The Weekend in Retrospect

Greetings all - time to do a little catching up after a brief absence. Over the weekend I managed to get a couple of important things done. One, I ran the San Francisco Marathon. It was cold, foggy, congested, and the hills were BRUTAL. But I had a good time. This, of course, means that I have now completed the LA/SF challenge - a feat for which I was awarded a giant medal - so I can rest for a while before I take on training for Las Vegas this December.

But enough about me.

I also read Kevin Levin's new book on the Battle of the Crater. I plan on writing a review of this study in the next few days, but here are a couple of very quick comments. I enjoyed the book very much. I believe that Kevin had tapped into something about the battle and battlefield that has gone unconsidered for too long. In terms of memory studies - the analytical backdrop for this book - there are many things here that Kevin and I could discuss. Stay tuned...I will expand shortly.

Finally, I was disappointed that no one knew who this person was - featured in the Cosmic America question of the day. So, if you give up.....her name is (or rather was, she passed in 2010) Cammie King. She played the role of Bonnie Blue Butler in Gone With the Wind. It was a minor part, but pivotal to the plot as I am sure you all know. King was four years old when she was selected to play the young Butler, a role for which she earned a whopping sum of $1000. Actually, not bad for a four-year-old in 1939. After GWTW, she went on to do a couple of other bit parts, including the voiceover for Young Faline in Bambi. And that was pretty much it for her show biz career. Much later in life she joked, "I peaked at five." Here is a shot of King in her Hollywood heyday.

Peace,

Keith