Friday, February 21, 2020

Weekend Links 2-21-20

It's quite the plethora of links for this weekend's reading:

In 1920, a group of men gathered at a YMCA in Kansas City to attempt to organize a professional league of black baseball players since they were not welcome in the Major Leagues. Here is a terrific profile of the man who was the driving force behind this league: Rube Foster.

This is a fascinating article about a baseball player you've likely never heard of and one man's mission to make his legacy known. Find out more about John Donaldson who is one of the greatest pitchers of all time.

Whenever Joe Carter publishes an article I pay attention. In his latest he helps you know whether you've made an idol out of politics. I think that we are often much more guilty of this than we would like to admit.

I could easily fall down this internet worm hole: old book illustrations from the 19th and early 20th century. 

Speaking of worm holes, another great site to explore is Atlas Obscura  Here are a couple of fun entries I found this week. First, the owner of New York's oldest phone number. If you know anything about music you should be able to figure out the answer before clicking the link

I've enjoyed a number of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe novels. So when I discovered this existed I was particularly excited: a plaque that marks the likely location of Nero Wolfe's New York brownstone. 

This is an example of something I've always known but never known the reason why: Why actors won't say Macbeth in the theater. 

Eyewitness to history: meet the man who worked behind the counter at Woolworth's during the 1960 sit-in in Greensboro, NC.

My favorite Agatha Christie novel And There There Were None is getting a new screen adaptation. As good as the novel is the film adaptations have not been all that great. The best adaptation I have seen is the 2015 BBC version. I am curious to see how they handle the novel in this new film.

The greatest mysteries of life are revealed through ordinary circumstances at least according to G. K. Chesterson's Father Brown. 

Long read of the week: Baseball, Fiction, and Life: Roger Angell's Era-Spanning Career at The New Yorker, The amazing thing is that he is still going strong at ninety-nine.

Answering the important questions: Is coffee good for you? 

Having seen and enjoyed this year's Best Picture Oscar winner I found this article extremely interesting: The real star of Parasite is the house.

Movie magic: thanks to a cameo in Parasite this snack company's sales have taken off.

Finally, this seems appropriate given that tomorrow marks the first spring training games of the baseball season:


No comments: