The Joy of Paper Gifts

Most of My Loyal Blog Readers (both of you) know that I collect and save significant newspaper headlines. I have over 120 front page sections that provide hours and hours of…

Anyway, my sister-in-law called last night and asked if she could come right over with something she wanted me to have. She’s not a lawyer, so I knew she didn’t have a subpoena. “Well, sure,” I said. In just a few minutes she was knocking our door.

And what to my wondering eyes did appear?

From the Los Angeles Examiner, August 15, 1945 (five cents): WAR ENDS!

The headline is at least 288 pt font size, maybe more. Huge!. It’s red, with a black background.

The sub-head says, MacArthur Named Jap Boss in 72 pt size that stretches across the page.

At the top of the page, wrapped around the tiny “Los Angeles Examiner” mast are two red white and blue US flags (with 48 stars). The word “Victory” has several stars and a red white and blue ribbon intertwined among the letters. On the bottom half of the page are pictures of Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Chester Nimitz, American WWII heroes who took on the powerful Japanese military.

This is an unusually colorful newspaper, but I guess it announced the end of some long, dark days.

Oh, and that’s not all!

From the Los Angeles Times, November 23, 1963 (Daily 10 cents) KENNEDY ASSASSINATED

There is a familiar photo of Texas Governor and Mrs. John Connally and President and Jackie Kennedy riding through the Dallas crowd just seconds before the two men were shot.

These may not seem like a great gifts to most people; but to me, I just won the lottery. My sister-in-law found them in Los Angeles recently and snapped them up for me. I'm sorry, but the papers are too big to scan. But I have a nice sister-in-law, don't I?

(By the way, My First Wife and I were married exactly one week before JFK’s murder—if that tells My Loyal Blog Readers anything.)