November 12, 1946: The 1st Drive-Up Teller Window

November 12, 1946: A Chicago branch of the Exchange National Bank -- later part of the Bank of America -- opens the 1st 10 drive-up teller windows. This is a big step forward in making personal banking more convenient.

World War II was over, and, along with American car production, American car culture was going into overdrive. Pretty soon, drive-up restaurants would become common. The growth of suburban supermarkets led to a process where a customer could phone in his order, drive to the store, and have it delivered right to his car.

Automatic teller machines were first tried in 1960, but it would be 1967 before they became practical and a few more years before they became drive-up as well.

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November 12, 1946 was a Tuesday. This was also the day that Walt Disney Pictures released the controversial film Song of the South. I have a separate entry for that event.

Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. The brand-new Basketball Association of America, later to become the NBA, was in its 1st month of games, and none were scheduled for this day. Nor were any scheduled for the NHL. So there were no scores on this historic day.

September 18, 1958: The 1st True Credit Card

September 18, 1958: Bank of America introduces BankAmericard. They send their cards to 65,000 households in Fresno County, California, after making arrangements with 1,000 local merchants to accept them. It is not the 1st credit card, but it is the 1st one as we now understand the term.

Diners Club had introduced the credit card in 1950. What made BankAmericard different is that, unlike Diners Club and previous cards, where the amount charged had to be paid at the end of the month, BankAmericard introduced the concept of credit card debt: The customer had the option of making a minimum payment, and agreed for the remaining balance to be an interest-bearing loan. It didn't work out well at first, but it made a profit by May 1961.

American Express introduced its eventually famous card 13 days later, on October 1. In the 1970s, the card would become known for its commercials where celebrities, out of their usual context, would start by asking, "Do you know me?" and ending with, "The American Express Card: Don't leave home without it!" (American Express was already in the business of travelers' checks, and their card's commercials would be accompanied by ads for the checks, with actor Karl Malden saying, "Don't leave home without them!")

Interbank introduced its card in 1966. It became Master Charge in 1969, and MasterCard in 1979. By that point, credit card debt became a common problem. In the 1970s, my parents literally used their BankAmericard to pay their Master Charge, and vice versa. That is no longer legal. In 1974, Nipsey Russell, who used poetry for comedy, said:

If you hold too much on your American Express

and your Diners Club bill is too large

take a loan on your BankAmericard

and pay it off with your Master Charge! 

In 1974, Hank Aaron's 715th career home run fell into the Atlanta Braves' bullpen, in front of an ad for BankAmericard. But in 1976, Bank of America brought its various international cards, including Barclaycard and ChargeX, under a single name: VISA.

By the 1980s, the various credit cards were no longer tied to a single bank, and Bank of America issued MasterCards and Discover Cards as well as Visa cards.

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September 18, 1958 was a Thursday. There were 3 baseball games played that day:

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 6-2 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* The Milwaukee Braves beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 9-3 at Busch Stadium (formerly Sportsman's Park) in St. Louis. Hank Aaron went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Stan Musial did not play.

* And the Kansas City Athletics beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-1 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. Ted Williams went 1-for-3. Future Yankees Roger Maris and Bob Cerv both hit home runs for the A's.