Sunset Bowling Center - "Home of the famous 52 Lanes in a Row"

"Situated on the Warner Brothers Sunset Lot where the first talking picture in Hollywood was made." 

Due to its role in the history of the motion picture business, the site was designated as a Historic Cultural Landmark in LAHCM 1977. The distinctive Executive Office Building, part of Warner Brothers original studio lot, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

Mike Lyman's Grill - Los Angeles, California

Mike Lyman's Grill (there were two locations, in Hollywood and Downtown, and Lyman also ran the Flight Deck restaurant at what was then the Los Angeles Municipal Airport), but a menu from the place, also dating from 1935, proves an astonishing document. To begin with, some 25 varieties of fish and shellfish were offered, including Coos Bay, Blue Point and Olympia oysters, English sole, striped bass, Catalina sand dabs, imported Irish salt mackerel and a dish called fried barracuda Maitre d'Hotel. 

UPDATE: Turns out I own a Mike Lyman's ashtray!

Float Fishing in the Missouri Ozarks

An unused linen card from the Blair Cedar & Novelty Works in Missouri which is the world leader in the production of cedar products and is still in business! 

Not sure why, but this card makes me think of the movie Deliverance...is that Ned Beatty in the bowler?  :D

Rock City Gardens, Lookout Mountain, Tennessee

Here are a couple of unused linen cards from Rock City Gardens near Chattanooga, Tennessee. I have never been to Tennessee and have never heard of this ancient rock formation that has a view of 7 states! Pretty cool!

Oddfellows Hall, Union Lodge #1 - Denver Colorado

Although this 40's linen postcard is for the Oddfellows Hall, I believe Le Moine's appliance store got some free advertising!

Hotel Shaw - San Francisco, California - 1942

The Hotel Shaw was built in 1909, originally as a two story office building named the Capitol Building. In 1936, five additional floors were added and it became a first class four star property. In the 1920's to 1940's, the hotel catered to the rich and well to do. It remained the Shaw Hotel up until the late 1970's. The name changed to Miramar Hotel and then the U.N.Plaza Hotel in the 1980's. It is now the Renoir Hotel.

Excelsior Institure - Excelsior Springs, Missouri

Excelsior Springs owes its existence to a natural spring that for ages gushed forth from remote depths of the earth at the edge of a pretty river near the western border of what is now Fishing River Township, Clay County, Missouri.

I think these days they would have just "photo-shopped" the bank out of the picture rather than the attempt to use "white-out"...interesting that they still accented the banks window awnings.

Alto Tourist Court - New Orleans, Louisiana

On the back: "New Orleans - America's Most Interesting City"

Chicago Municipal Airport

In 1926 the city leased the airport and named it Chicago Municipal Airport on December 12, 1927. By 1928, the airport had twelve hangars and four runways, lit for night operations.

In July 1949 the airport was renamed Chicago Midway after the Battle of Midway...If I'm not mistaken, the aircraft is a Douglas DC-3.

J.B. Pound Hotels

A 1940's linen card touting the hotel empire of J.B. Pound.

Mittino's Shangri-La - circa 1940

Located at 6600 Watson Road at Chippewa, St Louis Missouri

Bernstein's Fish Grotto - San Francisco, California

Opened by Maurice Bernstein in 1907, Bernstein's Fish Grotto was known worldwide for its unique entrance, a ship's bow jutting into the sidewalk. The ship was a faithful reproduction of Christopher Columbus's Nina. Inside the restaurant, the marine theme continued. Bernstein's had seven colorful dining rooms: the Fisherman's Cave, the Pilot Room, the Sun Deck, the Main Salon, the Cabin Nooks, the Upper Deck, and the Porthole Counter.

The Fun's All Over

A 1940's Curt Teich card from the "Everyday Comics" series

Dining in Manhattan (circa1948)

A couple of linen postcards touting their establishments (and owner's faces) in NYC.

 On the back: 

"Your visit to New York is not complete until you dine at the beautiful Toffenetti Restaurant.

Dempsey's was located on Broadway between 49th and 50th Streets.

On the back: 

"May I Play Host and Say "Hello" To You in My Restaurant Where Food and Friendliness are Knockouts". 

Riviera Restaurant - San Francisco

A colorful 1930's linen of the "Distinctively Continental" Rivera Restaurant
in San Francisco.

"We Bathe The World"

"A Part of what goes on within the Famous Hot Springs Bath Houses"...I'm not really sure what IS going on here, but I think this is one strange postcard. Makes me think more of an asylum that a spa. The backs has the saying, "We Bathe The World"

It's Wonderful at the Whitcomb!

This card makes me feel good! I don’t know if it’s the bright colors, the cartoonish figures or seeing all of the fun that one could have there, but it makes me smile!

The Whitcomb opened its doors to an elite and admiring crowd on May 3, 1928 when the "roaring twenties" were still roaring, and Americans, many of them rich, albeit only on paper, were enjoying unprecedented prosperity. 

 Not surprisingly, the Whitcomb became a gathering place for an A-list of celebrities, among them Joe DiMaggio, Eleanor Roosevelt among others.

 Unfortunately, a combination of factors, including the Depression, WWII and the end of steamship passenger service in the latter part of the 1940s, caused the hotel to hit a downward spiral from which it never fully recovered.

 Beset by hard times, the Whitcomb closed its doors as a hotel for good in November, 1966. The Whitcomb was reopened after extensive renovations as a retirement residence on March 15, 1973. 

Canal Street, New Orleans

A colorful birds-eye view of Canal Street in New Orleans. I found some interesting items on this card, starting with the photographers credit to Ray Cresson, followed by two theaters, the Saenger and Lowes.

RAY CRESSON:

He first began dabbling in photography in 1938. Interrupted by World War II, his career would include more than 50 years as manager of the K&B Camera Center on Canal St. The store was a favorite of budding photographers. John Raymond "Ray" Cresson Jr. passed away on January 7, 2011 at the age of 92

THE SAENGER THEATRE: 

Opened on February 4, 1927. The 4,000-seat theatre took three years to build and cost $2.5 million. The top ticket price was 65 cents, and the bill for each performance included a silent movie and stage play, and music from the Saenger Grand Orchestra. In 1977 the Saenger was designated a historic landmark by both the New Orleans Landmark Commission and the National Register of Historic Places. (Yea!)

LOWES: 

Opened in 1927, it was run by Loew's until the 1960s. It then became an indie-run theater until 1980. The 2,300-seat theater has been sealed off for years, but now an arts group has the OK to move forward with their plan for a cultural arts center. (Yea!)

The back of the card reads:

"NEW ORLEANS  -  AMERICA'S MOST INTERESTING CITY"

The New Hotel Mayflower

First and foremost, I love the "Mayflower" ship hovering around it's namesake hotel! Probably has trouble finding a parking space though! As usual, I like to look for some background info on postcards. While I did find out that the Mayflower was originally the Mason and that the hotel was demolished in 1978 (all together now: Awwww), I couldn't find much else, but I did find this obituary:

“Irene Ann Byram, 99, passed away January 16th, 2012. Irene, known as Nonie by her close family and friends, was born on May 22, 1912 in Detroit MI. Irene moved to Jacksonville with her husband and children in 1935 from Wauchula Fl. She was employed by the Mayflower hotel for over 30 years. In 1944 she was sworn in as the first female bartender in the state of Florida by Governor Spessard Holland”

King Tower One-Stop - Tama, Iowa

Gas, Food, Lodging AND a Garage! Just a neat looking linen in my book!

Good News!/Bad News!

The Good: King Tower Cafe is now open for business again!

The Bad: King Tower Cafe has 1-star on Yelp!