Hi John:
> Well, guess I've rambled on long enough . . .
Not enough here. I was the one who mentioned Altman's. Alas, when I had my
Canon rangefinder outfit stolen, I had to go to Helix (was 1976 and Altman's
had closed) to get my replacement: a OM-1 MD with 50mm f/1.8 They suckered me
into a UV filter even though I though I was smart enough to resist. It wasn't
even an Olympus!
Glad to hear that Mrs. Altman was nice. Mr. Altman, well . . . I went there
soon after my 16th birthday to apply for a job. I made it though the
interview fine and it appeared I had to be stuck in the darkroom and chemicals
department (4th floor) to apparently pay my dues. Mr. Altman was escorting me
down that fine department store escalator to your department when my girl
friend came up to me. She made some comment about me being 16 and Mr. Altman
looked at me and said something close to: "Get out of here and come back when
you grow up." Believe you me, I didn't lie about my age. He simply failed to
look at it on the application, possibly because I looked older than my years.
I was really down after that experience, esp. since I was probably the first
16 year old applicant who had spent most his high school Algebra classes
reading the Focal Encyclopedia of Photography cover to cover (for something to
do).
If I had been an adult, that would have been my last visit there, period. But
I continued to drop in afterwords. Like, how couldn't I? The place was one
of the world's top camera stores. I'm sure you never sold me anything, since
Shutan's was undercutting you on used equipment. But I suspect they were
buying your "turn aways." The Canon stuff I got there had trouble staying in
working order. And we all know the first years of the OM System were really
premium priced years - worse than now! Like $639 for an OM-1 and $403 for a
35mm f/2.8 (adjusted for 1988 dollars!).
Going to Helix after Altman's closed was never the same. You guys made
Altman's the ultimate photographic candy store. And I was shocked at how poor
service was in comparison when I finally got to New York in 1990.
Gary Reese
Las Vegas, NV
< This message was delivered via the Olympus Mailing List >
< For questions, mailto:owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx >
< Web Page: http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright/olympuslist.html >
|