By Ben Marks — Baseball season is upon us, so naturally our thoughts turn to beer. Yes beer, the social lubricant that transforms even the most taciturn fans into long-lost brothers and sisters—when it isn’t serving as the catalyst for countless post-game brawls in countless parking lots and bars. “Ruth responded to the writer's hyperbole by swatting a three-run homer.” We all have our beer-and-baseball stories, whether it’s the salving effects of a couple of cold ones after your team was literally...

Hamm's Scene-o-Rama: Beer Sign Bliss

By Barry Travis — The Hamm's Scene-o-Rama was a sign ahead of its time. Made by Lakeside Plastics in Minneapolis in the late 1960s through early 1970s, it features an outdoor scene with a waterfall and river that appear to flow, as well as a smoking campfire. The motion effect comes from an outer, semi-transparent scroll and an inner, vertically lined background that gives the water (and campfire smoke) the illusion of flowing. "Many urban legends surround the Scene-o-Rama." There are two sizes, small...

Beer Steins, From Stoneware to Faience

By Maribeth Keane — I’ve been a beer stein collector for about 25 years. About 10 years ago I sold my business, a specialty database provider. At that point, I had some experience in compiling databases and beer steins were my passion, so with the spare time that had become available to me I tried applying my business skills to the hobby I enjoy and the Beer Stein Library was born. If there’s one thing missing in almost every hobby, it’s a source of searchable information. When you’ve found an old beer stein...