"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free." - President Ronald Reagan
Sunday, December 28, 1980
We remember "super glove man" Aurelio RodrÃguez (1947-2000)
Thursday, December 25, 1980
We remember Rod Sterling (1924-1975)
Most of us grew up watching "The Twilight Zone", one of my all-time favorite TV shows.
Tuesday, December 23, 1980
We remember Tim Hardin (1941-80)
His songs include "Reason to believe", recorded by Rod Stewart and The Carpenters, and "If I were a carpenter", a big hit for Bobby Darin and recorded by many others.
1860-64: Christmas and President Lincoln
“In 1860, as President-elect, Lincoln received callers such as Thurlow Weed in Springfield, Illinois, and dealt with Cabinet issues. He was especially concerned that federal forts had been taken in the South.On December 20 he received the stunning news that South Carolina had seceded from the Union.In 1861 President Lincoln was deeply involved in Civil War problems such as the Trent affair, but found time on December 22 to attend services at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church.On Christmas morning he held an important Cabinet meeting, but was able to entertain a large number of dinner guests by evening.In 1862 President Lincoln again was absorbed with military matters and was preparing the final draft of the Emancipation Proclamation.On December 23 he wrote to Fanny McCullough, whose father had been killed in action and had been a long-time friend of his. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln visited Washington hospitals on Christmas Day.In 1863 President Lincoln reassured the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society he had no intention of retracting the Emancipation Proclamation.On Christmas Day he discussed the constitutionality of the draft with John Hay, one of his private secretaries.In 1864 President Lincoln received the following dispatch from General Sherman, who had captured Savannah, Georgia:“I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the city of Savannah with 150 heavy guns & plenty of ammunition & also about 25000 bales of cotton.”On December 26 Lincoln gave a Christmas reception at the White House.”
Monday, December 22, 1980
We remember Robin & Maurice Gibb today
I love their 3-part harmonies and songwriting skills.
From 'New York Mining Disaster 1941" in the spring of 1967 to "This is where I came in", their last LP in 2001, the Brothers Gibb recorded and wrote some of the best songs of the last 50 years.
Saturday, December 20, 1980
1957: Elvis and the draft
After six months of basic training–including an emergency leave to see his beloved mother, Gladys, before she died in August 1958–Presley sailed to Europe on the USS General Randall. For the next 18 months, he served in Company D, 32nd Tank Battalion, 3rd Armor Corps in Friedberg, Germany, where he attained the rank of sergeant.For the rest of his service, he shared an off-base residence with his father, grandmother and some Memphis friends. After working during the day, Presley returned home at night to host frequent parties and impromptu jam sessions. At one of these, an army buddy of Presley’s introduced him to 14-year-old Priscilla Beaulieu, whom Elvis would marry some years later.Meanwhile, Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, continued to release singles recorded before his departure, keeping the money rolling in and his most famous client fresh in the public’s mind. Widely praised for not seeking to avoid the draft or serve domestically, Presley was seen as a model for all young Americans.After he got his polio shot from an army doctor on national TV, vaccine rates among the American population shot from 2 percent to 85 percent by the time of his discharge on March 2, 1960.
Friday, December 19, 1980
2013 show: Cuban food for the holidays with Marta Darby & Sonia Martinez
Guests:
Marta Verdes Darby, (My big fat Cuban family)
and Sonia Martinez, author of "Tropical taste".
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk). If you like our posts, click send drop a dime here.We remember Walt "No neck" Williams (1943-2016)
We remember Walt Williams who was born on this day in 1943. He died in 2016.
In the early 1970s, it was a treat to watch the Chicago White Sox play the Milwaukee Brewers at the old County Stadium.
During that time, the White Sox had a stocky outfielder (5'6" & 165 lbs) with one of the greatest nicknames in baseball, or "No neck" Williams. His wife said that he got the nickname in his first year of baseball.
"No neck" played for several years with Chicago, Cleveland and New York Yankees. His best season was 1969 when he hit .304 with 133 hits. Overall, he retired with a very respectable .270 career batting average.
Walt "No neck" Williams. I loved the nickname and very aggressive style on the field.
We remember Tony Taylor (1935-2020)
We remember Al Kaline (1934-2020)
We remember Al Kaline who was born in Baltimore in 1934 and died in 2020.
Kaline broke with the Detroit Tigers in 1953.
In 1955, he won the AL batting title, the youngest champion ever at age 20.
Kaline played right field for the next two decades and finished in the top 3 of AL batting leaders five more times. He also hit 399 HR and won 10 Gold Gloves.
In 1974, he retired with 3,008 hits and was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1980.
One of my all time favorites. I saw him play several times.
Wednesday, December 17, 1980
Remembering the Cuban Christmas and "Los Reyes Magos"
Remembering the Cuban Christmas and "Los Reyes Magos".....Listen in now at http://t.co/OalrrUrZKg. #BlogTalkRadio
— Silvio Canto, Jr. (@SCantojr) January 7, 2014
Guests:
Marta Sosa (Cubanarama on the radio);
Tersi Bendiburg (storyteller)
Fernando Hernandez ("The Cubans, our footprints...") and,
Amarilys Gacio Rassler ("Cuban American.....")
We remember William Safire (1929-2009)
Safire was associated with President Nixon, including the famous "Kitchen debate" from 1959. Later, he wrote several books and a column.
His books were great.
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.
Tuesday, December 16, 1980
1773: A little Tea Party history
Once upon a time, colonists threw tea into the water of Boston harbor.
Our own "tea party" these days is also based on taxation and the sense that the government is out of touch with the governed.
Sunday, December 14, 1980
We remember Patty Duke (1946-2016)
We remember that Patty Duke was born in Queens, New York, on this day in 1946. She died in 2016.
Patty had a very popular TV star in the 1960's, or the kind of program that millions of girls would watch every week to catch up with her antics.
She was very talented and worked on many other movies as well.
We remember Bill Buckner (1949-2019)
He hit .289 with 2,715 hits and a .408 on-base average. Buckner was a tough out, a great competitor and the kind of guy that you wanted on your team. Indeed, a great major league hitter.
Thursday, December 11, 1980
1951: Joe DiMaggio retired from baseball
He began with the Yankees in 1936 when he was 21. We remember him for the 56-game hitting streak and a .325 career batting average.
He also played in 10 World Series, including 4 in a row (1936-39) and won the MVP 3 times. (1939, 1941 & 1947).
Was he the best? Let's say that he was one of the best!
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.
Monday, December 08, 1980
We remember John Lennon (1940-80)
Yes, it was a shocking act, as Howard Cosell said on TV, when he broke the story during the football game.
World War II right after the attack on Pearl Harbor with Barry Jacobsen
Click to listen:
Tuesday, December 02, 1980
1961: The day that Fidel Castro said: “Yo soy un Marxista Leninista”!
For much of the first two years of the so called “revolution,” Fidel Castro denied that he was a communist. In fact, he did it on “Meet the Press” when he visited the U.S. in 1959. Nevertheless, there were many people who had serious doubts, from Vice President Richard Nixon to many Cubans in the island.
On this day in 1961 Fidel Castro made it official:
“”I am a Marxist-Leninist and shall be one until the end of my life.”He went on to state that, “Marxism or scientific socialism has become the revolutionary movement of the working class.”He also noted that communism would be the dominant force in Cuban politics:“There cannot be three or four movements.””
And that was it! It happened about seven months after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion and ended any hopes of a multiparty election or restoration of the freedoms that the regime had eliminated by executive decree.
Last, but not least, Cubans were thrown in jail or executed in 1959-61 for calling Castro un “comunista.” None of those people were ever released after Castro confirmed that he was “un communista.” They stayed in prison, along with thousands of others.
As my late father used to say, communists lie and then lie so more!
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.
1823: The Monroe Doctrine
The declaration, drafted by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams intended to keep European powers from colonizing territory in Central and South America. The US was also looking westward and did not want to compete with Europeans in North America.
"America for Americans" was the message. Naturally, it had its critics and supporters over the years. On balance, it worked well and kept European powers out of America, from North to South.
Sunday, November 30, 1980
1963: The UK version of "I want to hold your hand" was released by The Beatles
By mid-January, the song was # 1 on Billboard and "Beatlemania" was off and running. The group appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9th and you know the rest of the story.
In the UK, the B-side was "This boy". In the US, it was "I saw her standing there".
A few weeks later, "Meet the Beatles", the first Capitol LP was also released.
We remember Dick Clark (1929-2012)
We remember Richard Wagstaff Clark who was born in Mt. Vernon, NY, on this day in 1929. On April 18, 2012, Dick Clark died of a heart attack. He was 82.
Dick Clark's American Bandstand was on the air until the late 1980s. He went from one generation to the other, from Elvis to U2. I guess that he connected so well because he never "aged". He looked as young in 1987 as he did in 1967 when we used to watch those Saturday shows.
Dick Clark was great and we thank him for all of the memories. I used to love that "rate the record" segment and the interviews.
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.
Friday, November 28, 1980
We remember Gato Barbieri (1923-2016)
He was born Leandro Barbieri in Rosario, Argentina, on this day in 1923. He died in 2016.
Leandro got the nickname "Gato" because he would go from one club to another in Buenos Aires.
Over time, he recorded over 30 albums and won many awards, including a Latin Grammy lifetime achievement.
Your music was excellent! By the way, he composed the music for "Last tango in Paris".
Wednesday, November 26, 1980
Charles Schulz (1922-2000), the man who gave us Charlie Brown
Charles Monroe Schulz was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on this day in 1922. He died in 2000. Schulz created Charlie Brown, Lucy, Snoopy, and the rest of the Peanuts Gang.
Back in the early days of “el exilio”, we learned English going to school, playing baseball with our new friends and watching TV. I don’t want to show my age but TV circa 1970 was “mucho mejor” than what we have today. Back then, we had 3 or 4 channels and something worth watching. Today, we have 300 channels and “mucha basura” as my late mother used to say.
We loved Mr. Schulz’ characters so much that we watched them on TV and holiday specials. What would Thanksgiving be without Charlie and the gang planning their celebration? What would a Christmas’ playlist be like without “Snoopy’ Christmas”?
Happy San Giving and catch Snoopy this weekend.
Friday, November 21, 1980
1980: Who shot J R Ewing of the Dallas TV series?
The "Dallas" TV series was a huge success in the 1970's.
On March 13, 1980, the season ended with someone shooting JR Ewing, the character that everybody loved to hate.
The show's fans, and a few others spent most of the summer wondering "Who shot JR"?
On this day in 1980, millions of people around the world tuned in to answer the question: Who shot JR?
83 million people in the country saw the show or an amazing 76% of all of the TVs in the US.
As I recall, it was Kristin who shot him!
Monday, November 17, 1980
1980: John Lennon's "Double Fantasy" released in the US
John Lennon released "Double Fantasy" on this day in 1980. It turned out to be his last LP because John was killed a few weeks later. I guess that I must be getting old because I remember the new LP and the night he was killed like it was yesterday.
Thursday, November 13, 1980
We remember Buck O'Neill (1911-2006)
The great Buck O'Neill was born in Florida on this day in 1911. He died in 2006.
Most baseball fans were introduced to the late Buck O'Neill in Ken Burns' baseball series. Buck related so many stories of the old Negro Leagues.
O'Neill won't get in the Hall of Fame because of stats. He did not hit titanic home runs like Josh Gibson or cut down batters like Satchel Paige.
I should add that baseball created The Buck O'Neill Award in 2008.
We remember Mel Stottlemyre (1941-2019)
We remember Mel Stottlemyre who was born in 1941 and pitched for the Yankees, 1964-74. He died in 2019.
Stottlemyre pitched during a very difficult time for the Yankees. He came up in 1964 and pitched very well for the AL Champs. Unfortunately, he never pitched for another contender after that. In fact, the Yankees did not return to the post season until 1976.
Stottlemyre won 164, completed 152, threw 40 shutouts and retired with a fantastic 2.97 ERA. Wonder how many games he'd won with better Yankee teams? It's hard to say but 250 is a real possibility.
After baseball, Mel served as pitching coach for the Yankees.
Saturday, November 08, 1980
We remember Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949)
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.
Friday, November 07, 1980
What a weekend to remember Reagan!
Finally, in late October, Reagan capitulated to Carter’s preconditions and met him one time, face to face, without Anderson present.In other words, until the very last week of the campaign, Reagan had an uphill fight. True, he eventually won a landslide victory in the Electoral College (489 to 49) and beat Carter handily in the popular vote. Yet Reagan only received a 51-percent majority.What had saved Reagan from a perfect storm of negative factors – gaffes, additional conservative candidates on the ballot, a single debate, and a biased media – was not just the debate. Voter turnout was relatively low at only 53 percent. If Reagan’s conservative base was united and energized, Carter’s proved divided and indifferent.