Thelma and Lowell's Diary: Dec. 1, 1943

Thelma cooks up a storm; FDR shops for souvenirs at Soviet Embassy

Thelma must have been feeling better today. Lowell had to work late, and when he came home he discovered she had baked a chocolate cake and made beef pie for supper. “Sure good,” he wrote, in his laconic way. I wish Thelma could get hold of that pen! She writes far more than her husband does.

With all the consumer shortages going on, Thelma may have resorted to a cake mix to produce her dessert. Duff’s Cake Mix had been available since the 1930s and got the jump on companies like Pillsbury and Duncan Hines in producing a quick mix. This 1943 magazine ad shows how fancy your cake could turn out if you used Duff’s devil’s food chocolate mix. The ad is offered on eBay.

FDR, Stalin and Churchill wound up their discussions in Tehran tonight with a banquet. But earlier in the day, the president, who was staying at the Soviet Embassy, did a little gift shopping at the “branch post exchange.” I wonder what he bought? Paid subscribers can read on.