Hauntfest on 5th 2009 (formerly Boo-N-Brew) in the historic Oregon District of Dayton, OH

Is this Bettie Page?

Found this image, uncredited and uncaptioned, in a magazine from 1955. I'm pretty sure it's Bettie Page. The dimple at the corner of her mouth, the arching eyebrows, and the haircut - of course.

Perhaps there's a foot fan out there who can ID her ankles or toes or something? Comment or email if you have any info. Comments are moderated so I'll get email either way, and if you don't want me to post your comment just say so.

I think this is a Bettie Page photo... I'll be looking into it a bit more on my own, but I'm glad for any help. Thanks in advance.

The Wright Brothers | Military Use of the Airplane

From the website of the National Air & Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institute
Found via Twitter.com/airandspace

The Wright Brothers | Military Use of the Airplane:
"First fatality On September 17, 1908, with Army observer Lt. Thomas O. Selfridge on board, the airplane experienced a mechanical malfunction involving one of the propellers and crashed. Orville was severely injured and Selfridge died, the first fatality in a powered airplane. Orville would resume the flight trials after his recovery."

Dayton Broadcasters Hall of Fame

On September 12th, 2009 a fresh batch of local on-air talent from Dayton, Ohio's radio and TV history were inducted into the Dayton Area Broadcaster's Hall of Fame. Among them was the late Gene "By Golly" Barry. I'd had the opportunity to meet him on a couple of occasions because he and our grandfather, Harold Bonnett had been friends for years. They shared a love of good music and I've been told they would occasionally get together to enjoy some jazz cuts. When you're done taking a look at these, take a look at the Dayton Broadcast Hall of Fame for a trip through a little bit of Dayton's broadcast past.


This is Gene on the air during a remote from... ? Clearly it's not in the station, unless the station serves Schlitz. That's Grandpa Harold over Gene's right shoulder. Naturally, Gene's the one with the mic and cans.










Here's Grandpa Harold and Gene in Gene's record shop, right off N. Main St., across the street from Forest Park Plaza, a stone's throw from where Peaches Records used to be. I can't remember the name of Gene's shop, but it was a nice place to pick good stuff.

And, as Gene would close his shows, "Bye bye. Buy bonds."

First Friday Full Moon - keep your pants on

This is a link to my personal blog.

First Friday (9-4-09) is a Full Moon. I'm fond of Lunar photography and I thought it might be fun to try and photograph busy urban scenes including the full moon. Come on down and give it a try. Feel free to stop in here at Bonnett's and say Hi. I'll probably be trapped inside all night, but I'd love to see what you come up with.

I've created a flickr group for anyone who wants to share their work afterwards.

Keep Your Pants On! First Friday Full Moon, Dayton, OH
http://www.flickr.com/groups/kypo/

Have fun!

John Wranovics - "Chaplin and Agee"

John Wranovics recently visited Bonnett's Books with some friends of the store. "Thank You" to the folks who brought him in for the short but pleasant visit which provided the opportunity for me to learn about his book, "Chaplin and Agee", of which I would otherwise remain ignorant.

John told me a little bit about his book with the lengthy title, "Chaplin and Agee: The Untold Story of the Tramp, The Writer, and the Lost Screenplay"*, and it sounds fascinating. I thought I'd pass word of it along to anyone who might also be interested in such things.

Now, I'm no Robert Osborne, but I do have the blood of a writer(1), actor(2), and culture/movie buffs(1,2) running in my veins, so this sparked my interest. Who doesn't like Charlie Chaplin's "Little Tramp" character, if they've had the fortune to cross his path? I've included a YouTube clip at the bottom of this post, so more recent generations might become acquaited with Chaplin. And James Agee's work is well respected and he's a familiar name to many of us, even if we've** avoided reading any of it, as of this writing. Mr. Wranovics' book is a slice of cultural-history pie, with a dollop of movie-buff topping... but, you won't get that info from Amazon unless you click the "Look Inside" prompt for a closer inspection, and frankly, there's little there likely to cause anyone to do so.

The gist is that Chaplin and Agee became friends at some point and Agee wrote a piece starring "The Little Tramp" as the sole survivor of an atomic bomb drop on New York City. Keep in mind, Agee's writing of this story occurred circa 1947, a mere two years after the release of our A-bombs over Japan. As you might expect, the show would have been the darkest sort of dark comedies dealing with what little was known about the aftermath of nuclear explosions at that time. The post-war world was still in a strange state and such explorations may have proven therapeutic to some, much in the same way many creatives have explored terrorism since 9/11. Alas, the movie never came to pass, for many reasons (gossip mongers, the Red Scare, etc.), all described in Mr. Wranovics' book. BONUS! Agee's screenplay is included in the tale of "Chaplin and Agee", allowing us the focus of 20/20 hindsight. The question I have now is, "Why haven't I heard any of this before?" I doubt the answer to that is within "Chaplin and Agee", but it certainly seems worth a look.

I'm sorry to report that we don't have "Chaplin and Agee" available at Bonnett's, but, last time I checked, it was available at Amazon.com. I expect I'll be ordering myself a copy.



*©2005, published by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN.
**By we, I mean "me".
(1) Hal Murray Bonnett - Pulp detective fiction writer of Crusher O'Shea stories, and more.
(2) Walter Bonnett - locally acclaimed stage actor and the man who taught us to love movies.
(1,2) Grandpa & Dad, in that order. See also: "Satan in High Heels" on IMDb.

Choose Your Own Adventure – Most Likely You’ll Die | FlowingData

We love the Choose Your Own Adventure books, but I typically found them a bit frustrating. There is a flow-chart at the link which tracks the odds of making it through CYOA #2 to one of two fortuitous endings.

I remember reading similar things from decades earlier that tended to be a bit more forgiving, as they were written for small children, so, when I was in my teens, becoming interested in role-playing games and related adventures, I picked up Choose Your Own Adventure books quickly.

As you might expect, we have a selection of such things. There were other series, besides specifically "Choose Your Own Adventure". Some required the use of dice and pencils to track your health and progress through the book. The latter versions are hard to find un-marked, but well worth tracking down for fans of such adventures and not nearly as complicated as full-blown Dungeons & Dragons. We recommend using a separate sheet of paper to track your progress, rather than writing in the book itself.

Choose Your Own Adventure – Most Likely You’ll Die | FlowingData

8 Ways to Use Books to Flirt

Now this is the kind of stuff we like to see...

There is an innate sexiness to books and reading that is often overlooked. Reading is partially a tactile, sensual experience, and, like all the stages of romance, reading takes place primarily in the mind and can engage the senses and emotions.

We offer a wide variety of sexy book selections, from love-making classics like "The Kama Sutra" and "The Joy of Sex" to erotic fiction, like "The Story of O" and Anne Rice's (writing as A.N. Roquelaire) "Sleeping Beauty" trilogy.

The blog at the link is from May, but the topic is timeless. Enjoy!

From the Marie Claire website / Sex & Relationships section / "A Year of Living Flirtatiously" blog - Post by Maura Kelly - 8 Ways to Use Books to Flirt (Even if You Don't Read Much)

FIRST FRIDAY Tomorrow Night 5p-10p

With all the Scrabble excitement I nearly forgot about First Friday. Come downtown and enjoy what promises to be a beautiful evening in the Oregon District. :-)

Bonnett's Directory of Dayton's "Oregon District"

The other day I posted a list of places to go and things to do on East Fifth Street. I mistakenly left out a few of our friends on Wayne Ave. (coming from the Convention Center, turn right at Fifth & Wayne):

• Easterling Portrait Studios - (you need a Team portrait to commemorate the Championship)
  
• Kendall Printing - (Wayne & Van Buren - need to make copies of your awards for friends and family?)
  
• Coco's Bistro - (a great place to eat and relax)

Also, one BIG update! Our friends at Derailed Hair Salon are mentioned in the August 2009 issue of ELLE for their participation in the magazine's "Best Hair in America" poll, in which ELLE sought out the most requested celebrity hair styles across the U.S. of A. Stop by and say "Hi".

Finally, here's a (renamed) link back to the original post with the majority of East Fifth Street attractions:

• =[BONNETT'S]= Quickie Tour of Dayton, Ohio's Oregon Historic & Arts District

Enjoy your stay in Dayton!

Oh, one more thing... The Oregon District is Dayton's oldest neighborhood and features a lot of excellent photo ops.