Rainbow Inn

It's not too often that I go out to shoot a 'then and now' photo and ultimately come back empty-handed.

While out in Vacationland a few days ago, I was really hoping that the restaurant shown on the vintage postcard – Rainbow Inn – would still be there. But it was not to be.

After driving back and forth on W. Lakeshore Drive just west of Port Clinton for a while, I had to give up the hunt. Although the undated postcard said that the Inn was one mile west of Port Clinton on what was then Route 2, there was nothing there but condos and a Moose Lodge in 2011.

A phone call to the Ida Rupp Public Library confirmed my suspicion: that Rainbow Inn was gone. The friendly and helpful reference desk employee told me that she remembered Rainbow Inn very well, and that it was located right around where the Moose Lodge is now (see below).

Photo courtesy of MapQuest

She also stated that the building had housed a Chinese restaurant after the Rainbow Inn years.

I don't get out to Port Clinton very often, but sooner or later I'll visit their library and see if I can rustle up some old ads or at least some kind of timeline for this place.

Steuk's Then and Now

The wife and I decided to extend the Memorial Day holiday break a little bit with a few days off this week. Since Wednesday was a beautiful day, we headed out on Route 2 to Vacationland for a pic-a-nic at East Harbor State Park.

On the way out there, I got off the highway to get a quick then-and-now shot of the old Steuk's barn. It's pretty sad to see this. I'm sure many of you who read this blog stopped at Steuk's over the years, or at least saw the complex from Route 2, with its iconic apple.

I don't know what the story is as to why the business closed in 1995, but the whole property has been for sale for a long time.

The 'then' shot is from the www.cardcow.com vintage postcard website. Here's my 'now' shot from Wednesday (below).

June 1, 2011 view

Once I got home, I dug into my archives and was surprised to see that back in late July 2008, I had snapped a photo of part of the farm market portion (seen in the bottom half of the vintage postcard).

The building shown above, along with its well-known, ever-smiling apple face (below) was demolished a couple of days later.

1967 Newspaper Ad for The Sands

Yesterday, I was reading some comments that were posted on this blog. What's kind of neat is that even though one of my blog entries may be months or even years old, to someone who finds it today for the first time, it's brand new – and they often leave a comment. So while a post might be old, it can still generate comments and the discussion goes on.

A few days ago, a reader helpfully pointed out that the former Margie's Magpie Inn on Colorado Avenue (which was torn down back in January and talked about here) was previously known as The Sands. So of course I would happen to find one of their ads on microfilm tonight during my brief visit to the library.

The ad dates from May 25, 1967 and features the host, Boris "Bobo" Lazoff. I really like that old-time habit of featuring the owner or host in restaurant and night club ads. It puts a face on the establishment and goes a long way towards convincing me that the owner cares about his business and stands behind it.

I was never in The Sands (as a Lorain west-sider while growing up, the east side was a big mystery to me for a long time). But I recognize Mr. Lazoff's distinctive name and nickname from the ads, and I hope he is doing well.

If you have any memories of being in The Sands, or better yet – if you worked there or knew (or were) the owners, be sure to leave a comment!

The Veterans Monument

I stopped by Veterans Memorial Park this past Friday to see what kind of shape the park was in after the recent vandalism (reported here by the Morning Journal). It looked pretty much the way it did when I stopped by a week earlier, except this time the fountain was working (see photo at top).

At first glance, the scene is attractive until you get closer. Then you can see the damage pretty well, with one piece of the monument missing and one torn loose. Strangely, the piece that was dislodged by the vandals is still on the ground in front of the monument (see photo below).

Veterans Monument on May 27, 2011

It's hard to understand why someone would do that. It's obvious they either didn't read the top of the monument (below) or if they did, they didn't care. I'd like to think they didn't read it.

Sadly, the park has a history of vandalism even though it is right across the street from the police station. I've been busy the last few months researching and compiling of a comprehensive history of the Civil War statue that used to be in that park for the Black Swamp Trader & Firelands Gazette. The vandalism to that monument was pretty disgraceful as well, and the main reason you don't see it in the park today. More's the pity.

Anyway, here are the Lorain Journal articles that ran at the time the Veterans Monument was first installed and dedicated in May 1967. (Click on each for a closer view.)

Memorial Day, May 30, 1949

Here's a full-page ad that ran in the Lorain Journal on Saturday, May 28, 1949, detailing Lorain's Memorial Day observances. (Click on it so you can read the roster of old-time Lorain businesses that sponsored the ad.)

The ad really gives me the impression of a Lorain unified in its reverence for its war dead.

Lorain still has the parade ( I marched in it as part of Admiral King's Marching Band) but the holiday seems to have lost some of its original meaning: to remember and honor those who gave their all while in service to their country.

What Was Playing at the Palace on May 29, 1951?

What was playing at the Palace sixty years ago this week?

Here's the answer: a great double feature of Ghost Chasers featuring the Bowery Boys and Tarzan's Peril, the latest in the ape-man's adventure series. (You might remember that I'm a big Bowery Boys fan, which I first mentioned back here.)

As opposed to the usual comedy plot in which a ghost is revealed to be a villain in disguise who is attempting to scare off the protagonists, Ghost Chasers featured a real ghost that only Sach (Huntz Hall) can see.

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Whenever I'm looking at old Lorain Journals on microfilm, I'm always amazed at the number of Bowery Boys features in the Lorain movie listings of the 1940's and 1950's. The Boys must have been pretty popular in working-class Lorain.

I remember as a kid watching them on Sunday mornings on one of the local UHF channels. Consequently my brothers and I would imitate Sach by turning up the brim of our baseball caps and running around saying, "Hey, Chief!"

Anyway, to visit the website of the Lorain Palace Theatre, click here.

The Charcoal Pit Part 2

Here's another Lorain Phone Book ad for the Charcoal Pit, this time from 1956. It's interesting to me because there's a couple things going on marketing-wise.

First of all, there's an advertising mascot  – a chicken dressed like an artiste, with beret, paint brush and – spats? I'm not sure if he is just a piece of clip-art that was added to the ad, or if he is a bona-fide mascot.

Also of interest is the reference to King Henry Family Style Chicken Dinners. I've scoured the internet to no avail trying to find some other mention of this brand. (All I could find is the claim that King Henry IV of France believed that everyone should eat chicken on Sunday.)

The whole ad is probably a template, supplied by the oven manufacturer, which the restaurant could customize with their city, phone number, menu, etc.

The ad is intriguing, though. Imagine broiling a chicken to a golden brown in two minutes! At that rate, in five minutes you'd have a pile of ashes!