R. Mark Melville

@rmarkmel.bsky.social

247 Followers 453 Following

Assistant editor of Utah Historical Quarterly. Holiday enthusiast, casual trail runner, cat dad. Views are my own. 🏳️‍🌈

The books "The Bald Eagle: The Improbable Journey of America's Bird" by Jack E. Davis and "The Turkey: An American Story" by Andrew F. Smith. The first book has a bald eagle on a branch. The second has Uncle Sam holding a live turkey while sitting on a pumpkin with a document that says "Thanksgiving Proclamation" next to it.
A bear holding an American flag while the old Utah flag is behind him; small toys of nineteenth-century pioneers, one of them pulling a handcart; salt and pepper shakers of a horse and covered wagon, with the present Utah flag behind them.
A newspaper ad for "New Type plastic, unbreakable, fluidless Invisible Lenses." It features two women next to each other, one wearing glasses, the other without.
A screenshot from the 1967 "Safe and Sane Halloween" episode of Bewitched. It has Samantha with Tabitha in a leopard costume, then an elf-like gremlin, a hairy gray goblin, and a jack-o'-lantern with a ghost body.
A screenshot from The Simpsons: "Summer of 4 Ft. 2." Millhouse does not have his glasses on and is petting a horseshoe crab.
An illustration of a boy (Paul) sitting on a bench offering orange slices to another boy (Vincent), whose back is to Paul, and Vincent is awkwardly positioned on the bench. The captions say "Paul ést généreux" and "Vincent est égoïste."
A screenshot from "The Nightmare Before Christmas" with Sally looking at the camera, with the subtitle reading "She's the only one who makes any sense around this insane asylum!"
Screenshot from "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," in which Lucy is reading a yellow TV Guide with a picture of herself on the cover.
A button pin that says "not a hugger" with an image of a saguaro cactus.
A large brown tabby cat with long fur and a mane on a bed with a blue blanket. The cat's back legs are behind him to the side.
An email dated August 24, 2006.
The white petals of a sego lily surrounded by leaves from an arrowleaf balsamroot plant. A light-colored spider can be faintly seen in the flower's petals.
A screenshot from Benjamin Park and Nicholas Shrum's article: "Yet on their path to the Great Basin region, the federal government enlisted a group of church members to serve in the Mexican-American War. Known as the Mormon Battalion, they marched into Mexican territory under an American flag with only 13 stars. It was a symbolic protest: the U.S. they hoped to represent was the one that existed during the American Revolution, not the one with 28 states that had chased them out. They saw their own church, not the current government, as the revolutionaries’ true inheritor."
A 1981 typed letter that says "all issues," but it originally had s's instead of l's. The l's are typed over the s's.
Plush animals from the 2002 Winter Olympics: a bear with a hockey stick, a coyote with ski goggles, and a rabbit with ice skates.
A t-shirt that says "Sundance Film Festival 2020" with a lanyard from the 2019 festival.
The Mormon Meteor III, a 1930s race car that is blue and orange.
A block of text in a museum exhibit that says: EXCERPT At one time he opened his eyes wide to the ceiling saying, "Blood! Blood! Blood!!" in a way that made my scalp fairly crawl. "What troubles him?" I asked one of those present. "He acts as though he is haunted." "Maybe he is. He was at the Mountain Meadows massacre, you know," was the answer. No, I certainly had not known.
A sego lily, with three white petals tinged with yellow and scarlet and three white sepals, with a light green spider on one of the petals.
A postcard of an old man in a blue Civil War uniform with flowers and an American flag in his lap, with a young girl standing next to him. They are by a tombstone that says "In memory of," with flowers in front of it. In the background, a flag flies at half staff.
A screenshot from Bureau of Indian Affairs that says, "You are viewing ARCHIVED content published online before January 20, 2025. Please note that this content is NOT UPDATED, and links may not work. Additionally, any previously issued diversity, equity, inclusion or gender-related guidance on this webpage should be considered rescinded."
A newspaper clipping of a large cat with his paws stretched out in front of him and his claws visible. The caption reads: "Coddled Alley Cat. Sylvester is a very special breed of ordinary alley cat. He lives very sumptuously in Detroit—so that other cats of all breeds might live. He is valued for his blood which, according to the Humane Society, is given about four or five times a year to other felines suffering blood deficiencies. Sylvester, shown stretching on society manager Ron Blauet's desk, enjoys the luxuries of a well-balanced diet, a large private kennel and complete freedom to roam in the two-story building."
A black-and white photograph of a baby with a surprised look on his face while another baby's hand is on his head.
The CD cover of the joint soundtracks for "It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown" and "Charlie Brown's All Stars!" by Vince Guaraldi. It features an illustration of Peppermint Patty and Charlie Brown lying down with their heads against a small tree.
A scene from My Three Sons, with Ernie on the left circled. Ernie, Robbie, and Chip each hold a cookie jar with their name on it, while Steve (the dad) holds a cookie in his hand.
An illustration from the LDS "Old Testament Stories" manual from 1980. It features an Egyptian woman talking to a young Moses. Moses is bare-chested and is as muscular as a full-grown man, even though he has a very young face and a bad haircut.
A screenshot from "The Nightmare Before Christmas" with Sally looking at the camera, with the subtitle reading "She's the only one who makes any sense around this insane asylum!"
A handwritten letter with the word "see" underlined. Each e has a vertical line next to a curly capital E.
A child in colorful overalls sits on a person in an Easter Bunny costume. The costume has a large bunny head, and beneath the nose is an open spot for the wearer's face. The person in the costume has their face painted white to blend in with the white costume.
A kid in an orange and black flannel shirt stands next to a person in an Easter Bunny costume sitting in a chair covered with material with an Easter egg print. The costume has an Easter Bunny face on the torso, and a large, purple hat with a flower is on the person's head.
The cover of "Millennial Star" in August 1970. It has a black-and-white photograph of a newlywed couple; the wife has flowers in her curly hair and large eyes. The husband has a beard and longish hair.
Dear friends of Ardis, This is W Paul Reeve, posting in behalf of Ardis, writing a post I hoped I'd never have to write. I am following her end of life instructions. Ardis passed away. Jenny Lund and I are taking care of Zilly, also carefully following her instructions. We will reach out with information as we know more regarding a graveside service. There will be no funeral and no viewing. Ardis was adamant about this. She threatened to haunt me should I deviate from her wishes. I take that threat seriously. She left it in writing: "I swear, if anybody overrules me to hold anything more than a simple graveside service, I will come back to haunt you all!" But we WILL gather and remember her. If someone with musical ability (I have none) is willing to help us sing her home to her mom and dad with a few songs at the graveside, I'd be grateful. (Screenshot from Facebook)
A shelf of books and periodicals: Latter-day Saint Historical Studies; Wayfare; Utah Historical Quarterly; BYU Studies; Mormon Historical Studies; The Annals of the Southern Mission; Elias; Settling the Valley, Proclaiming the Gospel; Gracing; At the Pulpit; Off for the Holy Land; Oh, It's a Great Life; Gathering as One; Rediscovering the Sites of the Restoration.
Maxwell speaks to a blond man and says, "I'll have to see some form of identification."
Text from a book that says "If such a central tenant"
The winter 2025 issue of "Wayfare: Explorations in Faith." It features a colorized version of Aztec art from 1502.
Mark, a white man in a blue shirt, reclines while a large, brown tabby cat sits on his chest.
A six-panel comic strip, "Kate left behind, Karl gets into trouble." Panel 1: A blond boy (Karl) says, "No Kate, you can't come, Dicky and I don't want no girls." A blonde girl says, "Can't I go too." Panel 2: Karl and a boy with a hat (Dicky) stand by a river with a bridge. Dicky says, "Wouldn't this be a good place to sail boats?" Panel 3: Karl says, "Yes, I wonder how deep it is." Dicky says, "Oh, 'bout three feet." Panel 4: Dicky says, "I guess I know how deep it is, it's three feet!" Karl responds, "Well, I guess I know it's not, it's much deeper 'en that!!!! So there, mister smarty cat!" Panel 5: Dicky says, "I say it is three feet!" Karl responds, "'Tisn't! 'Tisn't! It's much deeper 'en that!" Panel 6: Karl says, "Now, you see if it's not deeper than three feet." Dicky's feet stick out of the river.
A handwritten document that says, "You Sisters if any man comes to you commands you to have them kick their a** out of doors."
Bare aspen trees, green coniferous trees, brown shrubbery, and gray clouds in North Canyon, Bountiful, Utah, December 25, 2025.
A screenshot of Merriam-Webster's post with "golden" as "Your 2026 Word."
A large, brown, longhair cat looking at the camera.
A black-and-white screenshot of the "Christmas with the Addams Family" episode of The Addams Family from 1965. Lurch, Morticia, Gomez, Grandmama, Fester, and Cousin Itt all wear Santa Claus outfits, including giant belts, Santa hats, and fake beards. A noose hangs behind Morticia.
A plastic trophy with a gold star, along with a small wooden plaque that says, "The Year-Round Festive Footnote Fanatic Award: Mark Melville."
A plot of dirt in a garden with rocks and some plants, including hyacinth sprouts.
Album art of Kylie Minogue wearing a dress made of purple tinsel garland, holding a green triangular lollipop like a Christmas tree. She is standing in front of a red and green triangle that is vaguely reminiscent of a Christmas tree.
A screenshot of a newspaper article: "Superintendent A. O. Smoot exploded the idea of the old Catholic notion of 'Santa Claus;' it was an error to teach this old falsehood to the young and tender mind, advising parents to discontinue it, and if stockings must be hung up—hang them up to receive presents from parents, brothers and sisters."
A screenshot from Windows 11 settings. The settings are "Combine taskbar buttons and hide labels," "Combine taskbar buttons and hide labels on other taskbars," and "Show smaller taskbar buttons." All of them are set to "When taskbar is full."
A screenshot from the animated special "The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't" with a roasted turkey with ten legs. A Pilgrim woman and a Native American are in the background.
A screenshot of a foot-pedaled bamboo car from Gilligan's Island. Gilligan is driving while Mr. and Mrs. Howell are in the backseat.
A screenshot from "The Invasion" episode of Gilligan's Island, in which Thurston Howell III (Jim Backus) is playing the role of an evil bald man in a dream sequence. He appears on a screen in a soup ladle full of barley and asks, "Well, how can I see through all this barley?"
The cover of "This Land Is Their Land: The Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled History of Thanksgiving." It features simple depictions of cornstalks.
The cover of "Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War" by Nathaniel Philbrick. The image is a painting of a sailing ship and men on a smaller boat.
The cover of "Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon." It is a photograph of the skin of an orange pumpkin.
The cover of "The Turkey: An American Story." It features Uncle Sam, with buckled shoes, red and white striped pants, a white beard, and a white top hat with a band with white stars. He is sitting on a pumpkin and holding a live turkey, with a document called "Thanksgiving Proclamation" next to the pumpkin.
The cover of "Thanksgiving: The Biography of an American Holiday." It features a vintage illustration of a man with a green star-spangled jacket, red and white striped pants, and a white top hat with a blue band with white stars. The man is riding on a large turkey.
Five books on a background of a blanket with fall leaves. The books are "Thanksgiving: The Biography of an American Holiday" by James W. Baker, "The Turkey: An American Story" by Andrew F. Smith, "Pumpkin: The Curious History of an American Icon" by Cindy Ott, "Mayflower" by Nathaniel Philbrick, and "This Land Is Their Land: The Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled History of Thanksgiving" by David J. Silverman.
The comic strip "Moon Mullins—In Embryo" by Willard. Panel 1: A large woman says, "Of all the stupid simple minded saps! Runnin' downstairs in front of a houseful of company in his night gown hollerin' that somethin' terrible had happened to him." A man in checkered pants responds, "Well, pet, it did give me quite a start when I looked in that mirror and didn't see myself. I'd forgot the mirror was busted." Panel 2: The woman says, "I wish to heaven there was some way of preventin' his doin' such dumb things." A man with a hat and a cigar responds, "Well, Mamie, there ain't, but one thing that I know of that coulda prevented Uncle Willie's bein' that way." Panel 3: The woman says, "What's that?" The man with the hat responds, "If somebody'd shot his father when he was five years old!"
A wicker cornucopia with plush toys that look like fruits and vegetables. They have black and white eyes, purple noses, and limbs. They include corn, banana, watermelon, lemon, squash, apple, celery, green bell peppers, potato, grapes, peach, and broccoli.
A comic strip in a newspaper that says, "It's only Ethelinda—she merely drops her opera glasses." Panel 1: A woman with a 1900s hairdo, Ethelinda, is in a balcony seat with a bald man in a suit below. Panel 2: An object falls from Ethelinda while the bald man is looking down in his seat. Panel 3: Ethelinda looks down while the object shatters on the man's head, and he has jumped out of his seat with his hands in the air. Panel 4: The man looks up at the balcony while Ethelinda shrinks down in her seat.