My 15 Minutes of Blog Fame

It’s much sweeter when you don’t see it coming.

A few days ago, while checking on my blog stats, I noticed an incoming referral link I’d not seen before. It was from BookFinder, the largest book meta-search site in the world, one I’d used countless times since it was created ten years ago as a class project by a nineteen year-old student at Cal. I have a link to it in my blogroll.

It seems that Anirvan Chatterjee (the afore-mentioned site founder) had happened across one of my posts while searching for something he actually wanted to find, and he was kind enough to write a brief post in his on-line journal about it and one other post of mine*. He also added three links to my site, one each for the two posts, and one for my “about Craig Hodgkins” page. The journal is on the main page, right beside the site’s search engine information fields, so it’s quite prominent.

Over the next hour or so, other incoming referral links appeared. It seems a kind soul at the Library and Information Services News site spotted the BookFinder journal and added a link to my story. In short order, a prolific blogger in the UK (normblog) linked to (and quoted from) it, and someone at the Amazon Seller Community began a thread about it. Several other folks linked through from Bloglines, del.icio.us and Google Reader.

All this because of a post I wrote more than 4 months ago. Go figure.

Speaking of figures, by the end of the day, visits to my blog had tripled (over my usual average) to more than 600, and Day 2 remained strong. I know visits and page clicks will be back to “normal” levels within a couple of days, but it sure has been fun!

- craig hodgkins

*The two posts were “Books: Frank Fenton and “A Place in the Sun” and “How I Finally Satisfied My Wife with a Lavender Blue Strawberry Choo-Choo Train.”

Exclusive Interview with iCarly’s Jennette McCurdy

The school paper my oldest daughter writes for just ran an interview she conducted with her friend Jennette McCurdy. She did such a good job that I chose her to be Get it Got it Good’s first guest blogger. Here’s the interview, exactly as it ran in The Mariners Christian School Junior High Tide, with absolutely no editorial assistance from Dad (which is probably a good thing).

NOTE (1/17): I’ve received some questions on this, so I thought I’d clarify. Jennette and Emily don’t go to the same school. They became friends a few years ago through ice skating (they’re on the same synchronized team and take lessons together). This interview was for Emily’s school paper.

Jennette McCurdy (interviewee) and Emily Hodgkins (interviewer). The lack of other people in the photo shows just how exclusive this interview was.

Star of New Hit TV Show iCarly Chats with the High Tide

by: Emily Hodgkins

Jennette McCurdy, also known as “Sam” from the new show iCarly in Nick, took time out of her day of shooting to talk to the High Tide about what it’s like to be an actress on a television show.

McCurdy, 15, has been acting since she was about eight. She has starred and guest-starred in a multitude of TV shows and movies, from CSI and Will and Grace to Zoey 101 and Malcolm in the Middle. iCarly is her first permanent television job, and she has enjoyed working with the different actors and actresses. She says her favorite part of acting is “making people laugh. I have also enjoyed working with Miranda Cosgrove (Carly), Nathan Kress (Freddie) and Jerry Trainor (Spencer).”

When the High Tide asked her what her favorite episode was, she responded, “Definetely, iDream of Dance,” the episode where Jennette got to dance in a kilt to bagpipe music. The rest of the interview went as follows:

HT: What was the funniest moment you’ve had on the show?

JM: Actually, there have been quite a few so far. There was an episode where Miranda, Nathan and I were supposed to pull down Jerry’s pants. We were doing a run-through and were going to mime it. But we actually pulled a little too hard and his pants and underwear started to come down. Nobody saw anything, but he was like, “Cover your eyes, children, you’ll be scarred for life!”

HT: What do you do in your free time?

JM: I really like to figure skate, hockey skate, write, cook, and hang out with friends.

HT: What did you do for the premiere of iCarly?

JM: I went over to a friend’s house and watched the episodes on their TV. We played board games, ate pizza, laughed a lot, and, of course, watched the Nick countdown.

HT: Who has been your funniest fan?

JM: Once, when I was in the restroom at Universal Studios, a boy — yes, he was in the girls’ bathroom…no, I don’t know why — and he came up and was like, “Are you the guy from iCarly?” And I said, “I’m not a guy, but, uh, yeah.”

HT: What is it like to see yourself on television?

JM: It’s really wierd. Whenever I see myself in the media anywhere, like on a poster or a magazine, it kind of freaks me out!

Jennette’s website, jennettemccurdy.com, and the show’s website, icarly.com, both have more pictures, videos, and articles to learn more about either Jennette or iCarly.

Hope you enjoyed it!

- craig hodgkins

Books: Frank Fenton and “A Place in the Sun”

Recently, I wrote of locating a book my wife had been seeking for more than twenty years (click HERE to read about our search for Palmer Brown’s Beyond the Pawpaw Trees).

Here’s a (lengthy) tale of my most recent holy grail: Frank Fenton’s 1942 novel, A Place in the Sun.

—

It’s really all Joseph Henry Jackson’s fault.

Joseph Henry Jackson’s Continent’s End (1944). I was too lazy to take a photo of my copy, so I borrowed this one from eBay.

In June of 2002, I picked up Jackson’s Continent’s End: A Collection of California Writing (1944). As a collector of western lit — specifically on my native California — I regularly thumb through anthologies which expose me to writers unknown to me. And Jackson, a long-time critic and book reviewer for the San Francisco Chronicle, didn’t disappoint. Alongside authors I’d already read and collected (the hugely underrated George R. Stewart as well as Fante, Steinbeck, Corle, Saroyan and Schulberg), were excerpts from Hans Otto Storm’s Count Ten, Royce Brier’s Reach for the Moon and Idwal Jones’ China Boy.

But the excerpt I enjoyed most was a chapter from Frank Fenton’s A Place in the Sun. I’d never heard of it, or Fenton. The only Place in the Sun I knew was the unrelated film of the same title (adapted from Theodore Drieser’s An American Tragedy). So, with the info on it and the other books which piqued my interest, I fired up the computer and hit Bookfinder.

I found everything on my list but Fenton’s work. A Place in the Sun didn’t seem to exist. Anywhere. Not on Bookfinder, ABE or Alibris. Not for $15,000 or in dog-eared paperback. Not even — collectors may shudder — an ex-library copy.

I’d been shut out on Bookfinder only once before, searching for the elusive But He Doesn’t Know the Territory, Meredith Willson’s wonderful 1959 memoir about the gestation, casting and staging of the Tony Award-winning The Music Man (which I eventually tracked down — signed!). I’m used to not being able to afford many first editions, but not finding a hint of one? Where to look? I remembered Jackson wrote in his brief chapter intro that Fenton had “revers[ed] the common progression, [and] began writing movie scripts and worked up to a novel.” Hmm.

Movie scripts, eh? Off to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB).

On the usually reliable IMDB, I became confused again. Was he the Frank Fenton who wrote or co-wrote more than forty motion pictures, including The Sky’s the Limit, River of No Return, plus some Saint and Falcon programmers? Or the actor who appeared in more than eighty films, plus The Philadelphia Story on Broadway with Kathryn Hepburn? Were they the same guy? The IMDB lists their credits as one and the same. But how could a guy who died in 1957 (IMDB again) continue to write for film and TV through 1968? I’ve heard about building up a body of work, but that’s a bit over the top.

So I simply Googled “Frank Fenton.” Aside from the IMDB-related stuff (and a bunch of links to the Fenton Art Glass Company), I found a couple of short quotes from A Place in the Sun which intrigued me further, since they were not from the excerpted chapter in Continent’s End. One website attributed a Fenton quote to the book Southern California Country: An Island on the Land (1946) by author, lawyer and activist Carey McWilliams (Volume 14 of 28 in the “American Folkways” series edited by Erskine Caldwell). I picked up a copy and continued sleuthing.

McWilliams mentions Fenton’s novel several times…even uses pull quotes from A Place in the Sun to introduce two of his chapters. And it turns out that each Place quote I’d read on the Internet is found in the Fenton material quoted in McWilliams book, meaning none of the internet sites had seen a copy of Fenton’s novel either. But McWilliams obviously admired Place, and lists Fenton in some heady company:

“No region in the United States has been more extensively and intensively reported, of recent years, than Southern California…And yet, offhand, I can think of only four novels that suggest what Southern California is really like: The Day of the Locust by Nathanael West, Ask the Dust by John Fante, A Place in the Sun by Frank Fenton, and The Boosters by Mark Lee Luther.” (pg. 364)

High praise for a novel which no one seems to have read in more than fifty years except through excerpted second or third hand sources.

Months later, something “Fenton” did turn up on Bookfinder. It wasn’t A Place in the Sun, but his second novel titled What Way My Journey Lies (1946).

Frank Fenton’s second (and presumably, final) novel, What Way My Journey Lies. The inscription reads: “For Gen — A good eschatologist from another of the neo-Hypochondriac schools — Frank Fenton, 6-11-’46.” I’d sure love to know what that means.

I ordered it, hoping to enjoy it and learn more about Fenton. Unfortunately, the publisher (low-ender Duell, Sloan and Pearce) offered almost no author information on the dust wrapper, other than that he’d written Place. It was a very good read, about a WWII veteran returning home to a life filled with changing worldviews and difficult choices. When an inscribed first edition (see above right) showed up on Bookfinder a couple weeks later (for a ridiculously low price), I snapped it up as well.

How desperate was I? I actually bought a German language translation of it (Platz an der Sonne, printed in Switzerland in 1945), a purchase which still makes me laugh, since I read very little German. My Fenton library numbered three volumes, but still no (readable) A Place in the Sun.

Finally, in May of 2004, almost two years after I read the excerpt in Continent’s End, my daily checking of Bookfinder paid off. A bookstore in the Pacific Northwest (no, not Powell’s) listed a stated first edition. I called the store directly, and spoke to the owner, who said she’d just gotten it in that morning. I was unable to keep my tale to myself, and she was genuinely happy for me (maybe she just wanted to get me off the phone), saying “clearly, you deserve this book.”

I couldn’t agree more, especially when it arrived the next day in a bright and colorful (unclipped) linen-like dust wrapper with just a bit of chipping to the head of the spine.

The book itself is a surprisingly hefty wartime volume, but Random House was a major, and large scale paper rationing didn’t begin until after it was printed in 1942. And, come to think of it, the wartime pulp drives of the mid-forties may account for the lack of extant copies.

The long-awaited volume. Yep, it exists, and yep, it’s mine.

A final anxiety was allayed when the story met — and in many ways exceeded — the expectations created by the excerpted chapter. Although Place mirrors Fante’s earlier Ask the Dust in a few ways (each lead character was a writer who’d sold a single story, and each takes a love interest to the ocean at night), it remains unique in many respects. And though I’m not ready to place it alongside Dust or Day of the Locust just yet, it is a fine work, and it just doesn’t make sense that it remains out of print. But I’ll leave that to the publishers.

And what of Fenton himself? A quick glance at the dust wrapper answered one question. Frank Fenton the writer and Frank Fenton the actor were two different men, despite the IMDB listing. Fenton the writer studied journalism at Ohio State, wrote for several magazines (most notably Collier’s), married actress June Martel in 1941, and — to quote the author himself from the rear book flap — “kept writing movies and gradually began eating in better restaurants.” The flap also featured a photo, and Fenton the author looked nothing like Fenton the actor.

It seems certain, then, that the Frank Fenton who wrote A Place in the Sun and What Way My Journey Lies also wrote the screenplays for Station West (1948), Walk Softly, Stranger (1950), The Wings of Eagles (1957), several 1960s teleplays and a whopping 20+ projects with fellow writer Lynn Root. Not surprisingly, Fenton is mentioned as a contemporary friend of both McWilliams and Fante in multiple scholarly studies of the latter author, and in a recent interview, Fante’s son Dan cites Fenton as a source of his father’s early screenwriting work. In Material Dreams, noted California Historian Kevin Starr — attributing McWilliams — also lists Fenton as one of the “Boys in the Back Room” (”writers of the minimalist hardboiled school”) who were habitues of Stanley Rose’s Bookshop/Musso & Franks Grill.

Additional information on Frank Fenton remains hard to find, and I’m still checking around to see what new I can learn. If you know more about him than you’ve read here, please drop an email or post a comment. I’d love to know more.

I’ll close with a few paragraphs from A Place in the Sun (which — trust me — you’ll be hard-pressed to find anywhere else).

Enjoy Fenton’s description of (just) pre-war Los Angeles:

“Down the foothills into the city the air changed. The lingering mist of morning fog was rising and in the fog there was the salt flavor of the sea. Then the shreds of fog melted and the great yellow and white city lay at the mercy of the sun.

He drove down one street after another. It was all beautiful. A million bungalows and mansions of all conceivable architectures; flowers he could not name, and trees he had never seen before. Strange races on the sidewalks: Mexicans, Filipinos, Japanese, Chinese.

A strange and wonderful city.

It was not like some Middle-Western city that sinks down roots into some strategic area of earth and goes to work there. This was a lovely makeshift city. Even the trees and plants, he knew, did not belong there. They came, like the people, from far places, some familiar, some exotic, all wanderers of one sort or another, seeking peace or fortune or the last frontier, or a thousand dreams of escape. And all these malcontents had joined in a dreamy effort to create a city of their dreams…

This was a city of heretics. A themeless city with every theme. Chicago, St. Louis and Denver had each been different; each had its own sordidness and strength and fury. Each was lusty and titanic in its own way, joyful and somber in its own way, and each was indubitably American. But not this Los Angeles. It had the air of not belonging to America, though all its motley ways were American. It was a city of refugees from America; it was purely itself in a banishment partly dreamed and partly real. It rested on a crust of earth at the edge of a sea that ended a world.” (pgs. 101-102)

I think I can see it.

Now, if I could only afford first editions of Ask the Dust and The Day of the Locust…

* For an update (January 28, 200 on my Frank Fenton research, click HERE. Don’t worry…everything ends happily.

- craig hodgkins

Postscript: Shortly after I acquired A Place in the Sun, I took it to one of my favorite bookstores — Mystery and Imagination/Bookfellows in Glendale, California — to show owner Malcolm Bell. I’d mentioned it on a previous visit, and though he said he had a copy somewhere, he couldn’t remember ever seeing it in a dust wrapper. I figure that if a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of Firsts magazine (and frequent contributor to their “Points” column) hadn’t seen the wrapper, I am fortunate indeed to have actually found one.

Books: Walter Brooks and Freddy the Pig

I’m not certain of when I first read one of Walter Brooks’ “Freddy the Pig” series books, but odds are it was somewhere between fifth and sixth grade. We’d moved to Napa, California the summer before my 5th grade year, and shortly after that, my older brother Chris and I both signed on as volunteer “pages” at the local library, located in the historic Goodman Building downtown (deemed an historic landmark in 1974). When you move a lot, you use landmarks and locations to keep track of the years.

The Goodman Library (courtesy of the Napa County Historical Society), long before Chris and I worked there

It was a great gig. On weekends and after school, I’d re-shelve returned and errant volumes, stock the bookmobile (in the summer…we also went on the road!), read books to groups of children, and present puppet shows. In my more leisurely moments, I explored the nooks and crannies of the turn-of-the-century stone building. Each break time was different. One day, I’d listen to some 12″ 78 rpm spoken word recordings, the next I’d thumb through hundreds of National Geographics. Through it all, I acquired a working knowledge of the Dewey Decimal system which serves me to this day.

But most importantly, working at the Goodman jump-started my nascent love of literature. That summer, I discovered the Greek comedies, Keith Robertson and the wonderfully skewed worlds of Richard Armour and James Thurber. And I ventured for the first time onto the Bean Farm (a family name, not a specific cash crop) in upstate New York, and the anthropomorphic adventures of Freddy the Pig.

The initial “Freddy” book, eventually retitled Freddy Goes to Florida and released with new cover art by Kurt Wiese

I’d never met a character quite like Walter Brooks’ every-pig. Even though he stood (albeit frequently four-legged) at the center of the action (more about that in a minute), he was flawed. He could be cranky, self-centered, sarcastic and less-than-heroic. But he was a literate and loyal friend, and could be amazingly resourceful in tight spots and sticky situations. In short, he was real. Well, as real as a talking pig could be, I guess.

But he wasn’t originally the star of what eventually became a twenty-six volume series.

When Brooks — who had already written several short stories for magazines of the day, including The Saturday Evening Post* and The New Yorker — first penned books one and two (To and Again and More To and Again), Freddy was just along for the ride. Those early works featured the animal members of the Bean farm heading off to (respectively) Florida and the North Pole, facing all sorts of adventures along the way. But like many talented members of ensemble casts (see Annette on The Mickey Mouse Club, Barry McGuire in the New Christy Minstrels, and Gomer Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show), Freddy was destined to be first among equals. He finally took center stage in Brooks’ third book, Freddy the Detective, and — after his cameo appearance 3/4 of the way through The Story of Freginald (which immediately followed) — he never looked back.

From To and Again (192 through Freddy and the Dragon (published posthumously in 1958), Brooks (and his publisher, Knopf) delivered nearly a “Freddy” a year. Along the way, the popular pig and his pals made great friends (Mr. Boomschmidt, Mr. Camphor and Uncle Benjamin Bean) fought unique villans (Mr. EHA, Herb Garble, Watson P. Condiment and Simon, the rat) mirrored cultural trends (spaceships, flying saucers and football) and snuck in some valuable life-lessons to a multi-generational fanbase.

Three representative Freddy titles

For later printings, Knopf “Freddy-ized” the series, renaming a few volumes to put the star in the title. For example, To and Again became Freddy Goes to Florida and Wiggins for President became Freddy the Politician.

I would be remiss to omit the major contribution of prolific illustrator Kurt Wiese to the success of the series. Although he didn’t execute the original cover of the first two books, he created the final twenty-four. Then, when the first two books were re-titled, he rectified that situation by creating new covers for those as well. A prolific and highly-sought artist, he illustrated more than 300 books (many with Chinese themes, such as The Story of Ping). He received the Caldecott Honor Book Award twice. He was also an author, penning The Chinese Ink Stick (1929) and others.

Great sales equal great availability, right? Nope. When I attempted to collect the series in the 1980s, I was dismayed to learn that every volume was out-of-print. After looking through bookstores (in those pre-internet days) for more than ten years, I eventually acquired thirteen of the series in original hardcover. A few titles were reprinted in the late 1980s, but even those were not widely distributed.

Today, the complete series is back in print, thanks to Overlook Press, following years of hard campaigning by a dedicated group known as Friends of Freddy, who (which?) still maintain(s) a marvelous website (CLICK HERE) offering more than you could ever hope to know about Freddy, Brooks and the series. They also produce a newsletter and hold annual conventions. Overlook has now reprinted all twenty-six books, and a couple of “compilation” volumes as well. A few years ago, my wife and I proudly purchased and presented a full hardcover set to our daughters’ elementary school library. And the Xbox generation is reading them.

One of the more well-known FoF, children’s literature expert and library director Michael Cart (who wrote jacket blubs for the reissues), features the Freddy series in his fine 1995 volume, What’s So Funny? Wit and Wisdom in American Children’s Literature. He has also contributed a fair amount of content on the FoF site.

You can pick up the Freddy books through my GIGIG store (click HERE), and also through the Friends of Freddy website bookstore. It would probably be nice if you went to their site for purchases, though, since all profits support the FoF organization.

In a nutshell, the books are, to quote the dust jacket of Wiggins for President (part of my hard-sought first edition collection): “All by Walter Brooks. All Funny.”

- craig hodgkins

*Fans of 1960s sitcom television will be interested to note that “Mr. Ed,” which ran for six seasons and starred Allen Young (and the voice of cowboy star Allan “Rocky” Lane as the eponymous horse), was inspired by a series of Post stories by Walter Brooks.

Why I Love My Kids Today

I was just enjoying my morning coffee and checking out my fantasy football lineup (still cautiously optimistic about my title hopes) before the day gets too crazy, when my mind drifted off to thoughts of why I love my kids. There must be a million reasons, but these are the ones which struck me today:

I love Eric (who is 4) because he rarely wakes up cranky, he always runs out to greet me with a hug when I pull into the driveway after work (and he always offers to carry my travel coffee mug into the house). He is an incredible mimic, and has a great sense of humor. He can hit a ball a mile, and throw a spiral across the lawn, but more importantly, he may be the nicest boy on the planet, and he makes me glad to be alive.

I love Erin (who is 10) because she goes at life 100%, because she knows how to be a great friend, and because she always has a good morning and a goodnight hug set aside for me. She loves to laugh, and we laugh a lot at our house. She is a great card player (we haven’t had to “let” her win for years), a naturally gifted and powerful ice skater, and is surprisingly normal for a middle child (I’m one, and I’m not).

I love Emily (who is 13) because she works at stuff that doesn’t come easy (it’s a short list), and because she likes to discuss writing, plot and story structure with me. I admire her desire to learn and know things (she out-reads me 4 books to 1 these days), and how she has become a wonderfully graceful ice skater. I love our tradition of playing every Nancy Drew computer game (by HER Interactive) together, and that she likes to watch DVD episodes of Route 66 and Wild, Wild West (most recently) with her mom and me at night.

On the negative side, none of them are left-handed, so I don’t know what they’re going to do with my three baseball gloves, four guitars, two ukeleles and tenor banjo when I’m gone. But I guess that’ll be their problem, not mine.

I’ll probably have fifty different reasons to love them tomorrow, and I’m thankful for that as well.

- craig hodgkins

Judge Learned Hand and “The Spirit of Liberty”

In light of my recent trip to the historical east with a large group of eighth graders (click HERE), here’s some timeless wisdom from the late Federal Judge Learned Hand. In an excerpt from what has become known as “The Spirit of Liberty” speech, given in Central Park, New York City, on May 21, 1944, he addresses a subject apropos for Veterans Day weekend.

“What do we mean when we say that first of all we seek liberty? I often wonder whether we do not rest our hopes too much upon constitutions, upon laws and upon courts. These are false hopes; believe me, these are false hopes.

“Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it… What is this liberty that must lie in the hearts of men and women? It is not the ruthless, the unbridled will; it is not the freedom to do as one likes. That is the denial of liberty and leads straight to its overthrow. A society in which men recognize no check on their freedom soon becomes a society where freedom is the possession of only a savage few — as we have learned to our sorrow.

“What then is the spirit of liberty? I cannot define it; I can only tell you my own faith. The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which seeks to understand the minds of other men and women; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which weighs their interests alongside its own without bias; the spirit of liberty remembers that not even a sparrow falls to earth unheeded; the spirit of liberty is the spirit of Him who, near two thousand years ago, taught mankind that lesson it has never learned, but has never quite forgotten; that there may be a kingdom where the least shall be heard and considered side by side with the greatest.”

Something to think about.

- craig hodgkins

American History 101.5

Part 5 of “My Life with Eighth Graders.” To read parts 1-4, Click HERE.

After our visit to the Iwo Jima Memorial, we made our way west across the Potomac to Virginia, and the former Custis Estate, now known as Arlington National Cemetery. Our visit was made even more special because four students from our group would take part in the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The wreath presented on behalf of Mariners Christian School

I’d been to Arlington a few times before, and knew our students would witness a type of ceremony we don’t often see: one involving silent, somber reflection. Most modern public events seem designed to be loud and boisterous, often demanding audience participation. Even sporting events have acquired show elements unheard of twenty years ago. The moment a time-out is called, out come the Jumbotron highlights, T-shirt cannons and slam dunking mascots, each designed to captivate our attention until play is once again underway.

But, fortunately, sane heads continue to prevail at Arlington, where mobs of people shouting “you da man” are not welcome. Perhaps that’s a large part of the beauty of a National Cemetery: it truly is a place where you can pay your respects. If you’ve never witnessed the changing of the guard (volunteer sentinels from the 3rd U.S. Infantry Old Guard) at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, you have missed a ceremony steeped in dignity and honor.

Each student was asked to write an essay about the ceremony prior to the trip. The students selected to represent MCS at the wreath ceremony produced the top four essays.

Following the ceremony, we re-grouped in the Memorial Ampitheater (dedicated on May 15, 1920) to learn more about the history of Arlington and some of the famous men and women interred there.

Headmaster Don Cole addresses the MCS students in the Memorial Ampitheater. Uber chaperone Paul Wolfe holds some student coats in the right foreground, while ace photographer Mitch Vance peers around the stage in the far background, long lens at the ready.

After the Tomb ceremony, we visited several group memorials, such as those dedicated to the crews of the battleship Maine (from WWI) and the Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia. We also visited the graves of President John F. Kennedy and his brother, Senator Robert Kennedy.

Not far from the Memorial Ampitheater, I snuck away from the group for a moment to snap a photo of Audie Murphy’s gravesite. Murphy was the most decorated American combat soldier from WWII.

A traditional Arlington headstone marks the grave of Major Audie Murphy

Next: More Monuments and Memorials, plus a Ford and a Lincoln. For Part 6, click HERE.

- craig hodgkins

American History 101.4

Part 4 of “My Life Among Eighth Graders.” To read parts 1-3, Click HERE.

Our first full day in Washington D.C. began at The United States Marine Corp War Memorial, more commonly known as the Iwo Jima Memorial. Dedicated to all Marines who have given their lives in battle, the structure recreates perhaps the most famous photograph of World War II; the raising of the American flag on Iwo Jima’s Mount Suribachi by six service men (see below), three of whom would not survive the later phases of the battle to seize and hold the tiny yet strategic Pacific island.

The raising of the flag on Mount Suribachi, from the opposite angle of the famous photograph. The names and dates of all Marine Corp battles since 1775 are engraved and burnished in gold around the base of the monument.

The massive three dimensional bronze replication of Joe Rosenthal’s Pulitzer Prize winning photograph took more than three years to cast and assemble even after the sculpting work was completed. It was dedicated by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on November 10, 1954.

A tribute from Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz also appears on the base

Our wonderfully passionate guide, Greg St. Jacques of P.A.C.E. Travel, assembled the students to tell the story of the five Marines and a Navy hospital corpsman (Sergeant Michael Strank, Coporal Harlon H. Block, Pfc. Franklin R. Sousley, Pfc. Rene A. Gagnon, Pfc. Ira Hayes, and PhM. 2/c John H. Bradley, USN) who raised the flag that day. He also recommended the book Flags of our Fathers by James Bradley (son of the Navy corpsman) and Ron Powers, which inspired the recent Clint Eastwood film.

Gagnon, Hayes and Bradley survived the battle and returned home, but Strank, Block and Sousley gave their lives during the continued fighting on Iwo Jima.

And yet, all six live on, cast forever in bronze to honor the memory of all fallen Marines.

John Bradley’s face being sculpted by Felix DeWeldon

The likeness of John Bradley cast in bronze

The day had just begun, and we had barely scratched the historically inspiring surface of our nation’s capitol.

Next: Arlington National Cemetery and The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

For Part 5, click HERE

- craig hodgkins

American History 101.3

Part 3 of “My Life with Eighth Graders.” To read parts 1-2.5, Click HERE.

Although I’ve been in the Washington D.C. area often, and have read Dumas Malone’s work on Thomas Jefferson (well, not all six volumes), the closest I ever came to experiencing Monticello was holding a nickel. I’m not sure what the students in the group thought about the place, but I was excited to finally get there. And the buildings and grounds didn’t disappoint.

Since photographs are not allowed in the interior of Jefferson’s architectural testing ground, we more than made up for it outside, and took the first of seemingly thousands of group shots on the rear grounds (calling it the “lawn behind Jefferson’s house” doesn’t do either of them justice).

All the way from Southern California to Northern Virginia

I quickly learned that as a chaperone on this trip, one of my primary responsibilities was to keep my charges from touching the interior walls of historical buildings. It wasn’t a problem at Jamestown, since nothing there was “original,” but the issue began to gain steam at Colonial Williamsburg. By Monticello, it was a stated primary concern of the docents. Figuring that it would be better for our students to be corrected by a familiar adult than by a badge-wearing historical official, I stepped boldly into the breach.

As a former teenage slouch-meister, I was not without empathy. After all, they were somewhat sleep-deprived. But instead of being able to completely focus on the many titles in Jefferson’s (recreated) library or learning the names of the bewigged men in the formal portraits hanging on his walls, I spent most of my indoor time whispering “pssst” to the more indolent students while making “get away from the plaster” motions with my hands.

Emily and Me under a cloudless sky at Monticello Photo Central

My favorite design detail inside Monticello was Jefferson’s bed. Because of the way it was situated within a wall, he could roll out of one side into a sitting room, or out the other into his office. I’d love to have a commute like that. My favorite part of the grounds was the view down the ridge to the University of Virginia, the founding of which was the pride of Jefferson’s later years.

Following our visit to Monticello, it was down the hill to lunch at Michie Tavern, a roadhouse which itself dates to 1784. I applaud any eating establishment which does not shudder at the sight of 74 ravenous youths getting off a tour bus. And, for students from the OC who are more apt to recognize black-eyed peas on their iPods than on their plates, they put away a passel of poultry and pork. I’m just glad I didn’t have to keep their greasy fingers off of anything historical.

Following the meal, it was off to the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center for Air and Space (Part of the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museums, and located near Dulles airport). For someone who grew up during the Mercury/Gemini/Apollo days of the space race (and who used to be on the mailing list of the NASA Lawrence Livermore Labs as a pre-teen), it was a special treat. An entire wing of the center was dedicated to manned flight, from the earliest rockets through the space shuttles. The most fascinating thing in person? The size difference between the Freedom II Mercury capsule and the Space Shuttle Enterprise (both below).

The Freedom 7 II (not to be confused with the Mercury capsule which Allan Shepard rode to fame)

The Space Shuttle Enterprise (not to be confused with ANY Mercury spacecraft)

But despite being the space-kid that I am, the craft which made the biggest impact on me in person was the Enola Gay. Seeing it there was particularly poignant because I’d recently read an excerpt from a memoir by Colonel Paul W. Tibbets, Jr. — who led the bomber’s crew on August 6, 1945 — describing the mission destined to hasten the end of the war in the Pacific.

I didn’t take a photo…just stood in respectful silence. Even my daughter, who is somewhat of a WWII historian, was impressed. After a couple of minutes, we ambled off quietly together.

Next: Monuments and Memorials. Lots of ‘em. Several days worth, in fact.

For Part 4, Click HERE

- craig hodgkins

The Limeliters Sing for Coca-Cola

About two months ago, I posted a link to a Coca-Cola commercial recorded by the Seekers (HERE).

Now, here’s a YouTube link to another “folk” TV spot for Atlanta’s finest by the original Limeliters, featuring a few spoken lines of inspirational hard-sell from Glenn Yarborough himself. Of course, Lou and Alex are there in fine melodic (and harmonic) voice as well.

It appears that the Seekers track was simply overdubbed on the American TV spot to create the Australian version, since the film footage is the same and the visuals sync with the Limeliters recording.

Here’s the link to that commercial.

Here’s a link to another Limeliters Coke commercial. Enjoy this one while you can! You never know how long they’ll last on YouTube.

- craig hodgkins

American History 101.2.5

Part 2.5 of “My Life Among Eighth Graders” To read parts 1-2, Click HERE.

OK. At the risk of these current post titles starting to sound like Microsoft software releases, I decided I’d better drop in a few extra photos of our visit to Colonial Williamsburg before I move on to the Thomas Jefferson estate and other fun stuff.

I’d mentioned our evening lantern tour of Williamsburg in my last post, and it really was a great way to see some more of the working shops and “businesses” in town. Our group of 90+ adults and students divided into smaller “family groups” after sunset, then were led by docents to specific locations in town to examine more closely some of the period craft work. At each location, we were met by other docents, who taught the students (and, quite frequently, the adults) about the daily operations at each location.

An 18th century flat printing press (I almost got it in the photo at right)

For example, our guide at the print shop talked at length about the importance of the printing press (and moveable type) in revolutionary times, when it was used for everything from printing newspapers to paper money, often at the risk of being shut down by the British government. The power of the press certainly helped the colonists win their freedom.

I also mentioned the hedge maze on the beautifully manicured grounds of the Governor’s Palace. My guys had a lot of fun making their way through it.

I did too, although I was a lot slower than just about everyone. Fortunately, we didn’t lose anyone in there either.

The Hedge Maze on the grounds of the Governor’s Palace

Another very unique aspect of the Governor’s Palace were the wall decorations on display throughout the public spaces. Each wall in the large entry hall, the upstairs hallways and up and down the wide stairwell was covered with battle sabers and muskets.

A wall of muskets above the Palace stairwell

Our tour guide explained that the Governor had to do all he could to show his power to the colonists, since he was so far removed from the King.

Hey…it’s a little late for the Monarchy, but I was certainly impressed.

Finally…

Next: Off to Monticello and Outer Space

For Part 3, Click HERE

- craig hodgkins

American History 101.2

Part 2 of “My Life Among 8th Graders.” For Part 1, click HERE.

While many of our nation’s historical locations sit amidst modern buildings, fast food restaurants and freeways, Colonial Williamsburg retains acres of buildings, grounds and — yes — even “citizens,” so visitors of all ages may experience life as it was in colonial times.

The restoration and rebuilding of Williamsburg began in the early 1920s due to the generosity of John D. Rockefeller. Several homes and buildings were purchased during this time, and restored to their colonial splendor. Today, more than 600 structures in Colonial Williamsburg are managed and maintained as part of this living history museum.

Detail on the gate outside the Governor’s Palace in Colonial Williamsburg

We were fortunate enough to be at Williamsburg during a re-enactment weekend, so — in addition to the usual dose of docents — we were able to enjoy period troops, encampments, bands and carriages full of nobility as we wandered through the sculpted and shaded grounds.

Among the highlights were the Governor’s Palace and gardens (complete with hedge maze), but it was an equal treat to see the militia march by on their way to the encampment, conveniently set up on the Palace Green.

Our personal tour guide was a wonderful woman who must have been in her mid-seventies, but she walked faster than my gang of guys could keep up. After the guided tour, we had time to enjoy the sights and setting at a more leisurely pace. When night fell, we kept going, taking part in a “lantern tour” of several of the shops, including a printers, a hat shop (wasn’t sure if you’d recognize the term “milliner”), and a silversmith.

Militia on the Move

The Encampment on the Palace Green. The Governor’s Palace is in the background

At the end of the day, we ate dinner in the cafeteria of The College of William & Mary, the second oldest institute of higher learning in the United States (after Harvard). But the best news was that, after a full day on the East coast, we’d not lost a student.

Next: Monticello and Outer Space

For Part 2.5, Click HERE

- craig hodgkins

I’m Back, with a Dose of American History 101.1

Part 1 of “My Life Among Eighth Graders.”

I’ve done a great deal of traveling in my time — mostly on Disney-related business — but I’d never taken a trip focused completely on historical sites. I’ve worked in quite a few museums and monuments at the front and back end of business trips, but this was a first: all history, all the time.

My traveling companions for the journey? My daughter Emily and 73 other eighth graders, with a smattering of teachers, administrators, chaperones (including your’s truly) and bus drivers thrown in for good measure. The weather was amazing for nearly the entire trip (more about that later), which really added to the enjoyment of our extremely edifying educational experience.

Our first stop was at Jamestown, site of the first permanent English colony in America (If you know what happened to those folks in Roanoke, please drop me a note). We had the opportunity to be there on the colony’s 400th Anniversary, and saw recreations of the village, the fort, even the ships the colonists had sailed in across the Atlantic.

A full scale (yes, it was that small) replica of the Susan Constant, one of the three ships which brought the colonists west.

The historical recreations were augmented by commentary from docents who accompanied each group, and by costumed re-enactors, who described life as it was for the colonists in all aspects of the daily grind (and it WAS a grind…these people struggled to survive), from cooking and hunting to culture and government. There is also a fine museum on-site.

Emily and me outside the Museum/Bookstore/Cafe

After Jamestown, we traveled a short distance down the road to Yorktown, site of the decisive 1781 battle between the British troops and the soon-to-be Americans (with an assist from the — surprise! — French). And even though the French were led by Lieutenant General de Rochambeau, there’s no truth to the rumor that the battle outcome was decided by a vigorous game of rock-paper-scissors.

It was here that Lord Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington after their escape route down the York River was eliminated due to the sub-zero weather. The river froze, and they’d forgotten to pack their ice skates.

The Battlefield at Yorktown, much less populated than it was in October of 1781. This may have been the largest open field these students (not pictured) from Southern California had ever seen.

In a slightly more interesting photo, here I am posing against a redoubt (My usual doubters were not available)

Emily narrowly misses a classmate while manning a cannon at Yorktown

Next: Off to Colonial Williamsburg

For Part 2, Click HERE

- craig hodgkins

No Posts? Why?

A quick apology to everyone who — based on the recent dearth of posts from my little corner of the world — has asked if I was still living. There are three reasons why I’ve fallen silent of late:

1. A high volume of work at the day job (not that I ever post from there or anything)
2. The start of Football/Fantasy Football season (My 2-0 team needs tending, and I only have so much free computer time in the evening)
3. I really liked seeing the photo of my daughters when I opened my blog, and didn’t want to move it too far down the page.

Honestly, that’s it. I’ll be back soon.

- craig hodgkins

iCarly Debut on Nickelodeon: Part 2

*UPDATE: Check out a recent interview with Jennette McCurdy HERE

We don’t often make a big deal about the debut of a television show at our house, but we made an exception tonight for the first episode of Nickelodeon’s iCarly. The rare exception was in honor of special guests Jennette McCurdy and her mom, Debbie, who came over to watch with my daughters Emily and Erin and their friend Allison. Jennette co-stars as Sam, the splendidly spunky best friend of Carly (Miranda Cosgrove), and does a wonderful job with the role. The reviews of the program have been good, and many have pointed out something I noticed tonight…Jennette gets a lot of great lines.

Emily, Allison, Jennette and Erin waiting for the iCarly countdown to reach zero

Two episodes were shown back-to-back tonight along with a “meet the cast” special which was woven throughout the commercial breaks. Both will be shown again tomorrow (Sunday, September 8th) at 11 a.m. The show will land in its regular time slot next week…Sundays at 7:30.

I have to admit that I enjoyed the show. The four leads have good chemistry, the characters go beyond typical stereotypes, and the writing is crisp and clever (something lacking on many shows, not just those for ‘tweens). Another fun aspect of the program is it’s interactivity. Viewers can send in video clips of themselves doing crazy things, and some of the clips may be used on the program, which is really a show within a show. You’ll have to watch to see what that means.

After the episodes ended, the girls commandeered my Mac to take some crazy Photo Booth snaps, which seemed to amuse them almost as much as iCarly.

Emily, Erin and Jennette react to yet another kooky Mac Photo Booth creation.

Here’s one of the photos (above) and a photo of that photo becoming a photo (below)

Here’s one of their “60s album cover” shots (below)…

…and here’s another (below).

I’m fairly certain the girls wouldn’t want me to share any of the really wierd ones.

It was a very fun evening, and we look forward to seeing how the show progresses over the next several weeks. We couldn’t force Jennette to divulge too much, but it sounds as if there are some pretty fun plotlines on the near horizon. If you have any ‘tweens in the house (or even if you don’t), check out iCarly!

- craig hodgkins