Monday, February 28, 2022

Greenhill Chats Interview



Author Terry Melia recently invited me onto his YouTube channel for an extensive interview. This was quite a freewheeling talk. Usually people interview me regarding one specific subject: my books or my FBI films or my faith-based films or screenwriting in general or the haunting my family experienced. Terry wanted to talk about a number of subjects, including my new streaming series, and I was only too happy to oblige. Plus, he's from Liverpool. Gotta love that.

Here's the interview:

 

Click HERE to follow his channel. Lots of great content. 
Follow him on Twitter HERE.

My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & NobleChapel Street is the tale of a young man battling a demonic entity that has driven members of his family to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting. 


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:

The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

Let's stay in touch:

Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
Follow me on Facebook: Sean Paul Murphy
Follow me on Instagram: Sean Paul Murphy
Subscribe on YouTube: Sean Paul Murphy

Wednesday, February 16, 2022

Grave Tales #26: William Ashbie Hawkins

I am an avid genealogist. The past is very important to me. I spend a lot of time in cemeteries photographing tombstones to upload on website the FindAGrave.

I enjoy recognizing long dead people by putting memorials to them online. However, every once and a while something grabs me about a specific grave. It could be the name, or the dates or a ceramic photo. In those cases, I feel compelled to dig a little deeper. That's what this series of blogs is about: The tales behind those graves. Some of my subjects will be heroes. Some will be villains. Some will be victims. And some will linger in between, like most of us. However, don't be surprised if the tales are inherently tragic. These are grave tales. They all end in death.

It took me years -- literally years -- to find the grave of William Ashbie Hawkins in Mount Auburn Cemetery. The cemetery is recognized by the State of Maryland as a historic site. For years, it was the only place African-Americans could be buried in Baltimore City. However, despite its historic status, chest high weeds covered the grounds, maintenance buildings collapsed, monuments toppled over and sank into the earth. Even worse, human remains were clearly visible above ground in many places. 

The horrible conditions at the cemetery inspired my wife Deborah and I to recruit director David Butler and his producer Lynda Meier to help create our award-winning documentary Sacred Ground: The Battle for Mount Auburn Cemetery. The shoot took years. While we were filming, I researched some of the more famous occupants to highlight in the film. To me, one of the most fascinating people buried at Mount Auburn was William Ashbie Hawkins, an African-American lawyer who won some pivotal cases which overturned segregation laws in Baltimore. I was convinced if Hawkins had been alive and active during the 1950s and 1960s, he would be remembered in the same breath as Rosa Parks, John Lewis and Martin Luther King, Jr. Sadly, he is essentially forgotten today.

To include Hawkins in the documentary, I needed to find his grave. And I tried. When I started at Mount Auburn Cemetery, there were only a handful of monuments listed on Findagrave. I photographed and recorded a couple thousand more during the production. I believe I searched every inch of that cemetery, and I certainly had the poison ivy to prove it. To understand how shamefully overgrown the cemetery was at the time, take a look the picture below taken of one of the roads through the grounds:

Oh, if you think I was exaggerating about finding human remains above ground, check out the picture below of a human skull fragment.

Eventually, the State of Maryland stepped in and sent prisoners to chop down the weeds and slowly regain control of the cemetery. While they worked I finally discovered the grave of Robert and Sarah Hawkins, William's parents, only about twenty feet south of the road leading to the Annapolis Road entrance. I went to the grave and discovered William buried in the plot behind them. They shared a headstone.

It is a modest headstone. I felt he deserved more. Unfortunately, it seems, even by the time of his death, his deeds were largely forgotten -- at least by the majority white community.

Let's look at his obituary.

The Evening Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 3 April 1941, Thu:


Local Negro Lawyer Dies

     William Ashbie Hawkins, one of the oldest and most prominent Negro attorneys in Baltimore, died today at Provident Hospital after an illness of seven months. He was 78 years old.
     He was born in Lynchburg, Va., during the war between the States. He graduated from Morgan College and from the law department of Howard University in Washington and had practiced law here for the part of fifty years. He was also a school teacher here for the past fifty years. He was also a school teacher here for some time.
     During his career edited The Lancet, a Baltimore publication of some thirty years ago engaged in furthering the cause of the Negro, and on two occasions was a delegate to the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The attorney also served as supreme chancellor of the Knights of Pythias of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. He is survived by his wife and daughter.
     Funeral services will be held on Saturday afternoon at 2 o'clock from the Hawkins home, 929 Arlington avenue, Govans.

Okay. The newspaper mentioned that Hawkins was a prominent lawyer but they didn't discuss his specialty or the long battle he fought against segregation. Nor did they mention his run for the United States Senate. I hate to say it, but I was not surprised. I doubt the general readership of The Evening Sun in 1941 was appreciative of his campaign against segregation. 

The newspaper did offer a more detailed biography nearly sixty years later.  Here it is a story written by Carla E. Williams:

The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 28 June 2000, Wed:

WILLIAM ASHBIE HAWKINS

     One of Baltimore's first African-American lawyers, William Ashbie Hawkins spent his 50-year legal career fighting racial injustice. Hawkins graduated from Centenary Biblical Institute (later to become Morgan State University) in 1885 and went on to attend then Maryland University and graduate from Howard University. He completed a stint as a public school teacher and later settled into his law career after passing the Maryland Bar in 1894.
     Hawkins initially set up his own law practice, but later joined forces with his brother-in-law, George W. F. McMechen, in the law firm of Hawkins and McMechen. For a number of years, Hawkins served as legal counsel for the Baltimore branch of the NAACP fighting for the civil rights of Baltimoreans of color.
     In 1911, Hawkins, along with Warner T. McGuinn, successfully defended a black man attacked by whites who were disturbed by his decision to integrate their neighborhood. A 1910 law designed by Samuel West had made segregation and neighborhood covenants banning blacks legal. As a result of the case, that law was rejected as unconstitutional by the Criminal Court.
     Later that same year, Hawkins, outraged by the poor sleeping and eating conditions for blacks on Chesapeake Bay ferry boats, took the Baltimore Chesapeake and Atlantic Railway Company to court. His complaint was dismissed; however, the Public Service Commission did recommend in February 1912 that the company upgrade its facilities for blacks.
     Hawkins went on to fight another case in 1913, as counsel for John H. Gurry, regarding the violation of another segregation ordinance; both the Baltimore Criminal Court and the Maryland Court of Appeals agreed that the law was unconstitutional.
     In his largest case, Hawkins appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1917 in Buchanan v. Worley.
     Hawkins also served as the counsel for the Afro-American Newspapers and the Grand Lodge of the Masons. He was a member of the National Bar Association, the Monumental Bar Association and was almost selected by the Republican Party as a candidate for the Senate.
     He is buried at the historic Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Southwest Baltimore.

That brief biography certainly provides a much better overview of Hawkins' career than his perfunctory obituary, but it doesn't reflect the national significance of his work. Lawyers from all around the country used Hawkins' legal arguments to defeat segregation laws in their own jurisdictions. Then again, you'd never realize that reading The Baltimore Sun or The Evening Sun at the time either. Neither of those establishment papers offered Hawkins any kudos for his work. For example, look at the story below about the Gurry case. They don't even mention him.

The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 25 April 1913, Fri:


SEGREGATION LAW VOID
-----
Judge Elliott Declares The Ordinance Unenforceable.

     On the ground that no reasonable interpretation would make the segregation ordinance enforceable, Judge Elliott, in an opinion handed down yesterday, held the law to be invalid and sustained the demurrer to the indictment against John H. Gurry, colored, for alleged violation of the ordinance.
     Gurry was indicted on the charge of violating the ordinance by moving on June 17, 1911, into 581 Laurens street, in a white block. Argument on the demurrer was heard by Judge Elliott while presiding in the Criminal Court last year.
     An enforcement of the ordinance, the Court holds, would depopulate every block in the city now containing both white and colored persons, and then goes on:
     "When, then, by the definition in the ordinance a block can be at the same time both a white block and a colored block, it would seem unnecessary to say that the ordinance is invalid and unenforceable to punish either white or colored persons."
     In conclusion the Judge stated that there is no such reasonable interpretation of the ordinance as to make Gurry amenable to its penalty.
     A new ordinance on the same subject is expected to be introduced in the City Council.

I do not mean to indicate that The Sunpapers ignored Hawkins. To the contrary, he was frequently mentioned in its pages and not all of the references were favorable. Look at this story from earlier in 1910 about Mr. Hawkins' attempt at blockbusting.

The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 13 July 1910, Wed:


WOULD KEEP OUT NEGROES
-----
McCulloh Street And Madison Avenue
Association Meets.

     The McCulloh Street and Madison Avenue Property Protective Association, an organization formed last week for the protection of McCulloh street, Madison avenue and Eutaw Place from the invasion of negro residents held its second meeting last night in Norwood's Hall, Druid Hill avenue and Laurens street.
     The formation of the association was due to the purchasing of a house in the 1800 block of McCulloh street by W. Ashbie Hawkins, a colored lawyer, which he subrented to his law partner.
     The meeting last night was enthusiastic and means of getting rid of the undesirable neighbors were discussed. It was suggested that a committee of three lawyers be appointed and devise means of ridding the neighborhood of what the members called a great nuisance. Mr. Milton Dashiell, 1110 McCulloh street, a prominent lawyer, was appointed on the committee.
     The next meeting will be held Tuesday night at Norwood's Hall.

Is it just me, or does it seem to me that the reporter favored the new association's goal of driving the undesirable Hawkins from the neighborhood?

In fact, The Baltimore Sun endorsed City Councilman Samuel L. West, the author of the segregationist law. The law was referred to as "The West Ordinance." The ordinance, in brief, prohibited blacks from moving into white blocks and whites from moving into black blocks. (Interestingly, in an interview during the campaign, Councilman West said "Chinamen" should be considered white in regards to the new law, not colored.) Here's their editorial:

The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 30 April 1911, Sun:

The West Ordinance

     The Sun agrees with those who say that it would be most unfortunate if at every municipal election hereafter no Democrat, however much he might disapprove of the candidate nominated by his own party, could venture to vote for his Republican opponent for fear that the latter, if elected to the City Council, might vote to repeal the West Ordinance.
     The existence of such an issue in municipal politics is of all things to be regretted, for it obscures all other issues. But there is one way, and only one way, to get rid of it, and it is a very simple one: Let the white people and sensible colored people also of the ward which Mr. West, the author of the ordinance represents, laying aside for once all political considerations, unite in re-electing Mr. West by an overwhelming majority.
     If they will do that, it is safe to predict that no politician, Republican or Democrat, will ever thereafter venture to reopen the question by threatening to repeal the ordinance. It will be recognized as a settled question -- as dead as secession -- and soon be completely forgot -- a consummation devoutly to be wished. Baltimore will then enjoy the unique distinction of having settled this ugly problem in a peaceful and orderly way instead of resorting to the methods of violence or intimidation which have been so frequently employed in the cities of the North and West as well as the South.
     The ordinance is absolutely fair and just to the colored people as well as the white. Now that it has become law, let the people by their votes make it manifest that they do not intend that it shall be disturbed -- at any rate not before it has been fairly tried.
     The only practicable way in which to do that is, as we have said, to re-elect its author, Mr. Samuel L. West, by a decisive majority.

As the Baltimore Sun hoped, Samuel L. West won re-election. However, thanks to William Ashbie Hawkins and his colleagues the West Ordinance was thrown out -- as were subsequent attempts by Samuel West to codify segregation in municipal law.

However, despite the racist leanings of the newspaper, their attitude towards Hawkins softened as the years progressed. They frequently used him as a respected spokesperson for the African American community regarding local political issues. They also covered his run for the Senate. Here's a story:

The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), 17 August 1920, Tue:



NEGROES PICK NOMINEE TO OPPOSE O.E. WELLER
-----
W. Ashbie Hawkins, Colored Lawyer, Chosen To Run For U.S. Senate.
-----
WILL GO ON BY PETITION
-----
Speeches At Meeting Declared Action Is Reprisal On Regular 
Republican Organization For Attitude Toward Black Voters.
-----

     A committee of representative negroes, indignant at the refusal of Republican leaders to recognize them with patronage, met last night at Trinity Baptist Church, Druid Hill avenue and McMechen street, and nominated W. Ashbie Hawkins, color, attorney and leader among negroes, as a candidate for the United States Senate.
     Attorney Hawkins will compete in the election next November as an independent Republican, opposing O. E. Weller, Republican, and John Walter Smith, Democrat. The 40 or 50 negroes who unanimously voted for his selection as a standard-bearer of the negro race, declared they represent an overwhelming proportion of the negro vote in this city.
     Under provisions of the State Election law it will be necessary for the committee to secure the signatures of 500 voters to petition for Attorney Hawkins' nomination. The petition must be filed with the Secretary of State. No difficulty in securing that number of signatures will be experienced, the committee declared.

Form Independent League.

     They formed the Independent Republican League, elected officers and designated an executive committee to prosecute a vigorous campaign throughout the State for their candidate.
     Spokesmen for the "committee of forty" vouchsafed the opinion that their candidate will not be able to defeat his rivals for the Senatorial seat, but observed that if they can line up the negro vote behind Attorney Hawkins they can insure the defeat of Mr. Weller, whom they excoriated in speeches as an "ingrate" and "an unworthy representative of the Republican party."
     The committee unanimously adopted resolutions prepared by Arthur M. Bragg, editor, 1425 McCulloh street, in which they state their refusal to vote for the Republican candidate, Mr. Weller, because, they say, to do so would be to "indorse the unrighteous insult to the black group of Republicans," who have been denied their rights by "unworthy evasion and crooked devices." The negroes declared that "a return to Republican principles can be realized only through the defeat, especially, of O. E. Weller, the supreme representative of the lily white feeling within the Republican party."

Admission By Invitation.

     The negroes assembled in the conference room of the church in response to invitations from the leading spirits among the colored race. Although they were careful to see that none but "invited guests" was allowed to participate in the deliberations, their speeches could be heard many yards from the meeting room. when J. Stewart Davis, colored, attorney, placed Hawkins' name in nomination the negroes applauded generously.
     Speeches were made by the Rev. George F. Bragg, Dr. J. R. L. Diggs, John H. Murphy, W. Norman Bishop, Attorney Davis, Linwood G. Kogler and Dr. E. M. Boyle. Attorney Davis was elected permanent president, the other officers being: Mayfield Boyle, vice-president; William Langley, treasurer, and W. Norman Bishop, secretary.
     The executive committee, composed of Arthur M. Bragg; Attorney Davis; William Langley, commission merchant; Carl Murphy, editor; Daniel A. Richardson; W. Norman Bishop, attorney; Dr. Mayfield Boyle; William R. Proctor and Linwood G. Kogler, insurance broker, was given "unlimited authority" in arranging for the campaign, and was ordered to leave no stone unturned to line up the negro vote behind Attorney Hawkins.

Resolutions Adopted.

The resolutions adopted by the committee are:

     Whereas, the Republican organization, both in the city and State, apparently, at least, has actually deserted Republican principles, and one, of the type of said organization, has been selected by them as the Republican candidate for the United States Senate; and whereas to vote for such candidate would be to indorse the unrighteous insult to the black group of Republicans, therefore, it is the conviction of this conference of Independent Republicans that the maintenance of the self-respect of our own people demand the placing on the official ballot the name of a Republican for whom, in good conscience, they may cast their suffrage.
     The Independent Republican League, in thus acceding to such evident demand upon the part of self-respecting black voters of the State of Maryland, and presenting the name of a citizen worthy of their support, begs leave to state that the paramount issue with the people of the black group is to hurl back and refute the contemptuous insult and outrage perpetrated upon them.
     The Republican organization, in this State and city, refuses to accede to, in letter and spirit, the fundamental principles of the National Republican Party, as incorporated in our Constitution in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments, and continually, by unworthy evasion and crooked devices hinders a translation and interpretation of such principles of liberty and equality.
     The present municipal administration, won by the large assistance of the black group, has broken every promise, and has completely humiliated and insulted the people of our group.
     The entire organization in the State and city, so shamefully disproportionately represent the mind of Republicans of this State, that a return to Republican principles can only be realized through the defeat, especially, of O. E. Weller, the supreme representative of the Lily White feeling within the Republican party.
     The sustaining of our honor and self-respect constitutes the overshadowing issue in the present campaign, and we call upon every loyal member of the black group, throughout the entire State, to cast their suffrage for W. Ashbie Hawkins, the fearless champion and exponent of the principles of liberty, equality, and fraternity; and thus administer a stinging rebuke to those who would insult and outrage the manhood of black citizens. 
     The negroes have their guns trained especially on Mayor Broening and condemn him for his failure to give the negro positions in the municipal government which, they feel, they deserve after the overwhelming majority they rolled up in the Fourteenth and Seventeenth wards, admittedly negro districts.

I hope these stories give you a taste of Mr. Hawkins' life and his struggles. Sadly, you are not going to find much about him today on the internet. The best resource is Dennis Anthony Doster's dissertation abstract "To Strike For Right, To Strike With Might": African Americans And The Struggle For Civil Rights In Baltimore, 1910-1930. It dives very deeply into Hawkins' work. You can read it HERE.

I would also strongly recommend Antero Pietila's book Not in My Neighborhood: How Bigotry Shaped a Great American City. Pietila depicts Hawkins' ongoing battle against Baltimore's segregation laws as almost single combat against Baltimore City Councilman Samuel West. It's a fascinating book. Every Baltimorean who wants to understand how vast swaths of the city became a wasteland should read it.

Here's the Amazon link:

 

February is Black History Month. If you want to take the opportunity to honor a forgotten warrior in the battle for civil rights, head over to Mount Auburn Cemetery and lay a flower on the grave of William Ashbie Hawkins. You'll find his grave easier to find than I did. I marked its location using the Findagrave phone app.

Remember, there is a story behind every grave. You never know what you're missing when you walk past one....

Grave Tales:

My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & NobleChapel Street is the tale of a young man battling a demonic entity that has driven members of his family to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting. 


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:

The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

Let's stay in touch:

Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
Follow me on Facebook: Sean Paul Murphy
Follow me on Instagram: Sean Paul Murphy
Subscribe on YouTube: Sean Paul Murphy

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast #94: Ladies Choice 2

Here's another COVID free ZOOM edition of the Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast, a lively discussion of the movies that sometimes devolves into a group therapy session. 

Three years ago Podmaster Ralph had the bright idea of inviting our spouses and/or significant others onto the podcast for a Ladies Choice episode. Due in part to the dangerous combination of open bar and open mic, the results were disastrous. Ralph was traumatized and quit the podcast for eight months. Well, he decided to try it again. In this episode, Ralph, John and Chris invited their significant others on to discuss their Valentine's Day movie choices. Of course, my wife Debbie was already a weekly member so there's no way there would be trouble on that front....

Here's the podcast on YouTube: 

Our Podcast is now available for download on iTunes: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Subscribe to our YouTube page: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Check out our webpage: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast

Like us on Facebook: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast.
Follow us on Twitter: YKYPodcast
Check out Wojo's webpage: Wojo's World
And follow her on Twitter: @TheMicheleWojo

Check out our other episodes here:


My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can currently buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:

Thursday, February 10, 2022

Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast #93: Soylent Green

Here's another COVID free ZOOM edition of the Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast, a lively discussion of the movies that sometimes devolves into a group therapy session. 

In this episode we take a look at 2022 from the perspective of 1973 with the sci-fi classic Soylent Green, starring the ever sturdy Charlton Heston. Their vision of our present was very dystopian with overpopulation, global warming and environmental collapse. The population would die of starvation if it weren't a new food: Soylent Green. But what exactly is Soylent Green? I think you'll figure it out before Charlton Heston.

Here's the trailer for the movie:

     

Here's the podcast on YouTube:

      

Our Podcast is now available for download on iTunes: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Subscribe to our YouTube page: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Check out our webpage: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast

Like us on Facebook: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast.
Follow us on Twitter: YKYPodcast
Check out Wojo's webpage: Wojo's World
And follow her on Twitter: @TheMicheleWojo

Check out our other episodes here:


My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can currently buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Chapel Street Review: Ash Hoffen Horror

One of the best novels of 2022 so far? I'll take that!  Thanks for the kind words! Click on the image to read the review.

 

My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & NobleChapel Street is the tale of a young man battling a demonic entity that has driven members of his family to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting. 

Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:

The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

Let's stay in touch:

Follow me on Twitter: SeanPaulMurphy
Follow me on Facebook: Sean Paul Murphy
Follow me on Instagram: Sean Paul Murphy
Subscribe on YouTube: Sean Paul Murphy

Friday, February 4, 2022

Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast #92: Cool Runnings

Here's another COVID free ZOOM edition of the Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast, a lively discussion of the movies that sometimes devolves into a group therapy session. 

Mother Podcaster Deborah did something no other member of the team had done: Brought a film to the table that none of the other Mothers had seen. This had only happened previously when special guests who brought their own movies. This was a first in a regular episode.

The film was 1993's Cool Runnings about the Jamaican bobsledding team that competed in the 1988 Winter Olympics. It was a great choice to start our Olympic season this year. Everyone found the story interesting. Everyone found the performances endearing. Everyone found the ending uplifting. But did that make it a good movie? Listen and find out.

Here's the trailer for the movie:

   

Here's the podcast on YouTube:

    

Our Podcast is now available for download on iTunes: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Subscribe to our YouTube page: Yippee Ki Yay Mother Podcast
Check out our webpage: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast

Like us on Facebook: Yippee-Ki-Yay Mother Podcast.
Follow us on Twitter: YKYPodcast
Check out Wojo's webpage: Wojo's World
And follow her on Twitter: @TheMicheleWojo

Check out our other episodes here:


My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can currently buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

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Thursday, February 3, 2022

My Family: 1st Lieutenant Charles Edward Farber, KIA

Charles Edward Farber

I have always been a student of World War II. However, I spent most of my time reading about the European theater. I didn't give very much attention to the Pacific theater, despite my grandfather Kenneth Protani's participation in it. Lately, I have been listening to a number of podcasts about the Pacific war, and I wanted to honor one of my relatives who had died in that conflict.

I always viewed my Farber relatives as being lucky in war. The Farber family arrived from Germany during the 1850s and, after a brief stay in New York, became some of the earliest settlers of what is now the Petersburg section of Scranton, Pennsylvania. However, they were just another family of immigrant laborers until the Civil War. During that conflict, my 2nd great-grandfather Joseph Farber, who was forty-two-years old at the time, and a number of his children volunteered to fight for the Union cause. Reading about them now, it seems that their military service truly Americanized them. Afterwards, they all remained active in veteran and political organizations. My 2nd great-granduncle George Farber, who famously fired the last shots of the Civil War, became a well-known local politician. Farber Court, in Scranton, is named after the family.

I felt their luck in combat continued after the Civil War. I remarked to my grandmother Margaret Robertson Murphy that I couldn't find a Farber who had died in a war. She said that wasn't true. She told me one of her cousins, Charles Edward Farber, died during World War II flying "over the hump" to bring supplies to our Chinese allies. I thought his story would be a good way to honor the men and women who fought in the Pacific theater. I decided to research him. My grandmother's memory proved correct about her cousin dying in a plane, but it wasn't over the hump. He met his fate in a much more deadly airspace.  

Here's his story:

Charles Edward Farber was born on 20 November 1917 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Louis L. Farber and his second wife Ida Charlotte Sophia Mayer. Louis was born on May 16, 1867 in Scranton. He was previously married to Elizabeth Kramer and had three children with her. After she died in 1912, Louis married Ida and started a second family with her. They had two children. Charles had an older sister named Gertrude.

Here's a newspaper story about the wedding of Louis Farber and Ida Mayer:

Scranton Republican (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 29 May 1913, Thu:

     Louis Farber of 1022 North Irving avenue, and Miss Ida Mayer, daughter of Mrs. Louis Mayer, of 1408 Ash street, were married last evening in the home of the bride's mother by Rev. O. H. Dietrich, pastor of the Petersburg Presbyterian German church. The couple was unattended. Following the ceremony a wedding dinner was served to forty-five guests. Mrs. George Mechler, Mrs. Augusta Thauer, Mrs. Henry Wenzel and Mrs. A. Kehsli served.
     The bride made a charming appearance attired in a gown of crep-de-voile, trimmed with shadow lace and pearls. She also wore a sash of white satin trimmed with pearls.
     The couple will leave Saturday for Philadelphia and Atlantic City where they will spend a ten day honeymoon. They will reside at 1022 North Irving avenue upon their return.
     The bride has resided in the Petersburg section of the city since her birth and is well known there. The bridegroom is employed as a driver for Chemical company No. 3 on Ash street, and is popular with a large following of friends.

Charles was a child of old age. His father was fifty-years-old when Charles was born. His mother was thirty-six. Sadly, Louis, a retired fireman, died when Charles was only thirteen-years-old. His mother never remarried and lived to be ninety-five-years old.

Here's a story about the death of his father Louis Farber:

Louis L Farber

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 10 April 1930, Thu:

Louis Farber Expires While Dirigible Flies
-----
Retired Member of Fire Department Succumbs
to Heart Attack After Being Awakened by Wife
To See "Los Angeles" Pass Over City
-----

     Stricken with a heart attack just as the Los Angeles dirigible was passing over this city around 1:30 o'clock this morning, Louis L. Farber, for twenty-five years a prominent member of the city fire department died in his bed at his home, Ash street and Irving avenue. At the time he was retired on pension, two years ago, Mr. Farber held the rank of lieutenant. He was in his sixty-second year.
     Soon after the whirring of the propellers of the giant ship was heard over Scranton, Mrs. Farber, wife of the victim, awakened her husband so that he could glimpse the air Leviathan as it passed over the city on its moonlight trip. Mr. Farber complained of a slight pain and remained in bed while his wife went to a nearby window to view the ship. Minutes later when she returned to tell her husband of the inspiring sight Mrs. Farber found that he was dead. Dr. James R. Skeoch was hurriedly summoned but Mr. Farber was beyond medical aid. An acute heart attack was pronounced as the cause of his passing.
     Mr. Farber retired last evening apparently in the best of health, according to members of the family. Up until one week ago, he was engaged as an attendant at the First National bank. Mr. Farber retired from the fire department with a record unmarred during twenty-five years of service. For the greater part of that time, he had been stationed at Hose company No. 1, Ash street.
     Although he had been retired from the service, Mr. Farber never lost interest in the department, he was always telling his friends that he maintained a deep interest in "the boys." Only two weeks ago, he attended a meeting at Engine No. 1 rooms, Franklin avenue, at which time preliminary steps were taken to form a firemen's pension organization. Mr. Farber had planned to co-operate with present members of the department in extending the proposition to other units in the city.
     He is survived by his widow, Ida; a daughter, Gertrude, at home; three sons, Frank, Detroit, Mich; William and Charles, this city; a sister and three brothers. No funeral arrangements have been made.

Charles was obviously raised in a family that valued community service. He would soon have his chance to serve his country as the storm clouds gathered. Here's his World War II draft registration card.


Charles enlisted in the Army Air Corps on 1 February 1942, but he still found time for love. Here's a story about his marriage to Miss Jean Therese Boland.

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 15 Oct 1942, Thu:

MISS JEAN BOLAND TO WED SATURDAY
     
     The marriage of Miss Jean Boland, Washington, D.C., daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Boland, Moosic Street, to Charles Farber, Washington, son of Mrs. Louis L. Farber, Ash Street, and the late Mr. Farber, will take place Saturday at 4 p.m. in Washington.
     Miss Boland is a graduate of Technical High School and was employed by the Woman's Institute. Mr. Farber is a graduate of Technical High School and is a former employee of W.A. Case & Son manufacturing Company.

The war would separate the young couple. In a couple of months, Charles would be inducted.

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 9 Feb 1943, Tue:

FARBER INDUCTED

     Charles E. Farber, son of Ida Farber, 1323 Ash Street, has arrived at Miami Beach, Fla., according to word received yesterday by his mother. Aviation Cadet Farber left Philadelphia Friday, having enlisted some time ago in the Army Air Corps. He has been working for six months in the War Production Board, Washington, D.C., and was employed before that time at Chase and Company, plumbing supplies, Scranton.

Jean would return to Scranton as Charles trained for the Army Air Force in Texas. Here's a story from the newspaper when he completed his training.

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 14 June 1944, Wed:


After his training was complete, Charles was able to return home on leave to visit his wife and mother.  Here's the story:

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 10 January 1945, Wed:

EAST SCRANTON NOTES

     Lt. and Mrs. Charles Farber are visiting the former's mother, Mrs. Ida Farber, Ash St. Lieutenant Farber has been stationed at an Army Air Forces Field in Texas, serving as a navigator bombardier.

After his leave, it was time for Charles to put to practice the skills he learned. He was sent into aerial combat in the Pacific. He became a bombardier on a B-29 Superfortress. He was one of eleven crew members assigned to bomber #42-65295. The aircraft was piloted by 1st Lt. Marvel L. Geer of Oregon. Charles sent a letter home to his wife about his first mission and it was dutifully reported in the Men In Armed Forces section of the newspaper.  Here it is:

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 15 March 1945, Thu:

Lieut. Charles Farber, son of Mrs. Ida Farber, 1327 Ash Street, and husband of the former Jean Boland, 705 Moosic Street, was a member of a B-29 bomber crew that made a twelve-hour flight on March 4 giving Tokyo a terrific pounding, according to word received here by his mother and wife. It was Lieutenant Farber's first mission over enemy territory. He said none of the 300 B-29s was lost in the raid. The bombardier-navigator was graduated from a school at San Angelo, Tex., and left for overseas duty on Feb. 14 of this year. He is now based in the Marianas.

I couldn't find any specific information about a 300 plane raid on Tokyo on March 4th. However, on the night of March 10th, Operation Meetinghouse took place. It was the single most destructive bombing raid in human history. The firebombing destroyed 16 square miles of central Tokyo and took more than 100,000 lives. I think it is safe to assume that Charles took part in that mission.

I don't know how many bombing raid Charles participated in, but three months later his family received the news that every family dreaded. He was missing in action.  Here's the story:

The Tribune (Scranton, Pennsylvania) 31 June 1945, Wed:

     2d Lieut. Charles E. Farber, husband of the former Miss Jean Boland, 705 Moosic Street, and son of Mrs. Ida Farber, 1327 Ash Street, was reported in The Times' news broadcast yesterday over WQAN to be missing since April 29 on a bombing mission over Japan. He is a bombardier on a B-29 Superfortress and was based in the Marianas.
     His mother received word that he was missing in a War Department telegram delivered to her upon her return home from the Memorial Day exercises yesterday morning for East Scranton servicemen who made the supreme sacrifice.
     Lieutenant Farber entered the army on Jan. 30, 1943, and was graduated from the San Angelo, Tex., Army Airfield Bombardier School and commissioned in June, 1944. He was home on leave last January and went overseas in the middle of February. A graduate of the Technical High School and the Wharton Extension School, he was employed as a salesman by the W. A. Case & Son Manufacturing Company before entering the service.

According to Findagrave volunteer Russell S. "Russ" Pickett, here's what happened:

     Charles was "Killed In Action" when his B-29 was forced to leave formation when it was attacked by Japanese fighter planes while on a mission to bomb Nyakonojo Airfield, Kyushu, Japan during the war.
     The B-29 was believed to have been hit by an aerial bomb and crashed in Karakama, Mobiki Village, Kimotsuki County, Kagoshima Prefecture. No parachutes were observed. He was originally interred overseas and was later repatriated here on August 8, 1949.
     He was awarded the Purple Heart.
     Service # O-2060689
     The reason he is named on a group headstone is because when soldier's were killed in close proximity to each other they were unable, at that time, to identify them separately and interred their remains together in one grave.

Airmen who perished on B-29 #42-65295:

Allain, Joseph V ~ Sgt, Radio Operator, Illinois
Block, William R ~ M/Sgt, Engineer, Wisconsin
Farber, Charles E ~ 1st Lt, Bombardier, Pennsylvania
Geer, Marvel L ~ 1st Lt, Pilot, Oregon
Hix, Carnie B ~ T/Sgt, Aerial Gunner, Texas
Middlemas, Robert C ~ Sgt, Aerial Gunner, New Jersey
Morrisroe, Robert G ~ Sgt, Aerial Gunner, New Jersey
Mueller, Emil W ~ Sgt, Radar Operator, New York
Plunge, Edward J ~ S/Sgt, Aerial Gunner, Connecticut
Sullivan, Edward J, Jr. ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, Massachusetts
Widows, Harry J ~ 1st Lt, Co-Pilot, Iowa

Charles' wife Jean later married Francis McNamara. They had two children. She died on 27 March 1999 at the age of 81. Interestingly, Charles is mentioned in her obituary but her second husband was not. His mother Ida was ninety-five when she died on 26 December 1976. She seemed devoted to keeping Charles' memory alive. He was referenced in every story about her in the newspaper.

Charles was my second cousin, twice removed. That may sound distant, but my grandmother knew him and remembered him. They lived near each other and attended the same church. She told me about his death, but I wish I asked her more about his life. She could have provided me personal details about him as a man, not just as a warrior. That would have been very fitting here. Still, even if I couldn't provide many personal details, I am happy I had the chance to honor his service to our country.

Charles Edward Farber, thank you and your fellow crew members for making the ultimate sacrifice for us. You are not forgotten!

Click here for more of my genealogical blogs:


Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God, published by TouchPoint Press. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.



Here are some sample chapters of The Promise:

Chapter 7 - Mission Accomplished
Chapter 15 - Quarter To Midnight

Be sure to check out my novel Chapel Street. It tells the story of a young man straddling the line between sanity and madness while battling a demonic entity that has driven his family members to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting my family experienced.

You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble.


Learn more about the book, click Here.

Watch the book trailer:

  

Listen to me read some chapters here:


Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here:
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 1, An Introduction
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1 
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3

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