from Bruce
Anecdotes
Prejudice
• Tennessee Williams had a “mammy” (a black nanny) named Ozzie in his house when he was a small boy. He once called Ozzie a “n*gger,” and she walked out of the house, never to return. Although his family tried to track her down, they were unable to. Years later, when Mr. Williams became an international-class playwright, he made sure that his contracts stated that his plays could not be performed in segregated theaters.
• George M. Cohan, despite his name, was not Jewish. He once wired for reservations at a fancy hotel in Miami, but the management wired back that they catered to an exclusive clientele — meaning, no Jews allowed. Mr. Cohan wired the management, “APPARENTLY THERE HAS BEEN A MISTAKE ON BOTH SIDES. YOU THOUGHT I WAS JEWISH, AND I THOUGHT YOU WERE GENTLEMEN.”
• In the Jim Crow days, the great black comic actor Bert Williams was allowed to stay in a hotel only on condition that he use the service elevator — despite his being one of the most popular comic actors of the day. This saddened Mr. Williams a great deal. He once told Jewish comedian Eddie Cantor, “It wouldn’t be so bad, Eddie, if I didn’t still hear the applause ringing in my ears.”
• Someone once made a remark that George S. Kaufman felt insulted Jews, so Mr. Kaufman rose from his chair and — after speaking sharply to the man — said, “I am now walking away from this table, this room, and this hotel.” He then noticed Dorothy Parker, one of whose parents was Jewish, so he added, “And I hope that Mrs. Parker will walk with me — halfway.”
• African-American actor/singer Paul Robeson created a critical and popular sensation in his role as the title character in Shakespeare’s Othello, but he was sometimes forced to cancel his theatrical and musical performances — during the Jim Crow era, because of the color of his skin, he was unable to find in some cities a hotel room to stay in.
Problem-Solving
• In Miami, Florida, during a production of a murder mystery play that was set in London, England, an emergency arose that required the presence of Police Captain Ron Finkiewicz, who was in the audience. No one knew what Police Captain Ron Finkiewicz looked like, but rather than interrupt the play to make an announcement from the stage, the female lead put the news into the play. On stage, she asked, “Has Inspector Thorpe left?” Hearing from the other actor that he had left, she then said, “That’s a pity. I have a message for him from Police Captain Ron Finkiewicz. His mother-in-law’s home was broken into, and she needs to get in touch with him right away.” A moment later, Police Captain Ron Finkiewicz jumped up and left to take care of the emergency. Later, he said, “It was so smooth that it took a moment to sink in. All of a sudden it dawned on me. The play was about a murder in London, not Poland. Why would there be someone with a Polish name like mine in it?”
• Tim Hurst was an umpire who enjoyed Broadway theater. Whenever he umpired in Philadelphia, he wanted the game to end quickly so he could take a train to New York and see a Broadway show. Near the end of one game, it looked like he would make his train with time to spare because Philadelphia was leading St. Louis by 11 runs. However, since Jack Powell, the St. Louis pitcher, knew that the game was hopelessly lost, he decided to delay the game so Umpire Hurst would miss his train. Therefore, he deliberately started throwing wild pitches and walking runners. However, once Umpire Hurst realized what Mr. Powell was up to, he allowed Mr. Powell to throw only nine more pitches. No matter where Mr. Powell threw the ball — inside, outside, high, low — Umpire Hurst called the pitch a strike. After quickly completing the game, Umpire Hurst got on the train and went to New York.
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© Copyright Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
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Presenting
Michael Egan
U.S.A. took the day off.
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
BANDCAMP MUSIC
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: "Living Dead Boogie"
Album: ROCKABILLY GUITAR LEGEND
Artist: Danny B. Harvey and the Living Deads
Artist Location: Austen, Texas
Info:
“A collection of Rockabilly songs by Rockabilly Guitar Legend Danny B. Harvey. Levi Dexter, Lee Rocker, Slim Jim Phantom, Lemmy Kilmister, Brigitte Handley, The Living Deads and Tim Polecat are all present on this career-spanning compilation.”
“Danny B Harvey, Rockabilly Guitar Legend, guitarist for Headcat, Annie Marie Lewis, The Devils Daughters, The Rockats, Nancy Sinatra, Linda Gail Lewis, Wanda Jackson, and more.”
Price: $1 (USD) for track; $10 (USD) for 14-track album
Genre: Rockabilly
Links:
ROCKABILLY GUITAR LEGEND
Danny B. Harvey on Bandcamp
Danny B. Harvey on YouTube
Other Links:
Bruce’s Music Recommendations: FREE pdfs
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog #1
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David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
David Bruce has over 140 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
Reader Suggestion
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Ed K
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New Venture
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Current Events
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In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Extra long day.
Women's March
Lawrence & Schumer
Pregnant Jennifer Lawrence and longtime friend Amy Schumer united this weekend at one of the many marches to protest in favor of women's reproductive rights.
On Saturday, Oct. 2, the comedian, who recently revealed she underwent a hysterectomy to treat a debilitating disease, shared on her Instagram page a photo of herself standing at a rally with the Oscar-winning actress, who is expecting her and husband Cooke Maroney's first child.
"I don't have a uterus and she is pregnant but we out here @womensmarch @plannedparenthood #rallyforabortionjustice," wrote Schumer, 40, who held up a sign that read, "Abortion is essential."
Lawrence, 31, carried a poster as well. It read, "Women's can't be free if they can't control their bodies."
Actress Sharon Stone commented on Schumer's post, writing, "BRAVA" with four clapping emojis.
Lawrence & Schumer
'Jeopardy!'
Matt Amodio
That’s 33 Jeopardy! wins a row for Matt Amodio.
The Yale University Ph.D. student scored a brand-new title on Friday’s episode, becoming the contestant with the second-most wins overall in the game. His 33 wins put him second only to Ken Jennings, the current interim host of Jeopardy!, who ended his winning streak on the game show in 2004 with a record-making 74 wins.
Amodio surpassed previously runner-up James Holzhauer, who scored 32 consecutive wins in 2019. The two have exchanged playful banter with one another on social media, with Holzhauer, a sports better, criticizing Amodio for raking in less cash at the 23 win mark despite having an equal number of wins.
“Tomorrow on #Jeopardy I have the chance to remind everybody how much better than me @James_Holzhauer is in literally every way,” Amodio tweeted on September 29. “It would be an honor to be unfavorably compared to a person I admire so much!”
That’s not what happened, however. Instead, Holzhauer graciously offered his congratulations to Amodio when he surpassed his previous record on October 1, tweeting, “I’ve been betting sports since 2005 and this is the first time I’ve seen anyone hit a 33 game parlay. Congrats @AmodioMatt!”
Matt Amodio
Aspect Ratio Cuts Out Jokes
‘Seinfeld’
Seinfeld finally arrived on Netflix Friday, and while all 180 episodes are now available on the streaming service, some jokes didn’t make the cut, literally.
As noted on social media, some of the visual gags from the series have been cropped out due to the series’ now-16:9 aspect ratio that updates the picture for HD televisions, as opposed to its original and boxier 4:3 ratio from when the series first broadcast on TV.
The cropping is most visible in the episode “The Pothole,” where instead of searching for his keys in the now-paved street, George Costanza is instead seen lashing out at an otherwise unblemished pavement.
As Slate notes, Jerry Seinfeld’s iconic sneaker collection was also sacrificed in many episodes due to the cropping, which often just removes the lower portion of the screen.
A similar situation occurred when Disney+ assumed the streaming rights to The Simpsons, where many visual jokes were the victim to the hi-def cropping; however, six months later, Disney+ restored the episodes to their proper 4:3 ratio. It’s unclear whether Netflix also plans to reinstate the original aspect ratio for Seinfeld.
‘Seinfeld’
'Gilligan's Island' Harassment Case
Orange County
An judge held billionaire Bill Gross and his wife in contempt of court Friday for once again blaring music that bothered their Laguna Beach neighbors — ordering them jailed for five days but then immediately suspending the sentence.
Citing the pandemic, which has disrupted the county's jail system, Superior Court Judge Kimberly Knill said the retired bond investor and his wife, former professional tennis player Amy Schwartz Gross, could perform community service in lieu of two days of jail, with the other three days suspended if the two do not violate the restraining order for one year.
The decision was the latest development in a feud that started in 2019, when Gross put a $1-million lawn sculpture by glass artist Dale Chihuly on his property and installed netting to protect it.
Towfiq, his next-door neighbor on a stretch of luxurious beachfront homes, complained that the 12-foot netting blocked his ocean view. After fruitless attempts to resolve the issue, Towfiq complained to the city, which issued a citation because the sculpture and netting lacked a permit.
Towfiq and his wife testified during a trial last December that the Grosses retaliated by playing music on an outdoor system — including the "Gilligan's Island" theme song on a loop — that penetrated their home's concrete walls and half-inch-thick, dual-pane windows. He submitted as evidence an iPhone recording of the music.
Orange County
Defying The Laws Of Physics
Pennsylvania
A candidate for governor driving on the Pennsylvania Turnpike was sideswiped by a motorcyclist in a July nighttime crash that left the motorcyclist dead and the candidate traveling another 5 miles with the motorcycle lodged on his car, according to a new police report.
The Pennsylvania State Police have said little publicly about the July 21 crash just before 10 p.m. in an unlit stretch of the turnpike involving Charlie Gerow, the Republican candidate, and motorcyclist Logan Abbott.
In the nine-page police report, a state police investigator wrote that he could see marks on the driver’s side of Gerow’s Mercedes sedan “which were consistent with being side swiped” by the motorcycle.
After Abbott fell off his motorcycle and over Gerow’s car, the motorcycle traveled in front of Gerow’s car, which hit it, according to the report.
The motorcycle “became lodged onto the front hood and undercarriage” of Gerow’s car in an upright position, and Gerow continued driving westbound for about 5 miles before being pulled over by a state trooper, the report said.
Pennsylvania
Dwindling Salmon
Alaska
In a normal year, the smokehouses and drying racks that Alaska Natives use to prepare salmon to tide them through the winter would be heavy with fish meat, the fruits of a summer spent fishing on the Yukon River like generations before them.
This year, there are no fish. For the first time in memory, both king and chum salmon have dwindled to almost nothing and the state has banned salmon fishing on the Yukon, even the subsistence harvests that Alaska Natives rely on to fill their freezers and pantries for winter. The remote communities that dot the river and live off its bounty — far from road systems and easy, affordable shopping — are desperate and doubling down on moose and caribou hunts in the waning days of fall.
“Nobody has fish in their freezer right now. Nobody,” said Giovanna Stevens, 38, a member of the Stevens Village tribe who grew up harvesting salmon at her family's fish camp. “We have to fill that void quickly before winter gets here."
Opinions on what led to the catastrophe vary, but those studying it generally agree human-caused climate change is playing a role as the river and the Bering Sea warm, altering the food chain in ways that aren't yet fully understood. Many believe commercial trawling operations that scoop up wild salmon along with their intended catch, as well as competition from hatchery-raised salmon in the ocean, have compounded global warming's effects on one of North America's longest rivers.
The assumption that salmon that aren't fished make it back to their native river to lay eggs may no longer hold up because of changes in both the ocean and river environments, said Stephanie Quinn-Davidson, who has worked on Yukon River salmon issues for a decade and is the Alaska Venture Fund's program director for fisheries and communities.
Alaska
'Anti-Feminist' Vandals
Jerusalem
The joyful glint in Peggy Parnass' eyes is so sharp it can be seen from the walls of Jerusalem's bustling Old City. Posted across the street at the gateway to City Hall, twin images of the Holocaust survivor and activist gaze out at the ancient warren of holy monuments of Christianity, Judaism and Islam.
But just outside this center of spirituality, someone saw her image as a problem. Five times since the photos of Parnass were posted as part of an exhibition that began in April, vandals — widely believed to be ultra-Orthodox extremists — spray-painted over her eyes and mouth.
The graffiti was cleaned each time, leaving Parnass smiling again. For many Israelis, however, the short-term fix highlighted a familiar pattern that's all the more painful because the destruction is coming not from enemies across Israel's borders but from within.
For all of its modernity, military firepower and high-tech know-how, Israel has for decades been unable to keep images of women from being defaced in some public spaces. Billboards showing women -- including soccer players, musicians and young girls -- have been repeatedly defaced and torn down by religious extremists in Jerusalem and other cities with large ultra-Orthodox populations over the past 20 years.
Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel was erased from a 2015 photograph of world leaders in Paris published by an ultra-Orthodox newspaper.
Jerusalem
Two Decades of Data
Earth
Earth is getting dimmer, researchers have found, and climate change is likely to blame. As the oceans get hotter, they appear to be generating fewer bright clouds, which means less sunlight is reflected back into space – and that warms up the planet even more.
Researchers measured the reflectance or albedo of Earth by observing the earthshine that illuminates the Moon. Nearly 20 years of data, from 1998 to 2017, was collected to inform the results of the study.
The measurements showed that Earth is now reflecting about half a watt less light per square meter compared to 1998, the equivalent of a 0.5 percent decrease in Earth's reflectance. In total, our planet reflects about 30 percent of the sunlight that reaches it.
"The albedo drop was such a surprise to us when we analyzed the last three years of data after 17 years of nearly flat albedo," says theoretical physicist Philip Goode from the New Jersey Institute of Technology.
The brightness of Earth depends on both the amount of sunlight reaching it and the reflectiveness of the planet. This study showed the two factors were not in tandem, so something on Earth is causing the dimming, especially in recent years.
Earth
Northernmost Stone Age Hunters
Arctic Circle
Ancient cut marks on mammoth bones unearthed on a remote island in the frozen extremes of Siberia are the northernmost evidence of Paleolithic humans ever found, according to archaeologists.
The bones from the woolly mammoth skeleton, dated to about 26,000 years ago, were excavated this summer by a Russian expedition to Kotelny Island, in the far northeast of Siberia — 615 miles (990 kilometers) north of the Arctic Circle.
The team pieced together more than two-thirds of the skeleton — and they found cut marks and notches, made by stone or bone tools, on almost every bone. That indicates the animal was deliberately butchered, probably after it was hunted down by a nomadic band of Stone Age hunters, the archaeologists said.
It's the northernmost evidence of Paleolithic humans ever found, said expedition leader Alexander Kandyba, an archaeologist at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography at the Russian Academy of Sciences' Siberian branch.
Until now, the northernmost traces of Stone Age humans came from the valley of the Yana River in the Yakutia region of Siberia, and dated to between 27,000 and 29,000 years ago, he said.
Arctic Circle
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