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Author, Father, Reader, Etc.
The last Romantic--the symphonies of Gustav Mahler
Orchestral music was in a state of transition when Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) took up his pen and began composing symphonies, the likes of...
An Encyclopedia of Los Angeles
“There was a desert wind blowing that night. It was one of those hot dry Santa Anas that come down through the mountain passes and curl...
Triumph of the Antihero -- The 1961 Italian Grand Prix
It seems like a bad dream to Phil Hill, coming to Monza as the underdog to win the the 1961 drivers' world championship. What had...
As Contemporary as the Cell Phone
Johann Sebastien Bach was fooling around on the great organ in the Leipzig Cathedral when he composed the most hair-raising sounds ever...
The Well-Tempered Mind of J.S. Bach
Thomas Jefferson played violin and was familiar with the music of Vivaldi, Handel and Mozart, but it’s unlikely he ever heard of Johann...
Through the looking glass with Marco Polo
It’s the stuff of fantasy, not unlike the world of Alice in Wonderland, or of Dorothy in the Land of Oz, or of the time traveler in The...
Book Review—The Unfair Advantage—Mark Donahue Tells All
“The Unfair Advantage” is proof-positive that nice guys finish first—if they work hard. To say Mark Donohue was modest about his driving...
Book Review—"Inside the Third Reich"—A Cautionary Tale
When “Inside the Third Reich” by Albert Speer, arrived in bookstores in 1970, the Vietnam war was raging unabated. In an interview with...
Book Review—"The Best and the Brightest"—An Entertaining and Tragic Tale
It was a glittering array of talent. Vice president Lyndon Johnson was deeply impressed. After attending his first Cabinet meeting he...
George Frederick Handel - Superstar
George Frederick Handel was German--and a contemporary of Johann Sebastion Bach--who lived most of his adult life in London. Unlike...
A Middle-Class Invention
"England is a nation of shopkeepers." Thus spake Napoleon. Napoleon Bonaparte wasn't being complimentary. It was a put-down, his way of...
Eric Clapton--a tribute
Who knew? While the Beatles (raised on American Rock 'n' Roll) were perfecting their sound in the waterfront clubs of Hamburg, Germany,...
Roger McGuinn—an appreciation
My two sons were surprised. None of their high schools friends had ever heard of the Byrds. They’d heard of the Beatles—of course—and...
What Everyone Needs Most
When I was 12-years old, my brother brought home from the library “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. Judging by...
Black Jack Rolls a Seven in Champagne Country -- The 1966 French Grand Prix
While making the motion picture "Grand Prix" in 1966, filmmaker John Frankenheimer went to Reims, site of that year's French Grand Prix,...
Richard Nisley, On His Birthday
From Richard's son, Bill: My father's birthday was in August. I care about my father, and I care about all life. I, of course, have known...
Ordering Up A New World
Book Review: The Infidel and the Professor, by Dennis C. Rasmussen The “infidel” is David Hume and “the professor” is Adam Smith, two...
Fearless John Surtees drives his last race for Ferrari -- The 1966 Belgian Grand Prix
Henry Manney, wit, sage, and European Editor for ROAD & TRACK magazine in the 1960s, would stand behind a stone barn outside Burnenville...
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