Taking the Heat

During the 1973 energy crisis, RN took criticism for his habit of running the fireplace and the air conditioning at the same time.    And so it is worth noting this item from today’s New York Times: The capital flew into a bit of a tizzy when, on his first full...

One Man’s Humor Is Another Man’s Humidor

The former presidents traveling road show of George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton pulled into New Orleans yesterday for a gig with the National Automobile Dealers Association. Everybody knows that you’re supposed to open a speech with a joke, but who knew that Mr....

The Rise & Fall Of The White House Intellectual

Ben Alpers of Oklahoma University put up a quite interesting blogpost this week tracing the roughly fifteen-year heyday of the “White House intellectual.” President Kennedy began the tradition by bringing in acclaimed historian (and walking definition of...

A Victory For Future Historians

President Obama’s executive order regarding presidential records is a victory for future historians. (See here) Truly it is a new day for GWBs future historians. Before January 20, 2009, the future biographers of GWB faced a difficult road in the true telling of their...

Frost/Nixon: Five Oscar Nominations

The nominations for this year’s Academy Awards were announced this morning, and the list may not be one to bring a wide Opie-style grin to the face of Ron Howard. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button led the nominations with thirteen — many of them in...