We are celebrating World Radio Day with a party line of atomic secrets. Archives Technician Aaron located this image of two guys working on a ham radio in the South Pacific, with one guy on the phone under a sign saying, “SHHHH they are listening on the party line.” They are stationed at the Enewetak Proving Ground in the Marshall Islands under the direction of the Atomic Energy Commission. Their ham radio number was KX6BQ. The Enewetak Proving Ground is where the United States was testing atomic weapons before moving to Nevada. Nothing like broadcasting explosive sounds from the islands! I find it funny to have a place where you are doing top secret work and your communication system is a party line.
I know a girl from an island, she stands apart from the crowd. Moana, eponymous hero of her own magical Disney film, is a spirited teenage voyager and heir to the chiefdom of a Polynesian island village. She’s voiced brilliantly by Auliʻi Cravalho, both in dialogue and song. This article celebrates Moana as the perfect role model, whether you’re a headstrong youngster or a shiny old crab. [read more on goodcharacters.blogspot.com]
From 1708 to 1711, Woodes Rogers led a South Pacific privateering voyage to raid French and Spanish ships for England. The crew included Captain Edward Cooke, who wrote about their experiences. On January 31, 1709, the crew saw a fire on Juan Fernandez Island, near Chile. The next day, they anchored at the island and met Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish castaway living alone since 1704 after abandoning a British expedition. Selkirk lit the fire to alert the ship, which he assumed was British and therefore, an ally. Previously, Selkirk had only encountered Spanish ships and decided to hide from them.
During Selkirk’s first several months on the island, he built two huts with Pimento trees and lined them with goatskin after using his gun to kill goats. He was able to create fire by rubbing two sticks of Pimento wood. It was hard for Selkirk to digest fish without salt as a preservative, but he could eat crawfish, goats, turnips, cabbage, and season his food with allspice from the pimento trees. Selkirk had befriended cats who escaped ships that visited the island. One of his amusements was to teach his cats and goats how to dance, as pictured here. Selkirk was the inspiration for Daniel Defoe’s fictional character, Robinson Crusoe.
Images from:
Henry, David. An Historical Account of All the Voyages Round the World, Performed by English Navigators… Vol. 2. London: printed for F. Newberry …, 1773-74.
Movie Review: Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla
Movie Review: Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla
Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla dir. William Beaudine
Crooner Duke Mitchell (himself) and comedian Sammy Petrillo (himself) are on their way to a USO performance in Guam when they get lost on their way to the restroom and walk off the airplane. Good thing they were wearing parachutes! The pair land on the tropical island of Kolakola and wander around for a few days living on berries and raw…
