The Earliest Days of NASA
Maria Popova, at Brain Pickings, happened upon a treasure trove of early NASA (and its airplane-only predecessor NACA) archive photos. They are really something. From biplanes to the Mercury capsule, pre-1950 aeronautics seemed to live by the motto of “If we build it, then we can go there.” That’s a sentiment we could use a bit more of.
Yes please!
Brown vs. Board of Education
On May 17, 1954 the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision overturning “separate but equal” as unconstitutional, stating that segregation in public schools was a violation of the 14th amendment.
Four years earlier, members of the Topeka, Kansas, Chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) challenged the “separate but equal” doctrine governing public education through a class action suit when they were denied the opportunity to enroll their children in the white-only schools.
When the Topeka case made its way to the United States Supreme Court it was combined with other NAACP cases from Delaware, Virginia, South Carolina and Washington, D.C. The combined cases became known as Oliver L. Brown et. al. vs. The Board of Education of Topeka (KS).
You can see the original Complaint against the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, the Court Order, and correspondences between President Eisenhower about Brown vs. Board of Education from Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Papers as President here.
Pictured: Supreme Court Opinion of Brown vs. Board of Education, pages 1-3. 5/31/55.
-from the Eisenhower Library
Being that today is the opening of “Gatsby” we thought it fitting to share this snippet of a letter from F. Scott Fitzgerald to Ernest Hemingway. Hemingway sent Fitzgerald the typescript of “A Farewell to Arms”, and Fitzgerald wrote back about ten pages of commentary and edits, ending his critique with a compliment about the book overall, saying “A beautiful book it is.” After reading the ten pages of criticism of his book, Hemingway added his own colorful language (pictured) on the bottom. But, we know from later drafts that he did consider some of the advice! (From the Hemingway Collection at the JFK Library)
Jefferson Political Cartoons
Political cartoons are older than the republic, but didn’t really soar until Jefferson stepped into office. The Election of 1800 may have marked the end of the Federalist Party, but it can never be said they went quietly.
Today in History: May 16th, 1770 - Louis XVI of France and Marie Antoinette of Austria are married
A fourteen year-old Marie Antoinette and fifteen year-old Louis were married to form a political alliance that was supposed to stabilize often hostile relations between Austria and France. Although the marriage was always said to be amiable, Louis was very shy (it is also rumoured he suffered from phimosis, something royal doctors already stated in late 1772) and the marriage was not consummated for seven years. However, in 1778, the first of their four children was born, also the only one to survive past infancy. The couple was executed during the French Revolution, 8 months apart, after 23 years of marriage. After the death of her husband on January 21st 1793, Marie Antoinette went into deep mourning, refusing to eat or exercise. She was executed on October 16th, 1793. Their bodies were thrown in an unmarked grave. In 1815 their bodies were exhumed, and the couple is now buried at the Basilica of Saint-Dennis, a northern suburb of Paris.
(I feel obligated to point out that 3 of their children survived infancy. Louis Joseph was 7 when he died, and Louis Charles was 10, so they were well past infancy)
30 Day Romanov Challenge: Day 4- Favourite Tiara/Jewelry
The Elena Vladimirovna Kokoshnik
The Grand Duchess Elena was the first of the children from Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich to marry. Given to her by her mother the Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna on the occasion of her marriage to Prince Nicholas of Greece, this gorgeous kokoshnik was designed and created by Cartier in 1902. It features a classic vine motif, and pear-shaped diamonds.
It was later passed on to her daughter, Princess Olga, who later married Prince Paul of Yugoslavia. The tiara now remains in the property of Archduchess Sophie of Austria, Elena’s great-granddaughter.
Today we present 40 portraits that help us see the human beings behind some of the 20th century’s most vital works of art.
Pictured: Roy Lichtenstein, 1963
(John Loengard—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
