The Electric Egg Cream

In the lawsuit, Dupre contends that she was only 17 at the time and not old enough to enter into a contract. She was on spring break in Florida and merrily drunk when told to sign a release form for Francis’ GGW television extravaganza…featuring sultry bunnies, puerile exuberance and bouncing beach balls. In the five years since, the fact that Dupre has obviously matured and gained rich experience will definitely not be overlooked if the case goes to court. But when there’s a buck to be made, you have to love these most unlikely people’s soap opera strategy and sense of humor in advancing their avocational potential to the level of vocational reward. But she certainly is pretty and could have this old goat’s… …but that’s not important.

“Where we are most vulnerable at this moment is on the ground,” the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, Mark V. Rosenker, said. “To me, this is the most dangerous aspect of flying.”

While I monotonously absorbed my first jolt which led me to my second jolt of caffeine, I remained completely unsurprised and unmoved by these revelations. It should have been obvious to anyone within a twenty mile radius of a major airport that flights are circling and landing practically nose to tail. Someone behind the wheel of a car would (in theory, at least) be ticketed for tailgating in that close-knit fashion. If this crowded swarm of activity goes on in the sky, imagine the situation on the runways themselves.

“For the six-month period that ended March 30,” the article stated, “there were 15 serious ‘runway incursions’ compared with 8 in a period a year earlier.” The problems continue despite the FAA’s efforts to improve the situation, from pilot training to that of technology, at airports. Nonetheless, a recent decision by the FAA will probably delay a “new generation” of technology for surveillance and navigation for about ten years.

By this time I had guzzled down my third cup of coffee and was contemplating my first glass of Jack Daniels (even though I usually drink only on special occasions: such as Christmas, New Year’s Eve and Election Day). Then again, why should I worry? As I wrote in my last post (MEN WITH GUNS AND DOGS), currently, within NYC’s subterranean playground (aka subway system) I have Commando Joe protecting me. If the railways and byways and hallways of New York City are safe and secure, the nation’s runways are a mere trifle.

Remarkably, the influenza pandemic of 1918 was one of the most overlooked and ignored events in American history. Even though this incredible contagion is amply documented, until recently it became buried beneath the chaotic history of most of the 20th century. Over one fifth of the world’s population was affected and, within months, it had killed more than any other disease in recorded history. Whereas World War I claimed 16 million lives, this pandemic killed more than 50 million!  In the end, it disappeared just as quickly and mysteriously as it had appeared…more from human consciousness than from the surface of the earth.

Even though, as a pandemic, it suddenly emerged almost simultaneously throughout the world, its first appearance in America was in New York City. The disease struck in two phases, each time without warning. In May of 1918, people suddenly began to suffer from a malady which came to be known as the “three day fever”. Only a few deaths were reported and most people recovered after a few days. But in the fall, the second phase of the disease emerged with an intensity that defied medical science. Victims were dying within hours of being struck or, otherwise, dying a few days later with pneumonia-like symptoms.

The plague rapidly spanned the nation from coast to coast and as far away as Alaska. The most susceptible were young children and the elderly; but, to the further astonishment of doctors, young adults, who were thought to be the least susceptible to such diseases, were the hardest hit. Over 25% of the U.S. population was afflicted; in less than a year the average life expectancy had dropped by 12 years.

The story is complex and this post is merely a summary; many sites offer comprehensive information on this plague’s history. While the pandemic itself quickly subsided, epidemics of pneumonia continued throughout the early 1920s in many U.S. cities. Indeed, this particular strain of influenza had never actually disappeared but had altered influenza infections of its type down to the present day. Scientists believe that the pandemic strain is merely lying dormant and could strike again at any time when it attains a favorable immunity to modern disease prevention.

Pope Benedict visited Ground Zero this morning (NYC’s Eternal Construction Site and diminishing tourist attraction; the famous Deutsche Bank looming in the center) and offered a blessing to its memory. Naturally, he’s the first pope to visit Ground Zero, but the way construction there is proceeding and has been mysteriously and unaccountably delayed, he may not be the last. The pope asked for “eternal peace for the people who died in the attacks” and for “strength and healing for their families…making only “oblique references” to the terrorists (he may have been watching the 9/11 videos on Google).

In the afternoon, he said Mass at Yankee Stadium; the third Papal Mass held at this stadium, home of the most overpaid and overindulged team in the history of baseball. However, it’s a great place for attracting a crowd. Over 60,000 Catholics attended. In his “sermon on the mound” homily (coined when Pope Paul VI said Mass there in 1965), the Pope said that Catholics should “overcome every separation between faith and life [and counter] false gospels of freedom and happiness…rejecting a false dichotomy between faith and political life.”

This is the last day of Pope Benedict’s visit to America; most likely, he’ll never visit again. At 82, he seemed to be in good spirits and diligently energetic throughout an itinerary that would tire many younger people. Oftentimes, I’m exhausted after merely taking a stroll through Prospect Park.

Personally, I like Pope Benedict…being a Catholic myself (however cleverly suspended my faith may be), I probably have a deeply-ingrained acceptance of such personages. Then again, I’m also a romantic; it’s probably the romance of Catholicism and other idealistic aspirations that possess me against my better judgement. Even my English wife (follower of her King Henry VIII established Church) can dig it…so there.

Source: NY TIMES (as usual)

 The Empire State Building has been named by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. The building and its street floor interior are designated landmarks of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, and confirmed by the New York City Board of Estimate. Designed by Gregory Johnson (reputedly, in two weeks!!!) and his firm Shreve, Lamb and Harmon, built by Starret Brothers and Eken, financed by John J. Raskob (creator of General Motors) under the chairmanship of Alfred Smith, former Governor of New York, the building was constructed in a little over a year and officially opened on May 1, 1931.

Unfortunately, its opening coincided with the Great Depression and this resulted in most of its designigated office space remaining unrented and the building unprofitable. Critics began calling it the “Empty State Building” and derided it as a white elephant. Visitors to its observation decks were the Empire’s State Building primary source of revenue for its first years of operation; this would continue to be the case, more or less, until 1950.

Within less than six years, over 3,000,000 people from all over the world had visited the building’s two observatories: the broader 86th floor gallery and the primary 102nd floor tower. There are many stories regarding these first visitors to the Empire State Building and the following are only a handful.

An experienced pilot and his wife. She was terrified of flying and had never set foot in an airplane but when she reached the gallery she took-off with abandon ; when she ascended the tower, she was soaring with fascination. The view from 1,250 feet of New York City and beyond enthralled her so, that she even wanted to climb the mooring mast (a misguided and abandoned extension to the tower for dirigible landings) for an even better view. Meanwhile, her aviator husband, who had flown thousands of miles around the world, was terrified by this static height and stood inside the terrace’s glass-enclosure.

One day the King of Morovo in the Solomon Islands (soon to witness some of the bloodiest fighting of World War II) arrived. His name was Kata Ragoso, a giant chieftain with a kinky jounce of hair and bare legs beneath his wildly colorful apparel. His like had never been seen on Fifth Avenue before…at any altitude. Oblivious to the curious stares of others, he abandoned himself to his delightful viewing of the city: drawn out like a tapestry before him, the stream of automobiles and ships moving diversely on streets and rivers, gleefully chuckling and excitedly commenting on various sights in his native language.

A young Mexican girl who had come to New York from Texas, staying with a family in Brooklyn. She was glib towards most of the sights of New York City until she came to the top of the Empire State Building. She trembled with emotion and began to cry, not uttering a single word until she returned to the home where she was staying. She tearfully remarked that she’d “rather live in Texas…everything here is so towering it frightens me.”

Two great men stood atop the Empire State Building one overcast day in 1932 and conversed for the press: Alfred E. Smith and Winston Churchill. Smith, as chairman of the project, had made the Empire State Building’s creation and future plans a personal crusade and would talk with anyone who would listen, tirelessly endeavoring to rent its empty office space and show a profit. Some beneficial moments of national and international public relations were always welcome.

In the course of their casual talk, Smith and Churchill shared views and impressions of what they observed. “I can’t see the Statue of Liberty,” Churchill mildly remarked. “You can on a clear day,” answered Smith. “Ah, quite so, quite so, ” Churchill agreed, “the Statue of Liberty does seem to be in a bit of a fog, what.” As the talk proceeded, Churchill said that he had “never been so high up before.” To which Smith replied, ” And I don’t suppose I shall ever get any higher myself.” Alfred Smith would remain a legend in New York State, while Winston Churchill would go on to be a legend for the world.

Of all the visitors to the Empire State Building’s aerie heights, no single person captured the majestic view and grandeur of the building with more intensity and passion than Helen Keller. Rendered deaf and blind as a child by an affliction (possibly meningitis), she was still able to see and hear with the heart of a poet. In a letter to Dr. John Finley, she wrote as follows of her visit:

“Standing there, twixt earth and sky, I saw a romantic edifice wrought by human brains and hands that is to the burning eye of the sun a rival luminary. I saw it stand erect and serene in the midst of storm and tumult of elemental commotion. I heard the hammer of Thor ring when the shaft began to rise upward. I saw the unconquerable steel, the flash of testing flames, the sword-like rivets. I heard the steel drills in pandemonium. I saw countless skilled workers welding together that mighty symmetry. I looked upon the marvel of frail yet indomitable hands that lifted the tower to its dominating height.”

The Empire State Building was the tallest building in the world until the construction of the World Trade Center; the latter quickly losing its tallest building status to the Sears Tower in Chicago. With skyscrapers sprouting up around the world, the Sears Tower is currently the tallest building in America; the Empire State Building, with the terrorist demolition of the World Trade Center (as it stands in the above photo, it seems to give the impression that it pities its dying rival), the tallest building in New York City. The marvels of “frail yet indomitable hands” that are merely temporal but forever reaching for the stars.

Sources: Atop the City’s Great Peak by Julia Chandler; NY TIMES, January 17, 1937

                Churchill Is Guest Of Smith On Tower; NY TIMES, February 10, 1932

                 Wikipedia & related links