Are You Now, or Have You Ever Been ... ? - May 24, 2010

s Dissent is as American as apple pie. The Founding Fathers even enshrined the idea in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. About 150 years after them (and 72 years ago this week), though, the United States Congress panicked, started seeing threats everywhere they looked, and established the House Un-American Activities Committee, also known as HUAC. The men who ran HUAC had an ... interesting idea of what constituted "un-Americanism." Committee member John Rankin (of Mississippi, it must be said) refused to investigate the Ku Klux Klan -- saying it was "an old American institution."  Meanwhile, the Federal Theatre and such long-dead playwrights as Christopher Marlowe and Euripides were seen as imminent threats to the Republic and democracy. Interning American citizens of Japanese descent in prison camps was just fine, but almost any Communist anywhere had to be rooted out (a notable exception being committee member Samuel Dickstein, who was himself on the payroll of the Soviet Union as a spy). HUAC hit its height (or depth) in the 1940s and '50s, when members became convinced that Hollywood was not only a hotbed of Communist activity, but that writers, directors, and actors were sneaking subliminal messages into films and TV shows that were designed to convert Joe and Jane McDoakes into hardcore Reds.  Thanks to HUAC's relentless hounding, the careers and lives of scores of innocent victims were ruined. When Senator Joseph McCarthy's similar smears were finally recognized for the falsehoods they were, HUAC's influence waned -- to the point where, in the '60s, Yippies Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman openly mocked the committee when subpoenaed to appear. HUAC was finally disbanded in 1975, but left a decades-long legacy of ineffectiveness, destroyed lives, and suicides. Suggested Sites... Wikipedia: House Un-American Activities Committee - overview of HUAC and the men who ran it. A Look Back at the Hollywood Blacklist - history of the Hollywood hearings. Third World Traveler: HUAC and the Rise of Anti-Communism - information about the committee and friendly and unfriendly witnesses. Humphrey Bogart: "I'm No Communist" - Bogie takes to the pages of Photoplay to explain that being anti-HUAC didn't make him anti-American. HUAC and Hollywood - a PBS intriduction to HUAC's Hollywood hearings and the havoc they caused.

"Lucky" Lindy? - May 21, 2008

 

81 years ago today, Charles A. Lindbergh was catapulted from obscurity to being the most famous person on the planet. By becoming the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, Lindbergh went from an airmail pilot who'd taken his first flying lessons only five years before to a celebrity beyond all others.

In an era when any starlet can grab headlines simply by neglecting to wear underwear, it's hard to fathom just how famous Lindbergh was. 100,000 Parisians turned out just to see his plane land. Four million New Yorkers attended his ticker-tape parade. Songs were written about him. He was Time Magazine's first Man of the Year. A dance (the "Lindy Hop") was named after him. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Ultimately, an estimated 30 million Americans (out of a population of less than 150 million) welcomed the "Lone Eagle" home.

But not every fairy tale has a happy ending, and Lindbergh's story had more downs than ups. His first child, Charles Jr., was kidnapped and murdered, an act which lead him into seclusion. He did make appearances, though; some of which were unfortunate for his reputation. 

On trips to Nazi Germany, he made remarks that many took to be anti-Semitic and pro-Hitler; impressions later reinforced by his involvement with the America First Committee, which opposed American involvement in World War II. Lindbergh tried to re-enlist after Pearl Harbor, but his actions had so alienated President Franklin D. Roosevelt that his pleas were turned down (though he eventually flew on combat missions -- albeit as a civilian). After the war, he worked as an airline executive, and won renown for his work in aeronautical engineering and environmentalism.

Fittingly for an engineer who was famous for flying solo and living in seclusion, Lindbergh designed both his own grave and coffin and is buried alone under a plum tree on Maui.

Suggested Sites...

Charles Lindbergh.com - biography, photos, film and audio clips, and more about the Lone Eagle. Charles Lindbergh in Combat - examines Lindbergh's work during the War. Voices of the 20th Century: Charles Lindbergh - listen to Lindy himself speaking after conquering the Atlantic. New York Times: Charles A. Lindbergh - archive of stories about Lindbergh and his legacy. Biography: Charles Lindbergh - profile of one of the first worldwide celebrities.

The Perks of Office - May 19, 2008

When Henry Kissinger was asked about his success with women, he replied, "Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac." If a Secretary of State did that well, one can only imagine what a President could do. Many U.S. presidents have tested that proposition and found it a winner. From Thomas Jefferson to Bill Clinton, chief executives have carved innumerable notches into the bedposts of the Executive Mansion. Even James Garfield, who boasted one of the shortest presidential terms, found time to philander. Now, we don't mean to imply that every president has had affairs, or that those affairs start only once a man reaches the Oval Office. Franklin Roosevelt cheated on Eleanor long before he even contracted polio, and Dwight Eisenhower's affair began when Ike was still fighting World War II. The press was said to have known about such things, but kept them covered up through a "gentleman's agreement" -- an arrangement that stayed in place at least through George H.W. Bush's alleged affair (although Mr. Clinton was obviously not granted the same courtesy). Perhaps the greatest presidential philanderers were Warren Harding (who was rumored to have fathered an illegitimate daughter while president--DNA confirmed it nearly a century later) and John Kennedy, who probably could have used a UNIVAC to keep track of who he was sleeping with next. One of the women he was most rumored to have slept with (ex post facto, of course) was Marilyn Monroe. On May 19, 1962, in a gala celebration, she cooed "Happy Birthday" to JFK in a manner than indicated a more than casual acquaintance with him. Whether the current (or the next) president joins in this tradition, we can't say -- but given the personalities of Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, and Cindy McCain, we'd bet against it. Suggested Sites... What If Voters Don't Care About Infdelity At All? - well, maybe it's not a thing of the past... Was Marilyn Monroe Killed Over This JFK Secret? - some claim she was bumped off for knowing too much. The Strange Death of Warren G, Harding - we're not saying Florence Harding had anything to do it, but you never know. U.S. Presidents: Lists and Records - chief executives aggregated by claims to fame and shame.

It's Not Nice to Scam Mother Nature - May 19, 2009

 

If there's one thing mankind has discovered, it's that nature cannot be tamed. As last weekend's earthquake in Los Angeles and the recent "inland hurricane" in Southern Illinois proved, when Mother Nature wants to do something, it's best to stay out of her way. With that in mind, today we examine a few of the ways in which people have coped with nature's whims. The first took place on May 19, 1780. While the former British colonists of New England were still fighting their Revolution, strange things were happening. For a couple of days prior, the skies from Maine to New Jersey had been strangely colored -- yellow, copper, and red -- but in mid-morning of the 19th, those skies began to darken unnaturally to the point that, by noon (in most places), it was as dark as midnight. Animals behaved strangely, and many humans panicked and flocked to religious services, believing the end of the world had come. Those of a more scientific bent tried to determine what had happened, but were baffled. By the next day, the darkness had dissipated as mysteriously as it had come. Modern scientists have examined "Dark Day" and are now pretty sure (though not positive) that a combination of wet weather, Canadian forest fires, and just-right winds created a "perfect storm," and a cloud cover so thick that sunlight was unable to provide illumination to the region. While 18th-century Americans were driven into confusion and terror by a natural phenomenon, by the 20th century, Yankee ingenuity had figured out how to capitalize on Mother Nature. Halley's Comet paid the Earth a visit in 1910. Even though it had been doing so with no harmful effects since at least 240 BCE, the media got hold of the fact that the Earth would pass through the comet's tail on May 19th, and a minor worldwide panic ensued.  Predictions of the damage that would be caused were apocalyptic. It got even worse when scientists determined that the comet's tail contained cyanogen gas -- similar to cyanide -- leading many to believe they'd be poisoned.  Panicked (again), Americans packed churches, stopped up their doors and window with towels, and went insane from worry -- and (of course) there was a land-office business in comet "cures," ranging from pills to inhalers to gas masks. Of course, not everyone panicked, but even for those folks who kept their heads, retailers and restaurateurs managed to capitalize on comet fever, with souvenirs, postcards, pins, soaps, and even special dinners. While we can't imagine that when the "Big One" finally hits, folks will be flocking to buy souvenirs, we're pretty sure that, given the vast number of scams that popped up after Hurricane Katrina, American know-how will figure out a way to make a buck. Suggested Sites... The New England Dark Day - just what happened? Wikipedia: New England's Dark Day - description and links to sites explaining what occurred. Halley's Comet Postcards - capitalism is a worldwide phenomenon. A Brief History of Halley's Comet - from prehistory to the future. Comet Hysteria and the Millennium - it isn't limited to 1910.