1950s

Posted in Ephemera

Swing Hard With This Newport Jazz Festival 1955 Program

This one image, the cover for the program from the 1955 Newport Jazz Festival, pretty much sums up everything I love about the aesthetic of mid-century jazz in America. Notably, this was just the 2nd

Posted in Album Cover of the Week

Album Cover of the Week: Arthur Lyman on Broadway

Chris Holmes
posted on March 19, 2021
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Folks, this one has it all. Matching outfits, leis, pants up to the belly button, at least three tubes of Brylcreem, a vibraphone (or is it a marimba?), and state of the art photo editing. It’s

Posted in Ephemera

Celebrate Thanksgiving with the Navy Pacific Reserve Fleet (1952)

Chris Holmes
posted on November 24, 2020
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Enjoy a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast with the U.S. Navy's Pacific Reserve

Posted in Photography

Kodachrome Memories #7: Halloween Memories (1950s & 1970s)

Chris Holmes
posted on October 7, 2020
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A pair of quartets in classic Halloween costumes as seen in Kodachrome slides from the 1950s and

postcard banner, Postcards from the Past

Posted in Ephemera

Postcards from the Past #2: Labor Day at Dorney Park

Chris Holmes
posted on August 20, 2020
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This postcard is a wonderful piece of mid-century Labor Day ephemera from Dorney Park in

Posted in Advertising

Toon Time #2: Quick Draw McGraw for Kellogg’s

Chris Holmes
posted on May 16, 2019May 16, 2019
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From the age when corporations directly sponsored TV shows comes this color animation cel from 1959. It features Baba Looey of The Quick Draw McGraw Show on top of a wagon spiriting a Kellogg’s

Posted in Ephemera

Postcards from the Past #1: Pike’s Peak Auto Race, 1950s

Chris Holmes
posted on November 2, 2018
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Postmarked June 18, 1956: PIKES PEAK AUTO RACE Here on Labor Day of each year gather the world’s best dirt track drivers to test their skill on the 10% grade up the side of Pikes Peak, rising

Posted in Movies

Now Playing: On the Waterfront

Chris Holmes
posted on September 26, 2018
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From the September 26, 1954 edition of the Dayton Daily News comes this ad for Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront, starring Marlon

Swing Hard With This Newport Jazz Festival 1955 Program

Album Cover of the Week: Arthur Lyman on Broadway

Celebrate Thanksgiving with the Navy Pacific Reserve Fleet (1952)

Kodachrome Memories #7: Halloween Memories (1950s & 1970s)

Postcards from the Past #2: Labor Day at Dorney Park

Toon Time #2: Quick Draw McGraw for Kellogg’s

Postcards from the Past #1: Pike’s Peak Auto Race, 1950s

Now Playing: On the Waterfront

Now Playing: Vintage Movie Ads of the 1950s (Part 1)