Buddy Merrill played for Lawrence Welk‘s Champagne Music Makers for twenty years before he decided he didn’t like playing on camera.
You might not know his name, but you’ve heard his work. Neil LeVang was one of the greatest studio guitar players of all time, played on many TV shows and movie soundtracks. Lawrence Welk hired him when Buddy Merrill was drafted.
“This bullet was found on the roof of Kuwait International Hotel where the invaders camped during their last days. Today, the KIH presents you this limited edition souvenir for “GOOD LUCK” just as the hotel survived the war without major damage. November 1991″
Found that tucked away in my home office desk. I think it’s a .50 caliber Browning NATO casing, but I wasn’t smart enough to photo the head stamp before I mailed it off to a veteran friend.
Above: Kuwait International Hotel after occupation by Iraqi forces in 1991. Much of the interior was burned out as these pictures show. More on cartridge casings here.
A new kind of spider was discovered in 2012. It has a velvet body and lives underground, hence the genus name LouReedia.
“After hearing the Guinness Book of World Records planned to name him the most litigious man, one federal prisoner did what he does best — he sued.” Story here.
Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creation reports that sea turtles need to watch their backs, because bottle-nosed dolphins enjoy having sex with them (as well as with sharks and eels). [Source]
[Top image: On 16 May 2020, the USS Portland disabled a UAV with a laser. Story & video here.]
Lou Reed had an incredible a vocal range. In 2015, as he was about to be (posthumously) inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, his sister wrote about their early years in A Family In Peril.
Tom Waits‘ “Telephone call from Istanbul” from the movie Big Time. The missus-to-be and I saw it at the Nuart in L.A., and I remember it being damn surreal.
Have great weekend, folks, and be sure to wear a mask and maintain proper social distance if you decide to go looting and burning businesses in your neighborhood. See you back here tomorrow.
