Bob Dylan’s  debut studio album was produced by Columbia talent
scout John H. Hammond, who had earlier signed Dylan to the label,
a decision which was at the time controversial. The album primarily features folk standards, but also includes two original compositions, "Talkin’ New York" and "Song to Woody". The latter was an ode to Woody Guthrie, a major influence in Dylan’s early career.

The album did not initially receive much attention, but it achieved
some popularity following the growth of Dylan’s career, charting
in the UK three years after its release, reaching #13.

Bob Dylan in the studio recording his debut album in 1961.

Robert Dylan (Robert Allen Zimmerman) will be 81 in May.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation instituted the “Ten
Most Wanted Fugitives” list in an effort to publicize
particularly dangerous fugitives. The creation of the
program arose out of a wire service news story in 1949
about the “toughest guys” the FBI wanted to capture.

The story drew so much public attention that the “Ten
Most Wanted” list was given the okay by J. Edgar Hoover
the following year.

Since its debut, hundreds of the criminals included on the
list have been apprehended or located, with more than 150
as a result of tips from the public.

VW is resurrecting its iconic microbus — the quintessential van associated with hippie counterculture of the 1960s (below) as an
all-electric van called the ID. Buzz.
 

CORBETT, Ore (KATU). — Vista House is set to reopen to visitors
in the Columbia River Gorge this coming weekend.

While the viewpoint and parking lot have remained open, Vista
House and its gift shop and café will be back open to the public.

The historic Columbia River Gorge attraction has been closed for
most of 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Vista House opened in 1918 (above) as a glamorous rest stop and observatory for those traveling the new highway. This “comfort
station” was a rest stop like no other, featuring marble floors,
stained glass windows — and, of course, a stunning view. In the
words of The Oregonian, it was “the finishing achievement for the greatest highway in America.”

Architect Edgar M. Lazarus designed the building to be functional, beautiful and commemorative: the rest stop served as a memorial
to the settlers who had traveled the final stretch of the Oregon Trail
along the Columbia River. Inside, stone panels are carved with the
names of settler families. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, the building fulfills Lazarus’s vision as a “temple to
the natural beauty of the Gorge.

Edgar Marks Lazarus
(June 6, 1868 – October 2, 1939)

On March 9, 1959, the first Barbie doll went  on display at the
American Toy Fair in New York City.

Eleven inches tall, with a waterfall of blond hair, Barbie was the
first mass-produced toy doll in the United States with adult
features. The woman behind Barbie was Ruth Handler, who co-
founded Mattel, Inc. with her husband in 1945. After seeing her
young daughter ignore her baby dolls to play make-believe with
paper dolls of adult women, Handler realized there was an
important niche in the market for a toy that allowed little girls
to imagine the future.

First Barbie TV commercial in 1959.

The woman behind Barbie was Ruth Handler,who co-founded Mattel, Inc. with her husband in 1945.