The Blackhawk Restaurant

I've always thought that the strongest nostalgia is nostalgia for things we've never known. When I was born, in 1955, the era of the big band was all but over. I don't drink, smoke, and even though I feel quite comfortable riding my bike through L.A. traffic and standing on the edge of cliffs, I feel so rhythmically challenged, I've never dared to take up dancing. And yet, I've always felt that I've missed out on something in not being around when men and women dressed up and headed off for an evening at the local ball room. This is an interesting group of photos, each found in a Blackhawk Restaurant souvenir photo folder. The picture of the two ladies having dinner is dated "May 3, 1945," so we know that these picture were taken right as the second world war was ending. (Note that the woman on the right is in all three images.) The Blackhawk was in the loop, the business heart of Chicago, and since all three photos are of woman only, it presents two possibilities. These might have been housewives enjoying a weekly get together, or they might have been employed in downtown Chicago. The second photo of the four women has, "Best wishes, Earl Randall" hand written on the margin. It's the final image that really intrigued me. Propped up, in the middle of the table, in it's souvenir folder, the five women are displaying the second photo from this set. The Blackhawk Restaurant was founded by Otto Roth and first opened on December 27, 1920. In 1926, the Blackhawk added a dance floor and hired Carlton Coon-Joe Sanders and the Kansas City Nighthawks as a house band. In 1931, when Coon-Sanders moved on to other venues, a series of acts took up residence at the Blackhawk, including, Kay Kyser, Louis Prima , Mel Torme, and Bob Crosby and the Bobcats. (I've posted a photo of Kay Kyser on 6/8/10 and Bobcat drummer Ray Bauduc on 2/1/10) Big band broadcasts from the Blackhawk were featured on Chicago radio station WGN, and nationwide on the Mutual. There was a telegraph key at the restaurant so that radio listeners could make song requests. In 1944, on the death of his father, Don Roth took over the Blackhawk. In 1952, with a decline in popularity of big band music, he removed the band stand and dance floor, and made "Food the show." Prime rib was hand carved at the diner's table, while other waiters hand made salads in a spinning bowl. The Blackhawk closed in 1984, though a second Blackhawk Restaurant, in Chicago suburb, Wheeling, IL., which had opened in 1969 remained in business until December 31, 2009. In my research I found a postcard from the 1930's that was captioned, "The Blackhawk, the most famous theatre restaurant in the world." As always, more souvenir photo folders can be seen by clicking on night club in the labels section.

French Postcard One More Time

Yet another French postcard. 19th century porn, tame now.

Atlantic City 1924

It's always nice when things are dated, and all three of these images are dated, "Aug. 16, 1924." In addition, the one with the adult woman and child is labeled, "Mrs. Kravitz and Albert." Little Albert seems to be wearing a dress of some kind. The one with the girls sitting on the sand, "Gus and Jen Atlantic City." And the two girls standing, "Dot and Jen Atlantic City." Dot and Jen have their initials on their swim suits. Click on Atlantic City in the labels section, to bring up another old boardwalk photo.

Pasadena Portrait

Found in a paper folder, written in light pencil along the right border, "Bennett" along the bottom, "Pasadena." From the twenties.

Los Angeles After the War

I've written enough about my distress when dealers break up photo albums, that I'm happy to finally put up one of the albums I own, complete. It's a small collection. While the album itself has around fifty or so pages, these few pictures were placed on only five of those pages. (The album owner used photo corners. A few of them are missing and have left small, triangular bits of crystallized glue behind, that are not to be found on any of the blank pages, which has led to my conclusion that the owner of this album gave up adding new images.) One of the things I've always found fascinating about old American photographs is the documentation of movement; the movement from one part of the country to another. One of the things my father told me was that the depression and World war 2 were good for the United States because it forced people to uproot and move on from their established lives. My father had to drop out of the tenth grade, he went on the road, worked for both the C.C.C. and the W.P.A. and then ended up spending four years in Europe during, and right after the war. I found this album in Rosamond, California, and at first thought that it must have been owned by one of the families that went to the high desert as support workers for Muroc, latter Edwards Air Force Base, but on closer examination I realized that the ridge line seen in the background runs from just north of downtown Los Angeles to Pasadena. For Anglenos, think Mt. Washington. More than likely, these images were taken in Glassell Park, a real estate development aimed towards defense workers. A lot of those old houses are still there, and with a bit of work, I could probably find this street. Of course, Los Angeles is the city that it is, because of twentieth century population shifts. The depression saw the uprooting of people from the great plains, Texas, Oklahoma, the Ozarks, and lots of them headed for southern and central California. And then the war, and the growth of the defence industry, especially aircraft in the L.A. area, brought even more people west, looking for high paid jobs. Since these photos are held in the album with photo corners and are not glued to the pages, I have been able to, carefully, remove them and then replace them back in the album. A few of the pictures have hand written captions on the back. The first picture of the older man in overalls being embraced by the woman in slacks, "Feb-9-1946 Quite a paunch you have there pop." The younger man and woman wearing a skirt, holding a plant in her hands, "Feb-9-1946. Smile Mac, it's not." The older man in overalls, with his arm on the older woman's shoulder, "The couple." Mac, standing alone, cigarette in hand, "Feb-9-1946 Look at the birdiee please." The two younger women standing side by side, "A Blonde & A Brunette OH OH!" The woman laying on the ground, "Feb-9-1946 Uh Uh! What a form!?" Mac, his arm around the waist of the woman in the cowboy hat and boots, "Hold on tight so IT won't Blow Away. (The hat of course.)" 1946 was a good year. The soldiers were back, the economy was booming, and everyone had a job.

A White Wedding

I have no idea what the bride wore, but I do have this shot of a wedding guest in his white shoes and suit. The lady he's standing with seems to be a member of the wedding party. Stamped on the back, "ALBERT PHOTO SERVICE Candid Photography 5106 W. 22nd Place-CICERO, ILL. REORDER BY NUMBER."

A Chicago Society Lady

I'm always hoping that someone will leave a comment that reads, "Hey, that's me when I was young, or that's my mother or grandfather." Stamped on the back of this 20's/30's era photo, "CHICAGO TRIBUNE PHOTO." If she's not the grandmother of someone, she might be a Chicago society lady or debutante and recognizable by the blogosphere.