"He instinctively can find the shining greatness of our American culture and does a good job of highlighting it (although he also does have those rare lapses when he writes about hockey, but that is something caused by impurities in the Eastern waters or something)." Erik Keilholtz
Under the patronage of St. Tammany
Mark C. N. Sullivan is an editor at a Massachusetts university. He is married and the father of three children. Email
Sept. 29, 1914: The Braves, in last place in mid-July, clinch NL pennant with a 3-2 win over Chicago at Fenway Park. (Starters: Larry Cheney vs Tom Hughes) It is the seventh win in a row for Boston (88-56). (Baseball Library)
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Even though Evers, going through his fourth pennant race after three with the magnificent Cubs teams of '06, '07, and '08, felt that he would be the first to crack under the pressure, "the Crab" and the rest of the Braves played solid and took the pennant on September 29, beating who else but Evers' ex-teammates, the Chicago Cubs, 3-2. The unquestionable leader of the Tribe on the field, Johnny Evers was named MVP of the National League in 1914. ("Baseball's Miracle Boys")
Found while looking for general strike footage for Mrs P.
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Smells, bells, life, &c
The Jesuit painter Andrea Pozzo's masterpiece is the ceiling of the Church of St. Ignatius in Rome (1691-4), presenting an allegory of the Jesuits' missionary work.
Details of the fresco represent the continents. Above, the feathered Indian princess, perhaps a relative of St. Tammany's, is America.
More details are at the Web Gallery of Art. Be sure to click on the image to enlarge:
What if you could give one last lecture before your life ended? What would you tell people?
Forty-six-year-old computer science professor Randy Pausch, diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given only a few months to live, had just that opportunity. The result was gracious, good-humored, and quite inspiring.
We don’t watch a lot of television in our house but I do like the occasional game, especially early in the season when, in theory, everyone is tied for first place. The Girl Child was sitting to watch a little with me when a commercial came on and I promptly muted it. The problem is, you see, that the Girl Child can read and this is what happened next:
GC: “Life takes Visa”? No, it doesn’t. That’s so wrong. Me: Oh? What does life take? GC: Life takes love.
I cannot help but think that if that is her view of things, my wife and I cannot be doing as bad a job with her as I feared.
Holy Smoke is the Telegraph blog of Damian Thompson, the editor-in-chief of the Catholic Herald, who notes he once was described by Church Times as a "blood-crazed ferret." So of course it's good reading. Some entries:
King Lear vs. Iron Davis: that was the pitching matchup in the second game of a doubleheader between Boston and Cincinnati. The Braves lost, snapping an eight-game win streak, but would go on to begin a new nine-game win streak. The day's results:
September 23, 1914: Defeated Reds, 3-2 (Starters: Red Ames vs Bill James); Lost to Reds, 3-0 (Starters: King Lear vs Iron Davis); Fenway Park, Boston. The Braves (81-56) are in first place in the National League. (Baseball Library)
"Thar ain’t much t' bein' a ballplayer, if ye’re a ballplayer."
"Things be changin' fast by that time, lasses be beginnin' t' come t' th' ball parks. We had t' avast cussin'."
"I nereben sea sick. I dasn't e'en know what 't means t' be sea sick. I hear other players say they be havin' a cold. I jus' dasn't know what 't would feel like t' be havin' a cold - I nerehad one."
"In all me voyages o' play, I neresaw an ump deliberately make an unfair decision. They really called them as they saw `em." #
And I raise a toast to the Irish Brigade's commander, the remarkable Thomas Francis Meagher:
Perhaps no other Irishman this side of St. Patrick led a more colorful life, a life that reads like a movie script and epitomizes the label "fighting Irish."
Thomas Francis Meagher (1823-1867) was an Irish revolutionary, flamboyant orator, and Union veteran of the Civil War who twice served as acting governor of Montana Territory. Exiled from the British Isles to a penal colony in Tasmania in 1848, this Irish freedom fighter soon escaped to New York City. Arriving in Montana in 1865 at the height of its gold rush, Meagher served as acting territorial governor in 1865-66 and 1866-67. His political terms are viewed by many as opportunistic and corrupt. Meagher's mysterious disappearance from a steamboat in 1867 has led to disparate theories about the cause of his death - from falling into the Missouri River while intoxicated to premediated murder by British agents.
In appreciation, I set out in search of a suitable image for him of the Harvard College mace, but had no luck.
I did find:
The image at top of the British ambassador to the United States, Viscount Halifax, at the 1941 Harvard commencement, the train of his robe carried by a 10-year-old British refugee.
This procession of Class of '11 alumni bearing their own standard.
An image of FDR after he received an honorary degree, inscribed to "a statesman in whom there is no guile."
* Message on Massachusetts Bay Colony's original great seal #
Thursday, September 13, 2007
The Left's faith in America the Ugly
I've been feeling in a mood to vent a bit re the Left.
Do the smart folks with the "Impeach Now" bumper stickers really mean they want Dick Cheney to be president? I don't think so. Recently I was behind a car with these two stickers: "Hatred is Learned Behavior," and "Somewhere in Texas a Village is Missing its Idiot." So hatred is to be discouraged. But contempt is OK?
On visits to the public library, I wonder: Who exactly decides that the entire oeuvre of Molly Ivins, Michael Moore &c must take up the lion's share of the current affairs non-fiction shelf in the Audiobooks and DVD sections?
The Globe, like its parent NY Times, reads more and more like the Daily Prophet. Lest Gen. Petraeus' optimistic news from Iraq steer readers from the approved talking points, the Globe today offered a fresh dose of defeatist spin on the front of Boston.com:
[T]his week, the top US military officer in Iraq said that he did not know whether continuing the war is making America safer.
This isn't a replay of the deer-in-the-backseat scene in Tommy Boy, but a note to say the Irish Elk now may be read additionally at Patum Peperium, having joined the contributers there at the kind invitation of Mr & Mrs P. The company there is most convivial, so be sure to stop by.
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Winged Hussars
The 3,000 Polish winged hussars who famously charged at the Battle of Vienna in 1683 were said to have "attacked the Godless Turks like angels from heaven." Some wings!
For all your Battle of Vienna commemorative reading needs, visit Roman Christendom and the Llamas. #
Hail Columbia, happy land! Hail, ye heroes, heav'n-born band, Who fought and bled in freedom's cause, Who fought and bled in freedom's cause, And when the storm of war was gone Enjoy'd the peace your valor won. Let independence be our boast, Ever mindful what it cost; Ever grateful for the prize, Let its altar reach the skies. #
Sunday, September 09, 2007
This Day in Miracle Braves History
September 9, 1914: Lost to Phillies, 10-3 (Starters: Pete Alexander vs Gene Cocreham); Defeated Phillies, 7-0 (Starters: Ben Tincup vs Iron Davis); Fenway Park, Boston. The Braves (70-54) are in first place in the National League. (Baseball Library)
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In game two of a doubleheader, George A. Davis, a Harvard law student, pitches the only shutout of his brief career, a 7–0 no-hitter for the first-place Braves over the Phils. The spitballer walks the bases loaded with no outs in the 5th, but "he rose to the occasion to prove his perfect candidacy to a niche in the hall of stars," writes the Boston Post… Davis will be 3–3 this year and next, then hang up his glove to start a law practice. (Baseball Library)
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With first place psychologically secured from the demoralized New York Giants, Stallings looked to rest his pitching staff. George "Iron" Davis, a Harvard law student that Stallings cajoled into performing, debuted in the second game of a September 9th doubleheader with the Phils. After the first game was surrendered to Pete Alexander, 10-3, Davis pitched a no hitter in the second. After walking the first three batters, Davis struck out Ed Burns and got Gavvy Cravath, the next batter, to hit into a double play. After the three runners in the first, Davis only allowed four runners the rest of the game, on two walks and two errors. However, none of Phils crossed home plate or hit safely as the Braves won 7-0. Another no name player became a famed 1914 Miracle Brave. ("Baseball's Miracle Boys")
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Above, "Iron" Davis, Harvard Law student who no-hit the Phils
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Saturday, September 08, 2007
He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
I found myself watching this entire movie on the web the other night. The premise is unusual, to say the least, yet you find yourself pulled in by the surreal spectacle.
French scientist Paul Beaumont (Lon Chaney) has been working for years to prove his theories on the origin of mankind with little success until the wealthy Baron Regnard (Marc MacDermott) becomes his benefactor. But when Beaumont goes before the Academy of Science to present his discoveries, Regnard takes all the credit and claims that Beaumont was merely his assistant. When Beaumont pleads his case, Regnard slaps him and the audience of scientists roars with laughter. Beaumont seeks consolation from his wife Marie (Ruth King), only to be crushed when she reveals that she's leaving him for Regnard, with whom she's been having an affair. She calls him a clown and slaps him, then laughs hysterically.
Years pass and the shattered Beaumont has become a circus clown known as "HE--Who Gets Slapped," playing a character whose act consists of being repeatedly slapped by other clowns. One night, Regnard attends the circus and becomes infatuated with the bareback rider Consuelo (Norma Shearer). The daredevil rider Bezano (John Gilbert) is in love with Consuelo, but her impoverished father, Count Mancini (Tully Marshall), makes a deal with Regnard to marry her. Beaumont locks Regnard and Mancini inside a room and sics a lion on them. They're both killed, but Beaumont is mortally wounded after being stabbed by Mancini. Beaumont staggers out to the circus and performs his act, then dies in the ring as the crowd bursts into laughter and applause.
No one did "sad clown" like Lon Chaney. Make that, "sad, masochistic, maniacal clown with his heart ripped out and stomped on, but who gets even in the end -- oh-HO does he get even."
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Friday, September 07, 2007
This Day in Miracle Braves History
Monday, September 7: Defeated Giants, 5-4 (Starters: Christy Mathewson vs Dick Rudolph); lost to Giants, 10-1 (starters: Jeff Tesreau vs Lefty Tyler); Fenway Park, Boston. The Braves (68-53) are in first place in the National League. (Baseball Library)
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IN THE NEWS: The Braves and Giants play an A.M.-P.M. twin bill in Boston on Labor Day. To accommodate the crowds, the Braves have moved their home games to Fenway Park, courtesy of owner Joe Lannin: Fenway has triple the seating capacity of South End Grounds. The two contests draw 74,163 on the day. The Braves, down 4-3 to Christy Mathewson in the 9th, storm back for two runs to win the opener. Josh Devore scratches a single, Herb Moran doubles into the crowd ringing the outfield, and Johnny Evers slaps a single that eludes George Burns to drive home the tying and winning runs. Jeff Tesreau wins the nitecap, 10-1, and the Giants pile on Lefty Tyler. In the Giants' 4-run sixth, Fred Snodgrass takes a pitch on the sleeve to reach 1B, thumbing his nose at Tyler along the way. Lefty retaliates by acting out Fred's 1912 muff. When Snodgrass returns to CF, the crowd is merciless to the point that Boston Mayor Curley rushes on the field and demands the umpires eject the Giant player. McGraw, worried that Snodgrass might incur an injury, replaces Snodgrass. (Baseball Library)
George Washington Gale Ferris came up with the Ferris Wheel on the back of a dinner napkin.
The idea came to him in a Chicago chop house. He was dining with engineers working on the Chicago World's Fair. By supper's end, he'd sketched the whole thing.
It was a 250-foot wheel with 36 passenger boxes. It would turn on a 45 foot axle. He would levitate 42 tons of steel into the air and spin it around. Ferris wouldn't use rigid spokes. Instead, he'd make a web of taut cables -- like a bicycle wheel.
Of course, the other engineers didn't like it. It would fall over in the wind. It'd never carry its own weight. But Ferris prevailed. He built the wheel for the Chicago Fair, and it ran like a Swiss watch. When a hurricane swept the fairground, the wheel stood fast.
Ferris, inventor of the eponymous wheel, most spectacular attraction of the 1893 Chicago world's fair, ended up dying broke and alone, his masterpiece dynamited and buried in a Mississippi delta landfill.
Fifteen months after Ferris's death, a Pittsburgh crematorium was still holding his ashes, waiting for someone -- anyone -- to claim the remains of one of the great champions of North American technology, the engineer who proved Americans were capable of topping the Eiffel Tower. But the mad rush of American history into the 20th century had passed him by. Curiously, it was the French who paid George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. the ultimate posthumous compliment. When planning got under way for the Paris Exposition of 1900, the French decided they wanted a Ferris Wheel of their own, just like George's. The French engineers were given a copy of Ferris's original schematics and reconstructed his Ferris Wheel down to the last rivet. The dead inventor's soaring, shocking technological answer to the Eiffel Tower dazzled France, and dazzled Europe.
MIT today praises Ferris as "the author of [a] uniquely beautiful, and modern, amalgam of spirit, form and function."
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BC Prof. Jeffery Howe's Digital Archive of American Architecture offers a gallery of images from the Chicago Columbian Exhibition of 1893, including the one above.
One last look at McCain:"Still the old combat pilot battles on," the editor of the American Spectator, R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr., writes, "and frankly I am in his corner...Call me a contrarian if you will, but the gloomy media mood shrouding the McCain candidacy is a reflection of the unseriousness inherent in the presidential campaign at this point in the news cycle. By historic standards McCain is perfectly acceptable as a presidential candidate. His presence in the Oval Office would be no surprise to Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy or Ronald Reagan. The Democratic front runners' would..."
"The Bluest State": A new book by Jonathan Keller, political analyst at Boston's WBZ-TV, "contends that baby boom politicians and voters in Massachusetts have deeply damaged the political culture in the state, standing as a warning to voters nationwide of generational and ideological excesses," Seth Gitell writes in the NY Sun. "For Mr. Keller, Massachusetts is both the Petri dish of hot house liberalism and the locale from which its antidote can spring."
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Kari Jenson Gold: Blame it on W:"[If] my local grocery store runs out of duck confit, there is no doubt in my mind that this is because Bush has allowed the store’s employees to live in deplorable conditions without universal health care—thereby causing them all to call in sick last Wednesday. Do I even need to mention the effects of global warming on ducks?"
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Fidel's favorite US president: "'James Carter,' as Cuba's ailing revolutionary calls him."
With her red hair, Manhattan address and high flying job as an attorney, the skiing enthusiast was inevitably being compared to Miranda from Sex And the City although image-wise she was more of a Nicole Kidman or Maureen O'Hara lookalike. #
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