The MAKING OF A SOLDIER in 1918: Part 4

The final scans from The Making of A Soldier. Click on the links to the previous posts:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Click on any image to see it larger.

The MAKING OF A SOLDIER in 1918: Part 3

Taking the chance that the post card folder would not fall apart, I scanned the remaining pages of The Making of A Soldier.

You can see part 1 here and part 2 here.

Click on any image to see it larger.

My next post will contain the final pages of this 1918 vintage ephemera.

The MAKING OF A SOLDIER in 1918: Part 2

More images from this World War I post card booklet dated 1918 published by the Seattle Engraving Company.

In order are the last page, the inside back cover, and the back cover.

Click on any image to see it larger.

To see the first post click here.

The MAKING OF A SOLDIER in 1918

This was a Christmas gift which belonged to my best friend's grandfather who served in World War I. I have been unable to find one online so I have no information to enlighten us and as you can see part of the front cover is missing, thus I'm not positive of the title.

Is part of it offensive? Yes. It's a product of its time.

I probably won't be able to scan all of it because it is so fragile. The cover has already completely come off and it wasn't like that when I got it. So I may or may not be able to post more of this vintage post card ephemera in days to come.

For now, this is the front cover, interior front cover, and first page.

Click on any image to see it larger.

LET'S EAT OUT: Part 5...Farmers Market Los Angeles

In all the years I lived in Los Angeles I never once went to the Farmers Market. I drove by it a lot and ate up the street at Canters, but for some reason I didn't go to the Market. Sad really. I'd been there in the 1950s and '60s and have fond memories.

This card and souvenir booklet date back to most likely the 1940s or early '50s. I believe they probably belonged to my maternal grandmother who made at least 4 trips west during her life.

I'll let the booklet give you their version of the history. If you need more you can go to the Farmers Market official web site. Or try the book Los Angeles's Original Farmers Market by David Hamlin.

Cover art was done by Alex Perez. Alas, I cannot find anything about him.

The photos were taken by Herbert Bruce Cross. No bio information about him either, but you can Google his name and find many shots, mostly architectural.

And if you've a keen eye you'll notice something the same, but not really.

Click on any image to see it larger.

LET'S EAT OUT: Part 3...Spenger's Fish Grotto

Once upon a time there was a restaurant in Berkeley, California called Spenger’s Fish Grotto that had a history dating back to the early part of the 20th century. The food was abundant and good. The waiters were often as crusty as the wonderful sourdough bread that was served.

As a kid and young adult Spenger’s was a regular Friday night adventure. The wait in the bar for a table could take hours. The place was always packed. When I say packed, I mean people out on the street waiting for a chance to even wait inside. And who knows, you might even see someone famous waiting with you.

Click on either image to see it larger.

I never saw the bar as well lit as shown on this card. It was dark and smoky. Okay, I wasn’t fond of the cigarette smoke, but it was all part of the atmosphere. There were several dining rooms, but my favorite is the one shown here on the postcard, the Teak Room. I can remember sitting at one of those center tables watching waiters buzzing through the kitchen doors. The room was always busy. It was my mother’s favorite restaurant.

I bought this menu and napkin several years ago. I don't know exactly what year this menu is from, but it looks exactly like the ones I remember from the 1960s. I like to think that at some point my mother actually held this menu.

Click on any image to see it larger.

It was a family owned restaurant for generations.

My mother's favorite dish was the “Shrimp Scatter” described as “A platter full of Golden Fried Tiny Shrimp. Served with Cole Slaw and French Fries.” Look at the price. $1.85. A whole meal for $1.85. This included lots of crusty sourdough bread which was a classic with their clam chowder.

If you have memories of this place this napkin will look familiar; the only thing missing is the wet ring your glass would have made while you waited and waited for your table.

Sadly, all things change and the Spenger family sold the restaurant to a corporation. For awhile the place was closed. We worried about what changes would be made. I’ve been back once since it reopened. It looked the same outside, the entrance seemed to be similar, and the bar looked as close as my memory would allow. The dining room we were seated in bore no resemblance to the old place. The wait staff was pleasant, but generic. The food…I’ll never go back. What once was a landmark is now nothing more than another restaurant in a corporate chain of over 80 restaurants across the country. Think Red Lobster, but more expensive.

The shining history that may still linger in people’s minds when they hear the name Spenger’s was created by a family dedicated to their customers. There was no website with headings called “Our Investors” or “Our Culture."

As I’ve said before, support family restaurants. Keep the money in your community and not sent off to a corporate headquarters. Cookie cutter food prepared by people towing the company line means that the MBAs are in charge of everything and look how well that turned out for all of us.

LET'S EAT OUT: Part 1...Long Champ...Longchamp...whatever

During our journey around the country checking out first class places to stay we never stopped to eat. It's time to check out some high and low class food joints.

Now, don't get your hopes up because I can't guarantee they're all still in business, let alone still standing.

First stop Long Champ Dining Salon (also Longchamp) in Amarillo, Texas. I'm guessing this card was picked up by my grandparents in 1949 when my folks drove them across country from Pennsylvania to San Diego along Route 66.

Click on image to see it larger.

So was it Longchamp as shown on the sign or Long Champ as on the back of this Curt Teich card? I have no idea. How could advertising screw up from the front to the back of a postcard?

SOURCE: Amarillo by Ron Smith

SOURCE: Amarillo: The Story of A Western Town by Paul Howard Carlson

Homer Rice didn't just change the name of the place, he changed the whole feeling of the place with advertising in a completely different direction. You can see a few Rice Dining Salon postcards here, here, and here. Doesn't feel as classy, does it? How about an old matchbook or Yellow Pages ad from 1965? I'm sure if I continued digging I'd find more, but I'm not really that interested in what the place became; I'm interested in how it started. Unfortunately, I'm not finding that information.

I did however find a recipe for Rice's Dining Salon Turkey Dressing. Go figure.

As to what sits on the spot once occupied by Long Champ? It's not pretty. According to this web site it's now a "parking lot between Taco Villa & Pinkie's Liquor."

I give you the former site of Longchamp, or whatever it was called, according to Google maps.

The only other thing I'll bring up about this is that Longchamp/Long Champ was recommended by Duncan Hines. I did a post last year which included how important the Duncan Hines guide was when traveling across country which you can read here.