The Today Show 1980 - 16mm Film

For those who only know Betty as the face of Westinghouse, don't forget that just a few years later she was Chairman of the President's Committee on Consumer Affairs and spent many years fighting for consumer rights. Link: LBJ Mar 1967. And after Johnson, she moved to the NY Consumer Protection Board to continue her fight.

It was perfect timing as the general public had really gotten fed up with gimmicks, planned obsolescence, soaring prices (WP's price fixing scandal), weaselly warranties and zero support. And this was true for all the big makers. This was when Whirlpool flipped the script with their famous "Open Letter to Betty Furness" to curry favor with the public and show the changes the company was making (and they followed through). This would've been around '68.

cadman said:

For those who only know Betty as the face of Westinghouse, don't forget that just a few years later she was Chairman of the President's Committee on Consumer Affairs and spent many years fighting for consumer rights. Link: LBJ Mar 1967. And after Johnson, she moved to the NY Consumer Protection Board to continue her fight.

It was perfect timing as the general public had really gotten fed up with gimmicks, planned obsolescence, soaring prices (WP's price fixing scandal), weaselly warranties and zero support. And this was true for all the big makers. This was when Whirlpool flipped the script with their famous "Open Letter to Betty Furness" to curry favor with the public and show the changes the company was making (and they followed through). This would've been around '68.

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Thank you for the clear clarification, Cadman, and also for the great presentation, as well...

Glad Ms. Furness seemed to have lived into the very vintage age appliances were so well built, as though after her departure, that quality and well-being of, was surely GONE!

Westinghouse major appliances post World War II

I always had a soft spot for Westinghouse. They had some interesting designs. They’re slant front clothes washers were actually pretty good until about 1956 to 1958 but they really started to go downhill after that, they never had a particularly great clothes dryer.

Their refrigerators were also fairly good until the late 50s. They just started to fall apart with all the cheap plastic parts after this time.

Probably Westinghouse is best product overall were their electric ranges, they still weren’t as durable as GE or as well built as Frigidaire, but they had some great designs in good performance.

Westinghouse quality had declined so much by the 60s that builders were getting away from using Westinghouse appliances because it was hard to sell their houses with Westinghouse appliances in them.

The big East Coast home builder Levitt stopped using Westinghouse appliances around 1963 because of the excessive problems with them and switched to GE thereafter.

Westinghouse was the first of the big Appliance makers to fall. They sold out to WCI in 1974, that was pretty much the end of Westinghouse major appliances. Some remnants of their design stayed around, but pretty quickly disappeared altogether.

Hi Matt, What did you think of Westinghouse TVs radios etc from the 60s, the limited experience I had repairing them in the late 60s into the 70s did not impress me much.

John L

combo52 said:

Hi Matt, What did you think of Westinghouse TVs radios etc from the 60s, the limited experience I had repairing them in the late 60s into the 70s did not impress me much.

John L

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Westinghouse radio's, tv's, stereo's 1960s was fair, but I also was not impressed with those products.
But in the early years, 1930's, and up to the 1950's, they made some pretty nice stuff. - I restored several 1930's floor consoles in the shop for customers.

In my vintage radio collection, I have one Westinghouse AM radio, a 5-tube small table model which I picked up from an online seller.
It's a rare-ish two-tone pink and blue set, and plays surprisingly well.
The same model set was featured on an episode of "I Love Lucy" in the mid 1950's. - collectors sometimes call it "The Westinghouse Lucy".

Betty was all class. However, the TV ad urging folks to replace their old set after three years...yikes.

Also, what do you want to bet that the "mahogany finish" you can stub out your cigarette on was Westinghouse Micarta? They used that stuff on a lot of furniture especially for kid's rooms.

Westinghouse Micarta

supersuds said:

Betty was all class. However, the TV ad urging folks to replace their old set after three years...yikes.

Also, what do you want to bet that the "mahogany finish" you can stub out your cigarette on was Westinghouse Micarta? They used that stuff on a lot of furniture especially for kid's rooms.

Westinghouse Micarta

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My parents bought a chest of drawers and nightstand for my bedroom when I was 10 years old (1965). They were a Colonial style in maple, and had matching Westinghouse Micarta tops. Sold them at a yard sale years ago.

Betty had been a rather popular actress in the 1930s. She made several films for RKO Radio Pictures, including "Flying Down to Rio" (1933) and "Swing Time" (1936), both with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. She also appeared in "Here Comes Cookie" (1935) with George Burns and Gracie Allen, filmed at Paramount. She also did motion pictures at MGM, Columbia, and 20th Century -Fox.

supersuds said:

Betty was all class. However, the TV ad urging folks to replace their old set after three years...yikes.

Also, what do you want to bet that the "mahogany finish" you can stub out your cigarette on was Westinghouse Micarta? They used that stuff on a lot of furniture especially for kid's rooms.

Westinghouse Micarta

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Yes, I remember seeing Westinghouse, logo and all, on some things that you DON'T plug in...!!!!

Hi Matt, thanks for the information about Westinghouse electronics, here’s a little radio that was given to my father by a salesman probably 1959 or 60, as a little kid I was disappointed that he gave it to his older brother and didn’t let me have it, years later his older brother gave it to me.

John L.

Reply number 36 speaking of Westinghouse Mircarta, thanks for the great link about this product. I knew it was used as a countertop material, etc.. I didn’t realize it had so many other industrial and military uses.

This might be a great time to introduce the latest acquisition. I got this RCA Whirlpool buffet serving cart, which was probably one of the first commercial uses of Thermo electric refrigeration for the home, this Appliance had the ability to either keep food warm or to cool food for serving and even could make a tray or two of ice.

These were also sold under the Sears Coldspot name and in the Sears catalog, they said that it has a Micarta top.

John L

supersuds said:

Betty was all class. However, the TV ad urging folks to replace their old set after three years...yikes.

Also, what do you want to bet that the "mahogany finish" you can stub out your cigarette on was Westinghouse Micarta? They used that stuff on a lot of furniture especially for kid's rooms.

Westinghouse Micarta

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The similarities between Micarta and Formica are so similar.
With Formica being preferred for its smoothness and easy cleaning properties.
When my kitchen was done over in the 1970's by the previous owners, they had Formica countertops installed. - white with tiny speckles, which have held up to rough use quite well over the decades.

I found this interview with Betty Furness from 1989 interesting.
Betty White says in her biography "Here We go Again" that she took over a radio consumer programme (presumeably in the New York region) previously hosted by Betty Furness in 1964