Tribute to the American author Edgar Rice Burroughs

Edgar Rice Burroughs was born September 1, 1875, During his career he created many popular enduring characters but he is perhaps best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, whose exciting science-fiction exploits debuted in 1912 and feature a Confederate American Civil War veteren from Virginia who inexplicably finds himself transported to the planet Mars and discovers that Mars (which is known as “Barsoom” by the locals) isinhabited by 12-foot tall barbarians called Tharks, Intelligent & scientifically minded people from the neighbouring City of Helium, villainous Warlords, Pirates, Giant White Apes and vicious thugs named Warhoons, and discovers that the land is in turmoil and the various inhabitants are at war with each other over th planets dwindling resources and the situation is being manipulated by shadowy forces. So he undertakes a perilous journey across Barsoom, encountering many dangers along the way, in order to unite the population against a common enemy and fairly soon he finds himself in the midst of all-out war between the forces of civilization on Mars and those of destruction and the outcome will determine the fate of everyone on Barsoom.

Burroughs also produced works in many other genres including The Land That Time Forgot (1918),and had his first story, “Under the Moons of Mars”, serialized in All-Story Magazine in 1912. Burroughs soon took up writing full-time and by the time the run of Under the Moons of Mars had finished he had completed two novels, including Tarzan of the Apes, which was published from October 1912 and which went on to become one of his most successful series. Burroughs also wrote popular science fiction and fantasy stories involving Earthly adventurers transported to various planets (notably Barsoom, Burroughs’ fictional name for Mars, and Amtor, his fictional name for Venus), lost islands, and into the interior of the hollow earth in his Pellucidar stories, as well as westerns and historical romances. Along with All-Story, many of his stories were published in The Argosy

Thanks to the enduring popularity of the Barsoom and Tarzan series of novels Burroughs set up his own company, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc In 1923 and began printing his own books throughout the 1930s.Then In 1941 At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Burroughs was a resident of Hawaii and, despite being in his late sixties, he applied for permission to become a war correspondent. This permission was granted, and so he became one of the oldest war correspondents for the U.S. during World War II. After the war ended, Burroughs moved back to Encino, California, where, after many health problems, he died of a heart attack on March 19, 1950, having written almost seventy novels.

Happy Birthday Barry Gibb

Barry Gibb Eldest brother of the Bee Gees celebrates his birthday on 1st September. With their trademark falsetto harmonies, the Bee Gees helped turn disco into a global phenomenon with hits including Stayin’ Alive and Night Fever, which featured on the soundtrack of the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever, starring John Travolta.The Bee Gees sold more than 200 million records and notched up dozens of hits during a career spanning more than half a century.

The three Gibb brothers made their earliest performances at local movie theatres in Manchester in 1955, singing between shows.After emigrating to Australia with their parents, the Gibb brothers returned to England in the mid-1960s to further their singing careers. Their early recordings, including dramatic hits such as Massachusetts (1967), drew comparisons with the Beatles. The trio reached the Top Ten with I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You and I Started a Joke (both 1968) but split briefly after the relative failure of their concept album Odessa (1969). They reunited in 1970 and had hits with Lonely Days (1970) and How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (1971).

They returned to the charts with Main Course in 1975 – in which they produced a new sound – the emphasis being on dance rhythms, high harmonies, and a funk beat,  this propelled The the Bee Gees to the forefront of the disco movement, which their work on the sound track album of the film Saturday Night Fever (1977) would popularise and define.  Subsequently, they became among the most successful vocal groups in rock and roll history, and went on to sell more than 200 million albums.

Gibb and his brothers seemed to have a natural talent that allowed them to write hit songs with ease and this helped them become the first and only songwriters to place five songs in the Top Ten at the same time, and the song Jive Talkin’,  became their second American number one single, and was followed up with Nights on Broadway and then the album Children of the World, which yielded the hits You Should Be Dancing and Love So Right.

Their success was not limited to recordings issued under their own name either. Individually and together they’ve also written and produced major hits for artists including Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers, as well as Frankie Valli. In 1997 the band was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Sadly though his younger brothers Maurice and Robin Gibb  both passed away recently, but they have left the world some fantastic music