Another "Do you remember?" thread:

[trof]

Welcome geezers, geezettes, and wannabes.

Do you remember:
Cars with no ignition lock starter switch? You just pushed a small round pedal on the floor, or (more modern) a button on the dashboard and it...started! Usually.

When car radios were an "option".

Coupes? Sometimes pronounced "coo-pays". 2-door with no back seat, just a space for parcels, or where little kids could stand up.
Seat belts? Nah.

Fender skirts? And curb feelers?
How about steering knobs? Pretty handy before power steering came along.

Hand signals for turns and stopping?
And the first time you saw electric turn signals and thought "Wow! Magic!"

As well as a spare tire and jack, there was a tire pump in your trunk?

I don't go back quite as far as rumble seats.
Anybody?

[smbolisnch]

1. Nope.

I don't remember any of those! I guess I remember not having to wear seat belts as a kid and I do remember steering knobs on the wheel!

[Richardo]

2. I remember most of those. 'Curb feelers' :-)

I remember that tell tale scraaaaaaaaaping sound. ;-)

[Bertha Venation]

9. dude... were we each other in former lives?

:hi:

[trof]

22. Saw a big geezermobile Town Car with a set

just the other day. Didn't know they still made 'em.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. I remember cars with 8 track players in them

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[bif]

4. My uncle had a car with a record player in it!

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. nu-UH!

:o

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[NeoTraitors]

6. When I was a child...

Kids who wore helmets were beaten up as wussies. People smoked EVERYWHERE. There would never be lights in Wrigley Field. Kids who misbehaved were 'swatted.' Kids who 'smart aleced' adults were cut down to size quickly.
Also killer bees were supposed to soon swarm over America.

[no name no slogan]

93. I've seen those!

They were just big enough for a 45 rpm record! IIRC, they "floated" on some sort of suspension so the needle wouldn't skip when you hit a rough spot in the road. Cool stuff!

[BurtWorm]

7. I remember when most cars had clutches, and some had chokes.

I remember when you had to spin a handle to roll up the window, and when, if you were sitting next to a grownup in the front seat, you had to help pull the seat forward on the count of three (when Mom took over driving after Dad, for instance).

And I remember sitting in a car as a kid with the windows rolled up and some grownup in the front lighting up a cigarette. I loved the smell of a freshly lit cigarette in a car.

[trof]

23. 4 people smoking in a car in winter.

Finally had to crack a window to get the visibility up to something approaching safe.

[Freebird12004]

53. me too

[Bertha Venation]

8. curb feelers!

My grandma had those and I HATED them! Like nails on a chalkboard.

I remember a floorboard push button for bright headlights.

[Richardo]

10. Yes! the high beam switch on the floorboard

:hi: fellow geezette :)

[Bertha Venation]

11. heh... never felt more geezette than yesterday, when I learned that

my new glasses will be tri-focals.

Has anyone seen my Metamucil?

[auntAgonist]

14. geez Bertha!

Sounds like soon you'll need Geritol :)


I hated tri focals. Couldn't get used to them. Went to bi-focals, hated them too. Now I have 2 pair of glasses, 1 for reading and 1 for driving.

O8) <--- that's me hehe

[Sporadicus]

40. Still Complaining About Trifocals?

Check out what I have to wear!

[Bertha Venation]

45. AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!

lolol

[tsakshaug]

15. I still

push the floor looking to dim the high beams

[WritersBlock]

88. So do I. Have these been out of use that long?

It sure doesn't seem that long ago to me.

::muttermuttergrumblewherethehell'smywalkingstick?moangrumblemuttermutter::

[auntAgonist]

12. Push button transmission!

on the dash. Bright beam switch on the floor. 2/60 air conditioners. hehe .. 2 windows open 60 mph.
8 track players
Had an AMC pacer that started without the key in the ignition LOL ..

[Red State Rebel]

49. I remember seeing one of those!

Wild....

[auntAgonist]

98. Plymouth Valiant

1959, sold as a 1960 had an optional 3-speed push-button automatic.

[qwertyMike]

13. I had a 1954 Morris Minor (UK)

Split windshield (Rare - worth a fortune to collectors now)



Manual winshield wipers (Backup)

Same motor that they put in the first Mini

Like the Chevette, ran forever. Drove from London to Morocco at 35 mph.

And back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[trof]

19. Whoa! That was my first car!

Maybe a 1950 model?
Black.
Had those semaphore turn signals that popped out from the side.
Even had a hand crank starter in case the battery died.
Cool car.

[qwertyMike]

37. Yes the hand crank!

Forgot about that.
Alas mine didn't have the semaphore turn signals :(

[tsakshaug]

16. steering knobs

AKA- necker knobs

Do kids still go "parking?"

[trof]

25. We used a different "n" word.

And for the life of me I don't know why we called them that.
I don't know if kids still "park".
They can probably just use their own room now.
Ah, these modern times.

[lpbk2713]

30. I remember steering wheel knobs.

They usually had a clear cap and inside was a babe in a one piece swimsuit striking a pose.

[trof]

34. 'At's the one.

[GOPBasher]

17. I didn't know about a lot of those things.

Did cars get stolen a lot back then?

[trof]

56. Probably.

I think the doors still locked, but few bothered.

[Richardo]

18. Who had a water-cooled window a/c unit in the family car?

Pre-factory air...when we moved to SoCal in 1960 we had one of these on the Chevy Nomad Wagon:



My brothers and I used to pretend it was a torpedo tube :crazy: Hey! we were kids!

[trof]

21. Oh lord, I remember those too now.

Did they work very well?

[Richardo]

24. No.

We lived in the desert and even as a child I could tell they were not worth a crap.

[Hand]

81. No, but they could be fun...

My dad strapped one to the windshield of our 1952 Cranbrook when we were driving across Arizona from LA. Didn't do a damned thing for the cooling, but I remember that there was a string you could pull that sprayed a cooling mist of water across the front seat.

My brother and I would periodically pull the thing and spray the parents from the back seat. That produced some mighty fine cussing, I must say.

:evilgrin:

[Richardo]

82. I forgot about the 'misting' cord -- HAHAHAHA!

My brothers and I did the same thing: 4 of us against 2 of them. :evilgrin:

[Richardo]

20. Remember when the car registration was strapped to the steering column?

ANYBODY looking in your car could find out where you lived. :scared:

[trof]

26. Now I do.

Little plastic and leather thingy with springs to hold it on.

[Richardo]

29. You got it

:thumbsup:

[Hand]

86. Yeah...

The aforementioned Cranbrook had that too.

In the original "Big Sleep," Bogart gets some bad guy's address from the strap-on registration. I imagine most viewers today would see that scene and say :wtf:

[Richardo]

27. One more: Who had to have a canvas water bag to keep the radiator cool?

Family Richardo did!

[trof]

31. I think you're in my head.

or something.
In old movies, every car driving through the desert southwest had one of those hanging from the hood ornament.

[Richardo]

32. They worked about as well as the window a/c, if I recall correctly.

On the flat, OK. Hit an uphill grade and you were toast.

[jdonaldball]

28. Middle aged geezer, I remember MANUAL TYPEWRITERS!

I went through college in the early 1980s with a manual typewriter, a Smith and Wesson made in 1956 (my Dad's, when he was in college.)
And it seemed normal to me at the time. The only students who had word processors (or "computers", oh God) were spoiled rich kids, in the early 1980s.

[trof]

33. Smith Corona. And with no letters on the keys.

That's how I learned to type. Plain black keys.
Mom sent me to business school to keep me out of trouble in my 13th summer.
There was a big mock up of the keyboard on the front wall, but the keys on the practice machines were all black.

[jdonaldball]

39. WOW! I learned how to touch type, but not on blanks!

[trof]

44. Sure didn't help to look at the keys.

Which, I guess, was the idea behind it.

[Left Is Write]

58. We had blank keys in the advanced typing classes at my high school.

[Left Is Write]

57. I learned how to type on a manual typewriter.

I taught myself at age 8 on a typewriter that had belonged to my grandmother, circa 1920s.

In high school, I used my mother's electric typewriter that came in a wooden carrying case.

For high school graduation (1984), I received a Smith Corona electric typewriter.

I still have it. I don't suppose anyone out there somewhere still sells ribbons for typewriters, do they?

[Hand]

83. Ah, yes...

Back in college, I bought an ancient L.C. Smith at the Salvation Army for ten bucks. Typed all my papers, including a lengthy thesis, on that old thing. Built like a draft horse and weighed about as much. I think it must have been pre-Depression vintage, but it just banged away.

Geritol, quick!

[CO Liberal]

35. I Remember Cars With Running Boards

There were still a lot of them around in the mid '50s, which is the earliest I can remember. And cars with tail fins and pushbutton transmissions (like our '59 Plymouth Savoy).

I remember when Buick dealers sold Opels and Pontiac dealers sold Vauxhauls. And I remember the BMW Isetta, with its single door in the front.

[trof]

42. Isettas. Always thought they were Italian made.

I learn something new almost every day.

[trof]

36. Hood ornaments.

What ever happened to hood ornaments, anyway?
Chief Pontiac.
The ones that lit up were especially cool.

[Freebird12004]

55. way cool

[jdonaldball]

38. I remember Black and White TV in our house until 1969

We got our first color TV in summer 1969, when I was six years old, to watch the Moon Landing. But then it was broadcast in Black and White.
I DO remember appreciating how Ginger on Gilligan's Island looked a lot more sexy in color. I was six years old - and parenthetically, I think this is one example, among many, of how your sexuality is fixed at birth. No one ever taught me to be heterosexual - I was born that way - and similarly, all gays were born that way.
But anyway, Ginger looked even better to me when I saw her in color! :-)

[trof]

61. Remember getting our first TV.

My grandmother had a black maid who had "retired", i.e. gotten too old to work. They were great friends and granny went to see her one day. I got to ride along.
When we walked into her house the first thing I saw was a brand new TV set. Wow!
Her son had bought it for her.
I couldn't wait to get home and tell grandpa (we lived with them for a few years after my mom's divorce).
"TEENA HAS A TEE-VEE!"

We had one the next day, because...you know...no black servant could EVER be one up on grandpa.
Thanks Teena.

[CO Liberal]

97. We Got Our First Color TV in 1959

Right after my dad started working for RCA - we got it on employee discount. Back then, only two stations in New York broadcast in color, and then only part of the time - Channel 4 (WNBC, flagship of the NBC Television Network) and Channel 9 (WOR - not superstation WWOR).

My father made it a rule in our house that if there was a program being broadcast in color, that was what we would watch. There could be the greatest program of all time being broadcast in black & white on Channel 2, and a "Sons of Hercules" movie on Channel 9, and we'd watch the "Sons of Hercules".

[jdonaldball]

41. Here, good one: I saw some vets of the Spanish-American War!

When I was a boy, in the early 1970s, we had some veterans of the Spanish-American war still alive, in the Memorial Day Parade in my town!
And when I was born in 1963 (when Dr King gave his "I have a Dream" speech) there were still some Americans, still alive, who were born as slaves. Makes you think, doesn't it? The Civil War was not so long ago, not really.

[Hand]

84. Holy crap!

One of our neighbors was a WWI vet who'd actually been in the trenches, but you've got me beat! I do remember when the last Civil War veteran died, however.

To add: I was at one of the Nam war protests in 1968 when a whole contingent of Abraham Lincoln Brigade veterans marched through (American veterans of the Spanish Civil War). The whole crowd cheered--they looked great, too--proud men in Basque berets who fought Fascism at its root and didn't care who knew about it. :toast:

[trof]

87. A good friend was an English WW I vet.

George called it the '14-'18 war.
They didn't know it was only the first (of several?) "world war" then.
We called it "the war to end war" and "the war to save democracy".
He was the father of a close friend.
Was in the cavalry, carried (and USED) a saber, did battle with the hun, the whole nine.
After he mustered out, he joined the British foreign service and was posted to British East Africa. He was a provincial governor there until the mid-to-late 50s when he retired.

[tsakshaug]

43. Cars with cookbooks

We had a ford- mid 60's that came with a cookbook for cooking while driving. I remember the recipe for chicken wrapped in foil put on the exhaust manifold.

[trof]

50. I have a cookbook like that.

can't find it right now.
I think it's called "Manifold Destiny" or something like that.
How to cook all kinds of stuff on your car's engine.

[Sporadicus]

46. Double-Clutching

I had a '37 Ford panel wagon without a synchronized transmission, requiring me to depress the clutch, shifting into neutral, letting out the clutch, depressing the clutch again, then shifting into the desired gear, and letting out the clutch a final time. I finally got rid of it after being told there was no way in hell that it would ever pass California emissions standards - and the tickets I was getting for releasing clouds of smoke were eating me alive!

[DelawareValleyDem]

72. Yes, complete with a

stab of the throttle when you were down shifting. A couple of the bigger trucks I used to drive had to be driven like you described.

[stlchic]

47. Popcorn that you had to make on your stovetop...

Getting up and crossing the room to change the channel...

Sniffing memeographed (sp?) handouts at school...

Metal roller-skates that sparked when you went down the driveway...

Having to go to a movie theater to see a movie...

Replacing your favorite album because the tape inside the plastic case broke...

[tsakshaug]

48. Movies

That were double features!
Not getting thrown out of the theater, and sitting through the show twice-In the air conditioning Movie theaters having banners saying "Air Conditioned"

[trof]

54. The little Willy-the-Penguin guy on the sign outside.

"It's KOOL inside."
Also a plug for the smokes.

[trof]

51. Jiffy-Pop.

[Left Is Write]

65. I remember the mimeographs!

I also had some old metal skates that strapped right onto my shoes.

[trof]

80. purple "ink" and skate keys

faded fast
I had skates that clamped onto shoes too.
Did you wear your skate key on a string around your neck?

[WritersBlock]

90. Skates! Yeah!

Reading your post brought a vivid mind-picture of the pair I had when I was a kid.

And that mimeograph smell. The purple typing.

Edit - faulty mental spellcheck

[trof]

92. And the front of one skate would come loose?

Because you hadn't tightened it enough?
Screaming down the hill?
Skinned hands and knees.
Knees torn out of your jeans.
Ouch.

[WritersBlock]

94. You had the same pair I did, then?

Y'know, I can even hear, in my mind, the sound they made when you adjusted them. How crazy is that??

[Freebird12004]

52. it's official

I'm an old person - cause I remember most of those things

[trof]

62. Welcome to the club.

Just park your walker in the corner.

[Freebird12004]

74. no walker yet ~ but

my motorcycle morphed into a Trike

[tsakshaug]

59. Grocery stores

Mainly Mom and Pop operations. You knew the butcher in the back-usually the owner-the wife ran the cash register. There was a time you would give them the list and they would get the stuff for you.

I remember we got a new store-I think it was a Grand Union, the bag boys (remember bag boys?) would put your bags in a box, give you a number and the box went on a ramp to the outside, then you would drive up, give the outside bag boys your number and they would load the car.

Gas stations- check the oil, air, water, wash the windshield, give green stamps, and sometimes plates and cups.

[trof]

63. Yep, NOT self service.

When I was old enough (6? 7?), granny would give me the list and I'd take it down to Vincent's, the corner grocery. Wait at the front counter while a clerk walked up and down the shelves filling the order.

[jdonaldball]

60. I knew someone who knew someone whose uncle fought Napoleon!

I knew my great-Uncle, who knew his grandfather, whose uncle fought against Napoleon!
That is a bit of a stretch, but still, you have to be over 40 years old to have known anyone like that, who knew someone who heard a first-hand story about the battle of Waterloo!

[jdonaldball]

64. I remember when we ONLY flew the flag on SPECIAL occasions!

In the 1960s and 70s, my father (combat veteran of the Second World War) would hang our American flag outside our house, ONLY on SPECIAL holidays. We would put up our American flag only on
Memorial Day, Flag Day, and the Fourth of July.
That is how I was taught to revere the American Flag. It should not be used casually, it should not be a little plastic sticker on a car antenna.
For me, when I was a child in the 1960s, the Flag was something special, to be revered only on special occasions.
I hope some idiot Freepers will read this. :-)

[tsakshaug]

66. yep

or as John Prine once sang
-your flag decal won't get you into heaven anymore.

[jdonaldball]

68. Yeah, OUR FLAG is too important to wear out so casually!

[barackmyworld]

67. This thread is so interesting to me, a young'un

I love hearing about what it was like "back in the day," I didn't know about any of this stuff! Keep it up :)

[trof]

79. Same when I was a kid, listening to the "grown ups".

Grandpa talking about immigrating to Alabama in a horse and wagon.
whew

[lpbk2713]

69. Remember when the first two characters of a phone number were letters?

In my area it was like MU2-3456. The MU stood for Mutual.

[tsakshaug]

71. we were hillcrest

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

76. The phone number for the house I lived in from

1953 until 1973 was ST3-5513. The ST stood for Stewart.

[trof]

77. Just 5 numbers. 7-4014.

Jeezus Keerist!
How the hell can I remember our first phone number from circa 1947?
And when granny needed a number she'd still try to call "central".
That was when you picked up, talked to an operator, and said "Please connect me with 7-2398".
Then, when excanges came in it was ALpine 7-4014.

[Hand]

85. Yep...

I can remember three that we had:

EXbrook 4-8730
GLadstone 4-6007

(Los Angeles)

UNiversity 1-5962
(New York)

Actually, where I live now (Halifax, Nova Scotia), you can still tell what part of town someone lives in by their telephone prefix; apparently the old city telephone exchanges left remnants behind. I think that may be changing, though. You can actually move two miles and not have to change your telephone number!

[Spirochete]

70. Yeah, I remember those

and vacuum operated windshield wipers that never worked right. The fuel filter was a glass jar that could be taken off and dumped out and cleaned.

[DelawareValleyDem]

73. Vacuum operated winshield wipers

Air filters you reused - soak with fresh motor oil and wring out.

[July]

75. Garter belts, girlfriends?

When there was no such thing as pantyhose, remember?

Gloves with dresses, men wearing hats. Cotton bathing suits.

Glass baby bottles, cloth diapers with "rubber pants" and ducky pins.

No disposable diapers or Ziploc bags (so glad we had them by the time I had kids).

Ether for operations.

[trof]

78. Grandpa wore garters on his socks.

In the pre-elastic days.
When I was in college, they became the fad for "dress up" (coat & tie, or formal)affairs.
They were almost as complicated as garter belts.

[Freebird12004]

91. what do you mean "Garter Belts"

like yesterday ...:7

[July]

95. Yeah, they're still popular!

But I'm talking about the days when we had no choice! Still remember those packages of two single stockings.

[Freebird12004]

96. and now they are fun

but - yes, I remember - "way back when"

[B Calm]

89. I had a 46 Chevy with that little round pedal to start the car.

A lot of semi tractors still have this. You first turn the key to on and press a button to start.

[VOX]

99. Another car item: Wind wings -- point 'em inward for a cool breeze!

Although the whooshing sound would usually drown out the AM radio. :(