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Tag: 1970s

What Manhattan Looked Like in the 1970s Through My Eyes, Part 2

All photos copyright Betsy van Die and available in high resolution from original negatives. Permission needed to reproduce. By the time I was in my second year at RISD, I considered myself a veteran visitor of NYC. I was attracted to Times Square and all the sordid sights. I never would have dreamed of photographing the seedier side of Chicago’s strip clubs in the South Loop. Somehow I felt emboldened being away from home and photographing in NYC.  Times Square was a far cry from my ivory tower art school existence in Providence and even farther from my idyllic suburban Chicago upbringing. I found Times Square both fascinating and repulsive and completely different than anything I had ever seen. I was not a total rube, having spent a lot of time as a kid in the City of Chicago itself – but NYC was unique and I was smitten. I shot a lot of B & W photos in Times Square, and in retrospect, I was lucky that nobody bothered me. But I have so many regrets regarding photos I didn’t take back in the day, including 42nd Street and the interiors of diners and bars. Probably best that I didn’t venture into the latter, since I was an attractive young woman by myself. November 1977 Tiger Sign Company, Bowery and Delancey I couldn’t find out anything about this business, but still love the signage.   Pearl Paint and Canal Street Jeans Canal Street was one of my favorite hangouts thanks to Pearl Paint, all the cool job lot stores, Canal Jean Co., a dingy little antique mall, and street vendors selling vintage stuff. Pearl Paint’s NYC demise reflected the passage of time and loss of my youth. It was one more sign of gentrification that has nearly destroyed the…

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An Early 1970s Chicagoland Discount Booklet Inspired a Little Sleuthing

Many years before the internet and deal sites like Groupon, various local companies sold discount books. I recall some that continued this tradition, well into the early 2000s. I had never heard of the Chicago-based King of Fun until I discovered a little booklet and membership card at an estate sale. The 1971-1972 booklet of deals cost $15 and offered 2 for 1 deals and other discounts. While many of the businesses are lost to history and I could find nothing online, I thought it would be fun to see how many movie theaters and entertainment venues included in this little booklet are still in business, if any.     Mister Kelly’s Located on Rush Street in the city’s Gold Coast neighborhood, this club was a welcoming venue for rising stars who later gained international fame. Owned and operated by George and Oscar Marienthal, Mister Kelly’s changed show business and became one of American entertainment’s greatest proving grounds. The legendary nightclub launched the careers of superstars like Barbra Streisand, Richard Pryor, Bette Midler, and Steve Martin. Other greats included Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Anita O’Day, Della Reese, Ramsey Lewis, Herbie Hancock, Mort Sahl, Lily Tomlin, Flip Wilson, and Bob Newhart. The club smashed color and gender barriers, transforming entertainment in America in the 1950s to 1970s. In 1969, Mister Kelly’s was sold to Arts and Leisure Corp., entertainment division, then Paul Wimmer bought it in 1971. Security issues, late-night TV, and the emergence of Las Vegas style venues that could afford to pay the performers more money led to Mister Kelly’s demise in August 1975.

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