Greetings from the Rockets at Kennywood

Kennywood Park in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania is a distinct landmark of my boomer youth, as it is to many Pittsburgh natives of my generation.  The Rockets debuted at the park in 1940 and were likely inspired by the popular Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers movie serials of that era.  The circle swing ride mechanics actually dated back to 1925 when the attraction was located in a different area of the park and featured seaplanes as the ride vehicles.  The Rockets circled above the Kennywood Lagoon for the last time in 1978.

The postcard dates from the early 1950s.  The back-side description reads:

"The Nation's Greatest Picnic Park" One of the largest and finest amusement parks in the United States. A wonderland of pleasure for the entire family with every kind of outdoor amusement device including a mammoth crystal clear swimming pool and beach. Not to visit Kennywood is not to know Pittsburgh.

Greetings from the AMF Monorail

We recently featured a post that showcased Archie's comic book adventures at the 1964-65 New York World's Fair.  Prominent in that article was a panel excerpt that showed Archie and the gang riding the AMF Monorail, one of the Fair's best remembered icons.  This postcard features an artist's rendition of the Monorail and included the following caption on the back side:

THE AMF MONORAIL
New York World's Fair 1964-65
''Peace through Understanding."

The AMF Monorail ride at the New York World's Fair provides every member of the family with an enjoyable new experience aboard the transportation of the future. While riding in silent air-conditioned comfort three stories above ground, passengers see and can photograph many scenic Fair sights during the eight minute trip. Many riders return for a night time view of the Fair. Shown is one of seven two-car trains which transport passengers to and from the spectacular eighty-foot high station.

Greetings From Griffith Observatory

One of southern California's most famous landmarks, Griffith Observatory has served the exploration of science since opening in 1935.  Frequently a backdrop or set piece for filmmakers, it has appeared in numerous movies and television programs over the past seven decades.  Among its more notable appearances: Rebel Without a Cause, The Rocketeer, The Terminator, Rocky Jones Space Ranger and the 1950s era Adventures of Superman.

The postcard caption:

The splendid view of the Griffith Observatory with its shining copper dome arouses much interest to the residents and tourists in Southern California.  The museum and lectures give the layman an insight into the celestial mysteries and some of the "whys" of nature.

Greetings From - Manhattan's Classic Skyscrapers

It seems that the romance of skyscrapers has diminished greatly over the last few decades.  But that romance was certainly alive and well when the Manhattan Post Card Publishing Company showcased these two classic buildings.  The small print on the reverse side classifies each image as a "Colourpicture Publication."

The captions:

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

Empire State Building, the world's tallest structure, located at 5th Avenue and 34th Street, rises 1250 feet above the sidewalk.  Observatories are open to the public on the 86th and 102nd floors.

CHRYSLER BUILDING

A modernistic Georgia Marble and Indiana Limestone building which rises 1046 feet above the ground to the top of the steel mast.  A truly great achievement of modern architecture.

Greetings From Grauman's Chinese Theater

Here are two vintage postcard views of the now iconic Grauman's Chinese Theatre during its golden age of Hollywood heyday. Showman Sid Grauman built this elaborate movie palace with the help of investors Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Howard Schenck. It opened on May 18, 1927 with the premiere of the Cecil B.DeMille film The King of Kings. Grauman had previously built the equally elaborate but less famous Egyptian Theatre a few years earlier.

Grauman's Chinese Theater has achieved its legendary status primarily due to its well known forecourt where movie stars and Hollywood celebrities have long been immortalized via cement block footprints, handprints and signatures. Grauman explained how he literally stumbled upon the idea for his Walk of Fame on a Lux Radio Theatre program in 1937. "I walked right into it. While we were building the theatre, I accidentally happened to step in some soft concrete. And there it was. So, I went to Mary Pickford immediately. Mary put her foot into it." Partner Douglas Fairbanks quickly followed suit and thus the famous Hollywood tradition was born.

Jump over to 2719 Hyperion where we document all the Hollywood personalities that appeared in the Mickey Mouse cartoon Mickey's Gala Premier. The 1933 short took place at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and features a caricature of Sid Grauman.

Greetings From - Taylor Allderdice High School

Postcards are magical things. Small windows into the past. If you aren't careful, you can sometimes fall into them and have a hard time finding your way back.

It's been quite some time since my high school days, but this postcard extends even further back into the past, likely predating my graduation by three decades. In this particular rendering, Taylor Allderdice High School, located in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, looks pretty much as it did when I attended classes there in the mid-1970s. A later expansion saw a building placed directly in front of the school's main entrance, greatly diminishing the building's grand and stately architectural aesthetics. The large smokestack that towers behind the building was appropriately enough the common location for between-class cigarette breaks.

This next postcard displays part of the route I took when traveling from the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Lincoln Place to Taylor Allderdice. The Homestead High Level Bridge crossed the Monongahela River, connecting Squirrel Hill to the steel town of Homestead.