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The CRPF "Old Phones in Movies & TV" Compilation

Started by HobieSport, November 23, 2008, 01:45:19 AM

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Dave F

Here is a nice old payphone getting ready to be destroyed in the 1958 cult classic, Attack of the 50-Foot Woman.  The cheesy huge prop hand belongs to the 50ft Woman herself, Nancy Archer, played by beautiful (and not-at-all-cheesy) Allison Hayes.

Allison Hayes appeared in many movies and TV shows in the 1950s and 60s, Attack of the 50-Foot Woman being her best-known role.  Sadly, Allison died from leukemia in 1977.  She was only 46.

Southern California is the worldwide hub of the movie industry, and it should be no surprise that many in the entertainment business have found their final resting places here.  Allison is buried at Holy Cross cemetery in Culver City, CA under her birth name, Mary Jane Hayes.  Holy Cross is just about two miles from my house.  Yesterday, I took a ride up there to visit her gravesite.  I have included a picture of her grave marker in this post for posterity.  Rest in peace, Allison.

DF

Russ Kirk

Thanks for sharing that Dave!
I wonder what ever happened to that old payphone....

Find-a-grave is also a good web page.  She is listed.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=4283

- Russ Kirk
ATCA & TCI

TelePlay

Was watching Niagara (1953) a few months ago when I spotted this phone. The movie was on again late last night so I taped it to get this picture. I know, it's kind of hard to see the phone but it's that funny looking black thing in the lower center.  ::)

So, what is it. The phone is in a resort on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls (and I don't think they did this on a back lot somewhere), it's where the call originates. It looks like a Gray paystation with a top transmitter and a strange way of mounting it, if that's what those two top "hooks" really are, or is it an optical illusion because of the mirror?

So, what is it? Was that a common phone in the day?

WEBellSystemChristian

#573
It looks like a Gray Pay Station attachment fixed to a WE candlestick, but it has a dial. I've seen a few of these, but not many (and none with a dial like that).
Christian Petterson

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right" -Henry Ford

Greg G.

Catching up with Mad Men.  Lots of phones in the program, spotted this 10-button.  It's 1973 in the episode, there's a mixture of rotary dials and TT.  I haven't spotted a 12-button version yet.  There's a TT in the Draper bedroom, but can't see how many buttons it has.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Argee

Mad Men isn't in the 70's yet, it's still mid 1969.  Oh and the phone in the bedroom is a pink 1500.

Greg G.

#576
Quote from: Argee on December 15, 2014, 05:42:32 PM
Mad Men isn't in the 70's yet, it's still mid 1969.  Oh and the phone in the bedroom is a pink 1500.

You're right, I know why I was off a few years.  I saw some clues that referenced Nixon's inauguration, but I was thinking of his reelection in 72, which was memorable to me because it was the first election I was eligible to vote in.  He was first elected in 68, inauguration in 69.  69 would also make sense since his "niece" was definitely still in the late 60s hippie mode. 
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

andre_janew

I was thinking that the 12 button phones came out in the late 1960s.  When they first came out, the * and # buttons had no known use.  Am I correct in all this?

Greg G.

Quote from: andre_janew on December 18, 2014, 06:57:23 PM
I was thinking that the 12 button phones came out in the late 1960s.  When they first came out, the * and # buttons had no known use.  Am I correct in all this?

1968 per Paul F's website.  But I imagine it was a while before they were in common use and the 10-buttons disappeared.  I was around then but don't recall the transition from 1500s to 2500s.  I only remember when a neighbor down the street got a 10-button and showed it to me when I was over there one time.  I remember being totally impressed, that was really something!
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

andre_janew

That would make me about seven years old when the 12 button phones first came out.  I lived in a rural area that had party lines at the time.  As I understand it, touch tone phones and party lines weren't exactly a good match.  I don't think anyone in the area had a touch tone phone until the late 1980s or early 1990s.  That was about the time that an enhanced 911 system made party lines obsolete.

19and41

One old movie that revolves around telephone communication is 1950's  711 Ocean Drive, with Edmond O'Brien.  It's about a electronics expert that sets up a wire service for illegal horse race betting.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
— Arthur C. Clarke

Waterland

What kind of phone is this?  It's the from the 1976 Dario Argento horror classic "Profondo Rosso" (known as "Deep Red" in English speaking markets).  Sorry I couldn't get any better shots of it, it's only on screen for a brief time.  I'd like to find one of these for my collection, I think it's a very attractive phone.


BDM

#582
This episode of Father Knows Best - Short Wave. In the beginning the son uses what appears to be a 302 & E handset. Add to the fact he's trying to repair a Zenith H500 Trans Oceanic (missing the flip-top cover and antenna).

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xpm8ke_father-knows-best-short-wave_lifestyle


--Brian--

St Clair Shores, MI

19and41

Columbia Pictures, where the series was produced, had a product placement agreement with Zenith. You see a lot of their radios and even TV's in their programs and films.
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
— Arthur C. Clarke

BDM

#584
Interesting. Wonder why the tape on the front and handle? Plus you'd think someone in the prop department would've taken a rag and dusted her off just a little  ;)
--Brian--

St Clair Shores, MI