I was the featured speaker at the Oneonta (NY) Rotary Club back in 2012.. When I was directed to my seat I found myself next to an older gent and his wife. The minute he started talking I knew I was in for a great story.

His name is Vern Thomas. Vern and his lovely wife, Mary, have lived in Oneonta for decades. Vern is a lon…

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I was going through some of my many hundreds of interviews from back in my 33-year radio career. This was a favorite story of mine. I wrote it in 2015.

Niles Eggleston had the stories. Lucky for us, when he died recently just shy of the 100-year mark, he didn’t take them with him

I’ve always been interested in the famous Eva Coo murder case. It was a hot …

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This week’s article is from our archives in case anyone has missed it. This was published exactly one year ago today. Enjoy!

I was talking with my grandson Connor recently about “what makes a hero?” As we talked he asked me who were my heroes when I was his age. He is 11 years old.

My trip back through the time tunnel of my life was a quick one to find …

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Famed writer Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the classic Farmer Boy in 1933. The Little House on the Prairie author wrote the story based on the boyhood tales told to her by her husband Almanzo Wilder. He grew up on a farm in Malone in the northern part of Upstate New York.

“We call this the

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Without “conquering” the Niagara Escarpment, there would be no Erie Canal. And the Niagara Escarpment was here in Lockport.

The Erie Canal began with an army of immigrant laborers digging their way through the wilderness of western New York, from Rome, N.Y., near the center of the state, to the final destination, Lake Erie. Later, they would dig eastward to Albany. This 360-mile marriage of the waters, ultimately connected the Great Lakes to Albany and, via the Hudson River, to the great Atlantic Ocean port of New York City. The work was hard, even lethal. The workers earned as little as a penny a day for their back-breaking work, and great numbers died of disease and accidents along the way. When the Erie Canal reached Lockport, the only obstacle left to overcome was the Niagara Escarpment, an 80-foot solid limestone cliff that would require the canal diggers to create a way to navigate up and over it and on to the west.

Hence, the “Flight of Five.”

This incredible section of five attached locks, hand dug and blasted out of rock, proved to be the sterling achievement in the creation of the “greatest engineering project ever undertaken.” With the canal boats being able to enter the lower lock, only to slowly rise up to the next one, and the next one, and then finally entering from the fifth lock onto the placid waters which took them the final leg west to Buffalo, the Erie Canal was complete.

The Erie Canal was responsible for New York City becoming (essentially) the gateway to the West, and fully fifty-percent of all transported commodities spent at least some time on the canal route (at times, canal boats trying to get through the “Flight of Five” were backed up for as long as three months). Transportation costs were reduced by over ninety-percent and the expansion of western New York exploded. And all because the unknown thousands of workers (both American and legions of immigrants) were able to conquer the Niagara Escarpment here in Lockport.

And its ghostly footprints are still here today for all to see!

The old Erie Canal was replaced by a new canal system in 1918, called the Barge Canal. It still used a system of locks, but with modern technological advances, engines, generators and vehicles replacing the old system of water power, hard labor and animal power (the famous “Erie Canal Mule Named Sal”). The old “Flight of Five” is still a major draw in the downtown area of Lockport, and museums and well-placed historic markers complete one of Upstate New York’s most fascinating locales. A sight not to be missed is a tour of the Lockport Cave, running parallel to the “Flight of Five” in downtown Lockport. This natural underground system of water tunnels is one of the most unusual tourist sites in the state. You walk into the cave through a huge, rusty 100-year old water pipe, and ninety-minutes later you emerge a quarter-mile away at the end of an underground boat ride!

And when a boat enters the gigantic lock at Lockport (only tourism and pleasure craft ply the waters of the canal today), everyone still comes hurrying to the overlook to watch the unbelievable sight of the huge canal boats, loaded with camera-toting smiling visitors, slowly rising to near eye level, floating upwards, upwards some fifty-feet before your very eyes. And then the monster lock gates groan open and the boat slowly motors down the river and out of sight. It is an incredible scene.

Of the dozen or so major communities along the Erie Canal from Buffalo to Syracuse, Lockport definitely has the most to offer. The locks (both the new ones and the site of the original ones) draw 200,000 visitors a year to this city of only 22,000. The city itself retains much of its small town patina, despite the rampaging development in the area just south of the city.

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During my most recent visit here, I was directed to the “Lockport Wall of Fame Plaza” along Main Street. Here, memorialized on inscribed pavers, one will find the names of an astonishing array of famous folks from this city. Among them are author Joyce Carol Oates; Lt. Col. William Gregory, an astronaut who was a crew member aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour; William Morgan, the inventor of the game of volleyball; 1980s supermodel Kim Alexis; Jimmy Sacca, a founding member of the hit 1950s vocal group The Hilltoppers; Congressman William Miller, Barry Goldwater’s 1964 vice-presidential running mate; Lillian Bronson, a prolific character actress who played everything from Clark Gable’s leading lady to the Fonz’s grandmother on Happy Days; Albert Brandt, Sr., a Hall of Fame bowler whose 886 triple series was the highest such recorded for more than fifty years; and Birdsall Holly, the holder of 150 U.S. patents, second only to Thomas Edison (Holly invented the fire hydrant, making Lockport the first city in America to use them).

Click below to see the oddest, quirkiest, and most unbelievable story revolving around a social security card you’ve ever heard of. It is a riot. And it happened in Lockport!

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As many of my readers know, I have been writing stories, books, articles, columns, and reviews for more than 40 years. So I have quite a library of archival stories I have written for various entities. Every once in a while I like to open up that “nostalgia file” and re-read something that I wrote many years ago.

Recently I watched a TV tribute to the life of the late entertainer Betty White. It made me think, “Did I ever write anything about Betty White?” So I scanned my millions of words in my files and came up with one. It was interesting.

On June 22, 2013, I wrote an article which paid tribute the the great TV leading ladies of my youth. I mentioned their roles on some of my favorite programs, and I also noted their ages at the time of the article. I read it, now more than 13 years later, with a smile. And then I thought, “I wonder if any of these great actresses are still alive?

So…..

Here is the article I wrote for a newspaper exactly as it appeared on 6/22/2013. Following this article stick around and take a look at where they all these ladies are today. Yes, sadly, they are all in the same place. I hope you find this all interesting.

So back to June, 2013 we go!

“I recently saw on TV a birthday salute to actress Betty White. It included many archival videos, celebrity interviews and reminisces from her early days on television. There is no doubt that Betty has found the magic pill. Into her nineties she is still starring in a hit sitcom, Hot in Cleveland!

If you look up the word “durable” in the dictionary it should say: “See White, Betty.”

This sentimental tribute to Ms. White really got me thinking about some of my own cherished TV shows from the past and made me wonder how many of my favorite ladies from that era are still around. Surprisingly, quite a few are.

Baby Boomers remember the great character actress Ann B. Davis long before she whipped the Brady kids into shape. As Charmaine “Schultzy” Schultz she was the go-to-Girl Friday to cad photographer Robert Cummings in “The Bob Cummings Show.” Yes, Davis is an Emmy Award winner. But for “The Bob Cummings Show,” not for “The Brady Bunch.”

I recently saw on TV a birthday salute to actress Betty White. It included many archival videos, celebrity interviews and reminisces from her early days on television. There is no doubt that Betty has found the magic pill. Into her nineties she is still starring in a hit sitcom, Hot in Cleveland!

If you look up the word “durable” in the dictionary it should say: “See White, Betty.”

This sentimental tribute to Ms. White really got me thinking about some of my own cherished TV shows from the past and made me wonder how many of my favorite ladies from that era are still around. Surprisingly, quite a few are.

Baby Boomers remember the great character actress Ann B. Davis long before she whipped the Brady kids into shape. As Charmaine “Schultzy” Schultz she was the go-to-Girl Friday to cad photographer Robert Cummings in “The Bob Cummings Show.” Yes, Davis is an Emmy Award winner. But for “The Bob Cummings Show,” not for “The Brady Bunch.”

June Lockhart made a career out of playing television moms. Folks my age will remember her first putting the kitchen apron on back in 1959 as Ruth Martin on “Lassie.” Although she was not the first mother on the show (Jan Clayton and Cloris Leachman preceded her) it was Lockhart we remember most vividly standing at the farmhouse door praying that Lassie would find that darn well that Timmy had fallen into. Later, Lockhart headed up the Robinson family in the series “Lost in Space”

I find it somehow quite comforting to know that Joyce Randolph is still with us. She is the last surviving member of my favorite television show of all time, “The Honeymooners.” Oh, what stories Trixie Norton could tell us today!

The biggest movie this week in theaters is “Superman: Man of Steel.” To me Superman will always be George Reeves, the square, solid actor who essayed the caped hero in the 1950s television series. Noel Neill played the persistent and always flustered Lois Lane in the show. Both she and cub reporter Jimmy Olsen are still with us sixty years later.

Gloria Henry played Jay North’s mother on “Dennis the Menace” the entire run of the show, 1959 to 1963. Until recently, she was making appearances at movie and television memorabilia shows signing autographs and posing for photographs. As Mrs. Mitchell in the series, she had to keep track of her whirlwind son, Dennis, and her confused pipe-smoking husband, Henry, all the while keeping a wary eye out for that crusty pain in the butt next door, Mr. Wilson.

Kathy Williams was the glamorous wife of Danny Williams, the nightclub performer in the show “Make Room for Daddy.” Danny Thomas was the star, of course, but beautiful Marjorie Lord held her own as his Irish wife. Many forget that she replaced actress Jean Hagan on the program. Hagen was dissatisfied with her role and left the series three years in. Lord was hired to play a on the show. The Lebanese Danny eventually fell in love with his Irish nurse, married her and the rest was sitcom history. Lord is the mother of actress and Academy Award-nominee Anne Archer

Barbara Hale was a dark-haired beauty queen who co-starred as Della Street in the “Perry Mason” series. More than any other actress, Hale turned her role into a steady paycheck. As legal secretary Street, Hale handed Raymond Burr his hat, coat and briefcase in more than 250 episodes of the crime show.

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So, that is my article from June 2013. Where are all of these lovely ladies now? Click below and find out!

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When it hits 100 degrees (or more) Christmas gets on our mind.

We talked about a very unique “connection” between Christmas and Upstate New York in a previous post. The subject was Virginia O’Hanlon Douglas. She is the little girl who in 1897 famously asked her father, “Is there a Santa Claus?” Her story, her father’s direction, and the editorial reply she received from The Sun newspaper (“Yes, Virginia! There is a Santa Claus!” have all made for one of Upstate’s most endearing holiday legends. If little Virginia had come along a half century or so later she would have to look no farther than to Albion, N.Y. (Orleans County) to get her answer.

To many, Charley Howard was indeed Santa Claus.

Howard had been enamored with the Christmas icon since childhood and lived out his dream as he became an adult. He portrayed Santa in various places around his home in Albion. He was “discovered” by singer Kate Smith who had him on as a guest on her popular radio program in 1936. A year later he opened his Santa School.

He opened his Santa Claus training school in Albion with the intention of insuring consistent and reliable encounters between the man with the beard and his many young admirers. It was initially located in the living room of his home. Graduates received a “Bachelor of Santa Claus.”

Howard initially priced the tuition for his school at $15.00. It was not an immediate success. Friends told him that people thought the price was too cheap to get an education such as the one he was promising. He then raised the price of tuition to $50.00 a year and his classes immediately sold out.

He later constructed a small amusement park, dubbed Christmas Park, in Albion which was a popular holiday destination for many years. It featured animated holiday figures, animals (including reindeer), a train ride, Christmas lights and a visit from Santa himself (played by Charley). Nearly 100,000 visitors would seek out Christmas Park between Thanksgiving and Christmas every year.

Howard’s love affair with Santa Claus gained him national fame. He was the featured Santa in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade from 1948 to 1965. He made personal appearances during the holiday season around the country. He was the mystery guest on “What’s My Line” and was even on the Tonight Show. He was interviewed by the Saturday Evening Post, LIFE magazine and the New York Times. He also owned a business which made “proper” Santa Claus suits which he sold to department stores.

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Serious health problems forced Howard to retire from his school and his Christmas Park eventually went bankrupt and closed in 1965. The school was later picked up by a couple who continued on his name in Midland, Michigan where it continues on today. About 125 students visit the school each year to hone their craft in making perfect “ho-ho-hos” and to learn how to properly balance a fidgety child on their knee.

Charles Howard died May 1, 1966.

To see where Charles Howard is buried in Upstate New York, and how he is remembered for his connection to Santa at his grave, including a statue of him in his home town, click below.

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For more than 20 years there has been one television show that I’ve been interested in consistently. No, make that a show that I have been mesmerized by consistently! Whenever I flip on the tube and start channel surfing, if I land on this show, I am usually good for at least an hour, maybe even more. To me it is the ultimate reality program.

It is Antiques Roadshow on PBS.

Who is not intoxicated by the appearance of regular everyday people schlepping along to the show carting an old set of chinaware or a besmudged autographed baseball or a wobbly chair that they have had sitting in the hallway of their perfectly normal middle class home in Tumbleweed, Kansas? Of course, interest skyrockets quickly from normal to breathtaking when these unwitting antique hoarders find out that the chinaware once belonged to the Queen of the Netherlands, or that the black smudge on that old baseball is actually the signature of Babe Ruth, or even that the wobbly chair out in the hallway was made in the Revolutionary War days by Paul Revere.

Yessir, it gets real quick, real fast for those folks.

I saw a random rerun of the show last week. An old guy, we will call him Hank, maybe 80, with white hair, thick eyeglasses and dungarees pulled up under his armpits, came forward with a large black and white blanket. To my untrained eye it was just a plain old blanket, with large horizontal black and white stripes going across it. The expert who appraised the blanket (and these people are always so important as “co-stars” of this show) was positively twitching at the prospect of sizing up this blanket. Three time in his summation he actually said, “I cannot believe I am standing in front of this.” Hank looked on with a smile of amusement over the fuss.

Turns out the blanket was one of the rarest Navajo blankets ever seen. Anywhere. Quite possibly given to the old guy’s great-grandparents by the Old West frontiersman Kit Carson himself. The appraiser pointed out the rarified qualities of the blanket. That, like other early ones, there were no geometric designs, no vibrant colors, no sophisticated hand-stitching around the edges. “Quite simply, a blanket of this quality has never been seen by a trained eye before. I am almost speechless,” the appraiser whispered.

When told that the blanket was valued at between $600-800,000 dollars, the old guy was overcome with emotion. “Gee, my folks never came from money. It was just an old blanket that ended up coming to me,” he said as he wiped tears from his eyes. When the appraiser asked Hank how he felt, he said, “Gosh, I guess I better not drape it over the back of my rocking chair no more.”

Um, right, Hank.

This episode got me thinking as to whether or not I have anything, anything at all, that is Antique Roadshow worthy? I do have a lot of stuff (just ask my wife) but nothing that is really worth a startling amount of money. So, I finally came up with a single item of mine that I would take on the road show. Read the story below and see the “precious” item I have hanging on my office wall!

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Here are some things that I miss from the old days.

Raking and burning leaves in the fall. I know, I know. I have mentioned this in several columns over the years. And I also know you can’t do this anymore. Errant sparks, kids get burned, air gets fouled. I get it. But fall just isn’t fall without the smell of the backyard leaf pile once Dad takes his cigarette lighter to it.

Watching network television. I haven’t watched a network TV show in over 20 years. Oh, sure, I watch plenty of television. But almost exclusively on cable (for news) or Netflix (for movies). I heard a couple of people talking the other day about their favorite TV shows from the past including “Grey’s Anatomy” and “How I Met Your Mother.” Having never seen a minute of either shows, I could add nothing to the conversation. Oh, and for the record? “Grey’s Anatomy” has been on for 22 years and “HIMYM” was on for nine. Again, I have no clue about either.

And that is funny because I could always tell you where my favorite shows were when I was growing up. “McHale’s Navy” and “F Troop” were on ABC. Over on CBS I liked “Candid Camera” and “Perry Mason.” And my favorite show (even as a kid) was either the “Dean Martin Hour” or “Mission: Impossible” every Thursday night on NBC.

I miss a nice, long bench seat in my car. Today we all sit in Captain Kirk-like command center chairs with the console between us. I like the convenience of having that little console/cup holder/change compartment and French fry holder in the console. But there was just something about those long front seats, riding around with your sweetheart snuggled up next to you on an afternoon drive. Now your sweetheart is an arm’s length away plugged into her music ear buds, feet up on the dash, reading a book or dozing. Maybe that’s what America needs again. More snuggling while driving. But, what about seat belts? Yes, I get it. But I do miss the bench seat.

I miss the “old” lightbulbs. You know, the ones that give off a subtle glow adding a warm ambience to any room. Now, the new energy-saver light bulbs in our living room lamps make our place look like a dentist’s office. I know about energy saving, cost efficiency, etc. But that doesn’t mean I have to like them. I have a small desk lamp that I turned on when we moved into our new house 5 years ago. It has never, ever been turned off. Cost me 26-cents. Yes, we do use those new, blinding bulbs. I hate them. “Next patient, please.”

For more things I miss click below:

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My grandson was in the car with me the other day when we drove by a Krispy Kreme store. He hollered out, “Grandpa Chuck! The sign is lit! That means the doughnuts are hot and ready to go!” He is 8.

Donuts and I go way back.

In 1969, I was “The Donut King” in my hometown, Sidney, NY.

My father bought a donut making machine and his market was the first one in the village to make its own donuts (of course bakeries and coffee shops had been doing that for years). So, it was my duty to make a daily variety of donuts in that monstrosity. I had a sign over the machine and I’d write down how many I made each day. Our customers would poke their heads in to see what I was up to. By the time my reign as “The Donut King” ended, I had made more than a quarter-of a million donuts.

All kinds: plain, sugar, cinnamon, glazed, green ones for St. Patrick’s Day, pink ones for Valentines Day, etc. It was fun. In 1971, I moved out of Sidney, and I sadly gave up my royal scepter.

What is it about a donut, or doughnut?

People just go wild for them, and my customers back at my dad’s Don’s Super Market were no different. Think Krispy Kreme gone wild.

During my college years in Albany, I worked at Freihofer’s Bakery. I stood on an assembly line putting cherries on cupcakes. I watched donuts by the tens of thousands being scooped up out of their bubbling vats, placed on drying racks and then shipped out to stores all across the Northeast for sale.

This was a venerable Capital District bakery, started by Charles Freihofer in 1884. He delivered his baked good by horse and carriage. In fact, his donuts even today carry an image of that early horse and buggy on each box. They were good, too. Especially the glazed ones. I ate as many free ones as I could stomach when I worked at that bakery 60 years ago in Albany’s Arbor Hill district.

Another iconic donut was the Spaulding kruller. They came in an unmistakable orange and white striped boxes. This was “our” donut because their bakery was in Binghamton, their distribution center was on Market Street in Oneonta, and they could be found in every mom-and-pop store in every community no matter how big or how small.

They mastered the art of making the sugar donut. Rather than just being a snowy dust ball that ended up flaking all over your new shirt, the Spaulding sugar kruller had a mysterious paste-like quality to it that allowed the sugar to stay (mostly) on the donut and not on your clothes. Spaulding eventually went out of business, being bought up by Stroehmanns and today they are owned by (believe it or not) Bimbo Bakeries!

Spaulding krullers still come in the familiar orange and white striped box that carries their company slogan, “famous for flavor.” It may be just me but now that they’re made by Bimbo they don’t taste anything like the ones that came out of the bakery on Exchange Street in Binghamton oh those many years ago.

But there was another donut in my youth. Kind of a mysterious one. We only got it once or twice a year. And it was the best of the best. Click below and see it:

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Put this home on your summer bucket list. You won’t be disappointed!

This is one of those grand old homes that can literally take your breath away.

Geneseo’s Main Street is dotted with small mom and pop businesses, some college stores for those attending SUNY Geneseo, a few taverns and eateries, an exquisite hotel and a whimsical fountain featuring a dancing bear, which is located smack in the middle of town. And at the very end of the street, out of sight behind a curtain of leafy trees and hidden behind a long stone wall, is the home of Geneseo’s founder, James Wadsworth, and seven generations of his family.

You enter a stone gate and proceed up a long winding driveway. On the left side you will see many of the property’s 300 acres. On the right you will see an old cobblestone gate house, then some gardens and then a circular driveway. This leads up to one of the most magnificent mansions in Upstate New York.

“James Wadsworth and his brother, William, came to the Genesee Valley in 1790 to settle this land and they built this home in 1804,” Willliam Wadsworth told me. The property is owned by Will’s father, Austin, Austin’s children and grandchildren. Will is the current caretaker of the property and is a sixth generation Wadsworth. “They originally built a log cabin just west of here. This larger home was built in 1804 in the style of the Four Square Federal homes of the day. The home has had several major additions over the years, including 1815, 1823 and in 1874 when the entire house was moved back 130 yards from Geneseo’s Main Street for added privacy. Apparently this house-moving endeavor was quite the public attraction as it required more than twenty teams of oxen to move the large house on long timber beams and rollers. The original Wadsworths owned a large tract of land in the region, and the property included over 250,000 acres of western New York wilderness. Today this property consists of about 300 remaining acres.”

The Wadsworth Homestead contains forty-four rooms, including twelve bedrooms and eight bathrooms, and was constructed with solid 3-inch oak planks. “Yes, it was built almost like a ship. And it was very solid, as it was constructed to withstand gunfire during the wild and uncertain times of the early frontier out here. The Senecas were the previous inhabitants of the land and they were pushed out following the Clinton-Sullivan Campaign of 1779. Many of them resettled in Canada, which is not very far from here. So there was some worry that outside forces would rile them up in Canada and encourage them to return here and reclaim their ancestral land. That is why this house was built strong, like a ship or fort. You just never knew,” Wadsworth told me.

The interior of the house appears as if the some of the earliest generations of Wadsworths simply locked the door and left. Each room is overflowing with family furniture, antiques and possessions. The walls are museum-packed with large portraits of family members down through the years as well as hunting scenes and landscape paintings by some of the most well-known early American artists.

There are fourteen fireplaces in the mansion, all of them working. “We have seven fireplace flues and four chimneys. Each mantel and fireplace surround is unique. Most of them are carved wood with one carved out of Vermont marble,” I was told.

There are hundreds of large, hand-poured glass window panes, many of them installed in sweeping bay windows, which make the house seem light and airy. The wallpaper, carpets, silver objects, the piano, books and personal items all belonged to any and all of the family generations. This was a home lived in by wealthy, important people. “One of my early grandmothers concocted an intricate bell system to call the servants. There are buttons (some secret) which you could push in almost any room for an attendant to come.” He demonstrated this system for me. After pushing a button in the library, we walked to the servants’ quarters and looked at a large glass box with many little white arrows and labels in it. And sure enough, the little white arrow for the library was pointing up signaling that a Wadsworth was waiting for a servant to call. All of the rooms in the house are listed in this call box, including the drawing room, kitchen, Mrs. Wadsworth’s bedroom, and front parlor.

Perhaps the showstopper of the house is the large, ornate three-story staircase which winds its way up to the third floor. It is painted all white including the bannisters and the railings. It gleams in the glow of a large hanging chandelier, which is itself reflected in round antique mirrors. A tall grandfather clock stands sentinel on a landing. The whole scene is highlighted by a large, stunning stained glass window depicting the Atlantic Ocean. It was done by John LaFarge, a contemporary of Louis Comfort Tiffany. It is quite spectacular.

This massive home is set off by two large porches. The front porch is glassed in for all weather enjoyment and faces the tall porte-cochere, which would welcome guests in their horse carriages or early automobiles as they rounded the circular driveway. The rear “west” porch is open air and accommodates several outdoor seating areas overlooking an expanse of lawn, gardens and trees.

While strolling the west porch, I asked Will Wadsworth what it felt like to be the caretaker of something that has such a long and glorious family attachment for him.

“You know, sometimes I come out on this porch and watch the magnificent sunset in the Genesee Valley below. It is not hard for me to understand that just a few layers of paint under my shoes separate me from my ancestors who stood at this very spot and saw the same sunset. I take the responsibility to keep the family name and legacy alive in this home very seriously.”

James and William Wadsworth were the seed from which great wealth, importance and civic responsibility sprang. Over a span of six generations, each family member left his or her mark on the homestead. Some were little marks and others were epic. The family has deep roots to Geneseo. In fact, they donated the land for a school which is now the State University of New York at Geneseo, the economic engine which drives the success of the village and the surrounding area. Even today, Will Wadsworth, a current owner, is involved in Geneseo’s daily life as he acts as the town supervisor.

The Wadsworth brothers’ uncle, Jeremiah, originally purchased 4,000 acres of western New York wilderness and convinced his two younger cousins to invest in this land and to take it upon themselves to market it to future buyers. The Wadsworth brothers paid eight cents an acre to their cousin for 2,000 acres and moved here to an Indian village named Big Tree (today’s Geneseo). The return on the sale of the land made the brothers wealthy.

Big Tree was named after an enormous swamp oak, which was a famous landmark that served as a treaty meeting place for the Seneca Indians. Eventually the tree itself became property of the Wadsworth family. The big tree fell in 1857, but it is remembered here at the homestead in a colorful landscape scene painted by Hudson River School painter John Kensett.

Read the story of some of the amazing folks you will find on the Wadsworth family tree. And find out how you can see the inside of this home! Click below:

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Nipper, the longtime canine mascot of the RCA Victor Company, actually was a real dog.

The terrier belonged to Mark Henry Barraud. They lived over a theatre in England. When Mark died his two brothers, Francis and Philip, took custody of Nipper (named so because he was always nipping at the trousers of strangers passing by). The dog died in 1895. In 1898 Francis, who was a painter, memorialized the dog in a portrait. Having once seen Nipper looking curiously down the bell of a large cylinder and recording machine, Barraud came up with an idea. The result is a realistic painting titled “Dog Looking at and Listening to a Phonograph.” The painting was well-received by the artist’s friends and colleagues and he was encouraged to try and sell it to a music company.

The Gramophone Company, a forerunner of RCA, bought the painting for 100 pounds and an advertising legend was born. Over the years, the musical apparatus that we see Nipper listening to has changed from the original gramophone to successive recording devices, but the pup’s endearing, quizzical expression has remained the same: eyes focused, head tilted, ears at the ready. Magazine and print advertisements used the simple slogan “Look for the dog” to encourage people to buy the new music machine. With an eye for immediate recognition, the company decided to end the stodgy and cumbersome name of “Dog Looking at and Listening to a Phonograph” and held a competition inviting the public to christen the new logo. An Englishman named Ralph Mountain came up with the now iconic saying “His Master’s Voice.”

Over the years, Nipper has been painted by some of the greatest illustrators in America and featured in countless print advertisements. His image has been a marketing bonanza. Any antique shop or collectible store worth their salt should be able to come up with at least one of the logos on many product handouts or artifacts. Nipper has appeared on infant clothing, coffee mugs, plush toys, water glasses, refrigerator magnets, door stops, Christmas ornaments, coin banks, children’s toys, lapel pins, tee shirts, key chains and much more.

Emile Berliner, co-inventor of the gramophone, applied for a trademark for the logo and the catchphrase “His Master’s Voice.” He was granted trademark #34,690 on July 10, 1900 and promptly ordered 24 copies of the painting to be made by Barraud.

Nipper can still be found in various configurations all over the world. At one time every RCA distributor’s warehouse had one on their roof. In Moorestown, New Jersey for example, more than 30 fiberglass Nippers have been seen dotting the downtown landscape, each one painted by a different local artist. At the end of a certain time period these little Nippers are auctioned off for charity. Moorestown was the home of Eldridge Johnson who bought the American rights to the painting in 1900 and used it to advertise his Consolidated Talking Machine Company. In London, a large plaque marks the dog’s actual final resting place. It was placed there in 1984 on the 100th anniversary of the dog’s birth by a member of the Johnson family. It is located along Nipper Alley. The street sign bears the logo of the dog peering into a phonograph.

Perhaps the most world-renown incarnation of the iconic dog is in Albany, New York. Here, along the warehouse area of Broadway near the Hudson River, a massive dog still sits, striving mightily to catch the faint whisper of his master’s voice. Take a look and read the story below!

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Upstate New York is the birthplace of a lot of different things and people, from foods like the potato chip to a wide range of inventors, sports heroes, writers, several U.S. presidents and more. But, it is also the birthplace of one of our country’s most beloved and favorite old ditties.

“Yankee Doodle Dandy” was born at the Fort Crailo Historic Site in Rensselaer.

“Yes, it is a charming story,” Geoff Benton told me recently. He is the Assistant Site Manager of Fort Crailo. “In 1758, during the French and Indian War, a British surgeon named Dr. Richard Shuckburgh crossed the river from Albany to have dinner with the Van Rensselaers at what was then called Fort Crailo. The home was a common use fort for the locals, and you can still see the gun slots in the walls of the building. At the time, General James Abercrombie was preparing his troops for an assault on Fort Ticonderoga. While waiting for the Van Rensselaers to arrive, the surgeon sat on an old stone well, smoking his pipe, and watched with amusement as a large contingent of ragtag ruffian New England soldiers arrived at the training camp. Shuckburgh thought the site of these bumpkin Colonial soldiers humorous and he scratched out a poem, a derisive ode to them which became ‘Yankee Doodle Dandy.’ It was later put to a melody, called ‘Polly Lost her Pocket,’ and the song grew in popularity. Of course today every American knows the song by heart.”

I suggested to the site manager that it must be a great surprise to the visitors and tourists to find out that such a well-known and (now) beloved patriotic ditty began right here.

“Around 1880, during the first attempt to save Crailo from destruction, the powers that be decided that using this patriotic hook was a good way to raise donations for the preservation of the home. That is when the site really started to highlight its association with the song. And it worked. People love the story and we love to tell it. When we conduct a guided tour of the home we never mention the ‘Yankee Doodle Dandy’ connection until the end. After a tour of the mansion we exit out the rear door to show our guests the beautiful gardens. It is here, at the very well that Dr. Shuckburgh sat smoking his pipe, that we retell the story of the song’s beginning.”

I said to Benton that this must be quite a dramatic highlight of the tour. His answer was funny.

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I’m not a very lucky guy. But things do change.

Since 1968, I can only remember winning two contests. One based on naked talent, and one based on dumb luck.

As most people around here know, I won the “Gong Show” in 1977. I sang “Bad Bad LeRoy Brown” while buck-naked in a shower and for some odd reason I won first place. My prizes were four Mr. Coffee machines, $200 worth of Turtle Wax products and 1,000 rolls of ChapStik. That’s the naked talent one.

Around 1988, I was driving through Cooperstown and saw a sign for a Glimmerglass Opera raffle. I had never been to an opera, but I had an old one hundred dollar bill in my wallet and I liberated it and sprang for a ticket. Lo and behold I won. Big. $10,000 big! I got a new driveway and deck off that one. That was the lucky one.

And that was it. A driveway and a deck more than two decades ago, and some lip balm and coffee makers more than three decades ago.

But like I said, things do change.

I recently attended the Main Street artisan’s fair in a small rural town. I walked by a lady who was raffling off a large quilt. She belonged to the local quilting guild as this was their big raffle of the year. What do I know about making a quilt? Zero. What did I know about the history of quilts? Even less.

But I always like to support area groups so I bought a $5.00 ticket. Surprise! I won the quilt! I couldn’t even remember what it looked like.

When my prize was delivered I looked it over. It was beautiful. The handiwork was amazing, the colors were vibrant and the pattern was creative. “Flying Saucers” was its name, reflecting more on coffee cups and plates rather than alien spaceships.

Now, what to do with the quilt? Throw it on the bed? Hang it from a wall? Pack it away as an heirloom? The kids didn’t like the heirloom option. My wife voted for the wall hanging, and the dog and I voted for tossing it on the bed. Luckily, we didn’t have to make that decision because the quilt’s creator called and needed it back. She wanted to enter it in a major quilt show.

Ok, now I am starting to feel some real proprietorship to the darn thing. My quilt in an exhibition? That’s kind of cool.

On Saturday, my wife and I went returned to the little village to attend the quilt show. It was packed. I was astounded by the number of quilts on display and the quality of the work. There were dozens of the most dazzling pieces of craftsmanship you’ve ever seen there. I feigned interest in all of them as I tiptoed in and around the hanging displays.

The quilts looked like entries on “Antiques Roadshow.” Stunning. But where was my quilt? I ran into some people I knew who were more curious as to why I was there than anything else. “Oh, you know,” I said. “The Misses dragged me here.” I chuckled nervously as my wife sighed and rolled her eyes.

Where was my quilt?

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At last, I found “Flying Saucers.” My heart pounded with pride as I viewed it from afar, watching people go up to it and coo at its beauty. I overheard one lady say, “That’s the weirdest quilt I have ever seen.” My wife had to hold me back at this affront to my new possession. “It’s OK, Big Chuck,” she whispered. “Let it go.” I seethed.

So now that the exhibition is over, I’ve done some research about quilts. How they told the stories of the Underground Railroad. How the quilters brought their amazing talents to America from all over the world, especially Ireland. Of the sheer value of some of the rarest ones of all. In fact did you know that the most expensive quilt ever sold went for $265,000! It was the famous 1860s “Reconciliation Quilt” and depicted scenes of slavery.

I love my new quilt and can’t wait to get it home from its grand and triumphant tour of its first (and last) Quilt Show. I’ll certainly show it a newer degree of appreciation and love and will care for it with kid gloves. My wife and I have even talked about hanging it for all our guests to see.

The dog, however, is still voting for it to be up on the bed.

And, now for the BIG reveal. Would you like to see a photo of Big Chuck and his huge “Flying Saucer” prize quilt? I think you’ll agree it’s pretty amazing. Click below.

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Now in our third year on Substack. Was looking for an “old story” to share with you this time. Since summer is here, there is no better time to visit a farmers market in Upstate New York than now. And this is one of the best. Good food, nice people, and a whole lot of history. We posted this story over a year ago. …

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We all have favorite movies. And many times, they’re everybody’s favorite movies too. So much so that they beg to be remade, updated. And that is not always a recipe for success.

I recently went on a hunt on cable TV to find some of my old faves, and I was surprised that they had all been remade over the decades. I checke…

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I recently came across a 1960s magazine ad for Pan American Airways. It was touting the airline’s convenience, amenities and service. It showed stylish airline stewardesses, perfectly coifed, stylishly dressed and reed thin, pouring coffee from a silver tea set to smiling passengers. In each of the traveler’s laps were …

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It is funny what you remember about loved ones long after they have passed. I was thinking of my own Mom yesterday on Mothers Day. She lived to be 91 so there are plenty of memories to smile at. But, funnily enough, my mind went back to her pocketbooks. It was reliable, omnipresent, comforting, and part of her life. .

I grew up in a time when women …

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I haven’t gone on a hike since 1961 when President Kennedy asked all Americans to take a 50-mile hike for physical fitness. I did it then. With a large group of my schoolmates and friends. We walked from Sidney, NY to Oneonta, NY and back.

It was the last hike I ever went on.

Until recently.

It just seemed like a “Hey, gang, let’s do something as a family!…

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We struggle with it. We joke about it. We understand the importance of it. But it is still soooo embarrassing!

I had my second and probably final colonoscopy procedure of my life last Monday, following a harrowing two-day prep that brought me to the brink of the abyss. “Makes for a much better picture,” the d…

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