News of the Week: Torpedo Bats, Forgotten Stooges, and Honoring All the Rosie the Riveters

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Every week there’s a controversy. Maybe not a big one involving politics or a court trial, but one involving sports or pop culture.

This week? The Yankees hit several home runs using a new type of bat called a “torpedo bat,” which is thicker in the middle than traditional baseball bats. A physicist explains how it works.

When I played baseball as a kid I had a lousy first year. The next season I used a different type of bat that had a curved cup carved into the top of it. I have no idea if that made a difference, but I did hit a grand slam home run and a bases-loaded double in one game.

Tattoos For Beer

Come on. You’re asking people to get a lifetime tattoo, but you’re only giving them free beer for six months? They do make temporary tattoos you know.

Everything’s Coming Up Rosies

18 women were honored at the National World War II Museum for their work during the war as “Rosie the Riveters.” They received the Congressional Gold Medal and a tour of the museum. Most of them are now in their late 90s, and some have even hit the 100-year mark.

Here’s Post archive director Jeff Nilsson on Norman Rockwell’s famous 1943 cover.

Uploaded to YouTube by The Saturday Evening Post

Moe, Larry, and Curly (and Shemp and Joe and Curly Joe)

This is a fascinating documentary. Well, it’s fascinating if you love The Three Stooges. Your mileage may vary. But there are lots of great home movie clips, behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews in this different look at the comedy trio (actually, trio times two because there were six Stooges).

Uploaded to YouTube by The Sprocket Vault

RIP Val Kilmer, Richard Chamberlain, Bruce Glover, Denis Arndt, Clive Revill, L.J. Smith, Patty Maloney, and Joe Harris

Val Kilmer appeared in several movies, including The Doors, Top Gun, Batman Forever, Tombstone, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Heat, Real Genius, The Saint, Willow, and Top Secret! He died Tuesday at the age of 65.

Richard Chamberlain starred in the TV drama Dr. Kildare and two popular miniseries, The Thorn Birds and Shogun. He was also the star of the first version of The Bourne Identity and appeared in films like The Three Musketeers, The Last Wave, and The Towering Inferno. He appeared on Broadway and was also a singer. He died Saturday at the age of 90.

Bruce Glover appeared in such films as Diamonds Are Forever, Walking Tall, and Chinatown, as well as many TV shows. He was the father of actor Crispin Glover. He died last month at the age of 92.

Denis Arndt appeared in dozens of TV shows, including L.A. Law, The Practice, 24, Crime Story, and Columbo, as well as several films and stage plays. He died last week at the age of 86.

Clive Revill was the original voice of Emperor Palpatine in The Empire Strikes Back (later replaced by Ian McDiarmid). He also appeared in the films The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, The Legend of Hell House, and Robin Hood: Men in Tights, TV shows like Columbo, Magnum, P.I., and Murder, She Wrote, and many plays. He died last month at the age of 94.

L.J. Smith was the writer of the Vampire Diaries series of books. She died last month at the age of 66.

Patty Maloney appeared in the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special and many other TV shows and films. She died Monday at the age of 89.

Joe Harris was the oldest surviving World War II paratrooper. He died last month at the age of 108.

This Week in History

General Hospital Premieres (April 1, 1963)

It’s currently the longest-running soap opera on network TV. Of course, there are only four soaps still on: General Hospital, The Young and the Restless, The Bold and the Beautiful, and the new show Beyond the Gates (five if you count Days of Our Lives, which airs on Peacock).

Martin Luther King Jr. Shot (April 4, 1968)

Following the 1963 March on Washington and criticism that progress was happening too quickly in America, King wrote an article for the November 7, 1964, issue of the Post titled “The Pace of Change.”

This Week in Saturday Evening Post History: Kay Cheddar Cheese (April 2, 1949)

I thought that Kay was a different brand of cheese, but it was actually made by Kraft.

April Is National Grilled Cheese Month

You probably know how to make your basic grilled cheese sandwich, so here are a few variations you might want to try.

Curtis Stone has a recipe for a Zucchini Grilled Cheese, and Food Network has a Cheddar and Apple Grilled Cheese Sandwich. Foodie Crush has this Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese, while Spend with Pennies has Grilled Cheese Roll Ups. And The Pioneer Woman has a recipe that has been called “slightly controversial” because it involves making a grilled cheese sandwich in an air fryer.

I was on a health kick several years ago and made grilled cheese sandwiches with low-fat cheese and bread toasted in a toaster (no butter). I’m never doing that again.

Next Week’s Holidays and Events

NCAA Championships (April 6-7)

After the final four games this weekend, ABC will have the Women’s Championship game on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET, while the Men’s Championship game will be played on Monday at 8 p.m. on CBS.

Read a Road Map Day (April 5)

Ditch your GPS for one day and teach your kids the fun of trying to refold a paper map.

National Library Workers Day (April 8)

I haven’t been to the library in years and I feel bad about that.