vintage 1950s Scandals

The William Talman Scandal

          William Talman, a television and movie actor is best known for playing Los Angeles District Attorney Hamilton Burger in the long-running series, Perry Mason.

          In 1953, Talman played a sadistic, psychopathic killer in a film noir  The Hitch-Hiker. The New York Times wrote, "William Talman, as the ruthless murderer, makes the most of one of the year's juiciest assignments." His performance was also noted by Gail Patrick Jackson, executive producer of the CBS-TV series Perry Mason.

          What you may not know is his arrest. Sheriff's deputies raided a party on March 13, 1960, in a private home in Beverly Hills at which Talman was a guest. The deputies reported finding Talman and seven of the other defendants either nude or seminude. All were arrested for possession of marijuana an lewd vagrancy.  Municipal judge Adolph Alexander dropped the possession charge and dismissed the lewd vagrancy charges against Talman and the others on June 17 for lack of proof. "I don’t approve of their conduct," the judge ruled, "but it is not for you and me to approve but to enforce the statutes. Despite this Talman was fired by CBS.

          Talman was later rehired after Perry Mason producer Gail Patrick Jackson made a request to CBS following a massive letter-writing campaign by viewers.

                Talman was married three times and had 3 children and 2 stepchildren. He died of lung cancer on August 30, 1968, at the age of 53.

Vintage 1950s Food

Rice and Beef Porcupines

When I was young my mother made meatloaf every Monday. When she discovered this recipe the meatloaf retired and the porcupines were hired! I made some the other day, it serves about 4 people.

1 lb ground beef

2 tsp chopped onions

1/4 tsp poultry seasoning

1/2 cup raw rice, well washed

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp fat

2 small cans of tomato sauce

1 cup of water

Form mixture into 10-12 balls, brown them lightly in a saucepan in fat

Drain off excess fat and add tomato sauce and 1 cup of water.

Cover tightly, simmer 45-50 minutes or until rice is tender. Serve with flavory pan gravy.

Vintage 1950s Cars

Vintage 1950s

Dodge La Femme

          The Dodge La Femme was a full-sized automobile produced by Dodge between 1955 and 1956. It was specifically designed for women.

          The La Femme's stemmed from Chrysler's all-male marketing department's observation that more and more women were taking an interest in automobiles during the 1950s and that women’s opinions on what color car to buy was becoming part of the decision making the process for couples buying an automobile. The La Femme was an attempt to gain a foothold in the women's automobile market.

          The  La Femme began as a 1955 Dodge Custom Royal Lancer " spring special" hardtop two-door coupe, painted "Sapphire White" and "Heather Rose". From there, the exterior received special gold-colored "La Femme" script that replaced the standard "Custom Royal Lancer" script on the car's front fenders.

          Upholstered in a pink rosebud tapestry with pale pink vinyl trim, the La Femme came with a keystone-shaped purse that could be stowed in a compartment in the back of the passenger seat. Each purse was stocked with a face-powder compact, lipstick case, cigarette case, comb, cigarette lighter and change purse, all made of faux-tortoiseshell plastic or pink calfskin and gold-tone metal, all were designed by “Evans”, a maker of women’s fine garments and accessories in Chicago at the time.

          For 1956, the La Femme returned, with no less fanfare; letters to dealers from Dodge’s marketing department called the La Femme a "stunning success". For 1956, Dodge replaced the Heather Rose and Sapphire White scheme with a Misty Orchid and Regal Orchid color scheme

          Dodge dropped the La Femme in 1957.  Production numbers, suggests fewer than 2,500 were made over the two-year period. At least 40 are known to exist of the 1955 version and approximately 20 for the 1956 version.

          Many theories exist concerning the low sales of the La Femme trim package. No evidence of magazine, television, radio, or other La Femme advertisements have been found since 1986. Given the large number of Dodge dealerships in the U.S. at the time, few of them received a demonstration La Femme for their showroom. Instead, single-sheet dealer pamphlets were the only clue that Dodge La Femme was available when other trim-special models such as the Chrysler 300 letter series, Plymouth Fury, and DeSoto Adventurer were widely promoted.