TidbitsMOV Issue #1250 Records Info

The Neatest Little Paper Ever Read

TIDBITS® TURNS UP SOME RECORDS INFO

by Kathy Wolfe

Turn up the volume as Tidbits releases these facts on records, from 78s to LPs, 45s, CDs, and digital music.

• A vinyl record take its name from its composition of polyvinyl chloride, or PVC. Most of PVC, 57%, consists of chlorine, with the other 43% derived from crude oil.

• Beginning in the late 1890s, records were made of shellac, a rather heavy, brittle material. These 10-inch (25 cm) records were called “78s,” due to the number of rotations per minute. Recording duration per side was three to five minutes. During World War II, the War Production Board called for a 70% cut in production of phonograph records. Why? Because shellac wasn’t used just in record production, but was also needed for the manufacture of explosives. The shortage of shellac paved the way for vinyl records.

• RCA had already been experimenting with 12-inch (30 cm) vinyl records, having released the first long-playing record in 1931, a recording of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 by the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. Its rotational speed was 33 1/3, able to hold more than 20 minutes of music per side. These larger records became known as LP’s, for “Long-playing.” turn the page for more!

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RECORDS FACTS

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• Improvements were made to vinyl over the next several years, and in 1948, Columbia Record Company introduced the first 12inch microgroove record album. With 23 minutes of music on each side, it was a recording of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor performed by New York’s Philharmonic Orchestra.

• RCA’s 1949 innovation was a 7-inch (17.7 cm) record with a bigger hole in the center. It played a single song at 45 rpm’s, and was the preferred format for jukeboxes. The 45s had a better sound than the LPs, because they rotated at a faster speed. This made for more waveform definitions and grooves on the record’s surface, creating better audio quality.

• The first 45 rpm record, a green vinyl recording of Eddy Arnold’s “Texarkana Baby,” went on sale on March 31, 1949. The most valuable 45, a 1965 recording of “Do I Love You, Indeed I Do” by Motown artist Frank Wilson, sold for $37,000 in 2009. If you have a copy of the Beatles’ “Love Me Do” 45 record, it can be worth up to $20,000.

• In 1970, a vinyl record could be purchased for around $5.00 (about $33 in today’s dollars). The price of a 45 rpm was 95 cents.

• The popularity of vinyl led to the end of production of shellac records in the late 1950s. Yet vinyl’s popularity was coming to an end as well. Philips debuted the cassette tape in America in 1964, with music recorded on magnetic film. This innovation gave listeners the ability to record their own tracks of audio, giving rise to the mixtape. Within five years, cassettes outsold records. In 1979, Sony’s Walkman cassette tape player provided the convenience of on-the-go music

In this issue of TidbitsMOV our girl Tammy Tidbits is hiding

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RECORDS FACTS

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• More new technology put vinyl and cassettes at risk in 1982 when Sony created the first compact disc, a 4.75-inch (12 cm) disc with a capacity of 80 minutes of audio. The disc’s tracks are scanned by an infrared laser, with RPMs between 210 and 480. CDs were small, portable, and convenient, played on a device that could go anywhere.

• The success of CDs wound down when the first version of the MP3 format was introduced in 1993. This format launched the downloading of digital music, and the capability of listening on a computer.

• Apple revolutionized listening to music with the introduction of the iPod in 2001, a small convenient device advertised as giving music lovers “1,000 songs in your pocket.” Because the iTunes store wasn’t launched until 2003, listeners added music to the iPod from CDs or other online sources like Napster. By March, 2002, the updated iPod could hold 2,000 songs, and four months later, that number was up to 4,000. In September, the upgrade increased the total to 10,000 songs, and the 80 GB iPod of 2005 brought the total to 20,000. Apple discontinued the iPod product line in 2022.

• Yet all of the new innovations haven’t marked the end of vinyl records. Since 2007, there has been a renewed interest in vinyl records. The comeback was small at first, but by 2010, growth was quickly picking up. By 2020, the increase was 29.2%, surpassing sales of CDs for the first time in over 30 years. In 2021, 41.72 million vinyl records were sold in the U.S. For the first half of 2023, sales exceeded 23 million, with Taylor Swift leading the pack. These days, nearly every major artist is releasing their newest records on vinyl.

RECORDS FACTS

(continued):

• What’s created this resurgence of vinyl records? Part of it is a sense of nostalgia as listeners enjoy adding a new record to their collection and displaying them creatively. They like the imaginative cover art and the bonus items, such as posters, included in albums not present with CDs. Some say that the sound of vinyl is “warmer” and “more authentic,” a unique sound different from digital music.

• Michael Jackson’s Thriller, which was released in 1982, is the biggest-selling album of all time. It sold 32 million copies its first year, with an estimated 70 million number of sales to date. The honor of best-selling single of all time worldwide belongs to Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas,” recorded in 1942. Conservative estimates place the total at 50 million copies. “Rock Around the Clock” is the biggest-selling rock and roll single of all time. It was originally released on a vinyl 45 and a shellac 78 in 1954. Its sales are estimated at 25 million.

• We usually associate the hit “I Will Always Love You” with songstress Whitney Houston, featured in the 1992 film “The Bodyguard.” But it was a hit long before by its composer Dolly Parton, who wrote it in a day in 1974. Actor Kevin Costner contacted Parton for permission to use it in the film. Parton never heard another word about it, until she was driving her car down the road after the movie’s release and heard Houston singing it on the radio. Houston’s version is the best-selling single by a female artist of all time. The song was played at her 2012 funeral.

• Songs that were slammed by broadcasters, critics, and listeners as the “worst ever” include “Achy Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus, the Baha Men’s recording of “Who Let the Dogs Out?,” and “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” by Bobby McFerrin.

Savoring Summer: Grilled Fruit Delights for Memorial Day Weekend

As we celebrate the start of summer this Memorial Day weekend with family and friends, let's also take this time to honor the memory of those who have sacrificed for our freedom and served our nation with courage and dedication.

Let's dust off our grills and fire up the charcoal and shake things up with a twist on the traditional barbecue fare. While we often associate the grill with savory meats and veggies, why not indulge in the sweet side of grilling with desserts featuring grilled fruits?

Why grilled desserts, you ask? Besides the fun factor, there's something delightful about caramelizing fresh fruit on the grill. It enhances their natural sweetness, making for a practically virtuous indulgence packed with health benefits. Now, let's dive into the pièce de résistance: the Grilled Mixed Fruit Sundae. Imagine this: the aroma of caramelized banana, strawberry and pineapple wafting through the air, creamy vanilla ice cream melting in the bowl, topped with homemade caramel sauce, made boozy if you like that kind of thing. I say yes.

GRILLED MIXED

FRUIT SUNDAES

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Total Time: 25 minutes

3 tablespoons butter, melted 3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar, divided

4 bananas, cut in half lengthwise keeping in peel

1 fresh pineapple peeled, cored and sliced into rings, 3/4-inch thick 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

16 oz fresh strawberries, tops removed Pinch flakey salt

Vanilla ice cream for serving Boozy caramel, optional (recipe follows) Toasted chopped nuts and coconut strips, optional

Preheat your grill to medium-low heat and wipe the grill grates with oil, or spray with cooking spray. If you're using bamboo skewers, soak them in water at least 30 minutes before use. Alternatively, you can use a grill basket for all the fruit. In a small bowl, mix warm, melted butter and 2 tablespoons brown sugar until sugar dissolves. Brush this mixture onto halved bananas and pineapple rings. In another small bowl mix balsamic vinegar with brown sugar until the sugar has dissolved. Dip the strawberries in the balsamic and brown sugar mixture. Place the strawberries on skewers. Grill the bananas and pineapple rings for about 3 minutes on each side, or until grill marks develop. Remove them from the grill and set aside, keeping them warm. Then put the strawberry skewers on the grill, cooking for about 2 minutes on each side until hot and slightly tender. To assemble the sundaes: Remove the peel from the bananas, roughly chop then divide all the grilled fruit between 6 to 8 sundae cups. To take this over the top, add a little sprinkle of salt to intensify the complex flavors of the caramelized sugars. Top each serving with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle with boozy syrup, and a sprinkle of chopped nuts

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and coconut, if desired. EASY BOOZY CARAMEL SAUCE

Yield: 1 cup

Total Time: 5 minutes

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons dark rum, bourbon, whiskey or other liquor

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a small saucepan over low heat, cook the butter, heavy cream and brown sugar, stirring occasionally, until the sugar completely melts and the sauce is a uniform brown. Bring just to a boil then remove from heat. Let cool a little, then stir in the liquor of choice and vanilla. Keep warm.

As we celebrate the unofficial start of summer this Memorial Day weekend, let's embrace both abundant joy and sweet remembrance ***

Lifestyle expert Patti Diamond is the penny-pinching, partyplanning, recipe developer and content creator of the website Divas On A Dime Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! Visit Patti at www.divasonadime.com and join the conversation on Facebook at DivasOnADimeDotCom. Email Patti at divapatti@divasonadime.com (c) 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.

Summer sweetness grilled to perfection: Grilled fruit sundaes. PHOTO CREDIT: www.JasonCoblentz.com

the purchase of a pair of Widex SmartRIC 440 or 330 hearing aids. Expires 6/30/24

MARSHMALLOWS

This week, Tidbits has “s’more” than enough facts about one of our favorite treats – the marshmallow!

• Did you know that marshmallows grow on trees? Well, sort of anyway. There really is a marshmallow plant found in Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It’s a beautiful flowering plant that’s covered in white flowers, but it’s the roots and sap that provide the real benefit. For centuries, dating back to ancient Egypt and Greece, people used these parts of the marshmallow plant for its therapeutic properties to heal wounds, to soothe throat inflammation, and relieve coughs. The sap and root pulp were boiled and mixed with honey. The healing concoction was strictly for use by royalty.

• The Egyptians moved the marshmallow from merely medicinal to a confection, combining it with grains and nuts and baking into cakes.

• It wasn’t until the mid-1800s that the marshmallow started to become the form we know today. French confectioners took the plant’s roots and sap and whipped them together with sugar, water, and egg whites, resulting in a soft, puffy treat. Each marshmallow had to be hand-formed, so in the latter part of the century, they created cornstarch molds that allowed for mass-production.

• Yet the process was still tedious and took a lot of time, since the sap had to extracted from the plant took over a day to dry. Manufacturers replaced it with the moreconvenient gelatin, which had the added bonus of helping marshmallows to better hold their shape. Corn syrup, starch, powdered sugar, and water were added to the gelatin, resulting in a fluffy texture.

• Marshmallows came to America in the early 1900s, sold as penny candy. Germany immigrants, the Rueckheim brothers, opened Angelus Marshmallows in 1907, adding to the popular confection they had already introduced in 1893, known as Cracker Jack. (Continued page #7)

How to train an excited, reactive dog

DEAR PAW'S CORNER: My 1-year-old puppy, "Shellie," gets very excited when she sees another dog approaching. Because she's already26 pounds, I'm worried that she'll soon break awayfrom me while on walks. What can Ido? Glen H., Plattsburgh, New York

DEAR GLEN: Keeping control of your dog on the leash is such an important skill and there is a way to achieve that with Shellie. First, work on curbing overall reactivity. Does Shellie get really excited when the leash appears? Does she practically drag you out the door for walks? Get control of that first: Bring out the leash, but don't put it on Shellie right away. Wait until she's calm, then attach the leash.

Next, walk away from the door. Lead Shellie around the house. She'll be pretty confused, and that's fine.

Stand at the door and have her sit. Open the door slightly, then close it. Repeat. Repeat again until Shellie is staring at you like, "are you nuts?"

Now, exit the house, but only if Shellie stays by your side or slightly behind you. If she tries to rush out, repeat the door exercise. Now, let's address that reactivity on walks. Here are a few tips that can help: A sturdy, short leash is essential to maintaining control.

Train Shellie to walk at your side with a little slack in the leash.

Work on core commands when no other dogs are around: Come, Sit, Stay, Heel. Place yourself between Shellie and an approaching dog. Move her to your other side and keep her slightly behind you. You're her protector right now.

Avoid practicing "meet and greets" with other dogs until Shellie is no longer reactive on sight.

These training methods are just a start, but they'll put you both on the right track. Most importantly, be consistent with training and daily walks.

Send your tips, comments or questions to ask@pawscorner.com.

(c) 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.

MARSHMALLOWS

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• In 1927, the Girl Scouts’ Handbook and “Scouting Magazine” published a recipe they called “Some More,” maybe because the girls were always asking for more of the treat consisting of two roasted marshmallows and a chocolate bar sandwiched between two graham crackers. The name was later abbreviated to “s’mores.”

• 1948 brought a new process that transformed the production. It involved an extrusion machine, in which the mixture was piped through tubes, then cut into equal pieces. It also pumped more air into marshmallows, making them even puffier!

• In 1940, a Pennsylvania-based candy company named Just Born introduced a new candy they called Mike and Ike. In 1950, a cinnamon-flavored candy known as Hot Tamales was added to Just Born’s lineup. They presented another famous sweet treat in 1953, a chick-shaped marshmallow they dubbed Peeps. Originally, a batch of Peeps took about 27 hours to create, all made by hand. Today’s equipment enables the company to crank out the chicks and bunnies in about six minutes. Each Peep contains about 28 calories.

• Kellogg’s starting printing the recipe for their “marshmallow squares,” as they were called, on the Rice Krispies packages in 1941. The recipe was a joint project between the Kellogg test kitchens and a fundraiser for the Camp Fire Girls, producing a treat the girls could sell door-to-door. The recipe has remained unchanged ever since. General Mills added marshmallows to oat cereal in 1964, calling them Lucky Charms, and using Lucky the Leprechaun as their sales mascot.

• Marshmallows, originally a plant-based treat, are now made primarily from animal-based gelatin, although vegan marshmallows are available. Americans consume about 90 million lbs. (40,823,313 kg) of marshmallows every year.