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Cooley Hurd

Cooley Hurd's Journal
Cooley Hurd's Journal
August 23, 2013

liveblog from the Obama appearance in Auburn New York

Waiting for POTUS now...

August 22, 2013

EAA Founder Paul Poberezny dead at 91

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/EAA-Founder-Paul-Poberezny-Dies-At-91220479-1.html

Paul Poberezny, who founded EAA in 1953 and served as the organization's leader for many years, died on Thursday morning, EAA has announced. He was 91 and living in a retirement village in Oshkosh, Wis. The Poberezny family released a statement: "We deeply appreciate all the support shown to Paul and Audrey over the past five months. As Paul often said, he considers himself a millionaire because through aviation he made a million friends. He leaves an unmatched legacy in aviation and can be best remembered by all the people who discovered aviation through his inspiration to create EAA. We also thank you for respecting our family’s privacy during this time."

Poberezny served as a military pilot and test pilot for nearly 30 years, during both World War II and the Korean Conflict, retiring with the rank of lieutenant colonel. As a youngster, he built model airplanes and at age 16, taught himself to fly in a battered Waco glider he had restored himself. He logged more than 30,000 hours of flight time over more than 70 years of flying, and flew nearly 500 different types of aircraft, including more than 170 amateur-built airplanes. His memoir of his early years, titled Poberezny … The Story Begins, was published in 1996.


Cross gently, Paul and thank you for the many years of joy at Sun n Fun Oshkosh!!!
August 21, 2013

The Little Bopper has passed: Jay Richardson (son of JP Richardson) dead at 54...

http://globegazette.com/news/local/jay-richardson-son-of-the-big-bopper-dies/article_27c84916-0a80-11e3-9633-0019bb2963f4.html?comment_form=true

Jay P. Richardson, son of rock ‘n’ roll icon The Big Bopper and frequent performer at the Surf Ballroom, died Wednesday morning in Katy, Texas, according to the Surf Ballroom staff. He was 54.

Richardson was known as Big Bopper Jr. His father, The Big Bopper, was killed in a plane crash on Feb. 3, 1959 in Clear Lake, along with fellow rock ‘n’ roll performers Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, as well as pilot Roger Peterson.

The men’s last performances were the night before at the Surf Ballroom.

According to the Surf Ballroom, Richardson was born on April 28, 1959, in Houma, La. His birth came less than 90 days after the plane crash.

Richardson has made numerous appearances at the Surf Ballroom over the years including his last one in 2012.

“He was definitely part of our family,” said Laurie Lietz, the Surf’s executive director. “We’ve had him here a number of times and considered him family.”
</snip>


His story took an odd turn in 2007:

http://tinyurl.com/klenh9w

Richardson was survived by his wife and 4-year-old daughter. His son, Jay Perry, was born two months later in April 1959. At the time of his death, Richardson had been building a recording studio in his home in Beaumont, Texas, and was also planning to invest in the of a radio station. He had written 20 new songs he planned to record himself or with other artists.

Jay Perry Richardson took up a musical career and is known professionally as "The Big Bopper, Jr.," and has performed around the world. He has toured on the "Winter Dance Party" tour with Buddy Holly impersonator John Mueller on some of the stages where his father performed.

In January 2007, Jay requested that his father's body be exhumed and an autopsy be performed to settle the rumors that a gun was fired or that Richardson initially survived the crash. The autopsy was performed by Dr. Bill Bass, a forensic anthropologist at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Jay was present with Dr Bass throughout the autopsy and observed as the casket was opened; both men were surprised to find the remains well enough preserved to be recognizable as those of the late rock star. "Dad still amazes me 48 years after his death, that he was in remarkable shape," Richardson told the Associated Press. "I surprised myself. I handled it better than I thought I would". Dr Bass's findings indicated there were no signs of foul play. He was quoted as saying, "There are fractures from head to toe. Massive fractures ...[Richardson] died immediately. He didn't crawl away. He didn't walk away from the plane".

After the autopsy, Richardson's body was placed in a new casket made by the same company as the original, then was reburied next to his wife in Beaumont's Forest Lawn Cemetery. Jay then allowed the old casket to be put on display at the Texas Musicians Museum. In December 2008, Jay Richardson announced that he would be placing the old casket up for auction on eBay, giving a share of the proceeds to the Texas Musicians Museum, but downplayed the suggestion in later interviews.

Jay Richardson died on August 21, 2013 at the age of 54.


I got the sense that he had his father exhumed for the simple reason that he wanted to see him in person.

Regardless, cross gently, Jay...
August 21, 2013

Last week, a Blimp. This week, POTUS in my little berg! (x-post from GD)

Last week, I looked up and saw something I've never seen over Auburn, NY... a blimp!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017138819

That was cool, but this is much cooler:


http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/08/obama_advance_team_surveying_auburns_holiday_inn_for_thursday_night_stay.html

Auburn, NY -- Members of President Barak Obama's advance team are at the Holiday Inn in Auburn, surveying the building as a possible overnight site for Thursday's Obama visit.

Sources say all rooms at the Holiday Inn have been booked for Obama's visit. According to the Holiday Inn website, Auburn Holiday Inn rooms are not available Wednesday or Thursday night, but are available Tuesday and Friday nights.

The Hilton Garden Inn, Auburn's newest hotel, also has rooms fully booked from Wednesday through Friday, according to the Inn's website.

<snip>

Police agencies have begun discussing security details in Auburn at the Holiday Inn and at the house of Harriet Tubman, the leader of the anti-slavery resistance network known as the Underground Railroad, according to a source.

Obama also could visit the nearby historic home of former U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward, who was a friend to Tubman. The president has made it clear in speeches that Tubman and Seward were key figures in American history that he admires.


Last POTUS to come to town was Harry Truman in 1948 - so this is a very big deal for my little town!!!
August 21, 2013

Last week, a Blimp. This week, POTUS in my little berg!

Last week, I looked up and saw something I've never seen over Auburn, NY... a blimp!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017138819

That was cool, but this is much cooler:

http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/08/obama_advance_team_surveying_auburns_holiday_inn_for_thursday_night_stay.html

Auburn, NY -- Members of President Barak Obama's advance team are at the Holiday Inn in Auburn, surveying the building as a possible overnight site for Thursday's Obama visit.

Sources say all rooms at the Holiday Inn have been booked for Obama's visit. According to the Holiday Inn website, Auburn Holiday Inn rooms are not available Wednesday or Thursday night, but are available Tuesday and Friday nights.

The Hilton Garden Inn, Auburn's newest hotel, also has rooms fully booked from Wednesday through Friday, according to the Inn's website.

<snip>

Police agencies have begun discussing security details in Auburn at the Holiday Inn and at the house of Harriet Tubman, the leader of the anti-slavery resistance network known as the Underground Railroad, according to a source.

Obama also could visit the nearby historic home of former U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward, who was a friend to Tubman. The president has made it clear in speeches that Tubman and Seward were key figures in American history that he admires.


Last POTUS to come to town was Harry Truman in 1948 - so this is a very big deal for my little town!!!
August 18, 2013

Navy concerned about exhumation plans in Hawaii (Pearl Harbor Attack KIA's)

The story is 4 days old, but hadn't seen it posted yet.


http://hamptonroads.com/2013/08/navy-concerned-about-exhumation-plans-hawaii

The Associated Press
© August 12, 2013
HONOLULU

A Hawaii-based military command responsible for finding, recovering and identifying missing-in-action service members is at odds with the U.S. Navy over exhuming unidentified sailors from the USS Oklahoma.

The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command wants to exhume all of the unidentified Dec. 7, 1941 casualties of the USS Oklahoma buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, but the Navy prefers to maintain the "sanctity" of the graves, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Monday.

It will be up to the Army, which has "next-of-kin" authority over all Punchbowl unknowns.

JPAC Central Identification Laboratory Director John Byrd said the command proposes disinterring comingled remains of more than 330 unidentified Oklahoma crew members buried in more than 50 graves.

"The Navy leadership, secretary of the Navy's office, from what we understand, is against it," Byrd said. The Army is getting the Navy's input as a courtesy, he said.
</snip>
August 14, 2013

MetLife Blimp gets shoved around by the wind over my house

It's not everyday you see a blimp over your house. I just drove in my driveway during lunch and heard a buzzing over my head. My first thought was, "Oh shit! A drone!!!"

Seriously, I was a bit concerned at first because it was a very gusty day and it looked to be having trouble maintaining control, but it looks to have flown on without further issue.

Oh, the humanity!

August 9, 2013

End of the line for the Love Boat: MS ex-Pacific Princess beached at Aliaga for scrapping (UPDATE#2)

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/love-boat-makes-final-run-to-scrap-heap.aspx?pageID=238&nID=52222&NewsCatID=345

The MS Pacific, a cruise ship made famous by its appearance in the popular U.S. 1970s television show “The Love Boat,” has sailed its final voyage to a ship-breaking yard on Turkey’s Aegean Sea coast, a shipping group said.

Called the Pacific Princess when it was on the long-running comedy, the iconic 13,500-tonne, 171-m-long (561-foot-) vessel will be stripped for its metal and parts, said Ersin Çeviker of the Ship Recyclers’ Association of Turkey.

Aaron Spelling’s “The Love Boat,” starring Gavin MacLeod as the ship’s captain, ran on the U.S. television network ABC from 1977 to 1986. The show was set on board the Pacific Princess, which mainly sailed from California to the Mexican Riveria.
</snip>


Before being beached, she took on a significant list while in transit to Turkey:


Video of the actual beaching:


The ship in much better days:


...and now comes the earworm for the weekend:


Rest in peace, old girl!

UPDATE: Sadly, two scrapyard workers lost their lives shortly after her arrival in Aligia:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/12/travel/love-boat-accident/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

The ship, which had just completed its final voyage and was scheduled to be dismantled, was damaged while entering the port of Aliaga in Turkey's Izmir province and began taking on water in a storage area under the main engine.
Crews on Saturday began work to drain the water, deploying electrical pumps. Engine-exhaust buildup led to the toxic exposure, according to Izmir Ship Recycling Co., the firm that recently purchased the ship for 2.5 million euros (about $3.33 million).
Six other people were injured and were released from the hospital after receiving treatment, according to Izmir Ship Recycling.
The Aliaga attorney general's office has launched an investigation, but investigators haven't been unable to reach the accident site. Izmir Ship Recycling has to finish removing water and turn the ship off its side so authorities can continue the probe.
</snip>


Jeebus... she's not going without a fight.

UPDATE #2: She's turning turtle - in danger of rolling on her side:

http://maritimematters.com/2013/08/ex-pacific-princess-heeling-over/

<snip>
Selim San reports that ACIF (ex SEA VENTURE, PACIFIC PRINCESS, PACIFIC) is now in danger of capsizing as the ship continues to hemorrhage at a scrapyard in Aliaga, Turkey.
</snip>



She is giving up. She simply wants to roll over and sleep forever.
August 3, 2013

Something that makes me feel proud to be an American:



I still believe, despite recent revelations. I hate to be proven wrong, Mr President.
August 2, 2013

90 years ago today: Warren G Harding dies suddenly of "a stroke of Apoplexy"

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0802.html

President Harding Dies Suddenly; Stroke of Apoplexy at 7:30 P.M.; Calvin Coolidge Is President

DEATH STROKE CAME WITHOUT WARNING

Mrs. Harding Was Reading to Her Husband When First Sign Appeared -- She Ran for Doctor

BUT NOTHING COULD BE DONE TO REVIVE PATIENT

News of Tragic End Shocks Everybody, Coming After Day Said to Have Been the Best Since His Illness Began a Week Ago


President's Death Shocks Capital, Which Had Expected Recovery: News Telephoned to Executive Clerk From San Francisco -- Effort Made to Reach Coolidge in Vermont -- Only Two Members of Cabinet in Washington

San Francisco, Aug. 2 -- President Harding died at 7:30 o'clock tonight [11:30 o'clock New York time] of a stroke of apoplexy.

The end came suddenly while Mrs. Harding was reading to him from the evening newspaper, and after what had been called the best day he had had since the beginning of his illness exactly one week ago.

A shudder ran through the President's frame and he collapsed.

Mrs. Harding and the two nurses in the sick room knew the end had come, and Mrs. Harding rushed out of the room and asked for Dr. Boone and the others to "come quick."

Dr. Boone and Brig. Gen. Sawyer reached the President before he passed away, but were not able to avert the inevitable.


Then came the Teapot Dome Scandal...

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