I Witnessed the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
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When President Abraham Lincoln, his wife, and guests entered their terrace box at Ford’s Theater at 8:30 pm on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, the audience erupted in a spontaneous standing ovation. Our American Cousin, a comedy by playwright Tom Taylor, was well into its first act, but the arrival of the President brought the production to […]
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Hank Jones, Marilyn Monroe and Jazz Precision
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Since its emergence at the turn of the 20th century, jazz has always been blessed with an abundance of accomplished pianists. Looking over the names, it is truly an embarrassment of riches: Herbie Hancock, Teddy Wilson, Erroll Garner, Bill Evans, Dave McKenna, Oscar Peterson, Earl Hines, McCoy Tyner, Art Tatum and Hank Jones– it’s an […]
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What Ellen DeGeneres Could Learn From Johnny Carson
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The public flogging Ellen DeGeneres has recently endured is part of the life cycle of prominent personalities in Hollywood. Enthusiastically embrace them on the way up, and vilify them when the slightest incongruity between the star image and real life behavior is reported. Founded or not, accusation is now assumed to be proof of guilt –the more […]
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Recalling the Osage Murders: Martin Scorsese set to film the tragic story
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From 1910 until almost 1930, a parasitic evil had Native Americans from Osage County, Oklahoma in a chokehold. Scores of murders were committed, millions of dollars stolen, and human rights were ignored. Those who investigated on behalf of law enforcement were often brutally executed. It was a time locals called “The Reign of Terror.” Official casualty counts run […]
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Why Andy Williams Sang At Robert Kennedy’s Funeral
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Andy Williams stopped singing at funerals when he was 8 years old. A searing family tragedy and its ensuing consequences left a lifetime scar when it came to participating in memorial services. Only once in his remaining 76 years did the superstar entertainer overcome his trauma — and that was on the occasion of an […]
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