Thursday, April 25, 2019

Love and Lather - 1916




Love and Lather (1916)



"Our Vacuum Cleaner Enters the Movies

This Spring the Western Electric Vacuum Cleaner made its debut in the film world. It was reluctant about entering into any frivolity, for it was built for serious work and in its well ordered and useful life had never before felt the least desire to lay off and have any fun. But it finally accepted the offer of a Florida film concern to take the leading role in a picture styled "Love and Lather."

In the picture it may be seen chastising the poor victim in the chair. The tramp wanted his beard removed. It was a nine month's growth which would have sorely troubled an old-time barber, but the up-to-date tonsorial artist simply put Mr. Vacuum Cleaner on the job, and in no time it sucked the beard right off the client's face." ~~ Western Electric News Magazine July 1916

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Wednesday, April 24, 2019

195 Broadway - Western Electric News 1916 - 1917


July 1916



January 1917



January 1917




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Pennsylvania Station Main Entrance on Seventh Avenue






(The Pennsylvania Railroad's New York Improvement - 1910)


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Prism Glass Lighting The Way - Pennsylvania Station 1910




Pennsylvania Station - Exit Concourse showing one of the Exit Elevators, and Staircase leading to Thirty-Third Street
(The Pennsylvania Railroad's New York Improvement - 1910)


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Saturday, April 6, 2019

First Lady Barbara Bush Having a Cocktail At Fraunces Tacern NYC - circa 1990/1991





I just don't really understand how Trump can send out that maggot Roger Stone to criticize Former First Lady Barbara Bush in the most vulgar manner. 

As a surrogate of Trump continuing on the I hate women and or vaginas theme of first Fox News and their decades long hate of Hillary Clinton, another First Lady - is it not possible that politeness and or PC media BS protecting the present illegal First Lady will be lifted and open season on vulgar naked comments will be made all over the place.

Which reminds me of my only encounter with "the" Mrs. Bush at Frauces Tavern in the early nineties. Went to meet an old friend for drinks after work, in banks, for talk and catching up on gossip of the people we knew and worked with in two different work places together. Just general shoot the breeze and bar talk stuff, unwinding after a day of intense stress of moving money around the planet at the lower rungs in the belly of that beast, baby.

First clue that something was up as we stood at the bar drinking our first pop, was a jogger running into the bar as if in stopping from a long run and he had no sweat. He takes a bar stool. He orders water. We look at each other seeing something we had never seen before in this quint little corner of refreshment off Wall Street. "Man, where are you from?" we probably mutally thought, and then the chatter among customers that Barbara Bush was entering the building which we did not bother to look at in the nearby hallway. I did not vote for 41 in '89 but I did once vote for him in '80 on the bottom half of that ticket.

Of course with the verbal buzz that the First Lady was upstairs, our bartender who we knew, did not disclose anything about what me and my friend had surmised about our jogging friend in shorts in February who was probably Secret Service. The bartender disclosed that Mrs. Bush was upstairs changing clothes between appearances in the city and having a cocktail. As it turned out Frauces Tavern is federal property because of its historic status, its ground floor leased out commercially to the restaurant and bar on the ground floor. The museum on the second floor, site of Washington's farewell reception and speech to his officers also has other rooms used by the government for changing etc. among other things, like for members of the government in the city like Mrs. Bush. In other words a glorified and protected pit stop, safe site etc. downtown.

Yes Roger, Barbara Bush drank a cocktail or two on occasion and so have I. God Bless America.

The Bush entourage exited about an hour later and me and my friend waiting a few minutes to not get lost in the crowd of cops and police cars and limos parked out front. When we did exit, the limo train of cars etc. was still parked in front. Instinctively, my friend motioned me to stay on the top steps of the entrance to Frances' Tavern, his military training possible recognizing that our sudden appearance at this moment might be in the sight of government snipers on nearby rooftops. He later mentioned to me why he gestured us to halt. In the interim I got a glimpse in the Presidential limo at the curb at the bottom of the steps, in the backseat of part of the face of the First Lady and dressed in what looked like a dark blue or purple (I am color blind) sequin dress. It was February I think and the only motion in this temporary scene was the steam coming out of the tailpipes of running motors of police cars and Limos which promptly took off.

We then exited the site to the street. Me to the nearby ferry and my friend to the subway. 

Yes, real First Ladies do have cocktails Roger and Donald. Believe it or not.

BTW - First Lady Barbara Bush R.I.P.


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