January 2009 Archives

On this day in 1943 an order of Federal Government banned the sale of sliced bread as an economy measure to free up resources and assure the winning of World War II.

No, I'm not kidding. Wikipedia has the story here, and they reference this fine article about other edicts that came out of Washington during the war.

Rubber and gasoline rationing lasted the entire war, but the ban on sliced bread was both resented and ridiculed so it only lasted about two months before being rescinded.

Now things have come full circle and here in food-obsessed Northern California no one would dream of getting their Acme, Boudin, or Tartine bread sliced. Oh, the horror!

Update: for trvia fans here is a good blog post about the history of sliced bread.

I'm obviously getting old—my heroes are dying. Patrick McGoohan went yesterday, at 80 years. McGoohan created and starred in a 1960s British TV series entitled The Prisoner. It was a superb creation, sort of a mix of Orwell's 1984 with some Salvador Dali and Albert Camus mixed in. Yes, it was quirky, and it was about secret agents which were all the rage with the Cold War and all, but it was also thoughtful and intelligent. It dealt with issues of mind control, individualism and privacy. Those of us who saw it, will not forget the prologue to the show:

Prisoner: Where am I?
Number 2: In the Village.
Prisoner: What do you want?
Number 2: Information.
Prisoner: Whose side are you on?
Number 2: That would be telling. We want information..information..information.
Prisoner: You won't get it!
Number 2: By hook or by crook we will.
Prisoner: Who are you?
Number 2: The new Number 2.
Prisoner: Who is Number 1?
Number 2: You are Number 6.
Prisoner: I AM NOT A NUBMER, I AM A FREE MAN!

The show's thematic phrase was the enigmatic "Be seeing you" which is both friendly, and given the prisoner's lack of freedom, upsetting. In today's world where the Internet has stripped away layers of privacy from almost everyone, the message from the Prisoner remains timely.

I understand there's a re-make in the works. I don't have much hope for it.

McGoohan may be gone, but The Prisoner will live forever in The Village driving around in his Lotus 7 SII and espousing the deep and true principles of libertarianism. Everything about that is cool.

Update: Here is McGoohan's obituary from The Guardian. I've also come across a story about McGoohan being offered the role of 007 in the first James Bond movie, but turning it down because he though Bond was too promiscuous. He was not one to be swayed by the tide.