Depression-Era Diary, Part Two

 

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The Chicago Tribune announces that 100 theaters in Chicago and vicinity will close up. This is because of the tremendous overbuilding of theaters during the last 5 years of the boom. Each producer built his own chain of theaters and bought the real estate at fancy prices. Now they are going broke. In Youngstown movie admissions have dropped from 60 cents to 35 cents.

[Subsequent annotation dated July 10, 1970: Admission charges to a good movie theater are $2.50.]

Aug. 9, 1931. Professional men have been hard hit by the depression. This is particularly true of doctors and dentists. Their overhead is high and collections are impossible. One doctor smoothed a dollar bill out on his desk the other day and said that this was all the money he had taken in for a week. Lawyers are almost as badly off and most of them are not taking in enough to pay. We have been helped a little by foreclosure work which followed in the wake of the depression but most of it does not pay because the assets are worthless. Most professional men for past two years have been living on money borrowed on insurance policies etc. The only work that comes in now are impossible collections on a contingent fee basis. Everybody is digging up old claims and trying to realize on them. Tempers are short and people are distrustful and suspicious. There is nothing to do but work hard for less money and to cut expenses to the bone.

© 2008

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Member Comments

  • Posted By: Libricrat @ 11/10/2008 2:22:33 PM

    Now, once again, just like in the New Deal, we will speed faster toward more socialistic, redistributive policies. Captialism works, it just needs some curcuit breakers and speed breaks installed. My fear though is that true Socialistic change will come out of this recession, especially with respect to the medical field. We are truely at a fork in the road and as a blue collar capitalist, I'm very afraid.

  • Posted By: Karenn1 @ 10/30/2008 2:03:35 PM

    Get real Republicans trash the U S for profist. Exxon just broke the record for profits.Greed is good? Who needs to listen to what republcans have to say.Just look at the economy and what greed will do without oversights. 1929 crash is the G O P/ M O.

  • Posted By: Tea6 @ 10/29/2008 11:17:54 AM

    Trade with currency manipulation is not free trade, it is mercantilism.
    When countries run large export surpluses their currency should strengthen, which evens out the surpluses and deficits. Currency manipulation and its by-products are what got us into this financial meltdown. It is time to fix the system.

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