On This Day
1954 – In the United States, the National Negro Network is established with 40 charter member radio stations.
The National Negro Network was a black-oriented radio programming service in the United States founded on January 20, 1954 by Chicago advertiser W. Leonard Evans, Jr.[1][2] It was the first black-owned radio network in the country, and its programming was broadcast on up to 45 affiliates.[3] An article in the trade publication Broadcasting said that the network was expected “to reach approximately 12 million of the 15 million Negroes in America.”[4]
Evans was the network’s president. Reggie Schuebel was vice president-treasurer, and John M. Wyatt was executive vice president.[4]
The network featured a variety of different programming, including a popular soap opera The Story of Ruby Valentine, which was based on CBS’s We Love and Learn and As the Twig is Bent, and starred Juanita Hall, Ruby Dee and Terry Carter.[5] The serial was sponsored by, among others, Philip Morris and Pet Milk. Other short-lived series included The Life of Anna Lewis with Hilda Simms, and It’s A Mystery Man with Cab Calloway.[5][6][7]
Some shows were produced by Calloway and Ethel Waters. Other fare included broadcasts of symphony concerts from black colleges, and programs hosted by black DJs at affiliate stations.[3]
The network drew up plans for several more series, but—with the TV era exploding—fell apart within a year due to inadequate capital.[3][6][8]
Jason Chambers wrote in his book, Madison Avenue and the Color Line: African Americans in the Advertising Industry that Evans felt that advertising agencies were hesitant to recommend NNN to clients. “Agencies are aware of our existence and watch our growth closely,” Evans said, “but … are still reluctant to come right out and make a recommendation [for using] Negro radio, preferring to keep campaigns at a ‘test’ level while watching to see what others do.”[9]
Born On This Day
1526 – Rafael Bombelli, Italian mathematician (d. 1572)
Rafael Bombelli (baptised on 20 January 1526; died 1572)[a] was an Italian mathematician. Born in Bologna, he is the author of a treatise on algebra and is a central figure in the understanding of imaginary numbers.
He was the one who finally managed to address the problem with imaginary numbers. In his 1572 book, L’Algebra, Bombelli solved equations using the method of del Ferro/Tartaglia. He introduced the rhetoric that preceded the representative symbols +i and -i and described how they both worked.
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FYI
By Greg Myre: Tony Mendez, The ‘Argo’ Spy Who Rescued Americans In Iran, Dies At 78
Antonio Joseph Mendez (November 15, 1940 – January 19, 2019) was an American technical operations officer for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), who specialized in support of clandestine and covert CIA operations. He wrote three memoirs about his CIA experiences.
Mendez was decorated, and is now widely known, for his on-the-scene management of the “Canadian Caper” during the Iran hostage crisis. He exfiltrated six American diplomats from Iran in January 1980 by arranging to have them pose as a Canadian film crew. As part of their cover, the diplomats carried passports issued by the Canadian government to document them as Canadian citizens.
After declassification of records, the full details of the operation were reported in a 2007 article by Joshuah Bearman in Wired magazine.[1] This was loosely adapted for the screenplay and development of the 2012 Academy Award-winning film Argo, directed by Ben Affleck, who also starred as Mendez. Mendez attended the 70th Golden Globe Awards to give a speech about the film, where it was nominated (and later won) for Best Motion Picture – Drama.[2]
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Vector’s World: Altered Vettes; Treacherous crossing; Happy 97th birthday, Betty White! More ->
Written by Stacey Freedenthal, PhD, LCSW: Language Matters: Committed Suicide vs. Completed Suicide vs. Died by Suicide
People in the suicide prevention field discourage the use of the term “committed suicide.” The verb “commit” (when followed by an act) is generally reserved for actions that many people view as sinful or immoral. Someone commits burglary, or murder, or rape, or perjury, or adultery, or crime – or something else bad.
Suicide is bad, yes, but the person who dies by suicide is not committing a crime or sin. Rather, the act of suicide almost always is the product of mental illness, intolerable stress, or trauma.
To portray suicide as a crime or sin stigmatizes those who experience suicidal thoughts or attempt suicide. This stigma, in turn, can deter people from seeking help from friends, family, and professionals.
As Susan Beaton and colleagues note in their article, “Suicide and Language: Why We Shouldn’t Use the ‘C’ Word”:
“Suicide is not a sin and is no longer a crime, so we should stop saying that people ‘commit’ suicide. We now live in a time when we seek to understand people who experience suicidal ideation, behaviours and attempts, and to treat them with compassion rather than condemn them.”
By Maroosha Muzaffar: The Future of Maritime Trade? Unmanned Ships
Why you should care
From Norway to China, autonomous ships are emerging as the future of commercial maritime trade.
By Lars-Broder Keil: When Martin Luther King Jr. Spoke to East Berlin
Why you should care
The Rev. King, and his great oratorical skills, had impact far beyond American shores. He’s remembered in Berlin.
“Where people break down the dividing wall of hostility which separates them from their brothers, Christ achieves his ministry of reconciliation.” One speech, two locations and very different impacts.
The Passive Voice – 100% Diy: Interview with Cellist Zoë Keating; Spycraft Finland’s Flagship Library Oodi Opens to the Public in Helsinki; Business Musings: Audio; If You’re Hungry, Books Seem Full of Feasts
Today’s email was written by Jessanne Collins with reporting by Tim Fernholz, Lila McClellan, and Anne Quito, edited by Whet Moser, and produced by Luiz Romero. Quartz Obsession: Air traffic control
“Think of each plane as an ‘idea’ that pops into your head…. Let’s say Teddy Pendergrass might be one …. Or funnel cake; aluminum siding; potholes; the Dagobah system…. Somehow you have to keep them all located in your mind while you’re handing some off, exchanging their information with the other controllers. All your delicate ideas have to remain perfectly clear and distinct in your mind at all times.”
—Air traffic controller Gregory Pardlo to his son, who wrote for the New Yorker about how the 1981 air traffic control strike shaped his life.
Sierra: Can Cider Save The World?; The Last Great Wilderness; Hiking for Healing
This episode features in-depth feature story from the embattled Bears Ears National Monument, a radio diary from two members of North Carolina’s Lumbee Tribe, a conversation about heirloom ciders, and sustainable-living advice from our columnist, Mr. Green.
In this episode we take listeners to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which is now threatened by oil-drilling. Plus also: A radio diary from Olympic snowboarder Justin Reiter, a conversation about equity in the outdoors with Teresa Baker, and sustainable living advice from Mr. Green.
In Episode 3 of The Overstory, we join a group of single mom veterans from New York City as they take a weekend camping trip with their families—and in the course of their adventure find a respite from the stresses of military-to-civilian transition. We also talk with Ray Smith, a member of the first all African-American team to summit Mount Kilimanjaro. Plus: advice from Mr. Green and a radio diary from Yellowstone’s “wild woman.”
By ADRIAN SAINZ and KAREN PULFER FOCHT Associated Press: Unclaimed veterans buried with dignity, thanks to strangers
Army soldiers Arnold M. Klechka, 71, and Wesley Russell, 76, and Marine Charles B. Fox, 60, were laid to rest in a service attended by about 700 people at West Tennessee Veterans Cemetery in Memphis on Thursday. There was a gun salute, and a bagpiper played “Amazing Grace.”
By Chris Francescani and Bill Hutchinson: Viral video of Catholic school teens in ‘MAGA’ caps taunting Native Americans draws widespread condemnation; prompts a school investigation
Maria Popova’s Brain Pickings: FROM THE ARCHIVE (2016) | The Third Self: Mary Oliver on Time, Concentration, the Artist’s Task, and the Central Commitment of the Creative Life
Ideas
Rebecca D. Dillon Hometalker Roanoke, VA: Easy DIY Terrarium Refrigerator Magnets
By Hometalk Hits: 31 Clever Ideas To Reuse Muffin Pans And Cupcake Liners
By DonS89: Making a Keep-Warm Box
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for October 15 October 15, 2024Picture of the day Purple sea urchin (Sphaerechinus granularis), Garajau Marine Nature Reserve, Madeira, Portugal.
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for October 14 October 14, 2024Picture of the day Panorama of the Holy Trinity Church in Zinkiv, Khmelnytskyi Oblast, Ukraine
Recipes
By In the Kitchen With Matt: Low Carb and Sugar Free Peanut Butter Cups (Keto Friendly)
By AndrewW1977: Honey Garlic Spareribs – Chinese Restaurant Style
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