Author: Editorial Team

Diary

Birth Of ‘Mickey D’

by Editorial Team
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On Wednesday, May 15, 1940, brothers Richard and Maurice “Mac” McDonald opened the first McDonald’s restaurant in San Bernardino, California, as a barbecue restaurant.  In 1948 they reorganized their business as a hamburger stand, using production-line principles.  Businessman Ray Kroc joined the company as a franchise agent in 1955. He subsequently purchased the chain from the McDonald brothers and oversaw its worldwide growth.  Above: the original McDonald’s hamburger restaurant.
Diary

Dyeing Curtains

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 14, 1958, Dale wrote, “High was in the 70s.  Helen cleaned house and dyed curtains. I mowed the whole yard after work.  Dalene went to dinner at the YWCA in the evening.  Stan went to choir practice.”
Diary

Summer Is Coming

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Tuesday, May 13, 1958, Dale wrote, “We need rain.  High 84°.  I finished putting up the screens after work.  Stan went to class after supper.  Mother called to tell us she will be here Thursday, on the bus.”
Diary

Weekend Trip To Osceola

by Editorial Team
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On Saturday, May 12, 1951, Dale drove Helen, Stanley, and Dalene from Muscatine to Jettie’s house in Osceola for the weekend.  They went “uptown” for Saturday night, went out to Lloyd’s farm (Dale’s brother) the next day and drove back to Muscatine that evening.  Above: Dalene and Dale in 1951.
Diary

Bamboo Shades

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Sunday, May 11, 1958, Dale wrote, “High 85°.  Put bamboo shades on the front porch.  Worked on dandelions.  Helen, Stan and I drove to McCumber’s in the evening to visit.”  They were friends.  The bamboo shades looked like the above, and they turned up again after the folks retired to Osceola.
Diary

Forbidden Planet

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Thursday, May 10, 1956, Dale wrote, “Went to ‘Forbidden Planet’ at night.  Stan started to work on Collier deal, didn’t like it.”  The Collier deal was going door-to-door in neighborhoods selling Collier’s Encyclopedia.  The product was good, but I didn’t like selling to young families who may or may not be able to afford the program, so I quit.
Diary

V-E Day

by Editorial Team
On Tuesday, May 8, 1945, President Harry S. Truman announced on radio that Nazi Germany’s forces had surrendered, and that “the flags of freedom fly all over Europe.”  Watch above how London celebrated V-E Day (Victory in Europe) and hear Winston Churchill speak.
Diary

Robin Hood El Dorado

by Editorial Team
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On Thursday, May 7, 1936, after work in Washington, DC, Helen and Dale went to a movie and saw Warner Baxter in ‘Robin Hood of El Dorado.’  Dale wrote, “Sure a good show.”
Diary

Hindenburg Crash

by Editorial Team
On Thursday, May 6, 1937, at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey, the German commercial passenger airship Hindenburg crashed and burned, killing thirty-six people.  Above is a brief video.
Diary

Wedding Plans

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Tuesday, May 5, 1959, Dale wrote, “More rain and welcome.  Heavy rain after supper.  Stan called Bob Yates in Ames, Iowa, to make arrangements for his wedding there Friday.  Dalene went to a G.A.A. banquet.”  Above: my cousin Bob and his wife Rae in 1959.
Diary

Battle Of The Coral Sea

by Editorial Team
On Monday, May 4, 1942, the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first naval clash fought entirely with carrier aircraft, began in the Pacific during World War II.  The outcome was considered a tactical victory for Imperial Japan, but ultimately a strategic one for the Allies.  Above is a short video about the conflict.
Diary

Gone With The Wind

by Editorial Team
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On Monday, May 3, 1937, Margaret Mitchell won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction for her novel, “Gone With the Wind.”  The story takes place during the Civil War, and was the source for the 1939 movie of the same name.
Diary

Going Dancing

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Friday, May 2, 1958, Dale wrote, “Rain around noon.  Warm, high about 51°.  Took Helen to the library.  Stan went to a dance studio.  Dalene stayed home.”   I was taking Arthur Murray lessons to overcome two left feet.  That’s Arthur and Kathryn Murray above.
Diary

Sugar Ray Knockout

by Editorial Team
In Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 1, 1957, Dale wrote, “Sugar Ray knocked out Gene Fulmer for middleweight title.  I finished typing Stan’s 3000-word theme.  Dalene went to a concert at school.”  Watch the knockout punch above.
Diary

Looking At Travel Trailers

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Wednesday, April 30, 1958, Dale wrote, “Very windy today.  High 63°.  Looked at trailers after supper.  Nice.”  The RV bug bit him again.  Above is a 1958 ad.
Diary

Singing At The U

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Sunday, April 29, 1956, Dale wrote, “We went to a University chorus recital at Northrop Auditorium.  Stan sang in the chorus.”  That’s the auditorium above.  I was a freshman at the University of Minnesota.
Diary

Another Flood

by Editorial Team
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In Muscatine on Saturday, April 28, 1951, Dale wrote that the Mississippi River was holding at 20.9 feet.  The next day, a levee broke on the Illinois side of the river.
Diary

Going To Dairy Queen

by Editorial Team
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In Minneapolis on Saturday, April 27, 1957, Dale wrote, “Took storm windows off the upstairs and put screens on.  Helen and I went downtown early to look at carpets.  No sale.  Stan and Sue Timm went back to Muscatine on the 5 o’clock train.  Helen, Dalene, Bonita, and I walked up to the Dairy Queen after supper.”  Sue Timm was my girlfriend; Bonita was Dalene’s friend.
Diary

The Old Homestead

by Editorial Team
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Visiting in Osceola from St. Paul on Sunday, April 26, 1942, Dale wrote, “Gene and Lela came up.  We rode out to George and Wilma’s and to Louie and Ruth’s with them.  George and Wilma came out to the folks and borrowed our camera.”  Lela Yates and Wilma Casey were Helen’s sisters, and Louie Schaffer was her brother.  That’s the farm home of Williams and Jettie above, in 1942.
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