August 1974: Nixon, Ford and the presidency

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It was the first week of August 1974 when the unthinkable happened: President Richard M. Nixon announced that he had resigned the presidency.   We say unthinkable because it was the first and only time that a US president had resigned.  He made his announcement on TV the night before and formally resigned at noon on this day in 1974.

As I recall, I rushed home to watch President Nixon’s departure from the White House and President Gerald Ford’s inauguration.  I kept telling myself that I was a witness to history — a resignation and a new president who was never directly elected by voters.

Later my dad came home with a business friend visiting from Venezuela.  We sat down for dinner and the friend commented that it was impressive to watch a transfer of power without tanks or shots.

After the speech and his departure from Washington, President Nixon went into political exile but made a comeback in the 1980's with some great books, one of  them his memoirs, RN.  He became one of the premier foreign-policy statesmen in the world.  

President Nixon died in 1994 and was given a full presidential funeral.  

PS: This is a great book:

A chat with George Rodriguez, South Texas

 

Guest: George Rodriguez, South Texas. The latest from the polls in Texas, Data centers and Texas politics, The WNBA is crazier than ever plus we remember President Ford 1974.

CANTO TALK podcasts from last week

Check the shows from last week.   

 P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Bernie and the Lefts

Bernie and the Lefts:

The man who’s never held a real job in his life is now leading the most energized parade in America. But it’s a parade (we hope) that’s going nowhere.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/bernie-and-the-lefts/

We remember Tommie Agee (1942-2001)

We remember Tommie Agee who was born in Alabama on this day in 1942.    He died in 2001.

Like many others, Tommie had a decent career:  .255 average, 130 hr & 433 RBI.   He broke with the Indians in 1962 and retired with the Cardinals in 1973.

We remember Agee for game 3 of the 1969 World Series against the Orioles:    2 super catches on shots hit by Paul Blair & Ellie Hendricks.  They were game changing catches that may have turned the series momentum to the Mets who won the series in 5 games.

Agee was something else that day, as any Oriole fan will reluctantly agree.

P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

August 1966: Remembering The Beatles' Revolver, my 2nd favorite album!

In a previous post, I wrote that Rubber Soul was my favorite Beatles' album. Today, we remember my 2nd favorite: Revolver.

In the UK, and most places, Revolver was released after Rubber Soul.

In the US, Revolver was released after "Yesterday and Today", a collection of 45's and other songs from the UK Rubber Soul.

The US Revolver was interesting because Paul did most of the lead vocals. It also confirmed that George Martin is one of the great pop music producers ever! You can see Martin's creative influence all over this album.

George had 3 songs, including the classic "Taxman".

John was limited to lead vocals on two songs, like "Tomorrow never knows" and "She said, she said". He had more tracks on the UK version. He had a couple more in the UK Revolver and were released in the aforementioned "Yesterday and Today:.

Why were the US and UK versions different? I don't know but they were.

What else do they say about Revolver:

"If you don't like Revolver, then you probably don't like rock music." (Reviews)

I would agree with that.

Let me go further: If you don't like Revolver then you don't understand The Beatles!

P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Nixon to Ford 1974: Was it really so many years ago?

It was the first week of August 1974 when the unthinkable happened: President Richard M. Nixon announced that he had resigned the presidency.   We say unthinkable because it was the first and only time that a US president had resigned.  He made his announcement on TV the night before and formally resigned at noon on this day in 1974.

As I recall, I rushed home to watch President Nixon’s departure from the White House and President Gerald Ford’s inauguration.  I kept telling myself that I was a witness to history — a resignation and a new president who was never directly elected by voters.

Later my dad came home with a business friend visiting from Venezuela.  We sat down for dinner and the friend commented that it was impressive to watch a transfer of power without tanks or shots.

After the speech and his departure from Washington, President Nixon went into political exile but made a comeback in the 1980's with some great books, one of  them his memoirs, RN.  He became one of the premier foreign-policy statesmen in the world.  

President Nixon died in 1994 and was given a full presidential funeral.    

This is a great book.

(P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.)

Pollsters flop in Michigan and what lessons can we learn. Dems go left and set the table for a contrast election. WNBA in a state of confusion over gender. President Nixon resigned 1974.

 Pollsters flop in Michigan and what lessons can we learn.  Dems go left and set the table for a contrast election.  WNBA in a state of confusion over gender.  President Nixon resigned 1974.

I read the news today, oh boy, about pollsters who flunked the grade

I read the news today, oh boy, about pollsters who flunked the grade:

Polling was never an exact science, but the exploding number of polls and pollsters may explain why it’s having more problems than usual now.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/i-read-the-news-today-oh-boy-about-pollsters-who-flunked-the-grade/

We remember Frank Howard (1938-2023)

We remember Frank Howard who was born on this day in 1936 in Columbus, Ohio.  He died in 2023.

Frank broke with the LA Dodgers in 1958 and became a regular in 1960 when he hit 23 HR and won the NL Rookie of the Year Award. Eventually, he was traded to the Washington Senators where he hit 246 HR in 8 seasons and led the AL in HR twice with 44 in 1968 and 1970.    

From 1967 to 1970, Howard hit 198 HR over 5 seasons.   He and Killebrew were the two biggest  power hitters in the AL during that time.

In 1972, the Senators became the Texas Rangers and Howard hit the first HR in the team's history.   However,  he was traded to Detroit and his career was over in 1973.

Overall, Frank Howard hit a very decent .272 average with 382 HR & 1,119 RBI.     

My one memory of Howard is a line drive HR that left the park in a heart beat.   I have never seen a ball hit harder than that.   It was amazing!

 

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.