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VINTAGRAPH • WPA • WWII • YOU MEAN A WOMAN CAN OPEN IT?

Bar Stars: 1939

Aug. 31, 1939. "Seagram-Distillers Corp., Chrysler Building, New York. General view of barroom. Morris Lapidus, architect." Bonus points for identifying all 24 products. Large-format acetate negative by Gottscho-Schleisner. View full size.

Aug. 31, 1939. "Seagram-Distillers Corp., Chrysler Building, New York. General view of barroom. Morris Lapidus, architect." Bonus points for identifying all 24 products. Large-format acetate negative by Gottscho-Schleisner. View full size.

 

On Shorpy:
Today’s Top 5

Some, but not all...

OK, I'm late to this cocktail party, but I've taken a stab at the bottles (All either Seagram's made, or Seagram's distributed) as best I can see.

Here is the rundown, by rows, left to right, top to bottom:

1 Old Drum Gin (bargain brand)
2 Calvert Gin
3 Seagram's Ancient Bottle Whiskey
4 Kessler Blended Whiskey
5 Silver Dollar Straight Bourbon Whiskey
6 Silver Dollar Blended Whiskey
7 Old Drum Blended Whiskey (Bleh)
8 Calvert Blended Whiskey
9 Pedigree Bourbon (premium!)
10 Seagram's VO (classic Deco bottle)
11 Carstair's White Seal Whiskey
12 Unknown
13 Lord Calvert
14 Lord Calvert
15 Seagram's 5 Crown Whiskey
16 Seagram's 7 Crown Whiskey
17 Seagram's Ancient Bottle Gin
18 Unknown
19 Calvert's Reserve
20 Calvert's Special
21 Seagram's King Arthur Gin (another wonderful Deco bottle design)
22 Seagram's Ancient Bottle Gin
23 Carstair's Gin
24 Obscured

I know all of these products well, making the other two all the more vexing. Not a clue.

Mural

Haven't figured out where the mural went, but found this.

Art Trumps Booze

At least for me it does, I'm most interested in the wonderful mural on the left wall. Wonder if it's still there today, or what became of this barroom? Perhaps it's available for viewing somewhere. I hope!

Design would be hip today

Remove the ashtrays or convert them to champaign and ice buckets and you have the hipster hangout.

Almost!

I get as far as 23, but the one in the bottom right corner is proving hard to identify.

[Let us check your work. -tterrace]

A good time was had by all

One of the leading appliance distributors in NYC (Speed Queen Laundry Products, Roper Ranges, among others) would host dealer trips to the Caribbean, Europe etc. They were earned by selling enough of their goods to qualify, They were able to write it off as a business expense by having a half hour product pitch in the morning. On all those jaunts there would be a Seagram's Public Relations guy, I think his name was Sullivan and he hosted a cocktail party every evening and of course, Seagram brands were the only booze served. He would also supply selections of pint size samples to take home.

Many of those labels

were unavailable in Canada even while being made there, many were for export, and for American customers.

Popular Watering Hole

So much so, in fact, that in about 20 years Seagrams had to erect their own building.

Ashtray City Ordinance 1939

In any bar or restaurant there must be at least one ashtray for every two patrons.

Booze Matrix

Click to embiggen.

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