1947 Apex....my childhood vacuum. My mother received it as a wedding shower gift. Kept it until 1962 when she bought a Hoover Convertible Model 68. The Apex went to my Dad's office for another 16 years.
I wonder if the lady in this picture is modeled after actress Lauren Bacall. This could easily be lifted from the movie Dark Passage which she made with husband Humphry Bogart in 1947.
I have learned many valuable things already from all you knowledgeable posters! Among them is that there's a whole new world of vintage vacuums to explore -- new to me, at least. My all-time favorites, so far, are the "coffee can" Hoovers. I'm fortunate enough to have a 700 and 725, and tips from various posts have helped me get them into great condition. So..."My name is Tinytyke, and I am a vacaholic!"
For me it is an incurable illness that started around age 3 with my grandmothers Kirby built in 1959. The ability to gobble up dust mites only treats the condition to which there is no cure.
Thankfully I can live happily with the "condition" and is easily treated it with daily doses of a power full prescription that goes by the brand name of Kirby.