The Honest Abe Blog

We’ve all seen it already, but DANG. It looks every bit as...

Thu, 23 Aug 2012 12:31:20 -0400

We’ve all seen it already, but DANG. It looks every bit as amazing as I’d hoped.

IT’S COMING. (And WOW, DDL is WORKING IT!)

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 15:05:29 -0400

IT’S COMING. (And WOW, DDL is WORKING IT!)

This is the first time in many, many months in which none of the...

Wed, 09 May 2012 14:23:36 -0400

This is the first time in many, many months in which none of the first five articles that showed up on my Lincoln Google Alert were about vampires.

ICYMI… Lincoln invented Facebook.

Wed, 09 May 2012 09:54:33 -0400

ICYMI…

Lincoln invented Facebook.

This ad really drove home how ubiquitous Lincoln’s image...

Mon, 07 May 2012 13:39:15 -0400

This ad really drove home how ubiquitous Lincoln’s image has become with money in popular culture.

I’ve posted this image before — but this is from...

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:41:14 -0400

I’ve posted this image before — but this is from yesterdays post in my 300 things tumblr which I co-host with one of my best friends.

300things:

41. Abraham Lincoln

e: I’m not as big a fan of presidential history as some people (see below) but I’ve got a special place in my heart for AL. Upstanding citizen. Savvy politician. Of course, emancipation. And it’s well-documented that he liked cats. Although his death was tragic, it gives me hope that a person like him could achieve what he did and change the world for so many people.

a: Falling in love with history was the first step - and finding Abraham Lincoln was the next. Of course I had always had a deep admiration for our 16th President - but that admiration blossomed into complete fascination in 2008 as we approached the bicentennial of his birth. More than the individual himself, I’m fascinated with who has become to our society and what his legacy and history means to us now.

Last week I went to my first baseball game of the season -...

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:37:47 -0400

Last week I went to my first baseball game of the season - Nationals v. Marlins. Had some great seats in the lower section behind first plate -which meant that I had a decent view of “the main event” — the Presidents Race.

If you are unfamiliar with the Presidents Race (and the plight of our 26th President) I recommend checking this site out: http://blog.letteddywin.com/

I caught that pic of a man wearing that awesome “Winning races since 1860” shirt and thought it was worth a share. Lincoln & Washington are tied with 3 wins each this season with Jefferson coming out strong with 5. And while I still hold Abe dear to my heart, I cannot help but echo the calls to let Teddy win.

Oh. Yes.

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 16:33:02 -0400

Oh. Yes.

Not really Lincoln related… but I figured I’d post...

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:13:00 -0400

Not really Lincoln related… but I figured I’d post this classic Civil War narrative In Memoriam to The Band’s Levon Helm

Found this thought provoking irony via @LincolnsCottage

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:00:43 -0400

Found this thought provoking irony via @LincolnsCottage

It’s Emancipation Day here in D.C. - where we celebrate...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 14:00:42 -0400

It’s Emancipation Day here in D.C. - where we celebrate the fact that 150 years ago today the DC Compensated Emancipation Act of 1862 went into effect and ended slavery in the District.

Being a resident of Capitol Hill, I visit Lincoln Park - or as it has also been known as “Racist Statue Park” - with some regularity. The picture above shows the Thomas Ball statue which resides on the western side of the park. I was really pleased to see a nice write up in the Post examining the complexities of this statue - which also addresses the important issue of how we view history today, and how different images and figures mean different things to different eras.

Mary Todd was once asked if Abe had any hobbies and her reply...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:51:00 -0400

Mary Todd was once asked if Abe had any hobbies and her reply was: cats.

Lest you doubt Lincoln’s love of cats:

Mr. Lincoln had a particular weakness for kittens. One friend from his New Salem days recalled that he “ would take one & turn it on its back & talk to it for half an hour at a time.”¹⁰ Another New Salem resident recalled young Lincoln playing with the Carman family kittens, Jane and Susan: “he would Take them up in his lap & play with them and Hold their heads together & say Jane had a better countenance [sic] than Susan Had.”¹¹

So there you have it… Lincoln & Lee’s kitty ranch could have been a reality.

ggeemmiinnii:

The Oatmeal

“President Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” “Lincoln:...

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:50:00 -0400

“President Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”

“Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”

“The Legend of the Vampire Hunter”

“Secret Diary of the Vampire Hunter”

Loved this article detailing all titles that Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter will be released under.

What if I just want to see Secret Diary of the Vampire Hunter?

As my stomach is starting to grumble in anticipation of my...

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:15:16 -0400

As my stomach is starting to grumble in anticipation of my soon-to-be-eaten dinner, I figured it wouldn’t be a bad time to talk about one of my favorite spots in D.C. - Wok N’ Roll Restaurant.

Yes, ladies and gents, it’s true, it is possible to combine my love of Abraham Lincoln, puns and pan-asian cuisine into one brilliant location.

Granted - the Lincoln connection is a grim one - and any mention of Mary Surratt & Lincoln is sure to bring one thick into the weeds of some of the more difficult elements of Lincoln’s legacy (assassination and suspension of habeas corpus to name a few) - but still a fascinating piece of Lincoln and D.C. history.

Heather Havrilesky over at Vulture/New York Magazine has a new...

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 17:32:18 -0400

Heather Havrilesky over at Vulture/New York Magazine has a new post up looking at the “age-old” question of:

“Why Ninja Turtles Are More Real to Us Than Abraham Lincoln”

The post uses Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter as a mini-case study for how audiences approach and engage fiction and reality in media today - definitely worth a read; and something more to consider as coverage & AL:VH fanaticism heats up.

Alright, so this isn’t DIRECTLY Lincoln related —...

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 13:08:16 -0400

Alright, so this isn’t DIRECTLY Lincoln related — but it is one of my favorite moments in history on the steps of the Lincoln.

On this day in 1939 Marian Anderson gave her famous Lincoln Memorial Easter performance to a crowd of 75,000 (not including radio listeners). Learn more about her here or here.

Apparently Henry Rollins admires Abraham Lincoln. That...

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 09:50:50 -0400

Apparently Henry Rollins admires Abraham Lincoln.

That knowledge is enough to keep me happy for the weekend.

Here (excerpt below) is a little bit about the origins of Seth...

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 11:00:00 -0400

Here (excerpt below) is a little bit about the origins of Seth Grahame-Smith’s (pictured above)”Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”

“It was the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday,” he said, “so every bookstore in the entire country had two displays. You’d see the Lincoln biography display and then you would have a ‘Twilight’ display. I looked at that and said somewhat cynically, ‘OK, if you could combine those two things you’d really be onto something.’ “

Grahame-Smith immersed himself in Lincoln biographies and became convinced that the seemingly absurd concept could be pegged to solid historical detail. “The more I read, the more I realized that Lincoln’s real life story is a superhero origins story, and that’s what got me excited,” Grahame-Smith said. “He had to overcome all this darkness, like the death of his mother, yet he pulled himself up by the bootstraps to save the country.”

Yet another piece of information that makes me feel slightly better about this whole ordeal. Bicentennial fever was pretty epic back then and the fact that he purports to have actually done some research gives it some legitimate historical ties makes me feel a little better too. We’ll see though - I’m going to begin reading it this weekend.

A friend pointed me to the above (topical to my previous post!)...

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 17:02:39 -0400

A friend pointed me to the above (topical to my previous post!) correction from today’s Onion.

Seems like McClellan is making a resurgence of sorts these days!

Just caught wind of this incredibly hilarious anti-Lincoln...

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:52:00 -0400

Just caught wind of this incredibly hilarious anti-Lincoln campaign out of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

It’s part of a really excellent project known as flackcheck.org highlighting the impact of deceptive political advertising and divisive media reporting.

I love the parallels they are drawing and I think the McClellan/Lincoln and whomever-the-republican-candidate-ends-up-being/Obama metaphor is decently appropriate (albeit, clearly inaccurate and anachronistic). I highly recommend checking out the additional videos on their site.