The Era -- Day By Day

[ChiTownScion]

And we still haven't seen her face. Not that Ed's the kind of cartoonist who'd run a gag into the ground, of course...

 

[LizzieMaine]

(All that, and the conclusion is "Secession is unwise?" How anticlimactic. Mr. Schroth can't be pleased with the result. And note that "terrorists" is now "patriots." I was wondering about that.)

Chinese forces entrenched in the rugged hills of Chekiang province have killed 2000 Japanese troops and are slashing at the spearhead of an airplane led enemy drive by 80,000 troops toward the important Allied base of Kinhwa in Eastern China, a communique reported tonight. Severe fighting continues in the main Chekiang battle in Yiwu, about 30 miles east of Kinhwa, the communique continued, but it was also acknowledged that the Japanese sea-borne forces have gained a foothold near Foochow in Fuikien province about 225 miles to the south.

The Mexican Government today rushed place that nation on a war footing, with the Mexican Congress expected to vote to approve a formal declaration of war against Germany, Italy, and Japan by the middle of this week. Following Axis refusal to satisfactorily explain the torpedoing and sinking of the steamship Portrero de Llano with a loss of 14 lives on May 13th, Mexican President Manuel Avila Comacho announced last night that he would summon Congress to vote on a declaration of war. With a vote not expected until Thursday, it was expected that Congress would act swiftly on President Comacho's request to take strict measures calling for the immediate internment of Axis nationals and the seizure of Axis property.

The "Lone Wolf" of Queens, whose thirty-year police career was marked by his stubborn refusal ever to carry a gun, marked his retirement from the force last week. Detective Louis H. Noennich, who served for twelve years with the Missing Persons Bureau, was involved in some of the most sensational police-crime stories in the city over the course of his career. He was still a young patrolman in 1914 when he broke one of the biggest white-slave rings in Brooklyn history, and sent away its leader Joseph Anzelotti for a forty-year prison sentence. In 1915, Patroman Noennich walked unarmed into a saloon on New Utrecht Avenue and single-handedly disarmed and arrested notorious gangland figure Frankie Yale, and also broke up a narcotics distribution ring headed by the notorious Big Bankroll himself, Arnold Rothstein. And it was now-Detective Noennich who, in 1925, broke the kidnapping of five-year-old Raymond Vom Maluski and arrested his kidnapper, 61-year-old Mrs. Mary Jones. Detective Noennich and his wife Dorothea plan soon to leave their long-established residence in Queens Village for retirement in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Mary E. Dillon, president of the Brooklyn Borough Gas Company and chairman of the Brooklyn Defense Volunteer Office, will serve as an official sponsor of the U. S. Treasury Department's New York City War Bond Pledge Drive. Mrs. Dillon will join other business and civic dignitaries in the campaign, including Mayor LaGuardia, Governor Herbert Lehman, and former Governor Alfred E. Smith. More than 200 prominent New Yorkers have already volunteered their services for the drive.

One of Brooklyn's two surviving Civil War veterans will march next Saturday in the borough's Memorial Day Parade, sponsored by the Kings County Grand Army of the Republic. Robert L. Summers, who will celebrate his 100th birthday on November 17th, will serve as Grand Marshal for the parade, which marks the 76th anniversary of the formation of the G. A. R, and will also feature veterans of the Spanish American War and World War I. Parade organizers warn that the event is to be a solemn observation of the day, and not a carnival -- and stress that drum majors and majorettes performing stunts with batons "will not be tolerated."

Bensonhurst residents turned out in force this morning to give ninety local boys a warm send-off as they departed for military service. Ceremonies were held outside Sgt. Julius Goldstein Post No. 53, Jewish War Veterans, 6814 29th Avenue, commencing at 6 AM, with the new selectees treated to a hearty breakfast and given gift packages by members of the American Women's Volunteer Services. Five hundred persons crowded the street outside the clubhouse, as hundreds of others leaned out from apartment windows to cheer.

("'Aw, gawbless'm," says Sally as she pulls down the window. "Hope'y din' eat too many pancakes." "I bet Solly woulda gone f't'at," remarks Joe. "But hey, did I show ya t'is letteh I got yest'day? Says heeh onna en'vlope, 'CORP'RAL S. J. Pincus.' He awways was t'kinna guy takes chawge a' stuff." "Yeah," nods Sally. "Remembeh 'at time you fell inna brine vat, an' he was right t'eah t'pull ya out?" "T'ey made 'im a supehviseh f't'at," notes Joe. "I said he otta do me a faveh an' fawl inna vat so *I* could pull *him* out, but -- um --he din' see it 'at way." "A natch'rl leadeh," concludes Sally.)

(America's Biggest Small Town is ready.)

Reader WIlliam I. Davenport writes in to criticize Grover Whalen's plan to include a "sensational effigy of Herr Hitler" in the proposed War Day Parade on June 13th. Mr. Whalen by providing this effigy expects to provoke a storm of boos, hisses, and rotten eggs along the route of the parade "from Washington Square north," and Mr. Davenport questions whether it is appropriate or dignified to encourage such a "disagreeable and possibly vulgar exhibition for the sake of evoking disorderly manifestations from folks who enjoy that sort of thing."

(The More Things Change...)

(Never mind the Giants -- by what miraculous wizardry are the Braves in third place? Could it be that Stengel is some kind of, I don't know, genius???)

"Bald, tough, wiry, a half-pint package compounded of TNT," Gen. Jimmy Doolittle makes the front of TREND this week. General Doolittle, architect of recent smashing victories in the Pacific, has a mind composed of "a trigger brain and a couple of chapters of Joe Miller's Joke Book." Among his many accomplishments, capped this week by the surprise presentation by President Roosevelt of the Congressional Medal of Honor, is the fact that he is one of the only important aviators living to have successfully dodged one of Grover Aloyisius Whalen's glittering receptions.

Old TImer William Leonard continues his stroll along the Flatbush Avenue of old, c. 1886, by recalling kindly Mrs. Sinnott, who always had a basket of fresh grapes to hand over the fence to those negotiating the treacherous cobblestones past her home.

Rosalind Russell continues to build her place in Hollywood as the feminine equivalent of Edward Arnold by appearing in Paramount's "Take A Letter, Darling" as the no-nonsense president of a plush Manhattan advertising agency. In previous roles she has been seen as a judge, a private detective, an insurance broker, and a newspaper editor, "all roles that represent a feminist's dream."

(Does it really translate into dialect? Language is such a sociological construct.)

("Come on, laugh at my white hat with a bright yellow band, you internet dandies of the distant future! I DARE YA!")

(Even a bum has to keep up with the show-business trades.)

(Not liking this new Mary Worth artist at all. And what's that symbol at the bottom of panel 12? One of those crossed-out Scandanavian O's? The Greek letter Phi? Or were they playing tic-tac-toe and forgot to erase it all? Meanwhile, Dan interrupts Irwin's Sunday page to insert chiding etiquette advice? WELL AREN.T YOU MISTER PRIM AND PROPER.)

(Even worse, his decoder badge hasn't come in the mail yet.)

("Hey!" says Harry H. Hedgehog. "That's not a bad idea!")

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

A hokey count? Don't you know there's a war on?

I wonder how many daughters Mr. Hill has in college?

Gotta watch out for those nosey newsdealers!

Careful, remember what happened the last time you got on a boat.

Wait'll they find out it's just a prop from that cheap pirate movie filmed here in 1924.

"It's A Dog's Life."

"Reality Television?" It's been done.

Somehow I never figured Pat for a Gilbert & Sullivan fan.

If you're thinking of running away again, forget it.

"Spalpeen" -- from the Gaelic, meaning a cunning, mischievious rascal. Or, a devious little brat, depending on your point of view. Not to be confused with "spaldeen," a small pink rubber ball made to be hit with a broom handle. Although, in this case, that might not be a bad idea.

 

[Fading Fast]

(All that, and the conclusion is "Secession is unwise?" How anticlimactic. Mr. Schroth can't be pleased with the result. And note that "terrorists" is now "patriots." I was wondering about that.)
...

It's not hard to picture some of our young comicstrip ladies "wolfing" sailors.

...

Rosalind Russell continues to build her place in Hollywood as the feminine equivalent of Edward Arnold by appearing in Paramount's "Take A Letter, Darling" as the no-nonsense president of a plush Manhattan advertising agency. In previous roles she has been seen as a judge, a private detective, an insurance broker, and a newspaper editor, "all roles that represent a feminist's dream."
...

And in the Daily News...

A hokey count? Don't you know there's a war on?
...

With the Webb trial on hold for the weekend, kudos to Page Four for finding a marriage between a shammy count and a "sub-deb" with a rich-from-gold-prospecting father. Those combinations don't grow on trees.

...

I wonder how many daughters Mr. Hill has in college?
...

Or how many 1930s MGM college-themed movies he's watched.

...

Gotta watch out for those nosey newsdealers!
...

Van Dyke and Mrs. Yollman might be all ready to forgive and forget, but I don't think the law will feel the same toward them.

 

[LizzieMaine]

(Well, isn't this an eventful day. Somehow I think Mr. Shonbrun's confession is a matter of "too little, too late." And I'm afraid I have to question Butch's theology here -- there doesn't seem to be any evidence in any scriptural text to support the idea that the Consolidation Act of 1897 was in any way of divine origin. Unless he's into some kind of Gnostic stuff, but I wouldn't want to get into that. And as for Levine, what can be said? At least he's off the streets.)

A 28-year-old Ozone Park man is being held without bail on robbery charges following his arraignment today in Brooklyn Felony Court. Paul Genessee, alias Paul Daly, of 150-45 125th Street, was charged with holding up a stationery store at 2689 Fulton Street, only to have his escape foiled when the proprietor of the store, 38-year-old Ben Kaplan, slugged him on the head several times with a claw hammer. For some reason, according to police, Genessee threw away the $60 in stolen cash when he recovered consciousness, but only about a third of the money was recovered. The suspect is reported to have an extensive police record, including a stretch in Sing Sing.

Every air raid siren in the city will be tested at Saturday noon, and every Saturday noon thereafter, it was announced yesterday by Mayor LaGuardia. Speaking in his weekly radio broadcast over WNYC, the Mayor also warned residents to prepare for the first city-wide blackout drill, which will be held with little to no advance warning sometime within the next week to ten days. The Mayor noted that last week's Manhattan dimout was "miraculous," but he agreed with Major General Thomas A. Terry, commander of the 2nd Corps Area, that it "was still not good enough."

Police officials reported that weekend motor traffic dropped considerably as the effects of gasoline rationing continue to take hold. Only 12,000 persons were reported at Jones Beach yesterday, down from the 20,000 usual for this time of year, and only 10,000 automobiles had passed thru the Holland Tunnel by 7pm last night compared to the usual 30,000. An estimated 400,000 persons crowded the beaches at Coney Island yesterday, largest crowd of the year to date, but there were notable vacancies in the resort's parking lots. Only in the Rockaways did police report no notable decrease in the amount of motor traffic.

("Yeah," snorts Sally. "But who wants a sunboint head?")

(That's got to be the dullest still that could possibly chosen to represent "Yankee Doodle Dandy.")

(When you don't get the results you want, there's always spin.)

(Shooting galleries of the Era used what were called "Flobert rifles," cheap small-caliber guns loaded with cartridges containing only a primer. It was enough to fire a small slug at a target, but not enough to cause serious damage. Unless Bertha here brought a few shells of her own from work.)

Reader George W. McIlvaray writes in demanding that police do something about the barking dogs that make nights in the Bedford section "a bedlam." "Some of the newer residents own from one to three dogs apiece," he complains, and it's nuisance enough to hear them barking during the day. But at night, he declares, "it is very trying."

An estimate from the War Production Board estimates that about half of all cars now owned by Americans will vanish from the roads within the next two and a half years. WPB officials are hoping that the gasoline and tire shortages will drive millions of old jalopies off the highways and into the junkyards, where their valuable metal may be reclaimed for war use.

(I guess we're all resigned to the end of Fitz's active playing career, but it pleases me immensely that he'll be going out with the best batting average on the club.)

("I want a zoot suit -- with a reet pleat ---")

(You can't say Jo doesn't know her husband.)

(We've never actually seen John do anything more than frown disapprovingly, so Joey really shouldn't worry too much.)

(Hey, that's pretty resourceful. Ever think of becoming a Secret Operative?)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

It wouldn't surprise me at all for it to be revealed that someone on the draft board has a personal grudge against Mr. Tartaglione. Or even against Mrs. Tartaglione.

"Maytime?" I dunno, I kinda prefer "The Student Prince."

"Without my Evil Goatee I'll be UNRECOGNIZABLE!"

Hey, you know who else had a boat and knew his way around murky coves? Nick had a boat and knew his way around murky coves. Just putting that out there.

Lotta that happening lately.

Walt Wallet, Philosopher At Large.

Yeah, but watch him try to make it disappear.

Guess who's about to do something really stupid.

You know, hon, you could get a better job down at the precision-parts factory.

The Greatest Generation.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Oh, and...

Miss Lee is always one step ahead of the crowd.

 

[Fading Fast]

(Well, isn't this an eventful day. Somehow I think Mr. Shonbrun's confession is a matter of "too little, too late." And I'm afraid I have to question Butch's theology here -- there doesn't seem to be any evidence in any scriptural text to support the idea that the Consolidation Act of 1897 was in any way of divine origin. Unless he's into some kind of Gnostic stuff, but I wouldn't want to get into that. And as for Levine, what can be said? At least he's off the streets.)
...

There's rarely a boring day in the Webb trial. But I agree, his dramatic confession is just what he's saying now. Yet in theory, if he's genuinely making a confession to the crime, doesn't that stop this version of the trial or at least his part in it?

...

(We've never actually seen John do anything more than frown disapprovingly, so Joey really shouldn't worry too much.)
...

"Ritzy wren."

...

Hey, you know who else had a boat and knew his way around murky coves? Nick had a boat and knew his way around murky coves. Just putting that out there.
...

"With all of Annie's friends away, now would be a good time for me to come back as, with all the trouble she gets into, that kid needs a good protector. Plus, I see opportunity, with all these wartime shortages, for a, umm, facilitator of markets."

...

The Greatest Generation.

This is a heck of a build up.

Oh, and...

Miss Lee is always one step ahead of the crowd.

If I'm following this, which I'm not sure I am, he's trying to wrap a burlesque show inside fancier packaging and the Commissioner said he's wise to him. Nick would be a perfect éminence grise for just such situation, right Nick?

"Yeah, I could be an, uh, um, what he said."

 

[LizzieMaine]

(So much for Eli's "beau geste.")

Chinese troops have hurled back reinforced Japanese attackers from three sides of Kinhwa, and still hold the capital of coastal Chekiang province, 185 miles southwest of Shanghai, it was reported by a military spokesman today. In bloody battles it was stated that Japanese columns were defeated and forced to retreat nearly two miles to the south, about 7 1/2 miles to the east, and 8 1/2 miles to the northwest.

United States and Australian planes flew thru monsoon rains to fight off Japanese planes and continue their bombing of the enemy's two big invasion bases northeast of the Australian continent. The joint Allied force attacked airdromes at Rabaul, in New Britain Island, and Lee, on the north coast of New Guinea, raining bombs on the airfields and shooting down four Japanese interceptors that sought to drive them off.

To prevent the possibility of any poisonous snakes escaping during an air attack, the Brooklyn Children's Museum has moved its six dangerous reptiles to the Staten Island Zoo. Mrs. Jane Garrison, curator-in-chief of the museum, stated that the animals included two copperheads, one rattlesnake, one cottonmouth moccasin, and two Gila monsters.

The head of the War Production Board warned today that waste of essential war materials, such as scrap iron, will soon be made an act of treason. Donald L. Nelson, speaking before the National Association of Purchasing Agents' annual convention at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, also stated that before the end of this year, nothing will be produced or manufactured in the United States that is not essential either to the continuation of the civilian economy or the war effort.

(Before you tell a story, rehearse it.)

(Exactly what happened at the Brass Rail's opening that they feel the need to apologize for it? SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A STORY HERE WE'RE NOT GETTING. Oh, and if you're not heading to see Mr. Goodman at the Paramount, you're an ickie.)

Officials of Local 53 of the County and Municipal Workers of America CIO today demanded an investigation of the appearance by the Rev. Dr. Edward Lodge Curran
before the annual Communion Breakfast of Catholic employees of the Department of Finance on Sunday. In a telegram sent to Mayor LaGuardia and other city officials, the Local accused Rev. Curran, the former east coast representative of Father Coughlin, of "undermining wartime unity" in his remarks denouncing the American alliance with the Soviet Union, and charged that Rev. Curran "smuggled in" pro-Nazi propaganda in his address.

Several Soviet sailors who recently arrived at an unnamed eastern port will donate blood tomorrow to the Brooklyn chapter of the American Red Cross. By arrangement with the Soviet Consulate, the Russians will make their donations at the Brooklyn Red Cross headquarters at 47 Willoughby Street by tomorrow afternoon.

(Joe looks over at Stella the Cat, coiled under the kitchen stove, and winks at her. Stella opens her bright green eyes, uncoils, stretches to her full length, and winks back.)

(If Leon Henderson turned to crime...)

(I realize it's a legal necessity, but "unconditional release" sounds so brutally harsh. And never mind the Giants. What if the surging, surprising Braves think they could use a wily veteran to help their young staff, and what if Stengel knows Fitz from all his years in the National League, and what if they sign Fitz and he teaches that kid Spahn how to throw a knuckleball, and... well, what about THAT, Larry? HUH?)

The advent of twilight ball will also mean a change in the timing of the All Star Game this year. The 1942 midsummer classic will be played July 6th at the Polo Grounds, and Commissioner K. M. Landis, in agreement with the league presidents, announced yesterday that the contest will start at 5:30 pm rather than the accustomed mid-afternoon game time. The game was originally to have been played at Ebbets Field, but because all proceeds will be donated to Army-Navy Relief, it was agreed by all parties to shift the contest uptown to take advantage of the Giants' park's greater seating capacity.

Fourteen members of the Football Dodgers are now serving in the Armed Forces, with the list headed by Lt. Ace Parker, USN. Owner Dan Topping is also slated for Navy service before the 1942 National Football League season begins in September. It is anticipated that there will be sufficient veteran and young college players available to meet the necessary roster quotas.

(Never trust a man whose hat brim is as wide as his shoulder spread.)

("That goat was nothing! Let me tell you about this elephant I found!")

(Oh, John you're so adorable when you clench your little fist like that.)

(Tied to a chair in a dirty old barn? No underground lair? I'm disappointed, Marsh. You're just not trying anymore.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

He's not a rich man yet, but if he were, well, I bet someone could write a song about it.

BIggest lie in all this? "I haven't spoken to a girl since the day I met Madeline."

You know, it really COULD be Nick!

Oh, Min.

"Ew!"

"It's all in the eyes, kids. Remember that. All in the eyes."

War Is Hell.

If Skeez isn't in khaki a month from now, I'll eat my keyboard.

Miss Type is Snipe's hardboiled cousin.

Yep, she's Lana's roommate.

 

[Fading Fast]

(So much for Eli's "beau geste.")
...

Since there are others on trial, confessing isn't that simple. Kudos to the jury member for catching the inconsistency. Nice use of "beau geste," Lizzie.

...

To prevent the possibility of any poisonous snakes escaping during an air attack, the Brooklyn Children's Museum has moved its six dangerous reptiles to the Staten Island Zoo. Mrs. Jane Garrison, curator-in-chief of the museum, stated that the animals included two copperheads, one rattlesnake, one cottonmouth moccasin, and two Gila monsters.
...

"But, sir, what if they bomb Staten Island?"
"Why would anyone bomb Staten Island?"
"I'll start crating the snakes up for their trip, sir."

...

(Before you tell a story, rehearse it.)
...

Before you commit a murder, rehearse it. I think we are seeing a pattern that explains Shonbrun's failure in life.

...

(I realize it's a legal necessity, but "unconditional release" sounds so brutally harsh. And never mind the Giants. What if the surging, surprising Braves think they could use a wily veteran to help their young staff, and what if Stengel knows Fitz from all his years in the National League, and what if they sign Fitz and he teaches that kid Spahn how to throw a knuckleball, and... well, what about THAT, Larry? HUH?)
...

And Parrott, was "pudgy" really necessary today of all days?

...

(Tied to a chair in a dirty old barn? No underground lair? I'm disappointed, Marsh. You're just not trying anymore.)

It's probably too close to the river for an underground lair, so let's see what bondage allusions he comes up with before we judge the scene.

And in the Daily News...

He's not a rich man yet, but if he were, well, I bet someone could write a song about it.
...

Nothing energizes a day like a classic Page Four.

Always wondered about the name "Zero."

If true and she had no idea her husband was embezzling funds, I feel bad for the former Miss Pell as her life was just ripped out from under her.

...

You know, it really COULD be Nick!
...

How awesome would that be.

...

Oh, Min.
...

Live in crazy town long enough and it has to get to you eventually.

 

[LizzieMaine]

(I've heard of "Painting The Clouds With Sunshine," but "Painting The House With Gasoline" will never catch on. And if you read between the lines, it's reasonable to think that Mrs. Delfino will soon be welcoming a child. Well, maybe not "welcoming.")

Japan is concentrating large mechanized forces on the China-Burma border, possibly for a lightning drive thru Yunnan province toward Kumming, to coincide with intensified offensives in Chenkiang and Fukien provinces, it was revealed today by American volunteer pilots. The warning came following official disclosure that these "Flying Tigers" had silenced at least six more enemy artillery batteries along the west bank of the Salween River, 60 miles inside China in Yunnan province.

Japanese War Minister Gen. Hideki Tojo told an opening session of the Tokio Parliament that Japan's total losses in all theatres the war as of April 30th came to
9000 men killed and 20,000 injured. Without estimated Allied dead and wounded, Tojo stated that approximately 290,000 Allied troops have been taken prisoner, with Allied losses in material amounting to 1800 airplanes, 3500 guns, and 45,000 armored vehicles, trucks, and railroad cars. It was also stated that oil production in territories seized by Japan has "exceeded all estimates."

An eighteen-year-old Sunset Park youth has pleaded not guilty to charges that he beat a 63-year-old woman to death in her home in January of last year. William Peterson entered the plea at his arraignment yesterday before Judge Louis Goldstein in Kings County Court. It is alleged that, on January 24, 1941, Peterson broke into the 61st Street residence of Mrs. Catherine Watson, and struck her down with a tire iron, robbing her of $465 as she "lay quivering on the floor." Police say the youth took the time to place a pillow under his victim's head as she died. Peterson is being held without bail pending trial. A trial date has not yet been set.

(If this ends with Commissioner Moses marching the whole length of Ocean Parkway in a wet bathing suit, then I for one will be completely satisfied.)

An Astoria barber faces a charge of false advertising after he charged a police detective 20 cents extra for the application of a "scalp refresher" to the detective's bald scalp. Lieutenant Jacob J. Licker of the 16th Division, North Queens police, had come to the shop of barber Anthony Colosa and asked for a fifteen-cent shave. After the shave, Colosa applied the "refresher" fluid to Lt. Licker's shining pate, and then worked over the surface of the scalp with an electric vibrator. The Lieutenant had understood these services to be included in the price of the shave, but when Colosa tried to charge an extra 20 cents, Licker took him into custody. A large crowd of spectators laughed at Licker's testimony before Magistrate Jenkin R. Hockert in Long Island City Court, but Colosa was held for trial in Queens Special Sessions Court.

(If there is any actor who should be compelled to play S. Claus at every available opportunity it's Mr. Edward G. Robinson. "Behave yaself, kid, see or ya gonna get the business, nyahh! The business!")

(There's A New World Coming.)

Reader A. C. E. writes in to protest WPB regulations on dress lengths for women of her size. She admits to being "over three score" years of age, and is five feet, seven and one half inches tall. And she is in no way willing to show her "knees and round garters" just because some man in Washington says she can only have 28 inches of skirt. She suggests that if this is how it's going to be, men's trouser legs should also be limited to 28 inches in length, and let's see how THEY like it.

("The Wartime Cartoons of George Lichty" would be one of the great social documents of home front America.)

The City-Wide Citizens Committee For Harlem is alleging that racial discrimination is exercised in employment practices at Harlem Hospital, with the Rev. Robert W. Searle, general secretary of the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America, telling a Committee meeting last night that "job discrimination against the Negro is basic. If the Negro could get a job many of his problems could be cut off at the source." A spokesman for Harlem Hospital denied the charge, and declared "there's nothing wrong at Harlem Hospital."

("Hmph!" hmphs Joe. "T'one time it MATTEHS to go t' Bawston, an' we can't!" "Ahhhh," ahhs Sally, "remembeh t' las' time. LOS' BOT' GAMES. Wastea time." "Yeah," sighs Joe. "But t'em fried clams was good.")

The Blimp is soaring high in the National League batting race. Dodger expatriate Babe Phelps, who sat out most of last season following extensive disputes with Manager Durocher over his health and his dislike of boats and airplanes is now happy, comfortable, and hitting a bracing .352 for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Manager Durocher has no comment.

It seems, meanwhile, that blood will tell -- the Pirates, heavily fortified this season by rich Brooklyn blood, will donate the fluid of life en masse next week to the Red Cross and, unless the Dodgers hurry up and get organized, will become the first National League club to earn that distinction.

Box and Reserved seats are now available for the weekend Giants series at Ebbets Field, with 20,000 General Admission seats to the Decoration Day doubleheader held out until 11 am on May 30th. These tickets will be sold only at Ebbets Fields when gates open for that twinbill. Box and Reserved tickets for all three games in the series may be obtained now, at the ballpark or at the Dodger offices, 215 Montague Street.

NBC Television cut its schedule to six hours this week, and it is expected that another two hours will be cut off WNBT's transmission time later this summer. The change, made with the approval of the Federal Communications Commission, is the result of increased demands upon NBC staff due to the war, as well as the need to conserve equipment and supplies that are now irreplaceable due to war production demands.

(Street photography, what a cutthroat racket.)

(Oh, please please do. Take Jo along. She'll enjoy it.)

(Fun Fact: Luke Screed and Mayor LaGuardia go to the same tailor.)

(Well, actually you don't have any idea where he took her, but don't let that stop you.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

Gawdbless Miss Lavonne's roommate.

The News is clearly out for a Pulitzer here. A Pulitzer!

If it isn't Nick -- it could be Axel. Axel likes boats too, doesn't he, kid?

Point of order: high school drama coaches are NEVER this dynamic.

War makes strange bedfellows.

And to think two years ago they made can openers.

"Tony? Tony who?"

NOTHING TO SEE HERE FOLKS

Well, it certainly meets WPB regulations.

Should've held the tire the other way around.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Oh, and...

See, "stout HEARTED." That's how you say it. "Stout HEARTED."

*Sigh.*

 

[Fading Fast]

...

Japanese War Minister Gen. Hideki Tojo told an opening session of the Tokio Parliament that Japan's total losses in all theatres the war as of April 30th came to
9000 men killed and 20,000 injured. Without estimated Allied dead and wounded, Tojo stated that approximately 290,000 Allied troops have been taken prisoner, with Allied losses in material amounting to 1800 airplanes, 3500 guns, and 45,000 armored vehicles, trucks, and railroad cars. It was also stated that oil production in territories seized by Japan has "exceeded all estimates."
...

How embarrassing for Tojo, it looks like somebody gave him killed and injured figures that were both missing at least one zero and, maybe, two.

...

(If this ends with Commissioner Moses marching the whole length of Ocean Parkway in a wet bathing suit, then I for one will be completely satisfied.)
...

Silly me, based on the headline, I thought the government would be reducing the amount of material in bathing suits like it was doing for men's and women's clothing. If women have to wear small bikinis to help with the war effort, then so be it. If men have to wear tiny briefs, well, let's take a vote and see if either sex is in favor of that.

Interesting tidbit about the Bank of the Manhattan Company (that's a mouthful that wouldn't fly today) making loans for coal today as the gov't wants the trains freed up for war materials in the fall. Makes sense, but is another one I never heard of before these Day by Days.

...

An Astoria barber faces a charge of false advertising after he charged a police detective 20 cents extra for the application of a "scalp refresher" to the detective's bald scalp. Lieutenant Jacob J. Licker of the 16th Division, North Queens police, had come to the shop of barber Anthony Colosa and asked for a fifteen-cent shave. After the shave, Colosa applied the "refresher" fluid to Lt. Licker's shining pate, and then worked over the surface of the scalp with an electric vibrator. The Lieutenant had understood these services to be included in the price of the shave, but when Colosa tried to charge an extra 20 cents, Licker took him into custody. A large crowd of spectators laughed at Licker's testimony before Magistrate Jenkin R. Hockert in Long Island City Court, but Colosa was held for trial in Queens Special Sessions Court.
...

It's not a good news day for barbers.

Gawdbless Miss Lavonne's roommate.
...

"He's not staying with any friends on Long Island; he's off on another toot."

- Alcoholic Don Birnam's no-nonsense landlady setting Birnam's excuse-making girlfriend straight. (From 1945's "The Lost Weekend)


Toot is a wonderful word for bender that seems to have disappeared.

The News is clearly out for a Pulitzer here. A Pulitzer!
...

"No, I didn't do that, or that, or that! What? Oh, well, um, er, yes, I did pay by check. What? I don't know how it happened, but I didn't actually have an account at the bank on which I wrote the check, these things happen."

"Do they? Do they really?"

...

War makes strange bedfellows.
...

That's a pretty funny one.

...

Should've held the tire the other way around.

A twitch just went up Shadow's spine and he doesn't even know why.

Oh, and...


See, "stout HEARTED." That's how you say it. "Stout HEARTED."

"Phew."
"What dear?"
"Nothing Freddie, just enjoy your paper."

There's a lot to unpack and too many details we don't know to say if he's being treated fairly, but I am really glad he's staying with the Dodgers.

 

[LizzieMaine]

(Poor Fitz. He commits to staying in Brooklyn, and now he can't even wear shorts when he wants to.)

The Japanese have rushed 10,000 reinforcements into the siege of Kinhwa to make up for huge losses in three unsuccessful attempts to storm the provincial capital in frontal assaults, it was reported today in a Chinese communique. At the other end of the 1500-mile China front, Chinese forces have launched a general counteroffensive in western Yunnan, virtually encircling two enemy-held cities along the Burma Road. Fierce fighting continues to rage at Kinhwa and at Lanchi, 15 miles to the northwest, but both towns remain firmly within Chinese hands.

A plan to freeze the salaries and bonuses paid to business executives, in general, to amounts paid in recent years will go before Congressional fiscal experts shortly, in a proposal from Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau. The plan would prevent corporations, now facing higher taxes under pending revenue legislation, from siphoning excess profits off the corporate ledgers by jumping the salaries of top executives. Congressional investigating committees have already received evidence that certain corporations reaping huge war profits have granted huge pay increases to top officials.

(But where's Major Bowes? He's always high up on this list. Guess the draft must've really cut into the amateur-hour business.)

An 18-year-old youth "without a friend in the world" found today that he has one in the person of Judge Samuel J. Leibowitz. Frail, orphaned William DeWitt had pleaded guilty in March to second-degree burglary charges, but appearing before Judge Leibowitz in Kings County Court, the boy received an encouraging talk from the jurist who had just sentenced him to return to the reformatory from which he had escaped twice before. :Send me away," sobbed the boy. "They always do." But in returning the youth to the New York State Vocational School, Judge Leibowitz promised, with tears in his eyes, "I'll be your friend. I'm confident in you. I don't care about your record. I'm going to stand by you. Don't worry about this case -- I'll take care of it as soon as you come out of the reformatory." Asked by the Judge if he goes to church, DeWitt said that every Sunday he prays at his mother's grave. "I've got faith in you," repeated the Judge as the boy was led away.

("If we lived in Flatbush," noted Sally, "'magin cookin' food outdooehs." "We c'n do t'at now," replies Joe. "Remembeh las' summeh when it got hot, we cooked t'em hamboigehs -- right onna fieh escape? Din' even need no grill -- jus' laid 'em right onna met'l" "Felt sorry f'tem people down b'low t'ough," sighs Sally. "Allat grease drippin' down on Mrs. Bonnarigo's cloes'line.")

(At least they're not bald.)

A swallow's nest containing three eggs held up work today at a certain shipyard. As the yard's E pennant fluttered in the breeze, workers observed the traditional superstition of men of the sea and ships by refusing to disturb the avian domicile, built on the timbers surrounding the hull of a new vessel. Concerned that removal of the timbers when the time comes to launch the ship would disturb the nest, workers at the yard consulted an orinthologist from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, who reassured them that Mama Sparrow must've noticed the E banner, and wouldn't stand in the way of the war effort -- the eggs will hatch in less than three weeks, well before the scheduled launch.

(Paramount comedies had a reputation for being the most "sophisticated" on the screen, so saucy borderline quips are just par for the course. And you don't have to tell us, Herb, we know you were jitterbugging in the aisles with the rest of the 'gators.)

Parks Commissioner Robert Moses writes in to take umbrage at Mr. George Trumpler's recent critique of the work being done to make Gracie Mansion into the new Mayoral residence. Mr. Moses declares that all of Mr. Trumpler's objections are all "without exception baseless," and sniffs that Mr. Trumpler doesn't even know where the site of the residence is if he thinks the renovation will take away any current parkland. There will also be, despite Mr. Trumpler's assertions, no elaborate landscaping, not even a flower garden. Mr Trumpler also makes an incorrect statement of when the work began, he doesn't understand that the WPA is doing the work, and that the furnishings and fittings of the house were donated by museums, or by friends, or by the Mayor himself. Mr. Moses finally declares that Mr. Trumpler's statement that Brooklyn projects go waiting while the Mayor gets a new house is "too silly for extended comment," pointing out that the Triborough Bridge Authority just spent $15,000,000 on the Gowanus Improvement, "without a nickel assessment" to Brooklyn residents.

(Well to be fair, Mr. Waner has a legitimate beef, at least with Durocher. Remember last year, when he was promised the regular right field job out of spring training, only to be released before the end of May -- and was then cut off without a cent when it came time to carve up the World Series pot. Of such things are baseball vendettas made.)

Yesterday's holdup at the Bossert Hotel, in which $100 was taken by three gunmen, will be "cleaned up today," according to detectives. It is reported by a source that one man has been detained for questioning about the robbery yesterday, in which the three bandits held four hotel employees at gunpoint while looting the hotel office before escaping in a Manhattan-bound taxicab.

(Well, if the movies and radio are any indication, press photographers get beat up by hoods at least once a week, so you're certainly on the right track.)

("You went to grade school even longer than I did." And never heard of a Ponzi scheme.)


("The Big Job?" You mean -- Parks Commissioner?)

("Not unless you tie me to the bed first!!")

 

[LizzieMaine]

Before we get to the rest of today's Daily News, we really must concentrate...

Actually, she said "Judgie-Wudgie, I wouldn't disobey you for the world," but that was too much even for the news.

 

[LizzieMaine]

And then...

"FLATBUSH!" snorts Joe. ""At ain' no place t'bring up a kid, stuff like 'at goin' on!'" "HMPH!" snorts Sally. "At's BUSHWICK! Lookita map! NOT FLATBUSH!"

She's smart, but she doesn't know enough not to stand up in a boat.

You've got to admire her composure.

Hope it's a Standard record and not a Speedy-Q, the Standard ones are much more realistic.

You've never been on the run from the cops before, have you?

"Whatever," says the Horse. "As long as I get fed."

"Why officer, how you talk!"

Hedy Lamarr has too much dignity for this.

 

[Fading Fast]

(Poor Fitz. He commits to staying in Brooklyn, and now he can't even wear shorts when he wants to.)
...

"...his client [Miss Webb] knew nothing of the robbery-slaying of Mrs. Susie F. Reich on March 4th until three days later when she read about it."

I guess it just never came up in conversation. JFC, how stupid does her lawyer think we are?

...

Parks Commissioner Robert Moses writes in to take umbrage at Mr. George Trumpler's recent critique of the work being done to make Gracie Mansion into the new Mayoral residence. Mr. Moses declares that all of Mr. Trumpler's objections are all "without exception baseless," and sniffs that Mr. Trumpler doesn't even know where the site of the residence is if he thinks the renovation will take away any current parkland. There will also be, despite Mr. Trumpler's assertions, no elaborate landscaping, not even a flower garden. Mr Trumpler also makes an incorrect statement of when the work began, he doesn't understand that the WPA is doing the work, and that the furnishings and fittings of the house were donated by museums, or by friends, or by the Mayor himself. Mr. Moses finally declares that Mr. Trumpler's statement that Brooklyn projects go waiting while the Mayor gets a new house is "too silly for extended comment," pointing out that the Triborough Bridge Authority just spent $15,000,000 on the Gowanus Improvement, "without a nickel assessment" to Brooklyn residents.
...

You want to make absolutely sure you have your facts straight if you are coming up against Moses in an argument.

...

(Well to be fair, Mr. Waner has a legitimate beef, at least with Durocher. Remember last year, when he was promised the regular right field job out of spring training, only to be released before the end of May -- and was then cut off without a cent when it came time to carve up the World Series pot. Of such things are baseball vendettas made.)
...

Parrott's column is fun today.

...

Yesterday's holdup at the Bossert Hotel, in which $100 was taken by three gunmen, will be "cleaned up today," according to detectives. It is reported by a source that one man has been detained for questioning about the robbery yesterday, in which the three bandits held four hotel employees at gunpoint while looting the hotel office before escaping in a Manhattan-bound taxicab.
...

Well, at least we know where Shonbrun, Hirschl, et al., were when this was happening, so they're all in the clear. Webb is waiting three days before she'll even allow herself to read about it.

...

("The Big Job?" You mean -- Parks Commissioner?)
...

To be fair to Blackston, President Truman threatened to beat up a music critic who wrote an unfavorable review of his daughter's singing concert.

And then...

"FLATBUSH!" snorts Joe. ""At ain' no place t'bring up a kid, stuff like 'at goin' on!'" "HMPH!" snorts Sally. "At's BUSHWICK! Lookita map! NOT FLATBUSH!"
...

Good luck with that request Presbyterian Church; I doubt the country has much of an appetite for replaying Prohibition only ten years after it ended.

The most amazing part of the cop with a wife and girlfriend story is that he shot himself through the mouth, took a cab home and will be okay.


Good Sally and Joe ping-pong volley: point Sally.

...

Hedy Lamarr has too much dignity for this.

I don't know if she's really above it as Ms. Hedy Lamarr made, effectively, a soft-porn film back in Austria in '33.

The surprising thing here is that Shadow was fooled too. Give him time and he'll outfox the others and get Paulette for himself.

 

[LizzieMaine]

(You can't tell me, after everything we see here pretty much every day, that the life of a bookie is less profitable than the life of a burglar. Mr. Taranto needs to go into a legitimate business, like running a candy store.)

Uprisings against the Gestapo spread today to Norway, where a second Nazi leader was targeted by patriot-assassins. The Norwegians are reported in dispatches from Stockholm to have shot and killed "one of the principal Gestapo officials for western Norway," on Sotra Island off the coast of Bergen. Nazi occupation authorities responded to the assassination by arresting the entire population of the small village where the slaying occurred, confiscating all livestock, and burning the entire town to the ground. The assassination of the Norwegian official follows by a day the attempted assassination in Czechoslovakia of Reinhard "The Hangman" Heydrich, second only in the Gestapo to Heinrich Himmler, who was gravely wounded by partisans on Tuesday.

In Czechoslovakia, Himmler himself has arrived in Prague to supervise reprisals for the shooting of his second-in-command. By his order, six members of a single family were shot to death near Pilsen, two of them women and one a youth under seventeen, for "sheltering persons engaged in activities against the Reich." All Czechs older than fifteen were required to carry new identification documents, on penalty of death if they are found on the street without their papers. Meanwhile, a prominent German surgeon removed three bullets from Heydrich's spine in what was described as "a delicate operation"

Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau has Congressional support for his plan to prevent corporations from sheltering wartime profits from new taxation by raising the salaries of their high executives. Chairman Robert L. Doughton of the House Ways and Means Committee indicated had "unanimously voted its approval" of the plan to disallow deductions for salary payments deemed unreasonable, and commended the Secretary for a job well done.

Rep. Vito Marcantonio (NY-American Laborite) is the sole Congressional dissenter to an order from Attorney General Francis Biddle for the deportation to his native Australia of International Longshoremens' and Warehouse Union chief Harry Bridges on the grounds that he is "affiliated with the Communist Party." Congressman Marcantonio pointed to the recent release from prison of Communist leader Earl Browder on the basis of "national unity" as contradicting the order to deport Bridges. Leaders of the CIO, including President Phillip Murray, agreed with Mr. Marcantonio's interpretation, and praised Mr. Bridges for the work he has done to ensure that vital war supplies keep moving thru ports under his jurisdiction. But Biddle's order has closed all avenues of administrative appeal to Bridges, leaving only the possibility of an appeal to the courts thru a writ of habeas corpus if he is taken into custody. It is anticipated that it might take up to a year for such an appeal to reach the Supreme Court.

Police are holding a 26-year-old suspect in Wednesday's robbery of the Hotel Bossert, identifying him as the brother of a former hotel employee. Richard Kyler of Manhattan, a private watchman, was being held at the Poplar Street station after reportedly admitting his role in the holdup. Two employees in the hotel office at the time of the robbery noted the resemblance of one of the bandits to former employee Gray Kyler. An investigation by detectives soon determined that Gray Kyler had left Brooklyn and was now in Texas -- but he did have a brother who closely resembled him. Tracing that brother to his Manhattan apartment, police soon obtained a confession from the suspect, who stated that he robbed the hotel "because he needed the money." The gun used in the holdup was given to one of Kyler's two confederates, neither of whom has been found. It was also confirmed that the amount taken from the hotel office totaled $74, not $100 as had been previously reported.

(America's Biggest Small Town rallies to the war effort. And gawdbless the Brooklyn Billiard Academy.)

"Flatbush Observer" writes in to question why, during these days of blackouts, taxicabs are alllowed to drive around at will "all lit up like Christmas trees," with lighted signs on their fronts, tops, and sides. Why?

("I mean, you can't make toast with a cake fork. Well, you can, but who wants to?")

(Normandie -- your thoughts?)

(Tommy, Tommy, you've been around long enough to know you don't sew up a pennant in May.)

Five hundred British sailors will be the guests of the Dodgers at Ebbets Field today for the opening of the Memorial Day weekend series against the Giants. Arrangements were made by Dodger ticket manager Jack Collins thru the Brooklyn A. W. V. S. to introduce the jolly Jack Tars, fresh from North Africa, to the unique delights of the American Pastime.

Responding to reports that Max Schmeling has turned up in Occupied Paris trying to arrange bouts, Private Joe Louis, USA, has offered to meet him any time and any place, with or without a gun.

(Keeping clean is very important when you can turn invisible.)

("They're made from a special solution precipitated from ordinary gasoline. Oh, wait...")

("And unless you do exactly as I say, you know which photo I'll use!")

(HOLD OUT YOUR HANDS! "OK -- but first, let me tell you about 'safe words.'")