JB's Warehouse & Curio Emporium

Never underestimate the power of an audio cassette to bathe you in sound, deep emotions, a radiant glow and mystery mist. Especially when in swimwear. Source: Rolling Stone , April 16, 1981 - JB

Dundas Street West in the Junction, February 21, 2010 - JB

( full size version ) Six respectable-looking Edwardian Torontonians can't be wrong, can they? Even if this miracle revitalizer contains ingredients like arsenic and strychnine ? Alvin Wood Chase (1817-1885) was an Ann Arbor-based patent medicine salesman who received his medical training in fits and spurts while supplying local doctors and drug dispensers. He wrote a series of home remedy handbooks that recommended treatments like using water that toads were boiled in to heal sprains and a variety of poultices to battle cancer . By the late 1940s, Dr. Chase's miracle product was manufactured in Oakville (where the local historical society has posted a 1949 A.W. Chase almanac ). Ads continued to be produced, such as one posted on Kitchen Retro targeting 1950s housewives. Further websurfing indicates that you can still rely on the good doctor to lift brain fog and prevent loss of flesh. Source: The Toronto World , May 13, 1904 - JB

I discovered this account of a late night brouhaha while flipping through the May 13, 1904 edition of the (Toronto) News . Not answered: what exactly set the combatants off and why was Deborah's nature defined as "vigorous"? - JB

(because I left my camera in the car as it spent the second half of the long weekend in the shop...) Top picture taken in Guelph, February 6, 2010, bottom picture taken in Williamsville, NY, February 13, 2010 - JB

Attention Warehouse shoppers: we have a two-for-one deal today in the shirt department...all styles courtesy of the classified pages of Rolling Stone magazine... If the 1970s were the "me decade" then this shirt was right for its time—and it's 100% polyester to boot! The perfect gift for anyone whose philosophy was "it's all about me." Tired of preppies and their crocodile shirts? Not content to wear a knockoff like Fox or the Sears dragon (like I did in elementary school)? Show your scorn for preppie scum by wearing a dead croc! Your impatience will be rewarded... In a shocking development, shirt producer Mad Dog Productions was sued by Izod Lacoste over copyright infringement. According to Wikipedia, the matter was settled out of court and Mad Dog was allowed to sell the shirts for an additional year. Sources: Rolling Stone , May 20, 1976 (Me-T), April 16, 1981 (Croc O'Shirt) - JB

Before reading this entry, check out the related post on Torontoist . This is the full-size version of the ad for Yorkville merchants that was featured in the article—I figured that chopping out the list of businesses would provide less eyestrain, as well as save on endless scrolling if it was blown up to fit standard TOist image dimensions (which will be a risk for the ad I have planned for next week, but I think readers will be rewarded for the extra hand strain...or at least amused). *** Besides offering a suitable menu for two lovebirds, Toronto Star food writer Margaret Carr also provided tips on what to serve when inviting young adults over for a Valentine party. After all, as Carr points out, with Valentine's Day and Sadie Hawkins Day falling in February, isn't it a great month for the young? Naturally, the food will hold first place of interest at the table, no matter how fancy the centrepiece. Give franks a party dress by serving them in a tantalizing barb...

Except that the graphic, under the right conditions, might cause a trippy reaction... Source: Christian Life , May 1968 - JB

Before making too much fun of today's ad, keep in mind that this style of Eastern cuisine was in vogue in the 1950s and that the wide variety of Asian chili sauces you can snap up at many supermarkets and specialty stores today weren't available. Tabasco would have been a respectable substitute for fiery chilies and a big bottle of sriracha sauce . One shuddery aspect: it's hard not to imagine the chef speaking or gesturing in a stereotypical manner ("Gracious sir" is the tip-off), unless tourists were treated this way in Hong Kong. The only vaguely eastern hint in the Foo Yoong Shea Daahn is the curry powder—otherwise I suspect you could go into any American diner, ask for the house/farmers/special omelette, ask the tough-yet-tender-hearted chef if they have any shrimp in the freezer, and add a dash of Tabasco from the bottle on the table. Hearty and tasty as such an omelette would be, it's not a dish that conjures up the wonders of China. Source: Th...

Hmm, haven't checked the condition of my old mix tapes for awhile. Is this offer still valid? A quick surf of Maxell's Canadian site shows that the only type of audio cassette the company currently offers is the general quality variety that Dad bought mass quantities of to record his favourite CBC Stereo/CBC Radio 2/NPR programs. Unless an old photo is being used on the website, the packaging is similar to that used during the 1990s—a red wrapper featuring Maxell's iconic man-in-a-chair facing a torrent of soundwaves. As for the car, replacing a cassette abandoned in the tape deck would be the least of my worries...though the image would make for an atmospheric album cover. PS : Over on Torontoist, this week's Vintage Toronto Ads column spotlights the pre-CBC career of retiring Metro Morning host Andy Barrie. Source: Esquire , October 1981 - JB

Comments left so far on Flickr regarding this economical lunch: "If I'm going to eat that, I'd like to pay less, please." "Do you think if we shell out a few more cents they'll actually COOK the egg?!" "All that prep time AND 15 minutes to cook? How long a lunch break do Canadians get?" "Salmonella On Toast." We're happy to hear your comments or accept photos of any attempts to duplicate this cheap lunch. Source: Homemakers , March 1977 - JB

We may have a new winner in the “most disgusting looking dish ever developed by a corporate test kitchen” department. Ms. Ruby Chicken might have had good intentions, but frankly her dish is a comedy of errors. From the rosy-cheeked, oh-so-70s cartoon of Ms. Chicken in squaw garb to the mothballs floating in the nutrient bath that passes for sauce, one may pause to consider if extended exposure to cranberries has a detrimental effect on the brain. On the plus side, this meal is an excellent way to fight a sudden attack of scurvy. Source: Homemakers , March 1977 - JB

Because the only way to teach American children of the late 1970s/early 1980s about good dental exercise is to employ a Fonzie wannabe. Speaking of Fonzie, while researching a recent Torontoist piece on the early days of CityPulse , I stumbled upon this picture in the Toronto Sun from the episode of Happy Days that inspired the expression "jump the shark" ( Wikipedia has a cleaner version of this picture ). Photo originally published in the September 1, 1977 edition of the Toronto Sun . - JB

During several recent visits to Meijer locations around metro Detroit, I've noticed that the grocery/discount chain is livening up their cart corrals with cheeky posters. Who would be the most likely grocery chain to take this approach in Toronto? Photos taken at Meijer on Rochester Road north of M-59, Rochester Hill, MI, January 16, 2010 - JB

Before reading this post, check out the original article on Torontoist . "Far be it for anyone to contradict the Pope's chef—but John Lickiewicz did just that." So began an article on the chef of the Sir Nicholas that appeared in the January 27, 1979 edition of the Globe and Mail . The article was prompted by a claim by Tadeusz Podbereski, the proprietor of the only Polish restaurant in Mexico, that it took three days and eight kinds of meat to prepare a batch of bigos (hunter’s stew) for Pope John Paul II the night before. Lickiewicz felt that Podbereski had put too much effort into the Pope’s meal (“I don’t know why it took him three days to cook. What for?”), as bigos could easily be made in a few hours. Here is Lickiewicz’s recipe for bigos, intended to feed six: Chop up 3 pounds of fresh cabbage and place in a four-inch baking dish. Cover and put in the over for 40 minutes at 300 degrees. Remove from the oven and mix with 1½ pounds of sauerkraut, 1½ pound...

Thinking about my aunt prompted me to search on YouTube for the animated tiger graphic WDIV used for their Tigers broadcasts during the 1980s (she watched the game with Dad and I if one was on). If the Tigers won, the clip above was used as the broadcast drew to a close. If they lost, a whimpering tiger with an icepack on its head let out a sad meow, followed by a grumble worthy of Muttley/Mumbly . So far, no sign of the losing cartoon online.

My grandmother, Auntie Gladys and Aunt Shirley in our dining room on Second Concession (Fryer Street), mid-1970s. Who knows what mischief lurked behind Auntie Gladys's eyes in this picture, but it looks like a typical example of her amusing everyone else. She loved baseball, enlivening any situation and, as Gavin beautifully summed up in a post he wrote after she passed away on Monday night , "she loved her hugs." *** She was always "auntie"—"aunt" was too stuffy for her joyous nature. Mom says I always ran to the door if I knew she was coming in, likely knowing there was fun ahead. Though she didn't have any children of her own, she acted as if her army of nieces and nephews were. Even when I reached university age, I called her from far-flung places to update her on my latest adventure in London or New York. *** The last time I saw Auntie Gladys was on Christmas Day. I knew it was a matter of time before she passed on and her shrunken...

While the seasonings and chemicals in the mix may give this meal a south-of-the-border flair, the photographer has not done this tamale pie any favours in the visual appeal department. The slick, shimmery hamburger mixed with bits of corn resembles the after-effects of a night of hard drinking and/or indigestion. As one commentator pointed out when I posted this ad on Flickr, it's possible that high-end cookware was used to lend an air of dignity to the slop on the spoon. Could this ad provoke well-off hipsters to prepare a batch of private label Hamburger Helper knockoff in a Le Creuset pan? There was a time when I was happy to eat ersatz Mexican/Tex-Mex prepackaged food, or any kind of Hamburger Helper apart from stroganoff. The most exotic flavour I liked was Pizza Bake, where the seasoned hamburger was layered onto a crust and topped with cheese. Powdered tomato sauces don't turn me on anymore, but occasionally I crave a cheesy bowl of Tuna Helper. Even then, a box...

According to Spacing's twitter feed , a Bixi bicycle with a City of Toronto logo was spotted in the mayor's office last week. While visiting Montreal in November, Sarah and I almost tested out the city's Bixi system—fears about any mishap with the required $250 credit card deposit per bike gave us pause. Racks were plentiful downtown, with many running low on vehicles. If a system is ever implemented in Toronto, it would be useful for occasional riders, those with no space at home for a bike, or commuters who take TTC one way due to bad weather and bike the other. I could see myself using it for impulsive rides (scenario: we are on a leisurely stroll downtown and are overtaken by the urge to hop on a bike). It would also be ideal for visiting family and friends who might want to go for a ride along city trails and around the islands. While researching this post, I noticed a familiar figure standing next to the Bixi pay machine in the Wikipedia entry about the s...