It Went With The Wind!

June 30th, 1936: Gone With The Wind Is Published!

I’m every bit the romantic, but I cannot think of Gone With The Wind without picturing Carol Burnett in her curtain rod dress. It cracked me up as a nine year old and it cracks me up now (“I saw it in the window and I just had to have it”).

Yet it was that very TV sketch that introduced me to Margaret Mitchell’s sweeping saga which was first published on this very day, back in 1936. You can imagine my parents explaining that neither the actual book or movie contained any outfits fashioned from window treatments. I was really disappointed to learn it wasn’t even a comedy.

Some say Mitchell–who vehemently swore her novel was pure fiction–actually based most of the characters on real people. A feisty news journalist in 1920’s Georgia (think Rosalind Russell with a Southern drawl), she was an avid history buff who devoured books about the Civil War. Rumor has it, Rhett was based on real-life ne’er-do-well George Alfred Trenholm, a handsome blockade runner (high-class smuggler) from Charleston!

Once I was old enough to understand the “real” movie, I was blown away. The bombastic characters and ragged war-torn South left a deep impression. As sweet and good as Melanie was, it was hard not to side with smarmy, conniving Scarlett. But then, I’ve always been partial to firecrackers. Did you know Mitchell almost named her Pansy O’Hara? The power of editing.

Throughout the years, the book has become an old friend. Like other classics of its stature (it won the Pulitzer Prize in 1937), it sucks me in every time. So much so that a few years ago, I began collecting memorabilia from the film. There’s something about the Golden Era of Hollywood that enchants me.

I’ve got our Rhett and Scarlett Cookie Jar for my Rice Krispie Treats (not exactly a Civil War delicacy, but my kids’ favorite) and the antique-look Salt & Pepper Shaker Set (I pretend I got it from a Tara estate sale). When I need to curl up with the movie on DVD, I snuggle under my GWTW Fleece Blankie.

And for my birthday this year, my mom (also a fan) bought me the GWTW Art Deco-Style Wall Clock. It took me two weeks to pick a room to hang it in!

I suppose it’s possible to imagine a world without Gone With The Wind. But I wouldn’t want to live there!

Count Your Coins!

Tax Day Is April 15th!


How’s it going with your income tax returns?
Have you reached the point of total insanity yet?


I managed to get mine finished online last week, but it took a lot of rearranging of errands, schedules and priorities to rifle through my oh-so-organized shoe boxes full of files and paperwork. Still, once I hit that “send my return to the IRS” button, I let out an enormous sigh of relief!


If our maddening modern-day system has you pining for days of old when two sheep bought you some gunpowder and a petticoat, travel back in time with our collection of vintage coin sets!


The Declaration of Independence Coin Set would make John Adams and Thomas Jefferson proud. Three bicentennial coins honoring America’s 200th birthday are presented alongside a beautifully crafted facsimile of the Declaration of Independence.


Still too modern for you?


How about the Ancient Coins Kit? It includes 5 unrestored coins minted from 1500 to over 2000 years ago. Buried for centuries, these pieces were coin of the realm during the last years of the Roman Empire and there’s not a W-2 in sight!


And who couldn’t use a little Sunken Treasure? In 1985, coins from a perished 1809 British trading ship meant for the East India Company were discovered, packed in wooden casks and trapped in the thick mud, still in mint condition! They feature the coat of arms of the East India Company on the front and the value in Indian script on the reverse!


I’m already planning for next year with my Lionel Railroad Crossing Bank. Oh sure, I’m pretending it’s for the kids to “teach them the value of money.” But it’s so much fun with its 2 red flashing signal lights and real whistle sounds, we’re keeping it in the family room to remind the whole family to save our pennies.


That way, when tax time rolls around next year and I’m tearing through my shoe boxes full of files, I’ll know I have enough saved-up to treat myself to a pedicure once the deed is done!


Good luck and hang in there!

Happy Birthday, Telephone!

March 10, 1876–The First Telephone Call Was Made

In our fast-paced, techno-savvy world, it’s darn near impossible to imagine life without the telephone. I don’t just mean living without the finger-dancing text message goodness of the cell phone–I mean any phone, period. Whatsoever.

If you lived before 1876, you either got a lot of exercise running door-to-door to share your thoughts and office gossip, sent loads of telegraphs, or quietly seethed with pent-up gossip and bitter sarcasm you never got to express. Combine that with no pizza delivery and life looked pretty bleak, didn’t it?

And then a scientific genius named Alexander “Aleck” Graham Bell moved from Scotland to Canada and everything got a lot better!

Born in 1847, Bell was profoundly affected by watching his mother slowly lose her hearing, which began when he was only 12 years old. He invented a “finger tapping language” he used to communicate to her what other family members were discussing so she wouldn’t feel left out. It was this devotion to her, and his dedication to helping her, which led him to study the science of acoustics.

After years of teaching elocution–the art of public speaking–just as his father had, and later running a school for the deaf in Boston where he tutored countless students including Helen Keller, Bell returned to his primary obsession: transmitting the human voice across telegraph wires.

Enduring many agonizing, exhausting trials–on March 7th, 1876 Bell and his lab partner, electrical engineer Thomas Watson, received U.S. Patent Number 174, 465 for the “telephone” even though Bell hadn’t quite perfected it yet.

Three days later, on March 10th, he did! Bell, at one end of his experimental telephone transmitter, spoke into it saying the now-famous words, “Mr. Watson–Come here–I want to see you.” Watson, at the other end in another room on the receiver, heard all of Bell’s words clear as a...well, you know.

The Bell Telephone Company was created the following year and the rest is history! And some enormous cell phone bills for parents with teenagers!

One really neat way to add a functional touch of retro to your home is with a vintage-style telephone. Outfitted with modern push-button technology, all three of these models take you back to simpler times with sleek, classic style. Choose from the 1950’s Pay Phone (no coins necessary), the Black Candlestick Phone, or the Deluxe Wood Wall Phone.

Trust me, with phones this cool around, you’ll save your cell minutes for “Venti or Grande?” text messages and enjoy good-old fashioned gab sessions at home, just like you did when you were a teenager!

Have fun!

Making Politics Fun! Yes, It IS Possible!

As the presidential slugfest plays out before our eyes night after night, channel after channel, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. We’ve all heard the endless jokes about “change” as the buzz word for 2008. We’ve all heard each and every candidate (current and otherwise) promise to ‘fix” America, and deliver great jobs, healthy children, and a booming economy for all.

Your Aunt Betty has friends who run the gamut when it comes to politics. Some are glued to each debate; poised to cheer, jeer, and fight for their favored candidates. Others wish it would all just go away until November because they’d rather catch up on LOST.

Whichever way your voting boat floats, these treats from The Attic give very human faces to our nation’s presidents; turning dusty old lectures into scandalous gossip, adventure and intrigue!

Case in point: our Historical U.S. Presidents Newspapers. Each set of 3 reproduction vintage newspapers features a fascinating collection in 3 different categories: Elections & Inaugurations; Facts, Fallacies & Foibles; and Deaths & Assassinations.

Read about what it was like during the days George Washington was elected (we’re guessing George didn’t drive around in a day-glo motor home with a snappy slogan painted on the side). The scandals section covers everything from the mistakenly-reported “Dewey Defeats Truman,” (whoopsie daisy)–to Nixon’s less-than-glorious resignation (Buh-bye).

The final collection recalls untimely deaths and assassinations with original articles and obituaries that I found myself poring over as if they were priceless artifacts.

Too heavy?

Try the interactive pop-up/pull-out book full of neat facsimiles you can play with! America’s Presidents Museum In A Book takes you on an amazing journey through the hallowed halls of the American presidency from the George W. who started it all (Washington), to the George W. who readies to pass on the baton (Bush).

Pull out and study a mini Gettysburg Address in Lincoln’s own handwriting, a letter from Albert Einstein to FDR, and doodle drawings JFK made during a Cuban Missile Crisis meeting! (see? you're not the only one who doodles inappropriately).

As the TV anchors whip themselves into a tizzy over polls and projections, it all really comes down to people. People who are not perfect, no matter what they try to tell us. Some of them have great ideas. Some of them truly care about making a difference. And hopefully, one of them will.

We’ll find out soon enough.

In the meantime, enjoy the ride! Because once you realize how crazy it all is–it gets a lot more fun!

Veterans Day: Honor History By Learning It!

It’s one of those cliched facts of life that once you get older, you wish you’d paid more attention in school. Learning becomes a luxury you wish you had more time for. Such is the case for me with history. Now that time is at a premium, I quite often look to The Attic for books and DVDs that quench my thirst for knowledge.

I’ve spent hours poring through crisp maps (I love maps, don’t you?), charts, diagrams and photographs recounting battles in our nation’s fascinating history. And it’s highly likely that during the weekends you’ll find me glued to a DVD about Lincoln or Patton while I fold laundry and pretend to balance the checkbook.

Is it odd for a soccer mom to be fascinated by military strategy? I don't think so! Characters like Custer and Rommel are way more colorful than all the Desperate Housewives put together! American Idol? I'd rather watch The American Revolution!

As Thanksgiving looms, we find ourselves seduced by thoughts of roast turkey and buttery mashed potatoes. Christmas is right around the corner, full of sugar plums and shiny paper. At the onset of the holiday season, Veterans Day, quite frankly, gets the short stick. Sure, it gets media coverage full of emotional vignettes about patriotism, but if you ask me...it never gets enough attention.

How do we truly honor those who sacrificed everything to keep our country, and so many other nations around the world, free of tyranny (to use an old but relevant expression)? Making sure that we never forget. How do we do that? By learning. Reading. Exploring maps and diagrams. Watching DVDs. Putting faces to names so that those dusty old textbooks spring to life with wild characters and the smell of gunpowder in the air. Think of this blog as me—slipping you a note during class: “History’s cool! Pass it on!”