In Haitian Vodou, he is the intermediary between the loa and humanity. He is the master linguist, the trickster, warrior and the personal messenger of destiny. He stands at a spiritual crossroads and gives (or denies) permission to speak with the spirits of Guinee. Papa Legba’s colors are red and black (as worshipped in New Orleans voodoo rituals).
The blue cartoon ghost mascot of Boo Berry breakfast cereal. Introduced in 1973, it is one of three currently distributed General Mills monster-themed breakfast cereals. This sugary variety features blueberry-flavored corn cereal bits and marshmallows. Beginning in 2011, these cereals are only sold during the fall/Halloween season.
The cartoon mascot of Cap’n Crunch, a product line of sweetened corn and oat breakfast cereals introduced in 1963 and manufactured by the Quaker Oats Company. The sea cap’n’s full name is Horatio Magellan Crunch. Jay Ward Productions created the trademark character and Hanna-Barbera provided the cartoon animation for the original TV commercials.
An American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the “Capones,” was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early 1920s to 1931. Capone was convicted of tax evasion and spent years in Alcatraz.
An archduchess of Austria and the queen consort of France and of Navarre. At the height of the French Revolution, her husband Louis XVI of France was deposed and the monarchy abolished in 1792. The royal family was subsequently imprisoned at the Temple. On this day in 1793, Marie Antoinette was tried, convicted of treason and executed by guillotine.
P.S. “Let them eat cake.”
The King of All Wild Things and main character of Where the Wild Things Are, a 1963 children’s picture book by American writer and illustrator Maurice Sendak. The book has been adapted into an animated short, an opera, and, in 2009, a live-action feature film adaptation directed by Spike Jonze. Possibly my very favorite childhood book.
A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, created in 1902 by Scottish author J. M. Barrie. Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the island of Neverland as the leader of the Lost Boys, interacting with mermaids, Indians, fairies and pirates. The most famous Peter Pan adaptation is the 1953 animated Disney film.
The antagonist of J. M. Barrie’s play Peter Pan and its various adaptations. Hook is the villainous pirate captain of the Jolly Roger brig. It is said that he was Blackbeard’s boatswain, and that he was the only man Long John Silver ever feared. He most famously appears in the 1953 animated film adaptation produced by Walt Disney.
Note: This character is in honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day, which was created in 1995 by two guys from Albany, Oregon. Avast, there!
A fictional superhero who appears in Marvel Comics publications. The character, based on the Thor of Norse mythology, first appeared in 1962. He is a member of the superhero team The Avengers with Captain America, Iron Man and others.
An American rapper popularly known as Biggie Smalls and Big Poppa. He was a focal point of the East Coast-West Coast hip hop rivalry and became a central figure in the East Coast hip hop scene. In March 1997, at age 24, Wallace was killed by an unknown assailant in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles. Sometimes your words just hypnotize me.
The star of the Where is my Gnome? series of viral marketing ads used by Travelocity in early 2004. The ads consisted of a man looking for his garden gnome. The concept was inspired by the traveling gnome prank that began in the 1980s and was popularized by the 2001 film Amélie. The Roaming Gnome is now the de facto mascot of Travelocity.
The garden gnome from the 2001 French film Amélie. This character/prop helped popularize the traveling gnome prank that began in the 1980s. In the film, Amélie’s father finds that the gnome from his lawn shrine has gone missing. Later, he receives unmarked photographs of the gnome visiting exotic landmarks. Je ne comprends pas!
The main character of the Spanish animated television series, which is based on the children’s book The Secret Book of Gnomes by Dutch author Wil Huygen and illustrator Rien Poortvliet. David the Gnome first came to U.S. television in 1987 on the Nickelodeon cable channel.
A lonely gnome sets out to learn how to avoid being cold “from the inside out” and finds a friend in a sea otter. He is the main character of the 1974 children’s book The Gnome from Nome, written by Stephen Cosgrove and illustrated by Robin James. Watch an illustrated reading of the story.
A kindly old character of Scandinavian folklore featured in two 1960s children’s books by Astrid Lindgren. One story is called The Tomten and the other is The Tomten and the Fox, in which moonlit scenes of the farmyard under snow show Reynard the fox prowling near the henhouse. He’s hungry, but the tomten guards the henhouse at night.
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish mascot is NCAA Division I pixel art mascot #49 of 347. Tomorrow is the start of the NCAA Division IA football schedule, so here is a leprechaun to kick off another short series of 8-bit college mascots. This is FBS independent schools mascot #1 of 4. (View reference images.)
The founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. He conquered and massacred most of Eurasia, but also promoted religious tolerance. He unified the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia. He died on this day in 1227. Through his sons and grandsons, the Mongol Empire became the largest contiguous empire in history (and included 26% of the world population).
A Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize who died on this day in 2004. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization, President of the Palestinian National Authority, and leader of the Fatah political party, which he founded in 1959. Arafat spent much of his life fighting against Israel in the name of Palestinian self-determination.
A Puerto Rican professional baseball player and humanitarian. He was born on this day in 1934. He played his entire 18-year career with Major League Baseball’s Pittsburgh Pirates (1955-72) and was the first Latin American player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. He died in a plane crash in 1972, while delivering aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.
Marvin the Martian – No. 210
Marvin the Martian (also known as Commander X-2) is a fictional character who appears in Looney Tunes cartoons, often being foiled by Bugs Bunny. He made his debut in 1948. Marvin wears a Roman soldier’s uniform and basketball sneakers. His likeness appears on NASA’s Spirit rover on Mars.
One the nicer art projects I made in school was a version of Marvin the Martian’s head and helmet. I created it with plaster gauze (over a balloon, I believe), cardstock and acrylic paint. It was for my ninth grade art class with Mr. Tom Whitehead, one of my favorite teachers. I’m still proud of it.