Canadian Beavers Are Wreaking Havoc South America

Aside May 12, 2021 Markozen.com Animals, Environment

“Boner Billy’s” Famous Hot Dogs and Risque Ads

Aside May 12, 2021May 12, 2021 Markozen.com Advertising, History

Risque ads at bottom.

Although the birth of Boner Billy was unexpected, hence the name “Boner”, a Vaudeville term for a “silly mistake.” As you will soon learn, Boner “Bronco” Billy, a true American hero was anything but a silly mistake.
Documenting the life and times of American hero Boner Billy is a bit of a challenge due to the fact that Boner Billy’s son, grandson, and great grandson have the same name without a name suffix, Junior, Senior, or Roman numerals, etc. Due to this lack of a suffix in their name, si it can be a little tricky documenting the rich history of this American hero.
Here is how the story goes; in the early summer of 1845 a young Boner Billy, along with John Frémont, Kit Carson and 54 other men left St. Louis on an expedition. The stated goal was to “map the source of the Arkansas River on the east side of the Rocky Mountains.” Upon reaching the Arkansas, expedition leader, John Frémont suddenly made a hasty trail straight to California, without explanation arriving in the Sacramento Valley in early winter of 1846.

Records suggest shortly after arriving in the Sacramento Valley, Boner Billy owned and operated a popular trading post on a road leading from San Francisco to Sacramento. It is now believed America’s first hot dog, then called a tube steak was created and sold at Boner Billy’s trading post. This popular food consisted of a specially spiced and seasoned tube steak on a fresh bread roll, and was called the “Big Boner” due to its size, and named after Boner himself.
In January of 1847, Boner Billy, his wife, Frannie and young daughter, Bella were traveling to San Francisco on business when they had to make an emergency stop at Sutter’s mill in Coloma, California to give birth to the Billy’s first son, known as, “little Boner.” Folklore has it that a local man, James Marshall, and Boner Billy stepped outside to smoke a cigar to celebrate the birth of the child. James Marshall then spotted a sparkly object in the American River, which ended up being a small gold nugget that launched the great California Gold Rush. That nugget of gold was named after Boner Billy’s new born son and was thereon known as, “little Boner.”

Folklore has it that in the spring of 1858, Boner Billy and ranch hands, Bill “Dirty” Smith and James Finney, nicknamed “Old Virginy” were rounding up stray cattle in the foothills just NE of what is now known as Carson City, Nevada. At this point, ranch hand Finney located and later was credited with discovering the Comstock Lode, one of the largest silver ore deposits in the world. Over the next several years Boner Billy successful partnered in investments in the mining boomtown, Virginia City, Nevada. He also opened, a series of eating establishments serving tube steaks letter known as hot dogs in Nevada and throughout California.

America’s first Hot Dog cart, – Sacramento, CA 1855

Billboard in Flagstaff Arizona mid – 1950’s

Around 1928 a Boner Billy cousin, Betty Bonnie Billy owned a string of Boner Billy’s Hot Dogs stands throughout California. Sadly without the secret recipe that made Boner Billy’s tube steak such a hit the food was run of the mill. A short lived television show, the Boner Billy Play House did drive up sales for a bit but in 1962 the last Boner Billy’s Hot Dog stand closed.

The Big Boner airplane with full bar and glass bottom dance floor was a hit with the Hollywood elite 1950-64

It has recently been announced that Boner “JR” Billy the great, great, great grandson of Boner “Bronco” Billy has stepped forward with support and involvement in the launch of Boner Billy’s new Viva Las Vegas restaurant. In a recent interview, JR stated; “My great grandpapa who from a little trading post on the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains served-up America’s first hot dog to hungry forty-niners heading to the goldfields. “I cannot tell you how proud I am to now help bring the Boner Billy name and the greatest hot dogs in the world to Las Vegas” –Boner “JR” Billy

The risque and suggestive hot dog ads from the 1940’s and 1950’s.

A Very Early Selfie

Aside May 12, 2021 Markozen.com History

Japanese couple taking a selfie, 1920’s

Spring has Sprung in Manitoba

Aside May 11, 2021 Markozen.com Manitoba

The southern border of Manitoba is the 49th parallel, that is quite far north. Minnesota and North Dakota are south of Manitoba to put it in perspective. Today the temperature reached +19 celsius, 66 fahrenheit. Which is about normal for this time of year. We don’t see temps get into the hot zone, +30 C or in the 80’s F until the beginning of July.

But after our extremely cold winters, along with the frustrating pandemic restrictions, people in Manitoba are ready to go outside and breathe the fresh air. Pics were taken in Winnipeg.

“Foxitus” and “Foxmania”

Aside May 11, 2021 Markozen.com Politics

An attorney for an accused Capitol rioter said his client participated in the January 6 siege because he had ‘Foxitus’ and ‘Foxmania’ from watching Fox News for 6 months

An attorney for an accused Capitol rioter said his client was radicalized by Fox News.
The attorney said Anthony Antonio started “believing what was being fed to him” by Fox and Trump.
The attorney made the claim during a Thursday court hearing for other accused rioters.

An attorney for an accused Capitol rioter said his client had been radicalized by Fox News, and that he had “Foxitus” and “Foxmania.”

Anthony Antonio, of Clayton, Delaware, watched Fox News for six months prior to the Capitol riot, the attorney said during a multi-defendant hearing on Thursday related to the Capitol siege.

The attorney said his client started “believing what was being fed to him” by the news outlet and former President Donald Trump.

The attorney said his client started “believing what was being fed to him” by the news outlet and former President Donald Trump, HuffPost’s Ryan Reilly and The Daily Beast reported.

Antonio, who was wearing a black tactical bulletproof vest with a “Three Percenters” patch when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6, was included in a “seeking information” list posted by the FBI following the incident, court documents said.

Federal investigators interviewed Antonio on February 4, and Antonio said he was at the Capitol on January 6. But he did not answer when investigators asked if he had entered the building. Court documents alleged that Antonio entered the Capitol through one of the broken windows.

“Although his face was not visible, he was identifiable by the tattoo on his wrist and the distinctive black gloves with white writing,” the document said. A video also captured Antonio inside the building “picking up a piece of furniture, which appeared to have a broken leg, with another individual and tossing the furniture
off to the side,” the documents said.

In the February 4 interview with investigators, Antonio described his account of what happened when protesters confronted police officers outside the building, saying he saw “death” in the eyes of one officer who he said was asking for help.

Mike Fanone, a Metropolitan police officer, was shocked with a stun gun by accused rioter Danny “DJ” Rodriguez, who has been charged in relation to the incident. Video footage reported by HuffPost showed Antonio near Rodriguez while he was holding a stun gun.

A criminal complaint was filed against Antonio on April 14, charging him with unlawfully entering a restricted building or grounds, violent entry and disorderly conduct, obstruction of law enforcement, obstruction of an official proceeding, and destruction of government property.

A representative for Fox News did not immediately return Insider’s request for comment.

James Bond’s Coolest Cars

Aside May 11, 2021 Markozen.com Movies

1963 Aston Martin DB5

Mary Evans / Ronald Grant-Everett Collection

The ne plus ultra of James Bond’s automobiles, the Aston Martin DB5 was introduced in 1964’s Goldfinger, and came equipped with all the extras a spy could ask for—including rotating license plates, machine guns, a radarscope, and of course, an ejector seat. To show how far product placement in the movies has come, Aston Martin owner David Brown (the “DB” in DB5) originally asked the film’s producers to pay to use the car because he didn’t want to damage a £4,500 vehicle. Though destroyed in Goldfinger, the car lived more than once in Bond films—it most recently made a cheeky cameo in Casino Royale, when Daniel Craig’s 007 wins a 1963 Aston Martin DB5 in a poker game. The classic car also reportedly will appear in the 23rd Bond movie, Skyfall, opening in December.

1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1

beaulieu.co.uk

In a classic chase scene from Diamonds Are Forever, Sean Connery’s Bond gets behind the wheel of Tiffany Case’s 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1, and the two evade police in Las Vegas—until he heads down a dead end. Thinking fast, they lean over, and then the car defies several laws of physics by driving down a narrow alley on two wheels. The iconic scene also contains a major Bond blooper—when they enter the alley, the Mustang is on its right tires, when they exit safely on Fremont Street, it’s driving on its left side.

#3

1974 AMC Hornet X Hatchback

Mary Evans / Ronald Grant-Everett Collection

Though not nearly elegant enough to be issued to Bond by Q branch, the AMC Hornet was practical enough to steal when Roger Moore needed to chase Scaramanga through Thailand in The Man With the Golden Gun. The comical scene also features a return cameo for Southern Sheriff J.W. Pepper (from Live and Let Die), who rides shotgun with 007 for the most dramatic moment: when the car does a 360-degree mid-air corkscrew.

#4

1999 BMW Z8

BMW

Bond is notoriously hard on his cars, but no 007 vehicle met quite as painful an end as the BMW Z8 Pierce Brosnan drove in The World Is Not Enough. It was sliced in half by a helicopter equipped with a tree-cutting saw. When the blade meets the car, Bond quips, “Q’s not going to like this.”

#5

1969 Mercury Cougar XR7

Everett Collection

James Bond loves cars almost as much as he enjoys women, so it is fitting that the only love he marries—Diana Rigg’s Tracy Draco in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service—has a superb set of wheels. Tracy first drives the red Mercury Cougar XR7 onto a beach in Portugal before attempting suicide at the beginning of the movie, and it’s used later in the film when 007 is trying to escape Blofeld. Mr. and Mrs. Bond drive off in a different car, however, following their wedding—naively believing they have all the time in the world.

#6

2002 Aston Martin V12 Vanquish

Dave Hogan / Getty Images

After a three-picture deal with BMW, Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond went back to an Aston Martin in 2002’s Die Another Day. And while the V12 Vanquish was equipped with some classic refinements—machine guns, rocket launchers, an ejector seat, and retractable spikes in the tires for driving on ice—it was car’s “adaptive camouflage” system that went a bit too far, even for a Bond film. The car disappears with push of a button, which is why the Vanquish’s MI6 codename is the “Vanish.”

#7

Bentley Mark IV

In three of Ian Fleming’s novels, James Bond drove a 1933 Bentley “blower” convertible, equipped with a 4.5-liter engine and an Amherst-Villiers supercharger. (It also happened to be the very car Fleming himself drove—and posed with for the cover of Life magazine in October 1966.) But the Bentley only makes one appearance in the Bond film canon—when 007 takes Sylvia Trench on a picnic it’s in a Bentley Mark IV, a model that Fleming made up. And it’s equipped with a truly futuristic gadget for 1963: a car phone.

#8

1937 Rolls Royce Phantom III

beaulieu.co.uk

Strictly speaking, this is not James Bond’s car—it belonged to Auric Goldfinger—but the 1937 Rolls Royce Phantom III is one of the most beautiful vehicles ever to appear in a Bond film, and it plays an important role in the movie’s plot. The car’s bodywork is made of 18-karat gold, allowing Goldfinger to melt it down and smuggle his favorite substance across borders without suspicion.

#9

Aston Martin DB

beaulieu.co.uk

S V12What was intended to be a Ford GT for the opening chase scene in Quantum of Solace, evolved into an Aston Martin DBS, the same car Daniel Craig’s Bond drove in Casino Royale. It was a costly choice. Three Aston Martins—valued at $300,000 each—were destroyed during the filming of Casino Royale and six more reportedly were killed during the making of Quantum of Solace.

#10

1976 Lotus Esprit S1

After the Aston Martin DB5, no Bond car had more imaginative modifications than the Lotus Esprit S1 from The Spy Who Loved Me. When Roger Moore’s 007 drives the Lotus off a pier while being chased, the white sports car instantly transforms into a submarine, equipped with fins, a periscope, and a surface-to-air-missile. In 2008, “Wet Nellie” sold at auction for £111,500.

That mysterious lake in the Clint Eastwood movie High Plains Drifter

Aside May 10, 2021 Markozen.com Geography, Movies

High Plains Drifter is a classic Eastwood movie from the early seventies. I think I have seen the movie 7 or 8 times. And every time I watch it I am mesmerized by that beautiful lake.

High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. Eastwood plays a mysterious gunfighter hired by the residents of a corrupt frontier mining town to defend them against a group of criminals.

The film was shot on location on the shores of Mono Lake, California.

Mono Lake is a large, shallow saline soda lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in a basin that has no outlet to the ocean. The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate in the lake. These salts also make the lake water alkaline.

This desert lake has an unusually productive ecosystem based on brine shrimp that thrive in its waters, and provides critical nesting habitat for two million annual migratory birds that feed on the shrimp.

Mono Lake

Max. length	15 km (9.3 mi)
Max. width	21 km (13 mi)
Surface area	45,133 acres (182.65 km²)
Average depth	17 m (56 ft)
Max. depth	48 m (157 ft)
Water volume	2,970,000 acre·ft (3.66 km³)
Surface elevation	6,383 ft (1,946 m) above sea level

Islands	Two major: Negit Island and Paoha Island; numerous minor outcroppings (including tufa rock formations). The lake’s water level is notably variable.

Clint riding into the town of Lago, on the shore of Mono Lake.

In the movie they paint the town red to try and disorient the killers who are on their way.

The movie set (town of Lago) in the first picture, and the same location with the town gone in the second.

The most unusual feature of Mono Lake are its dramatic tufa towers emerging from the surface. These rock towers form when underwater springs rich in calcium mix with the waters of the lake, which are rich in carbonates. The resulting reaction forms limestone. Over time the buildup of limestone formed towers, and when the water level of the lake dropped the towers became exposed.