Photos, videos and docs of Alan Mays, with the keywords: "December 25"

Dreaming of a Gold Christmas

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 23 Dec 2024 02:53:02 +0000

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of holiday happenings -- any kind of end-of-year holiday gathering, celebration, or decoration.

Gold is the color of the day in this holiday scene that includes a gold Christmas tree, a gold sculpture on the wall, and gold wrapping paper and bows on the some of the presents. Even the carpet has a yellowish-almost-golden hue.

There's no date on the photo. What do you think -- 1960s?

The Girl Was Smiling But Her Doll Was Not

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Fri, 23 Dec 2022 23:45:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of toys or gifts.

A Christmas photo of a girl, who is smiling and seems happy, and her doll, who is rigid and tense -- and seems a little scary!

Before you cautiously back up and quietly exit the house, take note of the metallic Christmas tree, the granny square afghan on the chair, and the girl's striped shirt and Santa pin.

For another potentially scary situation, see The Doll Waited Patiently for Them to Come Home.

A Giant among Santas

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 26 Dec 2021 02:45:02 +0000

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A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of with Santa.

"Merry Christmas."

Two girls and a man pose for a photo next to a remarkably tall Santa Claus. This real photo postcard has a "Devolite Peerless" stamp box on the other side, and it's likely that it dates to the 1950s.

Season's Greetings from the Dé Lardis, 1938

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sat, 26 Dec 2020 02:15:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"The Dé Lardis. 1938 Season's Greetings."

Photographer Alfred A. Dé Lardi (1900-1993) created this small but unique greeting card that superimposed photos of himself, his wife Dorothy, and his daughters Janice and Yvonne onto individual playing cards (plus there's an extra card that doesn't have a photo). Since there's a total of three queens and two kings (three of a kind and a pair), I think he was suggesting that there was a "full house" at the Dé Lardi residence in 1938!

Alfred Dé Lardi was a well-known photographer who worked for the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper, Holiday magazine, and various companies, including the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Philadelphia Electric Company.

He taught photography courses at a number of schools and colleges in the Philadelphia area, and he also authored or edited a number of books on photography, such as Let's Make a Portrait (1937), Your Child's Portrait (1937), and Ships and Water (1938).

A collection of Dé Lardi's works was held by the Philadelphia History Museum, and a finding aid, Alfred A. Dé Lardi Negatives and Photographs, circa 1929-1964, was formerly available through the University of Pennsylvania Libraries (unfortunately, the Philadelphia History Museum closed in 2018, but there are plans underway to transfer its collections to Drexel University).

I'd like to acknowledge Gary Discavage, a dealer at Apple Hill Antiques in State College, Pa., who graciously gave me this photographic greeting card. Gary originally received the card from Alfred Dé Lardi, who was his friend and neighbor when he lived in Philadelphia. Thanks, Gary!

Paper Moon with Finnish Christmas Greeting, 1914

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 04:22:02 +0000

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A young woman posing with a paper moon. The sign in front of her says, "Hauskaa Joulua Ja Onnea Vuodelle, 1914-1915."

Google translation from the Finnish: "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, 1914-1915."

This is an unmailed real photo postcard with an Azo stamp box (four corner triangles pointing up) on the other side, which suggests a time frame—1904 to 1918—that matches the holiday season—1914-1915—indicated on the sign in the photo.

Christmas Greeting, Edward Ridley & Sons Department Store, New York City, 1880

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:45:02 +0000

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Edward Ridley & Sons, a New York City department store, printed this trade card for customers during the holiday season in 1880, and the store also took out newspaper ads to offer its "annual greeting."

The other side of the trade card is a wintertime illustration of a little girl holding some toys as she stands in the snow. This side (above) features the store's Christmas greeting:

32nd Annual Greeting

A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Toys, Dolls, and Holiday Presents.

Edw. Ridley & Sons

309, 311, 311½ Grand St.
59 Orchard St.
58, 60, 62, 64, 66, 68, 70 Allen St.

New York

The following excerpt from the store's advertisement in the New York Herald on December 5, 1880, provides additional details about its holiday sales:

Thirty-second Annual Greeting

Santa Claus' New Building. Opening Monday, December 6.

First Floor—Endless variety toys, dolls, hobby horses. Also china, glass ware, &c.

Second Floor--Work boxes, writing desks, Japanese varieties, &c., &c.

Tuesday, December 7. Third Floor—Dolls, dolls, dolls. And everything belonging to a doll.

Fourth Floor—Wednesday, December 8. Will contain toys of the very finest description….

Our new building gives 23,000 square feet. All devoted to toys. Come and see the toys and our methods.

Worsted embroideries, slipper patterns, brackets, &c. Photo and auto[graph] albums, in plush, Russia[n] leather and French calf bindings.

Handsome jewel and combination cases, pocketbooks, cigar cases, &c.

Prices below every other house—we warrant.

Girl with Toys in Snow—Christmas Trade Card for Edward Ridley & Sons, 1880

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:45:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

This is the front of a Victorian-era trade card advertising a New York store (for the other side, see Christmas Greeting, Edward Ridley & Sons Department Store, New York City, 1880).

I'm not sure why this wide-eyed little girl is taking all those toys with her out into the snow. She's dressed for the winter weather, however, and is even holding her hands—and her doll—in a muff to keep them warm.

Clear the Track for Merry Christmas!

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:48:10 +0000

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"Clear the track for Merry Christmas. HBG."

A Christmas postcard illustrated by H. B. Griggs (HBG).

Addressed on the other side to Mr. Paul Cadwallader, Sharonville, Ohio, R.R., and postmarked in Cozaddale, Ohio, on Dec. 16, 1910.

Handwritten message: "Hello Old Boy. How are you? Why don't you write. Have been very busy with my entertainment and did not have time. HRB."

A Merry Christmas—Let Every Heart in Christmas Customs Bear Its Part

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 25 Dec 2019 16:49:02 +0000

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A small Victorian-era Christmas card featuring a fairy and flowers.

The verse on the card appears in J. S. Ogilvie, compiler, The Album Writer's Friend: Comprising More Than Three Hundred Choice Selections of Poetry and Prose, Suitable for Writing in Autograph Albums, Valentines, Birthday, Christmas, and New Year Cards (1881), p. 60.

A Merry Christmas

Christmas comes, let every heart
In Christmas customs bear its part:
The old be young, the sad be gay
And smiles chase every care away.

Season's Greetings, 1950

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 15 Dec 2019 16:56:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

"Seasons Greetings, 1950." Handwritten signature on the other side of this photographic greeting card: "The Weidman's."

For the Weidman family Christmas card from 1949, this young girl posed with Santa outside on the porch instead of inside on the stairs. See Season's Greetings, 1949—From Our House to Your House.

Season's Greetings, 1949—From Our House to Your House

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 15 Dec 2019 16:56:04 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of boots (high button boots, rain boots, farm boots, etc.).

"Season's Greetings, 1949. From Our House to Your House."

A young girl, who's decked out in winter clothes and boots, poses with Santa Claus (or a reasonable facsimile), who's also wearing boots.

The girl posed with Santa again in 1950 for another photographic Christmas card. See Season's Greetings, 1950.

Cloyd in Front of the House, Xmas 1961

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Wed, 09 Jan 2019 05:32:02 +0000

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Handwritten note on the back of this photo: "Xmas 61 - Cloyd in front [of] our house. I wanted to get the top of the house. Almost missed him. Got it too high."

Stamped on back: "Jack Rabbit Co., Spartanburg, S.C."

Merry Lemony Christmas

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 25 Dec 2018 14:49:02 +0000

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An early twentieth-century postcard with a shiny "Merry Christmas" greeting that's actually an attached metal piece.

Why does the women in the illustration have a silly grin on her face and why is she holding a lemon, you ask?

At the time this postcard was published, handing someone a lemon was a humorous way to say "skidoo" or "23 skidoo," meaning "scram" or "beat it."

So those who knew about this 23 skidoo fad quickly realized that the lemon signified that this was a tongue-in-cheek greeting.

For another lemon postcard with a backhanded Christmas greeting, see I'm Sending You a Lemon for a Merry Christmas.

To learn how lemons came to be associated with the 23 skidoo fad in the early twentieth century, see Skidoo 23 Is Now 37.

Have a Gleeful, Fun-Filled Holiday!

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 24 Dec 2013 23:04:16 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

Hope you have a holiday celebration filled with as much fun and excitement as these kids seem to be having (well, the youngest one, at least, appears to be having a good time)!

Best wishes,

Alan

Two Santa Clauses in Naples, Italy, January 1, 1962

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 23 Dec 2018 15:32:04 +0000

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Second of two in a series of two or more photos that tell a story (number them, if appropriate) for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

Handwritten note on the back of this real photo postcard: "Naples, January 1, 1962."

Janet, Kit, and George Buck pose with two Santa Clauses in Naples, Italy, on New Year's Day in 1962. These two Santas, with their masks, slightly different clothing, and one holding a cane, seem to me to be rather mismatched and maybe even a bit creepy, but Kit is smiling broadly and looks happy.

Janet and Kit previously had their picture taken with a giant Santa in Athens, Greece, on or before December 30, 1961.

Based on the note that Janet wrote on the back of that first photo, the family was continuing to travel and expected to arrive in Germany by January 6, 1962. These two photos provide a glimpse into what must have been a busy and fun-filled European trip.

Santa Claus in Athens, Greece, December 30, 1961

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 23 Dec 2018 15:32:06 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

First of two in a series of two or more photos that tell a story (number them, if appropriate) for the Vintage Photos Theme Park.

This is a real photo postcard addressed on the other side to "Mrs. Mollie Neperiny, Lacrosse, Kansas USA." There's no stamp or postmark, however, so it was evidently sent in an envelope rather than mailed separately as a postcard.

Handwritten note on the back: "30/12/61. Aboard the ship San Georgia. Bound for Napoli. We are in Athenia now. Expect to arrive in Germany about 6 Jan. 62. Will send Xmas present then. Too many thefts at Turkey in mail. Will explain in letter. Received your pkg. George, Jan, Kit."

As far as I've been able to determine, George, Janet, and Kit (or Katherine?) Buck were traveling in Europe--from Turkey to Greece and then on to Italy and Germany--in December 1961 and January 1962.

Janet and Kit are posing in front of a giant Santa located on a square in "Athenia" (Athens), Greece. The blurred figures of the pedestrians behind them suggest that the camera was set to a slow shutter speed--perhaps it was a cloudy day. The building in the background on the left appears to be under construction. The one on the right has shops on the first floor, and a sign with Greek letters is partially visible on its roof.

As Janet wrote in her note to her mother Mollie, the family was bound next for "Napoli" (Naples, Italy). Take a look at the second photo to see the Santas they encountered there.

Merry Christmas Anyway

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Tue, 25 Dec 2018 04:11:02 +0000

Alan Mays has posted:

The illustration on this Christmas card from 1930 is a reference to the stock market crash that devastated the economy the previous year and signaled the beginning of the Great Depression. We see ticker tape spewing out of a stock ticker machine as brokers run around in the background trying to place buy or sell orders for stocks as the chaos of the crash unfolds. Despite the volatility of the market, the card's message is to have a "Merry Christmas anyway."

"The Bulls and Bears may have their day / But Merry Christmas, anyway. Your son, Ross."

"You can take stock in this greeting."

Handwritten date on the back of the card: "Dec. 15, 1930."

Hearty Christmas Wishes

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 23 Dec 2018 14:23:02 +0000

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An early twentieth-century real photo postcard with the solid three-dimensional letters of "Hearty Christmas Wishes" dramatically positioned against a background of snow-covered trees and hills.

Christmas Candle Kissing Apple

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Sun, 23 Dec 2018 13:56:02 +0000

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"Merry Christmas. Love and best wishes, Catharine."

An odd anthropomorphic scene of a burning candle kissing an apple as they hang together as ornaments on a Christmas tree.

This postcard dates to the first decade of the twentieth century.

Santa's Up on the Housetop!

nobody@ipernity.com (Alan Mays) — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 06:34:02 +0000

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Looks like good ol' Santa Claus and his reindeer are up on the housetop with lots of toys for all the girls and boys!

This is a Victorian-era sample of an advertising trade card.

"Christmas Card—Card No. 3. 3 colors."