Wednesday, December 21, 1988

1988: Remembering PAN AM 103


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It was many years ago but the pain does not go away.   This is a summary of what happened on this day in 1988:    
Pan Am Flight 103 from London to New York explodes in midair over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all 243 passengers and 16 crew members aboard, as well as 11 Lockerbie residents on the ground. A bomb hidden inside an audio cassette player detonated in the cargo area when the plane was at an altitude of 31,000 feet. 
We later learned that Libya was behind the terrorist act.  In 2011, Qaddafi met justice for the death of those innocent people in 1988.  

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1988: Pan Am 103 still hurts so many years later

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It happened on this day in 1988:
"Pan Am Flight 103 from London to New York explodes in midair over Lockerbie, Scotland, an hour after departure. A bomb that had been hidden inside an audio cassette player detonated inside the cargo area when the plane was at an altitude of 31,000 feet. All 259 passengers, including 35 Syracuse University students returning home for the holidays, were killed in the explosion. In addition, 11 residents of Lockerbie were killed in the shower of airplane parts that unexpectedly fell from the sky."
It was a horrific act of terrorism.  

By the way, Syracuse University held a special 25th celebration in 2013.    As we mentioned above, 35 young students were killed by this act of terrorism.


We can not forget the innocent lives of PAN AM 103.


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1988 and Pan Am 103

Image result for pan am 103 newspaper images
What a horrible day.   

Pan Am 103 was blown up over Scotland on this day in 1988.   It was a London to New York flight.

All 259 passengers were killed, including 35 students from Syracuse University returning home for Christmas.

Over the next years, Libya accepted responsibility but did not express remorse.

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Monday, September 12, 1988

1953: JFK got married and Khrushchev replaced Stalin

In early June 1961, US President Kennedy and USSR Chairman Khrushchev had an important meeting in Vienna.  There are many viewpoints about what happened but the consensus is that the Soviet leader pushed his way around the new US president.   In his book about President Kennedy, Richard Reeves concluded that Mr. Kennedy was totally unprepared for the summit.    It's hard to believe but apparently no one told President Kennedy that Chairman Khrushchev was testing him.

Wonder if the two men joked about September 12th or an important anniversary that they shared?

On this day in 1953, John F Kennedy, then a new senator from Massachusetts, and Nikita Khrushchev, of the USSR, had something to cheer about:

Jack married Jackie.   Cardinal Richard Cushing officiated the wedding ceremony at St. Mary's Church in Newport, Rhode Island.   They had a huge reception later.   Of course, JFK was elected president in 1960.

Over in the USSR, Nikita Khrushchev was elected leader.  He replaced Stalin who died.   Khrushchev tried to reform by denouncing Stalin's totalitarian policies at the 20th Party Congress and released millions of political prisoners.  He tried to present a new image to the world but the invasion of Hungary by Warsaw Pact tanks in November 1956 ended that.

Years later, the two met in Vienna as the leaders of their two nations.  They went head to head in the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962.

They had something to cheer about on this day in 1953!   Wonder if anyone reminded them about it?

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Monday, August 08, 1988

August 8, 1988: Lights at Wrigley Field


August 8, 1988: Lights at Wrigley Field


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Well, let me steal an idea from The Beatles and the first line of "Sgt Pepper's": "It was 33 years ago today that Wrigley turned the lights to play ... "

Like many pre-woke baseball fans, I got ready to watch the national broadcast.  Our second son was two weeks old, and the first one had a baseball jersey on, and our family was ready for a night game in famous Wrigley.  How could my young sons miss history being made in Chicago?  Such was the passion for baseball before the commissioner decided to go woke and turn off millions of us.

As I recall, the game was rained out, but the lights went on before the summer showers came. 

It all started at 6:05 P.M.., when 91-year-old Cubs fan Harry Grossman began the countdown.  "Three...two...one...let there be lights!"

Grossman pressed a button, and light towers were on.  Wonder if Mr. Grossman was around for the 2016 World Series title?  Hopefully yes, but I don't know for sure.  Millions around the country were probably caught up in the whole thing.

For years, Cubs fans were raised on day baseball.  It was charming, especially for kids off from school.  One of my first summer memories in the U.S. was walking to a park and seeing this older couple listening to the Cubs on their front porch.  As I recall, the lady was keeping score because she was holding a book and a pencil.

During my time in Mexico, one of my neighbors had an early version of a satellite antenna, and we would often light up the grill and catch the Cubs on TV.

It made afternoon rush-hour traffic a bit interesting listening to WGN radio and driving home.  It brought morning baseball to West Coast fans.  It allowed the players to play ball and have dinner with their families.

Eventually, economics caught up with the Cubs.  It's hard to play daytime baseball when TV viewership is crucial to pro sports.  It was fun while it lasted.

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Friday, March 18, 1988

The Big Sky (1952) is a good western

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Want to watch a good movie?   Try "The Big Sky", a western from 1952, starring Kirk Douglas and others that I did not recognize.   It will keep your interest.

The TCM synopsis is as follows and very complete:
In 1832, trapper Jim Deakins leaves his Kentucky home to look for work in St. Louis. En route, Jim meets Boone Claudel, a quick-fisted fugitive who has been falsely accused of a crime. Boone and Jim become fast friends, and Boone joins Jim on his journey. Soon after the two arrive in St. Louis, Boone strikes an innocent Indian crossing his path and tells Jim that he dislikes all Indians. It eventually becomes clear to Jim that Boone's prejudice against Indians stems from the poor opinion he holds of his alcoholic uncle, Zeb Calloway, who is half Indian. While searching for his uncle, Boone meets Sam Eggleston, the ill-tempered owner of the Missouri River Co., who tells Boone that Zeb owes him money for a missing delivery of whiskey. Later, Boone and Jim are thrown in jail for starting a barroom brawl with Eggleston and his men. To their astonishment, Boone and Jim discover that their cellmate is none other than Zeb. Zeb tells Jim and Boone that Eggleston and his company dislike him and that they killed his partner because as a free trader he was too much competition for the Missouri River Company. Following their release from jail, Boone and Jim decide to join Zeb on a keelboat expedition up the Missouri River and into dangerous Montana Indian territory. The head of the expedition, Jourdonnais, warns his men that they are about to embark on a 2,000-mile journey into the heart of the Blackfoot Indian territory, a region that has never been traversed by white men. To quell the trappers' fears, Jourdonnais explains that their safety will be ensured by the presence of Teal Eye, a young Indian woman, whom they will be escorting to her Blackfoot chief. Once the expedition gets underway, Zeb tells Jim and Boone that the Indians fear the white man's presence in their territory because of what they call the "grab," the white man's habit of grabbing everything in sight. Many months into the journey, the expedition, having survived the perils of white water rapids and Indian attacks, is beset upon by a group of white men, who attack their camp and abduct Teal Eye. The attackers, who are all in the employ of rival fur trader MacMasters, then try to sabotage the traders' effort to reach the Blackfoot territory by setting fire to their ship. The ship is saved just in time, and two of the saboteurs are captured by the traders and later confess to working for MacMasters. Teal Eye is eventually rescued and rejoins the expedition as it enters Blackfoot territory. Once the traders reach their destination and pick up their furs, Boone announces that he has decided to marry Teal Eye and live among the Blackfoot.
You can get the movie here:  CLICK!

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Thursday, March 10, 1988

1988: Andy Gibb died at age 30!


Image result for andy gibb imagesWho remembers hearing that Andy Gibb died on this day in 1988?  He had just turned 30 a few days before.

Andy was only 19 when hit the music charts in 1977 with "I just want to be your everything", a song written and produced by his older brother Barry Gibb.  

His recordings were on the pop charts for the next 3 years, from "Shadow Dancing", to "Everlasting love" to "Don't throw it all away" to "Desire" and "I can't help it", a duet with Olivia Newton-John.

Andy's career eventually faded in the 1980's and he faced several addiction problems.  His death was a reminder that drugs will kill you.

Andy sold millions of 45's and LP's.

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