A Brief History On September 1, 1952, The Old Man and the Sea, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Ernest Hemmingway novel, was first published. Many great novels have centered on ships and men at sea. In the Marine Corps we used to say, “The difference between a fairy tale and a sea story is the fairy tale starts ′Once upon a time,′ while the sea story starts ′This is no sh*t!′ ” Here 10 great sea stories involving the tales of sailors and seamen and their ships are listed. Digging Deeper 10. The Caine Mutiny, Herman Wouk, 1951. This Pulitzer Prize-winning fictional story of…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On September 1, 1715, King Louis XIV of France died after having ruled for 72 years, the longest reign of a king or queen of any major European country. Many Frenchmen were born and died during his time on the throne and never knew any other monarch. Here 10 of the longest-reigning leaders of countries or other institutions are listed, in no particular order. Digging Deeper 10. Howard Stern, “King of All Media,” 1986-Present. Howard became the soi-disant (self-proclaimed) “King of all Media” in response to Michael Jackson’s claim to be the “King of Pop.” Stern went national in 1986 after having been fired from…
A Brief History On August 30, 1918, Fanny Kaplan fired shots at Vladimir I. Lenin, leader of the Russian Revolution and founder of the Soviet Union, wounding him. Had Lenin died at this time and not six years later, history might well have been different. The fairer sex has sometimes turned to violence throughout history, either in domestic situations, for political reasons, in war or for idealistic purposes. Here 10 such murderous women are listed, in no particular order. Digging Deeper 10. Fanny Kaplan, Assassin. Her real name was Feiga Roytblat, and she was Jewish socialist revolutionary in Russia. Already in…
A Brief History On August 30, 1813, a force of about 1,000 warriors of a faction of the Creek Nation Native Americans known as the “Red Sticks” attacked Fort Mims in Alabama, killing almost all its defenders and many civilians as well. What later became known as the Fort Mims Massacre was the worst slaughter of white settlers by Native Americans in the South and probably the second worst overall. (Only the 1791 Fort Recovery Massacre in Ohio known as St. Clair’s Defeat may have been worse.) Digging Deeper As explained above, the Red Sticks were a faction of the Creek. Many Creek had assimilated with the white…
A Brief History On August 29, 1756, the Prussian army of Frederick the Great attacked Saxony, starting the Seven Years’ War. “Fred” was just one of many famous men who had a small wiener… wiener dog that is, also known as a dachshund! We have already listed 10 women who had wieners. Here we list 10 men who were not intimidated by the (surely false) adage that people resemble their pets (I, too, have a miniature wiener… DOG!). Digging Deeper 10. Andy Warhol, Strange Artist. This man could paint a can of soup and make it look good. Obviously a man…