The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe - 116: A Little Town Up North

Episode Date: November 13, 2018

It was just a tiny patch of farmland near a tiny little burg - but oh, the things that happened there...

This is the way I heard it. During her farewell tour in 2005, Cher demanded multiple boxes of aloe vera tissues in rose-scented, cube-shaped boxes. Happily, Cher wasn't David's problem. When Mariah Carey was interviewed in 2009, she demanded to be lowered onto the sofa by two stage hands so she would increase her dress.

Happily, Mariah wasn't David's problem. And when Madonna checked into her 5,000 square foot hotel suite in 2012, she demanded hundreds of pink roses individually placed into hundreds of crystal vases, carefully situated on every flat surface. Happily, Madonna was not David's problem. However, when Eddie demanded seven weeks to prepare for the most ambitious outdoor gathering in recent memory, Well, that was David's problem, because if David was going to pull off an event of this magnitude, he needed the right entertainment. And there was really nobody like, Eddie. But seven weeks of

rehearsal, that was a diva move unlike anything David had ever seen. The event was less than a month away, and moving the date at this point would be a logistical nightmare. What to do? David rubbed his aching temples and took a moment to feel sorry for himself. Back in the 60s, prima donnas were no less common than they are today, and guys like David were still at their mercy. But the 60s were also the reason David was determined to make this happen. America was at war. The youth were feeling rebellious, and David thought the country could benefit from a massive expression of love and unity. He also believed the farmland around his hometown would be the perfect venue. And of course, he was right. You know the town. You might even know its famous address,

but unless you were there in person to hear the music and smell the air and lose yourself in the moment, it's easy to forget the whole event relied upon a single performance, which is why David ultimately agreed to Eddie's demand. He rebooked the vendors, rebooked the bands, redrew the permits, and announced a new date. Then he prayed that Eddie would come through, which, of course, he did. Again, you had to be there. But if you weren't,

it's fair to say that Eddie was a force of nature. Like Hendricks and Joplin, he could go for hours on end. Like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson airplane, he could riff in ways that left the audience surprised and begging for more. But unlike other famous headliners, Eddie didn't have a band to back him up.

When Eddie took the stage, it was just him. That's why no one wanted to follow Eddie, ever. And that's also why, in spite of the last-minute date change, the announcement of his involvement triggered a migration of people. Thousands walked, thousands hitchhiked, and thousands more did whatever was necessary to get themselves to that little town up north, where they hoped to be a part of something bigger than themselves,

and maybe hear something transcendent, something they'd always remember. And boy, did they. After a few very solid opening acts, Eddie took the stage, and the crowd went wild. For over two hours, the most electrifying performer in America held thousands of people in the palm of his hand. When he finished, they applauded,

for a full 15 minutes, deeply moved and profoundly grateful to know that one day they would tell their grandchildren, I was there the day that Eddie made history. And of course, they did. And to this day, their great, great-great-grandchildren are passing on the same story to their children. Because remember, this was the 60s. America was at war. youth were feeling rebellious, and David thought the farmland around his hometown would be the perfect venue for a carefully planned expression of love and unity. And of course, he was right, because a few months earlier, another kind of gathering was unfolding in that very same place, a gathering that brought 175,000 young people together for three

days of unforgettable slaughter. An epic bloodbath that left 50,000 Americans dead or wounded, many of whom were scattered in terrible pieces right there in David's front lawn. That's why, after three months of unspeakable cleanup, David was determined to dedicate the farmland around his home to those now buried beneath it. And so he did. But unless you were actually there to hear the bands play their dirges and the choirs sing their hymns, unless you were there to smell the air, still rank with rotting flesh, and listen to Eddie deliver his 13,000-word eulogy from memory. It's hard to imagine what really happened in that little town up north during that unforgettable summer of death. You know the town.

you might even know its famous address. No, not the two-hour rhetorical masterpiece that no one thought they'd ever forget. I'm talking about the two-minute rumination that followed. The shockingly brief 272-word homily that left most people scratching their heads and wondering if they missed something. It's funny how things work out. Few people today remember Edward Everett, America's greatest orator. Fewer still can recall a single phrase from his epic address,

so masterfully delivered on that sacred afternoon in 1863. And almost no one remembers David Wills, the man who organized the event that transformed the farmland around his home into the sprawling National Cemetery it is today. But you might remember the man who stole the show. seven score and 15 years ago. A haggard man suffering from fever and grieving the death of his son. A humble man, about as far from a diva as a politician can be, an honest man who was content to write his speech the morning of the event in the spare bedroom of David Will's home.

A president called Lincoln, who delivered the address we still remember in a little town up north, a little town called Gettysburg. Anyway, that's the way I heard it. When you manage procurement for multiple facilities, every order matters. But when it's for a hospital system, they matter even more. Granger gets it and knows there's no time for managing multiple suppliers and no room for shipping delays. That's why Granger offers millions of products in fast, dependable delivery.

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