Rainy Day At The Ritz ...

“I can’t imagine there has ever been a more gratifying time or place to be alive than America in the 1950s. No country had ever known such prosperity.”

         ~ Bill Bryson

         ~ American-British author

          ~ born 1951

In the mood for a steak sandwich & fries, barbecue or maybe a burger, all topped off with ice cream? Then look no further than the iconic Ritz Barbecue, a tasty staple on the grounds of the Allentown Fairgrounds since 1928 in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Dine inside or step right up to the window to order as 1950s era music wafts outside and enjoy a slice of nostalgia served up by the eatery.

The Ritz serves up a pop of color in the painterly HDR image I shot in a rainy mist on a drizzly late December afternoon as the tree to the left is still festooned with Christmas lights.

 

Christmastime In The City ...

“Silver bells, silver bells

It’s Christmas time in the city ….”
                    "Silver Bells"

                        ~ composed by Jay Livingston & Ray Evans

                                                            1950

The spirit of Christmas illuminates on the iconic PPL building this

December in downtown Allentown, Pennsylvania.

The PPL Building, formerly the Pennsylvania Power and Light Building,

is a 24-story, art deco/art moderne skyscraper at Ninth and Hamilton Streets.

It is the tallest building in Allentown and the second tallest in the Lehigh Valley, and serves as the headquarters for the electric utility, PPL.

The building is often uniquely illuminated at night, especially during

the Christmas season. During the 1960s, PPL supported the local United Fund community drive program by using the building’s brightly lit windows at night

To spell out the abbreviation “U.F.” to remind area residents to contribute to the fund drive.

The PPL building was built from 1926-1928. The building was designed by architect and skyscraper pioneer Harvey Wiley Corbett, who would later have a hand in designing New York’s Rockefeller Center, and was supervised by his assistant, Wallace Harrison, who would later design Lincoln Center, La Guardia Airport, and the United Nations Headquarters Building. The building has exterior features bas reliefs by Alexander Archipenko. In 1930, the PPL building was named “the best example of a modern office building” by Encyclopedia Britannica, and also featured the world’s fastest elevator.