Friday, September 26, 2008

Kevin Appleseed, American Hero

Today is the 234th anniversary of the birth of John Chapman, a.k.a. Johnny Appleseed. He used to be just a wandering religious apple-planter, and now he's an environmentalist.

Only 141 years ago, famed cartoonist Windsor McCay was born. See if you can remember his most famous creation, part of whose name is also part of the name of a famed Daria fanfic writer.

And T. S. Eliot, whom I am overly fond of quoting in my Daria fanfics, was born 120 years ago today, too. His words appear in "After the End," "Always Beside You," "April Is the Cruelest Month," "Die! Die! You Bastard!" "Deus Jane," "Drive," and "One More River to Cross," at least.

Most importantly, today is also the 25th anniversary of the moment when a minor Soviet military officer saved the Earth. His story is worth reading, though you probably haven't heard it before. If you see him, remember to tell him, "Thank you."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good ol' Stanislav. Ooh, they're making a movie about him.

I always thought that the Commie bastards who downplayed his role were just sore that he'll be such an awesome hero for the rest of time.

Anonymous said...

Well, strictly speaking, he didn't so much save the world as choose not to destroy it.

Which, granted, is a heck of a lot more than I've ever done...or would choose to do.

Or consider doing, when presented with the allure of thermonuclear nirvana...

;)