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By this point in your life, you probably no longer believe the story that George Washington once threw a silver dollar across the Rappahannock River. You may have also come to terms with the fact that he never cut down… Read more: Our Father

 February 14th is not only Valentines Day but it is also the anniversary of the birth of George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr. Born in 1859 in Galesburg, Illinois, George received an engineering degree from  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in1881. After spending… Read more: As the Wheel Turns

I recently came across a “Rolling Stone” archive ranking the 100 all-time greatest rock songwriters.Here are the magazine’s top ten:10) At age 13, Stevland Hardaway Morris became the youngest solo artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 with his single, “Fingertips”.… Read more: Greatest Tunesmiths

January 31 marks the 106th anniversary of the birth of Jack Roosevelt Robinson. Jackie was born in Cairo, Georgia and raised in Pasadena, California. A major influence on young Jackie was his older brother Mack who became a member of… Read more: 42

 On January 25, 1890, Nellie Bly arrived back home in New York City after a trip around the world that was accomplished in an astounding (at the time) 72 days. The boisterous crowds attested that Nellie had become an American… Read more: Lonely Orphan Girl

January 17 marks the 126th anniversary of Al Capone’s birth. Everyone know the name of the notorious criminal but few are aware that the legendary hoodlum ran his infamous empire for only six years and only spent 48 years on… Read more: Scarface

On December 24, 2024, Bill Thilly, a renowned professor of toxicology passed away at age 79.Thilly received Bachelor’s and Doctorate degrees from MIT in the early 1970s. He captained MIT’s rugby team and found time to co-found the New England… Read more: The Professor’s Apples

December 21st would have been the 79th  birthday of Carl Wilson, lead guitarist for The Beachboys. Carl was instrumental to the group’s early success with his backup harmonies and Chuck Berry influenced strumming. He later sang lead on the seminal Beachboys… Read more: Good Vibrations

On December 13,1931 Winston Churchill stepped out of a taxi in New York City and was hit by a car travelling at 35 MPH. Had the future British Prime Minister succumbed to his injuries, the fate of western civilization would… Read more: Catastrophe Averted

Personally, I try to avoid listening to Christmas music but it’s an impossible task due to seasonal songs blaring in every store and in my house. Despite my Scroogelike demeanor I do enjoying learning about how these songs came to be.… Read more: Christmas Music

Some evening, if you are watching a movie and thinking “this is the worst movie ever”, be aware that there is an organization that annually recognizes the worst films and performances. The Golden Raspberry Awards for Failure in Cinematic Achievement,… Read more: The Worst

November 8th marks the fourth anniversary of Alex Trebek’s passing. In honor of Alex, I am recycling this blog from 2018. On November 30, 2004, Nancy Zerg, a Los Angeles realtor dethroned reigning Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings. The champ had recorded… Read more: Potpourri for $1000

November 2 marks the 270th anniversary of the birth of Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France. Born  Maria Antonia in Vienna, Austria, she was the youngest of fifteen children born to Empress Maria Teresa and Emperor Francis I. When… Read more: The Last Queen

Most people are on pins and needles as election day approaches. So it is a good time to step back, count our blessings and maybe have a laugh or two.To that end, here are some observations from two comedic giants:… Read more: Let’s Have Some Laughs

The list of people born on October 18 is extraordinary. Check out this roster. Actors and Musicians Dawn Wells In 1964, the former Miss Nevada beat out 300 other applicants (including Racquel Welch) to win the role of Mary Ann… Read more: October 18 Birthdays

October 11 marks the 215th anniversary of the death of Meriwether Lewis. As a grade school student, I totally disrespected Lewis and his companion William Clark.  My heroes were warriors like George Washington, Andrew Jackson, and Davy Crocket. What did… Read more: Undaunted Courage

August 30 marks the 127th anniversary of the birth of John William Mauchly who along with J. Presper Eckert invented the first electronic digital computer. Born in Cincinnati, Mauchly earned a PHD in physics from Johns Hopkins University in 1932.… Read more: All Hail the Geeks

At a recent alumni golf event, friends urged me to write a blog on golf.  As adult beverages flowed at the nineteenth hole, some requests seemed to turn into veiled threats. Thus, as an act of self-preservation here are some… Read more: FORE!

Mary Jane West AKA “Mae” was born on August 17, 1893 in Brooklyn, New York. Mae’s mother was a German immigrant and her father was “Battling Jack” West a featherweight prizefighter of English and Irish descent.  She made her performing… Read more: One of a Kind

Recently, I was surprised to discover that Keurig Dr Pepper is headquartered in Massachusetts. I knew from my many business trips to Dallas that Dr Pepper is a long-established Texas company. And Keurig? Must be a European entity, I thought.… Read more: Invasion of the Pods

August 9 marks the 97th anniversary of the birth of actor and novelist Robert Shaw. He left us way too soon in 1978, four years after his memorable performance as Quint in ‘Jaws”. Shaw was an accomplished Shakespearian actor who… Read more: You’re Gonna Need a Bigger Boat

July 26th marks the 96th anniversary of the birth of Stanley Kubrick. The film director, screenwriter, and producer made some of our generation’s most ground-breaking films. However, because of his perfectionism bordering on mania, Kubrick only directed thirteen feature films… Read more: Perfectionist

Supernatural July 20 marks the 77th birthday of legendary guitarist. Carlos Santana. Born in Autlan de Navarro, Mexico, Santana’s family moved to Tijuana when he was five. That year he began playing the violin but ditched that instrument in favor… Read more: Supernatural

If you happen to run into Harrison Ford on July 13, be sure to wish him a happy 82nd birthday.  Born in Chicago, Harrison’s mother was a radio actress and his grandfather worked in Vaudeville. He was a philosophy major at… Read more: The Ultimate Good Guy

Happy July Fourth. Here are some random facts and stories about the U.S. War of Independence that you can share at your Independence Day celebration: Thomas Jefferson was the chief wordsmith for the Declaration of Independence but received a great… Read more: Independence Day Trivia

I have always known that June 28th was an important date in history and not just because it is the birthday of myself, my “twin sister” Suzanne and golfer extraordinaire, Bill Ten Eick. On June 28, 1914 Austrian Archduke Franz… Read more: Happy 98th Mel

Happy 86th birthday to actor, Ron Ely, Ely who played the title role in the 1960s series “ Tarzan”. During the show’ s filming, Ely performed all of his stunts and along the way suffered two dozen major injuries including two broken shoulders… Read more: Swinging Star

On Friday, please take a few minutes away from celebrating Flag Day to commemorate the 38th anniversary of the death of explorer, conservationist and world-famous zoo director, Marlin Perkins. A pioneer in the filming of wild animals, Perkins hosted Mutual… Read more: Crazy Animal Facts

Terry and I are away for a few weeks so I am reposting this blog which is almost as old as Henny Youngman’s jokes. Thankfully almost everyone still enjoys his classic one-liners. Here is Henny’s story. Unlike many show businesspeople,… Read more: Take My Wife

On June 6, 1944, the United States,  United Kingdom, and Canada invaded Nazi-occupied France. “ D-Day” was the most massive military undertaking in  history. Here are some interesting facts about that historic day. D-Day was the 20th century’s best-kept secret.… Read more: The Best Kept Secret

A certain Professor Whalen from Boston College always sends me notes about how much he enjoys my Friday blogs. He then proceeds to complain that I have never written about the 27 Club- a collection of music greats who died… Read more: The 27 Club

I recently read that  in November 2023, Luke Willett  broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest nine holes of golf. The 39- year-old Willett is the British speed golf champion, a sport that combines golf and running. Guiness timed… Read more: Crazy World Records

Happy Mother’s Day to all the wonderful moms out there.  Here is some Mother’s Day food for thought I wrote down four years ago. The roots of the holiday trace back to the Civil War. Julia Ward who wrote the… Read more: Mother’s Day Ramblings

May 3rd marks the 89th anniversary of the birth of the first person to be enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. James Brown was known for his song writing, phenomenal singing and electrifying performances. He released over… Read more: So Good

April 19 marks the 142nd anniversary of the death of evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin. The intellectual heavyweight was born on February 12,1809, the same day as fellow non-slacker, Abraham Lincoln. Unlike Abe, who was famously born in a log cabin,… Read more: Monkey See

April 15, 2013 witnessed one of the worst terrorist events in American history. The celebration of the 117th Boston Marathon was shattered by two pressure cooker bombs set off by two subhuman losers. 260 people were seriously wounded and three… Read more: USA Strong

March 30 marks the171st anniversary of Vincent Van Gogh’s birth. Vincent was born into a relatively wealthy family in Zundert, Netherlands in 1853. His father didn’t make much money but because he was a minister, he was provided a house… Read more: Vincent

The modern Olympic Games were inaugurated on April 6 , 1896 in the games’ ancient birthplace – Greece. The ancient Olympics had been held every four years for twelve centuries. The first Olympic games took place in 776 BC in… Read more: Resurrecting The Olympics

April 13 marks the 125th anniversary of the birth of Alfred Butts, a mild-mannered architect from New York City who invented the game of Scrabble.  His time-honored invention is currently sold in 121 countries and is available in more than… Read more: That’s Not a Word!