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jmreyes9 · 1 year

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“BUT ONLY GOD CAN MAKE A TREE”

By Jesse Reyes

Almost three score (57) years ago (1913), Joyce Kilmer wrote the poem “Trees” which has become a favorite poem of many, including myself. The poem he wrote is as follows:

TREES

By Joyce Kilmer

I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;

A tree that looks at God all day, And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear A nest of robins in her hair;

Upon whose bosom snow has lain; Who intimately lives with rain.

Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree.

You may already know that Joyce Kilmer was a man, his full name being Alfred Joyce Kilmer (I had always thought Joyce Kilmer was a woman until a few years ago when one of my Facebook friends told me he was a man) and was an American writer and poet born in 1886 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He is remembered for a short poem titled “Trees” which he wrote in 1913 and was published together with some of his other poems in 1914. This poem became even more popular when Perry Como recorded it in 1955, the poem put to music by Oscar Rasbach.

.Kilmer was also known to be a journalist, literary critic, lecturer, and editor. When he was deployed in Europe during World War I, Kilmer was considered the leading American Roman Catholic poet and lecturer of his generation. Critics often compared him to British contemporaries G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) and Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953).

He enlisted in the New York National Guard and was deployed to France with the 69th Infantry Regiment (the famous "Fighting 69th") in 1917. He was killed by a sniper's bullet at the Second Battle of the Marne in 1918 at the young age of 31. His wife, Aline Murray, was also an accomplished poet and author. They had five children.

Trees have always fascinated me, to the extent that I have photographed hundreds if not thousands of them, particularly in autumn when their leaves are transformed to exquisite hues of red, gold, purple, fuchsia (my favorite color and Erap’s too, although when he was asked to spell it, changed it to “red na lang”!), orange, magenta and combinations or variations of these.

As a radiologist , during my active practice, I was confronted daily, by anatomic “trees” in the human body including: the tracheo-bronchial tree—the branches of the trachea (windpipe) and segments and subsegments of the lung, producing an “inverted tree” appearance on the coronal (frontal) view; the biliary tree:—the branching pattern of the ducts in and outside the liver and gallbladder which empty bile from these organs into the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine); and then there’s the arterial tree, e.g. ascending aorta and its branches and the various arterial trees in the different organs of the body.

It is amazing how trees display a different look for every season of the year, especially in the midwest where I live, because of the four seasons—spring, summer, fall and winter. In my back yard are three trees which I have named after the Three Stooges: Curly, Larry and Moe. In the spring, these trees begin to bear greenish or bronze-colored buds. The middle tree (Larry), bears ivory white flowerettes which later turn to light green as they are transformed into leaves. Then as the summer comes, the leaves of these three trees become lush dark green.

As fall approaches, Curly’s leaves turns yellow and fall to the ground even with a gentle breeze blowing. At the height of fall, Moe’s leaves turn reddish brown, and when they reach the ground after a brisk wind blows, they all turn brown. Eventually Larry’s leaves also turn brownish-yellow or brownish-red and they also all fall to the ground. No wonder they call autumn fall! Larry is the last to shed its leaves.

In the winter, the branches of all three trees are leafless, appearing “naked”. When it snows, the leafless branches are enveloped with ice or snow and glisten when the sun kisses them and sometimes appear like white Christmas trees. When a big snowstorm comes, large amounts of snow are deposited on the trunks and branches of the trees—it then becomes an alluring sight to behold, its grandeur reflecting the handiwork of our God—a God of beauty, order and perfection.

When I see the appearance of these trees during the four seasons, then I can say with Joyce Kilmer that “poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree!”

Written on 10/14/20 in Chicago, IL. Posted in Facebook in 2020.

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digiblitz · 3 years

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Trees

Alfred Joyce Kilmer was an American poet. His poem, Trees, became the most cited poem. Both of my parents learned this poem as children. They recited it from memory. When I was a child, I also had to learn the poem. When I recited it for my parents, they were delighted because it reminded them of their own school experiences.

Kilmer only lived 31 years, from 1886-1918. He died in battle in the first World War. Trees was penned some five years before his death. The poem has spiritual imagery and Kilmer thinks that only God could create a tree. There are references to how the tree weathers the seasons.

I will use the poem for my course montage mainly for the nostalgic value and because I think it will permit me to create some interesting imagery and possible some kinetic typography. The poem's lines rhyme and they also have a rhythm.

Credits:

Photo of Joyce Kilmer from poets.org

References:

Andrew Spacey, "Analysis of Poem 'Trees' by Joyce Kilmer" https://owlcation.com/humanities/Analysis-of-Poem-Trees-by-Joyce-Kilmer, 20 May 2021.

Poets.org, "Trees" https://poets.org/poem/trees

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edharrisdaily · 4 years

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New Jersey Hall of Fame announces 2020 inductees

Anne Hathaway, Eli Manning among the 29 honorees

he newest inductees into the New Jersey Hall of Fame include actress Anne Hathaway, former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and Charles Addams, the cartoonist who created The Addams Family.

The nonprofit organization, founded in 2005, honors a new group of New Jersey residents each year. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 induction ceremony will be pre-recorded and broadcast Oct. 18, the Hall announced Wednesday.

The Hall of Fame selects infleuntial people based on their contributions in five areas: arts and entertainment, sports, arts and letters, public service, and enterprise. All inductees must have lived in New Jersey for at least five years, with a few exceptions.

The 2020 Class includes 29 inductees who were chosen in part by a public vote.

Comedian Flip Wilson, actor Ed Harris, basketball star Rick Barry, basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer, "The Red Badge of Courage" author Stephen Crane, former Army General Martin Dempsey and Fairleigh Dickinson are among the most notable inductees.

Gospel singer Cissy Houston, the mother of the late Whitney Houston and aunt of Dionne Warwick, and Fran Lebovitz, an author and public speaker known for her New York City sensibilities, also are being inducted.

Only one of the inductees hails from South Jersey: Haddonfield's Alfred Driscoll, the state's 43rd governor.

The New Jersey Hall of fame has plans to open its official museum at the American Dream Complex in East Rutherford in 2021.

The full list of inductees is below:

Arts and Entertainment

• Danny Aiello, Ramsey, actor

• John Amos, Newark, actor

• Mary Chapin Carpenter, Princeton, singer-songwriter

• Ed Harris, Tenafly, actor

• Anne Hathaway, Millburn, actor

• Cissy Houston, Newark, soul and gospel singer

• Ernie Kovacs, Trenton, comedian, actor and writer

• The Nelson Family, Jersey City, stars of "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet"

• Flip Wilson, Jersey City, television show host, comedian and actor

Sports

• Rick Barry, Roselle Park, former NBA forward

• Gerry Cooney, Fanwood, former boxer

• Eli Manning, Summit, former NFL quarterback

• Robert Mulcahy III, Mendham, Former Rutgers University athletic director

• C. Vivian Stringer, Piscataway, Rutgers women’s basketball coach

Arts and Letters

• Charles Addams, Westfield, "The Addams Family" creator

• Stephen Crane, Newark, author

• Joyce Kilmer, New Brunswick, journalist

• Fran Lebowitz, Morristown, author and public speaker

• Mort Pye, Tewksbury, newspaper editor

Public Service

• Dr. Virginia Apgar, Westfield, anesthesiologist

• Sister Jane Brady, Paterson, former CEO of St. Joseph’s Health

• Martin Dempsey, Jersey City, former Army general and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

• Alfred Driscoll, Haddonfield, former New Jersey governor and president of Warner-Lambert

• Milton Friedman, Rahway, economist

Enterprise

• The Borg Family, Hackensack, former newspaper publishers

• Linda Bowden, East Brunswick, board chair of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, regional president at PNC Bank

• Fairleigh Dickinson, Rutherford, Co-founder of Becton Dickinson, benefactor of Fairleigh Dickinson University

• Steve Kalafer, Flemington, Chairman of the Flemington Car and Truck Country Family of Brands

• Joseph Simunovich, West New York, Former Hudson County freeholder director and chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority

#ed harris #anne hathaway #danny aiello #john amos #cissy houston #ernie covacs #new jersey #new jersey hall of fame 2020

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duhragonball · 5 years

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Describing Stuff

I’ve had this rattling around in my brain for a while, and I’ve got the day off and I’m trying to get used to this ergonomic keyboard I bought, so I figure I’ll write about this for a while.

Recently, I’ve been seeing more examples of really terrible writing where a male author describes a female character, and they seem to go out of their way to make it awkward and creepy and weird. I don’t really feel like quoting any excerpts here, but you can find all sorts of examples on Twitter @men_write_women .

I feel like the common thread with all the ones I’ve seen is this compulsion to describe a woman in exhausting detail. It always seems to boil down to how sexy the woman is, and why exactly she’s sexy, or what flaws she has that disqualify her from being sexy. It’s sexist, because the emphasis is on the character as a sex fantasy for the author, and presumably the reader. If the character has any other purpose in the story, it’s going to be undermined by a 500-word treatise on what her boobs look like. It also insults and dismisses a sizable portion of the audience that, you know, may not be that into boobs.

Writing is about setting priorities. People talk about unlimited creative freedom and building entire universes at the point of their humble quills, and that’s horseshit. Writing is all about deciding which parts of your daydream to keep and which to leave out. You can’t capture every tiny detail of a character, or and object, or a scene. Even if you could, it would take too long to document it all, and the reality is that the reader’s not going to parse that much information anyway. So you have to decide which parts are important and which ones aren’t. And if you blow 1,000 words trying to explain why breasts are cool, you’re sending a message to the reader about what your priorities are. The message is: “I’m horny right now, and my libido is more important to me than this character or your enjoyment of the story.” I don’t think that’s the message authors want to send.

There’s also probably some ego bound up in this. Every excerpt I see on @men_write_women seems to be completely unaware of any of the others. It’s like each writer has deluded himself into thinking he’s the first person to try to describe sexy ladies in print. That, or they think it’s been done before, but never quite right. I sense such an enthusiasm whenever I read these things, like the author is going to pull out all the stops and come up with this literary salute to badonkadonk. And it always ends up looking absurd, because they overthink it. How can they not overthink it? They're trying to come up with an extra-special description of something people see all the time. I’m pretty sure that’s how the word “badonkadonk” was invented, because no existing words were sufficient.

I’m going to talk about professional wrestling here in a minute, but first, let’s class the joint up by looking at the poem “Trees” by Alfred Joyce Kilmer.

I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree. A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast; A tree that looks at God all day, And lifts her leafy arms to pray; A tree that may in Summer wear A nest of robins in her hair; Upon whose bosom snow has lain; Who intimately lives with rain. Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree.

It’s that last line that made me think of the poem just now, because Kilmer recognized that he could never hope to recreate the beauty of a tree in mere words. At best, he could only string together a few lines to remind people of how nice trees look, which is an achievement in itself, but it’s never going to be as good as the real thing. If poems about trees can be beautiful, then how much more beautiful a poem is the tree itself?

But look at all the stuff he leaves out. He doesn’t mention the trunk at all, or the rough texture of the bark, or the way the leaves turn color in the fall. That’s because Kilmer wasn’t writing a monograph about the appearance of a tree for space aliens who’ve never seen one. He was making the assumption that his readers were already familiar with trees and referencing imagery they might have seen before.

I think the same trick can be applied to women (or any humans for that matter), since readers can be trusted to know what they look like. I also think it’s safe to assume that the inherent beauty of humans is comparable to that of trees, so a quick, simple description can be plenty.

That’s kind of my approach to this sort of thing. I’ve always struggled with describing things in stories, mainly because I would see these lengthy, detailed descriptions in books, and I thought I was supposed to imitate that and couldn’t really pull it off. But eventually I realized that I didn’t need to, and maybe I’m better off if I don’t even try. One of the stories that clinched this for me was “Gold” by Isaac Asimov. The main character is contracted to make a movie adaptation out of a book, which happens to resemble another Asimov story, The Gods Themselves. The problem is that the aliens in the book are sparingly described, so the guy has no idea where to begin. Through the author character, Asimov defends his own writing style, opting to keep things fairly abstract, and relying on the reader to fill in the gaps.

I could relate to this, because when I read Les Miserables in high school, I couldn’t get past Jean Valjean’s name, because it reminded me of Jean Paul-Valley, the DC Comics character who filled in as Batman while Bruce Wayne was injured in 1993-1994. Try as I might, I could not shake the image of Valjean trudging through the novel in an armored Batman costume. So eventually I stopped trying, and ran with it. I have no idea what Valjean was supposed to have looked like. Victor Hugo might have described him, but I only ever imagined a young man with long blond hair and glasses. Wearing an armored Batman costume.

I’m not sure exactly when I put it all together, but eventually I realized that it’s all theater of the mind, and ultimately the reader is going to imagine whatever the reader wants, regardless of what you put on the page. If you say this guy wore blue and the reader likes red better, they’ll just start imagining it’s red. They may know factually that it’s blue, but you can’t stop them from making that switch. Now, knowing that, doesn’t it seem a bit futile to describe exactly what shade of blue it is? You can pontificate about the profundity of the color blue, and how the guy’s shirt was the color of the ocean on a blustery afternoon off the shore of Maine, but your reader is like “Nah, mate, I like red better”, then you’re probably wasting words.

I’m not saying it’s pointless to specify details. If a reader was completely unwilling to cooperate with your story, then they’re probably not reading it in the first place. But I think writers need to make peace with the fact that readers are looking for cues and stage directions for their imaginations, not immutable details. That’s why it’s so important to prioritize. Take the most important details and get them out there up front, when the reader is most receptive to them. Boob size is not important. If boob size is one of the top three details for your character, then you either haven’t finished creating the character, or you probably don’t actually have any use for the character.

Just to demonstrate what I mean, I’m going to try to write a description of AEW referee Aubrey Edwards, as if she were a fictional character in a story. I wasn’t sure what to use for an example, but I watched All Out Saturday and she officiated the main event, so I decided to go with her. That’s her on the left, but I probably didn’t need to tell you that, since I think we all know how to spot a referee.

Now, first and foremost, if I were writing a story about a wrestling match, I probably wouldn’t bother mentioning the referee much at all. Their whole role in these events is to be as inconspicuous as possible. They just enforce the rules; it’s the wrestlers who are supposed to be the main attraction. I’d probably just keep it simple.

“The referee was a woman, but Dirk Hardcastle paid little mind to her. His main concern lay in the competitors, and which of them, if either was his archnemesis, Tad Plowshare, in disguise.”

Or I might not even go that far, and just use “she/her” pronouns whenever the referee is mentioned. I want the reader to think about where Tad Plowshare is, not the referee.

Of course, if the big twist is that the ref is important, then I have to go into a little more detail, because now she’s in the spotlight.

“It couldn’t be. Dirk knew it had to be true from the way she looked directly at him and smiled deviously. He would recognize that sinister grin on a thousand different faces. But he had already ruled out the officials and production staff as suspects. He had been so certain of this that he had ignored the referee completely, but she was definitely the one. And now that it was too late, Tad Plowshare dropped the act entirely. She pulled off the tie that held her brunette ponytail in place, and removed the black nitrile gloves from her hands. Only moments ago, her expressions and movements had been those of a consummate professional, focused entirely upon adjudicating the match. Her bright red lipstick had been the only sign that she had any sort of personal life outside of her work. Now, as she laughed in triumph, the red on her lips only reminded Hardcastle of the blood of thousands of innocents, which would soon be spilled as a consequence of his failure.”

Maybe I’m laying this on too thick, but the core things I’m trying to convey about Edwards are her no-nonsense attitude, the way she wears her hair in a ponytail, and the red lipstick she wears, which seems to contradict her serious demeanor. I wouldn’t even bother describing her referee uniform, because everyone has a general idea of what those look like. The other night, I found it kind of odd how the stripes on AEW’s refs look wider than what I’m used to seeing, but a lot of wrestling refs don’t even wear stripes at all, so it really doesn’t matter a lot. I’d probably only bring it up if there was a need to mention variations in uniform. Like if she was officiating water polo instead.

What I don’t need to spend a lot of time on is her figure. I don’t see much point in talking about how fat or thin she is unless I plan to have her crawl through a ventilation shaft, and then I could just confine it to “She fit”. And that doesn’t tell you anything because you don’t know how big the ductwork is.

Physical attractiveness is something I try to shy away from, because I figure that’s a subjective thing, and I don’t see much point in trying to cram my own standards down anyone’s throat. I don’t think it does much good to just declare that such-and-such character is attractive; it’s better to have another character do it instead, and that way it says something about both characters. This one finds the other one to be hot. If I want examples of what they find so hot in the other character, I’ll try to keep it vague. “Well, Dirk Hardcastle has a cute chin. What’s cute about it? Who knows? Who cares? The character who’s admiring his chin, that’s who. But why should it need to be explained in greater depth than that.

The handy thing about this approach is that it leaves large swaths of Dirk’s body open to interpretation. He could look like a troll doll and still have a “cute chin”. He could have chest hair or not, be chubby or skinny, and so forth. So if you want to join in the notion that he’s attractive, you can rule in your own type, whatever that is.

I don’t know if that’s making any sense, but that’s how I try to approach it. When I read these long things about knife-like boobs or gentle slopes of buttcracks or whatever, it annoys me because it feels like whoever wrote that was losing a game they never should have bothered trying to play. All they needed to do was have the character who’s looking at this woman be like “Wow, this is the hottest lady I’ve ever seen” or something like that, describe whatever sexy dress she’s got on (briefly), and you’re done. And only do that when you need to. Dirk Hardcastle doesn’t have time to size up all the ladies, not while that bastard Tad Plowshare’s running loose.

#/#//#///#////#/////#writing

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linusjf · 4 years

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Alfred Joyce Kilmer: Poem lovely as a tree

“I think that I shall never see / A poem lovely as a tree.”

—-(Alfred) Joyce Kilmer.

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#Alfred Joyce Kilmer

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barinacraft · 5 years

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Stinger ↠ Drinks Up History As Crème de la Crème

High Society's After Dinner After-Party

A Stinger is a classic cocktail (of sorts) mixed with Cognac and white crème de menthe.* Perceived as an upper class after dinner drink if you will, its mint flavor has deceived many with ordinary brandy as their swill.

How To Make The Perfect Stinger

Stinger Cocktail Recipe:

1 ½ oz brandy or Cognac

½ oz white creme de menthe

1 mint leaf for garnish

Add to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake ingredients thoroughly. Strain into a chilled glass and garnish with a mint leaf.

Many Stinger drink variations call for a lower ratio of Cognac to liqueur of say 2:1 or even lower. If you're unsure, its easy to start with that recipe and then adjust to taste by adding more brandy to stiffen the spirits if desired. Or, vice versa.

History of the Stinger Drink Recipe

The Backstory - Let Me In, I'm Filthy RICH!

The Stinger has long been associated with social status, which itself was once defined by the Vanderbilts who symbolized American Royalty during the Gilded Age. Patriarch Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt built the family business from scratch by turning a $100 loan from his mother into a $100 million fortune before his death in 1877.

But, his was new money ...

And to be truly accepted into the upper echelons of 'Society' you had to be on Caroline Astor and Ward McAllister's list of the 400 people who were considered fashionable. Old money dominated the elite New York socialite crowd back then and Lina thought railroad riches were distasteful.

Often identified, qualified and then picked from the Social Register, members of the aristocracy lead the way in a clash of old money versus new money struggling for acceptance in the Social 400. This meant Alva, wife of the Commodore's grandson William Kissam Vanderbilt, would have to find a new way in.

She decided to flaunt her wealth and make a list of her own.†

It all started by building an opulent mansion on Fifth Avenue followed by a lavish housewarming party hyped in the press and held on March 26, 1883. Her exclusive guest list included invitations to all of society's highest ranking members along with a select group of young debutantes with one notable exception, Mrs. Astor's daughter Carrie.

Social customs dictated that Miss Astor couldn't be invited since her mother had never visited the Vanderbilt home. Or so Alva claimed.

As a result, Mrs. Astor came calling and the Astors' invitations arrived the next day. A reciprocal request to attend the Astor's upcoming annual ball meant formal acceptance of the Vanderbilts into New York society's upper echelon.

Guess it pays to have a plan.

4th Generation Vanderbilt Mixology

Fast forward a few decades and it was time to check in to see how things were going inside The 400.

After inheriting over ten million dollars and then another five when his brother Alfred died a hero aboard the RMS Lusitania in WWI, Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt was living it up as an equestrian down on the Sandy Point Farm in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.‡ With a reputation as a playboy and avid gambler, Reggie was also famous for his country estate's "home bar."

Modeled after one in the William the Conqueror tavern in the seaside resort town of Deauville, France in the Calvados department of Normandy, it was spectacular and a status symbol like no other. What better way to celebrate the good life than a round of drinks among friends in grand style?

Long the stuff of legend (reputed to suck down lots at his favorite NY speakeasy, The Colony), this 1923 article made the scuttlebutt official and forever associated Reginald with his specialty behind the bar, the Stinger.1 He fancied himself an expert bartender and did everything from the squeezing and the shaking himself. That included the serving, even though he had servants.

So, Mr. Vanderbilt is largely credited with making the Stinger acceptable as a cocktail for other occasions too including morning, noon and nightcap apparently. In the 1957 musical comedy High Society for example, Bing Crosby heads to the butler's pantry, one of many bars in the movie's mansions, and hands a morning drink to Grace Kelly as “doctor's orders” after a long night of champagne and wine. Asked what it is, he said:

Oh, just the juice of a few fresh flowers called a Stinger ... removes the sting.

This drink has been in the movies outside of the upper crust of high society as well. Other notable featured film and TV appearances include The Bishop's Wife (1947), Kiss Them For Me (1957), The Apartment (1960), Gorky Park (1983) and Mad Men season one episode "Nixon v. Kennedy," set in 1960 along with season three episode two "Love Among the Ruins," set in 1963.

Stinger Drink Timeline with Related Recipe Milestones

Nibbling Along - But Not Quite A Bite

Prior to actually being stung, there was definitely a "sting in the air." Several recipe formulations pre-dated the soon to be Stinger standard that could be classified as iterations or similar drinks like those listed below, but were left in the timeline to illustrate the progression.

1892 The Judge - It called for a 2:1 ratio of brandy to crème de menthe along with a few dashes of gum syrup to sweeten things up. Sound familiar?

The Paymaster - Same proportions as above with bitters replacing the sweetener. Plus, a lemon-peel garnish on the glass brim.2

1895 Brant Cocktail - A renamed Paymaster drink with Angostura bitters and white crème de menthe called out specifically as ingredients.3

1900 Ice Trust Cocktail - Eight years later, the "Only William" of lower Broadway, who created The Paymaster and The Judge drinks above, decided equal parts plain was the perfect potion.4

Finally Stung - A Cocktail Chronology

1909 The Stinger - William T. "Cocktail Bill" Boothby, San Francisco bartender extraordinaire, is said to have left a note tucked into the back of one of his earlier books supposedly for possible inclusion in a later edition. In it he credits J. C. O'Conner, the proprietor of the "handsomest cafe for gentlemen in the world," located on the corner of Market and Eddy Streets in S. F., Calif.

Mr. O'Conner's formula stiffens the predecessors with a 3:1 ratio and caters to those with more expensive taste by specifying Cognac over ordinary brandy. Its shaken and served cold in a sherry glass. No garnish.

As for the date, its sometime after 1909 since his establishment didn't exist prior. Just exactly how long after is unknown and open to debate.5

1912 1st bartending book to actually print the Stinger recipe—maybe. Even though there seems to be consensus, 'circa' clouds the circumstance and we have been unable to confirm the calendar.6

Equal parts Rex Cognac and creme de menthe (white). Frapped.

1913 Popularity is plausible according to the Washington Herald which stated that both the Stinger (half brandy & half white mint cream) and the Green Dragon (green mint cream topped with white absinthe over ice) were on the rise. In hindsight, it looks like the latter didn't fulfill its promise, but the former certainly did.7

Half and half garnished with a lemon peel is what's mixed up in what may really be the Stinger's first formal trade publication appearance. No spirits from a specific region in France had to be brandied about in this recipe though.8

Amer Picon is said to have been the main ingredient of the Bustanoby brothers version at their famous ladies bar Café de Beaux Arts according to the New York Times back then. Very Campari-ble [sic]

1914 Cognac is back. One half pony glass of each. Shaken with ice and strained into an ungarnished vermouth glass.9

1916 Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder, or so says this barkeeper's bible. A couple dashes is all that's needed along with a base of 75% of the good stuff and 25% minty cream liqueur.10

Apparently, Reggie V. liked to splash a little absinthe in his for some extra sting as well.

1917 Country Club Style - St. Louis Country Club style in particular that is. One jigger of really old brandy mixed with one pony of white creme de menthe. That's a 3:2 ratio for those of you following along at home. Shake well with ice, strain and serve.11

Date Check

1933 From Sawdust To Upper Crust - Why did a little bartending book from Oshkosh, Wisconsin (once known as the "Sawdust Capital of the World") contain what appeared to be the first Stinger recipe in print, instead of one from a fancy East Coast publishing house?

Circa bites again. Only this time it was supposedly 1910.12

However, unlike the one from two years later (listed above), we were able to confirm that this promotional booklet was actually printed right after the Repeal of Prohibition which itself was on December 5, 1933. This was followed by ads for the brochure from Wiese Auto & Radio Sales in the Racine, Wisconsin Journal Times and the Universal Motor Company's Mixing Guide For Boatmen in Motor Boating - The Yachtsmen's Magazine in late December 1933 and March 1934, respectively. Both urged you to obtain your own copy of 101 Drinks and How to Mix Them by either coming in person or requesting delivery by mail in care of an Oshkosh address.

Direct mail marketing added a shot of humor to the mix of this particular recipe by joking:

Our pet bee took a sip of this once and threw a jealous fit.

Good one.

Its Official

Although David Embury, Don Marquis, Joyce Kilmer and others may disagree, the Stinger is an IBA official cocktail in their Unforgettables category. Their 5:2 after-dinner formula may be beloved, but many dissenting comments have been made over the years as to whether that drink style in particular is applicable.

White mint and brandy shaken up together with cracked ice make a good substitute for a cocktail. ~ Joyce Kilmer13

Of course, a cocktail or two and an occasional Stinger, is something no one can well avoid taking, if one is dining out or having supper after the theater with one's own particular crowd. ~ Hermione14

Liqueurs should never (with the possible exception of a very few drinks such as the Stinger, which is not really a cocktail) dominate and overpower the flavor of the base. ~ David Embury15

You, of course, will have to judge for yourself. But, whatever its classification, it certainly is unforgettable.

Plus, here's something I think we can all agree on:

Cocktails should be sipped, not gulped, and should remain stinging cold to the last drop. ~ Embury

Hear, hear.

Party Perfect

Stingers are not really Christmas drinks per se, they're much more all season. But, the minty flavor does fit other Christmassy themes like candy canes and such so they definitely make for some happy holidays.

This drink is also a namesake for the Columbus Blue Jackets NHL hockey team mascot Stinger, the “Bug with an Attitude.” Chosen as a symbol of the people of Columbus, OH who are known for their hard work and team pride, Central Ohio is becoming a hardcore hockey hotbed.

Wonder if Reggie was a fan?

Drinks Similar To The Stinger Cocktail

Mixing brandy with green crème de menthe, in place of white, yields an Emerald cocktail / Green Hornet drink. However, many recipes claiming the same name(s) use other green liqueur substitutions and host a hodgepodge of hooch mainly for St. Patrick's Day concoctions.

You can also replace base spirits and include the alternate in the naming pre-fix as in Amaretto, Gin, Rum, Tequila and Vodka Stingers et al.16 The list goes on and on.

Others akin with a spin include:

Alexander's Sister - dry gin, green creme de menthe and light cream.

American Beauty - brandy, white crème de menthe, French vermouth, grenadine syrup, orange juice and port wine.

By The Sea - green crème de menthe, brandy and kirschwasser.

Devil Drink - an Emerald with a dash of cayenne pepper.

Dry Stinger - brandy, lime juice and white crème de menthe.

Gamma Ray - VSOP Armagnac, white crème de menthe, cayenne pepper and flamed lemon peel twist.

Gentleman's Cocktail No. 2 - bourbon whiskey, brandy, crème de menthe and club soda.

Hell - a Stinger dashed with red pepper.

Miami Cocktail - white Cuban rum and crème de menthe with lime or lemon juice.

Shamrock Sip - green cream of mint liqueur, gin and egg white with lemon and orange juice.

Snapper - white crème de menthe and gin.

Stingeree - half-n-half with a dash or two of absinthe.

White Way Cocktail - a Snapper with dry gin.

References

* - Not to be confused with the 'stengah' drink popular in the British Empire in Asia which is mixed with equal amounts of whisky and soda water. Derived from the Malay word 'setengah' meaning half.

† - Broyles, Susannah. "Vanderbilt Ball – how a costume ball changed New York elite society." MCNY Blog: New York Stories. 06 August, 2013.

‡ - While unrelated, ingredient-wise, the Vanderbilt cocktail was created and named for his older brother Alfred in 1922.

1 - "Behind the Curtains With The '400.'" The Indianapolis Star. 08 July, 1923.

2 - William Schmidt, The Flowing Bowl - What and When to Drink (New York: Charles L. Webster, 1891), 160 and 169. Print.

3 - George Kappeler, Modern American Drinks - How to Mix and Serve All Kinds of Cups and Drinks (New York: Merriam, 1895), 33. Print.

4 - "Summer Drinks." The Saint Paul Globe. 02 July, 1900.

5 - William T. (Cocktail) Boothby, American Bar-Tender (San Francisco: Anchor Distilling, 2009). Print.

6 - Holtz & Freystedt Co. Importers; compiled by E.J.M., The Great American Cocktail (New York: Holtz & Freystedt, ca. 1912), 26. Print.

7 - "Balkan Idea At Last Reaches Summer Drinks." The Washington Herald. 22 June, 1913.

8 - Jacques Straub, Straub's Manual of Mixed Drinks (Chicago: R. Francis Welsh, 1913), 101. Print.

9 - Ernest P. Rawling, Rawling's Book of Mixed Drinks - An Up to Date Guide for Mixing and Serving All Kinds of Beverages and Written Expressly for the Man Who Entertains at Home (San Francisco: Guild Press, 1914), 84. Print.

10 - J. A. Grohusko, Jack's Manual on The Vintage and Production, Care, and Handling of Wines, Liquors, etc. A Handbook of Information for Home, Club or Hotel (New York: McClunn & Co., 1916), 122. Print.

11 - Thomas Bullock, The Ideal Bartender (St. Louis: Buxton & Skinner, 1917), 47. Print.

12 - 101 Drinks and how to Mix Them (Oshkosh, Wisconsin: Direct Mail Associates, Inc. and Dean W. Geer Co., ca. 1933), 12. Print.

13 - Annie Kilburn Kilmer, Memories Of My Son Sergeant Joyce Kilmer (New York: Brentano's, 1920), 89. Print. Note: individual letter was dated May 27, 1914.

14 - Don Marquis, Hermione and Her Little Group of Serious Thinkers (New York and London: D. Appleton and Company, 1916), 150. Print.

15 - David A. Embury, The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks (New York: Doubleday, 1948), 8. Print. Note: He also comments on page 143 that the Stinger formulated with equal proportions, like the Coffee cocktail (typically sugar syrup, port, brandy and a whole egg), isn't really a true cocktail. But, it can be converted into a dry and very palatable one like the Miami by substituting brandy for rum in the latter.

16 - A Vodka Stinger has also been known as a White Spider cocktail as far back as 1959 when Smirnoff published their How To Give A Vodka Party promotional pamphlet. Their White Spider drink recipe was a 3:1 ratio of Smirnoff vodka to Heublein white creme de menthe.

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