mother Nature Sings Her Lullaby" and "I Come to the Garden Alone." Our dining room was reserved for dining when relatives came. Our kitchen was our normal dining room. It was here where I added my love of music that was simultaneously being cultivated in me over at Kuser School in Miss Ruth Margerum's third grade. 

1986: SENIOR CITIZENS: KEEP THAT GRAY MATTER ALIVE!

One of the numerous nemeses that confront senior citizenship and the aging process is senility, loss of memory, and Alzheimers disease. It has been my impression over the past ten years or so to note that many of my contemporaries have thus far avoided those dreaded "old age" maladies. For me personally, I believe that keeping active with reading, writing, and other mental gymnastics that keep the brain focused goes a long way to postpone the inevitable. Such is the case with the 22 year old article I wrote in a column from that year. So for the relative few senior citizens who are on the computer, see how many of the things referred to in the article you can recall. 

2014: MY SUNDAY "SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY" COLUMN IN THE TIMES

Thanks to Mr. Dennis Hawver of West Windsor for this interesting link to the 1950's in the Delaware Valley.  

Dennis wrote:
 
Liked your Sunday column on earlier TV. Here's a video from only 58 years ago (only???)

Notice all the things and places that aren't there anymore!
Thought you might like to re-see a little history ---

This is a Mid-Fifties slice of life and landscape in Philadelphia and its surrounding towns, with excellent color footage of downtown scenes, neighborhoods, the Mummers Parade, Levittown, factories in Camden, NJ, and many other subjects that can no longer be seen.

It was produced at the time by WPTZ Channel 3, now known as KYW CBS 3. Pete Boyle Sr., father of Pete Boyle, cast member of Everybody Loves Raymond, had a children's show and is briefly shown in this clip. Some good shots of Dock Street as well. Notice too that all the cars shown are American!

CLICK ON LINK BELOW

http://www.archive.org/details/Miracleo1955

2013: BEFORE MINDLESS VIDEO GAMES AND LIVING ROOM SOFA GAMES

Back in the "dark ages" of hi-tech toys for kids, we survived quite well thank you, with many games that kept us outdoors all day with a break to run home for lunch. I can't begin to recall all the outdoor games that we played during those seemingly endless summer days of my youth" Buck Buck, Spin the Stick, Spin the Bottle, Post Office, Kick the Can, Marbles (we called them agates), getting under the hose in any one of our yards and wiling away those hot and humid central Jersey heat waves, sandlot baseball played on the very sandy Plaag's Grove field, shooting baskets in the Soffel back yard, swinging from a very far ranging monkey swing also in the Soffel yard from which we swung from a high platform and challenged each other to see how far we could drop to the ground.......the list goes on and on and on....

TRENTON, MY TRENTON! YOURS TOO?

"You keep coming back like a song.

A song that keeps saying 'remember.'"

The sweet used to be that was once you and me,

Keeps coming back line an old melody.."

OK, I admit it. I am completely enamored when I see these photos of center city Trenton; a place where I, my family, and countless visitors to this site hold in an almost sacred place in our collective memories. Reid's, The Mayfair, Yard's Kresge's, Woolworth's, Dunham's, Kaplan's, Traver's Book Store, Flagg Brothers Shoes, Trenton Transit, and a red brick paved street, stir memories in me that are so firmly and indelibly impressed in my memory that I know I will take them with me when life's journey is over.

The passage above is from an old song I remember to this day. It was popular back in the 1940's, and quite appropriate to this nostalgic post. It ends.........

"From out of the past, where forgotten things belong, you keep coming back by a song.." AMEN!

LOCAL MATCHBOOKS

At one time during my lengthy collecting career, I collected local matchbooks. Unfortunately, back in the early 1960's, the water hose fitting on my washer failed and a 4 inch flooded basement was the result. Unfortunately again, my matchbook album was left on the floor with a number of other valued antiques, and they had to be put in the trash. Above are a few of the types of matchbooks that were in that collection.

1937: I WAS (STILL AM) AN "OUR GANG" FAN.

If you grew up in the 1930's through the 1950's you will undoubtedly have been subjected to the reruns of the "Our Gang" movie shorts. It was upgraded a during televisions golden age to "The Little Rascals." The graphic above is a clever series of photos showing "Alfalfa" singing "The Object of My Affection." It was a classically funny scene in one of the Our Gang movies. Unfortunately, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer outgrew his amazing childhood talent, was involved in a few "B" movies. He was involved in a money dispute and was gunned down and died.

1940's: MY SECOND CHILDHOOD: "FUNNY BOOKS" AKA "COMIC BOOKS"

Our teachers hated them, all of us kids loved them. I have this insatiable longing to remember the things of my childhood. One of them is in what we called "funny books," but are more universally known as comic books. I actually had volume 1 number 1 of Jerry Siegle and Joe Schuster's "Superman" comic book way back in Miss Lacy's 5th grade at Kuser School. It was in June, and we had just finished our final exams and the school season was on half days. Miss Lacy told us we could bring in any books or magazines from home as long as we didn't disrupt the normal operation of the classroom. My classmate Ronnie Doyle and I were both "funny book" collectors and we decided to trade. Ronny was a Batman guy and also Captain Marvel. I was a Superman lover and also a fan of The Green Lantern. Well, we traded, and one of those trades was the first Superman issue. It probably got thrown in the garbage sometime during the era of what we know of today as "Golden Age Comics." I am currently downloading public domain comics from the "golden age" and saving them in a special place on my hard drive. Some time I'll tell you about my Joe DiMaggio rookie card, and Lord knows how many other rare baseball cards I and my contemporaries destroyed. Who knew?

1941: "MILKMAN, KEEP THOSE BOTTLES QUIET"

Only those of us who are in the "senior" senior years will remember the milkman delivering milk from a horse drawn vehicle. I can remember how strange it looked when our milkman pulled up with his horse drawn milk wagon with automobile wheels; it was a strange sight. I can also remember Peters' Garage on Liberty Street where Mr. Peters, his son Bill ("Beb") and my brother Bud were one of the repair centers for the Divco "Twins." Those guys knew every inch of those great old milk delivery trucks. Am I the only one who remembers that those Divco trucks had a seat, or, if the driver preferred, he could stand up and drive!.
Note from Tom: This graphic and many others on this site might take a bit longer to post, but I like to embellish certain ones that are certainly worthy of saving. Over the years, I have had many people tell me they cut out my columns as well as many of the posts on my websites and send them to friends and relatives who are not on the computer. I'm sure that many senior citizen would like to see this printed on a page and sent to him or her. That's one of the main reasons this website coined the slogan, "LOCAL HISTORY WITH A PERSONAL TOUCH!"

RALPH LUCARELLA said...

HI TOM...I RECALL OUR MILK MAN DELIVERING MILK FOR MANY YEARS WITHOUT GETTING PAID. MY FATHER ALWAYS SAID HE WOULD BE THE FIRST PERSON THAT WOULD GET PAID AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. WE HAD MANY OTHERS WHO ALSO WAITED A LONG TIME AND MY FATHER PAID EVERY ONE WHEN HE WENT BACK TO HIS REGULAR WORK.

Friday, March 15, 2013

LEE BELARDINO said...

Tommy
My uncle Frank Chiarello drove a horse drawn milk truck.I remember him delivering milk around the burg and the horse was a big attraction.We tried to jump on his milk truck and the ice truck and got chased away.30'S and 40's in the burg.
LEE

Friday, March 15, 2013

rayfromvillapark said...

Hi Tom, Horse drawn milk wagons, were around a lot later than many may think. My wife grew up in South Philadelphia. Her family lived on a small side street off of 10th & Snider Aves.I remember turning up Cantrell on one of our first dates, and ending up behind an Abbott's Dairy horse & wagon. The milkman left the wagon and walked up a few houses, turned and signaled the horse, and the horse pulled the wagon up to his location. I couldn't go around, so it took a while to go the length of the street. This was in 1960. I was surprised as anyone, because I'd never seen milk delivered in Trenton, with this conveyance. There were many great Italian Water Ice locations in South Philly, a commodity not found often in Trenton. Peter's Garage was an official repair garage for Divco Trucks, and even was a sub dealer for Studebaker, around 1941. I spent a lot of time during the mid sixties, while still living in Trenton, working on my 1941 Chrysler Highlander Club Coupe in Peter's Garage. I eventually sold him the car, and he restored it. Pete owned one the earliest 1954 Chevrolet Corvettes. I had him display it in the showroom at Patterson Chevrolet, during one of our events and he was tickled pink at all the attention he got. A great and memorable day. My best friend Ray Varga's family owned the Villa Park Dairy, on Columbus Ave., and Pete serviced their fleet of Divco Milk Trucks. They were painted Light Green and Cream, with a cow's head on the side of the truck. They also bottled a tasty Orangeade. It's a wonder Pete and Bib survived all those years, the garage was heated, only by gas space heaters, sitting on the floor, and they laid underneath cars, on the floor, making repairs. We had some great conversations, during those years, about Trenton, cars,politics, you name it. rayfromvillapark

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Tom Glover said...

My brother Bud worked as a mechanic for Mr. Peters along with Bill (known as "Beb" to his close friends. Bud and Beb were friends right up to my brother's death in December 2013. Beb lost his wife just a month or so ago. He lives in Titusville and was one of my clasmates at Kuser Annex. He is an excellent artist as well as an equally excellent artist in the duck carving craft.

Tom

Saturday, March 16, 2013

rayfromvillapark said...

Hi Tom, I just want to make a statement regarding your memory of the Divco Walk In Trucks. You are correct, they could be driven either sitting on a small fold away seat, or standing. It was quite a unique system. How could someone stand up and drive, accelerate and apply the brakes, standing on one foot? Sounds dangerous. Well, it more than likely was only used on a neighborhood route, where stop and go was constant. Time was of the essence, when working a route. The driver had to jump in and out of the truck quickly and efficiently. There was one pedal for both gas and brake. Push down, and the truck moved forward. Lift your foot off the pedal, and the brakes were applied and the driver could just jump out, with his milk carrier. The truck remained stationary, as if the emergency brake was on. Very nice setup. rayfromvillapark

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Ron Bound said...

Hi where was Peter's garage on Liberty St? Ray, what yr was that that you had the Corvette on display at Patterson Chevy? My cousin, Herb, was a manager there for some years.
A buddy heard a crash and ran down the block as we boys would do, and it was a walk in delivery truck, where the driver stood and drove. Johnny never ran to another accident again.
Ron

Sunday, March 17, 2013

rayfromvillapark said...

Ron, Peter's Garage was on Liberty St, opposite Lyndale Ave. Leonard's Barber Shop was next door.
The car show would have been, sometime around 1980 or so. I left Patterson Chevrolet in 1984. I knew your cousin, if it is Herb Conover. He was a salesman, when I was there and became a manager, after I left. I remember Herb having a 1961 or '62 Corvette. rayfromvillapark

Sunday, March 17, 2013

JoeB said...

Ray:
Did you know Bob Hope or Mike Ferrara? They both worked for Patterson? Also I think you mentioned once that you also knew my cousin Jimmy Montani. He purchased his cars there and wash the outside and the motor. You mentioned him riding his bike.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

rayfromvillapark said...

Joe, I met Mike Ferrara in the 1960's when he ran a body shop on Kuser Rd. I was looking for a job, when the first gas crisis hit in 1973. He was the person who hired me at Patterson. Never even had to apply. Hired me on the spot, just on my reputation in the business. I never forgot that. I was his assistant, until I moved up to be a manager in Sales. He was a good guy, and I always had a great relationship with him. Bob Hope came to Patterson as a line mechanic in the mid seventies.
Jim Montani was a gentleman. A mild mannered and very sociable man. He purchased the grocery store at the corner of Lyndale and Centennial, from Harry Miller. I lived right across the street. I remember his Reo panel truck, painted a bright Orange, used for deliveries. I went to school with his daughter, Roseann. Later, when he retired, he found out I worked at Patterson, and would ride his bike over to visit me, quite often. We had some great conversations. I know he lived well into his nineties. You meet some great people on this journey through life. rayfromvillapark

Monday, March 18, 2013

1931-2013: THE EVOLUTION OF THE "SNEAKER:

FROM THE HAMILTON LIBRARY "NOSTALGIA" FOLDER:

"Pepsi Cola hits the spot, twelver full ounces, that's a lot,

Twice as much for a nickel, too, Pepsi Cola is the drink for you.."

Nickel candy bars, cigarettes for 10 cents a pack, a loaf of bread 12 cents

but more importantly to a boy from 1931, a pair of Miles "sneakers" for 44 cents!

Their every bit as good as Converse!

BY THE WAY: THE QUALITY ON THOSE "MILES" SNEAKERS WERE EVERY BIT AS QUALITY LADEN AS THE 2013 VERSION; THEY HAD TO BE. DURING THE
DEPRESSION 44 CENTS WAS A SIGNIFICAN SUM.

It seems that as I wrote this, I heard a number of my senior visitors singing that Pepsi jimgle.
Confess, old timers: I know it by heart and I sang it without missing a beat!

SPECIAL POST FROM TOM

THESE GRAPHICS ARE FROM DIFFERENT ON SCREEN PRESENTATIONS I HAD PRESENTED AT KUSER MANSION OVER THE YEARS. I DREW THE TOP TWO GRAPHICS TO ILLUSTRATE "PASTIMES FROM PAST TIMES." THOSE OF US WHO LIVED DURING THOSE YEARS REALLY ENJOYED THE JOURNEY BACK TO OUR YOUNG YEARS. THE LOWER GRAPHIC REPRESENTS ANOTHER OF THE PROGRAMS WHICH MOVED US FROM CHILDHOOD IN THE 30'S AND 40'S TO THE 1950'S.