A Chance to Grab A Real Hot Collectable at Hake’s – The GILBERT NUCLEAR PHYSICS NO. U-238 ATOMIC ENERGY LAB” BOXED 1952 SET

It’s been a bit since the last post in this little corner of the World-Wide-Web – life can be quite the journey here in time and space – but some time must be taken to share this bit of interesting info. Nothing Earth shattering, but quite worthy of note for those who hold a curiosity for that which we have all come to know as the Atomic Age.

Hake’s Americana & Collectables is in the final days of bidding for their Auction #221 and do they have a classic up for grabs – Item 1066. It’s the GILBERT NUCLEAR PHYSICS NO. U-238 ATOMIC ENERGY LAB” BOXED 1952 SET in pristine condition. Folks have shown a bit of interest in this item at the Atomic Flash Tumblr site since it was first posted in September 2016.

Today it could be yours – for a pretty fancy price. We give the floor to Hake’s:

The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab cover Graphics

16.5×25.25×4.75″ deep textured paper-covered case contains A.C. Gilbert Co. set No. U-238 (a clever reference to Uranium-238, the most common isotope of uranium found in nature). This infamous lab’s intention was to allow children to create and watch chemical reactions using radioactive material.

GILBERT NUCLEAR PHYSICS NO. U-238 ATOMIC ENERGY LAB” BOXED 1952 SET

The lab contains a cloud chamber that allowed the viewer to watch alpha particles travel at 12,500 miles per second, a spinthariscope (a device for observing individual nuclear disintegrations caused by the interaction of ionizing radiation w/a phosphor or scintillator) that showed the results of radioactive disintegration on a fluorescent screen and an electroscope that measured the radioactivity of different substances included in the set. Looked upon as being dangerous because of the radioactive material in the set, Gilbert claimed that none of the materials could conceivably prove dangerous.

The lab contains a cloud chamber, a spinthariscope, and an electroscope.

In addition to items mentioned above, lab also includes – Geiger-Mueller Counter, nuclear spheres, Alpha, Beta and Gamma radioactive sources, radioactive ores, three illustrated books – “Prospecting For Uranium, How Dagwood Splits The Atom” and “Gilbert Atomic Energy Instruction Book” – Deionizer, three cardboard encased Winchester batteries. Underside of lid features great illustration of boy using lab w/atomic imagery and content listing as well as promotional text including US Government’s $10,000 reward for anyone finding uranium ore deposits.

The Gilbert Atomic Energy Manual and Prospecting for Uranium. The later was published by the United States Atomic Energy Commission and the United States Geological Survey – it was sold to those citizens who had an interest in hitting it rich in the Atomic Age ‘gold rush’ for Uranium ore.

The cover of Learn How Dagwood Splits the Atom – it’s all very scientific, you know. (The image is not on the item page but this book is also available with the set.)

Case shows little to no wear and displays Exc. Contents are complete and unused w/original packing material and show some scattered aging/dust soiling and are VF overall. Books/manuals show more moderate aging w/some pinch creases to spines. Fine overall. Unlike other chemistry sets released by Gilbert, the U-238 Atomic Energy Lab never gained popularity and the toy was taken off shelves, selling only from 1950 through 1952. Old store stock, choice condition example of this later 1952 version, as nice as they come. Special shipping required due to contents. This is the second example from this collection, the previous example selling for $8,696 w/o Dagwood books and added Prospecting book. Barry Lutsky Collection.

So there ya’ have it!

A set in this condition is extremely hard to find. The current bid is $4,500 – if you’re a serious collector you have a shot at getting this on a real deal. Go for it now if you’ve ever wanted a marvelous piece of Atomic Age Americana.

Paul László: The Quintessential Atomic Age Architectural Designer

Paul László was a Hungarian-born modern architect and interior designer whose work spanned eight decades and many countries. László built his reputation while designing interiors for houses, but in the 1960s, largely shifted his focus to the design of retail and commercial interiors. – wikipedia

László was the quintessential Atomic Age mid-century designer. In 1952 TIME magazine called him ‘The Rich Man’s Architect’. He did it all – he ‘design[ed] his houses down to the last ashtray or built-in Kleenex holder.’ He also designed a rather mod US Air Force bomb shelter:

Laszlo US Air Force Bomb Shelter Design (image via orhan ayyuce)

Below are some super articles covering Paul Laszlo’s Atomic Age masterpieces. Super thanks to MidCentArc on flickr. (Click on the images for a larger view)

Atomville 1950

Atomville – At Home, 2004 A.D. – 1954 (Page 1 of 3) – Architect: Paul Laszlo (Popular Mechanics Magazine)

Atomville – At Home, 2004 A.D. – 1954 (Page 2 of 3)

Atomville – At Home, 2004 A.D. – 1954 (Page 3 of 3)

The Paul Laszlo Residence, Beverly Hills, CA (1 of 2)

The Paul Laszlo Residence, Beverly Hills, CA (2 of 2)

Paul Laszlo was truly a Mid-Century visionary – if you could afford him.

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF ATOMIC ENERGY

Special Thanks To: Todd Franklin

Hey kids! Pull up your bobby socks and get ready to duck and cover ’cause we’re visiting the American Museum of Atomic Energy! I’m sure you’ve heard about that little project during WWII called the Manhattan Project, right? You know, atomic bombs and such. The souvenir beanie above is telling the truth when it says, “Oak Ridge, Tennessee is the home of the atomic bomb. This “secret city” sprouted up during the war years and in its factories the atomic bomb was built. After the war, the town shifted to civilian control.

In 1949, Oak Ridge also became the home of the American Museum of Atomic Energy! This was the place to learn about the benefits of the all powerful atom. More importantly, it was the place where you could get a radioactive dime to take home as a souvenir!

In the brochure pictured above, it looks like those teenagers are having fun feeding the machine dimes. Boy, that sure beats getting a wooden nickel for a souvenir!

Unfortunately, the dime didn’t glow like my exaggerated example, but that’s how I like to imagine it when it came out of the machine. In reality, the radiation faded away quickly and the dime was supposedly safe to stick in your pocket. (Click here for more info on irradiated dimes and here for another photo.)

The museum was much more than radioactive dimes according to these excerpts from the brochure.

The Dagwood Splits the Atom exhibit looks like fun! Science is always better when explained by comic characters. Apparently this exhibit made the rounds to various fairs and museums. Click here and here to view the official comic.

Here you get to see a schematic model of plants that helped build the atomic bomb.

The first gas diffusion separation is on display. (You know, I really don’t know what any of this means, but it sure does sound interesting!

The Theatre of the Atom. I think this is where an audience member would get their hair zapped. Click here to see this gal get a new atomic hairdo!

The American Museum of Atomic Energy moved to a new location in 1975 and in 1978 the name was changed to American Museum of Science and Energy. Even though they don’t have a dime irradiator machine the place still looks like a fun family outing.

I leave with you this very cool photo of a vintage bowling shirt from Oak Ridge. I snapped this pic at the Bowling Hall of Fame back when it was located in St. Louis, Missouri.

via Neato Coolville: AMERICAN MUSEUM OF ATOMIC ENERGY

When ‘Duck & Cover’ Isn’t Enough – Harold Tifft’s ‘Portable Shield’

Incredibly strange, but oddly sensible, Cold War shelter invention: Patent images for Harold C. Tifft’s ‘Portable Shield’ originally filed on 17 April 1956.

Fig. l is a perspective view of one form of such a shield when in use by a wearer; Fig. 2 is a side view of the shield shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 8 is a front detailed view of face protective means which may form a part of the shield of this invention.

Fig. 4 is a front perspective view of a second possible embodiment of the shield of this invention Patent ice Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 4, showing how the several sections can be telescoped together; Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of a carrying case with the handle for the head section extending through the cover thereof.

Fig. 7 is an illustration showing how the shields of this invention would actually be put to use in vertical and horizontal positions during times of danger.

The bottom image shows two possible positions for the wearer: face first flush against the wall, or face first flush against the ground (or floor).

The main object of this invention is to provide a portable shield which will serve to guard the human body from the injurious or lethal effects of a nuclear explosion.

A second object of this invention is to provide a portable shield against nuclear explosions which can be easily and quickly placed around a considerable portion of the human body.

Another object of this invention is to provide a shield which can be adjusted so that it will substantially cover the entire body of the wearer, regardless of whether the wearer is in a standing, sitting or reclining position.

A further object of this invention is to provide a shield for the body which, in addition to being portable, also can be readily adjusted by the wearer so as to permit him to run from one place to another and yet still have a substantial measure of protection on the upper portion of his body.

(Complete patent available at Google Patents)

The Classic Sound Of The Cold War – Brought To You By Chrysler

What you hear at the start of this video is the sound of a Chrysler FirePower Hemi V8 engine start and rev-up. Afterwards comes the old familiar wail of the cold war nuclear attack warning.

Its six horns were each 3 feet (0.9 m) long. The siren could be heard from a distance of 20 to 25 miles (32 to 40 km) away and had an output of 138 dBC (30,000) watts. They were 12 feet (3.7 m) long, built atop a quarter section of a Dodge truck chassis rail, and weighed an estimated 3 short tons (2.7 t).

The main purpose of the [‘Big Red Whistle’] siren was to warn the public in the event of a nuclear attack by the Soviets, during the Cold War. The operator’s job was to start the engine and bring it up to operating speed, then to pull and release the transmission handle to start the wailing signal generation. The Chrysler air raid siren produced the loudest sound ever achieved by an air raid siren. – SuzukiBlaze

When the Chrysler Air Raid Sirens were being retired during the 1970’s a number of car enthusiasts sought out the Hemi V8s for use in bracket racing and street rods.

High-Fi Radio: This week featuring a tribute to JFK and a special Scout ‘Kennedy the Sage’ Mix final cut.

The Chemosphere: John Lautner’s Space Age Wonder

The Malin House (Chemosphere) in the Hollywood Hills.

If you had to choose one building to represent the most Modern of iconic Modern designs, you might well choose the Malin House (Chemosphere) in the Hollywood Hills. An octagon perched atop a twenty-nine-foot high, five-foot-wide concrete column like a flying saucer on a stick, the Chemosphere is recognizable even to those who know nothing else about mid-century architecture.

It was designed by groundbreaking architect John Lautner for Leonard Malin, a young aerospace engineer with a steeply sloping lot and $30,000 to spend on a house that would somehow perch upon it. Thanks to Lautner’s ingenious design and sponsorships by companies like Chem Seal (who provided experimental coatings and was rewarded by the building’s name), Malin got his wish. Malin and his wife raised four children in the house.

A Room With A View – This innovative mid century modern home was featured in the Brian De Palma thriller, Body Double.

The one-story building is reached by a funicular and a concrete patio connects one side of it to the steep, lushly vegetated hillside. The bulk of the building hovers in an unlikely fashion above the hill, with windows on all sides to provide an astounding view of the San Fernando Valley.

Chemosphere Living Area – Mid-Century Modern Fantastic

Chemosphere Bedroom With A Different View

Today this architectural wonder is owned by TASCHEN book publisher, Benedikt Taschen.

All photos by Julius Shulman / Getty Images
Sources: Los Angeles Conservancy and Vintage Los Angeles.

The M65 – Not The Spiral Galaxy, The Atomic Cannon

Operation Upshot-Knothole – 25 May 1953

The M65 Atomic Cannon, often called Atomic Annie, was a towed artillery piece built by the United States and capable of firing a nuclear device. It was developed in the early 1950s, at the beginning of the Cold War, and fielded by 1953 in Europe and Korea.

On May 25, 1953 at 8:30am, the Atomic Cannon was tested at Nevada Test Site (specifically Frenchman Flat) as part of the Upshot-Knothole series of nuclear tests. The test — codenamed Grable — was attended by then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Arthur W. Radford and Secretary of Defense Charles Erwin Wilson; it resulted in the successful detonation of a 15 kt shell (W9 warhead) at a range of 7 miles. This was the first and only nuclear shell to be fired from a cannon.

The Grable mushroom cloud with the Atomic Cannon in the foreground. (Photo courtesy of National Nuclear Security Administration/Nevada Field Office)

After the successful test, there were at least 20 of the cannons manufactured at Watervliet and Watertown Arsenals, at a cost of $800,000 each. They were deployed overseas to Europe and Korea, often continuously shifted around to avoid being detected and targeted by opposing forces. Due to the size of the apparatus, their limited range, the development of nuclear shells compatible with existing artillery pieces (the W48 for the 155mm and the W33 for the 203mm), and the development of rocket and missile based nuclear artillery, the M65 was effectively obsolete soon after it was deployed. However, it remained a prestige weapon and was not retired until 1963.

Of the twenty M65s produced, at least eight survive on display.

Get To Know Your Nukes – It’s Fun And Easy With The 2013 Monogram USA/USSR Missile Set

Monogram USA/USSR Missile Model Set Box Cover – 2013 reissue of the 1985 Cold War Edition

They’re out-of-sight and out-of-mind these days but they’re still ready to do business when called. Yes, those Cold War classics, the U.S.A./U.S.S.R. nuclear missile collections, are still as relevant today as they were in the 20th century. Perhaps you’re part of the younger set who have no Cold War experience – the olden days of paranoia, crazy ideas like bomb shelters, and all that laughable stuff like ‘duck and cover.’ Yep, today we know that there’s not much to do in ‘the event’ and who would want to survive that stuff anyway? When we hear the clarion call of enemy missiles on the way, we’ll just climb up the highest hill, get a little drunk or high or both, and watch the freaky show as we evaporate into the All.

But wouldn’t it be fun to impress your friends and/or family during those last couple of hours or minutes? You can by knowing your nukes! Learning is fun and easy with the Monogram U.S.A./U.S.S.R. Missile set! The 2013 U.S.A./U.S.S.R. Missile Set is a reissue of the 1985 Cold War edition released shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union. The name may have changed, but those missile classics remain in the attentive care of the Russian Federation.

1985 Monogram U.S. and U.S.S.R. Missile Display Kit Box Cover

As you build each model you’ll become familiar with the different size, shape, and look of each explosive missile. For the U.S. you get the mighty Titan II, the stylish Minuteman III, and the awesomely ironic Peacemaker, as well as the Pershing II. But that’s not all! There’s the sea-launched Polaris A3, Poseidon, and Trident. A pair of cruise missiles are also included – the ALCM (Air Launched Cruise Missile) and the sea-launched Tomahawk.

The U.S.A. Collection of Nine Nuclear Missiles

The Soviet set name classifications are a hoot. They include the US Department of Defense designations, consisting of ‘SS’ and a NATO codename. You get the massive SS-18 Satan, SS-4 Sandal, the stylish SS-13 Savage, the SS-17 Spanker, the SS-19 Stiletto, and the stubby SS-20 Saber. The sea-launched missiles include the SS-N-8 Sawfly, the SS-N-17 Snipe, and the SS-N-18 Stingray. And finally, you also get the classically designed air-launched AS-6 Kingfish.

The U.S.S.R. Collection Of Eleven Nuclear Missiles

If you’ve never worked with models before you’ll find that these missiles are fairly easy to construct with most consisting of only two halves and 45 pieces in all. Included with your kit you get a decal sheet to give those missiles an authentic touch, and a display base to show off your handiwork – this also makes for a nice quick-glance study guide.

The 2013 Monogram U.S.A./U.S.S.R. Missile Display Set Components

So there you have it! The 2013 Monogram U.S.A./U.S.S.R. Missile Display Set – The Fun Way To Get To Know Your Nukes!

The Complete 2013 Monogram USA/USSR Missile Display

Images via Scale Model News. H/T to Luis Cesar at Atompunk brasil on Facebook.

Portable Phonographs – MOTOROLA Had It All Covered

Portable phonographs – they were all the rage in 1958 and Zenith had everyone covered. Check out the models below – they were featured in the USA MOTOROLA Dealer Sales Catalog. The pages have been wonderfully preserved by Mark Meijster, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The Moppet – A fun-time partner for the youngsters! The Miracle fabric covering wipes clean in seconds with a damp cloth and is scuff, stain, and scratch resistant.

The Playmate – Styled for the young and the young-at-heart! This Automatic 4-speed record changer has dual flip-over sapphire styli. Lets you Intermix different size records of the same speed.

The Musicmate – A new and completely captivating combination of radio and phono! The exhilarating new concept of design is just right for today’s young moderns.

The Calypso – Hi-Fi in fiberglass! The bold new concept of design adds to the glamour of today and tomorrow! High fidelity sound from 3 speakers, hi-fi amplifier and separate bass and treble controls. This portable was designed for people who were really going places.

The illustrations and graphic design on these pages are wonderful examples of the era – as are the colors (and their combinations) of the phonographs themselves.