Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Who Was William Ray Flesher & Why Was He In Japan In 1948 ?I discovered these pictures in my collection of whatsis today, and
the obituary below on the web. Who was William
"Bill" Flesher ? This a photo of Bill
Flesher (center with hat) possibly with Tokyo Imperial Univeristy's faculty wihile working for General Douglas MacArthur in
1948.
After some research I discovered Professor Flesher's
obituary.
I also have this photograph of Bill on Christmas
day with friends in Yokohama, Japan.
And the typed inscription on the back of the
photograph.
I believe this is the same Dr.Flesher of
Tokyo Imperial University. This photograph of Tokyo Imperial was taken in 1925. The entrance is identical to the group photograph
taken in 1948. It's known as known as Yasuda Auditorium. There are sixteen Nobel Prize
Laureates from Tokyo Imperial University. To read about them clck here. Along with the many
great scholars and faculty members in the astounding photograph, Bill Flesher should be remembered. I'd like to know if Bill
had friends in Memphis as I discovered the photograph among the papers of Memphis artist Louis Clericus (1856-1934), and well-known
Memphis chemist and socialist Louis Phillipi (1925-1998), of which I treasure and serve as the dutiful caretaker. http://davidsaks.com/2016.01.01_arch.html#/1452806484073 & https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/144867289/louis-victor-philippi
4:52 pm cst
Sunday, December 27, 2020
Philatelic Fraud - Dirty Deeds & A Warning !Here are some links about dealers and auction
houses who brazenly cheated buyers and sellers. Other cases of philatelic fraud, including fraudulent expertising certificates, are here as well. This is just the tip of the philatelic fraud iceberg: Stamp Collecting Is The World's Greatest Hobby ! It's No Longer A Hobby If You've Been Cheated
By A Dealer Or An Auction Firm ! Instead Of Being A Hobby
It Became A Crime And You Became A Victim Of Fraud When A Smooth Talking Dealer Or An Auction Firm Tricked You Into BelievingThat A Worthless Piece Of Paper Had Value ! Or Even Worse When An Auction House Promises That
You'll Receive
Healthy Proceeds From Their Next Auction, Advances You A Small Fraction of Your Collections Value As A Measure Of Goodwill, Runs Off With Your Collection, And You Never See Another
Dime After Swindlers Cherry
Pick Your Collection And Deplete It's Original Value ! False Promises Of Likely Prices Realized Are A Common Ruse With Auction Firms,
Many Double-Dipping The Sale With Ridiculously High Seller And Buyer Premium Fee Percentages Leaving the Seller With Little
If Any Proceeds From The Sale !
Many Stamp Dealers Have Been Prosecuted For Fraud
And Deceptive Business
Practices !
They Will Lie To You To Get Your Stamps !
Dealers And Auction Firms Have Been Known To Prey Upon The Elderly, Families
Who Inherit Collections And Know Little Of The Value, And Despairing Sellers Showing Extreme Urgency Because Of The Utmost Need For
Basic Human Resources !
Few In The Criminal Cases Were Vindicated, Many Facing Brutal Penalties,
Fines And Prison Sentences.
The World Is Full Of Con Artists Working In The Stamp Business ! There
Are Many Integrity Minded Auction Firms And Dealers Who Belong To The American Stamp Dealers Association, The American Philatelic Society, And Other Notable Philatelic Organizations.
They Advertise In Linn's Stamp News And The American Philatelist,
Both Magazines Possessed Of The Highest Integrity And Moral Standards Of Which They Fiercely Protect ! Be Vigilant ! Be Careful ! Always Do Your HomeWork Before You Purchase Stamps
Either As A Hobby Or As An Investment ! When Buying From A Dealer Or Auction "Caveat Emptor" Let The Buyer Beware ! When Selling To A Dealer Or Consigning For Auction "Caveat Venditor" Let The Seller
Beware !
Never Forget It Or You'll Always Regret It ! Enjoy
Your Hobby !
-David Saks-
François Barraud (1899-1934) Le Philateliste - The Philatelist
1929
5:05 pm cst
My First Stamps - Lundy IslandI bought my first stamps at Herron-Hill Coins & Stamps
in Memphis in 1959 at the age of seven with the nickles and dimes that my great grandmother had given me. Herron-Hill closed several years ago. The picture of the little bird on the stamps fascinated
me when I was child. I wanted to know more about Lundy and the puffin.
The stamps
of Lundy are denominated in Puffins, the currency used on the island. This is the one-half Puffin blue, a proof issued in
1929, the first year of issue of the stamps of Lundy. I'm searching for the one-half blue.
The stamps
of Lundy are as extraordinary as it's history.
Lundy stamps are known as "cinderellas".
A
cinderella stamp, in philately, is "virtually anything resembling a postage stamp, but not issued for postal purposes
by a government postal administration".
In 1925, a wealthy Englishman by the name of Martin Harman purchased
the small 3 mile-long island in the Bristol Channel off the coast of Devon.
One fine day, Mr.Harman mused, "
Since I own this island, why shouldn't I be the king ?"
The self-proclaimed king began coining money and issuing
stamps for Lundy's inhabitants.
The revenue from the stamps to be used for fuel and other necessities for the island.
The stamps bore the picture of the Puffin, a comical little, potbellied bird which inhabits the island in great numbers
and demonstrates a rather arrogant superiority to the other denizens of Lundy.
All appeared to fine in the beginning
of the stamp production, but, in 1931, the British government discovered Mr.Harman's puffin coins and stamps.
The
self-proclaiming King Harman was ordered to appear in court and charged with "unlawfully coining money".
The presiding judge cast a grim stare at Mr.Harman and asked him, "Who did you say is sovereign of Lundy ?"
Mr.Harman said, boldly, "I am, and as sovereign I have the right to issue stamps and coin my puffins and half
puffins."
The court disagreed with Mr.Harman whereupon Mr.Harman suddenly realized that he was the ex-king
and fined 5 pounds, equal to about ten dollars in American money.
But, the good news for stamp collectors like
me is that Lundy is protected by the British Empire and that the former king, Mr.Harman, was permitted to continue printing
his stamps.
The stamps of Lundy are very beautiful stamps which are highly prized and sought after by stamp collectors
throughout the world this very day.
Pictured above are Lundy first day covers
from my collection. Click them for more information about this captivating
island.
Click the picture of the amazing puffin to read more.
Click Here to listen to the laughter of the puffin. You'll never forget it and believe as I do that the puffin is the happiest bird
in the world ! I
hope to visit Lundy one day. To hold the stamp is to have a tiny piece of this magical part of the world in my hand.
11:58 pm cst
Friday, December 25, 2020
The First Christmas Seals 1907 - 1911Here's a page from my Christmas Seal Album featuring the very
first stamps issued by the American Red Cross to raise funds for the study and treatment of tuberculosis. I've enlarged the sections from my album to include enlargements of
the stamps with the descriptive notations for you. Merry
Christmas to all of my friends. May God bless
you and keep you safe, always.
2:03 am cst
Wednesday, December 23, 2020
Look Up
6:14 am cst
Sunday, December 20, 2020
To The GirlsI think about tomorrow like the next move in a game of chess.
If you know me then you also know
that I'm not spineless and believe that foolishly sentimental weaklings are an impediment to progress.
I never live in the past.
There's no future there. The
past is like an expired concert ticket. The band has come and gone and the ticket's a memory. If the band was lousy, the
ticket's a bad memory. Therefore, so is the past if it's full of bad tickets to the show. And I'm not a critic looking for converts to my way of life and thought.
I'm what you see, nobody else,
glad and thankful. I wouldn't want to be someone else. I'm not searching for valuable cash and prizes. I'm not an immodest, self=aggrandizing braggart, an egoist or a snob
competing in a popularity contest. And I'm not boasting about the number of views my YouTube channel gets and could care less
about it. I'm just David Saks and,
whether you like me or not, I can't change that fact, although I believe that it's better to be loved for who you are if you're
not someone with multiple personalities. So find one who'll trust you when
you can move forward and think of him instead of yourself and the past. Life gets easier with trust, too. Without trust there's no love, and never will be. When you stop trusting each other the love is over, so you have to love yourself and trust yourself
by yourself. Life is easier that
way, too, for some, but a little sadder while you grow old and alone. But when you've finally found him, love him more than your mirror or he'll soon forget about you.
Life can become a living dream
because life itself is a wonderful thing. People that are contemptible, vile, morally reprehensible, menacing and not so wonderful will discover that
their birth was nothing more than a prolonged and painfully dark terminal illness instead of a prospering bright miracle.
Never forget it.
7:42 pm cst
My Harley-DavidsonMy Harley-Davidson XLCH-1200 back in the 1980's. I drove it 105 miles an hour on sunny afternoons. And I drove my illustrious next-door-neighbor topless dancer
friends, whenever they needed rides, to their jobs at Whitehaven nightclubs on the saddle to make their stalkers think that
they had a bad-ass boyfriend when in reality I was just a piano playing stamp collector who read books by Alfred North Whitehead.
Happy New Year !
4:37 am cst
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year !
2:17 pm cst
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