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| All photos courtesy James L. Dixon |
Model railroading is no stranger to political commentary and satire. It's not unusual for such thoughts to be implicitly or explicitly expressed in a few of a model railroad's structures. It's pretty clear which group this model is in :-)
ELM built Carter Energy in 1979, so given the era, and the energy crisis going on at the time, the Carter in Carter Energy is no doubt the 39th President of the United States, Jimmy Carter.
I do recall that even here in Canada, $1US dollar for a US gallon, would have been considered an outrageous price. These days though that would be a bargain. The price in Ottawa recently is around $1.50CDN/litre, which translates into around $4.47US/US gallon. Across the border in New York state, the internet tells me the average price is something like $3.75US/US gallon.
Wowie! 40 years after his death, ELM still surprises! And thanks to you, J. D., for bringing this to our attention. Wonder if this were too political to print back then? He dealt with the paper shortage in an RMC article, but this one was too specific, perhaps. Can't anger the president...
ReplyDeleteEven though there appears to be unleaded gas pumps, he's put more into the firewood and peanuts. Wonder if there isn't a joke in there?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words; however, it was the generosity of ELM's grandson for getting in touch with me, providing the photos, and allowing me to post them. Because of his thoughtful actions we're now getting a more complete picture of ELM's life's work.
DeleteI don't know if this project was ever written up and submitted to a magazine. I seem to recall MR published a story about the train station in President Carter's home town of Plains, Georgia in '76, but '79 was a very different year from '76, so, who knows. I think the important thing here is these models from '79 are ELM's very last, and they give us a clear view of where he was at in the final months of his model building career.
The tar paper "painted on texture" appears to be streaks of black and white chalk literally drawn on glued-on tissue... without much brushing around. You can tell because the streaks are somewhat straight and only cling to the raised texture of the tissue. Despite its simplicity, it works. ELM excelled at that.
ReplyDeleteYes, it does look quite effective.
DeleteSay, I find one more parculiar thing: ELM's canopy over the front has a flat roof and 2 angled panels. It's almost as if he intended to make a normal gable roof but mismeasured. Not to say a canopy over gas pumps can't have a flat section, but it just seems out of place, no? How about this theory- his regular gable roof wasn't wide enough to support his CARTER sign?
ReplyDeleteIt's quite possible.
DeleteDon't get me wrong; I love this new find. It's so ELM.
ReplyDeleteI love the BOLD yellow sign and colorful pumps, while the rest of the building is muted tans and grays (with Moore green door and window trim, naturally).
ReplyDeleteOh, and the "P-Nuts" reference is to the Carter family business ties, which Jimmy divested from during his term in order to avoid financial entrapment or influence. It was a news item of note during his run for office.
I'm surprised there isn't a sign somewhere for Billy Beer :-)
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