Hello Ken, yes I can only imagine what the shipping world looked allike "back then". I am a member on a site called Shipnostalgia and it is fascinting for me to browse their photo gallery of ships, that sailed when I was even not yet born (before 1973 that is). It is also very educational for me as a late-starter with the hobby (that is, not grown up near the sea and no possibility to travel before 1990) to watch the fleets of companies like MSC, Matson Lines and Horizon Lines. A trip back to the past indeed !
But, sometimes I am wondering one thing: The very much loathed ships like Sietas 168 mass-production containerfeederships. Nobody likes them, due to "no character". I do sometimes wonder, whether I do, in 30 years, hear the same words from someone, like you say now ? That someone says, that "back then", the ships had still character, and that someone is pointing at such an (then very outdated of course) mass-production ship, and say "look at this, back then, the ships still had a character" :-D
OK, this is just something I do imagine, I do have of course no idea whether it will be like this.
I just remember, that some of the ferries built in the 80ies were called shoeboxes as I read in a book. And now, when they are almost ready to be made containers of, people call them having alot of character - unlike the (still) new ones.
Now, please don't worry, I am someone with alot of imagination, that's just so :-D But nice to share.