Why Not?????

A reader from Perry County, PA emailed asking why I haven't reviewed Laurel Run Lodge (Landisburg) or Chick's (which I assume is the great little taproom in Hummelstown Dauphin County).

I've been to Chick's but never Laurel Run.

Sounds like a trip to both is in order!

Years ago a buddy of mine asked why I do not have Google Ads on www.americantom.com

My reply was that not accepting advertising keeps me from outside influence as well as the fact that my site is solely for fun and entertainment.

I will never allow a bar or business to sponsor or influence my humbling reviewing but I have decided to post one row of Google ads.

Paying for this site is fairly expensive and maybe I can make enough change to cover the bills.

That's all.

So, if you see any of the Google ads that strike your fancy - go ahead and click on it. It will be interesting to see what ads Google tailors to this unique webpage.

Thanks!

www.readingbeer.com

I was thinking about how Reading Beer started so gloriously but soon fizzled so thoroughly.

Stopped by the website and now its not just outdated - its dead.

No longer up.

Tried to find out who owns it but its buried.

The Molly Maguires Movie

Until a few years ago I had never even heard of this movie. When it was released in 1969 it barely made back 10% of its $11,000,000 production cost.

Thankfully, it is now recognized as the great movie that it is.

One of the things I find most interesting about it is that when it was filmed the town of Eckley was so unchanged that all they had to do was bury power lines and hide antennas. The coal breaker they built for the movie still stands.

My ebay-purchased copy of this movie gets viewed a few times a year and I hope to get up that way sometime soon and check things out.

Lots of history and good bars there.

February 2010

Hello and welcome to February.

If you look down to the post below this one you will see it was a lonnnnnng time ago.

Over the past yr or so I put this site in simmer mode as I accomplished some personal and professional objectives.

Now that they are completed I will again get the ball rolling. The purpose of this site is unchanged - to document America's vanishing smalltown pubs. These homegrown businesses are most certainly MORE threatened now than they were when I launched this site - increased DUI pressures, more home entertainment options, ever-increasing costs to eat and drink out, etc - all work to make running a tavern a very risky and stressful occupation.

One of my new goals is to interview more owners and managers and to include more photos.

I have pretty much given up on using the new website. Maybe I should just bite the bullet and buy a brand new copy of Dreamweaver and learn it the right way.

For now, I will continue to manage the site on the antiquated Microsoft Frontpage software.

Thought? Comment? Email me at tom@americantom.com

Thanks -
Tom

October is almost gone...

Hello folks!

One half year has slipped by since I last blogged. That hardly seems possible.

For now, I have given up on getting the new website running. It cost me $500 and uses DREAMWEAVER which is radically different from the utterly simpl FRONTPAGE that I now use.
Essentially, my own stupidity has down this new idea in.

So, I am back and chasing stories and bars and will just keep this old layout.

Maybe I will have the time over Christmas to take another stab at learning how to make the new site work.

Thanks for your patience

AMERICANTOM

NEW WEBSITE - Almost

Time sure does fly.

The new website is almost done and should go live by 1May08.

To be honest, I am going to miss my old one just because it was something I created from knowing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about setting up a page.

The new site is far more professional and will make it easier on the readers. It has some functionality that is very different from what I have now.

Once its running please tell me what you think.

T