LBJ Landslide 50 Years Ago

President Lyndon Johnson, barely in office for a year, after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, won election in his own right in a landslide over Conservative Republican Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona.  This election was special to me is it was the first one that I can remember.
Johnson, one of the great senator's of our history, was unhappy as vice president under Kennedy and it has been said that he had entertained thoughts of resigning when he was called upon to take the Oath Of Office, coincidentally in his native state of Texas after the assassination in 1963.
In the 1964 election, Johnson carried 44 states, while Goldwater carried only 6.  Goldwater's views scared many Americans.  Johnson, while not as charismatic as Kennedy, was seen as "middle of the road".   The next 4 years would be tough on Johnson, who would announce in 1968 that he was not seeking another term.

You Stole My Life!

Cousin Tod Goldberg's book hit close to reality when a fictional Rabbi shared the same last name as the real one..  Tod's new book is known as" Gangsterland".

Cougars Lose Starting Quarterback

Washington State Quarterback Connor Halladay's football career sadly ended today after he sufferered a broken leg in the first quarter against the USC Trojans.  The Cougars would lose the game 44-17.

Maple Valley Four Corners Starbucks Remodeled

The Starbucks at Four Corners in Maple Valley has undergone an extensive remodel.  In addition to being larger, it offers beer and wine along with it's coffee and tea selections.  Entertainment is also featured on the weekends.  The location is at 26910 Maple Valley-Black Diamond Rd SE, Maple Valley 98038.

Happy Halloween

The Giants Win The World Series

The Giants have won the World Series for the third time in five years, quietly making them every bit the force that the Yankees were in the late 1990s. The KC Royals put up a great fight, taking the series to 7 games.  What is striking to me is how low in stature the World Series has become.  When I was younger, kids would bring transistor radios to school, classroom TVs were turned on, and it would transcend baseball.  Today, it barely gets mentioned on the sports radio station.  I would imagine it's different in the host cities.  I hope to find out one of these years.

Monster Mash

It's Halloween!

Vintage 1960s Rock And Roll

I found this picture featuring the late Paul Revere and Phil "Fang" Volk on Facebook.  They were part of the memorable Paul Revere And The Raiders.  Revere died of cancer earlier this month.

Happy Birthday, Dasher

Dasher is turning 3!

Keith Jackson's life and legacy - Washington State University

More on fellow WSU Alum Keith Jackson.  Thanks to KOMO reporter Eric Johnson, who is so good at these profiles.  Jackson is probably amongst the greatest sportscasters of all time.  He is a man I have always hoped to meet someday.

Paul Williams, Rainy Days & Mondays ~ LIVE

I thought it would be kind of fun to share this.

Winemaker's Death Shocks Region

The Washington wine making community is shocked at the sudden passing of Eric Dunham.  Dunham co-founded Dunham Cellars in Walla Walla.  The winery is near the local airport and a must stop on any trip to Walla Walla.  It has one of the largest tasting rooms and gift shops in the area.  He founded the winery with his father Mike in the mid 1990s  Mike Dunham passed away in 2013.  Dunham was known for naming wine blends after his dogs.  The dogs are often seen on the grounds of the winery.
Since Dunham Cellars was founded, the landscape of the Walla Walla Valley has changed into a world renown wine producing region.  A tourism industry has arose and downtown is filled with new restaurants and tasting rooms.  It is without a doubt that Eric Dunham will be remembered as part of the area's history.

It Happened Again

Only a few months after a tragic school shooting last spring at SPU, another one has occurred in our area.  A Marysville Pichuck High School student shot 4 students, killing at least one.  Then killed himself..

Keith Jackson speaks at his building dedication ceremony

Arguably the best college football announcer of all time, Keith Jackson returned to Pullman this fall where he attended WSU where the Communications building was dedicated in his name.

Washington Post Editor Ben Bradlee

Former Washington Post Editor Ben Bradlee has died at 93.  Bradlee was probably the most famous editor in the country, having assigned young reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein to cover and uncover a break-in at the Democratic headquarters at Washington's Watergate Hotel, in what would turn out to be a scandal that brought down the Nixon administration.  Richard Nixon became the first and so far the only president to resign his office.  Bradlee was portrayed by Jason Robards in the movie "All The President's Men", the role won an Oscar for Robards and help cement Bradlee into the nation's conscience.

World Series To Begin

The World Series begins tonight with the San Francisco Giants, the only survivor of 4 California teams to go to post season and the Kansas City Royals, a cinderella story that should give the Mariners hope.  Actually, I find it hard to believe that they're still playing baseball!

Sunday By The River

I couldn't resist snapping this picture of the Snoqualmie River from our friend's backyard in North Bend.  Temperatures were at a record breaking 70 plus degrees, making it pleasant to be outside.

Kerry Brock is inducted into the Murrow Hall of Achievement

A former Tri-Cities newscaster, a WSU graduate and a sister of my classmate Kathy Brock.  Kerry Brock gives a touching speech as she is honored at the Morrow Symposium.

Percy Harvin Trade Shocks Area

The Seattle Seahawks are now big news in this area outside the sports world, so fans and non-fans alike are in a state of shock at the news that Percy Harvin has been traded to the New York Jets.  I received the news on the Twitter feed on my phone while having coffee with my dad at Starbucks and spent a second wondering if it was a joke. 
Percy Harvin, although spending much of last season sidelined by injuries,  was probably the team's most exciting player, he will be remembered running back a kick-off for a touchdown in the Super Bowl, one of the most memorable moments in Seattle sports history.  It put an exclamation point on a great victory.  This year, while healthy, his numbers were less than exciting, but fans seemed to think a breakthrough was immanent. 
The Seahawks will receive a conditional draft choice from the Jets for Harvin.

Maple Valley Golf Course To Close

The Elk Run Golf Club, once, one of three Maple Valley Golf Courses, will soon be closing for good.  According to the Covington-Maple Valley Reporter, it is part of the "Donut Hole" land sale.  The Donut Hole entails a piece of land that is unincorporated within the city.  It has been a local controversy for over a decade as far as what to do with the land, most of which houses a county maintenance facility.  The area has been sold to private developers.  It includes 9 holes of Elk Run.   Golf course officials say that it would not be profitable to run the course simply as a nine hole facillity. 
Elk Run has always been my favorite place to play golf in town because of the beauty of the area and it's affordability.  It leaves the Lake Wilderness course as the only golf facility in town, although Druids Glenn and Maplewood courses are nearby.  Maple Valley's Taylor Creek Golf Course closed several years ago.

We Pack Collectables

We recently packed and shipped a baseball autographed by 1960s pitching legend Sandy Koufax at The UPS Store at 15600 NE  8th in Bellevue.

Paul Revere & the Raiders -The Smothers Brothers Show - 1967

In tribute to the late Paul Revere.

Severe Weather In Bellevue

After mild weather through most of the fall, a heavy rain downpour hit Bellevue.  The 15600 block of Northeast 8th Street where we work (Crossroads) was flooded.  If you look closely, a car was can be scene disabled by the deep water in the distance. 
The area also got the first tornado warning in 17 years  after a waterspout was sighted over Anderson Island.  A short thunder and lighting storm occurred in the evening.

Go Hawks

Fans around the Sound will be donning their Seahawk jerseys today for Blue Friday,  The Hawks take on the Dallas Cowboys this Sunday at Century Link Field.

Where Are They Now (1985)?: "Brakeman Bill" McLain (Part Two)

It's kind of  chilling think of a nostalgic "where are they now" piece on Brakeman Bill, running in 1985, almost 30 years ago.  The Brakeman Bill  aired in the afternoon on KTNT channel 11 out of Tacoma.  The station no network affilliation, so it ran mostly reruns, syndicated shows, news, and sports.  It became available by cable in the Walla Walla area, where I grew up, in the late  60s. The station was what was known in the business as a "superstation", since it had no network affiliation, it would run on cable stations throughout the state. 

The Brakeman Bill Show ran in the afternoon, about the time children would come home from school, it featured Bill McLain as a railroad worker with the Puppet Crazy Donkey. As a grown-up, you wonder what a Brakeman would have to do with a donkey.  

My favorite show at the  time on channel 11 was the "Dennis The Menace" reruns.  The show had actually been cancelled years earlier.  Eventually, the station would be known as KSTW, while still remaining a superstation.  It showed the Tacoma Cubs, Puget Sound Loggers, and later on the Seattle Super Sonics and the Seattle Mariners.    We still have channel 11, hear in Maple Valley, but rarely watch it.

Front Street In Issaquah Before Salmon Days

Taken at 9:45, Sunday I was headed to the 5th district Democratic Booth at Issaquah Salmon Days, Front Street looked quiet and deserted in this shot, but within minutes, the streets would fill with thousands of people enjoying the area's last outdoor festival.  It was reported that a total over 150,000 people enjoyed the two day event, held annually in the first weekend of October.  It celebrates the return of the salmon to the local streams.

Rock Icon Paul Revere Dies

Paul Revere, the founder of 60s rock group Paul Revere and The Raiders has died, he was 76.  Sources say that Revere had been suffering from cancer although no official cause of death has been released.  The band, with Northwest roots, was formed in 1963.  They were often featured on Dick Clark programs, "American Bandstand" and "Where The Action Is". Although their music was aimed at the teenage set, their 1970 hit "Indian Reservation", had political implications.  Another one of the band's hits was "Kicks", an anti-drug song.
Revere, who had a name from American history, was the organist and main comedian.  Mark Lindsay was the band's lead singer and sex symbol until he left the group in the early 1970s. 

Radio Exec Kevin "O'Brien" Metheney Dead At 60

The Seatac Media Blog  reports the sad new of the passing of Kevin Methenyy.  Metheny used the name Kevin O'Brien when he was brought to Seattle by Pat O'Day as a teen age prodigy to work evenings at KJR.  He worked as a radio executive in Cleveland, Chicago, and other major markets, but was perhaps best known as the Program Director at WNBC who tried to reign in Howard Stern.  Metheny was loosely portrayed as a composite character  Kenny Rushton, whom Stern called Pig Vomit in on the air ridicule.  I e-mailed Metheny from an old KJR tribute site after watching the Stern movie and he sent this reply

Metheny, Kevin

Mar 28, 2003

To

• mdbarer@yahoo.com

It's a MOVIE.

Not a historical text.

Bears SOME resemblance to fact. But not too much.

(It only required 10 years or so of therapy!)

You related to my old friend Burl?

KM


Kevin Metheny,
Regional Vice President of Programming, NE Ohio,
Clear Channel Radio
Metheny was program director at KGO-KSFO at the time of his passing.

Double Down--Game Change 2012

 

Double Down is Mark Halperin And John Heliemann's look at the 2012 presidential election.  In 2012, the economy was in bad straights and Obama was campaigning on what seemed a dubious new health care plan that exhausted nearly all of his political capital.  Mitt Romney was the former governor of a very Liberal state, a man who seemed to present a fatherly image, he was successful in business  and was seen as the force behind the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.  Needless to say, this was not going to be an easy ride for the administration.
There really is not much risk of adding spoilers,  because all of you should know the final result, however, for a really good insight in to the race and the strategy and the pitfalls that befell both campaigns,Double Down is an excellent resource.  It offers analysis on  all the candidates as well as how bringing Obama's old rival Bill Clinton aboard at the last minute proved effected the direction of the race. 
I have read that HBO has bought the rights to do a movie or mini-series on the book. 

Coach Borleske Featured On Walla Walla Page

Joe Drazan's Bygone Walla Walla page today, included pictures of Legendary Whitman College football coach Raymond Vincent Borleske.  Walla Walla's athletic field is known as Borleske Stadium.  After coaching, Borleske managed the Marcus Whitman Hotel and was later elected mayor of Walla Walla. 

Great Feature On Wa-Hi Grad Drew Bledsoe

Thank you to my brother Steve for this feature on Walla Walla's Drew Bledsoe. After a stellar pro career, Drew is excelling in another field, Wine making. His tasting room is in Downtown Walla Walla.

Sunflowers

This beautiful strip of Sunflowers grown by our Belmont Woods neighbor in our cul du sac was a lovely greeting when we returned from work everyday this summer.  They are now gone for the fall season, but look forward to their return.

Wait Til Next Year For M's

The Mariners ended this season the same way it started, a three game sweep over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (can you believe the name?)  The Angels of course, got it together and ran away with the AL West.  The real LA team (they actually play in Los Angeles) the Dodgers are also playoff bound,  likewise, the two Bay area teams, the Giants and the A's.  It makes it a possibility that that the World Series may have 2 California teams, some "World" series.
  This year's Cinderella story is the Kansas City Royals, which by coincidence, used to have the A's.  A couple of years after the A's left, KC got the Royals through expansion.  The Royals have not been to any post season since 1985, the longest draught in all of sports.  Pittsburgh and Detroit, both teams who have seen their share of lean times, round out the field. 
The Mariners will not be in the playoffs this year, however, they do finish the season with a winning record, 4 straight wins, and were in the hunt until the last day of the season.  That's quite a change from years past, when the Houston Astros were the only thing keeping the M's out of last place.
I accidently left out the Orioles, who are returning after a long absense and the Washington Nationals, DC's third attempt at Major League Baseball (Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers both began as the Washington Senators),  Rounding up the field are the St.Louis Cardinals, who are second only to the Yankees in World Series titles.

Happy Co-Anchors

Joyce Taylor welcomes new co-anchor Greg Copeland with a kiss on the cheek as KING 5 TV starts it's new 4pm newscast.  Taylor continues to co-anchor the morning news on KING. Thank you to Seatac Media blog for this.

Libe Barer

Is there a Hollywood actor in our family?  One of the members of the "Barer" group on facebook noticed a Libe Barer in the opening credits of Grey's Anotomy.  Ms Barer played a young lady who was facing brain surgery.  By coincidence, yesterday, I discussing with Cousin Stan the origins of the Barer name and whether all Barers are related. There is very little info about this lady, however she does have a facebook page.  It is interesting that she did not adapt a stage name. She has appeared in a number of shows that I have not heard of and has appeared on "Parenthood". 

Barers Of Maple Valley Competing Again

Thanks to reader's like you, this blog finished 15th out of 62 entrants in the category of "Best Neighborhood Blog" in KING 5's Best Of Western Washington.  This year once again, you can vote us the best at this site.  Thank you again!

L'Shanah Tovah!

Happy 85th To My Father!

Last Friday, we celebrated my father's 85th birthday with a party at the Bellevue Club.  His birthday is actually this Friday.  Pictured above is my Dad and me in the back with my brother Steve on the right and his wife Dawn on the left.

Saturday Night In The Center

We spent Saturday night in the Fremont district of Seattle, known locally as the Center Of The Universe.  We kicked off the evening with our friends Margie and Rick at the George And The Dragon, a well known British style pub.  We had dinner, watched a quarter of the WSU vs Oregon game and then wondered across the street to Woodsky's, a local ski themed bar which premiered a documentary snow boarding movie called Tortoise, featuring our Marjie and Rick's son Eythan.  You can see (barely) Eythan performing in the picture above.

Barking For The Seahawks

Seahawks fan's hearts were warmed with the picture of a Golden and her litter of puppies wearing the 12  fan jersey.  The picture has gone viral.  The Seahawks play the Denver Broncos in a rematch of the Super Bowl this afternoon.

Cool Things We Ship At The UPS Store In Crossroads

This antique radio is in mint condition, like the day it was first purchased.  Our mission is to pack it and ship it back East.  More to come.

Sad Anniversary For Seattle Music Scene

Seattle music icon Jimi Hendrix died September 18th, 1970 of an overdose of sleeping pills.  He is buried in Renton.

Bob Robertson interview with Keith Jackson

Bob Robertson interview with Keith Jackson  One of the greatest voices to come out of Washington State University, and a true broadcast legend--Mr College Football, Keith Jackson

Barers Of Maple Valley Return From Trip

Deb and I have just returned from a wonderful weekend in Seaside Oregon. Deb's Mom was with us as we had a relaxing time walking the beaches of Gearheart, Seaside, and Cannon Beach.  Seaside, of course was a family tradition growing up, one that was easily passed on to Deb's family.  We stayed at Worldmark resort at the famous turnaround, where these pictures were taken.

WA 8th CD Democrats Nominate Ritchie

A caucus of Democratic Party leaders of the 8th Congressional district have nominated Jason Ritchie  to challenge sitting Republican congressman Dave Reichert.  Ritchie is an Issaquah based small business owner. 
Democrats from throughout the state met this last weekend at the Silver Reef Casino (above) in Ferndale for the fall State Committee meeting.

America's Darkest Day--September 11th 2001

Sophie Barer (maiden name) escape from Russia

The audio is not very clean, but my Grandfather Barer's sister Sophie Barer Healey, tells the stirring tail of the family's escape from Russia.  Thank you to Burl Barer for posting this.

Lillian Celebrates 95

We surprised Debra's grandma, Lillian Eldridge, yesterday with a party at her assisted living facillity in Bellevue.  A crowd of family and friends enjoyed cake, punch, and live music. 

Labor Day Weekend In Walla Walla III

The tasting room for Doubleback Winery,has a very unusual design.  All of the signage is inside the store, visable through the picture window.  Doubleback is the brand created by retired NFL quarterback Drew Bledsoe, arguably the best athlete to come out of the region.  Bledsoe is a graduate of Walla Walla High School and Washington State University.  He helped transform the New England Patriots from one of the worst organization in professional sports into one of the best.  He is a member of the Patriots Hall Of Fame.
The tasting room is available by appointment only.  It is located at the 3 way intersection of Palouse, Boyer, and Main in Downtown Walla Walla.

Labor Day Weekend In Walla Walla II

The Teapot gas station was built to commemorate the Teapot Dome scandal that rocked the presidency of Warren G  Harding.  Until not long ago, it was visable from I-82 between Yakima and the Tri Cities.  It was recently moved to the city of Zillah, not far from the previous location.  The original location was right off  Highway 12.  It is no longer visable from the freeway, but we stopped by to show our friends.

Seahawks Get 2014 NFL Season Underway Wilth Victory

The world champion Seattle Seahawks got the honor of kicking off the 2014 NFL season last night, doing it in style with a 36-16 victory over the Green Bay Packers.  With a crowd so raucous that radio listens could barely hear the announcers (I listened to the 1st quarter and most of the second on the local radio station),  Green Bay was forced to use up their allotted 3 time outs early in the first half.
Seahawk NFL Hall Of Fame members Walter Jones, Cortez Kennedy, and Steve Largent raised the 12 Flag in the games opening ceremonies.

Joan Rivers Dies

Entertainment legend Joan Rivers died today.  She had been hospitalized after suffering a heart attack during a medical procedure. Rivers was 81.

Go Seahawks 2014

The World Champion Seattle Seahawks start their defense of the Super Bowl title tonight vs Green Bay.

Labor Day Weekend In Walla Walla

We went back to my hometown, Walla Walla this last weekend.  We brought our friends Marjie and Rick,who wanted to check out wineries.  Sunday, we rented a limo from Black Tie Limos, a local company.  That way, we got a tour of the area and did not have to drive while sipping.  We went to North Star, Gifford Hirlinger, Zerba Cellars (pictured above), and Forgeron Cellars.  On Monday,  before we left, we picked a designated driver and visited Dunham Cellars, and Three River Winery. 
Good places that we visited were The Coffee Connection (formerly the Red Apple) and the Fair (middle picture).   The bottom picture in the parking lot of what is known around town as the "Barer Building" , owned by my dad until a few years ago.  It is at 4th and Main.