Monday I spent in Louisville. First I paid a visit to the Hadley Pottery factory and picked up a few pieces with patterns that Cheri and I do not already have (Hadley is our everyday dishware).
Then downtown for some real blog-worthy shots. Here the handle of the World's Largest Bat pokes above the five-story brick edifice of the Louisville Slugger Museum.
Then, just down the street, there is another World's Largest Bat. It hangs upside down and clings to the brick wall of Caufield's, a costume and decoration store.
BTW, the world's biggest bat is actually the Malayan Flying Fox. Click the link to see one at the Columbus Zoo. Just a fun fact from your favorite zoo dude.
On the same street as the world's two largest bats is a strange monument. A plaque on a small concrete pedestal remembers the writers of the song "Happy Birthday to You" -- two sisters who published a book titled Song Stories for the Kindergarten and altered the lyrics to one song to create the immortal HBTY. No mention of the equally immortal "You live in a zoo" version.The plaque claims "the song has since become one of the three most popular songs in the English language." Poll: What would the other two be? (cuz I do not know). I am guessing one is "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."
The song is still protected by copyright and will remain so until 2030. If you hear the tune belted out in chain restaurants or in a movie party scene, someone must cough up a royalty payment to the current copyright holders.
Local beer report: Actually out of Boulder, Colorado, but plenty good: Ellie's Brown by Avery Brewing Company. Who can resist a brew featuring a choclate lab?Tuesday: Memphis and Tunica, Mississippi.
Technically, the Hill sisters wrote the song "Good Morning to All" upon which Happy Birthday is based. I had long believed that Paul McCartney owned the copyright to Happy Birthday, but that is a false rumor. It is owned by media giant AOL Time Warner. The two other most recognized songs in the English language are "Auld Lang Syne" and "For He's A Jolly Good Fellow." Whether that makes them the most popular is subject to debate.
ReplyDeleteI believe coming in at #3 (and appropriate for this blog): 99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer...
ReplyDeleteHow can a fox be a bat?
ReplyDeleteHow did my chocolate lab, Ella, get on the label of that beer?? And how do they know that I often call her Ellie? This is weird . . .
ReplyDelete