Americana music of the 1950s-60s I came from a musical family. My father sang bass in a barbershop quartet. That started everything. Okay, get ready for some name-dropping. My brother Morrie, a noted classical guitarist in the 1970s, once gave Bob Dylan a guitar lesson. Flo and Eddie, the stage names of Mark Volman [...]

Consult the chair for your answer. May 24, 1787. Pretend you are there. The air is supercharged with the weight of history and the hopes of a new nation that is all but four years old. Fifty-five state delegates gather with you at Philadelphia’s Pennsylvania State House, later dubbed Independence Hall. The place where [...]

Thank God for them. “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute my success in life to the moral, intellectual, and physical education I received from her.” – George Washington Like most every other man in America, I thought about my [...]

Or, perhaps better stated, is moral character on the decline in America? Some say yes and point the finger of blame, rather simplistically (in my view), at Donald Trump for poisoning our national discourse. He must be the culprit, right? Others counter that the blatant bias of mainstream news outlets, coupled with the hijacking of [...]

And the woman who toppled them. There’s a fascinating new book I must commend to you…A Fever in the Heartland, by New York Times bestselling author, Timothy Egan. As the book cover reads, it’s the true story of the Ku Klux Klan’s “plot to take over America” during the Roaring Twenties—the Jazz Age. When [...]

Boston…where the spark of revolution turned into a raging fire. Where just shy of 200 years later, seats in the bleachers along the first base line at Fenway Park were cheap enough that a broke graduate student and his bride could watch the Red Sox play in fair weather. A place and time of [...]

A Poem That Bears Repeating Another July 4th is around the corner, and everyone in the U.S. will celebrate my birthday. (That really is what I thought as a kid.) Happy 248th birthday, America! As we near the completion of one-quarter of a millennium, it’s worth reflecting on the generous legacy left to us [...]

An eerie dream just days before. I am forever fascinated by American history. Three days prior to his assassination, Abraham Lincoln related a dream he had to his wife and a few friends. According to Ward Hill Lamon, one of the friends who was present for the conversation, the president said: “About ten days [...]

How women rode the bicycle on the way to suffrage. A few years back I was Internet hopping in search of a unique idea for my next historical novel. I came across a quote that floored me. Perhaps you will find it interesting as well: “Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. [...]

The day my world expanded. Opening day 2024 is around the corner. My uncle had sprung me and my cousin from school that Tuesday. As we walked through the huge parking lot, I was surrounded by every car in Los Angeles. Well…maybe not every, but that’s how it appeared through these eleven-year-old eyes. We [...]