I’ve been on a Corn Flakes kick lately,  and of course it must be, the best, the one and only Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. One morning as I crunched on a few flakes, I thought, “Gee I wonder who came up with this?”

It all started back in the day….

It’s the 1890’s and a new health guru, Harvey Kellogg has set up a Sanitarium in Michigan where he taught others how to eat healthy and live longer. Many flocked to hear this charismatic man’s wisdom. Kellogg was a medical doctor who believed that the then American diet was bad. He called the modern cooking, “the greatest bane of civilization.” He felt that the way to happiness and health is having a healthy “digestive tract.” He believed that most illnesses and deaths were due to indigestion and bad eating habits. He must be turning in his grave.  He served healthy low-calorie diets in the Sanitarium, but worried what would happen to his patient’s eating habits once they returned home.

Kellogg experiments at home with a low calorie, ready to eat, breakfast food he would sell by mail order. Thanks to his wife and brother he came up with a product which most of us are familiar with, Kellogg Corn Flakes! Later, Kellogg’s brother, Will Keith took over the business. Will had flair when it came to marketing. One of his first ads, urged customers not to buy the new product, because there wasn’t enough available; needless to say, the cereal flew off the shelves.

A little on the weird  side but…..

Kellogg had a passion for digestion and came up with this product; however, I have to say he was a little too zealous. It is said that he gave himself an enema every day. Whatever… He also said that he was celibate through more than 40 years of marriage. Okay it  sounds extreme, but the man lived to see 90, but so have others who have not done as he. Just saying.

So the next time, you are chewing on a crunchy corn flake, remember how a pioneering health guru came up with this brilliant idea.

Senators Brooks' & Sumner having at it.....

We may think that all this mean talk today in politics is all new, but it isn’t. It has been around for quite a long, long time. There are so many stories much like what we hear today, and even worse, and others were downright creative. Let’s begin with a creative story. In 1950 George Smathers was running against Claude Pepper for the US Senate. In Smather’s campaign speeches he’d say strange things about Pepper, like Pepper is “known extrovert,” he’d say things like this with such contempt, that the audience thought this Pepper guy must be bad for them. Another time he said that Pepper’s brother was a “practicing homo sapiens.” Another time he said, that Pepper “practiced celibacy before marriage.” Huh? Again he’d say silly stuff like this emphatically and with scorn that he convinced the audiences that Pepper sucked, and he was the man. Well it worked because Smathers won. People…who can figure us out?

Then there was the Long brothers back in the 30’s.  Sibling rivalry is bad enough at home; it gets worse when brothers are running against each other in the political world. Earl Long called a political opponent, “a big-bellied, lily-livered liar and the crookedest man who ever lived,” he was referring to his brother Huey Long. One time Earl got so pissed off at his brother he called him a “son of a bitch,” not thinking twice of the implications. Earl, that isn’t a nice name to call your momma. Earl also had a tactic on getting his message out when he ran for office. He’d follow his opponent around and plant himself in the audience where the opponent was speaking. He’d yell out from the audience to inspire spontaneous debate. This allowed Earl to control the agenda for discussion, and got his message out on his opponent’s dime. This really backfired one day for Earl though. His brother Huey Long was running for senate and was speaking at a rally where his sneaky brother was part of the audience. Huey was proudly telling the people of his state what he had done for the state of Louisiana, when out of the crowd someone yelled out, “I know one person you ain’t done nothin’ for—your brother!” Earl replies, “I done something for you, Earl. He continues, “I built a big mental hospital down at Jackson and I had them reserve a room for you.” LOL! These two brothers eventually worked things out, and sadly one, Huey who became a presidential contender, was assassinated in 1935. Ah no, not by his brother.

The Longs were not the only brothers to have it out in the political world. Jimmy Carter’s worse nightmare was his beer guzzling brother, Billy. Billy was a drunk and was constantly embarrassing the peanut farmer, turned president.  One incident of the many led Jimmy to finally put his brother on a plane to Georgia for good. Billy decides to relieve himself on an airport runway in front of the Washington press corps! Now that’s telling Washington he’d didn’t give a sh*t huh? LOL

In 1856 during the height of the slavery debate, Representative Preston Brooks, of South Carolina didn’t like some remarks made about his family by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts. Brooks got so pissed off that he walked into the Senate Chamber and started to beat Sumner with his walking cane! I think Herman Cain would get a laugh out of this one! Brooks later regretted his actions, but not so much for beating Sumner, more about breaking his cane. But was comforted that he at least saved the gold-plated handle!

One of my favorite stories is the one of Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt didn’t need a cane; in 1883 he simply decked a Democratic opponent with one punch. When the guy gets up, he punches him again. Talk about how to handle a Democrat! LOL Just kidding guys, just kidding.

There are many more stories like these, I can go on forever. So the next time you hear our politicians duking it out, just remember it’s not new. If anything they are a lot more tamed today, and probably wishing they could turn back the clock.

I caught an interview with urban historian Steve Duncan on one of the morning shows and was just fascinated with what he was doing. Duncan takes us underground in New York City to abandoned subway stations, Lincoln Tunnel, a sewer (euwww) and even climbs the Williamsburg Bridge! The best part for me was the beautiful subway station, it spoke volumes of the creative architects who designed them.

Being a native New Yorker myself, I thoroughly enjoyed this and only wish Duncan had legal access to these beautiful structures so we could learn more. It was a daring feat, and one I don’t advise others to do.