By Michael Karl Witzel ©2007-2008
During the twilight of the fifties, the Englander Company manufactured a commercial sleeping slab with a mechanical vibrator at its core. One of their top salesman, John Houghtaling (hotel-ing), peddled the unit to customers in the lodging industry. When a number of clients complained that the buzz-boxes were burning [...]
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By Michael Karl Witzel ©2007-2008
In 1947, Art Lacey opened a small, five pump filling station along Highway 99E in Milwaukie, Oregon. It was the same year he had his biggest—and his best—idea: Why not mount a full-sized, four-engined airplane on top of a roadside gas station business?
When he heard that the military was scrapping [...]
Posted in American Icons, American Rewind, Food and Drink, Gasoline Stations, Historic Highways, Roadside America | No Comments »
By Michael Karl Witzel ©2007-2008
Heinrich Geissler invented one of the first genuine prototypes of the non-filament lamp in 1856. To create artificial light, he used high voltage alternating current to excite the carbon dioxide gas sealed inside a glass tube. But there was one major drawback: The energized gas reacted chemically with the [...]
Posted in American Icons, Roadside America | 1 Comment »