The Terrific Threes
The Corfu Trilogy, Primanti Bros., Cream, Michigan Football Trio, The Three Faucettos
Welcome to my weekly newsletter. I hope you enjoy the picks and pics.
Fave Five 9: The Terrific Threes. Gerald/Leslie/Lawrence (The Corfu Trilogy), Joe/Dick/Stanley (Primanti Bros.), Eric/Jack/Ginger (Cream), J.J./Cornelius/Donovan (Michigan Football Trio), and Plácido/José/Luciano (The Three Faucettos).
Our first grandchild, Julian Lewis Kahlscheuer, turns three today. He is the first of our three grandsons. For the most part, Julian avoided The Terrible Twos, and we expect him to be a role model for The Terrific Threes. Julian loves three things: trains, preschool, and his younger brother, Noah. We were fortunate to see him every day last winter, and look forward to doing so again this winter in Santa Barbara, California.
On Julian’s birthday, three is the number of the day. Following up on last week’s Fave Five, I triple dog dare you not to enjoy this issue, which I made triple strength.
Book Best Bet
The Corfu Trilogy by Gerald Durrell
Barb and loved all four seasons of The Durrells in Corfu. After viewing the entire series, I ordered the three books on which it is based. The 768 pages of the trilogy flew by, and it was just as enjoyable reading about Gerry and his family was watching them on TV.
From Amazon: The trilogy that inspired the television series The Durrells in Corfu. Three classic tales of childhood on an island paradise—My Family and Other Animals, Birds, Beasts and Relatives, and The Garden of the Gods by Gerald Durrell—are available in a single edition in The Corfu Trilogy. Just before World War II the Durrell family decamped to the glorious, sun-soaked island of Corfu, where the youngest of the four children, ten-year-old Gerald, discovered his passion for animals: toads and tortoises, bats and butterflies, scorpions and octopuses. Through glorious silver-green olive groves and across brilliant-white beaches, Gerry pursued his obsession, causing hilarity and mayhem in his ever-tolerant family. Durrell's memories of those enchanted days gave rise to these three classic tales, loved by generations of adults and children alike.
He has an uncanny knack of discovering human as well as animal eccentrics — Sunday Telegraph
A delightful book full of simple, well-known things: cicadas in the olive groves, lamp fishing at night, the complexities of fish and animals - but, above all, childhood molded by these things — New York Times
Gerald Durrell was born in Jamshedpur, India, in 1925. He returned to England in 1928 before settling on the island of Corfu with his family. In 1945 he joined the staff of Whipsnade Park as a student keeper, and in 1947 he led his first animal-collecting expedition to the Cameroons. He later undertook numerous further expeditions, visiting Paraguay, Argentina, Sierra Leone, Mexico, Mauritius, Assam and Madagascar. His first television program, Two in the Bush, which documented his travels to New Zealand, Australia and Malaya was made in 1962; he went on to make 70 programs about his trips around the world. In 1959 he founded the Jersey Zoological Park, and in 1964 he founded the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust. He was awarded the OBE in 1982. Encouraged to write about his life's work by his brother, Gerald published his first book, The Overloaded Ark, in 1953. It soon became a bestseller, and he went on to write 36 other titles. Gerald died in 1995.
Restaurant Recommendation
Primanti Bros. 43335 Crescent Boulevard, Novi, MI 48375
The women in Barb’s book club meet each month, and when they do, their husbands dine out together in what I dubbed “Book Club Counterprogramming.” Last night we met at the Novi, Michigan location of the legendary Pittsburgh establishment. This franchise version is not exactly the original, but it offers the same overstuffed sandwiches. In addition to three foundational elements (Italian bread, meat, and cheese), each sandwich includes three additional toppings (tomatoes, fries, and coleslaw).
Sticking with the theme of three, I ordered the Joe, Dick & Stanley Tall Boy sandwich: Italian white bread loaded with three meats (capicola, turkey, and roast beef) and topped with melted provolone, tomatoes, fresh-cut fries, coleslaw, and onions. It was a delicious combination.
It all started during the Great Depression—with Joe Primanti operating a small sandwich cart in Pittsburgh's now-historic Strip District, an area that even in 1933 was a bustling hub of activity. Strong sales allowed Joe to open a storefront that year, feeding hungry truck drivers and shift workers at all hours of the day.
One winter someone drove up with a load of potatoes. He brought them over to the restaurant to see if they were frozen. I fried the potatoes on our grill, and they looked pretty good. A few customers asked for them, so I tossed them on the sandwich. — Joe's nephew John DiPriter
The sandwich was an instant hit, allowing all of the drivers working near the restaurant to eat with one hand and drive their truck with the other.
Marvelous Musicians
My sister Joan bought Disraeli Gears and my brother David bought Fresh Cream, Wheels of Fire, and Goodbye. Cream was the ultimate power trio. When I was at Tenafly High School in 1968, my friends were excited about seeing Cream at Madison Square Garden, but I didn’t go. My favorite Cream songs are "White Room," "Crossroads," and "Badge."
Cream was a British rock band formed in London in 1966. The group consisted of bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker. Bruce was the primary songwriter and vocalist, although Clapton and Baker also sang and contributed songs. Formed from members of previously successful bands, they are widely regarded as the world's first supergroup. Cream was highly regarded for the instrumental proficiency of each of their members. Tensions between Bruce and Baker led to their decision in May 1968 to break up, though the band was persuaded to make a final album, Goodbye.
Their music spanned many genres of rock music, including blues rock ("Crossroads," "Born Under a Bad Sign"), psychedelic rock ("Tales of Brave Ulysses," "White Room"), and hard rock ("Sunshine of Your Love," "SWLABR"). In their career, they sold more than 15 million records worldwide. The group's third album, Wheels of Fire (1968), is the world's first platinum-selling double album. Cream was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.
Eric Patrick Clapton (born March 30, 1945)
John Symon Asher “Jack” Bruce (May 14, 1943 – October 25, 2014)
Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker (August 19, 1939 – October 6, 2019)
Crossroads live in 1968
My playlist
Sports Stars
Michigan Football Trio: J.J. McCarthy, Cornelius Johnson, and Donovan Edwards
Michigan was a 7-point underdog to Ohio State at Columbus on Saturday but emerged with a resounding 45-23 win. Almost all of the pundits predicted a Buckeye victory, but on the Fox pregame show, Charles Woodson was the lone commentator who got it right. Similarly, Desmond Howard was the only one to pick Michigan on ESPN College GameDay. Both are former Wolverine Heisman Trophy winners.
Ohio State sought revenge after losing 42-27 in The Game in 2021. In particular, they didn’t much care for this quote from Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh about Ohio State coach Ryan Day:
Sometimes people are standing on third base, think they hit a triple, but they didn't.
A trio of Wolverines stood out in this big win. They picked a great time to play the best games of their careers.
J.J. McCarthy (Jonathan James), quarterback
Against Ohio State he completed 12 of 24 passes for 263 yards and three TDs (69, 75, and 45 yards) with no interceptions, and rushed 6 times for 27 yards and one TD.
Semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award (2022)
Registered his first 300-yard game (304) with three touchdowns on 28-of-36 passing at Indiana (Oct. 8, 2022)
An accomplished hockey player
45-yard TD pass
3-yard TD run
Cornelius Johnson, wide receiver
Against Ohio State he had 4 receptions for 160 yards and two TDs (75 and 69 yards).
Two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree (2020-21)
Caught the fourth-longest passing touchdown in program history (87 yards vs NIU, Sept. 18, 2021)
His mother, Dr. Cassandra Tribble, graduated from U of M Medical School.
69-yard TD pass
75-yard TD pass
Donovan Edwards, running back
Against Ohio State he rushed 22 times for 216 yards and two TDs (75 and 85 yards).
Against Penn State had 173 rushing yards on 16 carries with a pair of touchdowns and 21 receiving yards (Oct. 15, 2022)
Threw a 75-yard touchdown pass to Roman Wilson, the fifth-longest passing play in Big Ten Championship Game history, against Iowa (Dec. 4, 2021)
Gained 170 yards on 10 receptions (a record for a U of M back) including a 77-yard touchdown catch at Maryland (Nov. 20, 2021)
75-yard TD run
85-yard TD run
Press Conference after beating Ohio State
Picture Pun
The Three Tenors were not available, so we had to settle for The Three Faucettos.
