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Please Buy a Copy A Cat Compendium DVD by the Museum's Video Unit  |
May 2011 Archive 28 May - Cats of War, Gettysburg Edition  This is the Museum's extremely rare variant of the famous Brady image, Three Confederate Prisoners, Gettysburg. We've tentatively titled the variant Three Confederate Prisoners with Cat, Gettysburg. A superb image. For some reason, the old Civil War song Tentatively Tonight on the Old Camp Ground is running through my mind. Previous Cats of War: Bashi-Bazouk with Cat Cats of the Great War Dragoon Cat, Lincoln's Cat, Christmas Truce Cat link 28 May - Alejandro Update  Remember Kitten Alejandro? He turned up in the neighborhood last June as a poor orphan stray. After capture and a visit to the vet, he graduated from Rebecca's thorough Kitten Enrichment Program, and was adopted by neighbor Sylvie. Renamed Bruno, he now lives over on Center Street. And...  ... Bruno has a new little sister, Colette. A very attractive young couple, Colette and Bruno. link 27 May - The New Spring Kepis Are Here  Gus, the Museum's maintenance man, tells me that he just could not resist the darling new spring kepis. The one he chose, and that he's modeling above, is an officer's cap with black braid, as would be suitable for a major or a lieutenant colonel or for a colonel. It's available from eBay shop Fort Laramie Trading Post. It's also available with gold braid, but I agree with Gus that the black braid's better - "dressy, but not too dressy", he says. Gus's tee shirt is from Mule Design. link 27 May - Cats of War, Middle Eastern Division  Found another instance of a Cat of War in the Museum's collections; this one portrays a bashi-bazouk - a Turkish irregular - with his little calico kitten, circa 1870. Very fierce and exotic, in a cute sort of way. link 27 May - Bibimbap  Here is a generous order of bibimbap from the Yellow Vendor truck. It was delicious. The bibimbap is available in 3D (red/blue glasses required), and with chicken or bulgogi. Must have it again, if only because I enjoy saying "bibimbap" so much.  The Yellow Vendor Truck, where I purchased my bibimbap. Bibimbap. link 23 May - Your Sunday Squid  Please drop a little acid or mescaline or slivovitz and then come back here and take a gander at this beautiful squid. Thanks to old Friend of the Museum Grahame, our cephalopodic advisor, for forwarding it, via Pharyngula, via The Node. link 21 May - Straw Hat Day is a Bit Late  Life Magazine, via Bruce Young Dang, can't believe I missed observing Straw Hat Day (May 15) again this year - pressure of work, etc. link 21 May - A Hotdog Cart in a City Upon a Hill  An exquisite sight at break o' day: a hotdog cart, chip and snack bags gleaming in the pure early morning light and hotdog water just a-coming to the simmer. Moments like these give me hope that the world can yet be made anew. Then I wise up. This sublime image may also be viewed in 3D. Also possibly of interest, a Polish Sausage effigy. link 15 May - L'Illusionniste  Very nice to have see some cinematic kyloe - highland cattle - they're the first I've seen since we watched The Maggie some years back. Last evening's kyloe appeared in L'Illusionniste, an animated film (and not to be confused with The Illusionist with Edward Norton and Jessica Biel) based on a screenplay by Jacques Tati, the immortal M. Hulot. It's a beautifully made film; much of it takes place in an impossibly beautiful Edinburgh, including...  ... A walk to Arthur's Seat, a wild romantic scenic location, which...  The Wild Highland Spaniel ... I myself have visited. After which, I walked to...  ... A chippy. As I said, it's a beautiful film, but in a very minor key; depressing and sentimental - my heart sank within me when the sad clown made his appearance, followed closely by a ventriloquist and his creepy dummy. But, oddly, it's worth seeing - especially when Tatischeff, the fading magician, catches a glimpse of M. Hulot himself. link 14 May - Let Slip the Cats of War  Had a chance to go through the Museum's files, and found some more Cats of War images. Above, a German machine gun crew on the Eastern Front, 1914, with cat. And also...  ... British tommies go over the top under fire as the regimental cat urges them on. Wouldn't be surprised if we had some more in the files, too. link 14 May - Kai  Please meet Kai, a service dog; he's in 3D (red/blue glasses required). Very nice guy, is Kai. link 14 May - Folk Song Day Once Again  Woodcut by Joseph Crawhall II, via the Joseph Crawhall II Society May 14th is Folk Song Day, established some years ago by one of the Janus Museum fellows who noticed the curious number of folk songs that take place on this date. Please see our entry from last year for a playable compendium of the songs. This year, I'm very pleased to report that old Friend of the Museum John Drouot has found another 14th of May song - it's June Tabor's version of Lisbon from her album Ashes And Diamonds: And John has also discovered a curious May 14th poem - Mulvaney's Regrets by Rudyard Kipling. Invited to dine with the member's of Yale's Kipling Club, Kipling was unable to attend and sent the poem to be read at the dinner: Mulvaney's RegretsHilarious... From the Autumn 1982 issue of the Yale Literary Magazine. In a footnote, the editor tells a rather fascinating story: Kipling wrote these verses in Vermont on 1 May 1896. Whatever his motive in declining an invitation for Thursday 14th (he was working on Captains Courageous) he certainly did not expect what in fact happened. On 6th occurred the frightening tragi-comic brush with Beatty Balestier [Kipling's brother-in-law]: Beatty threatened to kill Kipling, who at once went to his lawyer. On [the] 12th the disastrous court hearing took place, with immense publicity, leaving Kipling in the words of his wife's diary "a wreck". He was worse on the 13th, and still wretched on the 14th. The dinner at Yale was held, the intended guest of honour's light-hearted message of regret was circulated, but in fact his life had that week undergone a convulsive and permanent change.link 13 May - The Miracle of the Ex Voto Acquisition  I noted back in April that the charming ex voto shown above was available on eBay, but that, tragically, the Museum would not be acquiring it, since we had just bought the superb Miracle of the Worried Hippie ex voto. Imagine my surprise when I rolled in this morning and found the the Cat in the Moon ex voto on top of my scanning queue - it was the very generous gift of an old Friend of the Museum, whom we most gratefully thank for her generosity. Here is the translation of the inscription: I began to dream every night that my cat liked to be go up to the moon and that I had go to look for it for an infinitely long stair. And the worst thing was that I woke up very tired and the legs hurted me as if is by real I had gone up the long long stairway. I thank to the Virgen de San Juan because she illuminated me so that I had he idea of allowing to my cat to sleep in my bed be cause the bed is a place more comfortable that the moon and now me awake together very rested and I no longer have those strange dreams.... Truly wonderful. Previous Cat-Related Ex Votos: Miracle of the Worried Hippie Miracle of the World-Weary Elderly Cat Cats Rescued From Giant Venus Fly Traps Cat Bath Miracle Cats vs. Red Demons Merchandise-Hungry Cats Unmupped Kittens - More Miraculous Trusting Cats Miracle of the Trusting Cats Big Blue Cat Miracle Brave/Ugly Cats Miracles Miracle of Feline Augmented Literacy Pretty Hairy Kittens Miracle Demonic Fear of Kitties Cat Scratch Fever Miracle Miracle of the Cat Husband The Miracle of the Embarrassed Cats Tragic Love Canción de los Gatos San Pascual's Cat Aunt Honorata's Cats The Perfect Cat Storm Cat Pi Milagro Greedy-guts Miracle Cat link 8 May - Cats of War; Hindenburg Chasing  Several friends sent me the link to a fascinating Slate article on the Cats of War, which reminded me that the Janus Museum has a few nice examples of warcat images. Above, a trooper of the French 2nd Lancers with a cat of the 8th Dragoon Regiment, looking very fine in his plumed helmet. Also...  ... The well-known Gardner photograph of President Lincoln with General George McClellan and his staff and cat, taken after the battle of Antietam, October 3, 1862. And of course, there's always...  ... The famous photograph of a German Kriegskatze taken during the 1914 Christmas Truce. And previously posted here, The Death of Nelson, with Cat, and the recently acquired Cat of the Regiment stereoview. 
Bill Eaton with Zeppelin Regular readers (if any) will recall the story of our old friend Anne "Cookie" Chotzinoff Grossman, who, as a child in Connecticut in 1936, ran after the Hindenburg when it appeared over her school. Recently, I had the great privilege to talk with Bill Eaton, an Air Force vet and now a volunteer with the National Air and Space Museum's Archives Division, who revealed that he, too, had chased after the Hindenburg, but during its final flight in 1937. Here's his tale on the Air and Space Museum's blog, AirSpace. I wonder how many other Chasers After the Hindenburg are out there? Oh, here's a shot of Bill in thrilling 3D - red/blue glasses required. link |
