Book Review: "Harry Truman's Excellent Adventure"

In June of 1953, a recently retired executive and his wife got in their brand new car, just the two of them, and embarked on a road trip that covered several states, 19 days, and over 2,500 miles. Just another retired couple taking a long vacation to sight see and visit friends and family, right?

Hardly, because the couple in question was the recently-left-office President of the United States, Harry Truman and his wife, Bess. Author Matthew Algeo has written a fascinating and entertaining book, "Harry Truman's Excellent Adventure" (2009), that chronicles the Trumans' road trip. Not only is it an interesting historical account (hey, this is Harry Truman , one of the great Presidents we're talking about here), but it is also an interesting travelogue, and a commentary on how America and the Presidency, or, rather, the Ex-Presidency, has changed over the last 60 years.

Imagine, if you will, if Bill and Hillary or George W. and Laura decided to pack up a car and ramble about the country for three weeks with no security detail, no entourage, all by their lonesomes. Unimaginable, right? Well, in 1953, Harry Truman left office with no job, no personal fortune (not even a small nest egg), and no presidential pension, only a $111/month Army pension (interestingly, Truman got a pension for serving as an enlisted man for a few years during WW I, but nothing for serving 7+ years as Commander-in-Chief), no government expense account to support an office staff. Pretty bleak. That, however, was pretty much the way it was with ex-Presidents back then, and that was pretty much OK with Harry Truman.

After a few months in retirement, Harry accepted an offer to deliver a speech in Philadelphia, and he and Bess decided to drive there from Independence, MO. During that trip they visited and sometimes stayed with friends, ate anonymously (sometimes) in roadside diners and family owned restaurants, and stayed in cheap motels, ans even got pulled over by a PA state trooper on the PA Turnpike! While they were sometimes able to remain incognito on the trip, they usually were recognized and were warmly greeted by the folks that they encountered. Algeo retraces the trip, and re-visits the places that Harry and Bess visited, and talks to the people that they encountered, and gives you a fascinating look at America before there were Holiday Inns, Wal-Marts, McDonald's, and big box retailers. You also get to encounter two young US Senators who had big things ahead of them, Jack Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, and you get to learn some insights, through Harry's eyes, on people such as Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, and Herbert Hoover.

By 1958, Congress realized that former Presidents should not be near indigent, and passed the first law that granted a pension and expenses to ex-Presidents, and after the Kennedy assassination in 1963, Secret Service protection was continued for ex-Presidents and their wives as well. At that time, these were relatively modest sums of money, but we all know how that has worked out since then. When Bill Clinton was in office, there was a point when there were five Formers (as they apparently refer to themselves) still alive, and the cost of Secret Service protection alone amounted to over $20 million a year.

Truman never accepted high paying figurehead jobs or Board of Directors positions (and he was offered such opportunities). He felt that it commercialized the Presidency and was undignified. Again, we know how it works today. Algeo gives the credit, if that's the right word, to Gerald Ford for turning the Post-Presidency into a gold mine. Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton received, and receive, millions for speaking engagements. Ironically, the one Former who was most like Harry in how he operated during his Ex-Presidency was Richard Nixon who was one of two politicians that Truman truly hated (the other was some local Missouri pol).

This is not a long and ponderous historical tome, but an entertaining and most readable book that chronicles a small portion of the life of one of the twentieth century's great figures, and shines an interesting light on an America that was and is no more.

By the way, regular readers may recognize the name of Matthew Algeo. He is also the author of the book "The President is a Sick Man" about a secret operation performed on President Grover Cleveland back in 1893. I wrote about that book in The Grandstander back in July. He comes up with some amazing chronicles about our Presidents. I can't wait to see what he might have up his sleeve for the future.

A New Tool, or Is It Toy?

This edition of The Grandstander is being sent for no other purpose than to compose a post via my early birthday present, an iPad2. It is an amazing instrument, as many of you no doubt already know. I am amazed, for example, at how easy it is to use the on screen keyboard. I thought it would be much more difficult, but I seem to make fewer mistakes here than on the laptop keyboard.

Remarkable.

Not sure how much I will use the iPad for Grandstander posts. I might find it easier to load pictures on the laptop for copying into the blog, but we shall see.

Selected Short Subjects - Irene, Steelers, Pirates, John Grisham, Bob Pompeani, and Harry Truman

The big story of the weekend was, of course, Hurricane Irene and what it would do along the eastern seaboard of the USA. Having family members and friends along Irene's path certainly gave us cause for concern, and we never like to see our beloved Outer Banks getting ravaged. The good news is that family and friends survived with minimal damage so we are thankful for that.

Putting those concerns aside, you marvel at the performance of the national media during such crises. Seeing reporters in their colorful rain gear and studio talking heads practically salivating over the possibility of DISASTER and TRAGEDY occurring would be laughable if it wasn't in such poor taste. On Sunday morning, Anderson Cooper was on the scene for CNN somewhere in Manhattan, and he practically weeped when the studio weather babe said that Manhattan had already seen the worst of Irene. "You mean this is as bad as it's going to get?" he cried. His disappointment was palpable.

And for what it is worth, no on site reporter could compare to Dan Rather's performance a few years back when he lashed himself to a telephone pole to make his on-the-scene report. No, none of these guys today could carry Dan's journalistic-equivalent-of-a-jockstrap!

*****
Watched the entire Steelers game on Saturday night. It's old news now, but what a performance by Antonio Brown!!

Looks to me like the Steelers have what it takes to be an offensive juggernaut, and that they will score a lot of points. I worry about how they might fare defensively. Lots and lots of key players over age 30, and some of them considerably over age 30, on that side of the ball. We shall see.

Injuries became the key story of the game on Saturday with the key one being the broken arm of Byron Leftwich, which has put him in IR for the season, and this reemphasizes how vital it is that Ben Roethlisberger stay healthy for the Steelers. Charlie Batch and/or Dennis Dixon might get you through a game or two, but if #7 goes down for an extended period of time..... don't even want to think about it.

The other key injury was Markice Pouncy injuring the same ankle that kept him out of the Super Bowl last February. Reports are that he will be okay, but you hate to see that happening.

*****
Those of you who are friends on Facebook saw my comments about the hero-worshipping play-by-play announcing of Bob Pompeani on Saturday night. You can hear his thoughts: "Wow! I'm really broadcasting a STEELERS game. Golly gee!"

Nauseating.

Also, nauseating was his comment late in the game when yet another Steeler, back-up rookie tight end Miguel Chavez, was injured. After wailing and gnashing his teeth all night about the injuries to Keenan Lewis, Casey Hampton, Pouncy and Leftwich, his comment about Chavez was "well, he wasn't going to make the team anyway."

Very compassionate, don't you think?

*****
Read the latest paperback release from John Grisham, "The Confession." Typical Grisham in that you start reading, immediately get hooked, and can't stop until you're done. In this one, an innocent man sits on death row in Texas, scheduled to be executed in four days. In Topeka, Kansas, a several time convicted sex offender now on parole walks into a minister's office and says that he is the real killer, and he wants someone to know so that the execution can be stopped. Now what happens?

Lots of great characters - the defense lawyer, the minister and his wife, the death row defendant, assorted cops, prosecutors, judges, news reporters, family members. Great stuff and a most compelling story. You gotta read it. Once you start, it'll only take you a day or two to finish.

Are you like me when you read a book and do you try to picture who would play whom if they made a movie out of the book. I have George Clooney as the lawyer, Ben Afflack or Matt Damon as the minister, maybe Will Smith as the convicted killer. What do you think?

*****
The Pirates continue to slide. A week ago, when they were down to their final 40 games, I laid out some short range goals for them for the remainder of the season:

• Go 20-20 in those games. They are 4-7 through the first 11 of those final 40, and it is a bad looking 4-7 at that. They need to go 16-13 in the last 29 games. They have 17 games against the Cubs, Astros, Marlins, and Dodgers. Maybe they can do it, but not likely, I'm afraid, not with how they have looked in the last week.




• Finish ahead of the third place Reds. They are now five games behind the Reds. They do have three games left with Cincy, so this one could be achieved, but it won't be easy.




• Go 4-3 in their remaining games with the Brewers. They went 2-2 in the four game series with Milwaukee last week. They need to go 2-1 in the last series of the season with them. Why it won't happen: Those three games are in the Pirates' Miller Park graveyard. Why it might happen: It's the final three games of the season and the Brewers will be concentrating on the upcoming playoffs.

One thing to note is that if the Bucs go a mere 10-19 from this point, they will finish at 72-90, a 15 game improvement over 2010. That's a significant accomplishment, but still disappointing after the heady days of July when the team sat in first place.

*****

Just started reading a very interesting book last night about Harry Truman. This is not a heavy historical tome, but it makes some fascinating commentary on American life, culture, and the entire concept of Ex-Presidencies. That's just a teaser for you. I'll give you a full review when I finish, which should be sometime this week.

On the Pirates and Brewers

I am sure it is not unprecedented in baseball history for one team to have such a mastery over another as the Brewers have had over the Pirates in recent years, but off-hand I am not recalling any such dominance at the moment. I was at the game last night, the 11-4 win by Milwaukee, and it was positively infuriating to watch the Pirates lay down and die when they take the field against this smug bunch.

Why not give up seven runs in one inning?
Why not have Ryan Doumit sail a routine throw to first base into right field?
Why not have Nyjer Morgan get four hits against you?
Why not have pinch hitters Pedro Ciriaco and Brandon Wood swing at the first pitch and weakly ground out (Wood for a double play)? I guess they wanted to get home, too. (That Ciriaco and Wood are your pinch-hitters speaks volumes about the Pirates.)
And, of course, let Ryan Braun beat you like a rug for two doubles and a couple of walks. Why not?

In the series wrap up this afternoon, minor league recall Aaron Thompson will get the start for the Bucs. Maybe that's what it will take. Some kid who hasn't been here for all of the bitch-slapping that Milwaukee has been laying on the Pirates for the last three seasons. Maybe he won't know any better to lay down and die, and maybe he'll keep the Pirates in the game.

And one more thing, about which I seem to be a lone voice in the wilderness. In the second game on Monday night, Josh Harrison hits a screaming line drive to left, that Braun has to run far to his right, layout and dive for it, and makes the catch (of course he does!), robbing Harrison of a triple and possibly an inside the park home run. Great play by Braun, no question. Harrison then proceeds to TIP HIS CAP TO RYAN BRAUN out there in left field.

Now if I'm Clint Hurdle, I'd have yanked Harrison from the game then and there. At the very least, he gets his ass chewed out on the spot. On the telecast, Steve Blass was circumspect in talking about the incident, but you could tell that he was furious about it. However, I read nothing about this in the papers or in any other source.

Is this what baseball (or at least, the Pirates) has come to? That you tip your hat to the guys who have continually kicked your asses for three years???? Did Harrison go to the locker room after the game and ask for Ryan Braun's autograph?

Oh, and I noticed last night that when Harrison hit his first major league home run, none of the Brewers tipped THEIR caps to HIM.

Finally, a word about the Brewers. They are a good team. A very good team, and Ryan Braun may be one of the top five players in all of baseball. That doesn't mean that they are not annoying in the extreme, however.

To Absent Friends - Jerry Leiber

The Post-Gazette obit page reports today of the recent death of Jerry Leiber at the age of 78. The name of Jerry Leiber may not ring any bell with you, but how about if I refer to the team of "Leiber-Stoller"? Still drawing a blank? How about the following titles:

Hound Dog, Jailhouse Rock, Treat Me Nice, On Broadway, Charlie Brown, and Yakety Yak?

You know those songs, all (dare I say it) iconic songs for the early years of Rock & Roll, all written by the songwriting team of Jerry Leiber (lyrics) and Mike Stoller (music). And there are hundreds of other titles in their catalog. I once heard an NPR radio interview with Leiber & Stoller and it was amazing how they came up with stuff. Once, when their families were dining together at one of their homes, and it was time to clean up after dinner, one for them said to the other, "take out the papers and the trash." The other then quickly responded "or you don't get no spending cash."

That's how classic songs get born. That's a true story.

RIP Jerry Leiber.

Oh, and here's a bonus video for you of a Leiber-Stoller classic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRu3tw9fYxE&feature=fvst

Base Ball As It Was in the 1860's

This afternoon, five members of the Pittsburgh SABR Chapter, Alan Steinberg, Fred and Susan Shugars, and Bob and Marilyn Sproule, attended Vintage Base Ball matches featuring the Pittsburgh Franklins. A round robin tournament was hosted by the Franklins and featured vintage teams from Somerset and Altoona, PA.

We were treated to base ball (not baseball) as it was played when Abe Lincoln was occupying the White House. We were not sure quite what to expect from a game where no gloves were worn, where the ballists (players) acted as their own arbiters (umpires), where the striker (batter) was out if a ball was caught on one bounce, and where the hurlers (pitchers) delivered the pitches underhanded. To be honest, I expected to see something akin to a beer-league softball game with scores of 22-18. Instead, we saw a very entertaining game, certainly a different game from baseball as we know it in 2011, played by very skillful ballists. Scores of the two matches that we watched were 3-2 and 4-0, both victories for the host Franklins.

If you are a baseball fan have not seen or are completely unfamiliar with Vintage Base Ball, I would urge you to go to www.vbba.org to see if there is a vintage team in your area and check it out. The men – and women – who play vintage base ball are doing so for the sheer love of the game, and are keeping alive a part of sports history that is worth saving. They deserve your support and attention. You can also learn more about the Franklins at www.pittsburghfranklins.com.

The matches that we saw today were held at the Murrysville Community Park as a part of Murrysville Community Days. As you know, Pittsburghers are a provincial lot who like to stay close to home, so to travel from the North Hills all the way out to Murrysville, well, that is a HUGE step, but all of the events at the celebration and the participation of the Murrysville community, made for an absolutely delightful day.

I am hoping that the Pittsburgh Chapter of SABR will continue to support the efforts of the Franklins. There were five of us at the match today. Next year, I am planning to make this a formal Chapter Event with expanded attendance from the Forbes Field Chapter. I am also hoping that non-SABR readers of The Grandstander will consider taking in a vintage match as well. You will be kept well informed via this forum.

Huzzah to the Franklins and the other teams that participated!!

Lots of Thoughts Today....

Alone in the house, it's raining outside, the Beatles playing on the iPod. Sounds like it's time to clean out the Mental In-Box.....

• Since a lousy performance in an exhibition game (Steelers v. Redskins last week), can be brushed off with the line "it's just a meaningless exhibition game", should the same standard apply to a great performance (Steelers v. Eagles last night)? I'm just askin'.


• That said, Rooney U's first teamers looked pretty strong last night.


• How 'bout that "Dream Team" that the Eagles have put together? Of course, it was just a meaningless exhibition game.


• Page 1 of the Post-Gazette sports section headlined with the latest in the Terrelle Pryor saga. Page 7 of that same sports section highlighted the latest "Blue Chip Profile" of a local high school football player. This kind of pandering, build up, and ass-kissing of high school athletes is what creates people like Terrelle Pryor.


• Who can forget "Terrelle Pryor's Recruiting Diary" that the PG ran during Pryor's senior year at Jeannette?


• Oh, the sports section also gave us the news that two WPIAL football games will be televised on ESPN this season. Four more opportunities for high school football coaches to talk about their "programs."


• The Pirates now sit at 58-64, fourth place, 13.5 games behind the first place Brewers, and 1 game behind the third place Reds. Forty games remain. How about the following goals to motivate the team - and its fans - over these final forty? I propose the following:


• Number 1: Go 20-20. That would mean a 78-84 record. Still below .500, but a 21 game improvement over last year, and that would be nothing short of remarkable.


• Number 2: Finish ahead of the Reds. They can start with the three game series that begins tonight.


• Number 3: Go 4-3, or better, in the seven games that remain with the Brewers, and win at least one game in Miller Park in the last series of the season.


• Is all that too much to ask?


• Again, I called for 70 wins at the outset of the season. They can achieve that by going 12-26. I think that will happen. To finish over .500, they need to go 24-16. Possible, but not probable.


• Since 2001, I have been keeping a record of every time I play golf - date, course, score. During a round with my actuary buddy and stats freak Fred Shugars last night, I was prompted to see how many holes I had played in that time. In case you are wondering, including the nine at North Park last night, I have played 2,992 holes of golf since 2001.


• Wish I had the records from the late '80s and '90s when I was in the Blue Cross Men's Golf League, not to mention all the work related golf outings during that time period. I'd no doubt be well over 5,000 holes if I had those figures.


• Anyway you cut it, I am NOT playing enough!!


• In case you missed it, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence" was on TCM last Saturday night. Great movie with one of the all-time great lines: "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."


• In discussing that movie, the performances of John Wayne, James Stewart, and Lee Marvin are always praised, and rightly so, but how about Strother Martin as Marvin's sadistic henchman? Pure psycho evil.


• Just when you think it couldn't get worse in big time college sports, along come the University of Miami to raise (lower?) the bar.


• Speaking of old movies, in light of my goal to revisit the Billy Wilder catalog, I dug out the DVD and watched "Some Like It Hot" last week. Hard to say who was better in that movie, Tony Curtis or Jack Lemon. Great, great movie.


• As I mentioned at the beginning, I am listening the The Beatles play list as I type this. Everyone knows on my regard for The Beatles, but some of the George Harrison sitar stuff could be done without.


• That said, I think Harrison's work as a solo artist is way underrated.


• Had the good fortune to be at the Pirates-Cardinals game on Monday and sit in the Lexus Club. Row C of Section 19. In effect, we were watching the game from the Pirates on deck circle. Fantastic. These seats also gave you a great view of the pitcher. How great it would have been to have those very same seats and watch Sandy Koufax or Bob Gibson pitch.


• Will be in Murrysville tomorrow to watch the Pittsburgh Franklins play a Vintage Base Ball game. Yes, the two words Base Ball are (is?) correct here, as the Franklins will be playing according to mid-19th century rules and wearing appropriate uniforms as well. You can learn more by going to www.pittsburghfranklins.com

Best wishes for a great weekend to all Loyal Readers out there.