Captains and Crews

This past August 19th would have been Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's 92nd birthday. For two sci-fi geeks like us, that's all the excuse we need to talk a little Trek!

In honor of the occasion, we're presenting you with our highly-subjective list of the Top 10 Greatest Trek Characters. (Feel free to weigh in at the comments with the names we missed!)

-- Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

 "It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is *life*."

TRACY: When Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted in 1987, Gene Roddenberry was looking to have a very different crew than the one on Star Trek. And that started with the Captain. While there is no disputing the allure and charm of Captain Kirk, Jean-Luc Picard is a much different character. Picard is an intelligent, thoughtful leader. Where Kirk often was ready to jump into any adventure, Picard likes to think about his options first. He is a first-class negotiator who will follow the Prime Directive (no interference with developing alien civilizations) at almost any cost.

Some people have stated that Picard is a cold fish, but I believe that is the farthest thing from the truth. He may keep his emotions more hidden than many, but he is devoted to the well-being and safety of all those aboard the Enterprise. As seen in many episodes of The Next Generation, his crew is just as devoted to him and will risk their lives for him. This is most evident when Picard is assimilated by the Borg, a hostile alien race, in Season 3. This experience will also shape Picard and will haunt him for a very long time.

-- Captain James T. Kirk (Star Trek -- 2009 Film Series)

"There's greatness in you, but there's not an ounce of humility."

MS. B: I know, I know. Chris Pine's turn as Captain Kirk in the rebooted Star Trek films series will never hold a candle to the actor who created the role in the original series. But hear me out.

Jim Kirk has always been the kind of guy who bends the rules as needed and is likely to favor action over words. But the new film franchise has given movie-goers a chance to see how Kirk became the character as they've always known him to be. Pine's Kirk starts out brash and hot-headed, but as his story progresses, he's placed into situations where learning humility and responsibility are necessary -- not just to make him less insufferable, but to ensure the safety of the crew that depends on him. The fact that he's willing to learn these lessons for the sake of his crew, more than for the sake of himself, results in a character that truly earns the title of "captain."

With added layers of depth, and a true character arc, Pine's Captain Kirk is both fun to watch and utterly relatable. The result is a character that has become one of my very favorite Trek captains. 

(Just don't tell William Shatner.)

-- Chief Engineer Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (Star Trek -- 2009 Film Series)

"I like this ship!  It's *exciting*!"

TRACY: As a fan of the original Star Trek series, I was a little hesitant to see the reboot in 2009 by J.J. Abrams. However, I was quickly won over by all of the characters, but most especially by Scotty. In the film, Scotty is not an original member of the Enterprise. Kirk finds Scotty and his alien friend Keenser at a Starfleet base on a snow-covered planet, where Scotty has been "exiled" for his attempt to beam an admiral's prized beagle to an unknown location. 

Scotty's start in the reboot might be a bit different from his origin story in the original series, but he's just as resourceful an engineer. Through his transwarp-beaming theories, he's able to beam Kirk and himself onto the Enterprise and, therefore, help save the day. Scotty has always had to be resourceful, but in Star Trek: Into Darkness, we also get to see a man who stands up for what he thinks is right, and who also gets to have a wee bit more adventure than his Original Series character ever did. 

-- Dr. Julian Bashir (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

"The eternal optimist."

"Guilty as charged."

MS. B: Deep Space Nine has long been regarded as the black sheep of the Trek family. With its darker themes and shades-of-gray characterizations, it's a somewhat unusual series in a franchise whose focus has always been on celebrating the best aspects of humanity. Which is precisely what made Julian Bashir such a beloved character of mine.

At the start of the show, Dr. Bashir is a newly graduated doctor whose bright-eyed enthusiasm and cheerful audacity grates at the nerves of more than a few of his co-workers. Some of his never-say-die optimism is a result of his naivety -- and, indeed, over the seasons, Bashir has his deepest morals and convictions challenged time and time again. But despite his experiences, Bashir never loses sight of his belief in the best of people, always keeping his "Starfleet ideals" firmly intact.

-- First Officer Spock (Star Trek and Star Trek -- 2009 Film Series)

"I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

TRACY: Okay, I have two Spocks here. But I couldn't pick between the two! I find them both so fascinating!

As first officer to James Kirk, Spock (from the original series) is a balance to Kirk's more devil-may-care attitude. But he is also Kirk's must trusted friend and advisor. Spock can always be relied upon to provide the most logical answer to any question or situation. Spock and Kirk, in the reboot, have a rocky start to their friendship. But this too turns into a trusted friendship, after some advice to reboot Spock from original series Spock. Throughout the original series/films and the new series of films, that friendship is at the heart of these stories.

Spock is the son of Sarek, a Vulcan dignitary, and Amanda, a human. This dichotomy of cultures is a struggle that Spock faces on a constant basis. Vulcans are a logical species who suppress their emotions -- while humans are an emotional and, often times, volatile species. Spock seems to want to deny the part of him that is human, the part that does not always suppress his emotions. But when faced with the loss of people very dear to him, we see Spock let his emotions get the better of him, like many humans would do in the same situation. 

-- Lieutenant Commander Data (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

"Do you consider yourself superior to humans?" 

"I am superior, sir, in many ways. But I would gladly give it up to be human." 

MS. B: Partly inspired by the writings of sci-fi author Isaac Asmiov, Data would quickly develop into a wholly original character. An officer on the Enterprise, Data is an android -- a robot that appears to be human, but who is tougher, stronger, and faster than any human could ever be. With a computer for a brain, Data's also got the ability to make calculations that are always immediate and accurate, although it also leaves him unable to master the more subtle intricacies of human behavior and emotion.

For all his superior abilities, Data's fondest wish remains to be human. Throughout the seven-season run (and four feature films) of The Next Generation, Data never ceases striving towards what may be an unreachable goal. Still, it is his unfailing determination to rise to such challenges that reminds viewers of what being human is all about.

-- Guinan (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

"I've told you what you must do. You have only your trust in me to help you decide to do it."

TRACY: Guinan is one of the most interesting and compelling characters in all of the Star Trek universe. When Guinan joins the Enterprise, she is already over 600 years old. She comes from a race of listeners, which helps her in her capacity as hostess/bartender of the ship's lounge, Ten Forward. 

She is also an old and very special friend of Captain Picard's. Actually, they both say that their relationship goes beyond friendship. Picard trusts her advice, like he trusts no other. Many times he has taken her advice when it seemed to go against his better judgment. But, in the end, Guinan's intuition usually is right. 

-- Garak (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

"The truth is usually just an excuse for a lack of imagination."

MS. B: Originally intended as a spear carrier on Deep Space Nine, Garak would evolve to become one of the most complex and intriguing characters in the history of Trek. A shop owner on the DS9 space station, Garak is trapped on the station after being exiled from his home planet. Precisely why he is in exile, however, is a mystery. So is his previous occupation, in which he was probably a spy, despite his insistence that he's never been more than a "plain, simple tailor." 

Tailor or spy, there's no denying that Garak always knows more than he's telling -- especially since he's not about to tell the truth when a lie will do. And as layers of his past are gradually revealed, the audience is still not always sure exactly whose side Garak is on. Mysterious, complex, and with an unbeatable sense of humor, Garak remains a favored character of many Deep Space Nine fans.

-- Lt. Commander Worf (Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

"Sir, I protest! I am not a merry man!"

TRACY: As a Klingon, Worf would never have been able to serve upon the Enterprise of the original series. In the 23rd century, humans and Klingons were enemies. But a century later, there was a fragile peace that allowed Worf to become a member of Starfleet. Worf is a complex character that struggles with his upbringing on Earth by humans who adopted him as a child, his place as an officer on the Enterprise, and his natural intensity as a Klingon. 

Despite what seems like his great annoyance with humans, he develops very strong and meaningful relationships with many of his crew mates. One of those was with Security Officer Natasha Yar, who was somewhat of a role model for him when he unexpectedly had to take on her position after her untimely death. His friendship with Counselor Deanna Troi also has a profound affect on him throughout the years, as she gives him a calm and reassuring person to turn to.

-- Major Kira Nerys (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

"Your faith seems to have led you to something of a contradiction."

"I don't see it as a contradiction."

MS. B: The second-in-command on Starfleet's Deep Space Nine space station, Major Kira Nerys is a Bajoran -- a people who have just come out of a forty-year period of being occupied by an alien race. Kira herself had a rough childhood, growing up in a refugee camp and losing both her parents at a young age. When we meet her on the station, she is tough, guarded, and very, very angry.

Over the course of the series, Kira works away at the anger, sadness, and fear left in her from her days as a Resistance fighter, gradually overcoming her pain with help from both her friends and her strong religious faith. The definite character arc and development that Kira is given makes her one of the most complex and compelling figures in the series -- an honor afforded to few other female Trek characters.




-- Post by Tracy and Ms. B

Bad to the Bone

There was a little girl 
Who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
She was very, very good --
But when she was bad, she was horrid.

Okay, it's kind of a silly way to describe a kid. But if we were talking instead about the art of writing poetry, those last three lines are right on target.

Writing poetry is hard. After all, poetry is the art of using the imagery and melody of words to convey the deepest of human emotions. It is, to put it mildly, a tricky balance act to get just right.

So it really shouldn't come as much of a surprise when it sometimes goes so, so wrong.

It's not that kind of "apology," but you can still appreciate the sentiment.

I took several poetry classes in college, and I came away with a deeper appreciation of poetry than I'd had before. I also came away with a strong love of bad poetry, because -- well, as you'll see, the bad poems can have a charm all their own. (I'm not alone in feeling this way: August 18 is the semi-official holiday of Bad Poetry Day.)

Bad poetry doesn't always happen accidentally, of course. Some of the best examples are poems written by their authors to be deliberately bad, either to serve a story or simply to entertain the audience. Gordon R. Dickson, a classic sci-fi writer, had the hero of his novel The Dragon and the George compose the following ode to the boredom of long trips:


An hour, an hour ... another hour ... 
Without a difference I can see, 
Like faceless children on a wall 
That stretches to eternity ...


It's not the best simile, maybe, but I'll give it that the image sticks with you.

The Internet is quite good at producing intentionally-bad poetry.

Then there was humorist Dave Barry, who was invited to write a poem by a "publishing company" who was soliciting some 3,000 other poems for publication in an anthology, which they would then sell to their 3,000 poets at the steal-away price of $49.95. Barry seemed to sense some funny business about the whole enterprise, and so he may not have been taking himself overly seriously when he wrote his entry for the project, simply titled Love. Here's a sample:


Love is what made Lassie the farm dog run back to the farmhouse to alert little Timmy's farm family whenever little Timmy fell into a dangerous farm pit;
Love is a feeling that will not go away, like a fungus in your armpit;
So the bottom line is that there will always be lovers
Wishing to express their love in an heirloom quality book with imported French marbleized covers;
Which, at $49.95 a pop multiplied by 3,000 poets
Works out to gross literary revenues of roughly $150,000, so it's
A good bet that whoever thought up the idea of publishing this book
Doesn't care whether this last line rhymes.


It wouldn't be Barry's final poetry-writing efforts, I'm happy to say.

Of course, the poems that are written in genuine earnestness -- but don't turn out to be quite as awe-inspiring as their authors intended -- are probably the most fun. Take this quatrain by John Close, a nineteenth-century poet whose output might be considered by critics to be inversely proportional to his talent:


Around the gods, each seated on a throne,
The poets, crowned like royal kings they sat.
Around their heads a dazzling halo shone,
No needs of mortal robes, or any hat.


Hats aside, I'm sensing a little hubris here anyway.

The Vogon aliens in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy torture their prisoners by reading terrible Vogon poetry to them. 

Sometimes bad poetry presents itself in the most unexpected of places. Poor Elisha Woodruff wasn't even a poet, but may be doomed to remembrance at the hands of Bad Poetry. Born in 1746, he would grow up to oversee the construction of two saw-mills in Vermont. He kept both in operation until 1816, when he was killed in an accident by his own merchandise. The epitaph on his tombstone mostly speaks fondly of Woodruff, as a husband, father, and friend, but the inscription begins with these verses:


How shocking to the human mind
The log did him to powder grind.


At least he'll be remembered.

There are times when bad poetry is unexpected because it's written by a poet who should know better. Eulalie might be the best example of this phenomenon, being written by Edgar Allan Poe, who is generally known as, y'know, a rather talented guy. Here's an exert from this particular masterpiece:


I dwelt alone
In a world of moan,
And my soul was a stagnant tide,
Till the fair and gentle Eulalie became my blushing bride ...


That the vapor can make
With the moon-tints of purple and pearl,
Can vie with the modest Eulalie's most unregarded curl --
Can compare with the bright-eyed Eulalie's most humble and careless curl.


This was most likely written the same year as Poe's poetry magnum opus The Raven. Apparently, he either wrote The Raven first and used up all his efforts for the year doing so, or he wrote Eulalie first and was saving his strength for more important works later.

In the hit show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the fearsome vampire Spike was previously known as William the Bloody because ... he wrote bloody awful poetry.

Poe wasn't alone in his ability to be a great writer who, like all human (and therefore fallible) artists, could still occasionally drop the ball. William Wordsworth, who is notable for writing my personal favorite poem, I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud, was also the "artist" behind The Thorn:


This heap of earth o’ergrown with moss,
Which close beside the Thorn you see,
So fresh in all its beauteous dyes,
Is like an infant’s grave in size,
As like as like can be:
But never, never any where,
An infant’s grave was half so fair.


I suppose we can't argue with that.

I'd be remiss in this entry if I didn't mention William McGonagall. He was a nineteenth-century poet who, much like director Ed Wood, has developed a cult following out of sheer admiration for the level of bad he was able to achieve. A weaver by trade, McGonagall found himself one summer morning suddenly inspired to write. His first effort was a tribute to his friend, the Reverend George Gilfallan, which began:


Rev. George Gilfallan of Dundee, there is none can you excel;
You have boldly rejected the Confession of Faith, and defended your cause quite well.
The first time I heard him speak, 'twas in Kinnaird Hall,
Lecturing on the Garibaldi movement, as loud as he could bawl.


Although my personal favorite is a tribute he wrote in honor of Sir John Ogilvy, a politician:


He was a public benefactor in many ways.
Especially in erecting an asylum for imbecile children to spend their days.


(You can read lots more of McGonagall's poetry here.)

Ross, of Friends fame, has been known to perform what he refers to as "wordless sound poems." Whether they're truly poetry or music, their ... quality remains unaffected.

It might surprise you to know (or perhaps not), but there is actually a contender for the Worst Poem Ever Written. It was composed by Theophilus Marzials, and is entitled A Tragedy. You can read the whole thing here, if you dare, but here's a sampling:


My thought is running out of my head;
My love is running out of my heart,
My soul runs after, and leaves me as dead,
For my life runs after to catch them -- and fled
They all are every one! -- and I stand, and start,
At the water that oozes up, plop and plop,
On the barges that flop
And dizzy me dead. 
I might reel and drop.
Plop.
Dead.                                            


It's not really any worse than My Heart Will Go On, if you ask me.

In the end, we probably shouldn't judge our less-talented poets too harshly. As Oscar Wilde observed, "All bad poetry springs from genuine feeling." It may be fun to laugh at the more unusual poetic offerings -- but it leaves me a little appreciative of poets from all levels of talent. Bad or good, their writings do, indeed, inspire emotion in their readers.

It just may not always be the emotion they intended.

-- Post by Ms. B 

Seventies Television Shows

Being a kid in the seventies meant watching a lot of television in my house. Probably too much, but I don't feel it was wasted. We had a lot less channels to choose from, but sometimes less is more. There were some bad television shows back then, just like there are now. But there were also quite a few groundbreaking, well made and entertaining shows as well. Today's blog is going to take a look at a few of those.


-- All In The Family (1971-1979)

This CBS show debuted in January 1971 and ran for 9 seasons. It followed the lives of the Bunker family of Queens, New York. Archie, a World War Two veteran and his lovable wife Edith along with their daughter Gloria and her husband Mike make up the center of the show. Archie is a well-meaning but opinionated and bigoted man who misses the days when people just like him ran things. But with the cultural changes of the 60s, Archie's world is out of whack. Based on an English comedy, Till Death Due Us Part, the show became one of the most successful shows in American television history (and spawned two successful spinoffs -- The Jeffersons and Maude) . What made it so successful was that people could identify with these characters' struggles and that they also dealt with such real life issues as racism, women's liberation, the Vietnam War, abortion and rape.


-- Good Times (1974-1979)

This show, about life in the inner city projects of Chicago, ran for  six seasons. It follows the lives of the Evans family lead by father James, Sr. (John Amos) and mother, Florida (Esther Rolle). Their three children live with them as they struggle to make ends meet. They are a loving and supportive family. While there had been shows before Good Times that focused on African American families, this was the first time a show dealt with the lives of poor inner city people. The original intention of the show was to deal with serious issues in a comedic way. However, with the popularity of Jimmie Walker's character J.J. and his catch phrase "Dyn-o-mite", the show took a different turn. Amos and Rolle were not happy about the change and Amos was fired after the 3rd season. The show ran for three more seasons, but it never recovered. Another little tidbit - this was a spinoff of Maude!


-- The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977)

Another groundbreaking show from the Seventies, was The Mary Tyler Moore Show starring Mary Tyler Moore as Mary Richards a young, single, career woman living on her own in Minneapolis. As the show starts Mary has recently broken off an engagement and is looking for work. She ends up as the associate producer for  a local television news broadcast. Her co-workers and her neighbors become her closest friends. Never before had a show had a single woman who was not dependent on a man for support as it's lead. Her again, was a show that dealt with many serious issues with a humorous angle.
The show ran for seven seasons and is considered by many to be one of the best shows in U.S. television history. And this is another show that produced spinoffs -- Rhoda (1974-1978) and Phyllis (1975-1977).

-- M*A*S*H (1972-1983)

M*A*S*H was one of the longest running shows in television history (it lasted longer than the Korean Conflict where the show was set!). It was based on the film MASH released in 1972. The show and the movie were an allegory for the Vietnam war, although that lessened through its eleven year run. It followed the lives of doctors, nurses and other army personnel in a surgical facility near the front lines of the Korean War. There were many laughs, but the show also dealt with many real life issues, especially concerning these soldiers dealing with being in a war zone and far away from their loved ones. The series finale, "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen" was the most watched episode of television at the time it aired February 28, 1983 with 125 million viewers.

-- The Waltons (1971-1981)

Set during the depression and World War II, The Waltons, followed this large, extended family as it struggled to survive in a small Virginia mountain town. It was based on Earl Hammer's book "Spencer's Mountain" and a 1963 film of the same name. John and Olivia Walton, along with their seven children and John's parents offered a warm and familiar place for viewers in the Seventies. The stories are told through the eyes of the now middle-aged John Jr., or John-boy as he was known to everyone. Unlike some shows of the time, the Walton children grew up, married and moved away. This leant a very believable quality to the show. Americans laughed and cried right along with the Waltons for nine seasons and several made-for-TV movies. One of the most well known, and often parodied, parts of the show was the ending when several of the characters would comment, through voice over, on the events in that episode as they would all bid each other good night.


-- Post by Tracy

Animated Animals

Odie, from the Garfield comic strip

I love my superhero comic books, but I also love a good comic strip -- those laugh-out-loud stories told through text and art that appear in the pages of the newspapers (and, increasingly, online).

In honor of the anniversary of Odie (who first appeared in newspaper pages on August 8, 1978), I thought I'd take a look at five of the most famous, influential, and unforgettable cartoon creatures to grace the pages of the funny pages:



5. Pogo Possum

He's served as inspiration to a generation of comic artist heavy hitters -- and found time to become the official "state 'possum" of Georgia. The star of the comic strip Pogo, this 'possum is the creation of cartoonist Walt Kelly, whose strip ran in newspapers for nearly 30 years.

Kelly, who was both strongly interested in politics and liberal, often wove his political philosophies into the fabric of his strip, using wit and humor to lighten the results. (Pogo's picture popped up on buttons during the 1952 presidential election, along with the motto, "I go Pogo.")

Pogo Possum lives in the marshes, along with such friends and neighbors as Albert the Alligator, Howland Owl, and Porky Pine. Amiable and good-natured -- and desiring to stay out of trouble -- Pogo's pals often get him into trouble for him, not in the least in continually pestering him to run for president. (Hey, it's an allegory.)

Never heard of the strip before?  You probably know one of the quotes. In 1970, Kelly designed a Pogo poster for Earth Day. It read, "We have met the enemy -- and he is us."

-- Read some sample strips here

-- Request collections of Pogo



4. Snowy 

Created in 1929, The Adventures of Tintin is the work of a Belgian artist who went by the pen name Hergé. The artist modeled Tintin on a previous character he'd created (Totor, an adventurous Boy Scout, who had been the subject of his own comic strip when Hergé was in high school). A former reporter, Tintin is a detective who is something of an Indiana Jones -- touring the globe to foil criminals, recover treasure and artifacts, and occasionally save the world. Many of Tintin's adventures were based on real-world events (like space exploration and international politics).

While Tintin is surrounded by a large cast, his most faithful companion is Snowy, a fox terrier dog. Smart, heroic, and definitely still doglike, Snowy accompanies his master on all of his adventures, and saves Tintin's life on more than one occasion. (He's only got one real fear: spiders!)  And, like many comic strip animal creations, Snowy can talk -- though often he only speaks to Tintin.

The character was named after Hergé's first girlfriend (her nickname was "Milou," which was Snowy's name in the original French versions of the comic).

-- Read more about Tintin at the official website

-- Request collections of The Adventures of Tintin

-- Request The Adventures of Tintin animated series on DVD

-- Request Stephen Spielberg's animated film The Adventures of Tintin on DVD or Blu-ray



3. Hobbes

If this were a more subjective list, Hobbes would've claimed the Number One spot on this list for me!  Named for the seventeenth-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes, this talking tiger is one half of the duo that make up Bill Watterson's wholly-awesome comic strip, Calvin and Hobbes. Premiering in 1985 and running for ten years, the strip gained a devoted fan following for its stories about childhood, friendship, and the magic of the imagination.

Hobbes himself is a plush toy, owned by six-year-old Calvin. When Calvin and Hobbes are on their own, Hobbes is drawn as a walking, talking tiger; when other characters enter the room, however, Hobbes is drawn as an ordinary plush toy. The nature of exactly what Hobbes is, is something the strip is always careful not to resolve. As explained by Watterson: Calvin sees his stuffed toy one way, and the rest of the world sees Hobbes another way. Hobbes's nature is, plainly put, a subjective look at reality.

Hobbes himself -- as seen by Calvin -- is smart, sharp, witty, and terribly proud of not being human. (He's decidedly a "wild animal," with one of his favorite activities being sneaking up on Calvin and pouncing on him.) With his wry, quiet wisdom, he's also a good compliment to Calvin's zany and mischievous personality -- making him the best friend and tiger a kid could hope for.

Hobbes: As seen by Calvin, and by the rest of the world

-- Request collections of Calvin and Hobbes

-- Request the book Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and His Revolutionary Comic Strip by Nevin Martell



2. Garfield

He's lazy, hates Mondays, and loves lasagna. You don't have to read Jim Davis's comic strip to know about Garfield, the fat and lazy orange cat belonging to one Jon Arbuckle.

First appearing in 1978, the strip has been in circulation ever since. The strip was a quick success, going on to become the most syndicated strip in the world (appearing in over 2,500 newspapers across the world). Inspiring Saturday morning cartoon series and even movies, Garfield also reigns supreme in merchandizing, appearing on everything from notebooks and t-shirts to coffee mugs and plush toys hanging in car windows. Not bad for a "lazy" cat!

(You can also check out the truly unusual website Garfield Minus Garfield, which offers a unique, post-modern take on the comic strip -- and the weirdly philosophical misadventures of Jon Arbuckle.)

-- Request collections of Garfield

-- Request Garfield the animated series on DVD

-- Request the live-action/animated films Garfield starring Bill Murray on DVD or Blu-ray



1. Snoopy

We've talked before about the appeal of Charles Schulz's Peanuts strip, and no where is that more evident than in the strip's most popular character: Snoopy. A beagle dog owned by the hapless Charlie Brown, Snoopy has a love for writing, his bird-pal Woodstock, and, most of all, dinnertime.

While not as "talkative" as Snowy, Snoopy -- like Garfield -- speaks at least to the audience, courtesy of some handy thought bubbles. (Woodstock seems to be able to understand him most of the time, too.) Of course, this authorial canine doesn't really need the spoken word to communicate: parading up to Charlie Brown with his own dinner bowl in his teeth seems to get the message across pretty clearly.

The character was inspired, in part, by Schulz's childhood dog, Spike (which happens to be the name of Snoopy's brother). Like Hobbes and Calvin, Snoopy serves as a good counterpart to his anxious, somewhat sad owner, with Snoopy always cheerful, confident, and ready to enjoy life -- particularly when snoozing atop his red dog house.

-- Request collections of Peanuts

-- Request Peanuts cartoons on DVD



-- Post by Ms. B 

World Wide Web

A lot has changed in 22 years.

On August 6, 1991, the first-ever website was born. It was the creation of Tim Berners-Lee, a British physicist in charge of the massive project of creating the World Wide Web. That first website was simple by our modern standards: it showed an outline of his project, and some tips to readers on how to make their own web pages. (The website address? http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html -- still in use today.)

To clarify: the world wide web and the Internet are two separate entities. The Internet's been around since the 1960s, and simply refers to computers and networks interconnected with each other. The World Wide Web, on the other hand, is merely one service that the Internet offers -- but it's the tool that most of us use in order to access the Internet's text, pictures, sounds, and video. (If you're interested, you can read more about the technical differences between the two here.)

So unless you're a tech whiz, you use the World Wide Web pretty much exclusively when you access the internet. And we 21-century sorts use the internet a lot. 

Here's some usage facts to try to wrap your mind around:

-- In 2012, there were 2.4 billion Internet users around the world.

-- 244 million of those users are in America. (That's 78% of America's total population.)

-- Over one billion people have a Facebook account.

-- More than 500 million personal photos are uploaded to the Internet every day (using such websites as Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and Flickr).

-- 100 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute.

-- 15% of all internet traffic is coming from mobile devices, such as cell phones.

Computers and the Internet have helped usher in the modern age, but the World Wide Web has changed our everyday life. (Probably, it's arguable, for better and for worse.)

It's changed how we watch TV, view movies, and listen to music. (How we read books is probably next on the list.) It's changed how we learn, how we shop, and how we socialize. It's changed how we get our news and how we spend our time.

Most of all, it's put a world of information directly at our fingertips. Going to www.google.com and typing in a topic or a question has become such a standard method of finding answers that it's become a verb: "Just Google it!" However, whether or not such answers are coming from trustworthy sources can be another matter entirely. (Always remember, however, that we librarians are here to help sort out such matters!)

Computers have been used as tools for decades. But the last 22 years have seen them entirely alter our daily way of life. It remains to be seen what the lasting effect of the World Wide Web will be on our society -- but whatever happens, it's all but guaranteed that the world will never be the same.

All About the World Wide Web:

-- History of the Web: from Tim Berners-Lee's organization, the World Wide Web Foundation.

-- Internet Timeline: includes the introduction of the World Wide Web!

-- The Single Most Valuable Document: The World Wide Web was almost ... patented. Check out this article from NPR for more!

-- What 14 Popular Websites Used to Look Like: Websites looked a lot different in the 90s.



Website Lists:

-- Recommended Websites: MPL's own list of trustworthy research and reference websites.

-- 50 Websites: Time's list of the websites that make the World Wide Web great.

-- 2013's Most Addictive Websites: A highly subjective -- but still plenty fun -- list.

-- Great Websites for Kids: Recommended by the American Librarian Association.

-- 20 Really Cool Websites to Help Cure Boredom: Time-wasting in its most fun sense!

-- The Useless Web: Having trouble finding a thoroughly useless website?  Here you go!



-- Post by Ms. B 

Local History Comes Alive

Over a two-day period in August 1763, the fate of the future of Pittsburgh, and of the United States, was determined. The Battle of Bushy Run took place ten miles east of present-day Monroeville, near what is now Harrison City. The battle was a pivotal moment in the French and Indian War (1754-1763), which was actually fought between the French and the British for control of North America. (In Europe and Canada, it is called The Seven Years' war.)

The North American conflict began in 1754 with the battle for Fort Duquesne, where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet to form the Ohio River. The French, along with their Native American allies, controlled this important waterway, but the British felt they had the right to these lands and rivers. The first attempts by British troops to take control failed, but by 1758, the French would abandon the fort with the approach of General John Forbes's army. A new fort was soon built and named Fort Pitt, in honor of William Pitt, Britain's Minister of War.

In August 1763, Colonel Henry Bouquet was on his way to bring relief to Fort Pitt, which had been held under siege for two months by Indians. Bouquet and his troops set off from Fort Ligonier on August 4th. They camped along the trail that night and headed towards Bushy Run Station the following day.  After traveling seventeen miles, and only being about a mile away from Bushy Run, they were attacked by Indians.

Bushy Run Mounument

By nightfall, 60 of Bouquet's soldiers would be dead. The Colonel was unsure whether they would survive another day. He felt the only way they could defeat the Indians was by making them believe that the British were retreating. The idea was to get the enemy into the open where Bouquet's men could fight them. The next morning, August 6th, Bouquet met with his officers to inform them of his plan.

The plan worked. The Indians sustained a high number of casualties, but that didn't stop them from making one more attempt at attacking the British. However, the Indians were not successful. Despite suffering great losses, the British troops marched on towards Fort Pitt, where they were able to provide supplies and relief to the civilians and troops trapped in the fort.

To commemorate the 250th anniversary of this historical battle, the Bushy Run Battlefield Historical Site is hosting a three-day event (August 2-4), filled with activities, lectures, and a reenactment. Don't miss out on this educational and fun event.

To learn more about the Battle of Bushy Run, and other events during the French and Indian War, check out some of the books, DVDs, and websites below:


-- "Broken Promises, Broken Dreams: North America's Forgotten Conflict at Bushy Run Battlefield" (Pennsylvania Heritage Magazine)

-- "Events mark Bushy Run battle's 250th" (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)


-- Bushy Run Battlefield by David Dixon

-- The Battle of Bushy Run by Niles Anderson

-- War For Empire in Western Pennsylvania Edited by J. Martin West

-- War That Made America (DVD)


-- Post by Tracy

All For One

I love The Three Musketeers.

That is to say, I love the classic novel The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas. And, if you've read or seen any version of the story, you'll know that the book is actually about four Musketeers. There's the experienced trio of Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. But there's also the headstrong, determined, quixotic D'Artagnan, who has just left home and family and is on a quest to join the Musketeers.

D'Artagnan first meets his future friends when he makes it to Paris and promptly manages to insult three different people in the space of a few minutes. Each man challenges D'Artagnan to a duel, and D'Artagnan, never one to back down from a challenge (his father told him not to!), schedules the duels back-to-back-to-back. When he arrives at the meeting place for Duel #1, he quickly realizes that the three men he's fighting in turn are all friends -- and that, moreso, they are all Musketeers.

The duels never take place; the four of them become too busy fighting off the Guards of Cardinal Richelieu (who have arrived to arrest them for illegal dueling). D'Artagnan may be young and rash, but he proves his bravery and honor when he assists the three Musketeers in overpowering the Guards. The trio decides to take D'Artagnan under their wings, and what follows is a high-rollicking adventure tale packed with action, intrigue, and broad, sweeping romance.

Dumas would go on to write two sequels to The Three Musketeers: Twenty Years After and Ten Years Later. (The third novel, Ten Years Later, is so lengthy that it's often published as three separate volumes: The Vicomte de Bragelonne, Louise de la Valliere, and The Man in the Iron Mask.) The Three Musketeers and The Man in the Iron Mask remain the most-read works from Dumas's complete "D'Artagnan Romances" cycle, and have inspired numerous stage and film adaptations.

While the D'Artagnan Romances are, of course, historical fiction, it's interesting to note that they were historical fiction even at the time of their publication. The Musketeers' tales are all set in the seventeenth century, but Dumas himself was writing them in the nineteenth, with The Three Musketeers first appearing in serialized installments in 1843. That first novel was written by Alexandre Dumas and a collaborator, Auguste Maquet, a history teacher and fellow author (if one of less acclaim, by far, than Dumas, who was already a celebrated playright when he wrote Musketeers).

Dumas and Maquet did some homework for their tale, and the D'Artagnan Romances are based on a real-life figure. Charles de Baatz d'Artagnan, born in 1623, became the capitaine lieutenant of one of King Louis XIV's two Musketeer companies. He was a lifelong soldier who would go on to be appointed governor of Lille, and he died in battle in Hollan in 1673.

The Memoirs of Charles D'Artagnan were written by another real-life Musketeer (though not, unfortunately, by Charles D'Artagnan himself), and it was these memoirs that served as much of the inspiration for Dumas's novels. The other three Musketeers -- Athos, Porthos, and Aramis -- were also all real-life figures, who receive mention in the D'Artagnan memoirs. How much of these "memoirs" are factual is a matter of some debate, but what's certain is that both D'Artagnan and the Musketeers were figures who really existed.

The Musketeers themselves were formed by King Louis XIII of France, a combination of soldier and personal royal bodyguard. Louis armed his personal guards with a newly developed flintlock, muzzle-loading riffle -- the musket (hence the company's name). The Musketeers of history were variously disbanded and reassembled throughout the next two hundred years by various members of French royalty, before finally being permanently dissolved in the time of Napoleon.

A monument to the Four Musketeers in Southern France

Of course, in the end, the lasting appeal of D'Artagnan and the three Musketeers lies not in their factual history, but rather in what they've come to represent.

From the beginning, the Musketeers have had a glamorous appeal. King Louis XIII was something of a romantic, and he had a fondness for the by-gone days of chivalry. (It's what made him so reluctant to actually enforce any of those anti-dueling laws he kept enacting -- seeing as dueling itself was, in theory at least, a method of "defending one's honor.") The Musketeers themselves were career soldiers who did not include noble blood as an entry requirement to their ranks; you became a Musketeer through your own actions and merits, not by merit of your birth.

Dumas himself seemed entranced by the romantic chivalry of the Musketeers, writing about them two hundred years after their real-life creation. Audiences since then have responded to his books in kind, taking the stories to heart for their action, adventure, and chivalry.

Even in medieval times (where we think of the concept originating), chivalry was generally far more of a theory than a practice. There wasn't much more of it in the seventeenth century. So rather than harkening back to a better, nobler past, D'Artagnan and his friends represent a world of bravery, courtesy, and honor that's never really existed outside the pages of a book.

Or, at least, one that has not existed yet. It's true that the fun and adventure of Dumas's Musketeer tales is undoubtably a primary reason for the stories' staying power. And yet, the ability of story to inspire should never be overlooked. People would not keep reading these books if they did not see some appeal in the ideals of courage, honor, and friendship that Dumas wove throughout his stories. Hopefully, that appeal will prove inspirational to Dumas's readers. The honorable world of the Musketeers may not be in our past -- but perhaps it may be in our future.

Alexandre Dumas, born on July 24, 1802

From the Catalog:

-- The Three Musketeers
-- Twenty Years After
-- Ten Years Later
* The Vicomte de Bragelonne
* Louise de la Valliere
* The Man in the Iron Mask

-- All books by Alexandre Dumas
-- Film adaptations of The Three Musketeers
-- Film adaptations of The Man in the Iron Mask


(non-fiction)

-- D'Artagnan, The Ultimate Musketeer: A Biography by Geoffrey F. Hall and Joan Sanders.
-- Éminence: Cardinal Richelieu and the Rise of France by Jean-Vincent Blanchard.
-- Books on King Louis XIII
-- Books on King Louis XIV



-- Post by Ms. B