Thriftivator? Calgloss?

[johnrk]

It's always interesting to see the efforts of fifties marketing drones trying to distinguish their products with inventive terms.

Referring to the Hotpoint ad below, is there something special about the agitator that they call the "Thriftivator"? Is there anything special about the enamel that makes it "Calgloss"? My understanding is that Hotpoint was out of Chicago, otherwise I'd think it just meant it was in California-

 

[gyrafoam]

The Thriftivator was a rather plain looking, goose-necked agitator that was VERY effective. Some of them had rubber-tipped fins (another sales gimmick). Early ones were Red Bakelite with Gray Rubber Tips. Then solid Red. Then later ones were solid black.
When they started using that lame-ass spiral agitator in the upper model series in the mid-sixties, I used to tell people to get an old goose-neck and switch them out. The performance improved markedly.

I'd love to come across an old Hotpoint such as the one pictured here. They may not have been very dependable (in spite of all the hyperbole), however, they were good at cleaning.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Thriftivator, Gyrator, Surgilator, RotoSwirl Agitator, Activator, Pulsator, Three Ring Pump Agitator, Spiral Dasher, Hydractor were just a few of the names for agitators. Most manufacturers had one.

 

Hotpoint was big on "thrift." Their deepwell cooker was called the "Thrift Cooker." Westinghouse's deepwell was called the Econo-Cooker. Frigidaire's deepwell was called the "Thermizer" and their vegetable bins in their refrigerators were called "Hydrators." All were terms to dazzle potential buyers like the shimmering eyes in a Peacock's tail.

 

[Unimatic1140]

Here are a couple of Hotpoint Thrifivators. Anyone recognize that rare and unusual black agitator cap in the third picture?

 

[revvinkevin]

Question for Steve (Gyrafoam)

 

 

You refer to the agitator as "goose-necked", what do you mean by that?  

 

[appliguy]

Actually according to what I have read in Maytag literrature

Maytag called their agitator a Gyratator.........and as far as names for agitators go let us not forget RotoFlex, PentaSwirl, PowerFin Dual Action Agitator, Revolving Agitator, Blades of Water,.....have I missed any names guys?....PAT COFFEY

 

[mickeyd]

Hi Pat !

Actually Gyratator sounds more like what a Gyrator actually does! ;'D

Two more:

Easy's Spiralator

Kenmore's Vari-flex

Those rubber extensions on the Thriftavator remind me of the extendable fins on the Vari-flex; they make for quite a bit more current.

 

[golittlesport]

Kevin --

I believe the term "gooseneck" was used on the Hotpoint straight-vane agitator because it had a long, slim centerpost with no vanes on it.

 

[toploader55]

Jet Cone, Load Sensor, Jet Action (?) Burpalator, Dasher, Was there a PentaFlex ?

 

[DADoES]

 
PentaVane and PentaSwirl.

 

[washerlover]

And although Whirlpool’s “Surgilator” has already been mentioned, the butterfly-winged base agitators introduced later were called “Super Surgilator.”

 

[johnrk]

Jet Cone

I always liked that term! I remember mama's Frigidaire back then had that.

One of the funniest of those marketing terms for cars was the use of Buick's calling the 1958 Buicks (those hideous things) the "B-58 Buicks", obviously trying to buy into the Cold War mentality. Of course, the damn things looked like they could demolish any other car on the road! Because of the foot added on to the trunk, the Limited was actually longer than the '58 regular Cadillac models. You can imagine, though, how tough it would be to get into driveways and parking garages with that trunk!

 

[DADoES]

WP Surgilators

 
Super Surgilator had the lower three fins extended a bit beyond the edge of the skirt.

The winged version was called Double-Duty Super Surgilator.

 

[washman]

And Speed Queen has Flex Vane.

 

[supersuds]

I'm just guessing, but I'd think that "Calgloss" was more likely an attempt to make a connection to Hotpoint's heavily-touted Calrod surface units than a reference to California.

 

[gyrafoam]

John, the General Dynamics / Convair B-58 "Hustler" was the hottest jet in the sky that year! With those after-burner equipped GE jet turbines, there wasn't anything faster. I think the reference they are making must be to speed. (Remember, Jets of any kind were still fairly new in 1958----the airlines got their first Boeing 707's in 1958.) Of course, the Buick was considerably more comfortable than the jet and easier to park. My grandmother had one of those Buick's and I can tell you it was powerful and fast for the times. I loved how it started by mashing down on the accelerator pedal. The airconditioning was also very effective, (that it was effective was also a rarity in those days.) I also loved the thousand pounds of chrome on cars in 1958. I would have hated to keep them clean with all those crevasses.

 

[johnrk]

That Body

I had an aunt and uncle with a '57 with the four-door hardtop wagon body. Biggest drawback for the '57 and '58 GM lines was that they looked old compared to those beautiful new Mopars. But then, of course, one could watch those Mopars rust away in nothing flat--except for the parts that fell off. Shoulder room in particular was deficient in those GM's. And God help you if you got air bags!

But in so many ways the '58 Buick, rococo as it looked, was still more comfortable and practical than the '59. That same aunt and uncle replaced that '57 wagon with a '59 Electra and it was like sitting on the floor, literally. The worst part on the '59, as they discovered, was that not only was the trunk opening tiny like a '65 Marlin, but the spare tire had to sit at an angle and hogged about a third of the space. And the lid sloped down. It really did get uncomfortable on long drives, even with power seats, because they were so low with upright seat backs. My parents bought a '60 Bonneville, but GM changed the body and dipped the front floorboard down 1.5" for 1960 so that even though you sat low, it wasn't nearly as uncomfortable. In fact, my parents loved that Bonneville. It was the 4-door hardtop with the wraparound back window, the Vista. And yes, down here in TX it definitely had to have a/c!

 

[gyrafoam]

John, we hijacked your own thread!

In late 1958 Lockheed Aircraft, Burbank, began deliveries of their (then new) Model L-188 "Electra" Propeller-Turbine transport aircraft. It was fast and nimble compared to the sluggish piston-powered aircraft of the day. However, it still had propellers and so it was practically obsolete on delivery. Only a few of the airlines realized the public would demand jets as soon as they could be offered!

I think Buick changed the TOL model name from Roadmaster to Electra to reflect something new, fast and agile. If you take a close look at the prop-caps (minus propellers) on an L-188 you will see the tail lights of the 59-60 Buick Electra's. Especially the 1960 Electra.

I wonder what the connection between the GM stylists and Lockheed was? The -48 through -56 Cadillac tail lights were a throw-back to the twin-tails of the Lockheed P-38 of WWII.
Since Lockheed Aircraft were known for their high-speed, in an era where speed and flying went hand in hand, it stands to reason they must have wanted to imply speed and maybe agility if you can imagine those old things agile! That's a stretch!

Ironically, because of the high speeds and sometimes unknown dynamics associated with it, Lockheed designs tended to have problems with aerodynamic "flutter". A fatal condition if not held in check by structural strength.
Both the L-14 and P-38 designs of the 1930's suffered from tail-flutter. And both designs had to be modified to correct the problem

After two airlines lost new L-188 Electras due to wing-flutter, and subsequent loss of life, the FAA grounded them until the cause and fix could occur. Due to the negative media the public avoided travel on Electras by the droves. The Electras were modified as quickly as possible and had a lengthy and a successful life span with the airlines. Some were loathe to retire them. Eastern held on to theirs until the mid-seventies, Varig of Brazil until the nineties and Reeve of Alaska until the early 2000's. Some were converted to freighters and plyed the airways until just recently in Great Britain and Canada.

However, I leaves me to wonder if the Buick folks regretted re-naming the Roadmasters to Electras? If they did, it didn't stop them from using the name until the mid-eighties.

Your description of the -59 Electra is interesting. I remember when many cars with "power-seats" could only be moved two-ways, front to back. Some were four-way that included up and down. It wasn't until the six-way seats came out that you could adjust tilt and many of those had a manual adjustment for the seat-backs. Maybe it was a two-way seat that was the problem.[this post was last edited: 11/27/2017-18:10]

 

[circlew]

I don't know how Calgloss got its name, but Hotpoint originally was located in Ontario, California. It was founded as the Pacific Electric Heating Co. in 1906, as a manufacturer of electric irons. This factory made GE irons up until the early 80's.