Feb 27, 2019

Allentown Photographic


My experience with Allentown Photographic in the late 70's, at 12 N 8th Street, was not unlike my grandparents with the Vendig Hotel. Neither were particularly successful, both only lasted a few years, but provided many memories. Now, Bela Lugosi never came into my shop, but my custom darkroom did attract numerous characters. I printed negatives, supposedly smuggled out of Russia, of the Romanov Family, while my strange anonymous customer watched by the door for KBG agents.(If they were real, I made no copies, nor did I keep the negatives) I once rented the darkroom to the local Porno King for his art directors to produce Puritan Magazine. His former building is now becoming the new Mayflower Condominiums. I snuck into a local high school at night to photograph an old circus juggler perform his act, one more time, on the stage. This photo gem, of a midget skating between legs, is from the juggler's mementos.

reprinted from 2014

3 comments:

  1. I understand that the term midget is not PC, and no offense is meant to little people. This photo heralds back to a juggler in the circus, which itself no longer exists, because of PC concern over elephants.

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  2. The author said he did'nt make copies of the Romanoffs, but didn't say the same of the Puritan experience. Hmm.

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  3. Don@9:18, nope, no copies of that either. The magazine rented my darkroom, I did not do the work.

    ReplyDelete

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