~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
October 1, 2012

★~ Today’s Quote:  “Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn.” – Elizabeth Lawrence

★~ World Vegetarian Day:

Bacon’s domination of the internet may lead one to believe otherwise, but there are folks in this world who don’t dig on the swine. Or the beef, chicken, turkey, and fish, for that matter. For these non-meat-eaters, World Vegetarian Day, October 1, is the time to shine. The date kicks off the start of Vegetarian Awareness Month. The best way for meat lovers to celebrate is to practice tolerance, learn to cook a meatless dish, and perhaps learn about the advantages of a eating less meat and more veggies. This World Vegetarian Day is sponsored by North American Vegetarian Society   Click here for more vegetarian fascinating facts.

★~ Homemade Cookie Day:

More than likely we can thank the Anniversary of the New York Cocoa Exchange (October 1) for the origin of Homemade Cookie Day. Celebrate today by making your favorite cookies and sending them to me. Ok. You don’t have to send me the cookies if you share your favorite cookie recipe with us. In exchange here is an easy cookie recipe that Cole and I have been loving lately.

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1847 – Maria Mitchell, American astronomer, discovered a comet and was elected this same day to the American Academy of Arts — the first woman to be so honored. Mitchell (1818-1889) was the first person to find a comet by telescope.

♥~ 1908 –  Ford introduced the Model T at a price of $850, but by 1924 the basic model sold for as little as $260. Between 1908 and 1927, Ford sold 15,007,033 Model Ts in the US. Although the first Model Ts were not built on an assembly line, the demand for the cars was so high that Ford developed a system where workers remained at their stations and cars came to them. This enabled Ford to turn out a Model T every 10 seconds. Customers could have the Model T in any color they wanted; as long as they wanted black.

♥~ 1942 – Little Golden Books published its first children’s book, The Poky Little Puppy.

♥~ 1962 – “From New York … heeeeeeeeeere’s Johnny!” Ed McMahon introduced the new host of NBC’s Tonight Show for the first time. Johnny Carson entertained late-night America for nearly three decades, give or take 20 years for vacations…

♥~ 1971 – Walt Disney World opened in Orlando, Florida, USA.

♥~ 1994 – Eric Clapton’s album From the Cradle was number one in the U.S.

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1920 – Walter Matthau Academy Award-winning actor: The Fortune Cookie [1966]; The Odd Couple, Grumpy Old Men, Grumpier Old Men, Dennis the Menace, Kotch,Pete & Tillie, Plaza Suite, The Sunshine Boys, JFK, Fail-Safe, Earthquake; died July 1, 2000

♥~ 1924 – Jimmy Carter  39th U.S. President [1977-1981]; married to Rosalynn Smith [three sons, one daughter]; full name: James Earl Carter

♥~ 1927 – Tom Bosley actor: Happy Days, Father Dowling Mysteries, Murder, She Wrote, The Dean Martin Show, The Debbie Reynolds Show, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home; died Oct 19, 2010

♥~ 1933 – Richard Harris actor: Camelot, The Guns of Navarone, Hawaii, A Man Called Horse, Mutiny on the Bounty, Unforgiven, Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone,Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets; singer: MacArthur Park, Didn’t We; LP: A Tramp Shining; died Oct 25, 2002

♥~ 1935 – Julie Andrews (Julia Wells) Academy Award-winning actress: Mary Poppins [1964]; The Sound of Music, Victor/Victoria, 10, Hawaii; Emmy Award-winner: Victoria Regina: Hallmark Hall of Fame [1961-62]; My Fair Lady, The Boyfriend

★~ Did You Know:  The History of Little Golden Books

There’s a good chance you grew up reading the adventures of The Poky Little Puppy, Tootle, or Scuffy the Tugboat in the pages of Little Golden Books. Come along as we look at the history of these tiny tomes with the gold foil spine that have helped generations of kids learn to appreciate the printed word.

Before the introduction of Little Golden Books in 1942, children’s books were not really made for children. They were usually large volumes that were too difficult for young readers to handle or comprehend, and were expensive at $2 to $3 each (about $28 – $42 today). But George Duplaix of the Artist’s and Writer’s Guild, in partnership with Simon & Schuster Publications and Western Printing, wanted to change all that.

Duplaix had the idea of creating small, sturdy, inexpensive books with fewer pages, simpler stories, and more illustrations so little kids could actually enjoy them. Western was already publishing a line for kids called Golden Books, so they piggy-backed on the marketing and called this new line Little Golden Books.

The first 12 titles were released on October 1, 1942, at a price of only a quarter a piece—and they were an instant success. After only five months on the market, 1.5 million copies had been sold and many titles were already in their third printing; by 1945, most were in their seventh printing. One of the keys to sales was the fact they were sold in unusual places like department stores, drug stores and supermarkets. This gave busy moms a great way to keep busy kids occupied while shopping, and it was inexpensive enough to be tacked onto the final bill without much concern.

Well over two billion Little Golden Books have been sold since 1942 in nearly every country across the globe. (Though they were banned for many years in the Soviet Union for being “too capitalist.”) The Poky Little Puppy was and still is the most popular Little Golden Book.

What was your favorite Little Golden Book growing up?

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You may have heard a rumor (on Twitter, by email or via wherever it is that rumors get started) that this month has five Fridays, five Saturdays and five Sundays, and that this happens only once every 823 years. It’s not true. It happens a lot more often. I fell for it, though, and posted it on Facebook. In fact, I think, I posted it in 2011 too.

I’m reading the Nora Roberts book Witness and thoroughly enjoyed the easy read. After I turned off my Kindle, I had the thought that it’s impossible to multi-task while reading a book. Reading takes your full concentration. Nice. I use to always have a book on hand and looked forward to new releases. Time to take back a little of my reading time! Next up: J.D. Robbs’ book Delusion in Death.

What are you reading?

Rabbit Rabbit! Happy October!