Good Trouble Earns U.S. Stamp of Approval

Through most of my 27 years in Atlanta, Congressman John Lewis provided elected representation for this blogger's home district. 

As noted in previous posts, I also enjoyed the good fortune of speaking with the Civil Rights icon and "the conscience of the Congress" more than once. 

Sadly, when Lewis died during the early months of the pandemic, a suitable public memorial in Atlanta was not possible. 

On a brighter note, this unfortunate timing finally got corrected July 21, when the U.S. Postal Service hosted the First Day of Issue ceremony for the first-class stamp honoring the legend. Most seem to love the classy design. A recording of the entire ceremony is available via YouTube and at the base of this post. 

During the festivities held in the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College, it was inspiring to be reminded of Lewis' lifetime of service, and to learn a few surprises during remarks from postal officials, two former Atlanta mayors and Lewis' son. 

Golden Globe and EMMY-winning actress Alfre Woodard emceed the event (am I the last to learn she is from Oklahoma like me?), while U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, who is also senior pastor at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church, delivered the benediction as fellow U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff, a former intern of Lewis' office, looked on from the front row of the packed venue, which also included the actor Emanuel Lewis. 

Prior to the stamp's ceremonial unveiling, Ronald Stroman of the USPS shared details of its design, which features a photograph Marco Grob snapped for Time magazine in 2013 as the centerpiece of a design by Derry Noyes. 

"Look carefully at how the shadow falls on the right side of [Lewis'] face, illuminating the left side, in a way that seems to take the viewer from darkness into the light," said Stroman. "A fitting tribute to a man who sought to awaken the conscience of a country."

The congressman's son, John-Miles Lewis, and other speakers later revealed that the elder Lewis was an avid stamp collector who deployed both family members and staff to purchase stamps on a regular basis.

Among Lewis' favorite designs: a 2017 Forever stamp commemorating the National Museum of African American History and Culture. A former colleague who knew of the congressman's passion for stamps speculated on how his former boss might react to one featuring his likeness. 

"The release of this stamp is an honor that would overwhelm him and leave him speechless," said Michael Collins, former chief of staff for Lewis. 

After describing his father's love for philately and encouraging the exchange of ideas through letters, John-Miles also relayed family and national lore of the initial mail exchanged by a youthful Lewis and MLK Jr. (also described in Lewis' own words in this video). 

"Two stamps with letters changed history," he said. 

As a philatelist since family and a childhood friend encouraged the hobby in 1986, I never coveted First Day of Issue covers, the envelopes with the special day-of-issue cancellations. 

But I very much enjoyed attending this, my first official stamp-centric ceremony since the U.S. Postal Service in Oklahoma City hosted me for a thank you celebration after U.S. Olympic Festival-'89 (see the fine print of the Daily Oklahoman clip for details). 

Though it was news to me that Lewis enjoyed philately, it's no surprise he found value in the unlimited lessons of the hobby from history and geography to design, creativity, leadership and understanding other perspectives. There's a lot to unpack from each miniature work of art. 

Other fun facts from the Lewis ceremony press kit: 

• The postal service printed 30 million of the stamps in panes of 15
• The image is one of approximately 25 designs approved each year, culled down from "about 30,000 suggestions" received annually for consideration by the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC)

What's not in the press kit is that the CSAC and its 11 members have yet to respond to my detailed questions about the USPS halting Olympic stamp approvals since 2010. 

But anyone who agrees U.S. Mail should include Olympic stamps again in the future may nominate the topic for consideration by submitting a letter to the committee by mail via the instructions posted at this link. 

While exiting the ceremony to purchase two panes of Lewis stamps, I noticed the neighboring Morehouse track, recently resurfaced and named in honor of Olympic champion Edwin Moses, prompting a query about Lewis' own five-ringed experiences. The only definitive answer located so far was a June 1996 video archived by C-Span in which the congressman welcomed the Olympic flame to the U.S. Capitol steps (toggle to the 20-minute mark for Lewis' remarks).

The ceremony also inspired attendees to make time for personal correspondence and to find unlimited ways to engage in "good trouble" for all their days. If you have not done so already, I strongly recommend your investment of time to read or listen to Lewis' final op-ed published by The New York Times shortly after his death. 

Event photos by Nicholas Wolaver; stamp images via USPS; quote image below via BlackAlliance.org

Paris 2024 Unveils Grand Relais de la Flamme

Want to help the Olympic flame reach Paris? 

There's still time for nominations -- deadline 15 July -- for those seeking to fill one of the 10,000 torchbearer segments unveiled this Olympic Day. 

Each torchbearer will transport the flame about 200 meters, or just over 650 feet, which is shorter than my occasional Midtown Atlanta walks for lunch at Mary Mac's Tea Room. 

In press materials, this is estimated at four minutes per segment for the average torchbearer. Less officially that's 19 to 22 seconds for Usain Bolt or Florence Griffith-Joyner, respectively, the world and Olympic record holders for the same distance. 

With help from Google Translate, I call it la petite segment (though la petite tranche sounds more dramatic). 

During an online media preview held Tuesday morning, 2024 Olympic press team members showcased next year's torch relay route and other details under embargo until noon today in Paris. Since the first media question on the call regarded the in-progress police raid at Paris 2024's headquarters, it was not immediately clear how much resonated with other reporters in attendance. 

For this writer, the scope of next year's five-ringed route is impressive, as much for its blend of torch relay traditions with new elements as for its first-time destinations exotiques. 

Of course, the map starts in Olympia, Greece, where the Hellenic Olympic Committee will welcome the host city to launch the relay with rays from the sun on April 16, with VIP and Greek runners helping whisk aloft torches toward an April 26 ceremony at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens. 

Borrowing from past relays, the Olympic flame and its entourage will next travel by ship -- specifically aboard the triple-masted Belem -- embarking from the Port of Piraeus on April 27, heading westward to Marseille in time for a May 8 arrival ceremony. Historians may appreciate the Belem enjoyed its maiden voyage in 1896, the year Athens hosted the first modern Olympiad. 

I'm not sure how the route overlaps with past torch relays on French soil, but the chosen path generally hugs the southern coast and border -- including a hop to Corsica -- then north through several western towns until arriving at coastal Brest, where on June 7 things get intéressante thanks to the crew of another sailing vessel, the impressive Maxi Banque Populaire XI, capable of getting the Flamme Olympique across the Atlantic in eight days. This video provides a peek aboard.

Simultaneous to this oceanic crossing for the flame's first visits to Guadeloupe (June 15) and Martinique (June 17), other segments will be carried at ceremonies in French destinations including Guyana (June 9), Reunion (June 12) and French Polynesia (June 13), where weeks later Olympic surfers will ride the waves. Sidebar: Martinique is where Humphrey Bogart got quizzed RE: whistling in "To Have and Have Not."

Not sure how -- my guess is by jet (as it was not made clear in the press kit) -- but on June 18 the flame returns to France tout suite, where voilà, the route resumes in Nice for its five-week final march to the City of Lights. 

One noted curiosité: though the eastern map pinpoints a visit to 1924 Olympic host Chamonix, the route was charted sans Albertville and Grenoble, perhaps intentionally, which may leave each city's chambre de commerce to exclaim sacrebleu and others with their culotte dans une liasse.

No matter the possible flaming snubs, of the 2024 route -- it's a lot! 

Not the longest nor most elaborate torch relay, but definitely an expansive plan that will give tens of thousands of islanders or South American mainland and French residents a new or renewed option to experience the moving Olympic flame tradition. 

Those seeking to complete nominations may find helpful the Paris organizing committee's FAQ for the process.

As for the crew of Maxi Banque Populaire XI, they'll be looking for Mother Nature to follow Lauren Bacall's instructions to put [her] lips together and blow. 

Images courtesy Paris 2024, CFP on CGTN.com, and this Dailymotion link. Lauren Bacall photo via We Are Movie Geeks. Florence Griffith Joyner photo via Paul Hellstern/Daily Oklahoman

Average Joes Need Reply

The World Olympians Association is looking for a few good women and men -- anyone not an Olympian -- to participate in an online health survey. The organization is spreading the word, which reached me via Facebook on 10 January.

I spent about 20 minutes reading about and then completing the online questionnaire in which respondents get quizzed about their health and work backgrounds before posting answers about gait, joints, weekly physical activities and levels of anxiety or depression. Though the survey is served up for adults over 40, there were no survey questions about age.

Anyone interested can read all about it in the WOA letter pasted below then click on the survey link provided. A password (health2018) is needed (curious the password is so last year). When general public participants make it to the end, they may select to opt in for a potential prize and/or to view the final survey results when published.

There's a version for Olympians, too: https://olympians.org/olympians/health/.

Survey says: Give this WOA study a whirl, and post a comment with your thoughts on the Q&A they provide.

Blade Runner 2049: Everything You Want To See

In 2001, while on the set of CNN Headline News for a lawyer client interview, it was my great pleasure to shake hands with the legendary film director/producer Sir Ridley Scott.

He was in-studio to promote his latest work of the day -- "Black Hawk Down" -- and during a commercial break, with just enough time to ask one or two questions, I vaguely recall bringing up any potential for a sequel to one of his science fiction masterpieces, "Blade Runner."

He did not say much in response, and honestly his reply is long forgotten by this starstruck observer, but tonight watching "Blade Runner 2049" about 25 years after seeing the original, it was impressive to see Scott's likely touches and influence on the sequel in his role as executive producer. 

WOW, what a show! 

Here's a taste:

"Blade Runner 2049" has more Easter Eggs than a holiday ceremony on The White House lawn. They packed so many minor and major piques of interest and points to ponder the uber-fans will take years to decode and pontificate. 

This film really delivers on all fronts. 

First, the excellent writing/script provides a thought-provoking and shape-shifting story built upon Philip K. Dick's "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" (inspiration for both films). Audiences will savor an enjoy almost three hours of simmering plot and reveals. 

Loved the futuristic touches like a sunroof-turned-drone, wingless stone-shaped cameras, in-home projection units and monolithic video advertising across the concrete landscape of Los Angeles in 32 years. 

There's also outstanding music with movements inspired by Vangelis' work in the original film now treated by Hans Zimmer and Benjamin Wallfisch, who brilliantly advanced the score another few decades.

Driving to the theatre, I reflected on the thousands of times my "Blade Runner Soundtrack" cassette and later CD got played, and now that the new film's soundtrack is available, it's likely to get played thousands of times as well. 

For the most part, the acting is strong, too. Of course, Harrison Ford makes a dramatic and impressive entrance and, come to think of it, a near-miss exit, each reminiscent of his early action star work in "The Fugitive" as well as "Patriot Games" and "Star Wars." 

Ryan Gosling is a rock as the protagonist Replicant named "K" assigned to exterminate Nexus 8 Replicants on the lam. More on the story in a few lines. 

I enjoyed many of the cameos in this version, including Edward James Olmos still divvying out origami creations (a Taurus in place of a unicorn ... any guesses as to why?). Sean Young's character Rachel returns -- some of the film's most creative, memorable and intense lines of dialog set up her reunion with rolling cameras. 

The strongest newcomer is Mackenzie Davis, sort of Part II's answer to Daryl Hannah's knockout "Pris" of the original. Robin Wright impresses as the stern top brass of the LAPD. 

The film's early sequences take "K" to a stretch of rural pasture that looks like snow-covered farmland from a bird's eye view, quickly revealed as a maze of "farmland" completely covered by synthetic greenhouses. Elements of nature like trees, grass and other flora and fauna are all but extinct -- small pieces of genuine wood command top prices by collectors, it is later revealed. 

Gosling quickly puts down a fellow Replicant before answering the fugitive's question "Have you ever seen a real miracle?" To reveal the answer to this leading question would be a giant spoiler; let's just say, discovery of a buried body under what's left of an ancient tree -- and a race to find a person related to that corpse -- sets in motion the adventures ahead. There's both crime and genetic sleuthing, visits to incredible sets (filmed in Hungary, Iceland, Spain, Mexico City and the deserts of Nevada), and great action.

I can't even start on the astounding and seamless special effects, but noted a team of 56 CG artists collaborated on the film. They take the audience from desolate arid lands to new wetlands behind a new Pacific Coast Sea Wall, across endless miles of favela-style urban neighborhoods to the most massive rust belt junk yard one can imagine. 

Most interesting visual: A surprising tech-infused threesome with Gosling, Davis and one of the film's other starlets, Ana de Armas. 

Most moving scene: Swiss actress Carla Juri -- cast as a specialist in creating Replicant's false memories -- as she engages Gosling in an updated version of the "Voight-Kampf" exam. 

Best line (one of several): "There's a bit of every artist in their work." 

Runner-up best line: "This moment is beautiful, isn't it?" (for me personally the context in which this line of dialogue appears is reminiscent of an introduction to my own "Rachel" of days gone by). 

And yet another great phrase: "Sometimes to love someone you've got to be a stranger." 

Watching this gem, I was on the lookout for architectural cameos like The Bradbury Building and Frank Lloyd Wright's Ennis House of the 1981 edition. No such luck, but there was a brief cameo by what may be a Wright-designed office chair. 

For Jared Leto's villainous corporate tycoon of "Blade Runner 2049" there's a breathtaking all-wood indoor platform surrounded by a fish-filled pond, showcasing his fabulous wealth as if to project, "Ahhh, to own that much authentic wood and real koi, not to mention an army of on- and Off-World servants!" 

Ford's splash pad turns out to be an entire floor of a decades-old Las Vegas high rise with his own in-hotel theater and jukebox that play virtual reality Elvis and Frank Sinatra concerts, respectively (nice touch).

It's rare to see a new release in a theatre and wish to view it again right away. "Blade Runner 2049" is one such film, and like the towering billboards peddling unknown products to its inhabitants, enjoy "Everything You Want To See" when you screen it. 

Images via Warner Bros. and Alcon Entertainment 

Wintry Mix At Team USA Media Summit

It's fun to be back in Utah for the first time in four years. 

As in 2013, the U.S. Olympic Committee organized its Team USA Media Summit -- now underway through Wednesday in Park City -- to introduce reporters to more than 100 Olympians and Olympic hopefuls looking ahead to the 2018 Winter Games at PyeongChang. 

Flying into SLC International Airport brought back five-ringed anticipation for a some fun days of networking and gathering story ideas. Driving into the mountains brought a rush of memories from my first visit here in 1997 and, of course, 10 days here during the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics. 

It's always fun to pull off Interstate 80 and spot the ski jumps, then pull into downtown Park City, the village that in some ways remains as decked out for the Games as it was 15 years ago.

The biggest surprise so far: SNOW in September! 

A few miles up the slopes from Salt Lake City, a blizzard welcomed my rental Toyota, and most of the evergreens in and around the city have a great coating of fresh powder. 

Only two weeks ago I was taking sun at Sandy Hook's beaches in New Jersey, juxtaposed with a snow and fog gondola ride up one of the Rocky Mountain's greatest ski resorts.

Day one's press conferences and athlete or official interview opportunities included (as of early Monday afternoon) the U.S.O.C.'s top brass and announcements, a briefing by the PyeongChang committee's media operations team, a star-filled stage featuring top U.S. female ski and snowboard champions, and roundtables with athletes from biathlon, bobsled, speedskating and Para nordic disciplines. 

Enjoyed getting reacquainted briefly with Elana Meyers Taylor, a fellow Georgian and Olympic silver and bronze medalist who got married since her trip to Sochi. She also provided the welcoming remarks at a Sunday evening mountainside party to kick off the Media Summit. 

Also enjoyed a follow up conversation with Mikaela Shiffrin, first interviewed at the last Winter Olympic Media Summit before she went on to win gold in Sochi. We talked briefly about how her P.R. savvy and ability to speak "on message" evolved in recent years. 

I'll post more specifics from these and other athlete interviews in the days and weeks ahead on the road to PyeongChang. For now, it's time for some USA Hockey and USA Luge Q&A.

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver

Notes RE: Dr. Sammy Lee

Sad weekend news: Olympic diving champion Dr. Sammy Lee died in California at age 96, as reported by the LA Times.

I shared a fun, albeit brief, conversation with Lee at USA House in London during the 2012 Games. On an evening that included several Olympians visiting the house, including Shannon Miller and Prince Albert of Monaco, I spotted Lee attentively watching Olympic diving live on the monitors.  

Seated on a plush couch arranged in the center of the venue's main room, Lee explained he had returned to USA House from an afternoon diving preliminary, citing he was exhausted from the commute across the pond.

I don't recall the questions posed to him -- likely centered around his coaching with Greg Louganis at Seoul 1988 (see video) -- trying to ask only during breaks in the on-screen diving action, but his response after about my third question stuck with me.

He nodded off mid-sentence.

Later in the evening, as the night's gathering was winding down and visitors made their way outdoors to await hotel transportation, Lee spotted me and apologized for dozing. We spoke about the divers on screen and that was pretty much it.

Reading the online tributes to his decades-long career, I regret not being better versed in Lee's credentials -- would like to have asked more about 1948 and 1952, coaching later athletes, his role (if any) with LA84, and his contributions to other Olympic bids, including LA2024, which Tweeted the organization's condolences on Lee's passing.

One of the Tweet responses was a follower's suggestion that an LA2024 venue bear the name "Sammy Lee Aquatics Center." I kinda like the sound of that.

Photo via Olympic.org

With Her For 24 Years (And Counting)

Photo by Annie Leibovitz

Four years ago, on the approach to election eve, I made time to write about Mitt Romney's Olympic feats and political record that was not right, and too right, for me.

This year, this "rock the ballot" post comes from a first-time early voter, eager to explain more than 24 years of #ImWithHer support for Hillary Clinton.

Somewhere along the way, maybe in the late 1990's, someone (perhaps a character in a film, or a political science professor or friend) suggested folks "should never vote for someone they have not met." This struck me for options are generally very limited for plain folks to shake hands with every candidate, especially at The White House level. 

Good timing and good fortune afforded me not one by three personal interactions with Candidate Clinton, starting on October 30, 1992, when the future first lady Hillary stopped by my alma matter Mankato State University with Minnesota-born former Vice President Walter Mondale. 

Several thousand fellow students and I listened with interest to Mrs. Clinton in a gymnasium.

As inspiring and forward-thinking as she projected to the crowd, my vote went to Ross Perot in what was my first election experience. 

During Hillary's remarks, my friends Susan Sorenson and Heather White joined me in making our way to the stage, where we attempted a film "selfie" decades before pointing a camera at one's self earned that nickname.

If memory serves me, Susan got a high-five from Hillary while I attempted a close-up photo gone bad. 

Flash forward to winter 1993. Working to make good on their healthcare reform promises, both President and Mrs. Clinton made numerous return trips to Minnesota (then a model state for their ideas), and this guy was on the healthcare beat for the MSU Reporter newspaper.

No photos this time. Instead, my Hillary interaction came in the form of chasing her motorcade all over the Twin Cities, eventually earning a handshake after her appearance on KTSP-TV (my first time donning a press pass). She answered my question about healthcare, leaving me happy and impressed with her plans. 

Unfortunately, those plans did not come to pass and we had to wait two decades for healthcare reform. 

Photo by Simon Bruty/Getty Images

I did not have another opportunity to speak to Mrs. Clinton for nearly 20 years, but over time, her actions started to impress me. In 1995, she was graceful as First Lady helping the bereaved at the Oklahoma City bombing memorial service. 

In 1996, her motorcade passed my assigned zone at the Atlanta Olympic Village, and we saw her (on TV) in the neighboring Olympic Aquatic Center cheering on Team USA (sadly, she had more post-bombing duties in Georgia as well). 

Photo by Paul J. Richards

One of the most interesting photos of Hillary was published just a few days before news about Monica Lewinsky started -- the Clintons appeared dancing in a candid beach vacation photo, and the famous "Tammy Wynette" interview of 1992 seemed like ancient history for about a week. 

If folks asked me in 2000 whether the Clintons would remain married after the Gore:Bush election, my response generally was "no."

Simon & Schuster

As soon as the 1998-99 impeachment process played out, the dust settled, and Hillary announced her run for U.S. Senate, my knee-jerk reaction was that's why they're still married ... she is going to run for president someday. 

Listening to her Grammy-nominated audiobook for "Living History" reinforced these notions. 

Sure enough, she did. We all know how that panned out, with her eventual appointment to Secretary of State. 

I financially supported Mrs. Clinton's run with a modest donation in 2008, only to feel like it jinxed her run!

Which brings me to my most recent interaction with Mrs. Clinton. As noted on this blog post from the eve of Barack Obama's first inauguration, Hillary received honors from The King Center in Atlanta, and during remarks that evening, several speakers seemed to wish for and predict a Clinton For President run in 2016. 

Hearing the likes of the King Family, Ambassador Andrew Young and others praising Clinton sold me again on supporting her, and I have not looked back since. No Bernie for this guy. 

The recent screening of "Michael Moore In Trumpland" only reinforced my perspective: Hillary will make a great 45th president.

Now, some may ask, what about her opponent? I indirectly met Donald Trump as well when a handful of Edelman colleagues invited me to tag along for a Trump real estate event in Atlanta during early 2007. Most of my interaction was with his very smart, friendly and business savvy daughter, Ivanka -- I dig her. Donald was not shaking hands with anyone except potential investors, however, so the closest we got was 10 feet or so, but that was enough for me to surmise what was already my POV from his early days on "The Apprentice."

To wit: He was, and remains, pompous. 

That's obviously putting it lightly given the candidate's ever-growing list of crud. 

The whole scene with Ivanka, Donald, colleagues and I later appeared in the then-glamorous/now-defunct Peach Magazine (that's me with Ivanka and Donald to the left).

Like the magazine, Trump Atlanta plans vaporized once autumn 2008 rolled around, and I don't think the city saw Mr. Trump again until early this year on an election stopover. 

My views on innumerable issues match closely with Hillary's. I voted for her, and think you should, too.

Indulging in one Clinton political fantasy, imagine in Hillary's victory speech her announcement that after all the years of Bill's shenanigans, as part of her acceptance she's decided to announce her intention to divorce (haha -- no more worry over what title to give Bill in office). 

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver except where noted; topmost image by Annie Leibovitz.