Lost Words From Our Childhood

[SfanGoch]

I'm happy to be able to do it, Richard. I'm weird when it comes to reminiscing. I can think of something from a particular time and pick a specific date and tell you what I was doing, what else was going on and recall conversations I had. I freak out old friends when I bring stuff up. They'll look at me, start thinking back and BAM! Holy BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH! "I remember that!" Then, they add in their recollections; and, after a while, we end up filling in any blanks with a pretty detailed history of that particular day. My old friend, Rich Rewkowski, a retired FDNY Battalion Chief, were planning to compile an oral history of our neighborhood, the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn, by interviewing the older residents and documenting their stories and recollections before they pass on and these memories are irretrievably lost. Unfortunately, Richard passed away on Nov. 22, 2015.

Edited February 11, 2016 by SfanGoch

[SfanGoch]

I also recall a guy who came around the neighborhood crying out "I buy clothes."....  We called him the Rag Man.  He'd buy any old clothing people wanted to get rid of...... He wouldn't pay much, but in those days any extra coins helped our parents.

Then there was the guy who came around ringing a bell... He'd sharpen your knives and scissors...

I remember the knife and scissor guy, the rag man, the junk man, the pie lady and her husband. They all rode in horse pulled wagons, all the way into the late '60s. Oh yeah, the Hammer Soda truck and the milkman from Eastern Dairy were regular sights, too. I was biking with my son one Saturday and ran across this:

The knife and scissor guy I remember was his grandfather who started the business! He might've been the same guy passing through Inwood. Mike here, is essentially the only travelling knife and scissor sharpener left in the city and he told me that business has never been better. He has customers from Brooklyn to the Bronx.  

Edited February 11, 2016 by SfanGoch

[Harry P.]

I also remember the scissors/knife man, the junk man, and even the fruit man... they all came by regularly, all used horse-drawn wagons as they went through the alleys. And it's not like I grew up in the 1920s or something...yes, this was being done where I lived in Chicago well into the mid to late 60s.

I can still remember the fruit man saying in his loud voice, "Freestone peaches! Four pounds, one dollar!" as he slowly went down the alley. Another cool childhood memory.

[Crazy Ed]

   For those that lived/grewup in the LA San Fernando Valley area in the 50' - 60's these 3 words will produce a Pavlov bell ringing like mouth Watering - The Helms Truck. It was a (in our area) Panel Truck from the Helms Bakery that had Fresh Bread and Pastries and Doughnuts. Curbside was the Breads and the rear had the Magical doors to the Sweets, and on Wed's only, Apple Strudel  ......... The simple mention of Helms brings back that Wonderful blend of Smells.

[vintagedragcrazy]

I remember the local restaurant that made fresh donuts had an old 53 Chevy panel truck that would go through all over town selling donuts for a nickel. The guy always had one of those old change machines on his belt and that would have been in the late 60's. And I actually have a couple green stamp books in my desk I get them out every now and then just to remember going to the stamp store and getting stuff. We also had plaid stamps here but they weren't as popular as the green stamps.

vince

[Ace-Garageguy]

... The guy always had one of those old change machines on his belt...

That phrase made me remember these guys, always around just about everywhere...

 Apparently, a hit with the babes, too.   

[vintagedragcrazy]

Hey ace maybe we should have been a good humor man! Lol

vince

[Ace-Garageguy]

Hey ace maybe we should have been a good humor man! Lol

vince

I guess girls everywhere go for the man in uniform. 

[Snake45]

I guess girls everywhere go for the man in uniform. 

No, they go for a man with ice cream.

[vintagedragcrazy]

I think snake is right they seem to hang out a lot at the dairy queens but hey what's wrong with that!! Lol Vince

[Ace-Garageguy]

No, they go for a man with ice cream.

This babe decided to skip the middleman and get her own truck. 

 

[SfanGoch]

No, they go for a man with ice cream.

The Good Humor Man in my neighborhood in the early '70s was really popular, especially with older teens, chicks and heads. He dealt pot and "pharmaceuticals" out of his truck. He was busted one fine Sunday afternoon in August 1972 while parked outside Dupont St. Playground. He sold an ice cream cup to some kid's mother with a plastic bag containing a tab of acid taped to the bottom. OOPS!  

Bungalow Bar was a competitor of Good Humor. The trucks were pretty odd looking in a cool way - they looked like, well, bungalows on wheels:

This would make for a pretty interesting model.

Anywho, Bungalow Bars sold for about half the price of Good Humor. When I was growing up, it was 15¢ as opposed to a quarter. We used to sing a rhyme:

Bungalow Bar tastes like tar,

The more you eat, the sicker you are.

They weren't bad at all; but, you know how kids are.

 

And last, but not least, Mister Softee. Whenever the truck pulled up on the block and us kids heard the tune, we were like a pack of hyenas charging a wounded gazelle to get in front of the line. The Banana Boat was the best.

 

 

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

My guess would be that Mr. Softee wasn't as popular with the...

Never mind. Don't want to risk being banned. 

Edited February 12, 2016 by Ace-Garageguy

[JollySipper]

The back of that ladies ice cream truck says "Caution: Children"........ That must be where she keeps them!  

[Harry P.]

That "lady" ice cream man looks like a linebacker...

[Harry P.]

Around here we had the Good Humor truck, but also a lot of generic independent guys, too. My favorites were the banana-flavored popsicles, the Heath bars with the crunchies on them, and the push-up orange thingie (in a round tube with the stick)... don't remember what they were called.

[Snake45]

 and the push-up orange thingie (in a round tube with the stick)... don't remember what they were called.

We called 'em push-ups, but I don't know if that was the official name.

[Harry P.]

We called 'em push-ups, but I don't know if that was the official name.

Yeah, that's what we called them, too... but I think they had a "real" name that I can't remember.

[Harry P.]

Another great childhood memory... (man, I love this thread!)...

My mom would do her grocery shopping every Saturday morning, and of course she dragged me along. Sometimes, if she was feeling generous (or if I had behaved myself in the stores), she would buy me lunch at Phil's, which was one of those hot dog joints that were scattered all over the city. The place was tiny... on one side was the hot dog counter and cash register, and on the opposite wall there was a counter that ran all along the wall from front door to the back wall where you could stand and eat (no seating in the place!). This place sold just hot dogs, fries, and Cokes. No burgers, no beefs... just dogs. In case any of you are unfamiliar with a "Chicago-style" hot dog, this is what I'm talking about:

No ketchup on a Chicago dog. Ever! Ketchup was for the fries!

Anyway, Phil was a master hot dog builder. He would grab a steamed bun, flip open the lid on the hot dog container and pluck one out and slam it onto the bun... slam the hot dog lid shut... whip open the mustard lid... spoon the mustard on the dog, slam the lid shut... whip open the relish lid, spoon on the relish, slam the lid shut... whip open the onion lid, spoon on the onions, slam the lid shut, etc. You get the idea. He would start at the beginning of the counter (the buns) and work his way down through all the ingredients so fast, it was amazing! He could build a Chicago dog in like 10 seconds start to finish! Obviously he didn't have to go that fast... I think he just liked to show off!

Man, those hot dogs were so freakin' good! Getting one of those hot dogs and fries for lunch made my mom's whole "drag me from one store to the next store" Saturday morning ritual worth it!

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

Mmmmm...hot dogs...Nathan's on Coney Island (no whitefish).

Edited February 13, 2016 by Ace-Garageguy

[Snake45]

Yeah, that's what we called them, too... but I think they had a "real" name that I can't remember.

I just googled "orange push up" and got a lot of hits calling the things exactly that, so I guess that was the real name.

For extra credit (and fun), then hit the google "images" button and scroll down a bit...prolly shouldn't try that at work, though.

[Harry P.]

Hmmm... I guess they really were called "push ups." Somehow I thought they had a more "official" name, but I guess not.

[Kit Basher]

I remember Good Humor, but "push up" has another and more interesting connotation to me. That may be what Snake is referring to when he says "Don't google it at work."

[Rob Hall]

I remember orange push-ups.  My Dad liked those in the 70s and I remember having them as a kid...don't recall ever seeing them again after the 70s, though.

[Ramfins59]

Another great childhood memory... (man, I love this thread!)...

My mom would do her grocery shopping every Saturday morning, and of course she dragged me along. Sometimes, if she was feeling generous (or if I had behaved myself in the stores), she would buy me lunch at Phil's, which was one of those hot dog joints that were scattered all over the city. The place was tiny... on one side was the hot dog counter and cash register, and on the opposite wall there was a counter that ran all along the wall from front door to the back wall where you could stand and eat (no seating in the place!). This place sold just hot dogs, fries, and Cokes. No burgers, no beefs... just dogs. In case any of you are unfamiliar with a "Chicago-style" hot dog, this is what I'm talking about:

No ketchup on a Chicago dog. Ever! Ketchup was for the fries!

Anyway, Phil was a master hot dog builder. He would grab a steamed bun, flip open the lid on the hot dog container and pluck one out and slam it onto the bun... slam the hot dog lid shut... whip open the mustard lid... spoon the mustard on the dog, slam the lid shut... whip open the relish lid, spoon on the relish, slam the lid shut... whip open the onion lid, spoon on the onions, slam the lid shut, etc. You get the idea. He would start at the beginning of the counter (the buns) and work his way down through all the ingredients so fast, it was amazing! He could build a Chicago dog in like 10 seconds start to finish! Obviously he didn't have to go that fast... I think he just liked to show off!

Man, those hot dogs were so freakin' good! Getting one of those hot dogs and fries for lunch made my mom's whole "drag me from one store to the next store" Saturday morning ritual worth it!

 

Maybe it's because I'm not from Chicago, but...... having all of that extra stuff on a hot dog just does not appeal to me at all.   Give me a couple of Nathan's hot dogs with lots of mustard and maybe some sauerkraut, and some Nathan's french fries with plenty of ketchup...... YUMMM.