Tabla de contenidos para September 2016 en Reminisce Extra

ARE YOU ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE who can meet someone and immediately remember his or her name? Not me. I remember faces, but names can be tricky. Then I read “The Name Says It All” on p. 30, a tribute to the many ways people came by their names. So I’m taking a new tack. I’ll start by learning someone’s story, which should result in a more lasting connection to names, faces and details. Speaking of names: My parents named me Linda when I was born on St. Patrick’s Day. Patricia wasn’t going to work with a last name like Laskowski. Then again, Linda was a popular name in the ’50s, so that was that. Also in this issue, you’ll hear from a number of women who added a rank…

FROM 1950, WHEN I WAS 11, until 1955, I worked alongside my parents, three sisters and three brothers on our 200-acre dairy farm in Walden, New York. My parents came from Holland, and owning the farm helped them realize their dream. We all had before- and after-school chores. Mine involved working in the barn and caring for our 50 Holsteins. Typically, I got up at 5 a.m. and helped with the milking and barn chores. Then I went home to eat breakfast, wash up and change for school. After school I changed again, grabbed a snack—some cookies or a slice of applesauce or molasses cake that Mom had baked—and went out to clean the stalls. There were 25 down each side of the barn. At 6:30 I’d go back for…

IN THE SUMMER OF 1951, I was 11, but because I was tall for my age—5 feet 10 inches—our paper carrier offered me a job delivering the Kansas City Star and Times. The pay was $11.50 a week, which sure beat my 25-cent allowance. The job involved tossing rolled-up papers to houses from the back of a 1948 half-ton Chevy pickup truck, and delivering the papers by hand to apartments. I would share duties with an older boy while the boss drove. I’d have to arrive by 3:30 a.m. for morning delivery and 3 p.m. for afternoon. After much debate, my mom said I could try it for a couple of weeks. I soon found out I was responsible for delivering nearly 600 newspapers to 315 street residences and almost…

Start the journey into your past with these simple steps. Interview relatives, explore family documents and write down everything in detail. Browse census records for names, ages, relationships and birthplaces, among other details, at the National Archives (archives.gov) and the Mormon-sponsored familysearch.org. Examine local property records and newspaper clippings. Researchers at public libraries and volunteers at Family History Centers (familysearch.org) can help refine your search. Look for a local genealogy group through the Federation of Genealogical Societies (fgs.org). Stay on track and organize information with family group sheets and research logs. Try the free templates at ancestry.com. If you get stuck, consider hiring an expert. The Association of Professional Genealogists (apgen.org) lists members by state and specialty; Legacy Tree (legacytree.com) has research packages starting at $350 after a free consultation.…

BOATER: A warm-weather hat of straw or linen, it has a flat crown and a straight brim, and is often trimmed with a wide black or striped grosgrain ribbon. COWBOY OR WESTERN: Invented by John B. Stetson, it has a very high crown, usually pinched to mold to the head. The extra-wide brim protects the wearer from the elements and curves at the sides to stay clear of a cowboy’s rope. DERBY: Known as a bowler in Britain, it has a stiff, round crown and a narrow brim curled up at the edges. Tilting his trilby, Frank Sinatra oozes confidence for a 1963 movie role. FEDORA: One of the most popular styles of the 20th century, it has a high crown and is creased in the center and pinched at…

WEEKEND CHORES Did your parents have a rhythm to housework? Maybe you did certain chores during the week and saved the major chores for the weekend. Did your mom scrub floors and your dad wash the car every weekend? Or were chores seasonal: planting in the spring, weeding during the summer and harvesting every fall? What were the chores you loved or dreaded the most? Email your submission with “WEEKEND CHORES” in the subject line. COLORFUL APPLIANCES Starting in the 1950s, kitchen appliances in colors ranging from yellow to pink or turquoise to coppertone gave homeowners a rainbow of options. Were you one of those savvy cooks with avocado and harvest gold appliances in the kitchen? Tell us or, even better, show us. Email your submission with “COLORFUL APPLIANCES” in…

WORKING AS A BEAUTICIAN in Sioux City, Iowa, in the early 1940s, my mom, Phyllis E. Riherd, couldn’t help but notice the many Uncle Sam posters that implored: “I want YOU!” In February 1943, she joined the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), the women’s branch of the U.S. Navy Reserve. This was her opportunity to serve her country, continue her education and enjoy travel and adventure while meeting like-minded people from all across the country. She spent six weeks in boot camp at Hunter College in the Bronx, New York, before doing intensive hospital training in nearby Brooklyn. From there she went to the U.S. Naval Training Station hospital in Sampson, New York. But it was her civilian training that got my mom assigned to the first beauty…

Do You Believe in Magic? FAIRY SNOW PICKVET BURNS, TN MY PARENTS DECIDED TO NAME ME after my grandmothers, who were two of the sweetest ladies in the world. I could have been Mitty Novella, but they decided to go with the other two names, so I became Fairy Ellen. That would have been unusual enough, but my last name was Snow. Yep, I was going through life as Fairy Snow. My childhood was interesting because the other kids were never sure if I had real fairy magic. I did not disabuse them of the notion that I might. In school we were seated alphabetically in rows by last name, which is also how teachers took attendance. Everyone had a good laugh when the teacher called out “Snow, Fairy.” It…

MY SISTER AND I played Batman and Robin as kids. I was always Batman because I was older. For our annual trek to Comic-Con in 2015, my daughter made us costumes. She gave my little sister a longer cape—which Robin never had! TERRI THOMAS CRINNION I WATCHED IT EVERY WEEK. It drove me crazy, though, when they fought at the end and my mom would read every fight word out loud. DEBRA SCHRECK AYDINIAN MY FAVORITES were the two episodes with the Green Hornet. Burt Ward (Robin) marveled at the speed of Bruce Lee (who played the Green Hornet’s sidekick, Kato). The director kept telling Bruce to slow down his punches so the camera could actually capture them. JIM HOPE I STILL GET a kick out of this show—it’s so…

Up through the 1940s and ’50s, carefree kids had plenty of time for after-school play that often revolved around a jump rope, a bat and ball, jacks or a bag of marbles. Youngsters got together to play tag, hide-and-seek, hopscotch and other no-tech games and amusements. Brothers Hilen and Bruce Williams made good use of the well cover in the backyard of their house outside Gilman City, MO, in this fight to the finish. “It’s 1960, and we’re setting up figures from our cowboys and Indians set,” says Bruce, now living in Bethany, MO. Pushmobiles gave a kid the opportunity to gain wheels and a sense of accomplishment—all in an afternoon. Chuck Maitzen of Grand Haven, MI, gave his son a crate, a two-by-four, an old steel roller skate, a…

AN AFFAIR TO FORGET My girlfriend, Tommie, invited me to the annual Sadie Hawkins Day Dance at the University of Iowa’s student union in November 1949. Sadie Hawkins Day originated with Al Capp’s Li’l Abner comic. In the story, Dogpatch’s Mayor Hawkins comes up with a scheme to marry off his daughter Sadie by creating a day when all the single women chase the single men. If a woman caught a man, she could marry him. For the Sadie Hawkins dance at the University of Iowa, the girls handled everything: They asked the boys for a date, bought their tickets, picked them up for dinner, took their coats and helped them get seated—a complete role reversal of the typical date routine. The girls even gave their dates corsages. These were…

TELL US HOW TO FIND YOU: Whether you send your submission via mail or email, include your full name, daytime phone number, email address and mailing address. If you have a PO Box, be sure to tell us your street address too. HELP US SORT THINGS OUT: Include the name of the department your submission is for (Motoring Memories, Growing Up, etc.) on the first page of your submission or in the email subject line. For any photos you submit, please identify the people, city, state and year the photo was taken. We reserve the right to use submissions in any section of our magazine, or elsewhere. WHAT YOU’LL GET: For stories we publish in the magazine, we’ll make a one-time payment of $100 for a full published page or…

ATTENDING ARTHUR HILL HIGH SCHOOL in Saginaw, Michigan, in 1945, I was among the first girls to play in the school’s inaugural coed marching band. During that era, young men often enlisted in the armed forces when they turned 18 and were shipped off to war. The sudden departure of so many male students from the school left some vacancies in the marching band, so females were allowed to join for the first time. The traditional uniform of the marching band consisted of a jacket and pants. While females could wear the men’s jackets, the pants often were too large. Wartime rationing made it impossible for us to order new pants. So the school allowed us to wear skirts—which as another result of rationing were quite short. MEASURED SARTORIAL SPLENDOR…

GROWING UP IN INKSTER, MICHIGAN, I learned about home deliveries from my dad, the Sealtest milkman. He started taking me with him on his weekend routes when I was 7 or 8. In the beginning, it was for only an hour or so. By the time I was 10, though, I could work all day and was experienced, seasoned and very eager to earn my own money. Dad was paying me 50 cents a day, and that was good money for a kid in the 1940s. About that time, Dad told me about a Detroit News paper route available in Inkster. I jumped at the chance to have my own business. It worked out perfectly. The Detroit News was an evening paper, so delivering it wouldn’t interfere with my working…

Millions of dollars are printed daily at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in the nation’s capital and in Fort Worth, Texas. Designers turn ideas and rough sketches for bills into final designs that are then given to the secretary of the Treasury for approval. Engravers translate an approved design for a bill in reverse onto steel dies, using sharp tools and acids to etch the metal. The grooves in currency printing plates are two one-thousandths of an inch deep but hold enough ink for intaglio printing. The paper used for U.S. currency is made from 75 percent cotton and 25 percent linen. TAKE A TOUR! Admission is free, but you may need tickets. Before you go, contact the Tour and Visitor Center at the location you wish to visit.…

MY AUNT HAZEL WOLF HAGER, born Feb. 2, 1910, in Welch, West Virginia, lived her life in service to and for her family, her friends and her community. Shortly after she married in 1933, her husband, Ora Hager, fell to his death from a railroad bridge while working as a train conductor. To make a living, Aunt Hazel cared for friends’ children and worked in a ladies dress shop. When Navy recruiters came through her town during World War II, Aunt Hazel joined and spent the next two years making and shipping ammunition. She now resides in Carrington Place outside of Roanoke, Virginia, where she celebrated her 106th birthday in 2016.…

I was named after my Great-Grandmother Millett, whose maiden name was Dennis. I can still taste her molasses cookies. DENNIS BURNELL NEW BREMEN, OH I was born only 9 1/2 months after my sister Shari, so Mom thought it would be cute to call me Bari, instead of Barry, to make it seem as if my sister and I were twins. I’ve been explaining that spelling for 67 years now. BARI STRADER FORSYTH, MO The story goes that my mother, who was close to her due date and couldn’t decide on a name, overindulged in a big bowl of cherries. She got a fierce stomachache—and a few hours later, I was born. CHERRY JORDAN GRANVILLE, NY It had been 20 years since a girl had been born to my father’s…

The Boy Wonder may not have had Batman’s fancy gadgets, but he did have a way with words. His “holy” phrases—more than 350 of them—reveal a surprising range of knowledge, from the scientific (Holy Reverse Polarity) to the political (Holy Fourth Amendment) to the literary (Holy Hamlet). Here are a few more favorites: HOLY KNIT ONE, PURL TWO HOLY CONTRIBUTING TO THE DELINQUENCY OF MINORS HOLY ASTRINGENT PLUMLIKE FRUIT HOLY UNCANNY PHOTOGRAPHIC MENTAL PROCESSES HOLY HOLE IN A DOUGHNUT HOLY FLOOR COVERING HOLY IMPREGNABILITY HOLY HUMAN SURFBOARDS HOLY BENEDICT ARNOLD HOLY RETURN FROM OBLIVION HOLY SUBLIMINAL HOLY PRICELESS COLLECTION OF ETRUSCAN SNOODS HOLY NON SEQUITURS HOLY WAYNE MANOR HOLY CLICHÉ…

THE HAT MADE THE MAN RON HIRSCH PLANO, TX MY DAD, JULIUS HIRSCH, was a men’s hatter in the Bronx, New York, for 30 years. He opened his first retail and manufacturing location in 1929 in the East Bronx with $600 he borrowed from his life insurance policy. Those were great days in the hat business because nearly everybody wore hats. My mother worked alongside my father, sewing leathers, linings and trim, while the other employees steamed and sold hats to the customers. Sometimes there were lines around the corner to get a hat from Hirsch. He opened his second store, Hirsch the Hatter, on the Grand Concourse at Fordham Road just before WWII ended. It was a beautiful store in a high-fashion area; Hat Life magazine even had an…

A VERY NEAR FRIGHT We lived in a small central Georgia town, McDonough, in the 1950s and 1960s. I was playing in our yard one morning when a car pulled up in front of the house. A gruff-looking man in a dirty hat and old overalls climbed out and walked toward me. He was missing several teeth, and he had heavy, dark whiskers. I got really nervous. “Boy,” he asked, “is your mama or your daddy home?” I thought, Oh my God, he’s gonna try to grab me! I backed away. “Boy! Did you hear me?” the man shouted. “Go ask yer mama if she wants any roast nears!” I’d never heard of anything like that. Was it some kind of strange animal he was hiding in his car? I…

Hattie has lost two hatpins in this issue! If you find them, tell us at reminisce.com/hatpin. We’ll randomly select 10 winners to receive a year’s subscription to Reminisce Extra. In the July issue, we hid the hatpins on page 12 at the far left, along the side of a building, and on page 25 in the spokes of the Texas Star. There’s no purchase necessary to enter to win. Purchase will not improve your chances of winning. Sweepstakes is open to legal residents age 18 years or older of the U.S., its territories and possessions, or of Canada (excluding the Province of Quebec). Sweepstakes begins on 9/02/16, and ends on 10/27/16. For official rules, visit reminisce.com/contests/hatties-hatpin-rules-rem/. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. Sweepstakes sponsored by RDA Enthusiast Brands, LLC. REMINISCE EXTRA (ISSN 1069-8957)…

A FEW YEARS AGO, spurred on by a budding interest in genealogy and incipient old age, I started searching for information about my mother’s maternal family. I gave up when I found enough turn-of-the-century women called Mollie Jacobson, my grandmother’s name, to fill a tenement block. But one twig of my mom’s family tree that I did know has sparked muted excitement over the years. Her cousin was Bert Jacobson, whose stage name was Bert Parks, most widely known as the longtime host of the Miss America pageant. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1914, Bert hosted the Miss America telecast from 1955 to 1979, the competition’s golden age. In those days, no one cared that the talents of the 50-some beauties ranged from baton twirling to baton dropping. A contestant…