WA2K Radio is now on the air

First a word to Walter. You may have already done this, Germany, but when I think of Dresden china, and the "mistakes" of war, I find it worthy of iteration:

....... rising from the ashes
Sun Oct 30, 9:34 AM ET
DRESDEN, Germany (AFP) - Sixty years after it was destroyed by Allied bombs in World War II, Dresden's rebuilt Frauenkirche, or Church of Our Lady, was re-consecrated.

The painstakingly restored baroque church and its spectacular dome, originally built in 1743, is a symbol both of the wartime suffering of German civilians and of reconciliation between former enemies.
The service of consecration was the culmination of an 11-year, 180 million euro (218 million dollar) project that saw the church reborn after lying in ruins for almost half a century.
The Dresden Bishop Jochen Bohl said in a sermon: "A deep wound that has bled for so long can be healed. From hate and evil a community of reconciliation can grow, which makes peace possible."
At least 35,000 people perished in the British and US bombing of the eastern city on February 13-14, 1945, less than three months before the end of the war.
The Protestant church was hit and finally collapsed two days after the first wave of bombing.
Throughout the communist era of East Germany, the remains were left where they had fallen as a ghostly reminder of the Allied attack.
Only when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 were plans made to raise the Frauenkirche from the rubble and reconstruction began in 1994.
The consecration was an emotional moment for Katarina Koenig, 78, who recalled seeing the "sky lit up red" the night the bombers came.
"I was working in what we called civilian service in a small town outside Dresden, but when I heard about the attacks I rushed home. From my village you could see smoke rising from the city for days," she said.
"In communist times, we never believed we would see the Frauenkirche again."
Although two-thirds of the funding for the reconstruction came from donations, German President Horst Koehler acknowledged in his speech that there was considerable opposition in the immediate post-reunification period to committing any state funds to the Frauenkirche project.
"Did eastern Germany not need roads, roofs and factories more than an expensive church? But a group of residents said Dresden needed more. And now we can see that those people were right," Koehler said.
Lifelong Dresden resident Herbert Rummel, 67, one of the 60,000 people watching the service on giant TV screens outside the church, said the Frauenkirche's worth could not be measured only in financial terms.
"I was not near the church on the night of the bombings, but many people had taken shelter nearby. They were never seen again," he said.
"So to see the church back to its former glory is important to me in so many ways. And it fills me with joy to know that so many countries donated to the reconstruction."
The Duke of Kent, who spearheaded a British campaign to raise 1.5 million euros, represented the royal family at the service.
And

Queen Elizabeth II had sent Koehler a letter expressing her happiness at the church's rebirth.
In a symbolic gesture, Britain, which sent the first wave of bombers to level the city, donated the golden cross and orb that sits atop the dome.
Outgoing German Chancellor

Gerhard Schroeder and Angela Merkel, the conservative leader who will succeed him, were among the 1,700 people who attended the consecration service.
The rebuilding project has involved more than 200 specialist builders and craftsmen.
The only original wall left standing after the bombing has been incorporated into the rebuilt structure, although it has been left blackened in stark contrast to the honey-coloured sandstone around it.
The Frauenkirche has regained its place as the jewel in the crown of the city once dubbed "Florence on the Elbe" for its artistic riches.
The trustees of the church say they hope it will also become a beacon in the fight against far-right extremism, which is gaining a foothold among unemployed, disaffected youths in eastern Germany.


Bob, dear, I know most of your folks, but Keats stands out, Boston. Thank you, again.

Good morning to me favourite radio moderator and aal WA2K listeners!

Lots of new pics on McTag's Dresden thread. :wink:

Dresden was most likely targeted because of its high civilian population, since many refugees had migrated to the city under the false impression that it would not be attacked because of its lack of military installments. For this reason, the city and its inhabitants were totally unprepared for the bombing.
During the night of February 13, the Royal Air Force sent 234 planes which bombed for seventeen minutes during their initial attack. Three hours later, another 538 planes arrived, followed by another 311 American bombers to drop 771 tons of explosives ten hours later Over 650,000 incendiary bombs were dropped, accounting for three quarters of the explosives used. This created a huge firestorm which would burn for over a week, creating temperatures over a thousand degrees ferinheight and plumes of smoke visible as far away as London Witnesses to the incident described people's clothing exploding into fire from the heat alone, naked bodies whose clothing was incinerated while they were wearing it, piles of dead who suffocated from lack of ventilation while trying to take shelter from the fire The losses were devastating, with estimates of over 135,000 casualties, more than Hiroshima.

Good Morning WA2K:

Today's birthdays:

1291 - Philippe de Vitry, French composer (d. 1361)
1345 - King Fernando I of Portugal (d. 1383)
1391 - King Duarte of Portugal (d. 1438)
1424 - King Wladislaus III of Poland (d. 1444)
1538 - Caesar Baronius, Italian cardinal and historian (d. 1607)
1599 - Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles, English statesman and writer (d. 1680)
1620 - John Evelyn, English diarist (d. 1706)
1622 - Pierre Paul Puget, French artist (d. 1694)
1632 - (baptism) Johannes Vermeer, Flemish painter (d. 1675)
1636 - Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria (d. 1679)
1705 - Pope Clement XIV (d. 1774)
1795 - John Keats, British poet (d. 1821)
1815 - Karl Weierstraß, German mathematician (d. 1897)
1835 - Adolf von Baeyer, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1917)
1860 - Juliette Low, American founder of the Girl Scouts
1875 - Eugene Meyer, American businessman and newspaper publisher (d. 1954)
1887 - Chiang Kai-shek, Nationalist Chinese leader (d. 1975)
1892 - Alexander Alekhine, Russian chess player (d. 1946)
1895 - Basil Liddell Hart, British military historian (d. 1970)
1896 - Ethel Waters, American singer and actress (d. 1977)
1912 - Dale Evans, American singer and actress (d. 2001)
1918 - Ian Stevenson, American parapsychologist
1920 - Dick Francis, Welsh novelist
1920 - Helmut Newton, German photographer (d. 2004)
1920 - Fritz Walter, German footballer
1922 - Barbara Bel Geddes, American actress (d. 2005)
1922 - Illinois Jacquet, American saxophonist (d. 2004)
1922 - King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia
1925 - John Anthony Pople, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
1927 - Lee Grant, American actress
1928 - Cleo Moore, American actress (d. 1973)
1929 - Eddie Charlton, Australian snooker player (d. 1994)
1930 - Michael Collins, astronaut
1931 - Dan Rather, American television journalist
1936 - Michael Landon, American actor (d. 1991)
1937 - Tom Paxton, American singer
1939 - Ron Rifkin, American actor
1944 - Kinky Friedman, American musician and novelist
1945 - Brian Doyle-Murray, American comedian and actor
1946 - Stephen Rea, Irish actor
1947 - Deidre Hall, American actress
1947 - Frank Shorter, American runner
1950 - John Candy, Canadian comedian and actor (d. 1994)
1950 - Jane Pauley, American news anchor
1953 - Michael J. Anderson, American actor
1958 - Jeannie Longo, French cyclist
1959 - Neal Stephenson, American author
1961 - Peter Jackson, New Zealand film director
1961 - Larry Mullen, Irish drummer (U2)
1961 - Alonzo Babers, American runner
1963 - Dunga, Brazilian footballer
1963 - Fred McGriff, baseball player
1963 - Rob Schneider, American actor
1964 - Marco van Basten, Dutch football player
1965 - Annabella Lwin, British singer (Bow Wow Wow)
1966 - Adam Horovitz, American singer (Beastie Boys)
1968 - Vanilla Ice, American rapper
1968 - Antonio Davis, American basketball player
1970 - Linn Berggren, Swedish singer, member of Ace of Base
1970 - Rogers Stevens, American guitarist (Blind Melon)
1971 - Alphonso Ford, American basketball player (d. 2004)
1981 - Frank Iero, American guitarist (My Chemical Romance)
1981 - Irina Denezhkina, Russian Generation Y writer
1986 - Christie Hayes, Australian actress




Whose Garden Was This by Tom Paxton
Whose garden was this? It must have been lovely. Did it have flowers?
I've seen pictures of flowers, and I'd love to have smelled one.
Whose river was this? You say it ran freely. Blue was it's color.
I've seen blue in some pictures, and I'd love to have been there.

Tell me again I need to know. The forest had trees, the meadows were green.
The oceans were blue and birds really flew. Can you swear that it's true?

Whose gray sky was this? Or was it a blue one? You say there were breezes.
I've heard records of breezes and I'd love to have felt one.

Tell me again I need to know. The forest had trees, the meadows were green.
The oceans were blue and birds really flew. Can you swear that it's true?

Whose garden was this? It must have been lovely. Did it have flowers?
I've seen pictures of flowers, and I'd love to have smelled one.
Tell me again I need to know, tell me again I need to know.
Tell me again I need to know, tell me again I need to know.

The lady pictured is Lee Grant, blacklisted from Hollywood for more than 10 years because she spoke in defense of fellow character actor Lee J. Bromberg.

From IMDb:
Academy Award winner Lee Grant was born Lyova Haskell Rosenthal in New York, New York, on October 31, 1927. She made her stage debut at age 4 at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, playing the abducted princess in "L'Orocolo". After graduating from high school, she won a scholarship to the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, where she studied acting with her classmate, Sanford Meisner. When she was a teenager, Grant established herself as a formidable Broadway talent when she won The Critics' Circle Award for her portrayal of the shoplifter in, Detective Story (1951). She reprised the role in the film version, a performance that garnered her the Cannes Film Festival Citation for Best Actress as well as her first Academy Award Nomination. Immediately following her screen debut, however, Lee became a victim of the McCarthy blacklists; except for an occasional role, she did not work in film or television for an additional 10 years. In 1966, Lee had resumed her acting career in the TV series, "Peyton Place" (1964), for which she won an Emmy Award as Stella Chernak, and later garnered her first Academy Award for Shampoo (1975), and received Academy Award nominations for The Landlord (1970), and Voyage of the Damned (1976). Since 1980, Lee has been concentrating on her directorial efforts, which began as part of the Women's Project at The Americal Film Institute (AFI); her adaptation of Strindberg's, "Stronger, The" was consequently selected as one of the 10 best films ever produced for AFI. In 1987, she received an Academy Award for the HBO documentary, Down and Out in America (1986); and she directed _"Nobody Child's" (1986)_ , for CBS, for which she received the Directors Guild Award. In 1983, Lee Grant received the Congressional Arts Caucus Award for Outstanding Achievement in Acting and Independent Filmmaking. Subquently, Women in Film paid tribute to her in 1989, with their first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award. Both the New York City Council and the County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors have recognized Ms. Grant for the contribution her films have made to the fight against domestic violence.

Walter, those pictures were indeed a page from The Firebird Suite. The before and after photos from sepia to color were a remembrance of war and the spirit of rebirth.

Listeners, I have spent some time going through the archives and looking for the difference between porcelain and bone china. I even came across a song by the Dresden Dolls, which is not worth playing here.

dys, That bit of history was quite depressing as I had always thought the bombing was a mistake.

Well, we must not dwell in a house of sorrow, I suppose.

Why isn't Letty's B'day on the list today?

listners, i just got this request, a song for a special girl who's celebrating a special day

Birthday
The Beatles

You say it's your birthday
It's my birthday too--yeah
They say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you.

Yes we're going to a party party
Yes we're going to a party party
Yes we're going to a party party.

I would like you to dance--Birthday
Take a cha-cha-cha-chance-Birthday
I would like you to dance--Birthday
Dance

You say it's your birthday
Well it's my birthday too--yeah
You say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you.

Very happy birthday to our PD!

The Birthday Cake Polka

Put another candle on my birthday cake
We're gonna bake a birthday cake
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today

I'm gonna have a party with my birthday cake
Come on and take some birthday cake
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today

We'll have some pie and sandwiches
and chocolate ice cream too
We'll sing and play the day away
and one more thing I'm going to do
I'll blow out the candles on my birthday cake
and when I do, a wish I'll make
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today
........

Put another candle on my birthday cake
We're gonna bake a birthday cake
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today

I'm gonna have a party with my birthday cake
Come on and take some birthday cake
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today

We'll have some pie and sandwiches
and chocolate ice cream, too
We'll sing and play the day away
and one more thing I'm going to do

I'll blow out the candles on my birthday cake
and when I do, a wish I'll make
Put another candle on my birthday cake
I'm another year old today
Happy birthday to you
I'm another year old today.

if it's ok to introduce a somber note, here's a sad & lovely poem by John Keats, preceded by comments by a Francis T. Palgrave from The poetical works of John Keats.

A big happy birthday, Letty! I hope you enjoy your special day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY?!?

Well, why didn't you say so!!!



Everybody grab and hat and sing!

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU-u-u....."

If I had known and I knew how to bring that beautiful graduation picture of Letty over here, I wouldn't have even bothered with all those other people on the list.

Happy Birthday to our fair lady and incomparable PD.

Well, Reyn. I am not sweet sixteen, but I will try and enjoy my day. Thank you, dear B.C.

Eva, you are such a good friend, and your lovely basket of goodies and the card of letters is most welcome today.

Ah, there's my other best researcher. Thanks sweet Raggedy.

Listeners, I have received many Hallmark cards today, and they have all been delightful, but none that mean as much as do those of our audience and contributors.

Hugs all around. <smile>

You know it doesn't make much sense
There ought to be a law against
Anyone who takes offense
At a day in your celebration
'Cause we all know in our minds
That there ought to be a time
That we can set aside
To show just how much we love you
And I'm sure you will agree
It couldn't fit more perfectly
Than to have a world party on the day you came to be

Chorus
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday
(Repeat)

I just never understood
How a man who died for good
Could not have a day that would
Be set aside for his recognition
Because it should never be
Just because some cannot see
The dream as clear as he
That they should make it become an illusion
And we all know everything
That he stood for time will bring
For in peace our hearts will sing
Thanks to Martin Luther King

Chorus
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday
(Repeat)

Bridge
Why has there never been a holiday
Where peace is celebrated
all throughout the world

The time is overdue
For people like me and you
You know the way to truth
Is love and unity to all God's children
It should be a great event
And the whole day should be spent
In full remembrance
Of those who lived and died for the oneness of
all people
So let us all begin
We know that love can win
Let it out don't hold it in
Sing it loud as you can

Chorus
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday
(4x)

(Background Stevie)
Happy birthday Ooh yeah
Happy birthday,
To you

We know the key to unity of all
People
Is in the dream that you had so
Long ago
That lives in all of the hearts
Of people
That believe in unity
We'll make the dream become
A reality
I know we will
Because our hearts tell us so

Oh, my God, Walter. That was beautiful. Just reading again and again. You are so dear, my German friend, and have made your world so clear to me, as has Francis and others.

You all are my trip around the world, and now a tiny tear of happiness.

Happy birthday Letty and as you requested I won't do that bio of you.

Bob, you funny thing. Thank you for the no show bio, and I would much rather have a song. Will you play one for me?

The Other Happy Birthday Song
Tom Gardner


Your friends from far and near
Have all gathered here
To celebrate this day
Together we will say.....

Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
May all your dreams and wishes come true
Happy birthday to you

Another year has gone
Since last we sang this song
We all remember when
And so we sing again...

May good fortune come to you
In all the things you do
In the year that lies ahead
Remember what we said.......

Now I understand, finally.

Thank you all again and again, especially Eva who began. That is a great song, girl, and one that I have never heard.

Please play it over again and I'll remember just when I heard that lovely song before. <smile>

Listeners, I really believe that this is going to be the best year ever in spite of the hurricanes and the emergencies.

Do you folks know that I remember almost every gift that I ever got. The very first was pre kindergarten and it was an ermine muff. I thought that I was really uptown then.

Now, we'll have a pause for Letty to fan herself.