Classic Sports Thursday

With the Pittsburgh Steelers preparing for a run at yet another Super Bowl, it's perhaps a good time to look back at what might, arguably, be the greatest single moment in Steelers history.  It didn't come from one of the six Super Bowls the team has been in, nor even from a year in which the Steelers won.  And yet it lives on, not only in the minds of Pittsburgh fans, but football fans everywhere.

It is, of course, the Immaculate Reception, Franco Harris' miracle touchdown in the waining seconds of a playoff game against the Oakland Raiders on December 23, 1972.  I remember this game vividly, having seen it live on TV, and having despaired that the Steelers appeared headed for a heartbreaking 7-6 loss to the Raiders.  Then, of course, a miracle happened.

If you weren't alive back in '72, or if you didn't see the game, this is probably what you remember it having looked like:



Yet, if you saw the game live as I did, or if you've been fortunate enough to have seen the actual TV replay (rather than the NFL Films version above), you might get quite a different perspective on what happened:



See the difference? The NFL Films version is excellent at showing you what happened and how, but it's only in the NBC coverage, broadcast by the great Curt Gowdy, that you experience the sheer shock of what happened as it happened. In the first clip we see how the rookie phenom Harris, a man truly in the right place at the right time, made the most of his opportunity by grabbing the ball just before it hit the ground. The angle captured by NFL Films is perfect - you couldn't have asked for better if it had been choreographed.

In that sense, it's almost too good. Look again at the NBC clip, as we see the ball go completely out of the picture, presumably bouncing harmlessly to the turf, the Raiders defenders all but celebrating their victory - when all of a sudden there's Harris, coming out of nowhere, nexplicably running downfield for a touchdown. The shock and sheer delight of the Pittsburgh fans, having seen tragedy turn to triumph in the blink of an eye, is wonderful. (Unless you were rooting for the Raiders, in which case perhaps the wounds have healed by now.)

It's truly a What the Hell? moment, and seeing it in the original context makes a truly exciting moment even more thrilling. I wonder if anything nearly as exciting will happen this weekend? ◙

Opera Thursday

A brief aside to some readers who may not be familiar: A few years ago, upon the fatal crash of a military plane by a woman in the military, a caller used the term "female aviator" to radio talk show host G. Gordon Liddy in reference to the crash. Mr. Liddy responded by telling him the correct term is "aviatrix". We have sadly seen poor grammar become mandatory in the House of Representatives under Louise Slaughter's reign at the Rules Committee, banning the word "man" in language that would irritate Mr. Liddy. Such use of language is why the term "Governess" is used when referring to South Carolina's Her Excellency Nikki Nirmata Randhawa Haley, the Governess of South Carolina.

For today's Opera Thursday we go to an artist I've enjoyed throughout my music career, Georg Frederic Händel. While most of us know around the late 1730's and early 1740's was a time where his great work Messiah was published, it coincided with the release of another opera piece that can be sung as an oratorio based on a Biblical character, Samson, whom most remember had power with his hair, and lost it when Delilah cut his hair.

Händel's Samson was changed after it had been originally published in 1741, but was changed with two additional pieces at the end in 1743. One of those is a soprano aria, "Let the Bright Seraphim," sung after Manoah asks the people to cease their regrets over the death of the titular hero, and this aria follows the funeral ceremony. It is said the song is worthy only of the greatest artist, characterized by joyousness, brilliance and lofty inspiration, both with voice and instrument. Yet in this Official Inaugural Prayer Service held at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, across from the State House (the last state funeral for a Governor, Carroll A. Campbell Jnr, was held here) and a wing of the more liberal Diocese of Upper South Carolina (different from the Diocese that is more conservative that starts once you leave Lexington and Richland Counties that wants to break away from the Episcopalians), just two hours from the Inauguration of Governess and Sargent Haley (yes, First Gentleman Michael Haley is a reservist, and wore his uniform at the inauguration; it seems odd his picture in military garb will be in the same gallery as Iris Campbell, Mary Wood Beasley, and other great women of the state) was the call for this selection near the end of the opera was called to celebrate the Governess' inauguration.

As I've previously mentioned, I sang last year in a production of Beethoven's Mass in C Major with Ashley Briggs as the soprano soloist. Here is Miss Briggs, with Tony Roebuck on trumpet and Jared Johnson on organ, with "Let the Bright Seraphim". We had a fun discussion afterward. ◙

Wish I'd Written That

A boy writes a letter to God:

"Dear God, why do you let bad things happen in our schools?"

God replied "Dear Son, I'm not allowed in your schools."

- From my friend Peter DePalma. Having a blog entitles me to steal the best material from my friends, giving proper credit of course. ◙

Opinion Digest

Opinions worth reading:

Brannon Howse: Glenn Beck's New Book Reveals He Embraces New Age Theology, Is a Knowledgeable Mormon, and a Universalist.

WorldNetDaily: Rick Warren hosts “cult” celebrity doctors. (The kingpin of Life Enhancement Centres promotes Eastern mysticism.)

In light of attending Rick Santorum's speech Saturday at the South Carolina March for Life regarding one of his children, and the attempt by the doctors to kill her using “hospice” and excessive morphine, Chuck Norris' two columns on ObamaCare's Baby Death Panels.

Star Parker: Restoring a Culture of Life.

Michelle Malkin: Blame Righty: A Condensed History.

Dennis Prager: Libeling the Right.

Ingrid Schlueter: El Paso (TX) City Officials ignore voters and force Homosexual "Domestic Partner" Benefits. ◙

Who's that guy?

Guest Post by Cathy of Alex

A few days ago one of the most unique of British actors passed away: Pete Postlethwaite, died at the age of 64. Who? You ask.

Be honest. Would you have recognized the name without the photo (at right)? Oh, THAT guy. And, still, some of you may not recognize him or know his name. It helps to be a fan of British TV or arty, smaller budget films or TV series of the last 20 years.

I first noticed him as the nemesis of Richard Sharpe, Obadiah Hakeswill, in the first Sharpe’s miniseries in the early 90s. Unless you are a fan of local public television in the Twin Cities you may not have ever seen the series which is a crying shame in my humble opinion. Postlethwaite is a study in evil. He’s very Shakespearean in his manners; twitching and clever.

He’s an odd looking man. Very angular and raw. Not quite handsome, not quite ugly, but decidedly noticable. He’s what is usually called “a character actor” which is a term I usually equate with “scene stealer” Put him a scene and the lead actor better be on their game or the entire episode or film will be stolen.

Speaking of Shakespeare, maybe you remember Postlethwaite as the Priest in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet ? Most of us remember Leo, the beach, the fish tank and a lot of buffed young men with guns from that film. But, Postlethwaite was there and, unsurprising, able to make an odd role over in his own image.

Or, maybe you remember him in the second Jurassic Park film?

More than likely you remember him from The Usual Suspects -probably his biggest stateside role.

Besides his role in Sharpe I see him, forever, as the seemingly out of touch conductor of a brass band in a dying mining town in Brassed Off His surprising and impassioned speech at the end could only have been pulled off by Postlethwaite as during the rest of the film he seems completely out of touch with any reality other than music, yet, surprisingly he was paying attention and was well aware the whole time. Suddenly, we realize that music was an escape for him as much as it was for the miners in the band.

If you saw Inception recall that Postlethwaite spent his role on his back in a hospital bed and is shown in only two brief scenes with scarcely any dialogue. A lesser actor would have faded into the sheets-not Postlethwaite.

This post is a shout out to, not only Postlethwaite, but all the actors who give us enjoyment but whose names are not always, or ever, above the marquee. Consider the following names: J.T. Walsh, Terry O’Quinn (who prior to his breakout in “Lost” was largely unknown), Jessica Walter, Lance LeGault, Lance Henriksen, Ben Johnson, Slim Pickens, Judith Chapman,Christine Belford, Jeff Mackay, Strother Martin, Denholm Elliot. Some of these actors have passed away, and some continue to find work, but no matter they will continue to entertain via Hulu, DVD, Netflix, TCM, AMC or daily reruns on cable or satellite TV. ◙

Classic Sports Thursday

This was one of my most vivid memories of NFL football as a kid, and now I'm able to see it again for the first time since then: Don Criqui's wonderful call of Tom Dempsey's record-setting (and game-winning) 63-yard field goal on November 8, 1970.



A few small points: first, note that the Saints used to embellish the end zones with not only their name, but the name of their opponent as well (you can see it on Errol Mann's go-ahead field goal for the Lions). The Chiefs did something similar to this too, back in the day, by putting the helmet logos of both teams at midfield.

But most outstanding is Criqui's call. The low-key announcer (who you can still hear on the radio calling Notre Dame football, and very well), starts out with a healthy (and justifiable) skepticism about Dempsey's effort. This quickly turns to incredulity as the kick nears the end zone, followed by spontaneous chaos after it goes over the crossbar. In an era when we're used to hearing shouters, sreamers, and homers trying their hardest to get on SportsCenter, it's refreshing to hear something so utterly unaffected and genuine. This made such an impact that I recall WCCO, the local CBS affiliate, replaying the clip several times on their local sportscast at the request of viewers who had either missed it the first time or who wanted to see (and hear) it again. Now, thanks to You Tube, we can all have that pleasure. ◙

An historic photo

Look carefully at this Senior Class Page from The Indian 1989, my eighth-grade yearbook. Keep an eye on the class photo in the "senior section" of school and an easily seen signature.

There is an important signature, and an important member of this senior class. Can you identify it?  ◙

Mocking Communion

Depending on denomination, all terms based in the 10th and 11th chapters of First Corinthians, it may be called Eucharist, Holy Communion (1 Cor 10:16, a translation of koinōnía), or The Lord's Supper (1 Cor 11:20-21). The same section of the Bible in question (1 Cor 11:23-25) states:

For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

Section VI of The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 states it is "a symbolic act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming." Denominations that use grape juice have because of Dr. Thomas Welch, a former Methodist minister and later dentist, who discovered pasteurising grape juice to stop fermentation that was used to create wine; "Dr. Welch's Unfermented Wine" was first sold for communion services in New Jersey and the product, which we now know as Welch's juices, became the success it is during Prohibition when many congregations used the product instead of the prohibited wine. Today, many Protestant congregations prohibit the alcoholic drinks from their communions, and being in a state where alcohol is prohibited on Sunday (although rock music stations are wanting it to be eliminated), even some Catholic congregations prohibit wine in communion owing to the state's Sunday prohibition.

This leads to the insult that one contestant (that did not qualify for the finals thankfully) in Pepsi's annual Crash the Super Bowl contest with an advertisement concept that, when it was published on the Web and reported on the Fox Nation, drew the ire of millions. A contestant (that thankfully did not qualify for the finals) posted a concept ad that featured the mocking of Communion by replacing the unleavened bread with Pepsi's Doritos brand corn chips. This one was notoriously insulting that every denomination lit up the switchboards, helping this ad lose, and Pepsi later pulled it from their contest site.

Last year, another insulting commercial, "Casket," was run mocking the Resurrection, and was developed by Mosaic, a famed Los Angeles area Life Enhancement Centre fronted by Erwin McManus, a notorious false teacher, that meets in a nightclub.

It seems the mocking of faith has become clearer each and every day, and Albert Herlong's Communist Goals of 1963 keep marching towards the goals of the CCCP in that bad "art," this time mocking God, is acceptable in the eyes of the modern Left. Pushing such bad art is helping towards the goals of demolishing the church while anything insulting to God is acceptable, as we saw in the last Congress.

More: L. Brent Bozell III: Pepsico Mocks God. ◙

Do you believe in miracles?

If you're feeling that perhaps today just isn't your day, or if you're just suffering the Monday blahs, take heart: Joe Posnanski recalls the day forty years ago when the world's losingist team actually won. ◙

Retro TV Friday

For some reason, when I was growing up we always favored the ABC news over NBC or CBS. I'm not sure why, but in doing so we were definitely in the minority. ABC was constantly on the lookout for news credibility in the hopes it would translate to higher ratings, but until Roone Arledge took over the news division in the late 70s, such was not the case.

Here is one of ABC's best teams, circa 1969-70: Harry Reasoner, who had come over from CBS after it appeared he would never succeed Walter Cronkite, and Howard K. Smith, who had been with CBS many years before.



I always really liked this intro: intense, aggressive music (that matches up perfectly with the graphics), high energy, with an underlying seriousness. As the images flash by faster and faster, the subliminal message seems to be, "When the world moves so fast you can't keep up, turn to the trusted names at ABC News." Knowing that Lou Ciaffi and Irv Chapman and Peter Jennings are on the beat was supposed to impress us (although apparently it didn't impress enough of us).

And note those issues - abortion, the Mideast, unemployment, inflaton, China, Congress, ecology (or as we would think of it today, the environment), Substitute "Iraq/Afghanistan" for "Vietnam," and you have virtually a duplicate of what could be on today's news. It proves, once again, that there's very little new under the sun. ◙

Classic Sports Thursday

While researching tomorrow's "Retro TV Friday," I came across this clip (You Tube is a wonderful thing) from Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals between - surprise - the Celtics and the Lakers. This game was played, if you can believe it, on May 5 - well over a month earlier than it would be today. It was, as I recall, one of the rare championship games to be nationally televised in prime time rather than in the usual Sunday afternoon timespot.



If you're so inclined, you can hunt down the rest of the quarter on You Tube. But note some things from this clip that are readily apparent: low-key announcers (Chris Schenkel and Jack Twyman, an underappreciated humanitarian), limited graphics (just the score, ma'am), a court that is remarkably free of clutter, uniforms that fit (and shorts that don't come down to the ankles), and most of all a serious atmosphere (do you really miss not having that obnoxious music blaring at you during every stoppage in play?). I'll tell you, if it was like this today, I might still be a basketball fan. ◙

Notable Quotables, 2010

The Year in Review time is here, and here we go with some outrageous, and fun quotes from 2010.

“Has feminising of today’s classical music allowed the tackiness of women in concert halls where it’s appropriate to be Henry Ford, and wear anything, provided it’s black, even if it’s a black sweatshirt, black jeans, and sneakers, something that I find inappropriate when the dinner jacket is worn?”

-- On “Beethoven and Blue Jeans”. Later in the year a friend and I attended the Methodist university's concert choir performance of Händel's Messiah and the dress of the choral singers had started becoming sloppy with questionable dresses. What is with the sloppiness of dress in the orchestra?

“Whatever happened to the idea of walking golf? The pros do it, but the country-clubbers who want the revenue ban the simplest of golf fundamentals.”

-- On playing my first full round of golf.

“Eardrum-busting prerecorded music is not church music – ever.”

-- Excessively loud church “music”.

“Hey, it was the 13th marathon on the 13th of February. Something was bound to go wrong.”

-- Bi-Lo Myrtle Beach Marathon XIII was canned because of snow on February 12 just eight hours from the gun. The second attempt is in seven weeks, and unfortunately, they will have a course different from the one originally drawn. A user sent me this statement. The 13th renewal of the marathon is February 19.

“It would have been better if McMurray fending off Junior on Lap 208 was at 9:34 PM instead of 7:34 PM where Family Guy would never have aired."

-- On “Family Guy” insulting Sarah Palin, which should have never aired. It also began the Ganassi Triple Crown of the Daytona 500 and both major Indianapolis races (500 and 400). The Harley Earl, Borg-Warner, and PPG Trophies.

Boogity, boogity, boogity!

Happy New Year, Everyone! ◙

Retro TV Friday: New Year's Edition

Back in the day, New Year's meant four things: Guy Lombardo at night, hangovers in the morning, the Rose Parade, and college football.

People change, and times change. Guy Lombardo has long since gone to his eternal reward, but the hangovers are still around. The Rose Parade is now in HD, probably soon to be 3D. The big sporting event now is an outdoor hockey game, and although the bowls are still going, the big game doesn't come along until a couple of weeks later.

So let's take a glimpse at what New Year's Day used to look like.  Welcome to New Year's Day, 1961.

The first thing you'll notice is that they seem to be celebrating New Year's on January 2. That's because the 1st fell on a Sunday, and traditionally the parades and games would be moved to Monday.  They still are, in fact; you'll see that on New Year's, 2012.

Imagine what it must have been like to watch the Rose Parade in black-and-white.  Yet that's the way it was throughout the 50s; NBC, the pioneer in color broadcasting, is the only place you'll see the flowers in living color in 1961.  And don't forget to send in your order for those lifelike plastic roses.

Ah, Bess Myerson. The former Miss America was a sophisticated beauty, and a staple on game shows such as I've Got a Secret.  Bess Myerson alone might have been enough to make up for ABC's black-and-white coverage.

At this point in time, there were only four football games on January 1 (or January 2, in this case), and most of them overlapped: the Orange Bowl at 11:45, the Sugar Bowl an hour later, the Cotton Bowl at 2:30, and the Rose Bowl, the granddaddy of them all, at 3:45.  There were no night games, which is a big difference compared to today.  But the biggest difference, which football fans will notice immediately, is in who plays in these games.

The Orange Bowl, of course, was the first of the bowl games to go prime-time, two or three years after this game was played.  It's been a long time since either Missouri and Navy were New Year's day contenders, but there's a good reason for Navy to be there: Joe Bellino, the Heisman Trophy winner, is their star running back.  A future Heisman winner, Roger Staubach, will be quarterbacking them the next three years.

 
For many years the Sugar Bowl labored under a self-imposed handicap: New Orleans, one of the most racially segregated cities in the country, was somewhat less than inviting to integrated teams.  Hence, the majority of Sugar Bowl participants came from the South, and for that reason, the Sugar had a tendency to pick more unlikely teams than the other bowls.  And for today's football fan, they wouldn't be much more unlikely than Rice Institue.  A habitual bottom feeder today, Rice was at one time a pretty good team, as their 1960 record of 7-3 would indicate.  They would lose this game 14-6, however.

   
In fact, perhaps the only team unlikelier than Rice is Duke.  Duke! Yes, the team that year-in, year-out has one of the worst records in college football, was a powerhouse in the 30s, 40s and 50s. Even in 1960, they were 7-2. And they'd come out on top here as well, beating the Razorbacks 7-6.

Well, maybe there's one other team even more unlikely than Rice and Duke, and that would be the Minnesota Gophers.  If you're my age or younger, you likely weren't alive the last time the Gophers played in the Rose Bowl.  As a matter of fact, every team in the Big 10 - including Nebraska, which isn't even an official member yet - has been to the Rose Bowl since the last time the Gophers were there.  And while it may be hard to believe today, the Minnesota Gophers were the National Champions in 1960, even though they will lose this Rose Bowl to Washington.  Reason?  In those days, the bowls were purely exhibition games - the national champion was chosen at the end of the regular season.  Incidentelly, Minnesota would return to the Rose Bowl the next season, becoming the first Big 10 team to make back-to-back appearances in Pasadena.  This time they would win, defeating UCLA.  They haven't been back since.

One of the advantages to having the hometown TV Guide is the chance to see a charming ad like this, as a local brewery wishes the native sons well.  Kind of poignant, in a way.  Ah, but then, isn't that part of what nostalgia is all about? ◙

And your New Year's resolution is?

Retro TV Friday

This round of Retro TV Friday is naturally a Dick Clark themed one since he was New Year's Eve from the time ABC dominated until his stroke in the past half-decade recently. But here are a few clips of him on the opposite side of the desk where I grew up watching him (and I've quoted his signature phrase). ◙

Opera Thursday

What better opera to look at for my final Opera Thursday of the year that Johann Strauss II's Die Fledermaus.

Now, Die Fledermaus ("The Bat") doesn't really have anything to do with the New Year - it's a comedy about mistaken identity, practical jokes, and huge misunderstandings, all against the backdrop of a masquerade ball. How then, you may ask, did it wind up becoming a New Year's tradition? In addition to the lightheartedness of the story, it's probably due to lyrics such as "Glücklich ist, wer vergisst, was doch nicht zu ändern ist..." ("Happy is he who forgets what can't be changed..."), as this site suggests. The masked ball is also evocative of the New Year's Eve party, which has helped make this operetta a New Year's favorite not only in Strauss' home of Vienna, but in opera houses throughout the world.

Frequently, the New Year's Eve performance will feature cameo appearances by big-name stars from the non-opera as well as the opera world (last year's Washington D.C. performance featured Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, striking a greater blow for bipartisanship than anything the president has done lately), and a genial, party atmosphere. For this video clip, we've got a 1994 performance by the Vienna State Opera, featuring Karita Mattila and Hermann Prey. Ulf Schirmer conducts the Vienna State Opera Orchestra.

Happy New Year, everyone! ◙

Bud Greenspan, R.I.P.

To cut to the chase: Bud Greenspan was the best film documentarian there was.  Period.  Better than the Burns brothers, Ken and Ric, who did so much to popularize the long form documentary.  Better than the father-and-son team of Ed and Steve Sabol, whose NFL Films played a major role in forming the modern conception of the National Football League.  Better than David L. Wolper, who made the television documentary so accessible in the 60s and 70s.  Better than Errol Morris, whose Thin Blue Line transcended the genre to be seen as a mainstream movie.  Better even than Michael Moore.

Perhaps the only documentarian in the same league with Greenspan was Leni Riefenstahl, and it's ironic that both of them came to their greatest fame through the Olympics, for it was Greenspan's epic 1976 television series The Olympiad that first brought him widespread fame.  There was just something about the Greenspan style; his companion and business partner, Nancy Beffa, described it well:

Bud was a storyteller first and foremost. He never lost his sense of wonder and he never wavered in the stories he wanted to tell, nor how he told them.  No schmalzy music, no fog machines, none of that. He wanted to show why athletes endured what they did and how they accomplished what so few people ever do.

And that's exactly it.  No mawkishness, no tinkling piano music - things that have undone many a fine documentary.  David Perry's sparse, precise, emotionless narration was the perfect compliment to Greenspan's stories.  With all due respect to voiceover giants such as John Facenda*, Perry (who, incidentally, was Greenspan's brother) never distracted from the importance of the words he spoke.  Ken Burns may have perfected the art of celebrity narrators speaking in the voices of his subjects, but Perry's anonymous omnipresence underscored, rather than overlayed, the powerful images on screen.

*Also known as The Voice of God.

Another thing about Greenspan's technique:: sound effects.  Many of them were dubbed in, of course (doubtful that there were sound movies of the 1904 Olympics), but the very artificality of them only heightened the drama.  The lonely sounds - a shoe digging into the gravel of the track, the heavy breathing of the long-distance runner, the echoless shot of the starter's pistol, the silence broken by the roar of the crowd - isolated Greenspan's film images in a way that made them stand out even more than as if they had been shot in 3-D.  For that single moment sports was not of this world, not of the mundane, but existed in a vacuum where the only things that mattered were the athlete and the finish line.  Much, one might imagine, as the athletes themselves might have experienced it.

If you listened to Greenspan's prose being spoken, or caught a glimpse of him on television, you might have thought him a serious, perhaps even humorless man.  Not so.  In his frequent appearances with Johnny Carson (Greenspan wearing his trademark turtleneck, glasses perched on top of his bald head*), he often brought along very funny sports blooper reels, on which he commented with a dry sense of humor.

*True story.  I saw Greenspan on Tonight once, his glasses in their customary place, and Carson cracked everyone up with a comment about how Greenspan must have been looking out of the top of his head, or something like that.  It was much funnier when Johnny said it, and would have been funnier now if I could remember it exactly.  But the memory of it is still funny to me.

He and his late wife Cappy were true partners until her death in 1982 (he named the production company after her, Cappy Productions).  He once said of her that "Everything I wrote, I used her as my model. I talked about courage and spirit and endurance and talent, and for all my scripts I used Cappy as an example. I told her that once. She said, 'Aw, go on.' I said, 'Listening to Beethoven and thinking about you is very inspiring.' "

The Olympics weren't Greenspan's only gig on the sporting scene.  For several years in the early 80s, back before the Heisman Trophy went all Hollywood (or all ESPN, at any rate), Greenspan produced the syndicated Heisman broadcast, with its centerpiece being three or four ten-minute vinettes on past Heisman winners.  Done with all the Greenspan trademarks, including Perry's narration, those profiles brought to life the dramatic stories of Ernie Davis, Johnny Rodgers, Nile Kinnick, John Huarte, and other winners - some household names, others mere footnotes in the fog of sports history.  In Greenspan's hands, they became titans: not overhyped superheroes, but quiet men pursuring a dream.  Unlike the show today, it was - dignified.

And that's a good word to use to describe Bud Greenspan's work.  He didn't romanticize sports, didn't gloss over its faults or pretend everything was a fairytale.  He returned to Berlin with Jesse Owens, told the story of Larry Doby (the first black American League player), covered the horror of the Munich Olympics.  He won seven Emmys, a Peabody, Lifetime Achievement awards from the Directors Guild and the Emmys, and was inducted into a bunch of halls of fame.  Not bad for a lifetime, but if you ask me, the real award was the work that Bud Greenspan did, and the true winners were those of us who had the chance to view them.

Bud Greenspan died on Christmas Day of Parkinson's, at the age of 84.  Through it all, he gave you the whole picture, straight up, no chaser.  And nobody did it better.  ◙

More Intolerable Acts: START and Net Neutrality

AAnother round of Intolerable Acts has struck.

It seems the Congress of Pelosi and Reid and liberals of the FCC have seen the moves by England in 1774 after the Boston Tea Party, and have passed another round of Intolerable Acts to impose their agenda that we rejected on the people.

Another treaty, this time favouring Россия, in the START treaty. It seems when your necessity is to pluck less than ten of the opposition, including the legislator we've called “Grahamnesty,” to surrender our weaponry while letting Россия run amok, we have surrendered the nation to them. Terrorists and dangerous nations such as nations with the word “People's Republic” in them (DPRK, PRC) will have the ability to have dangerous weapons to attack us, while our defence will be worthless. In effect, with this Intolerable Act, we have allowed the enemy to run roughshod over us with our Front Seven and Secondary being unable to make contact with any nation, while they can hit our guys. Now we have surrendered our sovereignty in lawmaking to the European Union by court orders (see Constitutional Right to Sodomy and coddling of teen criminals), now we are allowing other nations to dictate what we can do in defence (START).

Add this to “Net Neutrality” which will be used to outlaw Webcasts of radio programming that is opposition to the propaganda machine of this Administration, their goal is set. First we shut down the Armed Forces and replace it with the Department of Social Engineering, Special Rights Division. Now we weaken our defence against terrorists and rogue nations. This Administration reminds me of West Coast Basketball – no defence at all!

It does seem to be 1774. We've raised our hand to say no to these liberal activists, and they decide full speed ahead to impose their agenda to say we did not win at all since they will have made their victories as revenge. We have a King George III in Barack Obama and his triumvirate colleagues of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid imposing their Intolerable Acts on us. Kyrie eleison!

More:
http://blog.heritage.org/2010/12/22/morning-bell-merry-christmas-moscow/

http://blog.heritage.org/2010/12/20/do-we-still-believe-in-american-sovereignty/ ◙

Wish I'd Written That

Wonder if the horse I ride on stage in act two (of "Fanciulla del West") could pick me up on his way to the Met(ropolitan Opera House)? Probably the most reliable transport in this blizzard!"

-- Deborah Voigt, in discussion of the Boxing Day Blizzard of 2010. ◙

Opinion Digest: a look at the anger over the creation of the Department of Social Engineering, Special Rights Division (US Armed Forces, RIP)

An angry mob has descended on this nation, with the Congressional mandated demolition of the Armed Forces in favour of a new Department of Social Engineering, Special Rights Division.

Here are a few columns on the issue.

Daniel Blomberg: Religious Liberty problems with new military policy favouring special rights activists

Albert Moher: What's Really At Stake.

Pat Buchanan: The Marines: Sacrificed for San Francisco Values.

David Limbaugh: Understanding the Left's Intolerance for Intolerance. (aka forcing The New Tolerance)

The Washington Times: The Left's Legislative Rampage.
Robert Knight: Reckless Congress Makes Case for Recall.

Bill Connor: Biblical Code versus Open Sexual Deviancy. ◙

More Christmastide music

As is tradition on the blog, we hold our Christmastide celebration throughout the necessary days. And as someone who appreciates great hymns (and has a tendency to sing the first verse of this in Latin), I found this intriguing in Wien -- three different languages. The English is the third verse (the second verse is almost always forgotten in denominational hymnals) but in Charleston on Christmas Eve we always have all four verses (in English).



This Franck tune was found in my voice teacher's pocket during the runup to an informal recital at her home we had years ago, and she had me learn it. Again, this is from Wien. It's another song that's sung around Christmastide that, through the nine years of classical music ties I've had, makes me appreciate the wonderful songs we don't sing it seems now.



I'd love to do this baby in Latin (which I didn't then) but it's something I want to sing in Latin. Frederica von Staade and Kathleen Battle with this. Just don't put peas in the pasta! ◙

From all of us to all of you, a very Merry Christmas!

From all of us at Our Word - Mitchell, Judie, Bobby, Steve and Paul - our sincere wishes for a very Merry and Happy Christmas!

Image: American Homestead Winter, Currier and Ives ◙

Christmas reflections

After reading about Jessye Norman's rendition of "The Holy City," I wonder how after learning the song was written by Freemasons, and the doctrine of the Masonic, against the Last Judgement of Christians. Don't know if theologically it is apropos; too many of my friends would not accept such false doctrine.

It seems every year when we reach Christmas, the increasing hoofbeats of secularism have greatly increased. It becomes harder each year to find manger scene decorations, while decorations for winter celebrations continue to pilfer. As ESPN's Allen Bestwick wrote in regards to a Christmas memory, he was asked to cover the "Race of 1,000 Years" ACO-sanctioned sportscar event run in 2000 at Victoria Park in Adelaide, South Australia. The seasons flip in the Southern Hemisphere, and this year's temperature for Christmas will be a beautiful 86 degrees with a breezy 11 MPH wind for the summer this year. Mr. Bestwick noted the family went to Australia for the fun (and the summer temperatures) and probably spent a nice summer on the beach while preparing for his assignment for the 1,000km race which was never run again (the track was shortened by removing the Brabham Straight, and is used for V8 Supercars). Having a friend in Dee Why (New South Wales) , and another serving on missions in Zambia (100 degrees for Christmas) solidify my conviction that winter celebrations are flat-out wrong. It's all about the Christ Child and the Manger, and I find it tragic I cannot find a manger scene in a general store now. Why are we celebrating winter when you could play a winter song when it snows? This is about the Christ Child, so we have only one thing to celebrate -- his Advent.

Seems Fox broadcasters Jeff Hammond and Larry McReynolds, along with Eddie Gossage, the man who is giving IndyCar racing a return to the twin-features in 2011, have their Christmas priorities set straight.

Paul Marshall: Away in a Manger. (remembering Christians persecuted for their faith)
Jay Nordlinger: There They Go A-Caroling.  This article is a must-read because you will understand about "White Christmas". It starts with Marilyn Horne being in sunny Palm Springs, and that sets the stage for Bing Crosby's dream. Sadly, this song, along with all of the snowmen, reindeer, and other fat men in a red outfit, has ripped Christmas away from the proper moorings. When you've heard both Luciano Pavarotti's and Wayne Watson's renditions of "Gesu Bambino" (a song I've sung at an informal recital), it's clear which one you prefer.

Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion! ◙

Opera Wednesday

So today I'm walkikng past one of those noontime "Holiday Concerts" they have downtown with a local orchestra of young musicians, and I have to ask: why are they playing the overture to Orpheus in the Underworld?




(Yes, I know they might think of it as "Hurry, Hurry Hercules," but still...)


*****
Here's the great Jessye Norman singing the beautiful, underappreciated, "Holy City," which isn't played nearly often enough during the Christmas season.





*****
And what would Christmas be on this blog without a clip from Amahl and the Night Visitors? (Mitchell would never let me return.) This is from the Teresa Stratas version that NBC did in the late 70s. - "Have You Seen a Child." Menotti thought if he had a do-over he would probably make this shorter, as young audiences tend to squirm a bit. I think it's just fine the way it is.




Merry Christmas, everyone! ◙

Christmas greetings of 1962, part 3

Here's one last blast of advertising that we find in the "Community Magazine" from Albert Lea, MN for Christmas, 1962. (Click for parts one and two.)

I like the sentiment in this - "Let us thank you for your past patronage."  Remember that the customer is doing you a favor.  A lot of businesses don't remember that anymore.

Christmastide - now there's a word you don't hear very often.  Sounds vaguely liturgical, doesn't it?  Also serves as a reminder that Christmas is more than one day.  They could have been talking about the lead-up to Christmas - or they could mean the whole twelve days, leading up to Epiphany.

Remember when carolers used to come to the front door?  Maybe they still do - just not here.

Another ad with candles - I really wish we saw more like this.  Notice too how many advertisers wish us something along the lines of "health and happiness"?

Another image of the Virgin and Child.  I can guarantee you wouldn't see this today - again, at least not here.

"Best wishes of the season" - with an image like this, there isn't much doubt as to what season they're talking about.  Remarkable how many of these ads have a religious motif.

Another image of the Wise Men.

This looks a lot like the snowdrifts we're experiencing here in Minnesota!

Finally, Reddy Kilowatt wishes us all a Merry Christmas.  And, by the way, don't forget to use that electricity!

I don't know about you, but I enjoyed going through these ads immensely.  There was only one sour note in the issue (aside from the sense that this is a world lost to us forever), and that comes in what I suppose we'd call the "predictions" section of the magazine.  The column concludes with a prediction of "a year that lies before us clean and untouched.  May it bring joy and successto us and to you."  Indeed, the year was to bring the death of John XXIII, the continuing "work" of the Second Vatican Council, the overthrow of the president of South Vietnam and continuing U.S. involvement, the assassination of President Kennedy, the murder - live on national television - of his accused assassin, the death of C.S. Lewis - well, you get the picture.  Knowing how the year turns out adds an extra note of poignancy to the optimistic hopes for the year.  When, in 50 years, historians look back at 2011, I hope they will see better news. ◙

The Intolerable Acts

Taxation that was imposed on the Colonies in the 1760's and 1770's infuriated colonists, who protested, and by 1773, taxes on tea were the only ones remaining, with a monopoly imposed. The infuriated colonists launched a raid on the tea in Boston, leading to the famous Boston Tea Party of 1773. The resulting furore over the protests led to a British attack called the Coercive, or Intolerable Acts.

In the past two years of the Pelosi-Reid-Obama triumverate, we have seen a series of Intolerable Acts of the 21st Century, aimed at a modern mostly conservative protest organisation whose name was derived by CNBC's Rick Santelli on February 19, 2009, knowing of the history of the United States 235 years ago. The result was the birth of the modern Tea Party Movement, protesting against the Left's numerous policies of the past 45 years that has left this country in a lurch, and sending modern Americans to reliving the “spirit of 1773” with this protest.




In the spirit of 1773, it seems Congress has agreed to be the English and pass Intolerable Acts to stop their opponents. A no debate, no discussion, follow the Dear Leader Congress has continued with this action.

The list of Intolerable Acts of the Administration includes:

Bobby's Messiah adventures

It's Messiah week and I am joining along for the ride Monday night (for the sixth time) at Washington Street United Methodist Church's Sing-Along Messiah VIII, with Bonnie Lynch (soprano), Janet Hopkins (alto), Ryan Headley (tenor), Marc Rattray (bass) our four soloists. If there's a sing-along this week, come in guys and join in your local sing-along! We, as classical music aficionados, want you to join in your local production!

I decided to go Inside the Numbers for this one.

STAT SHEET

In the nine years since I began singing, and more recently participating in choral productions, I have been honoured to have participated in Die Jahreszeiten, Messiah, and Mass in C Major.

NOTE: Names in italics are singers who have been soloists in productions where I have sung. Notable musicians who have played at the gigs are mentioned and listed in italics. Except for 2008, soloists listed in order of soprano, alto, tenor, and bass. The 2008 version is listed differently because the bass and alto are husband and wife.

2005: Tina Milhorn Stallard, Helen Tintes-Schuermann, Walter Cuttino, Jacob Will
Concertmaster: Mary Lee Taylor
Cello: Colleen Marcou Bassoon: Stephanie Whitson (both U09)

2006: Whitney Vance, Ann Benson, David Bankston, Richard Conant
Violin 2: Jennifer Hill Viola: Maurice Hood Cello: Colleen Marcou Oboe: Benjamin Woodruff Bassoon: Stephanie Whitson (all U09)

2007: Serena Hill (J09), Brittnee Siemon, Mark Husey, Hal McIntosh
Oboe: Benjamin Woodruff (U09)

2008: Serena Hill (J09) (soprano), Mark Husey (tenor), and the husband and wife team of Daniel (bass) and Holly (alto) Cole
Violin 2: Jennifer Hill. Viola: Maurice Hood, Audrey Harris. Cello: Colleen Marcou. Oboe: Benjamin Woodruff. Bassoon: Stephanie Whitson (all U09)

2009: Whitney Vance, Elizabeth Woodard, Zach Marshall, Mark Hightower
Violin 2: Jennifer Hill. Viola: Audrey Harris. Cello: Colleen Marcou. Oboe: Benjamin Woodruff. Bassoon: Stephanie Whitson (all U09)

2010: Bonnie Lynch, Janet Hopkins (B10), Ryan Headley, Marc Rattray
Violin 2: Jennifer Hill. Viola: Maurice Hood, Audrey Harris. Cello: Colleen Marcou. Oboe: Benjamin Woodruff. Bassoon: Stephanie Whitson (all U09)

NOTES: J09: Die Jahreszeiten. U09: Union UMC Messiah. B10: Mass in C Major

And here is a video clip from 2009.  Enjoy! ◙

Christmas greetings of 1962, part 2

As we move into Christmas week, it seems like a good time to look at some more of the Christmas ads that appeared in the "Community Magazine" from Albert Lea, MN for Christmas, 1962. (See part one here.)

You often get "Merry," "Happy" or "Greetings" wished you, but "Joyous" is kind of nice, isn't it?  I hope De Soto Creamery had some joyous sales.

This is also a nice sentiment.  With all the PC police, it's harder to find that part about "Good will toward men" than it used to be.

Here's not only a very nice sentiment, but a very stylish one as well.  Look how they've worked the numbers 25 into the sleigh.  Look even more closely, and you can see December in there somewhere.  Makes you wonder if Al Hirchfeld worked on it.

And let's finish this series with this serene portrait of a small town in the stillness of a winter night.  Sadly, the hopes for a lasting era of "Peace on earth, goodwill to man" would pretty much be wiped out by the end of 1963.

There are still a few days until Christmas - I wouldn't be surprised if I could scare up a few more of these wonderful images before then.  ◙

Liberals' next move: sexual deviancy in the military

A friend from college serves in the United States Army, and he is being reassigned from Fort Knox (Kentucky) to Fort Benning (Georgia). The husband of an elementary school classmate serves in the Navy and is being reassigned to Hawaii. Yet we now hear of Congressman Reid trying to force down a repeal of a ban on homosexuality in the military that passed the House as a stand-alone. And this time the President is wanting a full passage of this.

Can you imagine the loss of troops as new policies would effectively strip troops of the Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, and the right to assemble by effectively saying they must subscribe to the idea that sexual deviancy is normal, and opposing it is an automatic dishonourable discharge, where a new "speech code" in the military will even prohibit soldiers from attending church because it promotes values in conflict with the new leftist mandates?

If this passes, we shall see soldiers exit the military as they will be ejected for violating code. Worse yet, those who stay will be forced to observe and accept by force the despicable conduct of these sexual deviants, and their conduct has long been one that has hurt the military. The military is not a social engineering facility to force us into the Left's ideas. We saw how the President seized political opponents of his auto agenda in order to force us into the tiny cars he wants us driving. They've imposed a new federal speech code on speech that is from the Bible that says sexual deviancy is wrong in Shepard-Byrd. The Left has used schools as a social engineering venue to punish men by banning men from sports via Title IX, and eventually banning men from school for the same reason. Now they are wanting to make the military the newest social engineering venue for the homosexual agenda.

We voted to throw these legislators out, and yet they are now ramming this down our throats as a final way of saying "this is our house, and we will not let you have it." At this rate, is the first word of our National Anthem "Soyuz," and the Hammer and Sickle replacing the Stars and Stripes?

More on this story from Sandy Rios. ◙

Retro TV Friday

From the TV Guide of December 5, 1964, an ad for the premiere showing of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.  It's changed networks since then, but nearly 50 years later it's still going strong. (Click on the image to enlarge.) ◙

Word association

It’s funny how the mind’s synapses work. A co-worker of mine was discussing how she was considering changing the name of her pet pygmy frog, Bob, to Jesús since she had gotten him as a Christmas gift last year.

Hearing that, I thought to myself that the name Noel might be an even better choice. That reminded me of the singer/actor Noel Harrison*, and all of a sudden I couldn’t get The Windmills of Your Mind out of my mind.

* Why didn’t I think of Noel Coward? Good question. Perhaps my mind also subconsciously realized I needed a good idea for a blog post.

At any rate, you might not remember Noel Harrison. He’s the son of the actor Rex Harrison, and was a co-star (with the luscious Stefanie Powers) of the short-lived Girl from U.N.C.L.E. series of the late 60s. He also sang, and his rendition of the Michel LeGrand/Marilyn and Alan Bergman song The Windmills of Your Mind won an Oscar in 1968 for Best Song, from the Steve McQueen/Faye Dunaway crime caper flick The Thomas Crown Affair.*

* Oddly enough, it was not Harrision but Jose Feliciano who sang the song at the Oscar show. Why? Again, I don’t know – I suppose some internet research might reveal the truth. I suspect I’ll discover the answer around the same time I figure out why I’m not writing about Noel Coward.

Now, if The Thomas Crown Affair sticks in your mind at all, it might be because of the remake a few years ago, which featured Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo in the McQueen/Dunaway roles. That movie featured The Windmills of Your Mind as well, in an absolutely hideous, wretched version by Sting, so bad that I’m not even going to link to it.* But then, there have been a lot of covers of The Windmills of Your Mind. As I’ve suggested, I didn’t care for Sting’s. I wasn’t thrilled with Feliciano’s either, although it was better. Dusty Springfield had a hit with hers. Matt Monro (who sang the title track to the Bond flick From Russia With Love) had a version, which I thought was a little cold.  It was fine technically, but there wasn't much feeling to it.

* Of whom Joe Queenan once wrote, “Sting, where is thy death?” It is true that Sting has had a few good songs over the years, mostly from when he was with The Police. The Windmills of Your Mind is not one of them.



No, for me the Harrison version has always been pretty much the definitive article, so to speak. It’s tight, not drawn out, and epitomizes the hypnotic nature of the lyrics, in a way most of the covers fail to do. But I have to admit that I was taken by Allison Moyet’s rendition, which I more or less stumbled upon.

Aside from the fact that the running time was nearly twice that of Harrison’s original, all you had to do was hear the word “Round” to tell that this was going to be quite different. As a matter of fact, I almost clicked it off right then and there – I had heard Sting’s version, after all. But I think by the time she came to “spiral,” my hand paused, and by the end of the first line I was hooked. Yes, it’s different, but unlike so many covers of classic songs, it’s also terrific. She does a particularly nifty job in interpolating a lyric that, in the original, has a distinct male-to-female reference. (Yes, I know someone else probably wrote that for her, but it’s still good.)



Anyway, don’t just listen to me – listen to the song. I still have Harrison’s at the top, but Moyet’s a close second. ◙

Opera Wednesday

Over the years I seem to have become something of an authority on the TV opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. Every once in a while, especially at this time of the year, I'll find myself in a discussion that runs something along the lines of "why don't they do a new version of this on TV?"

It's a good question, one that I've asked myself.  The original 1951 broadcast, which featured Chet Allen's memorable turn as Amahl, as well as the 1952 broadcast with Bill McIver, make occasional appearances on the DVD trading circuit, but have never been commercially released.  The only version to make it to DVD commercially is McIver's final apperance as Amahl in 1955, which exists in a handsome release by VAI.  NBC's annual broadcasts of Amahl continued through 1966, but the 1963 showing was the last original staging (videotaped, it was run through 1966.  Whatever happened to that version?  Who knows.)

But those aren't the only versions of Amahl to make it to television.  NBC remade Amahl in 1978 with Teresa Stratas, but that one never made it past VHS.  The BBC mounted two versions of Amahl, in 1955 and 1959.  They also prepared a version for broadcast in 2002, but it was never broadcast.  Why?  Read all about it here.  The short version?  "The screen rights to Menotti's best-known work, which is often performed in schools, are held by an American company, Schirma, which plans to make its own film of the opera and will not sanction another version."


And that, apparently, is where the issue stands to this day.  Barring an unexpected change of heart - the "miracle" referred to in the Guardian's article - it's unlikely we'll see a new version any time soon.  And that's a pity.  Amahl is one of the truly unique moments in television history, but that alone can be transmitted through the 1955 video.  No, Amahl is a wonderful, charming story of a child's pure love, and the miracle that love produces.  Menotti's music and libretto are clever and intriguing - if you think you don't like modern opera, you should at least listen to a recording of it.  (The original cast recording is readily available on CD.)  Amahl can easily be enjoyed as a historical artifact; television viewers deserve to see it as a worthy hour of broadcasting, one that never forgets the reason for the season. ◙

Random thoughts

As most of you probably know, "random thoughts" is usually another way of saying, "I don't have enough material for a good story, so I'm going to string together a bunch of unrelated ideas." Fair enough, but I'm going to ask you to bear with me anyway, for some interesting odds and ends.

First off is this fascinating series from Hell's Bible (That's The New York Times, in case you were wondering), on a piece of history I really didn't know much about: the December 16, 1960 plane crash over New York City that killed 134 people - at the time, the deadliest plane crash in American history, and the first to involve a passenger jet aircraft.  The death toll might seem modest compared to, for example, the World Trade Center bombing, but as this picture suggests, the horror on the streets was every bit as real.  I happened on this while following a link to another story altogether, and it was an hour before I could stop reading.  The overview is here, but be sure to follow the link to this affecting story about Barbara Lewnes, the nurse who stayed the night with Stephen Baltz, the young boy who for an all-too-short time was the only survivor of the crash.

Next up is this piece from our loyal reader Suzanne, who thought it was something we might want to put on the blog.  Gross?  Disgusting?  Probably.  Free speech?  Without a doubt.  An accurate description of politicians?  Can't say about the specific case, but in general,...

We've talked before about Bernie Ecclestone, the major domo of F1.  (I probably ought to trademark that description.)  A few weeks ago the 80-year old Ecclestone was mugged and roughed up a bit, but Bernie being Bernie, he's turning it to his advantage.

So what do you know? ◙

Christmas greetings of 1962, part 1

One of the added benefits of combing antique stores in search of TV Guides is that in the meantime you can run into the most fascinating things.

Take this magazine: it's called "The Community Magazine," and it's from Albert Lea, a town in southern Minnesota.  "The Community Magazine" is one of those free magazines you get in supermarkets, and it's about what you'd expect: television listings for the month, a few local columnists and notes, and advertising.  Mostly advertising.  Which, in this case, is a real treasure trove for the cultural archaeologist.

This is the January 1963 issue, which means that it would have come out sometime in December 1962.  As such, it's the last chance for advertisers to wish their customers the greetings of the season.  And herein lies the tale.  I picked this up a couple of years ago, and since then I've been dying to scan in these images.  Taken collectively, it presents a remarkable slice of life from the early 60s.  It was a time when religion was an accepted - no, a necessary - part of the public square, and when the PC police hadn't ridden Christmas out of town in the name of "diversity."  (Insert gagging noices here.)  Granted, we're talking about what might be referred to as "Small-Town America," but no matter how you look at it, it's a real document from a real time, one that sadly seems far away today.  (Click on the images to see larger versions.)

Here is the cover of "the Community Magazine," in festive green and red, with a Dickensian-styled family gathered around the table for Christmas dinner.

This ad is mind-boggling for a couple of reasons.  First, it's brought to you by "your servants in government" - that sounds kind of quaint, doesn't it?  What's even more stunning is that it not only specifically wishes people "Christmas Joy," but it features the Three Wise Men.  Can you imaging a government agency using this kind of symbolism today?



Religious symbolism is a running theme throughout these ads.  I'd go to them for a loan.  (Do you think it was an accident that a financial institution would go for images of gold, frankincense and myrrh?)

Here's another example.  Sorenson Lumber is doing more than advertising their business; they're telling you something about the kind of people that run the company.  I don't know anything this company (a quick Google search didn't tell me much), but I wouldn't be surprised to find out it was a family business.

This ad is from the local Skelly gas station.  Werner Wittmer doesn't leave you in any doubt as to what they think Christmas is all about.

Not every ad in this issue has an explicitly religious motif, but it's hard to look at a candle without thinking of "The Light of the World."  By the way, we don't see candles in Christmas decorating like we used to - when you find them nowadays, it's mostly as part of retro-themed advertising.

Stay turned throughout the rest of the week as we continue leafing through the pages of "The Community News," and see how America used to celebrate Christmas. ◙