Journal Six- Ruchir Saha

Part One

Television has changed us over for many generations.  Especially when it comes to watching reality TV like talk shows.  Joe Franklin was a talk show host in NYC.  He had the experience doing radio and television broadcast around 41 years.  His talk show “The Joe Franklin Show” used to be mighty popular.   Franklin once said “I get about 1,000 calls a day from people who want to be on my show.”  The theme here that stood out to me was nostalgia. He discussed that he kept records of his show that would continue airing on TV and his business made it to what he called “the rare record market”.  In our world today, major events or happenings that people have experienced in the past are usually not forgotten as they slowly grow up. At certain times, people talk about the good things that happened to them and how did they make that achievement or success come true in their lifetime.

Part Two

One of the two profiles that struck me was Augustina Martinez.  She was a doctor that would heal patients.  She had wrinkles on the palm of her both hands and one of them was marked with letter “M”.  Martinez said it stands for “milagrosa”, that meant “miracle worker”. This brings a theme on diversity. Also I was surprised that she could give and deliver lots of birth to children even at the age of 12.  Here she displays the theme of ambition. 

Another profile was Maury Graham.  He was a hobo that had the given nickname “Steam Train”.  Graham always used to spend his life on the road and railroad tracks since he was 13, after living in a broken home.    I cannot imagine anyone else including me to live this kind of life.  This theme supports someone being desperate and bravery.   Later he used to hang out with a gang of hoboes that formed a club called the “hobo jungle”.  They all would eat, hang around and sleep together.  This seems like a theme for showing passion.  The hoboes would also take care of their collection of pots and pans by washing them streak clean and not leaving it dirty like a “bum” would do. 

After reading Holding On, I found out that it is quite vivid as you read every profile to imagine how it would feel like if you were in the same situation like these historical Americans. Overall, I liked this book because all the information can be useful to anyone who admires and wants to teach American History. Therefore, I would recommend it to any reader who likes to know more American History.