Rickey; Iced Tea; Jazz

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RICKEY (continued)

     Another "rickey" (I'll have to check the Louisville Courier-Journal and
the Washington Star when I go to the Library of Congress next) is in the
WASHINGTON POST, 24 April 1903, pg. 1, col. 7:

_COL. RICKEY A SUICIDE_
_Draught of Poison Closes Noted_
_Character's career._
_POPULAR DRINK GIVEN NAME_
     New York, April 23.--Col. Joseph Kyle Rickey, said to be the originator
of the famous drink known as the "gin rickey," died to-day in his home at 24
West Twenty-fifth street.
(...)
     Col. Rickey's death will be mourned in Washington, where he lived and
was a famous character about town.  To this day, in Shoomaker's place, noted
on Newspaper Row, the sign appears that in this place the rickey was
discovered.
    Col. Joseph Kyle Rickey was born in St. Joe, Mo., sixty-one years ago.
He came to Washington as a lobbyist in 1883.  While here, Mr. Herzog, of
Shoomaker & Herzog, on E street, died and the place was offered for sale.
Mr. August W. Noack, a member of the firm, urged Col. Rickey to purchase the
business, which he did.
     (...)
     _Origin of the Rickey._
     Col. Rickey, before he became the owner of the resort on E street, would
go into Shoomaker's and ask George Williamson, who is still there, for a
drink composed of "Belle of Nelson whisky," a piece of ice, and a siphon of
seltzer.  Fred Mussey (Muesey?--ed.), now gone, watched Col. Rickey indulge
in these beverages.  He finally took the recipe to New York, and there called
for a "Rickey drink," which he explained and got, and thus spread its fame.
One day Representative Hatch, of Missouri, went into Shoomaker's and asked
for "one of those Rickey drinks, with a half of a lime in it."  This was
given Mr. Hatch and the rickey was complete.

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ICED TEA (continued)

     This is from the Tea Council of the USA, Inc., 420 Lexington Avenue, NYC
10170 (their postage meter has "1899-1999 100 Years of Service to the Tea
Industry"):

     _CELEBRATE NINETY-FIVE YEARS OF ICED TEA DURING_
     _NATIONAL ICED TEA MONTH IN JUNE_
     NEW YORK, NY, June 1999--When temperatures soared during the 1904
World's Fair in St. Louis, tea promoter Richard Blechynden added ice to the
popular beverage and created an instant favorite.  Today, Americans consume
more than 2.2 billion gallons of tea a year and 80% of that is served over
ice.
     As iced tea nears its platinum anniversary, its popularity continues to
grow.  (...)  What better time to celebrate the tasty thirst quencher than
the start of summer during _National Iced Tea Month_ in June.

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JAZZ (continued)

    Ken Burns (of the PBS documentaries CIVIL WAR and BASEBALL and the
brother of Ric Burns, of the upcoming PBS documentary NEW YORK) is currently
doing a long documentary on the history of "jazz."  Gerald Cohen should try
to contact him--I don't know if Burns intends to credit any of Peter Tamony's
work.
   PBS documentaries, as you all know, are used as an educational tool.
Students watching THE STORY OF ENGLISH, for example, can learn that the term
"O. K." came from Africa....