It was a hot summer day in May 1827, and Johann Maelzel’s robot exhibition was not going well. Crowds had gathered inside Baltimore’s Fountain Inn on Light Street to see the star of the show, a European chess-playing robot (or “automaton,” in the language of the era) that had impressed the likes...
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: World TeamTennis, founded in 1973, featured 16 teams, including the Philadelphia Freedoms, the Detroit...
In early 1979, The Evening Sun ran a full-page ad announcing a new columnist lineup, including a promised thrice-weekly offering from a puppy-faced young reporter by the name of Dan Rodricks. “Dan Rodricks will slice bits and pieces of Baltimore and serve them up in a reporter’s stew. The column...
In Super Bowl V, Baltimore Colts defensive end Roy Hilton played the game of his life: four tackles, two sacks and a fearsome fourth-quarter rush of the Dallas Cowboys quarterback that forced a hurried pass, a Colts interception and the tying touchdown. After the game, celebrating a 16-13 victory...
Baltimore and the surrounding area sure has changed a lot in its centuries-long history. But many traditions and landmarks from decades ago are still around today, give or take a few variations.More
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: What presidential candidate, who would end up winning the election, delivered a campaign speech on the...
Thousands of Marylanders have died from opioid overdoses in recent years, with a surge in deaths from fentanyl. But our present-day opiate epidemic has a Victorian precursor. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, hundreds, if not thousands, of Marylanders died by overdosing on laudanum, a mixture...
Each morning at Leidig’s Bakery, the glass case beckoned with row upon row of sugary doughnuts in all of their glazed glory. But not for long. The pastries went fast as folks rushed to buy them, even double-parking outside the brick shop at 8143 Main St. in Ellicott City. The doughnuts were worth...
With the Harlem Globetrotters bringing their unique mix of amazing basketball and endearing tomfoolery to the University of Maryland Baltimore County Thursday night, a longstanding (and long-laughing) Charm City tradition remains robust. Hard to say they’ve been to Baltimore every December in their...
The year was 1872. A cold snap had frozen Baltimore’s waterways. The city was preparing for Christmas. And as the holidays approached, city leaders were looking to stamp out a societal vice: eggnog. One hundred and forty-six years ago, Baltimore’s Temperance Convention gathered Dec. 17 to call...
The Library of Congress recently announced 25 classic Hollywood films it’s adding to its National Film Registry. Included is “Bad Day at Black Rock,” whose screenplay was written by former Baltimorean Millard Kaufman, who graduated in 1934 from City College, and the Johns Hopkins University in...
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: Which old Baltimore department store featured a restaurant called the Quixie? ANSWER: Hutzler’s
Gilbert Sandler, whose nostalgic stories of old Baltimore were told in The Sun and on WYPR-FM, died Wednesday afternoon of cancer at Roland Park Place. He was 95 and formerly lived in Mount Washington. Born in Baltimore, he was the son of Joseph Sandler, an East Baltimore pharmacist who tended...
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: President Dwight D. Eisenhower's younger brother Milton was president of what Baltimore university? ANSWER:...
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: In January 1984, Vice President George H.W. Bush appeared before the Maryland General Assembly in Annapolis...
Trumpeter and band leader Louis Armstrong announced his arrival in Baltimore by giving away 300 bags of coal in a poor black neighborhood. He offered the coal to those who appeared at the Royal Theatre’s doors on the morning of Dec. 11, 1931. Armstrong would play concerts at the theater starting...
As President Donald Trump had planned a visit to Baltimore on Wednesday (but instead will hold the meeting at the White House), a look back at some of the other presidential visits to the city over the years.
Readers: Think you know your Baltimore? Try answering our weekly trivia question. Some weeks will be ridiculously easy, some weeks a bit more challenging. Here’s last week’s trivia: QUESTION: On Sept. 13, 1964, The Beatles came to Baltimore for a pair of concerts at the Civic Center (now called...
When Army and Navy butt heads Dec. 8, give the Midshipmen the edge on looks, at least. Their football helmets will bear the logo of a goat. Not just any old goat. The emblem on their headgear, gloves and cleats will be — for the first time — that of Navy’s goat, Bill, as a tribute to the purebred...
The passing of former President George H.W. Bush on Friday evening gives us cause to relive a moment when Baltimore was the center of media attention — and a seat of U.S. and British power. In May 1991, then-President Bush and Queen Elizabeth II attended an Orioles game at old Memorial Stadium...