Edmond Life and Leisure - February 13, 2025

From the Publisher

President’s Day is Monday, Feb. 17

By Ray Hibbard

Did you understand the half time show at the big game last Sunday? Me either. I was good with the rapper music but the whole show had all kinds of drama around it that I knew nothing about until the next day. I guess having someone like George Strait perform is out of the question. These things should be brought up to date. Heck, my parents did not care for Elvis or the Beatles either but see how that turned out. Maybe next year they could publish a guide for half time for people over forty?

This coming Monday is a day we old folks can understand. We may not understand much about our current president, but we know about the ones of the past. President Trump seems to be loved or hated depending on who you are talking with. What I do know is that Presidents that were heavily criticized in their terms turned out to be highly praised by history or at least some of them do. Ronald Reagan is one example. I am old enough to remember his time in office and the complaining, but history has told us otherwise. He brought down the Berlin wall and much more. We could sure use another Reagan folks. What is open/closed on Presidents Day? The U.S. Postal Service, banks, the stock market and most schools will be closed on Presidents Day. Most retail and grocery stores remain open. Here is some information about some of our presidents for educational purposes. It is full of things you may not have known.

Franklin Roosevelt wore dresses as a child

Long before non-gender-specific clothing became a thing, Franklin Roosevelt’s parents clothed him in dresses as a child. But it turns out some cultural norms happen in cycles; gender-specific clothing was not invented until about the time of World War I. Everything old is new again.

Jimmy Carter believed in UFOs

In 1973, four years before becoming the 39th president of the U.S., Jimmy Carter filed a report of a UFO sighting in 1969 in Georgia. He called it “the darnedest thing I’ve ever seen.” He promised if elected president, to disclose government information about UFOs, but backpedaled while in office.

Abraham Lincoln was a licensed bartender

Before he became the 16th president, Abraham Lincoln was a bartender and bar owner. He partnered with a friend to buy a bar in Illinois but gave it up to become a lawyer shortly thereafter. He remains officially the only president to be a licensed bartender.

John Adams named his dog “Satan”

Plenty of U.S. presidents have had dogs as pets in the White House, but only one had a dog named after the devil himself. Satan was one of the dogs that belonged to the second president. No word on whether the animal lived up to its name.

We had a 24-hour president

Ever hear of President David Rice Atchison? If the answer is no that is probably because he was only “president” for a day. In 1849, the inauguration of Zachary Taylor landed on a Sunday, and the religious incumbent refused to be sworn in on a holy day. He had Atchison stand in for him.

James Monroe attacked his rival with redhot tongs

After backing down from running against James Monroe in the presidential election, William H. Crawford accepted a position as his Secretary of the Treasury. During a fight between the two men, the fifth president chased the politician out while brandishing a set of tongs from his fireplace.

Thomas Jefferson had a comically positioned bed

Jefferson famously served out his tenure at his estate, Monticello. Though his home was vast in size, he preferred to squeeze his bed into a tiny alcove that provided zero room at the foot and head of the bed. He is thought to be the originator of the alcove bed design.

Presidents’ Day is technically called Washington’s Birthday

Presidents’ Day has a more complex history than one would think. After George Washington died in 1799, his supporters recognized his birthday as a day of remembrance. In 1885, his birthday became a federal holiday for the whole country. Later, in 1968, a new bill made certain federal holidays on Mondays and combined birthday celebrations for Washington and Lincoln for a “Presidents’ Day.” According to the United States Code, however, that holiday is technically still called Washington’s Birthday and never officially changed to Presidents’ Day. Federal code permits local governments and private businesses to name federal holidays whatever they want, so most states call it Presidents’ Day.

Three Presidents married while in office President John Tyler remarried in 1844 after the death of his first wife. Woodrow Wilson also remarried after the death of his wife in 1915. And before his wedding, Grover Cleveland was one of two White House bachelors. (The other was James Buchanan, who never married.) Cleveland is also the only president to marry in a White House ceremony.

Martin Van Buren made “OK” popular Experts don’t definitively know the origin of “OK.” People argue it has origins in Native American language or Sub-Saharan Africa language, among other possibilities. They do know that Martin Van Buren helped popularize the expression. One of his nicknames was “Old Kinderhook,” the town he was from in New York. During his election campaign in 1840, people held signs with, and chanted, “OK.”

“Billy Possums” was meant to replace “Teddy Bears”

President Theodore Roosevelt inspired the name “Teddy Bears.” Roosevelt chose not to shoot a bear on a hunting trip, asking to put

down the already injured bear humanely instead. Newspapers made cartoons of the event and Morris Michtom, a candy shop owner, asked Roosevelt’s permission to sell stuffed bears in his shop and call them “Teddy Bears.” Once William H. Taft became president, toy makers worried that the bears would not be as popular. They produced an alternative toy to name after Taft, “Billy Possums.” In 1909, the president ate possum in Georgia, inspiring this rival toy that never came close to the popularity of the Teddy Bear.

Ronald Reagan consulted with an astrologist while in the White House

Joan Quigley was Ronald and Nancy Reagan’s astrologist while in the White House. Quigley only met the president once, but she did communicate regularly with the first lady. Quigley was reportedly responsible for timing conferences, speeches, take-off and landings, as well as the State of the Union address. The president kept a color-coded calendar based on good and bad days according to astrological rules and circumstances based on information from Quigley. In her book, Quigley even claims she could have predicted the assassination attempt on his life— but at the time she hadn’t drawn up his charts.

In some ways, all 46 U.S. presidents have been very much alike. So far, they have all been men, for one, not lacking in ambition or charisma, and with a certain knack for self-promotion and networking.

At the same time, each commander in chief brims with uniqueness.

If you are lucky enough to have this Monday off, enjoy!

(Ray Hibbard, publisher of Edmond Life & Leisure, may be reached at ray@edmondpaper.com)