Coca-Cola Glasco GBV-50 Slider

Circa 1958

Model 130000

The Glasco GBV-50 Slider is an iconic 1950s vintage Coca-Cola slider vending machine known for its compact chest-type design.  These machines feature a mechanical, manual slide-and-release system that held 50 (6-12 oz) bottles by the neck in a chilled wet bath, along with space to pre-cool 60 more bottles, making them highly sought after collectibles for garages or game rooms.

Often called the "slider" because users slide bottles along 5 perpendicular trails each holding 10 bottles to release the mechanism. A manual, coin-operated system that, in original form, sold bottles for 10 cents.

The Glasco GBV50 Slider or Glasco Starlet (its marketing name) is a cooler and vending machine with a chromed top lid with a chrome handle first introduced by Glasco in 1957. On the front, it had the fishtail Coca-Cola logo used after 1958 on some machines. This also had a bottle opener and catcher on the front left side and a Glasco metal plate logo near the top right corner. 

 This is a chest-type cooler adapted to release bottles manually with a coin entry plate to the left side of the machine. To use it, you had to open the lid to pick your selection, deposit your coin that would mechanically allow you to release the bottle inside and then slide the drink to a butterfly-type release.

It had a very simple chest design on the outside, while on the inside it was mechanically complex.  This vending machine was produced from 1957 until 1962. 

 

Unique Carousels that will Spin You Back in Time.

The bright colors, rows of lights and organ music make boarding a carousel feel like entering a magical portal.  While technology becomes increasingly complex, the relatively simple carousel persists, transporting us back in time.

From the late 19th century to the early 20th century is considered the goldlen age of carousels, most built by companies around the United States including Herschell-Spillman, the Philadelphia Toboggan Company and Gustav Dentzel Company.  Still, people continue to build new carousels and refurbish old ones, often as a community effort. And many of us still love to ride them!

What makes a carousel great?  It's part artistry, part music and the lights.  Sometimes it's the nostalgia invoked by a century-old historic carousel, thinking of all the thousands (maybe millions?) who have circled the platform before you.  Other times, it's the creativity that goes into the shiny steeds.  some of us carousel lovers experience great excitement when seeing an animal we've never seen represented.

Dorothea Laub Balboa Park Carousel

San Diego, California 

This carousel is a lovingly restored 1910 gem spinning just steps from the San Diego Zoo. With hand-carved animals, a vintage band organ and with one of the last brass ring* games in the country, it's a whimsical nostalgic ride that delights kids and grown-ups alike. 

*A brass ring is a small, grabble ring that a dispenser presents to a carousel rider during the course of a ride. These dispensers are filled with a large number of iron or steel rings with a single brass ring or a few brass rings.  Typically, a brass ring can be traded for a prize, when is often a free repeat ride.  Although they were standard features for carousels during their heyday in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, brass ring dispensers are now rare.  The figurative phrase to "grab the brass ring" is derived from this device. 

"It used to be that you'd fall off a horse reaching for a ring, pick yourself up and get back on.  These days you fall off, pick yourself up and go to the nearsest attorney."

Carol Perron of the Perron family, historic carousel preservationists

Circa 1990

Although there are many carousels in operation today, those that still use brass ring dispenseres are very rare.  The need for carousel riders to position themselves at wide angles to reach for rings from a ring dispensing arm often leads to lost balance and falls off the ride, leading to personal injury lawsuits and hence their avoidance by most modern operators. 

Kiddie Park Carousel

San Antonio, Texas

San Antionio's historic Kiddie Park which claims to be the oldest children's amusement park in America, has an incredible collection of century-old amusement rides including the Herschell-Spillman hand-carved carousel. Built in 1918 for traveling carnivals, it features 36 wood "jumping" horses and two chariots, each horse uniquely carved and painted with some having real horsehair tails. 

City Park Carousel

New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans' carousel history dates back to at least 1848 with early mentions in the Picayune newspaper of a riverfront ride and a steam-powered carousel featured at the 1884 World's Industrial and Cotton  Centennial Exposition. Today, the city's most iconic example is the 1910 carousel in City Park, known affectionately as the Flying Horses. Housed in a grand, 10-sided Victorian pavilion adorned with stained glass, the hand-carved horses (each with real horsehair tails) continue to delight generations.  Both the carousel and its historic shelter are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Riverfront Carousel

Salem, Oregon

Volunteers built Salem's Riverfront Carousel from the ground up.  Salem residents who financially sponsored the carousel could choose an animal and give design input.  You can ride some eclectic animals like "Mr. Hopkins", a frog wielding a tennis racket or Ramses, the smiling great white shark. "Mr. Hopkins" is a popular, whimsical figure on the Oregon carousel.  He was specifically designed to reflect the personality of the late Don Hopkins who was a longtime carousel supporter and is intended for riders 55 inches or shorter and is built to sit on the inside row.  The frog's design features a tennis racket and a fishing pole, reflecting the personality of the real Mr. Hopkins.

Carol Ann's Carousel

Cincinnati, Ohio

The community-fueled carousel opened in Cincinnati's Smale Riverfront Park in 2015.  Following a $5 million donation from Carol Ann and Ralph Haile, Ohio's Carousel Works built Carol Ann's Carousel.  This carousel is a year-round, indoor carousel featuring 44 hand-carved, Cincinnati-themed figurres inside a glass pavilion with views of the river and skyline enjoyable in any weather. The carousel has scenes painted by local artists.  The gift from the Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr./U.S. Bank Foundation is a popular attraction with a small fee per ride, offering a nostalgic experience with modern amenities like air conditioning during summer months.  It's a great addition to a day out at the riverfront with nearby parks, fountains and other attractions. 

 

1 Marine Drive

Buffalo, New York 

The Buffalo Heritage Carousel is one of the five solar-powered carousels in the world. The solar-powered roof of the Buffalo Heritage Carousel demonstrates, in real time, the power of renewable energy to operate a locally made and restored historic carousel providing education, joy and hope for the children and individuals of all ages and for generations to come. The vision is to be the beacon on Buffalo's revitalized waterfront at Canalside near the Erie Canal.

info@buffaloheritagecarousel.org

 

Neil Sedaka

1939-2026

Sedaka was an American singer, songwriter and pianist.  Beginning his music career in 1957, he sold millions of records worldwide and wrote or co-wrote over 500 songss for himself and other artists, collaborating with lyricists Howard Greenfield and Phil Cody. 

After a short-lived tenure as a founding member of the doo-wop group, The Tokens, Sedaka achieved a string of hit singles over the late 1950s and early 1960s including "Oh, Carol" (1959), "Calendar Girl" (1960), "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" (1961) and "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (1962).  Sedaka maintained a successful career as a songwriter, penning hits for other artists including "Stupid Cupid" for Connie Francis and "Love Will Keep Us Together" for Captain and Tennille.  He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1983.

My favorite Sedaka song is "Laughter in the Rain".  It was recorded between November and December 1973 at Clover Recording Studios in Hollywood, California.  The song was subsequently released in October 1974 and became a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1975.  The lyrics were by Phil Cody and includes a 20-second saxophone solo by Jim Horn.

Strolling along country roads with my baby.  It starts to rain, it begins to pour.  Without an umbrella, we're soaked to the skin I feel a shiver run up my spine.  I feel the warmth of her hand in mine.

Ooh, I hear laughter in the rain Walking hand in hand with the one I love. Ooh, how I love the rainy days and the happy way I feel inside.  

While Neil Sedaka had several major hits, his most iconic and popular was "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do".  It hit #1 twice, first as a fast-paced pop song in 1962 and then as a slower ballard in 1975, a rare feat for any artist. 

Neil Sedaka, who went from classical music prodigy to talented songwriter to teenage idol to pop music fixture in a celebrated career that spanned seven decades.

RIP Mr. Neil Sedaka

Your music filled our hearts!

"Music is what feelings sound like."

 

.. To my blog followers .. 

❤️ 

.. a request ..

 Please ask one person to follow this blog

that 

features 

.. Americana ..

 People, Places and Things.

&

Tell that person why you enjoy this blog.

Thank you.

❤️ 

www.offshoremuse2023.blogspot.com

 

The Bean (Cloud Gate)

Chicago, Illinois

Cloud Gate as "The Bean" is one of Chicago's most popular sight.  The monumental work of art anchors downtown Millennium Park, the lakefront park in Chicago's downtown Loop area. It sits above the McCormick Tribune Plaza in the AT&T Plaza and reflects the city's famous skyline. This area of downtown is where you'll find alfesco dining in summer and a free skating rink in winter.  If you are walking on Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe, you really can't miss it. 

What is The Bean?

The Bean is a work of public art in the heart of Chicago's downtown.  The sculpture which is officially titled Cloud Gate, is one of the world's largest permanent outdoor art installations.  The monumental work was completed in 2006 and quickly became one of Chicago's most iconic sights.   The Bean's reflective surface was inspired by liquid mercury.  This shiny exterior reflects the people moving around the park, the lights of Michigan Avenue and the surrounding skyline and green space .. perfectly encapsulating the Millennium Park experience.  The reflection of the sky above the park, not to mention the curved underside of The Bean serves as an entrance that visitors can walk under to enter the park, inspired the sculpture's creator to name the piece Cloud Gate. 

It was designed by internationally acclaimed artist, Anish Kapoor.  The Indian-born British sculptor was already well-known for his large-scale outdoor works including several with highly reflective surfaces.  Cloud Gate was Kapoor's first permanent public outdoor work in the United States and is widely considered his most famous.

The exterior of The Bean is made entirely of stainless steel.  It was created using computer technology to precisely cut 168 massive steel plates which were then fitted together and welded shut for a completely seamless finish.  Inside, it's made of a network of two large metal rings.  The rings are connected via a truss framework similar to what you might see on a bridge.  This allows the sculpture's massive weight to be directed to its two base points creating the iconic "bean" shape and allowing for the large concave area beneath the structure.  The Bean's steel exterior is attached to the inside frame with flexible connectors that let it expand and contract as the weather changes. 

The Bean is 33 feet hight, 42 feet wide and 66 feet long.  It weighs about 110 tons which is approximately the same as 15 adult elephants.  The Bean features a 12-foot-high arch that visitors can walk through to see reflections from below. 

Why is it called The Bean?

While the piece's official name is Cloud Gate, the artist doesn't title his works until after they're completed.  When the structure was still under construction, renderings of the design were released to the public.  Once Chicagoans saw the curved, oblong shape they quickly began calling it "The Bean".

The nickname stuck!

 

Fun with Dick and Jane

Dick and Jane are iconic American books (1930s-1970s) used to teach reading through simple, repetitive sentences and watercolor illustrations.  The books follow siblings Dick, Jane, younger sister Sally, mother and father along with their dog, Spot and cat, Puff in daily suburban adventures.  These books are considered staples of Amercian nostalgia, representing a specific idealized mid-century lifestyle.

Zerna Addas Sharp was an American educator and book editor who is best known as the creator of Dick and Jane.  Published by Scott, Foreseman and Company of Chicago, Illinois.  The series, which included such titles as We Look and See, We Come and Go, We Work and Play,  Fun with Dick and Jane, war marketed until 1973 and used the look-say or the "sight words"method to teach reading.  Dick and Jane was written by William S. Gray. He was an  American educator and literacy advocate who was commonly referred to as "The Father of Reading".  Sharp developed the Dick and Jane characters and edited the series of books.  Gray authored and Eleanor B. Campbell did most of the illustrations for the early readers. The characters of "Dick" and "Jane" made their debut in 1930 reaching the height of their popularity in the 1950s until the series was retired in 1965. Today, the Dick and Jane characters have become icons of mid-century American culture for many from the baby boomer generation and the books have become collector's items.

The books have been reissued in various formats including hardcover boxed sets making them available for a new generation of young readers.