"I remember running from store to store, grabbing as many ballots as I could. In the neighborhood there sure wasn't talk about the election for mayor or governor... but when it came to the Miss Rheingold Contest, everybody was involved. The talk was all about it. Everybody talked about it... and everybody voted."
- John Corrado, resident of East Harlem, NY during the 1940s & 1950s
I was thinking about my precious grandmother tonight and decided to google her name to see what I could find. I knew that she was a model back in the day {and I'm lucky to have lots of her gorgeous photos}, but it was so fun to learn more and see pictures of her that I've never seen. I am so fascinated!From 1940 to 1965, the greater New York metropolitan area took part in selecting a new Miss Rheingold every August. Rheingold was a local brewery that used lovely young ladies as their spokesperson/model for advertising campaigns. I have to say {and I may be biased} that 1951's Miss Rheingold, my dear grandmother Elise Gammon, was definitely a knock-out, no? My favorite is the Christmas-themed one in the white.
If you'd like to read more about the Miss Rheingold contests, you can do so here, here or here.
3 comments:
Your grandmother was, as you can see from the Rheingold ads, indeed beautiful. She was also adorable. We were friends in our twenties, round 1949-50. She married a mutual friend, Edward Ory (I assume your parents will know of this), who recently died. If your grandmother still walks the earth, please send me her phone or email address and I'll brighten her day with sweet memories of our shared youth in glamorous Manhattan.
Stuart Hample
Hi Stuart - so nice that you knew my grandmother back then! Please send me an e-mail (elise@pennyweightonline.com) and I will put you two in touch! Thank you!
this is my favorite post of all time :)
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