THE FIRST WORD

remarques

LeRoy Neiman (1921-2012), an internationally known painter long associated with boxing, the Olympics and other sports subjects, periodically drew small images called "remarques" on the white borders around the poster....

A remarque (which comes from a French word meaning "remark" or "note") is a drawing or other embellishment made by an artist in the border of a print. Remarques were originally made to test parts of the printing process; now they're usually added to increase the price, uniqueness or perceived value of a print.

IS THIS HOW YOU PLAY TABLE TENNIS?

THE SILENCE THAT SPARKED NEW SOUNDS

English: Sonny Rollins in concert (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

At the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, as 1947 gave way to 1948, unionized musicians in the U.S. were ordered to stop making records. For nearly a year, recording studios were largely silent as the American Federation of Musicians demanded that record companies pay a percentage of sales to a union fund set up to help support unemployed musicians. (click below to read more)

NEW YEAR FIREWORKS FROM DUBAI

HOLIDAY GREETINGS

TUNE IN TONIGHT

THE PINK PANTHER

TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET

What a delightful film – and what a pleasant way to begin the New Year, by laughing out loud. This 1963 movie, in which Peter Sellers introduces the bumbling character of Inspector Clouseau, is a very, very funny film. David Niven, Robert Wagner and Capucine co-star, but this movie belongs completely to one actor. It’s a Sellers market.

THE MUSIC THEY MADE WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN

PEOPLE BEING PEOPLE

A Russian man spent a month starving in a forest after fighting with his wife about a bowl of soup. Yuri Ticuic, 69, stormed out of his home in a remote region after his wife served him soup he felt was not hot enough. Ticuic became lost in the woods, and survived for a month on berries and leaves until he was finally found, suffering from malnutrition and frostbite. “No matter what happens,” he said, “that’s the last time I criticize my wife’s cooking.”

WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

Here it is. The answer to a perennial question of what on earth does “Auld Lang Syne” mean?
The confusion over the song is arguably almost as much of a tradition as the song itself. As revelers stumble and mumble through the verses–singing the “auld lang syne” part much louder than the rest of the song because it’s really the only part people know–someone always asks what the words mean.
The title of the Scottish tune translates to “times gone by” and is about remembering friends from the past and not letting them be forgotten. (click below to read more)

TODAY IN HISTORY

JANUARY 1

1863

Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

1908

The ball signifying the New Year was dropped for the first time at Times Square in New York City.

1914

The world's first airline, St. Petersburg Tampa Airboat Line, starts operation in St. Petersburg, Florida.

1959

Fidel Castro and his revolutionaries took over Cuba and toppled Fulgencio Batista's regime.

1975

John Mitchell, H. R. Haldeman, and John Ehrlichman were convicted of obstruction of justice in the Watergate affair.

1993

Czechoslovakia peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

1994

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went into effect.

2002

Euro coins and notes went into circulation in twelve European nations.

1801:Great Britain & Ireland union is in effect, creating United Kingdom

1772:The first traveler's checks issued (London)

1984:Amid increasing pressure over its monopoly status, AT&T is forced to dismantle and separate out its long-distance company.

1995:Cartoonist Gary Larson finishes the last "Far Side" cartoon, which he started in 1980.

1502:Portuguese navigators discover Rio de Janeiro.

BY THE NUMBERS

How are we feeling? 
Not great, but we’re getting better. In October, 42% of Americans said the country was heading in the “right direction,” the highest number in almost three years (ABC News/The Washington Post), and 61% thought the economy was either in recovery or would be soon (Pew Research Center). (click below to read more)

WELCOME TO (UNLUCKY?) 13

For prophets of doom, the failure of the world to end Dec. 21 may have been a bit of a letdown. Now, the calendar brings a new possibility for anxious obsession: a whole year ending in the unlucky number 13.
Thirteen has been associated with bad luck for centuries. Many people cite the Biblical Last Supper, where Jesus Christ gathered with his 12 disciples, as a reason for the stigma. In Norse mythology, the troublesome Loki is said to have spoiled a dinner in Valhalla by arriving as the 13th participant. There is even a word for the dread of those digits: triskaidekaphobia. (click below to read more)