This Day in History

 Nov 15, 1806:
Zebulon Pike spots an imposing mountain

Approaching the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains during his second exploratory expedition, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike spots a distant mountain peak that looks "like a small blue cloud." The mountain was later named Pike's Peak in his honor.

Pike's explorations of the newly acquired Louisiana Territory of the United States began before the nation's first western explorers, Lewis and Clark, had returned from their own expedition up the Missouri River. Pike was more of a professional military man than either Lewis or Clark, and he was a smart man who had taught himself Spanish, French, mathematics, and elementary science. When the governor of Louisiana Territory requested a military expedition to explore the headwaters of the Mississippi, General James Wilkinson picked Pike to lead it.

Although Pike's first western expedition was only moderately successful, Wilkinson picked him to lead a second mission in July 1806 to explore the headwaters of the Red and Arkansas Rivers. This route took Pike across present-day Kansas and into the high plains region that would later become the state of Colorado. When Pike first saw the peak that would later bear his name, he grossly underestimated its height and its distance, never having seen mountains the size of the Rockies. He told his men they should be able to walk to the peak, climb it, and return before dinner. Pike and his men struggled through snow and sub-zero temperatures before finally taking shelter in a cave for the night, without even having reached the base of the towering mountain. Pike later pronounced the peak impossible to scale.

The remainder of Pike's expedition was equally trying. After attempting for several months to locate the Red River, Pike and his men became hopelessly lost. A troop of Spanish soldiers saved the mission when they arrested Pike and his men. The soldiers escorted them to Santa Fe, thus providing Pike with an invaluable tour of that strategically important region, courtesy of the Spanish military.

After returning to the United States, Pike wrote a poorly organized account of his expedition that won him some fame, but little money. Still, in recognition of his bravery and leadership during the western expeditions, the army appointed him a brigadier general during the War of 1812. He was killed in an explosion during the April 1813 assault on Toronto.

This Day in History

 Nov 14, 1882:
Franklin Leslie kills Billy "The Kid" Claiborne



On this day, the gunslinger Franklin "Buckskin" Leslie shoots the Billy "The Kid" Claiborne dead in the streets of Tombstone, Arizona.

The town of Tombstone is best known today as the site of the infamous shootout at the O.K. Corral. In the 1880s, however, Tombstone was home to many gunmen who never achieved the enduring fame of Wyatt Earp or Doc Holliday. Franklin "Buckskin" Leslie was one of the most notorious of these largely forgotten outlaws.

There are few surviving details about Leslie's early life. At different times, he claimed to have been born in both Texas and Kentucky, to have studied medicine in Europe, and to have been an army scout in the war against the Apache Indians. No evidence has ever emerged to support or conclusively deny these claims. The first historical evidence of Leslie's life emerges in 1877, when he became a scout in Arizona. A few years later, Leslie was attracted to the moneymaking opportunities of the booming mining town of Tombstone, where he opened the Cosmopolitan Hotel in 1880. That same year he killed a man named Mike Killeen during a quarrel over Killeen's wife, and he married the woman shortly thereafter.

Leslie's reputation as a cold-blooded killer brought him trouble after his drinking companion and fellow gunman John Ringo was found dead in July 1882. Some Tombstone citizens, including a young friend of Ringo's named Billy "The Kid" Claiborne, were convinced that Leslie had murdered Ringo, though they could not prove it. Probably seeking vengeance and the notoriety that would come from shooting a famous gunslinger, Claiborne unwisely decided to publicly challenge Leslie, who shot him dead.

The remainder of Leslie's life was equally violent and senseless. After divorcing Killeen in 1887, he took up with a Tombstone prostitute, whom he murdered several years later during a drunken rage. Even by the loose standards of frontier law in Tombstone, the murder of an unarmed woman was unacceptable, and Leslie served nearly 10 years in prison before he was paroled in 1896. After his release, he married again and worked a variety of odd jobs around the West. He reportedly made a small fortune in the gold fields of the Klondike region before he disappeared forever from the historical record.

History and Production of Cuckoo clocks

The first noted Black Forest cuckoo clock was designed and created by Franz Anton Ketterer in a small village named Schonwald, Germany. This signaled what the world now recognizes as an industry filled with quality cuckoo clocks that are hand carved with the most beautiful detailing in the world. Since the early 18th century, the German Black Forest has been famed for the creation of the world's most beautiful and unique cuckoo clocks. Although there are several producers of cuckoo clocks in the world, none quite compare to the quality and beautiful designs of those which are made in the Black Forest.

The cuckoo clock industry began its climb into popularity during the 18th century. The earlier versions of the clocks had only 12 hour movements and the movements were made primarily from wood. Even the moving parts were made of wood. When the cuckoo clock popularity from the Black Forest increased, clockmakers began replacing several of the wooden movement pieces with metal and brass. This act greatly increased their durability and ensured that they would last longer, which ultimately led to their increase in popularity throughout the world.   During the end of the 18th century and the 19th century, there were new tools and crafts discovered that helped the clockmakers to significantly increase their production times. Although new and more effective methods were implemented, the art of handcrafting remained the same, as it does today. The number of clocks that one woodcarver could create was increased by more than six times over the next 100 years or so. By this time, German Black Forest clocks had grown significantly in popularity. The most popular of this time was the Shield clock. The cuckoo clock's popularity was still yet to come. About fifty percent of all Black Forest clock creation during the 18th and 19th centuries was the shield clocks. These beautiful and elegant clocks are still very popular today. There were more than 600000 clocks per year coming out of the Black Forest during this time. The clockmakers in this region had earned themselves quite a reputation for creating beautiful and high quality clocks. The customer base for Black Forest clocks had now become worldwide. However, logistical problems soon caused a slow down in the production of the clocks. Clockmakers during that time were being forced to work very long hours just to ensure that all their customers were receiving their orders on time. There were simply not enough hours in the day to ensure that all orders could be filled. These challenges eventually proved too difficult for single clockmakers to overcome. Clockmakers soon began working with wholesale companies in order to fulfill their orders. They could create their clocks and the wholesale companies helped them with the shipping and distribution. This led to all customers receiving their Black Forest creations in timely manner, which only proved to make the German Black Forest cuckoo clocks even more popular throughout the next few years. In 1870, the production and distribution of German Black forest cuckoo clocks reached the highest numbers yet. There were more than one millions clocks produced in the Black Forest region during that time. In 1905 that number hit nearly six million. Half of all clocks produced in the world came from the Black Forest area. Since then the Black Forest has produced a record number of clocks and distributed them to customers worldwide every year. Today the production and distribution of German Black Forest clocks lives on. Each year millions of clocks are made and millions of worldwide customers collect them. Although there are several clock styles that come from the Black Forest region, the cuckoo clock is still the most popular with collectors. These beautiful and whimsical clocks are one of the most popularly exported products in Germany. The Railway House Clock is a very popular version of the Black Forest cuckoo clock. The beautiful and elegant house design represents the cuckoo clock styles that are most seen today. The house shaped form incorporates decorative elements that are synonymous with scenes from every day life. The earlier versions of this design implemented a wooden clock face with hands and numbers that were white. It also featured a fir cone shaped weight. Today's version features vine leaves and beautifully handcrafted wooden figurines in the shapes of animals and plants, as well as hunters, dancing couples in traditional German attire who dance to the music, a mill wheel that turns on every hour and a farmer who chops wood. The cuckoo is still very much a part of the cuckoo clocks today. He moves his wings and beak and rocks in a back and forth motion when delivering his famed call.  Although the Black Forest cuckoo clock creators have seen their fair share of troubles and tribulations, they have emerged as some of the most talented artists in the world today. The beautiful and unique German cuckoo clocks that hail from the Black Forest region are among the most highly appreciated and popular pieces throughout the world. Whether it is the cuckoo clock or any other beautiful Black Forest creation, customers and collectors from all points of the world can appreciate the fine quality and beautiful, unique pieces that come from this scenic region in Germany. One has to only step foot on the German Clock Trail or visit one of the many museums that are dedicated to the historical methods of clock making to see that the culture and tradition of those earlier years are still alive in the German Black Forest.

By the way: There are quite a few different spellings for cuckoo clocks. Relatively often one finds the spellings cookoo clocks, coocoo clocks or even coo coo clocks (or singular cookoo clock, coocoo clock, coo coo clock.

This Day in History

Nov 11, 1918:

World War I Ends

At the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, the Great War ends. At 5 a.m. that morning, Germany, bereft of manpower and supplies and faced with imminent invasion, signed an armistice agreement with the Allies in a railroad car outside Compiégne, France. The First World War left nine million soldiers dead and 21 million wounded, with Germany, Russia, Austria-Hungary, France, and Great Britain each losing nearly a million or more lives. In addition, at least five million civilians died from disease, starvation, or exposure.
On June 28, 1914, in an event that is widely regarded as sparking the outbreak of World War I, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire, was shot to death with his wife by Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Ferdinand had been inspecting his uncle's imperial armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, despite the threat of Serbian nationalists who wanted these Austro-Hungarian possessions to join newly independent Serbia. Austria-Hungary blamed the Serbian government for the attack and hoped to use the incident as justification for settling the problem of Slavic nationalism once and for all. However, as Russia supported Serbia, an Austro-Hungarian declaration of war was delayed until its leaders received assurances from German leader Kaiser Wilhelm II that Germany would support their cause in the event of a Russian intervention.
On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, and the tenuous peace between Europe's great powers collapsed. On July 29, Austro-Hungarian forces began to shell the Serbian capital, Belgrade, and Russia, Serbia's ally, ordered a troop mobilization against Austria-Hungary. France, allied with Russia, began to mobilize on August 1. France and Germany declared war against each other on August 3. After crossing through neutral Luxembourg, the German army invaded Belgium on the night of August 3-4, prompting Great Britain, Belgium's ally, to declare war against Germany.
For the most part, the people of Europe greeted the outbreak of war with jubilation. Most patriotically assumed that their country would be victorious within months. Of the initial belligerents, Germany was most prepared for the outbreak of hostilities, and its military leaders had formatted a sophisticated military strategy known as the "Schlieffen Plan," which envisioned the conquest of France through a great arcing offensive through Belgium and into northern France. Russia, slow to mobilize, was to be kept occupied by Austro-Hungarian forces while Germany attacked France.
The Schlieffen Plan was nearly successful, but in early September the French rallied and halted the German advance at the bloody Battle of the Marne near Paris. By the end of 1914, well over a million soldiers of various nationalities had been killed on the battlefields of Europe, and neither for the Allies nor the Central Powers was a final victory in sight. On the western front—the battle line that stretched across northern France and Belgium—the combatants settled down in the trenches for a terrible war of attrition.
In 1915, the Allies attempted to break the stalemate with an amphibious invasion of Turkey, which had joined the Central Powers in October 1914, but after heavy bloodshed the Allies were forced to retreat in early 1916. The year 1916 saw great offensives by Germany and Britain along the western front, but neither side accomplished a decisive victory. In the east, Germany was more successful, and the disorganized Russian army suffered terrible losses, spurring the outbreak of the Russian Revolution in 1917. By the end of 1917, the Bolsheviks had seized power in Russia and immediately set about negotiating peace with Germany. In 1918, the infusion of American troops and resources into the western front finally tipped the scale in the Allies' favor. Germany signed an armistice agreement with the Allies on November 11, 1918.
World War I was known as the "war to end all wars" because of the great slaughter and destruction it caused. Unfortunately, the peace treaty that officially ended the conflict—the Treaty of Versailles of 1919—forced punitive terms on Germany that destabilized Europe and laid the groundwork for World War II.

 

 

Madcow Movie Review -SKYFALL

After the pathetic Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall is the worthy follow-up that Casino Royale (2006) deserved. While the previous film was saddled with what appeared to be an unfinished screenplay and a less-than-qualified director, the new one has stepped up its game with a solid script, first-class director (Oscar-winner Sam Mendes) an all-time great cinematographer, Roger Deakins, and some set design and art direction that would make all of this year's literary adaptations dry up and blow away.

As with some of the more recent Bond films, the opening teaser -- co-starring Naomie Harris -- actually ties into the story, and it ends with a shock, before going into Adele's much-celebrated title song. From there, the plot has to do with a stolen hard drive containing the names of all the undercover MI6 agents implanted in terrorist cells around the world. James Bond (Daniel Craig) finds a suspect, and collects a gambling chip that leads him to a fancy casino (of course!). There he drinks his requisite martini (and not the Heinekin an early report led us to believe), and chats with a beautiful girl (Bérénice Marlohe). She has ties to the bad guy, Silva (Javier Bardem). After a brawl with some bodyguards, Bond is off to save the day. Unfortunately, Silva is one of his most challenging foes.

In addition, Ralph Fiennes joins the cast as a new bureaucrat in the MI6 office, and Ben Whishaw is the new "Q," complete with a series of "young vs. old" jokes. Albert Finney also stars, though his role comes in later in the story and is best left undisclosed.

For this entry, director Mendes tends to slow things down, allows the mix to thicken. Rather than faster and louder chase/fight scenes, he now allows them to be snappy and clever. One fight scene takes place in an astonishing setting: an upper floor of a Shanghai high-rise, with glass walls everywhere, multi-colored city lights reflected in every one of them. Mendes shoots a quick brawl in one shot, with the players in silhouette, culminating in a breaking window.

Another fight takes place in a casino/nightclub; Bond and his assailant fall into a decorative pit filled with giant Gila Monsters. The fight is over rather shortly.

Even the Bond girls in this one don't hang around for long. They serve their purpose, which is sometimes rather dark, and then they move on. This Bond is too brooding and self-centered to get too cuddly with any one woman. Indeed, a couple of well-placed lines of dialogue reveal more about Bond's character than in any other previous movie. He now seems sadder than ever before, trapped and damaged, rather than just cool and aloof.

To be sure, the movie gets a bit ridiculous during its final showdown, but that's to be expected. Mendes doesn't mess too much with the formula, overall, and it goes to show that he's probably better with unpretentious material than he is trying to get important on us (see Revolutionary Road). Skyfall happens to arrive very near the 50th anniversary of Dr. No (1962), the very first James Bond movie, and it suggests an exciting, mature new direction for the series. These movies don't have to be trashy and cheap. They can be exciting and exotic, to be sure. But now they're also relevant.

On This Day in History

 Nov 9, 1938:
Nazis launch Kristallnacht



On this day in 1938, in an event that would foreshadow the Holocaust, German Nazis launch a campaign of terror against Jewish people and their homes and businesses in Germany and Austria. The violence, which continued through November 10 and was later dubbed "Kristallnacht," or "Night of Broken Glass," after the countless smashed windows of Jewish-owned establishments, left approximately 100 Jews dead, 7,500 Jewish businesses damaged and hundreds of synagogues, homes, schools and graveyards vandalized. An estimated 30,000 Jewish men were arrested, many of whom were then sent to concentration camps for several months; they were released when they promised to leave Germany. Kristallnacht represented a dramatic escalation of the campaign started by Adolf Hitler in 1933 when he became chancellor to purge Germany of its Jewish population.

The Nazis used the murder of a low-level German diplomat in Paris by a 17-year-old Polish Jew as an excuse to carry out the Kristallnacht attacks. On November 7, 1938, Ernst vom Rath was shot outside the German embassy by Herschel Grynszpan, who wanted revenge for his parents' sudden deportation from Germany to Poland, along with tens of thousands of other Polish Jews. Following vom Rath's death, Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels ordered German storm troopers to carry out violent riots disguised as "spontaneous demonstrations" against Jewish citizens. Local police and fire departments were told not to interfere. In the face of all the devastation, some Jews, including entire families, committed suicide.

In the aftermath of Kristallnacht, the Nazis blamed the Jews and fined them 1 billion marks (or $400 million in 1938 dollars) for vom Rath's death. As repayment, the government seized Jewish property and kept insurance money owed to Jewish people. In its quest to create a master Aryan race, the Nazi government enacted further discriminatory policies that essentially excluded Jews from all aspects of public life.

Over 100,000 Jews fled Germany for other countries after Kristallnacht. The international community was outraged by the violent events of November 9 and 10. Some countries broke off diplomatic relations in protest, but the Nazis suffered no serious consequences, leading them to believe they could get away with the mass murder that was the Holocaust, in which an estimated 6 million European Jews died.

Madcow Book Review

One Last Strike: Fifty Years in Baseball, Ten and a Half Games Back, and One Final Championship Season
Tony La Russa with Rick Hummel

Tony La Russa is a baseball lifer. He began his career in the minors; had an unproductive stint as a major leaguer, batting .199 over six seasons as a utility infielder; and made a name for himself as one of the best managers in the game. He won six pennants and three World Series over a 33-year span for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox and, most recently, St. Louis Cardinals. He ranks third in wins behind Hall of Fame managers Connie Mack and John McGraw, and trails only Mack in games at the helm with 5,097. There is no doubt that La Russa will earn his own plaque in Cooperstown when he becomes eligible.

La Russa decided during the 2011 campaign that it would be his last as a field leader. As with many of his generation, the demands of the game, both in terms of production and handling the younger and more expensive players, started to take their toll on the enjoyment of the profession for the 67-year-old. And even though he couldn’t have predicted it at the time, what better way to go out than on top? La Russa directed the Cardinals to a thrilling pennant race, as the subtitle indicates, and defeated the Texas Rangers for the World Championship.

Aided by Rick Hummel, an award-winning journalist who spent four decades with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, La Russa lets fans into the secret world of managing, with its acid-churning decisions, thought processes, and personnel (and personal) issues. They guide readers over the last few months of the season --- with mere passing references to La Russa’s years as a player and manager of the A’s and White Sox --- as the Cardinals clawed their way back from a deep deficit and unexpectedly beat what was considered a superior team in the Series.

Cards fans who have an intimate knowledge of the players will no doubt consider ONE LAST STRIKE an essential part of their baseball library, as will those who are interested in a manager’s mental manipulations, which have to take into consideration who’s hot and who’s not, both on your team and your opponent’s. Then there are the work-arounds when it comes to who’s injured physically or who’s having a tough time mentally (La Russa’s long-time coach and friend Dave Duncan was going through family health issues), which the authors use to show that these are human beings and not athletic robots.

La Russa is all business. You won’t find any locker room gossip or even derogatory remarks about his charges, although you know there has to have been some disagreements along the way. Just about everyone in his eyes deserves the benefit of the doubt, leading to ho-hum descriptions that Player A really knows how to play the game of baseball or Player B is a true major leaguer. That might be a disappointment to those who really want the dirt (La Russa even glosses over the scourge of performance-enhancing drugs).

Another potential problem is that La Russa is a craftsperson, and as such loves to talk about his work as if he was in the presence of other craftspeople. A long-used “baseballism” is that the worst players make the best managers because they spend so much time on the bench that they can become adept students of the game. Some of the narrative borders on jargon (an appendix includes photos of various paperwork that would give the code-breakers of World War II fits). Of course, this is completely comprehensible to La Russa’s peers and uber-fans, but a mystery and perhaps a bit off-putting to the casual reader.