Meanwhile, in the Fediverse... @BonnettsBooks is now on mastodon.social. Pop over and take a peek! Sadly, the server we were on for a little over a year, mastodonbooks.net, was a hobby for a groovy guy in Canada and is shutting down soon. One beauty of federated networking is, you can move from one system to another without losing your friends/followers/contacts. You can also keep any mutes, blocks, lists, or bookmarks you've created! Downside... just like moving in the real world, it takes a little effort. Bigger downside... your posts don't come along for the ride; however, I feel sure there's someone trying to figure that out. So, I don't have much there as of this writing, but there's a lot of interesting stuff going on besides book posts and updates from the #WorldsOldestComicShop, #BonnettsBooks!

Brand New Mastodon

https://mastodonbooks.net/@BonnettsBooks https://linktr.ee/bonnettsbooks/ I've finally opened an account on Mastodon. Find it at the top link of this post. The content there will be essentially the same as on Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook. Mastodon may eventually replace our Twitter. If you're on Mastodon, please give us a follow. It, and our other social sites can be found on our LinkTree. ✌️

Social Media Killed the Blogging Star

Apologies to The Buggles for the title of this post. I'd still love to blog, but haven't the time I once enjoyed. In lieu of longform posts, please allow me to direct you to our LinkTree, where you can find our most recent online activity. linktr.ee/bonnettsbooks Bonnett's Bookstore is known as @BonnettsBooks on TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Twitter is my personal preference. I won't be TikTok-ing much, so it's best to follow our Twitter or Instagram. Thanks!

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

Grandpa, Harold "Hal" Murray Bonnett, wrote pulp detective fiction before opening Bonnett's Back-Issue Magazines in 1939. He would've turned 105 today.

As the era of pulp mags gave way to the paperback age, he shifted gears, writing under pseudonyms. One story, "Satan in High Heels", published under the name "Noel Candler", found it's way to the silver screen in 1962, at which time his real name was credited for the story.

I've often posted about this in the past, so I'll leave out the links to mainstream websites for the film and it's excellent score by Mundell Lowe; who passed away just a few months ago. The B-film was also adapted for an off-Broadway comedy musical a few years back!

I can't help enjoying Grandpa's film. It was released 2 years before I was born, almost to the day, plus, Dad, Walter Bonnett, had a small role in it! However, for this birthday post I'm going to link to a couple of blogs to give an idea of what others have thought of "Satan in High Heels". Enjoy!

Cinema Knife Fight

She Blogged by Night

LitMuse

Going through a stack of recent arrivals, I found "To the Finland Station" by Edmund Wilson, and I thought the title seemed familiar... from a song lyric. A short search later, a Wikipedia page for "West End Girls" by Pet Shop Boys was open; "from Lake Geneva to the Finland Station," is the lyric I recalled. As it happens, that line, consciously or not, likely refers to the title of this book, "a study of the writing and acting of history", which refers to Lenin's WWI train route as he was returned to Russia near the start of their revolution, in 1917.

I'll leave you, dear reader, to research the above, if you wish; but, as a dealer in books, comics, magazines, and movies, I took note of the connection to pop-culture. It has been a fairly common thing for print stories to become radio shows, movies, and TV programs, moreso now than ever. The forthcoming film "Ready Player One" borrows from so much that one could barely trace all the references. My own first experience with a specifically musical referencing of the written word was Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On", sometime in the early 1970s, when I realized some lyrics were about "The Lord of the Rings".

So, I learned there was an earlier version of 1985's "West End Girls", in 1984. A bit longer, not as slick, also by Pet Shop Boys, and that the '85 re-recorded version had been named Song of the Decade ('85-'94) by the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters! Naturally, I had to hear the original, so I turned to YouTube. The version you've likely already heard is easily the better version, but the original has some charm of it's own, reminding me of other '80s synth & sampler work, like Art of Noise (a personal fave). And all of this is just so I can share the original... Ready? Click!

https://youtu.be/vXRqGfF64zQvxrqgff64zq

Just One Magazine

Browsing an old magazine is truly like stepping into a time machine for a look around at the world gone by. Few magazines capture this wonder and nostalgia so effectively as LIFE.

Searching the internet for individual items of specific interest; be they photos, articles, ads, or what have you, cannot duplicate the experience of sitting down with a single old magazine and allowing yourself to enter that time-slice of an age gone by; with a cornucopia of hints toward the whole world from which it spawned.

Here's a peek, from a famous issue. This long list of interesting items is both astounding and incomplete. Yet, herein you'll find the grieving of a nation, folly, holiday celebration, assembly of and hope for the World's Fair, faith, science, and even some fun.

Experiences of this sort should be priceless, but are occasionally no more expensive than a fancy coffee, artisanal soap, or local craft beer. Find them here @BonnettsBooks!

LIFE magazine; December 6, 1963: JFK Funeral - Jackie, Caroline, & John, jr. cover and coverage. Also: Ritz cracker ad/Squibb Broxodent corded electric toothbrush Christmas ad/Budweiser & turkey dinner Christmas ad/Rexall Christmas ad with aluminum tree/Norelco Beauty Sachet groomer-massager ad/Singer sewing machine Christmas ad/Dow Metalized Saran icicles ad/Max Factor Christmas line/Penney's Chemstrand nylon satin Gaymode® Christmas ad/Parker pen ad/Columbia records ad/Fruit of the Loom ad/Carnation Friskies canned dog food ad/Dial-A-Car rental ad/Vat 69 scotch Christmas ad/Richman Bros. suit ad/Capitol records Christmas ad/Bulova watch USPS  ad/Maytag Halo of Heat dryer ad/Trifari philanderer ad/Du Barry cosmetics Christmas ad/'64 Studebaker Daytona & Avanti ad/Lucky Strike Christmas ad/Weller Dual Heat soldering gun kit ad/Campbell's bean with bacon soup ad/Seagram's 7 Crown ad/Hunt's Tomato Catsup ad/Zippo lighter Christmas ad/Miller High-Life ad/'64 Chevrolet Chevy Chevelle Malibu SS ad/Tareyton Dual Filter black eye woman ad/Edison Electric Ohio Family ad/Rath Black Hawk sliced hickory bacon ad/Bathrobes - Mink-lined, low-cut pullover/Mayflower Movers ad/Heublin Smirnoff vodka ad with pull-out party tips & cocktail recipe book/GMC commercial trucks ad/'64 World's Fair fiberglass dinosaurs exhibit/Hot Dr. Pepper ad/Chef Boy-Ar-Dee lasagna ad/Gilbey's gin "international holidays" globe Christmas ad (World Fair tie-in?)/Heart surgeon's dream theater operating room/Champion sparkplugs Bobby Unser Pike's Peak challenge record ad/Black & Decker U-100 ¼" drill ad/General Electric appliances ad feat. Mobile Maid dishwasher with lift-top rack & 3-level washing/'64 Ford Lincoln Continental ad/Noxema's NEW Cover Girl medicated makeup feat. Cosmopolitan magazine cover & covergirl Lois Heyl/Toledo, Ohio's ELTRA Corp. Prestolite car battery ad/Corby's Whiskey makes a terrible martini ad/Honda scooter Christmas Santa ad/Beaunit nylon tricot chemise slip ad/Wembley neckties ad, as seen in "Who's Minding the Store?" feat. Jerry Lewis/Ossy Davis & Ruby Dee article/Heinz 57 Worcestershire sauce ad/Medici filter pipes ad/Schick Crown Jewel ladies' electric shaver Christmas ad/article on World respect of President Kennedy's death/Benrus watch ads/Allied Van Lines movers ad/Polaroid Color Pack camera ad/Mrs. Filbert's margarine ad/Travelers Insurance Company toy truck on steps ad, "Even your best friend might sue you." Travelers umbrella/Jones Dairy Farm Little Sausages, Wisconsin/National Oil Girl Institute, oil heat ad/Florida Citrus Commission ad/Sharp Electronics Corp. Japanese Santa Claus ad/Caravelle watch ad/Dayton, Ohio's Inland Manufacturing Division of General Motors Corporation, Honeycomb® "Magic Touch" ice-cube trays ad/Menley & James Laboratories Contact ad/GM "Body by Fisher" ad/Revere-Wollensack Division of 3M Company's self-changing stereo tape cartridge system Christmas ad/Carter's Marks-A-Lot felt-tip permanent marker ad/Chrysler Simca 1000 economy car ad/Testor's Spray Pla enamel paint ad/Snow Crop Orange Samoa quick-frozen concentrate of orange plus tropical fruit juices for orange punch ad/GM Frigidaire Imperial Nineteen refrigerator-freezer ad/ballet cat/LIFE daily Christmas shopping guide calendar/"Love's Warm Instant: the Embrace" photo-essay about hugs/Kitchen-Aid dishwasher ad/back cover missing.

Holiday Deals, Hours, Updates

The 2016 Holiday Season brings some Sale Pricing to Bonnett's!

10% off nearly everything we offer through Christmas Eve!

Dec. 2nd First Friday! Find an item in any of our social media streams, show it at check out, and get an extra 15% off!

As always, quality Trade-Ins are welcome, but sale pricing does not apply to trades.

Hours! Some of you may know our 2-man operation has been halved due to a health issue. I open the shop daily, Mon-Sat as always, but am unable to arrive until mid-late afternoon. The time fluctuates, but I update my arrival time via our Facebook page & Twitter (@BonnettsBooks).

Updates! For now, look for our featured items, latest arrivals, & special selections by following @BonnettsBooks on Instagram, Twitter, Swarm, Flickr, & Pinterest.

We can be found on other sites & apps, too, but updates are infrequent, if they happen at all. Just search for Bonnett's Books or Bonnett's Book Store.

That about covers things for now. Stay tuned, Happy Holidays, and I hope to see you soon!

2016 World Series-inspired Thoughts

These anecdotes of family history and the shop have come to mind thanks to my son, Ian, who recently saved a bunch of paternal family letters and photos from doom, including my grandparents' marriage certificate; followed with a surprise visit to the store by some of Grandma's kin.

Grandpa, Harold "Hal" Murray Bonnett, married Grandma, Ruth Adella Guy, on October 7th, 1930, during the World Series match-up between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Athletics. Their honeymoon was spent the next night watching the Athletics win the series in game six on a manually updated scoreboard mounted to the side of the Dayton Daily News building. Plays were called in via phone(?) and the board updated for the crowd of local baseball fans in the street below.

The last time the Cleveland Indians won the World Series was 1948 and "Bonnett's Back-Issue Magazines" was 9 years into our, now, 77 years at 502 East Fifth Street. Better luck next year, fellas!

The letters Ian found were mostly notes to home from an ancestor with Great Grandma Ruby's maiden name, Murray, who was serving in Europe during the World War (that's WWI to us today). I have yet to dive into them, but one letter, an outlier, was postmarked 1902; six years before the Chicago Cubs last World Series Championship. It's a shame our old friend, long-time customer, and die-hard Cubs fan, Bob Yaple, is no longer here for us to share the Cubs' victory with. We didn't give him an easy time of his fandom, this being "Reds Country" and all.

After 108 years, what's a little rain delay? A sign from above, perhaps; signifying the end of professional baseball's longest drought?

It was a well-earned win and I'm glad to have been around to see it! Congratulations Cubbies! Major League Baseball's World Series Champions for 2016!

Excerpts from: Saving the Self in the Age of the Selfie

This is a long article, worth the effort. Turn off notifications before reading... Maybe you'll leave them off afterwards.

Saving the Self in the Age of the Selfie
The American Scholar, Cover story, Spring 2016 James McWilliams, February 29, 2016

"Even as digital distraction promises to alleviate boredom, it removes from the existential equation the founding prerequisite for identity development—the individual, alone, facing nothing."

"When the smartphone transports our consciousness elsewhere, which it does every time we pick it up to avoid the stress of isolation, our most private choices suddenly hew not to the undiscovered ambitions of a curious mind, but to the commercial designs of a data-driven cloud."

"Saving the self in the age of the selfie may require nothing more or less complicated than recovering the lost art of serious reading."

My photos from the 30th Hauntfest on 5th (2015)

My old camera died at the start of Hauntfest 2014, so I'm very pleased to present my images from #HauntfestOn5th 2015! Click the link in the title of this post to see the full photos, or just enjoy this small slideshow here. Have a boo-tiful day!