Degrees of Historical Separation

[livius drusus]

I just found out this morning that there are 5 degrees of separation between myself and the real live historical Seth Bullock of Deadwood Sheriff, US Marshall and Yellowstone Park fame.

A good friend of the president, Seth Bullock recruited 50 cowboys to weild six shooters and rope people in the crowd at Teddy Roosevelt's 1905 presidential inauguration. One of those cowboys was Tom Mix, soon to be a famous star of silent era westerns. As it happens, my maternal grandfather was the spitting image of Mix and was offered a job as his body double. He declined the job, moving on to marry my grandmother and raise my mother who then in turn gave birth to me. :pleased:

What tenuous links to historical people and events can y'all pull of your asses?

[Dingfod]

Related to yours, liv: My paternal grandmother's family and maternal grandfather's family are from a town only 15 miles from Dewey, Oklahoma where Tom Mix was bartender and sheriff/marshal in 1904. My dad was a big Tom Mix fan even though he was born well after the zenith of Mix's career.

Other than that, I've got nothing.

[Darren]

If anyone likes single malt whisky, the D. Johnston whose name appears on the Laphroaig bottle, was Donald Johnston of Tallant, Islay, my great, great, great grandfather (on my paternal grandmother's side). The Hebridean name Johnston is an anglified version of the Gaelic MacIain. The Hebridean Johnstons were originally survivors and refugees from the (fairly) famous massacre of Glencoe (the MacIains being that branch, or sept, of Clan Donald - or the Macdonalds as they are more widely known - targeted by the British Crown and gvmnt as an example to the Highlands).

[livius drusus]

My dad was a big Tom Mix fan even though he was born well after the zenith of Mix's career.

I think that's cool. Tom Mix went down the memory hole pretty quickly.

If anyone likes single malt whisky,

Not I, MacIain. :giggle: Good story nonetheless, though.

[Blake]

Wow! Those are all neat connections. I have a Western one too; my grandfather (maternal) was born in Cement, Indian Territory, and right around the time when it became Oklahoma (he was 2 or 3) his dad let him have a ride there with Frank James on his horse. Frank James was Jesse James' brother.

[Dingfod]

My dad was a big Tom Mix fan even though he was born well after the zenith of Mix's career.

I think that's cool. Tom Mix went down the memory hole pretty quicklyDad said the local theater would show Tom Mix movies for Saturday matinees in the late 1930s and early 1940s, at least a half decade after they first ran.

[Ensign Steve]

Keeping with the Western theme: I went to tech school with, and went to a party hosted by, Christie Earp (and her twin sister) who are direct decendants of Wyatt.

[Shake]

Descendants on my mother's side came over in the 17th century and worked at (founded?) the Saugus Iron Works (http://www.nps.gov/sair/) in Massachusetts.

Oh, not a relation, but my high school German teacher actually saw Hitler in Dresden back in WWII. I think she was there during the Allied firebombing.

[natasha]

A good friend of the president, Seth Bullock recruited 50 cowboys to weild six shooters and rope people in the crowd at Teddy Roosevelt's 1905 presidential inauguration. One of those cowboys was Tom Mix, soon to be a famous star of silent era westerns. As it happens, my maternal grandfather was the spitting image of Mix and was offered a job as his body double. He declined the job, moving on to marry my grandmother and raise my mother who then in turn gave birth to me. :pleased:

What tenuous links to historical people and events can y'all pull of your asses?

My grandparents, father and uncle performed in the Tom Mix circus! My gradnfathe had some relation to Harry Lighting Lee (some southern general I think.) He stood in for Buffalo Bill and worked on a lot of westerns; as AD and as a bit player.

On my mother's side her cousin was the character actor Akim Tarmiroff. (sic)

[livius drusus]

Man, that Tom Mix got around, didn't he? :laugh:

[lisarea]

The apartment manager at my first apartment knew Gene Autry and had had some kind of protracted schoolyard feud with him in second grade or so.

A descendant of James Madison used to stay in my house and mooch offa me.

I knew someone who was fairly closely related to a famous sniper--I think Charles Whitman, but I'm not 100% sure. At the time I was acquainted with her, I was woefully lacking in knowledge of Famous Snipers, so I don't trust my recall on that too much.

[natasha]

I met Elvis once! Got to play in his limo while he was inside with the boss...

(ooh, all kinds of celeb stories, lol)

[The Lone Ranger]

According to my great-grandmother, I'm a descendent of Rolf Ganger (http://www.geocities.com/missourimule_2000/dukesofnormandy.html#Family:%20Rolf%20"The%20Ganger"%20Rognvaldsson), which I've always thought interesting.

Rolf "The Ganger" Rognvaldsson, b. 846 in Norway, m. Gisela (3), 912, d. 932 in Normandy, France

Father: Ragnvald "The Wise" Eysteinsson, Earl of Raumsdal and More, b. ca. 820 in Maer, Nord Trondelag, Norway, d. ca. 889 in More, Scotland

Mother: Ragnhild Hrolfsdotter, b. in Maer, Nord Trondelag, Norway

Rolf Ganger (or Göngu-Hrolf) was a great Viking and was so stout that no horse could carry him (Ganger means "The Walker"). Everywhere he went he had to go on foot. He was declared an outlaw by King Harald Harfager for stealing cattle within the territories of Norway in Viken. He left Norway and eventually landed in present day France and founded Normandy. Many Norman earls and English kings are descended from him.

Cheers,

Michael

[livius drusus]

I met Elvis once! Got to play in his limo while he was inside with the boss...

Cool! Did he say or do anything memorable? Offer you a fried pb&b sammich, perhaps?

According to my great-grandmother, I'm a descendent of Rolf Ganger, which I've always thought interesting.

It is indeed. I'd never heard of the man before today, but he seems a dashing figure, to say the least. I'm surprised to hear that Normandy was only founded a hundred or so years before William the Bastard rose from it to kick Saxon ass.

[natasha]

I met Elvis once! Got to play in his limo while he was inside with the boss...

Cool! Did he say or do anything memorable? Offer you a fried pb&b sammich, perhaps?

He came to the non profit where I workd in L.A. at the time to make a donation. We had to close the place down. We were told to behave "normally." At the time, I thought I was "too cool" for Elvis, lol.

Anyway, first about 3 really skinny aloof models walk in, then some very short plump man in a double breasted suit with a cigar, then Elvis, the KING , all in black. Black leather pants, a velvet capel lined in red, and gloves! With rings on them. And a cane. This is in Los Angeles and it was 80 degrees or so!

He comes by my desk, shakes my hand, says "Hi, I'm Elvis" (like I didn't know!) and waits very patiently for me to buzz the boss. I get up to direct him down the hall and the boss comes out to meet him and his troop, Elvis says "thank you" and that's that.

He was followed by three more models and a couple of other guys in suits.

I went from "I am way too hip for Elivs," to "Oh my f****** God, it's f***** Elvis!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I've since then developed an appreciation for Elvis.

So yeah, the car was cool. All white, bar, tv, deep white carpet, turntable (before CDs) leather, smoked windows, all that good stuff. Chauffer was cool but nervous, told us to get back inside he didn't want Elvis to find us, lol.

[Penni]

So, this may be too close to me to be very exciting, but my great aunt wrote Farewell to Manzanar a rather famous book about living in the WWII internment camps, as a Japanese-American, and how it has influenced her life. In the book, my great aunt talks about my grandmother having married "the boy from Terminal Island" which I think was a rather disparaging comment about my grandfather! It was weird, though, reading about this family and the father (of my great aunt) being taken away to a more dangerous camp and how he came back with a limp and became an alcoholic (It was assumed he was interrogated and tortured, but he refused to talk about anything). Or how her mother, upon being given her 48 hours notice that all her civil liberties were being rescinded, refused to sell her fine china to a snobby white woman for like the current equivalent of 20 cents (there were lots of people that preyed on their misfortune) and smashed all the china on the ground in front of her instead. And then I was like, Wait. This is MY family. It's kinda crazy to learn all these things about your own family by reading a book that just anyone could pick up.

A movie was later made of it, where most of my family got to play extras, except my own father, because he had just broken his leg in a motorcycle accident. But, Pat Morita (aka Mr. Miyagi) was in it and so my whole family got to work with him. This was just prior to me being born, I believe, so I didn't get to cash in on any Mr. Miyagi action.

[natasha]

So, this may be too close to me to be very exciting, but my great aunt wrote Farewell to Manzanar a rather famous book about living in the WWII internment camps, as a Japanese-American, and how it has influenced her life. (snip)

I think that's very exciting Penn! :wave:

[maddog]

my great aunt wrote Farewell to Manzanar a rather famous book about living in the WWII internment camps, as a Japanese-American, and how it has influenced her life. I enjoyed that book very much. Thank you for the background.

My best friend Jim's brother John just died on the night of July 4 (only 55 -- very shocking) and will be buried in the same cemetery as Wyatt Earp, who retired to Colton, CA, after Tombstone. My aunt and uncle live(d) (my uncle died a year ago) in Tucson, and took me to see Tombstone, the OK Corral, and Boot Hill two or three years ago.

#441

[livius drusus]

I'm so sorry for your friend's loss, maddog. It's been a rough year, hasn't it? :hug: