Melmac Color-Flyte by Branchell

Recent spring cleaning brought this forth
from the back of the pantry cupboard.

"Melmac!" rang through my head.

Melmac is hard, lightweight, and smooth.
It is molded thermosetting plastic, melamine formaldehyde.
When you put your finger through the hole in the handle,
the inside edge feels like machined metal,
except that it is warm.

The underside has this imprint,
as did every piece in the set
in Gene and Clara's postwar kitchen.

"Designers Dinnerware;" "Fashioned of Melmac K"
"ColorFlyte by Branchell"
"St. Louis, MO"
And that's a jet with three vapor trails,
with clouds and the sun or moon
as a backdrop.
Wonderful.

Chuck Yaeger broke the sound barrier in 1947, so yes.

From "Plastiquarian Reprints No.32": "The basic chemical, melamine was first isolated by Liebig in 1834. It lay dormant for almost exactly 100 years until Henkel & Co in Germany took out a major patent for MF. Between 1935 and 1940 similar work was being carried out in the US and American Cyanamid brought out its Melmac moulding material. Henkel's first MF moulding powder was produced in 1941 and called Ultraplas."

"During the war MF was used for several military applications in the USA including liners for helmets and various catering items for the navy."

So Marty, have I messsed up your head?

"Eat your cereal!  The bus will be coming soon!"

 

That single gray teacup is the only item left
from the set we knew in the Marilla house,
and which they must have bought in their
first apartment, or in the Bowmansville house.

Sorry, I can't find a photo of the orange butter dish we had.

There were good times at Gene and Clara's.

1945 Kensington High School Yearbook, Part 3 of 3

Student art continues the theme with representation of Buffalo cultural centers: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the Buffalo Museum of Science, the Historical Society Building, and Kleinhans Music Hall.

Sophomore girls include Clara Matynka, back row, fifth from the right.

Click to enlarge.

 

 

Homeroom 106 went all-out with their purchased ad.

1945 Kensington High School Yearbook, Part 2 of 3

"As the war moves toward a successful conclusion, the editors of the Compass feel that it is an appropriate time to turn our attention to our own home city, Buffalo;  the city to which many of the Kensington boys now in foreign lands will soon be returning.  Our division pages will tell the story of Buffalo's part in the war and of our own aspirations to help create an even better city when peace has come.  Our artists have depicted the  commerce, industry, cultural and recreational centers, and all the assets that make Buffalo worthy of her title - Queen City of the Lakes."

"Buffalo's industries, pictured on the opposite page, are many and varied.  Some, notably shipping and flour-milling, are outstanding nationally.  Equally important are the small, privately-owned forms making everything from hair pins to nuts and bolts."

"But it is the airplane and steel-manufacturing plants that have played the greatest wartime role.  Kensington boys, who are now serving their country, must feel proud of Buffalo as the great planes from Curtiss and Bell join in the fight for freedom."

The Bell Aircraft Factory was part of Bell Aircraft, founded in 1935 by Lawrence D. Bell.

Glenn Curtiss founded Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company.  Here's one of their WWII-era planes, the SB2C Helldiver:

"The knowledge that Japan still resisted dimmed the horns and quieted the clamor of the gay celebrants.  Thousands of American fighting men still fought and died on Okinawa and the other approaches to Tokyo.  For them tthere was no V-Dayy.  There was only fighting and then more fighting."

"But there was hope for a final V-Day - a V-J Day . . ."