The Daily Dose/April 15, 2023
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™

Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience. 

Leading Off will return. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow was wrong about the snow being gone. Today’s Diary. 

…when we looked out about 0630, before getting ready to head out to the veterans service office (VSO) BOOM there were six inches in the driveway and the new ride looked like it had spent the winter at Amundson-Scott Station.

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———

On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.  

In 1755 – Samuel Johnson’s A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London. Johnson had been commissioned to write it by a group of London printers in 1746 and he completed the work largely on his own, with only some minor clerical assistance. The book contained 42,773 entries, measured 18×20 inches, and cost over $400 in today’s money.  The first English language dictionary had been published in 1604. 

In 1991 – Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers establish a new NBA record for most career assists in a 112-106 win over the Dallas Mavericks. Johnson had 19 assists and broke the record of 9,898 assists established by Oscar Robertson from 1960-1974. Johnson retired for good in 1996 with 10,141 assists, a mark now good for seventh on the all-time list. The record is now 15,806 assists by John Stockton from 1984-2003. 

In 1989 – The Fine Young Cannibals are at #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 for the only week with She Drives Me Crazy. The song went to #1 in five other countries including Spain and Austria, peaked at #5 in Great Britain, at #54 on Billboard’s soul chart, and was Billboard’s 18th biggest song of the year. It was the first of six chart singles for the group, their first of three Top 40 hits, and their first of two #1s (Good Thing, one week, 1989).  

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.

Politics is the art of making civilization work. 
Louis L’Amour
Education of a Wandering Man

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

The song by an Ultimate One-Hot Wonder that spent the most weeks at #1 on the Hot 100 was Mood by 24k Goldn & Iann Dior, which spent eight weeks at #1. It remains Dior’s only Hot 100 appearance. 

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.

Who holds the NBA record for the highest per-game assists average in a career? – Answer next time!

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The Daily Dose/April 14, 2023
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™

Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience. 

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER: While doing some research for the beloved On This Date segment yesterday we came across the tidbit that on April 13, 1985, USA for Africa hit #1 with We Are The World. The feat was noted in last year’s column, so there was no reason to include it this year. 

Already With The Dry, Technical Matter: The song was only in its fourth week on the Hot 100 and while it spent four weeks at the top, it fell off the chart fairly rapidly and some are surprised to find it was only Billboard’s 20th-biggest song of the year. 

Back On Message: The item also noted that a rather dull discussion could be had regarding whether or not USA for Africa was entitled to Ultimate One-Hit Wonder status, with Ultimate One-Hit Wonder being defined as an act whose only chart single goes to #1. 

Oh Jesus H: We are going to have that discussion now. 

Get Your Dry, Technical Matter Right Here: There have been 17 Ultimate One-Hit Wonders since the Hot 100 era (1958 to now) in 1958, a total that does not include new acts whose first hit went to #1 and can reasonably be expected to have further hits. 

This Whole Item Is Dry, Technical Matter, Isn’t It?: USA for Africa was a collection of superstars and proceeds from the song went to aid those in Africa who were hungry. The artists never recorded together again, so not only did they not have another hit, they didn’t produce a body of work to draw from, either.

The Bottom Line: For this reason, we do not include USA for Africa on our list of Ultimate One-Hit Wonders: they were not an act in the strictest sense, but a collection of artists collaborating on a one-time project. Now, you might have them on your personal list of Ultimate One-Hit Wonders – and who doesn’t have one, really? – but that’s your lookout, not ours. It’s our column, and they do not belong on the list. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Detective Sparrow tries to find out what the constables are up to out by the post office. Today’s Diary. 

Unfortunately, it’s still dark at zero-dark-thirty, so it was tuff to see what the deal was, despite lites that could be seen from the International Space Station…

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Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.

Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

———

On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.  

In 2014 – The Islamist militant organization Boko Haram conducts two bombings in central Nigeria and kidnaps 276 schoolgirls in eastern Nigeria. The bombing kills 88 people and injured over 200 more. The girls were taken from a government secondary school in Chibok, a village with a Christain majority. Several dozen girls escaped immediately and while others have also been found, it is believed that over 100 girls are still unaccounted for. 

In 1929 – The first Monaco Gran Prix is run, with Great Britain’s William Grover-Williams winning the 100-lap, 197-mile race in 3 hours, 56 minutes, 11 seconds, beating Georges Bouriano of Romania by 1 minute and 17 seconds. It was the second of seven Gran Prix wins for Grover-Williams – who also raced as W Williams – and was his only win in Monaco. The road course is still in use, with the only changes concurrent with changes in Monaco’s streets, though the start/finish line has been moved several times over the years. 

In 1962 – Shelley Fabares is at #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 for the second and final consecutive week with Johnny Angel. It was the first of four chart singles for Fabares, then 18, and remains her only Top 10 hit. The song also went to #1 in New Zealand and Canada, peaked at #41 in Great Britain, and was Billboard’s 6th-biggest song of the year. Fabares was appearing in The Donna Reed Show at the time and the song made its first appearance on the show.

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.

One thorn of experience is worth a whole wilderness of warning.
James Russell Lowell 

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Billboard’s #1 soul song of 1974 was Feel Like Makin’ Love by Roberta Flack, which spent five weeks at #1. 

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.

What song by an Ultimate One-Hit Wonder spent the most weeks at #1? – Answer next time!

Share Gaylon! Go!

The Daily Dose/April 13, 2023
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™

Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience. 

Leading Off will return. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow has the latest 3-hole punch drama from the hotel. Today’s Diary.

After the remodel it was placed on the shelf above the desk, very convenient, because we don’t have to get up for it; we can merely reach up and get it…

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Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.

Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

———

On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.  

In 1873 – An indeterminate number of Blacks – estimated at between 60 and 150 – are murdered at the courthouse in Colfax, Louisiana by former Confederate soldiers and KKK members. The violence was part of large-scale rioting that gripped the state following a disputed gubernatorial election the previous year and the number of deaths is difficult to determine because some of the dead were thrown into either the river or a mass grave. History refers to the murders as the Colfax Massacre. 

In 1940-  Cornelius Warmerdam of the US becomes the first person to pole vault 15 feet at a meet at UC Berkeley. For reasons that History has declined to make clear, the vault was not ratified as a world record, which Warmerdam took care of on June 29, vaulting 15 feet, 1 inch and he would hold the world record at assorted heights until 1957. Armand Duplantis of Sweden has held the record since 2020, including a vault of 20 feet, 4.75 inches this past February. 

In 1974 – Gladys Knight & the Pips are at #1 on Billboard’s soul chart – then known as the Hot Soul Singles chart – for the second and final consecutive week with Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me. The song also peaked at #3 on the Hot 100, went #7 pop in Great Britain, and was Billboard’s 4th-biggest soul song of the year. It was the seventh of ten #1 soul hits for the group in a chart career that spanned from 1958-88 and in 1973 a version by Ray Price hit #1 on Billboard’s country chart. The song remains one of the few to go Top 10 on all three major Billboard singles charts. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.

Who can ask more of a man/Than giving all within his span/Giving all, it seems to me/Is not so far from victory
George Moriarty
The Road Ahead of the Road Behind

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Elton John’s biggest hit on Billboard’s soul chart was That’s What Friends Are For as part of Dionne Warwick and Friends, which three weeks at #1 in 1986.

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.

What was Billboard’s #1 soul song of 1974? – Answer next time!

Share Gaylon! Go!

The Daily Dose/April 12, 2023
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™

Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience. 

Leading Off will return. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Morning coffee service being left out all day now. The latest from Sparrow. 

 …the coffee is still decently hot and if you’re looking for an evening cup of joe in a hotel lobby you’re probably not all that picky in the first place, so we leave it out until fresh pots are made.

———

Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.

Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

———

On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.  

In 1945 – Harry S Truman becomes president of the United States following the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt died while sitting for a portrait at the Little White Hosue in Warm Springs, Georgia and his final words were “I have a terrific headache”. Truman would be elected to the presidency in 1948 and declined to run in 1952. Roosevelt was first elected president in 1932 and remains the only president to serve more than two terms. 

In 1938 – The Chicago Black Hawks win the Stanley Cup, defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 in Game 4 to win the series 3 games to 1. It was the second of six Stanley Cup titles for the Black Hawks and the fourth of eight runner-up finishes for the Maple Leafs. The Black Hawks had barely made the playoffs, finishing with a 14-25-9 record, two points ahead of the Detroit Red Wings, and they remain the only team with a losing regular season record to win the Stanley Cup. 

In 1975 – Elton John is at #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 for the first of two consecutive weeks with Philadelphia Freedom. It was the 17th of 58 Top 40 hits for John, his twelfth of 27 Top 10 hits, and his fifth of eight #1s. The song also went to #1 in Canada, peaked at #12 in Great Britain, at #32 on Billboard’s soul chart, and was Billboard’s 3rd-biggest song of the year. The song was written by John and Bernie Taupin for Billie Jean King, who played for the Philadelphia Freedoms tennis team. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.

He was the Fool. …the footloose traveler, urged onward by something outside the confines of intellect and caution.
Robertson Davies
The Lyre of Orpheus 

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Carl Hubbel of the New York Giants holds the record for most consecutive wins by a pitcher over consecutive seasons with 24, in 1936-37. 

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.

What was Elton John’s biggest hit on Billboard’s soul chart? – Answer next time!

Share Gaylon! Go!

The Daily Dose/April 11, 2023
By Gaylon Kent – America’s Funniest Guy™

Leading Off
Notes from around our human experience. 

Leading Off will return. 

Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually. 

The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow has the latest on the chick front. Today’s Diary. 

We are pleased to report that the cacophony of last week – when ol’ Sparrow had no less than three women in play – has passed without yours truly getting a date…

———

Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.

Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device. 

———

On This Date
Extra, extra, read all about it.  

In 1970 – Apollo 13 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Two days later an oxygen tank failed, making a lunar landing impossible, and getting the crew back to Earth took no small amount of ingenuity in extraordinary circumstances, a safe return to Earth not entirely certain until they reentered Earth’s atmosphere. Apollo 13 Commander James Lovell was also a member of the crew of Apollo 8 and remains the only person to travel to the moon twice and not walk on the surface.

In 1912 – Rube Marquard of the New York Giants wins the first of a major league record-tying 19 consecutive games in an 18-3 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers. Marquard would not lose until July 8 at Chicago and tied the record established by Tim Keefe, also of the Giants, in 1888. Marquard finished the season 26-11 and the mark remains the major league record for the longest winning streak from the start of a season. 

In 2009 – Lady Gaga is at #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 for the only week with Poker Face. It was the fifth of  17 Top 10 hits for Lady Gaga and her second of five #1s. The song went to #1 in 21 other countries including Mexico, Norway, and Great Britain, peaked at #75 on Billboard’s soul chart, and was Billboard’s 2nd-biggest song of the year. The song spent 40 weeks on the chart, including 18 weeks in the Top 10 and nine non-consecutive weeks at #2. 

Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.

Either the people would overthrow the government or, more likely, the government would overthrow the people.
Gore Vidal
Empire

Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.

Four Americans – three men and one woman – have won Olympic marathon gold medals.  

Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.

Who holds the major league record for most consecutive wins over multiple seasons? – Answer next time!

Share Gaylon! Go!