RobKirkpatrick.com

Thursday, July 31, 1969

The Astros completed a 3-game series sweep of the Mets at Shea. Tom Seaver allowed just 1 earned run in seven innings, but that was enough for Houston. ’stros starting pitcher Tom Griffin held the Mets scoreless through eight innings, and closer Fred Gladding came on to pitch the ninth and record his third save in two days.

Astros 2, Mets 0.  W: Griffin (7-4)  L: Seaver (15-6)  SV: Gladding (22).

***

The Cubs lineup rapped out 12 runs on 12 hits and Fergie Jenkins recorded his 14th win of the season. Ernie Banks, Randy Hundley, and Billy Williams each homered, and Ron Santo also drove in 2 runs against the Giants.

Cubs 12, Giants 2.  W: Jenkins (14-9)  L: Bolin (5-7)

Team Name                        W    L    T    GB  
Chicago Cubs                    64   41    1    -  
New York Mets                   55   44    0   6.0  

Wednesday, July 30, 1969

It was a disastrous day at Shea as the Mets dropped a doubleheader to the Houston Astros. In both games, Mets pitchers allowed at least 10 runs in one inning.

In the first game, a close 5-3 contest suddenly turned into a rout as the Astros scored 11 runs in the ninth off relievers Cal Koonce and Ron Taylor. Both Denis Menke and Jimmy Wynn struck  grand slams in the inning.

The Mets lost big in the second game, too, despite 3 hits and 4 RBI from Ed Kranepool. This time, Houston blew out New York early with a 10-run rally in the third, highlighted by Curt Blefary’s triple with the bases loaded and a 2-run home run by starting pitcher Larry Dierker.

The inning also witnessed some tension when Houston’s Johnny Edwards doubled into leftfield and the Mets’s Cleon Jones gingerly pursued the ball on the muddy Shea sod. Manager Gil Hodges, who didn’t like the way Jones went after the ball, walked the entire way from the dugout out to Jones, talked with his player for a few moments, and then had Jones (who stands at second in the National League with a .346 average) follow him back to the dugout. Ron Swoboda took Jones’s place in rightfield.

Astros 16, Mets 3 (1). W: Wilson (12-7)  L: Koosman (8-6)  SV: Gladding (20)

Astros 11, Mets 5 (2). W; Dierker (13-8) L: Gentry (9-9)  SV: Gladding (21)

***

Gaylord Perry not only pitched a complete game but doubled and scored what proved to be the winning run in the 9th inning. Dave Marshall’s single drove home Perry, and Bob Burda’s double added two insurance runs.

Don Kessinger had 3 hits and scored twice for Chicago.

Giants 6, Cubs 3.  W: Perry (13-7)  L: Nye (2-5)

If you bought 1969: The Year Everything Changed – and especially if you bought it and liked it! – don’t be afraid to click over to Amazon and write a review for it!  Even if you didn’t buy the book from Amazon, you’re free to write a review of it, or any other product offered on Amazon, just as long as you have an account with them.

Every little bit helps.

Thanks!

- Rob

In doing a Google search to check on any articles that might have come out of my trip to Vegas, for some reason one of the results was a review, from back in February, written by someone named Ellen Wernecke and published on something called EDGE Boston. I was not familiar with the site, but I quickly discovered that it had carried the only [knock knock knock] bad review of 1969: The Year Everything Changed I’ve encountered to date. 

How bad is the review?  After I read it, I asked myself if I had ever met the reviewer and done something to offend her.  I was inspired to post a comment in response to the brief but scathing piece, not because it was a negative review – not everyone is going to like your book – but because the reviewer seemed to have missed the entire premise or point of the book. So I drafted a careful response and went to post it…only to discover one had to register with the EDGE Boston site before posting comments. 

Then, when I looked around the page some more and noticed the ad for a Vegas bathhouse, another for the man-on-man dating site FINDFRED.com, and another for a Melissa Etheridge concert, I realized that it was a GLBT site – or, as it boasts, “the largest network of local Gay, Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) news and entertainment portals in the world, serving a quarter of a million dedicated readers from a variety of metropolitan areas around the United States.”  So, not being in the target group myself, I figured it wouldn’t make sense for me to sign up.  (I already get too many emails about activities that I do participate in…)  Given the nature of the site, though, it’s especially surprising that the reviewer didn’t mention the material from the book on Stonewall; certainly, this content would be of interest to many of the site’s viewers. 

Anyway, since I was unable to respond to the review on the site itself, I figured I’d just post my response here.  If anyone’s interested, you can read the review at: http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=entertainment&sc=books&sc2=&sc3=non-fiction&id=86703

My response:

I usually do not respond to reviews – especially those of my own book – but I think this reviewer has a fundamental misunderstanding of my book’s premise, and I wanted to address this.

First, the reviewer writes that “Anyone dim enough to have to pick up 1969 to discover that 1968 wasn’t the be-all and end-all of the radical ’60s probably needs Kirkpatrick’s refresher course.”  Well…thank you.  But I would point out that, since there had been many books on the 1960s – including a few on 1968 alone – yet not one on the year 1969, it seemed clear to me that there was a gap in the historical literature.  In this sense, it seems inaccurate to label my book as a “refresher course” since it is, in fact, the first historical narrative on 1969 in America. My book was an attempt to fill a niche, and I’ve been encouraged by the enthusiastic and even grateful response that I have received from readers across the country.

The reviewer also notes, “Kirpatrick [sic] makes his case by trotting out seemingly every event, large or small, that happened in ’69, from the bombing of Cambodia to the Joe Namath-led Jets victory in Super Bowl III which led to the merger of AFL and NFL to prove that yeah, stuff happened then too.”  The reviewer’s argument seems to be that I err in trying to address the many important events of the year, rather than limiting the discussion to just a few. Well, yes, a lot of “stuff” did happen in 1969—more significant events than in any other postwar year in America, I would argue—and I do cover many events that we still look back to today, as we’ve seen by this year’s commemoration of such events as Woodstock and Apollo 11 and even the Miracle Mets.  While I am assuming the reviewer offers the bombing of Cambodia as an example of a “large” event (and I would agree), I’d observe that Super Bowl III is not considered a “small” event by football fans or members of the ever-burgeoning sports industry; not only does it stand as the most famous upset in the history of American professional team sports, but it cemented the merger of two rival leagues into what became our most popular sports league. (And not coincidentally, only months after this historic championship game, ABC came to an agreement with the NFL for a little thing called Monday Night Football.)  Perhaps the reviewer just hates football.

The most troubling observation, though, is that there’s “no build-up to a thesis bigger than ‘1969 is important.”  I would ask: How much more ambitious of a thesis could an author develop than arguing: “In a single year, American saw the peaks and valleys of an entire decade—the death of the old and the birth of the new—the birth of modern America”?  As I explained in my Prologue, my aim was to delve into the zeitgeist, or “time spirit,” of this unprecedented year…to show how it was indeed a time of unprecedented change.  For one thing, I believe the year witnessed the height of the Sexual Revolution—an arguable point, but one supported by the recent History Channel documentary, Sex in ’69: The Sexual Revolution in America.  It was a year of lines being drawn in the sand, whether between the New Left and Nixon’s Silent Majority, the FBI and the Black Panthers, New York’s homosexual community and the NYPD at Stonewall, the counterculture and the “Blue Meanies” at People’s Park, or the Weathermen and Chicago’s finest in the Days of Rage.  The genesis of major technological inventions that shape our world today, such as jumbo jet transportation, ATMs, the artificial heart transplant, and the computer network connection (a precursor to the Internet you’re using right now) occurred in 1969.  The music changed, with the first punk, heavy metal, progressive rock, jazz fusion, and rock opera albums.  Movies changed, and an X-rated movie from 1969 would win the Oscar for Best Picture.  Ronald Reagan, then the governor of California, ushered in the era of the No Fault Divorce.  Curt Flood rocked the national pastime by announcing his intention to challenge baseball’s reserve clause and become a free agent. The counterculture peaked with Woodstock but also came crashing down with Altamont and the arrest of Charles Manson.  The headlines out of Hamburger Hill and the public discovery of the horrors of My Lai left indelible images of the Vietnam War, causing more and more Americans to question the righteousness of our government’s foreign policy. So it’s not simply that “stuff happened then too” but, rather, that America experienced a remarkable 12-month narrative, one that was both beautiful and terrible at the same time.  Or as I told USA Today’s Craig Wilson earlier this year, there’s an America before ’69 and an America after ’69. 

If the reviewer preferred a book more focused on politics, such as Nixonland, so be it; I obviously preferred a more encompassing approach in examining the fabric of daily life in several different branches of American culture and society.  If the reviewer thinks 1969 was just another year, so be it: I obviously disagree, and the many celebrations of “things ’69″ this year lead me to believe that I’m not alone in my observations.

Rob Kirkpatrick 

This is sorta fun. I received a review of 1969 that was published in a Chinese newspaper.  The review was in Chinese, so I ran it through the Google translator.  The results of the computerized translation were predictably erratic, but for kicks I wanted to paste an excerpt here.  Although the precise wording of the review is undoubtedly lost in translation, the piece seems to cover many of the main points of the book as it relates our current situation to what happened forty years ago.  Thanks to the author, Berlin Fang, for reviewing the book and taking the time to send me what he wrote.

- Rob  

This is an unusual year, economic depression, the collapse of many banks, the auto industry recession, “moon walk” the singer Michael Jackson has died, “America’s most trusted” anchor Cronkite’s dead, “教书匠“Frank McCourt has been turned into ashes. I turn on the TV, it seems there are bad news. It seems there is a cyclical history, four decades ago and today is quite similar to the United States, the United States inside stuck in the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement in full swing, because of the assassination of Martin Luther King, has been a certain setback. That year the United States with a lot of pent-up emotions of society. Also occurred in the year a lot of things have been written on behalf of the United States dedicated to the sixties罗伯柯克writer Patrick (R obK irkpatrick) specifically written a book describing the United States during the grand finale of an extraordinary one extraordinary years, the title is called “1969.”午夜牛郎” the release. Terms of its propaganda is: “on”午夜牛郎“all the rumors are true.” “Playboy” and “loft” playing the “private part World War II,” with the pornography and exposure to the mainstream media. At that time, the daughter of Vice President艾格纽, there are several members of Congress because of the children of drug abuse, have been expelled from school and have been arrested by the police, shows the madness of an era.尸骨未寒encountered a half of these students is not a small problem for the race to determine whether the contradictions and class conflicts, teacher-student contradiction, or is it simply the growth of闲得发慌trouble? It is hard to say, to do an event with a different definition and interpretation, so the situation in order to avoid the expansion of schools to deal with more caution.马丁佩雷斯after witnessing the scene at the time said, “I think the problem of civilization. I think, how we can regain our past to see the teachers, the self-issued the kind of respect? … … These students occupied the administration building of the act, let me overnight change their political stance, the left turn from a right-wing. ”

- Berlin Fang

Thanks again go out to Mark Page and everybody at Telling Pictures for including me in the documentary Sex in ‘69: The Sexual Revolution in America, which broadcast Monday night on the History Channel.  If you missed it, you can read more about it and buy a copy of the DVD (http://www.history.com/shows.do?action=detail&episodeId=464960).  And, of course, my book is also available from the History Channel online store.

I think the highlight for me was seeing myself speak while juxtaposed with scenes of Natalie Wood in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice. 

And to Margo Sappington, the great choreographer behind Oh! Calcutta!: You’re awesome, and next time you’re in New York, let me know if you’d like to meet for coffee.

-Rob

Tuesday, July 29, 1969

Willie Mays tripled in the go-ahead run and then scored an insurance run in the seventh inning as the Giants beat the Cubs.  Chicago starting pitcher Jim Colburn lasted 4 2/3 innings, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits and 1 walk.  Bobby Bonds had 3 hits and scored twice for San Francisco.  Frank Linzy got the win after pitching 4 shutout innings out of the ‘pen.  Ron Santo and Don Young collected 2 hits apiece for the Cubbies. 

Giants 4, Cubs 2.  W: Linzy (9-6)  L: Abernathy (4-3)

Monday, July 28, 1969

The Giants looked like they’d won this game with a run in the top of the 10th inning, but then the Cubs struck back for two in the bottom of the frame to send the Wrigley faithful home happy.

With the score tied 2-2 after nine, Willie Mays singled in Bobby Bonds for the go-ahead run. It could have been worse but Rich Nye came on and got Ken Henderson to ground into a bases-loaded double play, third to catcher to first, to end the inning.

Starter Juan Marichal, still going in the tenth inning, retired the first two Cubs batters and was just one out away from victory. But Willie Smith walked and then Don Kessinger, Glenn Beckert, and Billy Williams all singled to score the tying and winning runs.

Bill Hands had started for Chicago and gave up just 2 runs in 8 2/3 innings.

Cubs 4, Giants 3 (10 inn.)  W: Nye (2-4)  L: Marichal (13-6)

Sex in ‘69 airs tonight at 9 PM ET. I was interviewed for this program and will appear in four of its nine segments.

Travel back to 1969 and uncover fascinating trends, people and events that forever changed the way Americans think about and have sex. Viewers will travel from the Playboy Penthouse in Los Angeles to San Francisco’s Hippie crash pads, the boardwalk in Atlantic City, a court room in Miami, and other spots across America to meet some of the women and men who found themselves caught between old values and new desires in 1969, and decided to do something about it. Some of them, like Playboy publisher Hugh Hefner, actor Jim Brown, and Ray Manzarek of The Doors, will be famous. Others will be average Americans whose lives were transformed by the sexual tides coursing through the nation as the Sixties came to a close. But they will all have one thing in common–they will all have fascinating stories to tell.

Rating: TVPG

Running Time: 120 minutes

Sunday, July 27, 1969

Dodgers 6, Cubs 2.  W: Drysdale (5-3)  L: Jenkins (13-9)  SV: Mikkelsen (1)

Jenkins comes back on one day’s rest, gives up 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings.

Reds 6, Mets 3.  W: Arrigo (1-2)  L: Cardwell (3-9)  SV: Granger (13)

Bobby Tolan and Tony Perez each drive in 2.

Team Name                        W    L    T   PCT    GB 
Chicago Cubs                    61   39    1  .610     -  

New York Mets                   55   41    0  .573   4.0  

Saturday, July 26, 1969

Cubs 3, Dodgers 2 (11 inn.)  W: Regan (11-5)  L: Brewer (3-4)

Billy Williams doubles and scores on Randy Hundley’s single for the game winner.

Mets 3, Reds 2.  W: Seaver (15-5)  L: Cloninger (7-13)

Seaver strikes out 8 in a complete-game victory. Agee’s single drives in 2 in the 5th.

Friday, July 25, 1969

Dodgers 4, Cubs 2.  W: Osteen (13-8)  L: Jenkins (13-8)  SV: Brewer (16)

The two teams combine for 25 hits. Jenkins leaves early after being hit in the hand by a line drive.

Mets 4, Reds 3.  W: Taylor (5-2)  L: Carroll (12-5)

J.C. Martin hits a 2-run shot as Mets rally for 3 in the 8th. 

Thursday, July 24, 1969

Cubs 5, Dodgers 3.  W: Holtzman (12-5)  L: Sutton (12-10)  SV: Regan (10)

Two RBIs from both Al Spangler and Randy Hundley.

Reds 4, Mets 3 (12 inn.).  W: P. Ramos (4-3)  L: McGraw (5-2)

Tony Perez homered in the top of the 12th.

Thanks go out to everybody at the Freemont Street Experience and also Preferred Public Relations & Marketing for a fun event at John Van Hamersveld’s Hippie Nation Gallery and Records last night! 

And if you’re in Vegas tonight, come out to the FSE to see The Fifth Dimension, who had two #1 songs in 1969.  I think I’m supposed to be introducing the band, or something like that…

- Rob