You have to love this picture, somewhat goofy!

AEROSPACE AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Following graduation from Princeton University in 1953, Mr. Conrad entered the Navy and became a naval aviator. He then attended the Navy Test Pilot School at Patuxent River, Maryland, where he was assigned as a Project Test Pilot. Mr. Conrad also served as a flight instructor and performance engineer at the Test Pilot School. After completing his tour of duty at Patuxent River, he served as instructor pilot in F4H Phantoms on VF-121 and was then assigned duty in VF-96 on board USS Ranger.

In September of 1962, Mr. Conrad was selected as an astronaut by NASA. His first flight was Gemini V, which established the space endurance record and placed the United States in the lead for man-hours in space. As commander of Gemini XI, Mr. Conrad helped to set a world’s altitude record. He then served as commander of Apollo XII, the second lunar landing. On Mr. Conrad’s final mission, he served as commander of Skylab II, the first United States Space Station.

In December 1973, after serving 20 years (11 of which were as an astronaut in the space program), Mr. Conrad retired from the U.S. Navy to accept a position as Vice President - Operations and Chief Operating Office of American Television and Communications Corporation (ATC). At ATC, he was responsible for both the operation of existing systems and the national development of new cable television systems. In 1976, he resigned from ATC to accept the position of Vice President and consultant to McDonnell Douglas Corporation. In 1978, he became Vice President of marketing and was responsible for all commercial and military sales for Douglas Aircraft Company. Mr. Conrad then became Senior Vice President-Marketing in 1980. He was appointed as Senior Vice President Marketing and Product Support in 1982 and 1984, was named Staff Vice President of International Business Development for McDonnell Douglas Corporation.

In 1990, Mr. Conrad became Staff Vice President - New Business for McDonell Douglas Space Company, where he participated in research and development for the Space Exploration Initiative. Included for research and development in the Space Exploration Initiative are the construction of Space Station Freedom, the return to and colonization of the Moon, and the exploration of Mars. Mr. Conrad contributed his expertise on SSTO, the Single-Stage-To-Orbit and return space transportation system called the Delta Clipper. In 1993, Mr. Conrad became Vice President-Project Development.

Mr. Conrad died July 8, 1999 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident in Ojai, California.

The Kissers

Famous Kiss

Did the sailor and the nurse in the famous V-J Day kiss scene
know each other? No, they didn’t. Do we know who they are today?
Well, maybe…

by Tom Huntington

Everyone knows the photo. It has become an iconic image of the 20th century. Taken in New York City’s Times Square on August 14, 1945, it shows an exuberant sailor kissing a nurse. Onlookers grin in the background. The nurse looks surprised as the sailor bends her backwards, her right foot raised off the ground, her left arm behind her. The image manages to capture the sense of relief, exhilaration, and unbridled joy brought by the news that Japan had surrendered and the most terrible war in history was finally over.

Since the picture appeared on the cover of the August 27, 1945, issue of Life, it has become the magazine’s most reproduced image. But the photographer—Alfred Eisenstaedt, one of Life’s finest—took no notes that day, and the identities of the sailor and nurse remain a mystery. Over the years, many men have claimed to be the sailor, but Life has not endorsed any of their claims. One of those men, George Mendonsa, is so certain of his case that he has enlisted the latest in facial identification technology to support it.
Continue Reading Here……….

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Thomas Edison Signed Check

Business check from the Edison Botonic Research Corporation, 8.5 x 3, filled out in another hand and signed “Thoas. A. Edison,” payable to W. A. Benney[?] for $438.72, April 6, 1928. Punch cancellations and a few faint creases touching signature, otherwise fine, clean condition. This item is available for sale right now at www.trishautographs.com

A brief history of the Edison Botonic Research Corporation

In 1927, Edison, Henry Ford, and Henry Firestone formed the Edison Botanic Research Corporation of Fort Myers. Plants were collected in Florida and throughout the southern United States by field collectors. Plants were grown under controlled conditions in Florida and at Edison’s laboratories in West Orange, New Jersey. The Edison employee most associated with this research was B. Jonas. Eventually, over 17,000 plants were tested for the quality and quantity of rubber they produced. It was determined that the goldenrod was the most likely candidate and after two years of cross-breeding a goldenrod was developed that yielded almost twelve percent rubber.  Source