Ford Times: July, 1961

Ford Motor Company began publishing The Ford Times in 1908. The last issue came out in 1993.

My brother was given a friend's parent's collection of Ford Times from the 60s and 70s. My brother gave me the duplicates. It's fun to look at the car and travel culture of my childhood.

The 5" x 7" magazine included wonderful artwork by artists including Charlie Harper. Harper's art appeared in over 120 issues of Ford Times! You can more read about it here.

Ford Times with cover by Charlie Harper

The July, 1961 edition included articles on "How to Visit a College," "Down the Canyon on a Mule," "Do Women Lack the Packing Knack?," "They Hunt for Relics of Rogers' Rangers," "Wagon Train East," "Piggyback on Penobscot Bay," "Land of a Million Years Ago" about Montana's badlands, and more. There is even an article about an early San Francisco Ford dealer!

"Wagon Train East" by Charlie Harper, and illustrated by him, is about a wagon train that went into the Cherokee National Forest

 "Piggyback on Penobscot Bay" illustrations

There was an article by Jo Copeland about how to dress to "Look as Smart as Your Car."

 Copeland talks about what she saw at turnpike restaurants as "the most bizarre outfits this side of a beatnik coffee house." Appalled, she offers suggestions on how to travel in style.

Copland calls the coat illustrated above a 'topcoat,' but I grew up calling them 'car coats.'

"When I am at the wheel, I like to wear short cotton gloves, the kind that wash and dry easily, because my hands stay cooler and cleaner. Bare hands perspire and stick uncomfortably," Copeland wrote.

I know Jo Copeland's name from collecting vintage designer handkerchiefs. I have several in my collection.

Jo Copeland handkerchief

Jo Copeland handkerchief

Learn more about Copeland at Living in Fifties Fashion and at  here

"Seeing Detroit" is about the Ford Rotunda's 25th year. The building was built for the 1934 Chicago Century of Progress Exposition. It was dismantled and relocated to Dearborn, MI.

 In November, 1962 a fire destroyed the building!

The article "How to Beat the Heat" promoted air conditioned cars but also suggested parking in the shade, the use of tinted glass, woven upholstery, opening the vent windows, and the wearing of skirts for women.

"Digger in Velvet" by Franklin M. Reck, illustrated by Charles Culver, was about moles. "He 'hears' with his snout and his tail rather than his ears. He can neither walk nor run," Reck informs. "Next time you catch one of these unrelieved nuisances, pause to admire the world's most efficient sapper with the silk fur and one-track mind."

"The Ford Times Dictionary of Automotive Terms" included expected terms like 'air cleaner' and 'additive.' Then there is 'A-bomb', a hot rod term for a Model A Ford, and 'balloon-foot,' an overly cautious driver. 'Beach buggy' was a car with oversized tires that could drive on the sand, and 'brain box' was slang for a crash helmet.

Of course, there had to be an article on a Ford car. The Falcon achieved over 32 miles per gallon in an Economy Run! Shell Oil reported that a 'skilled driver' with a 'specialized car' could get 168 miles per gallon! 

Another travel destination highlighted was Guilford, CT.

 The illustrations were by Sasha Maurer

"Comforts of Home...Outdoors" touted the latest camping gear.

Travelers would want to know the best places to eat so every issue included "Favorite Recipes of Famous Taverns." This issue included The Red Barn in Fort Scott, KS and its Heavenly Hash and Santa Cruz's Shadow-Brook's Sauce Philippe.

Heavenly Hash
1 can fruit cocktail drained
one or two sliced bananas
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup halved seedless grapes
1/2 cup whipped cream
lettuce
Combine fruit, sugar, and marshmallows. Fold whipped cream into mixture and keep chilled. Serve on lettuce.
The Henry Ford includes digital copies of Ford Times found here.

Nuclear Reactor Accident Inspires Novel

The Longest Night by Andria Williams is inspired by the only American fatal nuclear accident that occurred in 1961.

Young army wife Nat has come to Idaho Springs when her husband Paul is assigned to a nuclear reactor there. With two young children and no support system in place Nat struggles to adjust. Paul realizes that his boss is hiding problems in the plant and when he clashes with his superior he is sent to the Arctic for a six month deployment. Left on her own, a pregnant Nat finds an unlikely friendship and support from a local man. Vicious rumors isolate her from the other wives and threaten her marriage as Paul wonders if he can trust his wife.

The accident in the novel is based an the actual accident which took the lives of three men. Read about the SL-1 reactor and the accident at http://www4vip.inl.gov/publications/d/proving-the-principle/chapter_15.pdf. An Army video illustrates in detail what happened on youtube here.

We recognize in Nat the 60s housewife yearning for more than children and kitchen. I could relate to Nat. Military wives and itinerant pastor wives face some of the same problems: lack of control over when one moves, where one moves, and housing; the need to find friends and support in new communities; husbands with stressful jobs and limited pay. Although the army families had some socializing there was not a lot of mutual support. She is a spirited but idealistic young woman.

I found Nat better drawn than Paul whose actions sometimes baffled me. Nat contends he was not violent by nature, but he hits his boss several times, participates in a near fatal road rage accident, and judges his wife without hearing her story. I actually wondered why she didn't run off with the loving and sensitive local guy.

I was interested to learn about early nuclear reactors and how they worked. The accident was gruesome; the cover-up disturbing.

Readers will find the novel an interesting study of a marriage and informative about early nuclear power.

I requested the book based on this review by David Abrams, author of Fobbit, whose blog I read:
"It's hard to believe The Longest Night is Andria William's debut novel. Her command of language, character, and plot--the three essential ingredients for a riveting read--is extraordinary. This is the book I will be pressing into my friend's hands this year when they ask me what they should be reading."

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

The Longest Night
Andria Williams
Random House
Publication January 12, 2016
$27.00 hard cover
ISBN:9780812997743