WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:17.960 A man earns two million dollars an hour. 00:17.960 --> 00:20.120 Two famous authors engage in a public fight. 00:20.120 --> 00:23.760 A noted man gets a warm place by the fire through a half a pack of oysters. 00:23.760 --> 00:24.760 Can you imagine that? 00:24.760 --> 00:27.880 This is Lindsay McCarrie once more, ladies and gentlemen, introducing another session 00:27.880 --> 00:31.920 of this series of broadcasts in which we try to dramatize for you some of the more surprising 00:31.920 --> 00:33.680 incidents and facts of the world. 00:33.680 --> 00:36.040 We'll return in just a moment with the first one. 00:36.040 --> 00:40.360 Subscribe to Sangria 2019 to see the original 01:36.040 --> 02:05.200 And 02:05.200 --> 02:09.560 here's our first item. Sometimes we gasp at the fortunes made and lost overnight in a 02:09.560 --> 02:14.040 furious buy and sell flurry in the stock market. But did you ever hear of anyone earning two 02:14.040 --> 02:19.800 million dollars an hour? Yes, I said two million dollars an hour. It staggers the imagination 02:19.800 --> 02:23.720 to think of what that might amount to in a year or even a month. Just give me one day 02:23.720 --> 02:28.240 like that and I'd be willing to let the rest of the world go by. In fact, I'd buy a few 02:28.240 --> 02:32.280 things I've always been wanting. But here's the proof of that amazing statement. Vance 02:32.280 --> 02:36.800 Breeze, famous test pilot, once took a plane up for a test dive. He took the ship up to 02:36.800 --> 02:42.440 20,000 feet and dived within 4,000 feet to the ground. The dive took up 15 seconds for 02:42.440 --> 02:47.040 which Vance Breeze was paid 8,000 dollars. If you're mathematically inclined, expand 02:47.040 --> 02:52.280 those 15 seconds into a minute, which gives you 32,000 dollars. Multiply by 60 and you 02:52.280 --> 02:58.480 reach the staggering total of nearly two million dollars per hour. Can you imagine that? You 02:58.480 --> 03:02.560 know it occurs quite often that two famous men will engage in a feud of words over some 03:02.560 --> 03:06.360 bitterly contested difference. But it seldom happens that any two great men will come to 03:06.360 --> 03:12.480 a physical encounter. It did happen on one Thursday evening in 1931, March 29 to be exact, 03:12.480 --> 03:15.960 within the heavily draped and thickly carpeted walls of the Metropolitan Club in New York 03:15.960 --> 03:21.080 City. On that night, Mr. Ray Long, editor of the Cosmopolitan Magazine, was entertaining 03:21.080 --> 03:25.440 at a banquet in honor of the Russian writer, Mr. Boris Pilnyak. Among those attending were 03:25.440 --> 03:30.040 such noble names of letters as Mr. Irvin S. Cobb, Mr. Haywood Brune, Mr. Arthur Brisbane, 03:30.040 --> 03:35.240 Mr. Rupert Hughes, Mr. Theodore Dreiser, and Mr. Sinclair Lewis, as well as a rather imposing 03:35.240 --> 03:39.960 array of American literary critics. After cigars had been passed and lighted, and as 03:39.960 --> 03:43.800 the men of the fourth estate sat chatting over their demitasse, their host, Mr. Ray 03:43.800 --> 03:46.840 Long, arose and tapped on his glass. 03:46.840 --> 03:53.680 Gentlemen, gentlemen, gentlemen, it is our pleasure this evening to welcome to the metropolis 03:53.680 --> 03:58.800 and to America a colleague from across the sea, a man of letters who has come to visit 03:58.800 --> 04:04.840 our land from the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics, a man whose fame has long preceded 04:04.840 --> 04:14.160 his actual presence among us, Boris Pilnyak. I'm going to assume the privilege of calling 04:14.160 --> 04:18.880 upon several of you to welcome this fellow penman in your own way. First, I know you'll 04:18.880 --> 04:25.520 be glad to hear a word or two from a gentleman recently from Minnesota, but more recently, 04:25.520 --> 04:31.080 winner of the coveted Nobel Prize for Literature, Mr. Sinclair Lewis. 04:31.080 --> 04:40.120 Mr. Long, gentlemen, I'm very happy to meet Mr. Pilnyak, but I do not care to speak in 04:40.120 --> 04:46.640 the presence of a man who has plagiarized 3,000 words from my wife's book on Russia, 04:46.640 --> 04:52.880 nor do I care to talk before two sage critics who objected to the Nobel Committee's selection 04:52.880 --> 05:01.920 of me as America's representative writer. 05:01.920 --> 05:07.660 Thank you, Mr. Lewis. Now I'm sure we'll all be glad to hear a few words from that Dean 05:07.660 --> 05:16.280 of American Humorists, Mr. Irvin S. Carr. 05:16.280 --> 05:22.680 Thank you, Mr. Long. I don't know whether I'm Dean or not, but one thing I'm certain 05:22.680 --> 05:30.080 of is that right now I'd rather be Dean than President. Well, I suppose you'll expect the 05:30.080 --> 05:36.600 story about the old days down in Paducah. 05:36.600 --> 05:41.880 Wisely calling upon sure fire Irvin Cobb, Long saved the situation momentarily. Following 05:41.880 --> 05:46.400 Cobb, others paid just tribute to the guest of honor, and at last the banquet adjourned. 05:46.400 --> 05:50.840 As small groups gathered to discuss the speeches, two newspaper men assigned to cover the event 05:50.840 --> 05:52.160 stood by one of the doors. 05:52.160 --> 05:56.480 Hey, what did Lewis mean by the one man who has plagiarized his wife's book on Russia? 05:56.480 --> 05:58.240 Don't you know? Theodore Dreiser. 05:58.240 --> 05:59.240 Why? 05:59.240 --> 06:01.600 Sure, you remember? Dreiser... Hey, hey, look. 06:01.600 --> 06:02.600 What's the matter? 06:02.600 --> 06:05.120 There they are. Lewis and Dreiser sitting at that table talking. 06:05.120 --> 06:09.240 Yeah, man, and how they're talking. Come on, come on, let's get up a little closer. 06:09.240 --> 06:12.720 Dreiser, you're a liar and a cheat. 06:12.720 --> 06:21.240 For the love of Mike, Dreiser slapping Lewis in the face. 06:21.240 --> 06:29.480 Yes, friends, truly indeed did Mr. Lewis, Nobel Prize winner, author of Main Street, 06:29.480 --> 06:33.560 Babbitt and Aerosmith, receive several resounding smacks upon his countenance from the ample 06:33.560 --> 06:39.200 palm of portly Mr. Dreiser, Nobel Prize runner-up, author of An American Tragedy, The Genius, 06:39.200 --> 06:43.200 and The Hand of the Potter until the latter was restrained by fellow writers. 06:43.200 --> 06:44.720 The next day remarked Mr. Lewis. 06:44.720 --> 06:49.040 Dreiser's a pretty big fellow. He must weigh close to 200 pounds. 06:49.040 --> 06:54.400 I'll bet he could have put up a good scrap if they'd let us go. Still, he's pretty old. 06:54.400 --> 06:55.400 Must be 60. 06:55.400 --> 06:59.800 You know, he was an established editor in New York when I was just a kid trying to get 06:59.800 --> 07:05.160 along. The incident, however, is closed as far as I'm concerned. Can't two men have a 07:05.160 --> 07:08.200 private squabble without all this fuss being made over it? 07:08.200 --> 07:12.280 Then after some difficulty, Theodore Dreiser was located at his apartment on 57th Avenue. 07:12.280 --> 07:13.920 He made the succinct comment. 07:13.920 --> 07:16.800 It was the proper retort to any insult. 07:16.800 --> 07:22.760 And thus did 1931 witness the amazing progress of Barrett between two of America's leading 07:22.760 --> 07:25.120 writers. Can you imagine that? 07:25.120 --> 07:27.460 God helps those who help themselves. 07:27.460 --> 07:31.200 And that's a saying that's well enough known to everyone, but here's a case where it was 07:31.200 --> 07:35.760 put to practical use by the famous American statesman, Benjamin Franklin. It's one of 07:35.760 --> 07:39.600 those human interest stories that take the varnish and veneer of legend away from our 07:39.600 --> 07:43.640 national heroes and make them just plain human beings like ourselves. 07:43.640 --> 07:47.600 It seems that Benjamin Franklin was traveling one night in bitterly cold weather. He reigned 07:47.600 --> 07:52.120 his horse up in front of a cozy looking tavern and one of the hostels ran up to meet him. 07:52.120 --> 07:54.760 Good evening, sir. It's a bit of cold tonight. 07:54.760 --> 07:59.680 Yes, it is. But I suppose I'll be able to thaw the ice from my bones in your tavern 07:59.680 --> 08:01.040 here. Looks cozy enough. 08:01.040 --> 08:06.120 Well, I don't know, sir. A lot of others had the same idea. A few of the townsmen are 08:06.120 --> 08:10.040 toasting themselves in front of the fire. They save wood in their own homes. 08:10.040 --> 08:12.440 And no place by the fire for a frozen traveler? 08:12.440 --> 08:16.880 None at all, sir. But you can try. I'll take your horse to the stable, sir. 08:16.880 --> 08:17.880 Thank you. Thank you. 08:17.880 --> 08:24.880 Well, good evening, sir. Good evening. It's a bit of cold out there. 08:24.880 --> 08:28.760 Yes. But cozy in here. Warm. With a cheery fire. 08:28.760 --> 08:33.800 Well, I always manage to keep a blaze going, sir. Even with times as hard as they are. 08:33.800 --> 08:36.280 I suppose I couldn't find a place by the fire. 08:36.280 --> 08:40.040 Well, no, sir. I... The places are all taken. 08:40.040 --> 08:46.320 Well, no matter. But, landlord, you may take a half pack of oysters out for my horse. 08:46.320 --> 08:49.480 A half pack of oysters? For your horse? 08:49.480 --> 08:51.680 A half pack of oysters for my horse. 08:51.680 --> 08:54.320 Very good, sir. And, landlord? 08:54.320 --> 08:57.160 Yes, sir? On the shell. 08:57.160 --> 08:59.280 On the shell? For a horse? 08:59.280 --> 09:01.840 Bless my soul. I'll get them right away, sir. 09:01.840 --> 09:06.840 Why do you say shell for a horse? I'm going out to see the horse eat them. 09:06.840 --> 09:07.840 I see that. 09:07.840 --> 09:14.840 Ah. A seat by the fire. Nothing like it on a cold night. 09:14.840 --> 09:20.520 So Franklin seated himself comfortably in one of the vacated chairs by the fire. 09:20.520 --> 09:22.160 But it wasn't long before... 09:22.160 --> 09:27.160 I beg your pardon, sir. I beg your pardon. But your horse won't eat the oysters. 09:27.160 --> 09:32.160 Oh, won't he? Well, no matter now. Just bring them in here and I'll eat them myself. 09:32.160 --> 09:38.080 And so Benjamin Franklin, the humorist and statesman, got himself a warm place by the 09:38.080 --> 09:42.360 fire with no fuss, no bother. Can you imagine that? 09:42.360 --> 09:45.680 Comes time now for another of our Can You Imagine That musical oddities. 09:45.680 --> 09:49.480 We all like to play detective and now we're going to give you your chance to do a little 09:49.480 --> 09:51.280 melodic snooping. 09:51.280 --> 09:54.800 If you ferret out the clues, you can award yourself a bright badge and a diploma complete 09:54.800 --> 09:56.480 with fingerprint outfit. 09:56.480 --> 10:00.720 First, let's listen to a composition of the immortal Frédéric Chopin, whose delicate 10:00.720 --> 10:03.760 musical traceries have left him undying fame. 10:03.760 --> 10:08.360 While you're listening to it, try to figure out what popular tune of pre-war days sounds 10:08.360 --> 10:09.720 very, very much like it. 10:09.720 --> 10:14.720 Are you ready? Then listen to Chopin's Fantasy Impromptu in C-sharp minor. 10:14.720 --> 10:33.440 Did you catch it? Well, we're not going to give you another chance on the Fantasy Impromptu, 10:33.440 --> 10:38.360 but here's the popular tune of pre-war days. We're sure you'll recognize the melody, but 10:38.360 --> 10:41.200 if you don't, the lyrics will tell you all about it. 10:41.200 --> 10:42.200 Listen. 10:42.200 --> 10:49.200 I'm always chasing rainbows, watching clouds drifting by. 10:49.200 --> 11:10.200 My schemes are just like all my dreams, standing in the sky. 11:10.200 --> 11:14.200 Some fellows look and find the sunshine. 11:14.200 --> 11:18.200 I always look and find the way. 11:18.200 --> 11:22.200 Some fellows make a winning sometime. 11:22.200 --> 11:27.200 I never even make a gain. 11:27.200 --> 11:37.200 Believe me, I'm always chasing rainbows, 11:37.200 --> 11:47.200 waiting to find a little bluebird in there. 12:07.200 --> 12:30.200 Believe me, I'm always chasing rainbows, 12:30.200 --> 12:49.200 waiting to find a little bluebird in there. 12:49.200 --> 12:52.960 And there it is, the closing item on another session of Can You Imagine That? But we'll 12:52.960 --> 12:56.280 be back with you soon on this same station, and we most heartily invite you to be with 12:56.280 --> 12:57.280 us at that time. 12:57.280 --> 13:00.280 Until then, this is Lindsay McHarris saying goodbye now. 13:27.280 --> 13:50.280 Thank you. 13:57.280 --> 14:25.280 Thank you. 14:27.280 --> 14:44.280 Thank you.