# The List of Disappearing Products **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 23, 2008, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094 "2008-11-23T14:15:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Amber\_in\_Treasury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc79bd/32.png) [@Amber\_in\_Treasury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amber_in_Treasury)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/61 "2008-11-25T01:23:15Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > When I was a kid, I can remember seeing these cloth towel “strips” hanging in public restrooms (particularly in rural areas). The towel strip was suspended from a large metal box, often with a mirror on the front; I think there was some mechanism for rotating/wringing the towel strip. Those are still rather common around here. ---
**Author:** ![urban1a](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e47c2d/32.png) [@urban1a](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urban1a)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/62 "2008-11-25T03:43:24Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > Are the platters made of metal and heavy? If not, you run the risk of excessive wow and flutter. I’m looking [at one of these](http://www.dak.com/Reviews/2020Story.cfm) from good old Drew Kaplan (Yeah! He’s back!) WOW! Drew Kaplan. I used to drool over his catalog for hours at a time. Never bought anything though. Thought he was probably dead. Bob ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/63 "2008-11-25T03:53:28Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > - 3-piece men’s suits You can still find them, but you have to look hard. And the vests are becoming (pardon the pun) vestigial. Back when they were regularly worn, they usually had six buttons and four pockets. Now they typically have five buttons and two pockets - a little less functional; a little less elegant. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/64 "2008-11-25T14:53:56Z")
> [@Beware\_of\_Doug](#): > > You can still find them, but you have to look hard. And the vests are becoming (pardon the pun) vestigial. Back when they were regularly worn, they usually had six buttons and four pockets. Now they typically have five buttons and two pockets - a little less functional; a little less elegant. I asked about one last year, but Joseph A Bank, my latest go-to men’s shop doesn’t sell them anymore, at least the three in my general area don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/65 "2008-11-25T15:03:23Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > - Depilatory powders for men. Check the ethnic products aisle of your drug store. Still quite popular with folks who tend to get razor bumps or easily get keloid scars. ---
**Author:** ![Octalcode](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Octalcode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octalcode)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/66 "2008-11-25T17:19:39Z")
Hotel/Motel room keys. With the big fob that had the hotel/motel name,address, and room number on it. (drop in any mailbox. Return postage guaranteed) Time clocks that punched actual cardboard time cards. Pay phone booths. (the kind you walk into and close the door). ---
**Author:** ![SirRay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@SirRay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SirRay)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/67 "2008-11-25T18:42:56Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > When I was a kid, I can remember seeing these cloth towel “strips” hanging in public restrooms (particularly in rural areas). The towel strip was suspended from a large metal box, often with a mirror on the front; I think there was some mechanism for rotating/wringing the towel strip. Those I haven’t seen in ages - first they were replaced by paper towels (cool), and then by ‘electric’ hand dryers (I quote electric, as the majority seemed so lame that your hands were dried mostly by the ‘shake hands first’ part of the instructors on the drier - then came the [Xlerator Hand dryer](http://www.exceldryer.com/Products/xlerator.asp). Still useless for blowing your nose (which is why it’s lucky that \*\*hankerchiefs \*\*are available almost everywhere, including Wal\*mart & Target - sorry, the whole premise of the OP was based on a falacy 😛 ). > [@](#): > > Pay phone booths. (the kind you walk into and close the door). Agreed, although it’s cool to find some of the wood booths in older public buildings, especially if they are still in use. While not product-based, still a good time to mention [http://www.forgotten-ny.com/](http://www.forgotten-ny.com/)[Forgotten NY](http://www.forgotten-ny.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2008, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/68 "2008-11-25T23:27:13Z")
I just heard on NPR that The Sharper Image is gone. Wow. Where will I get my combination nose-hair clipper, clock, and voice recorder? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/69 "2008-11-26T21:38:25Z")
> [@emilyforce](#): > > Not that I necessarily disbelieve you, but – cite? I’m gonna slightly back off on this, because most of the sources I’ve found that suggest paper towels rather than cloth towels refer to cleaning in the kitchen rather than the batroom. Here are a [couple](http://www.carefair.com/Nutrition/Most_Common_Germs_in_Kitchen_3243.html) of [them](http://www.professorshouse.com/your-home/cleaning/germs-in-the-kitchen.aspx). The idea is that towels collect the germs, and paper towels dispose of them when they themselves are disposed, but cloth towels hold them for the next user unless cleaned very frequently. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/70 "2008-12-09T04:43:13Z")
[quote=“flodnak, post:1, topic:474094”] Some more products I’d put on the list:[ul][li]VCRs[_]VHS tapes[_]tubed televisions[_]CRT monitors[_]Polaroid film[/ul][/li][/QUOTE] An update on Polaroid film is [here](http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/12/08/polaroid.farewell/index.html). It will be available next year, but no more will be made after this month. Wonderful. Yet another item that will peg me as an Old Fogey for not only remembering it, but also remembering what a big deal it was when it first came out. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/71 "2008-12-09T05:33:36Z")
> [@jali](#): > > I’m surprised since DJs in clubs still use turntables. Maybe it’s specialty equipment at a premium price. IME, most DJs are switching to CD decks, or are skipping CDs entirely and going straight to .mp3-based systems. ---
**Author:** ![oliversarmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/eb8c5e/32.png) [@oliversarmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oliversarmy)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/72 "2008-12-09T06:08:36Z")
Pica poles. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/73 "2008-12-09T06:39:09Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Cigarette cases. > > CB Radios. > > Car phones. > > Jalousie windows. > > Soon/next: Formica/laminate counter tops, bar soap, hand towels CB radios pretty much disappeared from popular culture in the early 1980s, but they’re still very popular among hobbyists who aren’t inclined to get an amateur radio license, those living in rural areas, and truckers. They’re as popular as they were in 1985 – which means “not very” – but they’re not disappearing. They’ve just bottomed out. Car phones: disappeared completely. My mom’s car still has one, which she got in 1992. It’s unusable now; I don’t think there’s AMPS service anywhere in the United States. As long as there’s starter homes and apartment complexes, there will be laminate countertops. Not every part of the country is on the granite and quartz bandwagon. Just my opinion. EDIT: to the items that seem to be disappearing, I’ll add some one-common tools used in drafting; architect’s and engineer’s scales, drawing templates, lead sharpeners, angles, and the like. They’ll be available forever, but likely much harder to find. ---
**Author:** ![Promethea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Promethea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Promethea)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/74 "2008-12-09T10:21:14Z")
Blue Airmail Stationery. Yes, you can still track it down online but my mum had a devil of a job just trying to just buy it from stationery shops when she lived in the USA for a few years and I didn’t have much better luck trying to find it here in England. Email increasingly taking the place of international letter sending, presumably. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/75 "2008-12-09T10:29:22Z")
> [@Promethea](#): > > Blue Airmail Stationery. Yes, you can still track it down online but my mum had a devil of a job just trying to just buy it from stationery shops when she lived in the USA for a few years and I didn’t have much better luck trying to find it here in England. Email increasingly taking the place of international letter sending, presumably. How about airmail envelopes? You know, the ones with the red and blue diagonal blocks all 'round the edges? I haven’t seen those in years. Do they still exist? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/76 "2008-12-09T13:38:45Z")
> [@Promethea](#): > > Blue Airmail Stationery. Yes, you can still track it down online but my mum had a devil of a job just trying to just buy it from stationery shops when she lived in the USA for a few years and I didn’t have much better luck trying to find it here in England. Email increasingly taking the place of international letter sending, presumably. Easy to find in Thailand. > [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > How about airmail envelopes? You know, the ones with the red and blue diagonal blocks all 'round the edges? I haven’t seen those in years. Do they still exist? I use them every month to mail my credit-card payments to the US. (Thai law prohibits payments made straight from bank accounts to another country; I have to mail bank drafts.) Easy to find here. Even says “Par Avion.” ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/77 "2008-12-09T13:52:47Z")
Wild Berry Pop Tarts have been sadly discontinued. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go poor a 40 on my toaster. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/78 "2008-12-09T14:12:26Z")
I’m finding it quite hard to get blades for my “Missile Silo” style shaver; Wilkinson Sword are the only company I know of that still make them and the local supermarket has an erratic at best supply. ---
**Author:** ![BJMoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@BJMoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BJMoose)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/79 "2008-12-09T14:33:38Z")
> [@oliversarmy](#): > > Pica poles. Does this mean mine is worth big bucks now? Cool! Apparently bottle brushes (I think of them as thermos brushes) have gone bye-bye. I spent twenty minutes looking for one at Wal-Mart a few weeks back. Nada. Couple of weeks back the local paper had a story on the last photo lab in America (or maybe even the world) that still processes Kodachrome film. It’s in Pittsburg, Kansas, if you want to visit. I thought about mentioning Fizzies and Root Beer Kool-Ade, but that would _really_ be dating myself. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2008, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094/80 "2008-12-09T14:38:46Z")
> [@BJMoose](#): > > Apparently bottle brushes (I think of them as thermos brushes) have gone bye-bye. I spent twenty minutes looking for one at Wal-Mart a few weeks back. Nada. That’s another item that’s plentiful here. I find them handy for washing my lager glasses. You can even find some with a little sponge attached to the end for such purposes. As for Kodachrome, I know it has to be sent out of Thailand, but I don’t know where. Takes up to two weeks to get it back. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-list-of-disappearing-products/474094.md?page=5)