posted
I was thinking about my grandfather a little while ago and wanted to share a couple brief things with you.
He was a signpainter who had a shop in Trenton, N.J. back in the thirties and on up until the late fifties. He started out with the R.C. Maxwell Co. in Trenton and Philadelphia as a billboard painter. Actually they painted anything walls, etc.
He said they had a lot of billboards that faced the railroad in those days, namely the one that ran from Boston to South Florida, and that was their territory for a while. They would break up into crews and take the train, ladders and all, down to wherever the board was. Then they'd stop the train so they could hop off and they"d go paint some stuff.'Catch the evening train back. He supposedly was renown amongst his peers for memorizing the layout on the train ride, then being able to go to the sign and lay out the whole thing without another glance.
I have also heard of other times when he was young and starting out... he was on road crews that travelled throughout the south. Maxwell had several crews, and each one would specialize in a particular layout. For example, one crew would do nothing but Coca-Cola, another chewing tobacco, etc. They had an advance man, the salesmen type, go ahead of them and scout out locations....barns, drug store walls,etc. He carried a suply of hams with him and that was the deal. Let our guys paint Coca-Cola on your wall and I'll give you this here ham. Then everyone was amazed when these signpainters showed up and just wacked out this wall. They were so used to painting the same ad that they were very proficient.
Now I'm taking up too much space here. I like hearing stories about the old days if y'all got some.
Best regards to all Jeff
[ September 14, 2002, 11:23 PM: Message edited by: Jeff Ogden ]
-------------------- Jeff Ogden 8727 NE 68 Terr. Gainesville FL, 32609 Posts: 2138 | From: 8827 NE 68 Terr Gainesville Fl 32609 | Registered: Aug 2002
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Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity. — Charles Mingus Posts: 6805 | From: Mendocino, CA. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
That would be interesting reading. Do you happen to know who publishes it. I haven't seen that one mentioned anywhere . By the way, my grandfather did eventually settle down when he opened that shop in Trenton and rode the neon wave after that. Back then all the shops did "commercial art" as well, designing logos, etc.No ad agencies back then, or at least not like today.
-------------------- Jeff Ogden 8727 NE 68 Terr. Gainesville FL, 32609 Posts: 2138 | From: 8827 NE 68 Terr Gainesville Fl 32609 | Registered: Aug 2002
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posted
Jeff that is a nice story about your Grandfather. What fun to have grown up with signpainting in your family! I love these stories. Mike Languein has tons of stories of his signpainting days. I hope he posts some again.
Posts: 3729 | From: Seattle | Registered: Sep 1999
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Hi Jeff. Here's one that I heard a while ago. Can't remember who told me the story, but I got a chuckle from hearing it.
An oldtime signpainter had finished up a job for a real "nitpicker" of a customer. When this customer arrived to inspect the sign, he immediately went right up to it for a close-up inspection, with the intent of finding some tiny flaw to complain about. This customer was looking at the sign REALLY close, so that his nose was only one inch from the sign surface. The old signpainter then pinched the back of this guy's shirt, and gently drew him back from the sign face. "You're supposed to READ them....not SMELL them" was the oldtimer's admonishion.
-------------------- Ken Henry Henry & Henry Signs London, Ontario Canada (519) 439-1881 e-mail: kjmlhenry@rogers.com
Why do I get all those on-line offers to sell me Viagara, when the only thing hardening is my arteries ? Posts: 2689 | From: London,Ontario, Canada | Registered: Feb 1999
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posted
Maxwell had tons of photos from way back of many of the jobs they did and of General Outdoor which they bought many years ago. David Maxwell donated a lot to the sign museum?? When he sold out a few years ago a lot were thrown away or taken by people who worked there. Some were really neat. I had heard of Horse and Buggy Billposting but not the train thing. Whatever it took I guess.
P.S. What was your grandfathers name?
[ September 15, 2002, 08:52 PM: Message edited by: Roy Somers ]
-------------------- Roy H.Somers Signs Of Distinction 609-652-6507 Oceanville, New Jersey Posts: 107 | From: USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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To Ken, Yeah , Smell That Sign. UMMMM. I smell some 104 and some 101 and some 152 don't you? I just knew the guy in the story was going to end up with paint on his nose, but I like this ending better.
Roy.... in answer to you question.... George Ogden was his name. He might truly be in some of those pix.
[ September 15, 2002, 09:26 PM: Message edited by: Jeff Ogden ]
-------------------- Jeff Ogden 8727 NE 68 Terr. Gainesville FL, 32609 Posts: 2138 | From: 8827 NE 68 Terr Gainesville Fl 32609 | Registered: Aug 2002
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posted
I remember back in the 70's.... did I just say that? the 70's?.. oh well, but I remember when the company I worked at had to do 2 trucks for 2 different companies. they were about 24 ft box trucks with the whole sides hand lettered. When one of the customers came in to pick up his truck he said that the job was "perfect... but there was one small problem.. it seems that we lettered the wrong trucks, we put the companies name on the wrong trucks.. gee it would have been easier for the owners to buy each others trucks.
And then there was the time we letterd a police "Paddy Wagon" this is a van that the police would put the drunks and petty criminals into the back. anyway on the back of this Paddy Wagon we lettered "Free pick up and delivery". we took a photo of it and then removed it, we showed it to the police when they came in and they got a great laugh.
-------------------- "Keep Positive"
SIGNS1st. Neil Butler Paradise, NF Posts: 6277 | From: St. John's NF Canada | Registered: Mar 1999
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Neil- this is slightly astray from the old timers topic, but it fits in the vein of bloopers. I heard this story when I was gold leafing fire trucks at Emergency One in Ocala, FL. It seems that at another fire truck co. there was an order placed for 9 or 10 trucks for a city in Argentina. The trucks were built and the doors were dutifully gilded in Spanish, layed out directly according to the blueprints. The trucks were coated with something to protect them from salt spray during the shipping process, and off they went. When they were unloaded in South America, the coating was washed off, at which time everyone started laughing hysterically and slapping each other. It seems they had neatly lettered "place decal here" in 23 carat gold leaf, complete, of course, with outline, shade, and clear coat!!!
[ September 16, 2002, 09:35 AM: Message edited by: Jeff Ogden ]
-------------------- Jeff Ogden 8727 NE 68 Terr. Gainesville FL, 32609 Posts: 2138 | From: 8827 NE 68 Terr Gainesville Fl 32609 | Registered: Aug 2002
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I see Cheryl measures my ramblings properly; not by volume, but by weight. I believe fertilizer is sold the same way. I concede to Rick Sacks. I like his stories better than my own.
Posts: 1859 | From: / | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
Okay, I got one more. Same grandpa, different time. Now its the middle 1930,s.He had been painting for awhile now, and it was noted by his comrades that he never got much paint on him. He used to argue that he could paint a whole board without getting a drop of paint on him if he wanted to. Well it so happened just around this time he was approached about painting a billboard that was on top of a building right in the middle of downtown Trenton at State and Broad streets. Well he concocted a deal. The billboard was for a tuxedo renting store, so he proposed to don a tuxedo and tophat and go up there and paint that board without getting anything on the tux. He took on all bettors, and when it was all over he won. 'Got alot of press too, I understand.
-------------------- Jeff Ogden 8727 NE 68 Terr. Gainesville FL, 32609 Posts: 2138 | From: 8827 NE 68 Terr Gainesville Fl 32609 | Registered: Aug 2002
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posted
On the other hand -- she had warts! No, no, no - that's not the one. Ha ha ha.
I met an old wall dog once that did high work hanging in a bos'n's chair; backs of theaters, water towers, billboards, etc. During WW2 he had been one of those guys who lowered down on a rope to throw a satchel charge into the caves where the Japanese soldiers were holed up. He was telling me about one time he painted the back of the Egyptian Theater in L.A. on a windy day and around the corner was a Packard dealer, and he had to clean them all up. Slowly he shook his head in nostalgic remembrance and said "Boy! I've painted a LOT of cars."
Posts: 1859 | From: / | Registered: Nov 1998
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