The German publishing house of Rütten & Loening, who wanted to translate The Hobbit into German, first required assurance from JRR Tolkien that he was of wholly Aryan ancestry and had no Jewish blood. Tolkien refused to provide any such assurance, though he was Catholic and of German descent, and told his agent to let a German translation “go hang.”
German people are the second biggest consumers of beer in the world (after the Czechs), with an average of 107 liters per person per year in 2010 (or 0.30 l per day).
Ninkasi was the Sumerian goddess of beer.
He did provide such assurance, but zinged them quite effectively in doing so: http://www.lettersofnote.com/2012/03/i-have-no-ancestors-of-that-gifted.html
Back in play: The 19th century American Association baseball league was derided as the “Beer and Whiskey League” because some of its owners owned breweries or distilleries and sold beer at games (the National League did not). This did not hurt their popularity.
Moses Fleetwood Walker and his brother, Welday Wilberforce Walker, were the first two black players in the major leagues, both playing for the 1884 Toledo Blue Stockings in the American Association.
Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, Democrat of Ohio, has represented Toledo and much of northwest Ohio for decades now. After redistricting, she defeated Congressman and two-time Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich in the Democratic primary last year.
That AA League was formed in 1882. Also in 1882 the National League (NL) moved one of its teams out of Troy, NY. Many former Troy Trojans players formed the new team in New York City, the New York Gothams in 1883. In the 1880s the NY Gothams became the NY Giants and remained in NYC until 1957 when the team moved to San Francisco. The SF Giants debuted in 1958.
The San Francisco Giants trace their heritage back to Troy, NY.
ETA: Ninja’d!
In-play: the Toledo Mud Hens’ baseball team history goes back to 1883 as a professional team. Today the Mud Hens are a minor league affiliate for the Detroit Tigers.
Jamie Farr and his character of Maxwell Klinger on MASH* were both born in Toledo Ohio and were both Med Hens fans. Presumably, Farr still is.
Jamie Farr’s first movie role was playing a student in 1955’s Blackboard Jungle, where he was credited as Jamell Farah.
Upton Sinclair intended for his novel “The Jungle” to be about the plight of workers in the United States. Instead, readers focused on the deplorable conditions of slaughter houses and the meat packing industry. Legislation resulted in creating the Bureau of Chemistry that would eventually become the Food and Drug Administration. Sinclair complained, “I aimed at the public’s heart, and by accident I hit it in the stomach.”
A brontosaurus was the symbol of Sinclair Oil, which is why the family in the sitcom “Dinosaurs” was named Sinclair.
The 1964-65 New York World’s Fair featured a collection of nine life-size replica dinosaurs sponsored by Sinclair. After the fair concluded, the sculptures went on tour as an exhibit (which I saw at Southland shopping center in suburban Cleveland).
A fictional oil company called Dinoco, which has a dinosaur on its logo similar to Sinclair’s, has appeared in several Pixar movies, including Toy Story and Cars.
http://jimhillmedia.com/mb/images/upload/Dinoco-Filling-Station-web.jpg
Dinoco first appeared in Toy Story as the gas station that Buzz and Woody end up at (and get into a fight at) on their way to Pizza Planet, but Dinoco played a major role in Cars, as the company that sponsored “The King”. Lightning McQueen dreamed of becoming “the new face of Dinoco” upon The King’s pending retirement (and after winning the Piston Cup), and when he got stuck in Radiator Springs, he feared that rival Chick Hicks would get all that glory instead.
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In 1909, Earl Grey, Governor General of Canada, donated a cup to be awarded annually for the best rugby team in Canada. Last November the 100th Grey Cup game was held, won by the Argos. (The Cup wasn’t awarded during some of the war years, hence the centennial game being played in 2012, not 2009.)
The Earl Grey blend of tea, or “Earl Grey’s Mixture,” is assumed to be named after the 2nd Earl Grey, British Prime Minister in the 1830s and author of the Reform Bill of 1832, who reputedly received a gift, probably a diplomatic perquisite, of tea flavoured with bergamot oil. According to one legend, a grateful Chinese mandarin whose son was rescued from drowning by one of Lord Grey’s men first presented the blend to the Earl in 1803. The tale appears to be apocryphal, as Lord Grey never set foot in China and the use of bergamot oil to scent tea was then unknown in China. However, this tale is subsequently told (and slightly corrected) as on the Twinings website, as “having been presented by an envoy on his return from China.”
Cutty Sark scotch is named for a clipper ship of the 19th century. The original Cutty Sark was a tea clipper, making fast runs to China and back. The invention of the steamship and the opening of the Suez canal spelled and end to the clipper ship era.
The four categories of Scotch are Single Malt, Vatted Malt, Blended, Single Grain.