A REMINDER TO SELF-RIGHTEOUS BABY BOOMERS ON FACEBOOK

A MEME FOR ALL OF YOU YOLO MILLENIALS, WHO ARE TIRED OF SELF-RIGHTEOUS BABY BOOMERS & GENERATION Xers ON FACEBOOK TRASHING YOU WITH THEIR MEMES.

1977 HALLOWEEN SAFETY FILM SHOWS WHY I BELIEVE SOME PEOPLE MY AGE ARE SCREWED UP

I almost posted this first, but decided to post the 50s Halloween film first, so that watching this will be a jarring example of how attitudes changes toward kids and Halloween in over the course of two decades. The 50s film portrays Halloween as fun and games, while the 70s film portrays it as a dark and sinister world of multiple, suburban death traps.

Another thing to notice is that in the 50s film, the dog causes the problem, but is forgiven in the end. From the very beginning of the 1977 Halloween Safety film, the kids are relentlessly portrayed as the cause of countless problems, for drivers of large, gas guzzling cars, with their little Halloween antics and costumes. Of course, there are people who poison in the treats, so just have your parents throw all your candy away. The basic gist of this film is DON'T HAVE FUN.

This was an attitude that permeated my childhood in Missouri: FUN IS BAD. I mentioned it before, but the elementary school I attended in Lebanon, Missouri, only allowed the kindergartners to dress up or have any fun on Halloween, because "Halloween is a man made holiday" and "mature children don't trick or treat."

This was drilled into us as children, along with "You don't want to be like the previous generation." (Baby Boomers) My thought was "Why? They are having all the fun. I'm stuck here doing this worthless arithmetic junk." That usually got me slapped by the teacher (I'm against discipline and violence to children, but that is a topic for another time). 

What I'm seeing now is some people my age getting in trouble for various crimes and I think, "Wait a minute, these were the 'positive peer pressure - Just Say No' group. They signed contracts that said they would abstain from rock music, drugs and sex. What happened?"

My theory is these people tried to conform to the rigid ideas the adults of the community had about what a "good, responsible, mature kid" was supposed to be, that they eventually just snapped and broke the rules. Cranky adults robbed them of a fun and happy childhood by trying to force them into some idea of a perfect adult at a young age. On the other hand, I thought adults were full of BS, broke all the little rules and I've stayed out of trouble. As I always say, I hate adults, I'm ashamed I grew up to be one.

Another thing this rigid attitude by adults caused others of my generation to have a deep resentment towards today's kids. Every day I see this on Facebook with memes claiming that "In my day, we cured ADHD by beating kids with belts." Not only is advocating child abuse not funny, but the truth was they tried to cure ADHD by not allowing kids to drink any red Kool-Aid. The NO-FUN adult factor strikes again. Facebook has become a constant barrage of "kids are stupid" garbage that should have died out several years ago, but is rearing its ugly head with my "do-gooder" classmates.

Speaking of the previous generation, I have been forced to work with several of the talk radio ilk, who are proud that they were not part of the counter culture or into that rebellious stuff that other Baby Boomers did. These are people are not only bitter, cranky, little people, but they will stab you in the back and leave you for dead. I believe the proper word for that behavior is conniving.

So watch this film and realize that most of this is part of the "cranky adult" attitude that I've been fighting and thumbing my nose at since I was a kid. Following the rules laid out in this film, will make you have a boring Halloween and screw up a generation. Of course, this opinion is why I'm considered the SUPER-VILLAIN OF THE OZARKS! Mwu-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

R.I.P PAUL REVERE

Songwriter and Record Producer Bob Crewe Dead

Here is his obit from The New York Times. Here is Bob Crewe's big solo instrumental hit, Music To Watch Girls Go By.

Gerry Goffin, Carole King's ex-husband, dies at 75

Gerry Goffin, Carole King's ex-husband, dies at 75

THE AGE OF TELEVISION ON LP

Let's take a break from the female comic strip character films for a quick post about an LP I found at a record collector's show in Springfield over the weekend. I cannot find any substantial background information on the origins of it's content. It is called The Age of Television. It features the voices of Hugh Downs, Milton Berle, Arlene Francis and Sylvester "Pat" Weaver.

My guess is this was a television special of the early 70s. The LP was released in 1972 on RCA. You are probably saying, "Why would a TV special be released on a record album?" The answer is that this was before VHS, DVD or You Tube. This was common before home video. There was a Tonight Show anniversary special released on LP (I believe I have that somewhere). There were LPs made containing one episode of Saturday Night  Live, the Smothers Brothers, Donny and Marie and Dean Martin shows. I can't find a date on when this show aired or what network, although I'm guessing NBC because of Pat Weaver and Hugh Downs involvement and it was released on RCA (NBC and RCA were part of the same company back then).

If this was a TV special, I would love to see it. This LP is filled with great audio clips from both TV and radio shows. The LP is produced in true stereo so you can hear different clips on different speakers. I want to listen to this with headphones some time. It does come with a booklet of photos, that are a kind of psychedelic collage.

This must not be a real rare LP. Several websites have unopened copies for about $20 (I gave $5 for mine). I wish I could find information on whether this is audio from a TV special or was produced solely for this record. It is a great relic from the 50s nostalgia craze of the 70s.    

Howdy Doody Christmas (1957) Classic TV Clown and Puppet Show

Not sure what year this is from, but I'm sure that is Bob Keeshan, who later became Captain Kangaroo, playing Clarabelle. Dayton Allen plays Ugly Sam. Also Howdy Doody and Buffalo Bob borrowed that spaceship from Flash Gordon.

CAPTAIN ACTION: THE FIRST SUPERHERO ACTION FIGURE

CLICK TO ENLARGE

This post was inspired by several incidents. First off, this classic toy from the 60s is back again. I bought one for my great-nephew Carson (named after Johnny Carson), because I was born to late to have one of the originals. I bought it  and a Spider Man costume back in January of this year. last month, Retrospace featured a comic book ad for Captain Action toys. Yesterday, Pam of Go Retro posted a clip she found on You Tube of a family's Christmas home movies from 1966. She mentioned that in her post on Facebook, that a little boy in clip received Superman and Lone Ranger action figures as presents. Before even watching the the footage, the boy had received a Captain Action with a Superman outfit and a Lone Ranger outfit, because in 1966, Captain Action was the only superhero action figure.

The history of Captain Action is interesting. Most people saw Captain Action as Ideal Toys' oddball knock off of Hasbro's G.I. Joe. The truth is both were the creation of the same guy, Stan Winston. He took the money he earned from G.I. Joe and created a company to licence famous characters for toys. He pitched an idea to ideal called Captain Magic, a soldier who could change into various comic book superheroes. He would go the "accessories sold separately" route, but with the emphasis that had made Mattel's Barbie a success: clothes.

The backlash against "war toys" and the sudden success of the Batman TV series, as well as Saturday morning cartoons about Superman, Lone Ranger, Captain America and Aquaman, Ideal ran with Captain Action. Besides outfits of the five superheroes mentioned above, Captain Action could also dress as The Phantom, Flash Gordon, Steve Canyon and Sgt. Nick Fury.

Now, The Phantom and Flash Gordon still make perfect sense to us in 2013, because they are still in newspapers as well as  having been the subject of movies with the last thirty years. Sgt. Nick Fury and Steve Canyon may not seem like good choices. Sgt. Nick Fury and Steve Canyon were obviously included for the G. I. Joe fans. The Sgt. Fury outfit was basically camo fatigues, a helmet and guns. Steve Canyon's outfit was a pilot jumpsuit, helmet with oxygen mask and parachute. Ideal had been successful with Steve Canyon toys during the height of the character's popularity in the 50s, when it was in newspapers, comic books and a TV series. About the time Captain Action was introduced, Marvel Comics changed Sgt. Nick Fury into Secret Agent Nick Fury of SHIELD. Steve Canyon shifted from adventure strip about a jet pilot to soap opera strip about an aging jet pilot with a mild case post-traumatic stress disorder.

Captain Action was a hit, so Ideal added outfits for Buck Rogers, the Green Hornet and Spider Man. Here began more problems along the line of the Sgt. Fury and Steve Canyon dilemmas. The Green Hornet TV show was cancelled about the time the outfit hit the stores and the Buck Rogers comic strip was cancelled after the outfit was released. Spider Man had a successful cartoon on TV but didn't sell well. For one thing, it didn't look quite like Spider Man and one of his accessories was a hand saw (?). The original Spider Man outfit is highly collectible. One smart change to the original outfits was to change the Lone Ranger outfit from the red shirt and black jeans used in the newspaper comic strip to the blue jumpsuit he wore in the movies and TV shows.


Idea also added a Action Boy doll that could be dressed as Robin, Aqualad and Superboy. They also added the Silver Streak vehicle and Dr. Evil, Captain Action's creepy looking mad scientist arch-enemy. Sadly, in 1969, Ideal dropped Captain Action. The superhero craze was fizzling out and replaced by space travel toys inspired by the real life moon landings. Another problem was the cost of licensing of characters and a few missteps such as Buck Rogers and Green Hornet hurt financially. Unlike G. I. Joe, who reinvented himself as an adventurer with a fuzzy beard and kung-fu grip, Captain Action disappeared into toy history.

One thing you will notice when you see the 60s Captain Action in the uniforms, by today's standards, they don't look very good. Of course, this was the first and only superhero action figures available in the 60s. Baby Boomers had no choice. 

A company called Playing Mantis revived Captain Action in the late 90s. As with Ideal, the Playing mantis found Captain Action to be very costly. Another thing about Playing Mantis was they sold the Captain Action doll and uniform together in many cases. Playing Mantis ceased production by 2000. They only made Green Hornet, Flash Gordon, Lone Ranger and the Phantom, as well as Kato, Tonto and Ming the Merciless. No DC or Marvel characters were produced which is a shame considering the 90s uniforms were an improvement over the 60s uniforms.

In April 2012, a company called CA Enterprises released a new version of Captain Action. The new incarnation of Captain Action comes in both the classic look as well as a white and blue Arctic Adventure suit. The superhero uniforms are all Marvel characters (Captain America, Spider Man, Thor, Iron Man and Wolverine). They are well designed and great looking, unlike the original 60s uniforms.

They say things eventually come back and Captain Action is a good example.

Here is the original TV commercial.

 

DESDINOVA'S TOP 30 FAVORITE BRITISH INVASION HITS

The British Invasion of the early 60s is the second most important event in the history of rock and roll. To use modern terms, it was a game changer. I have loved the British Invasion music since I became interested in rock and roll in elementary school. I took some flak for liking this music in junior high and high school.

Overall, I have found that Ozarkers hate the British Invasion music. Not sure why. Of course, the local media doesn't help. Over the years, I've seen the Springfield News Leader run countless articles filled with quotes from idiots who hate the Beatles, Stones and other British Invasion acts. Recently, one of the CHR stations ask people on their Facebook page if they thought the Beatles were overrated. I can't believe a radio station would even bring up a topic like that.

I work as a producer on a popular radio show. I researched and scripted and idea for this program called "The British Invasion Songbook." We played hits of the British Invasion that had been recorded previously (and less successfully) by other artist. When it was finished, an insurance agent called a complained, saying he "always hated the British Invasion music. Don't ever do that theme again!" Like we should care what kind of music an insurance agent doesn't like.

Since I have a firm belief that I should force Ozarkers (and others around the world) to like the same music I do, I present my list of my favorite hits of the British Invasion. These are not ranked by chart performance or in any chronological order. I also decided to limit to the main years of the British Invasion's popularity, which would be 1964 - 1968, this way I can get a mix of the first wave (1962-66) and second wave (67-70) of the British Invasion, while including a few hits by first wave acts that hit during the second wave. Also trying to concentrate on the more "power pop" feel of the British Invasion rather than the later progressive/blues/metal British groups (that would make a good follow up list).

1. "She Loves You" - The Beatles
2. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" - The Rolling Stones
3. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
4. "I Can See For Miles" - The Who
5. "The House of the Rising Sun" - The Animals
6. "Bus Stop" - The Hollies
7. "Heart Full of Soul" - The Yardbirds
8. "She's Not There" - The Zombies
9. "Needles and Pins" - The Searchers
10. "Come See Me" - The Pretty Things
11. "Gimmie Some Lovin" - Spencer Davis Group
12. "Pretty Flamingo" - Manfred Mann
13. "Wild Thing" - The Troggs
14. "She's Fallen In Love With a Monster Man" - Screaming Lord Sutch
15. "Sunshine Superman" - Donovan
16. "I Only Want To Be With You" - Dusty Springfield
17. "Mystic Eyes" - Them
18. "Go Now" - Moody Blues
19. "It's Going To Be Alright" - Gerry and the Pacemakers
20. "Fire Brigade" - The Move
21. "White Shade of Pale" - Procol Harum
22. "All or Nothing" - Small Faces
23. "Sign of the Times" - Petula Clark
24. "Something I've Got To Tell You" - Glenda Collins
25. "Bits & Pieces" - The Dave Clark Five
26. "Here Comes My Baby" - The Tremeloes
27. "Game of Love" - Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders
28.  "No Milk Today" Herman's Hermits
29. "To Sir With Love" - Lulu
30. "The Knack (and How To Get It)" -John Barry Orchestra

I'm sure I left off someones favorite. Leave it as a comment and I might create another list.

     

 

I'M STILL A GENERATION X SLACKER AND PROUD OF IT!

In recent weeks, I've starting seeing articles about "What happened to the Generation X slackers?" Most of these articles surmised that they "grew up to be responsible, hard working adults." Whatever!

First off, I'm probably the only person who wasn't offended by either the term "Generation X" or "slacker." As a matter of fact, I liked because being a "slacker" kind of sounded like being a "hippie." We dressed kind of like hippies and had our own music and culture like the hippies. I, myself, had a soul patch, wore Converse Chuck Taylor sneakers and Bart Simpson T-shirt, usually carried a copy of both Rolling Stone and Spin with me, and listened to Nirvana, Blind Mellon and REM on my Walkman. I even read Generation X: Tales of an Accelerated Culture by Douglas Coupland, because I considered it a kind of Bible of the subculture I in which belonged.

Also, like the hippies, we were hated by a certain segment of the older generation. We were hated by Baby Boomers. According to them, we were lazy, stupid, arrogant and had no taste in music. Whatever!

I first realized how bad this bigotry and hatred was at the first job I had out of college.  I worked at one of the local newspapers. Among the career goals I had considered was to have my own syndicated newspaper column, sort of like Dave Barry, Joe Queenan, Art Buchwald and Ron Davis' Chatter in the News Leader. I had researched how to land a syndicated newspaper column and I knew I had to have tare sheets or clippings of an actual column to submit to a syndicate. My supervisor and managing editor was a Baby Boomer. When I told him that I wanted to write a column from a liberal Generation X perspective, he flew into a rage and snarled, "Absolutely not! Nobody cares what people of your generation's opinions."  Whatever! (I guess he would rather read Bill O'Rielly, or a column by his wife or a real estate guy, who thinks it is cool to use the word "cattywompus" in his radio commercials).

Another Baby Boomer that I've had the displeasure of working with, enjoyed making jokes on the radio about Generation Xer's "who get them thar big college degrees and wind up asking ya if ya want fries with yer burger." I should note that this guy DOESN'T HAVE A COLLEGE DEGREE (but I've noticed several people people on Facebook, who are not college graduates, make this same stupid joke). He also didn't like that I had worked at the college radio station playing rock music. He didn't think that should be allowed on a radio station that received money from taxpayers. Whatever! (I didn't have the money to bribe a radio station to give me a radio show).

Most of these articles about "what happen to Generation X slackers" point out what we Generation X members already knew, we really weren't lazy or stupid. We quietly went to work, many times multi-tasking, doing things that we wanted to do and doing them our way. Granted, that has been hard for me to a degree, but I guess you could say this blog and my previous one is an example of me making the best of a bad situation and getting personal satisfaction from it, even if there isn't any pay. It is more for us personal rewards and goals than a huge house, fancy cars, stocks and bonds.


I discovered this video on You Tube about Millennials. Yes, every thing the actors playing Millennials in this video say Baby Boomers accuse them of are the same things they accused us Generation Xer's of. The only difference is you could substitute Brady Bunch for Full House and it is exactly the same thing I was hear nearly twenty years ago.

I should point out that the Baby Boomers who gave me grief about being a Generation X slacker were Republicans. They were not the cool Baby Boomers who would have cool stories about hitchhiking to a Grateful Dead concert in Laurel Canyon and seeing Tom Smothers and Peter Fonda in the crowd. These were the Baby Boomers have been wearing a suit and tie since they were 10 years old. They seem to be upset that I wasn't more concerned about "welfare queens" or "the drug epidemic." Whatever!

Those two Baby Boomers I mentioned above have probably come around to the fact that they like some Generation Xers. I know for a fact these two still hate my guts (And yes, they know each other because second one brags that his sister dated the first guy), so I know I'm not their ideal Gen Xer. Their ideal Generation Xer is this guy:

And this guy:

Whatever!

I'm know I'm way cooler than those two Preppies. You see, even though I have had to shave off the soul patch and wear dress clothes to work, I'm still the slacker in the Bart Simpson t-shirt, who reads Rolling Stone, watches MST3K and Beavis and Butthead, and can't decide whether his personal theme song should be "No Rain" or "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

Opinions, like these, are why I'm considered the Super-Villain of the Ozarks!!!! Mwu-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!    

MY TWO FAVORITE HIGH SCHOOL MOVIES

It is back to school time, so I decided to look at my two favorite movies about high school: 1955's Rebel Without a Cause and 1986's Ferris Bueller's Day Off. There are basically two kinds of high school movies: 50s "juvenile delinquent" films and 80s teen comedies. When it comes to the later, John Hughes (Director and writer of FBDO) was to teen comedies, what John Ford was to the Western.

These two movies are the best examples of both of those kinds of high school movies and polar opposites of each other. One is a heavy drama, inspired by a non-fiction book by a psychologist and the other is a comical farce about a kid, with a habit of skipping school, being pursued by an obsessive principal.

These movies have staying power because they have managed to stay current through the next generations.
Rebel was far ahead of its time. It deals with problems, such as the "new kids in school," underage drinking, bullying, gangs, sexual orientation, animal abuse, abusive parents, abusive relationships, reckless driving, gun violence, cranky adults, school brown-nosers and over-zealous cops. Ferris Bueller is a brighter world, but every generation encounters boring teachers, school rules, gossip, loquacious stoners, mean principals, jealous siblings, snooty waiters and borrowing a parents car without permission.

One thing that makes these films transcend generations and universal is the fact that they are average kids. Not popular preppies or jocks, just kids. Not a caricature of what an adult believes a kid is like or something to be ridiculed, but the kids in both films are humans with dignity.

However, it is the overall theme that connects these two movies and have made them popular after the number of years since first released (Rebel will soon be 60 years old, Ferris is over 20 years old) is the theme of freedom, something all teenagers long for. The freedom to be yourself and escape a structured environment. Ferris, Cameron and Sloane skip school and go into the city, whereas Jim, Judy and Plato take refuge in an abandoned mansion.  

What I identify with in these films is Jim Stark's need to find friends and a sense of comfort away from bullies and his bickering parents. I identify with Ferris on an intellectual level. He seems to be smarter than the adults in his world and I have always thought I was smarter than most of the people I encounter. His philosophy on life is similar to mine.
 
It is unusual that two movies, made 30 years apart, could become iconic rites of passage for young people.

"If I had one day when I didn't have to be all confused and I didn't have to feel that I was ashamed of everything. If I felt that I belonged someplace. You know?" Jim Stark - Rebel Without a Cause.

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." Ferris Bueller - Ferris Bueller's Day Off.


 

Cosmo Allegretti- Dennis from Captain Kangaroo Dies

http://www.mercurynews.com/tv/ci_23812710/cosmo-allegretti-captain-kangaroo-character-dies

PLASTIC SIGN MOLDS 3 - FUN WITH SEX & RELIGION

Time for more Art/Craft vacuum form molds for plastic signs. This time it is humorous wall plaques. This was 1973 when Jesus freaks, hippies and the sexual revolution was the order of the day. You will notice that unlike the stuff you see on Facebook, these are very genteel, innocuous and childlike (especially the religious stuff). No strident agendas. Just laughs and smiles. Click on the image to enlarge.

What is supposed to be funny about "spicy" and "clout"? A little feminist religious humor at the top.

A black Klansman saying "Just passing thru?" Just the word "Disco?"

The gender sign gags are pretty funny.

Sadly, the Pollack joke was still alive at this time. 

No look at 70's posters or plaques would be complete without "Keep on Truckin."

Before Facebook, it was okay to say you hate work.

Smiley faces, peace signs and the "one way" finger.

 I believe "Go To Hell"  and "sit On It" are the meanest statements on any of these. The one with the drunk cat is clever.

Nice and gentle religious messages.

Followed by dirty sex.

'Family Ties' creator Gary David Goldberg dies

The Keaton Family of Family Ties

Goldberg's production company logo and his dog, Ubu.

'Family Ties' creator Gary David Goldberg dies

THE TV DAD I IDENTIFY WITH THE MOST - DANNY WILLIAMS

Last year for Father's Day, I posted photos of a few of my favorite TV dads from the past. Later, I realized I forgot one of my favorites, Danny Williams of Make Room for Daddy. I have never been married and I don't have any kids, but I do identify with on one level. Danny, played by Danny Thomas, was a singer and performer, but nobody seemed to give him much credit or respect. The early episodes of the show was based loosely on Thomas' life as a touring nightclub performer and having to make the most of his time at home with his kids.

The show changed networks after a few years and it was revamped. Danny was a widower, but soon remarried a widow named Kathy, who had a little girl. He started performing regularly at a a popular nightclub, so he was at home more often. The running gag that makes me identify with Danny Williams comes into play. In these shows, the kids would need help with a school project or Kathy would need to find someone to entertain for the P.T.A fundraiser. Danny would act like he didn't want to help or would volunteer, only to be told "We knew you were busy so we got _______." You can fill in the blank with many well known personalities of the day. Bob Hope, Milton Berle and Jack Benny appeared more than once in this capacity.

Another scenario was to have a famous singer like Dean Martin or Frankie Lane. While everyone is bragging up Lane or Dino, Danny would casually mention that he was also a singer. Then somebody would say something like "Yeah, but he's good."

Danny's Uncle Tonoose comes to ask Danny to talk his Cousin Stephen (Tony Bennett) out of becoming a singer, because Stephen's parents "don't want him to end up like you." (BTW, I think Borat is the illegitimate son of Uncle Tonoose).

When Danny tries to give advice to the lady directing the kids in the school play, she tells him that all he does is "tell jokes in a saloon." An investigator for A.F.S says the Williams can't host an exchange student because they aren't "representative of a normal American family" since Danny is an entertainer.

In one of the more famous episodes, Danny gets mad after being stopped in a small town called Mayberry for running a stop sign (Danny says there wasn't an intersection, just a stop sign). He tells the sheriff, played by Andy Griffith (Who else?), that he will be sorry for giving him a ticket, because his driver's licence will prove that he is "somebody." Sheriff Taylor exclaims, "You know, I knew that the minute I laid eyes on you. Yes sir, I've never seen a car yet that wasn't being driven by somebody."

This pattern was continued in the short lived 70s sequel Make Room For Granddaddy. The bossy manager for a conseeded singer (Diana Ross) ask "What does he do?"

Of course, what made these gags funny were Danny's blustery meltdowns in reaction. He would yell and wave his arms before Kathy would calm him down.

Why I identify with the Danny Williams is that he was portrayed as the sort of a Rodney Dangerfield of show biz. He is in the shadow of other well-known performers or can be upstaged by a teenager (usually played by young pop stars like Paul Anka, Bobby Rydell or Brenda Lee). Other times, people don't realize he is an entertainer or don't think he has a job.

As a radio personality, I identify with people not recognizing me. They usually say "I thought your voice sounded familiar" after you tell them your name. 

I have also had the problem of people in the industry, who tend to put you down to make themselves look good. I should point out that these people, usually, didn't go to college or a broadcasting school, but, at some point, decided that they could do a better job than you, your veteran co-workers, the local TV news people or most of the national media people. These people seem to think they are more important than anyone else in the building. I actually told a person like this that he needed to have more respect for experienced professionals like myself and my co-workers. He threatened to sue me.

You also get disrespect from people, who have no reason to hate you other than they subscribe to a politaical philosophy that hates entertainment and media people. There is nothing that could lead me to a Danny Williams-style meltdown than being disrespected by the manager of a Kum & Go store that the soda fountain never works and the floor is dirty or some jerk from Mansfield that post links to Newsmax on Missouri Radio Message Board.

Danny Williams was not by no means the perfect dad. He had a bad temper, which lead to loud tirades, he had an inflated ego and he had a habit of doing downright goofy things, like trying on his wife's girdle. What of course made Danny Williams a memorable TV father was the fact that Danny Thomas based the character on himself. His daughter, Marlo, has said that he even worked things that happened at their home into the show.

For someone of my age, who only knew of Danny Thomas as the pitchman for Reader's Digest sweepstakes, coffee makers and the spokesman for St. Judes Children's Research Hospital, watching these shows on DVD (I recommend the episodes made between 1957 and 1961), you also understand the show and Thomas' popularity.

As Danny Williams would say, "Holy Toledo!"

DESDINOVA'S FAVORITE SONGS BY THE DOORS

As promised, a list of my favorite songs by the Doors. I'm part of that second wave of Doors fans that discovered them in the early 80s. NOTE: While the Doors rank as one of my all time favorite bands, I'm not one of those annoying fans that pick their most obscure songs as my favorite songs.

1. "Light My Fire"
2. "Love Her Madly"
3. "Touch Me"
4. "Hello I Love You"
5. "Riders On the Storm"
6. "Love Me Two Times"
7. "Moonlight Drive"
8. "Five To One"
9. "Peace Frog"
10. "Break On Through (To The Other Side)"
11. "Strange Days"
12. "Soul Kitchen"
13. "The End"
14. "Wild Child"
15. "Unhappy Girl"
16. "My Eyes Have Seen You"
17. "L.A. Woman"
18. "When The Music's Over"
19. "Crystal Ship"
20. "Roadhouse Blues"




 

Doors' Keyboardist and Founder Ray Manzarek Dies

http://www.mercurynews.com/music/ci_23284917/publicist-ray-manzarek-founding-member-doors-dies-at

The Doors are one of my all time favorite bands. I will follow this up with an Ipod playlist of my favorite Doors songs.

PEOPLE GUILTY OF INTERUPTING TV SHOWS

"It's Mountain Grown."

"You're soaking in it."

"HI GUY!"

"Hello dear, Aunt Bluebelle here!"

"Comet gets out stains, when other cleansers can't."

"Ladies, please! Don't squeeze the Charmin!"

KRUNCH!

"It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!"

"It's the quicker picker upper."

He doesn't speak, just cries.

He doesn't speaks, just smiles (Way too much)

"Big bubbles. No troubles."

"You have my word on it."

They don't say Haines until I say they say Haines!

"Welcome to Progressive dot com. How can I help you?"

"Stay thirsty, my friends."