Twelve Discontinued Beers That Sadly You'll Never See Again-- Part 1: Good Ol' Falstaff

From December 7, 2022, Eat This, Not That!  by Tanya Adwards.

If you like beer like me, you'll find this of interest.  Fortunately, I had not ever heard of or had most of them.  I will start by listing the ones with which I  was familiar.

1.  Bud Dry--  Heard of it, but never tried it.  I'm not a big Bud fan, especially of Bud Light.

2.  Miller High Life Light--   Tried it, but no Miller High Life product out of a can hits it with me.  It's got to be in a Blonde or nothing.

3.  Pete's Wicked Ale--  Heard of it but never tried it.  Unfortunately craft beers are expensive and I tend to be a cheap beer drinker.

4.  Falstaff--  A favorite of mine--  and CHEAP!!!

5.  Meister Brau--  A Chicago beer bought by Miller and phased out.  Of interest, Meister Brau was one of the first breweries to feature a light beer, Meister Brau Lite.  This is where Miller Lite comes from, my favorite beer.

6.  Milwaukee's Best--   This became a favorite beer of college students because it was CHEAP.  Back in the 1970s at NIU in the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity, we drank Old Milwaukee for the same reason.  A six pack of Old Milwaukee went for 99 cents.  A six pack of Coca-Cola went for a $1.49.  As such, we were FORCED to drink beer.

7.  Red, White & Blue Lager--  Again, it was CHEAP!

**  Anybody remember Pickett Beer from Dubuque, Iowa.  I used to buy their beer for $5 a case!!  And, it was good.

Little Old Cheap Beer Drinker Me.  --CootDrunk

Bluto Meets Clark at Volo Auto Museum-- Part 3: About That 'Vette

This title comes from their having the original Corvette from the movie "Animal House" with Bluto Blutarsky and the Clark Griswold Family Truckster from the movie "Vacation."  Two of my all-time favorite movies.

The "Animal House" Corvette was the one that Eroc "Otter" Stratton owned.

The road to procuring the "Animal House" Corvette was a winding one according to Brian Grams of the Volo Auto Museum,  First they had to deal with the Mercurial Mr. Smith who owned it.  He wanted a six-figure payment for his Corvette and it had to be in cash -- specifically in $100 bills. 

And, that was with the fact that the car's keys had been misplaced and that it hadn't run since the 1980s.

Well, Grams got his car, regardless.  Plus there were some extras that sweetened the deal.  That included the movie's transportation coordinators signed copy of the original film script that came with the car as well as the October 24,1977, dated Universal City Studios receipt for four weeks of rental, along with a copy of the $400 check written to Mr. Smith for that rental.  (What, not four $100 bills?)

Plus, Grams said the car has great value both in the fact that it is a verified piece of movie history and as a solid 1959 model Corvette featuring a dual quad high-performance engine and original paint.

"Corvette people are purists," he said.  "They love original paint, even if it does have a  few battle scars."

"Was It Over When the Germans Bombed Pearl Harbor?"  --RoadDog

Bluto Meets Clark at the Volo Auto Museum-- Part 2: Acquiring the Corvette

The Corvette was featured in the 1978 breakout movie for John Belushi, "Animal House" and was featured in posters of it.  (And, it sure reminded me of my dear old frat rat days with the Delta Sigs at NIU.)

That Corvette spent decades in a pole barn near Eugene, Oregon, where the movie was filmed.  The previous owner, before Brian Grams, director of the Volo Auto Museum, said that its previous owner, Paul Smith, bought it in 1975 as a gift for his wife.  But, neither one of them liked the car much, so, it sat, accumulating only about 200 miles on the odometer, most of those coming during the filming of the movie in 1977.

Paul Smith is an old-time drag racer and car guy.  He used to scout cars for film projects, and he offered his Vette when the producers of "Animal House" were looking.

--Cootimal

Going Back to 1970-- Part 1: 'What Is Life'

On May 8, 2021, Chicago's WXRT, 93.1 FM went back to 1970 on its Saturday Morning Flashback Show.  It took me right back to that great college/fraternity year at NIU.

Songs played:

TEACHER--  Jethro Tull  Remember, they were the recipients of the first Grammy for Heavy metal.

WOODSTOCK--  Joni Mitchell

GALLOWS POLE--  Led Zeppelin

I CAN'T GET NEXT TO YOU--  Temptations

WHAT IS LIFE--  George Harrison  What is better than one Beatles group?  Why, four different Beatles releasing songs at the same time. Lots more Beatles music.

REVIVAL--  Allman Brothers Band

WHY DOES LOVE GOT TO BE SO SAD--  Derek & the Dominos

THANK YOU--  Sly & the Family Stone

FEELIN' ALRIGHT (LIVE)--  Joe Cocker

COUNTRY GIRL--  Crosby, Stills & Nash

SHAKIN' ALL OVER (LIVE)--   Who

MAKE ME SMILE--  Chicago

ARE YOU READY--  Pacific Gas & Electric

Name That Tune (from the above songs):  "Lookin' At The devil, Grinnin' At His Gun, Fingers Start Shakin', I Begin To Run."  Answer below.  --  RoadDog

"Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)"

Deaths: William 'Bill' Schulz, Member of Hebron 1952 State IHSA Basketball Champs-- Part 3:

Bill then received a scholarship to play basketball for Northwestern University.  he was co-captain of the team his senior year and a member of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity.  he met his wife, Karin, at  Northwestern, and they married August 31, 1957.  

After living in Evanston for two years, they moved to Northbrook, Illinois, and lived there for 56 years.

Bill never waned in his support of Northwestern teams.  He was a loyal fan and season ticket holder for NU football and basketball game and he and Karin traveled to cheer the NU football teams in several bowl games.

Bill joined Motorola in 1957 and stayed with its Quasar  division after it was sold to Panasonic.

In 1987, he became the proud owner of a True Value Hardware store.

Quite a Man.  

What was That David vs. Goliath Stuff.  Hebron vs. Quincy.

NIU's 125th Anniversary-- Part 4: Huskies, Greeks, Lorado Taft and Grad

1940--  Northern Illinois' athletic teams  are formally named the Huskies.

1944--  First official Greek organizations installed.

1949--  Leslie A. Holmes  becomes fifth president.

1949--  The NISTC Foundation established.

January 22, 1951--  The first master's degree is authorized.

1951--  Gilbert Hall, the first men's dormitory, opens.

1951--  Lorado Taft Field Campus is established.

1952--  Founding of the Graduate School.  I received my BS-Ed in 1973 and MA-History on 1981.  Both from NIU.  Liz received her BS-Ed in 1973 and MA-Ed from Concordia College.

--CootGrad

Mising the Boat May Have Saved George Halas' Life-- Part 3: He's Alive!!

Three days later, the Chicago Tribune ran a list of Western Electric employees who were still missing and possibly dead.  One of those listed read "Halas, G.S., Sept. 4110."  None other than our eventual "Papa Bear."

"Two of his fraternity brothers from the University of Illinois read the newspaper  with his name on the list, and they came to my grandfather's home to express condolences to my grandfather's mother,"  McCaskey said.  "They were delighted and surprised when my grandfather answered the door."

According to the Eastland Disaster Historical Society, Halas played on Western Electric's sports  teams and was going to play in the picnic baseball game.  His plan was to meet his best friend, Ralph Brizzalara, and Ralph's brother, Charles.  Both boarded the Eastland and both survived.

He's Alive.  --Cooter

Let's Dance-- Part 10: Give Me Good Old Frat/Soul Dancing Anytime

My idea of fun dancing is what you saw on "Animal House" at the Delta Tau Delta toga party.  That and any type of soul dancing.

We used to do a lot of dancing at our Delta Sigma Phi parties at NIU.  We generally played just four albums (yes, albums as that is what we had back 1969-1973).  They were:  Green River by CCR (our fraternity song was "The Buffalo Song" to the tune of "Lodi"), Sly & the Family Stone's Greatest Hits, Four Tops Greatest Hits and Temptations Greatest Hits.

Play one side of all four, flip them over and do the other side.  Repeat as needed.

I dance where the music takes me.

Give Me a Beat That Can't Be Beat.  --CootFrat

Looking Back to 1966: The Great "Cone" Caper at NIU

From the March 30, 2016, MidWeek (DeKalb County, Illinois) "Looking Back."

1966, 50 Years Ago.

"Several rubber cones valued at $4.65 each were stolen from the site of the NIU Chariot Races Saturday morning.  DeKalb police set up a total of 28 cones to block off parking and traffic so the students could hold their annual Greek races, but only 21 were returned to the police department"

So, I Wonder If They Ever Got Those 7 Cones Back?  --Cooter