Hats

"Boston Art Gallery, 109 Franklin St., Johnstown, Pa."

A real photo postcard showing three dapper gentlemen in suits, ties, and straw hats pretending to ride in an airship in a photo studio located in Douglas, Isle of Man. Notice how the pilot is carefully operating the fake control lever as a cigarette dangles from his mouth. I just hope that the gas bag above him doesn't contain dangerously flammable hydrogen! Printed on the back: "F. Johnson, Fort William, Douglas, I.O.M."

J. Kohn, the leading clothier and hatter, corner First and Morrison Sts., Portland, Oregon.

"Hurrah! Hurrah! The Fourth of July. Liberty. Copyright 1908, P. Sander, N.Y." The disembodied head of Uncle Sam appears to be exploding out of an oversized firecracker to commemorate Independence Day!

Handwritten on back of photo: "Orville Mellis, Decatur, Illinois, 1938, Lincoln impersonator." Reminiscent of Alexander Gardner's photo showing Allan Pinkerton, President Lincoln, and Maj. Gen John A. McClernand posed in front of a tent on the Antietam, Maryland, battlefield, Oct. 3, 1862.

"Ye Gilded Boob. / You think that you are: just it, / With your monocle [kid gloves] and ten-dollar hat." A vinegar valentine that pokes fun at pretentious fools. The reference to a "ten-dollar hat" may come from the saying, "He wears a ten-dollar hat on a five-cent head," suggesting that an expensive hat can't make up for a lack of intelligence. For a similar valentine, see Oh! You Lobster .

"R. & J. Beck, opticians, 1016 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. Copyrighted by Chas. W. Frost 1879." There's no signature, but the artwork is either by or in the style of Kate Greenaway . For another trade card from this company, see W. H. Walmsley, Manager, R. & J. Beck, Opticians, Philadelphia, Pa. (thumbnail image below).

Text of the sign that the two men at the front are holding: "Suvretta House Été 1919! [Suvretta House summer of 1919!]" (mouse over the image to see an enlargement of the sign ). A real photo postcard showing the chef staff of a luxury hotel, the Suvretta House, in St. Moritz, Switzerland, in 1919. The hotel celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2012.

"The Whole Dam Family on Their Vacation. Mrs. Dam, Mr. Dam, Miss Dam, Master Dam, Cissy Dam, Kity Dam, Baby Dam, The Dam Dog. Copyright, 1905, W. G. Kress." The "Whole Dam Family" postcard craze was in full swing when the Insurance Press asked about the Dams in its May 31, 1905, issue, p. 6 : "Whence the sudden prominence of this family of strong and sturdy patronym? At present writing, the streets of every city and town ring with the name of these celebrities. Venders, fakirs, and newsboys vie with one another in sounding their glories, and stationers' windows are graced with their smiling portraits. On poster and mailing card they are displayed--a handsome, happy group labeled 'The Whole Dam Family,' from Mr. I. B. Dam and Mrs. U. B. Dam through the grades of little Dams, down even to the Dam dog. An ideal family!" For other "Whole Dam Family" postcards, see The Whole Dam Family and The Last of the Whole Dam Family . Or take a look at The Whole Dam Family Postcard Craze, 1905 .

"No. 404, Hatters' 2 designs." A sample of an advertising trade card for hatmakers.

Dressed up for "Halloween" in the Vintage Photos Theme Park . I found this photo at an antique co-op in western Pennsylvania a couple of years ago. I was able to determine the month and year--October 1916--from the Mellon National Bank calendar that's hanging on the wall.

Women in disguise for Halloween? Or just for an amusing photo? Printed on the back of this real photo postcard: "Twentieth Century Studio, 263 North Eighth Street, Philadelphia, Pa."

Handwritten on the back of the photo: "Suzy on Halloween '53 (her hat slipped a little)."

A souvenir photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park . The souvenir photo category is a favorite of mine, and two of my previous theme park submissions happened to be souvenir photos (see Two Woman Posing for a Boardwalk Souvenir, Atlantic City, N.J. and High over Zurich, Sept. 22, 1910 ). This souvenir real photo postcard shows a man wearing a fez and riding an ostrich at the Cawston Ostrich Farm in South Pasadena, California, sometime in the early part of the twentieth century. The logo on the fez, consisting of a scimitar, crescent, and star, identifies the man as a member of the Shriners . The letters "RAJ" are barely visible above the logo and indicate that he belonged to the Rajah Temple , which was a local Shriners' chapter based in Reading, Pennsylvania, at the time this photo was taken. For another example of a souvenir photo from the Cawston Ostrich Farm, see ricksoloway's f_cawstonostrichfarm photo on Flickr.

A glasses photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park . Well, no, this is probably not silent film star Harold Lloyd and his father, but the men's distinctive round glasses and straw hats are certainly reminiscent of the ones Lloyd wore in early comedies like 1923's Safety Last! (see it on YouTube: Harold Lloyd's "Safety Last " - 1923 ).

These six fellows evidently got their picture taken before they headed out hither and yon for a wild night of zithering (or, more specifically, autoharping ).