Laundry Day

 
The other day I talked about cleaning tips for the home, and I mentioned how much I love my dryer. As this blog is also a diary that I hope my kids will read one day (soon Harry, soon), I aim to do the occasional post on everyday living, as well, so I wanted to continue with some tips on doing laundry.
Laundry rocks! source
Everyone’s definition of “dirty” is different, but really neither our clothes or our bodies benefit from fanatical scrubbing down with detergents. Modern “standards” for cleanliness are relatively new – basically in the last 50 years since the start of cheap mass clothing, modern washing machines and easy access to water .  One hundred years ago wash day was once a week, as was ironing day.  My mum still tells me of her days as a young wife in t he 60s using a ‘copper’, which required heating the water and clothes with a fire underneath, and both my grandmothers did their washing once a week ( in the most basic of machines)until their deaths in the 90s.   Today I do a fair bit of laundry in comparison, about a load a day, sometimes two, but then I have four school age children (with associated sheets, towels and clothes and I use table cloths and napkins). Everyone has their own level of comfort with dirt and smells and the need to wash their clothes and their own way of doing things.  I did start off as a bit of a clean freak when I was newly married and had only one child, but now I am of the school that if you can’t see dirt or smell sweat, it doesn’t need to be cleaned (this goes for everything but socks and undies, they need to be washed each day – and not left in mum’s car, right kids?).  Funny how I am going back to what my grandmothers did.
1910 ad source
In our hot, humid climate here in Queensland most tops need washing after a day in winter, or after a few hours in summer. Sometimes they can be aired out and dried and re-worn, especially if they are cotton with no polyester in them. In winter if a shirt is creased after a short wear I like to spray it with water and air dry or toss in the dryer for a few minutes. If I wear a jacket or cardigan at work I try and wear a shirt with short sleeves at least, to protect the underarms from sweat, and I air it out when I get home. It’s easier to wash a shirt than dry clean a jacket. I have found that letting my underarm deodorant dry before getting dressed stops staining, and I like to use a little powder with a puff (vintage of course) as well to make completely sure (I have found that unscented deo and scented powder makes clothes smell less bad than scented deo, but this may just be me!).


Pants, including jeans, and skirts first get a brush down with a clothes brush I found at the op shop (but a broom from a brush and shovel works too). Then if they need it they get the spot treatment – an old toothbrush and a bit of sunlight soap on the dirty area and then an airing. I have a hanging rail in my laundry where clothes can catch a little breeze. If jeans are clean but get too baggy I stick them in the dryer for about 10 minutes. Work pants and skirts and anything vintage gets hand-washed (actually my machine has a hand wash setting too) every 6 wears or so. Nothing gets put away dirty, as here it grows mould in a day.
Bras get hung up on a hook in the bathroom overnight to air out – if they smell in the morning they go into the wash, otherwise back in the drawer. I do keep meaning to hand wash them, as I know this is better for them (apparently in the shower is a good place), but I use a wash bag instead and wash my stockings with them too. But I do dry them without pegging, just pop them over the line. hanger or rack at the centre, so they don;t stretch and I NEVER put them in the dryer.  And let me tell you, underwires are really not good for washing or drying  machines if they get loose.   I am planning to get everyone their own mesh bag for socks too, as we seem to have a sock monster in our house that eats one of each pair.
 

I have three rules of separating laundry – darks together, whites together and towels together. I cannot stress this enough. If you have white towels and dark towels, do them separately too. Lots of things will say wash separately, but really if you are washing dark denim with other dark things, it doesn’t’ really matter. Fluffy bathmats, on the other hand, are best washed by themselves. Dark washing is best washed in cold water to prevent running.
 source
I like to soak white washing, which includes my husbands’ business shirts and my daughters school t-shirt overnight on a Friday and wash Saturday morning. That way I can iron them straight from the line when they are still a little damp (this is when I get to watch an old movie without anyone whinging because I am doing a job). I usually soak in hot water with napisan (oxygen bleach), but I used bicarb soda the other day when I had run out, and it did a pretty good job. I have heard of using aspirin, but bicarb is really cheap and handy to keep in the laundry for cleaning the sink, and the kids won’t want to eat it.
1967 ad source
The benefits of only washing when you need to include:
· Having clothes that last longer;
· Having clothes that stay their true color for longer;
· Using less water, power and products – better for the environment (this is a great excuse/reason if you need one with your other half/girlfriends and you can buy recycled plastid pegs too);
· Doing less laundry (doh!);
· Having your machine last longer.
Although I do love my dryer, it has been sunny here the last few days so I have been air drying.  Air dried sheets smell so good! My hanging tips:
· Shake each item as you get it out the basket to remove some creases;
· Hang t-shirts with about 5 to 10 cm folded over the line to keep the hem straight;
· Pull things, like pant legs and sleeves straight;
· For time saving use one peg for the spot where two items meet;
· Hang dark washing, especially jeans, inside out, to keep the color longer;
· Use a rack for small items like socks and undies and get the kids to help hang up their things (move this undercover or inside at night instead of putting them in the dryer, as pant elastic does not like to go in the dryer;
· Dry knitwear flat over a rack, or use old stockings through the arms and pin the stockings.
Other tips = I also like to fold straight from the line as it stops things getting re- creased. I did have a table under the line to sort out, but now I have a couple of baskets. I only iron cotton shirts and table cloths. I always put the towels in the dryer for about 5 minutes to fluff them up.  If you want to feel really vintage use wooden dolly pegs (hard to find but craft shops sell them or check ebay, I bought mine at Sovereign Hill in the 90s.).  I used to use them when my eldest son was a baby, and would give them to him to hold (and suck on) – great for the pincer grip, and he couldn’t hurt himself.

Have a great(laundry) day
Deb xx

Secrets of a Tidy House

Since we have had the house on the market – one whole week – we have had photos taken, a horde of real estate agents visit, and buyers inspecting every day but Sunday. I have another one this afternoon, with two hours notice, so I like to keep the house tidy just in case!

What is the secret to a tidy house? Don’t have a man, kids or pets in the house. Simple. Boring. Joking!

What’s not to love 

With four children at home, a dog, a puppy and a cat, keeping the house tidy enough for constant visitors takes a little work. But it is do-able. And notice I said tidy, not clean. I have tried to de-clutter, and each few days I pack another small box of unessential stuff away. I am going through cupboards room by room, and gradually sorting them out. I also went through each room and de-cobwebbed, filled holes in walls and touched up paint where needed, including all the doors. I have cleaned most of the windows and blinds, and do another couple each weekend. The bathrooms get a good clean each weekend too, as do the timber floors.

Unfortunately I am not really living in the 40s, when I may have had a daily maid or housekeeper, and I am not living in a Disney movie with helpful cockroaches to clean the tub either. During the week my eldest daughters (10 and 16) do their bit with their own rooms and occasional tidying of the kitchen and lounge room, and hubby takes out the rubbish and does any jobs I ask – they just don’t see mess like I do. My husband will actually walk over strewn toys or shoes without noticing them. It has taken years, but I have learnt not to get cross with them, and him in particular – I just let them all help (even the twins, age 7) if they offer, but I try not to nag. If they don’t it the way I want it done, I redo after they have gone if I NEED to. If it’s good enough I leave it. I have learnt to love imperfection, and I figure a buyer will see past a bed that is made a little crooked. Unless they do the white glove test the house will look clean enough if it’s tidy and smells nice (or at least doesn’t smell bad).

At present my husband usually takes the kids to school, and then I have about half hour or so to tidy in peace before I leave for work. Sounds fun right?!
So what do I do in that half hour?

 source

The Half hour tidy
1. Put the breakfast dishes into soak (I could rinse and stack the dishwasher);
2. Wipe the table and shake out or replace the cloth and put a bowl of fruit on it;
3. Wipe all the counters and the coffee table in the lounge;
4. Open curtains, blinds and windows;
5. Use a cushion to dust off (whack it forcefully) the sofa then adjust the cushions;
6. Check the kids beds are made and open their blinds and windows;
7. Throw any clean clothes in their cupboards, dirty in the hamper and toys in a basket for them to sort out later;
8. Toilet duck the toilet, flush and shut the lid;
9. Wipe the bathroom sink and hang up towels neatly;
10. Wash the dishes and leave to drain;
11. Sweep or lightly mop all the floors except the kitchen;
12. Put away the dishes and wipe the sink and stove top;
13. Wipe the fridge and oven doors and hang up a clean tea towel;
14. Mop the kitchen floor;
15. Take out the trash out on the way downstairs; and lastly
16. Brush teeth, put on lipstick, perfume, jewelry and shoes.

Remember this is upstairs only, which is a small three-bedroom house (downstairs is built in under and has our room and bathroom, which I make sure is neat before I shower, dress, basic makeup and hair and go upstairs for breakfast). This makes my home tidy, and clean enough for visitors, and for me (as long as no-one looks in the fridge cause that’s next weekends job). Sometimes I open blinds and windows first thing if I have to wake the kids up (not usually with the little two but often with the big two) and do the lounge while waiting for the kettle to boil etc. It’s winter here now – in Summer I tend to clean and then shower, and it gets so hot and humid here.

How can I be bothered every day? I want to sell my house! And although I have told the agent I like a days’ notice, I really don’t want to say no to a prospective buyer. But it’s really just a bit more of what I do each day anyway. I like a tidy house – it makes ME feel better and more relaxed. I love to sit on the couch with the kids and do their readers after work and not think “I really need to get those cobwebs”, but really focus on them instead. Today I also stripped the kids beds and put the sheets into wash. I will stick them in the dryer when I get home. I also didn’t put away the dishes – but they are quite neat and decorative on the rack.

Next kitchen is having one of these! source

Since I stopped complaining about housework and stopped nagging everyone to do their bit, they are all more happy to help. The little two compete with each other to make their beds first in the morning and the big two will do a job, like unstack the dishwasher, on the first ask. I try not to live in a fantasy world where everything is magazine perfect and my pegs are matching on each item of clothing I hang out to air dry (yes, I did used to do this). I know that the mess will be back tomorrow morning, and I will have to do it all again, but I think of it like brushing my teeth – it’s so routine I don’t even think about it and I feel (and smell) better when I do it.

Tools for success:

Get a good broom and mop – preferably the same one like the Enjo one I mentioned earlier – you can swap heads easily and you don’t need buckets of water. (Yes I did used to sell them, but I have had mine over 10 years and it’s still going strong. My husband used to snap a mop every time he used it, but this one is strong and height adjustable – shorten it for the kids or lengthen it to dust cornices. You can also put a window washing squeegee on it). Also a good brush and shovel (with long handle so you don’t have to bend down, or make it your little ones ‘special job’ to do it for you).
Get a good vacuum cleaner – even if you have polished boards like me, you will probably have rugs. Vacuuming is heaps easier than beating them out. It can also do your car, blinds, sofas, the little gap under sliding doors and window, air vents, pump up a air bed etc....

1948 Hoover ad source

 Use minimal cleaning chemicals – I use enjo cleaning cloths, which need no chemicals, but I do have a simple nice smelling cleaner that I sometimes use when I want a little extra (or the kids are helping, they love to spray stuff) – ½ white vinegar and ½ water with a little essential oil – I like lavender or eucalyptus. I also use cotton dishcloths which I wash every day, although I often I wipe down the bathroom sink with a dirty t-shirt from the hamper. Bi-carb soda is great for stainless steel sinks (baths, dirty pots, bottom of glass vases), and is a bit like the old powdered cleaners (Bon ami) , but better for your hands.

Toilets are the one place I use real cleaner – I toilet duck everyday just about, but I try and get the enviro-friendly one. My kids used tho play with the leave in thingy’s so I don’t use them (although I hope their past that now!) And if you have little a boy, like I do, check the toilet walls regularly too!

Bon ami ad 1935 

Use hampers/ baskets for dirty linen– the big girls have a basket in their rooms for their stuff (and they do their own washing) and there is one in the bathroom for the twins. We have our own. I do a dark load every day, bath towels twice a week, and sheets/shower curtains and whites on Saturdays. Curtains and blankets I do about once every two months.
Bins – have lots of them, kitchen, bathroom, laundry and each bedroom. Line them with used grocery bags, or get scented bin liners. Get the kids to take out their own rubbish when the bin is full, or at least every rubbish collection day.
Baskets – have a nice one (vintage with a lid or handle, or even one of those stools with a hinged lid) in each room for bits that are laying around that you don’t want to throw away or put away – toys, odd shoes, hairbrushes. Then when someone (right Olivia) says, “I can’ find a hairbrush” you can point to the basket. Empty it at the end of the week, or better yet get the kids to do it.

cute vintage basket

Get a clothes dryer – I am assuming here that you already have a washing machine (if not, get one, they are the world’s best labour saving device ever invented). Yes, I know air drying is better for the environment blah blah – I do do it - When it’s not raining, or on the weekends. You could even call them vintage, as the first electric dryer with a glass window was developed in the 1940s. I used to wash at night and hang on the line, but now we have fruit bats at night and second hand mango stains real bad, let me tell you! Even if I hang clothes under the house to dry, I still put them in the dryer for five minutes to soften them up and make sure they are REALLY dry – in this climate everything goes mouldy really easy (except shirts, which I like to iron while damp). Also, fold clothes straight from the line or dryer to save creases and time.
I would rather have a clothes dryer than a dishwasher – If I am going to rinse I might as well wash, although I don’t dry I let things air dry. If you hate washing, though, by all means get one.

Bendix dryer ad 1948 source

Flowers – treat yourself (or train your partner) to a bunch of fresh flowers (or a flowering plant) every other week. My husband started doing this for me – he gets a bunch of lilies at the supermarket when he does the groceries on the weekend (he loves it, takes one child for ‘special one on one time’ and is leaning to stick to the list). The flowers sit near the front door and smell wonderful – and people always notice them and comment, which means they have less time to notice any mess I may have missed. As they die off I stick in a few fern or palm fronds - greenery is cheap and cheerful. Flowers are great to hide defects too, like that drawing someone did in lipstick and you haven’t had time to scrub off. Pot plants are also great, if you remember to water them each week and have kids who no longer eat dirt.

My entry and dining area

 
Just remember, as my mother in law told me recently, the day your house will stay clean is actually when you don’t have the kids at home anymore, or a husband, or pets.  Enjoy a little mess – it means you have love, or at least company, in your life.

deb xx

July 1932 Better Homes & Gardens

1932

A step further back in time today. I recently bought this magazine on Etsy – Better Homes & Gardens July 1932.
Here are some of my favorite ads:

A soap ad with a story for the kids

 

I want one.

Better Homes was founded in 1922 by Edwin Meredith, who had previously been the United States Secretary of Agriculture under Woodrow Wilson.  It was originally launched under the name Fruit, Garden and Home and changed to Better homes and Garden in 1924.  It is still published twelve times a years by the the Meredith Corporation, and is the fourth largest selling magazine in the US.

In a 1938 issue of Better Homes and Garden an article called "Toss That Salad" was featured. It introduced tossed green salads to American families. and the recipe was a variation on a classic French Vinaigrette Salad.  What a revelation! You can read more about the history of the magazine here. 

Deb xx

My Home July 2012

Here's our humble little home as at July 2012.  It's a 3 bedroom high-set built in about 1964, and downstairs is closed in (our bedroom currently).

Front with shadesail carport

Lounge/Living room

Kitchen

Dining area

back deck

Pool area

Parents retreat

ensuite

Walk in Wardrobe

Twins Room (with playroom veranda)

front yard with in ground trampoline

 Deb xx

16 July 1942–The Big Sweep Begins in Paris

 

On this day in 1942 La Grande Rafle ("The Big Sweep") began in Paris.  Just after Bastille day there were many Gestapo in Paris, and the Nazi s decreed that all stateless and foreign-born Jews (including German and Austrian Jews but not British and American Jews) living in the city be rounded up.  Many thought they would be relocated, but the Nazi plan was more extreme.

The Rafle du Vélodrome d'Hiverv, which was actually conducted by the French police, was the first of these roundups on 16 and 17 July 1942, code named Opération Vent printanier ("Operation Spring Breeze"),it  involved the arrest of around 13,000 Jews  (3,118  men, 5,919 women and 4,115  children according to police records).  Under the authority of the Vichy government’s Secretary General of Police, the majority of those Jews were taken to the Vélodrome d’Hiver (Vél d’Hiv'), the winter cycling stadium in Paris.  The Vélodrome was designed to hold less than a quarter of the number people, and conditions inside were miserable.   There were few toilets, little water and no food.  After six days  the prisoners were finally transferred to nearby camps and from there to camps in the east, such as Auschwitz, for extermination.

Vélodrome d'Hiver, in Paris,
July 1942.  Source

It wasn’t all the Nazi’s idea,  in July 1940 the Vichy government had began a review of all naturalizations in France since 1927, including Jewish and non-Jewish immigrants.  A month later the Marchandeau Law of 1938, which banned expressions of anti-Semitism in the press, was repealed.   In October 1940  the first Statut des Juifs was passed, which defined Jews by their race and excluded them from top positions in the civil service and army.  In June 1941 a second Statut des Juifs  was passed that led to a purge of Jews in various professions, a census of all Jews in the occupied zone, and a huge  “aryanization” campaign.  In all, at least 77,000 Jews from France were murdered during the war.

Marshal Philippe Pétain, head of the Vichy government, greets Adolf Hitler. source

If you a haven’t seen it, the movie Sarah’s Key is worth a watch and gives a dramatic account of the events of July 1942.  It cuts back and forth in time to tell the slowly intertwining stories of Julia Jarmond (Krsten Scott Thomas), an expatriate in Paris circa 2002, and Sarah Starzynski (Melusine Mayance), a 10-year-old girl arrested by the French police during the July roundup of 1942.  It is a fascinating movie, but don’t watch it with the kids.

Sarah in the velodrome. source

In 1995 French President Jacques Chirac apologized for the complicit role that French policemen and civil servants served in the raid on 16 July 1942.

Deb xx

Road to Morocco, 1942

Perfect for a rainy Sunday Afternoon while catching u with the ironing, Road to Morocco is an 1942 American comedy about two fast-talking guys  (Bing Crosby and Bob Hope) who are shipwrecked on the African coast after accidentally causing a merchant ship to blow up, because of Bob smoking in the Powder Room..  They sing on top of a camel on their way along the road to Morocco  and Bing sells Bob into slavery, where upon  he is dragged off to parts unknown.  Bing’s conscience, in the form of the ghost of his Aunt Lucy, bothers him,  and he searches the town in search of his buddy.  He sings Bob’s favourite childhood song to help find him, and despite Bob’s pleas to leave the country before he too is tortured, Bing enters a luxurious palace, where Bob is being treated like a rajah by a beautiful Moroccan princess (Dorothy Lamour).  

The princess announces plans to marry him, as she has been advised by her astrologers that her first husband will suffer a violent death, and that her second marriage will be long and happy. The boys don’t know this, but a Sheik  (Anthony Quinn) is waiting in the wings as husband number two.

Quinn and Lamour  source

 Of course on the eve of the wedding, the astrologers find they've made a mistake, and the princess is now free to marry the man of her dreams-who, by this time, is Bing.  Bob must console himself with the beautiful handmaiden (Dona Drake).  The sheik is non too happy, and kidnaps the princess and handmaiden, leaving Bob and Bing trussed up in the desert.  They escape and make their way through the desert (and mirages) sneaking into the sheikhs camp to attempt to rescue the girls.

The kidnap source

After getting captured again, they again escape, and start a small war, before finally rescuing the girls and catching a ship to New York.  Bob goes to powder his nose before arriving in the Big Apple, and of course he enters the wrong powder room for a smoke and manages to blow that ship up too, and the four are left on a raft in New York harbour, instead of entering it in style.

Just before the explosion source

The movie is the third of the "Road to …" films starring Bing and Bob and Dorothy Lamour, and there are a few gags to that effect.   In all I thought it was a delightfully funny movie, silly in parts, and I was glad when I finished the ironing and could sit down to enjoy the rest in peace.   Even the kids thought bits of it hilarious, and they loved the talking camels here and there.

American troops landed in Morocco on 8 November 1942 during Operation Torch, and the movie was released later in the month, so it had an automatic drawcard for viewers.  The film won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and was nominated for a few others.

Worth a watch if you can.

Deb xx

14 July 1942–Bastille Day

 

Paris July 1942 Source

The Melbourne Argus reported on 15 July 1942 that there had been a wave of sabotage in Paris on the Eve of Bastille day:

On the eve of Bastille Day, France's national day, a wave of sabotage swept through France… according to reports received through the Low Countries.

Bombs exploded in offices o f the French Tricolour (anti-Bolshevik ) Legion and the People's party at Bourges.  Extensive, damage is admitted, but no  casualties are reported. Railways tracks are reported to have been blown up at Monchy, near Arras; Cayeux, near Saint Valery; and at Anviaiuz.

Lt-Gen Niehoff, German commander at Lille, has announced that 50 Communists have been deported for acts of sabotage.

Hundreds of members of the Gestapo have arrived In Paris,where a big demonstration on Bastille Day is expected, despite the ban on flying French flags. Vichy Government has decreed that there shall not beany national celebrations today, and that the day shall be regarded as one of mourning. Patriots throughout unoccupied France, however, intend to display the Tricolour and sing the Marseillaise.

Sabotage also is increasing in the Low Countries. Warning against this, General von Falkenhausen, Nazi Governor of Belgium, has announced that the Allies are trying to stir up the population by radio and leaflets.

In Holland the Germans have seized a large number of new hostages, and General Christiansen, German commander, has threatened that they will be shot if sabotage continues.

.

Dutch Jews begin for Auschwitz  Source

Indeed thousands of Dutch Jews were arrested in Amsterdam on 14 July, and deported to Auschwitz, where many were gassed. In the Przemysl, Poland, the ghetto was sealed by the Nazis. The news bulletin of the United Romanian Jews of America had been publishing reports of atrocities committed against Romanian Jewry since June 1942, with headlines like "Mass Execution of Jews." The US government, however, remained silent. French Jews, who had been integrated into French Society for around 150 years, would be next, with round ups beginning in a few days time in Paris. 

On a happier note, we have had our croissants for breakfast, and wish everyone a safe and happy Bastille Day!

 Source

Cheers!

Deb xxx

Fantasia, 1940

Another rainy afternoon – it is apparently our wettest winter in over 60 years.   Mackay is usually sunny in July, with the temperature cool enough to actually go outside at midday – great for birthday parties at the beach.  My daughter’s 16th birthday is next week, and at the moment it looks like it will be an inside party.
With homework done, it’s time for a movie. We have around 100 kids movies on the external hard drive.  The kids pick? Fantasia.


Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney.   It consists of eight animated segments set to pieces of classical music conducted by Leopold Stokowski; seven of which are performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra.  The Sorcerer's Apprentice, with Mickey Mouse, is probably the best known piece, and it was designed as a comeback role for Mickey who had declined in popularity.   My daughter’s favourite pieces are the Tchaikovsky's ballet, the Nutcracker Suite, with fairies and dancing toadstools and the The Pastoral Symphony by Beethoven, with centaurs, cupid and fauns.  My son, on the other hand, find those bits a little boring and prefers Rite of Spring by Stravinsky, with dinosaurs and explosions, and the devil in Night on Bald Mountain by Mussorgsky.


When it was released in November 1940, Fantasia received mixed critical reaction, and was unable to make a profit.   The movie needed special sound equipment installed in theatres, which was expensive, and some thought that Disney had got a bit carried away and didn’t bother going to see it. May be it would have done better if was more patriotic – showing a bit more red, white and blue perhaps?   Of course the war also meant it was unable to be shown in much of Europe, which cut revenue too. 

Many critics were harsh too, such as by Dorothy Thompson for The New York Herald Tribune on November 25, 1940. Thompson was recognized by Time magazine in 1939 as the second most influential woman in America next to Eleanor Roosevelt, and was notable as the first American journalist to be expelled from Nazi Germany, in 1934.   She actually compared the film to Nazism, which was "the abuse of power" and "the perverted betrayal of the best instincts."and said the film was "cruel" and "brutal and brutalizing." Interesting!
Dorothy Thompson in 1920

The film did well in Australia however.  On 15 August 1942 the Melbourne Argus reported:
“FANTASIA" BREAKS WORLD RECORD AT SAVOY
SO far as the Melbourne screen is concerned, today marks what,is the most notable date in its history. Wait Disney's "Fantasia"has been taken off the Savoy programme after a full year's run. I believe that is a world record for any film. "Fantasia" opened on August 15 last year……  Had anyone prophesied that an entertainment based on classical music would hold either stage or screen In Melbourne for a year, there would have been a move to have him certified as nuts and locked up for his own safety. I do not say that the Disney organisation could not have turned out a good fantasy without the orchestra but it certainly was the orchestra that Inspired this particular fantasy. But how much of the success was due to the orchestra and how much to Disney is some-thing that can never be settled satisfactorily.
A HERE is one thing, however, of which I am sure. Had the orchestra gone, alone  to the Town Hall giving 2 performances a day it would not have run for 3weeks.  Had Disney's film been put on at the Savoy without the sound track,it might have run 6 weeks, but I doubt it.   The lesson seems to be that the public will accept classical music with an appropriate visual accompaniment.  It is to my mind significant that, practically all the long-run and most popular films have been musical, but their music has not been what is called moderne music.  Remember "Naughty Marietta and  "The Desert Song."

In emphasising the musical side of these shows I do not wish to detract In anyway from the wonderful imaginative work Walt Disney put into “.Fantasia " No 2 people seem to agree on which section should be regarded as the best from the visual aspect and there must have been hundreds of people who saw the film twice or more often” 

You can read the whole article here.


I saw Fantasia for the first time at the age of five in the early 70s and loved it – I have loved classical music ever since.  It had been re-released in the 60s and apparently did better, especially with the acid crowd, although some parts were made more politically correct (removing a black centaur maid for example), so it is no longer the version seen in the 40s.  Because of this scene, and the fact that the centaurs are colour matched into pairs (they are half horse, though, and we do often breed horses according to color), Fantasia is seen by some as one of the most racist films ever made.  Really?! I just always thought the colour thing was cute.   I am so innocent!  (Anyway, the black and white pegasus have four different coloured babies).  It’s sexist too apparently…..!





Love it or hate it, it is a must see. What do you think of Fantasia?
Deb

Day 1045 of the war

I have been very slack with my postings of 1942, so I will try and make up for it today.

This cover is actually from 11 July 1938 – but how cute is Shirley Temple?! Defiantly doing her bit for the war effort.

Did you know that you can read a summary of Anne Frank’s diary online?  Today’s is as follows:

• Nobody but Anne loves the sound of the Westertoren clock, which signals every quarter of an hour. To Anne, it feels like a faithful friend.
• Anne thinks they have the most comfortable hiding place in all of Holland.
• However, she is always terrified that the neighbours might hear them and discover them. Margot has a cold but isn’t even allowed to cough.
• Anne describes the silence of the hiding place as oppressive, especially at night. She can’t wait until the van Daans arrive so that the place isn’t so lonely.

Read more of her diary here.

In the city of (Thes)Salonika, Greece, this day in 1942 became known as “Black Saturday.  9,000 Jewish males from the ages of 18-45 were forcibly assembled at Liberty Square in the centre of the city . About 2,000 were sent to do forced labour for the German army.  We can guess what happened to the rest.

 Source – public humiliation of Jewish men

 

Meanwhile at El Alamein, Egypt, the Australian 26th Brigade pushed  forward taking 1000 Italian troops and overrunning the German Signals  Company 621,  who had been providing Rommel with         intelligence from Allied radio communications.

The Italians also fared badly in the Mediterranean , when South African Naval Forces armed whalers HMSAS Protea and HMSAS Southern Maid plus a land-based Fleet Air Arm Walrus flying boat combined to sink the Italian submarine Ondina with depth charges.

In Alaska, Four B-24s taking off for weather, bombing and photo missions to Kiska were attacked by seaplane fighters.  There were no losses, and a cruiser was bombed with unobserved results.

In the North Atlantic U-203 sank the Panamanian tanker SS Stanvac Palembang (5 dead, 45 survivors in 3 lifeboats picked up by US submarine chaser USS PC-8 next day and landed at Port of Spain), while West of the Portuguese island of Madeira, U-136 is detected and sunk by French and British ships (all 45 hands lost).

In the Baltic Sea, just off the East coast of Sweden, Soviet submarine S-7 sank the Swedish coastal freighter SS Luleå carrying iron ore to Germany.

On  lighter note, the Australian Women’s Weekly published an instalment of Agatha Christie's Poirot mysteries – The Many Headed Monster.  You can read it here.  During the 1930s, Hercule Poirot was always talking about "retiring". Of course, any such period of "retirement" didn't last long and wherever he was, murder seemed to follow – who needed retirement  anyway?!  So he decided to exit in grand style by taking just twelve more cases, each one the modern equivalent of the original 12 labours of Hercules. The Many Headed Monster is also known as "The Lernean Hydra" – very Greecian. A great read if you have time.

Deb xx

Department Store Shopping - 1942

I love this two page ad for Firestone from my American Saturday Evening Post, June 1942.

 

That mix master is unlike any I have seen, wonder what it is.  I also wonder how if “every plant is working twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, manufacturing anti-aircraft fun mounts and carriages, tanks tracks “ etc, how do they have time to make everything else they have for sale?

Firestone sold everything from fishing lures to clothes dryers (yes clothes dryers in 1942 – maybe it was just a clothes rack), white wall tyres to roller skates, and radios to waffle bakers. What a store! I would really love one of the citrus juicers (under ‘for the home near the washing machine’).

What would you buy?

Deb xx