John Edwin Mason: Documentary, Motorsports, Photo History

Gregg Allman & Walter Becker: Soundtracks from My Life

Music defines our lives. That's true of the present, when what we listen to tells us who we are. And it's true of the past -- music kindles memories. There's nothing original about these insights, but there are times when they're more apparent than at others. Last May, Gregg Allman's... Read more →

22 November 1963

When the principal told us that the president had been shot, we broke into applause, and I joined in. It's a shameful memory. I've spent a fair amount of time over the last 50 years trying to figure out what the heck it was all about. I was in the... Read more →

Funky Friday: The Monkees, "I'm a Believer."

When I was 13, I thought the Monkees were cool. I wasn't supposed to, of course, but there was no one around to tell me that my musical tastes were politically suspect. At the time, I lived with my family in the tiny rural burg of Gambier, Ohio, and went... Read more →

Memorial Day, 2009: Gordon Parks, Ella Watson, and My Dad

Memorial Day is a time for remembering what we owe to those who are no longer with us. (Yes, it’s also a time for picnics, backyard BBQs, and sleeping late. But it should be more than that.) I’ve been thinking about my father, Lt. Col. John E. Mason, Sr., who... Read more →