Monthly Archives: May 2019

Why Vietnam Was Unwinnable

Posted on May 30, 2019 by

An American paratrooper sergeant shouts orders to his squad as they charge brushline while subject to sniper fire in Vietnam on June 1, 1965. “While I was working for the Pentagon in the early 2000s, wounded veterans from Iraq and … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Henry Kissinger, Ho Chi Minh, John Kennedy, Lyn. Johnson, Nixon, R. McNamara, Tet 1968, Viet Cong, Vietnam War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Stonewall riots

Posted on May 29, 2019 by

Stonewall Bar 1969. Disturbance on Sheridan Square, NYC. Scenes at Christopher St. and 7th Ave. South with police trying to clear crowds. “The Stonewall riots (also referred to as the Stonewall uprising or the Stonewall rebellion) were a series of … Continue reading →

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Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band – Strictly Personal (1968), Mirror Man (1971)

Posted on May 29, 2019 by

“The tracks for Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band’s second album were recorded between October 1967 and May 1968. One reason for giving the album the title Strictly Personal was that Van Vliet wrote all the songs, with no song … Continue reading →

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A Humument – Tom Phillips (1960s)

Posted on May 27, 2019 by

“A Humument: A treated Victorian novel is an altered book by British artist Tom Phillips, published in its first edition in 1970 and completed in 2016. It is a piece of art created over W H Mallock‘s 1892 novel A … Continue reading →

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The Literary Sophistication of François Truffaut

Posted on May 26, 2019 by

François Truffaut on set of Fahrenheit 451 (1966) “Truffaut is not literate merely because his films contain allusions to Renoir, Walsh, Vigo and Hitchcock, although they are the sources of the film conventions he manipulates, nor because Jules and Jim contains … Continue reading →

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Gloria Emerson – Winners & Losers (1976)

Posted on May 26, 2019 by

“When Gloria Emerson’s Winners & Losers, a sprawling portrait of the United States in the wake of the Vietnam War, was first published in 1976,it was hailed as a classic and won the National Book Award. But it also inspired … Continue reading →

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Whatever Happened to Avon Bard?

Posted on May 24, 2019 by

“Among other things, the book imprint, Avon Bard, was known for its surreal, often dream-like and vivid covers. Also distinctive was the white banner across the top of the cover announcing the title, author’s name and one or two short … Continue reading →

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Sharp suits, thin ties and the coolest musicians on Earth: Jazz 625 is back!

Posted on May 23, 2019 by

Singular vision … Bill Evans in the BBC studio. “The camera holds its close-up on the pianist’s hands, his long fingers adding delicate inner voicings to the familiar melody of Come Rain or Come Shine. Then, very slowly, the camera … Continue reading →

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Apollo 11

Posted on May 22, 2019 by

“Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first two people on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin, both American, landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC. Armstrong became … Continue reading →

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16-Year-Olds Want a Vote. Fifty Years Ago, So Did 18-Year-Olds.

Posted on May 21, 2019 by

A pamphlet that activists in New Jersey used to gain support for lowering the voting age to 18 in 1969. There is a similar effort underway today to lower it again to 16. “JAMESBURG, N.J. — Stuart Goldstein still has … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil Rights Mov., Draft board, Vietnam War | Tagged , , | Leave a comment