The Password Is Christmas

Began the morning with breakfast and A Victorian Christmas. I found this lovely CD a couple of years ago. It's a collection of carols and songs, some of them actually dating to the Victorian era, played on harpsichords and flutes. In addition to songs that are still well-known today like "The First Noel," "The Holly and the Ivy," and "Greensleeves (What Child Is This)," there's numbers that are probably known only to carol collectors and music historians. Both versions of "The Cherry Tree Carol," are lovely, and there's "Wextford Carol," "The Sussex Mummers' Carol," and "Jacob's Ladder." 

Hurried off to work before the CD ended. On one hand, work was very busy, especially early-on. That's hardly surprising on the last weekend before Christmas! On the other hand, I was outside almost the entire time and never had fewer than one or two guys outside helping me the entire time. The only time I was inside for longer than a bathroom break was when I emptied the trash in the women's bathroom. It started clearing out later, to the point where between the two guys there and me, there was a lot less to do, allowing me to sign out slightly early.

Besides, I had a few things to pick up that I forgot yesterday. I'm almost out of batteries again, and the Acme is having a buy two, get one sale. Got a large container of AA, a small container, and four Cs. Found a bin of adorable stuffed white elephants with red bows on their ears on half-price clearance in the floral department. Got one for me and a second for a friend's daughter when I noticed that the elephants had the same name as the girl on their tags. Grabbed bows for the cookies and a bag for the elephant gift. 

Tonight's YouTube marathon began almost as soon as I finished changing and putting everything away. I ate dinner as I watched A Super Password Christmas. By the mid-80's, game shows dove a lot harder into the holidays. Unlike Password Plus, all Christmas and most New Year's episodes of Super Password exist and are online, which gave us even more of a chance to see how holidays on game shows changed throughout the 80's. 

Jamie Farr and Shelly Smith appeared during Christmas week on the show's first year. Farr turned up again the next year, this time with fellow former MASH actor Gary Burghoff. Christmas week 1986 was a family affair with Mary Ann Mobley and her husband Gary Collins. The week after, Mr. Belvedere stars Illene Graff and Christopher Hewitt took the show into the New Year. Though Christmas 1987 was an all-star affair with Father Knows Best alumni Lauren Chapin, Billy Gray, Jane Wyatt, and Elinor Donahue, only Donahue was really much of a player. Wyatt in particular was incredibly slow to solve puzzles. Graff returned for Christmas week 1988, this time joined by twitchy One Day at a Time handyman Pat Harrington. 

There were a few givens. The set was always beautifully decorated, with white wreaths and huge trees on each side of host Bert Convy's entrance door. The guy who moved the word board would eventually turn up in a white beard and Santa hat to play Santa. At one point, someone threw fake snow on Bert for the closest thing California could get to a white Christmas. Bert had to break out a chalkboard to give an explanation for one of Christopher Hewitt's answers that looked more like he was practicing to host Win, Lose, or Draw later in the 80's. 

At any rate, the password is...Christmas! Celebrate the holidays with these hilarious and classic episodes!

Sunday Classics - A Super Password Christmas