LOS ANGELES — I noted with great dismay the drawing of Betty Boop and article [“Trips, Tips & Deals”; May 14] identifying Grim Natwick as the creator of Betty Boop. It is a well documented fact that Betty Boop was created by my grandfather Max Fleischer. It is true that Mr. Natwick worked in the 1930s at my grandfather’s studio, Fleischer Studios, as an animator and may have been involved in that capacity with the animation of the original Betty Boop cartoons, but in no manner did Mr. Natwick “create” the Betty Boop character. To make such a statement is the equivalent of saying that the person who places the bricks in the mortar in accordance with the architect’s design is the architect of the house.
— Mark Fleischer
LARIAM CRITIC
WESTFIELD, N.Y. — As one who has had his life nearly wrecked by Lariam, I can tell you the degree and extent of the pain caused by Lariam is much more extensive than hinted at in Alfred Borcover’s column [“Traveler’s Dilemma”; June 4]. I wish he had contacted Lariam Action USA to learn the gravity of Lariam prior to writing this column.
— John Ellison
Lariam Action USA was one of the sources Borcover used in researching his column. For more information: Lariam Action USA, PMB 248, 1563 Solano Ave., Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-663-5168; lariaminfo@yahoo.com; www.suggskelly.com/lariam
LARIAM AFTER-EFFECTS
IOWA CITY — I graduated from Dartmouth College in 1992 and then went to Zimbabwe to play professional soccer later that year. I took Lariam for over three months and the drug built up toxic levels in my system. To make a very long story short, I became very sick from the drug and it ended my soccer career. I could not work or do much of anything for nine months. I went from being a professional athlete to not even being able to walk down the block. The problems continued for years, and some of the symptoms remain to this day, even eight years later. And the side effects I experienced were very serious. I experienced the side effects that you mentioned but I had many more as well, the most serious were problems with my heart — murmurs, abnormal rhythms, tachycardia and an atrial flutter.
— Jesse Bradley
RESEARCH NEEDED
MISSOURI CITY, Texas — No wonder the physician [who suffered serious side effects from Lariam] requested not to be identified. I cannot believe that a health-care provider did not research his choices for anti-malaria drugs prior to visiting another health-care provider. Research is critical prior to any intervention!
— Barbara J. Blue
BIGHORNS MEMORIES
TOULON, Ill. — I surely enjoyed Phil Marty’s article in Travel [“The Bighorn Romance”; April 30]. What memories it brought back. My first trip to the Bighorns was in ’31 in a Model T. We stopped in Ten Sleep at a drugstore and I had a chocolate milkshake. The fellow turned a crank to mix it.
In 1950 my hunting buddy and I started 28 trips to Saskatchewan bird hunting. After a couple of boring trips home by the same route, we started to come back through Montana, hence many trips through the Bighorns from Lovell. Two or three times on old [U.S. Highway] 14A — wow. From Lovell to Sheridan on 14A and 14 you are up so high for a lot of miles. One October it was after a big snow. It was beautiful. From Sheridan to Gillette we always took U.S. 14 to see all the game.
I’m 85 now and too old for trips, my wife says.
— Dick Finney
INSPIRED TO EXPLORE
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — I am a civil engineer currently searching for employment out West and was told about “The Bighorn Romance,” , so I tracked it down on the Internet. My wife and I will be heading to Sheridan next week to get a feel for the area. If it is even half as wonderful as you describe, I think we will be very happy there.
I was especially touched by Phil Marty’s “I wonder where that road goes…” attitude, as I share the same desires for exploring new areas and trying to “see everything.” My wife, Dorothy, is very excited about our visit, as your article brought her to tears three times. As an avid hiker, camper and amateur wildlife photographer, the article reassured our hopes of experiencing the Wyoming mountains and all the adventures they may hold.
Having traveled through many places in the Rockies including New Mexico, Colorado, western Wyoming (Yellowstone), Montana, Idaho and Canada, I am continuously awestruck by every mountain, canyon, green meadow and antelope. I have not been through the Big Horns, but with your inspiring description, we can approach them with the same sense of discovery and respect that we have on every other adventure.
— Larry Dears
CRAZY ABOUT THE BIGHORNS
LAKESIDE, Mich. — My husband and I enjoyed your Bighorn National Forest article enormously. During our many years of camping we always include a two- or three-day stop in the Bighorns on our way to the Pacific Northwest or to Northern California. On our first Western camping trip in 1968, we were intrigued by the Western penchant for realistic names. One of our favorite campgrounds in the Bighorns is Dead Swede Creek. The other name we found interesting was Crazy Woman Creek, which you first encounter east of the mountains on Interstate 90.
We noticed the cutoff to Crazy Woman Canyon from U.S. 16 and decided to try it. Our mini-motor home has seen some tough terrain, but I could tell from my husband’s expression that he was not convinced that we could manage the trek into the canyon and out again. We drove about a mile on into the canyon road before my practical husband said, “If we go any farther along this road I’m not sure that even a heavy-duty tow truck could get us out.”
He managed with much maneuvering and a few choice words to turn our vehicle around and begin the choppy climb out of the place. We’d still like to see the canyon for ourselves.
— Mary Margaret Schimmelman
———-
Reader comments are welcome. Write to the Chicago Tribune, Travel Section, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611. Or, send e-mail to ctc-travel@tribune.com. Include your name, address and phone number.
