Wartime Wednesday: Albert Staehle

Wartime Wednesday: Albert Staehle

Although photography had been commercially available since 1839, it was an expensive process. Therefore, newspapers, magazines, billboards, and posters were produced using illustrations rather than pictures well in to the 1930s and 1940s. Some of the more famous illustrators include Charles Dana Gibson, Norman Rockwell, and Beatrix Potter. Artists who were well-known at the time, but have fallen into obscurity are J.C. Leyendecker, Sarah Stilwell Weber, Edmund Franklin Ward, and Alfred Staehle.

Born in Munich, Bavaria in 1899, Alfred Staehle came to America with his parents in 1914. His father and maternal grandfather were both artists, so Alfred came by his talent naturally. In an effort to improve his skills, he attended The Wicker School in Detroit and the Arts Student League in New York. He found early success after entering a poster contest for Borden milk and was soon providing advertising and cover art for magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, American Weekly, Jack & Jill, and Good Housekeeping. He also created posters, and one of the most prized posters of the 1939 World’s Fair is his.

A large portion of his work featured animals, and he was considered by many to be an animal expert. Often using live animals as models, it is said that Staehle surrounded himself with creatures while working in his studio. He also painted from pictures, and he eventually married one of the photographers he hired to photograph his models. Staehle was also successful with his billboard work, and in 1938 he was awarded the Kerwin H. Fulton medal for Achievement of Art in Outdoor Advertising.

But he became a household name with the February 19, 1944 issue of The Saturday Evening Post when he drew a cover that featured a Cocker Spaniel named Butch chewing up ration coupons. The magazine seemed to sellout overnight, and letters poured into the Post’s offices defending the puppy. A few readers also sent replacement coupons. Butch was incredibly popular, and he was featured in twenty-five Post covers and thirty American Weekly covers, often getting into trouble for chewing something, “borrowing” an item that didn’t belong to him, or getting into some sort of predicament. Staehle purchased his very own “Butch” in June 1944.

Butch was so popular, Hagen-Renaker Potteries of California created figurines of him, Atlas Toys produced a stuffed version of him, and Saalfield produced a coloring book and jigsaw puzzles. Butch also made personal appearances to help raise money for worthy causes, and after the war he appeared on a Navy re-enlistment poster resulting in his being sworn in as the official Navy mascot.

Not bad for a small, mischievous puppy.

Traveling Tuesday: Canterbury

Traveling Tuesday: Canterbury

What do you think of when you hear the name Canterbury? Perhaps Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales comes to mind. How about St. Augustine or Archbishop Thomas Becket who was murdered at the cathedral, or even Joseph Conrad who is buried in one of the city’s cemeteries. Suffice it to say that Canterbury has a lot of history associated with it, and as with most of England, incidents occurred during WWII.

By May, 1941 the eight month Blitz of London had finally ceased. Having realized the British were not going to cower, no matter how many bombs were dropped on them, the Germans switched their focus to invading the Soviet Union, with periodic “hit and run” raids on England’s coastal towns. The night raids the British were conducting were determined to have been mostly ineffective, so those came to halt as the Allies reconsidered their strategies.

Canterbury was one of the coastal towns that suffered from bombing attacks. Located on the River  Stour, it is about sixty miles southeast of London and has been inhabited since prehistoric times.

As a result of the destruction of the German towns of Lubeck and Rostock, Hitler was furious and ordered retaliatory attacks. The targets were selected to have the greatest possible effect on civilians. 

According to Goebbels, Hitler “intended to repeat these raids night after night until the English are sick and tired of terror attacks” and that “cultural centers, health resorts, and civilian centers must be attacked…there is no other way of bring the English to their senses.” The raids were referred to the Baedeker raids because of a comment made by the German propagandist Baron Gustav Braun von Stumm who said, “We shall go out and bomb every building in Britain marked with three stars in the Baedeker Guide (a popular travel guide at the time).”

Just after midnight on June 1, 1942, the Germans dropped over 10,000 incendiary bombs. This kind of fire bomb caused more damage than explosive bombs because of the intense blazes that start when the land. In short order, the city was a conflagration, and over 700 homes and nearly 300 other buildings, including the bus depot, three churches and two schools, were destroyed. Reports indicate that 115 people perished. Canterbury was hit again on June 6 and 7 resulting in another forty-five deaths.

Raids of this type continued well into 1944 when the Germans once again turned their sights to London.

Wartime Wednesday: Who was the Mystery Chef?

Wartime Wednesday: Who was the Mystery Chef?

Although television had been invented in 1927, it was far from being the mainstream item it is today. In fact, very few households had one. When WWII rolled around, the manufacturing of TVs stopped, so radio remained the mass communication tool of government and industry. As such producers recognized that the population would desire entertainment in addition to news and public service announcements. Rather than thirty and sixty minute programs like today, many radio shows ran for a mere fifteen minutes.

One of those shows was The Mystery Chef. Airing from 1932 to 1945, it was one of many popular recipe programs. The host, James MacPherson, was a Scotsman who came to the U.S. via England, but he remained unnamed, so the general public had no idea who he was. Speculation abounds as to why he maintained his anonymity. One blog claims it was because his mother would be horrified that he had an effeminate hobby such as cooking. A museum exhibit claims because his family was well-to-do, they would be upset that he was doing such menial tasks. Whatever the reason, Mr. MacPherson was a huge success.

In addition to sharing recipes on his show, he discussed cooking on a budget as well as what he called artistry in the kitchen. “Always be an artist at the stove, not just someone who cooks.” He published his first cookbook in 1936: Be an Artist at the Gas Range: Successful Recipes by the Mystery Chef, and followed that up with The Mystery Chef’s Own Cookbook in 1943. Copies are still available on Amazon. In 1949, NBC launched the show one television, but it did not fare well and was canceled after only one season.

Unsung Female Sleuths of the 1940s

Unsung Female Sleuths of the 1940s

When asked to list famous fictional sleuths from the 1940s, you probably think of Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe, and Philo Vance. Maybe you also come up with Nick and Nora Charles, and of course, there are always Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot.

But with the 1930s and 1940s being the “Golden Age of Detective Fiction,” there are dozens of others, unfortunately many of whom have faded into obscurity. Here are just a few of the female sleuths, you’ll want to investigate:

Author Joan Coggin

Lady Lupin: A vicar’s wife, Lady Lupin was featured in only four novels written by Joan Coggin, the daughter of a vicar herself. Born in 1898 in Lemsford, Coggin and her family moved to Eastbourne, a small seaside village in England, after the death of her mother. She worked as a nurse during WWI, and after the war worked with the blind, writing novels on the side. Her character Lady Lupin is a 21 year old earl’s daughter who marries a vicar twice her age. They settle in Glanville (a town much like Eastbourne). She doesn’t do a lot of detecting, but her off-hand remarks and keen observations set the police on the right track to finding their culprit.

Lily Wu: Author Juanita Sheridan’s detective Lily Wu solves crimes in New York and Hawaii, and is most probably the first Asian female detective to be a principle character in fiction. Sheridan lived for many years in Hawaii and integrated herself into the diverse community, so wrote with authority as she created minority characters. Like Lady Lupin, Lily on shows up in four novels. Her “Watsonesque” sidekick is Janice Cameron who narrates the stories and gives the reader insight into Lily’s multi-faceted personality.

Maggie Bryne: Australian author June Wright created Maggie Bryne in the late 1940s, and only used  her in two novels. Born in Melbourne where June set most of her stories, she wrote her first, Murder in the Telephone Exchange, from experience, as she had been working in one for four years. June only published six books having to take a “regular job” when her husband became unable to work. In the first book, her protagonist, Maggie, is a single, career girl, and in the second, she is a married, stay-at-home mom. In both books, she is intelligent, sensitive, and sarcastic making her a realistic, complex character readers can fully enjoy.

Jeanie Halliday: Jeanie is only featured in one mystery written by Ianthe Jerrold (pen name Geraldine Bridgman). Ianthe was born into a family of writers. Her father, Walter, was a well-known author and journalist, and her grandfather was Victorian playwright, Douglas Jerrold. Published in 1940, Let Him Lie, is a traditional mystery set in a country home (a popular setting with many authors at this time.), and Jeanie is a fledgling amateur sleuth, learning as the story progresses. She is highly conversational, and uses that trait to interview witnesses, suspects, and anyone else who might help her solve the murder. Ianthe went on to write romantic fiction and psychological thrillers and left Miss Halliday behind.

Erle Stanley Gardner

Bertha Cool: Created by Erle Stanley Gardner while writing under the pen name A.A. Fair, Bertha is an overweight, penny-pinching widow who is a professional private investigator. As with all of Gardner’s characters, Bertha is not your everyday gumshoe. Alternately greedy, corrupt, dishonest, and offensive, she partners with attorney Donald Lam, and the two of them always get their man (or woman). The books are fast, fun reads filled with colorful characters, interesting plot twists, and in-depth plots. There are twenty-nine books in the series, with captivating titles such as Spill the Jackpot, Turn on the Heat, and Gold Comes in Bricks.

Have you ever heard of any of these unsung ladies?

Talkshow Thursday: Meet Pegg Thomas

Talkshow Thursday: Meet Pegg Thomas

Linda:  Thanks for joining me today. Congratulations on your debut story “Embattled Hearts” with Barbour Publishing. How did this come about? Did you submit a novella and the publisher decided to add it to a collection, or did they contact you?

Pegg: It was a God thing. My son was dating a young woman whose sister is a Christian literary agent. We became Facebook friends and she gave me the ‘heads up’ that this Pony Express collection was in the works, but hadn’t been contracted by Barbour yet. They were three writers short and she asked me if I’d like to work up a proposal for it. Well … yeah! When Barbour picked up the project, I sent in my proposal and they took it.

LM: Congratulations! That’s exciting. Research is a huge part of writing, whether historical or contemporary. Do you have a research tidbit you stumbled on that caused you to thing “aha?”

Pegg: For “Embattled Hearts” that moment was linking the story to the Civil War. President Lincoln needed the communication between the coasts during the early years of the war. The fear was that California might side with the South. With the Pony Express – and then the telegraph – the line of communication remained open and the president knew what was happening on the west coast.

LM: What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Pegg: The next new idea! The work is in fleshing them out.

LM: What do you do to prepare yourself for writing? For example do you listen to music or set up in a specific place?

Pegg: I turned our son’s old bedroom into my office and that’s where I work. I prefer quiet to work in, other than the natural sounds around me. I live in a rural area, so my sheep baaing, horses clip-clopping past on the road (we live in an Amish area), birds singing, that sort of thing.

LM: If money were no object, what is your idea of the ultimate vacation?

Pegg: I’m not a globe trotter. We camp weekends during the summer and that’s what I enjoy. I guess even if money were no object, you’d still probably find me on the shores of Lake Superior, camper behind me, cook fire in front, book in my hand. Doesn’t take much to make me happy.

LM: What is your next project?

Pegg: I have another story, “In Sheep’s Clothing,” coming out in January with The Bouquet of Brides Collection from Barbour. That one is set in Colonial Connecticut and the heroine is a spinner and weaver. It was fun for me to write. I raise sheep and spin and knit with the yarn. I have a few other proposals out to Barbour, but I’m also working on a new full-length novel I hope to have finish by the end of this year.

LM: Where can folks find you on the web?

Pegg:

Website: https://peggthomas.wordpress.com

Blogs: https://quidproquills.com

http://colonialquills.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pegg.thomas

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Pegg_Thomas

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4486713-pegg

GooglePlus: https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/116663110830009950038/116663110830009950038/posts

Pegg's Bio: Pegg Thomas lives on a hobby farm in Northern Michigan with Michael, her husband of *mumble* years. A life-long history geek, she writes “History with a Touch of Humor.” An avid reader and writer, she enjoys fiction stories threaded through historical events and around historical figures. Pegg is also the Managing Editor of Smitten Historical Romance, an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. When not working on her latest novel, Pegg can be found in her garden, in her kitchen, at her spinning wheel, tending her sheep, or on her trusty old horse, Trooper. See more at www.PeggThomas.com.

Blog Tour: Alice's Notions

Blog Tour: Alice's Notions

 
 

Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Book

 

Book: Alice’s Notions
Author: Tamera Lynn Kraft  
Genre: Christian historical romance
 Release Date: April 1, 2017

 In this quaint mountain town, things aren’t always what they seem.World War 2 widow Alice Brighton returns to the safety of her home town to open a fabric shop. She decides to start a barn quilt tour to bring business to the shop and the town, but what she doesn’t know is sinister forces are using the tour for their own nefarious reasonsBetween her mysterious landlord, her German immigrant employee, her neighbors who are acting strange, and a dreamboat security expert who is trying to romance her, Alice doesn’t know who she can trust.

My Thoughts

Despite having won the war, Americans were struggling in the aftermath of WWII for many reasons, the worst being the loss of loved ones. Alice Brighton is a war widow and must figure out how to go on without the love of her life. Heading home to the small town of Burning Bush, WV, she opens a fabric shop as a way to earn a living. One difficulty after another strikes, yet Alice is determined not to let them get in her way. Tamera Lynn Kraft has created an uplifting, moving story despite dealing with a topic that could easily get maudlin. Alice and the other characters are realistic and well-developed. References to songs, actors, and products evoke the era, if readers are familiar with them. I enjoyed following the clues trying to figure out the “whodunit.” Well-researched, the book was fast-paced and exciting.

I received a copy of this book for free from CelebrateLit Publishing, and a positive review was not required. All opinions expressed are my own.

About the Author

Tamera Lynn Kraft has always loved adventures. She loves to write historical fiction set in the United States because there are so many stories in American history. There are strong elements of faith, romance, suspense and adventure in her stories. She has received 2^nd place in the NOCW contest, 3^rd place TARA writer’s contest, and is a finalist in the Frasier Writing Contest and has other novellas in print. She’s been married for 38 years to the love of her life, Rick, and has two married adult children and two grandchildren. Tamera has two novellas in print: A Christmas Promise and Resurrection of Hope. Her first full length novel, Alice’s Notions released in April through Desert Breeze.

You can contact Tamera on her website at http://tameralynnkraft.net
 

Guest Post from Tamera Lynn Kraft

How Classic Movies from the 1940s Made Their Way in My Latest Novel

By Tamera Lynn Kraft

One thing I loved about writing my post World War Two novel was my main character’s passion for movies. Alice Brighton and her late husband loved to go to movies on Friday nights. Now, even after the war made her a widow, Alice still loves movies and compares everyone she meets to a movie character.

Of course for Alice, all these wonderful classic movies and movie stars and a part of her culture, but for me, it was so much fun because I love classic movies. In the novel, Alice compares her landlord to Cary Grant. Cary Grant is one of my favorites. After starring in movies like Suspision, Arsenic and Old Lace, and Notorious, Grant was one of the biggest stars around in 1946 when Alice’s Notions takes place. My favorite Cary Grant movie wouldn’t be made until a few years later. An Affair to Remember, released 1957, with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr is one of my all-time favorites.

At one point in the novel, Alice thinks back to when her late husband always said she reminded him of Judy Garland. Garland would have been twenty-four at the time, just a bit younger than Alice, but she became a big star in her teens. She began acting at two years old when she debuted as Baby Francis and sang Jingle Bells. After playing in various roles including a few movies with Mickey Rooney, Garland had her big break in The Wizard of Oz. She went on to star in a ton of movies and had a thriving singing career until she committed suicide in the 1960s. One of my favorite Judy Garland movies released in 1945 during the war was The Clock. The Clock was about a woman who met and fell in love with a GI on leave. Their romance was intensified because they only had the weekend before he was shipped out again for the remainder of the war. This movie must have been in Alice’s mind since she had lost her husband shortly after the movie came out.

During Alice’s Notions, Alice goes on a date to see the movie, The Postman Always Rings Twice, starring Lana Turner and John Garfield. It was released in 1946 and was considered scandalous at the time because the two main characters have an affair and murder her husband. The main theme of the movie is you can’t get away with your sin. The truth will be revealed. In Alice’s Notions, the truth being revealed is also a main theme.

So you may be wondering what classic movie Alice’s Notions reminds me of. Charade with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn was released in 1963. In that movie, Hepburn is being pursued and doesn’t know who she can trust. The movie has light hearted intrigue, suspense, and romance just like Alice’s Notions. Alice, also, doesn’t know who she can trust.

Blog Stops

May 11: Genesis 5020

May 11: Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations

May 12: Inklings and notions

May 13: Carpe Diem

May 14: Christian Bookaholic

May 15: A Reader’s Brain

May 16: History, Mystery & Faith

May 17: A Bakers Perspective

May 18: Have A Wonderful Day

May 19: Reading Is My SuperPower

May 19: Jami’s Words

May 20: Mary Hake

May 21: Daysong Reflections

May 22: Vicky Sluiter

May 23: Bigreadersite

May 24: His Grace Is Sufficient

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Tamera is giving away a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/b72

I'm looking for Book Brigade Members

I'm Looking for Book Brigade Members

Do you love historical fiction? Have you read any of my books? (It would probably be good if you enjoyed it!). Do you love telling people about books you like? Then perhaps you'd like to join my Book Brigade Street Team.

What's a street team, you ask?

In simple terms, it's a group of like-minded people who enjoy an author's writings (dare I use the word fans) and want to help get the word out about his or her books. It's also a fun place to hang out and socialize with the author and other fans. Does that sound good to you?

I'm recruiting folks for my street team during the month of May in order to get the team in place by June. I'll run the Book Brigade as a private group through Facebook. As a member of the Book Brigade, you'll receive "missions" such as sharing a post, pinning a book cover, or tweeting a bit of news. You'll also be asked (but not required) to vote in a contest, leave a review, or share another person's review. We'll also have discussions and parties to get to know each other.

What's the catch?

Nothing. Really.

You're not required to do anything but hang out, make friends, and get gifties.

Gifties?  Yes, indeed. As part of my Book Brigade you'll get exclusive content, sneak previews, bonus content, the chance to win an appearance or name a character in a future book, and Book Brigade-only swag.

Have I got your attention yet?

If so, click on Linda's Book Brigade Application to open the application, which hopefully answers all your questions. If you're still not sure, post a comment, and I'll get back to you.

Sign up today. Applications will only be accepted through May 31st.