When I was a child, I admired the lovely pink dishes my grandmother had in her china cabinet. She still had a house full of children at that time, and we all ate off those delicate pink dishes. They were Depression glass, a distinctive souvenir of both hard times and the rise of mass production.
Prior to the crash, most glass dinnerware was often clear, and handmade from cut crystal. It cost too much, for even a typical middle class family budget. After Black Tuesday, such extravagances were all but forgotten, as scores of Americans stood in lines waiting for bread.
But a revolutionary machine that used new processes such as mold etching—a method that utilized acid to etch patterns into an iron mold rather than directly onto the glass—made manufacturing glassware quicker and cheaper. The molds themselves were costly, but each one could produce thousands of dishes. Thanks to mechanization, one Depression glass manufacturer, Anchor Hocking, increased glass production from one piece per minute to over 90 pieces per minute. This allowed companies to sell individual dishes, such as tumblers, for a nickel or less.
The price was low enough that such dishes were often offered as premiums for buying other things, such as oatmeal, gasoline, or movie tickets. Read about how Depression glass went from a poor person's treat to collector's item at Atlas Obscura. I'm a collector myself, pink, please, like my grandmother's dishes.
(Image credit: Flickr user PINKÉ)
Comments (5)
A certain shade of pinkish-purple depression era glass used neodymium to give it that color, and I've always wondered if the the glassware can be turned into a laser, as neodymium glass (usually of special quality) is used as the gain medium in some lasers.
(checking) ...yes I was. I never even saw Gladiator.
I wish someone would start again withe River Phoenix movie "Dark Blood," because that plot sounds pretty cool.
On a side note, I had no idea Heath Ledger had a 3 year old daughter. What the hell was he doing popping pills?
I don't know the real facts, but according to "sources" he died from a reaction to combination of over the counter pharmaceuticals. As for people deliberately knocking themselves off even though they are a caregiver, isn't a new idea. You just hear about it less because those people aren’t in the eye of the media.
At least the second (City of Angels) had a father's love for a his kid be the reason for coming back, not the typical boy meets girl.
sigh... thanks for the info.
Bruce Lee did not die while dubbing Enter the Dragon.
He actually died in Betty Ting's Apartment from a reaction to a painkiller given to him by Ting. Its rumored that they were having an affair.