“Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor on the Bedpost Overnight?” is a novelty song written and originally recorded in the 1920s. It was revived with great success in the late 1950s and became a hit single.Only somewhat less frivolously, peo…
Historical marker outside She-nannigans, 16 W. Division St in Chicago.In 1951, the City of Chicago enacted what came to be called the ‘barmaid ordinance.’ It prohibited women from “pouring, mixing, or drawing intoxicating liquors” in a licen…
Russian Standard is the only major vodka brand made and owned by a Russian company.NOTE: I revised this post 3/3/22 to include new information about Stoli. I apologize for putting out misleading information. Sorry, fog of war. I’m doing the best I can….
Opened in 2017, the Sagamore Spirit Distillery is in Baltimore’s Port Covington neighborhood. It is the largest distillery in the U.S. that makes only rye whiskey.It is perhaps symbolic of our era that the most faithful recreation of Maryland-sty…
The figure-8 roller coaster at Luna Park, Mansfield, Ohio (c. 1915).I enjoy history and especially the history of places I’ve visited or lived. I grew up in Mansfield, Ohio, a small city midway between Cleveland and Columbus. It’s a place like an…
Göbekli Tepe is a Neolithic archaeological site near the city of Şanlıurfa in Southeastern Turkey.Humans began to collect and eat rye seeds about 10,000 years ago. The people who built Göbekli Tepe, the oldest known monumental structure on earth, …
Keebler CEO Ernie Keebler, flinging fudge in front of his cookie factory.June, 2022, will mark the 30th anniversary of the premiere of “Made and Bottled in Kentucky,” the documentary about bourbon that I made for KET (Kentucky’s public television…
Murderer George Remus and his victim, in happier times. (1907)This is a tease post for the latest issue of The Bourbon Country Reader, where we cover the Remus issue in some detail, but I won’t make you subscribe to get the payoff.George Remus wa…
But what were they drinking?My fellow baby boomers will not appreciate being reminded that 1971 was half-a-century ago. Much has changed. We wore Nikes and polyester bell bottoms when we went skateboarding with Farah Fawcett, but what did we drink? The…
A little knowledge goes a long way. Are they? Short answer, no; but here is why this question is asked and why that ‘no’ is nuanced and will bear some explaining. (Fair warning: It may not need as much explaining as it’s about to get.)Basil …
