A Brief History On October 31, 1941, the United States Navy destroyer, USS Reuben James was sunk by a German U-boat with torpedoes, the first US Navy ship sunk in the European Theater of Operations during World War II, and over a month before the US was even in the war. Today we will tell you a little about the namesake of the fateful ship, and about 10 ships well known for having songs about them. (Apologies to “The Ballad of Gilligan’s Island” and the SS Minnow!) Digging Deeper 1. USS Reuben James. The ship also known as DD-245 was assigned…
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A Brief History On October 30, 1974, the unlikely venue of Kinshasa, Zaire (Zaire is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) was the scene of one of the most memorable fights of all time. Muhammad Ali squared off against Big George Foreman in a fight billed as “The Rumble in the Jungle.” Today we honor those fighters brave enough to face the best and give as well as take with the hardest punchers in the world. Digging Deeper 1. Ali-Foreman, October 30, 1974. Known as “The Rumble in the Jungle,” the match pitted 25 year old reigning Heavyweight Champion “Big…
A Brief History The Jungle is a 1906 novel written by the American journalist and novelist Upton Sinclair (1878–1968). Sinclair wrote the novel to portray the harsh conditions and exploited lives of immigrants in the United States in Chicago and similar industrialized cities. Perhaps his main goal in exposing the meat industry and working conditions was to advance Socialism in the United States; however, most readers were more concerned with his exposure of health violations and unsanitary practices in the American meatpacking industry during the early 20th century, greatly contributing to a public outcry which led to reforms including the Meat Inspection Act. Sinclair famously said of the public…
A Brief History On October 28, 1886, President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World), that great beacon of freedom welcoming immigrants into New York Harbor, for many, the gateway to a better life in the United States. Today we list 10 statues that we think are the most famous, most notable, and most significant. What artworks would you add to this list? (Note: The order listed has no significance, and we only considered statues that still exist.) Digging Deeper 1. The Statue of Liberty, New York City. A gift to the people of the United States…
A Brief History On October 27, 2017, Paramount Pictures releases Suburbicon, a noir-ish “dramadey” written by the Coen Brothers and directed by George Clooney. With the star power of Matt Damon and Julianne Moore, the film is sure to make a major splash on the movie scene. We watched a pre-screening event on October 23, 2017 and will share our thoughts on the film. Digging Deeper The Coen Brothers have brought us a string of somewhat odd, but highly successful films, such as Fargo, The Big Lebowski (one of our favorites), No Country for Old Men, and True Grit (the…