Ray Harryhausen is regarded as a pioneer and one of the great 20th century artists of stop-motion animation. His extensive career is showcased through over 100 original creations on display at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum. Through original armatured models, artwork, miniatures and props, the exhibit transports us back to the silver screen. Creatures and artwork from such films as 1949’s Mighty Joe Young, where Ray began as a technician, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, Earth vs the Flying Saucers, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Jason and the Argonauts, and the 1981 Clash of the Titans bring to life the imagination of Ray Harryhausen.
Johnny Cash was born 93 years ago today, and though he wasn’t born in Michigan, he sang about us and the struggles of workers on the line. In honor of the Man in Black, here’s a photo that Bill shared photo back in 2023 writing “Formerly the Gibson Guitar factory. Rumor has it that Elvis Presley himself came to Kalamazoo to pick up his guitars straight from the factory. Johnny Cash, Steve Winwood, B.B. King, and others also visited to check on their orders.”
Here are couple more photos of the old plant along with Bill’s burning ring of fire (with apologies to Johnny Cash). Follow Bill on Flickr & Facebook for more!
I’ve been seeing photos from all across Michigan of communities lighting up for the holidays, and for my money Kalamazoo’s Bronson Park nailed it this year!
Axios Detroit takes a nice look at an app for UFO (Unidentified Flying Object) & UAP (Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon) reporting developed by Enigma Labs. The artificial intelligence app generates a score as to the likelihood that user-submitted photos are something truly unidentifiable or just a plane, satellite or other known object (hint: most of these are the deeply freaky Starlink satellite clusters).
UFO researcher Alejandro Rojas says the app aims to crowdsource as much information as possible because the government typically lacks enough data to study these anomalies. Michiganders have submitted 526 sightings since the app launched last year which is good for 9th most UFO friendly state in the nation. Check the map out below, and if you have an iPhone & want to check it out (or get on the Android waitlist) head over to the Enigma website.
Bill took this photo ten winters ago at Kalamazoo’s Henderson Castle. See more in his absolutely massive Kalamazoo, Michigan gallery on Flickr.
They built the “Kalamazoo State Hospital Water Tower” for the Michigan Asylum for the Insane in 1895. They instructed the architect to design something with a medieval feeling to complement the existing buildings – it looks creepy because it was meant to look creepy. It is no longer used as a water tower; its only function now is a landmark. They planned to demolish it in 1974 (almost none of the original asylum buildings remain), but “The Committee to Save the Tower” raised funds to save it. The National Register of Historic Places added the tower to its list in 1972.
The tower soars 175 feet into the air, rising from a base of cut stone blocks five feet high. The brick begins above this base. Approximately 50 feet wide at its widest point, it contains three water storage tanks inside. The main tank is 40 feet high and 40 feet in diameter and has a capacity to hold more than 200,000 gallons of hard water … The structure is really a tower within a tower. The outer shell tapers from six feet thick at the base to four feet at the top. Enclosed is an inner shell, which is also about six feet thick. Between the inner and outer shells is a wooden circular stairway, which winds upwards until it reaches 100 feet. Then a series of ladders leads to the top of the tower. At the top is a little room, gothic in appearance, that has a window facing in each direction. Four enormous wooden beams meet in the center of the room. They are etched with dozens of sets of initials carved by visitors, the oldest by one W. E. DeLong dated 1898.
The storms rolled through around 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., causing thousands to lose power. Some of the heaviest damage was concentrated around Westnedge Avenue, Centre Avenue and Oakland Drive, according to Portage city officials.
The FedEx building at 6701 Portage Road sustained a direct hit from one of the reported tornadoes. The roof of the building caved in, leaving the interior exposed. After the storm passed, 50 employees were trapped inside as crews worked to remove dangerous wires so rescue efforts could commence. First responders eventually helped them all out of the building, Tuesday night.
Another spot with major damage was Pavilion Estates Mobile Home Park, 6830 East N Ave. in Pavilion Township, just east of Portage. About 17 of the homes were totally demolished and 173 had some degree of damage, according to the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office.
William shared this pic to our Michigan in Pictures Group on Facebook back in April of 2021, writing Dicentra cucullaria, or Dutchman’s breeches, is a perennial herbaceous plant, native to rich woods of eastern North America, with a disjunct population in the Columbia Basin. The common name Dutchman’s breeches derives from their white flowers that look like white breeches.
He is one of the leading participants in the group, sharing great updates from Kalamazoo & southwest Michigan. He has also been featured lots through the years on Michigan in Pictures – check him out and for sure share your photos with us there or to the Michigan in Pictures Facebook (where we just added one of his new pics as the cover!)
In these uncertain & chaotic times, it can really lift your spirit to share the joy of music and art This week the Kalamazoo Bach Festival has you covered with live, online events tonight & Thursday night:
The Bach Festival Society was founded in 1946 by Henry Overley, Professor of Music at Kalamazoo College, who wanted to bring “town and gown” together to experience the joy of making music and to create something sublime — in particular, to recreate the choral and instrumental music of J. S. Bach and his contemporaries.
Since 1947, the Festival has grown and expanded, due to the active involvement of the community: now year-long, it includes “Bach-to-School” educational programs, Bach Legacy Lectures, a “Bach-Around-the-Block” organ crawl, a Young Artist Competition and Concert, a High School Choral Festival, master classes for young singers, and performances with the Kalamazoo Symphony,
June 2 will feature Dede Alder and her magical marimba and beautiful voice with song and stories in collaboration with the Kalamazoo Public Library. On June 4, live-streaming from our Facebook page, Jordan Hamilton will spread his love and message with his cello and thought provoking vocals. Join us at 7 pm on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday for these amazing programs brought to you buy some very talented local artists!
EDITOR’S NOTE: Both Dede & Jordan are friends and they are INCREDIBLE! More about the Bach Festival on their website & check out the details on their Facebook event!
Joel shared these 50-year-old photographs from Michigan’s January 1967 blizzard. They were taken by his father after the snow stopped falling on January 27th. Seeking Michigan has a feature that looks back on two late January blizzards in 1967 & 1978:
The 1967 blizzard fell on January 26 and 27, and dumped twenty-four inches of snow on Lansing. Lansing State Journal articles from the days after the storm tell stories of stranded bus passengers, a mother who picked her children up on horseback, and neighbors who built a human-sized Snoopy snow sculpture. Rachel Clark, an education specialist at the Michigan Historical Center, remembers growing up and hearing stories about the time her father got a ride to work from the National Guard, because he had to abandon his car during the storm. He was a reporter for the WJIM television station in 1967, and the station needed him to read the news and help keep Lansing residents informed about the storm.
Michigan in Pictures 