CALIFORNIA DREAMING

That's where we're going to live? Where are the palm trees? Where's the beach? Where are the lifeguards in skintight swim trucks?

John Steinbeck gets pulp cover treatment thanks to Corgi Books and artist John Richards, as his 1933 novel To a God Unknown is transformed circa 1958 into something that looks like rural sleaze. This is a fantastic piece from Richards, and it isn’t totally off base, as there actually is some lust and adultery in the story. But Steinbeck always had deeper concerns, including class struggle, the relationship between humans and the tilled land, and the effects of hardship. In this tale about a journey to California and the misadventures and tragedy that result, he also focuses on superstition. But you’ve probably read him before. East of Eden and The Grapes of Wrath remain our favorites.

Corgi Books, John Steinbeck, John Richards, cover art, literature

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HISTORY REWIND

The headlines that mattered yesteryear.

April 20

1939—Holiday Records Strange Fruit

American blues and jazz singer Billie Holiday records “Strange Fruit”, which is considered to be the first civil rights song. It began as a poem written by Abel Meeropol, which he later set to music and performed live with his wife Laura Duncan. The song became a Holiday standard immediately after she recorded it, and it remains one of the most highly regarded pieces of music in American history.

April 19

1927—Mae West Sentenced to Jail

American actress and playwright Mae West is sentenced to ten days in jail for obscenity for the content of her play Sex. The trial occurred even though the play had run for a year and had been seen by 325,000 people. However West’s considerable popularity, already based on her risque image, only increased due to the controversy.

April 19

1971—Manson Sentenced to Death

In the U.S, cult leader Charles Manson is sentenced to death for inciting the murders of Sharon Tate and several other people. Three accomplices, who had actually done the killing, were also sentenced to death, but the state of California abolished capital punishment in 1972 and neither they nor Manson were ever actually executed.

April 18

1923—Yankee Stadium Opens

In New York City, Yankee Stadium, home of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees, opens with the Yankees beating their eternal rivals the Boston Red Sox 4 to 1. The stadium, which is nicknamed The House that Ruth Built, sees the Yankees become the most successful franchise in baseball history. It is eventually replaced by a new Yankee Stadium and closes in September 2008.

April 17

1961—Bay of Pigs Invasion Is Launched

A group of CIA financed and trained Cuban refugees lands at the Bay of Pigs in southern Cuba with the aim of ousting Fidel Castro. However, the invasion fails badly and the result is embarrassment for U.S. president John F. Kennedy and a major boost in popularity for Fidel Castro, and also has the effect of pushing him toward the Soviet Union for protection.