dual personalities

Today we toast John Singleton Copley (July 3, 1738 – September 9, 1815) on his birthday. Copley was was an American painter, active in both colonial America and England. He was famous for his portraits, but the above painting–Watson and the Shark (1778)–traumatized me as a child. It is still scary!

It is also the birthday of George M. Cohan (July 3, 1878 – November 5, 1942)–although I always think of him having a July 4th birthday–you know, “I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy, born on the 4th of July”! Poetic license, I guess. Anyway, Cohan was the quintessential Irish-American song-and-dance man and everything I  know about him I learned from the James Cagney movie Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) which is a good movie, although probably only half true.

I also saw George M! with Joel Grey at the Muny Opera back in 1970 when it was touring.

I wonder if kids today have ever heard of George M. Cohan or heard any of his songs. I grew up with them. “Over there! Over there!/Send the word, send the word over there/That the Yanks are coming/ The Yanks are coming…” I guess Americans lost their enthusiasm for that sentiment somewhere in the 1960s. Oh well.

And hold the phone, Steve McQueen is star of the month on TCM!

June was Leslie Howard and July is Steve McQueen. Have I been a good girl or what? Set your DVRs for Thursdays! By the way, the OM and I watched The Towering Inferno (1974) the other night–possibly one of the worst movies ever–but it was worth the 165-minute investment of time to see Steve McQueen…

…and Paul Newman.

The horrible 1970s sets and costumes were amusing as well. Egad, 1974 was the pits.

Today is also the start of the Dog Days of summer according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac. To the Greeks and Romans, the “dog days” occurred around the day when Sirius appeared to rise just before the sun, in late July. They referred to these days as the hottest time of the year, a period that could bring fever, or even catastrophe.

Dog Days are approaching; you must, therefore, make both hay and haste while the Sun shines, for when old Sirius takes command of the weather, he is such an unsteady, crazy dog, there is no dependence upon him.
–The Old Farmer’s Almanac, 1817

We are mixing a lot of metaphors here, along with myths, so I’ll wrap this up.

Daughter #1 arrives home tonight to celebrate the 4th of July with us, as will my nephew Tim and his girlfriend Abbie, who are driving in from Indiana. We will have a full house. Cross your fingers that the air conditioning holds up!

The wee babes have come a long way since last July 4th, but Lottie was still stylin’.