Playing Cards Go Mod
by Lynne Rostochil
One of the best things about being a member of the Mod Squad is meeting other people and hearing about their crazy collections of mid-century goodies, from old TVs to designer chairs to vintage textiles to playing cards. Playing cards? Heck yeah, playing cards. Back in the day (whenever that was), many of the Metro’s best buildings were advertised on playing cards, and over the years, Robyn and I have amassed separate collections. Here are some of our finds — let’s start with Robyn’s collection first:
Founders National Bank in pink and green before the renovation that enclosed all of those great windows. Even with the renovation, the old Founders Bank (now Bank of America) building remains a favorite of many local architecture fans.
Two decks from Guaranty Bank & Trust:
The Liberty (now Chase) Bank building never looked so good:
The Pietro Belluschi-designed Kerr-McGee tower that has recently been rehabbed by Sandridge for use as their headquarters.
And here are the treasures in my collection. First up is the Quail Creek Country Club clubhouse in all of its mid-century glory:
Two for one — The 1330 Classen Building and the Classen Terrace Building on the same deck! While 1330 looks remarkably similar today, just across the street, the lovely Classen Terrace Building met a much sadder fate when the long-vacant structure was demolished last year:
There was a time when the swankiest business and lodging address in town was located at the sophisticated Lincoln Plaza complex; however, those days are long gone and many of the buildings and hotel are now vacant. Rumors persist that the complex will be renovated in the near future, but I haven’t seen any sign of that yet.
Yes, I know that the Cravens Building (now known as the Robinson Renaissance Building) isn’t mid-century, but I have the cards in my collection, so why not post this?!
One of our members, Ralph Beuc, sent us this great card of the former Security Federal Savings and Loan building downtown:
And, that’s it. If you have cards to add to our collection, please send us a scan and we’ll be happy to post it.