Growing up in Louisa – News!
Weekly feature . . . by Mike Coburn
As I best recall, the sources for news back in my earliest days were few and often days slower than what we now take for granted. Thanks to the internet we know about things almost before they happen. Let a movie star or someone important die, the world knows it within minutes. Sports are watched in real time, whether you are at home or on the road. So if, news traveled slowly in my day, the generations before me were even slower. Most local news was delivered by word of mouth. Gradually national news found new ways to travel, such as the telegraph. Those came along more, or less, with the railroads. Sure, cities and larger towns had their newspapers, some weekly and some daily. In our little town the weekly newspaper was the ‘Big Sandy News.’ I knew Mrs. Sparks, who ran the paper. I guess she was publisher and editor, but she was just Mrs. Sparks to me. I know my family always looked forward to the social news that would announce which families had company in, or where a person, or persons visited that week. They even had sections devoted to outlying communities such as Zelda, or Inez. I have many pages that were copied that told of my ancestors coming and going. To get your name in the paper was a big deal. This little weekly newspaper spent little time on national news, but did carry some from the state government. Otherwise, it was restrained since they didn’t take articles of the AP except for war news. That pipeline was a bit limited.
We got the ‘Times Herald’ and the ‘Courier Journal,’ as I imagine many around still get. Back in the forties or fifties some got copies of the big, out-of-the-area papers like: NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Miami Herald, Cincinnati Enquirer, or Detroit Free Press. Those rolled into town on the train, or on the bus. So here I am today writing a weekly column for an electronic newspaper. By its design and nature, it is still a ‘local’ news edition that carries only a little national news, per se. That’s just as well, as the newspaper media is deeply into transition into making themselves relevant by moving toward an electronic base. Very few publishers today strictly print on paper. I still get a paper every morning, but the news is a day late and somewhat obsolete. I like to read the ‘funnies’ and study the obituaries. I suppose that I think of one to confirm we still have humor; the other to see if it’s time for me to lie down and be quiet.
Back in the day newspapers weren’t the only way we got news. The radio was a standard piece of furniture in every home that had electricity, for a couple of generations prior to my entrance in this shrinking world. Nearly every family learned of Pearl Harbor by broadcast. They also took time to listen to favorite radio programs. There was baseball, boxing, ‘Jack Benny,’ and a host of situational comedies, like ‘Amos and Andy.’ We weren’t quite the backwoods people the world imagined we were. We had movies, too. My family and others had restrictions on attending movies, at first. I know my grandmother hated the idea of my attending a movie on Sunday, so I rarely did, if ever. Nonetheless, all movies had a newsreel before the main feature was run. It was there that we heard of Royal weddings, the election results, and the latest news from the war zones.
There was another source that mostly still exists, but in a much different form today. I know that ‘Ern’s’ and ‘Hack’s newsstands carried several newspapers, like the ones mentioned earlier, but they also had a number of copies of well-known and treasured magazines. Most did not carry regular news, except for a couple of leading publications like, ‘Look,’ ‘Time,’ and ‘Saturday Evening Post.’ These large, well-known publications had articles and pictures of not only national importance, but even world news. Some of the famous photographs of the time adorned the covers of these publications.
As a kid, I always looked forward to getting my hands on the newest edition of the Saturday Evening Post. One thing I wanted to see was the latest Norman Rockwell picture that would show the wonderful people of America going through one action or another. He painted the common man in common situations. Whether a sailor, a farmer, a little kid, a family physician, a preacher, or a barber, his painting told the story. They were a way to see the humanity and humor of the people, but also to give us a reason to reflect on our brotherhood. His works always showed the good side of people.
I also liked to read that serialized article of the adventures of Alexander Botts, the grandest salesman ever of Earthworm Crawler Tractors. Written by William Hazlett Upson, thousands of readers in the nations barber shops, doctor’s offices, and school libraries would rush to read the latest episode. I have little doubt that you could read them now by searching the internet.
As a challenge to myself, I began to write down the names of the magazines I remembered from childhood. I was surprised that I knew so many. Some only by covers, but I read many when in waiting areas at the barber shop, doctor’s office, or at one of my friends’ homes. While compiling the list I went to the web to refresh memories and help myself along. I have added the list in the next paragraph, and broken them down into several categories of my own making. I next went back to research whether they were still in production. It was easy to sort them by my idea of the readership, such as women, men, kids, etc., but even within this there were obvious subcategories and crossovers, so let me take a chance of being called a sexist, or whatever, and share them in hope of stirring a memory of your favorite magazine(s).
Women:
Home and family: Woman’s Day, 1931; American Home, 1928 – 1977; Ladies Home Journal, 1873 – 1957; Liberty, 1924 – 1950; Redbook, 1903; Family Circle, 1932
Romance/Detective: True Detective, 1924; Authentic Detective, 1944
Fashion: Vogue, 1892; Glamour, 1939; Today’s Woman; Colliers, 1888 – 1057; Coronet, 1936 – 1971; Cosmopolitan (Cosmo), 1886
Men:
How to: Mechanic Illustrated, 1928 – 1964;
Sports: Field & Stream, 1895 – 2007; Sport, 1946; Sports Illustrated, 1964
Fashion/Models: Esquire, 1933; Gentlemen’s Quarterly, 1931; Playboy, 1953
Kids: Boy’s Life, 1911; Seventeen, 1944
Both:
Movies/Entertainment: Silver Screen, 1952 – 1954; Screenland, 1920 – 1971; Hit Parade; Movieland, 1904 – 1978; Picture Show, 1919 – 1960
Photography: Photography, 1977; Modern Photography, 1943 – 1989; National Geographic, 1888
News: Saturday Evening Post, 1897 – 1963; Look, 1937 – 1971; Life, 1883 – 2000; Time, 1923; Ebony, 1945; Fortune, 1929; The New Yorker, 1975
I put the year of their creation based on what I found on the web. Many have met their demise, or have merged in the years since I read them. I marked the ending year, if I saw they had stopped publishing them. At my age, I’m pretty used to seeing a date, a dash, and another date, if you know what I mean. With magazines, just like people, it’s not the beginning, or end that’s important. It is the dash. It is what happened between the two dates that will matter.
Lest I be charged with forgetting the ‘yellow press’ I have to admit I sneaked a peek at some, but of course I’ve totally forgotten anything I saw. There, I mentioned it. Going on, there were other magazines that I have not yet mentioned. They were those ‘pocket-sized’ publications that could be dropped in a purse, slid into the pocket of one’s coveralls, or hid in a saddle-bag on a horse or bicycle. I remember some of those titles, including: Focus, Week, Pulse, Flick, Fans, Jet, Quick, Stag, Men, Man’s, Man’s Life, People, Girl’s Diary, Petticoat, and Saga.
Instead of newsstands of old, magazines are sold at the checkout in supermarkets and box stores, and in drug stores. Most have a cover displaying this model, movie star, or celebrity, usually with a headline meant to attract sales. I resist buying them, but the covers are interesting while waiting for the cashier.
The newsstands of my day also sold candy, popcorn, novelties, etc., but also sold the latest in comic books. Now you’re talking! Whether Superman, Superwoman, Spiderman, Super Boy, Dick Tracy, Flash Gordon, Batman & Robin, or many others, this was the $.10 treat I’d add to my well-read collection whenever I had a dime. We boys would trade editions back and forth until we had worn paper thin. I know pages would be ripped or missing altogether on half of mine. Good thing I was careful with them. Considering their condition, if I had them today the value would have increased perhaps to $.20 each.
As you read these names and titles, it is my hope that you saw some of your favorites. Maybe, I missed one. If so, remind me. mcoburncppo@aol.com
