Richard Kreitner

richardkreitner

Richard Kreitner is a contributing writer and the author of Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America's Imperfect Union. His writings are at richardkreitner.com.

February 13, 1990: Agreement Is Reached on a Plan to Reunify Germany

February 13, 1990: Agreement Is Reached on a Plan to Reunify Germany February 13, 1990: Agreement Is Reached on a Plan to Reunify Germany

The new Germany, The Nation said, ought not to become yet another “bully on the block.”

Feb 13, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 12, 1924: George Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ Premieres in New York

February 12, 1924: George Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ Premieres in New York February 12, 1924: George Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ Premieres in New York

It was “a new chapter to our musical history,” The Nation’s reviewer averred.

Feb 12, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 11, 1916: Emma Goldman Is Arrested for Distributing Information About Birth Control

February 11, 1916: Emma Goldman Is Arrested for Distributing Information About Birth Control February 11, 1916: Emma Goldman Is Arrested for Distributing Information About Birth Control

100 years ago, The Nation ran a profile of “Emma Goldman, prophetess of anarchy.”

Feb 11, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 10, 1962: Roy Lichtenstein Exhibits ‘Look, Mickey!’

February 10, 1962: Roy Lichtenstein Exhibits ‘Look, Mickey!’ February 10, 1962: Roy Lichtenstein Exhibits ‘Look, Mickey!’

Pop Art as an insult to the intelligence.

Feb 10, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 9, 1737: Thomas Paine Is Born

February 9, 1737: Thomas Paine Is Born February 9, 1737: Thomas Paine Is Born

Paine was the enemy of “the tyranny of masters over slaves, of husbands over wives, of mankind over dumb beasts.”

Feb 9, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 8, 1915: ‘The Birth of a Nation’ Opens in Theaters

February 8, 1915: ‘The Birth of a Nation’ Opens in Theaters February 8, 1915: ‘The Birth of a Nation’ Opens in Theaters

The Nation favored censoring the film for “arousing race hatred.”

Feb 8, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 7, 1964: The Beatles Arrive in the United States

February 7, 1964: The Beatles Arrive in the United States February 7, 1964: The Beatles Arrive in the United States

The Nation’s scathing review of the Beatles, a “derivative” act, “manna for dull minds.”

Feb 7, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 6, 1911: Ronald Reagan is Born

February 6, 1911: Ronald Reagan is Born February 6, 1911: Ronald Reagan is Born

A brief history of the “third-rate student at a fifth-rate college.”

Feb 6, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 5, 1937: President Franklin Roosevelt Proposes to ‘Pack’ the Supreme Court

February 5, 1937: President Franklin Roosevelt Proposes to ‘Pack’ the Supreme Court February 5, 1937: President Franklin Roosevelt Proposes to ‘Pack’ the Supreme Court

The so-called “court-packing” scheme was endorsed heartily by The Nation—unsurprisingly, as the plan was first floated in its pages four years earlier.

Feb 5, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

February 4, 1899: Fighting Erupts Between the Philippines and the United States

February 4, 1899: Fighting Erupts Between the Philippines and the United States February 4, 1899: Fighting Erupts Between the Philippines and the United States

Somehow, The Nation lamented, “we got hold of the notion that it would be a good thing to annex 1,200 islands at the other end of the world.”

Feb 4, 2015 / Richard Kreitner and The Almanac

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