Friday, October 7, 2016
Looking at Kelly and Duke
This strip was clearly a favorite of 14-year-old me, since I was cutting it out along with Pogo, Li'l Abner, Tumbleweeds, The Smith Family, and others.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelly_%26_Duke
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Looking at My 1965 Christmas List

Translating from six-year-old penmanship:
Mattel's Power Shop
Cat and Mouse Game
Pike's Peak Hill Climb
Secret Sam
Marble Raceway
James Bond 007 Road Race
Jack and the Beanstalk
Duffy's Daredevil
Winnie the Pooh Game
Eldon's Thrill Drivers
Monkeys and Coconuts
Shenanigans
Camp Granada
Daredevil Trick Track
Hamilton's Invaders
Hands Down
Operation
Motorific Torture Track
Fish Bait
Union Station
Time Bomb
Hands Up Harry
Getaway Chase Game
Smackaroo
Gilbert Chem Lab
Rock'em Sock'em Robots
Thingmaker
Bats in Your Belfry
Battle Action
James Bond Set
Mattel's Power Shop

Cat and Mouse Game

Pike's Peak Hill Climb

Secret Sam
Secret Sam doesn't appear in the 1964 Sears Christmas catalog (which I have on CD) or the 1966 edition (which I have in old-fashioned paper), so it must have been a one-year wonder. There was a Secret Sam attache case, which contained a dismantled gun and other goodies--I assume this is what I was asking for. I didn't get it, but I did get a Secret Sam Sixfinger gun, a hollow plastic finger...well, here, I found a picture online (thanks to whoever's site I got it from):

Marble Raceway

James Bond 007 Road Race

Jack and the Beanstalk

Duffy's Daredevils
Winnie the Pooh Game

Eldon's Thrill Drivers

Monkeys and Coconuts

Shenanigans

Camp Granada

Daredevil Trick Track (actually Daredevil Trik-Trak)
Hamilton's Invaders

Hands Down

Operation
Well, everyone knows Operation--I don't see any point in posting a picture of it. My sister had it.
Motorific Torture Track

Fish Bait

Union Station
I haven't been able to figure out what this was. Some kind of train set, maybe.
Time Bomb

Hands Up Harry

Getaway Chase Game

This and the Rock'em Sock'em Robots were the things I asked for every year but never got. I'm not sure why--I certainly got plenty of other things. It still looks really cool.
Smackaroo

Gilbert Chem Lab
I couldn't find a picture of this specific chemistry set, but needless to say I didn't get it.
Rock'em Sock'em Robots

Thingmaker

Bats in Your Belfry

Battle Action
James Bond Set



Saturday, October 23, 2010
Looking at My 1964 Christmas List



Here are the Uncle Wiggily and Red Riding Hood games (neither of which Santa elected to bring me):

And here's Odd Ogg, which I didn't get either:


Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Looking at a Page From the Seattle P-I Entertainment Section, 5-12-67

At the Rod & Reel, now appearing at the piano table nightly, fantastic ballad singer Ted Dore.
At the Sounds Cellar, the newest "18 and over" night club, 2 top bands every Friday and Saturday.
At the New Warling's, where your hosts are Jim Anas and Geo. Serpanos, coming Monday is Janie Tucker, with Woody Drake at the piano (Wonderful duo! Don't miss this!).
At Mr. Mike's Steak House, live Dixie nightly, with Dug Davis and the Uncalled Four.
At the Marine Room at the Olympic Hotel, island mood music from Sterling Mossman and Company, plus Ronnie Eastman.
At the Golden Door Restaurant, the continuous entertainment nightly includes, every Friday and Saturday, two fabulous shows from Tani and the South Sea Islanders.
At the Wharf, at Fisherman's Terminal, Suzie and Franc are playing their last two nights, to be followed by Ukie Sherin.
At Casa Villa, in their charming dining room, now playing is the Bob Winn Quartet featuring Patti Summers.
At the Avalon Ballroom, there's dancing every Sunday with Charlie Cannon's Music.
At the Meet & Mix Dance, held Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at an unnamed building at 1512 6th Avenue, there's a 5-piece orchestra.
At Piccadilly Corner at the Olympic Hotel, if you're not interested in the island mood music in the Marine Room, Percy Franks holds forth nightly with a repertoire of old favorites.
And at the Islander on Mercer Island, Charlie Ross, the well known organist, is now appearing nightly.
I don't really have any comments about any of this, except to say: I wonder what these people sounded like? All those musical acts, all presumably lost to posterity--I don't imagine that video, or even audio, exists of any of them (nowadays they'd all be on YouTube). What did well known organist Charlie Ross sound like? What was in Percy Franks' repertoire of old favorites? What the hell did Ukie Sherin do? (Did he play the ukulele?) What top bands played at the Sounds Cellar? I hate that I don't know...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Looking at a Page From the Seattle P-I Entertainment Section, 9-9-66

To the left of that ad is one for the Trade Winds Restaurant at 1st and Wall, offering breakfast, lunch and dinner "at popular prices," and "cocktails of course." Nightly from 8 PM they have Cor Du Mee, "a real 'show stopper,'" "entertaining nightly in the Continental manner at the piano table"--with go-go girls. To the left of that, partially cut off by the scanner, is an ad for Nisco's, which "presents the lyrical piano styling of Jack Brownlow." What did he sound like? How was he different from Cor Du Mee? Apparently he was less Continental, and didn't have go-go girls.
Just above the Nisco's ad you can see the tail end of the following news blurb:
Silent Film Star Dies at Age of 90
MIDDLETOWN, Conn.--(UPI)--Mrs. Anna Zadina, star of the early silent film here, died Tuesday night at the age of 90.
Mrs. Zadina, billed as "the emotional Bohemian actress" by a Czech theater prior to her screen career, turned to pictures in 1910.
I don't know what her name was before she got married, but I got nowhere searching for "Anna Zadina."
Getting back to Seattle lounges, 1966, the bottom right shows that Harry Taylor, "America's smartest supper club star," was playing the Legend Room at the Bon Marche at the Northgate Mall--I was wondering if his act consisted of solving differential equations, but a Google search tells me that he was a risque humorist. Above that we see that at the Drift Inn at 5th and Pike you could "dance to Western Music by Leo Ball and the Fireballs featuring Mary Regis." Above that is an ad for Seattle's Finest Ballroom, the Encore Ballroom at 1214 East Pike, where you could "hear the Grandiose Orchestra under the leadership of Alice Nadine Morrison the famous composer." (Another internet search reveals that Alice did have some successful songs going back to 1920, and that in 1966 she was in her mid-70s.) The ad goes on to say that admission was $1, "same program as usual." Sounds like they were in a bit of a rut.
Just to the left of the Encore Ballroom ad is an ad for the Penthouse at 1st and Cherry, where they actually had some big-time jazz artists: Shelly Manne and His Men, plus Ruth Price, with Ahmad Jamal due in September 22. But my favorite piece on the page is just up and to the right, a short announcement whose headline is partially cut off, leaving only the last two words: "Spastic Children." The text reads:
The Magnolia Kiwanis Club will hold its sixth annual spastic children's fishing derby on Sunday at the Canyon Park Trout Farm, north of Bothell, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Club members will provide transportation for 35 handicapped youngsters and their parents, then will help the youngsters fish. After the fishing is over there will be entertainment and refreshments.
Well. Now, I'm not exactly sure how to translate this into 21st century English--was that a catch-all term referring to anyone with a physical handicap, or did it refer to a specific condition that we now call something different? And do people still take them fishing?
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Looking at the Best TV Cartoon Theme Songs
10.Spider-Man
“Is he strong? Listen, bud, he’s got radioactive blood.” Yeah, but is he STRONG?
9.The Beagles
This is a show that I used to feel like nobody but me remembered, but I found a copy of the soundtrack LP in the 80s so I knew I hadn’t imagined it. It was one of my favorite shows while it lasted.
8.Super Chicken
This was always my favorite segment of the George of the Jungle show.
7.Beany & Cecil
One of my earliest TV memories. It was many years later that I learned it had originally been a puppet show. Egomaniacal Bob Clampett had himself written into the song and depicted in the animation. “Lovable, gullible, armless, harmless, ten foot tall and wet.”
6.Jonny Quest
The only instrumental in the countdown. Here are the opening and closing versions.
5.Linus the Lionhearted
This had separate opening and closing themes and they were both great. Linus appeared on boxes of Crispy Critters cereal, and the other cartoon segments on the show were also cereal tie-ins, most notably Sugar Bear. Linus is not to be confused with King Leonardo from “The King and Odie”—which was a better cartoon but didn’t have as cool a song. (The video here includes the opening and closing themes, but has some other segments in between.)
4.The New Casper Cartoon Show
I’ve discussed this here before, but this is not “Casper, the friendly ghost, the friendliest ghost you know” from the 1950s theatrical cartoons. This is a new song (actually two new songs, opening and closing, again both great) that was written for the television show.
3.The Mighty Hercules
“With the strength of ten ordinary men.” “Softness in his eyes, iron in his thighs.” Written and sung by Johnny Nash.
2.The Bugs Bunny Show
Also used for “The Bugs Bunny Road Runner Hour,” “The Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show,” and possibly other combinations. What could be more rousing than “Overture, curtain, lights, this is it, our night of nights” and then the march of the cast across the stage? (For this one I had to go with a link rather than an imbedded video.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdVseljx2UU
1.Underdog
“When criminals in this world appear and break the laws that they should fear and frighten all who see or hear the call goes out both far and near for Underdog!” “Speed of lightning, roar of thunder, fighting all who rob or plunder, Underdog!” Other than some well-used “oohs,” that’s all the words they needed. So concise it’s like haiku!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Looking at Disney Nature Films Where the Title includes the Main Character’s Name, What Kind of Animal it is, and a Modifier
Flash, the Teenage Otter 4-30-61
Chico, the Misunderstood Coyote 10-15-61
Sancho, the Homing Steer 1-21-62
Sammy, the Way-Out Seal 10-28-62
Greta, the Misfit Greyhound 2-3-63
The Ballad of Hector, the Stowaway Dog 1-5-64
Ida, the Offbeat Eagle 1-10-65
Concho, the Coyote Who Wasn’t 4-10-66
Joker, the Amiable Ocelot 12-11-66
Brimstone, the Amish Horse 10-27-68
Pancho, the Fastest Paw in the West 2-2-69
Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar 11-2-69
Cristobalito, the Calypso Colt 9-13-70
Lefty, the Dingaling Lynx 11-28-71
Chango, Guardian of the Mayan Treasure 3-19-72 [okay, this doesn’t exactly fit my parameters, since the title doesn’t tell you that Chango was a spider monkey]
Nosey, the Sweetest Skunk in the West 11-19-72
Chandar, the Black Leopard of Ceylon 11-26-72
Salty, the Hijacked Harbor Seal 12-17-72
Chester, Yesterday’s Horse 3-4-73
Carlo, the Sierra Coyote 2-3-74
Ringo, the Refugee Raccoon 3-3-74
Shokee, the Everglades Panther 9-29-74
Stub, the Best Cow Dog in the West 12-8-74
Deacon, the High Noon Dog 3-16-75
Twister, Bull From the Sky 1-4-76
Did I mention that these are all real? My inclination was to make fun of these by thinking up even sillier-sounding ones, but I’m not sure that’s possible—half of these sound like jokes already. I mean, after “Joker, the Amiable Ocelot” and “Brimstone, the Amish Horse” there’s really no way to take it any further…
(Let me make it clear that I’m not ridiculing the programs themselves, just the titles—I have very fond memories of “Charlie, the Lonesome Cougar” and like to imitate Rex Allen’s narration when I have a cold and my voice gets nice and resonant, and I’ve probably seen most of the others even though I don’t remember them.)