Its My Life . I've Lived it • I Love it • Criticism Be Damned

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coinsarefun
coinsarefun Posts: 21,781 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited May 30, 2023 7:45PM in U.S. Coin Forum

Now that I have your attention :D I thought this Merchant card needs its own thread.........
So, if you let me walk you down a little bit of old Hollywood and Beverly Hills.

I first seen this advertising token years ago but, have never been able to find one in nice shape. Aluminum. 38mm.
It was for a Cocktail Lounge and restaurant in the 1940's. They are closed now. It is down the street from Cedars Sinai. Just happens to be the hospital where I received my second kidney transplant. Needless to say this is in some prime property location.

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House of Murphy – cocktail lounge at 410 S. San Vicente Blvd. 1940s. Their slogan was “It’s my life…I live it…I love it…criticism be damned.” The House of Murphy was a nightclub as well as a restaurant, and specialized in corned beef and cabbage. It was owned by Bob Murphy, an actor who had been a “singing emcee” in vaudeville and also had some work in the movies. He also owned Murphy’s Cellar in NYC. He died in 1948, but the restaurant continued in business.

As listed in the ‘Los Angeles Guide, 1941’ : “House of Murphy, 4th St at La Cienega Boulevard. The a la carte entrée is a complete meal. Cornbeef and cabbage cooked in an old-fashioned dish style. Master of ceremonies Bob Murphy provides impromptu entertainment and the crowd chimes in.”

The link here for above paragraphs of information
https://martinturnbull.com/hollywood-places/places-e-to-k/

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Some great pic's of the "joint"

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Menu.............check out the prices!!!
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Postcard
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Look inside
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CoinsAreFun Pictorials Album FOR SALE SOME will mark final ones before auction
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CoinsAreFun Toned Silver Eagle Proof Album
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Gallery Mint Museum, Ron Landis& Joe Rust, The beginnings of the Golden Dollar
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More CoinsAreFun Pictorials NGC FOR SALE

Comments

  • Namvet69
    Namvet69 Posts: 9,424 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Love the huge Gruen clock billboard on the roof. Lobster thermidor makes my mouth water. Peace Roy

    BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall, coinsarefun, MichaelDixon, NickPatton, ProfLiz, Twobitcollector,Jesbroken oih82w8, DCW

  • hchcoin
    hchcoin Posts: 4,843 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Great stuff!

  • DCW
    DCW Posts: 7,878 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Lovely read! Well written, Stef.
    The token is just fantastic! I've never seen that one before.

    Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
    "Coin collecting for outcasts..."

  • kaz
    kaz Posts: 9,378 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Great stuff! Love the menu cover, a play on Salome' with the owner's head on a plate! hilarious.

  • MidLifeCrisis
    MidLifeCrisis Posts: 10,617 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Excellent!

  • Smudge
    Smudge Posts: 10,001 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Gotta love those prices.

  • conrad99
    conrad99 Posts: 375 ✭✭✭
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    Oh, for the days you could just eat whatever you want and no one had a second thought about it. Also, I like the post card.

  • Glen2022
    Glen2022 Posts: 1,005 ✭✭✭✭
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    a couple of menus now being offered on eBay starting $85 plus shipping.

  • Catbert
    Catbert Posts: 8,258 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Really cool Stef! Love the headline and token. We all need some of that 'tude!

    Seated Half Society member #38

    "She comes out of the sun in a silk dress,
    running like a water color in the rain...."
  • U1chicago
    U1chicago Posts: 6,995 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Very neat!

  • NumisOxide
    NumisOxide Posts: 11,049 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    So cool!! I've never seen one of those before either.

  • pursuitofliberty
    pursuitofliberty Posts: 7,927 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    You always have some of the coolest posts (and tokens and coins to go with them)!

    I also love the attitude. Speaks to many of us I'm sure.

    Thanks for sharing Stef!!


    “We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”

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  • RobertScotLover
    RobertScotLover Posts: 1,069 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    I am from L.A. and that restaurant is still standing, just called something else. Still a restaurant, just cannot remember the name, but its popular and well known.

  • coinsarefun
    coinsarefun Posts: 21,781 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    @RobertScotLover said:
    I am from L.A. and that restaurant is still standing, just called something else. Still a restaurant, just cannot remember the name, but its popular and well known.

    .
    I lived there for 35 years and only remember seeing the structure in the late 90’s. I didn’t know they were still open as something else. Could it be a different address.?

    Here’s a link to Google maps for the address.
    https://www.google.com/maps/place/410+S+San+Vicente+Blvd,+Los+Angeles,+CA+90048/@34.0711626,-118.3761326,3a,86.7y,67.1h,83.26t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1srL1s18f9Fcj3zrv9DI4EaA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192!4m17!1m9!3m8!1s0x80c2b94c059d3ce9:0x719e7d15820cb680!2s410+S+San+Vicente+Blvd,+Los+Angeles,+CA+90048!3b1!8m2!3d34.0713315!4d-118.3759576!10e5!16s/g/11c891qbb8!3m6!1s0x80c2b94c059d3ce9:0x719e7d15820cb680!8m2!3d34.0713315!4d-118.3759576!10e5!16s/g/11c891qbb8?hl=en-us&entry=ttu

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    Screenshot.

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    CoinsAreFun Pictorials Album FOR SALE SOME will mark final ones before auction
    .
    CoinsAreFun Toned Silver Eagle Proof Album
    .
    Gallery Mint Museum, Ron Landis& Joe Rust, The beginnings of the Golden Dollar
    .
    More CoinsAreFun Pictorials NGC FOR SALE
  • Cocoinut
    Cocoinut Posts: 2,556 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Interesting token, and the menu has my mouth watering. In case you're wondering, the following article from the November 17, 1941 issue of Life magazine states that their average reader had an annual income of $2,500. Inflation was an issue back then, as shown in the comparison of the prices of some food staples compared to 2 years earlier. A dinner at the House of Murphy would have been an extravagance for many people.

    Countdown to completion of my Mercury Set: 1 coin. My growing Lincoln Set: Finally completed!
  • OldIndianNutKase
    OldIndianNutKase Posts: 2,717 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    I love this post Stef. Cool token that takes us back to another era. My best memories of California only go back to the 50's in Long Beach.

  • Lazybones
    Lazybones Posts: 1,633 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 30, 2023 10:52PM
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    Love it!

    USAF (Ret) The purpose of Bourbon is to make you feel like you should feel WITHOUT Bourbon. Remembering RickO, a brother in arms.

  • 1630Boston
    1630Boston Posts: 14,157 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    :)

    Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb, Ricko

    Bad transactions with : nobody to date

  • ricko
    ricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    @coinsarefun.... Great post Stef.... Neat token, will have to look for one of those. I am not a token collector, but that has a great message. Cheers, RickO

  • 1630Boston
    1630Boston Posts: 14,157 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 31, 2023 6:54AM
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    Great post, great history, great token
    .
    .

    Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb, Ricko

    Bad transactions with : nobody to date

  • Catbert
    Catbert Posts: 8,258 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    If that's a depiction of Murphy on the obverse, then I'd say he was well fed! :D

    Seated Half Society member #38

    "She comes out of the sun in a silk dress,
    running like a water color in the rain...."
  • 1630Boston
    1630Boston Posts: 14,157 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    .
    Can't have an ash tray without matches
    .

    Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb, Ricko

    Bad transactions with : nobody to date

  • FrankH
    FrankH Posts: 982 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    There was a House of Murphy in Stockton, CA. Ate there many times.

    Now if you look closely, you will see it is House of E.J. Murphy.
    No idea if it was an intentional copying or what, but Stockton was home to a plethora of fine dining.
    :)

  • 1630Boston
    1630Boston Posts: 14,157 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    The 'cover' in the OP was done by Henry O'hara Clive, quite a talented artist.
    .
    .
    Henry Clive (October 3, 1883–December 12, 1960) was an Australian-born American graphic artist and illustrator. Clive is known particularly for his illustrations in The American Weekly and cover series, which were posed for by screen celebrities.
    .

    Sketch of Clive, 1911

    Sultana by Henry Clive

    1933 Photograph of Henry Clive Painting Actress Alice White

    Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb, Ricko

    Bad transactions with : nobody to date

  • coinhack
    coinhack Posts: 1,226 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    So fun. Best post of the week!

  • asheland
    asheland Posts: 24,548 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Awesome stuff!

    My YouTube Channel

  • Barberian
    Barberian Posts: 4,643 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Murphy looks like George Conway.

  • crazyhounddog
    crazyhounddog Posts: 14,252 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Very, very cool😎👍

    The bitterness of "Poor Quality" is remembered long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.
  • Custerlost
    Custerlost Posts: 140 ✭✭✭
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    I remember Sultana from high school. She was in the class behind ours.

  • Smudge
    Smudge Posts: 10,001 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Sultana has a Max Parris look about it.

  • mr1931S
    mr1931S Posts: 7,314 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Corned beef and cabbage <3

    "Two things are infinite: human stupidity and the universe; and I'm not sure about the universe."
    -Albert Einstein-

    Mistakes are natural. But repeated mistakes without reflection are something else. That may be the “stupidity” he was referring to. In research, he admitted uncertainty openly. “If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?” This shows humility. Even a Nobel laureate accepted doubt. That humility makes the quote less cynical and more observational.

  • Paradisefound
    Paradisefound Posts: 8,623 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    ❤️ Thank you Steph for sharing a personal story.
    I love the little bird on his curls 🤔

  • BuffaloIronTail
    BuffaloIronTail Posts: 7,767 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    I didn't notice the bird till you pointed it out, PF.

    Pete

    "I tell them there's no problems.....only solutions" - John Lennon
  • Lakesammman
    Lakesammman Posts: 17,699 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Great post and read - Murphy sure looked prosperous ...... :D

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  • joeykoins
    joeykoins Posts: 18,863 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2, 2023 8:54AM
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    Awesome dudette!
    Now, you have me fired up to search for that token.
    ❤ 😎
    Across from Wrigley Field, in Chicago.
    There is a long establishment called, "Murphys".
    Could there be a connection?
    :*

    "Jesus died for you and for me, Thank you,Jesus"!!!

    --- If it should happen I die and leave this world and you want to remember me. Please only remember my opening Sig Line.
  • coinsarefun
    coinsarefun Posts: 21,781 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Thank you so much everyone for you kind comments. I have another interesting one coming soon!

    CoinsAreFun Pictorials Album FOR SALE SOME will mark final ones before auction
    .
    CoinsAreFun Toned Silver Eagle Proof Album
    .
    Gallery Mint Museum, Ron Landis& Joe Rust, The beginnings of the Golden Dollar
    .
    More CoinsAreFun Pictorials NGC FOR SALE
  • tokenpro
    tokenpro Posts: 940 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    For those of you now seeking an example of the Murphy token you should not find the search to be overly difficult (other than competing against each other). The token is listed as Los Angeles K-502 in the Kappen catalog of California trade tokens, still the standard catalog for that state. While the values in the catalog are out of date they still carry relative consistency to each other. The Murphy token carries a $3.00 catalog value compared to $35.00 cat values for better saloon tokens or scarce towns (which were already very undervalued when the catalog came out). Translated to a rarity scale it would be a R-2 or R-3 on a R-1 to R-10 (unique) scale.

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