Busy as Bamberger's on a Saturday Morning

When she was at wit's end with a million things to do, Mom said she was, "Busier than Bamberger's on Saturday morning!" and I knew to go away for a while.

The best part of going to Bamberger's for my back-to-school clothes was when Mom would buy me a hot dog and an orangeade at the stand next to the escalator in the basement. There was a sign that said: We don't boil the flavor out of our hot dogs

I can still remember the giant miniature circus displays they had and you got to look through a glass to see them. Awesome. I think it alternated with a giant train set up (sort of like the set Gomez Addams would blow up on the TV show.)

All I Want For Christmas ...


I'm sure all my Santa pictures were taken with the Bam's Santa. The lines were well recreated in Jean Shepherd's "Christmas Story." We kids wanted to tell the big scary Santa what we wanted for Christmas without forgetting anything or crying and our Moms just wanted to get the picture to send to the relatives.

Alas, Newark has changed in the past 40-plus years. So have I. And even my beloved Bamberger's is gone.

DISCLOSURE
Coincidence alert: I worked in the advertising department at the Newark Bamberger's store in 1984. I wanted to know if they still had the circus and train displays set up on a hidden floor - like in an episode of the Twilight Zone. I heard about Mahogany Row where the big shots worked, but I never got to see the circus set up or the train display.

See Also:
A Father's Place - An Eclectic Collection: Seventh Floor

Copyright © 2005 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission. Updated May 2008

Support this web site, shop at Amazon through this link, thanks