"Iowa Almanac" is a copyrighted production of Stein Enterprises, L.L.C.
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Copyright 2019 by Stein Enterprises, L.L.C.
All Rights Reserved.
No use of the material is allowed without prior written permission of the copyright holder.
Copyright 2019 by Stein Enterprises, L.L.C.
Iowa Almanac for Monday, September 30, 2019
"TV Comes to Eastern Iowa"
After World War II, Americans were impatient. They sacrificed during wartime, and now wanted to enjoy all aspects of life. That included entertainment, such as the new medium of television.
But there were too many applicants for TV station licenses, so the Federal Communications Commission put a freeze in place to help them determine how best to use the limited television spectrum. For those of us in Iowa, it meant very few local stations--one in Davenport, one in Ames, and one in Sioux City--until the freeze was lifted in 1953.
William B. Quarton was a broadcasting visionary, and quickly moved to put Channel 2 on the air in Cedar Rapids, to go along with the radio station he ran. And while his WMT radio was successful, local bankers weren't too sure about the promise of television and refused to loan him the money needed to put a TV station on the air. He had to go to the Twin Cities for financing.
Then on September 30th, 1953, local television came to eastern Iowa when Channel 2 signed on just before noon.
This is a great day for us, and I hope it is for you, too. Now, we've had a wonderful time building this station. Please do remember that we are not experts. We're trying to do the best we can. We're going to make many mistakes. You're going to have a lot of fun with us, laughing at our mistakes. But one of these days we'll end up, I feel confident, with a very good operation.
That was the voice of William B. Quarton from that first broadcast. The first full program on the channel was the first game of the 1953 World Series between the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Channel 9 in Cedar Rapids went on the air two weeks later, followed by Channel 7 in Waterloo on Thanksgiving day. In a unique burst, eastern Iowans went from no local stations, to three, in the space of less than two months.
This is WMT-TV, Channel 2 in Cedar Rapids.
But it started when Channel 2 went on the air as eastern Iowa's first television station, on this date in 1953.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 30th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"TV Comes to Eastern Iowa"
After World War II, Americans were impatient. They sacrificed during wartime, and now wanted to enjoy all aspects of life. That included entertainment, such as the new medium of television.
But there were too many applicants for TV station licenses, so the Federal Communications Commission put a freeze in place to help them determine how best to use the limited television spectrum. For those of us in Iowa, it meant very few local stations--one in Davenport, one in Ames, and one in Sioux City--until the freeze was lifted in 1953.
William B. Quarton was a broadcasting visionary, and quickly moved to put Channel 2 on the air in Cedar Rapids, to go along with the radio station he ran. And while his WMT radio was successful, local bankers weren't too sure about the promise of television and refused to loan him the money needed to put a TV station on the air. He had to go to the Twin Cities for financing.
Then on September 30th, 1953, local television came to eastern Iowa when Channel 2 signed on just before noon.
This is a great day for us, and I hope it is for you, too. Now, we've had a wonderful time building this station. Please do remember that we are not experts. We're trying to do the best we can. We're going to make many mistakes. You're going to have a lot of fun with us, laughing at our mistakes. But one of these days we'll end up, I feel confident, with a very good operation.
That was the voice of William B. Quarton from that first broadcast. The first full program on the channel was the first game of the 1953 World Series between the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Channel 9 in Cedar Rapids went on the air two weeks later, followed by Channel 7 in Waterloo on Thanksgiving day. In a unique burst, eastern Iowans went from no local stations, to three, in the space of less than two months.
This is WMT-TV, Channel 2 in Cedar Rapids.
But it started when Channel 2 went on the air as eastern Iowa's first television station, on this date in 1953.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 30th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Friday, September 27, 2019
"An EMMY Winner"
On September 27th, 1927, Hugh and Corlyss Thompson of Des Moines welcomed a daughter into the world. They named her Sada Carolyn.
The family moved to New Jersey, where Sada spent many of her years growing up. She had a flair for the stage, and after graduating from high school in 1945, Sada earned a bachelor of fine arts in theater degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology. She worked regularly in regional theater in the 1950s. By 1956, she made her television debut in a Goodyear Television Playhouse production, and her Broadway debut in the 1959 musical Juno.
She was a true star of the Broadway stage, earning a Tony award and being named to the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2005.
But many know her from her television work. She starred as the matriarch of the Lawrence family on the ABC drama called Family from 1976 to 1980, and in 1978, won the EMMY® award for outstanding lead actress in a drama series for her portrayal of Kate Lawrence. The program brought Meredith Baxter and Kristy McNichol to prominence.
What is not often known is that her career might have taken a different path. She was cast as one of Archie and Edith Bunker's neighbors in All in the Family -- but she was replaced after just one episode, when she and show creator Norman Lear disagreed about how the character was to be portrayed.
All in all Sada Thompson was nominated for nine Emmy awards...and enjoyed a 61-year marriage to husband Donald Stewart, which ended only with her death from lung disease in 2011.
EMMY® and TONY® award winning actress Sada Thompson, born in Des Moines on this date in 1927.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 27th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"An EMMY Winner"
On September 27th, 1927, Hugh and Corlyss Thompson of Des Moines welcomed a daughter into the world. They named her Sada Carolyn.
The family moved to New Jersey, where Sada spent many of her years growing up. She had a flair for the stage, and after graduating from high school in 1945, Sada earned a bachelor of fine arts in theater degree from the Carnegie Institute of Technology. She worked regularly in regional theater in the 1950s. By 1956, she made her television debut in a Goodyear Television Playhouse production, and her Broadway debut in the 1959 musical Juno.
She was a true star of the Broadway stage, earning a Tony award and being named to the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2005.
But many know her from her television work. She starred as the matriarch of the Lawrence family on the ABC drama called Family from 1976 to 1980, and in 1978, won the EMMY® award for outstanding lead actress in a drama series for her portrayal of Kate Lawrence. The program brought Meredith Baxter and Kristy McNichol to prominence.
What is not often known is that her career might have taken a different path. She was cast as one of Archie and Edith Bunker's neighbors in All in the Family -- but she was replaced after just one episode, when she and show creator Norman Lear disagreed about how the character was to be portrayed.
All in all Sada Thompson was nominated for nine Emmy awards...and enjoyed a 61-year marriage to husband Donald Stewart, which ended only with her death from lung disease in 2011.
EMMY® and TONY® award winning actress Sada Thompson, born in Des Moines on this date in 1927.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 27th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Thursday, September 26, 2019
"Always An Actress"
From the time she was born in Marshalltown on September 26th, 1946, Mary Beth Supinger knew she was an actress. She once told an interviewer that the first play she ever saw was put on by children in her neighborhood. She then realized that the people she saw on television and in movies were actors, and once she knew that, she understood that she didn't want to be an actress some day...she was an actress.
Her older next door neighbor and baby-sitter was Jean Seberg, who herself would become a world-renowned actress.
She graduated from the University of Iowa in 1968 and studied at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. She was married for a time to actor William Hurt, and became known professionally as Mary Beth Hurt.
She made her New York stage debut in 1974 and has been nominated for three Tony Awards.
Her film debut was in Woody Allen's dramatic film "Interiors" as the middle sister. She also played Helen Holm Garp in "The World According to Garp" and was featured in director Martin Scorsese's film "The Age of Innocence".
She even played Jean Seberg, through voice-over, in a 1995 documentary about her fellow Marshalltown native.
She is still acting, with her most recent film, “Change in the Air”, released in 2018. She once said she'd never been cast as a mistress. Instead, as the girl men marry, not the one they have affairs with.
Always an actress, Mary Beth Supinger Hurt was born in Marshalltown on this date in 1946.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 26th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Always An Actress"
From the time she was born in Marshalltown on September 26th, 1946, Mary Beth Supinger knew she was an actress. She once told an interviewer that the first play she ever saw was put on by children in her neighborhood. She then realized that the people she saw on television and in movies were actors, and once she knew that, she understood that she didn't want to be an actress some day...she was an actress.
Her older next door neighbor and baby-sitter was Jean Seberg, who herself would become a world-renowned actress.
She graduated from the University of Iowa in 1968 and studied at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. She was married for a time to actor William Hurt, and became known professionally as Mary Beth Hurt.
She made her New York stage debut in 1974 and has been nominated for three Tony Awards.
Her film debut was in Woody Allen's dramatic film "Interiors" as the middle sister. She also played Helen Holm Garp in "The World According to Garp" and was featured in director Martin Scorsese's film "The Age of Innocence".
She even played Jean Seberg, through voice-over, in a 1995 documentary about her fellow Marshalltown native.
She is still acting, with her most recent film, “Change in the Air”, released in 2018. She once said she'd never been cast as a mistress. Instead, as the girl men marry, not the one they have affairs with.
Always an actress, Mary Beth Supinger Hurt was born in Marshalltown on this date in 1946.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 26th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Wednesday, September 25, 2019
"The Last Spitballer"
When Urban Clarence Faber was a child in Cascade, Iowa, his father managed a tavern and ran the Hotel Faber in their hometown. Young Faber, known to all as Red, was athletic, and by the age of 16, was getting $2 just to pitch in Sunday afternoon baseball games in Dubuque.
Red Faber pitched in the major leagues for 20 seasons, all with the Chicago White Sox. Yes, that included the infamous Black Sox team in 1919, but Red was not involved in game-fixing; he missed the World Series due to injury and the influenza epidemic.
At one point, in 1917, he started and won three games in two days…and later that year, in the World Series, he received pitching decisions in four games, a record which stands to this day. Oh, and he won three of them.
He won 254 games total in the big leagues, despite playing for some poor White Sox teams in the 1920s. At the time of his retirement in 1933, he was the last legal spitball pitcher in the American League. He was 45 years of age when he retired, and still holds the White Sox franchise record for most games pitched.
Faber helped found Baseball Anonymous, a charitable organization that helped former players who had run into financial or physical problems.
Red Faber of Cascade, Iowa, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964, a dozen years before he died, on this date, in 1976.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 25th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"The Last Spitballer"
When Urban Clarence Faber was a child in Cascade, Iowa, his father managed a tavern and ran the Hotel Faber in their hometown. Young Faber, known to all as Red, was athletic, and by the age of 16, was getting $2 just to pitch in Sunday afternoon baseball games in Dubuque.
Red Faber pitched in the major leagues for 20 seasons, all with the Chicago White Sox. Yes, that included the infamous Black Sox team in 1919, but Red was not involved in game-fixing; he missed the World Series due to injury and the influenza epidemic.
At one point, in 1917, he started and won three games in two days…and later that year, in the World Series, he received pitching decisions in four games, a record which stands to this day. Oh, and he won three of them.
He won 254 games total in the big leagues, despite playing for some poor White Sox teams in the 1920s. At the time of his retirement in 1933, he was the last legal spitball pitcher in the American League. He was 45 years of age when he retired, and still holds the White Sox franchise record for most games pitched.
Faber helped found Baseball Anonymous, a charitable organization that helped former players who had run into financial or physical problems.
Red Faber of Cascade, Iowa, was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964, a dozen years before he died, on this date, in 1976.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 25th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Tuesday, September 24, 2019
"An Iowan Makes Television History"
People in Dakota City, Iowa said he got his strong vocabulary from his mother, who taught him to read before he started school. Harry Reasoner used those skills throughout his life, beginning his journalism career while a high school student in Minneapolis.
He started in radio after the second world war and soon moved to the new field of television. Reasoner was one of the early faces on the screen, who helped invent television news.
On September 24th, 1968, his was the first voice heard on a new program, one which would revolutionize television.
Good Evening. This is 60 Minutes. It’s a kind of a magazine for television.
Once the program found a home on the Sunday night CBS schedule, 60 Minutes became the top rated program of any kind in the country and invented the television magazine show format. Reasoner was restless, though, and left CBS News in 1970 for the chance to co-anchor the ABC Evening News.
That later made him part of history again, on October 4th, 1976.
Our major story tonight is that agriculture secretary Earl Butz has paid the price for telling an obscene racial joke on a commercial airline flight. Secretary Butz resigned today. Closer to home, I have a new colleague to welcome…Barbara? Thank you, Harry…
Reasoner’s new co-anchor was Barbara Walters, the first female anchor of a TV evening newscast.
Reasoner later returned to CBS and 60 Minutes.
That’s the news. I’m Harry Reasoner. Good night.
Iowa native Harry Reasoner co-anchored the first 60 Minutes broadcast on CBS, on this date in 1968.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 24th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"An Iowan Makes Television History"
People in Dakota City, Iowa said he got his strong vocabulary from his mother, who taught him to read before he started school. Harry Reasoner used those skills throughout his life, beginning his journalism career while a high school student in Minneapolis.
He started in radio after the second world war and soon moved to the new field of television. Reasoner was one of the early faces on the screen, who helped invent television news.
On September 24th, 1968, his was the first voice heard on a new program, one which would revolutionize television.
Good Evening. This is 60 Minutes. It’s a kind of a magazine for television.
Once the program found a home on the Sunday night CBS schedule, 60 Minutes became the top rated program of any kind in the country and invented the television magazine show format. Reasoner was restless, though, and left CBS News in 1970 for the chance to co-anchor the ABC Evening News.
That later made him part of history again, on October 4th, 1976.
Our major story tonight is that agriculture secretary Earl Butz has paid the price for telling an obscene racial joke on a commercial airline flight. Secretary Butz resigned today. Closer to home, I have a new colleague to welcome…Barbara? Thank you, Harry…
Reasoner’s new co-anchor was Barbara Walters, the first female anchor of a TV evening newscast.
Reasoner later returned to CBS and 60 Minutes.
That’s the news. I’m Harry Reasoner. Good night.
Iowa native Harry Reasoner co-anchored the first 60 Minutes broadcast on CBS, on this date in 1968.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 24th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Monday, September 23, 2019
"Live From The Field"
Earl Peak was glad to have talented employees working for his Marshall Electric Company. Chauncey Hoover and Merle Easter could invent whatever devices and methods that were needed. That included building a broadcasting transmitter.
Soon experimental radio broadcasts were coming from the company's building at the corner of 16th and Main Streets in Marshalltown, which was then on the edge of town.
Then as now, high school sporting events were popular with audiences. But the only way to put them on the radio was for someone at the game to use a telephone and describe the action to an announcer in the studio, who then spoke into a microphone in a form of hearsay play-by-play.
The Marshall Electric staff could hear the crowd cheering at Marshalltown Bobcat football games, since Franklin Field was just three blocks away. And that gave them an idea.
At Peak's encouragement, Hoover and Easter made a microphone cable that was more than three blocks long, running it out the window of the studio down the street to the field. That was unique; so unique that on September 23rd, 1922, what became KFJB radio broadcast the first high school football game, live from the field, in the country.
In fact, it was a double header, and central Iowans heard it live...America's first, live from the field, high school football broadcast, from Marshalltown's Franklin Field, on this date in 1922.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 23rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Live From The Field"
Earl Peak was glad to have talented employees working for his Marshall Electric Company. Chauncey Hoover and Merle Easter could invent whatever devices and methods that were needed. That included building a broadcasting transmitter.
Soon experimental radio broadcasts were coming from the company's building at the corner of 16th and Main Streets in Marshalltown, which was then on the edge of town.
Then as now, high school sporting events were popular with audiences. But the only way to put them on the radio was for someone at the game to use a telephone and describe the action to an announcer in the studio, who then spoke into a microphone in a form of hearsay play-by-play.
The Marshall Electric staff could hear the crowd cheering at Marshalltown Bobcat football games, since Franklin Field was just three blocks away. And that gave them an idea.
At Peak's encouragement, Hoover and Easter made a microphone cable that was more than three blocks long, running it out the window of the studio down the street to the field. That was unique; so unique that on September 23rd, 1922, what became KFJB radio broadcast the first high school football game, live from the field, in the country.
In fact, it was a double header, and central Iowans heard it live...America's first, live from the field, high school football broadcast, from Marshalltown's Franklin Field, on this date in 1922.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 23rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Friday, September 20, 2019
"A New Place to Play"
The Iowa State University football program has a long history. The legendary Pop Warner was one of the early coaches. And starting in 1914, the team that became known as the Cyclones played in Clyde Williams Field, named after the man who coached the team from 1907 through 1912, and was later Iowa State's athletic director.
But by the 1970s, Williams Field had seen better days, and in 1973, ground was broken for a new stadium to be built on the south end of campus. The structure was completed in just less than two years, and opened on September 20, 1975, when Coach Earle Bruce's team defeated Air Force 17-12.
The original stadium had a capacity of 42,500, but quickly grew to 46,000 the next season when end zone bleachers were constructed.
And it's continued to grow, with the two largest crowds in stadium history coming in successive weeks in 2015...61,500 for games against the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa. It's the third-largest stadium in the Big 12 Conference, and the third-newest in the conference.
The stadium cost $7.6 million to build, which would be the same as $33.4 million today.
The facility was originally called Cyclone Stadium and the playing surface was called Jack Trice Field, in honor of the African-American player who died following injuries sustained in a game at Minnesota in 1923. The stadium itself has carried Trice's name since 1997, and it remains the only stadium in FBS Division I named for an African-American.
The Cyclone football team has played in fourteen post-season bowl games...but 12 of those have come since they began calling their current facility home. A facility then known as Cyclone Stadium, which opened with a win over Air Force, on this date in 1975.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 20th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"A New Place to Play"
The Iowa State University football program has a long history. The legendary Pop Warner was one of the early coaches. And starting in 1914, the team that became known as the Cyclones played in Clyde Williams Field, named after the man who coached the team from 1907 through 1912, and was later Iowa State's athletic director.
But by the 1970s, Williams Field had seen better days, and in 1973, ground was broken for a new stadium to be built on the south end of campus. The structure was completed in just less than two years, and opened on September 20, 1975, when Coach Earle Bruce's team defeated Air Force 17-12.
The original stadium had a capacity of 42,500, but quickly grew to 46,000 the next season when end zone bleachers were constructed.
And it's continued to grow, with the two largest crowds in stadium history coming in successive weeks in 2015...61,500 for games against the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa. It's the third-largest stadium in the Big 12 Conference, and the third-newest in the conference.
The stadium cost $7.6 million to build, which would be the same as $33.4 million today.
The facility was originally called Cyclone Stadium and the playing surface was called Jack Trice Field, in honor of the African-American player who died following injuries sustained in a game at Minnesota in 1923. The stadium itself has carried Trice's name since 1997, and it remains the only stadium in FBS Division I named for an African-American.
The Cyclone football team has played in fourteen post-season bowl games...but 12 of those have come since they began calling their current facility home. A facility then known as Cyclone Stadium, which opened with a win over Air Force, on this date in 1975.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 20th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Thursday, September 19, 2019
"Reopening The University"
Many mark the birthdate of the University of Iowa as February 25th, 1847...the date when the first General Assembly passed a law establishing a "state university" in Iowa City, then the state's capital.
But Iowa has had a unique history, and more than one state constitution. Each time a new constitution was adopted, changes in state government structure came about, and those affected what we now call higher education.
The original State University of Iowa suffered from being in the same city as the state's government, which tended to micromanage things. For a time, there were branches of the University in Fairfield and Dubuque which were on an equal footing with regard to funding as the Iowa City campus.
All the while, the State University of Iowa held classes, but the governing board of trustees was ineffective and changed its members too often.
Another new state constitution went into effect in the fall of 1857...the third and final one our state has had. The document specifically placed the state capitol in Des Moines, and the state university in Iowa City. A new Board of Trustees decided to close the university that was in existence until proper funding could be obtained, and until buildings could be remodeled. That included the Old Capitol building, which had only been vacated by the state government not long before.
The university was closed for two years. In the summer of 1860, a full faculty was appointed and the university reopened that fall. It's remained open ever since.
The first classes may have been held in prior years, but classes began for good at the State University of Iowa in Iowa City when it reopened on this date, in 1860.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 19th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Reopening The University"
Many mark the birthdate of the University of Iowa as February 25th, 1847...the date when the first General Assembly passed a law establishing a "state university" in Iowa City, then the state's capital.
But Iowa has had a unique history, and more than one state constitution. Each time a new constitution was adopted, changes in state government structure came about, and those affected what we now call higher education.
The original State University of Iowa suffered from being in the same city as the state's government, which tended to micromanage things. For a time, there were branches of the University in Fairfield and Dubuque which were on an equal footing with regard to funding as the Iowa City campus.
All the while, the State University of Iowa held classes, but the governing board of trustees was ineffective and changed its members too often.
Another new state constitution went into effect in the fall of 1857...the third and final one our state has had. The document specifically placed the state capitol in Des Moines, and the state university in Iowa City. A new Board of Trustees decided to close the university that was in existence until proper funding could be obtained, and until buildings could be remodeled. That included the Old Capitol building, which had only been vacated by the state government not long before.
The university was closed for two years. In the summer of 1860, a full faculty was appointed and the university reopened that fall. It's remained open ever since.
The first classes may have been held in prior years, but classes began for good at the State University of Iowa in Iowa City when it reopened on this date, in 1860.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 19th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Wednesday, September 18, 2019
"A President Comes Back To The Heartland"
I'll come back any time you ask me, especially when I'm met by 10 acres of people; now you figure out how many that is.
As it turns out, about 100 thousand people filled the 10-acre area around the stage to hear President Harry S. Truman on September 18th, 1948.
The scene was the annual National Plowing Matches, held that year near Dexter, Iowa.
Truman was in a tough election fight, and many presumed Republican Gov. Thomas E. Dewey of New York would win. Truman toured the country by train in a whistle stop campaign, taking on the Republican-led 80th Congress, which he dubbed the "do nothing" Congress.
During his appearance in Iowa, the president took a jab at the opposition party. He first noted that times had changed greatly in agriculture from when he worked in the fields as a boy; now machines automatically did what a man and a horse used to do.
I don't want to turn the clock back, I don't want to go back to that horse and buggy age, although some of our Republican friends do.
In one of history's great political comebacks, on November 2nd, Truman won election for a full term as president against three major challengers, including Iowa's Henry A. Wallace.
Truman wound up carrying the state of Iowa in that 1948 election, no doubt in part due to when the president spoke to 100,000 people at the National Plowing Matches in Dexter, on this date, in 1948.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 18th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"A President Comes Back To The Heartland"
I'll come back any time you ask me, especially when I'm met by 10 acres of people; now you figure out how many that is.
As it turns out, about 100 thousand people filled the 10-acre area around the stage to hear President Harry S. Truman on September 18th, 1948.
The scene was the annual National Plowing Matches, held that year near Dexter, Iowa.
Truman was in a tough election fight, and many presumed Republican Gov. Thomas E. Dewey of New York would win. Truman toured the country by train in a whistle stop campaign, taking on the Republican-led 80th Congress, which he dubbed the "do nothing" Congress.
During his appearance in Iowa, the president took a jab at the opposition party. He first noted that times had changed greatly in agriculture from when he worked in the fields as a boy; now machines automatically did what a man and a horse used to do.
I don't want to turn the clock back, I don't want to go back to that horse and buggy age, although some of our Republican friends do.
In one of history's great political comebacks, on November 2nd, Truman won election for a full term as president against three major challengers, including Iowa's Henry A. Wallace.
Truman wound up carrying the state of Iowa in that 1948 election, no doubt in part due to when the president spoke to 100,000 people at the National Plowing Matches in Dexter, on this date, in 1948.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 18th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Tuesday, September 17, 2019
"A Darling of a Park"
Jay Norwood Darling was born in Michigan in 1876, but he quickly became an Iowan. He spent much of his childhood in Sioux City, and returned there after graduating from college in Wisconsin. He became a reporter for the Sioux City Journal, but his hobby of sketching quickly overshadowed his reporting, and Darling became the paper’s editorial cartoonist.
He signed his work “Ding”…shortening his last name of Darling, by using the first letter, D, and the last three, i-n-g.
His work soon became well known and in 1906 he joined The Des Moines Register & Leader and provided artwork for that newspaper’s front page. He tried working for New York newspapers twice, but each time “Ding” Darling soon returned to Des Moines, where his cartoons graced the front page of the Register until 1950. Along the way, his work was syndicated nationally and he won two Pulitizer Prizes for his editorial cartoons, in 1924 and 1943.
But Darling was at heart a conservationist. In the 1930s, he was appointed by President Franklin Roosevelt to a federal commission on wildlife restoration, which is when he came up with the idea of the federal duck stamp program to raise funds for wildlife preservation, and even designed the first stamp himself. Roosevelt then appointed him as the head of what is today the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
On September 17, 1950, Lake Darling State Park was dedicated in his name near Brighton, Iowa. “Ding” Darling himself “set the gate”—the ceremony by which the valve on a spillway is closed, completing the water impoundment process to create the lake. Lake Darling State Park is made up of more than 1,400 acres, including a 300-acre lake with 18 miles of shoreline. Camping, hiking, boating and fishing are popular activities there today.
And that’s not the only recognition you’ll find for “Ding’s” conservation efforts. The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge was named for him in 1967 on Sanibel Island, Florida, where he had a winter home.
Many know “Ding” Darling as an award-winning editorial cartoonist. But it was his work in conservation that led to the dedication of Lake Darling State Park in his name, on this date, in 1950.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 17th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"A Darling of a Park"
Jay Norwood Darling was born in Michigan in 1876, but he quickly became an Iowan. He spent much of his childhood in Sioux City, and returned there after graduating from college in Wisconsin. He became a reporter for the Sioux City Journal, but his hobby of sketching quickly overshadowed his reporting, and Darling became the paper’s editorial cartoonist.
He signed his work “Ding”…shortening his last name of Darling, by using the first letter, D, and the last three, i-n-g.
His work soon became well known and in 1906 he joined The Des Moines Register & Leader and provided artwork for that newspaper’s front page. He tried working for New York newspapers twice, but each time “Ding” Darling soon returned to Des Moines, where his cartoons graced the front page of the Register until 1950. Along the way, his work was syndicated nationally and he won two Pulitizer Prizes for his editorial cartoons, in 1924 and 1943.
But Darling was at heart a conservationist. In the 1930s, he was appointed by President Franklin Roosevelt to a federal commission on wildlife restoration, which is when he came up with the idea of the federal duck stamp program to raise funds for wildlife preservation, and even designed the first stamp himself. Roosevelt then appointed him as the head of what is today the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
On September 17, 1950, Lake Darling State Park was dedicated in his name near Brighton, Iowa. “Ding” Darling himself “set the gate”—the ceremony by which the valve on a spillway is closed, completing the water impoundment process to create the lake. Lake Darling State Park is made up of more than 1,400 acres, including a 300-acre lake with 18 miles of shoreline. Camping, hiking, boating and fishing are popular activities there today.
And that’s not the only recognition you’ll find for “Ding’s” conservation efforts. The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge was named for him in 1967 on Sanibel Island, Florida, where he had a winter home.
Many know “Ding” Darling as an award-winning editorial cartoonist. But it was his work in conservation that led to the dedication of Lake Darling State Park in his name, on this date, in 1950.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 17th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Monday, September 16, 2019
"A City of Literature"
The University of Iowa Writers' Workshop was founded 80 years ago, and has been home to thousands of talented writers. Its graduates include 17 Pulitzer Prize winners and six recent U.S. Poets Laureate.
That pioneering program in the teaching of creative writing led to dozens of creative programs within the university and the Iowa City community. One of the more recent is tied to UNESCO‒the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
On September 16th, 2008, the city and the university unveiled their joint proposal to designate Iowa City as one of the world's few Cities of Literature. It was shipped to the UNESCO office in Paris for consideration.
Why Iowa City? Many say it's been a haven as well as a proving ground for writers, and the synergy between the writers and the institutions that have grown from them have created an unique identity for the city.
Two months later, word came that UNESCO had designated Iowa City as the world's third City of Literature, joining Edinburgh, Scotland and Melbourne, Australia. Since then, 25 other cities have earned the designation, including Dublin, Ireland; Reykjavik, Iceland; Norwich, England; and Krakow, Poland. The only other U.S. city is Seattle, Washington.
The designation makes Iowa City part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, to promote innovative growth and shared experiences worldwide. A successful application, submitted on hand-made paper with original calligraphy, for Iowa City to become a world City of Literature was submitted on this date, in 2008.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 16th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"A City of Literature"
The University of Iowa Writers' Workshop was founded 80 years ago, and has been home to thousands of talented writers. Its graduates include 17 Pulitzer Prize winners and six recent U.S. Poets Laureate.
That pioneering program in the teaching of creative writing led to dozens of creative programs within the university and the Iowa City community. One of the more recent is tied to UNESCO‒the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
On September 16th, 2008, the city and the university unveiled their joint proposal to designate Iowa City as one of the world's few Cities of Literature. It was shipped to the UNESCO office in Paris for consideration.
Why Iowa City? Many say it's been a haven as well as a proving ground for writers, and the synergy between the writers and the institutions that have grown from them have created an unique identity for the city.
Two months later, word came that UNESCO had designated Iowa City as the world's third City of Literature, joining Edinburgh, Scotland and Melbourne, Australia. Since then, 25 other cities have earned the designation, including Dublin, Ireland; Reykjavik, Iceland; Norwich, England; and Krakow, Poland. The only other U.S. city is Seattle, Washington.
The designation makes Iowa City part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, to promote innovative growth and shared experiences worldwide. A successful application, submitted on hand-made paper with original calligraphy, for Iowa City to become a world City of Literature was submitted on this date, in 2008.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 16th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Friday, September 13, 2019
"So That Others May See"
Back in the early 1950s, Ruth Fisher was having problems seeing clearly. An ophthalmologist at the University of Iowa concluded that her best hope was a corneal transplant. But there was a problem...a successful operation had to be conducted within 36 hours of receiving a donor cornea, and by law at the time, those had to come from outside the state.
It took weeks before a donor could be found in Buffalo, New York...and three more months before another donor was found so surgery could be done on her other eye.
Doctors saw a need for a new system, so during a speech to the 1954 state convention of Iowa Lions Clubs, Dr. Alson Braley of the University of Iowa convinced the Lions to expand their well-known sight conservation program. Those in attendance quickly agreed.
Lions from across Iowa contacted lawmakers and got state law amended to allow Iowans to will body parts to a medical school or eye bank. On September 13, 1955, the Iowa Lions Eye Bank was established with an office in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Iowa. The first staff member and executive director--Ruth Fisher, who served in the post until 1983.
From humble beginnings, the Iowa Lions Eye Bank has called a 14,000-square foot space at the UI Bioventures Center home since 2013. And thousands have been helped thanks to the Iowa Lions Eye Bank, which opened on this date in 1955.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 13th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"So That Others May See"
Back in the early 1950s, Ruth Fisher was having problems seeing clearly. An ophthalmologist at the University of Iowa concluded that her best hope was a corneal transplant. But there was a problem...a successful operation had to be conducted within 36 hours of receiving a donor cornea, and by law at the time, those had to come from outside the state.
It took weeks before a donor could be found in Buffalo, New York...and three more months before another donor was found so surgery could be done on her other eye.
Doctors saw a need for a new system, so during a speech to the 1954 state convention of Iowa Lions Clubs, Dr. Alson Braley of the University of Iowa convinced the Lions to expand their well-known sight conservation program. Those in attendance quickly agreed.
Lions from across Iowa contacted lawmakers and got state law amended to allow Iowans to will body parts to a medical school or eye bank. On September 13, 1955, the Iowa Lions Eye Bank was established with an office in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Iowa. The first staff member and executive director--Ruth Fisher, who served in the post until 1983.
From humble beginnings, the Iowa Lions Eye Bank has called a 14,000-square foot space at the UI Bioventures Center home since 2013. And thousands have been helped thanks to the Iowa Lions Eye Bank, which opened on this date in 1955.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 13th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Thursday, September 12, 2019
"The Most Beautiful Theater in Iowa"
Dr. Philip Wieting, a dentist, moved with his wife from Worcester, N.Y. to the Tama County town of Toledo in the spring of 1867. Wieting branched out into the mercantile and abstract businesses, and with his father-in-law, co-founded the Toledo City Bank in 1878.
Around the turn of the century, the Wietings returned to New York, this time establishing residence in Syracuse. There, Wieting became involved in manufacturing and, according to sources, "amassed quite a fortune".
After Philip Wieting's death in 1906, Ella Wieting decided to honor her husband by establishing memorial "opera house" theatres in the three towns where they had "lived happily and participated widely in civic affairs"-- Philip's hometown of Worcester, N.Y., Syracuse, N.Y., and Toledo, Iowa.
The Toledo theater was built in less than a year. An advertisement promoting the grand opening called the Wieting Opera House "the most beautiful theater in the state of Iowa".
On September 12, 1912, the Wieting Theater opened with a performance of Verdi's opera "Il Trovatore" featuring more than 100 musicians. Ella Wieting was present on opening night to hand the deed to the property over to local officials. The Toledo Chronicle reported that "Mrs. Wieting was dressed in the gown which her husband gave her just before his death and which she had worn only once since, and that was at the opening of the opera house in Worcester."
Citizens of Toledo rallied to restore the Wieting in time for its centennial less than a decade ago. It cost $20,000 to build in 1912, but $1.4 million to renovate a century later.
The Wieting Theater still proudly stands as an anchor of the city's downtown district, befitting its place as one of five structures in Toledo to be on the National Register of Historic Places. And the first performance was held there on this date in 1912.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 12th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"The Most Beautiful Theater in Iowa"
Dr. Philip Wieting, a dentist, moved with his wife from Worcester, N.Y. to the Tama County town of Toledo in the spring of 1867. Wieting branched out into the mercantile and abstract businesses, and with his father-in-law, co-founded the Toledo City Bank in 1878.
Around the turn of the century, the Wietings returned to New York, this time establishing residence in Syracuse. There, Wieting became involved in manufacturing and, according to sources, "amassed quite a fortune".
After Philip Wieting's death in 1906, Ella Wieting decided to honor her husband by establishing memorial "opera house" theatres in the three towns where they had "lived happily and participated widely in civic affairs"-- Philip's hometown of Worcester, N.Y., Syracuse, N.Y., and Toledo, Iowa.
The Toledo theater was built in less than a year. An advertisement promoting the grand opening called the Wieting Opera House "the most beautiful theater in the state of Iowa".
On September 12, 1912, the Wieting Theater opened with a performance of Verdi's opera "Il Trovatore" featuring more than 100 musicians. Ella Wieting was present on opening night to hand the deed to the property over to local officials. The Toledo Chronicle reported that "Mrs. Wieting was dressed in the gown which her husband gave her just before his death and which she had worn only once since, and that was at the opening of the opera house in Worcester."
Citizens of Toledo rallied to restore the Wieting in time for its centennial less than a decade ago. It cost $20,000 to build in 1912, but $1.4 million to renovate a century later.
The Wieting Theater still proudly stands as an anchor of the city's downtown district, befitting its place as one of five structures in Toledo to be on the National Register of Historic Places. And the first performance was held there on this date in 1912.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 12th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Wednesday, September 11, 2019
"Lindbergh Against the War"
September 11th, 2001, ultimately led to the U.S. fighting wars on two fronts. Literally 60 years before the terrorist attacks on America, on September 11th, 1941, one of the world’s most famous citizens was in Des Moines, warning about intervening in the conflict which became the second World War.
Charles Lindbergh was the first man to fly a plane across the Atlantic Ocean, in 1927. He gained immediate fame worldwide, and even 14 years after his accomplishment, his opinions were respected across the country.
Lindbergh became involved with the America First Committee, which advocated staying out of what was then a European conflict. His Des Moines speech on the topic, however, led many to be outraged. He claimed there were three groups pushing the U.S. into war—the British, the Jewish, and the Roosevelt Administration. He said the greatest danger to our country was Jewish influence in motion pictures, the press, radio, and government.
We are on the verge of a war in which the only victor would be chaos and prostration.
We are on the verge of a war for which we are still unprepared, and for which no one has offered a feasible plan for victory--a war which cannot be won without sending our soldiers across the ocean to force a landing on a hostile coast against armies stronger than our own.
The famed aviator Charles Lindbergh was roundly criticized for that speech, advocating isolationism in the face of World War II…a speech delivered in Des Moines on this date in 1941.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 11th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Lindbergh Against the War"
September 11th, 2001, ultimately led to the U.S. fighting wars on two fronts. Literally 60 years before the terrorist attacks on America, on September 11th, 1941, one of the world’s most famous citizens was in Des Moines, warning about intervening in the conflict which became the second World War.
Charles Lindbergh was the first man to fly a plane across the Atlantic Ocean, in 1927. He gained immediate fame worldwide, and even 14 years after his accomplishment, his opinions were respected across the country.
Lindbergh became involved with the America First Committee, which advocated staying out of what was then a European conflict. His Des Moines speech on the topic, however, led many to be outraged. He claimed there were three groups pushing the U.S. into war—the British, the Jewish, and the Roosevelt Administration. He said the greatest danger to our country was Jewish influence in motion pictures, the press, radio, and government.
We are on the verge of a war in which the only victor would be chaos and prostration.
We are on the verge of a war for which we are still unprepared, and for which no one has offered a feasible plan for victory--a war which cannot be won without sending our soldiers across the ocean to force a landing on a hostile coast against armies stronger than our own.
The famed aviator Charles Lindbergh was roundly criticized for that speech, advocating isolationism in the face of World War II…a speech delivered in Des Moines on this date in 1941.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 11th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Tuesday, September 10, 2019
"Winning Olympic Gold"
Doreen Wilber first became interested in archery in 1957 when one of her husband’s customers paid his auto repair bill with a bow and set of arrows. But it soon became clear she was a natural.
She had amazing concentration, and was physically strong. No professional coach, no commercial sponsor…but Doreen did not lose a single tournament at the state level for 10 years.
She shot on the international level from 1968 to 1974 and established 10 new records, along the way becoming the first woman to shoot over 1200 in international competition.
On September 10th, 1972, she won the gold medal in the women’s section of the first modern Olympic archery competition…and she did so at the age of 42.
She was inducted in nine halls of fame, including the Sports Illustrated Athletes of the Century. She died of Alzheimer’s Disease in her hometown of Jefferson in 2008. She was memorialized with a life-sized bronze statue in the center of town three years later.
The Iowa woman with outstanding sportsmanship, Doreen Wilber, won Olympic gold in archery on this date in 1972.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 10th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Winning Olympic Gold"
Doreen Wilber first became interested in archery in 1957 when one of her husband’s customers paid his auto repair bill with a bow and set of arrows. But it soon became clear she was a natural.
She had amazing concentration, and was physically strong. No professional coach, no commercial sponsor…but Doreen did not lose a single tournament at the state level for 10 years.
She shot on the international level from 1968 to 1974 and established 10 new records, along the way becoming the first woman to shoot over 1200 in international competition.
On September 10th, 1972, she won the gold medal in the women’s section of the first modern Olympic archery competition…and she did so at the age of 42.
She was inducted in nine halls of fame, including the Sports Illustrated Athletes of the Century. She died of Alzheimer’s Disease in her hometown of Jefferson in 2008. She was memorialized with a life-sized bronze statue in the center of town three years later.
The Iowa woman with outstanding sportsmanship, Doreen Wilber, won Olympic gold in archery on this date in 1972.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 10th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Monday, September 9, 2019
"Riding the Rails"
Today, the city of Ames and Iowa State University are integrated to the point it’s hard to tell where one starts and the other stops. Back in 1890, though, the Iowa Agricultural College campus, as it was then known, was separate from the town of Ames, and the only transportation linking the two was a stagecoach line.
In an effort to bridge this distance, there was great interest in connecting the town and campus with a railway. On September 9th, 1890, the Ames Street Railway Company began soliciting subscriptions to pay for the two-mile rail line.
By the next spring, grading for the line was underway, and testing was done on Independence Day 1891, with regular service beginning soon after.
The rail car carrying passengers itself was called the Dinkey. Ultimately the roster of cars used included three passenger cars and a multipurpose flat car. The flat car was used to carry freight and baggage, complete with stakes, set-in pockets, and ropes to keep suitcases from falling off.
The Dinkey operated to connect the campus with the town until 1907, when it was retired. The equipment was stored at the Chicago & NorthWestern facility in Boone, until it was scrapped in 1917 to provide material for World War I.
The train is remembered fondly today, with a beer named in its honor at a local brew pub for a time. The fundraising effort for Ames’ in-town train, the Dinkey, began on this date, in 1890.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 9th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Riding the Rails"
Today, the city of Ames and Iowa State University are integrated to the point it’s hard to tell where one starts and the other stops. Back in 1890, though, the Iowa Agricultural College campus, as it was then known, was separate from the town of Ames, and the only transportation linking the two was a stagecoach line.
In an effort to bridge this distance, there was great interest in connecting the town and campus with a railway. On September 9th, 1890, the Ames Street Railway Company began soliciting subscriptions to pay for the two-mile rail line.
By the next spring, grading for the line was underway, and testing was done on Independence Day 1891, with regular service beginning soon after.
The rail car carrying passengers itself was called the Dinkey. Ultimately the roster of cars used included three passenger cars and a multipurpose flat car. The flat car was used to carry freight and baggage, complete with stakes, set-in pockets, and ropes to keep suitcases from falling off.
The Dinkey operated to connect the campus with the town until 1907, when it was retired. The equipment was stored at the Chicago & NorthWestern facility in Boone, until it was scrapped in 1917 to provide material for World War I.
The train is remembered fondly today, with a beer named in its honor at a local brew pub for a time. The fundraising effort for Ames’ in-town train, the Dinkey, began on this date, in 1890.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 9th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Friday, September 6, 2019
"The Padre of Hollywood"
If you're a movie fan, you may recall the 1934 film "It Happened One Night" and the pivotal scene where would-be bride Claudette Colbert leaves her fiancé at the altar of their garden wedding to run away with Clark Gable.
The man preparing to officiate at the ceremony was Iowa native Neal Dodd. He was a popular choice to play such a role, since he was in real life an Anglican priest.
He first appeared in a film in 1920, the same year he became the founding secretary of the Motion Picture Relief Fund. He was the first clergyman to become a member of the Screen Actors Guild. You may recall him from roles in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," where he played the Senate chaplain, and his last role in 1951, as a priest in "Here Comes the Groom."
He officiated at 300 weddings on film, and more than 700 in real life...including performing the wedding ceremony for Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. He also served as a technical advisor on religious material for several films.
Father Dodd donated all his acting fees to charity. Much of it went to the church he founded with a Christmas Eve mass in 1918, St. Mary of the Angels Anglican Church in Los Angeles. He died in 1966 at age 86; his ashes are interred at the church he built.
He became known as the Padre of Hollywood for the number of roles he played, officiating at weddings. Father Neal Dodd, born in Fort Madison, on this date in 1879…140 years ago today.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 6th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"The Padre of Hollywood"
If you're a movie fan, you may recall the 1934 film "It Happened One Night" and the pivotal scene where would-be bride Claudette Colbert leaves her fiancé at the altar of their garden wedding to run away with Clark Gable.
The man preparing to officiate at the ceremony was Iowa native Neal Dodd. He was a popular choice to play such a role, since he was in real life an Anglican priest.
He first appeared in a film in 1920, the same year he became the founding secretary of the Motion Picture Relief Fund. He was the first clergyman to become a member of the Screen Actors Guild. You may recall him from roles in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," where he played the Senate chaplain, and his last role in 1951, as a priest in "Here Comes the Groom."
He officiated at 300 weddings on film, and more than 700 in real life...including performing the wedding ceremony for Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. He also served as a technical advisor on religious material for several films.
Father Dodd donated all his acting fees to charity. Much of it went to the church he founded with a Christmas Eve mass in 1918, St. Mary of the Angels Anglican Church in Los Angeles. He died in 1966 at age 86; his ashes are interred at the church he built.
He became known as the Padre of Hollywood for the number of roles he played, officiating at weddings. Father Neal Dodd, born in Fort Madison, on this date in 1879…140 years ago today.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 6th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Thursday, September 5, 2019
"Missing"
On Sunday, September 5th, 1982, 12-year-old John David Gosch left his home before dawn to deliver The Des Moines Sunday Register. He took the family dog along with him. He met other newspaper carriers at the paper drop site, then started on his paper route.
He never finished the route.
His parents, John and Noreen Gosch, started getting phone calls from customers, complaining their paper wasn't delivered. They found his wagon full of papers only two blocks from their home. But Johnny Gosch was nowhere to be found.
Police believe Gosch was kidnapped, but other than one neighbor who saw Johnny talking with a stocky man in a car with Nebraska license plates, they had few leads.
The case drew national attention, as Gosch's photo was one of the first to be printed on milk cartons, along with those of other missing children.
What happened to Johnny Gosch remains unknown. His mother says Johnny came to her home 15 years later, with another man. She believes he was abducted and used in a teenage prostitution ring and is living under an assumed identity today in fear for his life.
Less than two years later, another Register paperboy, Eugene Martin, disappeared under similar circumstances.
The case remains the subject of speculation and dispute. But there is no dispute that West Des Moines paperboy Johnny Gosch disappeared on this date in 1982.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 5th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Missing"
On Sunday, September 5th, 1982, 12-year-old John David Gosch left his home before dawn to deliver The Des Moines Sunday Register. He took the family dog along with him. He met other newspaper carriers at the paper drop site, then started on his paper route.
He never finished the route.
His parents, John and Noreen Gosch, started getting phone calls from customers, complaining their paper wasn't delivered. They found his wagon full of papers only two blocks from their home. But Johnny Gosch was nowhere to be found.
Police believe Gosch was kidnapped, but other than one neighbor who saw Johnny talking with a stocky man in a car with Nebraska license plates, they had few leads.
The case drew national attention, as Gosch's photo was one of the first to be printed on milk cartons, along with those of other missing children.
What happened to Johnny Gosch remains unknown. His mother says Johnny came to her home 15 years later, with another man. She believes he was abducted and used in a teenage prostitution ring and is living under an assumed identity today in fear for his life.
Less than two years later, another Register paperboy, Eugene Martin, disappeared under similar circumstances.
The case remains the subject of speculation and dispute. But there is no dispute that West Des Moines paperboy Johnny Gosch disappeared on this date in 1982.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 5th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Wednesday, September 4, 2019
"Sketching Our Times"
During his five-decade-long career, cartoonist Paul Conrad provided comment on 11 presidential administrations. His work for the Los Angeles Times even landed him on President Nixon’s enemies list during the aftermath of Watergate.
He and his twin brother James were born in Cedar Rapids on June 27th, 1924. He was actually left-handed, but forced by teachers to use his right hand, not uncommon at the time. He first showed a flair for art by drawing on the bathroom wall of his elementary school in Des Moines. His role model was the legendary Des Moines Register editorial cartoonist, Ding Darling.
After service in World War II, Conrad enrolled at the University of Iowa in 1946 and started drawing cartoons for The Daily Iowan. He graduated in 1950 and spent the next 14 years at the Denver Post. He earned his first Pulitzer Prize in 1964, and his work was syndicated across the country.
He moved to the Los Angeles Times in 1964 and offered cartoon commentary on the important political events of the time, picking up another two Pulitzers during his 30 years there.
When Paul Conrad died in California at the age of 84, he was universally regarded as one of the finest political cartoonists of the century. Iowa-born Paul Conrad died on this date in 2010.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 4th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"Sketching Our Times"
During his five-decade-long career, cartoonist Paul Conrad provided comment on 11 presidential administrations. His work for the Los Angeles Times even landed him on President Nixon’s enemies list during the aftermath of Watergate.
He and his twin brother James were born in Cedar Rapids on June 27th, 1924. He was actually left-handed, but forced by teachers to use his right hand, not uncommon at the time. He first showed a flair for art by drawing on the bathroom wall of his elementary school in Des Moines. His role model was the legendary Des Moines Register editorial cartoonist, Ding Darling.
After service in World War II, Conrad enrolled at the University of Iowa in 1946 and started drawing cartoons for The Daily Iowan. He graduated in 1950 and spent the next 14 years at the Denver Post. He earned his first Pulitzer Prize in 1964, and his work was syndicated across the country.
He moved to the Los Angeles Times in 1964 and offered cartoon commentary on the important political events of the time, picking up another two Pulitzers during his 30 years there.
When Paul Conrad died in California at the age of 84, he was universally regarded as one of the finest political cartoonists of the century. Iowa-born Paul Conrad died on this date in 2010.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 4th...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Tuesday, September 3, 2019
"The Candidates Meet in Des Moines"
Campaigns for president can often be contentious affairs; we in Iowa certainly see that up close every four years.
On September 3rd, 1936, a unique meeting of the two major party nominees occurred in Des Moines.
The summer of 1936 saw continued economic stress in America. In the Midwest, that was coupled by crippling drought.
A conference was held in Des Moines, attended by governors from states most affected by the drought, including Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt attended the sessions, held at the state capitol building in Des Moines. That included a meeting with his presidential rival, Kansas Gov. Alf Landon. The two shook hands for the media cameras and exchanged pleasantries before a lunch and the afternoon drought relief conference.
A poll released that very day showed Landon’s lead over Roosevelt in rural areas widening. But as the November election approached, the tables turned nationally, and FDR won in a landslide, only losing Maine and Vermont.
The two rivals for president, Franklin Roosevelt and Alf Landon, met in Des Moines to talk about drought relief, on this date, in 1936.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 3rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"The Candidates Meet in Des Moines"
Campaigns for president can often be contentious affairs; we in Iowa certainly see that up close every four years.
On September 3rd, 1936, a unique meeting of the two major party nominees occurred in Des Moines.
The summer of 1936 saw continued economic stress in America. In the Midwest, that was coupled by crippling drought.
A conference was held in Des Moines, attended by governors from states most affected by the drought, including Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt attended the sessions, held at the state capitol building in Des Moines. That included a meeting with his presidential rival, Kansas Gov. Alf Landon. The two shook hands for the media cameras and exchanged pleasantries before a lunch and the afternoon drought relief conference.
A poll released that very day showed Landon’s lead over Roosevelt in rural areas widening. But as the November election approached, the tables turned nationally, and FDR won in a landslide, only losing Maine and Vermont.
The two rivals for president, Franklin Roosevelt and Alf Landon, met in Des Moines to talk about drought relief, on this date, in 1936.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 3rd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
Iowa Almanac for Monday, September 2, 2019
"The Ballpark Gets A New Name"
Garner W. Taylor became sports editor of the Des Moines Register in 1914. He was still on the job 51 years later, when he died of a heart attack at the age of 78 in 1965.
During that time, he shaped Iowans' impressions of sports. Generations recall The Big Peach sports section in the paper, and his regular column, "Sittin' in With the Athletes".
Prior to working at the Register, he was secretary to the baseball team in St. Joseph, Missouri and earned the nickname "Sec"...which he used the rest of his career. And it was that interest in baseball that is behind today's story.
He strongly believed that a city the size of Des Moines should have a strong minor league baseball team, and pushed for the effort in his columns. In 1947, a new ballpark was built to house the Des Moines Bruins of the Western League. It was called Pioneer Memorial Stadium. The Bruins were in town for 12 years, followed by a three-year stint by the Des Moines Demons of the Three-I League.
After the Demons' first season, on September 2nd, 1959, the ballpark got a new name--Sec Taylor Stadium, in honor of the newspaperman who supported Iowa sports so strongly.
The ballpark has a corporate name now, but the field where the Iowa Cubs play is still named for him.
Pioneer Memorial Stadium, the minor league baseball stadium in Des Moines, was renamed Sec Taylor Stadium, on this date, in 1959.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 2nd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.
"The Ballpark Gets A New Name"
Garner W. Taylor became sports editor of the Des Moines Register in 1914. He was still on the job 51 years later, when he died of a heart attack at the age of 78 in 1965.
During that time, he shaped Iowans' impressions of sports. Generations recall The Big Peach sports section in the paper, and his regular column, "Sittin' in With the Athletes".
Prior to working at the Register, he was secretary to the baseball team in St. Joseph, Missouri and earned the nickname "Sec"...which he used the rest of his career. And it was that interest in baseball that is behind today's story.
He strongly believed that a city the size of Des Moines should have a strong minor league baseball team, and pushed for the effort in his columns. In 1947, a new ballpark was built to house the Des Moines Bruins of the Western League. It was called Pioneer Memorial Stadium. The Bruins were in town for 12 years, followed by a three-year stint by the Des Moines Demons of the Three-I League.
After the Demons' first season, on September 2nd, 1959, the ballpark got a new name--Sec Taylor Stadium, in honor of the newspaperman who supported Iowa sports so strongly.
The ballpark has a corporate name now, but the field where the Iowa Cubs play is still named for him.
Pioneer Memorial Stadium, the minor league baseball stadium in Des Moines, was renamed Sec Taylor Stadium, on this date, in 1959.
And that's Iowa Almanac for September 2nd...Listen to the extended audio version of today's story by clicking on the audio player above.