July 9, 2025 to July 10, 2025
74-75: slept like a baby, city of firsts, emoticon, nickelodeon, kiss-my-ass clock, old overholt, world series, kdka radio, slinky, cathedral of learning, mellon pillars, mysterious door, the fence, dippy, gas station, b & t water, big mac
Pittsburgh
Wow.... I slept like a baby last night.
Pittsburgh has an amazing number of Firsts. You many recall how, when I go to a city that has a "first," I try to partake in whatever it is. Some examples on this trip include:
+ Key Lime Pie in Key West, where it was first created
+ Big Mac in Miami, where the first one was made
Among the many firsts here is that the polio vaccine was created here by Dr. Salk at the University of Pittsburgh. I checked that one off my list as a young child.
The first combination heart and liver transplant was performed, also at the University of Pittsburgh, by Dr. Starzl in 1984. Although I'm completely committed to this Quest of Firsts, I'm going to pass on the heart/liver transplant... although if I have to eat another Whopper I might not have a choice.
Pittsburgh had the first internet emoticon, the smiley face, which was created by a Carnegie Mellon University computer scientist in 1982.
So.....

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One that wasn't easy was America's first dedicated movie theater. The Nickelodeon, at 433–435 Smithfield Street, opened on June 19, 1905. It charged a nickel (hence the name “Nickelodeon” = nickel + odeon meaning theater) and initially seated 96 people.

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Still unsuccessful, I went into a bank and talked with the three security guards. Just like the guy I had asked in the convenience store across the street from the alleged location, the guards had no idea this wonderful landmark was even in the area. As they were murmuring amongst themselves, I happened to find some information on my phone that noted the street numbering has changed over the years and the address is now 441 Smithfield Street so, as they were still scratching their collective heads, I tromped over to the new address.

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1 week ago
After spending two hours on my quest, I finally called it quits. While it's not exactly the oldest glass eye in western Cameron county, it is something I had really wanted to see.

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After wandering around Pittsburgh, accosting strangers like a deranged person to ask where the old Nickelodeon theater is and getting quizzical looks from pretty much everyone, I needed a drink........

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Onward and backward.......

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Maybe you noticed the wet streets in the previous picture. It rained on me while I was here, which shouldn't be surprising considering that Pittsburgh gets more rain than Seattle. Although it doesn't have as many rainy days, the amount of rain is higher.
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Here we take a commercial break in order to listen to KDKA, the world's first commercial radio station. Dr. Frank Conrad, a Westinghouse engineer and radio enthusiast, had been conducting amateur broadcasts from his garage. As the broadcasts became more popular, Westinghouse, the corporation manufacturing radio receivers, saw this as an opportunity and started the first commercial radio station on 2 November 1920. It sent across the waves live results of the 1920 U.S. presidential election between Warren G. Harding and James M. Cox.
Because it predates audio recording on magnetic tape, no recording of the actual event exists, but here's a re-enactment of the original broadcast:
KDKA's broadcast of the 1920 presidential election
This recording is particularly impressive because it uses:
* restored crystal radio equipment like what Frank Conrad used in his garage station, including 100-watt vacuum tube transmitters and the carbon microphones used in 1920
* replicated room acoustics with reverberation matching the roof of the Westinghouse Building K (where the studio was)
* voice actors using an early-20th-century broadcast style (clear enunciation, slower pacing, etc)
* eyewitness accounts and oral histories
* Westinghouse memos and logs, and notes from KDKA engineers like Conrad
* background effects like Morse code interference or static, which was common to early broadcasts.
And here's a link to the current KDKA station which, since it's a First, is necessary for me to listen to:
KDKA now
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Slinkys were invented in Pittsburgh. I bought one, and plan to insert a video of one going down some steps, but the steps have to be short (read: for someone with a size 4 shoe), or it doesn't work. I'm still looking for the right steps, which shouldn't be hard in this town, so check back later.
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1 week ago

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If you haven’t read about my experiences eating a Whopper in Miami, you should do that now by clicking here. Otherwise, the following section will make no sense whatsoever, and you’ll become convinced that “That Mark guy is just plain weird” (although there’s a strong risk you may already think that).
Just as the first Whopper was created at a Miami Burger King, the first Big Mac was invented and test-marketed in a Pittsburgh-area McDonald's in 1967. If you recall from my Whopper experience, I experienced some... ….ummm..... physical and mental changes which were a bit disturbing. The effects took a while to wear off, so this time I’m not taking any chances. I’m eliciting your help to determine if any changes occur, however subtle, while I undertake possibly the most dangerous task of the trip: eating a Big Mac from McDonald’s.

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Watch very carefully to see if you note any physical changes, however slight, that might take place.
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There were a few places I'd like to have seen but just didn't have the time. However, I really like Pittsburgh, and will definitely be back.
* Bicycle Heaven - the world’s largest bike museum (and even better, it’s free).
* The Meadowcroft Rockshelter - is the oldest known site of human habitation in North America. It's south of town so I would've had to eliminate some of the places I did see.
* Latrobe - this small town of only 8,000 people is home of the very first banana split, the birthplace of Mr. Rogers (!), and the birthplace Arnold Palmer.
Those are three excellent reasons to visit, but it's 40 miles away and I just didn't have enough time.
I start riding tomorrow, and since it's been three weeks since I've put butt to saddle so I'm a little anxious. It's been so long that it feels like a different tour.
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Have you recovered yet?
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