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Putting the Sales Cart in Front of the Credit Horse
By Jim Acee

Are you charged with growing a new market niche but feel you are constantly swimming upstream against everyone in your company?

Does your company only dabble in certain markets because your credit team has narrowed the credit profile and or equipment types to a point where it’s almost impossible to write business (i.e. they will approve class 8 trucks but will not entertain class 4-7 trucks?)

Have you hired a top tier sale rep to go after a new equipment type (knowing that they have written tens of millions of dollars in this market with a competitor) only to find out that your credit teams approval level is less than 50% and your competitors are approving 85%? Have you lost this new sales rep after only a few months out of their frustration over not being able to get deals done?

I call this putting the sales cart in front of the credit horse.

If you have said yes to any of the above questions you are not alone. The likelihood of an equipment finance company organically growing a new market niche from the ground up to over $100MM successfully is difficult. The modus operandi of equipment finance companies is to dip their toe in the water for a couple of years to see if it is safe to enter the pool. After they find out that they cannot compete effectively relegate the market niche into a hodge-podge group of other undesirables. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, everything lost.

How much lease volume do you want to originate in the new market within the next 3-4 years: is it $10MM or $110MM? (If its $10MM, forget everything I’ve said above and below and keep doing what you’re doing.) If it’s the $110MM, it’s worth the time, money and effort to do it right.

If you look at most successful launches into new markets by existing finance companies, you will typically find that they have either lifted out a whole group (sales, credit and asset management) or purchased a market segment from a competitor. While this is a sure-fire way of entering a market successfully, it is also very expensive.

Companies not wanting to spend big bucks to hire a whole team or buy a business segment from a competitor make the classic mistake of thinking they can jump into a new market niche just by adding a big hitter sales rep from a competitor. This is a formula for failure as your current credit and asset team don’t know enough about the market expectations, end users, legal requirement and asset types to be able to support your new sales rep effectively. Trying to figure it out on the run is a strategy destined to fail. It amuses me when senior sales leaders complain that they cannot gain a foothold in new markets and want to blame the credit staff for their lack of insight. These same sales leaders throw up their hands in desperation and start looking for the next Holy Grail in the leasing business, only to repeat their same mistakes in the next new market.

It is not impossible to start a new market niche from the ground up. The alternative to spending a lot of capital is to seed your new endeavor with a few key individuals that will bring the market experience and credibility both inside and outside of your organization.

You can do this with 3 strategic hires:

The first of the key hires is a commercial lead that should not only know the sales side of the market but should have a high level of understanding of the credit risks, asset types, legal hurdles and finance/lease agreement types. This individual should have the resume depth, authority and credibility to affect change within your organization.

The second person added should be a credit manager from a competitor with deep experience in this equipment type (I find that risk management leadership is more inclined to agree to new credit parameters if championed by a seasoned credit professional from outside their organization). The classic mistake most finance companies make is assuming that one of their current credit team members that has ‘some’ experience approving this type of equipment, will be sufficient for entering a new market. The problem is that this individual does not have the credibility to change the risk leadership’s view point and risk criteria needed to effectively compete. If there is an OLV or FMV component to the equipment, an experienced asset evaluator should be the third person hired (no, your copier asset group cannot evaluate material handling equipment correctly no matter how much they insist they can).

Engage a good recruiter and hire the best and brightest from your competition. Stop trying to do it on the cheap, $110MM in new business volume is worth the investment. The rest of the team can be built out as needed from new or current staff as sales grow.

The key to a successful foray into a new market is to start by hiring an experienced team to build the backroom first and then add the big hitter sales reps later, not the other way around.

Jim Acee
(m) 484-883-9618
jjacee@verizon.net
He has a rich background, serving as
DLL Country Sales Manager;
Vice President, Syndication Buy Desk;
Vice President, Field Sales, Wells Fargo Capital Finance;
Managing Director, Vendor Leasing, US Bank;
Director of Sales, US Bancorp (formerly BCL).
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-acee-578a03b

Previous Jim Acee columns plus Sales Makes it Happen
http://www.leasingnews.org/Legacy/index.html

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Letters?! We get eMail
(Mostly in Chronological Order)

Duane Russell, 83, Passes Away in South Carolina
An Old Timer Who Was Very Active in His Day
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Nov2017/11_20.htm#russell

Kit
"I just had a message from Duane Russell's son - Duane passed away on 15th in a traffic accident."

Jim Swander
Phnom Penh, Cambodia

(Jim informed me about the passing of Duane and also sent me the obituary to put in Leasing News. Kit Menkin).

"Nice job on the story on Duane. I have already told some friends."

Jim

"I was sorry to read of the passing of Duane Russell in today’s edition of Leasing News, it brought back some good memories. We used to do quite a bit of business with Duane when I was at Taylor Financial and he was at Atlantic Financial, and I know he and Russ Rickards were friends. I forgot that he was the “R” in RS and later RSN – Russell, Swander and Nathanson. I’m friends with Jim Swander on Facebook, so follow what he’s up to over in Viet Nam and Cambodia, and of course Stan Nathanson passed a few years ago – we did business with Stan when I was at Bank of the West up until about a month before his passing. Although it’s sad, I appreciate your efforts in keeping everyone up-to-date on stuff like this, without Leasing News there would be no means of communicating information about people from the past – keep up the good work!"

"Thanks,"

Steve Crane, CLFP
EVP & Sales Manager
BSB Leasing, Inc.

"To family & friends of Duane Russell,

"I enjoyed working with Duane on a couple of WAEL panels many years ago and recall him saying at one, ‘Asking me to say a few words is like asking me to take a sip of water from a fire hose.’ Duane and I reconnected a few years ago and have exchanged some correspondence since then. Sad to read he’s passed. "

Hal Horowitz

“I had the opportunity to work with Duane Russell at Atlantic Financial in Mid 1980’s. He was a great gentleman.

“At the same time frame, also had the opportunity to work with Ken Studer, Steve Tidland and Mike Walsh.”

“Lost contact with Mike and Ken.”

Mohammed Ahsan
Quail Financial Solutions

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New Hires/Promotions in the Leasing Business
and Related Industries
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Nov2017/11_17.htm#hires

"I appreciate your feedback on my LinkedIn profile picture. My choice to use it - and continue to do so - is quite purposeful. It's what I would call a pattern interrupt - it's just so different from the norm that it becomes a conversation starter. I hear often from people that they love my pic.

"I continue to be a regular reader of Leasing News, and continue to admire your dedication to our industry.

"All best,"

Jonathan Zigman

----

The Complaint Process for Leasing and Finance Associations
Certified Leasing and Finance Foundation
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Oct2017/10_10.htm#complaint

"Thank you for your reference to me in today’s Leasing News. Please, also if you can, give credit to Barry Marks because it was both he and I that developed the initial program for NAELB that was ultimately accepted by the board of directors at that time. There have been tweaks here and there over time, but the overall program was lawsuit free as of the time of my discharge by NAELB, and Barry and I designed it specifically to minimize the risks of any resulting litigation from an adverse party. Seems like the design and the program worked.

"The CLFP model is not quite the same as the NAELB, but there are small similarities.

"Thank you again and best regards,"

Joseph G. Bonanno, Esq.

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How to Better Understand the Importance of
Search Engine Optimization

FinTech #102
by Alex Vasilakos

No matter which industry you’re in, chances are good you’ve at least heard of search engine optimization, more commonly known as SEO. Even though SEO has been around for a while, it’s still just as essential to a company’s marketing and advertising strategy now as it was when it first emerged. If you have yet to put SEO to good use for your company, here’s a solid introduction to help familiarize you.

Make Your Business Easily Visible

The main objective of SEO is to make your company as visible as possible to your target audience, which is done by positioning you near the top of search engine results. There are more businesses that offer the same products or services as yours, and you need every advantage you can get to set yourself in front of the eyes of your customers. Not only that, but you’ve got to maneuver yourself in a way that’s unobtrusive so users don’t find your presence more annoying than they do helpful. SEO offers you an effective and cost-efficient way to accomplish that task and much more.

Know Who You Want to See You

No matter how you choose to go about your SEO campaign, you must always proceed with your audience in mind. Knowing who your target customer is helps you decide which keywords and key phrases will attract that customer. Do some research to truly connect with your audience and know not only what they want right now, but what they’re likely to want in the future as well. That way, you’re always acting rather than reacting, which goes a long way in saving you time.

Know Your Story

Something else to think about when optimizing your site is what story you want to tell. It’s the story that sets your company apart from others in your business sector, and it’s your story that makes your company truly human and not just another business brand. What need did you set out to meet when you originally launched your business? How have your customers and employees helped shape your business? What’s next on the agenda for your business? It’s the answers to these questions that help guide your marketing and advertising efforts and do so in a way that’s truly authentic.

Break That Story Down

To make the story of your business easily digestible, you’ve got to break it down into chapters, or pages, in this case, since we’re talking about your business website. Your story should carry on throughout each page of your site, from the unique features of your products or services and customer testimonials to your business philosophy and the benefits your product provides. Know that it’s okay for you to go back every now and then and revise chapters you’ve already written. Unlike writers of actual books, you do have the option of making changes once your site has been published and made available to the public.

Keep Things Structured

Just like no story can truly satisfy without some type of structure, the same is true of your company’s SEO strategy. It’s the research you’ve put into getting to know your audience better that will guide you in your quest to find that structure. Let those specific keywords and phrases decide what the focus of each chapter/page will be. One thing to bear in mind is that it’s important you do not stuff as many keywords as possible throughout your site. While this might seem like a good idea to quickly raise your commercial site to the top of search engine results, doing so does you more harm than good, mainly because search engines are likely to penalize you if they think your site is almost nothing but a domain of keywords. You’re much better off using keyword variations instead.

Because SEO doesn’t seem to show any signs of fading anytime soon, you might as well get as much use out of it for your business as you can. Know that getting the hang of optimization is easier than ever thanks to the many resources available, it doesn’t matter what your industry might be or the overall size of your company. Start easing your way into it now to see how much easier it can be to realize your brand’s full potential.

Alex Vasilakos
Director of Marketing
The Finance Marketing Group
Alex@financemarketing.com
Office: 518-591-4645x102 / Fax: 518-677-1071
90 State Street, Suite 1500, Albany, NY 12207
Currently, Alex works exclusively with financial services companies but his depth of knowledge and experience can help design and implement long-reaching strategies for businesses across all industries.

Previous Financial Technology Articles
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/fintech.html

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New Kabbage Survey Shows 67% of Small Business Owners
Expect To Finish 2017 with Higher Revenues

Kabbage Inc. a global financial services, technology and data platform serving small businesses, released new data reporting on the similarities that connect all small business owners (SBOs), including personal sacrifices, professional challenges and growth expectations. Featuring responses from 400 SBOs, the data shows more than 67 percent expect to increase revenues by the end of 2017, with more than half anticipating an increase of 10 percent or higher. The findings demonstrate work-life-balance commonalities across SBOs and illustrate what it takes to build a business, irrespective of industry.

In partnership with Bredin, a leading small-business market research firm, Kabbage polled small business owners across industries, including retail, education, manufacturing, food and beverage, healthcare, automotive, energy and finance. The number one sacrifice SBOs make each year is not taking a proper vacation. Sixty percent said they take only one vacation per year; 23 percent take fewer than two vacation days annually; and, when on vacation, 75 percent still work.

SBOs also prioritize building their businesses over personal financial gain. When asked how they spend surplus cash, a greater number will invest it in their business (40 percent) rather than paying themselves (21 percent), saving for retirement (17 percent) or setting aside for personal or family investments (14 percent).

Additionally, the survey found:

Nearly one-third (29 percent) of small business owners work more than 50 hours per week; 86 percent work on weekends.
Almost half (47 percent) of all SBOs use personal savings to pay for aspects of their business. This is particularly common among 25- to 34-year-olds (75 percent).
One-third work at least three of the six major US holidays, including New Year’s Day, Independence Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

To improve productivity and be more efficient in 2018, the data showed:

36 percent of SBOs will seek ways to improve their skills.
32 percent will invest in new technologies.
28 percent intend to hire more employees.

Kabbage Chief Revenue Officer, Victoria Treyge, commented, “Small businesses are the heartbeat of our economy, and they deserve an enormous amount of gratitude.

“These are the individuals who take service calls at midnight on Christmas Eve, work long hours and forgo what many Americans take for granted. They define hustle and motivation and go to great lengths to support themselves, their families and their communities.”
See the full results from the survey and learn how Kabbage is giving back to help keep small business owners motivated here.

About Kabbage
Kabbage Inc., headquartered in Atlanta, has pioneered a financial services data and technology platform to provide automated funding to small businesses in minutes. Kabbage leverages data generated through business activity such as accounting data, online sales, shipping and dozens of other sources to understand performance and deliver fast, flexible funding in real time. Kabbage is funded and backed by leading investors, including SoftBank Group Corp., BlueRun Ventures, Mohr Davidow Ventures, Thomvest Ventures, SoftBank Capital, Reverence Capital Partners, the UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund, ING, Santander InnoVentures, Scotiabank and TCW/Craton. All Kabbage U.S.-based loans are issued by Celtic Bank, a Utah-Chartered Industrial Bank, Member FDIC.
For more information, please visit http://www.kabbage.com

Working Capital from $10,0000 to $250,000 ChannelPartnersCapital.com

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FDIC-Insured Institutions Earn $47.9 Billion
in Third Quarter 2017

Community Bank Net Income Rises to $6 Billion

Industry Net Income Is 5.2 Percent Higher Than a Year Earlier
Annual Loan And Lease Growth Slows to 3.5 Percent
Net Interest Income Rises 7.4 Percent from Third Quarter 2016
Community Bank Earnings Increase 9.4 Percent from a Year Earlier

“This was another positive quarter for the banking industry. But while overall performance improved, the interest-rate environment and competitive lending conditions continue to pose challenges.”

-- FDIC Chairman Martin J. Gruenberg

Commercial banks and savings institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) reported aggregate net income of $47.9 billion in the third quarter of 2017, up $2.4 billion (5.2 percent) from a year earlier. The increase in earnings was mainly attributable to an $8.8 billion (7.4 percent) increase in net interest income. Financial results for the third quarter of 2017 are included in the FDIC’s latest Quarterly Banking Profile released today.

Of the 5,737 insured institutions reporting third quarter financial results, 67.3 percent reported year-over-year growth in quarterly earnings. The proportion of banks that were unprofitable in the third quarter fell to 3.9 percent from 4.6 percent a year earlier. The results do not include one insured community bank that was delayed in reporting third quarter results. The omission does not have a material impact on the overall or community bank results.

“Third quarter results for the banking industry were largely positive,” Gruenberg said. “Revenue and net income were higher at most banks, net interest margin improvement was widespread, and the number of unprofitable banks and ‘problem banks’ continued to fall. Community banks also reported another solid quarter of revenue, net income, and loan growth.

“While the quarterly results were largely favorable, the industry continued to see a gradual slowdown in the annual rate of loan growth. In addition, the operating environment for banks remains challenging. An extended period of low interest rates and an increasingly competitive lending environment have led some institutions to reach for yield. This has led to heightened exposure to interest-rate risk, liquidity risk, and credit risk. These risks must be managed prudently for the industry to continue to grow on a long-run, sustainable path.”

Highlights from the Third Quarter 2017
Quarterly Banking Profile

Quarterly Industry Net Income is 5.2 Percent Higher than a Year Earlier: Quarterly earnings were $2.4 billion (5.2 percent) higher than in the third quarter of 2016 due to relatively strong growth in net interest income and limited growth in operating expenses. The average return on assets rose to 1.12 percent, from 1.10 percent in the third quarter of 2016. More than two-thirds of all banks — 67.3 percent — reported higher quarterly earnings than a year earlier. The percentage of banks reporting net losses for the quarter fell to 3.9 percent, from 4.6 percent in the third quarter of 2016.

Net Interest Income Rises 7.4 Percent from Third Quarter 2016: Net interest income totaled $127.5 billion, an increase of $8.8 billion (7.4 percent) from a year earlier. More than 80 percent of all banks reported higher net interest income than in the prior year. The average net interest margin rose to 3.30 percent, from 3.18 percent a year earlier. This is the highest average net interest margin for the industry since the fourth quarter of 2012. Total noninterest income was $639 million (1 percent) lower than a year earlier.

Community Bank Earnings Increase 9.4 Percent: The 5,294 insured institutions identified as community banks reported $6 billion in net income in the third quarter, up $513 million from the prior year. Net operating revenue was $1.5 billion (6.7 percent) higher, as net interest income was up $1.7 billion (9.7 percent). Noninterest income declined $174.2 million (3.4 percent). Loan-loss provisions increased $39.8 million (5.5 percent), while noninterest expenses were $631.7 million (4.3 percent) higher.

Total Loans and Leases Increase $96.2 Billion During Third Quarter: Loan and lease balances increased 1 percent during the three months ended September 30. All major loan categories registered growth during the third quarter. Residential mortgage loans increased $20.5 billion (1 percent) from the prior quarter, credit card balances rose $15.7 billion (2 percent), and loans to finance nonfarm nonresidential real estate grew $12.1 billion (0.8 percent). For the 12 months ended September 30, loan and lease balances rose $321.6 billion (3.5 percent).

Noncurrent Loan Balances Decline While Net Charge-Offs Increase: The amount of loans that were noncurrent — 90 days or more past due or in nonaccrual status — declined $2.1 billion (1.8 percent) during the third quarter. Noncurrent balances fell in residential mortgages and in commercial and industrial loans, but increased in credit cards and other consumer loan categories. The average noncurrent loan rate fell from 1.23 percent to 1.20 percent during the quarter. This is the lowest noncurrent rate since the third quarter of 2007. Net charge-offs were $813 million (8 percent) higher than a year ago, as the average net charge-off rate rose from 0.44 percent to 0.46 percent.

Two New Charters Are Added During Third Quarter: Two new commercial bank charters were added in the third quarter, bringing the total for the first nine months of 2017 to four new institutions. The FDIC’s Problem Bank List fell from 105 to 104 during the third quarter. This is the smallest number of problem banks since the first quarter of 2008, and is almost 90 percent less than the post-crisis peak of 888 in the first quarter of 2011. Total assets of problem banks fell from $17.2 billion to $16.0 billion during the quarter.

Deposit Insurance Fund’s Reserve Ratio Rises to 1.28 Percent: The Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) balance increased $2.9 billion during the third quarter, to $90.5 billion on September 30, driven by assessment income, including surcharges on large banks. The DIF reserve ratio rose to 1.28 percent from 1.24 percent at the end of June. Estimated insured deposits rose 0.7 percent in the third quarter.

Quarterly Banking Profile Home Page (includes previous reports and press conference webcast videos):
Insured Institution Performance, Third Quarter 2017
Community Bank Performance, Third Quarter 2017
Deposit Insurance Fund Trends, Third Quarter 2017
Chairman Gruenberg’s Press Statement

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Janet Yellen to Step Down from Federal Reserve System
Upon the Swearing in of her Successor as Chair

Janet L. Yellen submitted her resignation Monday as a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, effective upon the swearing in of her successor as Chair.

Dr. Yellen, 71, was appointed to the Board by President Obama for an unexpired term ending January 31, 2024. Her term as Chair expires on February 3, 2018. She also serves as Chair of the Federal Open Market Committee, the System's principal monetary policymaking body.

Prior to her appointment as Chair, Dr. Yellen served as Vice Chair of the Board of Governors, from October 2010 to February 2014, and as President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, from June 2004 to October 2010. She was initially appointed to the Board by President Clinton in August 1994 and served until February 1997, when she resigned to serve as Chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, until August 1999.

Dr. Yellen is Professor Emerita at the University of California at Berkeley, where she has been a member of the faculty since 1980. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, in August 1946 and received her undergraduate degree in economics from Brown University in 1967 and her Ph.D. in economics from Yale University in 1971. Dr. Yellen is married and has an adult son.

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Leasing News: Special Thanksgiving Edition
By Fernando Croce

As end-of-year holidays quickly pile up, it’s important to not lose track of the things that really matter, like health, family, and a good movie. So for this upcoming Thanksgiving, we’re recommending a slew of savory cinematic treats to go with your turkey gravy and pumpkin pie. Enjoy!

Plymouth Adventure (Clarence Brown, 1952): Although Thanksgiving is an event around which many movie plots circle, its origins have been seldom depicted on screen. Enter this 1952 historical drama from MGM, which dramatizes the Pilgrims’ voyage from England to the New World in the 17th-century. Over the course of the ocean trip, the stories of several characters are intertwined. Cpt. Christopher Jones (Spencer Tracy) falls for Dorothy Bradford (Gene Tierney), whose own marriage makes for a tragic romantic triangle. Others on the ship are carpenter John Alden (Van Johnson), jaunty shipmate Coppin (Lloyd Bridges), and doomed little passenger Button (Tommy Ivo). Can the Mayflower get to Plymouth Rock before its many dramas capsize it? This Hollywood history lesson was directed by family-movie veteran Clarence Brown and shot in splashy Technicolor.

Avalon (Barry Levinson, 1990): Best known for the Oscar winner “Rain Man,” writer-director Barry Levinson has often explored his native Baltimore with a series of loving autobiographical dramas, such as “Diner” and “Tin Men.” Arguably most heartfelt of all is this gentle portrait of a Polish-Jewish family that comes to America in the early 1900s dreaming of a land of opportunity. Unfolding mainly during the Eisenhower years, the story centers on kindly patriarch Sam Krichinsky (Armin Mueller-Stahl) and his close-knit clan, which includes son Jules (Aidan Quinn) and nephew Izzy (Kevin Pollak), as they live in the suburbs and pursue the American Dream. Brimming with fine performances and nostalgic details as it alternates between comedy and drama, Levinson’s movie features a particularly memorable Thanksgiving dinner.

The Ice Storm (Ang Lee, 1997): Family has always been one of versatile director Ang Lee’s (“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”) concerns, a concern that he examines in this sensitive, beautifully acted portrait of tensions and secrets emerging in suburban Connecticut during the Thanksgiving weekend. The year is 1973, and families are struggling not to spin out of control in the face of national crisis. There’s Ben (Kevin Kline) and his wife Elena (Joan Allen), whose frustrations come to a boil as their seductive neighbor Janey (Sigourney Weaver) enters the picture. Will the festivities bring them together, or will their troubles merely grow larger? A melancholy but thoughtful and ultimately hopeful tone and splendid performances from a first-rate cast (which also includes Christina Ricci and Elijah Wood) make this a must.

You’ve Got Mail (Nora Ephron, 1998): One of classic cinema’s most sublime romances, director Ernst Lubitsch’s 1940 comedy-drama “The Shop Around the Corner” is updated to the digital era with this breezy remake, directed by genre specialist Nora Ephron. Reuniting her stars from “Sleepless in Seattle,” Ephron casts Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as rivals brought together unexpectedly by the Internet. Kathleen (Ryan) is a struggling bookseller whose business has taken a hit by Joe (Hanks), the owner of a competing corporate. Though they despise each other in real life, they slowly develop a tender bond based on their interactions on line, unaware of who their pen-pals really are. Largely powered by the undeniable chemistry between Hanks and Ryan, the movie has emerged among recent rom-coms as an audience favorite.

Mistress America (Noah Baumbach, 2015): Writer-director Noah Baumbach re-teams with his "Frances Ha" star Greta Gerwig for another fluffy, breezy New York comedy. Gerwig plays Brooke, an outgoing and impulsive young woman who takes Tracy (Lola Kirke), the lonely college freshman who's about to marry her brother, under her wing. Juggling men and jobs while harboring fancy dreams, Brooke glides through Manhattan with a merry nonchalance that dazzles her future sister-in-law, who's trying her best to overcome her own insecurities. With Thanksgiving just around the corner, can the two remain together in the face of some sour revelations? Paced with a brittle energy that has reminded critics of classic screwball comedies from the 1930s, Baumbach's portrait of the ups and downs of friendship benefits once again from Gerwig's winning likability.

News Briefs----

Fleets Should Prepare for New Lease Accounting Rules
Public Held Companies it Goes into Effect by End of Next Year
http://www.ttnews.com/articles/experts-say-fleets-should-prepare-new-lease-accounting-rules

Uber steps up driverless-car push with deal for 24,000 Volvos
will be delivered between 2019 and 2021
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/11/20/uber-steps-up-driverless-cars-push-with-deal-for-24000-volvos/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=gmsv&utm_medium=email

F.C.C. Announces Plan to Repeal Net Neutrality
Provides to Charge Consumers More & Limited Content Choices
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/21/technology/fcc-net-neutrality.html?emc=edit_na_20171121&nl=breaking-news&nlid=31282772&ref=headline

Meg Whitman to Step Down
as Hewlett-Packard Enterprise C.E.O.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/21/technology/meg-whitman-hewlett-packard.html

10 of the most innovative FinTech firms right now,
according to research
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/20/10-of-the-most-innovative-fintech-firms-right-now-kpmg-h2-ventures.html

Asset Manager
Los Angeles, California
Class 8 through Class 6 Trucks

Manage repossession, valuation, refurbishing,
remarketing trucks and equipment
Exp. owner-operator trucking business a must
To learn more, please click here

www.maximcc.com

"Helping Owner-Operators Break
through Credit Challenges"

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You May Have Missed---

These new homes have shiny appliances and granite counters,
but you can’t buy them...only Rent them
http://www.sacbee.com/news/business/real-estate-news/article185353338.html#emlnl=Afternoon_Newsletter

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Poem of Thanksgiving
By Barry Marks, Esq.

I begged off Thanksgiving dinner with my neighbor’s family,
but I sent a Cranberry Apple Oatmeal Casserole.
I keep cranberries in the freezer in case I need to send a Cranberry
Apple Oatmeal Casserole when someone invites me to dinner.

I taught myself to cook after my wife left
because I didn’t want to be that guy in the bathrobe
eating Beefaroni from a can and talking to his cat.

I wanted to be a Norman Rockwell father,
carving the turkey which the one we had never looked like
when I was a boy and we’d ride over Dixie Highway
and through Calle Ocho to grandmother’s house,
where the green beans were boiled to mush,
the mashed potatoes were hard-lumpy
and the dressing was from the Food Fair
because it had more than three ingredients,

my uncle snickering if anyone mentioned G-d
because he saw Him die at the Battle of the Bulge,
my father eating steak because
they served chicken in Korea,
my grandmother dragging cartons and tubs
from the black hole of her Frigidaire,
all as my mother sniffed the milk,
wiped the crusted mouths of jars, and filled our plates
with grey-tasting meat and vegetables,
intoning Eat, Eat.

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Broncos making quarterback switch,
will install Paxton Lynch as starter
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/broncos-making-quarterback-switch-will-install-paxton-lynch-starter-214441882.html

Ken Norton Jr. was an easy scapegoat,
but firing him won’t solve the Raiders’ problems
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/11/21/oakland-raiders-ken-norton-jr-defensive-coordiantor-dc-fired-firing-replacement-john-pagano-jack-del-rio-rumors-news-2017-schedule-broncos/

Jerry Jones says he won't sue over Roger Goodell's contract,
but fight isn't over
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/columnist/bell/2017/11/21/jerry-jones-roger-goodell-contract-dallas-cowboys/887057001/

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California Nuts Briefs---

How Safari West’s owner saved preserve’s animals from fire
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/specialsections/7585721-181/how-safari-wests-owner-saved?gallery=7525164&artslide=0

'France is a Feast': Photo exhibit celebrates Julia Child
http://www.sfgate.com/living/article/France-is-a-Feast-Photo-exhibit-celebrates-12374320.php#photo-14583922

[headlines]
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“Gimme that Wine”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

LVMH buys majority stake in Napa Valley’s Colgin Cellars
http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/napacounty/7670345-181/lvmh-colgin-cellars-napa?artslide=0

Republic National Distributing Company/Breakthru Beverage Group to Form $12 Billion Company with North American Footprint
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171120005314/en/Republic-National-Distributing-Company-Breakthru-Beverage-Group

Wine.com Expands Local Pickup Service to 10,000 Locations
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/winecom-expands-local-pickup-service-to-10000-locations-300559553.html

Winespectator Top 100 Wines
http://top100.winespectator.com/lists/

Massive Gallo winery could mean ‘free-for-all’ in Lodi wine country
http://www.recordnet.com/news/20171119/neighbors-massive-gallo-winery-could-mean-free-for-all-in-lodi-wine-country

Wine Prices by vintage
http://www.winezap.com
http://www.wine-searcher.com/

US/International Wine Events
http://www.localwineevents.com/

Leasing News Wine & Spirits Page
http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/wnensprts.htm

[headlines]
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This Day in History

History records the earliest American harvest festival was celebrated in early December by the Pilgrims at Plymouth, Mass. A peace treaty and defensive alliance between the Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims was concluded at Strawberry Hill, Plymouth, Mass. Arranged by Squanto, an English-speaking Indian, it was one of the earliest recorded treaties between Europeans and Indians in North America. Squanto had been kidnapped and sold as a slave in Spain. He escaped to England, where he learned English, and lived in Newfoundland for a time before returning to Massachusetts in 1619. Meat and bird were rare. Turkeys flourished in Pennsylvania, but not here. Seafood was the main source of nutrition women and children arriving in New England year to join their Pilgrim husbands and fathers. Settlers were feasted with “a lobster or a piece of without bread or anything else but a cup of spring water.” Many lobsters weighed 25 lbs. and were so abundant that the smallest child could catch them. Clams, mussels, and fish stew were also popular dishes. The coastal Indians, diminished by a viral hepatitis needed the Europeans to help protect them from “inland” Indian tribes and approached the “Pilgrims” to aid them offering food and fur as blankets for small trinkets that was their main reason for the relationship. (See the December, 2005 edition of Smithsonian Magazine.)

The first public thanksgiving, a fast day, was celebrated in Massachusetts Bay Colony, on February 22, 1631 though history records many private celebrations before this date.

1789-- Thanksgiving Day was celebrated for the first time as a national holiday. President George Washington, at the request of Congress, had proclaimed it a day of thanksgiving for the Constitution. Anti-Federalists protested that his proclamation violated states’ rights.

1864 - Oct 3, Thanksgiving Day was proclaimed a national holiday by Pres. Lincoln, to be observed on the last Thursday in November. In 1939, Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt moved Thanksgiving Day one week back to stimulate Christmas shopping. In 1941, Congress adopted a joint resolution confirming the fourth Thursday, not the last Thursday, as Thanksgiving Day. IN most states, the Friday after Thanksgiving is also a holiday. In Nevada, it is called Family Day.

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    1633 - Irish Catholic Cecil Calvert, 27, sent two ships (the Ark and the Dove) from Ireland to establish a colony in America as a refuge for fellow Catholics. His work later earned Lord Calvert the nickname, "Colonizer of Maryland."
http://www.epfl.net/exhibits/lordsbaltimore/cecil.html
http://www.somd.com/culture/history/cecilius-calvert.htm
    1641 - An observer at Boston, MA, recorded a "great tempest of wind and rain from the southeast all night, as fierce as a hurricane, and thereupon followed the highest tide which we have seen since our arrival here."
    1643 - René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, or Robert de La Salle (d. 1687) was born in Normandy, France. He explored the Great Lakes region, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico. He claimed the entire Mississippi River basin for France. La Salle's major legacy was establishing the network of forts from Fort Frontenac to outposts along the Great Lakes, Ohio, Illinois and Mississippi rivers that came to define French territorial, diplomatic and commercial policy for almost a century between his first expedition and the 1763 cession of New France to Great Britain. In addition to the forts, which also served as authorized agencies for the extensive fur trade, LaSalle's visits to Illinois and other Indians cemented the French policy of alliance with Indians in the common causes of containing both Iroquois influence and Anglo-American settlement. He also gave the name Louisiana to the interior North American territory he claimed for France, which lives on in the name of a US state. His efforts to encompass modern-day Ontario and the eight American states that border the Great Lakes became a foundational effort in defining the Great lakes region.
    1718 - Off the coast of North Carolina, British pirate Edward Teach (best known as "Blackbeard") was killed in battle with a boarding party led by Royal Navy Lieutenant Robert Maynard. Teach captured a French merchant vessel and equipped her with 40 guns. He became a renowned pirate, his nickname derived from his thick black beard and fearsome appearance. He formed an alliance of pirates and blockaded the port of Charles Town, South Carolina, ransoming the port's inhabitants. He then ran aground on a sandbar near Beaufort, North Carolina. But he was soon back at sea, where he attracted the attention of Alexander Spotswood, the Governor of Virginia Colony. Spotswood arranged for a party of soldiers and sailors to capture the pirate, which they did following a ferocious battle.
    1744 – Abigail Adams, nee Smith, (d. 1818) was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts Bay Colony. Adams' life is one of the most documented of the first ladies: she is remembered for the many letters she wrote to her husband while he stayed in Philadelphia during the Continental Congress sessions. John frequently sought the advice of Abigail on many matters, she was his closest advisor, and their letters are filled with intellectual discussions on government and politics. Her letters also serve as eyewitness accounts of the Revolutionary War home front. She was also the mother of John Quincy Adams. She is sometimes considered to have been a Founder of the US and is now designated as the first Second Lady and second First Lady of the US.
    1842 – Mt. St. Helens erupted.
    1847 - In New York, the Astor Place Opera House, the city's first operatic theater, is opened.
    1849 - Austin College was chartered in Texas at Huntsville under Presbyterian sponsorship. In 1876, the school campus was moved to Sherman, TX.
http://www.austincollege.edu/academics/
    1854 - San Francisco Saloon keepers at a mass meeting decided to keep the free lunch, despite the high cost.
     1864 - Confederate General John Bell Hood invades Tennessee in a desperate attempt to draw General William T. Sherman out of Georgia. This movement was part of the sad saga of Hood's Army of Tennessee in 1864. In the spring, the army, commanded then by Joseph Johnston, blocked Sherman's path to Atlanta from Chattanooga. During the summer, Sherman and Johnston fought a series of relatively small engagements as Sherman tried to flank the Rebel army. Johnston slowly retreated toward Atlanta, but kept his army intact. By July, Confederate President Jefferson Davis had seen enough territory lost to the Yankees, so he replaced the defensive Johnston with the aggressive Hood. Hood made a series of attacks on Sherman outside of Atlanta that did nothing but diminish his own army's capabilities. After a one-month siege, Hood was forced to withdraw from Atlanta. He took his army south, then swung around west of Atlanta in an attempt to cut Sherman's supply line. This line ran down the corridor from Chattanooga covering the same ground over which the two armies had fought in the summer. Although Sherman had to commit a substantial part of his force to protect the lines, Hood could do little more than pick at them. In October, Hood headed into Alabama to rest his beleaguered army. Hood then embarked on a bold expedition to save the western theater for the Confederates. He planned to move toward Nashville, into Kentucky and maybe even into the Northern states before turning east and joining up with General Robert E. Lee's army, which was under siege at Petersburg, Virginia. It was an enormous task, but Hood was determined to carry it out. The November 22 passage into Tennessee marked the start of a new campaign that spelled disaster for the Confederates. In early November, Sherman took part of his force, cut loose from his supply lines, and began his March to the Sea, which would end with the capture of Savannah just before Christmas. He sent the rest of the force under George Thomas back to Nashville to guard against Hood. Hood charged toward Thomas and attacked part of his force at Franklin, Tennessee, on November 30. Hood suffered a devastating defeat there but continued on to attack Thomas at Nashville on December 15. After that attack, little remained of Hood's once-proud Army of Tennessee. As a side note, the white male voters in Tennessee did not want to secede from the union and the slave population in the state was low. (here is a fascinating account of “slavery” in Tennessee.http://www.tnstate.edu/library/digital/document.htm )
    1873 - American lawyer Horatio G. Spafford's four daughters drowned when their passenger ship, while crossing the Atlantic, collided with another and sank. The following month, as his own ship passed over the spot of the earlier tragedy, Spafford penned the words to the enduring hymn, "It is Well With My Soul."
http://user.icx.net/~glhurst/index_43a.html
    1883 – New York Gothams owner John B. Day proposed a resolution to prohibit a team from signing a player who has broken the reserve clause of his contract. This resolution, eventually adopted by both the American Association and National League, effectively changed the reserve clause from a device to protect owners from their own greediness to a vindictive weapon to be used against uncooperative players.
    1893 - Birthday of Alrutheus A. Taylor (d. 1955), Washington, DC. A teacher and historian, he was a specialist in the history of blacks and segregation, especially during Reconstruction. “The Crisis” cited him as a "painstaking scholar and authority on Negro history." A teacher at Tuskegee University and at West Virginia Collegiate Institute, following a grant from the Laura Spellman Rockefeller Memorial Fund, Taylor began heavily researching the role of African Americans in the South during Reconstruction.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books&field-author=
Taylor%2C%20Alrutheus/104-6368463-9838304
    1898 – Wiley Post (d. 1935) was born in Grand Saline, TX. A famed American aviator during the interwar period, he was the first pilot to fly solo around the world (1930). On August 15, 1935, Post and American humorist Will Rogers were killed when Post's aircraft crashed near Pt. Barrow, AK.
    1899 - Hoagland Howard “Hoagie” Carmichael (d. 1981) was born Bloomington, Ind. An attorney who gave up the practice of law to become an actor, songwriter, pianist, and singer, while still a student at Indiana Univ. he was influenced by a number of jazz musicians. Several of his jazz tunes, e.g., "Riverboat Shuffle” (1924), became popular in the 1920s. He went on to write many songs of which "Stardust” (1929) is best known. Others include "Georgia on My Mind” (1930), "The Nearness of You” (1938), "Skylark” (1942), and "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening” (1951, Academy Award). Carmichael also played in and recorded with a number of bands. His easygoing charm made him a popular celebrity as was apparent in his film roles, “To Have and Have Not” (1944) and “Young Man with a Horn” (1950).
http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue5_6/brancolini/
    1899 - The world's first radio company, the Marconi Wireless Company of America, was incorporated in New Jersey. Marconi made his first demonstration of his system for the British government in July, 1896. Numerous additional demonstrations followed and Marconi began to receive international attention. In December, 1898, the British lightship service authorized the establishment of wireless communication between the Dover lighthouse and the East Goodwin lightship, twelve miles distant. In March, 1899, the lightship sent a signal on behalf of the merchant vessel Elbe which had run aground on Goodwin Sands. The message was received by the radio operator of the Dover lighthouse, who summoned the aid lifeboats for the rescue. In the autumn of 1899, the first demonstrations in the United States took place. Marconi had sailed to the U.S. at the invitation of the New York Herald newspaper to cover the America’s Cup international yacht races off Sandy Hook, New Jersey. The transmission was done aboard the SS Ponce. Marconi left for England in November, 1899 on the America Line’s SS Saint Paul, and he and his assistants installed wireless equipment aboard during the voyage. On 15 November Saint Paul became the first ocean liner to report her imminent return to Great Britain by wireless when Marconi's Royal Needles Hotel radio station contacted her 66 nautical miles off the English coast. These developments motivated Marconi’s incorporation of the Company.
    1905 - Birthday of tenor-clarinetist Cecil Scott (d. 1964), born, Springfield, Ohio.
    1906 - The SOS distress signal was adopted at the International Radio Telegraphic Convention in Berlin. The International Morse Code signal for distress – three dots, three dashes, three dots - was first adopted by the German government radio regulations effective April 1, 1905, and became the worldwide standard under the second International Radiotelegraphic Convention, effective on July 1, 1908. SOS remained the maritime radio distress signal until 1999, when it was replaced by the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System. SOS is still recognized as a visual distress signal.
    1908 – In the first US vs. Japan baseball game, the Reach All-Americans defeated Waseda University, 5-0.
    1910 - Arthur F. Knight of Schenectady, NY obtained a patent for a golf club with a steel shaft; it had tapered and tempered steel tubing. Before this date, all clubs were made of wood.
    1911 - Birthday of reedman Ernie Caceres (d. 1971), born Rockport, TX.
http://www.landing.com/profiles/caceres.htm
http://shopping.yahoo.com/shop?d=product&id=1927046799&clink=dmmu.artist&a=a
    1912 - Birthday of Doris Duke (d. 1993), NYC, the only child of tobacco and hydroelectric power tycoon James B. Duke and his second wife, Nanaline Holt Inman. At his death in 1925, the elder Duke's will bequeathed the majority of his estate to his wife and daughter, along with $17 million, in two separate clauses of the will, to The Duke Endowment he had created in 1924. The total value of the estate was not disclosed, but was estimated variously at $60 million to $100 million (equivalent to $819 million to $1.366 billion in 2017), the majority from Duke's equity in Lucky Strike cigarettes. Her philanthropic work in AIDS research, medicine, and child welfare continued into her old age, some of it unknown to the public during her lifetime, and her estimated $1.3 billion fortune was largely left to charity. After much legal challenging of the executors and trustees, Duke's legacy is now administered by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, dedicated to medical research, prevention of cruelty to children and animals, the performing arts, wildlife and ecology, and one of the world's most richly endowed philanthropies at the time.
    1921 - Birthday of Rodney Dangerfield, born Jacob Cohen (d. 2004), Babylon, NY. Comedian, “I don’t get no respect;” actor, “Caddyshack,” “Easy Money,” “Back to School,” “Natural Born Killers,” “Ladybugs,” “The Dean Martin Show.”
http://www.rodney.com/home/home.asp
    1925 - French hornist-musicologist Gunther Schuller (d. 1915) birthday, Queens, NYC.
http://www.artistdirect.com/music/artist/bio/0,,490385,00.html?artist=Gunther+Schuller
http://www.schirmer.com/composers/schuller_bio.html
http://www.stevenestrella.com/composers/composerfiles/schullerliving.html
http://www.gmrecordings.com/gm2059.htm
    1927 - Birthday of trombone player Jimmy Knepper (d. 2003), Los Angeles.
http://shopping.yahoo.com/shop?d=product&id=1927005896&clink=dmmu.artist&a=b
    1935 – Transpacific commercial air service began with the maiden flight of China Clipper. PanAm’s Martin M-130 departed Alameda, California for Manila, The Philippines, arriving November 29.
    1938 - Bunny Berigan and his orchestra waxed "Jelly Roll Blues" on Victor Records. The tune became a standard for the band.
    1942 - Birthday of Guion S. Bluford, Jr., first African-American astronaut in space, West Philadelphia, PA.
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/bluford-gs.html
http://raahistory.com/astro/bluford.htm
    1943 - BONNYMAN, ALEXANDER, JR., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. Born: 2 May 1910, Atlanta, Ga. Accredited to: New Mexico. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Executive Officer of the 2d Battalion Shore Party, 8th Marines, 2d Marine Division, during the assault against enemy Japanese-held Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands, 20-22 November 1943. Acting on his own initiative when assault troops were pinned down at the far end of Betio Pier by the overwhelming fire of Japanese shore batteries, 1st Lt. Bonnyman repeatedly defied the blasting fury of the enemy bombardment to organize and lead the besieged men over the long, open pier to the beach and then, voluntarily obtaining flame throwers and demolitions, organized his pioneer shore party into assault demolitionists and directed the blowing of several hostile installations before the close of D-day. Determined to effect an opening in the enemy's strongly organized defense line the following day, he voluntarily crawled approximately 40 yards forward of our lines and placed demolitions in the entrance of a large Japanese emplacement as the initial move in his planned attack against the heavily garrisoned, bombproof installation which was stubbornly resisting despite the destruction early in the action of a large number of Japanese who had been inflicting heavy casualties on our forces and holding up our advance. Withdrawing only to replenish his ammunition, he led his men in a renewed assault, fearlessly exposing himself to the merciless slash of hostile fire as he stormed the formidable bastion, directed the placement of demolition charges in both entrances and seized the top of the bombproof position, flushing more than 100 of the enemy who were instantly cut down, and effecting the annihilation of approximately 150 troops inside the emplacement. Assailed by additional Japanese after he had gained his objective, he made a heroic stand on the edge of the structure, defending his strategic position with indomitable determination in the face of the desperate charge and killing 3 of the enemy before he fell, mortally wounded. By his dauntless fighting spirit, unrelenting aggressiveness and forceful leadership throughout 3 days of unremitting, violent battle, 1st Lt. Bonnyman had inspired his men to heroic effort, enabling them to beat off the counterattack and break the back of hostile resistance in that sector for an immediate gain of 400 yards with no further casualties to our forces in this zone. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
    1943 – The Cairo Conference brought President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill and Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek of China together to strategize the Allied position against Japan during World War II and made decisions about postwar Asia.
    1943 – Billie Jean King was born in Long Beach, CA. A former World #1 professional tennis player, she won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King won the singles title at the inaugural WTA Tour Championships. King is an advocate for gender equality and has long been a pioneer for equality and social justice. In 1973, at age 29, she won the ballyhooed television event, "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs. King was also the founder of the Women’s tennis Association and the Women’s Sports Foundation. Regarded by many in the sport as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, King was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987. The Fed Cup Award of Excellence was bestowed on King in 2010. In 1972, King was the joint winner, with John Wooden, of the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award and was one of the Time Persons of the Year in 1975. King has also received the Presidential Medal of freedom and the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year lifetime achievement award. King was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1990, and in 2006, the USTA National Tennis Center in New York City was renamed the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
    1945 - Top Hits
“It’s Been a Long, Long Time” - The Harry James Orchestra (vocal: Kitty Kallen)
“Till the End of Time” - Perry Como
“I’ll Buy that Dream” - The Pied Pipers
Sioux City Sue - Dick Thomas
1950 - The Fort Wayne Pistons used a stall tactic to defeat the Minneapolis Lakers, 19-18, including 3–1 in the fourth quarter, in the lowest-scoring NBA game ever. The game drew a large crowed for fifty cent tickets for father-son night, but was so boring that people were reading newspapers in the stands during play. The game led to the adoption of the 24-second clock in 1954.
  1950 – Steven Van Zandt was born in Boston. Musician and actor who frequently goes by the stage names Little Steven or Miami Steve. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He is also known for his roles on television dramas such as Silvio Dante on “The Sopranos” (1999–2007) and Frank Tagliano / Giovanni "Johnny" Henriksen on “Lilyhammer” (2012–2014). In 2014, Van Zandt was inducted into the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band.
  1951 - STONE, JAMES L., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company E 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. Place and date: Near Sokkogae, Korea, 21 and 22 November 1951. Entered service at: Houston Tex. Born: 27 December 1922, Pine Bluff, Ark. G.O. No.: 82, 20 October 1953. Citation: 1st Lt. Stone distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and indomitable courage above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. When his platoon, holding a vital outpost position, was attacked by overwhelming Chinese forces, 1st Lt. Stone stood erect and exposed to the terrific enemy fire calmly directed his men in the defense. A defensive flame-thrower failing to function, he personally moved to its location, further exposing himself, and personally repaired the weapon. Throughout a second attack, 1st Lt. Stone; though painfully wounded, personally carried the only remaining light machine gun from place to place in the position in order to bring fire upon the Chinese advancing from 2 directions. Throughout he continued to encourage and direct his depleted platoon in its hopeless defense. Although again wounded, he continued the fight with his carbine, still exposing himself as an example to his men. When this final overwhelming assault swept over the platoon's position his voice could still be heard faintly urging his men to carry on, until he lost consciousness. Only because of this officer's driving spirit and heroic action was the platoon emboldened to make its brave but hopeless last ditch stand.
    1952 - LORING, CHARLES J., JR. Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Major, U.S. Air Force, 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing. Place and date: Near Sniper Ridge, North Korea, 22 November 1952. Entered service at: Portland, Maine. Born: 2 October 1918, Portland, Maine. Citation: Maj. Loring distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. While leading a night of 4 F-80 type aircraft on a close support mission, Maj. Loring was briefed by a controller to dive-bomb enemy gun positions which were harassing friendly ground troops. After verifying the location of the target, Maj. Loring rolled into his dive bomb run. Throughout the run, extremely accurate ground fire was directed on his aircraft. Disregarding the accuracy and intensity of the ground fire, Maj. Loring aggressively continued to press the attack until his aircraft was hit. At approximately 4,000 feet, he deliberately altered his course and aimed his diving aircraft at active gun emplacements concentrated on a ridge northwest of the briefed target, turned his aircraft 45 degrees to the left, pulled up in a deliberate, controlled maneuver, and elected to sacrifice his life by diving his aircraft directly into the midst of the enemy emplacements. His selfless and heroic action completely destroyed the enemy gun emplacement and eliminated a dangerous threat to United Nations ground forces. Maj. Loring's noble spirit, superlative courage, and conspicuous self-sacrifice in inflicting maximum damage on the enemy exemplified valor of the highest degree and his actions were in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Air Force.
    1952 - "It's in the Book" by Johnny Standley topped the charts and stayed there for 2 weeks.
    1953 - Top Hits
“Ebb Tide” - The Frank Chacksfield Orchestra
“Rags to Riches” - Tony Bennett
“Ricochet” - Teresa Brewer
“There Stands the Glass” - Webb Pierce
    1954 – The Humane Society of the United states was formed in Washington, DC by journalist Fred Myers and Helen Jones, Larry Andrews, and Marcia Glaser to address what they saw as animal-related cruelties of national scope, and to resolve animal welfare problems by applying strategies beyond the resources or abilities of local organizations.
    1955 - RCA paid the unheard of sum of $25,000 to Sam Phillips of Memphis, TN for the rights to the music of a truck driver from Tupelo, Mississippi: Elvis Presley. Thanks to negotiations with Elvis’ manager, Colonel Tom Parker, RCA tossed in a $5,000 bonus as well, for a pink Cadillac for Elvis’ mother.
    1955 - Elvis Presley sends a telegram to his new manager, Colonel Tom Parker, which reads: "Dear Colonel, Words can never tell you how my folks and I appreciate what you did for me. I've always known and now my folks are assured that you are the best, most wonderful person I could ever hope to work with. Believe me when I say I will stick with you through thick and thin and do everything I can to uphold your faith in me. Again, I say thanks and I love you like a father."
    1957 - The Miles Davis Quintet debuted with a jazz concert at Carnegie Hall in New York.
    1957 - Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel make their first appearance on ABC-TV's dance show American Bandstand -- in their earlier incarnation as Tom and Jerry, playing their minor hit "Hey Little Schoolgirl."
    1957 - In a controversial vote, Yankee outfielder Mickey Mantle edges out Red Sox superstar Ted Williams to win the American League MVP. In spite of the 'Splendid Splinter' leading the league with a .388 average and 38 home runs, as well as a stunning .731 slugging average, two Chicago writers still list him in the ninth and tenth places on their ballots. Mantle, who won the award in 1956 for his Triple Crown performance, hit .365 with 34 HR, 94 RBI, 121 runs scored, and the highest OPS – 1.177 – of his career.
    1957 - Extremely destructive Santa Ana winds blew from Oxnard to San Diego and inland parts of southern California. The high winds produced a 28,000 acre brush fire on a 40-mile front west of Crystal Lake. People were ordered off streets in some areas due to flying debris.
    1959 - Boston Patriots enter the American Football League. Boston business executive Billy Sullivan was awarded the eighth and final franchise of the developing AFL that began play in 1960. The following winter, locals were allowed to submit ideas for the Boston football team's official name. The most popular choice – and the one that Sullivan selected – was the "Boston Patriots.” Immediately thereafter, artist Phil Bissell of The Boston Globe developed the "Pat Patriot" logo.
http://www.patriots.com/home/default.sps
    1961 - Top Hits
“Runaround Sue” - Dion
“Fool #1” - Brenda Lee
“Goodbye Cruel World” - James Darren
“Big Bad John” - Jimmy Dean
    1961 - Frank Robinson was elected National League MVP by the Baseball Writers Association for his efforts as an outfielder with the Cincinnati Reds. He became the first baseball player to win Most Valuable Player in both Major Leagues on November 8, 1966 when he was unanimously chosen MVP in the AL for the Baltimore Orioles. He developed a reputation as an aggressive outfielder and hard-charging base runner. Also a feared hitter, Robinson ranked fourth on the all-time home run list at the time of his retirement with 586, trailing only Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays. His intelligence and leadership helped him become the Majors' first African-American manager in 1975, when he skippered the Cleveland Indians.
    1963 - There are certain days we never forget. One of my most vivid is this day when President John F. Kennedy was slain by a sniper while riding in an open automobile at Dallas, Texas. Accused assassin Lee Harvey Oswald was killed in police custody awaiting trial. There has been much controversy about his death and perhaps we would not have escalated the Viet Nam war and the succession of leadership would have changed differently in our country. Generations recall watching CBS Television on this day. The popular soap opera "As the World Turns" was interrupted by a flash bulletin from Dallas. No one was available to man the CBS News studio at that instant, but a voice informed the nation that President John F. Kennedy had been gravely wounded during a motorcade through downtown Dallas. Minutes later, the network interrupted again to bring the world the terrible news. This time, Walter Cronkite, wearing partially rolled-up, white shirt sleeves, a loosened tie, no makeup, and black glasses, read wire copy just handed him: “Ladies and gentleman, the President of the United States is dead.” Cronkite, disbelieving the words he had just said, turned to look at a studio clock, stoically raised a hand to wipe away tears and continued with the tragic news that President Kennedy had died while undergoing emergency surgery at Parkland Hospital.
http://www.ipl.org/div/potus/jfkennedy.html
    1964 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: "Leader of the Pack," The Shangri-Las. The group is made up of two sets of sisters from Queens, New York - Mary and Betty Weiss and twins Marge and Mary Ann Ganser.
    1965 - The production of "Man of LaMancha," including the classic "The Impossible Dream," opened in New York City for the first of 2,328 performances.
    1965 - Tamla-Motown Records releases Stevie Wonder's "Uptight." peaking at Number one, on the R&B chart and #3 on the pop chart, it will become the fifteen year old's biggest hit since "Fingertips Part Two" in 1963.
    1967 – Tennis champion Boris Becker was born Leimen, West Germany. former world #1 professional tennis player. He was successful from the start of his career, winning the first of his six major singles titles aged 17. He also won five year-end championships, 13 Masters Series titles, and an Olympic gold medal in doubles. Tennis magazine ranked him the 11th best male player of the period 1965–2005. Currently, he coaches Novak Djokovic.
    1968 - The Beatles release their long-awaited double album simply called "The Beatles" but better known as "The White Album." Among the set's 32 songs is Ringo Starr's first songwriting contribution to the group's repertoire, "Don't Pass Me By," which as a single, makes it to Number One in Scandinavia.
    1968 - In San Francisco, The Beatles Tour/Show: Magical Mystery Tour at Straight Theatre

http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/the-beatles/poster-art/handbill/SAG681122.html
    1969 - Top Hits
“Wedding Bell Blues” - The 5th Dimension
“Take a Letter Maria” - R.B. Greaves
“Smile a Little Smile for Me” - The Flying Machine
“Okie from Muskogee” - Merle Haggard
    1971 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Reed v Reed that it was unconstitutional to give preference to men as executors of estates. Argued by Ruth Bader Ginsburg who herself would become a Supreme Court judge 22 years later, the decision marked the first time a high court decision overturned a law based on sex.
    1971 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: "Theme from ‘Shaft'," by Isaac Hayes. The single is the third No. 1 hit to win an Academy Award for best song.
    1972 - Chuck Thacker, a computer scientist at Xerox PARC, started designing the Alto computer, designed to improve the quality of machine-human interactions. The computer featured a graphical user interface, a mouse, and the ability to network easily with other computers. Despite its cutting-edge design, Xerox decided not to market the Alto. Instead, Apple's cofounder Steve Jobs, who saw a working version of Alto during a visit to Xerox PARC in December 1979, adopted many of Alto's ideas into the interfaces for the Apple Lisa and the Apple Macintosh, released in 1984. The Original Apple design came from Nolan Bushnell’s personal computer, which he thought would never became popular due to its limited storage and speed.
    1972 - The United States loses its first B-52 of the war. The eight-engine bomber was brought down by a North Vietnamese surface-to-air missile near Vinh on the day when B-52s flew their heaviest raids of the war over North Vietnam.
    1975 - "That's the Way (I Like It)" by K. C. & the Sunshine Band topped the charts and stayed there for 2 weeks.
    1975 - Barry Manilow's "I Write the Songs" enters the US chart, on its way to number one. Although Manilow wrote many of his hits, this one was actually written by Bruce Johnston of The Beach Boys. I went to high school with him and we each played in each other's bands, although more in my dance band.
    1977 – British Airways inaugurated regular London to New York City supersonic Concorde service.
    1977 - Top Hits
“You Light Up My Life” - Debby Boone
“Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” - Crystal Gayle
“Baby, What a Big Surprise” - Chicago
“The Wurlitzer Prize” (“I Don’t Want to Get over You”) - Waylon Jennings
    1977 - Tony Orlando returned to the concert stage after a self-imposed, three-month retirement following the suicide death of his good friend, Freddie Prinze. Orlando appeared in concert in San Carlos, California.
    1977 - Weddings will never be the same after Debbie Boone has a Number One hit with "You Light Up My Life." The record goes platinum on this date and makes Pat Boone a proud papa.
    1981 - During Muddy Waters' gig at the Checkerboard Lounge in Chicago, the legendary bluesman is joined onstage by the Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ron Wood, currently touring through the Midwest.
    1981 - San Diego tight end Kellen Winslow ties an NFL record with five touchdown catches in the Chargers' 55-21 victory over Oakland.
    1985 - Microsoft signed an agreement with Apple, allowing Microsoft to copy visual characteristics of Apple's Macintosh in its Microsoft Windows software. Windows was heavily based on the Macintosh user interface (which, in turn, was greatly influenced by the Alto, designed at Xerox PARC in 1972). The mouse instead of the keyboard was one of the innovations. In 1988, Apple sued Microsoft for copyright infringement, because Microsoft's licensing agreement had applied only to Windows 1.0, not to subsequent versions. The suit was dismissed in 1991.
    1985 - Top Hits
“We Built this City” - Starship
“You Belong to the City” - Glenn Frey
“Separate Lives” - Phil Collins & Marilyn Martin
“Hang on to Your Heart” - Exile
    1986 - Center Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers scored the 500th goal of his National Hockey League career in only his 575th game, a 5-2 victory of the Vancouver Canucks.
    1986 - Justice Department finds memo in Lt. Col. Oliver North's office on the transfer of $12 million to Contras of Nicaragua from Iranian arms sale.
    1986 - "Human" by Human League topped the charts and stayed there for a week.
    1989 - Kirby Puckett becomes the first Major Leaguer ever to sign a contract that calls for an average salary of $3 million per year when he inks a pact with the Twins for $9 million over three years.
http://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/min/history/min_history_timeline.jsp?period=3
    1989 - Strong northerly winds produced squalls along the shore of Lake Michigan, with heavy snow in extreme southeastern Wisconsin. Milwaukee, WI received nine inches of snow, and in Racine County there were more than one hundred automobile accidents.
    1990 – President George Bush visits US troops in Saudi Arabia during Thanksgiving.
    1992 - 45 tornadoes touched down in the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys. Georgia was hard hit with 2 F4, 1 F3 and 3 F2 storms which killed 6 people and injured 144. Indiana has a total of 15 tornadoes on this day to set a record for an outbreak in November and for the month of November. One, an F4 multiple vortex type, cut a 22-mile path through extreme southeastern Indiana and northern Kentucky.
    1998 - It was week 12 of the NFL football season as Denver Broncos QB John Elway achieved the 50,000-yard career-passing mark. He joined Dan Marino as the only passers to throw for more than 50,000 yards in a career. And Elway threw four touchdowns passes the following week to move into third place on the all-time TD pass list.
    1999 - ‘The Great One,’ Wayne Gretzky, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. On June 23, 1999, it had been announced that Gretzky would be the tenth, and last, player to have the three-year waiting period waived by the hall-of-fame selection committee “by reason of outstanding pre-eminence and skill.” Gretzky held 61 NHL records.
    2004 - The recently-relocated – from Montreal - NL franchise announced its new name, logo and colors. Using the official original name of the district's team which was popularly known as the Senators from 1901-71, the club clad in red, white, blue and gold will be known as the Washington Nationals.
    2005 - Tim McGraw, the Black Eyed Peas, Green Day, Destiny's Child and Kelly Clarkson triumph, each taking two trophies away from the 33rd annual American Music Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
    2005 – Ted Koppel signed off for the last time as host of “Nightline.”

2012 - A dense fog near Beaumont, Texas caused a 100-vehicle pileup, leaving 120 people injured and 2 killed. The accident forced the Interstate 10 in Southeast Texas to close in both directions

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