The Old-Time Saloon: Not wet--not dry, just history

by George Ade

Fancy a tipple? Then pull up a stool, raise a glass, and dip into this delightful paean to the grand old saloon days of yore. Written by Chicago-based journalist, playwright, and all-round wit George Ade in the waning years of Prohibition, T he Old-Time Saloon is both a work of propaganda masquerading as “just history” and a hilarious exercise in nostalgia. Featuring original, vintage illustrations along with a new introduction and notes from Bill Savage, Ade's book takes us back to the long-gone men’s clubs of earlier days, when beer was a nickel, the pretzels were polished, and the sardines were free.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

174 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1931

About the author

George Ade (February 9, 1866 – May 16, 1944) was an American writer, newspaper columnist, and playwright.

Ade's literary reputation rests upon his achievements as a great humorist of American character during an important era in American history: the first large wave of migration from the countryside to burgeoning cities like Chicago, where, in fact, Ade produced his best fiction. He was a practicing realist during the Age of (William Dean) Howells and a local colorist of Chicago and the Midwest. His work constitutes a vast comedy of Midwestern manners and, indeed, a comedy of late 19th-century American manners. In 1915, Sir Walter Raleigh, Oxford professor and man of letters, while on a lecture tour in America, called George Ade "the greatest living American writer."

(wikipedia)

Reviews

[Tyler McGaughey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very entertaining reading, aside from one slanderous insult to karaoke bars in the endnotes.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

A quick read and a quick overview of the old time saloon. It was to short and to overreaching to get into deeply.

On my scale it rates a Meh

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

On a good day, Ade was the greatest journalist/humorist hybrid between the eras of Mark Twain and H.L. Mencken. This was not that day. Published in 1931 or 1932 (judging by the contents - date not given in the reprint I picked up), "The Old-Time Saloon" has some not especially amusing descriptions of pre-Prohibition bars - the clientele, the decor, the free lunch - along with one or two dull anecdotes about Chicago bartenders in the days when Ade was a reporter there. He also claims that while many saloons were pleasant enough places, the disreputable ones were enough to bring the 18th Amendment down on the just and unjust alike. Okay, whatever.

I considered giving this one star but relented because it's not as bad as 1929's "Irvin Cobb at His Best," the worst thing sold as humor that I've ever read. Stick to Ade's famous Fables in Slang and his parodies of boys' adventure stories, which are hilarious.

There are illustrations by Rube Goldberg, Gluyas Williams and some others. Always nice to see Williams cartoons, but it's jarring to find them outside of a Robert Benchley collection. It just points up how Ade wasn't exactly operating at Benchley's level in this one.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bill Savage did right by George Ade by giving him another printing and supplying fantastic endnotes that fill in much context likely to be missed by modern readers. Other reviews mention a lack of description of the saloon environment, I think it’s plenty adequate and it goes beyond just plain description instead identifying the social, economic, and controversial role saloons held in the many community areas of Chicago. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to read an account of prohibition and saloons from a skilled writer who knew the landscape intimately…it’s a rare historical account: the convergence of skill and the right time-right place!

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lively and funny book (first published in 1931) that is both a fond remembrance of the saloons of the late 19th Century, and a polite screed against Prohibition and the “drys.” The version I read is a 2016 facsimile edition of the original (right down to Ade’s signature on the title page), which is bolstered by Bill Savage’s informative introduction and endnotes. This book will have a permanent place on my “drinking literature” shelf, between Kingsley Amis’ Everyday Drinking and Frederick Hackwood’s Inns, Ales and Drinking Customs of Old England.

[Al Lock · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very entertaining book written during Prohibition about the culture of the Saloon from pre-prohibition. It is interesting and easy reading. At the back there is lots of notes made by Bill Savage as Editor/Annotator which will help those who are less familiar with the period in question to understand the references. A very enjoyable read.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Engaging storyteller and a fast read, but I had hoped for more of an in depth description of the saloons. Instead, there is more focus on why the saloon was the true target of Prohibition, not alcohol.

[Nicole C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, but entirely too short. I was hoping for a bit more depth into the atmosphere of the old saloon. I enjoyed the writing style.

[Jacob Kiper · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a look at Pre-Prohibition saloon culture... written in 1931 during Prohibition. In modern days, we tend to forget just how absurd early saloon culture could be.