Penelope’s Loom

  I know...tits that kill, right?  And yet, this was kind of the fashion for bras in the 1950s--also the design copied the shape of a missile head.  Oh, my. You're not gonna believe this, but atomic bomb culture was EVERYWHERE during the 1950s, and early 1960s.  Still trust that I'm telling you the truth?  Ah ha!! Well take a look at this, Dear Reader: Uh, let's take a moment...shall we? In the words of the immortal Keanu Reeves, "whoa." 'Explosives for building and learning...umm, I have nothing to say to that. I know what you may be thinking...but I'm afraid that this was an actual toy.  Pretty sicko, right? Wait.  I have some more.... Oh my, what safe fun for the whole family! OK, I think that's enough to illustrate my point, right? And yeah, these were actually real honest-to-God toys, folks.  No s*&t.   This was the cultural atmosphere that influenced Americans in the mid 1950s.  These products and images were intentionally meant to lull the p

Welcome to the first episode of Penelope’s Loom…a place to explore eccentric history. In this podcast, we’re going to talk about some of the rumored affairs of this tragic figure. Check out this episode!

  Yeah, I know, he was pretty good looking. And, I think he found his true best friend, when he met Sinatra.  Ah, the Rat Pack. I realize I touched upon this subject in one of my first blog posts, but recently I watched a documentary that reminded me of how pissed I was at our former (and tragic) president, John F. Kennedy.  I know what you might be thinking Dear Reader:  why not let the poor man's memory rest in Valhalla? Hey:  Historian, remember? : ) Here's the documentary (it's a bit biased) if you're curious: A little warning:  this film is not complimentary to our fallen/murdered president. So, where shall we begin? How about a gal named Inga Arvad Petersen (d.1973)? Inga was a beauty queen.  Well, in 1931 at least.  As a younger woman, she studied journalism at Columbia.  And, in 1935, she scored an interview with -- wait for it -- Adolf Hitler.  He ended up talking with Inga three times.--something pretty rare for that freak.  From her description of this gag wo

 Much has been made of the correspondence that occurred between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in the last years of their lives.  This body of letters leaves us with keen and poignant insights on the nature of government and revolution, as well as the human condition.  While these men corresponded for years, there was a distinct rift that occurred between them after the presidential election of 1800, in which Jefferson beat Adams.  Believe me, there was a hell of a lot of skullduggery from each camp in that contest, leaving some very hurt feelings on the part of both men.  But, with the intervention of men like Dr. Benjamin Rush, a rapprochement was reached between the two men in 1812, and their correspondence gradually resumed. I think that it is right and proper we consider some of these letters today of all days (July 4th). From John Adams to Jefferson Feb. 3rd, 1812: "...your Memoranda of the past, your Sense of the present and Prospect for the Future Seem to be well founded,

...[you know when] the air [is] so still it aches like the place where the tooth was on the morning after you’ve been to the dentist or aches like your heart in the bosom when you stand on the street corner waiting for the light to change and happen to recollect how things once were and how they might have been yet if what happened had not happened. Robert Penn Warren,  All the King's Men I often wonder these days about that last bit: what would’ve happened if…? But, as my mater often chides me—that’s just not productive.  But, what would’ve happened if Leo had just picked up the goddamned phone when Newt called his house on the night of the murder? We’ll never know.  When the highest court in the world judicially affirms that the State which ‘tried and convicted Frank, accorded him every right guaranteed to him under the highest law’, ought not the decision to be respected? -Tom Watson That was written in the aftermath of the trial's conclusion, so I guess you know how Frank’s