Happy Birthday Elvis P.

Happy Birthday to the late, great, Elvis who requires no last name. He would have been 76 years old today. So I got to thinking about him.

Elvis has always been under rated for the pure eclectic nature of his musical choices. You might like his music, some of it, or none of it, but his contribution to our country's fiber is undeniable. Elvis provided the perfect channel for song writers from every walk of life.

The social implications of this created more than just good listening. Elvis, while a boy from the old south, was the first of the equal opportunity employers. When it came to music, he didn't care where the song writer came from, color, creed, or politics, just that it sounded good.

While the Beatles may have brought some social change to America, it was Elvis that paved the road of social change that they traveled on. In pure American style, Elvis sewed together all the best pieces of society that all Americans could agree on, into one huge blanket. And they named that blanket "Rock-n-Roll".

Everybody has a favorite Elvis song. Mine is "Suspicious Minds", which I consider one of the greatest songs ever written/performed. Of course, on YouTube, I had 5 million choices of concert footage for this one. I choose the one below because I loved the pictures of him and Priscilla. I'll bet it was some of the happiest years of Elvis Presley's life.

"Very superstitious, Writing's on the wall, Very superstitious, Ladders bout' to fall"

The point isn't whether they're true or not, the point is to cover your ass just in case.

Never Leave your Hat on the Bed: I've heard this before and have never been sure where it came from so I'm going to make something up (artistic license). The guy who coined this phrase was caught having an affair with his bosses wife. In turn, the boss fired him, and blacklisted him so no one would hire him, not even Speedway. Unfortunately, a a parting gift, his mistress gave him a sexually transmitted disease which he generously shared with his long suffering wife. On her first outbreak, the wife realized it could only have come from a cheating husband. So she bought a gun and shot him dead. All this because the dumb ass left his hat on the bed. Now that's some bad luck.

Wishing on a Falling Star: This is my favorite. Can't speak on whether it's true or not. The dome of gloom covering Cincinnati smothers them. Regardless, always know your wish ahead of time just in case.

Knocking on Wood: This is to ward off the voodoo-whammy-mojo you just placed on yourself for speaking of the future. In case there is no wood to knock on, here is a tip from my "Yiddish" dictionary. Look over your right shoulder and say "poo-poo-poo". It's the very same effect.

Wishing on the First Star you See Tonight: There is far too much opportunity here, so it can't possibly work. Having said that, I do it every night just in case. Sometimes, I think I wish on airplanes and radio towers...I'm never quite sure.

Letting a Bird Get in Your House: Have you ever seen what happens when a wild bird gets in your house? Everybody, including the bird, completely freaks out, all of you running into walls and screaming like a bunch of zombies. Bad luck for all parties involved. Even worse, are raven and crows. If a bird that big and that black stalks you, you're fucked no matter what you do. Don't invite them in to your house no matter what they tell you.

Step on a Crack; Break your Mothers Back: The thought of taking care of my mother while she's in traction has always been too much for me. While I step over anything that can even be construed as a crack in the sidewalk, I have a good friend that steps on every crack possible. Someday we'll both walk down the street together and start a new dance fad.

Find a Penny, Pick it Up: There are issue's with this one. Is it only good luck if it's laying heads up? Or down? My solution; always leave the penny where you found it for someone who needs the penny, and the luck, more then you do.

Dead Human Bodies Floating in the River: If you see a human body floating with the current, you should immediately remove an article of your clothing and throw it in the river. Wow, tough town. I'm not sure which culture this comes from, but I'm betting it's not the middle east. Not many riverside's to walk along in the desert.

Never Open an Umbrella Indoors: First of all, you're opening something that's meant for rain when it's not raining. That means you're just opening it to be belligerent, and if there's one thing the universe hates, it's belligerence. Do you want to be like Schlep-rock from the Flintstones for the rest of your life and have a gray cloud follow you everywhere you go? Secondly, umbrella's are so big and unruly, you're bound to break something. Probably a mirror, and that's even worse luck.

Touching the Car Ceiling when Passing Under a Train Trestle: In high school, while riding around with my fresh- off -the- temps 16 year old driving friends, I learned that this gesture would ensure that everyone in the car would always be friends. Too bad I can't remember who the hell they were.

Crossing Shadows: If someones shadow crosses yours, and you don't make sure your shadow crosses theirs back, it's bad luck. Must be hell on the playground. Way too exhausting for me, I'll take the bad luck.

Repeatedly Making Sure the Front Door is Locked: Any re-checking over five times means you're obsessive compulsive. Anything under five is only superstition. My benchmark? I only check three times.

Seeing "Little People" on the Day of the Show: Some superstitions come from experience as does this one. If you see any "little people" before your performance, it will ruin your show. Hey, before you judge, you try having a heckling dwarf stalk your band all the way through Texas. You'd be superstitious too.

Three on a Match: This one comes straight from the war zone. When in combat, never leave a match lit long enough to light three cigarettes because one of you, if not all of you, will be visible to the sniper that is going to shoot you. In peace time, it's still bad luck, because your ass is too poor to buy a disposable lighter. Although, if you can keep a match lit long enough to light three cigarette's, you are a certified smoking master.

Eating Black-Eyed Pea's and Hog Jowls on New Years Eve: While I've been aware of this superstition for many years, I've never actually ate it. That may explain the last twenty years. As long as I don't have to pick the meat off the hog's actual face, I think I'm desperate enough.

Driving the Same Route to a Sports Venue when on a Winning Streak: This is a sportsters superstition. Since I've never been on, rooted for or voted for a winning team in my life, I've only heard tell of it. Should I ever be on a winning streak, I will not only drive the same route, I will not shave or change my shirt. Nothing different there.

A Broken Mirror Means Seven Years of Bad Luck: The worst, most long-lasting of all. No words can describe how much you never want to do this. If it does happen....never mind, just don't do it. That is all I'm going to say about this except for "poo-poo-poo" over my right shoulder.

If One Person Bumps into a Pole while Walking in a Group: It is bad luck when this happens, especially to those whom walked around the pole instead of into it. The only remedy is for everyone, and it has to be everyone, to take a step back, and bump into the pole.

Never Walk Under a Ladder: Walking under ladders is so dangerous, they had to turn it into an evil superstition thing to make people stop doing it. Walking up or down a ladder ain't so safe either, but someone has to do it.

Going Through a Yellow Light: "Kiss my hand and touch the roof = 2 hours of good luck." Somewhat like touching the roof when the car goes under a train trestle, only with kisses and good luck. Only two hours of good luck stresses me out a little bit, so I plan ahead for this one.

Throwing Spilt Salt: I always throw spilt salt over my right shoulder. For some reason, it always seems to annoy the people seated behind me. Surely they've spilt salt before?

Black Cats Crossing your Path: Totally a myth made up by some racist-cat-hating mother fucker. All cats are good luck at all times.

The Who Concert, December 3, 1979; A View from the Front

One of the things that defined the 1970's for both my peers and myself, was the Who concert tragedy.

Before the concert started, several people died, and many were almost killed, having been trampled to death by their friends and neighbor's, while waiting for the doors to open.

On the 31st anniversary of the Who concert at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio, I asked my Facebook friends what they remembered about that day.

Some were there, some were not, but every one of them remembered exactly where they were and what they were doing the evening of the concert.

Every person who was at the concert remembered the shoes, the "Who Shoes".

If you are interested in sharing your story, (Patrick) please leave it on the comments and I'll add it to this record.

Thank you to everyone that took the time to contribute. It's a part of Cincinnati history that needs to be recorded. I am reprinting your stories as you wrote them, in your own voice.

Randy Cheek: yeah...no longer like a crowd (it seemed like a living thing, not individual people at all,but a big whirlpool of flesh)-will always blame the stupid mother-fuckers in the back chanting '' fuck iran!" as the mashing started...plenty i could say but fuck after all this time...yeah i keep exits and doors in mind at all times.
Janis Hastings: I was 2. And I wasn't there, but I'm sure my parents were pissed off that night since they couldn't go bc they had to take care of me & my bro. I wouldn't call myself a hero, but I guess you could say I saved their lives. All in a day's work.. ;)
Tami Skurow Stephens: ok..went with val and his gf anita.... we were about 10 feet from the 1 door that opened and u could hear music inside....people behind us going across the walk bridge to old riverfront started pushing forward thinking the concert started....thats when it got real bad.... val grabbed my arm and pulled me with him and we got thru a door then he popped a few open..... after the concert we saw all the ems but hey it was the who...someone od'd or somethin...remember seein jimmy afterwards in passing...we drove home in anitas new car with no radio - we stopped for food, takin our time up reading rd into roselawn not knowing a thing until we walked in and marilyn n hy were awake watching the news freaked out.... i immediately called momma walters and let her know i saw jimmy and he was fine...the end!!

Shari Lauter: I was there, still remember it vividly---the cloud of steam rising from the compressed cold even though it was only 30 degrees out; to this day I don't like to be closed in inside a crowd, I'll email more
Kelly Hale: I was .. and my good friend and Band-mate( at the time) was interviewed and made the front page of the Cinci Enquier .. I remember it well...

David Neal Lewis: When news of the Who Concert drifted in like a bird on a wire I was working at Subway Records on Vine St. Greg Fernandez and I tuned into Alan Browning's "Rapline" show in hopes of some news, but he was running some creaky topic about the Shah of Iran. I called in and asked on air if they could devote some more coverage to the Who Concert and what was going on. He got really mad, insulted me and hung up my call. Afterward he was so deluged with calls asking for the same thing that he stormed off the set.

Later at a WAIF show I was covering I played Throbbing Gristle's "Blood on the Floor." What I remember mainly from the Who Concert were huge heaps of shoes; tried to find photographic evidence of this years later but couldn't find any pictures like that. The Who Concert deeply impressed me and ingrained my hatred of arena rock, which has relaxed over the years. But not so relaxed is my deep disappointment that no one was ever held responsible for what happened that deadly night.

Libby Carter Ostrow: I was living in Houston and watching TV and there was Lonnie Ostrow on The Tom Snyder show describing the horrible event. Still have the tape.
David Cover: I was living in South Bend Indiana. My wife and I were watching T.V. when a news flash can on about what had happened. We both got scared cause my sister in law was going to the concert. Found out she was almost killed and that one of the people who died was with her party that night. He died trying to help others get out. The only thing that saved here was the guy she dated at that time was able to pull her up time after time when she would get knocked down. Finally he yelled "this woman is sick and will puke on you " The crowed picked her up and passed her back to the end and dumped her on the ground at the back of the crowed.
Paige Graham: I had tickets and was supposed to go. The day of the concert, a Monday, my girlfriends pierced my upper ear in my bedroom. My ear of course got infected and when my Mom found out I double pierced my ear I wasn't allowed to go. My friends did go and I still have the t-shirt they bought me back. My friend Brian Wagner from Ft Thomas was one of the first to die that night when they opened the doors Brian, who was in front was trampled.......RIP Brian.....
Sage Walker: My sister's boyfriend was there. When my mom saw it on the news she started FREAKING out sure that he'd been one of them. He wasn't. Paula Rosenberg: ‎@sage...yes, i know. i was with you...to make our short story shorter.

Ray Kennedy: Since you asked, here's my story of that night. I was working at the Palace Theater up in Downtown, there was a Harry Chapin concert there the same night. The manager caught wind of the events at the coliseum, and had two comp tickets, and wanted someone to see what was up. I went down there in a taxi with his girlfriend, probably an hour or so into the concert, and news trucks and news crews were everywhere, along with a big police presence and probably still some medics. The casualties were all gone by then, but there were shoes scattered where they had come off feet, and a few reporters were looking for interviews, asking us if we had seen anything, which we of course hadn't. We went inside and the concert was happening as if nothing had occurred. It was quite strange, we already knew people had died, but there were thousands inside who had no clue and were mostly just enjoying the show. I seem to remember the authorities didn't tell the band until after the show. The thing that was really striking was the shoes. I guess people were in some cases just pulled out of them by the force of the crowd. I will always remember the shoes.

Andrew Cloud: I waited to buy a Ticket and then it was sold out. I went trippin in Frenck park. I still remember the sunset and the scene from up on the hill that night.

Cheryl Beardslee: My brother went, we all waited up to see whether or not he would come home when the concert was over. When he walked in the door, we all jumped on him with "Jeff, thank God you're alive!!" He looks at us and says "Yea right, I know what time it is and I am not late. I'm not even close to my curfew! Whatever head game you're trying to play, it's not working." We told him what happpened and he didn't believe us. Then the news came on the TV again...
Jeff Demaree: I was born in Cincy in 1971 and can remember listening to Baba O'Reily at the bus stop when I was 5 years old. The Who are still my all-time favourite band and I still live in the Queen City. I knew none of this about the tragedy! If these first hand anecdotes aren't recorded the real story of that night will be lost forever! Excellent job Paula in collating these stories and thanks to everyone for contributing- it's vital.

Lisa Rosenberg: I was front and center at the who concert and was right below the awning that some people fell from.... We just thought people were passed out only to find out later that they were deceased. You know me... the ultimate rocker, always in the very front of the lines at any concert.

Robert E Beatty: I wasn't there but I remember previous incidents that led up to it. I had bee lifted off of my feet trying to get into UC Fieldhouse, and remember people being pushed through the plate glass at Cinti Gardens.

Elise Waxler: I was living on my own for the 1st time and putting up my first Xmas tree when I heard the newscast. I immediately called my father to see if my brother had gone. I didn't go simply because my dad had asked me not to. My brother didn't go either but my cousin had. My cousin had left his identication at home so my Uncle went down to the morgue. My cousin wasn't one the bodies. We just had to sit back and wait until he called us. We didn't hear from him until late after the concert was over. He was busy looking for his boots. During the pushing, he got seperated from his girlfriend and lifted out of his boots so he was trying to locate them. Her did find his girlfriend but never did find his shoes. The waiting was horrible and the incident should never have happened.