It
was 1951, and my Christmas present was a new Sparta box camera, with
a flip open viewfinder, and a flash attachment. I couldn’t wait
to get that thing working, and since there were no film or flashbulbs
included in the box, I asked dad if “Stiles Drugstore might be
open,” and he said, “Brent is always there, and I’m
sure he’s open today. He lives upstairs over the business, you
know.” No, I really didn’t know where he lived, but with
dad’s permission and a $10 bill he gave me, I headed down to
see if Stiles was open on Christmas day. He was only about eight
blocks away, and I had been there dozens of times. Brent Styles was
the kind of man who got to know his customers, and dad had been his
very first one on the day he opened. Mom still had the purse dad
bought from Brent, and he was proud of it, and proud to be Brent’s
first customer. One of my sister’s worked for Brent for a time,
as a soda jerk, and he knew our whole family well. I wonder what ever
happened to that old purse. It was covered with Rhinestones and mom
never used it, primarily because dad didn’t take her anywhere
where it would be appropriate. It was still in its box the last time
I saw it, in mom’s Chester drawers. It apparently was an
anniversary present, and I know mom was proud of it, because it was
often the topic of conversation, especially when visitors came, and
she would smile as she repeated the story. It had to be a testament
to their love.
As
I turned the corner from Seneca Avenue to Park Boulevard, I could
almost see the drug store, and I thought the lights in the storefront
were shining on the sidewalk. Yes! It looked like Brent was open for
business. I had been pleading for this camera for several months, but
at ten years of age I was probably not equipped to fully understand
what I had. I did know that I had $10 of dad’s money, and he
didn’t say anything about wanting change. It made me wish that
every day was Christmas; dad did not hand me $10 very often, and I
was determined to spend every penny of it, if I could. I wondered if
I would have enough left over to get one of Mr. Stile’s famous
ice cream sodas. If not, I knew he had lots of good candy treats. I
was almost there, when suddenly, out of nowhere, there were four
older kids headed toward me, on the same side of the street as me.
They were about twelve years old, a little bigger than me, but then,
anyone was bigger than me. I was a beanpole. They also picked on
anyone smaller than them, and I of course was really wary of them. I
was carrying the $10 in my hand, and I quickly stuck it in my jacket
pocket. This was a serious situation. First, I couldn’t whip
even one of these guys, and there were four of them, and they were
laughing and walking four abreast, taking up the entire sidewalk,
plus some. I thought about crossing the street, then I told myself
they would definitely come after me if I did that, so I shifted to
the right side of the walk, thinking, no, hoping they would allow me
to pass. Tommy, the biggest one of them, was on the outside, facing
me, and as we met, I stepped off into the grass, as he bumped me hard
with his shoulder, causing me to step off the curb. I was hoping mad,
but I was not a stupid kid. No one stopped me, so I was safe, and so
was my $10. Crisis averted, and I got back on the sidewalk and
continued on. Maybe Christmas day saved me. It could be those guys
were a little more mellow on this special day.
If
I remember correctly, the roll of film for this camera produced only
12 shots, in beautiful black and white. Color film worked in
the
camera as well, of course, but that was way above my budget (I'm
repeating my dad's words). I bought several rolls of film, as well as
several packs of flashbulbs, and Mr. Stiles asked if I had batteries
for the flash. No, I didn’t, and that ended up taking almost
all of the $10, but I was still able to buy myself a milkshake. Those
were the days. $10 went a long way. Mr. Stiles was good to us
neighborhood kids, and it didn’t hurt that dad was his first
customer.
My
new Sparta had no lens adjustment and required me to hold the camera
absolutely still, with proper distancing from my subject, which was
around 12 feet. At my age, this was a bit more difficult than I had
imagined; I was rarely still to begin with, so from the very
beginning, my photography left a lot to be desired, usually producing
blurry pictures, some of which I did not remember taking. I took a
lot of pictures of lousy subjects, too. Trees, bushes, walls, etc.
Plus, of course, I had to pay to get those pictures developed, so
with the cost of film, flash bulbs, which I no doubt used
unnecessarily, and the final cost of film development, the camera had
a “cost tail,” which I doubt my parents had considered. I
quickly blew through my allowance, and began to hit my father up for
a few dollars here and there. It soon became a problem.
None
of my pals had a camera, so I became very popular in my neighborhood,
at least for a short time. All my friends wanted me to take their
picture with their Christmas tree, lit of course, or with their
favorite present, which mostly was a toy, or a game. I remember the
disappointment of several of them when they viewed the results.
First, they wondered why the picture was not in color, and to say
they didn't understand the cost analysis my dad had laid on me, is an
understatement. My brief popularity was just that; “brief.”
After
all these years, I can still hear my dad's voice giving me an
economic lesson about his pocketbook, and he was right of course.
Yes, as I said, i did wonder if he had really thought about this
present, and the effect on his pocketbook, but I was afraid to say
that to him. I mean, it was the cost of that gift that kept on
growing. I do not remember the cost of film back then, or even how
much the flash bulbs cost, but I do know that I went through several
rolls rather quickly, maybe a dozen, and I loved to use that flash.
The cost of film development was a killer for dad, and that may have
been because dad viewed the result of my photography with a bit of
skepticism. I used the excuse, “practice makes perfect,”
as long as I could, but improvement did not come fast enough, if at
all, and like most kids, I soon tired of my new toy. I am sure that
made dad happy. I know I didn't like those lectures about money, even
though it did help me in later years. In fact, it may be what caused
me to be so frugal. At any rate, I do remember thinking that
photography was more complicated than I had imagined, and it did
cause me to have a new respect for professional photographers.
Looking
back, it seemed only Dick Tracy could take a perfect picture, and
that was done with his watch, in the form of a TV camera/receiver.
Actually, Dick's watch did not appear in the Tracy cartoon until the
late 40s, and it was only a one-way radio receiver then, used to
alert Dick of what the bad guys were up to. It was around 1964 when
Dick's watch was upgraded to become a two way TV, which allowed him
to send pictures of the crooks in action, or picture a predicament in
which he found himself.
Fast forward 75 years; it is so hard for
me to believe that we can get a perfect picture or video with our
cell phone, in beautiful color, and send it to anyone anywhere in the
world. In fact, it is difficult to mess up a shot, no matter how
quickly we snap the picture. It is pure nostalgia to think I received
the latest technological advancement on Christmas day, 1951, in the
form of a box camera. I remember the Brownie and Sparta cameras were
competing not only for the child market, but also for adults who had
never used a camera. Back in the day, there were many photography
studios, and parents would take their children, or family to have
quality photos taken. In fact, back then a lot of families didn't
even own a camera.
Today,
I am a good photographer, especially with my cell phone, but I have a
quality camera as well, which also takes good pictures. I have
hundreds of pictures on my phone, all shared with my tablet, laptop,
and tabletop computer, and of course, backed up in the cloud. I can
even share my pictures with my smart TVs, as well as anyone who
wishes to see them.
My
mother passed away in the fall of 1963, so long ago. My father passed
in the fall of 1991. The greatest invention my mother would say she
loved was the telephone. I can remember a day when we would receive
phone calls at a neighbor’s house. Our neighbors were kind
enough to allow us to give their phone number to relatives and
friends, and when someone called for mom or dad, our neighbor, “Tommy
Howerton,” would knock on our door and announce, “A call
for you, Mrs. Cowles.” then in 1951, or so, we got our own
phone, with a three party line. I think mom must have convinced dad
that we should go, all out, and get a private line. Too much
“listening in” by one of the parties pushed us to want
more privacy. For dad, he would probably say the greatest invention
of his time was A/C, and he did love it. I remember visiting him one
hot summer day, and he was holed up in his air-conditioned bedroom. I
never mentioned that it would be simple to air condition the small
house in which he lived, all alone. I knew what the response would
be, and I didn't particularly want to hear another of his lectures
about controlling expenses. He was happy, and his drilling me
with expense control had already paid off; why ruin my visit. I let
it be. He would be proud to see that he helped put me on the
road to financial success, but probably a little disappointed
with my
politics. Dad was one of those who would never vote Republican, while
I have voted for the person whom I feel is the most honest, whether
Democrat or Republican. Time has taught me to become more
conservative, as I have observed the failure of those who wish to use
government to produce a utopia for man, an impossible goal. The
greatest gift we can give our children is education, no matter what
they choose to do in life. And “Dad, I am still a registered
Democrat. I will always stay in the party to honor you.”
This
all started with my Sparta Camera, which in itself, was not the
greatest invention. But, if I had to name what I feel is the greatest
invention of my time, it would of course, have to be the internet.
The computer accompanies the internet, of course, and together, what
an amazing toy and tool for adults and kids alike. From
my old box camera to today’s smartphone, smart TV, Ring
doorbell, laptop, desktop computer, and Alexa, technology has come a
long way.
What technological
miracles will be advanced in the next ten years? It is obvious AI
advancement waits for no one - the future is coming quickly. The
thing my Sparta taught me is that new technologies are never perfect.
They are not always what they are cut out to be. There are downsides
to everything, and we should do our best to recognize them for what
they are. While nothing is perfect, I marvel at these amazing things
happening during my lifetime, and my imagination goes wild, as I
dream of what the future may hold.
Contact
James (Unless
you
type
the
author's name in
the subject
line
of the message we
won't know where to send it.)
