A 1937 Wedding

I like these wedding photos because of the shots of the couple arriving for the ceremony. Dated May, 1937, the Honeymoon, with the couple wearing suits and dresses in the tropics, isn't' something we'd see today.

Bayonet

One of the things there will never be a shortage of are military pictures. In the twentieth century alone, we managed to slaughter hundreds of millions of people in one war after another. An American soldier practising with his bayonet. My guess is around the World War 2 era, sent to his family or girl friend. The thing about military pictures, is the wondering if this was the last image taken of this man before his death in combat.

Coast Radio

This image is a perfect example of just how far an old photo can take a collector like me. I bought it because, as a cyclist, I love old bikes. The woman is riding a very distinct machine. The angle is just off enough that it can't be identified with any precision. Once beyond the bikes, things get even more interesting.

On the back of the picture, there is a processor's stamp. "PRINTED APR 8 1940 THE OWL DRUG COMPANY." That set me off in an entirely new direction. The Owl Drug Company was founded in 1892, in San Fransisco, CA. It would go on to become one of the biggest drug store companies in the world and would be taken over by Rexall in 1920. The Coast Radio store could be the name of a chain, or it could indicate that this picture was taken in an American coastal city like San Fransisco, or Seattle. Under the silk sign it says Rayons and Wools. Is the store next to it Molly Mae or perhaps Holly or Polly Mae? Is there a Masonic sign next to the silk shop? Quite a lot of information for a photograph that measures 2 3/8 x 4 inches.

Two From Maurice Seymour

Maurice Seymour was a Russian immigrant who opened a photography studio in Chicago in the 1920's. He specialized in theatrical portraits. The seller told me that these two images were of a stripper, and taken during the 1950's. There was type on the bottom, Pat Windsor. I've done an Internet search, and couldn't find any trace of this lady.

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Time for a correction. According to the comment left by Mr. Charles Rosenberg, Pat Windsor, also known as Pat Windsor Mitchell was a singer. The dealer who sold me these photos was wrong about her being a stripper.

The Cleveland Motor Company

Three nice little urban pictures. I have no idea what city these pictures were taken in, but the ad in the window is for a Cleveland Automobile. Frederick C. Chandler founded the Chandler Automobile Company in Cleveland, Ohio in 1913. In 1919, he founded the Cleveland Automobile Comapny to make a lower cost car. He merged them in 1926, and sold out to Huppmobile in 1928. $550 is about a third of what a Cleveland went for new.

A Beautiful Couple, 1939

One of the problems of being a collector of old photos is in the dating of images. Sometimes, the photographer writes something down or the lab stamps a date on the back, but more often than not it's a matter of guessing about clothes and hair styles. In the second image from this series, the lady is leaning against a wall, visible in the background is Morris Gest's Midget Town. Also known as Morris Gest's Little Miracle Town. Gest was a theatrical producer who had a distinguished career in New York presenting plays by the Moscow Art Theater, Max Reinhardt, and Elenore Duse. Things slowed down for him during the great depression, and for the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, he ended up putting on a midget show.

In looking at old photos, I often find myself thinking about historical proximity. In 1939, Japan had invaded China, and Germany was about to invade Poland. The gentleman in the first picture may or may not have ended up in combat. He may or may not have been wounded or died. His wife may have ended up building airplanes, or may have stayed at home. Of course, I can't tell what happened to them from these pictures, but I also can't help speculating. Whatever happened, it all changed.

Cat Fight!

These have got to be from the swinging seventies, and the sexual revolution. As a long time collector of old photographs, and as a former lab tech, I can attest to the fact that sexual imagery in photography goes back to age of Daguerre. The one thing I always ask myself when I see something like this is, "Was it done by an amateur for his own private pleasure, or was it a commercially made photo, printed for under the counter distribution." The only clue with these images is that one of them is fogged, which indicates that it might have been an amateur effort.