Shopfloor » The Way It Was

Results for 'The Way It Was' Category

Dagwood Returns to his Roots

Monday, November 3, 2008

Frankly, we think their problem is simply marketing. The backward “E”s confuse the buying public.

Comics aficionados will recognize the re-emergence of the themes of economic anxiety that accompanied the Depression Era origins of the Blondie strip, as Dagwood, son of millionaire industrialist J. Bolling Bumstead wooed working-class Blondie. Dagwood surrendered his inheritance to marry her, but even now, he sometimes resents his fall. (And really, an apple cider stand is only one step removed from an “Apples - 5 cents” stand.)

(Cartoon from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.)

Posted @ 10:00 am | Category: The Way It Was | Author: Carter Wood | Tags: Blondie, Dagwood| 2 Comments

The Way It Was: Charles and Ray Eames

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The%20Way%20It%20Was.jpg Charles Eames and his wife Ray are not household names, and yet their inventive genius is present in just about every household – not to mention airports, restaurants, and other public places all over the world.
They got their start during World War II creating laminated plywood splints for wounded military personnel. They were better than the metal splints that easily transmitted vibrations to wounds and fractures.

When the war ended, Charles and Ray branched out, applying what they had learned about hot-molding wood laminates to furniture design. All across the country, there was a mad scramble to build houses for returning servicemen, and all those houses needed furniture.

Charles and Ray entered a furniture design contest run by the Museum of Modern Art with a single shelled molded plywood lounge chair that was comfortable even though it had no upholstery. It was designed of soft but lasting material to fit the design of the human body. And being so simple, it was inexpensive to make, also a major plus. They won the contest.

That chair was introduced commercially in 1946 and is still being made. In its last issue of 1999, Time magazine named it the Best Design of the 20th century.

The Eames didn’t just invent creative furniture; they also invented the tooling to make it. Manufacturers just loved them and with reason. Their chairs were, and are, comfortable, simple and inexpensive.

Posted @ 1:52 pm | Category: The Way It Was | Author: Hank Cox | Tags: Charles Eames, Ray Eames| No Comments

The Way It Was: Horace Greeley

Sunday, June 8, 2008

The%20Way%20It%20Was.jpg In 1872, the famous newspaperman Horace Greeley was candidate for President for both the Democrat and Liberal Republican Parties. Trouble was, he was up against President Ulysses Grant of Civil War fame, one of the most popular Presidents ever.

Greeley was 60 years old and in declining health. His wife was on her deathbed. He wrote a friend, “I wish she were to be laid in her grave next week, and I to follow her the week after.”

On October 30 Molly Greeley died. Greeley wrote to his friend again, “I am not dead, but I wish I were. My house is desolate, my future dark, my heart a stone.”

Grant was re-elected in a landslide. Greeley carried only six states. The distraught man, his mind going, had to be institutionalized. On November 29, three weeks after the election, Greeley died.

When the electoral college met in December, three electors from Georgia insisted on voting for Greeley even though he was dead. But Congress refused to count their votes.

So poor Horace Greeley, in less than a month, lost his wife, the presidency, his mind and then his life. He was the only major presidential candidate to receive no electoral votes.

And you think you had a bad day.

Posted @ 7:41 am | Category: The Way It Was | Author: Hank Cox | Tags: Horace Greeley| No Comments