 Janus Museum Webcams Washington Grove Pacer Farm Circle Cam Groveland Security Network Node 4 The Groveland Security Network At-a-Glance A Spotter's Guide to the Circle Cats The Janus Museum The Circle Cat Club Panabasis II Panabasis - Photo Please Buy a Copy  New! A Cat Compendium DVD 
  Listen in to our webmaster, Tibor Szégy-Légy, as he presents a wide-ranging program of some of his favorite music. Program 3 in our new series - Outlaws and Bad Persons Program 9 - Music from the Civil War for Decoration Day Program 8 - Jazz, harp, and hurdy-gurdy. We're pleased to feature tunes from The Janus Museum's extensive music library. Every week - or more often as the spirit moves, we'll feature a tune, song, or sound from the collection in streaming Real Audio format. Here's an extremely rare treasure, a 78 rpm recording of The Rocket Ranger March from the 1953 TV series Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers These may be the the first internet performances of The Rocket Rangers March, performed by the Rocket Rangers Chorus, and also an instrumental version of the Rocket Ranger March, performed by the Rocket Ranger Philharmonic Orchestra of Zagreb. For Armistice Day - The Bells of Hell, from a newly reissued DVD of Richard Attenborough's Oh! What a Lovely War. And now, a Stephen Foster song especially for the Fourth of July, Plain Old Soldier, sung by Leslie Guin. From Songs of Stephen Foster. Here's a sprightly archaic banjo tune - Pompey Ran Away (1782) from Carson Hudson Jr.'s I Come from Old Virginny! Early Virgina Banjo Music 1790-1860, another recent find in the old-time music bin. Here's a thumping good tune, Chasing Old Satan, from the Double Decker Stringband's fine new album, The Rest is Yet to Come. In honor of the splendid Hésperion XXI concert we recently attended, here's Jordi Savall performing Captain Tobias Hume's A Souldiers Resolution on the viola da gamba. To commemorate the end of legal fox hunting across the pond, here are two songs from the rich tradition of hunt songs: Nic Jones sings Reynard the Fox from Ballads and Songs. Oak, Ash and Thorn perform Bold Reynard from Sowing Wild OATs & Out On A Limb. We occasionally mention of some of the classic films that are shown in The Janus Museum's Fellow's Lounge - here are links to the webmaster's capsule reviews: Aaya Toofan Aelita, Queen of Mars Amar Akbar Anthony Astérix & Obélix contre César L'Atalante Babes in Toyland (1934), AKA March of the Wooden Soldiers Baiju Bawra Bajrangbali Balram Shri Krishna Berserk! Body Book and Sword Boxer The Brain That Wouldn't Die Bride & Prejudice British Intelligence Byron The Calamari Wrestler (Ika Resuraa) The Call of Cthulhu The Captain's Paradise Catwoman The Charge of the Light Brigade China Gate Chronicles of Narnia The Clowns Cold Comfort Farm (1995 version) Cousin Bette The Crawling Hand A Dance to the Music of Time Death in the Air (AKA Pilot X) Drôle de Drame Elena and Her Men, More on Elena Enchanted The Eye of Vichy Fathom French Cancan Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs A Good Woman George Washington II: The Forging of a Nation Giulio Cesare Glen or Glenda The Golden Coach Gormenghast H.M. Deserters (C.K. Dezerterzy) Halaku Har Har Mahadev The Heart of the World Henry V (1944 version) Hot Fuzz The Illusionist Les Indes Galantes The Indian Tomb (Das Indische Grabmal; Fritz Lang's Indian Epic) More on The Indian Tomb Jai Santoshi Maa Janosik: The Highland Robber More on Janosik Jungle ki Nagin Lagaan The Living Corpse Lola Montes The Lost Zeppelin Luv Kush (TV serial) The Maggie Mahabali Hanuman (Dara Singh, 1980) Mahabali Hanuman (Rakesh Pandey, 1981) Mahabharat; And another entry Maniac March of the Wooden Soldiers La Marseillaise Master and Commander The Mikado (1939 version) Mister Vampire 3 Münchhausen (1943) Oh! What a Lovely War Old Khottabych Old School Les Paladins Passport to Pimlico The Phantom Empire The Pirates of Penzance (1980) The Pirates of Penzance (1983) The Pirates of Penzance (1994) The Pirates of Penzance (2007) Porco Rosso Pride and Prejudice (2005) Private Life of a Cat Ramayan (TV serial) Royal Flash The Saddest Music in the World Sadko Sampoorna Ramayana (children's theater version) Sampoorna Ramayan; Also a video segment Seven Years Bad Luck Shaolin Soccer Sikander-e-Azam Sleepy Hollow The Stranglers of Bombay The Legend of Suriyothai Tarzan (1985 Bollywood version) Teenagers From Outer Space They Who Step on the Tiger's Tail (Tora no o wo fumu Otokotachi) Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines Titus Two Comrades Were Serving (Sluzhili dva Tovarishcha) V for Vendetta Valiant Wagner - The Complete Epic Waterloo War of the Worlds (2005) The Wrong Arm of the Law Yahudi The Young Visiters Zeppelin News & Comment City Journal DEBKAfile Thomas Friedman History News Network Jane's Information Group New York Times The New Yorker Oliphant Salon Slate Washington Post Weblogs and Filters Achenblog Airminded ArtsJournal Arts & Letters Daily BibliOdyssey Lilek's Bleat Boing Boing Brass Goggles Cephalopodcast Chase me Ladies, I'm in the Cavalry Combat Helmets of the 20th Century Command Post Comics Curmudgeon Cooked Books Cool Tools Cottage Renovations Cronaca Cul de Sac Cute Overload Daffodil Field Daily Kos DC Blogs Defense Tech Fed by Birds Fig Newtons and Scotch FuturePundit.com Gizmodo Good Name for a Dog Grow-a-Brain Hand Eye Paint Hanuman Hullabaloo Intel Dump Irish Elk J-Walk The Kitten Channel Language Hat The Law West of Ealing Broadway Fife on Two Acres Martin Klasch Metafilter Ministry of Minor Perfidy Mirabilis The Nonist The Nonist Annex Notes from the Technology Underground Octopia The Online Photographer Other Men's Flowers Pharyngula Pinky Diablo and His Singing Grubworm Political Animal Ramage Ref Grunt Repository for Bottled Monsters The Rest is Noise Retro Thing The Rhine River The Salt Mine Samizdata.net seven years in the navey Squid Squidblog Talking Points Memo things magazine Time Has Told Me The Tsarina of Tsocks Your Daily Art Winds of Change Janus Links Another Janus Museum Temple of Janus by Peter Paul Rubens Temple of Janus by H.W.B., 1883 Some Thoughts on the God Janus Janus in Myth More Janus in Myth The Mystery of Janus Emblem 18 from Andrea Alciato's Book of Emblems (1531) Engraving of Janus from Vincenzo Cartari's Le Imagini de gli Dei (1608) Janus and Athena Mars, Janus, and Minerva Janus Galleries The Art of Katherine Janus Kahn Janus Great Danes The Society of Janus (not connected with The Janus Museum) Photography The American Museum of Photography Eugene Atget at George Eastman House Atget at the International Center of Photography Civil War Photographs from the Library of Congress The Daguerreian Society The George Eastman House Kathleen Ewing Gallery (represents the Janus Estate) Helios - Photography at the National Museum of American Art Klotz/Sirmon Gallery Robin Schwartz Star Camera Company Music Alan Lomax Archive Archeophone Records Archie Edward's Blues Heritage Foundation Blues on Air Classical Music Archives Classical MIDI Connection Concertzender Radio Dr. Horsehair Hackmann Hurdy-Gurdies honkingduck.com John Fahey Magnatune Joe Bussard's vintage 78s Max Hunter Folk Song Collection Music by Michael Starke Old-Time Music Homepage Phonozoic Roots of Folk: Old English, Scots, and Irish Songs and Tunes (Bruce Olson's Web Site) Smithsonian Folkways Recordings Sugar in the Gourd Time Has Told Me Weenie Campbell History & Reference American Civil War Portal American Memory - Library of Congress CivilWar@Smithsonian Common-Place Cyber Times Navigator (New York Times) Government Information Awareness The Great War in a Different Light Historical Picture Collections ibiblio Making of America Moving Image Archive New York Public Library Digital Gallery Online Books Page Open Video Project Proceedings of the Old Bailey 1674-1834 Repositories of Primary Sources David Rumsey Map Collection SIRIS - Smithsonian Institution Research Information System Statistical Abstract of the United States Studies in Intelligence Voice of the Shuttle Favorites 5ives Amusing Seaches The Apothecary's Drawer Big Meadows (Virginia) Webcam Bookworm Game Cat of the Day Coconino World Coudal Partners Ferd'nand Framley Museum Golden Age Comic Cover Gallery Jesus of the Week Lawsonomy Mars Attacks Macaroni and cheese recipes Mutts - the Official Site Mutts Online Patrick O'Brian Web Resources Pepys' Diary Sodaplay The Tasarina of Tsocks Washington Grove Pacer Farm webplayer |
Recent photographs, commentary,
and links from The Janus Museum's webmaster, Tibor Szégy-Légy 3 January - A Famous Victory, With Dinner to Follow  I came across this photograph while organizing our so-called Frantisek Strašlipka Collection - two Austro-Hungarian sad sacks, the sergeant-major's despair, working over a liberated goose - a very Švejkian scene. In fact, the two sad sacks look like younger versions of Švejk and Sapper Vodička:  From the Švejk Picture Gallery. Strange; World War I was not, for Austria-Hungary, what could be described as a good war - far from it. But you wouldn't know it from the photographic evidence: Chin Chucking the Test Pilot Aviators with Bunny Ears K.u.K. Chorus Line Oh, we must have a listen to the Radetzky March (streaming MP3) - this version is played on a 1904 street organ, and was recorded by bilwiss. link comment 3 January - Treasure Hunting Pleased to pass on the news that friend and neighbor Charlie Challstrom has set up Washington Grove's first geocache (free registration required) almost within spitting distance of the Museum's Historic Cottage (no spitting, please). If you're not familiar with the term, a geocache is a sort of hidden trove - one obtains the cache's geographical coordinates, and then finds it through the exercise of one's navigational skills, using a GPS unit or astrolabe. Or read the FAQ. Why not combine a hunt for the Grove geocache with a visit to the Janus Museum, or at least to the Janus Museum Museum Shop? And then a snack in the Museum café? Sounds like a plan to me. link comment 2 January - Five Fine Fezzes  Flickr user Wackystuff has some truly wonderful ephemera on view...  ... Including this commemoration of the explosion of the laughing gas works in Elgin, Minnesota, 1914. Oh, have a look at the matchbox labels, too. Via Martin Klasch. link comment 2 January - 2008 - The Year in Catwalks  A pretty good year for catwalks, 2008. I think the highlight of the year in catwalks would have to be the arrival of Max Gray, that rising young photographer, and his attendance on some of our expeditions - I've included a selection of his superb images in our slideshow: Or view it in glorious full screen. The Circle Cats and I look forward to another year of brisk catwalks, and snacks and naps, too. The Year in Catwalks, 2007 Edition link comment 1 January - Like an Eel to a Monadnock  Sugarloaf Mountain, from One Hundred Famous Views of Sugarloaf Nothing gets the new year off to a good start than to light out northwest into the wilds of central Maryland to that famous monadnock, Sugarloaf Mountain. I don't question this; I just get in the car and go take a few snaps of Sugarloaf on or around the first, like an eel returning from the ocean to his natal stream. Yes, very eel-like, now I come to think of it. Here's a sort of mountain song, Elkhorn Ridge (streaming MP3), sung by Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin, from Old-Time Music on the Air Volume 1. Oh, speaking of old-time music, thanks to Dogma for sending this Christian Science Monitor article on the greatly revived interest in the genre - very interesting. Today is the blog's sixth anniversary - please send presents. Previous Sugarloaf Views: New Year's 2006 From Old Hundred Road From Mt. Ephraim Road From Thurston Road Summiting Sugarloaf, November 2007 link comment 31 December - Sunny Side Up As the horrid old year comes to a close, the only advice I can offer is this - and it's a song, too: Keep Your Sunny Side Up (streaming MP3), sung by Jane Gaynor. See you next year. link comment 29 December - Trail Cat  Sunnier, not as warm as yesterday, but a good day to go scouting for campsites in the Museum's Forest Preserve. And not just for me - the Museum is now trying to rent campsites to Inaugural visitors who can't find rooms in DC. A hundred and fifty bucks gets you a spot in the woods, a surplus pup tent - byo sleeping bag - and complimentary espresso and a day-old bagel in the Fellow's Lounge. Above, Natasha perks up her superb ears at the approach of a friend. I'll be posting our annual Year in Catwalks after New Year's. link 29 December - Reasonably Unseasonable Yesterday it was very warm and windy hereabouts, which some of the local cats found most invigorating. The Museum's Video Unit found the invigorated cats invigorating, too, and produced the minor epic shown above. I tried to tell Josh, the head of the Video Unit, in a friendly way, that his cute little hackneyed vanishing cats effect as seen in this and many other Video Unit videos, is, in fact, quite a hoary old effect; not nearly as original as he would like to think. Watch this 1920 film by Claude Friese-Greene from the British Film Institute's wonderful Youtube channel: Strangely enough, Josh wasn't grateful for the information. But I like the soundtrack music, a little banjo piece called "Johnny Booger", taken from the album Traditions of a West Virginia Family & Friends. Unseasonably warm days in winter are turning out to be pretty seasonable around here. link comment 26 December - The Young Visiters  Daisy Ashford, Author of The Young Visiters In another example of the world run mad with innovation, we watched The Young Visiters (2003) instead of our usual Christmas movie fare of either The Beggar's Opera or Mahabharat. You certainly must see The Young Visiters; it's based on the 1890 novel by the distinguished nine year old author Daisy Ashford (above); hence, the non-orthodox spelling of "visiters" - Daisy's uncertain though enthusiastic spellings are left as they are in both book and movie.  The Young Visiters tells the story of Mr Alfred Salteena, "an elderly man of 42", in his own estimation "... not quite a gentleman but you would hardly notice it but cant be helped anyhow". Mr Salteena is fond of asking people to stay with him. He has fixed a fond eye on his current guest, young Ethel Monticue, very beautiful, though "pale ftrom the drains in this house" and somewhat given to running from rooms "...with a very superier run throwing out her legs behing and her arms swinging in rithum." In the scene above, Mr Salteena, played by Jim Broadbent, models a superb new topper as Ethel (Lyndsey Marshal) and Rosalind the bronchitic maid (Sally Hawkins) gaze admiringly. Oh, let's see the illustration of the same scene by William Pène du Bois from the 1952 Doubleday edition:  Ethel yearns to mix with lords and duke; Mr Salteena arranges an invitation to the castle of an acquaintance, Bernard Clark - Lord Bernard Clark in the movie - played by Hugh Laurie:  He serenades his guests with the touching ballad Oh, Fair Maiden, or I am Unworthy - oh, watch it on Youtube.  Fearful that his being not quite a gentleman will prevent him from winning the fair Ethel, Mr Salteena puts himself under the tutelage of the Earl of Clincham (Bill Nighy), who keeps "compartments" at the Crystale Pallace. Clincham is agreeable to "rub up" Mr. Salteena to a becoming state of gentility for a consideration (£40). Rubbing up includes grueling interludes like the "Hat Dofing" training shown above.  For some reason, I'm always reduced to hysterics when Clincham laps up his whiskey.  Clincham arranges for Mr Salteena, now sufficienty rubbed up, to attend a "levie" at Buckingham Palace, where he is graciously received by the Prince of Wales (Simon Russell Beale), shown above wearing his "small but costly crown". Mr. Salteena achieves a wonderful success, but Lord Bernard Clark has wafted Ethel off to the Gaierty Hotel in London for a week's gaierty. Ethel is overcome by Lord Clark's attentions, and by all the gaierty, of course. Finally, Mr. Salteena - now Lord Hyssops and appointed to canter after the royal barouche, encounters Ethel. Who does she choose; Lord Hyssops or Lord Bernard Clark? For that, you'll have to see the movie (also available on Netflix), or read the book. Just do both, actually - they're very fine. link comment 25 December - The Annual Catwalk; Not Available in Stores  The Annual Christmas Catwalk was short and none too brisk, me still being somewhat fragile and all - maybe we'll do an afternoon walk, if I gain a bit more strength. Josh Sackville-Cohen, the head of the Museum's Video Unit, informs me that the long-awaited DVD collection of the Unit's cat videos, A Cat Compendium is now available through the Unit's primitive rudimentary web page. The collection includes classics like Giant Squid vs. Cat (the original and the sequel both), Zombie Game, and the recent hit Maxine Doesn't Want to Play. Several of the films have been remastered and appropriate soundtracks have been added. I'm particularly taken with the new version of Father, Please Come Home, a harrowing melodrama dealing with the tough issue of catnip addiction, starring Peake and little Kitten Leroy: The other videos feature the usual Circle Cat Players - Natasha, Leroy, Peake, Nutmeg, and Booper. Even our maintenance man Gus has a cameo (in Flash in the Pan). Wow, it's only seven bucks post paid - NTSC only, though Josh says a PAL version might be available if there's any interest. Buy it here and help support the Video Unit's documentary mission. link comment 24 December - Nelson and the Bear  And now, a dramatic tableau vivant taken from the life of Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson - Nelson and the Polar Bear (sorry - they were out of polar bears at the store). Or, if you prefer, it's another in our ground-breaking series of thought-provoking counterfactual histories: What would have happened if... in 1773, the young Midshipman Nelson of His Majesty's Ship Carcass, instead of tangling with a polar bear, had encountered a giant land-dwelling octopus? History might have turned out very differently. Or not. Probably not, land-dwelling arctic octopi being so very unusual. Still, it makes you think. Nelson is shown above with his faithful cat Leroy; a walrus looks on in the background and wonders what he's going to have for dinner. 24 December - The Menace of Seasonal Cheer  Cat Tucker, waiting for Santy Claws, Christmas 2004. As another year draws to a close, let me take this opportunity to collapse on the Fellows' Common Room couch and whine pathetically - it's the hideous painful sore throat that came to me yesterday, like an unwanted gift. But I am to be allowed in the FCR, and may wallow on the couch, and may even make an occasional espresso, 'cos the fellows have all lit out for the territory for the holiday. Of course, I do have to supervise the burial of the recalled fruitcakes, out in the Museum's Forest Preserve. And I do have to pass around the cocoa to the groups of carolers shuttling in and out of the Historic Cottage atrium today - will try not to sneeze in the cocoa; really, I will. But here's another fine old song, The Holly and the Ivy (streaming MP3) from the Sneak's Noyse album Christmas Now is Drawing Near. link comment 21 December - On the Scout  Cat Natasha has kindly agreed to do a bit of aerial reconnaissance in order to help me find a spot to pitch my tent during Inauguration week. Bon voyage to old Friend of the Museum Rodger Kingston - he of the fascinating "forgotten photographs" that are featured here occasionally - he and Carolyn are off for a couple of weeks in Oman. He'll be posting photographs and anecdotes. I'll be enjoying the searing heat of the desert vicariously through his blog as I shiver in the woods. link comment 20 December - Seasonal Update  As in previous years, we ambled down to the gazebo to admire the holiday decorations. It momentarily took my mind off some of the bad news that's been coming down: First - if you've ordered one of our famous Janus Museum fruitcakes, don't hold your breath. After last year's ergot catastrophe, I suggested that we no longer outsource fruitcake production to China. So we went back to baking the damn things in the Museum's kitchens; and now the problem is melamine contamination - it turns out that someone ordered bargain basement powdered milk from... China. Refund checks will go out "soon", I'm informed. Like I said - don't hold your breath. Second - as reported earlier, the Museum board was considering renting out the staff's accomodations to Inauguration visitors. I'm told the deal's gone through, and I'll have to move out of the carriage house a week before the Inauguration - the rental fee is five grand. I'll be camping out in the Museum Forest Preserve - hope it doesn't snow - and I've been told to make sure that my tent can't be seen from the Museum. The cats get to stay, though. That's nice. Third - the Museum Video Unit's splendid DVD collection of Museum Cat videos, A Cat Compendium, is finally done and will be available "very soon" - too late for Christmas shopping, of course. Fourth - I was at Union Station in DC yesterday, and spotted Ralph Nader, signing books:  For some reason, gazing at Nader did not improve my mood, and I did not buy a book. Finally - we've gotten the usual end-of-month threat from our web hosting service that we're exceeding our stingy bandwidth allotment, and will probably go off the air for the rest of the month. Probably on Christmas Eve...  Oh, just one more cat/holly shot, so to end on a somewhat more festive note, with fluff. Oh, and some music, absurdly appropriate for seasonal fluff: The Furry Day Carol, performed by Sneak's Noyse, from their album Christmas Now is Drawing Near. link comment 13 December - Nitro Nostalgia  Hank Burchard of Pecker Wood The Sage of Tappahominy County, the Squire of Pecker Wood, Hank Burchard, sent this charming reminiscence of his dangerous boyhood in rustic pre-sprawl Northern Virginia: Katie Couric of CBS has her knickers in a twist because American teenage boys are building bombs. I think teenage boys have been building bombs since the Chinese inwented gunpowder. I would be worried about any teenage boy who didn't like to blow up stuff, and since the gummint nannies have taken cherry bombs, M-80s and even, for all love, ladyfingers out of circulation, kids have no choice but to make their own explosives, hair-spray cannons and whatever.And as the sound of the joyful explosion resounds and then fades in the Potomac valley, let's listen to Essence of Old Virginny (streaming MP3), performed by Joe Ayers, from the splendid Minstrel Banjo Style album. link comment 13 December  Rita Keith Taylor, 1930-2008 Yesterday, I was out to Luray, Virginia to bid farewell to an old friend, Rita Taylor - boxer whisperer, mistress of llamas, and a fine and funny lady.  I paid my respects to the Shenandoah Homeplace herd - this is young Hi Ho Silver, a handsome up-and-comer among the 2008 cria class. My best wishes go out to all the llamas, the boxers, and to all of the Taylor family. And from Jean-Baptiste Lully, Sarabande pour une femme (streaming MP3), played by Andrew Lawrence-King, from his album Chorégraphie. link comment 6 December - Cephalopodic Haberdashery  Thanks to old friend Bob Lyon for sending a link to this charming do-it-oneself squid hat on Instructables. If I could make a suggestion to the designer (whose name I could not find), it would be to make the tentacles even longer - one could then drape them artistically about oneself, like the long tail of the medieval liripipe:  Bust of Lorenzo de Medici after Andrea del Verrocchio and Orsino Benintendi, National Gallery of Art Very striking, it would be. Here's another jota (streaming MP3), somewhat more muscular than yesterday's jota, performed by Los Otros, from their splendid album Tinto. link comment 5 December - Fragility  Potomac near Difficult Run Feeling a bit fragile at the end of a long week - tired, of course - maybe somewhat overfull of dumplings, noodles, crispy shrimp, roast pork. Why not have a bracing espresso? 'Cos it's now only for the use of the Museum's fellows, we're told. And on top of that, I've been informed that I'll be expected to move out of my digs for Inauguration week - the management is attempting to rent out the staff housing, taking advantage of the hordes of visitors expected to swamp DC for the festivities. I'm told that I can camp out in the Museum Forest Preserve. How does that make me feel, one asks? Fragile. Is it any wonder that I'm hitting the dim sun so hard? Here's a fragile but beautiful anonymous Spanish dance, a jota (streaming MP3), performed on the harp by Arianna Savall from the album Villancicos y Danzas Criollas 1550-1750. link comment 3 December - Peddling Bangers to the Wild Magyar A Hungarian sausage advertisement from the '70s, posted on Youtube by one yessong69, via Boing Boing. Funny - I'm usually up for a sausage or two most any time; right now... not so much. But here's a song for the occasion - Billy Murray sings Fido is a Hot Dog Now, from 1914 (streaming MP3). link comment Archives 2009 January 2008 January February March April May June July August September October November December
July August September October November December
July August September October November December
July August September October November December
July August September October November December
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