Publicity photo of Merian C. Cooper with a King Kong prop, ca. 1933. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cooper-Kong.jpg. History is often more imaginative than fiction with individuals whose lives reflect deeds like something out of a novel. Merian C. Cooper is one of these individuals. As a young journalist, he joined the American Expeditionary Forces and became a pilot. … Continue reading “King Kong” and the American Relief Administration
Rep. W.C. Hawley and Sen. Reed Smoot, April 11, 1929.Library of Congress, National Photo Company Collection, http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/npcc.17371. A popular understanding of studying history is reflected in an attribution to the philosopher George Santayana: “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” The notion that history contains lessons that if only studied … Continue reading Lessons of History? The Use and Misuse of Smoot-Hawley Tariff
The Family Tree. It is easy to think about Herbert Hoover’s humanitarian relief efforts as discrete events brought about by different moments in historical time. Yet Hoover saw them all related and extensions of his original efforts with the Commission for Relief in Belgium, the United States Food Administration, and the United States Grain Corporation. … Continue reading The Family Tree
The American flag flying in front of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum by Spencer Howard Did you know that on March 3, 1931 President Hoover signed the law that designated "The Star Spangled Banner" as our national anthem? For more than a century, the people of the United States debated what song, if any, should … Continue reading Herbert Hoover and “The Star Spangled Banner”
On display until March 19 is our temporary exhibit, 1968: A Folsom Redemption. The exhibit tells the story of the Johnny Cash live recording concert for the inmates of Folsom and its aftermath. The concert rebooted Cash’s career and began a series of concerts he gave at various prisons. He became an inspiration for many … Continue reading Johnny Cash and Herbert Hoover Confront Prison Reform
"Monument of Gratitude" by Xawery Dunikowski, Hoover Square, Warsaw, ca. 1933. (HHPL-M image #31-1933-54) A previous blog post (see Herbert Hoover Loses His Head) dealt with the Xawery Dunikowski statue, Monument of Gratitude, dedicated in Warsaw’s Hoover Square in 1922 in memory of the American Relief Administration’s [ARA] postwar food relief efforts. Individuals who served … Continue reading A Celebration Gone Too Far
Joseph Green, one of Hoover's devoted CRB men. Most individuals appreciate complements on a job well done and welcome their superiors inquiring about their level of satisfaction at work and in family life. Critics who have painted Hoover as cold and aloof also claim he didn’t like to complement subordinates because it removed the spotlight … Continue reading Modern Hoover Myths: Part 5
President Hoover, in formal attire, greets President elect Herrera of Columbia, June 2, 1930. (HHPL-M image #31-1930-45) Critics have often claimed that Hoover lacked the social graces required of a President. What constitutes required “social graces” of any President is subjective. One of America’s greatest presidents, Abraham Lincoln, was criticized for the vestiges of his … Continue reading Modern Hoover Myths: Part 4
A jovial Herbert Hoover at Bohemian Grove, 1941. (HHPL-M image 31-1941-a49) Individuals who are inclined to be introverts in public are often assumed to be humorless. Funny people usually command the center of attention not only with their wit but larger than life personalities. The characterization that Hoover lacked a sense of humor is baseless … Continue reading Modern Hoover Myths: Part 3
Herbert Hoover in Poland, 1946. Science fiction depicts certain aliens and robots as possessing no emotion and basing their actions entirely on logic. The popular television series Star Trek introduced Vulcans who evolved replacing emotions with logic. Herbert Hoover was neither a Vulcan nor a robot, but writers have often depicted him as lacking any … Continue reading Modern Hoover Myths: Part 2
