Simanaitis Says

On cars, old, new and future; science & technology; vintage airplanes, computer flight simulation of them; Sherlockiana; our English language; travel; and other stuff

FERRARI 166MM—ASK THE MAN WHO BOUGHT ONE (OR TWO)

LOTS OF FERRARIS have appeared here at SimanaitisSays: the cars of Enzo, Casablanca‘s Blue Parrot owner Signor Ferrari, and the charming “Amati, Io Viso Dire” of composer Benedetto Ferrari.  But … Continue reading

February 15, 2021 · 5 Comments

HAS THE ELEPHANT GONE BATSHIT??   PART 2

YESTERDAY AND TODAY, I share tidbits from the American Enterprise Institute’s Survey Center on American Life and its January 2021 American Perspectives Survey. To provide balance of findings from this … Continue reading

February 14, 2021 · 2 Comments

HAS THE ELEPHANT GONE BATSHIT??   PART 1

I PONDERED MY wording for this title, but given a hit TV show parodizing the same word, I decided to keep it. The American Enterprise Institute is a respected conservative … Continue reading

February 13, 2021 · Leave a comment

THE ONLINE AD BUBBLE

HAVE YOU BOUGHT anything because of online advertising? I don’t believe I have. Ever. You know the kind of ad I have in mind: those ubiquitous online comeons that are … Continue reading

February 12, 2021 · 3 Comments

THE LRB ON KISSINGER    PART 2

YESTERDAY, DAVID RUNCIMAN’S article in London Review of Books offered tidbits about Henry Kissinger, whose years of Realpolitik had significant influence on the world. Today’s Part 2 continues, with Kissinger … Continue reading

February 11, 2021 · Leave a comment

THE LRB ON KISSINGER   PART 1

“POLITICAL SATIRE BECAME obsolete,” Tom Lehrer quipped, “when Henry Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.”  That was years ago, 1972, though both of these guys are still around; Lehrer … Continue reading

February 10, 2021 · Leave a comment

THE ADVENTUROUS LIFE AND MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF C.F. HALL    PART 2

YESTERDAY, 19TH-CENTURY ARCTIC adventurer Charles Francis Hall immersed himself in Inuit culture while exploring the Canadian Arctic. Today in Part 2, let’s celebrate his discovery of 300-year-old Frobisher relics and … Continue reading

February 9, 2021 · Leave a comment

THE ADVENTUROUS LIFE AND MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF C.F. HALL    PART 1

I BOUGHT CAPTAIN C.F. Hall’s Life with the Esquimaux, 1865, for three reasons: It would be the oldest book in my collection. For its time, it was richly illustrated. And … Continue reading

February 8, 2021 · Leave a comment

THE FIRST HUMANIST PLAYWRIGHT

SHAKESPEARE: THE INVENTION of the Human, 1998, is a classic book by Harold Bloom, 1930–2019, who is oft cited as “the most influential English-language critic of the late 20th century.” … Continue reading

February 7, 2021 · Leave a comment

PARLIAMO ITALIANO

ON THE LONG shot that you might be dining (likely these days outdoors) at  an Italian restaurant, here are culinary translational tidbits gleaned from a little guidebook. It’s more than … Continue reading

February 6, 2021 · 3 Comments