We remember Barbara Tuchman (1912-89)

Barbara Tuchman was born in New York City on this day in 1912.    She died in 1989.

She wrote several books such as "The march of folly" that I read in the 1980's.     However, it was ''The Guns of August,'' a book about World War I, that made her famous.   It was about the background and events that led the world to war in 1914.

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We remember General Douglas McArthur (1880-1964)

We remember General Douglas McArthur, who was born on this day in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1880.  

He graduated from West Point in 1903 and went on to serve in World War I.    In World War II, McArthur was the commander of Allied forces in the Pacific.    In 1951, President Truman dismissed him for differences over the Korean War.    The general died in 1964.

 

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A couple of songs about the girl in the window...

A few days ago, I heard "Silhouette" by Herman's Hermits. 

This song was originally recorded back in the late 1950'ss by The Rays, a "doo wop" group.

Herman's Hermits released it during the days of the so-called British Invasion of the US pop charts, or 1964-66.  

Herman's Hermits was very popular in our home.  In fact, my sister's pet canary was named Herman, a.k.a. Peter Noone!

My sister had Herman posters all over her room, along with Paul McCartney, Barry Gibb, Davy Jones and a few others! 

"Silhouette" is one of two songs that I can recall about watching "a girl" in the window.

The other is "From a window" recorded by Billy J Kramer in 1964, or in the middle of Beatlemania & The British Invasion mentioned above.  It was written by Lennon-McCartney but never released by The Beatles.

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“The Black Scorpion” is not a bad movie at all

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On a scale of 1  to 10, I’d rank "The Black Scorpion" about a 3.    In other words, I  have seen a lot worst movies.   

The story is about a giant scorpion freed after volcanic activity in Mexico.   Everything gets interesting when the giant scorpion threatens the countryside and then heads to Mexico City.     The Mexican Army goes on offense and you see tanks and soldiers with machine guns shooting at the scorpion.

The lead actor was Richard Denning, who apparently made a bunch of these science fictions movies about monsters.   The leading lady was Mara Corday, a very pretty woman indeed.    

I love the trailer.

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1945: # 4 for FDR

On this day in 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was inaugurated for the 4th time.    

A few months later, the president died and VP Truman took over.     The Constitution was subsequently amended limiting the presidency to two terms.

FDR's 4th election had a lot to do with World War II.   It was argued that it made no sense to change "horses in mid-stream".  In reality, President Roosevelt was exhausted and looked it.   

FDR did carry 36 states, 432 Electoral votes and 53% of the popular vote against Governor Dewey of New York.

FDR did not see the official end of the war.  He died weeks before VE Day and it was President Truman who had to make the tough calls of Hiroshima and Nagasaki later that summer.

 

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1966: Ted Williams elected to The Hall of Fame

The great Ted Williams was selected to the Hall of Fame on this day in 1966.   

He was probably the greatest hitter in history.  His numbers must take into consideration military service in World War II and Korea:  .344 career batting average, a .482 On Base Average, 2,654 hits, 2,021 walks, 521 HR and 1,839 RBI.   

Williams hit .406 in 1941, the last hitter to do so, and flirted again in 1957 with .388!

Williams was a bit temperamental with fans and the media.   However, there was not a better hitter once the game started.

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Winchester '73 is still a great movie

What's the test of a good movie?   In my opinion, a great movie is one that you can watch years later and still enjoy.   Or one where you pick up a few new things that you missed the first time.

"Winchester '73" is such a movie.  It stars Jimmy Stewart.   He is not "George Bailey" or the idealistic senator who goes to Washington.    He is a rough guy in this film.

It is the story of that famous rifle in the hands of several men.

Intense?  Very intense!  

You can get a copy here!

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We remember Mike Fornieles (1932-1998)

 

We remember Mike Fornieles who was born Jose Miguel (Torres) Fornieles  in Havana on this day in 1932.   Mike, as he was known, broke into the majors in 1952 with the then Washington Senators now Minnesota Twins.  He played for Chicago, Baltimore and Boston.   He was an effective bullpen pitcher saving 40 games for Boston in 1959-61.  

Mike died in Tampa in 1998.  He was a closer before we called them that.

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We remember Don Zimmer (1931-2014)

We remember Don Zimmer who was born in Cincinnati on this day in 1931.   He was drafted by the Dodgers in 1949 as a shortstop.    As a player, he hit .235 over 1,095 games with 5 teams.   

Most of us remember him as a manager and Joe Torre's dugout coach with  the Yankees.       

As a manager, he won 885 and lost 858.   He led the 1989 Cubs to the NL East but lost to the Giants in the NLCS.    He did win several World Series titles under Joe Torre.

Great guy who spent 66 years in baseball.   He died in 2014.

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The Eisenhower Farewell continues to be Misunderstood

Four days before turning the presidency to John F Kennedy, President Eisenhower delivered a speech that is remembered because of one line:

"In his farewell address to the nation, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warns the American people to keep a careful eye on what he calls the "military-industrial complex" that has developed in the post-World War II years.

A fiscal conservative, Eisenhower had been concerned about the growing size and cost of the American defense establishment since he became president in 1953. 

In his last presidential address to the American people, he expressed those concerns in terms that frankly shocked some of his listeners.

Eisenhower began by describing the changing nature of the American defense establishment since World War II. 

No longer could the U.S. afford the "emergency improvisation" that characterized its preparations for war against Germany and Japan. Instead, the United States was "compelled to create a permanent armaments industry" and a huge military force. 

He admitted that the Cold War made clear the "imperative need for this development," but he was gravely concerned about "the acquisition of unwarranted influence... by the military-industrial complex." 

In particular, he asked the American people to guard against the "danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite."  

First, the speech is worth reading. It shows how thoughtful and serious our 34th president was. He was a pre-television man and used the word rather than the image to make his point.

Second, President Eisenhower was concerned about corruption, or the close relationship between the defense industry and members of Congress. 

Last, and not least, it was not the anti-military speech that so many in the left make it out to be, as David Greenberg pointed out:

"Eisenhower's fears about standing military power never outweighed his conviction that it was necessary. 

As Ledbetter writes, Ike was, "by any definition, a leading figure in that complex." 

He loved the Army and devoted his life to it. 

Within the Republican Party, his great accomplishment was to drag the rank and file into the age of internationalism with his triumph over Robert Taft for the 1952 presidential nomination, which isolated the isolationists in the GOP."

Overall, a good speech that should be read for what it said, i.e. spend wisely and watch for corruption.   

It would be wise for a president today to deliver a speech but warn us about "the public-sector unions" and their influence on our politics. The corrupt relationship between the public-sector unions and elected leaders is more dangerous than the military industrial complex ever was, is, or will ever be.

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