Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at another college whose teams have a more inventive name than the overused Eagles, Tigers, Bulldogs and Wildcats.
DRAKE STATE TECHNICAL COLLEGE Continue reading
Monthly Archives: June 2026
FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: CAVALCADE OF AMERICA (1952-1955)
CAVALCADE OF AMERICA (1952-1955) – This terrific 30-minute anthology series dramatized real-life events in U.S. history from the Revolutionary War onward. Sometimes fictional works appropriate for the series would be presented as well. Even if you don’t want to watch the show you can just pick out historical names below and look them up online.
STANDOUT EPISODES: 1952-1953
POOR RICHARD – Benjamin Franklin and John Adams surreptitiously delay pretended negotiations with General William Howe for an American surrender just to help buy time for General George Washington’s withdrawal from New York. Starring Dabbs Greer, Alan Napier and Henry Brandon.
ALL’S WELL WITH LYDIA – Lydia Darragh, a Quaker widow living in Philadelphia, obtains information about an imminent British attack and risks her life to get that information to General Washington. Thus prepared, Washington and his troops manage to hold on against the Redcoats at White Marsh from December 5th-8th, 1777. Howe, Cornwallis and their Hessian ally Knyphausen are forced to retreat back to Philadelphia. Ruth Warrick of Citizen Kane plays Lydia. With Reginald Denny.
THE MAN WHO TOOK A CHANCE – Inventor and entrepreneur Eli Whitney (Richard Denning) pioneers interchangeable parts in muskets to keep Americans armed and ready against any European encroachment long after the Revolutionary War. Continue reading
Filed under Forgotten Television, Neglected History
GEORGE C. ADAMS: WHO SAYS ADAMSES CAN’T BE GOOD ATHLETES?
GEORGE C. ADAMS – As part of Balladeer’s Blog’s seasonal posts headed into America’s 250th birthday I recently reviewed the 1970s miniseries The Adams Chronicles – Part One HERE and Part Two HERE. Those two blog posts were so popular I decided to do another Adams, but one who stands out not for nation-defining political accomplishments but for college football.
George Caspar Adams was born on April 24th, 1863. His father was John Quincy Adams the Second and his mother was Frances Crowninshield-Adams, as in the Crowninshield ancestors of the Washington Post‘s Ben Bradlee.
In 1882 George graduated from the Adams Academy, which was founded by America’s 2nd President John Adams. From there he entered Harvard University, graduating in 1886. Despite the high brow reputation of most Adamses, George made the Harvard Crimson football team, playing Halfback on Offense and Rushing End on Defense. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History
NEWS ROUNDUP: JUNE TWENTY-NINTH
Start your Monday with a current events roundup from Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog.
HAVING DRIVEN MOST REASONABLE PEOPLE OUT OF THEIR POLITICAL PARTY, DEMOCRATS NOW BATTLE OVER WHO CAN BE THE MOST HATEFUL TOWARD AMERICAN CITIZENS. Mamdani and his fellow hatemongers are on the march.
EVEN DEMOCRAT JAMES CARVILLE ADMITS IT MAY BE TIME FOR A SCHIZM IN THE DEMOCRAT PARTY OVER THE UNHINGED MAMDANI WING ACCELERATING THE DEPARTURE OF RATIONAL PEOPLE FROM THE PARTY. He says “I can’t be in the same party” and more.
IN DEMOCRAT-HELD MINNESOTA, A SCHOOL BOARD WORKER CALLS FOR HAVING DOGS URINATE ON THE GRAVES OF WHITE CHRISTIANS. Do you get the feeling that James Carville’s far too late?
DEMOCRATS CONTINUE TO HATEMONGER ABOUT CELEBRATING AMERICA’S 250th BIRTHDAY IN TEN STATES. More HERE.
TWO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS SENTENCED TO OVER SIX YEARS FOR ATM TARGETING CONSPIRACY TIED TO TREN DE ARAGUA. Yet the top priority for Democrats remains keeping criminals like this in the country.
PRESIDENT TRUMP PRAISED FOR HIS PROGRESS IN ENDING CORRUPTION IN THE BIDDING FOR GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS. Another reason why America’s most corrupt and compromised political figures hate Trump. Continue reading
AMERICA: MONTH BY MONTH 1976
With America’s 250th birthday fast approaching, Balladeer’s Blog has been looking at national history using 50-year milestones. Previously I did 1826, and 1876, and 1926. This time it’s 1976.
1976
U.S. President: Gerald Ford Vice President: Nelson Rockefeller Speaker of the House: Carl Albert Chief Justice: Warren Burger
Number of Senators: 100 Number of House Representatives: 435 Number of Supreme Court Justices: 9
JANUARY
1st – The ROSE BOWL GAME was played between the UCLA Bruins from the Pacific 8 (Pac 8) Conference and the Ohio State Buckeyes from the Big Ten Conference. A 3-0 Buckeyes lead at Halftime turned into a 23-10 Bruins victory in the end.
Also the 1st – The Liberty Bell in Philadelphia is moved from Independence Hall to its own pavilion to accommodate tourism for America’s 200th Anniversary year.
4th – The musical comedy Home Sweet Homer, an adaptation of The Odyssey, does so poorly it opens AND closes on Broadway this same night. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History, opinion
FLASHBACK: VACLAV KLAUS CALLS OBAMA’S WEAK, INEPT AND CROOKED REGIME “THE KARDASHIAN PRESIDENCY.”
FROM JUNE 7th, 2016:
Obama at his most presidential
Vaclav Klaus once made this remark which nicely captures the weak, inept and crooked little man named Barack Obama as well as the shallow, mindless, unquestioning supporters of this Hollow Man.
That quote: “The danger to America is not Barack Obama, but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History, opinion
REVOLUTIONARY WAR HERO CASIMIR PULASKI
CASIMIR PULASKI (1747-1779) -Obviously from my last name I’m Polish-American and therefore grew up immersed in the role played by Casimir Pulaski and Tadeusz Kosciuszko in America’s War of Independence. I’m often surprised by how comparatively unknown they are to the public at large, so in keeping with Balladeer’s Blog’s theme here’s a look at Pulaski. I’ve covered Kosciuszko separately HERE.
Casimir Pulaski began fighting against tyranny when he was 21 years old. In 1768 he served in the Bar Uprising against Russian domination of Poland. The uprising was facing overwhelming odds and was deemed hopeless, but it became a minor cause celebre around the western world as the fierce insurgents kept the war going through four long years.
The war never became as romanticized as the later Greek War of Independence from the Ottoman Turks, but the conflict drew attention to Russian totalitarianism and to the abilities of Polish officers like Casimir Pulaski. In fact, it took an invasion by Russian-allied Austria and Prussia to help Russia put down the rebellion in 1772.
Pulaski and other Polish soldiers from the Bar Uprising flirted with an alliance with Turkey against the Russians but when the Ottomans made peace with Russia in 1774 that possibility was eliminated. By December of 1776 Casimir was living in Paris where, the following spring, he was introduced to Benjamin Franklin, one of the American Commissioners in France.
Franklin was impressed with what he could learn about Pulaski and sent him on to America with a letter of introduction to George Washington. Franklin described the Pole as “an officer famous throughout Europe for his bravery and conduct in defence of the liberties of his country against the three great invading powers of Russia, Austria and Prussia … may be highly useful to our service.”
Casimir told Washington “I came here, where freedom is being defended, to serve it, and to live or die for it.” During the summer of 1777 the 30-year-old Pole was made Chief of Cavalry by Congress. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History, Revolutionary War
THE INHUMANS (1975-1977)
This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at Marvel’s 2nd attempt to give the Inhumans their own spinoff series.
INHUMANS Vol 1 #1 (Oct 1975)
Title: Spawn of Alien Heat
Villain: Blastaar
Inhumans Royal Family Roster: Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Karnak and Triton
NOTE: This series picks up after Medusa ended her temporary stint in the Fantastic Four and was back to living in Attilan, the hidden futuristic city in the Himalayas (at this time) where the thousands of Inhumans have lived for millenia. Ever since the alien Kree experimented on their caveman ancestors with the Terrigen Mists.
Synopsis: Blastaar, a recurring foe of the Fantastic Four, is let loose from the adamantium prison in which he has been held for some time. His saviors are the Kree Empire, who once again want to try capturing those inhabitants of Attilan who have powers that would be effective in the millennia old Kree-Skrull War.
Blastaar flies to Attilan, the Great Refuge and fights his way in past the airborne guards. In the Royal Palace, a long-buried device rises from the lowest depths below Attilan and sits, apparently waiting for a clearly missing component to complete it. Black Bolt and Triton dive into the watery depths below Attilan to see where the machine originated from.
Shortly after they depart, Blastaar bursts in and begins fighting Medusa, Gorgon and Karnak. Continue reading
Filed under Superheroes
FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: 1954-1955 SEASON OF U.S. STEEL HOUR
Previously, Balladeer’s Blog examined the 1953-1954 episodes of this revered anthology series HERE. Today I review standout episodes of the 1954-1955 season.
1954-1955 SEASON
THE NOTEBOOK WARRIOR (Sep 14th, 1954) – Ben Gazzara stars as a talented violinist who is drafted into the army and has difficulty adapting to the rigid lifestyle. Richard Kiley also stars.
BASEBALL BLUES (Sep 28th) – A forty-year-old baseball pitcher tries to come to terms with his impending retirement. Starring Edward Andrews and Frank Lovejoy.
THE MAN WITH THE GUN (Oct 12th) – Anti-communist activists suffer in a concentration camp in Europe. Gary Merrill, Edward Binns, Leueen McGrath and Dana Wynter star. Continue reading
Filed under Forgotten Television
JUNE TWENTY-SIXTH NEWS ROUNDUP
Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog is here with a Friday current events roundup.
NATO CHIEF MARK RUTTE PRAISES PRESIDENT TRUMP’S HANDLING OF IRAN SITUATION.
CURRENT IRANIAN REGIME IRATE ABOUT GAY PRIDE SYMBOLS AT SEATTLE WORLD CUP GAME. They want FIFA to ban such symbols at any more games. Democrat hypocrites silent because they support that regime simply because it is hostile to Trump. Cowards.
MAJORITY MUSLIM COUNCIL IN MICHIGAN TOWN BANS THE GAY FLAG FROM PUBLIC PROPERTY. As usual, Democrats were wrong when they claimed that the delicate little darlings would NEVER commit intolerant acts like this and that it was “Islamophobic” to even suggest it. I guess the Muslim majority is making gay people feel “unsafe”, right Democrats?
VIDEO: DEMOCRAT CONGRESSMAN SETH MOULTON PHYSICALLY ATTACKS REPORTER OVER DEMOCRAT GRAHAM “NAZI TATTOO” PLATNER. This would dominate an entire news cycle if the other political party did it. Will Republicans EVER try to catch up with Democrats in the Media Outlet Arms Race?
DEMOCRAT ANDREW CUOMO COURAGEOUSLY BLASTS HIS PARTY FOR SUPPORTING GRAHAM “NAZI TATTOO” PLATNER.
DEMOCRAT LETITIA JAMES ACCUSES FANATIC DEMOCRAT MAYOR MAMDANI OF “BLOWING UP THE DEMOCRAT PARTY.” Well, Democrats drove away all of us rational Democrats over the years, leaving the Party at the mercy of Mamdani and his ilk. More HERE. Related HERE.
FATHER OF VICTIM MURDERED BY KARMELO ANTHONY CALLS OUT PROPAGANDIST SUNNY HOSTIN FOR TRYING TO MONETIZE HIS SON AUSTIN’S DEATH. Sunny, Whoopi (LOL) and the rest of The View‘s staff are lying hatemongers. Remember when Whoopi (LOL) claimed Trump was going to nullify interracial marriages? Whoopi (LOL) is pathetic and deranged.
PRESIDENT TRUMP HOSTS DINNER FOR AMERICAN FARMERS IN THE WHITE HOUSE ROSE GARDEN.
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SENTENCED TO EIGHT YEARS FOR THEIR PART IN AN EIGHTY-NINE-MILLION-DOLLAR PAYROLL SCAM. Privileged white male one percenter Bruce Springsteen’s kind of guy!
BOB IGER REVEALS THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH DEMOCRAT PROPAGANDIST JIMMY KIMMEL’S SUSPENSION. Yet Kimmel and filth like him were lying about it for months, calling Trump “a dictator.”
GAY TEACHER ADMITS ON CAMERA TO GROOMING CHILDREN. Democrats, can you please leave children alone?. Continue reading
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