Very cool! ..... By the way LA still has lots of old street lights like the Novalux you mentioned, though most of this specific type have been converted to HPS. Some may still be incandescent.
By the way, have you seen Joe Maurath's street lighting forum at groups.yahoo.com/group/vintage_streetlights ? It's all about old street lighting.
I ran across this site when searching for Novalux on the web, so I am new to being a lighting junkie. I like anything ornate such as iron work, Art Deco architecture, Victorian... especially mechanical stuff (boilers, radiators, iron register grates) and of course lighting. So I haven't run across Joe Maurath's forum yet, but thanks for the tip.
One of the largest antiques shows in the world (Brimfield Antiques Show) is near where I live, and there are always old lighting fixtures there, so I will be sure to get photos at upcoming shows. In fact, Brimfield is where I found the G.E. catalog.
The town of Mount Oliver PA still has lamp posts that look like they are from the same era as the catalog. They are globe fixtures with a Victorian, or maybe medieval looking casting surrounding the globe. They are kinda creepy looking like gargoyles, and I love the look. I'll have to dig through my photos to see if I have one to post. The color of the illumination suggests they may still be incandescent.
There is an old '50s Westinghouse fluorescent fixture in my basement I'll probably post.
I'll post more catalog pages as time allows. Speaking of which, time to get back to work.
Jeff