Frank Absher

Historian and author seeking St. Louis radio, TV, print and advertising history and historic materials.

[Marlene Robertson🇨🇦 @marlene4719]

Nothing says grift more than America’s Warpig taking all six kids to France on the taxpayers dime

[⚽️ Kyle Sheldon @kylesheldon]

Is this the best World Cup team photo of all time?

Bravo, Norway 🇳🇴⚔️

[Joseph Miscimarra 🇺🇸 @jmisci]

This week I came across the obituary of a photographer named David Plowden. I was unfamiliar with his work, but decided to browse his website after reading that he specialized in photos of trains and industry.

I’m not much of an art guy, but these photos are astonishing. (1/4)

[Frank Absher @FrankAbsher]

@KMOXPD But it's obvious that management was not interested in hearing opinions that differed from theirs, even from experienced, reliable employees.

[McPherson @McPherSTL]

🧵
Last week @MarkMaxwellTV of @ksdknews aired an in-depth story about the aftermath of the May 2025 tornado that devastated parts of St. Louis City, especially neighborhoods on the city's impoverished north side. The story, reported in a somewhat breathless tone, suggested that the insurance industry and MO state regulators were to blame for the fact that many homeowners had inadequate insurance policies, or often no insurance at all.

At the center of the story was a homeowner named Kim Holt, who owns a property a few blocks north of Delmar Blvd in the Academy neighborhood. The story said Kim Holt and her husband, Eli, "had completed a renovation and were preparing to move in" when the tornado struck, causing extensive damage to the home. Their insurance payout was $81,000, according to the story. The implication was that this amount was nowhere near enough to compensate them for all the time and money they had put into renovating the property since they bought it about 15 years ago.

The story got a fair bit of attention on X last week and was quickly reposted by @saintlouispres Board of Aldermen President Megan Green and her chief of staff. Green, a Democratic Socialist, accused insurers of "insurance redlining." There's a lot of focus on North STL at the moment: Green is sponsoring a bill at the Board of Aldermen to spend $110 million of the city's Rams settlement money to help fix the north side; $79 million of this is directly linked to tornado recovery. (Some of the left-wing activists who backed Green's rise in STL politics are pressuring the city to spend even more.)

There's a problem with KSDK's story, though. Public records, as well as images from Mark Maxwell's own reporting, cast serious doubt on the credibility of Kim Holt, the "victim" in this narrative. For one thing, there are no building permits on the city's website to indicate she and her husband did any kind of renovation at their property before the tornado.

https://t.co/u9YKjdSdOF

[Liam Nissan™ @theliamnissan]

BREAKING NEWS: The Chuck E. Cheese Band has officially backed out of Trump's #Freedumb250 concert

[St. Louis Post-Dispatch @stltoday]

Historic 'Link House' will be featured on Lafayette Square home tour https://t.co/yrcR8imtJn

[Frank Absher @FrankAbsher]

@DavidAmelottiTV That would be Rams'

[Turnbull @cturnbull1968]

Almost bought a new Porsche today. We got 95% of the deal done but couldn’t agree on a price, exact model, color or accessories.

[Michael Socolow @MichaelSocolow]

Metaphor Alert™

A book, composed with the (acknowledged) assistance of A.I., titled "The Future of Truth" contains fabrications that the author attempts to pass along as verified and accurate.

https://t.co/rpytFEe3VD

[Niall Stanage @NiallStanage]

"Political violence, wherever it comes from, is unacceptable in the United States of America," says VP Vance, minutes after defending the fund that could potentially compensate Jan. 6 rioters.

[Oliver Marmol @OliMarmol]

Last night’s atmosphere was electric. Let’s run it back this weekend.

I’ll buy tickets for fans who want to sit in the right field Loge and bring the energy.

https://t.co/wxax7VZhzp

[St. Louis Cardinals @Cardinals]

A true FLASH sale!

Oli Marmol has bought out the remaining tickets in the Tarps Off section for both this afternoon's and tomorrow's games and made them available FREE to fans.

Claim your FREE ticket, while supplies last: https://t.co/ngmZ99TG1Z

[Frank Absher @FrankAbsher]

@MacFarlaneNews My old employer back in the day...

[Frank Absher @FrankAbsher]

@AugieNash Augie: What's the year on this ad? I've not seen it before.

[Sarah Longwell @SarahLongwell25]

He gets a ballroom. An Arch. A new reflecting pool. 10 billion directly into his pocket from taxpayers. Billions from special interests seeking favors and pardons.

What has America gotten? Tariffs, a new war, higher gas prices, inflation.

Truly a golden age.

[Governor Newsom Press Office @GovPressOffice]

Crazy that the Great AMERICAN Road Trip includes a Japanese car and Caribbean cruise.

[STL-Style @STLstyle]

@GovMikeKehoe You are an embarrassment.

[HixxInSoulard @HixxinSoulard]

This story from @RyanWKrull
in @stlmag is great. Like a halcyon days RFT piece. "The mystery of the city-owned garage that houses hosts of abandoned cars" https://t.co/9hXLP4HFHF