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JOE'S LECTURES ON NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL TOPICS |
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS: THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE QUINCENTENARY (1492-1992).
Mr. Laufer spent the period from 1990 through 1992 traveling the world researching the contributions of Christopher Columbus and the controversy surrounding his expeditions and then sharing this information with audiences of all ages. He has impersonated the discoverer in costume, and has tackled a variety of subjects dealing with him, including his nationality, where he landed, his treatment of the Native Americans, his Catholicism, the details of his four voyages, and his legacy.
THE LONGEST DAY: D-DAY, THE SIXTH OF JUNE, 1944
Joe Laufer was only nine year's old when the Allies landed at Normandy. However, in 1984 and again in 1994, Joe visited the Normandy landing beaches in France during the 40th and 50th anniversary years of the historic event. Using a unique comparison of the coast of Normandy with the Atlantic coast of New Jersey, and his own slide collection, Joe provides the audience with clear insights into the strategies, timing and heroism of the undertaking.
HALLEY'S COMET: THE THIRTIETH RECORDED RETURN
Halley's Comet returns to the vicinity of Earth every 75 years. When it returned on its 30th recorded visit (Winter,1985-Spring, 1986), Joe Laufer put together a chronology of its visits throughout history and the reaction of earthlings to each return. Not a lecture on Astronomy (but it does include astronomical data), it delves more into the historical and human dimensions of the phenomenon.
ARTIST FOR A DEMOCRACY: EMANUEL LEUTZE - 1816-1868
Emanuel Leutze is best known for his painting of Washington Crossing the Delaware. But Joe Laufer discovered him through his interest in Christopher Columbus. Leutze created eight masterpieces dealing with Columbus. Another of his famous works appears as a mural in our nation's Capital in Washington, D.C.: "Westward Ho!" Laufer uses a 10' x 12' mural of Leutze's The Departure of Columbus From Palos in 1492" and other illustrative material in this fascinating lecture which blends art and history.
Related Link: Emanuel Leutze
THE HOLY SHROUD OF TURIN: AFTER THE TESTING
In 1988, Carbon-14 dating showed that the cloth on which the scorched image of a crucified man appears was made between 1260 and 1390 A.D. Many thought that this would put an end to the speculation that the shroud was the burial cloth of Christ and that the image on the cloth was indeed the image of Christ Himself. However, despite the dating, the mystery remains -- how did the image get on the cloth? Is there still a spiritual message associated with the Shroud of Turin? Can anyone still believe it is authentic? Joe Laufer has studied the shroud and its mysteries for over 45 years and has visited Turin Italy, where the shroud is kept rolled up in a narrow silver casket behind the main altar of a major church there.
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