HUZZAHS FOR PERLMAN, NASH, AND SAENT-SAËNS!
I’VE JUST heard the most marvelous Itzhak Perlman recording of Camille Saent-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals, and it has instantly risen high on my Christmas/Hanukkah list, both as gift and … Continue reading
DOUGLAS DAUNTLESS SBD—SLOW BUT DEADLY
LET’S CELEBRATE an aircraft that contributed mightily to our victory in the Pacific in World War II, the Douglas Dauntless SBD. Indeed, the SBD accounted for destroying more Japanese tonnage … Continue reading
CHARLATAN TRUMP
THERE ARE those of us who would argue that “charlatan” is too kind a word to describe the likes of Donald J. Trump. However, the word has such interesting etymology, … Continue reading
TRAVELIN’ THE RAILS WITH CHARLEY F. MURPHY
WHAT FOLLOWS is a multi-part exposition of science (you’ll excuse the word) based on charge, force, and magnetic field, better known among students of physics as Charley F. Murphy. My … Continue reading
MALTA, ITS KNIGHTS, FALCON, AND PARTYING
MY PRIMARY knowledge about the Mediterranean island of Malta was pretty much limited to its falcon and detective Sam Spade. However, this knowledge expanded considerably upon reading “Malta, Where the … Continue reading
CELEBRATING PROMETHEUS. OR BLAMING HIM?
IN GREEK mythology, it was Prometheus who defied Zeus by giving fire to humanity. Fire, that led to civilization’s hearths, metalworking, the Industrial Revolution, and our modern age. In fact, … Continue reading
JOSHUA A. NORTON, AMERICA’S ONLY EMPEROR PART 2
ON SEPTEMBER 17, 1859, after having bankrupted big time on a rice scam, Joshua Abraham Norton sent the following proclamation to several San Francisco newspapers: “At the peremptory request and … Continue reading
JOSHUA A. NORTON, AMERICA’S ONLY EMPEROR PART 1
THE STORY of Joshua A. Norton, aka Emperor Norton I of the United States, is offered as historical entertainment here in two parts, today and tomorrow. You are free to … Continue reading
PEPPER GRINDERS, CAGE CRINOLINES, AND VIS-À-VIS MOTORING
THE MOTOR car image below is exemplary of a wonderful path that led from pepper grinders to cage crinolines to one of the earliest of the world’s famous automakers, Peugeot. … Continue reading
HOLMES RESIDUALS
I SUSPECT it was chronicler Dr. John H. Watson who taught Sherlock Holmes the value of branding, of selling marketers on his reputation as the world’s greatest detective, and then … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 