Sunshine Surprise

It was still cloudy and humid when I awoke this morning, but not nearly as warm. I watched cartoons in the morning while eating breakfast. I didn't head out to the Haddon Township Library until around 11. By this time, the clouds were starting to break up a bit, and Newton River Park was busy with lots of joggers, bikers, kids on the playground, and men running lawn mowers and weed whackers.

Haddon Township Library was busy, too. For once, there were lots of DVDs and books to shelve. I organized kids' DVDs, pulled improperly shelved titles from the adult DVD area, and added books to the kids' area displays. I helped kids find DVDs they were interested in as well. Ended up taking out an Angelina Ballerina cartoon disc "Friends Forever" and three movies - the notorious 80s action flop Shanghai Surprise, this year's Oscar-winner The Artist, and another 50s drama set during Labor Day, Picnic.

Made a few quick stops at Super Fresh and Dollar Tree; just got soap and toothbrushes, both much-needed, at the latter. Had lunch at the Westmont Bagel Shop. It was quarter of 2 when I finally sat down to a vegetable quesadilla with salsa and pickles (nixing the French fries) and a bottle of Sprite Zero. Since the shop was closing in an hour, they gave me six free bagels. It was better than throwing them away!

The sun was coming out as I headed home. I worked on my TLC Disney Toddler doll Belle's matted mess of hair while watching Angelina Ballerina. Needless to say, friendship of all kinds was the theme of this set. My favorite was the first, "The Ballerina Rag Doll." Angelina has second thoughts about giving away her rag doll Polka when she discovers she got it from her grandfather. Miss Lilly has asked her to assist the beginner's dance class, and when she sees a little up-and-coming dancer with Polka, she realizes that her doll now has a new home where she'll be equally loved.

I switched to music while cleaning the bathroom. Actually, it wasn't that bad. I've seen it much worse. Since it didn't take me that long to do, I also got the windows washed and dusted.

When I finished there, I went for a quick walk down Manor and around the neighborhood near the school. By 5:30, the sun was out, the haze was gone, the clouds were rapidly dissolving, and there was a wonderful breeze. It had transformed into the perfect late summer evening. I passed by men mowing lawns, mothers playing with their children, and a kid bouncing a basketball on the sidewalk down West Clinton, probably to shoot hoops with his buddies at the basketball court behind the school.

When I got in, I made chicken thighs and Sauteed Summer Vegetables for dinner and started Shanghai Surprise. Right away, I could see why this was a huge disaster at the box office in 1986. This is supposed to be an Romancing the Stone/Indiana Jones-style adventure romp set in 1938 Shanghai. Madonna is a missionary looking for an opium shipment that vanished a year before; she wants it to ease the pain and suffering of the people. Sean Penn...well, I'm not sure what he was supposed to be, other than a seller of loud 80s ties, but he gets mixed up with Madonna and the search for the drugs.

While the story is kind of fun, it's dragged down by racist Asian characters, fairly bad dialogue, a lack of historical accuracy (Penn sports a mullet), and blatant miscasting. Penn's actually has some fun in his goofy adventurer/salesman role, but Madonna's definitely not anyone's idea of a dedicated missionary.  For major fans of Penn, Madonna, or 80s adventures only.

I had more luck with movies online. One of my favorite animated films during my childhood was Animalympics, a hysterical spoof of the Olympic Games that ran frequently on cable throughout the early and mid 80s. Animals from the four corners of the globe come to Animalympic Island to compete in their first annual Summer/Winter events. There's all kinds of great stories - a sprinting alligator who has overcome disability, an elephant weightlifter from the Russian circus, a stunning hawk known as the Contessa who literally leaps into a fencing match to save the day, a German weiner dog who disappears right before his big downhill skiing race. Above all, there's the French goat and Kenyan lioness who are literally neck and neck in the marathon for the entire movie. Which one of these athletes will take home the gold?

I seriously wish I'd found this while the Olympics were running. It was made in 1980 and it's dated, with too many weight and stereotypes jokes for its own good. The music is delightful but very much of its time, and the animation is so-so. What makes this is the hilarious script, with sports and celebrity wisecracks running fast and furious, and some fabulous voice work. Gilda Radner does all of the female voices, including the lioness marathoner, a poodle announcer, and a bird sportscaster (the last done in her Baba WaWa persona).

To my knowledge, this still isn't DVD, and the tape is very hard to find. Your best bet by far is YouTube. If you're an 80s kid, this brings some great memories and is very much worth seeking out. (My favorites - Kurt Wuffner the heartbroken skiier, the amazing Contessa, Dean Wilson and his surfer dude gags, and the crazy-tough North American all-bear ice hockey team.)

Animalympics