16 October 1955 “Suspenseful Film with Robert Mitchum, Modern Magazines vs. Vintage”

The film, Night of the Hunter, came out 29 September this year. It was based on the book of the same name and was based on a true account.

I had spoken briefly about how modern movies tend to be more about the gore and no imagination is used, just gratuitous shots of people being cut up. This movie was a thriller and film noir. It is very scary to me even today. It used camera angles, dialogue and music to make the suspense and I am sure was shot for what was considered nothing today. If you would like to see it, the movie in its entirety is on youtube HERE.

I recently received another package in the mail that I was excited about. I periodically will find a batch of 1950’s magazines at a good price and when they arrive boxed up at my post, I am like a kid, rushing to get home to tear it open. Then, however, I begin to savor it. I make a pot of tea, perhaps grab a little snack and settle into my favorite corner and begin the perusal.

I noticed again this time that these magazines, compared to modern women’s magazines, are so full of useful information. For example my Better Homes and Gardens is PACKED full of recipes and real articles that speak to a homemaker to help her along the way. Today, such magazines are merely giant adds. I was sad to see that Better Homes and Gardens now is just that: a giant ad. It is filled with pages of how your home ‘can look’ and guess what? You can copy it down to a tee, all you have to do is go to Wal-Mart and buy all the items they used to decorate the rooms in the magazine’s pages. For anyone with an ounce of brainpower, and we know we homemakers are not idiots, can see that this is merely a ad disguised as a magazine. It made me furious to know this! ( A homemaker can get her dander up!)

How low and how deep into our lives will they go to sell us things! I have even noticed many blogs are starting to have an odd cadence about this product and that with links to the products page. Have they even begin to throw pennies at us to invade our own personal journal/blog space? Is there no decency? Are we truly are nothing but walking consumers?

In my vintage magazines there are plenty of ads, don’t get me wrong, but they are not disguised as stories or features in the magazines. That sort of subtle manipulation, to me, borders on evil. And if you have a fine product, then by all means advertise it and we may want to buy it. When we are brainwashed and lead into a world where everything we do is proceeded by trips to large chain stairs to get it done, that is very scary to me. But, I digress, no tirade today.

So, both as an example of this and to also share just a small portion of the rich and varied information found in my vintage magazines, here are some of the items in just one of my ‘new’ better homes and gardens from 1950s:

I love this article as it accepts that fact that the homemaker and her family can have the skills to remodel their own home. They do not have to always rely on outside expensive help. This article was printed so you could cut it out and remove the holes and place it either in your own binder or that of the better homes and gardens home remodeling book. SO, there is a tie in with advertising, but it gives you information and the ability to choose rather or not you want to purchase the book, even if you don’t here is some great information. That advertising somehow seems more honest to me.

These should be printable at a readable size if you want to print and keep them in your own home-manual book. I was thinking that might be a fun project we could do for one of our “T0-doing” weeks. We could make a three ring binder to start collecting up ideas that we can share for running our homes. Our own hand-made Homemakers manual! We could decorate the covers an such as we please. Again, if I can master this website building and can get my site up, that would be a great thing to share, we could upload pics of our own versions of our homemade Homemakers Manuals, fun fun fun, Gals!

This next bit is also from the same issue and suggests you cut it out and place in your Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. Again, they are using advertising here (and really mid 1950’s this is really starting) to show how nice it would be to have the cookbook, yet here are recipes for free and you can choose to use just these.

The feathery fudge cake is actually already in my old addition of Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, so it must be a later addition. This is my ‘go-to’ cake when I know I need to make something for someone and I want to make sure it turns out moist and wonderful. Those potato dishes look scrumptious, don’t they?

Now, I have had many people request old child care tips and things. Again, I have no children and therefore would never, myself, give advice, but every so often I come along some interesting articles. This article was from the same issue of Better Homes and Gardens as the above. I think it very interesting that posture is addressed as import to a child. Really, posture does affect our growth and certain health issues later in life. I am afraid that many modern children spend ALOT of time hunched up in front of computers, video games and TV. I don’t know if they even address posture in school anymore. I don’t even recall it back in the late 70’s early 80’s when I was young.

Those of you with children, is posture ever discussed? Is it part of modern child-rearing or do you know if it is addressed in schools?

I have to make another new foray in the kitchen in the making of pickles. I have often wanted to try this and Gussie (who works on a local farm) was kind enough to come home with a lovely assortment for me. So, I am going to begin sorting through my recipes and see what I can come up with. I will share results and recipes, of course.