Archive for August 2012
The FBI’s File on Carole Lombard
Last month I wrote about the FBI’s file on the architect Frank Lloyd Wright, a post that attracted many readers. Now I’m putting up my notes on the FBI’s file on…
Read MoreThe Forgotten Highlander: A Book That Slipped between the Cracks
Nearly two years ago, I reviewed The Forgotten Highlander, a World War II POW survival narrative by Alistair Urquhart. I expected the book to receive much more attention than it did,…
Read MoreFour More Top History Blogs
A while back, I wrote about several history blogs that I enjoy reading. I promised to return with the work of more exemplary history bloggers (or in some cases teams of…
Read MoreResuscitation for the Masses: How the Invention of CPR Shifted the Line between Life and Death
In 1960, the Journal of the American Medical Association published a manuscript credited with saving more lives than any other medical article of the previous hundred years.CPR training using a life-saving mannequin…
Read MoreAn Interview with a Stage Hypnotist
Last month, I posted the first in a series of short essays adapted from an article on hypnotists and hypnotism that I wrote for (but was never published in) Harper’s magazine several years ago.…
Read MoreThe Case of the Boxing Kangaroo
I’ll be posting sparingly over the next week or two, but I wanted to let you know about a contributing gig I now have with the wonderful history blog Wonders…
Read MoreSavants in the News
Last month I wrote a post on my experiences with Max Weisberg, a mentally disabled savant who put his numerical talents to work as a sports bookmaker. I’ve long been interested in…
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