Father's Day "Lucky Dad" Sweepstakes – June 1963

Here's hoping all of you fathers out there (including my two brothers) enjoyed a Happy Father's Day!

Above is an ad from the June 7, 1963 Journal with a special "Lucky Dad" Sweepstakes promotion being held by the Downtown Merchants Association of Lorain. The only requirement was to register Dad at any one of the participating stores. In addition to the main prize of a $100 savings bond, each store contributed a prize – either a sample of its own particular merchandise, or a gift certificate. The winning father received all the goodies; but what's interesting is that whoever registered him got a transistor radio, courtesy of WEOL in Elyria.

Small, portable AM transistor radios were still a hot item in 1963, having only been mass-marketed since the late 1950s. I remember one Christmas when my siblings and I each received one; they were green and came with some kind of faux leather wraparound case which we quickly removed. The radios themselves didn't seem to work real well, but could at least receive the stations we listened to, such as CKLW out of Windsor.

Eventually, transistor radios seemed old-fashioned next to huge boom boxes that also could get FM.

Today, I still listen to AM radio in my car, even when the stations I listen to simulcast on FM. (Don't ask me why.) And some car manufacturers have already removed AM radios from their new vehicles, or are planning to. If AM radio ever really goes away, I'll miss it – along with the CD players that are already history in new cars.

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It only took me a few minutes on eBay to find a transistor radio exactly like I used to have. It turns out it was a Westinghouse. And by George, it still had its leather-like case that was such a nuisance.