1960's Archives - Page 15 of 20 - Retro Reminiscing Video and Pictures

Vavoom From Felix The Cat

I was in a restaurant with my wife celebrating our anniversary and there was a table with kids. All were well mannered but one kid was just so loud I said he reminded me of the cartoon character Vavoom which gave me the inspiration for this post.

Vavoom was an Inuit (Alaskan indigenous person) on the Felix the Cat cartoon who used his voice to get them out of situations, like blasting rocks away in this video.

I grew up watching Felix The Cat on the Saturday morning cartoons. Surprisingly Felix The Cat only ran from 1958 to 1960 for a total of 126 episodes. CBS revived in the 90’s from 1995 to 1997 under the name The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat for just 21 episodes.

Did you ever give someone the nickname Vavoom. Please tell!

Skittle Everything!

Aurora Toys had big success with Skittle Bowl when it launched in 1969. It seems their company started making EVERYTHING Skittle, except for the candy!

This was one of the games my dad played with me and my four brothers that we actually started leagues with playoffs and championship. We even had a cup like the National Hockey League.

You can still find the games on eBay, but way more than $6.99. I bought one over fifteen years ago and play it with my kids from time to time. Sometimes when my brothers get together one of us will break it out and relive the memories.

Here is the commercial on Youtube I wonder where we got the idea for leagues and a championship cup? !!

The Munster Test Pilot

The Musters was a series that ran from Fall of 1964 to the Spring of 1966 and aired on CBS at 7:30 on Thursday nights. It was written by the same writers from Leave It To Beaver.

Here is the 1964 pilot that was recorded in color. It was recorded for 15 minutes but edited to 13 minutes. Many say the network didn’t want to spend the extra money to produce it in color while others say it was to copy Universal’s vintage monster film’s appearance from the 1930’s and 40’s.

There were a total of 70 episodes recorded. The show ran for two years until it received stiff competition from ABC’s Batman that aired opposite of the Munster’s. The show continues to run in syndication. At the time of this writing it has been picked up by Cozi-TV

As you can see, the characters weren’t finalized. What did you like or dislike about the original cast? Do you wish it was recorded in color?

Howard Johnson Restaurant Specials

What was your favorite item or special at Howard Johnson’s? Who didn’t love their clams? My all time favorite was the strawberry ice cream, the only brand that I chose over chocolate ice cream!

Howard Johnson chairman, George Carter was quoted as saying back in 1987 to the Orlando Sentinel “We have the concept, but it desperately needs to be modernized, internally and externally. Howard Johnson was allowed to become tired and stale. We must get rid of that plastic image… Anything can be salvageable if a great deal of time and money and effort is put in it. And Howard Johnson needs all those same things.” So they just let the restaurant chain die. Sadly, only the hotel chain remains.

Hey Skinny! Charles Atlas Ad

This was the ole Charles Atlas Advertisement seen in almost every comic book. Can any viewer testify this worked for them?

Crazy Foam

Who remembers Crazy Foam from their childhood? It did make bath time more fun! They were mostly popular during the 60’s. A couple of sources say it was popular through the 80’s but by then I didn’t need any bath aids!

Crazy Foam was just recently purchased and reintroduced with Justice League and Looney Toons. We really didn’t need them to be licensed to like them!

Music Memory-More Love

Kim Carnes’ version of More Love peaked at number ten on Billboard’s Hot 100 in 1980. The song was written by Smokey Robinson to his wife Claudette Rogers Robinson who sadly had eight miscarriages . Claudette was part of the Smokey Robinson and the Miracles group and toured with them since 1957. She felt her touring with the band contributed to the miscarriages. Smokey wrote the song to tell her she did not let him down. She never toured with the band again but she did eventually have two healthy children, Barry named after Motown’s founder Barry Gordon and a girl named Tamla named after the Motown record label. Smokey’s version of More Love peaked at 23 on Billboard in 1967.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br8CGKOFjp4

Glassware Give-A-Ways

I just posted about dish night at the movie theaters back in the 30’s and 40’s posting pictures of what my mom collected along with dish promotions at supermarkets during the late 70’s. It reminded me of the glassware my mom collected through Duz laundry detergent. We kids had Cracker Jacks with a free prize inside and mom had Duz! During the 50’s Duz gave away towels and during the 60’s moved to glassware. I found pictures of the two styles we had in our home mom collected and share it with my brothers who were excited as I to see them again. They are the two in the top of the picture.

The bottom left picture were the glasses Shell Gas gave away during the 70’s and the bottom right photo was the Welch’s Jelly jars that became your free glassware!

I have four brothers so a family of seven had to make the dollar stretch. So if you had buy laundry detergent make it Duz for a free glass. Fill up the gas tank? Get another free glass. Buy jelly? Again, get a free glass. There were many other glass give-a-ways. How about the McDonald character glassware with a meal purchase? I have those tucked away in the attic! What give-a-way do your remember?

Which Batmobile Would Win In A Race?

This is a fun what if scenario. A drag race between the 1989 Batmobile or the original 1966 version? It’s as classic as Ford versus Chevy since the 1966 was built on a 1955 Lincoln Futura chassis and the 80’s built on a Chevrolet Impala. Keep in mind these are replicas and neither had jet engines as depicted on TV or the big screen. Fun to watch regardless!

The Acid Generation- Where Are They Now

If you were a hippy back in the 60’s you are now in your 70’s. Many could be in nursing homes now! Hard to believe! Well, here is a funny parody that aired on Saturday Night Live back in the 70’s.