Wednesday, April 29, 2015

SWEET & SOPHISTICATED~~~~~~Donald MUNRO

By DONALD MUNRO, The Fresno Bee (TNS)

VIENNA - It takes an empire to build a city like this.
Like an immaculately tailored suit fresh from the dry cleaner, the historic core of Vienna suggests easy elegance and decorum. The cavernous palaces, treasure-
stuffed museums, towering cathedrals, superlative cultural attractions and even the pastries - ah, especially the pastries - seem to hearken back to a time of pomp and majesty. Climbing up the marble stairs in the grand foyer of the Vienna State Opera, with everything in sight gilded and buffed to a shine, you half expect to see members of the royal court enjoying a pre-show champagne.
In my schooling I learned a lot of British history and to a lesser extent French history, but I realize while immersing myself in this former imperial capital that I'm a little sketchy on the Austro-Hungarian Empire. I think that's common for a lot of Americans.





Yet the Hapsburgs - who ruled varying vast swaths of Europe for 500 years - were a very big deal on the world stage. They controlled such vast wealth and power it's no wonder Vienna feels like regal even though Austria has long since given up its imperial possessions.
Perhaps the most conspicuous display of wealth is found in the syllable-heavy Kunsthistorisches Museum, known to locals as the KHM, just one of several world-class art museums housed in former palaces. One of the prime attractions inside is the Kunstkammer Vienna (chamber of art and wonders), reopened in 2013 in a stunning permanent display, which includes precious artworks and knick-knacks from the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque eras.
There's a whole room just for gilded models of transportation, including golden ships and carriages.
Taking in the hundreds of priceless objects is almost dizzying. Various emperors and empresses had their own specific collections they wanted to build, ranging from timepieces and sculptures to coins, weapons and "curiosities," such as a 15th century fossil shark tooth thought to be that of a dragon.




One of the themes of my January trip to Berlin, Prague and Vienna was: Go in the off-season so you don't have to deal with the crowds. That was certainly true for Vienna. I managed to get a photo of the Schloss Belvedere, another palace converted into a museum, with almost no one in sight - as if the emperor himself had decreed an afternoon of emptiness.
But you have to plan in advance for some things. The Vienna opera is known for selling out, and it's imperative that you book tickets well before a trip. I waited until six weeks before arrival and managed to snag the last two seats (not together, alas) for a production of "Salome."
It was ravishing, gorgeous and so emotionally charged I almost forgot to breathe in the final 15 minutes. Catherine Naglestad, singing the title role, managed to both creep me out (especially when she makes out with the head of John Baptist) and elicit my sympathy when she meets her executioners. The triumphant scenic design and fabulous singing makes the memory my most treasured Vienna souvenir.
Throughout our stay, the elegant ambiance of Vienna just seems to settle into my bones. The city doesn't feel like a historical theme park, which can be the case with Prague. Modern buildings sit alongside historical landmarks such as the imposing St. Stephen's Cathedral, a towering Gothic masterpiece.
There was something formal yet almost playful about the people we met. (I even loved the sound of German in a lilting Austrian accent.) Yes, it can be a little intimidating if as a small-suitcase tourist you don't pack a sports coat for elegant events. I got really warm at the Vienna Philharmonic and took off my nice wool sweater (between movements, of course) to reveal a long-sleeved dress shirt beneath, and even sitting in the cheap seats, I caused some surprised looks from among those around me.




Yet I never felt as if people were being condescending in Vienna. If anything, they extended a dignified welcome.
Besides, I could never find fault with a city that prides itself so much on dessert. Yes, an empire is to this day responsible for one of the world's great sugar rushes.
At the Hotel Imperial, which used to be (you guessed it) another palace, I took my first bite of the Imperial Torte and almost melted into one big taste bud. The recipe is said to have been created for Emperor Franz Josef I on the occasion of the hotel's opening in 1873. The hard chocolate glaze, which gives way to layers of almond flavour, marzipan and a slight hint of cocoa creme, will forever for me be the taste of Vienna.




Now if I can only get back there someday to get not seconds but fifths and sixths.
The Vienna Philharmonic, which performs in a glorious, ornate hall opened in 1870, likewise was exhilarating. We got to hear Rafael Payare, a brilliant up-and-coming Venezuelan conductor, lead the orchestra in works by Strauss and Tchaikovsky. Also on the program: a work by Lorin Maazel, the famed American conductor and composer who died last year, set to the text of Shel Silverstein's "The Giving Tree." Dietlinde Turban-Maazel, the composer's widow, read the words of the book aloud.



 

“Drachenschale” by Gasparo Miseroni; or the “Dragon Bowl.” It is made of precious stones: Lapis lazuli, which gives it its beautiful blue base; gold; enamel; rubies; emeralds; pearls; and garnets. Miseroni established his workshop for precious stone vessels, such as this one, in Milan in the mid-1500's. The skill required to cut the precious materials and fashion them into such pieces was only mastered by a handful of artists, making these kinds of objects some of the most-highly prized in royal collections. Emperor Maximilian owned over 60, many of which were the works of Miseroni.


 

“Zweifigurigeraptusgruppe” by Jean Boulange, aka Giambologna; or “Raptus Group of Two Figures.” Giambologna carved this famous statuette out of bronze around 1580 in Florence, Italy. It depicts the abduction of a woman with “weightless elegance” and “ideal beauty.”

 

 

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HICKOK






Thursday, April 23, 2015

Memorializing Lincoln: 150 years ago today, Buffalo honored slain president with first of Two Funerals


 
 


Memorializing Lincoln: 150 years ago today, Buffalo honored slain president with first of two funerals.

150 years ago today, Buffalo honored slain president with the first of two funerals.

 

This was the locomotive that pulled the "Lincoln Special", the Presidents remains & and an Honor Escort including former President Millard Fillmore to Buffalo from Batavia in the early hours of April 27th 1865. Please credit: Courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum, used by Permission. 

http://www.buffalonews.com/storyimage/BN/20150419/OPINION/150419333/AR/0/AR-150419333.jpg&maxW=602&maxH=602&AlignV=top&Q=80 

This was the locomotive that pulled the "Lincoln Special", the Presidents remains & and an Honor Escort including former President Millard Fillmore to Buffalo from Batavia in the early hours of April 27th 1865. Please credit: Courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum, used by Permission. 

 


actual remains of President Abraham Lincoln. Above, the locomotive Dean Richmond, dubbed the Lincoln Special, carried the president’s remains and an honor escort, including former President Millard Fillmore, to Buffalo from Batavia on April 27. At center, the Official Order of Procession, led by Maj. Gen. Rufus L. Howard. Buildings on the east side of Main Street were draped in mourning. Lincoln photo from Library

 
 

 

East side of Main Street, Buffalo, NY, draped in mourning for President Lincoln in April 1865. Photo credit: Courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum, used by Permission.


 

  

At top is a rare photo of the actual funeral car that was used both on April 19, 1865, with an empty symbolic coffin and again on April 27, with the actual remains of President Abraham Lincoln. Above, the locomotive Dean Richmond, dubbed the Lincoln Special, carried the president’s remains and an honor escort, including former President Millard Fillmore, to Buffalo from Batavia on April 27. At center, the Official Order of Procession, led by Maj. Gen. Rufus L. Howard. Buildings on the east side of Main Street were draped in mourning. Lincoln photo from Library

 
 

 East side of Main Street, Buffalo, NY, draped in mourning for President Lincoln in April 1865. Photo credit: Courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum, used by Permission.



 


 

The Official Order of Procession on April 19, 1865, led by Major General Rufus L. Howard, and followed by all major military, civil and social organizations in Buffalo (courtesy of The Buffalo and Erie County Public Library

 

 

A Placard that Buffalonians awoke to on April 15, 1865, informing them of President Lincoln's death. It was also attached to sign stakes, tacked to houses and displayed in shop windows and businesses of all kinds. An interesting attempt to inform city residents in a pre - internet society (courtesy of The Buffalo and Erie County Public Library ).

 
 

An illustration of John Wilkes Booth leaping from the president’s box onto the stage at Ford’s Theatre and crying out "Sic semper tyrannis.” (Library of Congress, Rare Book & Special Collections Division)

 """"John Wilkes Booth leaped from the president's box @ FORD'S THEATRE onto the stage after shooting Abraham Lincoln in the head.  

Buffalonians were informed of the the president's death through the ABOVE placard, which was attached to sign stakes, tacked to houses and displayed in shop windows and businesses of all kinds."""""


 

 

The somber-looking black crepe-laden train slowly came to a stop at the Exchange Street Station. The massive crowd that waited was respectfully silent. The only sound was the hissing of the escaping steam from the locomotive Dean Richmond. It was near 7 a.m. on April 27, 1865, almost two weeks to the minute that Abraham Lincoln had breathed his last. Now, the martyred president visited for the last time.

Buffalo was one of the stops on the 1,654-mile route of the Lincoln Funeral Train – or the Lincoln Special, as it had been dubbed – as it mournfully progressed to Springfield, Ill., for his burial. Accompanying Lincoln’s coffin were the remains of his beloved son Willie, who had died of typhoid in February 1862 and had been temporarily interred in Washington.
Former President Millard Fillmore and prominent Buffalonians who comprised an escort of honor would disembark and join the procession carrying the president’s remains to Saint James Hall, at the corner of Main and Eagle streets. The citizens of Buffalo would be allowed to pay their final respects.
The train was scheduled to leave Buffalo at 10 p.m. for the next stop, Cleveland, Ohio. To the thousands present, this sad scenario was tragically familiar; it was not just déjà vu, because the events of April 27 would be the second funeral for Lincoln in Buffalo.
Late-night dispatches on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, carried the shocking news that the president had been shot while attending the theater in Washington. Buffalonians awoke Saturday to tragedy as quickly printed posters and signs and word-of-mouth encounters announced Lincoln’s death.
An account of events, “Expressions of Public Feeling on Reception of the News and at the Funeral Obsequies of the President at Buffalo, New York” described the atmosphere:
“Saturday, April 15, was a day of mourning in Buffalo. The direful news of the assassination of the president … passed, until within a space of time almost incredibly short, it was diffused all over the entire city. Workmen on their early way to the forges and shops spoke of the awful calamity with blanched faces; bells tolled; the usual sounds of a busy city on the busiest day of the week were hushed, and it seemed that a pall had been spread over all.”
Local newspapers reflected the shock. The Commercial Advertiser stated: “Like thunder from a clear sky, the intelligence of the assassination … has fallen upon unprepared ears, and sunk deep into the hearts of the people.”
From the pulpits that Sunday, there was no shortage of emotion. At Central Presbyterian Church, the Rev. Dr. Lord commented: “From the height of gladness, in the midst of joyful tidings, the nation is plunged into the deepest grief.”
Buffalo, a city that felt it had a special connection to the president because he had visited the city and area several times (as early as 1846 and as recent as his Inaugural Train stop in February 1861), was determined to memorialize him in a most public and befitting manner.
That morning, the Board of Trade met and called for resolutions of mourning and public displays of draping in the city. A committee was established for the purpose of working with others to plan obsequies. That evening, a citizen’s meeting at the Merchants Club Room pledged similar activity.
As the meeting minutes of April 17, 1865, reveal, the Buffalo Common Council established, with Mayor William Fargo’s support, a committee of aldermen to plan the public displays in honor of Lincoln to coincide with the state funeral to be held in Washington on April 19. The U.S. Department of State had suggested that events in the states be observed on that day.
In addition to the mayor and Common Council, prominent Buffalonians stepped forward to assist in the hastily made funerary arrangements. Among them were Lewis F. Allen, a relative of future President Grover Cleveland and a successful businessman and real estate magnate; and Rufus L. Howard, a businessman and philanthropist and major general of the New York State National Guard 8th Division. Howard was named chief marshal of the procession. Fillmore was named honorary chairman.
These individuals and committee members were “on a mission” to provide the most memorable funeral obsequies for the assassinated president, even though his remains lie in state in the nation’s capital and would not actually be in Buffalo.
Wednesday, April 19, was planned as the largest memorial event ever held in Buffalo. All businesses, factories, shops and offices were closed. Mourning emblems and pictures of Lincoln festooned the city.
Firsthand accounts attest to the respectful quiet throughout. The procession would begin at noon from Niagara Square, eventually arriving at the city gathering place known as the Terrace.
The most prominent feature was the funeral car, which would transport the symbolic empty casket. It was described as “… a superbly draped canopy resting on four pillars, silver trimmed with black velvet fringe … upon which rested the coffin.” Six black draped horses would pull it. Accompanied by citizens of Buffalo and a military Honor Guard (of members of the 65th, 74th and 98th New York National Guard), the cortege filed its way to the Terrace.
The procession, 2½ miles in length, took over an hour to pass a given point. The funeral car halted before a large makeshift platform. Thousands serenely crowded around. At 1:30 p.m., Allen called the proceedings to order. After an opening prayer by the Rev. Dr. Allison and hymns, the crowd heard an emotional oration by Lord. Allen then made brief remarks recalling his time with Lincoln in Washington. Following the hymn, “Rest, Spirit, Rest,” and a final benediction, the proceedings closed and the crowd respectfully dispersed.
The City of Buffalo, although wracked with shock and grief, had provided a memorial worthy of the fallen Lincoln. Funeral Obsequies noted: “April 19 will never be forgotten by those who took part directly or indirectly in the obsequies of President Lincoln … the procession embodied the various military, civic and religious organizations of the city …”
It was the most dignified and imposing funeral cortege ever witnessed in Buffalo.
It would be inconceivable, then, that eight days later the entire event would be repeated. For that evening, from Washington, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton announced that a Lincoln Funeral Train (bearing the president’s remains) would depart the capital on April 21 and stop at major cities, including Buffalo on April 27, 1865.
For Buffalo, April 19, 1865, would begin again.
Timothy Ellis is a retired history teacher from Hamburg.




 

 












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HICKOK

 




Wednesday, April 22, 2015

A journey in Northern Ireland, the home of HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’

A journey in Northern Ireland, the home of HBO’s ‘Game of Thrones’


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Large waves batter the harbour wall during stormy weather in Ballintoy in Northern Ireland, on December 10, 2014. (Paul Faith/Getty Images)

On the Kings Road . . . at last . . . en route to Winterfell. I, a true pilgrim and loyal bannerperson, do pledge allegiance to the clan Stark and wish to pay homage at Winterfell, seat of the King in the North.
My journey began in Belfast, my mother’s ancestral home. I confess to being a fan of the HBO cult hit “Game of Thrones,” and, having traveled to Northern Ireland to visit family, I have seized the chance to visit some of the filming locations scattered across Northern Ireland. About 75 percent of the show is filmed here, transforming the fortunes of those lucky people who can now find work in the film business — and giving a boost to the tourist industry.
First I traveled north, to the Antrim Coast, whose scenic glens and coves play host to numerous GoT dramas, on a one-day tour organized by McComb’s Travel.
 
McComb’s started these bus tours a year ago. Co-owner Caroline McComb tells me they appeal to a new demographic of tourist: the “Throners,” generally under 50, who come to Northern Ireland to see the filming sites. Once here, they get to see all the stunning vistas, castles, forests, moorland and caves that originally lured the cable network — all within a two-hour drive of Belfast. An added bonus is the traditional “hundred thousand welcomes” from the locals in Northern Ireland, who have a tale or two to tell of their own and legends to rival those written by George R.R. Martin.
Our first stop is near the town of Ballymoney, at “the Dark Hedges,” which framed one of the best-known scenes from the series — the flight of a young heroine, Arya Stark, from her father’s betrayers at King’s Landing. There is no mistaking the eerie beauty of this avenue of beech trees, and it has become a favorite subject of amateur photographers.
People don’t often visit Ireland in the hope of fine weather, but I was blessed with blue skies and glistening seas. The picturesque Ballintoy Harbor served as the backdrop to antihero Theon Greyjoy’s homecoming. Today elderly couples mill around a whitewashed cafe, while “Game of Thrones” fans snap selfies in another of the show’s most recognizable locations.

 

The Larrybane quarry on the Antrim Coast will be recognizable to fans as Renly’s military encampment in Season 2. It also serves as an overflow parking lot for the nearby Carrick-a-Rede bridge — a famously terrifying rope bridge suspended nearly 100 feet above the sea, connecting a rocky island to the mainland cliffs. Alas, our bus schedule meant that we didn’t get to make the crossing. But if you have a head for heights and the resolve of a Stark, it’s well worth a visit.
Most northbound tours make a detour to the Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland’s most famous natural feature and a UNESCO World Heritage site (though it hasn’t — yet — appeared in GoT). A four-mile promontory made of huge, interlocked basalt columns rises from the North Atlantic as if it was carved by the giants who stalk Ulster’s mythology. The columns were created about 60 million years ago when this landscape was volcanic and took their striking polygonal form from rock crystallization as lava slowly cooled.

The second day of my pilgrimage took me south, by car, toward the Mourne Mountains. I grew up in the foothills of these granite giants, not far from Sandy Brae, whose bleak landscape appears in the TV series as the entrance to Vaes Dothrak, home of the Dothraki people and their new khaleesi (queen), Daenerys Targaryen, a key heroine and claimant to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms.
Tollymore Forest was a favorite spot for many outings of my childhood; memories of negotiating steppingstones over the Shimna River came back as I wandered through woodland glades enjoying the dappled sunshine.
Onscreen, though, this idyll is often a place of menace. Tollymore appears in the very first episode as a snowy forest haunted by the mythological undead. Later, patriarch Eddard Stark and his men are traveling in the woods when they come upon a gored stag and some direwolf pups, which the Stark children adopt.

 
The Mourne Mountains behind Newcastle. (David Cannon/Getty Images

The Clearsky Adventure Center at the castle offers a “Winterfell Experience.” I didn’t have to be asked twice whether I wanted to dress as a Stark in furs and cloak; I also tried — but failed — to wield a sword gracefully. Extras include meeting the Northern Inuit dogs that have portrayed some of the direwolves onscreen and getting archery tips from a Stark look-alike. Groups can also book medieval-style banquets.
It seemed that everywhere we turned on the Castle Ward estate, we found evidence of Starks, including Robb’s camp on Audley’s field, the seemingly impassable crossing at Riverrun, and a hanging tree, scene of a brutal execution.
    

beautifullyconstructed:

bc
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Hickok




Monday, April 13, 2015

ATLAS/MERCURY LAUNCHPAD & GEMINI CAPSULE ALBUM. March 30 at 12:58PM


   
The above Album includes images of THE PROJECT-GEMINI Space-capsule; and The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad & Ramp.

  

The AFT-SEction---of the Gemini Space-capsule; the second 'capsule' in the progression of the U. S. Manned Space Program. This section is commonly referred to as the Business-Housing-Unit.


  

This is middle section; the retro-rocket housing unit. As already mentioned; the nearly 50 years of existing---the model has incurred some irregularities. The housing shell has a 'chunk' of it that has broken away. And one of the retro-rocket pods---is now lost.


 

The interior of the capsule----from the port-side.  

   

The interior of the capsule----from the starboard-side.

  

Overhead; with the two astronauts, aboard.


  The complete ensemble---from the starboard-side. The nose-resting antenna---is missing. One of irregularities.

Lou Marconi's photo.  


  

The complete ensemble---from the starboard-side. The nose-resting antenna---is missing. One of irregularities.

 

The complete ensemble---from the rear of the business-housing-unit.


  


   Lou Marconi's photo.    

  • he Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad & Ramp.
  • Lou Marconi Sadly---an element of age~~~~the Escape-Tower---was lost---some time ago.   


   

The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad, Launch Complex 14 & Ramp; from the back-side.


The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad, Launch Complex 14 & Ramp; in its entirety.


  

The above Album includes images of THE PROJECT-GEMINI Space-capsule; and The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad & Ramp.


  • Lou Marconi PROJECT II ~~~~ Saturday 28 March 2015!!


  • Lou Marconi ...give me time!!! Will illuminate!!


  • Maria Mulder Herberger Will read later!


  • Lou Marconi Growing up in the turbulent Cold-War 1960's, I would find myself absolutely fascinated and riveted to ~~~THE SPACE RACE. I would just try to absorb ANYTHING that had to do with Soviet & American accomplishments in their respective MANNED SPACE PROGRAMS.


  • Lou Marconi Part of that appeal included building a couple of models that depicted some aspects of our involvement in the U. S. Manned Space Program.

  • Lou Marconi The above Album includes images of THE PROJECT-GEMINI Space-capsule; and The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad, The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad, Launch Complex 14 & Ramp; in its entirety.


  • Lou Marconi Both of these models are knocking on the door of----50 years old. Yes, they are somewhat shelf-worn; but all-in-all, the lustre of the paint-colors----is still vibrant.


  • Lou Marconi The Atlas/Mercury Rocket w/Launch Pad & Ramp, was procured first. It was gotten at Field's Hobby Shop; circa 1965, 1966. The model was procured by fellow-alum Norb Warnes~~~but to this day, in conversations with Norb, he does not recall getting this for me.


  • Lou Marconi THE PROJECT-GEMINI Space-capsule REVELL model---was the second one that I was fascinated with---and sought-out to construct. By this time, I had become more familiar with the offerings @ Model Land---and purchased the Gemini Spacecraft at that WEST-SIDE location.


  • Lou Marconi My one disappointment: never having procured, and build----REVELL's Saturn C-5/Apollo Rocket. This certainly would have been the Grand-daddy of my Space-Program-Models. The drive to accomplish--- just 'slipped-away', as life sunk in, its claws.


  • Lou Marconi NB: In reviewing this album---with a fine-tooth-comb, one may notice an anomaly attached to the red-colored-horizontal-piping running along the deck-area of the launch-pad just to the left of the opened launch-pad storage-enclosure.

  • Lou Marconi That is an ACTUAL United-Nations-pocket-tag.


  • Lou Marconi It is now~~~48 years old.


  • Lou Marconi How so procured; you ask????


  • Lou Marconi Back then~~~~the priests at Bishop Fallon High School~~~were just as crazy!!! as we were!!


  • Lou Marconi I don't even remember any more, where in God's name I got the money to participate in this, but in my Sophomore campaign; early Spring of 1967, the Father's Forkin & Joyce & Company decide to but together a FOUR-DAY---Washington DC/NewYork City Tour~~~~~~~~~~~by GREYHOUND BUS!!!!


  • Lou Marconi Not plane---


  • Lou Marconi Not train-----Greyhound Bus!!


  • Lou Marconi ...saw some things---had some experiences----that I will never forget---in those four INTENSE days.


  • Lou Marconi The ACTUAL United-Nations-pocket-tag?!?!?


  • Lou Marconi We actually got to have a Guided-Tour on the Saturday, of the UNITED NATIONS bldg. One of the hand-outs was: the pocket-tag. When I brought the pocket-tag home, I rested it---to that location on the launch-pad.


  • Lou Marconi IT HAS RESTED---IN THAT ONE DEDICATED SPOT~~~~ever since.


  • Lou Marconi Dan Panzica!! You were on this tour; yes?!?!? Weren't you in the group of us---on the Thursday evening ---walking through these God-Forsaken-parts of the back-streets of Washington DC~~~looking for a bowling-lanes???? Do you remember the actual dates of this TOUR?????


  • Dan Panzica Hi Lou:
    Hope all is well.I just landed in Buffalo. My Mother's funeral is Wednesday.
    I definitely remember the trip. However I do not even remember the year of the DC - NYC trip, April 1967 would be my guess. I remember the DC hotel was in a bad p



  • Lou Marconi Dan Panzica~~~~I am saddened to learn about your mother. My thoughts, prayers & condolences are graciously extended to you----and your family. RE: Washington, DC!! YES!!! Dan Panzica!! THE DODGE HOUSE~~~~in Washington, DC!! And Dan, wasn't it on the Friday afternoon---in Washington, DC~~~~the group of us saw the matinee~~~~BLOW-UP?!?!?


  • Maria Mulder Herberger Louie! GREAT job on Parts I and II on the launch entries But That Other Guy!


  • Lou Marconi Ah!!!!! Somebody noticed!!!


  • Maria Mulder Herberger Now I understand your Saturday!!!

  • Victor Marconi Lou was sure an outstanding model maker.

















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HICKOK