Today is the 109th birthday of the French photographer Robert Doisneau. His images are known the world over. The world was a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss because he has left.

Eighty-two years ago today, the John Steinbeck novel The Grapes of Wrath was published and quickly became a critical and popular success. This is another book that is popular for United States public school students to read in class. If it happens at the right time, it can become one of the books that can help solidify a student’s lifelong love of reading. You have to read this.

This episode is also available as a blog post.

Today is the 115th birthday of the playwright Samuel Beckett.  Waiting for Godot was a big read one summer at Interlochen, it went around my group of friends like a head cold.  It was great.  I should read it again.  We also read Dante’s Inferno, Tom Robbins’ Skinny Legs And All, Jack Kerouac’s On The Road.  When I think of Godot, I remember that humid summer at Interlochen, our inside Beckett jokes, beach bonfires, late night swims and those friends.  It seems like a strange group of memories if you are familiar with the play, but that’s how memory works. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.

Today is the 105th birthday of universally-loved award-winning children’s author Beverly Cleary.  You will have a difficult time finding anyone who has not read her books as a kid, they were a major part of everyone’s elementary school experience.  The world is a better place because she was in it and still feels the loss that she has left.

Today is the 96th birthday of the civil rights activist Viola Gregg Liuzzo. Even through the smear campaigns and coverups (of which some were conducted by government departments and officials), her legacy shines through. She believed so strongly in equality and inclusivity, she will always be remembered as being on the right side of history, even when it was difficult. There is nothing more difficult than dying for what you know is right. Her story is more important than ever right now. Her resistance helped push issues and legislation that has made all our lives a better and more fair existence. Her work is not done. The world is a better place because she was in it and still feels the loss that she is gone.

Sixty-six years ago today, the film East of Eden premiered. Of the three films that James Dean played the male lead, this is the only one that he got to see completed. A Steinbeck story, Julie Harris, and James Dean are winning ingredients for a spectacularly beautiful movie. You have to see this!

This episode is also available as a blog post.

Forty years ago, the film D.O.A.: A Rite of Passage premiered. It chronicles the origins of Punk Rock. It has a lot of live performances. You need to watch this.