Wishing You a Merry Christmas!

Shown above is an early 1970’s edition of one of the largest indoor Christmas trees in the world, and certainly the most famous one of any kind in the Chicago area – the “Great Tree” inside the Walnut Room restaurant at the legendary State Street home of Marshall Field & Company.The Walnut Room (named for its beautiful walnut paneling) and the tree tradition date all the way back to 1907, when

Christmas on Fifth Avenue

“…by night it becomes festive, chic, expensive, for in this season Fifth Avenue is the quintessence of Christmas for adults…it is a scintillating sight, alive with bright movement. And in its own way, it is full of Christmas peace, the peace which makes such elegance possible…The shops of Fifth Avenue are mostly elegant shops offering elegant Christmas gifts for or from elegant people. But a

It's a Wonderful Life at Penney's

Christmas in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania, sometime in the late 40’s or early 50’s. The charming Santa decoration says both “Merry Christmas” and “Season’s Greetings”, so everyone is covered. Colorful garland hangs across the storefronts on either side. The building itself easily dates to the earliest years of the 1900’s if not before, and undoubtedly housed other businesses prior to J.C.

Christmas "On The Square" at S. Klein!

So to speak, that is. Regardless of location, S. Klein stores were always “on the square”, even if they were in a mall, a shopping center, or the middle of a field. It was an integral part of the name, dating back to the opening of their famous flagship store on New York City’s Union Square. An engineering square (barely visible below the “L” in the sign) served as a company logo of sorts for

Christmas at Randhurst, Early 1960's

Randhurst. In its early years it was an appealing sight, regardless of the time of year. At Christmastime that appeal was magnified in many ways. A glittering new shopping center it was, the world’s largest…where we lucky Northwest Suburbanites got fresh new gift ideas from sparkling new stores…where we found gifts galore from token to treasure…all under one roof, in 72-degree comfort.

When

Mr. Penney, Mountains & Main Street

The pages of retail history are filled with the names of companies that no longer exist. Many of them were the picture of success for decades on end. They were leaders in their field - patronized, respected and loved by millions of customers. Household names. For one reason or another, these companies failed to adapt to conditions, and consequently they’re gone – sold out to a competitor, or just

When It Was Penneys

For most of their first sixty years of existence, the signs out front read “J.C. Penney Company” or “J.C. Penney Co.” in “black and mustard yellow“ as Time Magazine described them in 1965. Straightforward and prosaic these signs were, with the exception of some nice deco versions in the 1940’s. From 1971 until earlier this year, it was “JCPenney” in Helvetica, a much-loved classic in its own

Holiday Inn - The World's Innkeeper

The "Great Sign" combines with a rooftop sign to form a powerful image, 1972.Rarely has a commercial icon been so appropriately named as “The Great Sign” of Holiday Inn. It was “great” in multiple senses of the word. Great in size - the standard version stood a titanic five stories tall and sixteen feet wide. Great in impact – striking green, orange and yellow colors by day, a blaze of

Happy (Belated) 4th of July!

Am I too late for the cookout?Sorry, I stopped by “Jewels” in Winnetka to pick a few things up – they had Kingsford charcoal for 89 cents a bag, two jars of Open Pit barbecue sauce for 69 cents, two jars of Heinz relish for 59 cents, Oscar Mayer wieners for 49 cents, and unspecified “Bar-B-Q Tools” for 69 cents! Shopping in the North Shore is such a bargain!You mean it was yesterday?!Whoa.

Roosevelt Field Shopping Center, 1965

August 1965 was a hot, tumultuous month for the New York metropolitan area. For one thing, the city was in the midst of a historic water shortage, so severe it was officially declared a disaster by the federal government on August 18. The New York World’s Fair, the last of its kind, was in the midst of its second and final season. Save for a few trademark structures, the Fair would be completely

A Look Through Penney's Window...

…is a look into another world, one different in so many ways from the world we know today. For one thing, people tended to dress up – to visit relatives, to travel on a train or plane, and yes...to go shopping. Shown above, in two sidewalk-level views taken soon after its April 14, 1955 opening, is the J.C. Penney store in Plainview, New York. The interior decor is typical of new Penney stores of

The Randhurst Story - Available Now!

I’m honored to be the first to let you know about a wonderful new book that tells the story of one of the most important malls ever built. Randhurst : Suburban Chicago’s Grandest Shopping Center is available now!

Ah, Randhurst – monumental in its day, it was influential in so many respects, including its triangular “three-anchor” design, cooperative ownership, and a host of charming

Coming Very Soon, a New Book...

...about a very special place. Stay tuned for details to follow!

Before You Travel, Ask Us!

Before we move on, I wanted to put up a quick postscript to our look at the history of gas stations. A couple of folks brought up the important point that virtually all of the major petroleum brands gave away free travel maps to customers. I had intended to touch on this on the earlier post, but felt my original idea for it was a bit too cute, and as it was the post ended up bring pretty darn

The Golden Age of Gas Stations

One of my all-time favorite movie sequences is only a few seconds long. It’s a scene from the 1985 movie “Back to the Future”, where a dazed Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) has just been unwittingly transported back thirty years in time, to 1955. Eyes wide and mouth agape, he walks the downtown square of his hometown, the fictional Hill Valley, California. In place of the familiar blighted streets

Hail the New Shopping Center!

"The stars shone just a little brighter that night. And the birds sang."A Pay Less Northwest/Safeway combination, somewhere in Washington state, 1961.I couldn't let February slip by with nothing new at all on here. Hoping to have the next "real" post up within a few days!

A Surprise Visit to Katz City

So I’m on a business trip to Springfield, Missouri a few weeks ago, in town just for the day. I’m there to call on a customer, a well-known manufacturer of well-known products, as part of an effort to become well-known. As I drive through town, the usual mental prep is taking place.Until I spy a building in the distance, that is, one I’d previously seen only in photographs. It’s a CVS Pharmacy

Happy New Year!

The floors are washed and waxed, the checkout lanes fully stocked with paper bags, and the cash registers are loaded with change and crisp new bills. We’re ready to launch a new year of Pleasant Family Shopping, a look at the everyday places that make up a surprising share of our youthful memories, in part because we spent so darn much time at them! I’m referring to the chain stores – the