Category: True Stories

Saturday Matinee – Boop, Bongos, Bass & Bob, Gatemouth Brown and RIP Roy Clark

In 1932, Franklin Roosevelt ran against incumbent President Herbert Hoover for the presidency, hence the caricatures, and there are hints about the repeal of Prohibition in this cartoon. Hoover first shows up at 0:45. “Mr. Nobody” (1:12) probably refers to the other six candidates, including 3rd runner-up Socialist Party candidate Norman Thomas. Roosevelt’s nose and chin appear at 2:12.

The depiction of Congress at 2:28 is relevant today (as is Betty Boop twerking, promising everything for free). [Video found via here.]

Yep. That’s Penn Gillette (of Penn & Teller) on bass ca 1991. I first saw it in a movie theater as part of “Animation Celebration” or something, but I couldn’t find a link.

Clarence Gatemouth Brown (1924-2005) didn’t use a pick, and his calluses were tougher than woodpecker lips. Here’s his take on Bill Doggett‘s classic 1956 hit “Honky Tonk.” Brown was a speed blues artist as well. (If you doubt me, check out “Pressure Cooker.“)

RIP Roy Clark (1922-2018) What a great musical talent.

See you back here tomorrow for more extraneous arbitrary extrapolations.

Pray for those who lost loved ones, homes and businesses in the California fires, and don’t fall for the soulless scammers asking for donations. Donate directly to trusted charities only.

 

WWI – Navy Aircraft deployed to Nova Scotia

 

– A Curtiss HS-2L at U.S. Naval Air Station Halifax, circa 1918. Crates containing the first two HS-2L flying boats arrived at the station on 17 August 1918. The first aircraft was assembled and successfully test flown two days later.

The second-oldest military airfield in Canada, the Shearwater air station at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, has been home to Canada’s naval or RCAF maritime air squadrons since its inception in 1918.

[Image & caption found here.]

Armistice Day – The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month 1918

100 YEARS AGO

Celebration of the end of WWI, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Photograph shows crowds filling streets surrounding City Hall in celebration of Armistice Day, November 11, 1918, with replica Statue of Liberty.

[Image from here. Related posts here.]

Saturday Matinee – Stop-Motion Pumpkin Carving, Dangerous Dinner, The Growlers & Bite The Buffalo

Stop-motion pumpkin carving is awesome. Many gourds sacrificed their lives [via].

“If you steal the kill, and nobody is hurt, that’s when you can relax.”

Hunting without killing is ballsy as all get out. Psych out the predators and steal their stuff before they figure out what’s going on and they kill you [via].

The Growlers is an excellent name for an excellent semi-retro band. I love ’em.

Bite The Buffalo is an excellent name for an excellent semi-retro band. I love ’em.

Have a great weekend, folks, and we’ll do something different tomorrow. Or not.

Burgers, Chicken, Shakes and a Creepy Head on a Stick.

Mr. Hamburger, Huntsville, Texas

Opened in 1959, Mr. Hamburger is still in business. From their website:

“Situated across from the famous downtown Huntsville “Walls” prison unit, Mr. Hamburger has literally been the first taste of freedom for thousands of released inmates waiting for their bus ride out of town. This influence can be seen in the uniquely named burgers fitting the prison theme.”

[Found here.]

A Da Vinci Bridge – 15th Century Engineering

Okay 1502 AD is technically the 16th Century, but the engineering was already in existence.

VERY cool – You can build it on the spot if there’s available timber, no connectors required, and you can knock it down and take it with you once your army has crossed the stream, arroyo, ravine or ditch. Here’s one in use (with planks installed):

This kid constructed one without notches or connectors, using friction and compression only.

[Top image from Da Vinci. 2nd image from here, video from here, links found in here.]

New Kitchen Lighting Gripes

The electricians finally showed up this morning, installed 8 LED fixtures with new conduit, j-boxes, wiring and wall switches with dimmers. The Missus told them she also wanted two pendants over the island.

I came home to find this. 😀

Not only that, the new LEDs are so yellow that our neighborhood will be rid of moths for the next 20 years. 😦

[Image source: Bunk’s kitchen.]

R.A. Miller Paints A Snake

[Found here.]

Shark Attack

That beast looks to be about 6 feet long. The one that attacked the kid in San Diego this weekend and took a chunk out of his torso was 5 to 6 feet longer, about the length of the cool Stingray in the photo.

Think about the damage an aggressive shark half its size could do.

Here’s my honest opinion. Let’s eat them before they eat us.

[Found here.]

1949 Amusement Park Ride Advert

The Tilt-A-Whirl was the only ride I ever puked on. I was about 6 years old at the time, and it happened here.

See that blurb at the bottom left? The Runyon Cancer Fund is a charity founded in 1946 (named after famed newsman and writer Damon Runyon) and is still in operation over 70 years later.

[Image found in here.]