QUARANTINE BLOG # 79

June 17, 2020

Today we begin and end with the Statue of Liberty.

On this day in 1885 the Statue of Liberty arrived in New York Harbor.  The Statue, a gift of friendship from the people of France to the people of America, arrived in 350 individual pieces packed in more than 200 cases.  She was reassembled and officially dedicated on October 28, 1886, by President Grover Cleveland, who said, “We will not forget that Liberty has here made her home; nor shall her chosen altar be neglected.”

The statue was intended to commemorate the American Revolution and a century of friendship between the U.S. and France, initially scheduled to be finished by 1876, the 100th anniversary of America’s Declaration of Independence, but fund-raising efforts took longer than anticipated.

In 1903, a plaque inscribed with a sonnet titled “The New Colossus” by American poet Emma Lazarus was placed on an interior wall of the pedestal. Lazarus’ now-famous words, which include “Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” became symbolic of America’s vision of itself as a land of opportunity for immigrants who were heartily welcomed when they came legally, instead of illegally entering, circumventing the laws of the nation.

👉  In other unusual gifts from one nation to another is the present, every year since 1947, of a Christmas tree from the people of Norway to the people of the England.  The 60 foot tall spruce trees stand in Trafalgar Square to commemorate the assistance Britain gave to Norway in resisting Nazi occupation.  When Norway fell to the Nazis, the exiled government took refuge in London where they conducted resistance strategies.

👉  Another annual tradition that commemorates wartime deeds, this time between Holland and Canada, is the delivery of tulips to Canada from Holland.  The Netherlands, located between Britain, France, and German, had declared their neutrality in both world wars because if they declared for once side they would be attacked by the other.  The Nazis invaded Holland in 1940 anyway, without any formal declaration of war.  The Dutch royal family were taken in by Canada and sheltered there during the war. 

In 1945, the Dutch sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to Canada to say, “Thank you.”  They have sent 10,000 every year since for a total of 830,000 bulbs.  They have even specially developed the “Maple Leaf Tulip” which resembles the Canadian flag.

One international gift exchange didn’t relay the message the sender intended.  In 2009, in an attempt to improve relations between Russia and the United States, we gave the Russians the symbolic gift of a “reset button.”  Sadly, the Russian word we chose did not mean “reset,” but rather “overcharge.”  Oops!

👉  From our “People Have More Fun Than Anybody Department,” a couple of one panel cartoons featuring Mr. Potato Head.  Laugh and enjoy.

👉  For the next few blogs, let’s take a look at some television “spy” shows.  I had a request for this almost a month ago.  Sorry, Brian!  Better late than never, I guess.

I Spy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwE-snD4bqc was a secret-agent adventure series that ran for three seasons (1965-1968) on NBC.  The characters were US intelligence agents Kelly Robinson, played by Robert Culp, and Alexander “Scotty” Scott, played by a relatively unknown Bill Cosby.  The two traveled undercover as international “tennis bums.”  Robinson was an amateur and Scott was his trainer.  They played against wealthy opponents in return for food and lodging.  Their work involved chasing villains, spies, and beautiful women.

It was the first American television drama to feature a black actor in a lead roll.  Cosby was picked after the producer, Sheldon Leonard, saw him do a stand-up routine on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show.  The concept was originally to have a  mentor-protégé relationship but was changed to same-age partners who were equals.   It was also notable that Cosby’s race was never an issue in any of the stories. 

I Spy was a trailblazer in its use of exotic international locations in an attempt to emulate the James Bond film series. The series filmed its lead actors at locations ranging from Spain to Japan, rather than relying on stock footage, and doing it on studio back lots like contemporaries such as Mission Impossible and The Man From U.N.C.L.E.  Here is the first episode. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gdZf4hVvU8 “So Long, Patrick Henry.” Sorry about the commercials.

👉  In 1976, I was the editorial assistant to the editor in chief of Church of God Publications.  That year I also helped the Radio and Television Department of the COG with its bicentennial celebration nationwide television special (I did script research, took some photographs of the live event, and edited a souvenir booklet).  The TV special featured a trio of COG ministers called “The Churchmen” singing Neil Enloe’s beautiful song, “Statue of Liberty.”  I couldn’t find that clip, but here is another, and just as powerful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXi5jesEP5c Enjoy, and be thankful.

-30-