Regardless of the circumstances, I always find myself pausing on Constitution Avenue or 16th and H Streets NW to gaze at the Executive Mansion; my head usually in the stars. Somewhere in its upper reaches, even late at night, there's a light or two on and looking at those windows, the pomp, history, and hopelessly muddled contemporary politics abate; the real and imagined barriers of that immense power seem to give way to basic truths about what it means to be successful in America. Of course, nobody except those closest to the President ever get to witness that incredibly unique and valuable perspective - Until their death, that is. Nothing in this life is as equalizing and humanizing as its end.
It's been said that as you approach 30, you realize a lot of the things that you had been self-conscious about growing up were distracting and at times debilitating wastes of time. In short, people really weren't thinking about you all that much. And your young life becomes increasingly idealized as it gets eroded away by the harsh realities of life on what seems like a daily basis. In the past 48 hours alone, one of the nicest girls from every graduating class of mine from elementary school to high school passed away suddenly and inexplicably. To boot, my first "modern" love; someone I dated for four years (from the very first hours I was in college until we started getting into retrospectively comical fights about the way things would be set up when we inevitably tied the knot), got married. Of course, it was to someone other than myself. I'm at once surprised, happy, and even a bit mournful over the way I've been able to put these jolting events into perspective. If I'm lucky enough to live deep into old age, I can't imagine the sheer amount of wisdom that I'll have from a lifetime of context.
That being said, what follows are the last words of men who have called 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW home (And George Washington, too). Those Presidents for which no record exists are omitted:
- Washington: "I die hard, but I am not afraid to go. 'Tis well."
- Adams: "Thomas Jefferson survives."
- Jefferson: "Is it the Fourth? I resign my spirit to God, my daughter to my country."
It's still a source of constant amazement that these two men died on the same day (50 years to do the day the Declaration of Independence was fully accepted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776). And it's always great to be in the presence of someone finding that out for the first time. Sure, certain details might have been embellished and romanticized over the generations. But the two men had renewed their famous friendship, even if was simply because old age and loneliness caught up with them. As their loved ones and peers systematically died off, it's not a stretch to say they were living to correspond with each other at the end.
- Madison: "Nothing more than a change of mind, my dear."
- Monroe: "I always talk better lying down."
- Adams: "This is the last of Earth. I am content."
- Jackson: "Oh, do not cry. Be good children and we shall meet again in Heaven."
- Van Buren: "There is but one reliance."
- WH Harrison: "I wish you to understand the true principles of government. I wish them to be carried out. I ask nothing more."
- Tyler: "Doctor, I am going. Perhaps it is best."
- Polk: "I love you, Sarah. I love you for all eternity."
- Taylor: "I am sorry I am about to leave my friends. I have tried to do my duty, and am not afraid to die. I am ready."
- Fillmore: "The nourishment is palatable."
- Buchanan: "Oh God Almighty, as thou wilt."
- Lincoln: "She won't think anything about it," in response to his wife's questioning of what "Miss Harris would think of her hanging onto him so."
- Johnson: (Suffered a fatal stroke while writing addressing the popular - and historically correct - opinion that his failed Reconstruction policies were even greater failings compared to what Lincoln's would have been) "I was somewhat surprised when I received your account of VEEP Wilson's conversation with Governor Isham Harris and others in regard to what would have been the policy of President Lincoln, if he had lived. In your letter, you state that Wilson....."
- Grant: "I want nobody distressed on my account."
- Hayes: "I know I am going where Lucy is."
- Garfield: "This pain, this pain. Swaim, can't you stop this? Oh, Swaim.
- B. Harrison: "Are the doctors here? Doctors, my lungs..."
- Cleveland: "I have tried so hard to do right."
- McKinley: Whispered the tune "Nearer, My God, to Thee." Then, "We are all going, oh Dear."
- T. Roosevelt: "Please, put out the light."
- Wilson: "The machinery has just worn out. I am ready."
- Harding: "That's good. Go on; read some more."
- Coolidge: "Good morning."
- Franklin Roosevelt: "I have a terrific headache."
- Eisenhower: "I want to go; God take me."
- Kennedy: "That's obvious." In response to Nellie Connally's wife's remark "You can't say that Dallas doesn't love you today, Mr. President."
- Johnson: "Send Mike immediately."
LBJ died relatively quickly after he left office, and a lot of that can probably be traced back to a famous and personally respected, albeit tragic anecdote - "On Inauguration Day, Johnson saw Nixon sworn in, then got on a plane to fly back to Texas. When the front door of the plane closed, Johnson pulled out a cigarette - the first he had smoked since his heart attack in 1955. One of his daughters pulled it out of his mouth and said, 'Daddy, what are you doing? You're going to kill yourself.' He took it back and said, 'I've now raised you girls. I've now been President. Now it's my time!' From that point on, he went into a very self-destructive spiral."
- Reagan: All we know of Reagan's last minutes and even years is what Nancy and the rest of the family gathered by his bed-side described as a transcendental moment - Ravished by Alzheimer's and waking from a coma, he looked directly at his beloved "Mommy," smiled clearly, and passed away.
His last official contact with the American public is as poignant as it comes, will probably be housed in the National Archives someday, and serves as a fitting end to this entry.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
TV Notes and other Newark-Centric Stray Thoughts
- Leighton > Lively. I'm not crazy, right? I know that all of the Twilight Zone's episodes were more or less constructed like this, but I feel like I'm in one; where everybody unquestionably perceives something that I just can't for some chilling reason. And while on topic, all I know of that wildly popular tweenager's wet dream of a show is what Joel McHale succinctly mocks for me on a weekly basis, but that Chuck Bass character seems halfway brilliant - "Looks like you just hooked yourself a bass! *stares creepily, kisses dude.*"
- I realize ripping on SNL in 2009 is like criticizing the Bush Administration's Iraq exit strategy, but between the pathetic reliance on fart jokes, an endless, disjointed parade of celebrity cameos, and the loss of any semblance of accurate impersonations (Fred Armisen as Obama, I'm looking at you), they've reached their once-every-five years nadir. Kristin Wiig is certainly not helping things - I'm pretty sure Keanu Reeves is jealous of her range. Still, I'm intrigued by an admittedly wishful rumor that has Lorne Michaels toying with the idea of taking every other week off, but having a longer (if not year-round) season. The show doesn't always have to be political, but come on... between American politics reading like a Katharine Graham nightmare, the Balloon Boy saga, etc., the uninspired and aimless mess they churn out each week is inadequate at best, sub - Mad TV quality at worst. God bless Taylor Swift and her undeniable magnetism for trying, though.
- No real Mad Men spoilers here for those still catching up since this is weeks late, but I absolutely love the "lawnmower incident" as a JFK assassination allegory (be it from an exhausted, blood-stained Joan as Jackie to the promising, style over substance young leader shockingly and suddenly cut down in his prime). And the fact that it basically came from a commenter on the blog of a TV critic for the Newark, NJ Star Ledger makes it even more amazing. Not that he hadn't already proven himself with his nationally renowned Sopranos reviews, but Sepinwall has really solidified himself as a beacon for intelligent discussion of intelligent television.
- Speaking of the Kennedy Assassination, and spawned by a recent History Channel piece that gloriously offered no hopeless commentary and took no liberties with the primary sources that comprised 99.9% of the program ...
I loathe irresponsible conspiracy theories as much as the next person, but I fear the misguided 9/11 "Truthers" or whatever the hell those poor souls want to go by have tainted what is some legitimate and historically responsible research into the litany of suspicious things that were going on in Dallas on November 22, 1963. Before practicing pseudo-psychology and casting off all contrarian views of the Warren Commission as a manifestation of American society's inability to process the transition from the idyllic 1950s to the tumultuous 60s, take the time to evaluate any author's citations and recall the true definition of a conspiracy - it doesn't mean that the famous Onion headline has to hold true, it just means more than one person was aware of what the shooter planned.
Beyond that, the lingering question anybody who has visited the superbly oriented and maintained Sixth Floor Museum comes away with remains inexplicable - If Oswald was indeed the lone shooter, why on earth would he not take the fateful shots as the motorcade came up on Houston Street? Not only is it a much easier shot, but even when William Greer inevitably accelerated, each subsequent shot would have been closer for anybody in that particular spot, not more difficult as was the case in Dealey Plaza. Oswald's alleged perch makes so much more sense if there was an accomplice, be it on the Knoll, Triple Underpass, or in the Dal-Tex Building. As a historian, I'm naturally skeptical of Oliver Stone's excessive use of the creative license, but in addition to popularizing some pretty basic facts, he brings up a great point that too often gets lost in not only his personal distortions, but the white noise of JFK conspiracy theories - Ask why, don't get caught up in the how ... Part of the reason so many are still hung up on that dark chapter in American history is because Kennedy represented such a stark and hopeful contrast to the shadowy and increasingly bold elements of the old guard who wanted nothing more than to move against the Soviet Union by way of Cuba.
- Anybody sticking with the too-frequently unintentionally hilarious Flash Forward? It's hanging around, despite the fact it has to be hard for anyone without a DVR to switch over from NBC's vaunted Thursday-night lineup (Speaking of Joel McHale, Community has exceeded any and all expectations). Can't believe Joe Fiennes and his cavalcade of strained whispers has gotten a pass so far ... Cho (aka Harold of Harold and Kumar fame) can't be that bad. And I know a decent amount of initial reviews mentioned this, but it is indeed distracting how quickly the show seems to settling into the routine police procedural framework despite the obvious scale of the event. They haven't gotten us invested enough in the characters yet to ignore the fact the entire world should have been thrown into complete and barely irrevocable chaos. I guess it goes back to the "only interested in the cause" mentality that's already overtaken the vast majority of those who initially tuned in, but what's the President been up to? How many died? What's the Federal response been like? Did it effect astronauts? Geeky questions like that. Also, that schoolgirl "Ring Around the Rosie" intro a few weeks back, to borrow a quote from Sideshow Bob, was so cliche "it could have been sprung from the PowerBook of the laziest Hollywood hack."
- Sticking with ABC, I adore Modern Family so far. But I know it's nothing more than what The Office was initially - a faux-documentary as a vehicle for a by-the-numbers sitcom. But I think it will survive even when the (generally slow) viewing public compensates for the lack of a laugh track. Plus, Sophia Vergara. My God, Sophia Vergara.
- As some of you may know, I've been (less than) relentlessly working on a thesis this semester, so my course-load is light and my sleeping schedule is as close to normal as it might ever be. As a result, I've often found myself taking breaks in the 11am hour and as any student, retiree, or office worker playing hooky knows, that means... The Price Is Right! I'm happy to report Drew Carey is settling in nicely as Bob Barker's replacement and obviously that's no small feat. Additionally, the overly enthusiastic cross-section of America, perpetually knowledgeable on the exact price of Metamucil and Gold-Bond Medicated Powder is still well represented. If you can't crack a smile seeing frat guys and old ladies frantically embrace over comically and perpetually outdated prizes, you officially have no soul.
- I'm still a Late Show man through and through, so I missed the majority of Conan O'Brien's "important" feud with Newark Mayor Corey Booker. Nevertheless, I understand he caught some flack back up North for the amount of energy he devoted to what from the beginning was an obvious gag. Regardless, a friend put it best - In the end, he received hundreds of thousands of dollars to help the City. More than that, he highlighted specific and unique charitable efforts that aim to attack the root of the Newark's problems. And as an added bonus, he got the late night hosts to start ripping on Detroit instead of a Newark that was, and would have still been a great American city had it not been for the '68 race riots.
- Do people still not understand that Monday Night Football now exists as NBC's Sunday Night Football? If last night's "epic" Baltimore v. Cleveland match-up didn't give it away, I don't know what will. A consolation to the shoddy contests ESPN is legally obligated to air (every NFL team has to appear in primetime once a season) is a disorientingly crowded TV landscape on Mondays.
Other ramblings...
As someone who didn't drink in high school (NERD ALERT!) and only put in a year at Hofstra before switching to commuter status for the rest of my undergrad career, I was predictably introduced to the bottle relatively late in life. That being said, I'm pretty sure I'm already at the final phase of my relationship with alcohol: quality > quantity. Thus, I still am perplexed by those amateurs who sully high-end booze with mixers. I'm reminded of an anecdote...
"While sitting in a bar, we overheard an order for a JD Single Barrel and Coke. 'Who the hell orders that cut?' we asked. 'Julian Lennon,' said the waitress. Naturally. It goes to show: When you corrupt quality bourbon, all you do is embarrass Dad."
Re: the thesis, of course I picked a topic that had to do with our 16th President, however narrow it ended up having to be. I think the highlight of my research so far was Honest Abe's 1860 tongue-in-cheek missive to residents of Newark, NJ who were patronized even back then - "I shall be able to do no more than to bow to the people of New Ark from the train."
- The Red Line has been exemplary post-crash and since I've moved to Cleveland Park. Having typed that, I fully expect to sit in a tunnel, without explanation, somewhere between Dupont Circle and Farragut North come tomorrow's AM rush.
- I realize ripping on SNL in 2009 is like criticizing the Bush Administration's Iraq exit strategy, but between the pathetic reliance on fart jokes, an endless, disjointed parade of celebrity cameos, and the loss of any semblance of accurate impersonations (Fred Armisen as Obama, I'm looking at you), they've reached their once-every-five years nadir. Kristin Wiig is certainly not helping things - I'm pretty sure Keanu Reeves is jealous of her range. Still, I'm intrigued by an admittedly wishful rumor that has Lorne Michaels toying with the idea of taking every other week off, but having a longer (if not year-round) season. The show doesn't always have to be political, but come on... between American politics reading like a Katharine Graham nightmare, the Balloon Boy saga, etc., the uninspired and aimless mess they churn out each week is inadequate at best, sub - Mad TV quality at worst. God bless Taylor Swift and her undeniable magnetism for trying, though.
- No real Mad Men spoilers here for those still catching up since this is weeks late, but I absolutely love the "lawnmower incident" as a JFK assassination allegory (be it from an exhausted, blood-stained Joan as Jackie to the promising, style over substance young leader shockingly and suddenly cut down in his prime). And the fact that it basically came from a commenter on the blog of a TV critic for the Newark, NJ Star Ledger makes it even more amazing. Not that he hadn't already proven himself with his nationally renowned Sopranos reviews, but Sepinwall has really solidified himself as a beacon for intelligent discussion of intelligent television.
- Speaking of the Kennedy Assassination, and spawned by a recent History Channel piece that gloriously offered no hopeless commentary and took no liberties with the primary sources that comprised 99.9% of the program ...
I loathe irresponsible conspiracy theories as much as the next person, but I fear the misguided 9/11 "Truthers" or whatever the hell those poor souls want to go by have tainted what is some legitimate and historically responsible research into the litany of suspicious things that were going on in Dallas on November 22, 1963. Before practicing pseudo-psychology and casting off all contrarian views of the Warren Commission as a manifestation of American society's inability to process the transition from the idyllic 1950s to the tumultuous 60s, take the time to evaluate any author's citations and recall the true definition of a conspiracy - it doesn't mean that the famous Onion headline has to hold true, it just means more than one person was aware of what the shooter planned.
Beyond that, the lingering question anybody who has visited the superbly oriented and maintained Sixth Floor Museum comes away with remains inexplicable - If Oswald was indeed the lone shooter, why on earth would he not take the fateful shots as the motorcade came up on Houston Street? Not only is it a much easier shot, but even when William Greer inevitably accelerated, each subsequent shot would have been closer for anybody in that particular spot, not more difficult as was the case in Dealey Plaza. Oswald's alleged perch makes so much more sense if there was an accomplice, be it on the Knoll, Triple Underpass, or in the Dal-Tex Building. As a historian, I'm naturally skeptical of Oliver Stone's excessive use of the creative license, but in addition to popularizing some pretty basic facts, he brings up a great point that too often gets lost in not only his personal distortions, but the white noise of JFK conspiracy theories - Ask why, don't get caught up in the how ... Part of the reason so many are still hung up on that dark chapter in American history is because Kennedy represented such a stark and hopeful contrast to the shadowy and increasingly bold elements of the old guard who wanted nothing more than to move against the Soviet Union by way of Cuba.
- Anybody sticking with the too-frequently unintentionally hilarious Flash Forward? It's hanging around, despite the fact it has to be hard for anyone without a DVR to switch over from NBC's vaunted Thursday-night lineup (Speaking of Joel McHale, Community has exceeded any and all expectations). Can't believe Joe Fiennes and his cavalcade of strained whispers has gotten a pass so far ... Cho (aka Harold of Harold and Kumar fame) can't be that bad. And I know a decent amount of initial reviews mentioned this, but it is indeed distracting how quickly the show seems to settling into the routine police procedural framework despite the obvious scale of the event. They haven't gotten us invested enough in the characters yet to ignore the fact the entire world should have been thrown into complete and barely irrevocable chaos. I guess it goes back to the "only interested in the cause" mentality that's already overtaken the vast majority of those who initially tuned in, but what's the President been up to? How many died? What's the Federal response been like? Did it effect astronauts? Geeky questions like that. Also, that schoolgirl "Ring Around the Rosie" intro a few weeks back, to borrow a quote from Sideshow Bob, was so cliche "it could have been sprung from the PowerBook of the laziest Hollywood hack."
- Sticking with ABC, I adore Modern Family so far. But I know it's nothing more than what The Office was initially - a faux-documentary as a vehicle for a by-the-numbers sitcom. But I think it will survive even when the (generally slow) viewing public compensates for the lack of a laugh track. Plus, Sophia Vergara. My God, Sophia Vergara.
- As some of you may know, I've been (less than) relentlessly working on a thesis this semester, so my course-load is light and my sleeping schedule is as close to normal as it might ever be. As a result, I've often found myself taking breaks in the 11am hour and as any student, retiree, or office worker playing hooky knows, that means... The Price Is Right! I'm happy to report Drew Carey is settling in nicely as Bob Barker's replacement and obviously that's no small feat. Additionally, the overly enthusiastic cross-section of America, perpetually knowledgeable on the exact price of Metamucil and Gold-Bond Medicated Powder is still well represented. If you can't crack a smile seeing frat guys and old ladies frantically embrace over comically and perpetually outdated prizes, you officially have no soul.
- I'm still a Late Show man through and through, so I missed the majority of Conan O'Brien's "important" feud with Newark Mayor Corey Booker. Nevertheless, I understand he caught some flack back up North for the amount of energy he devoted to what from the beginning was an obvious gag. Regardless, a friend put it best - In the end, he received hundreds of thousands of dollars to help the City. More than that, he highlighted specific and unique charitable efforts that aim to attack the root of the Newark's problems. And as an added bonus, he got the late night hosts to start ripping on Detroit instead of a Newark that was, and would have still been a great American city had it not been for the '68 race riots.
- Do people still not understand that Monday Night Football now exists as NBC's Sunday Night Football? If last night's "epic" Baltimore v. Cleveland match-up didn't give it away, I don't know what will. A consolation to the shoddy contests ESPN is legally obligated to air (every NFL team has to appear in primetime once a season) is a disorientingly crowded TV landscape on Mondays.
Other ramblings...
As someone who didn't drink in high school (NERD ALERT!) and only put in a year at Hofstra before switching to commuter status for the rest of my undergrad career, I was predictably introduced to the bottle relatively late in life. That being said, I'm pretty sure I'm already at the final phase of my relationship with alcohol: quality > quantity. Thus, I still am perplexed by those amateurs who sully high-end booze with mixers. I'm reminded of an anecdote...
"While sitting in a bar, we overheard an order for a JD Single Barrel and Coke. 'Who the hell orders that cut?' we asked. 'Julian Lennon,' said the waitress. Naturally. It goes to show: When you corrupt quality bourbon, all you do is embarrass Dad."
Re: the thesis, of course I picked a topic that had to do with our 16th President, however narrow it ended up having to be. I think the highlight of my research so far was Honest Abe's 1860 tongue-in-cheek missive to residents of Newark, NJ who were patronized even back then - "I shall be able to do no more than to bow to the people of New Ark from the train."
- The Red Line has been exemplary post-crash and since I've moved to Cleveland Park. Having typed that, I fully expect to sit in a tunnel, without explanation, somewhere between Dupont Circle and Farragut North come tomorrow's AM rush.
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