Unknown America Read online

  And where is that band who so vauntingly swore, that the havoc of war and the battle's confusion A home and a country should leave us no more? Their blood has wiped out their foul footstep's pollution. No refuge could save the hireling and slave, from the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave: And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave. O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

  Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand between their loved homes and the war's desolation! Blest with victory and peace, may the heaven-rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation. Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto: "In God is our trust."And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

  What's in a name? Scooby

  Frank Sinatra is arguably the most famous member of the Rat Pack. But did you know that Sinatra’s hit, “Strangers In The Night,” actually inspired the name of one of our most beloved cartoon characters? Iwao Takamoto, who animated Scooby-Doo, got the inspiration for Scooby’s name after listening to Sinatra’s ad-libbed “Dooby dooby doo,” scat at the end of the song!

  MYTH BUSTER ALERT!

  Wild West Revision

  The gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone AZ didn't actually happen at a corral. Nope it actually occurred in an alley behind a photographers shop. Contrary to myth it wasn't even much of a shoot-out, lasting only about 30 seconds and with fewer casualties than other old west dust ups.

  Books and movies have reported that what the sparked the shoot-out was a confrontation between cattle rustling outlaws and lawmen. In reality it was a plot between Ike Clanton and Wyatt Earp that was the real impetus. The two had conspired to capture three other outlaws who were accused of robbing a stagecoach. Clanton would get the cash reward and Earp the credit. However the three were killed before the plot could be unhatched. Clanton became paranoid and friction between the two escalated as Clanton thought he would be outed as a rat by Earp.

  Portrayals of Doc Holliday (Who was a Dentist by trade) as a real gunslinger, have been embellished. Holliday was diagnosed with tuberculosis at 22. The theory of the day was that the dry air of the desert was good for the lungs, so he went west. Once there he found he couldn't make a living as a dentist so he turned to gambling. This career change forced Holliday to improve upon his gun slinging skills.

  While he was a capable shot he was not the blazing fast dead eye history suggests. He was also ashamed of being a professional gambler. It was the male equivalent of being a prostitute in the 1800's.

  Holliday never told his family the truth about his life in Tombstone, but news spread fast after the gunfight, in which he did participate. Once his family back in Atlanta got word of his activities, his father never spoke his name again.

  Doc and Wyatt also were not good friends as movies have often portrayed. Holliday was friends with Wyatt's brother Morgan. So much for the death bed scene with Kurt Russell's Wyatt and Val Kilmer's Doc in the movie Tombstone.

  MYTH BUSTER ALERT!

  Embellished Eliot

  In recent years there has been discussion whether or not to rename the headquarters of the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) in Washington DC. Several names have been bantered around, among them Chicago Crime fighter Eliot Ness. According to the Chicago Sun Times, Eliot Ness was “the Prohibition-era crime fighter whose unit brought down Al Capone” and “his work helped indict Capone with more than 5,000 Prohibition violations.”

  Problem is Ness had little to do with Capone's fall despite what TV and movies have suggested. Al Capone was brought down by Elmer Irey, Frank Wilson, and the IRS, not Eliot Ness. Despite Ness' effort to get Capone on Prohibition violations, Capone was actually convicted of income tax evasion.

  According to writer and researcher Peter Bella, Eliot Ness was either delusional about his contributions to Capone's fall or an outright liar. He, along with Oscar Fraley, wrote a book about his “legendary” career in Chicago. However Fraley, fictionalized much of the story. Yes Eliot Ness was a shameless self promoter. But to Al Capone he was nothing more than an annoyance. Ness had little impact on Capone's illicit business activities. Even the charges that Ness attempted to bring Capone down with, prohibition violations, were dropped at trial.

  Titanic Coincidence?

  In 1898, a full 14 years before the sinking of the Titanic, author Morgan Robertson penned a book called “The Wreck of the Titan: Or Futility.” (The book was originally called simply “Futility”) The book has been the subject of much speculation and debate over the years due to the erie similarities between the fictitious Titan and the Titanic.

  So similar are the two stories, some conspiracy minded folks have even theorized Robertson was revealing some sort of devious plan by US and European Bankers to help advance the Federal Reserve Banking act by intentionally sinking the Titanic, thus killing some of the acts key opponents. (The act would pass into law a year after the Titanic tragedy paving the way for a US Central Bank) These conspiracies have been easily debunked and the remarkable similarities between the Titan and the Titanic continue to amaze people to this day.

  Some of the more uncanny comparisons include:

  * Both the fictitious Titan and the Titanic were described as the largest craft afloat and the greatest of the works of men.

  * The Titan was 800 feet long, displacing 45,000 tons. The Titanic was 882 feet long, displacing 46,000 tons.

  * Both ships were described as “unsinkable.”

  * Both had a triple screw propeller.

  * Both ships were short on lifeboats, The Titan carried 24 which was “as few as the law allowed.” This number could carry less than half of her total passenger capacity of 3,000. By comparison the Titanic carried only 16 lifeboats (plus 4 folding lifeboats).

  * Both ships sunk after striking icebergs. The Titan, was traveling at 25 knots, when it struck an iceberg on it's starboard side at night in the North Atlantic, 400 nautical miles from Newfoundland. By comparison The Titanic, was moving at 22½ knots, and also struck an iceberg on it's starboard side at night in the North Atlantic, 400 nautical miles from Newfoundland.

  * The majority of the fictional Titan's 2,500 passengers and crew died; only 13 survived. 1,523 of the Titanic's 2,200 passengers and crew died; 705 survived.

  * Both disasters occurred in the month of April.

  MYTH BUSTER ALERT!

  Sacagawea and the Lewis and Clark expedition

  Sacagawea was a Lemhi Shoshone Indian woman who reportedly worked as a guide and presumably became the savior of the troubled expedition of Lewis and Clark. Although she is mentioned in the journals kept by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark as being a helpful presence on the journey, she is not described as either a guide nor as the savior of the expedition as the history books have reported.

  Sacagawea was one of two wives of a French-Canadian trapper named Toussaint Charbonneau. Charbonneau was recruited by the expedition to serve as a guide and interpreter during its wintering period at Fort Mandan in North Dakota between 1804 and 1805. Charbonneau had his wives accompany him on the journey.

  During the groups journey, Sacagawea did occasionally serve as an interpreter. But she neither saved the Corps of Discovery from starvation nor did she guide them to safety as history books have claimed. As the group neared the lands of her native Shoshone people, they encountered relatives from her extended family, and working as an interpreter she helped the group secure favorable terms for food and horses.

  Her legend was born near the turn of the 19th century during the drive by suffragette associations to obtain voting rights for women. A woman named Eva Dye, who served as the chair of an Oregon suffragette association, published The Conquest: The True Story of Lewis and Clark, describing the feats of Sacagawea in saving the Corps from certain death. And it didn't take long, as is often the case with revised history, that others picked up the story and repeated the claims. Soon Sacagawea was being portrayed i
n books, articles and history lessons as having great beauty in addition to courage, character, perseverance, and other desirable attributes. Her embellished reputation continued to be repeated in movies and television.

  The myth of the Shoshone Indian woman that saved the Lewis and Clark expedition is now enshrined in statues, coins, and other icons. Her legend a far cry from the reality of what she really contributed. The long forgotten truth buried in the mostly overlooked journals of the people who had first hand knowledge of her life and real accomplishments.

  Execution Inspiration

  On the evening of July 19, 1976, Gary Gilmore robbed and murdered a gas station employee named Max Jensen, in Orem Utah. The next night he robbed and murdered Bennie Bushnell, a motel manager in Provo.

  Gilmore was executed for his crimes by a firing squad on January 17, 1977 at Utah State Prison. Prior to the execution Gilmore was strapped to a chair with a wall of sandbags placed behind him. Five local police officers stood concealed behind a curtain with five holes, through which they aimed their rifles. When asked if he had any last words, Gilmore simply replied, “Let's do it.”

  Its been long believed that Gilmore's famous last words were the inspiration behind one of the most famous advertising slogans in American history, NIKE's Just Do It!

  Jayne and her bar

  On June 29th, 1967 actress Jayne Mansfield was traveling in a 1966 Buick Electra to New Orleans along with her lawyer boyfriend Sam Brody, her driver Ronnie Harrison, and 3 of her 5 children after an appearance in Biloxi Mississippi when a dense fog from an anti-mosquito spray drifted over the highway.

  Unaware of a slow moving tractor trailer in front of them the car rammed into the semi and ran completely under the trucks trailer. All 3 adults were killed instantly, but miraculously Mansfields children all survived.

  The horrific deaths of Mansfield, (who early reports said had been decapitated - later proven false when it was discovered the blonde hair lodged in the car's windshield was actually her wig) Brody and Harrison led the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require all semi truck trailers to be equipped with a DOT Bar. To this day this bar, more commonly known as a “Mansfield Bar” can be seen protruding downward from the rear deck of Semi trailers across the country and serves as a constant reminder of one of the most gruesome highway accident scenes in American automotive history.

  An aside to this story: Mansfield was the mother of actress Mariska Hargitay. Hargitay is one of the 3 surviving children and she bears a scar from the accident.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  UNKNOWN MILITARY HISTORY

  Odd plans, little known events,

  and bizarre ideas in defense of America

  ...and no reward was even offered

  When George Washington found a lost dog during the battle of Germantown Pennsylvania in 1777, he crossed enemy lines to return the wayward K9 to its rightful owner, General William Howe, his opponent in the battle.

  Prostituting the war

  During the Civil War Union General Joseph Hooker brought prostitutes along for his soldiers to keep them sexually satisfied. His legacy is so (in)famous that his name is now synonymous with the world's oldest profession.

  The other Jefferson Davis

  The Union had their own Jefferson Davis. Union General Davis shared a name with the Confederate President, a circumstance that didn’t cause too much confusion with one notable exception. It was during the Battle of Chickamauga in 1863. As darkness fell on Horseshoe Ridge members of the 21st Ohio saw a swarm of men approaching but couldn’t tell if they were friend or foe. Most assumed they were Union reinforcements but a few feared they were Confederates. As the troops grew closer, one Union soldier called out, “What troops are you?” The collective reply was “Jeff Davis’s troops.” The Ohio soldiers relaxed, believing they meant the Union general. A few moments later, they were staring down the muzzles and bayonets of the 7th Florida. The Ohioans surrendered. The Confederates won that “battle.”

  The theatrics of war

  Deception in combat is not unusual including in the US Civil War.

  At Corinth Mississippi in May of 1862 Confederate General P.T.G. Beauregard pulled a fast one on the Union Troops. Outnumbered two to one and expecting a massive Union assault at daybreak, Beauregard ordered a single locomotive rolled in and out of the town all night making it sound as if thousands of fresh troops were arriving on an endless procession of trains. To add to the charade, he had his men cheer each time the lone steam engine pulled into the station, fooling the Yankees into believing the reinforced Southerners were amassing in droves. Meanwhile, Beauregard was evacuating the town; the sound of the train even masking the noise of his army breaking camp.

  The Civil “Wars”

  The US Civil War was known by more than 25 names, including:

  * The Brothers War

  * The War to Suppress Yankee Arrogance

  * The War for the Union

  * The War of the Rebellion

  * The war for Southern Independence

  * The War between the States

  * The War of Northern Aggression

  * The War of Southern Aggression

  * The Freedom War

  * The War of Secession

  * The Battle between North and South side of the United States

  * American (US) North-South War

  * The War for Emancipation

  ...and numerous others usually depending on the perspective of the people discussing – or as often the case, arguing it.

  Enlisted Elephants

  In one of the stranger events of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln politely declined an offer of war elephants from the King of Siam. While the letter from Rama IV was actually addressed to the previous President James Buchanan, it was up to Lincoln and his Secretary of State William Seward to politely decline this rather bizarre offer. As Lincoln pointed out in his reply to Rama, steam power had overtaken the need for heavy animal power of this kind.

  Lincoln's odd currency

  After President Abraham Lincoln died on April 15, 1865, his leather wallet was found to contain a $5 Confederate bill imprinted with the image of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Lincoln may have gotten the bill when he visited Richmond earlier that month.

  The Lusitania sinking, intentional?

  In early May 1915, several New York newspapers published a warning by the Germans that Americans traveling on British or Allied ships in war zones did so at their own risk. The announcement was placed on the same page as an advertisement of the imminent sailing of the Lusitania liner from New York back to Liverpool England. The sinking of merchant ships off the southern coast of Ireland prompted the British Admiralty to warn the Lusitania crew to avoid the area.

  Some historians contend the vessels provocative route was set intentionally to provoke the attack which occurred on May 7th 1915 and create further justification for the US involvement in the war. Especially after it was revealed that the Lusitania was carrying about 173 tons of war munitions for Britain, which the Germans cited as justification for the attack.

  Of the more than 1,900 passengers and crew members on board, more than 1,100 perished, including 128 Americans. Nearly two years would pass before the United States formally entered World War I, but the sinking of the Lusitania played a significant role in turning public opinion against Germany, both in the United States and abroad.

  Mr. and Mrs. Tank

  During World War 1, British made tanks were frequently grouped according to their “gender.” The male tanks had mounted cannons while the females carried machine guns. These fighting machines were often deployed to provide support for US Troops during joint operations.

  Hitler invades America

  During the Second World War, Adolph Hitler launched a failed mission to strike fear into the heart of America when the German Dictator attempted to terrorize the US by infiltrating America with spies. The first setback came when a Nazi U-boat carrying secret agents got w
edged 400 yards off the coast of New York.

  The submarine ran aground on a sandbar off Long Island as its commander attempted to drop off four Nazi agents. The mission was codenamed Operation Pastorious. The intention of the mission was to bomb a string of targets and see the US “burning in flames.” Targets included New York's Pennsylvania station, the city's water supply power plants, bridges and Jewish-owned department stores.

  The mission was a dismal failure but was not the only attempt by the Nazi's to invade US shores. Over the years reports of German U Boats in places like the Hudson River, the Gulf of Mexico and others were plentiful although many of these sightings were unconfirmed. However it is known that the Nazi's did in fact attempt to bring the war to America, although with little success.

  Anti-Semitism or just poor judgment?

  Before the Nazi Holocaust ramped up to full speed, Adolph Hitler gave the US, Britain and several other European nations the opportunity to take Jewish refugees, while many were accepted, many more were not.