re: Maccholz
My father often told me about seeing Halley's comet in 1910 in Arizona. He said it stretched completely across the sky. It was a very good placement for the comet, and the skies were very dark. Scared the hell out of a lot of ignorant people.
I have not been so lucky. I had to drive for 3 hrs. In 1986, to get away from city lights, just to get a faint view through a 4" telescope.