Happy Birthday, Miss Rogers!!!

In lieu of any attempt I could make to explain what this day is all about in the World of Gingerology, I thought I would just share some of my fave photos on Ginger's 99th birthday... They speak volumes more than I can ever put into words about why Gingerology exists...

...Remember, Ice Cream and Tennis (not particularly in that order) are the call of the day! Wear pink if ya got it...honestly, I don't, but I think she might give me a pass on that! :-]

And of course, at least one GingerFilm must be viewed... Friday Night will be GingerFest in the Huey Household!

What are YOU doing to celebrate Ginger's 99th?

Keep It Gingery FOR SURE today, y'all!!!

VKMfan

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Other July 16th Birthdays and Historic Events...

Well, of course, Friday is July 16th, Ginger Rogers' 99th Birthday...of course G-ology will have what will hopefully be a HONKIN' post for that occasion... but before then, here are some 'other' birthdays which occur on July 16th, along with some historical events which have taken place on the same date (from The World Almanac.com):

Birthdays:
1486: Andrea del Sarto, painter (near Florence, Italy; died 1530)
1723: Sir Joshua Reynolds, portrait painter (Plympton, Devon, England; died 1792)
1796: Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, landscape painter (France; died 1875)
1821: Mary Baker Eddy, founder of Christian Science (near Concord, NH; died 1910)
1872: Roald Amundsen, polar explorer (near Oslo, Norway; disappeared 1928)
1907: Barbara Stanwyck, actress (Brooklyn, NY; died 1990)
1911: Ginger Rogers, dancer/actress (Independence, MO; died 1995)
1915: Barnard Hughes, actor (Bedford Hills, NY)
1942: Margaret Court Smith, tennis champion (Australia)
1943: Jimmy Johnson, football coach (Port Arthur, TX)
1947: Alexis Herman, former labor secretary (Mobile, AL)
1948: Ruben Blades, singer/actor (Panama City, Panama).
1948: Pinchas Zukerman, violinist (Tel Aviv, Israel)
1963: Phoebe Cates, actress (New York, NY)
1967: Will Ferrell, actor (Irvine, CA)
1968: Barry Sanders, football player (Wichita, KS)

This Day in History:
1790: Pres. George Washington signs legislation naming the District of Columbia as the permanent capital of the United States.
1918: In Russia, Czar Nicholas II and his family are executed by a firing squad on the order of the Bolsheviks.
1945: The first atomic bomb, produced at Los Alamos, NM, is tested in an explosion at a desert site in Alamogordo, NM.
1969: Apollo 11, the mission to land the first men on the Moon, is launched.
1988: At the U.S. Olympic Trials in Indianapolis, Florence Griffith Joyner runs the 100 meters in a record-smashing 10.49 seconds.
1999: John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and his sister-in-law Lauren Bessette die in a plane crash off Martha's Vineyard, MA, in a private plane piloted by Kennedy.

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...A few things that 'jump out' at me on these lists... one, I did NOT know that Ginger shared the same birthday with Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of Christian Science... pretty cool, considering that Ginger was arguably the most famous practicing Christian Scientist ever...

...also, ol' George Washington declares DC as the Nation's Capital... the significance of that is, Ginger is a direct descendant of Mr. Washington...

...Ginger and Barbara Stanwyck shared the same birthday - THAT'S pretty cool - Juliette at "Some Parade" is a big Stanwyck fan, if memory serves...

...Apollo 11 was launched - THAT'S a pretty significant event in history, no?

...AND, the first atomic bomb was dropped in testing in Alamogordo, NM... appropriate for the 'bombshell's birthday', no?

Well, that's all I've got... if there are any other birthdays or events which occurred on 7/16, please feel free to add to the list!

Until Friday :-) ...

KIG in the SOG!!!
VKMfan
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Now For Something Completely Different...

...well, as usual, it DOES involve Ginger (duh)...

OK - first of all, a 'disclaimer'... just to set the record straight, I am NOT a 'believer' or whatever ya call it, of astrology and horoscopes... HOWEVER, the following few items ARE just a bit interesting... and being that Ginger's 99th Birthday is coming up, I was just 'curious' as to how all this mumbo-jumbo would shake out concerning VKM...although I am pretty certain she wasn't a big fan of this stuff, either...

First, For ME, it is just pretty cool that Ginger and I share the same 'sign', that being 'Cancer' the Crab... now, does that mean Ginger was 'crabby'? Really don't think so...

BUT, for what it's worth, here IS what Cancers are supposed to be, from 'astrology.com': Are generally 'nurturing', 'a homebody', 'patriotic', 'emotional', 'moody', 'strong-willed', 'kind', 'vindictive', 'active', 'lazy'...so, unless I read a lot of this wrong, it seems like the entire gamut of personalities apply, with conflicting traits aplenty... it DOES say Cancers are 'water types', and Ginger DID have a swimming pool... so there you go.

...A pretty cool pic, even tho this stuff is bogus...

BTW... I'm not sure ANY of these really apply to me... well, I guess I am 'patriotic'... and as for how Cancers get along together, seems like a 'Maybe So, Maybe Not' type deal... but we all know Miss Rogers gets along swimmingly (pun very much intended) with her Perpetual Cabana Boy, right? :-]

OK - the one that REALLY gets interesting, for Huey, anyway, is the CHINESE stuff... they use the YEAR you were born, not the month... So... Ginger was born in July 1911, which makes her a... pig. (Honest...I'm not making this stuff up...) The interesting thing about that is, Pigs are most compatable with Goats... and, wouldn't ya know it? Ol' Huey, born in June of 1967, is a Goat. NOW, to make this even MORE weird, My wife, born in 1971, is ALSO a Pig... BUT, there is another 'level of association', using 'elements'... and Ginger and my wife are BOTH 'Metal Pigs!' (really...NOT making this stuff up!!!) Metal Pigs are headstrong, hard workers, outspoken, loving, and trusting of others. ...Not sure, but I think I saw Metal Pigs open for Ozzy Osbourne back in '83... :-]

...my new favorite minor league baseball team...

SO, there you have it... again, I am NOT endorsing ANY of this cockamamie jive, but...just throwing it out there for y'all, just F.Y.I... and if YOU happen to follow this stuff, well, it IS interesting, or else it wouldn't be around... but I wouldn't set your calandars to any of it, y'all...

Above all, let's just...

Keep It Gingery! (oink oink!)

VKMfan
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It's Gingerology's...

...First Anniversary! Thanks to ALL of the folks who follow this blog, publicly or... er, 'non-publicly'! Your support has made Gingerology a very cool place to discuss all things Ginger, and has encouraged me through good times (like my baby boy being born) and bad (like my dad's illness and death). Over 50 followers is a bit mind boggling - I am very humbled that y'all take interest in the blog, and MORE jazzed that there is such an interest in Ginger, who could NEVER really be over-hyped, IMHO.

When I 'created a new blog' back on July 5th, 2009, the primary purpose was to be able to comment on Beth's blog, 'Finding Ginger'. Her blog was the primary inspiration for Gingerology; most notably, her "List of Ginger Rogers Movies I Have Seen" - I had just purchased the Ginger and Fred box set of all ten of their films, and was just getting into the 'beautiful science of Miss Ginger Rogers'... I knew she had been in a few other films... er, a FEW? How about over 60 more? Beth had crossed off WELL over half of her movies, in fact, down to a dozen or so she had NOT seen... so it got me to searching for more Ginger movies - of course there ARE quite a few on DVD, such as Stage Door, Roxie Hart, Kitty, Major-Minor, and so on.

But after the 'studio DVD' scope of Ginger had been exhausted, I had to resort to 'other' means to obtain her movies... including some 'iffy' purchases on eBay and iOffer, among others... and general obtaining of 'files'... which seems to be ok, since the movies are 70 years or so old (public domain?), and NOT available anywhere else... and of course, TCM has been a MAJOR player in the development of PG Huey's accumulation of VKM titles... so 'hats off' to Ted Turner, whatever continent he may be on or over at the present time. So, taking all of these 'sources' into account, I have somehow managed to obtain all but ONE of the feature films Ginger Rogers had a role in - and that one, that elusive white whale, is 'Hat Check Girl', by Fox Studios. I have heard of someone who saw it from an 'original reel', so there is a copy or two out there - just wish someone could transfer it to 'electronic media' of some type. But hey, we have to have SOMETHING to look forward to obtaining, right?

In addition to movies, I have also spent quite a bit of time and money on eBay purchasing various Ginger-related items, such as LIFE magazines, books, sheet music, and other various types of 'Gingerbilia'. One day, I better SELL a few things to counter the $$$ I have burned via PayPal. But, it has not been ALL in vain, for within the purchased items, I have learned quite a bit more about Ginger in various stages in her career and life, which were honestly one in the same, it appears... and just like any great subject, the more you learn about her, the more you WANT to learn about her - thus the need to continually update info on Gingerology, so y'all can also discover and share cool facts about Miss Rogers.

I have had some pretty neat 'blogships' with a lot of y'all over the past year... of course, Beth, who got me started in all of this (and coined the phrase, "Keep It Gingery!"), and Lauren, who has been a great help in 'setting my path straight' as to my mission of Gingerology, while being a good fellow 'gabber'... then of course there is Kate, a.k.a."The OGRE" - (Official Ginger Research Expert) - she has dug up gobs of great Ginger footage, audio and video-wise... and has shared with all of us, and we are all richer for it. So special thanks to these three ladies, along with all of you (if I start naming folks, will leave someone out... sorry) who have shared their knowledge and expertise in various subjects and situations, and patiently nudged me along the sometimes quite perplexing world of the blogosphere, which I am lost as a goose in most of the time.

BTW - the pic at the top of the post was the original 'header pic' for Gingerology - it is STILL one of my all-time favorites... her eyes in this photo are so sharp and clear, it is unnervingly beautiful to Huey, if that makes any sense... Maria of the blog, 'Let Yourself Go' (which, BTW, I could not find recently... any ideas where it went?) 'colorized' the current header pic for Gingerology, which is ALSO just a devastatingly beautiful pic... there is NO lack of visual images of our topic subject, thank heavens!

So, here's to many more years of Gingerology, and to all who follow and encourage it! It is great to be able to learn and share info on such a beautiful subject!

Thanks one and all! ...and,

KEEP IT GINGERY (KIG)!!!

Jeff Walker -

a.k.a. VKMfan, PG Huey, jwalker, Huey in the Ham, Sunny, Ginger Rogers' Perpetual Cabana Boy (GRPCB)

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Happy Fourth of July, y'all!!!

...from all the folks here at Gingerology! Be safe and have fun celebrating the 234th birthday of the United States of America, wherever you may be! I think of Magnificent Doll when the Fourth of July rolls around... it was the only 'colonial period film' Ginger was ever in, and I just think it is awesome... well, SHE is especially awesome in it, as Dolley Madison - she wears some honkin' dresses, and is just 'dolled up' (pun intended) to the nines! A few cases in point:

...that last pic is so awesome - her eyes are riveting! Not sure who the dude is, but just that he is one lucky dude!!! ...and in case you are wondering, the REAL Dolley Madison was not QUITE as fetching as Ginger... in fact, I'll just leave it for you to Wiki... but they will never be mistaken for one another, believe me...

And remember, Ginger was born in Independence, Missouri - and not TOO far away on the calendar from Independence Day...how cool would THAT have been? born on Independence Day in Independence, MO... (...on a side note, I was scheduled to be born on July 4th, but my doc was in a golf tourney that weekend, so I entered the world on June 30th instead...)

ANYWAY, y'all have fun, and hope to have some more stuff on here soon! Well, tomorrow especially... stay tuned!!!

KIG in the SOG!!!

VKMfan

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