Survival Under... Attack

Reprint of a federal booklet, with added illustrations and local content. (A scan of the original booklet's text is here.)

The original's cover—

SURVIVAL UNDER ATOMIC ATTACK
THE OFFICIAL U.S. GOVERNMENT BOOKLET

Part of the front matter—

Executive Office of the President
National Security Resources Board
Civil Defense Office
NSTB Doc. 130
UNITED STATES
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON: 1950

The federal booklet has a notice that's also on the back of the Detroit version—

Permission is hereby automatically granted to any responsible organization, institution, individual or concern which wishes to republish this booklet for free distribution, legitimate promotional purposes or for sale.

In reproducing the booklet, however, advertising, promotional material, art work, and typographical styling should conform to the tenor of the text.

Other back cover detail of the Detroit booklet includes a word from the sponsor—

Here's the fine print (and only sign of the booklet's date)—

"DETROITS 250 ANNIVERSARY 1701-1951
1881-1951 HUDSONS 70-YEAR"

Front matter added in Michigan includes names of the military, police and political dignitaries on the state Civil Defense council, a forward by Governor G. Mennen Williams, and a call for CD volunteers.

This is followed by the Feds' Cold War boilerplate text, which urged readers to "KILL THE MYTHS," to learn "SIX SURVIVAL SECRETS FOR ATOMIC ATTACKS," and so on. Some samples of bland reassurance on what to expect when the big one dropped—

WHAT ARE YOUR CHANCES?

WHAT ABOUT BURNS?

Among the practical tips offered—

Take Cover in the Cellar; Upper Floors May Collapse.

Avoid Getting Wet...

Change Outer Garments After Leaving Contaminated Area.

By whatever combination of dumb luck and (eventual) diplomacy happened, we never needed to test these theories.

A few years ago I read this interesting look at post-war Civil Defense planning. The National Security Act of 1947 established institutions to enable a process of continuous civilian, economic, and military mobilization. Andrew Grossman writes that what was aimed at the public used "a sophisticated version of 'communication science' developed during World War II..."

For decades it's been easy to mock the absurdity of the CD efforts (for example, here, and at that blog's links). Grossman's book instead focuses on the seriousness of official planning for a World War III expected to be fought with nuclear weapons. But Grossman also acknowledges that planners at the highest levels—

... distrusted the very social order they were defending... These "wise men" of American foreign policy believed that postwar consumerism, combined with the kind of democracy that was practiced in the United States, would not generate the kind of citizen necessary to combat what was known as "Red Fascism."

To counteract its perceived softness the post-war public had to be made—in Grossman's words—"the consumer of the home front mobilization process." The civil defense planners' target—the growing middle-class that was relocating to suburbs—were also the consumers driving the post-war economy. Not coincidentally, suburbanites were also likely to have space for installing fallout shelters.

Grossman compares Cold War civil defense planning with the late twentieth century focus on terrorism. Of this (late 1990s?) chart—

—Grossman notes the threats to civil liberties inherent in a "hydra-headed bureaucratic planning structure."

As it happens... his book was published August 2001—just around the time of this.

The next month—Presto!—we're at "war," without end.

Oh well... after World War II we got ourselves, in Gore Vidal's words (Screening History), a "military-industrial-political combine that has locked us all up inside a National Security State and has thrown away the key."

The Reds never launched an atomic attack on Detroit, after all. Though with the 1966 accident here, Detroit and vicinity may have had a near miss.

Hudson's met its end the capitalist way: a move to the suburbs, change of ownership and eventual closing. The company's historic downtown store was leveled—not by bombs, but by implosion (1998).

The fate of the city itself is another story, currently in the re-writing. Much like the Cold War, myths are created to support the agendas of moneyed power. Not only is this the perfect opportunity to starve public pensions, there is land for the grabbing, and the big chance to get private hands on all sorts of things that have been held in public trust until now.

A different context, yet prophetic?
)

Twelve Ways to Decorate a Dog: March

"The Hooked Rug dog

is made on a canvas with five squares to the inch, using knitting yarns..."

And then there's that enviable calendar note, which students get to make...

Game of Intrigue

A mysterious publication, found on a giveaway shelf at the library.

Challenge Bridge
Reference Manual
Volume 1
Deals 1-100
1972, Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company

First mystery (to me) was that this company had ever published stuff.

It turns out there was a "3M Bookshelf Game Series"—made from 1962 to 1975, and meriting its own Wiki page. According to which—

These games were marketed towards adults and were designed to fit onto a standard bookshelf. Each game fit into a slip cover that was made to resemble the spine of a hardcover book. 3M's catalog described them as follows: "bookcase games, packaged in attractive leather-like slipcases, make a handsome set of volumes for any bookshelf."

Sure enough (once I bothered to look beyond the cover and title page), there's a photo of the missing box and its contents.

According to Wiki, freelance designers created 3M's games. That may account for a cover image that seemed to be another mystery. I know pretty much zero about card games, but have long had the impression that bridge players are elderly people, not dashing intriguers.

At least, that was going by players I've known. And remembering the guy on the left, whose columns ran in the newspapers of my youth.

Here's his Wiki page.

Poking around in this stuff, I find there was also a TV show, from 1959 to 1964 (Theme Song: "Music to Play Bridge By").

I like the credits' low-budget stop motion effects, which are very early TV. Here's an entire show: an episode with Chico Marx.

He was known as a compulsive gambler, and the brothers' bad late movies supposedly were made to pay off his debts (unless Groucho told that story to excuse the turkeys).

But enough digression, as tempting as it is to pursue the tangents of odd things people have left around the tubes. (Whatever kind of person puts time and effort into such things ...)

Back to the game booklet: 3M had an expert of its own, who, like Charles Goren, seems less than glamorous—

"After playing each deal," reads the booklet, "your foursome should refer to the corresponding deal in the Reference Manual for scoring and valuable comments on the bidding and play, written by one of the world's foremost bridge authorities, Oswald Jacoby."

Mr. Jacoby does seem a bit of a contrast to the James Bond-ish feel of this group.

Twelve Ways to Decorate a Dog: February

Bargello bow-wow—

A Stitch Out Of Time

Silk hosiery mending kit, c. late 1940s - early 1950s.

This article is a petite 3/4" wide by 2" high. Earlier versions, such as this, are the size of standard matchbooks. In all cases, the insides of the kits supplied silk thread (here, in several shades), along with cardboard tabs topped by blobs of glue.

Directions for use, "Run-Arrestor Wands"—

Back cover, with distributor's details—

The Indiana Historical Society offers a company history. Founded in 1922, Real Silk manufactured hosiery, lingerie, and underwear. Operations would expand to mills in Indiana, Georgia, and Mississippi.

In the wording of the Historical Society account, "The company ran into financial difficulties in the early 1930s as a result of the Great Depression, and control was assumed by a bank committee." New ownership took control in 1932, but—

Difficulties soon occurred with labor over wage increases which resulted in a strike in April and May, 1934, that included the arrests of sixteen strikers in Indianapolis.

"Difficulties"... Elsewhere on the Historical Society site are these notes—

The Real Silk Hosiery Mills Strike was one of the most violent in Indianapolis' history, lasting from April to May 1934. No clear winner to the dispute emerged but all sides were pacified.

Which links to this item in the collection: an April 1934 Indianapolis Times editorial, "The Real Issue at Real Silk." This was "Indianapolis' first real test of the new deal," said the paper. It criticized the company for claiming a company-controlled organization represented the workers, while company stockholders, workers, and the city's economy were being hurt by the factory stoppage. The editorial concluded—

We hope the strike is settled. Strikes are bad for the community, but justice is of more importance to Indianapolis than Real Silk's pay roll.

The labor problems of Real Silk never can be solved permanently until its management recognizes the right of labor to enjoy the benefit of REAL industrial democracy.

But enough of workers, with their quaint "rights' and "democracy," as we go back to that other account of company history. Which says profits declined during World War II (the war effort took over use of available silk), yet the company also

... was instrumental in the manufacturing of parachutes for bombs as well as hosiery for both male and female military personnel.

Then—

After a post-war profit increase, the financial situation again declined in the early 1950s.

By that time synthetic stockings (later, pantyhose) would have taken over the market.

Gustav Efroymson died in 1946, and control of the company passed to his son, Robert. Under Robert Efroymson's control, the company first closed its manufacturing operations in Indianapolis and Dalton, Georgia, and a short time later closed all other manufacturing operations as well. All the machinery was sold except that which was related to direct-to-consumer selling...Robert Efroymson also directed the retiring of all preferred and some common stock and invested the surplus funds in securities. In 1957 Real Silk Inc. became registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment company, although they continued the door to door selling of hosiery, lingerie, and other clothing products on a national scale.

It's a very odd part of the story that this guy seems to have been about three decades ahead of the corporate curve in doing what would become SOP: closing production of tangible items, stripping the assets, and switching to financials.

But back in the day, companies did produce actual goods. As an enlarged view of one manufacturer's "stitch in time" matchbook kit shows, thrifty women also did this—

Sarah McFarland, Threads

The cover designs of Real Silk's matchbook kits are very '30s, including a hokey "Oriental" font (also used in the company's ads). But the chic ladies walking their equally chic dogs are quite nice.

It's interesting that images of '30s chic were followed by a more isolated presentation of legs; a new focus attributable to war-time pinups?

This has some nice images. For me, though, it is jarring when interesting old items are filtered through the lens of hipster discovery. Not to mention, semi-literacy—

My favorite kit is the one on the left, with the woman walking the dachshunds, and the one with the woman walking in the rain is also so cute! The backs of the kits have information to get ahold of the Real Silk reps, but I'm not exactly sure what Har. 1855 means.

When a savvy commenter chimes in, "I'll bet Har 1855 was the telephone number," hipster seamstress  replies—

I agree, but I don't know how phone numbers worked back then! Maybe I'll ask my Grandma...

Twelve Ways to Decorate a Dog: January

Front cover of a publication—

Explained by the title page—

Clever idea; inspired, perhaps, by this?

Oka's book was contemporary, and influential for designers. According to a reviewer here, the first English publication was in 1967, but a revised version (still in print) was done in connection with a 1975 exhibit. It's a likely inspiration for this calendar's concept, if the end product is not quite Japanese design chic.

I see a few of these for sale online, and they include a pattern for a stuffed dog design that's missing from my copy.

I haven't been able to find if stuffed dogs were a store mascot, or just a product aimed at a particular age group, but seen here is an ad from around the same time.

In any case, each month of the year features a project and instructions, next to the engagement calendar.

The target demographic? This particular calendar copy was used by a well-organized college girl: prepared for all birthdays and sorority rush week, while no doubt fashionably dressed.

Well, this is a reminder of another thing about the dying out (or, murder) of print: less likelihood of such twofer finds as strange hand-written notes used to mark pages in old books.

But back to 1976: the calendar has no obvious connection to the store's products, and it also seems like doing the projects would have taken free time otherwise available for shopping. But the store did finally go under, in 2005.

Though after that date, this guy cites Casual Corner as short-hand for fashion faux pas.

A different view expressed—

My favorite store is closing ! Casual Corner - Crossdressers Forum
www.crossdressers.com › ... › Male to Female Crossdressing‎
3 posts - ‎2 authors
My favorite place to shop for womens suits is closing. They had a lot of nice clothes for the professional woman. Now I don't know where to shop for excellent ...

"The World's Largest Shopping Center"

Caption—

The picture looks later that 1954, though the publisher's postal zone (instead of zipcode) would make this pre-1963—

The card is from roughly the same time as this restaurant guide; a fine old (defunct) department store that advertised its food departments and tea rooms in the guide also built this mall. The card image does seem puzzling for the period: I wouldn't have expected it was that early that everyone—even what looks looks like an old guy (left foreground)—was wearing jeans. Certainly not to a "fabulous" mall.

Shifting to the current spirit of retail, there's 2013 post-Thanksgiving good news: "Calm Black Friday: Only 1 Death, 15 Injuries..." Attributed to Big Shopping Day.