Friday, July 5, 2019

July 4, 1969 Storm – Ohio Edison Ad

Four days after the infamous July 4, 1969 storm, Ohio Edison placed this special ad featuring Reddy Kilowatt in the Journal on July 8th.

It's a nice bit of marketing in which Ohio Edison thanks its Northeast Ohio customers for their patience during the storm's aftermath. The ad notes that as many as 50,000 (or about one-tenth of Ohio Edison customers) were without power at some point.

For a guy made up of electrical bolts himself, though, Reddy looks kind of, uh, shocked at the intensity of the lighting strike.

2 comments:

  1. I've been meaning to leave a comment since you posted the article about the busy intersection at Routes 254 and 57 and "Old E.H." rocking away on the building at that location. We grew up in the house next door to that business and remember lots of serious accidents as well as riding our bikes in the business parking lot when they closed for the day. It is both nostalgic and a little exciting when you reference places or events that are familiar to me and gratifying to have my distant memories confirmed by your reminiscences.

    That is also the case with all the great info provided about the storm of '69. My younger sister was born the day before, July 3rd, and there was plenty of "storm" conversation as we celebrated her 50th birthday. Mom and my sister weathered the storm in St. Joseph's Hospital and my mom spent the night of the storm standing just outside the nursery ready to grab sis and head for the best interior wall, as designated by dad, should a tornado come. Thank goodness that never happened.

    One day my wonderful 4th grade teacher, at Vincent Elementary in the Clearview School District, brought in news articles and commemorative info of the Lorain tornado which she lived through as a child. Mrs. Cook lived to 100, or maybe a little more, and our class was fascinated as she shared her first-hand memories of the storm with us. That was a long time ago and as you mentioned in a post, first-hand stories are a thing of the past.

    I share all this because I want you to know how much your blog is enjoyed and appreciated. It triggers long-forgotten memories about nostalgic advertising, fine dining long closed, places of interest that are no more, and the general "feeling" of growing up in the area.

    Please keep up the good work. Your blog is a daily must for this reader!

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  2. Thanks for the wonderful and eloquent comment – I really appreciate it. Thanks also for sharing your great story about your sister’s birth, and how your fourth grade teacher educated your class about the tornado. Hope you continue to enjoy the blog!

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