Obit watch: May 9, 2021.

May 9th, 2021

Tawny Kitaen, 80s figure.

With her flowing red hair and acrobatic moves, Ms. Kitaen appeared in videos for bands like Whitesnake and Ratt, coming across as both sultry and playful. She famously danced on the hood of a white Jaguar in the music video for Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again” and graced the cover of Ratt’s 1984 album, “Out of the Cellar.”

She once described working with Paula Abdul, who was a choreographer at the time, on the set of one video.
As Ms. Kitaen recalled, Ms. Abdul asked her what she could do, and Ms. Kitaen showed Ms. Abdul some of her moves. Ms. Abdul then turned to the director, Marty Callner, and said, “She’s got this and doesn’t need me.” And then, Ms. Kitaen said, she left.
“That was the greatest compliment,” she said. “So I got on the cars and Marty would say, ‘Action,’ and I’d do whatever I felt like doing.”

She married David Coverdale, the frontman of Whitesnake, in 1989. The couple divorced two years later. In 1997, she married Chuck Finley, a pitcher with the Anaheim Angels (now the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim). They had two daughters, Wynter and Raine. The couple divorced in 2002.

Tawny Finley, in a declaration to the Orange County Superior Court, claimed Finley used steroids among other drugs. She also claimed he bragged about being able to circumvent MLB’s testing policy. When told of his wife’s accusations, which also included heavy marijuana use and alcohol abuse, Finley replied: “I can’t believe she left out the cross-dressing.”

Ed Ward, music critic. He wrote for “Crawdaddy” and “Rolling Stone”:

Mr. Ward’s review of the Beatles’ “Abbey Road” (1969) in Rolling Stone demonstrated his tough side: He called “Sun King” the album’s “biggest bomb” and its second side “a disaster.”
“They’ve been shucking us a lot lately and it’s a shame because they don’t have to,” he wrote. “Surely they have enough talent and intelligence to do better than this. Or do they?”

Mr. Ward was fired from Rolling Stone after a few months (he didn’t get along with Jann Wenner, the publisher), then became the West Coast correspondent for the rock magazine Creem, a post he held for most of the 1970s. He left in 1979 to write about the thriving music scene in Austin as a music critic at The American-Statesman.
“Ed brought a reputation to Austin as an unflinching critic — Rolling Stone had a lot of clout — and he was not diplomatic in his writing,” said his friend and fellow writer Joe Nick Patoski, who described Mr. Ward as cantankerous and difficult. “Early on, there was a reaction to some of the things he wrote and it started a ‘Dump Ed Ward’ movement that had bumper stickers and T shirts.”

Over the next decade, Mr. Ward was a music and food critic (sometimes, while he was still at The American-Statesman, under the pseudonym Petaluma Pete) for the alternative weekly The Austin Chronicle; one of three authors of “Rock of Ages: The Rolling Stone History of Rock & Roll” (1986), in which he focused on the 1950s; and, in 1987, one of several founders of the South by Southwest music, film and technology festival in Austin.

He returned to Austin in 2013 and set to work on “The History of Rock & Roll, Volume 1: 1920-1963,” which was published in 2016. A second volume, taking the music’s history up to 1977, was published in 2019. But his publisher declined to publish a third one because the second book’s sales had not been as good the first one’s.

Ernest Angley, televangelist. Or, as I liked to call him, “the man who took over Rex Humbard’s soup kitchen“.

These last two by way of Lawrence: George Jung, cocaine smuggler.

Japanese composer Shunsuke Kikuchi. Among his credits: “Dragon Ball”, “Dragon Ball Z”, and several “Gamera” films.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 403

May 8th, 2021

There have been a couple of incidents recently involving old guys falling off boats into the water and dying.

I’m not making fun of them: mad props to these guys for being out there. But, as Lawrence put it: “Important safety tip: try not to fall off the boat.”

From the National Safety Council, circa 1972: “Find a Float”.

Bonus #1: in honor of the late Bobby Unser, “Hazards of Mountain Driving”.

Bonus #2: “Blasting Cap Danger” brought to you by the “Institute of Makers of Explosives” circa 1957.

I remember when I was young and reading “Boy’s Life”, every now and then they’d have a public service advertisement depicting various types of blasting caps and warning young Boy Scouts not to mess with them. My question was: why? Was there a real problem with people just leaving blasting caps lying around for kids to find?

Well!

May 7th, 2021

A federal appeals court has overturned the conviction of a former U.S. representative from Florida who had been accused of running a sham charity and had served time in prison, with the judges finding that a juror had been wrongfully dismissed for saying that the Holy Spirit had told him that the former congresswoman was innocent.

Previous coverage of Corrine Brown.

More:

But the court’s majority found on Thursday that the judge who had presided over Ms. Brown’s case in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville had violated her constitutional right to a unanimous jury verdict when he removed a juror and replaced him with an alternate during the panel’s deliberations.
Shortly after deliberations had begun, the juror told the other members of the jury he had received divine guidance, prompting another juror to bring his comments to the attention of Judge Timothy Corrigan.
In a majority opinion, the appeals court wrote that Judge Corrigan had not had cause to dismiss the unidentified juror, known as Juror No. 13, whom he had questioned about the role of his faith in deliberations.
“We ask whether Juror No. 13’s religious statements amounted to proof beyond a reasonable doubt that he could not render a verdict based solely on the evidence and the law, thereby disqualifying him, despite substantial evidence that he was fulfilling the duty he had sworn to render,” the court’s majority wrote. “They did not.”

The decision was 7-4.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 402

May 7th, 2021

Two videos on unrelated topics today. One short-ish, one admittedly long.

Short-ish: This is an episode of the old “True Adventure” TV show called…”Serpent Cult”, about snake handling religion in Kentucky. I possibly could have put this in last week’s travel entry, but it didn’t feel right there.

I actually kind of like the host’s introduction. When was the last time you heard someone on TV say:

  • I was brought up religious.
  • I believe in people’s right to worship as they please.
  • I have a point of view on this, but I’m not going to force it on anybody else.

Long (about 70 minutes): “Raid on the Northfield Bank: The James-Younger Gang Meets Its Match”.

I wanted to link this for two reasons:

1. There’s a pretty good movie that the Saturday Night Movie Group watched not too long ago: “The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid”, which you can find on YouTube with a carefully crafted search or on Amazon (affiliate link). I don’t believe it is exactly historically accurate, but…

2. Massad Ayoob in “American Handgunner” actually devoted an “Ayoob Files” column to the “Great Northfield, Minnesota Bank Robbery”, concentrating on the role of armed citizens.

(I have also read, and can recommend, the book Ayoob cites: Shot All to Hell by Mark Lee Gardner. (Affiliate link.))

Obit watch: May 7, 2021.

May 7th, 2021

This has been well covered locally (and on ESPN) but for the historical record: Jake Ehlinger, linebacker for UT, was found dead in his apartment yesterday. He was 20 years old.

This one is for Lawrence: Milva. I’d never heard of her, either, but she was apparently a very prominent Italian singer.

Her deep, powerful voice garnered attention. But her short brown hair and slight build were far from the thick manes and full hourglass figures then in demand.
To compensate, she padded her bras and thickened her legs with three pairs of stockings. An agent recommended that she dye her hair red, a color that became her trademark and earned her the nickname La Rossa, or the Redhead.

NYT obit for Johnny Crawford.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 401

May 6th, 2021

Travel Thursday!

Do you like kids? Do you like trains? Do you like kids on trains?

“Big Trains Rolling”, from the Association of American Railroads. This dates to either 1946 or 1955: YouTube contradicts itself.

Is it just me? Am I an old man? Or do those two kids seem awfully young to be taking a train trip alone?

Bonus: I can’t believe I haven’t used this one, but it doesn’t come up in a search, and I had it bookmarked…

“Wings to Guatemala” from those wonderful folks at Pan Am.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 400

May 5th, 2021

This popped up in my feed, and you know I had to post it here: “TRS-80 Color Computer: Radio Shack’s $399 Micro from 1980!”

It me. Mine had 4K of memory: not 4 GB, or 4 MB, but 4,096 8-bit bytes of memory, and used cassette tape for storage.

Bonus #1: I’m marginal about using this one, but it calls back to an earlier blog entry: “The Norco Shootout, 40 Years Later”.

Not officially part of the content here, but: the “Behind the Badge” channel posted the Norco documentary in one (54 minute) chunk. I linked to that in my previous Norco post, but that version divides the video up into three chunks.

Bonus #2: Here’s something we hope you really like (especially you, RoadRich): a video on “Use of Force” from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC).

Bonus #3: This is short, but I thought it was worth putting up here. Simon Sinek on “The Most Toxic Person In The Workplace”.

Obit watch: May 5, 2021.

May 5th, 2021

Playing catch up once again:

Bobby Unser.

Unser conquered a fear of heights to capture the Pikes Peak climb a record 13 times, racing against the clock on a gravel road twisting through more than 150 turns with no guardrails overlooking drops of up to 1,000 feet. The previous Pikes Peak record of nine victories had been held by his uncle Louis.

He also won the Indianapolis 500 three times. Yes, three:

Unser bested Mario Andretti by 5.3 seconds in the 1981 race, but the next day officials gave the victory to Andretti after penalizing Unser one lap for illegally passing several cars under a caution. Had they imposed the penalty during the race, Unser might have made up the lap and won anyway, since he had the fastest car that season. An appeals panel reinstated Unser as the winner more than four months later but fined his team part of the winning purse.

Jason Matthews. This is a guy I’d never heard of, but am now intrigued by. He was a former CIA officer who wrote three spy novels (affiliate link) that are highly praised for their realism.

“I wake up every morning and I think, ‘Thank heavens for Vladimir Putin,’ ” Mr. Matthews told The Associated Press in 2017. “He’s a great character, and his national goals are the stuff for spy novels: weaken NATO, dissolve the Atlantic alliance, break up the European Union.”

Johnny Crawford. He was one of the original Mouseketeers, and later played Mark McCain, son of Lucas McCain, on “The Rifleman”.

Billie Hayes. Yes, “Witchiepoo”, but also “Mammy Yokum” in “Li’l Abner” (she replaced Charlotte Rae on Broadway, and played the role in the 1959 film version and the 1971 TV movie version).

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 399

May 4th, 2021

And now for something completely different.

“The Lumberman”, a 1971 film from the good folks at Encyclopedia Brittanica. It was part of a series called “Our Changing Way of Life”.

Bonus #1: When was the last time you thought about rice? For me, it was last night. But I am somewhat food obsessed.

Phil Robertson says “America Doesn’t Know How to Cook Rice Anymore”.

In addition to Romans 12:13, I am also reminded of Luke 24:42, where the risen Jesus appears to the apostles and asks, “Hey, you guys got any food up in here?” ‘Cause you never know when Jesus might show up, and who wants to be placing an order from Domino’s while Jesus is hanging around?

(If it comes to that, though, I have to warn you: the Bible is very clear that just introducing the delivery guy to Jesus is no substitute for a tip. You still need to tip your delivery driver, and I’d suggest 25% under normal circumstances. Do you really want Jesus to think you’re a cheapskate?)

(Also, if it comes to that: Jesus likes the meat lover’s pizza, or whatever your local equivalent is. Acts 10:15: “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”)

Walter White Alton Brown discusses his “fast and foolproof” method for rice cooking.

Bonus #2: Okay, the quality on this isn’t great, but it is short. And this is the “Month of Mayberry” according to MeTV. Don Knotts advertising the Dodge Tradesman van.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 398

May 3rd, 2021

Military History Monday!

I have another doctor’s appointment early this afternoon, and didn’t have a chance to set this up yesterday, so I’m being shorter than usual today.

“Target Toyko”:

…the story of the first bombing raid on Tokyo by B-29 Superfortress bombers of the U.S. Army Air Forces flying out of Saipan. B-29 crews are followed from their training staging at Grand Island, Nebraska to their bombing embarkation point on the island of Saipan. From there, the B-29 attack on the Nakajima aircraft plant outside Tokyo is depicted.

Extra bonus: the narrator is Ronald Reagan.

Bonus #1: “Position Firing”, an animated 1944 Army Air Corps film about hitting moving targets.

Extra bonus: “Trigger Joe” is voiced by Mel Blanc.

Bonus #2: “Arctic Mission”. This is yet another Bell System (actually Western Electric) propaganda film, but I think it more appropriately belongs here: it covers the construction of the DEW Line, and specifically deals with the difficulties of construction and transport above the Arctic Circle.

Obit watch: May 3, 2021.

May 3rd, 2021

Getting caught up:

Pete Lammons, tight end for the New York Jets. He was 77, and participating in a fishing tournament in East Texas.

Major League Fishing, the sponsor of the tournament, said that Lammons, who was participating in the event, had fallen out of his boat on the Sam Rayburn Reservoir, a popular spot for bass fishing, and that the other man in the boat tried to rescue him. A team equipped with sonar recovered Lammons’s body a few hours later.

Olympia Dukakis, for the historical record. THR. Variety.

Jill Corey. This was a little before my time, but still an interesting story. She grew up in Avonmore, Pennsylvania (literally a coal miner’s daughter) but was discovered at 17 and went on to a career in music.

Before the end of the decade, Ms. Corey had a spot on the “Johnny Carson Show” (a variety show precursor to his late-night talk show) and the NBC series “Your Hit Parade,” in which a regular cast of vocalists sang the top-rated songs of the week.
For a time Ms. Corey even had her own show, 15 minutes of song that followed the news once a week, a programming format that placed many popular singers in similar slots across the networks.
She recorded many records and performed at Manhattan nightclubs like the Copacabana and the Blue Angel. (Mr. Miller, in tight control of her career, turned down Broadway roles for her because her nightclub work was more lucrative.) And she was courted by heartthrobs like Eddie Fisher and Frank Sinatra (as he and Ava Gardner were divorcing).
She also made a “terrible movie,” in her words, called “Senior Prom” (1958).

In one of those odd cases that seem so common during that decade, where the line between “romance” and “creepy stalking” becomes blurred, she was pursued by Don Hoak of the Pittsburgh Pirates (even though she was already engaged) and married him in 1961. She gave up singing, but Mr. Hoak died in 1969 and she went back to performing.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 397

May 2nd, 2021

Science Sunday!

Have you ever asked yourself, “Self, I wonder how light bulbs are made?” Specifically, incandescent lights, not LED bulbs: the latter are probably also interesting, but that’s not today’s subject.

Really, how often do you think about light? I’ve been thinking about it a fair amount recently: throughout the whole history of man, we have really only had the ability to control lighting for about 150 to 170 years now. If you want to get an idea of what things were like in the days before, pull a Samuel Pepys. Go into the smallest windowless room in your house (a bathroom is fine) with a book and a candle. Light the candle: just one candle, because candles cost money in Pepys day. Now try to read the book. Now imagine doing that every night for the rest of your life.

This is a vintage GE documentary about the making of their “Mazda” brand light bulbs.

The name was used from 1909 through 1945 in the United States by GE and Westinghouse. Mazda brand light bulbs were made for decades after 1945 outside the US. The company chose the name due to its association with Ahura Mazda, the transcendental and universal God of Zoroastrianism whose name means light of wisdom in the Avestan language.

Bonus #1: Perhaps I am fudging the definition of “science” a bit here, but you’ve heard the expression “build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door”, right?

“West Germany vs. East Germany Mouse Traps. Mousetrap Monday”.

Also, this gives me a chance to retell the classic Soviet joke (which I think was used in “Chernobyl”): “What’s as big as a house, burns 20 liters of fuel every hour, puts out a shitload of smoke and noise, and cuts an apple into three pieces? A Soviet machine made to cut apples into four pieces.”

Bonus #2: Let’s get back to something that is at least a close approximation to science. Plus bonus fun!

“Shaking Buildings Over a Mile Away!” from “Tech Ingredients”. Basically, this involves igniting decently large amounts of hydrogen mixtures.

“Let’s bring everything in soon so if the cops come there’s nothing here.” That’s my kind of science.

Bonus #3: I wanted to do some biology last week, but compromised. Here’s something that comes closer to what I wanted to do: a 1954 film about the virtues of antibiotics.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 396

May 1st, 2021

Today, some more fun bait for FotB RoadRich!

“Don’t Tell My Wife”. This is a promo film for Piper from sometime in the 1960s. The husband decides he wants to learn to fly…and so does his wife. But neither one wants the other to know.

The man and woman sit in wingback chairs in an elegant living room with a large fireplace. Each is reading a flying manual hidden by a newspaper.

Interestingly, Piper has a YouTube channel, but there’s not a whole lot of historical videos there.

Bonus #1: This is one of the few Piper historical videos: “The Classic Piper Cub”.

Bonus #2: This is a vintage Boeing promo film for the 707 Stratoliner, concentrating on the passenger cabin design.

A mock-up of the cabin (apparently built a bit roomier than the actual aircraft by designer TEAGUE) was unveiled in New York City in 1956. The mock-up appears throughout the film.
The cost of the mock-up was about $500,000, and included overhead service units, seatback trays, and target reading lights. The New York Times’ Richard Witkin compared the cabin to the “reception room of a high-stepping ad agency”.
Not surprisingly, the public’s fascination with the new jet was so intense that meals were even served to “passenger” visitors aboard the mock-up using the innovative meal trays.

“What you gonna do when you get out of jail?…” part 395

April 30th, 2021

Phone Phriday is back!

I’m kind of fascinated by the idea of disaster recovery. Back in the day when I was a sysadmin, and later when I was doing backup/recovery support, disaster recovery was a part of my life. These days, other people plan disaster recovery for what I do (and we have a lot of redundancy) but every now and then, I see someone who’s got themselves jammed up…

What does the phone company do?

“Operation Desert Switch”. After Gulf War I, Kuwait’s phone system was completely destroyed. AT&T came to Kuwait in early March 1991 to get at least some limited phone service back to the country:

The company first installed a station in Kuwait City to provide 120 outgoing lines to Kuwaiti citizens, the press, and Operation Desert Storm soldiers. The station was established when a group of AT&T technicians drove from Saudi Arabia and erected a portable satellite ground station overnight. The station, which was the first to link Kuwait to the outside world, soon was handling 10 to 12 thousand calls per day. A more permanent station was established later in 1991, with 720 lines.

Bonus: “Miracle on Second Avenue”.

The morning of February 27, 1975 brought a fire in the telephone building at 204 Second Avenue, at East 13th Street. The building housed the Main Distribution Frame that served customers in lower Manhattan and Brooklyn–the mainframe was destroyed, disconnecting tens of thousands of customers, and switching equipment was melted or damaged by smoke. The fire took out approximately 170,000 lines.

The Second Avenue fire is not one I remember, but I do recall the Hinsdale Central Office fire: I was reading TELECOM Digest on USENET pretty avidly at the time, and the Hinsdale fire was a big freaking deal.

Quick update from the legal beat.

April 30th, 2021

Five people have been arrested on charges related to the shooting of Lady Gaga’s dog walker.

Three of them were actually involved in the robbery, according to police:

Detectives do not believe the men were targeting the dog walker because of the dogs’ owner, the police said. Evidence, however, suggests that the men knew that the dog breed was valuable and that this was the motivation for the robbery, according to the police.

The other two are charged as accessories after the fact. One of them is the woman who returned the dogs.