The Era -- Day By Day

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

"Nice to finally get a day off!" -- The Cat.

"Coming Events Cast Their Shadows Before..."

Oh, Flip, you're so funny.

"You can ride a bike, right? Ever consider deliverin' papers?"

Well, nobody try to stop her now.

"She used to drive a trolley, but she got tired of all those dumb articles in the paper."

"Oh, and that'll be $12.50."

"At least he didn't say 'Hande Hoch!' That's a good sign, right?"

Where's Child Welfare Services, anyway?

"Remember the last one? Killed in a car accident? You know how to cut brake lines, right?"

 

[Fading Fast]

"ENOUGH!" snaps Ma.

"White belt and all."

 

[FOXTROT LAMONT]

Terrence and all, honour remembrance this Armistice Day weekend.

 

[LizzieMaine]

("Awrmistice Day," sighs Joe. "I guess ev'ybody remembehs wheh t'ey was. Heh, d'I eveh tell ya what happ'nt'a me? I was jus'sa lit'l kid, five yeehs ol', an' I was out on Graham Av'neh wawtchin' alla stuff goin' on, an'neese kids was hangin' a dummy a' t' Kaiseh up a pole -- an'ney made *me* shinny up t'eh t'tie it awff. Me, a lit'l kid five yeehs ol' . I ask ya! An'nen I fell awff, an' landed onna cop! Heh. Neveh f'get t'at day. What was *you* doin?" "Oh, naaathin," sighs Ma, still embittered by the memory. "Oh," nods Joe, remembering that he shouldn't bring up the subject. "Yeh," he apologizes, "Sal tol' me about, you know, ya husban'..." "No use thinkin' aboot it now,"sighs Ma. "Waaar changes people, and aaaft'n not farr the bettar. He's where he is, Oi'm where Oi am, an' thaaat's joost how it is." "Yeh," agrees Joe. "I t'ink a lot about, y'know, wawr changin' people. Me pal Solly, right? He was awrways one'a t'ese guys laughin' it up, awrways havin' a good time, but -- y'know, he's been oveh t'eh oveh'ra yeeh now. He got shot. An'now, I guess he's right back inna middl' of it again. I dunno. He hawrdly eveh writes no moeh, an' when he does, y'know -- he don' really say nut'n. Don' even soun' like himself. I hope when'ne comes back, he ain' changed too much. Hell, I hope whennit's my toin, I don't change too much. I like bein' me, y'know? I'm kin'a use to it. I'm good at it." "Ahhh," reassures Ma, "ye'll nevarr change, Joseph." "I hope Mickey don' change none neit'eh," adds Joe. "Nooo," agrees Ma, "i doon' think thar's mooch chance a' that."

Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden told the House of Commons today that the Moscow conference had agreed upon measures to shorten the war -- presumably including the opening of a second front -- but said they would be revealed "only as they develop at the expense of a common enemy." Eden opened debate on the war situation only a little more than 24 hours after his return to London from the Moscow conference and from a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Numan Menemencioglu in Cairo that a dispatch from Ankara speculated might lead to Turkey's entry into the war on the side of the Allies within three months. He said the communique and documents released by the Britain, the United States and Russia following the Moscow conference "included all the information regarding the work of the conference which we felt it possible to make public at this time."

With proportional-representaiton counting of City Council ballots now complete, Brooklyn will be represented on the new Council by six seats -- each to be held by an incumbent, but the counting of ballots at the 23rd Regiment Armory at Bedford and Atlantic Avenues nearly ended in fisticuffs when the total after fifteen counts found Communist Councilman Peter Cacchione leading the total vote with 68,836 votes. At that time, a row broke out, with Republican and Democratic Party officials demanding a sixteenth count redistributing the ballots of incumbent Democratic Councilman William McCarthy, who came in seventh in the total vote, among the six winners to determine the final standing, while Communist representatives maintained that, with all available seats being filled, no further count was required. After a battle "that nearly ended in fisticuffs," the sixteenth count was held, and McCarthy's ballots redistributed. At the end of that count, Cacchione was dropped to second place among the six victors, with his final total of 69,149 votes exceeded by 74,716 votes for Majority Leader Joseph Sharkey. Fusionist Genevieve Earle finished third with 67,241 votes, Democratic Councilman Walter Hart fourth with 67,234, Democrat Anthony DiGiovanna fifth with 47,852, and Democrat Edward Vogel sixth with 47,041. McCarthy, defeated in his reelection bid, swore after the count that he will never run for the Council again so long as the proportional representation system exists, a comment echoed by Councilman Hart. Mrs. Rita Casey, who dropped out of the race after the fourteenth count with a little over 34,000 votes, had no comment, nor did American Labor Party candidate Louis P. Goldberg, who fell off the list after the fifteenth count, after going no higher than 36,638 votes.

Cacchione, who in 1941 became the first Communist elected to a City Council seat, will be joined on the new Council by fellow Communist Benjamin Davis Jr. of Manhattan. The left-wing bloc will be further bolstered by Michael Quill, head of the Transit Workers Union, elected to represent the Bronx. Quill is technically an independent, but most of his support comes from trade-unionist and left-wing voters.

Queens Borough President James A. Burke today demanded a return to the traditional two-party system of electing members to the City Council, and denounced proportional representation as "racial and ideological and purely un-American." He called the adoption of P. R. in 1937 "never more than an experiment, and I say the experiment has proved a failure."

(SO QUIT COMPLAINING)

With the recent death of Robert G. Summers, Brooklyn's last surviving veteran of the Civil War, the Grand Army of the Republic is officially dissolved in the borough, leaving the United Spanish War Veterans as the senior veterans organization for Brooklyn, and places that group in the position formerly reserved for the G. A. R. as the official head of Memorial Day observations in the borough. Kings County Commander of the United Spanish War Veterans, Col. William A. Dawkins, had served as an adjutant and chief of staff representing surviving G. A. R. members in Brooklyn over the final twelve years of that organization's active life.

("The Greatest Generation" = "Soy Boys.")

("At least until nap time!")

The Eagle Editorialist marks the 25th anniversary of the end of the "war to end all wars" by declaring that "the fight for freedom is still on." But he also notes that "surely there has been evidence in these last few weeks of a steadfast determination that this time peace shall be enduring, that this time the sacrifice shall not be in vain, that the world shall not wade through a sea of blood only to face disillusionment once again..."

A disciple of Father Divine who denied possession of policy slips was presented in court with evidence in the form of a chunk of plaster prised from the wall of his apartment. William Kennedy of 348 Christopher Avenue, known to his fellow followers of the Harlem Messiah as "Careless Love," was arraigned last night in Brooklyn-Queens Night Court after being arrested by Patrolman Joseph Doctor, who, while searching the apartment discovered what appeared to be policy numbers written on the wall. Kennedy was ordered held on $500 bail for a hearing in East New York Court next Monday.

("Yeh," chuckles Sally. "T'ey otta go right out'n sign'nat LaMotta. Durocheh won't be too lippy inna clubhouse witta guy like t'at aroun'." "Y'know who likes t' go t'fights?" pipes Alice. "Misteh G likes t'go t'fights. Siddy was tellin' me he'n Misteh G useta go out t' Jamacia Areneh alla time befoeh t' wawr an' see t' fights. An' rasslin' too, Misteh G useta really love t'at, Siddy says. He'd get up onna seat an' yell "AF'N BOYKH! AF'N BOYKH!' I ast Siddy whassat mean, an'nee says it's sump'n like 'on ya, you know, belly!" Siddy says he'd yell an' holleh an' have a swell time." "Whas' he t'ink about t'two'a yez gett'n married?" inquires Sally. "Ahh, I t'ink he's happy 'bout it," grins Alice. "I sez t'him., I sez, "Misteh G, I need t'tawk t'yeh. I'm still gonna help out you folks inya place heeh, but me'n Sid Krause, we'eh gonna get married.' An'ne kin'a blinks an' looks at me, an'nen he takes me by t'han' an' kin'a looks up an' says sump'n like 'alev ha sholem.' An'nen he pats me onna awrm an' goes off smilin'. I guess t'at means 'good luck t'yez,' huh?" "Yeh," replies Sally, stifling a laugh. "Sump'n like t'at.")

Dr. Brady remonstrates a correspondent who writes in asking for advice on finding a psychiatrist who shares his own religious beliefs. Doc B. declares that he "has no way of knowing if a particular doctor is of a particular creed, or whether or not he is a good Democrat," and he "can't see what difference it would make under any circumstance." A doctor's religious beliefs, he maintains, are irrelevant in determining decisions of medical treatment. "Those questions are up to the patient and his religiousl advisors," declares Doc B, "The doctor's religious belief doesn't enter into the problem at all."

"Come to see me in taxi!" I don't think the seats are big enough for that.

("Of all the fatheaded old men in the world, it had to be HIM.")

("Go ask Bim Gump, he'll fall for anything!")

(I wonder what brand of soap they use?)

("Dog? We don't own a dog. We do? Oh, whatever.")

 

[LizzieMaine]

And also --

(America's Biggest Small Town Keeps 'Em Flying.)

(And then some.)

(But there are still priorites.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

"NOW JUST A MINUTE! I'VE GOT A CONTRACT!" -- The Cat.

Well this is a new twist.

"We could always hit the Army-Navy."

Practice, practice, practice.

"Go ahead! There's a double-page spread in the News for us if you do!"

"Of course, it'd cost like hell to heat, but there's plenty of trees. S'pose it's a state park, though."

"I wonder where *my* son is now? I guess I'll have to read next Sunday's paper."

"Oh yes, custom made. Cost you $17.50 each, with two pairs of pants."

"Come in, your box of soy powder is on the table."

Of course, too much soy powder causes bloating.

 

[Fading Fast]

"Dog? We don't own a dog. We do? Oh, whatever."

 

[LizzieMaine]

("Bein' a supeh's a hawrd job," sighs Alice. "T'is pooeh guy heeh -- get'n boint all up. T'at could jus' as easy happ'n t' Siddy. I worry 'bout t'at. I mean, remembeh t'at night we had t'gas leak, how t'at was?" "Krause wasn' even 'neah," points out Sally. "I'was 'is night awff," interjects Alice. "If he'da been'neah, t'ough, he coulda got hoit bad. Remembeh what happen't t't' boid t'eh, Zippy t' Fois'. T'at coulda happn't t'Siddy." "We awl got lucky t'at night," sighs Sally. "Not Siddy," replies Alice. "Y'know what he tol' me? Remembeh he said he was at a lawdge meet'n 'nat night? He wasn'. He was up'n'a Bronx, playin' pinochle wit' his mot'eh. She's seven'y-two yeehs ol', an' ev'ry Sun'ay night he goes up t'eh an' plays pinochle wit'eh. An'nee was embarassed t'say so." "Why would'ee be embarassed t'say t'at?" protests Sally. "T'at's a nice t'ing, t'at he goes t'look afteh his ol' ma like t'at. Lotta guys aroun'eeh woul'n do t'at. He oughta be proud've it. You oughta be proud OF 'im f't'at." "Well," shrugs Alice, "it's like t'is. He's embarassed 'cause -- um -- she cleaned 'im out." "Ah," ahs Sally. "Yeh," nods Alice. "Two cents a pernt. Cleaned 'im right out. Didn'ev'n leave 'im a nickel f'cawrfare home. He hadda hitchhike. T'at's why he was so late gett'n back heeh. Allawauy f'm t'Bronx. He hadda hitchhike." "You met t'is mot'eh yet?" queries Sally. "No," admits Alice. "But I tell ya one t'ing." "Whassat?" reponds Sally. "I ain'," declares Alice, "playin' pinochle wit' 'eh!")

Dispatches from the Middle East said today that French troops at Beirut had fired on demonstrators as riots spread across Lebanon and Syria against the imprisonment by French colonial authorities of Lebanese government officials seeking to throw off French control. A report from United Press correspondent Sam Souki in Beirut predicted that a full-scale revolution is likely unless the French release President Beshara El-Khoury, Premier Riad Sohl, and members of the Cabinet. The leader of the Christian Maranite faction and the Grand Mufti of the Moslems both appealed to Sir Edward I. Spears, British Minister to Lebanon, for his intercession to help avert a revolution. A deputation of Lebanese citizens also called on Spears and on American ambassador George Wadsworth. Two civilians and a French policeman were reported killed in the rioting.

A Brooklyn restaurant counterman who posed as an attorney offering to sell his services to get an acquaintance out of the draft faces Federal charges. Thirty-six-year-old Robert Thompson pleaded guilty yesterday before United States Commissioner Martin Epstein, and is being held on $5000 bail pending action by the Federal grand jury. Thompson admitted requesting $200 from William F. Monahan of 450 95th Street in exchange for his promise to get Monahan a "permanent deferrment." Monahan reported the transaction to the FBI, and agents arrested Thompson as soon as he received the payment. Thompson himself is 4-F due to two prior felony convictions, while Monahan is due to report for induction next week.

("Ahhhh," sighs Uncle Frank, delicately dabbing his lips with a napkin after concluding a hearty lunch, "ye know, Nora, it's gett'n t'be joost like old toimes. Wish Oi could get a new set of tires farr the troock, because Oi can see there'll be a lot of need. Annd joost loike it says in those aaadvretoisements, 'me hand has nevarrr lost it's skill." Yes indeed, Oi think..." But his soliloquy is interrupted by a gentle tinkle on the linoleum. "Ye dropped somethin' thaar, Nora," he diverts. "Moosta fell oota'va hole in ye apron pocket tharr." He bends over and picks up a glittering brass key and regards it curiously. "Whaaat's this then?" he inquires, handing the key to Ma, who, with a glare, tucks it down her budge. "Joost an' old key," she snaps. "Looks loike a safe deposit box key," comments Uncle Frank. "Oi didn't know ye had a safe deposit box." ""Did ye see in the paper there," Ma continues, hoping to shut down this particular line of conversation, "the bail Hockert set in that case? He's a toof one, he is. Better tell the boys t'mind their step oot in Queens, 'special with all these ootsiders troyin' to mooscle in." "Ahh, the boys know their way arooond." shrugs Uncle Frank, settling back in his chair and reaching for his coffee cup. "And Hockert's a friend'a moine, so I wouldn't worry none aboot.." He is interrupted again by a jingle, heard from the open door to the store downstairs. "Oi thought ye locked oop the place f'loonch," Uncle Frank interjects. "Ahh, that'll be Joseph. He's gaaaht a key to the front door, remember." "Oh yes," nods Uncle Frank. "Aaaamd speakin' o' keys, ye didn't answer..." "Ye better get baack to warrk, Francis." hastens Ma. "Oi imagine tharr's a lot to be done these days. "Ah," ahs Uncle Frank, knowing he's lost the encounter. "As ye wish, Nora. Joost be careful." "Ye as well," nods Ma with finality.)

A war plant in Queens announced today that it will hire only honorably-discharged veterans of the current war, in what is described as a concrete step toward heading off the anticipated postwar unemployment crisis. The General Aircraft Corporation in Long Island City announced that the policy has already been tried on a trial basis, with more than twenty former fighting men hired last week, and the company, which builds troop-carrying gliders, expects to hire another 600 veterans over the next year. At present the plant is hiring only skilled workers capable of passing a difficult mechanical aptitude test, and those accepted for work on the glider assembly lines are being paid 65 cents to $1.30 per hour.

("Now, if we're finished here, I need to go -- it's almost time for 'Ma Perkins.")

Distressed by "the scandalous election of a such a strong Communist bloc" in the recent City Council election, the Eagle Editorialist endorses a new campaign to repeal Proportional Representation, and nominates Parks Commissioner Robert Moses to lead it. "Under P. R.," sniffs the EE, "all all the emphasis is placed on the rights of minorities. We prefer the 'American System' of democracy, which while insisting on the protection of the rights of minorities, is essentially rule of the majority. As we see it, that is the only way to secure responsible government."

(KIDS TODAY)

A 25-year-old war worker from Mineola, Long Island faces second-degree assault charges for beating his wife. Joseph W. Koch, Jr., a precision thread grinder at a plant in Oceanside, was arraigned yesterday before Judge George S. Johnson after his wife Mae Koch, a beautician, charged from her bed at Meadowbrook Hospital that he beat her with his fists and a rubber hose. Koch is being held on $5000 bail pending a court appearance on November 18th.

Cigarette retailers in the metropolitan area have imposed voluntary rationing, limiting customers to purchases ranging from two packs to one carton depending on available stock. The limits are in place both at small neighborhood shops and chain retailers, and cover all popular brands, with Camels and Philip Morris in the shortest supply. Cigars are also in increasingly short supply, with some retailers now refusing to sell them by the full box. Trade representatives stress that the shortage is "not serious," and the limits have been put in place to hold off "panic buying" that could create a more serious problem.

(The NFL is struggling during wartime, between player shortages, short gates, and no real broadcast revenue. Some franchises are near collapse, hence the merger of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers into the -- uh -- Steagles. I guess that's better than the "Eaglers.")

Lionel Barrymore will join Amos 'n' Andy tonight at 10PM over WEAF as guest star on the famous team's slick new half-hour show. Mr. Barrymore works for the same sponsor that now backs the comedy duo in his program heard "on another network."

("Hash? I haven't seen hash in almost two years. I love hash.")

(Hey Bill, think hard now. Any chance you might have a daughter, oh, twenty-two or so, that you might've forgotten all about? Why are you looking at me like that?)

(GOOD DOG.)

(ALL THE FINE COMPLEXION SOAP IN THE WORLD WON'T GET THE BLOOD OFF THOSE HANDS!)

("FINALLY GOT RID OF 'EM BOTH! "-- Kitty.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

Well, we'll wait up for the next edition for the details!

"All's well that ends well! Now feed me! (purr)" -- The Cat.

"War is FUN!"

"Sure, why pay for a title search? We're all friends here? We're friends, aren't we? AREN"T WE??"

"Don't worry, DICK Tracy is the right man for the job!"

"Ain't you got anything in a 46 stout?"

"Also, it says right here -- 'babies hate beets.'"

Thanks for the translation, Gus.

Sometimes this strip reminds me so much of my own relatives it hurts.

Well, good, at least we know Harold is, in fact, in the service and not, well, in jail for being an idiot. And "Dudley DUNN?" Hey, soldier, is your father by any chance....?

 

[LizzieMaine]

Oh, and...

"Well whatta YOU t'ink?" -- Sally Petrauskas, Brooklyn, war worker.

 

[FOXTROT LAMONT]

That sailor should have stopped to chat with Miss Martinez.

 

[LizzieMaine]

("Yeh," says Alice, as she, Sally, and Leonora emerge from the 18th Avenue BMT station and turn the corner onto 63rd Street. "I been lookin' awl oveh f'cigawrs f' Siddy f' Chris'mas. He smokes t'em Rocky Fawrds, y'know? 'If it's got t'stuff a nick'ls enough?' C'ept t'eh six cents now, but t'ey still smell t'same. An' I t'ought I'd get 'im a box, right? But I wen' inna Schreibstein's t'ot'eh night, an'ney said t'ey ain' got none lef', an'ney don' 'spec' t'get none in. I wen' oveh't Whelan Drug, oveh't United Cigawr Stoeh, awlese places, an'ney awl tol' me t'same t'ing." "Jus' get some ot'eh bran'," suggests Sally, as they climb the stoop at number 1720. "T'ey awl stink about t'same." "Oh, no," declares Alice as they step into the foyer, "Siddy'll know. He's pa'ticuleh." "Well," shrugs Sally, "good luck wit'tat." "STINKY!" adds Leonora, wrinkling her nose in distaste as she and her mother head up the stairs. Alice pauses before the door of the Ginsburgs' apartment and fumbles in her bag for the key. "Hold on'neh, toots," whispers a grating, nasal voice. "Whoozat?" snaps Alice, her hand closing around the blackjack she carries in her purse out of force of habit. "Take it easy," replies Hops Gaffney, stepping insolently out of the shadows. "I got a message fawr yeh. T' ol' lady wants t'see ya." "What? I was jus' oveh t'eh," replies Alice thru a fog of confusion. "She wants t'see ya alone," continues Hops. "Wit'out -- you know who." "Whassis awla'bout?" demands Alice. "I ain' done nut'n." "Who'm I, Elmeh Davis?" shrugs Hops, biting down on his toothpick. "I don' know nut'n. I jus' bring t'message. T'marra night, afteh woik. Afteh you know who picks up t'kid, you tell'eh you wanna go 'crawsta street t' Dewes' Deli, an' have a san'wich. Take fifteen minutes, an'nen come back. She'll be waitin' fawr ya. Don' be late." "Awright," stammers Alice. "I'll be t'eh." "Oh, an' toots," adds Hops, pausing by the front door, "y'hadn' oughteh carry t'at t'ing in ya pocke'book. Y'might get arrested...")

The United States Government reported today that it has spent as much in the four and one third months since July 1st as the total cost of the First World War to this nation -- a total of $32,830,000,000. The report indicated that the public debt over the same period has risen more than it did over the entirety of American involvement in World War I. Since the 1944 fiscal year began on July 1st, the debt has increased by $28,668,000,000 to stand at a total of $169,500,000,000. Included in spending for the present war was some $4,400,000,000 laid out in Lend-Lease to Allied nations.

("You think I'm worried? Make one that sounds like Sinatra!" -- Bing.)

A plea of innocent by reason of insanity was entered yesterday in Kings County Court on an indictment charging 49-year-old Harry Rosalinsky of 3115 Brighton 4th Street with the first-degree murder of his wife. 49-year-old Anna Rosalinsky, the mother of three children, was beaten to death with a pipe fitting on the morning of October 30th. The court appointed former magistrate Leo Healy, former assistant District Attorney Samuel Goldstein, and Benjamin Spector as attorneys for the defendant, who declared that he is unable to afford counsel. Under the insanity specification, Rosalinsky's attorneys may engage alienists to examine him in preparation for trial.

("Now me, I like a good comic book...")

("Very fine, very fine," muses Mr. Rickey. "Mr. Camilli will no doubt make an excellent pilot out there in the Coast League, an excellent pilot." "How are the plans coming along," interjects Mrs. Rickey, "for Dolph Camilli Day?" "Ahhh, my dear," chuckles Mr. Rickey, "your sense of humor. That's why I married you, my dear, that's why I married you.")

(Here comes the wartime reissue craze!)

(YOU SNEAKY SWAB! Don't think a crucifix on the wall will help you!)

("Hello, Dad.")

(I TOLD YOU ONCE AND I'LL TELL YOU AGAIN -- I'M NOT BIM GUMP! HERE, LOOK AT MY CHIN!)

(A chain letter scam? Whoa, DREAM BIG!)

(When dogs become class conscious.)

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News..

"Well, I'M not going anywhere! I like the climate!" -- The Cat.

SURE JIMMY STIR THE POT

("I can see it now! Not just the whole center spread, but a great big one on the front page and four or five small ones on the back! MAYBE EVEN WITH A LITTLE WHITE ARROW POINTING TO YOUR HEAD!")

(And I wonder who the pilot of that transport might be? DUDE HENNICK! IS THAT YOU?)

Are we ready for JON STARDUST -- COMMANDO?

"Please, sir? We've even rented Horn & Hardart for the reception!"

"An' if you can't get him to sell, leave it to me. How deep is the lake again?"

Time to make with the Lend-Lease!

It's a living.

Is it just me, or has Lillums gained, uh, weight?

 

[LizzieMaine]

And also...

Maybe Babe Herman should keep trying for a comeback. Maybe Babe RUTH should try for a comeback.

 

[Fading Fast]

Internally, at the Daily News, that arrows is known as the "Owen's Arrow" for use when anything carelessly rolls away.

 

[FOXTROT LAMONT]

''Blue Moon'' needs to play in The Gumps strip or better yet, my favourite ''Moonlight Serenade'' by the
immortal Major Glenn Miller whose superb theme plays now on my laptop courtesy YT with a continuous
hour cycle. If the man never returned his music never left, and Armistice weekend is quite appropriate our
remembrance the man, his splendid era, a magnificent generation, and the music they danced and enjoyed.

 

[LizzieMaine]

("Ah," ahs Ma, as the bell rings and the door opens to admit a nervous Alice Dooley. "Ye got me message," Ma continues. "Yeh," yehs Alice. "Lissen, how'd teh Hoppeh know we was woikin' Sunday ovehtime t'day?" "He's a diligent lad, Mr. Gaffney is," chuckles Ma. "Aaaahlthough, I do admit, soomtimes he pours it aaahn too thick. Thinks he's a charactarr in a gangstarr movie, he does." "Yeh," nods Alice, her mood darkening. "Will ye have a drink?" offers Ma. "No t'anks," shrugs Alice, "i don' feel like no soda right now. Keeps me awake at night." "Ahhhhh," chuckles Ma, "who said anything aboot soda?" She reaches under the counter and produces a plain, unmarked bottle from which she pours a straw-colored liquid into a Coca-Cola glass. She squirts a small blast of seltzer into the glass from the fountain, and slides it across the counter to Alice, who gives it a suspicious sniff. "Ah," she nods. "Uncle Frank." "He's haapy as a schoolboy t'be back in the oooold loine," adds Ma. "Joost loike old toimes." "So," sos Alice, downing the drink in a single gulp. "Whatcha wanna see me about? I ain' said nut'n t' Sal 'bout nut'n, if ya worried 'bout t'at. I'm t'original clam." "Oh, no no no," hastens Ma. "I waanted to ask ye some questions about me boy Michael." "Oh yeh," replies Alice. "Sal tol' me ya got t'is funny pos'cawrd fr'm'im innat heinie camp he's in." "Oh, no, no, noothin' to do with thaat," prevaricates Ma. "Ye used to go oot with me boy, isn't thaat so? Back before ye...?" "Yeh," nods Alice, unsure where the conversation is going. "We wen' out, we -- did some t'ings, nut'n serious, but you know. He's a fun kid. An'nen t'at t'ing happn't out'na Flatlan's, an' I took t' rap." "I know, I know," demurs Ma, shaking her head. "A varrrry sad business, that was. Verry sad. And, as Oi've said, ye have me gratitude farrr..." "Look, Ma, " sighs Alice. "Come to t'pernt, OK?" "When ye was gooin' with Michael," resumes Ma, "did ye -- know him to have any bank accounts. Did he haaave any dealin's with banks, did he, ooooh, Oi don't know, haaave a Christmas cloob aaahr anything loike that." "Well," shrugs Alice, "seems t'me he useta have business at t' Dime Savin's. Not t'one downtown, t'branch in Bensonhoist, down on 86t'." "Ah," ahs Ma. "Isn't thaaat interestin'. Of coorse, that's not cloose to where Sally and Joseph live?" "Nah," nahs Alice, "t'at's, what, twenny blocks an' change. Awmos' in Bat' Beach. I neveh knew why Mickey hung aroun' down'neah, but y'know, I was youngeh t'en, an' I din' ask too many questions long's I was havin' a good time." "Intarrrestin', intarrrestin'," nods Ma. "Have anoothar drink, will ye?" "Nah," insists Alice. "If t'at's awl ya wanna tawk about, I gotta get home." "Ooooh yes," smiles Ma. "Oi hear yarr gonna get married. To a janitarr, is it?"" "He ain' no janiteh," frowns Alice. "He's a buildin' supeh'rintendant. It's a whole diff'nt t'ing." "Well," adds Ma, her arms folded, and her face assuming a stern expression. "Oi don't have to tell ye aboot keepin' ye mouth shoot to him aboot what goes ahhn ovar here. Because thar's a few things YOU might not waant him to hear..." "Lissen," huffs Alice, stepping back and looking Ma straight in the eye. "If you mean about me bein' in stir, Siddy knows awla'bout t'at. I tol''im t'fois' night we wen' out. An' y'know what he said? He said 'yeh.'" "Oh," ohs Ma, with genuine surprise. "Butcha don' hafta worry, I ain' whatchacawl implicated you, a' Uncle Frank, a' nobody else. I wouldn' DO t'at f' Sal's sake, an' you know it. So y'don' hafta worry." "All roit then," nods Ma. "Ye've made yarr point." "An' anot'eh t'ing," Alice fumes. "Nex' time y'wanna tawk t'me, cawl oveh t' Schreibsteins, will ya? Don' sen' Gaffney oveh, he gives me t'willies." "Ye've been a big help," concludes Ma, taking up a dish towel and beginning to polish the fountain spouts. "Oh," adds Alice, her hand on the doorknob. "Tell Uncle Frank t'at's a swell batch." She exits into the Rogers Avenue evening, as Ma shakes her head in wonder.)

Intraparty dissension, which has been spreading in local Democratic ranks since the election, flared on another front last night when former member of the Board of Transportaition Charles V. Halley Jr. demanded the removal of Edward J. Flynn, former Democratic National Committee chairman, as Democratic leader in the Bronx. Halley declared in a statement last night that the Democratic Party in the Bronx has "sunk to its lowest level in years" under Flynn's leadership, and demanded that immediate action be taken to reorganize the party in that borough. Flynn was replaced as Democratic National Committee Chairman by James Farley earlier this year following a controversy over his use of city-owned paving stones to build an "antique Belgian courtyard" at his Long Island estate. The demand for Flynn's ouster comes as a drive is also underway to replace Tammany leader Michael Kennedy as part of a general reorganization of Tammany Hall.

Reports from Cairo last night said sailors from French naval units have swarmed ashore at Beirut, Lebanon to reinforce Senegalese troops fighting an "armed revolution" by Lebanese rebels against colonial rule. A report in a Wafdist newspaper stated that local police in Beirut are refusing to obey orders from French colonial authorities. It was also reported that French troops are firing on civilians, and rebels set fire to a French tank.

Mayor LaGuardia today will read a letter from Federal Communications Chairman James L. Fly ruling on whether his remarks during his radio talk last week were "political" in nature, but the contents of that letter will not be disclosed until the Mayor reads the message during his WNYC broadcast this afternoon. The mayor's charge last week that the Republican Party was responsible for the election of Thomas Aurelio to a judgeship despite his ties to underworld figure Frank Costello produced a demand from Republican leader Thomas Curran that he be allowed to respond over the municipal station immediately following the Mayor's broadcast today. While that request was declined, WNYC did offer Curran an opportunity to discuss the matter on the air later in the week, along with leaders of the Democratic and American Labor parties. Curran will meanwhile respond to the Mayor in a broadcast tomorrow night over station WHN.

(FIGHTING WORDS!!!!!!)

(College football? Rah rah rah.)

(That's it, Tommy. Throw another log on the fire.)

("Y'see?" says Joe, with Leonora on his lap eyeing the paper with fascination. "T'at's Genevieve Oil. She's onna City Council. She does awlkin'sa impoehtn' stuff, an' she still got time t' ride onna merry-go-roun'. An' someday, I betcha, t'at's gonna be YOU!" "Be Mayah!" blurts Leonora. "Well," chuckles Joe, "awl in good time. I t'ink ya Ma's got'teh eyes onnat one foist!")

(Given how often this sort thing seems to happen, maybe you should build a better fence.)

("But mein Fuehrer, this photograph is upside down!")

("Miraculously." In other words, Stamm got tired of this story.)

("Why did I do it? I mean, look at you!" Oh, and that's why you always build a four foot fence around your kangaroo.)

(Gypsy says "howwwwwwwwwwdeeeeeeeee.")

 

[LizzieMaine]

And in the Daily News...

"Whatcha t'ink, lady, t'is is Valley Stream?"

Um, your point being?

"And all you little kids, EAT YOUR BEETS! DON'T YOU KNOW THERE'S A WAR ON?"

All right, DICK, you've made your point!

Poor Walt. Left to face middle age forgotten and alone.

"I'll give you my note, of course." Because as we know, Annie always does things BY THE BOOK. And Chester has studied hard all those Juvenile Delinquency articles in the paper and he knows his part by heart!

BEEFCAKE! BEEFCAKE! BEEFCAKE!

All children in 1943 are 35 years old.

Be sure to save that dress for the next time you fall in the Carribbean.

Did you forget the creepy French pilot? Mr. Caniff hasn't forgotten the creepy French pilot.

 

[Fading Fast]

I feel seen.

 

[FOXTROT LAMONT]

Grett's dead.