We pause to give thanks Sarah Josepha Hale, the 74-year-old magazine editor who wrote a letter to Abraham Lincoln on September 28, 1863, urging him to have the day of our annual Thanksgiving made a National and fixed Union Festival. She explained, You may have observed that, for some years past, there has been an increasing interest felt in our land to have the Thanksgiving held on the same day, in all the States; it now needs National recognition and authoritive fixation, only, to become permanently, an American custom and institution.
On October 3, 1863, Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise. According to the April 1, 1864, letter from Lincoln assistant John Nicolay, the proclamation was written by Secretary of State William Seward, and the original was in his handwriting. A year later the manuscript was sold to benefit Union troops.
In his 1863 proclamation, President Lincoln recognized that for which we too have to give thanks: The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty G*d.
Best wishes for a happy Thanksgiving to all our readers.
Drawn from the Proclamation of Thanksgiving at Abraham Lincoln Online. More background in Barbara Maranzanis Abraham Lincoln and the mother of Thanksgiving."
Jimmy Fallon, Adele & The Roots Sing "Hello" (w/Classroom Instruments)
Sure, youve heard Hello (everyone has by now). But youve never heard it played like this.
Adele took time out from her historic sales week to unwind for a performance with Jimmy Fallon and the Rootsand a room full of classroom instruments.
Adele"s "25" First-Week U.S. Sales Forecast Increases to 3 Million
The British pop singer and her hosts tackled the global hit with an array of percussion instruments, a ukulele and even a flip phone (hello!).
The "classroom instruments"segment aired Tuesday night on The Tonight Show, a full 24-hours after Adele shone with a performance of Water Under the Bridge and stuck around to play Box of Lies.
"Hello" andWater Under the Bridge are lifted from Adele"s smash third album release 25, which is cruisingtoward threemillion first-week sales in the U.S., where its now holds the single-week record.It"salso on track for thebest-ever opening sales week for any album in the U.K.
Watch Adele"s "classroom instruments" performance of "Hello."
Pretty Little Liars | Season 6B First Four Minutes | Premieres January 12 at 8pm/7c on ABC Family!
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American Experience 8 p.m., PBS We owe more than the Thanksgiving holiday to the group of English settlers who crossed the ocean on the Mayflower in 1620. As Pilgrims, tonights episode of PBSs U.S. history series declares, the landing of the colonists in what is now Massachusetts would come to be seen as the true founding moment of America.
The story of how a tiny cult of religious refugees teamed up with a group of adventurers men the Pilgrims disdained as strangers to found a lasting colony with just 102 people, a third of them children, is a fascinating one.
It is also steeped in myth, and filmmaker Ric Burns (brother of Ken) does his best to wipe away the legend in this retelling. The core character is William Bradford, played by the late actor Roger Rees, the colonys governor whose memoir serves as the primary first-hand account. Interviews with historians are mixed with re-enactments to create an engaging tale of fortitude and good fortune.
Verdict: Watch this
WATCH THIS
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 8 p.m., ABC The Peanuts specials were faltering when the 10th one rolled around in 1973 to give the series a welcome boost. While this does not reach the heights of A Charlie Brown Christmas or Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, its still nostalgic fun. And it isnt really Thanksgiving without a meal of toast, popcorn, jelly beans and pretzel sticks.
SKIP THAT
Pretty Little Liars: Five Years Forward 8 p.m., ABC Family With its teenage stars pushing 30, Pretty Little Liars deserves a reboot; it just seems about three years too late. After beating the original storyline senseless over five seasons, we wonder if there is a show left to save. Tonights special previews the coming season, which arrives with real episodes in January.
Contact the writer: 714-796-7724 or mhewitt@ocregister.com or @WatcherofTV on Twitter or The Watcher on Facebook.
November 23, 2015 / Steve Carr/Chandler Unified School District / Stories by You
Hamilton High School is one of more than 600 schools worldwide to implement AP Capstone, an innovative diploma program that allows students to develop the skills that matter most for their future college success: research, collaboration, and communication.
The program includes a two-course sequence: AP Seminar and AP Research. Developed in direct response to feedback from higher education faculty and college admission officers, AP Capstone complements the in-depth, subject-specific rigor of Advanced Placement courses and exams.
AP students working on a project in the AP Capstone program. Photo courtesy The College Boards Advanced Placement program
Students completing AP Seminar and AP Research with scores of 3 or higher, and receiving scores of 3 or higher on four AP Exams in subjects of their choosing, will receive the AP Capstone Diploma.
Students earning scores of 3 or higher on the two AP Capstone exams but do not take or earn qualifying scores on four additional AP Exams will receive the AP Seminar and Research Certificate.
The program will be taught by Debbie Nipar Ed Anderson and Phyllis Carr, 2015 Chandler Unified School District Teacher of the Year.
This innovative program prepares a broader, more diverse student population for college and career success, and also provides our teachers with flexibility in the curriculum to expand access to challenging course work and the development of important skills, said Hamilton High School Principal Ken James. The application process to be awarded the program is intense, but we knew the value of the program to our students.
The AP Seminar course, typically taken in 10th or 11th grade, will equip students with the power to explore academic and real-world issues from multiple perspectives. Through a variety of materials from articles and research studies to foundational and philosophical texts students will be challenged to explore complex questions; understand and evaluate opposing viewpoints; interpret and synthesize information; and develop, communicate, and defend evidence-based arguments. Teachers have the flexibility of choosing themes based on student interests, whether they are local, regional, national, or global in nature.
Samples of themes that can be covered in the AP Seminar course include education, innovation, sustainability, and technology. By tapping into students personal interests, AP Capstone gives a broader array of students an entry point into challenging course work. Students are assessed through both an individual project and a team project completed during the year and a year-end written exam.
Video: AP Capstone: A Paradigm Shift from Content to Skills
The subsequent AP Research course will allow students to design, plan, and conduct a yearlong investigation on a topic of their choosing with support from experts at the university level or in the community. Students will build on the skills learned in the AP Seminar course by using research methodology; employing ethical research practices; and accessing, analyzing, and synthesizing information to present an argument. At the end of the course students have the confidence to present and orally defend their own scholarly academic research.
We are proud to offer AP Capstone, which enables students and teachers to focus on topics of their choice in great depth, said Trevor Packer, senior vice president for AP and Instruction at the College Board. This provides terrific opportunities for students to develop the ability to write and present their work effectively, individually, and in groups the very skills college professors want their students to possess.
By responding to and partnering with the higher education community, the College Board developed AP Capstone to allow students to practice the important skills that colleges want. The program will prepare more students for the rigors of college and for success in future careers.
AP Capstone is a unique program that teaches skills we think are very valuable not only for college but life, said John Barnhill, assistant vice president for enrollment management, Florida State University. The ability to analyze, to critically think, to present information is really wonderful, and I think both courses do a great job of preparing the student for the rest of their lives.
For more information, please contact:
Ken James, Principal, Hamilton High School, (480) 883-500
Steve Carr, The Kur Carr Group, Inc., (602) 317-3040
The College Board, 212-713-8052; communications@collegeboard.org
About the Advanced Placement Program
The College Boards Advanced Placement Program (AP) enables willing and academically prepared students to pursue college-level studies with the opportunity to earn college credit, advanced placement, or both while still in high school. Through AP courses in 34 subjects, each culminating in a rigorous exam, students learn to think critically, construct solid arguments, and see many sides of an issue skills that prepare them for college and beyond. Taking AP courses demonstrates to college admission officers that students have sought the most rigorous curriculum available to them, and research indicates that students who score a 3 or higher on an AP Exam typically experience greater academic success in college and are more likely to earn a college degree than non-AP students. Each AP teachers syllabus is evaluated and approved by faculty from some of the nations leading colleges and universities, and AP Exams are developed and scored by college faculty and experienced AP teachers. Most four-year colleges and universities in the United States grant credit, advanced placement, or both on the basis of successful AP Exam scores more than 3,800 institutions worldwide annually receive AP scores. In the last decade AP participation and performance rates have nearly doubled. In May 2014, 2.3 million students representing more than 19,000 schools around the world, both public and nonpublic, took over 4 million AP Exams.
About the College Board
The College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students to college success and opportunity. Founded in 1900, the College Board was created to expand access to higher education. Today, the membership association is made up of over 6,000 of the worlds leading educational institutions and is dedicated to promoting excellence and equity in education. Each year, the College Board helps more than seven million students prepare for a successful transition to college through programs and services in college readiness and college success including the SAT and the Advanced Placement Program. The organization also serves the education community through research and advocacy on behalf of students, educators, and schools. For further information, visit www.collegeboard.org.
Charlie Puth -- Meghan Trainor Makeout Was Real and Spectacular
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Meghan Trainor looked fabulous at the 2015 AMAs. Not only did she look amazing in her black gown, her manicure was so cool and glamorous! Thankfully, Meghans manicurist gave us instructions to get her exact look!
Meghan Trainor, 21, looked absolutely amazing at the 2015 American Music Awards. It was such a big night for the songstress as she won awards and had amazing performances. What caught our eye, though, was her glitzy and glamorous manicure. Luckily, her celeb manicurist dished on exactly what she did to get that color! Get Meghans look here.
Celebrity Manicurist, Michelle Saunders, did an unbelievable job on Meghans nails and luckily for us, she told us exactly how to get Meghans dazzling manicure, just in time for Mani Monday! Meghans mani was the perfect shade of metallic and sparkle, but wasnt too overboard. So we are dying to know what her manicurist did so that we can try it this upcoming holiday season!
Michelle described her inspiration behind the manicure she gave. The lyrics in one of Meghans hit songs inspired her glitzy nail look I found myself dreaming in silver and gold. I started with essies penny talk for the base and then dipped each nail tip in a glitter mixture of three essie luxeffects shades, including: a cut above, set in stones and rock at the top. Ultimately it made for the perfect stand-out, sparkly combination. Are you kidding me that is amazing!
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It is so much fun to layer on different color polishes to give you a cool effect, but we didnt know that four different polishes could give you such a cool finish!
We are obsessed with this manicure and cannot wait to try it for our next holiday party or vacation.
What do you guys think of Meghans mani? Do you love it as much as we do?
NASCAR Victory Lane: Jeff Gordon - Martinsville 2015
Jeff Gordon"s parents, Carol (left) and John Bickford, will have an emotional finale, too, as the driver retires.(Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
HOMESTEAD, Fla. Now it all makes sense. Wonder Boy, as Jeff Gordon was often called in his early NASCAR days, was a product of Wonder Bread.
Seem silly? Trace the steps.
Gordons mother, Carol, was no more than 12 years old, maybe 13, when her father, Pat, worked for the Continental Baking Company in Vallejo, Calif. Pat delivered bread Wonder Bread, mostly to various businesses in the community, most without fanfare, but one captured Carols attention.
The house phone would ring on a Saturday night, with something ofa food emergency on the line. Vallejo Speedway, which featured the racing of hard-top cars as they were still called in the 1950s, would be so crammed with race fans that it would run short on hot dogs and hamburgers, and it needed help. Buns, specifically.
Off Pat would go, Carol in tow.
Carol freely admits she wasnt much help because she was mesmerized by the action at what was billed as the fastest quarter mile in the West. The cars were loud, fast and while not necessarily sleek, they had a beauty about them, and she was smitten.
I loved going out there, she said, reminiscing this week.
Which sets the scene for what happens Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m., WTHR-13, NBCSN) when Jeff Gordon goes for another Sprint Cup Series championship in his final stock car race.
Years later, as a divorced mother of two young children, Carol agreed to a date with colleague John Bickford, the designer at the hospital supply company where they worked. On the side, John was a builder of race cars and a crew chief,and their first date was at that same Vallejo dirt track at Solano County Fairgrounds.
Carol had again found love in that noisy, dusty place.
A footnote to the date was that Carols children, Kim and Jeff, were in tow. Jeff doesnt remember it he wasnt yet 2 years old but there was something symbolic of his first night with John. They would have many, many, many more in racing in the years to come. John is the longtime president of Jeff Gordon Inc., responsible for everything involving Jeff, including the Italian-made inscribed gifts Jeff on Saturday gaveto every other driverin Sunday"sSprint Cup Series field.
The rest, of course, is motor sports history. John and Carol married, and soon after Jeff learned to walk, he learnedto ride a bike at Johns side. By age 4, Jeff was racing boys twice his age in BMX, and before long it was time for the quarter-midget racers John brought home for the kids.
Were talking the mid-1970s here, which speaks to the amount of time and energythe family has invested in racing.
Truly, all these years our lives have been planned around a race, or the race, or around people coming to town to see Jeff race, Carol said. People would stay with us when we moved to Indiana. They went to sprint car races with us. They scraped mud off the side of race cars.
She laughs.
When he came down here (to NASCAR), we didnt have to scrape mud anymore, she said.
Jeff has gone on to become one of the most successful race car drivers in U.S. history, winning four Cup championships and collecting93 race wins, including three Daytona 500s and a record five Brickyard 400s. He has won millions of dollars in prize money and collected countless more in salary and endorsements. His first year in Cup, when he wasnt yet 22 years old and still looked like a student attending Tri-West High School in Lizton, he was paid $1 million by Hendrick Motorsports.
Its fair to say Gordon has been stock car racings most recognizable face since Dale Earnhardt was killed in 2001. He has been admired and adored, and the cameras will be focused on him throughout the Ford 400. He starts fifth.
Carol knows how big this moment is she still goes to the grocery store after all, and his face adorns magazine covers at checkout lines.
I told him the other day,"Ive seen a lot of you lately," she said.
The move to Pittsboro
John has received so much of the credit for Jeffs success, and rightly so. He guided his stepson through the earliest days, all the way up to through that first Cup championship. But Jeffs sister gets some credit, too.
Kim graduated from high school in Vallejo just as Jeff was showing significant signs of becoming a legitimate race car driver. She chose to attend San Diego State, which obviously wasnt close to the familys home northeast of San Francisco.
For any suspicion that John pushed for a family move to the Midwest, where Jeff could race sprint cars at an earlier age, Carol said Kim had an influential voice. Kim could see the opportunity available to her kid brother of four years, and it wasnt like she was going to be home much anyway. Go for it, she suggested.
They say timing in life is everything, right? Carol said.
Jeff had raced one summer in Ohio, but because the family had racing friends in Indiana the Osbornes and Easts, to name a few the decision was made to make that their new base. Appropriately, John and Jeff were off racing that 1986 season when Carol flew to Indianapolis to select and purchasewhat became their new Hendricks County home southwestof Pittsboro.
As crazy as it sounds," Carol said of the transition,"it made sense."
As crazy as this sounds, Carol wasn"t even present for Jeff"s first big racing achievement. She was inSan Diego visiting Kim when Jeff won the 1989 Night Before the 500 midget race at Indianapolis Raceway Park. That race was a first for Jeff on so many levels his first time in a midget, his first pavement race, his first drive for car owner Rollie Helmling but it was also something of a first for Carol.
She didnt know anything about the Night Before the 500, ashort-track racingjeweltelevised by ESPN.
I was like, Oh, thats great, she said of the winning news delivered by telephone. He was excited, and I was excited for him, so that was enough.
So many more nights like that were to come, of course.
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Jeff Gordon with his wife, Ingrid Vandebosch, and their children Ella and Leo met with Ron Howard in 2012, the year he drove the pace car for the Brickyard 400 at The Indianapolis Motor Speedway.(Photo: Kristin Enzor/ For The Star)
It was about this time last year that Jeff decided he wanted to quit driving stockcars to spend more time with his wife, Ingrid, and their children, Ella and Leo.That set in motion a series of activities building toward Sundays green flag. One of those was knee replacement surgery for Carol; she had it after the Brickyard 400 in order not to miss hometown races at Sonoma Raceway (in June) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway (in July).
Jeffs retirement also meant the familys last official race at their latest home track, Charlotte Motor Speedway. They had watched so many of his Cup races overlooking Turn 1in a condominium owned by Ken Barbie, the man who owned the apparel company first outfitting the would-be champion.
Barbie had long vowed to sell the condominium when Jeff retired, so at last months race, the friends went through the necessary festivities, goodbyes included.
I cant imagine why I would go back, Carol said. Ill be watching (on TV), probably watching races forever, but I wont go. Why would I?
John has a reason, maybe several. For one, Jeffs 2016 retirement tour will require the attention of various business endeavors, so John will oversee them.John also has a nephew, 17-year-old James Bickford of Napa, Calif., who is a promising young race car driver, having won two races in NASCARs K&N Pro Series West series.
He looks really good, so Ill help him where I can, John said of James. Plus, I get a lot of calls from moms and dads who want to see their children do this.
But John acknowledges changes are coming for those who have been with Jeffall these years.
Its been a h**l of a trip, he said, exhaling. But the rides not over.
Follow Curt Cavin on Facebook and Twitter: @curtcavin
SNL Host Matthew McConaughey Tells Adele and Cecily a Quick Story
A weak monologue was followed by one of the seasons strongest hosting performances
Matthew McConaughey said in his opening monologue on Saturday Night Live that it had been 14 years since the last time he was on the show. This isnt true. He hosted in 2003, and the last time we checked, that was only 12 years ago. But that was about the only thing that McConaughey did wrong Saturday evening.
The cold open began with the old reliable Fox and Friends. Sure, its formulaic, but since were living in a news cycle that has forced us into election season way too early, its refreshing to see Taran Killam, Vanessa Bayer, and Bobby Moynihan skewer the extreme right. Best lines from the sketch included Bayers Elizabeth Hasselback angry about Black Friday: All Fridays matter! Also noteworthy was Jay Pharoahs Ben Carson: Im like a koala bear. On the outside I seem nice, but on the inside, Ive never held elective office.
McConaugheys monologue was a recapping of how he first came to utter the alright, alright, alright that has been his catchphrase since his screen debut in Dazed and Confused. He told the story without many laughs, but with the engagement of a guy that youre a few beers deep with at the bar. Not that funny, but it was entertaining just the same.
Also Read: "SNL" Pays Tribute to Paris After Deadly Terror Attacks (Video)
The first sketch after the monologue will be the one that everybody is passing around for the next week. It was a pre-taped vignette of a Thanksgiving meal where the different generations clashed in their political views and lifestyle choices, but just as things started to get really heated, a young girl pressed play on a boombox. As soon as Adeles Hello came through the speakers, everybody at the table became lost in the moment, singing, growing totally enraptured and slowly becoming Adele. Jay Pharoah for the win again as he held his painted nails to his face with his long, silky hair blowing in the sepia-toned wind.
Next up was Kenan Thompson leading a band at Charlies Blues Shack. McConaughey played an out-of-tune bluesman sitting in with a New Orleans house band whose blues dont go much deeper than having a sucky fantasy football team. The game was established early, and they did a good job heightening it, but they werent able to take it beyond soft laughs.
Cecily Strong set up the next sketch, leading a presentation about a company called Bio-Print, which figured out how to use a 3D printer to create a human man. She invited audience members to guess which of the three men onstage is not a real human. Without giving away too much, this sketch is full of some of the most quotable SNL lines since the 90s, with the character who may or may not be the 3D printing of a man saying things like youre making a sunglasses guy like me laugh hard from my face.
Also Read: Olivia Wilde"s Childhood Chris Farley Story Will Warm Your Heart (Video)
The highlight of the show was a pre-taped bit with J.J. Abrams introducing screen tests for the new Star Wars. Its an easy joke, and one SNL has done before, most magnificently with Kevin Spacey playing Christopher Walken reading for the part of Han Solo. This one was just as funny, with Cecily Strong killing it as Sophia Vergara and Aidy Bryant nailing a highly improbable audition from Wynona Judd. Famous cameos abounded, most notably Jon Hamm, saying hes reading for the part of Hamm Solo.
Adeles musical performance was as amazing as the world needs it to be right now, as evidenced from the first filmed sketch of the evening. At this point in the show, we were still hoping that shed also do a comedy cameo, as more than 11 million have already seen what she did with Graham Norton earlier this week.
Weekend Update focused mostly on American politicians hypocrisy for refusing to allow Syrian refugees into the States, especially timely given the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. The best lines included Michael Che saying, my ancestors werent exactly immigrants. We were more like invited guests and Colin Jost saying, Do you know how easy it is to lie about being Christian? I do it every time I go home for Christmas. Che and Josts biggest asset is also their biggest downfall: They always seem like theyre performing primarily for each other. Cameos from Vanessa Bayer as an aspiring Update anchor and Kenan Thompson as David Ortiz helped minimize this though.
Also Read: Larry David Hasn"t Collected $5,000 Reward for Calling Donald Trump Racist on "SNL"
The game show medium is hit or miss on SNL, and this one was kind of a miss. It was a good premise; a game show called Should You Chime In On This? Again the focus was American ignorance, where participants gave their opinions on matters they have no knowledge about. Not even Kate McKinnon as Hillary Clinton could save this though.
Kate McKinnon dis indeed save the next sketch though. It was Bright Side of the Bed, where Strong and Taran Killam play married morning talk show hosts. McConaughey played Buster Little, a hirsute creole cook who tells jokes he doesnt even get. This bit is moderately funny, but Killams character cops too much of his persona from Dana Carveys Lyle the Effeminate Heterosexual. But it was McKinnons Ed Sheeran impersonation that tied this installment together.
Adeles second song was flawless. It really is great to be living in an age where a contemporary singer is still releasing her best material.
The show closed with one of the funnier moments. McConaughey played a character at a small town meeting who speaks out and gets hung up on what everybody else has that he doesnt have (a college education, shoes, a real hand etc.). His performance here almost made up for the fact that he didnt do a True Detective parody. Almost.
We joined current and former cast members, hosts and other Saturday Night Live mainstays for Sundays bonanza celebrating 40 years of the NBC sketch comedy show
"SNL 40": Dave Chappelle, Adam Sandler, Sarah Palin Reminisce Over Favorite Moments, Chris Farley
