World Championship Rodeo Boston Garden 1956 Personal Appearance by Rin Tin Tin

I picked this great item up today at Little Ritchie's Antiques in Braintree, MA.

 (50 Hancock Street, Braintree, MA 781-380-8165) 

Promo photo featuring the cast of Rin Tin Tin.

    (Interesting to note that that 'Apache Joe' appears more northern european than native north american. A sign of the times I guess...)   

SPUD cigarettes? I wonder why that brand didn't catch on...

    More fun vintage ads:

International Chewing Gum Co. Cambridge, MA (Warning: Disturbing Image)

My husband aquired this card with an assorted lot collection he purchaced years ago so we have no way of knowing where it originally came from but I tried a web search for 'International Chewing Gum Co.' and came up with nothing.

  According to the back of this card it was produced by The International Chewing Gum Co. Cambridge, MA 1938.

Since I can't find any info about this company I am not sure what type of product this card was distributed with but I certainly hope it was not a chewing gum product sold to kids.

This image distrubs me but I felt it was worth posting as it is a small piece of vintage americana and the only piece of history I can find documenting that this Cambridge, MA company ever existed.

Milk of Amnesia - Donna Lethal

I just posted this review on Amazon and it seemed silly to write a whole new one just for this blog, I really don;t have any new insights froma few minutes ago til now so I'm just going to cut and paste and hope no one is offended by my laziness... 

I had a bit of a hard time determining if this book is a memoir or if it is a fictional novel (different places in the book label it as either) but after reading it I have come to the conclusion that it doesn't really matter either way. What it is, is a marvelous stand alone piece that illustrates time and place with the authors brilliant sparse use of words.
   Much like the old saying about music, the words left out of this book are just as important to the whole of the story as the words used to write it.  
  In a market full of memoirs (let's assume it's a memoir for now) written from a male point of view, this is one of the very best growning up in/near Boston memoirs that I have read, not only becasue it stands apart from the pack for it's female point of view but it's written with such a unique style that makes it a book you just can't put down til the ride is through.
    Touching, heart breaking and side splittingly funny, anyone with even the slightest family disfunction will find something to relate to in this book.
     I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more from this brilliant voice.


      Seriously, go buy this book, it's awesome.

                       Milk-Amnesia - Donna-Lethal (Link to Amazon)

The Galway House, 710 Centre St, Jamaica Plain, MA

Sometimes you want to go where nobody knows your name, but they're still always glad you came.

Or something to that effect...

The first apartment my husband and I rented was near Franklin Park and we had dinner at 'The Galway' at least (at the very least) about once a week for a good solid 5 years or so before we moved south into our own house. 

In the dozen or so years since our days as semi-regulars, we have occasionally thought, "Hey, let's go back the Galway for dinner!" and off we've gone. 

Before tonight it had probably been at least 6 months since we went and as I was getting dressed today I put on a vintage Galway House shirt and told my husband, "I'm feeling rather retro today."

To which he replied,

 "How long has it been since we've been to the Galway???"

 So, of course, off we went! 

Much has changed but much is just the same, thankfully the chicken fingers and hot wings are still quite pub-a-licious and our favorite waitress is still there (25 years! we asked her tonight) and although the wall decor and the booths have changed the nice, easy, go ahead and spread the Sunday paper across the booth atmosphere is exactly the same as it's always been. 

There was however one, most spectacular change that goes to show,

 even if things change at the places you love,

 if the people behind the scenes stay the same then the wonderul feel of a place that attracted you in the first place will never change.   

I forgot to ask the name of the local artist who painted the door (the owner found the great light and installed it in the center of the door) but I have a feeling that there is time enough for getting the details later, of course we will be back. 

And when we do go back to ask, we'll have to also find a discreet way to get the name of our favorite waitress (whose name I'm sure we've asked a million times through the years, Pam? I'm not sure, we always ask after a pint or 4 and then, well, we forget...) and perhaps pass on our own. 

Not that we have any problem being known as "Wings, Hot" and his wife "Chicken Fingers" as long as we continue to be greeted with a big smile and "Hey! Haven't seen you in a while! How've ya been?"

 I wouldn't trade a night at the Galway for all the 5 Star joints in town.

 Good times, great art, full belly.

Who could ask for more?

 : )

Rogers Archive - Great Old Boston Photos for Sale on Ebay

  I sell assorted collectibles on eBay as a part time job and while investigating Jordan Marsh items I have to sell, I found this shop that is more of a museum than an eBay shop:

Rogers Archive Boston, MA eBay store

    I absolutely love this collection of great images from old Boston, well worth checking out even if you aren't in the market to buy. It's a unique collection and really fun and informative to browse.

Merry Christmas from the top of the hill at Larz Anderson Park in Brookline, MA

First snow of the season this year:

Not a lot of snow so far but it was nice that the first snow came on Christmas day, can't wait til this hill is covered and ready for sledding! 

Happy Holidays Everyone! : )

Fabio, Tommy Hillfiger and Santa all walk into a bar....

About 10 years ago or so I worked as an Area Sales Manager at the Downtown Crossing Filene's location.

(If you bought a handbag at Filene's Downtown Crossing location anytime from 1997-ish to 2002-ish, you bought it from me and my crew, but I digress... : )

   There are so many things I wish I had taken pictures of when I had the chance roaming around the back halls of the old Filene's building but the building is mostly gone now and life moves on. I have made it a bit of a life challenge to never miss another opportunity to take pictures of neat things,  (especially neat vintage things, visit my vintage blog at www.grrlpickers.com ) and now have a camera stashed in my bag everywhere I go.

     I first encountered this chair many years ago when I passed it in back hall storage area at Filene's. I was excited when I first saw it and asked my boss if this was an old Santa chair and if the store was going to have a Santa that year. (There were no department store Santa's at either Filene's or Jordan Marsh/Macy's across the street during my years working in the area)
     My boss informed me that as red and ornate the chair was, it was not ever used as Santa's seat. This chair had been manufactured and delivered to the store as part of a product launch (fragrance?) and was originally designed to seat not Santa but, Fabio.
   
     I thought for sure she was kidding but nope, "The King of Romance" Fabio.

       At first glance it appears to be an awesome Santa throne but upon closer inspection, one can see that there are no holiday references carved into it, in fact even the red fabric seems a little off for a holiday celebration and more appropriate for a coronation. Cherubic angel face below the seat? Not quite a North Pole elf...

    So,
       For a couple of years the Fabio throne sat in the back halls of Filene's as a monument to the absurd excess that are most department store product launches (especially fragrance launches...) until one day, Tommy Hillfiger was due to arrive at the store to launch one of his products.
 
                         Fragrance? Men's pants? Tennis shoes? Who knows?...
 
   What I do know is that this cahir was brought out of storage and used to seat 'his royal highness of ready to wear' for an instore event sometime 2000-ish.

      Which brings us up to today (or a couple of days ago to be more precise). I now work for another business in Downtown Crossing and was passing by Macy's the other day when I saw an old friend.

      "Hello Fabio chair! It's nice to see you again!" thought I.

    About 3 days a week now around lunch time a really great Santa sits here outside Macy's and passer by are encouraged to use their own camera's and take all the free pictures with Santa that their hearts desire. It's a really nice thing that appears to completely confuse consumers more used to getting the hustle to buy something when walking through Downtown Crossing.

      I have contemplated approaching him and telling him the history of the chair as I know it but he would undoubtedly, believe me to be one of the many  'assorted nuts' that roam the area and the very last thing I want to do is irritate Santa.

       I want to stay on the good list this year...

                                  : )