Kroger Ad – Sept. 2, 1964

Let's start off the week with something non-controversial. How about a Kroger ad featuring the beloved Walt Disney menagerie? The double-spread ad above ran in the Journal back on September 2, 1964.

It's kind of an odd ad. The infamous, much-feared Disney legal machine apparently wasn't firing on all pistons yet in the early 1960s, because I can't seem to find any sort of reason for the lovable cartoon characters to even be there. Mickey is ringing the school bell, so perhaps there's supposed to be some 'Back to School' ad copy and it was cropped out. But there's no trademarks anywhere.

The ad is amusing none the less. The cartoon characters have no relation to the sales product they're next to! Granted, Happy the Dwarf Person of Short Stature is kinda chunky, so it makes sense to plunk him down next to Star-Kist Chunk Tuna. But Jiminy Cricket next to Smoked Ham? Pluto Pup next to Potatoes?

And then there's Chip – or is it Dale? – next to Nylons. He looks a little too happy to be pushing women's stockings. By the way, I don't like either of the mischievous chipmunks. They were always making life a living hell for Donald Duck: stealing his pancakes, borrowing his toy sail boat, blowing up his house, etc. 

And speaking of the irascible duck, why isn't he in this ad? Perhaps he was still tied up promoting his same-named orange juice.

Well, he's available now. Unfortunately, nobody is going to be Krogering in Lorain County anytime soon.

Lorain National Bank North Ridge Branch – Then & Now

Although I never banked at this branch of Lorain National Bank, located at the intersection of North Ridge Road (State Route 254) and Lake Avenue, I passed it many times on my way to Midway Oh Boy and Dog 'N Suds. I admired its architectural design.

Above is the ad announcing the impending Grand Opening of the branch. The ad ran in the Journal back on August 29, 1964.

Like many people, I felt somewhat wistful when Lorain National Bank was sold to Northwest Bank, and the 'Lorain' in its name disappeared forever. (I blogged about it here).

At least the branch was converted to a Northwest Bank branch. Here's a Google Maps view from 2019.

The branch's location, and modern consumer banking practices in general, probably led to its closing. With Midway Mall no longer a major destination, North Ridge Road not as heavily traveled as in the old days, and the convenience of online banking, there just weren't enough customers to keep it open. Eventually the building was for sale. Here's a 2021 shot from Google Maps.

And here's a 2023 view.

Happily, today the building is being used for its original purpose (rather than becoming a tattoo parlor or payday loan outlet) by Buckeye Community Bank, who did a magnificent renovation of the property.

By the way, I don't bank there – but I'm really impressed that Buckeye made the commitment to the community by having their own building, and beautifying that intersection by relocating from the shopping center.

Here's the story from earlier this year in the Chronicle-Telegram. (I would link to the Morning Journal more often, but every time I try to access a story online, I'm told I reached my limit - which is apparently 0 articles per year.)

Cleveland Browns vs Packers Ad – 1954

The Cleveland Browns open their 2024 regular season this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. The team has already met the Green Bay Packers, the Minnesota Vikings and the Seattle Seahawks in preseason games.

Seventy years ago (!) the Browns also met the Packers in the first preseason game. Above you see the ad that appeared in the Lorain Journal on August 20, 1954 promoting the game.

It's interesting seeing that the game was going to be broadcast on WGAR. It seems that the Browns games were on 1100 WWWE for so many years that I thought it was always their home. But the radio home changed many times over the decades. Even now, I seem to forget that the games are on 850 The Fan.

Radio announcers for the 1954 season were Bill McColgan (who called Browns games from 1954 - 1960) and play-by-play man Ken Coleman (father of Emmy Award-winning sports anchor Casey Coleman).

Note the sponsor of the games: Carling's Black Label Beer, a favorite topic on this blog and – when I can find it – a favorite beer in my fridge.

Reddy for a Controlled Tornado? – Sept. 1952

Back in September 1952, our old pal Reddy Kilowatt was doing his part for Production for Freedom Week by encouraging us to visit Ohio Edison's Edgewater Power Plant to see his 'Controlled Tornado.' Above is an ad that ran in the Lorain Journal on September 10, 1952.

So what was Production for Freedom Week anyway?

It was a national campaign that was the brainchild of the electric companies. As described in the South Amboy Citizen in an article on August 22, 1952, "The genesis of this idea is interesting. It was conceived within the electric industry and the original plan was for a "Power for Production Week." But the more the electric industry worked on it, the more evident it became that the scope of the observance should be greatly broadened, in order to help tell the story of all industry, rather than just one.

"Contact was made with organizations which represent industry in general and they welcomed the plan enthusiastically. Thus, the final idea of "Production for Freedom Week" came into being.

"The Week has two primary aims – first, to foster a better understanding of industry and the way our economic system operates; second, to show graphically what our system means to every American worker, and to emphasize its advantage over any other system. The Week will be in the nature of a vigorous, positive defense against those forces which would weaken, undermine and finally destroy the way of doing things that has made our country great and given it its living standards, and which would then lead us down the dismal road that could end only in socialism, communism and tyranny.

"One great thought underlies "Production for Freedom Week" – it is that freedom must be earned, nurtured and everlastingly guarded. In other words, we don't get it for nothing, and we won't continue to have it if we do nothing. And it is the millions of working people of America, with whom the Week is primarily concerned, who have the most to gain in preserving freedom under a representative form of government."

There are a lot of good points in that article.

Now, about Reddy's "Controlled Tornado."According to the ad, it was referring to the huge fans blasting a "man made tornado" through the boilers, along with turbo generators spinning their blades "as fast as 1,000 miles an hour." 

I like the illustration of Reddy actually piloting a twister. It's interesting that if you Google "controlled tornado," you'll see that the idea of controlling (or shutting down) a tornado has been around for a long time in the world of weather wonks.

Anyway, I don't know how many Lorainites took advantage of Reddy's offer to tour the Edgewater plant in 1952. Little did they know it would be gone – demolished – sixty years later. (I did a few plant demolition photo updates, including one in October 2010 and one in November 2010. 

School Safety Ads – 1954 & 1964

School's been back in session in Lorain County, for a week or two. For those of us that drive to work each day, that means remembering to think about the school kids and driving safely.

I don't think too many kids actually walk to school these days, compared to when we were growing up in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The days of neighborhood schools seems to have ended a long time ago, in favor of large school campuses. 

But there's still buses to contend with. It's always shocking watching footage on Cleveland news stations of thoughtless (and reckless) drivers simply going around stopped school buses illegally, sometimes driving right on the sidewalk! I haven't seen that, that goodness, during my rural commute to Oberlin. 

One thing that's kind of interesting for me is that last year, I used to catch up with the bus on Quarry Road at the same time each morning, stopped in front of the same house. I would notice the mother (accompanied by the family cat) sitting on the front porch, swilling coffee in her robe, making sure that her child got safely on the bus. It was all kind of nice, a reassuring vision of small-town America.

Once in a while the mother (or the cat) wasn't there, and I almost felt a little anxious.

Anyway, it's a good time for me to post two full-page school-themed 'drive safely' ads. The first is from August 18, 1954.

It's a pretty effective ad, with great type too. The slogans are pretty good too: "Give the Kids a Brake" and "Safety is No Accident."

The next ad is from August 12, 1964. It's a two-page spread this time.

It's kind of an odd ad. Are the kids hollering in terror, or just insanely happy?

I'm not sure about the clip art of the motorcycle cop either. With those dark glasses, he reminds me too much of the intimidating Highway Patrol officer in the movie Psycho.

(By the way, the officer was played by the great Mort Mills, who shows up in a lot of Western TV shows and movies on GRIT and OUTLAW TV networks.

Labor Day Ad – 1972

Here's another nearly-full page ad with a Labor Day theme that ran in the Journal. As I've mentioned before, the appearance of the full-page sponsored ads in the Journal really began to peter out by the time the 1970s rolled around. So this large ad that ran in the paper on Sept. 4, 1972, sponsored by Ohio Outdoor, was the solution.

The Labor Day ad is a salute to policemen in general, which is certainly an appropriate message since they're always working – for the public's safety and welfare in general.

Who could have guessed that more than 50 years later, supporting the police financially would become a somewhat controversial concept?

Anyway, the illustration of the policeman in the ad unfortunately would be seen as dated today. Over the years, the appearance of policemen in general often seems to have gone away from the full head of hair towards the shaven look, sometimes accompanied by a goatee.

It's a long way from the clean-cut look of Officers Reed and Malloy of TV's Adam-12.

Labor Day Ad – 1958

Here's wishing all of you a safe and Happy Labor Day!

As usual, I spent part of yesterday laboring over what to post today. Over the years, the Lorain Journal didn't always feature one of those typical full-page ads with lists of sponsors at the bottom every year. Plus, I already used up a lot of the ones from the late 50s and early 60s. 

But I did manage to find one from the August 30, 1958 Lorain Journal. Sorry, no Grim Reaper in this one. But we do get an illustration of working men in a generic industrial environment that would have accurately reflected Lorain in its heyday.

What would the same kind of Labor Day ad in the Journal look like today? I'm not sure. 

As usual, it's interesting to see the listing of the 1958 ad sponsors. A few businesses are still around, including Amherst Memorial Studio and National Waste Paper (now doing business as National Material Recycling). Predictably, the other survivors are successor companies, consisting mostly of insurance companies, funeral homes and banks.

Entertainment Page Featuring Maynard Ferguson – August 7, 1964

Sixty years ago, the Entertainment page of the Lorain Journal had something for everyone.

For the Brady Bunch, that would have been jazz trumpeter and bandleader Maynard Ferguson, who was appearing with his orchestra at Musicarnival near Cleveland. We were big fans of Maynard in our family (my brothers and I all played trumpet).

Dad was a fan too, which wasn't surprising, since Maynard used to be a member of Stan Kenton's orchestra in the early 1950s. Dad loved Kenton's bold, brassy style of jazz, and he had several Kenton 78 rpm records in his collection. It's kind of funny that Mom confessed to me in later years that she didn't care for the Kenton sound too much.

My older brother Ken, who was a very talented jazz trumpeter, was very much inspired by Maynard's exciting style of performing, especially with the emphasis on notes in the high register. Ken adopted that musical style and, as a result, the Admiral King Stage Band enjoyed some high-profile years in the mid-1970s, winning regional awards.

Although my family did not catch Maynard's August 1964 performance at Musicarnival, we collected his records and saw him many times in the 1970s (including a January 1977 appearance at Lakewood High School).

Elsewhere on the Journal Entertainment page – as usual – are several establishments and clubs that I've written about, including Vian's; Lincoln Park; Lorain Arena; Colony Bar; Maple Inn; The Note; and Mister S.

For a taste of what Maynard's performance at Musicarnival was like, here's a recording of him and his band circa 1963.

World's Largest Miniature Circus Comes to O'Neil - Sheffield Shopping Center – August 1962

Vintage Postcard of Ernie's Circus – "World's Largest Most Fabulous Hand Carved Exhibit"

Back in the days when people used to like to leave their homes to shop, merchants often utilized special promotions to entice people to visit their stores.

Sometimes these promotions could get pretty elaborate, such as the O'Neil - Sheffield Shopping Center bringing in the Paul Miller's Wild Animal Circus to entertain shoppers back in June of 1962 (which I wrote about here). 

On the other hand, sometimes something tiny was the drawing card – such as Ernie's Miniature Circus, which paid a visit to the O'Neil - Sheffield Shopping Center in late August 1962, just a few months after Paul Miller's Circus.

Below is an article that ran in the Journal on August 29, 1962. 

The miniature circus, a 'midget replica' of the Ringling Bros., Barnum & Bailey Show, was the brainchild of Ernest Palmquist. As the article notes, "All of the tumblers, all of the clowns, all the animals... all of the remarkable members of the "Ernie's Circus" troupe are laboriously hand carved of wood. Many of the figures are animated. All are accurately designed to scale.

"Several years ago, "Ernie's Circus" was a big attraction at the Brussels World's Fair. In 1964 and 1965, he will be booked for two years at the New York World's Fair.

"Ernie loves circuses. This is the reason he began whittling circus figures, back in the days when he had his own band, and later when he was a novelty tune writer with Ted Weems Orchestra.

Here's some black and white footage from June 1962 of some workers unpacking "Ernie's Circus" for an engagement in Roanoke.

And here's a poster for sale on the American Decay website.

And here are some photos of some of Ernie's creations, courtesy of the Daily Press.

I wonder where Ernie's Circus is today?

Avon Lake Landmark 'Spirit of St. Louis' Repaired – August 1964

Although my daily commute to work is now along country roads, for many years I drove to Cleveland – both Downtown and the near West Side. During that time I sometimes decided to enjoy the ride and follow U. S. Route 6, the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, all the way in. It took forever, but there were many interesting roadside sights to see – a lot of which have now vanished without a trace.

I've written about some of them, including the Harbor View Motel in Rocky River (here and here), as well as The Harts family sign. Both are long gone.

And then there was the Kekic Gas Station's iconic Spirit of St. Louis replica plane. I've written about it a few times, since I used to pass the small service station daily. This post featured a "Then & Now" photo study of its location, and this one has some vintage news articles.

As I noted, I drove by it for many years, and then suddenly the gas station – and the small plane on its pole  – were gone. Fortunately the Avon Lake landmark was born again (thanks to Nick Zangas of Avon Lake) which I wrote about here.

Anyway, I recently found another piece of the puzzle, an article from the August 24, 1964 Journal about the Spirit of St. Louis plane. It tells how the plane had been at that location at the Kekic Service Station since 1927, and was one of 150 replicas distributed by the Coca-Cola Company. 

The main focus of the article, however, is that the plane had been blown down in a bad windstorm and had been missing from its perch for about a year. At the time of the article it had recently been repaired and re-installed.

It's sad that so many roadside reminders of yesteryears are disappearing – but it's a wonderful thing indeed when steps are taken to hold on to local heritage, such as the installation of the replica Spirit of St. Louis at Miller Road Park.

The Stash Box Ad – August 27, 1973

For you Baby Boomers that lived in Lorain during its heyday, here's one of those articles (in reality a paid ad) shining the spotlight on a well-remembered business: The Stash Box. The page below is from the Journal of August 27, 1973. (Note the Yogi Bear Jellystone Park ad.)

For the uninformed, the Stash Box was a head shop, a term that I haven't heard in a while. 

At the time of the 1973 article, the store was located at 1065 Broadway. Later, it moved to Eighth and Broadway (which is the location I remember). Here's a December 1976 ad mentioning the move. Note the illustration of its building (now the home of Marzavas & Son Jewelers).

With the legalization of recreational marijuana in Ohio last year, maybe head shops will make a comeback. The Wiki entry suggested that cannabis dispensaries more or less double as head shops.

****

It may seem strange, but I never tried marijuana in my life, although it was definitely in use in the dorm at Ohio State. When I came back to Lorain one year for the summer break, all of my old high school friends were using it too – which upset me and probably cost me some friendships. 

I guess if I wanted to get a buzz on, I preferred the 'old fashioned' way: alcohol. Nowadays, I literally do it the old-fashioned way sometimes: with an old-fashioned! I like all the fruit in it, although to many it's sacrilegious.

I know several people at work that were downright excited about the legalization of recreational marijuana in Ohio. I know the State will make a lot of money of it. But at what cost?

So no thanks. I'll stick to my Hamms and my old-fashioneds, the way dear old Dad used to make. 

Oakwood Shopping Center Back-to-School Ad – August 26, 1959

I feel sorry for kids nowadays. Starting school before Labor Day still seems kind of cruel to me. 

In Lorain this year, the first day back is August 26th, which I suppose is better than the middle of the month. But it's a long way from the way it used to be.

Back then, those ubiquitous back-to-school sales used to take place in late August, and above you see an example. It's for the stores at Oakwood Shopping Center in South Lorain, and the ad ran in the Journal on August 26, 1959.

It's an odd ad. Instead of school supplies being touted, the items being promoted in the ad include traveler's cheques, bicycles, a Scotts lawn product to 'blast' crabgrass, feminine hygiene products, and Canada Dry pop. There's also a free back-to-school dance advertised, with beatnik phrases like "Real cool" and "The Most" utilized.

At least the ad features the Thrifty Squirrel shopping center mascot. For years I thought the name of the squirrel was Oakie, since early Oakwood ads made reference to a rodent by that name. I even named my first website Oakie's Treehouse (featuring local ad mascots) for that reason. But eventually I learned that the girl squirrel with the purse was named Pearl, in honor of Pearl Avenue, the street on which the shopping center was located.

Lorain County Fair 1974

I'll close out Fair Week here on the blog with a look at the 1974 Lorain County Fair.

Here's the full page ad that ran in the Journal on August 19, 1974 promoting the Fair.

With so many big name country music stars scheduled to perform at the Grandstand, a series of individual ads promoting specific acts began running weeks in advance of the Fair.

Here's one for Buck Owens and Susan Raye that ran in the paper on July 31, 1974.

Mel Tillis and Judy Kester were featured in this ad that ran on August 2, 1974.

Those are some pretty big names. The Journal highlighted all of the performers in this article that ran on August 18, 1974.

As noted in the article, also appearing at the Fair was the Dan Fleenor Auto Thrill Show. Dan Fleenor had also been featured at the 1969 and 1972 editions of the Lorain County Fair.

But not all of the Journal articles about the Fair were concerned with upcoming musical acts. Longtime Journal Staff Writer Lou Kepler provided some charming reminisces about Fairs of the past in this report that ran in the paper on August 18, 1974.

Here are a few more 'tall' ads that ran in the Journal for the 1974 Lorain County Fair. I like the groovy clip art of the young couple in the second ad. No fedoras or boater hats there!

And finally, the Journal provided a nice review on August 25, 1974 of the Buck Owens and Susan Raye performance.

Lorain County Fair 1964 – Part 2

The Harmonaires were the headliners at the 1964 Lorain County Fair, as noted in the ad above, which appeared in the Journal on August 25, 1964. As the photo from the August 21, 1954 Journal notes, the singing and recording group had appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.

The group was based out of Columbus, Ohio. Here they are on one of their few recordings, which consist of a few 78 rpms.

You can read more about the history of the Harmonaires on musician, historian and author Arnett Howard's blog here.

As for the other entertainment highlight of the 1964 Lorain County Fair, what would a fair be without an auto thrill show? But instead of the Hurricane Hell Drivers, the Fair featured the Rotroff All-Girl Auto Thrill Show, as noted in the ad below (from the August 27, 1964 Journal).

This photo and caption from the same edition of the Journal tells a little about one of the thrill show drivers, Pat Jackson.

And here's a souvenir program from 1960.

This spread from the program gives us a look at some of the comely drivers, including Sylvia Haynes.

The Rotroff All-Girl Auto Thrill Show was scheduled for two shows on the last night of the Fair. As an article from the Journal of August 29, 1964 noted, "a deluge hit the area just as the curtain was lowered on the second and final performance of the all-girl Rotroff auto thrill show."

Today's Lorain County Fair usually end with a Demolition Derby on Sunday night. I work with one of the demolition derby drivers, who had a busy summer at the various fairs. He's told me some fascinating behind-the-scene tales of what goes through the drivers' minds at these things, and how it gets pretty personal when you encounter drivers and teams from earlier derbies in the season! I wish him good luck this Sunday, and I hope he creams those punks who ganged up on him a few weeks ago at another metal-crunching ordeal!

Lorain County Fair 1964 – Part 1

Today we fast forward ten years from yesterday's post and take a look at the 1964 Lorain County Fair. Above is the full-page ad that ran in the Journal on August 22, 1964.

As usual, I love the clip-art used in the ad, especially of the family. Dad's got his suit and fedora on (I thought that JFK had made hats unpopular?) while Mom's wearing a stylish boater hat. And the sandwich-board-wearing stilt walker has a lit stogie with smoke wafting upwards.

In that same edition of the Journal, a photograph of the new main entrance gate of the Fairgrounds was featured.

The look of the Fairgrounds was slowly evolving into what we see out there today. The article below from the August 1, 1964 Journal revealed some of the new buildings, including new homes for the ponies and rabbits (a must-see during my visit to the Fair each year).

Tomorrow, I'll feature some of the entertainment from the 1964 Lorain County Fair.

Lorain County Fair 1954 – Part 2

We'll linger at the 1954 Lorain County Fair one more day.

Above is the front page of the August 24, 1954 Lorain Journal with the story of the opening day of the 1954 edition of the fair. Apparently it set an opening day record with more than 10,000 attendees.

In her report, Molly Maloy crafts a nice description of the Fair. She notes, "The Lorain County Fair is underway and the Wellington fair grounds have been turned into a combination carnival, amusement park, rodeo and grand exhibition.

"It promises to be a great week. People from all over the county are invading the grounds and every imaginable club, organization, and business is represented with a booth of some sort. You can buy anything from a fine bone china cup and saucer to a cup of salty french fries.

"The fair is alive with sounds, smells, sights and children. On stepping on the grounds your ears are greeted by the gay music of the merry-go-round, the blaring of a polka played over a loud speaker, and the excited hum of many voices.

"The barkers' deep, husky callings dominate the scene, telling you to "Step right up and try your luck" or "Get your ticket now and see the monkey drive his own automobile."

"Every five minutes a man's voice drones over the microphone announcing the next event, paging someone or summoning Officer Jones to Police Headquarters.

"You are attacked with odors from all sides. The smell of the stock mingles with that of hot food. The tempting odor of hot buttered popcorn or onions on a foot long hot dog is wafted beneath your nose.

"The midway is a gala sight to see. There are gaily painted rides, the tilt-a-whirl, midget racers, a huge ferris wheel, hundreds of try your luck booths, a merry go round, monkey hot drivers, fun houses, innumerable concession stands.

"The stands were packed with spectators watching the horse show and they cheered and applauded the high stepping parade horses and the thrilling rescue races."

These are just a sampling of Maloy's charming descriptions of the Fair. Many of the sights and sounds of the Lorain County Fair haven't changed in the 70 years since her article. That's why the Fair is so great – it's timeless, old-fashioned fun.

However, some things – such as monkey speedways – seem lost to the vagaries of time. What's a monkey speedway? Visit the Curbside Classics website (here) for a well-researched article about the popular fair attraction.

Courtesy CurbsideClassic.com