Mask On!

The epidemiologists were right about Delta-Covid creating another pandemic wave. Incredibly, the Trumpy simpletons continue to insist they know more than communicable disease experts, and that masks are completely useless. Some masks are, sure, because they’re just a piece of cloth, or proper masks that have been overused. What’s really concerning for public health are the anti-maskers who are also anti-vaxx.

I like this clever faux Winsor McCay cartoon by Peter Kuper in The New Yorker, from early in the pandemic, April ’20.

Click to enlarge

I’m going to assume Kuper worked from an actual McCay cartoon. For reference here’s a Little Sammy Sneeze.

Here’s another McCay creation, Dream of the Rarebit Fiend, featuring an early appearance of Gertie the Dinosaur. Gertie appeared the following year in an animated cartoon by the prolific McCay.

Testing… Testing… 1… 2… 2:20

Today after 2 PM ET is the time to not panic!

https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20210611/fema-and-fcc-plan-nationwide-emergency-alert-test-aug-11-test-messages-

WASHINGTON – FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission, will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) this summer.

The national test will consist of two portions, testing WEA and EAS capabilities. Both tests will begin at 2:20 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 11.

The Fun of OTR

A couple of years ago I talked about my mother‘s voice training during the years of classic radio entertainment. Later that year I met Ann Robinson, who starred in the classic film The War of the Worlds. I wanted to talk about one of the all-time greatest radio actors, Les Tremayne, who played an Army general in the movie, and Ann happily obliged.

When I was in college, I enjoyed listening to CBS Radio Mystery Theater. On AM radio, the new productions provided a real feeling of the Old-Time Radio experience from before it was old. In 1975 the unmistakable voice of Les Tremayne was heard in “The Ides of March.” The radio play was later adapted into a Sandra Bullock vehicle, The Premonition.

https://youtu.be/riGqt4m0SM0