Jul 17 2022
Today is the birthday of Aleksandr Petrov, the Russian animator born July 17, 1957, in the village of Prechistoye. He is known for his unique technique of creating animations from pastel oil paintings on glass, using his fingertips to paint for added texture. Petrov’s first animation was made in 1988, Marathon, and was a tribute …
Jul 17 2022
Disneyland opened its gates on July 17, 1955, on a plot of land in Anaheim, California that previously consisted of orange groves. It cost $17 million to open the park, and its opening day was referred to as “Black Sunday” by Disney employees for years afterward because it had a bumpy start. Several rides were …
Jul 04 2022
Best known for his role as Anatoly in the musical Chess, singer, musician, and actor Tommy Körberg was born on this day July 4, 1948 in Norsjö, Sweden. Chess, released in 1984, is a magnificent musical loaded with talent. The most popular song from the musical is the epic “One Night in Bangkok,” which became an …
Jun 30 2022
Folk singer & songwriter Dave Van Ronk was born on June 30, 1936, in Brooklyn, NY. As a young boy enamored with the local jazz and folk music of his day, he learned to play the guitar, and when he was a little older, he played banjo in a group. He also played piano, possibly inspired …
Jun 29 2022
Inspired after seeing this at Soviet Visuals and Folklore Film Fest‘s #SovietFilmWednesday, this was the first Soviet film I shared a little over two years ago, and it is still one of my favorites. What can I say, I love rain and cats, and the illustrations are beautiful. A Rainy Story is about a cat who wanders …
Jun 27 2022
The first image that comes to mind when anyone mentions Tiki to me, is the famous Walt Disney Enchanted Tiki Room. There are three such rooms. One is located in Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and the other is located at Disneyworld in Orlando, Florida, and the third is located in Tokyo, Japan at the Tokyo …
Jun 25 2022
Joseph Eichler was born on this day, June 25, 1900, in New York City. He lived in a Frank Lloyd Wright home in Hillsborough, California for a while, and was so inspired by Wright’s new naturalist designs, that he founded a company that eventually created modern, innovative housing for the Greater San Francisco Bay and Greater Los Angeles areas, …
Jun 22 2022
The Scarlet Flower (Аленький цветочек, Alenkiy tsvetochek) is a popular Russian folktale based on Sergey Aksakov’s rendition of the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. Similar to the traditional tale, it begins when a merchant father, Stepan Yemelyanovich, asks his three daughters what gifts they would like from his travels. The oldest daughter, Gordeya, wishes for …
Jun 08 2022
Speaking of great architects with June 8 birthdays, in addition to Bruce Goff, Frank Lloyd Wright also has a birthday today. Wright is one of America’s most influential architects, defining the Organic Architecture movement which incorporated natural designs into homes. He was born in Richland Center, Wisconsin, on June 8, 1867. Wright’s best known work …
Jun 08 2022
Architect Bruce Alonzo Goff was born in Alton, Kansas on June 8, 1904 and passed away on August 4, 1982. He was a brilliant child with a talent for drawing, and in 1915, his parents moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he was later made an apprentice at the Tulsa architectural firm of Rush, Endacott and …