Remember today is all about Hallmark's bottom line

Happy Valentine's Day folk





Remember to enjoy the day and don't eat too much chocolate


For those of you not in a romantic mood today -
February 14, 1931 -
Just in time for the Valentine's Day holiday, Universal Pictures released Tod Browning's horror classic, Dracula, on this date.



Universal's original plan was to make a big-budget adaptation of Dracula that would strictly adhere to the Bram Stoker novel. However, after the stock market crash of 1929 and the beginning of the Great Depression, Universal chose not to risk an investment on such a sprawling film. Instead, it adapted the much less expensive Hamilton Deane stage play.


Today in History:
February 14, 1400 -
... For God's sake, let us sit upon the ground / And tell sad stories of the death of kings.



King Richard II of England, who had been deposed in 1399, died mysteriously on this date.


February 14, 1779 -
English explorer Captain James Cook and some of his crew are slaughtered (and possibly eaten) by angry Hawaiian islanders, after he tried to take a Hawaiian chief hostage over a dispute regarding a stolen boat.



There was possibly a better way to get the deposit back on a boat.


February 14, 1929 -
The Capone gang kills six members of the Bugs Moran gang and one other person at the S.M.C. Cartage company in Chicago, in an event known as the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.



Bogus police officers were used so that it appeared to be a routine police bust. Except for all the bodies.


February 14, 1948 -
Raymond Joseph Teller (Teller) an illusionist, comedian and writer best known as the silent half of the comedy magic duo known as Penn & Teller, accomplished sleight of hand artist, painter, atheist, debunker, skeptic and Fellow of the Cato Institute was born on this date.



He legally changed his name to Teller and possesses one of the few United States passports issued in a single name.

Yeah, he can speak (you idiots.)


February 14, 1962 -
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, with her breathless voice, takes television viewers on a tour of the White House. (Am I the only one bothered that Marylin Monroe and Jackie Kennedy basically have the same voice?)



It was estimated that hundreds of millions of people saw the program, making it the most widely viewed documentary during the genre's so called golden age.



And so it goes.


Before I forget: My favorite Vlogger, C.G.P. Grey has a new video out -



8 Animal Misconceptions Rundown

There's no real reason for this

but it's National Tortellini Day

And it has something to do with Venus di Milo's belly button


February 13, 1932 -
The Our Gang short, Free Eats premiered on this date. This marked the introduction of George "Spanky" McFarland to the Our Gang comedies.



George "Spanky" McFarland He and his brother Tommy auditioned for Our Gang in the Spring of 1931, with Spanky passing a screen test easily. Tommy also appeared in many Our Gang film in bit roles.


February 13, 1972 -
Bob Fosse's film version of the musical Cabaret, starring Liza Minnelli, Michael York, and Joel Grey premiered on this date.



In an interview given at the time of the film's release, Liza Minnelli said you could tell she was the star of the cabaret in which the movie is set because she's the only performer with shaved armpits.


Today in History -

On February 13, 1542, Henry VIII of England's Vth wife, Catherine Howard, was executed for adultery on this date.



Given the track record of Henry's other wives, one would have figured out marrying Henry was not a career with a lot of advancement possibilities.


On February 13, 1883, German composer and posthumous Hitler idol Richard Wagner, best known for writing the soundtrack to Apocalypse Now, died on this date.





Almost exactly eleven years later (February 12, 1894), Hans von Bulow, German pianist and composer, and the first husband of Wagner's wife Cosima, also died on this date.


February 13, 1945 -
An estimated 135,000 people, mostly women and children, died in the firebombing of the 13th-century city of Dresden, a revenge bombing that had no real military justification, which had begun on this date.



Kurt Vonnegut was one of just seven American prisoners of war in Dresden to survive, in an underground meatpacking cellar known as Slaughterhouse Five.


February 13, 1950 -
Don't you know you've got a chocolate monkey







Peter Gabriel, singer, was born on this date


February 13, 1953 -
Transsexual Christine (formerly George) Jorgenson arrived in New York with much fanfare on this date.



She had had sex change operations performed in Denmark by Dr. Christian Hamburger, becoming the first successful surgical transgender. Upon return, she becomes a cabaret actress.



The excess parts of George goes on to become the other half of the famous East Germany TV Comedy Duo, Gunther and Smeckel.


February 13, 1959 -
Barbara Millicent Roberts, noted American Idol contestant, Ballerina, Fashion model, Movie producer, Movie star, Rock star, Radio City Music Hall Rockette, Aerobics instructor, Olympic gymnast, Olympic figure skater, Tennis star, WNBA basketball player, Dentist, Medical doctor, Nurse, Pediatrician, Surgeon, Veterinarian, United States Army officer,United States President, UNICEF Summit diplomat, Ambassador for world peace, Firefighter, Police officer, Canadian Mountie, Astronaut, Flight Attendant ( for both American Airlines & Pan Am ), NASCAR driver, Pilot, Cowgirl, Chef, Paleontologist, McDonald's Front Desk and Flight Attendent, etc. is introduced by Mattel in California.



What have you done with your life? (There is some debate whether or not today or March 9th is actually her birthday.)


February 13, 1961 -
Henry Lawrence Garfield (Henry Rollins), singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, stand-up comedian, author, actor, activist and publisher, was born on this date.





And he will mess you up if you don't believe he is a sensitive soul.

And so it goes.

Once again, it's just sad

Whitney Houston RIP


It's the 203th birthday of both Abraham Lincoln, a man with only a years' worth of formal education and still became our 16th President



and Charles Darwin, the man who tried to ride a dog to the tropics and the uncle of most monkeys.



Go try preserving a union and question people's fundamental religious beliefs in their honor.


February 12, 1924 -
George Gershwin's Rhapsody In Blue premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York on this date.



It has become one of the most popular American concert works.


Today In History:
On February 12, 1554, The sixteen year old Lady Jane Grey, puppet Queen of England for nine days, was beheaded in the Tower of London, on this date.



Questions arose as to where to bury this semi-queen, until it was decided to place her among the beheaded former wives of Henry VIII.


Adolf Frederick was King of Sweden until he died of digestion problems on February 12, 1771 after having consumed a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sour cabbage, smoked herring and champagne, which was topped off with 14 servings of his favorite dessert: semla (a hot cross bun filled with cream) served in a bowl of hot milk.

He is thus remembered by Swedish schoolchildren as the king who ate himself to death.

So remember - Folks, push away from the dessert tray,.


February 12, 1789 -
Ethan Allen died in a drunken sleigh accident while crossing the frozen Lake Champlain, reminiscing with friends and rye. Much of the circumstance remains a mystery.

The Spirit of Ethan Allen is Lake Champlain's largest cruise ship.

So kids remember, if you're lucky and you die while drunkenly crossing a Great Lake, you too can get a cruise ship or a line of furniture named after you.


Immanuel Kant, a real pissant, died on February 12, 1804. His last words were reportedly It is good.



This is hard to believe, since Kant did not speak English.


On February 12, 1894, Hans von Bulow died, (yes, Klaus is related to him).

He was a popular pianist and composer, and the husband of composer Franz Liszt's daughter, Cosima, who screwed around behind Hans' back and ultimately left him for Richard Wagner, (more about him tomorrow)


Emperor Pu Yi of China's Manchu dynasty abdicated on February 12, 1912, allowing the establishment of a provisional republic under Sun Yat-sen, eventually causing Red China.



And the making of a fine movie.


February 12, 1912 -
With pilot Frank Coffyn flying the plane, American Press Association photographer Adrien C. Duff, shot the first ever film of New York City from overhead on this date



By doing so, this made Duff the very first airplane passenger over New York Harbor. Mr Duff spent the next 10 years getting a full body cavity search from the TSA.


February 12, 1935 -
The 785-foot USS Macon, the last US Navy dirigible (ZRS-5), crashed on its 55th flight off the coast of California, killing two people. After takeoff from Point Sur, California, a gust of wind tore off the ship's upper fin, deflating its gas cells and causing the ship to fall into the sea. Two of Macon 's 83 crewmen died in the accident.



The U.S. Navy lost the airships Shenandoah in 1925 and Akron in 1933. Some considered airships too dangerous for the program to continue at that point, and work on them in the United States was halted temporarily.


On this day in 1940, Superman appeared for the first time on radio, the first time in a non-print medium. It was the debut of the radio show called The Adventures of Superman and the episode was called "The Baby From Krypton."



We don't get to hear Superman speak though until the second episode: "Clark Kent, Reporter" (February 14, 1940)


February 12,1967 -
Police in London arrest Keith Richards, Mick Jagger and Marianne Faithful after they discover amphetamine pills, cannabis resin, and Marianne scandalously naked but for a fur rug.



The two Rolling Stones received jail sentences which were successfully appealed. Questions still persist - where exactly was that Mars Bar anyway?


February 12, 1976 -
Sal Mineo, film and theater actor, was stabbed to death in Los Angeles while coming home from a play rehearsal.

A pizza deliveryman, Lionel Ray Williams, was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to 57 years in prison for killing Mineo and for committing 10 robberies in the same area.


February 12, 2004 -
After 43 years together, Barbie and Ken, shocked the nation when they announced that they were breaking up.



As of last year, Barbie and Ken's relationship seemed on the mend.


Happy Birthday Vivian



And so it goes.

Enjoy the snow

It's a gentle reminder that we are in the middle of winter right now.

It's Peppermint Patty Day - No, not this one



This one



It's minty chocolatey goodness.


February 11, 1969 -
Our lady of the perpetual bad relationship, Jennifer Aniston, was born on this date.



Jennifer deserves to be well and happy.


February 11, 1962 -
Sheryl Suzanne Crow, singer-songwriter, musician and Michael Jackson backup singer survivor, was born on this date.





Good to know that she's still in good health


Today in History:
On February 11, 1573, Francis Drake saw the Pacific Ocean for the first time on this date,

and this is noteworthy, since 100's of thousands of West Coast living indigenous Native Americans saw it before they went to bed the night before. And he still had time to create those delicious little cakes.


February 11, 1650 -
Rene Descartes, mathematician, drunken fart and philosopher best known for his statement "I think therefore I am", stops thinking on this date.

Queen Christina of Sweden (remember - the boy queen - see December 18 ) persuaded Descartes to come to Stockholm. On this date, after only a few months in that cold climate, he died of pneumonia.



Kids let this be a lesson to you - never accept an invitation from transvestite royalty.


Friedrich Ebert was elected the first president of the German Republic on February 11, 1919.

President Ebert brought about the Weimar constitution that eventually resulted in Adolf Hitler's rise to power.

I bet he didn't see that coming.


February 11, 1929 -
The Lateran Treaty is signed -- Mussolini granted recognition to the Vatican in return for their support of his fascist dictatorship.

Kids, here's another lesson for you - entering a treaty with balding dictators can never lead to anything good.


February 11, 1936 -
It's Burt Reynolds' birthday. He's not the one who squealed like a pig in Deliverance (what he does in his private life is none of my concern.)

But his hairpiece is much younger than he is.


February 11, 1938 -

BBC Television produces the world's first ever science fiction television program, an adaptation of a section of the Karel Capek play R.U.R., which coined the term robot.



The show was a thirty-five-minute adaptation of a section of the play, performed live from the BBC's Alexandra Palace studios. The BBC had no professional facility for recording programs in those pre-war days, so save a few on-set publicity photographs and reviews in the press, all records of this production are lost.


February 11, 1960 -
Jack Paar, temperament host of the Tonight Show, in a fit of pique, walks off his TV show when he is not allowed to tell a very lame joke about W.C. 's.

Yes Jack, there is a better way to make a living than this, nowadays, you would be allowed to broadcast live from your toilet while using it (Most of reality TV prove this to be true.)


February 11, 1963 -
Julia Child's show The French Chef premiered on this date.



For my money, one of the greatest Americans who evry lived.


February 11, 1979 -
Followers of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini seized power in Iran, nine days after the religious leader returned to his home country following 15 years of exile.

But 43 million people in the US try to seek salvation by watching Elvis! on ABC on this date.



Most do not find it because they forgot to place one hand on the TV screen and the other hand upon their pelvic area.

When will the damned ever learn.


February 11, 1986 -
Frank Herbert, author of Dune, died from pancreatic cancer on this date.



If only he had access to the spice Melange.


February 11, 1990 -
Nelson Mandela, a political prisoner for 27 years, is freed from Victor Verster Prison outside Cape Town, South Africa on this date.



In April 1994, he was elected president in the first all-race elections.


BTW - Peppermint Patty's real name is Patricia Reichardt.



And so it goes.

There is an explanation for this

But why bother seeking it - just watch the video



I particularly love the rhino's blue eye shadow.

There's an explanation for this as well

Why ask why?


February 10, 1535 -
12 Anabaptists ran nude through the cold and snowy streets of Amsterdam on this date. (Once again, I'm sure there's an explanation but why ask why?)

And you wonder why Anabaptism didn't catch on big in the US - I just wanted to put that little thought in you mind today



Today in History
February 10, 60CE -
St. Paul is believed to have been shipwrecked near Malta while en route to Rome for trial for practicing Catholicism. (It shouldn't have been a shock to the Romans that St. Paul was practicing Catholicism when his first name was St.)

The story is told in the Bible’s New Testament Acts of the Apostles, chapter 27. Since the shipwreck involves the lead-cup drinking, orgy-mongering Romans (who obviously were otherwise occupied when it came to accurately recording dates in history,) the Maltese commemorate the event every February 10.


February 10, 1840 -
Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, (whose first language was German, was taught English and French, and became virtually trilingual, though her mastery of the conjugation of the past-participles irregular verbs in English remained incomplete which was luckily not on the English Monarchy exam), marries her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (proving she also failed biology.)



She arranged marriages for her nine children (mostly to their first cousins) and forty-two grandchildren (mostly to their own first cousins - they needed charts and grafts to make sure they didn't marry their own brothers and sisters) across the continent, tying Europe together; this earned her the nickname "the grandmother of Europe".



Oh those wacky inbred royals.


February 10, 1855 -
US citizenship laws were amended to include all children of US parents born abroad.

Birthers take note - Willard Mitt Romney's father, George Wilcken Romney, the 43rd Governor of Michigan, was born in Chihuahua, Mexico (to American parents.)


February 10, 1863 -
Midgets Tom Thumb and Lavinia Warren married in a ceremony at New York's Grace Episcopal Church. P. T. Barnum footed the bill for the wedding, and generated tremendous publicity (and revenue - reception tickets $75, adjusted for inflation, $1250 in today's dollars) in the weeks prior to and following the nuptials.

Commodore Nutt and Lavinia's shorter and younger sister Minnie acted as attendants. The Thumbs afterwards honeymooned in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington. In Washington they were invited by President Lincoln to be the guests of honor at a special White House reception.


February 10, 1920 -
Jozef Haller de Hallenburg, Polish general and politician, performs a symbolic wedding of Poland to the sea, celebrating restitution of Polish access to open sea.

Happy anniversary (no comment.)


February 10, 1967 -
The 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified on this date.

The Twenty-fifth Amendment (Amendment XXV) to the United States Constitution deals with succession to the Presidency and establishes procedures both for filling a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, as well as responding to Presidential disabilities. It supersedes the ambiguous wording of Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution, which doesn't explicitly state whether the Vice President becomes the President if the President died, resigned, was removed from office or was unable to discharge the Presidential powers.

Not that Joe Biden wishes anything bad should happen.


February 10, 1940 -
Puss Gets the Boot, the cartoon short is released by MGM. It's the first appearance of Tom and Jerry.



Yeah, yeah, I know that the cat is called Jasper in this cartoon. But dammit, it's Tom, none the less.


February 10, 1945 -
The no. 1 song in America, on this date, was Rum & Coca Cola by Andrews Sisters. (The copy write holder of the song was Morey Amsterdam of The Dick Van Dyke Show fame but that's another story.)



It's nice to think back in the more 'innocent' era of America, songs about mother and daughter prostitute rings in the Caribbean were all the rage.



And so it goes

I'm trying to understand the connection here

It is Toothache Day,



Bagels and Lox Day and



Pizza Pie Day today.



I'm not quite sure why?


February 9, 1976 -
Paul Simon's song, 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, hits number 1 on this date.



It his first no. 1 hit single since ending his 13-year partnership with Art Garfunkel in 1970.


Today in History -
On February 9, 772, Adrian I was elected pope. His election was won largely due to strong Frank support. (This Gaelic support system was the precursor to French support, which remains anything but Frank.)

Adrian worked closely with Charlemagne, also known as Carolus Magnus (Big Chuck), the inventor of France.


William Henry Harrison was born on February 9, 1773. Mr. Harrison was the ninth president of the United States.



He died after 32 days in office, although historians are quick to point out that it has never been adequately proven that he was alive prior to his inauguration.


The Great Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky died on February 9, 1881.



But what the hell do you care, you didn't read him anyway.


February 9, 1894 -
Chocoholics everwhere rejoice!



Milton Hershey founded the Hershey Chocolate Company and began experimenting with a process mastered by the Swiss — mixing milk with chocolate on this date.


February 9, 1909 -
The first federal law prohibiting the importation of opium is enacted, The Opium Exclusion Act of 1909 on this date.

It is aimed not particularly at the ravages the drug was having on American society
but at the Chinese (note: white people weren't using opium in large quantities at the time.)


February 9, 1933 -
Based on the Mae West play Diamond Lil, She Done Him Wrong, opened in general release on this date. This was one of the last films to be made before the introduction of the Production Code.



The only Mae West film to receive an Academy Award nomination and the shortest film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.


February 9, 1942 -
The former French cruise ship Normandie, launched in 1935, burned in New York Harbor during its conversion to an Allied trip transport ship on this date.



It was once regarded as most elegant ocean liner ever built. In 1947 it was cut up for scrap.


February 9, 1950 -
Senator Joseph McCarthy announces he has a list of 205 State Department employees who are Communist Party members on this date.



He did not mention that J. Edgar Hoover likes to wear garters and pumps.



February 9, 1964 -
The Beatles made their first live American television appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on this date. Approximately 74 million viewers (about half of the American population) watched the group perform on the show.



If you listen very quietly, you can still hear those little girls screaming at the Ed Sullivan Theatre.


February 9, 1971 -
All in the Family aired what TV scholars believe to be the first positive portrayal of a gay issue on American television on this date.



The program, Judging Books by Covers, was aired barely a month after the sitcom had gone on the air.


February 9, 1997 -
The Fox cartoon series Simpsons became the longest-running animated series in cartoon history when it aired it's 167th episode on this date.



"I can't believe we've been annoying people for this long," executive producer and show creator Matt Groening told the Associated Press.



And so it goes.

Does Waldo want to be found?

I know this is an old one but after being forced at gunpoint to re-read it, I though you might enjoy Werner Herzog reading, "Where's Waldo?"




February 8, 1968 -
Planet of The Apes premiered in NYC on this date, cementing Charlton Heston's position in the "Hall of Ham Actors."



Two 9-foot statues of the Lawgiver were made. After the filming of the original series was completed, one of the statues was given to Sammy Davis Jr. by one of the producers and was kept by him for many years. The statue was later sold by the Sammy Davis, Jr. estate, to pay off the singer's unpaid back taxes, to a Hollywood actor and friend of Roddy McDowall.


February 8, 1976 -
Martin Scorsese's pageant to the splendid squalid of 70's New York, Taxi Driver premiered on this date.



Paul Schrader was inspired to write the script after reading the published diary of Arthur Bremer, the man who was convicted of shooting presidential hopeful George Wallace.


Today in History:
February 8, 1587 -
After some nineteen years in prison, Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded. She had spent the last hours of her life in prayer and also writing letters and her will. She expressed a request that her servants should be released. She also requested that she should be buried in France. The scaffold that was erected in the great hall was three feet tall and draped in black. It was reached by 5 steps and the only things on it were a disrobing stool, the block, a cushion for her to kneel on, and a bloody butcher's axe that had been previously used on animals. At her execution she removed a black cloak to reveal a deep red dress - the liturgical colour of martyrdom in the Catholic Church.



The execution was badly carried out. It is said to have taken three blows to hack off her head. The first blow struck the back of her head, the next struck her shoulder and severed her subclavian artery, spewing blood in all directions. She was alive and conscious after the first two blows. The next blow took off her head, save some gristle, which was cut using the axe as a saw.



Various improbable stories about the execution were later circulated. One which is thought to be true is that, when the executioner picked up the severed head to show it to those present, it was discovered that Mary was wearing a wig. The headsman was left holding the wig, while the late queen's head rolled on the floor. Another well-known execution story concerns a small dog owned by the queen, which is said to have been hiding among her skirts, unseen by the spectators. Following the beheading, the dog rushed out, terrified and covered in blood. It was taken away by her ladies-in-waiting and washed, but it did not survive the shock.



All of this must have been a pretty sight.


February 8, 1861 -
The southern states which had seceded from the United States agreed to reunite in The Confederate States of America.



This caused the Civil War, a period of unprecedented bloodshed in American history, which surely could have been avoided through a rigorous U.N. regimen of plantation inspections.

co-incidentally, or not
February 8, 1915 -
D.W. Griffith's controversial film The Birth of a Nation (The Clansman) premiered in Los Angeles on this date.



Ultimately, the film is considered technically brilliant but morally repugnant (think Triumph of the Will in black face.)


February 8, 1924 -
The first person to die in Nevada's new gas chamber was Chinese born Gee Jong on this date for the murder of Tom Quong Kee, a member of a rival gang. His lawyers had fought a long battle in the courts to show that the gas chamber was a "cruel and unusual punishment" and as such was illegal under the Eight Amendment to the Constitution.

The execution commenced at 9:30 a.m. when Gee Jong was led from a holding cell and secured to the chair within the chamber. He appeared to struggle a little after the gas was manually pumped in and then lapse into unconsciousness but as no external stethoscope had been used he was left in the chamber for 30 minutes to ensure death.

And this was the humane alternative to hanging.


February 8, 1942 -
Robert Klein, comedian and actor, was born on this date.





And if you hurry, you can still order every song starting with the leter K.


February 8, 1960 -
Beer heir Adolph Coors III (who was ironically allergic to beer), was killed after a failed kidnapping attempt in Colorado. By October, Joseph Corbett Jr. is arrested in Canada after an national manhunt.



Corbett was convinced and sent to prison. He was pardoned in 1978. Mr Corbett committed suicide in 2010, still maintaining his innocence in the crime.

I guess Mr. Corbett didn't get his deposit back.


February 8, 1968 -
Gary Coleman, actor, security guard, perp and corpse was born on this date.



What else is there to say.



And so it goes.

Valentine's Day is in a week

Mardi Gras is in two weeks - get busy.

February 7, 1908 -
Buster Crabbe, Olympic swimmer and actor, was born on this date.







Crabbe is the only actor who played Tarzan, Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers — the top three comic strip heroes of the 1930s.


February 7, 1914 -
Charlie Chaplin first appears as The Tramp, as his first film Kid Auto Races at Venice is released at Keystone Studios. The Tramp, as portrayed by Chaplin, is a bumbling but usually good-hearted character who is most famously presented as a vagrant who endeavors to behave with the manners and dignity of a gentleman despite his actual social status.



However, while he is ready to take what paying work that is available, he also uses his cunning to get what he needs to survive and escape the authority figures who will not tolerate his antics. With only a small number of exceptions, Chaplin would play only The Tramp (or slight variations on the character) on film until The Great Dictator.


February 7, 1962 -
Edward John "Eddie" Izzard, stand-up comedian, dramatic actor and until recently an executive transvestite, was born on this date.







Long time readers of this silliness may have realized that I am very partial to Mr Izzard, Executive Transvestite.


February 7, 1965 -
... Charlie Brown is the one person I identify with. C.B. is such a loser. He wasn't even the star of his own Halloween special.







Christopher Julius "Chris" Rock III, comedian, actor, screenwriter, television producer, film producer, director and not an executive transvestite was born on this date.


February 7, 1974 -
Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles opened on this date. Fart jokes gain a certain cache afterwards.



Mel Brooks never told Frankie Laine that the theme song 'Blazing Saddles' was for a comedy. Frankie thought it was a dramatic western. Mel was worried Frankie wouldn't sing it with conviction if he knew the truth.


Today in History:
February 7, 1812 -
Charles Dickens, English novelist, was born in Portsmouth, England on this date.



He was the quintessential Victorian author.


February 7, 1845 -
An 'intemperate' vandal, William Lloyd, entered the British Museum and smashes the irreplaceable Portland Vase into over 200 pieces. The elaborate glass amphora was created when Augustus was Caesar and is about ten inches high.

It takes a lot of crazy glue and months to repair.


On February 7, 1898, the trial of Emile Zola began in Paris. He lost, but then eventually he won. He accused someone of something. Somehow, the actor Paul Muni was involved. Or vice-versa. Long story.



It all began in the backwoods of Illinois... no, that was Lincoln. Never mind


February 7, 1940 -
Walt Disney's second feature-length movie, Pinocchio, premiered at the Center Theatre in Manhattan on this date.



The first animated film to win an Academy Award in a competitive category. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs won an honorary Oscar two years earlier.


February 7, 1964 -
It was 48 years ago today, The Beatles arrive at JFK International Airport to begin their first tour of the United States. They helped bring about a social revolution whose effects can be felt to this day.

The Beatles came from Britain, sometimes known as England, a little island in the North Atlantic from which many people have come to the United States over the years, some of them without guitars.



The British (or English), like so many other Europeans, have a long and storied history. Although it took the French to perfect the guillotine, the English (or British) made up for in zeal what they lacked in technological savvy, and next week is the anniversary of three British (or English) queens having their heads hewn from their shoulders.



On February 8, 1587, after nineteen years in prison, Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded.



On February 12, 1554, Lady Jane Grey, Queen for nine days in 1553, was beheaded.





On February 13, 1542, Catherine Howard, Henry VIII's Vth wife, was beheaded.



If you can get to an English (or British) pub next week, order a beer with extra head and see if they get the joke. Be prudent, however, as people will sometimes react in unexpected ways when asked for any kind of head at all.)


February 7, 1968 -
It became necessary to destroy the town to save it. --

This was a quote attributed by Peter Arnett (written on this date.) to an anonymous American major speaking about the town of Ben Tre, the main town in Ben Tre province, Vietnam, after the Americans had heavily bombarded it.



February 7, 1990 -
The Soviet Union's Communist Party agreed to let opposition political parties compete for control of the country, thereby giving up its monopoly on power.

They were forced to sell of most of their properties on Baltic Avenue.



And so it goes.

So let's review

The Giant won the Super Bowl. Madonna didn't stink up the joint but M.I.A. flipped the camera the bird. David Beckham may have a large penis. The Avengers might be a good movie for the kids. And if Go Daddy could, I believe they would show porno in their commercials with the Go Daddy logo inter-cut.

I'm just saying ...


Today is halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, which is the scientifically correct way of saying it's the middle of winter, such as it is in the Northeast. I'm hoping the second half doesn't hold any unexpected treats.


Today is Waitangi Day in New Zealand. This celebrates the February 6, 1840 signing of "The Treaty of Waitangi" by representatives of the British Crown and leading Maori chiefs in Waitangi. The treaty preserved many Maori rights while making New Zealand a British Colony.

Given the confused and confusing state of things, I must recommends that America join her Kiwi friends in celebrating Waitangi Day. There's no particular logic to this, but it's fun to say "Happy Waitangi Day." We could all wear funny hats and buy each other Waitangi presents.



Sound silly?



Just four days ago we were all waiting for a stupid rodent to crawl out of a hole and look for his shadow. In the Southern Hemisphere, Summer is winding down, which might have something to do with why it's Waitangi Day down there.)


February 6, 1921 -
The Kid, starring Charlie Chaplin and 6-year-old Jackie Coogan (Uncle Fester), was released in the US on this date.



For the scene in which the Kid is taken from the Tramp and nearly carted away to a workhouse, Charles Chaplin stated in his autobiography that the young Jackie Coogan was made to cry by his father, who told him that if he would not cry in the scene, he would be sent to an actual workhouse.


Today in History:
February 6, 1911 -



That great American, Ronald Reagan, who appeared in such films as Jap Zero, Girls on Probation and Bedtime for Bonzo, was born in Tampico IL.



It should be a national holiday (or a day of great national shame.)


February 6, 1917 -
I am a marvelous housekeeper. Every time I leave a man I keep his house.



Zsa Zsa Gabor, Queen of Outer Space was born in Budapest on this date. Party girls everywhere are celebrating their patron saint's day. They wanted to donate blood for her but her doctors thought better of it.


It was on this date in 1919 that the German constituent assembly met in Weimar for the first time to declare itself The Official German Government For The Time Being.



This Weimar Republic, as it came to be known, should not be confused with the Weimar Republic fashion clothing outlet found in many American malls. The former caused an economic depression, Hitler, and the horrors of the second World War. The latter caused a slight dip in sales at Banana Republic and Old Navy.


February 6, 1943 -
In like Flynn.

Omnisexual, neo-nazi, actor Errol Flynn was acquitted of raping an adolescent on this date. The woman had actually tried this shakedown with other celebrities and wasn't quite an adolescent despite her testifying with pigtails and a lollypop.


February 6, 1945 -
Bob Marley, musician, singer-songwriter and Rastafarian was born on this date.







How can your day not be a little brighter.


February 6, 1952 -
Elizabeth II became Queen upon the death of her father George VI, on this date. At the exact moment of succession, she was in a treehouse at the Treetops Hotel in Kenya.



Talk about bizarre ways you can land a job - Elizabeth went up a tree a princess and came down a Queen.



And so it goes.

Enjoy the game

Today is Liberation Day in San Marino. Americans remain woefully misinformed about San Marino.

(American remain woefully misinformed about most countries that aren't located between Canada and Mexico, but today is only Liberation Day in San Marino, so let's not get off-topic.)

About seventeen-hundred years ago, during an epic game of hide and seek, Marinus the Stonemason ran up Mount Titano in Italy to hide from the Roman Emperor Diocletian. It was a good hiding spot and he was never found. He started his own country to pass the time, and the Republic of San Marino survives to this day, an island of foreign nationals in the middle of Italy.

Citizens of San Marino are not San Mariners. They are Sammarinese.

The population of San Marino is about 25,000. The population of San Marino, California, is about 13,000.

The California town was named in 1878 by James de Barth Shorb, who had built his home there and didn't think people would go for Shorbtown. Instead, he named it after the Maryland town in which he'd been born.



That was reportedly San Marino, Maryland, which the California town's website claims to have been named "for the tiny European republic."

There is no Maryland town named San Marino. (If there is, they haven't yet made their presence felt on Google.) Foul play is obviously afoot.

Proceed with caution.


February 5, 1914 -
William Seward Burroughs II, junkie, novelist, murderer, painter, professional sodomist and performer was born on this date.





Except for a couple of things on his CV, he is my hero (well him and Julia Child.)


February 5, 1940 -
Hans Ruedi Giger, Swiss painter, sculptor, and set designer best known for his design work on the film Alien, was spawned on this date.



He had a very happy childhood.


Today in History:
February 5, 1783 -
A large earthquake in Calabria Italy leaves 50,000 dead.

Luckily none of my wife's or a good friend of mine forebearers were involved or they wouldn't be here.


February 5, 1816 -
Rossini's opera Barber of Seville premieres in Rome on this date.





It was one of the earliest Italian operas to be performed in America and premiered at the Park Theater in New York City on November 25 1825.


February 5, 1919 -
Four of the leading figures in early Hollywood: Mary Pickford, Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and D. W. Griffith, incorporated to form their own company to better control their own work as well as their futures. The company was United Artist.



Tom Cruise (and his group’s) purchase of UA in 2006 has done little to help the prospects of the company and it’s future six years later is still very much in doubt.


February 5, 1927 -
Buster Keaton's movie The General premiered on this date. Keaton's picture received both poor reviews by critics and weak box-office results when it first opened.



In the scenes with the opposing armies marching, Keaton had the extras (which included Oregon National Guard troops) wear the uniforms of the Confederacy and march in one direction past the camera, then he had them change uniforms to the Union blue and had them march past the camera in the other direction.


February 5, 1936 -
Charlie Chaplin Little Tramp makes his final silent-film appearance, Modern Times, was released on this date.



Charles Chaplin allows the Tramp to speak on camera for the first time during the restaurant scene, but insisted that what the Tramp says be universal. Therefore, the song the Tramp sings is in gibberish, but it is possible to follow the story he tells by watching his hand gestures.


February 5, 1941 -
The SS Politician wrecked off the coast of the Isle of Eriskay in the Hebrides. It carried some 20,000 cases of whisky, which the natives hid from customs agents.



The story was told in the 1947 book Whisky Galore by Compton Mackenzie. The book was made into a film in 1949. According to official files recently released by the British Home Office, there was nearly 290,000 ten shilling notes on board as well (this would be the equivalent of several million pounds at today's prices), not all of which was ever recovered.


February 5, 1953 -
Walt Disney's Peter Pan, opens at Roxy Theater, on this date. This was the last Disney animated feature released through RKO, as Walt Disney established his own distribution company, Buena Vista Distribution, by the end of 1953.



Though the film was extremely successful, Walt Disney himself was dissatisfied with the finished product. He felt that the character of Peter Pan was cold and unlikable. This would be the

Remember, it's the second to the right (and straight on till morning.)


February 5, 1956 -
Don Siegel subversive take on 50's Communist paranoia, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, premiered on this date.



The film originally ended with Miles J. Binnell on the highway shouting to the people driving by, "You're next, you're next!" However, the studio wanted a happier ending that would assure the audience that the hero's efforts were not in vain, so scenes were added to the opening to show Miles in a hospital recounting his story to two other doctors and to the end when the other doctors find out about the pods and one of them contacts the FBI.


February 5, 1967 -
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour premiered on CBS, on this date.



Mom actually liked both of them equally.



And so it goes.

What freakin' drug are you on?

Newt Gingrich thinks riding the subway is for the elite.

Yes, the homeles man sitting in my car with his pants around his ankles, picking only the choicest crabs from his crotch to munch upon was on his way to confer with Mayor Bloomberg.


To start the day in a better vein, the wonderful Japanese Ukulele group U900 has a new album out - Ukulele Michael -



How can your day not be great after that?


On February 4, 2008, at 00:00 GMT, NASA transmitted the Beatles song Across The Universe in the direction of the star Polaris, 431 light years from Earth. The transmission was made using a 70m antenna in the DSN's Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex, located outside of Madrid, Spain. It was done with an "X band" transmitter, radiating into the antenna at 18 kW.



What the hell will we do if they are all Stones fans?


February 4, 1918 -
Ida Lupino, actress, director, and a pioneer among women filmmakers was born on this date.





Nobody messes with Ida Lupino (actual the phase I always heard was 'nobody fucks with Ida Lupino', which, if you think of it, suits her so much better.)


February 4, 1948 -
Vincent Furnier (Alice Cooper), rocker and avid golfer, was born on this date.





Yes, we're all not worthy.


February 4, 1977 -
Fleetwood Mac's Rumours was released on this date.



The album shot to the top of Billboard's chart staying there for 31 weeks. More than 17 million copies have been sold in the U.S. This was another album my sister and I wore the needle on the record player out on.

What a happy little album


Today in History:
February 4, 1861 -
Do you think Hallmark has a card commemorating this event?

State delegates meet in Montgomery, Ala., to form a Confederate government on this date.

They elected Jefferson Davis as president of Confederacy.


February 4, 1889 -
Harry Longabaugh was released from Sundance Prison in Wyoming, thereby acquiring the famous nickname, The Sundance Kid on this date.



Kids, this was the film Brokeback Mountain during the 60's


February 4, 1902 -
Isolationist, racist, neo-nazi and early environmentalist Charles Lindbergh, first man to fly solo across the Atlantic, was born on this date.



Kind of complicated guy, don't you think.


February 4, 1912 -
Franz Reichelt (alias the flying tailor) designed an overcoat to fly or float its wearer gently to the ground like the modern parachute. To demonstrate his invention he made a jump of 60 meters from the first deck of the Eiffel Tower, at that time the tallest man-made structure in the world.



The parachute failed and Reichelt fell to his death.



The jump was recorded by the cameras of the gathered press. Winner of the 1912 Darwin Award.


February 4, 1913 -
Rosa Lee Parks, civil rights activist whose refusal to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Alabama started the Civil Rights Movement, was born on this date.




February 4, 1974 -

Newspaper heiress Patricia Hearst, 19 years old, was kidnapped in Berkeley, California, by the Symbionese Liberation Army on this date.




February 4, 1983 -
Karen Carpenter dies of anorexia nervosa on this date. She frequently took laxatives and induced vomiting to prevent weight gain.



At the time of her death she was pencil thin. Lead graphite thin.


February 4, 1987 -
Pianist/jewelry wearer Wladziu Valentino Liberace died in Palm Springs, California due to complications from AIDS.



Nobody ever suspected the man was gay.


February 4, 1999 -
In NYC plainclothes police officers fired 41 shots at Amadou Diallo, a Bronx street peddler and immigrant from Guinea, who was unarmed in front of his Bronx home. Police were searching for a rapist and Daillo was killed with 19 gunshot wounds.



Officers Kenneth Boss, Sean Carroll, Edward McMellon and Richard Murphy were later indicted (but ultimately cleared) for 2nd degree murder.


February 4, 1998 -
Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates was assaulted with a direct hit by a fluffy cream pie during a three-pronged attack in Brussels. He was in Belgium attending meetings with industry and government leaders.



Rumor is that the attack was engineered by Noel Godin, infamous for his other pie throwings at government officials.



And so it goes.