Space Shuttle Endeavour

NASA’s space shuttle Endeavour flew over Los Angeles International Airport 

while riding piggyback atop its Shuttle Carrier Aircraft on Sept. 21, 2012, 

during a 4.5-hour aerial tour over California. 

The shuttle was being delivered to L.A., 

where it is destined to serve as a museum piece at the California Science Center.

Endeavour, built as a replacement for space shuttle Challenger, 

completed 25 missions, spent 299 days in orbit, 

and orbited Earth 4,671 times while traveling 122,883,151 miles. 

Landing at LAX

Spectators crowd the fence as the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA)

carrying space shuttle Endeavour, taxis to the welcoming ceremony.

The space shuttle flew over landmarks…HOLLYWOOD sign.

Flew over San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge.

Moving space shuttle Endeavour across the United States was a massive undertaking. Endeavour first flew on the back of a Boeing 747 from Cape Canaveral, Florida to Edwards Air Force Base in California, while making several stops along the way.

After arrival, Endeavour honored many California landmarks as it flew over the State from Sacramento to Southern California while onlookers marveled at the sight all along the way. After landing at Los Angeles International Airport, the biggest adventure was yet to come, transporting Endeavour through the heart of urban Los Angeles to its new home at the California Science Center.

At 78 feet wide, 57 feet high and 122 feet long—longer than two school buses—navigating the streets of Los Angeles and Inglewood required the guidance and skill of over 100 people. Police controlled traffic; engineers and technicians lifted power lines and took down traffic lights while approximately 1.5 million people lined the sidewalks to celebrate the event. Photographers and filmmakers were on hand to document this once-in-forever moment in history.

Since Oct. 30, 2012, the shuttle has been on display in the California Science Center’s 

Samuel Oschin Space Shuttle Endeavour Display Pavilion, 

embarking on its new mission to commemorate past achievements 

in space and educate and inspire future generations of explorers.

 The exhibit also highlights the shuttle program’s strong connection to California, where all the orbiters were built. Endeavour exhibit includes images of Endeavour under construction locally in Palmdale and Downey,

as well as artifacts that flew into space aboard Endeavour.

Dramatic video programs convey the emotion and power of Endeavour.

California Science Center
700 Exposition Park Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90037
Admission is FREE
however, you need a reservation.
Check website for additional information

https://californiasciencecenter.org

By Barbara KisKis

 

 

 

Car Emblems

Car makers’ emblems are synonymous with their companies and their cars, and they’re something every car fan, and many non-enthusiasts, can recognize in an instant.
However, most people don’t know the often fascinating detail behind these emblems and the symbolism they represent.

BMW: The name is an initialism for the German meaning Bavarian Motor Works. The black exterior circle comes from the logo of BMW’s predecessor, Rapp, while the blue and white chequered roundel represents the flag of Bavaria.

 

BENTLEY: Bentley started building aircraft engines in the First World War, so wings seemed natural. The silver of the logo represents sophistication. There are actually an uneven number of feathers on either side of the wing, and they have varied throughout history.

 

 

 

CHEVROLET: The famous ‘bowtie’ logo was introduced two years after the company was formed. The badge was inspired by a design that Louis Chevrolet saw in an advertisement in a local newspaper, likely for the Coalettes coals company.

AUDI: Founder August Horch left his eponymous company but was blocked from using the name again for his own efforts. His son suggested ‘Audi’: ‘Horch’ is German for ‘listen’ and ‘audi’ the same in Latin. The logo derives from that of Auto Union, a merger of four brands (Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer). The rings, representing each brand, overlap to signify union. They are silver, the national racing colour of Germany.

ALFA ROMEO: Alfa is an acronym for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili, while Romeo is the surname of the businessman who bought the company in 1915. Of the badge, the red cross on the left is the symbol of Milan, while on the right is a crowned viper swallowing a Moorish man – the insignia of the House of Visconti, which historically ruled the city.

PORSCHE: Porsche’s insignia is intrinsically linked to the brand’s home town, which is written in the centre. Below it is a horse – ‘Stuttgart’ translates from Old High German as ‘Stud Garden’. The quartered crest surrounding the horse is taken from the coat of arms of the Free People’s State of Württemberg, which was founded after the dissolution of the German monarchy in 1918, and of which Stuttgart was the capital. The trio of black antlers in the top left and bottom right date back to at least the 10th century, signifying the greater region of Swabia, while the red and black stripes are of the Duke of Württemberg.

 

ROLLS-ROYCE: Rolls-Royces originally just had the overlapping Rs badge. Many owners wanted something more prominent, however, and one, Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, commissioned his friend, the sculptor Charles Robinson Sykes, to design such an ornament. Montagu chose his secretary and mistress, Eleanor Thornton, as the model. The ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’ features her with a finger to her lips and her robes fluttering behind.

 

FERRARI: At the top of the logo is the Italian flag. Below it is a yellow shield, the colour of Modena. There are also the initials ‘SF’, for Scuderia Ferrari (meaning Team Ferrari), and the leftward-facing prancing black horse. Enzo Ferrari chose this after meeting a count whose late son, Francesco Baracca, had been a fighter ace in the First World War. The horse had been painted on the fuselage of his aeroplane. Baracca’s mother told Ferrari to use the horse on his cars for good luck. The ace was thought to have taken the horse from the plane of a German pilot, whom he had shot down, from Stuttgart. Therefore, the Ferrari horse is the same as the one on the Porsche crest.

 

MERCEDES-BENZ: The Mercedes part of the name comes from the daughter of Daimler partner Emil Jellinek. Benz came from Karl Benz, maker of the first real car. When the two companies merged in 1926, Mercedes-Benz was born. The logo originated from a postcard sent in the 1870s by Gottlieb Daimler to his wife, in which he marked where he was living with a three-pointed star and wrote by it: “One day this star will shine over our triumphant factories.” It was first used on a car in 1910 and it came to be that the star’s three spokes represented land, sea and air.

 

 

MG: MG stands for Morris Garages, having started out as a part of William R Morris’s automotive business in Oxford, in 1924. The octagonal badge was chosen to separate MGs from regular Morris models, with some cars even gaining octagonal instrument dials too.

 

 

MASERATI: The trident is taken from that held by the statue of the Greek god Neptune in Bologna’s Piazza Maggiore central square. Not only did this therefore represent Maserati’s hometown but also Neptune’s qualities of strength, being god of earthquakes, storms and horses.

 

 

 

PEUGEOT: Peugeot’s logo features a stylized lion standing on its hind legs. This logo appeared as early as 1847, long before Peugeot entered the automotive business, and represented quality goods. From 1923, Peugeot cars gained a lion’s head bonnet ornament. In 1948, with the introduction of the 203, a more familiar lion appeared – that of the coat of arms of the French region of Franche-Comté, the successor to that in which Armand Peugeot was born. This slowly evolved to become ever more angular.

 

 

 

MAZDA: The name Mazda is taken from Ahura Mazda, the creator of and god in Zoroastrianism, a religion that was prominent in early Asian cultures. ‘Mazda’ translates as ‘wisdom’. Coincidentally, it is also an anglicisation of the name of the company’s founder, Jujiro Matsuda. Mazda has gone through several badges in its time, with the current one being introduced in 1996. A stylized M within an oval, the oval represents the sun and the M the company. It also looks like outstretched wings, which is claimed to symbolize the Mazda’s freedom of expression.

TOYOTA: The inner ovals symbolize the heart of the customer and the heart of the company, overlapping to represent a mutually beneficial relationship and trust, as well as forming a ‘T’ shape for Toyota. The outer oval is for the world embracing Toyota. Each oval is drawn with different stroke thicknesses, pointing to Japanese calligraphy art and culture. The space in the background within the logo is meant to exhibit the values that Toyota stands for: quality, value, driving joy, innovation, and integrity in safety, the environment and social responsibility.

LOTUS: Although the meaning behind the name ‘Lotus’ has never officially been revealed, it is commonly believed to relate to company founder Colin Chapman’s knowledge of the lotus flower and its representation of Nirvana (paradise) in Asian philosophy. The yellow of the badge supposedly represents bright days ahead, while the green central lozenge is in British Racing Green, showing Lotus’s racing origins. The intertwined letters at the top are the initials of Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman.

Happy Motoring…

I hope you enjoyed reading about the origins of car emblems. I found this story on the internet and thought you might like it as much as I did.

Until next time, drive safely.

By Barbara KisKis

 

Purple Heart: Badge for Military Merit

On this day August 7th in 1782, in Newburgh, New York, General George Washington, the commander in chief of the Continental Army, creates the “Badge for Military Merit,” a decoration consisting of a purple, heart-shaped piece of silk, edged with a narrow binding of silver, with the word Merit stitched across the face in silver. The badge was to be presented to soldiers for “any singularly meritorious action” and permitted its wearer to pass guards and sentinels without challenge. The honoree’s name and regiment were also to be inscribed in a “Book of Merit.”

Washington’s “Purple Heart” was awarded to only three known soldiers during the Revolutionary War: Elijah Churchill, William Brown and Daniel Bissell, Jr.
Washington stated that the award was to be a permanent one, but once the Revolution ended, the Badge of Merit was all but forgotten until the 20th century.

General John J.”Blackjack” Pershing suggested a need for an award for merit in 1918, but it was not until 1932 that the Purple Heart was created in recognition of Washington’s ideals and for the bicentennial of his birth. General Order #3 announced the establishment of the award:
The “Book of Merit” was lost, and the decoration was largely forgotten until 1927, when General Charles P. Summerall, the U.S. Army chief of staff, sent an unsuccessful draft bill to Congress to “revive the Badge of Military Merit.”

In 1931, Summerall’s successor, General Douglas MacArthur, took up the cause, hoping to reinstate the medal in time for the bicentennial of George Washington’s birth. On February 22, 1932, Washington’s 200th birthday, the U.S. War Department announced the creation of the

“Order of the Purple Heart.”

In addition to aspects of Washington’s original design, the new Purple Heart also displays a bust of Washington and his coat of arms. The Order of the Purple Heart, the oldest American military decoration for military merit, is awarded to members of the U.S. armed forces who have been killed or wounded in action against an enemy. It is also awarded to soldiers who have suffered maltreatment as prisoners of war.

The Purple Heart has undergone many changes with respect to the criteria for being awarded. At first, the Purple Heart was exclusively awarded to Army and Army Air Corps personnel and could not be awarded posthumously to the next of kin. In 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt signed an executive order allowing the Navy to award the Purple Heart to Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guard personnel. Also in that year, the Purple Heart was made available for posthumous award to any member of the military killed on or after December 7, 1941.

Originally the Purple Heart was awarded for meritorious service. Being wounded was considered to be one type of merit. With the creation of the Legion of Merit in 1942, the award of the Purple Heart for meritorious service became unnecessary and was therefore discontinued. The Purple Heart, per regulation is awarded in the name of the President of the United States to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after April 5, 1917 has been wounded, killed, or has died after being wounded.

Please visit http://www.purpleheart.org for additional information and programs.

One program I found in my research:

PURPLE HEART LICENSE PLATE PROGRAMS (STATE BY STATE)

[Revised December 2014]

This summary provides details on each state’s Purple Heart License Plate program to include cost, step by step procedures to acquire them, and whether or not a surviving spouse can use them. MOPH members are encouraged to acquire the Purple Heart Plate.

This sounds like a good place to visit:

The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor offers visitors an incredible journey through military history as well as reminders of human sacrifice and the cost of freedom. They invite you to visit their 7500 square foot facility in New York’s Hudson River Valley.

The Hall of Honor not only seeks to preserve the stories of Purple Heart recipients, but to educate visitors about the award and the recipients. Our “Soldiers Across Time” educational program looks at the evolution of the Purple Heart through the changing nature of America’s military history as seen through the common soldier, sailor and airman.

“…By order of the President of the United States, the Purple Heart, established by General George Washington at Newburgh, August 7, 1782, during the War of the Revolution is hereby revived out of respect to his memory and military achievements.”
By order of the Secretary of War:
Douglas MacArthur
General, Chief of Staff

 

Please remember:

Veterans Suicide Hotline: 1-800-273-TALK

 

Editor Notes: The Purple Heart has a special meaning to me…back in 1968

during the Vietnam War, I came home from work and found a package in

my mail box. When I opened the box, I found a Purple Heart…my own heart stopped.

My husband, Julius J. KisKis, was serving in the U.S. Army in Vietnam.

There was no warning of this medal coming…nothing at all. I didn’t know if my

husband was dead or alive. I called the Red Cross to help me find out what happened

and was he alive. I’m sorry you tell you they were not any help at all.

I waited days, then weeks…just waiting for someone to show up at my door.

(I still went to work each day)

The good news finally came, he was injured in combat, not dead.

If you think that this was easy for me to write this side story,

after 47 years, you are wrong. It still haunts me, the entire Vietnam War

haunts me. Today is the first time I wrote about his time

in the war.

We are no longer married but I have his son, Jamie KisKis, who

I’m thankful for each and every day.

By Barbara KisKis

 

 

Treasures of the White House: “Resolute” Desk

Resolute Desk

This double pedestal partners’ desk, usually called the “Resolute desk”, was made from the oak timbers of the British ship H.M.S. Resolute as a gift to

President Rutherford B. Hayes from Queen Victoria in 1880.

It has been used by every president since Hayes,

excepting Presidents Johnson, Nixon, and Ford, 1964-1977.

It was used in the President’s Office on the Second Floor of the Residence from 1880 until 1902, at which time the office was moved to the newly constructed West Wing.

This desk remained, however, on the Second Floor of the Residence in the President’s Study. President Franklin D. Roosevelt requested that the rear kneehole be fitted with a panel carved with the presidential coat-of-arms, but he did not live to see it installed in 1945.

 

After the Truman Renovation of the White House, 1948-1952, it was placed in the Broadcast Room on the Ground Floor where it was used by President Dwight D. Eisenhower during radio and television broadcasts.

 

 

It was first used in the Oval Office in 1961 at the request of President John F. Kennedy. After President Lyndon B. Johnson selected another desk for his office, it was lent to a Kennedy Library traveling exhibition, 1964-1965, and then to the Smithsonian Institution for exhibition, 1966-1977.

 

 

 

President Johnson at his desk…not the Resolute Desk

In January 1977, President Jimmy Carter requested that this historic desk be returned to the White House for use again in the Oval Office.

President Carter at Resolute Desk in Oval Office

Nancy and President Reagan in Oval Office

President George Bush used it in the Oval Office for five months in 1989 before having it moved to his Residence Office in exchange for a partner’s desk which he had used in his West Wing office as Vice President.

President George HW Bush in Oval Office

It was returned to the Oval Office for use by President Bill Clinton, 1993-2001.

President George W. Bush has chosen to continue using it in the Oval Office.

President Obama used the Resolute desk in the Oval Office

President Trump uses the Resolute desk in the Oval Office

A brass plaque affixed to the desk records the history of its creation:
“H.M.S. ‘Resolute’, forming part of the expedition sent in search of Sir John Franklin in 1852, was abandoned in Latitude 74º 41′ N. Longitude 101º 22′ W. on 15th May 1854. She was discovered and extricated in September 1855, in Latitude 67º N. by Captain Buddington of the United States Whaler ‘George Henry’. The ship was purchased, fitted out and sent to England, as a gift to Her Majesty Queen Victoria by the President and People of the United States, as a token of goodwill & friendship. This table was made from her timbers when she was broken up, and is presented by the Queen of Great Britain & Ireland, to the President of the United States, as a memorial of the courtesy and loving kindness which dictated the offer of the gift of the “Resolute’.”

Editor notes: The history of the Resolute desk is a compelling one to tell and part of our

American history. I hope you enjoyed reading it because I was educated about this

piece of history along the way. I love writing about history.

Information was obtained by Office of the Curator, The White House

 

By Barbara KisKis

KILROY WAS HERE !

He is engraved in stone in the
National War Memorial in Washington , DC- back in a small
alcove where very few people have seen it. For the WWII
generation, this will bring back memories. For you younger
folks, it’s a bit of trivia that is a part of our American
history. Anyone born in 1913 to about 1950, is familiar with
Kilroy. No one knew why he was so well known- but everybody
seemed to get into it.

So who was
Kilroy?

In 1946 the American Transit
Association, through its radio program, “Speak to America ,”
sponsored a nationwide contest to find the real Kilroy,
offering a prize of a real trolley
car to the person who could prove himself to be the genuine
article.  Almost 40 men stepped forward to make that
claim, but only James Kilroy from  Halifax ,
Massachusetts , had evidence of his
identity.

 

‘Kilroy’ was a 46-year old shipyard
worker during the war who worked as a checker at the Fore
River Shipyard in  Quincy .
His job was to go around and check on the
number of rivets completed.  Riveters were on piecework
and got paid by the rivet.  He would count a block of
rivets and put a check mark in semi-waxed lumber chalk, so the
rivets wouldn’t be counted twice. When Kilroy went off duty,
the riveters would erase the
mark.
Later on, an off-shift inspector would
come through and count the rivets a second time, resulting in
double pay for the
riveters.

One day Kilroy’s boss called him into
his office.  The foreman was upset about all the wages
being paid to riveters, and asked him to investigate.  It
was then he realized what had been going on.  The tight
spaces he had to crawl in to check the rivets didn’t lend
themselves to lugging around a paint can and brush, so Kilroy
decided to stick with the waxy chalk.  He continued to
put his check mark on each job he inspected, but added
‘KILROY WAS HERE’ in king-sized letters next to the check, and eventually added the
sketch of the chap with the long nose peering over the fence
and that became part of the Kilroy
message.

Once he did that, the riveters stopped
trying to wipe away his marks.  Ordinarily the rivets and
chalk marks would have been covered up with paint.  With
the war on, however, ships were leaving the  Quincy Yard
so fast that there wasn’t time to paint them.  As a
result, Kilroy’s inspection “trademark” was seen by thousands
of servicemen who boarded the troopships the yard
produced.

His message apparently rang a bell
with the servicemen, because they picked it up and spread it
all over Europe and the South
Pacific.

Before war’s end, “Kilroy” had been
here, there, and everywhere on the long hauls to Berlin
and  Tokyo .  To the troops outbound in those ships,
however, he was a complete mystery; all they knew for sure was
that someone named Kilroy had “been there first.”  As a
joke, U.S.  servicemen began placing the graffiti
wherever they landed, claiming it was already there when they
arrived.

Kilroy became the U.S. super-GI who
had always “already been” wherever GIs went.

It became a
challenge to place the logo in the most unlikely places
imaginable (it is said to be atop  Mt. Everest , the
Statue of Liberty , the underside of the Arc de Triomphe, and
even scrawled in the dust on the moon.

As the war went on, the legend
grew.  Underwater demolition teams routinely sneaked
ashore on Japanese-held islands in the Pacific to map the
terrain for coming invasions by U.S troops (and thus,
presumably, were the first GI’s there).  On one
occasion, however, they reported seeing enemy troops painting
over the Kilroy logo!

To help prove his authenticity in
1946, James Kilroy brought along officials from the shipyard
and some of the riveters. He won the trolley car, which he
gave to his nine children as a Christmas gift and set it up as
a playhouse in the Kilroy yard in  Halifax ,
Massachusetts .

And The Tradition
Continues…

EVEN Outside Osama Bin Laden’s
House!!!

Share This Bit Of Historic Humor With All
Your Friends!

AS PAUL HARVEY WOULD SAY, NOW YOU KNOW THE REST OF THE STORY.

By

Barbara KisKis