Harry's Men's Wear Ad – March 3, 1954

Here's a great ad for that Harry's Men's Wear, that venerable Lorain institution that every man visited at some time or another. It ran in the Lorain Journal back on March 3, 1954.

(I've featured Harry's on several occasions, including this 1950 Grand Opening ad, and this 1972 profile of the man.)

The theme of the ad is "Hi Style," which points out the similarities between the men's fashion of 1851 and that of 1954. That's freckle-faced Mr. Sharp on the right, who looks like he might be Archie Andrews' cousin.

As usual in these types of ads, it's fun to see what was in style back then. Suits were available in Gabardines, Rayon Flannels, Wool Serges, All-Wool Flannels, Sharkskins, and Rayon Acetate. (I had a lime green gabardine suit made for me at Ricci Taylors during my senior year of high school!)

I'd never heard of a "web jacket" before. It doesn't seem to be a phrase in common usage. The only reference I found in the Journal's 1954 archives was a reference to a 'web jacket' worn by someone in the Lorain Easter parade. Where did they get it? You guessed it – Harry's.

The part of the ad that did catch my eye was the Pork (suddenly I'm kinda hungry) Pie Hats for $2.98. I had always heard of a pork pie hat as being the type that Buster Keaton wore in his silent comedies. 

But this Wiki entry for Pork Pie Hat explains it all pretty well. In addition to Buster (the comic, not our resident blog contributor), architect Frank Lloyd Wright wore one as well. This article compares pork pie hats and fedoras.

Today, pork pie hats are favored by musicians and retro hipsters.

Harry’s Men's Wear Article – April 1972

When a new business opens these days – whether it’s a restaurant, boutique or whatever – the trend is for it to have an unusual name, requiring the owner to have to go to great pains to explain it on TV or the newspaper (assuming they even get some news coverage). I guess the strategy is for the name to be so unique that you remember it. 

Unfortunately, most new businesses fail anyway, despite what creativity or thought went into their names.

But in the old days, many of Lorain’s most popular and enduring businesses simply took the first name of whoever owned it. Think about it: Rosie’s Pizza; Steve’s Shoe Shop; Bob’s Donuts; Mary’s Sweet Shop; Dom & Luigi’s Barber Shop.

Walking into these businesses and seeing the owner working there instilled a sense of trust and loyalty. You recognized Bob making the donuts, Rosie in her kitchen overseeing her pizza operations, or Steve repairing the shoes.

Along those lines, here’s an article about one of those gutsy Lorain entrepreneurs who started a business that lasted for decades: Harry Levine, who owned and operated Harry’s Men's Wear. The article ran in the Journal back on April 2, 1972 and provides a nice biography of Harry.

Harry’s been featured on this blog before. You can find the ad for his 1950 Grand Opening here, a 1954 Back-to-School ad here, and a 1959 ad for his line of bowling attire here. 

Harry’s was located in the Thistle Building.

Harry’s Men’s Wear Ad – Sept. 1959

Bowling and Harry’s Men’s Wear have both been regular topics over the years, so when I saw this ad, I knew I had to post it.

Art from another King Louie
ad from 1959

The Harry’s ad ran in the Lorain Journal on September 8, 1959 – sixty years ago this month – and features King Louie blouses for lady bowlers. Contrary to the name of the store, Harry did carry some clothes for women and girls (such as Levis).

The ad announces a clever promotional contest to draw in the lady bowlers. If they shot 275, they won $275.

And we all know bowling was wildly popular in Lorain and the surrounding areas. There were many bowling alleys to choose from, including Rebman’s (on the west side), Andorka Lanes (on the east side), Broadway Lanes, Lake Erie Lanes (in Vermilion), Shoreway Lanes (in Sheffield Lake) and Aqua Marine Lanes (in Avon Lake). Plus many social clubs and bars had lanes as well.

My parents actually met in a bowling alley in Avon Lake that was located in the rear of the shopping center on Route 6.

As the story goes, my mother was bowling there one evening with a girl friend. They had been given a ride there by another friend. But when it was time to go home, their ride back to Lorain was a no-show. Fortunately, my father was bowling there at the same time. He knew Mom’s friend, so he gave them both a ride home – even finagling to take Mom home last. And that’s how they met.

Later, when they were engaged to be married, they were still bowling at the same alley in Avon Lake. Dad even told the owner that they were considering getting married there. The owner thought it was a great idea.

Mom and Dad kept right on bowling for many years. Still later, they bowled in the “Tuesday Twosomes” B. F. Goodrich league at Aqua Marine Lanes.

My parents tried to make bowlers out of my siblings and me, even signing us up for a Saturday morning league at Shoreway Lanes. But that went about as well as Dad trying to make fishermen out of us.

I’ve tried bowling as an adult, but usually end up with about the same scores that I did when I was a kid. But now that I live about a mile from Pence’s Lake Erie Lanes, maybe it’s time to try again.

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Although Harry’s is but a memory, King Louie is still around! You can visit the company website here and download a catalog.

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You can revisit some of my other bowling-themed posts if you like. I wrote about Sheffield Lake’s Sully Bates, inventor of two bowling grips here. And I wrote about Rebman’s and its AMF Automatic Pinspotters here.

Back-to-School Harry’s Men’s Wear Ad – Sept 2, 1954

I’m sure most older Lorainites remember Harry Levine and his iconic Harry’s Men’s Wear store on Broadway. (I did a post on the store’s 1950 Grand Opening here that included some details about the man behind the store.)

Well, above is an ad for Harry’s with a Back-to-School theme that ran in the Lorain Journal on September 2, 1954 – 62 years ago this month. It’s an interesting ad that’s firmly rooted in its time. 

The ad copy is written in that 1950s beatnik-style way of talking that was just gaining a foothold in the American lexicon about then. Next to a caricature of Harry dressed as a bell-ringing school teacher (complete with mortarboard) the headline reads, “Dig Who’s Doing the Ringing – It’s That Crazy, Mixed-up Prof From Harry’s Men’s Wear.”

The ad also mentions a store appearances by Lorain disk jockey Kenny Vincent, who will be “spinning the latest platters,” and Jackie “Isle of Capri” Lee.

Wondering what Jackie Lee’s 1954 popular rendition of “Isle of Capri” sounded like? Well, here it is! It’s pretty cool, man.

Harry's Men's Wear Grand Opening – November 2, 1950

Here's an ad for a well-remembered, iconic Lorain business – Harry's Men's Wear – that ran in the Lorain Journal on November 2, 1950 – the eve of its Grand Opening. Every Lorain male shopped at Harry's Men's Wear at some time or another.

As the above ad noted, owner Harry Levine was the manager of Fisher Brothers Department Store before opening his own business that would prove to be a linchpin of Downtown Lorain for decades.

At the time of his passing at age 63 in late December 1977, Harry Levine was remembered as follows in a touching Journal obituary. It read, "Harry Levine was a fixture on Broadway and around Lorain. In recent years his stocky figure and silvery beard reminded everyone of someone you would expect to see on that other Broadway in New York.

"He loved people and he loved to talk with them. "Come and see me," he'd say, "I've got something (clothing) just made for you.

"Harry Levine was a mix of joy and style in business. His store was among the first to take on class on a street that desperately needed class. He was honored for his efforts long ago but maybe his efforts were as instrumental in an urban renewal project for downtown Lorain as all the later events proved to be. Levine was a do'er and not just a talker.

"Born Dec 2, 1914 in New Castle, Pa., he had resided in Lorain 42 years and made his home at 2647 Skyline Drive. A U.S. Navy World War II veteran, he had come to Lorain after graduating from Geneva College, Pennsylvania, where he studied education. Prior to starting his business, he spent 10 years managing a chain clothing store in Lorain with his wife, Jennie.

"He was a member of Agudath B'nai Israel Temple, B'Nai Brith, Jewish War Veterans and Lorain Elks No. 1301."

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I didn't know that at one point, Harry's Men's Wear actually had two locations. In the late 1970s, there was a second store at 371 Broad Street in Elyria.

The Levine family continued to operate the store at 700 Broadway for a number of years after the death of its founder. It finally closed in the mid-1980s, disappearing from the Lorain city directory in the 1986 edition.

700 Broadway today
(Courtesy Lorain County Auditor)

Harry's Men's Wear and Mr. Levine undoubtedly live on in the memories of countless Lorainites.

Lorain's First Baby of 1958 Ads

Back in the 1950s and 60s, it was a big deal to be the first baby born in Lorain in the New Year. The Lorain Journal would feature a photo of the proud mother and baby, and a variety of Lorain businesses would shower the baby with gifts.

My older brother Ken was Lorain's first baby of 1958, and as expected, a photo of Mom and him ran on the front page. The Lorain Journal even wrote a follow-up story (with pictures) about him a year later, contrasting his development as an infant with the many changes that took place around the world that year.

I remember as a kid thinking that Ken was indeed a celebrity in Lorain.

Recently I went back to the Journal microfilm archives to checkout some of the other hullaballoo surrounding Ken's birth. I found a whole spread of congratulatory ads sponsored by a variety of local companies, most indicating that they had donated a special gift to the lucky newborn.

The ads – some personalized with Ken's name – all ran on Jan. 7th. The collection below is only a sampling of some of the goodies he received!

30 quarts of milk from Ideal Dairies is a pretty nice gift (below), although I don't think it wasn't enough for my parents to switch their loyalty from Home Dairy, their regular choice.

It's appropriate that Kline's participated in the "first baby" contest – Grandma Brady worked there for almost her entire adult career. The store weighed in on the festivities with a free nursery scale.

While most of the gifts had something to do with caring for the new baby, at least one company – Harry's Men's & Boy's Wear – had a gift for Dear Old Dad (below).

Even old Reddy Kilowatt had a gift for Ken (below)!

The strangest congratulations came from Schwartz Home For Funerals (below)! No gift, though!