Gemco “going out of business” commercial. Gemco was one of the casualties of Asher Edeleman’s unsuccessful 1986 takeover bid for Lucky Stores.

Gemco “going out of business” commercial. Gemco was one of the casualties of Asher Edeleman’s unsuccessful 1986 takeover bid for Lucky Stores.
For my Christmas vacation, I visited a Lucky store and finally saw in person one of those murals I helped their ad agency assemble. Appropriately, the first “new Lucky” I visited was also the very first “old Lucky” I ever visited, way back in 1992: the Lakeshore Plaza store in San Francisco.
Photo by Mark Winston.
Finally, a picture of the historic mural in the new/old Lucky Stores of Northern California. I’ve been itching to see this, because I supplied their ad agency with three of the six photos they used. Once again, my betrothed has come to the rescue.
Now here’s a site that warms my heart. Another San Francisco store (one that was originally designed as a Lucky but opened as an Albertsons) reclaims its rightful and historically significant brand name. Photo courtesy of my betrothed who’s working in San Francisco this week.
I’ve uploaded a few old commercials to YouTube. Enjoy:
OK, so maybe I wasn’t on the radio a few weeks back as stated. I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I’ll update you if I get any more news…
Anyhow, for those who care, I’m working fast and furiously on my new Charlotte section, which is promising to be the most thoroughly researched yet…
If you have any information for me, please let me know. I’m especially light on vintage photos, so these are particularly appreciated, as are additions to the list of stores I’ve compiled. Note that there is no information for the years between 1992 and 2005. I’m working on it; so far I’ve been unable to uncover city directories for these years…
I’ve also been adding some random bits and pieces to the San Francisco section, not to mention Safeway and Lucky to reflect some recent research…
A Lucky update before I go to bed…
It’s officially all over for the Alma Plaza Lucky now, I suppose. It was scheduled to close on Thursday, and I made it by for a few final photos last Sunday. I’m definitely sorry to see this one go.
I’ve been busily organizing all my assorted newspaper and magazine articles into a Filemaker database lately, which means I haven’t really been working on the site very much. But it should make later updates (and the long-pondered book) much easier.
In addition, I’ve been trying to get all the Northern California photos I can before leaving the Golden State forever at the beginning of June. Suggestions are welcome, as are pointers to things I should see on the road back east. Our stops are tentatively planned for Palm Springs, Phoenix, Austin, Houston, and New Orleans. We may also take breaks in El Paso, Atlanta, and/or Jacksonville before arriving in Groceteria’s new home of Charlotte NC.