Q: Which Major League Baseball player holds the record for the longest home run ever hit? — Via email
A: Some books claim the record for the longest estimated home run in a major-league game is 634 feet by Mickey Mantle of the New York Yankees against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit in September 1960. However, in 1996, author William J. Jenkinson released his book “Long Distance Home Runs,” in which he says the record rightfully belongs to Babe Ruth, who hit a home run ball 575 feet in Detroit on July 18, 1921.
Jenkinson claims the previous method to determine where the ball would have landed — the way that gave Mantle the 634-foot home run — is based on faulty assumptions. He claims that once a baseball reaches its maximum height, it quickly drops, making the distance traveled far less than originally believed.
Q: I have long wanted to own a JFK rocking chair. I was told the exact chair is still being made and is available to the public. Where can I order one? Is there a story behind this chair? — R.L., Santa Rosa, Calif.
A: In 1955, John F. Kennedy was a young senator from Massachusetts. He suffered from back problems due to a war injury. Physician Janet Travell recommended a rocking chair from P. and P. Chair Co. of North Carolina to help relieve tension in the lower back. Kennedy ordered a sturdy Appalachian oak rocker. Before long, the chair would carry his name. As president, Kennedy ordered dozens of chairs not only for his own use but also as gifts for guests and heads of state.
While most sources say the chair is still being made by P. and P. Chair Co., this is not true; P. and P. ceased operation and sold the rights to the Kennedy Rocker to Troutman Chair Co. in Troutman, N.C. — you can visit their website at thekennedyrocker.com. You can also order a chair from the Kennedy Library by calling 1-866-JFK-1960. As of this writing, the chair sells for $399 plus $100 shipping.
Q: Elizabeth Taylor had a brother, but there was never a mention of him in any article about her death. Is he still alive? How old is he? Why was there no mention of him in any of his sister’s obituaries? — C.M., St. Michaels, Md.
A: Elizabeth “Liz” Taylor (1932-2011) had an older brother, Howard Taylor, who was born in 1929. The last I heard he was living in Taos, N.M., where he opened a branch of the Taylor Art Gallery. Howard Taylor was never interested in the movie industry, and he did his best to be far removed from it.
Taylor said he was at his sister’s funeral, but he remained in the back to be out of the limelight. Over the years he pursued several careers, including oceanography and marine painting.
Q: I was sitting in a park near an elderly man and a young boy. The man was sitting, and the boy was running around wildly. The man lovingly grabbed the boy by the waist, picked him up and told him he was going to “put him in the hoosegow to slow him down.” They laughed and continued to carry on. It was a touching moment. Then it dawned on me — I haven’t heard that term for a jail in a long time. What is the origin? I can’t look it up myself because I have no idea how to spell the word. — V.N., Peoria, Ill.
A: Well, guess what, V.N., you spelled the word correctly! Had you looked it up, you would have discovered “hoosegow” is an Anglicization of the Latin American Spanish “juzgao,” a variant of “juzgado,” which means “jail.” The word hoosegow is first found in English in the early 1900s. I’m glad you didn’t look it up yourself — that would have deprived the rest of us from learning about the word.
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