Tales of a Rainy Day

Began the morning with breakfast and He-Man. "Evil-Lynn's Plot" is to turn herself into a sweet young woman to trick the elf-like residents of Widget into giving up their Cordite mineral. Skeletor wants to make a sword that's even more powerful than He-Man's. The Widgets learn a lesson about not believing everything you see when they end up being the ones who help He-Man out after Evil-Lynn reveals her true intentions.

Took down the summer decorations and put up the fall decorations while the cartoon finished. Not only is today the first day of fall, but for once, it feels like it. It was cloudy and rainy and barely in the 60's. The stuffed owl with the book and the candy corn candles and the stuffed pumpkins and apples and raffia bow wreath and wooden leaf, pumpkin, and acorn hanging went up today. The Halloween decorations will go out in about two weeks. 

Spent the rest of the morning looking up the basics on Habit for Humanity and finishing yesterday's blog entry. On one hand, I wasn't looking to have a home built for me, but they apparently do build condos, too, and they can help with finding homes for low-income families. I'll do further research on this and the waiting lists when I get back from vacation.

Listened to CDs and cassettes while I worked. 20 #1 Hits of the '20's does feature a few songs that are still well-known today, like "St. Louis Blues" by Marion Harris, "Singin' In the Rain" performed by Cliff Edwards, and Van & Schenck turning "Ain't We Got Fun?" into a comedy novelty number. Others here are far more obscure. "Charmaine" is a graceful waltz from the rowdy silent comedy What Price Glory. Eddie Cantor has fun with "No, No Nora," while Al Jolson brays about his "Swanee." The patter from "Two Black Crows" has dated far less well today.

Switched to Let's Pretend while eating a quick chicken-Swiss wrap for lunch. "Faithful John" is a servant tasked with keeping watch over the handsome young prince in his care. He discovers a conspiracy to kill the king, but can't tell him why he has to shoot a horse or remove drops of blood from his wife, or he'll turn to stone. The fairy who cast the stone spell claims the prince can only free John by killing his own son. Fortunately, just threatening the child here is enough to release John. In the actual fairy tale, the prince does kill his children and use their blood to free John, but John returns them to life. 

"The Little Mermaid" is probably the least-changed of the stories I listened to today. It's pretty much the story as Hans Christian Anderson wrote it, up to and including the dark ending where the mermaid dies and comes back as a spirit. "Why the Sea Is Salty" is more obscure today, and a lot more fun. A young peasant brings a salt grinder out of the sea, but is delighted to discover it can grind a lot more than rocks when it creates instant wealth for him and his wife. His greedy brother buys it, but can't control it. Nor can the captain who also buys it, but creates so much salt, it goes into the sea...

"The Elves and the Shoemaker" is the most changed. The original story is just a poor shoemaker who is helped by elves who make shoes he can sell. Some versions of the story do give the shoemaker a wife. Here, he has a wife, a son, and a pretty daughter. The last is coveted by the miserly old man who owns the store and will throw them out if she doesn't marry him. Of course, the person who bought the most shoes from the Shoemaker just happens to be the head of the town. 

I hurried out at around 2:25. It rained for most of the morning, but the rain was long gone by 2 PM. It was cloudy and cool, but not raining. I figured I was all right to take the bike to Thomas Sharp. Maybe it's just as well that we only had 16 younger kids today, 5 in my group. It started raining harder while they were eating their snacks. There could be no thought of anyone at any age going outside. 

Things did get noisy when the older kids came in the cafeteria to eat their own snacks. By the time we left, the head teacher settled the kids down with an art project. She cut out paper ice cream scoops, cones, bowls, cherries, and whipped cream topping and glued them to sheets of construction paper. The kids could decorate them however they wanted. One girl went with a rainbow sherbet cone. Another did what she called her "Superman cone," a red cone with blue and red ice cream scoops and a red cherry. When I didn't admire artwork and sharpen colored pencils, I built apartment buildings and space stations with the boys at the magnetic tile tables. By the time I left, there were only two girls and a boy remaining, and one of the girls went when I did. 

Thank heavens it wasn't raining when I got back out, even though my bike was soaked. Given it was still cloudy, cool, and humid, I went straight home. Hit the shower when I got in, then had dinner while watching Match Game '76. Most of tonight finished out the week with Susan Sullivan and Gary Burghoff. By the end of the night, they'd skipped ahead slightly again as everyone welcomed Orson Bean back to the show. 

Finished the night with a more recent episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Emily became the first female host to interact with the 'bots as they tried to figure out the treasure-hunt adventure film Beyond Atlantis. This story of boat owner Vic (Patrick Wayne) who has to deal with sleazy hustlers and falls for an anthropologist Dr. Katherine Vernon (Lenore Stevens) while searching for massive pearls around a remote island is both creepy and pretty darn dumb. The only normal-looking humans on the island are of course the king (George Nader) and his gorgeous daughter Syrene (Leigh Christian), whom he wants to produce an heir who is a heck of a lot more attractive the the bug-eyed, in-bred inhabitants of the island. She chooses Vic, but despite her grabbing him and doing things in coral underwater, he's already in love with Katherine. The rest of the gritters just care about the enormous pearls they've dragged up from the sea.

Um, yeah. On one hand, this does have its fun points, including them looking for pearls and just how tough East Eddie (Sid Haig) is. There's also some pretty decent cinematography on and around the island, when they're on land. All that swimming underwater looks murky and dull, and likely was there because underwater photography was still pretty new in 1973. Wayne and live wire Haig are the only people who come off as even remotely interesting. The ping-pong-eyed natives are more likely to give you nightmares than make you long for the wonders of the South Seas, the sets are minimal, the story silly and cliched. Honestly, it's for aficionados of bad B-action and horror films and major camp lovers only. 

(Oh, and to my knowledge, the rain has not returned since I got home. It's stayed cloudy, windy, and cool the rest of the night.)

Puppy Love Matches

Started a gloomy morning with breakfast and the Elton John album Ice On Fire. The lovely Cold War ballad "Nikita" was the big hit here, but honestly, this is a pretty dark album. Wikipedia talks about this having a rhythm and blues sound, but I think it's very mid-80s dark blues. "This Town" explores economic decline, "Cry to Heaven" is vaguely anti-war, and "Shoot Down the Moon" is a dark ballad. The other hit "Wrap It Up" and the upbeat ballad "Soul Glove" are more fun.

It had just started to shower by around 9. I ended up calling Uber. I called them early, and they arrived in less than 5 minutes. Had less luck going home. The original driver canceled, and their replacement didn't arrive for 13 minutes. 

Honestly, work was unusually quiet for the Eagles' first 1 PM Sunday game. It was busy right before the game started, but it was relatively quiet before that and died quickly afterwards. The weather didn't help. It remained cool, rainy, and humid off and on for the entire afternoon. I had plenty of help, too. The Sunday bagger and one of the college boys took the indoor chores and did carts, though I did end up doing the outside trash. No trouble whatsoever.

(I didn't see the game, but the Eagles apparently started well, then stumbled against the Tennessee Titans in the second half. They got a last minute pass that won them the game 24-20. It was a good Philadelphia sports day all around. The Phillies killed the Mets too, 7-2.)

Went straight down for a nap when I got home. I was up way too late last night, and I'm still really tired. I've been busy lately! Hit the sack at 4, and didn't get up until around 5:30.

Good thing I woke up when I did. Tonight's Match Game YouTube marathon had just started. Questions and jokes about our friends from the animal kingdom abounded on this show. Though they were mainly about what mean widdle kids do to animals, two real animals did appear on syndicated episodes. Blind man Glenn made history as one of the first disabled contestants, with the help of his beautiful service dog Princess. Betty White adored her, and she was sweeter and better-behaved than most of the panelists. 

Betty also helped with Trotter, who belonged to Gene's daughter Lynne. Trotter was a dear sweet old mutt who stayed right with Aunt Betty and Grandpapa Gene. Charles kept talking about her being a vicious dog, but he later said he had dogs himself. I think he realized that Trotter was probably smarter and better-looking than any of them.

The other "animal" who turned up on an episode wasn't real, or quite as pleasant. An extremely ugly paper-mache eagle Charles dubbed "The Goody-Toddy Bird" dropped a Match Game '77 egg at the start of the New Year's Eve 1976 episode. Later on, Gene gave the egg to the contestant George when he gave a bad answer on the Head-to-Head. Mark Goodson turned up to praise the job they were all doing before the balloons dropped for the New Year and the new sign.

Celebrate our animal friends with two of the sweetest real dogs around!

Match Game Sunday Classics - We Love Our Animals Marathon

Finding Home

Kicked off the morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Daniel celebrates Grandparent's Day in "Daniel's Grrific Grandpere." He's disappointed when the tide is too low to take his Grandpere's boat out, but Grandpere shows him all of the wonderful treasures that can be found on the beach at low tide. Dan and Jodie love "Making Mozies With Nana." Nana shows them how to replace the chocolate chips with raisins when you're out of chocolate chips and decorate boxes to give them to everyone in the neighborhood.

I went online to look up the remaining material I needed for Clarifi...or tried to. I've been looking for the quarterly statement for my investment account on PNC and couldn't find it, no matter how much I checked or looked back in the archives. I ended up writing the information down instead. 

Listened to Phil Collins while I worked. Apparently, Dance Into the Light was not a huge success in 1996, either as a CD or in its two singles. Considering how often the title song and "It's In Your Eyes" turned up on the radio in the late 90's, I find that kind of hard to believe. Many of the other songs take more of a world music bent, like "The Same Moon," "Lorenzo," and "Just Another Story." 

Called Uber around 11:25. Even leaving later than planned at the start of the lunch rush hour, I got an Uber driver who came in 5 minutes. There was some traffic in Haddonfield, but I still got there on time. Clarifi turned out to be in one of the office buildings next to the Cherry Hill Library on King's Highway. Once the Uber driver dropped me off, I had no trouble finding the elevator and then their office. Their door was locked, but they had a bell, and Donna the housing counselor let me in.

In good news, she praised my good credit score (over 800!) and that I saved as much as I did and did as much as I have on my own. The bad news is...even two incomes aren't enough to buy a condo in an expensive state. I genuinely do like her idea about looking into Habitat for Humanity and talking to them. I'll do the research next week and try reaching out after I get back from vacation. I still don't like the idea of getting on waiting lists, though. I don't want to live in an attic forever. Some waiting lists take years before something is available. She suggested getting on a rental list, too, even though I tried to tell her how badly I want to own my own home. I want something that is mine, that'll never be taken from me again. I'll look at the waiting lists after vacation.

Went next-door to the Cherry Hill Library after my appointment ended. The office building is set pretty far off the street behind another building. I thought the library would be easier to find. Called Uber after I went to the bathroom. They arrived in 10 minutes, giving me enough time to grab a Diet Coke from the soda vending machine in the library.

I got home at quarter of 2. That was barely enough time to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, grab my water bottle, and hurry back out on my bike. I ended up being five minutes late to Thomas Sharp. Not a good thing at all. The head teacher had other things she needed to do today and tomorrow and won't be around to help out. The kids were crazy before, during, and after snack time. They just wouldn't listen. 

They did a little better when we finally got them outside. It was cloudy earlier in the day, and even showered a little bit when I was riding down the White Horse Pike. By 3:30 when we got the kids out, it was sunny, hot, and humid. Many of them stayed under the trees, calling out to joggers and dog walkers, turning ivy leaves into rings, and looking for ladybugs in the mulch. There was some squabbling over the swings later, but they all eventually got at least one turn, and most of them got two or three. They had so much fun, the remaining two teachers were taking the last remaining boy to the blacktop to play with the five remaining older kids as I left.

Went straight into The Price Is Right when I came home. The regular Showcase had games as a theme, including a pinball machine, a nifty curved TV, and a trip to Las Vegas. The big "theme" Showcase was the models helping Johnny Olsen go back to college. The "prizes" were their gifts to him, including a gorgeous roll top desk, a stereo that reminded me of my mother's in the 80's, and a car. The lady who went with the college package went over. The other lady got her Vegas vacation.

Stuck around for Match Game '76. Nipsey Russell and Dr. Joyce Brothers saw the excitable young lady who won yesterday have trouble with "Denver __" on the head-to-head. The next two winners did better, including a charming young woman named Maggie Smith (no relation to the English actress).

Finished the night with Dancing Pirate at Tubi. I go further into this unique swasbuckling musical, the first musical film in three-strip Technicolor, at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

Cult Flops - Dancing Pirate

A Couple of Characters

Began a rainy morning with breakfast, the last chapters of Sonnet of the Sphinx, and Julie London. The heavy showers and gloomy, gritty clouds seemed especially appropriate for The Unforgettable Julie London. "Cry Me a River" is only the tip of the iceberg in her many melancholy ballads. "A Cottage for Sale," "Little White Lies," "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You?" "What Is This Thing Called Love?" and "No Moon at All" go into similar dark turf. "Cuddle Up a Little Closer," "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," "Daddy," and "Hot Toddy" are a bit more upbeat.

Though the rain had slowed down considerably by 9 AM, it was still raining. I called Uber. No trouble there. The driver going to work arrived in 8 minutes. It took me a while to get a ride going home and cost me a bundle, but when I did, they came in 7 minutes. No trouble either way, not even with some flash flooding in Oaklyn in the morning.

It's probably a good thing it did stop raining. Though I did have to return cold items for a half-hour, I spent most of the morning and early afternoon outside. In fact, the sun came out later on, and it got hot and murderously humid. It was really busy from about 11 AM onward, too. People were getting ready for the first Eagles game of the season against the Commanders at 4:25. It wasn't until almost before I left that we managed to corral the carts again.

Stopped at the pharmacy after work to get my Covid vaccine. I don't want the kids getting sick or making me sick. I've been meaning to get this done and kept putting it off. Talked to the pharmacist. She figured out my insurance. I waited a minute, then went in the room next to the pharmacy. They gave me the injection and covered it with a Band Aid, and I moved on. 

When I got home, I changed...and went straight into bed for a nap. I was up way too late last night and had to get up early this morning (and will for most of this week.) Put my head on the pillow at quarter after 3 and didn't get up until 5:30.

I originally woke up just in time for tonight's Match Game marathon...but YouTube kept giving Match Game Productions a hard time. It blocked two marathons before we found out that the YouTube Studio was glitchy and blocking all new uploads. 

(At least things went better for the Eagles. They hit the ground running to start and were up 14-9 when I checked at half-time. The Commanders caught up in the second half, but it wasn't enough. The Eagles finally outran them 24-22.) 

I finished up the night with CDs featuring two true characters of American film and theater instead. Jimmy Durante may not have been traditional leading man material, but darned if he couldn't put over a ballad almost as well as Julie London. His "As Time Goes By" on As Time Goes By: The Best of Jimmy Durante was so iconic, it's on the Sleepless In Seattle soundtrack. That also features his delightful version of "Make Someone Happy." As Warners Archives says on the back of the CD box, only Walter Huston did "September Song" better. I've also never heard "Try a Little Tenderness" done as a jazz ballad.

Elaine Stritch was an entirely different type of character, but one who was just as memorable as the gentler Durante. I remember hearing great stuff about her one-woman show Elaine Stritch at Liberty when it opened on Broadway in 2002, and no wonder. The 2-disc cast album was recorded live at the original off-Broadway show. Stritch is obviously having a ball telling her life story. And what a life it was! She really had been there, known everyone from a young Marlon Brando to Noel Coward. 

I kind of wish we could have gotten one song from the charming flop Goldilocks, where she played a silent film star and Don Ameche was her exasperated director and ex-husband. Her other famous roles were far better represented. In addition to her first song "Civilization" from the 1947  revue Angel In the Wings, "The Ladies Who Lunch" from Company, "Zip" from Pal Joey, and "Why Do the Wrong People Travel?" from the Coward show Sail Away, there were bits of "There's No Business Like Show Business," "I Want a Long Time Daddy" as she recalled getting into trouble for sneaking out to see a drag queen in Detroit, "Broadway Baby" (which she sang in the 1986 Follies concert), and the Coward song "I Went to a Marvelous Party." 

This may be a party of one, but no one can party like Elaine Stritch can. If you love her or just want to hear someone tell a few great, slightly drunken stories, this is an absolute must-find. 

This Magic Summer

Began the morning with breakfast and He-Man. It's "Like Father, Like Daughter" when Teela follows He-Man and Man-at-Arms after they go to find out what's going on with Skeletor's latest plot, even those her father told her not to. Man-at-Arms is glad his daughter came along after all when she's the one who rescues him from Skeltor's latest brilliant scheme, an animal and robot lizard army.

Spent the rest of the morning putting the new ink that came from Amazon in my printer and printing out some things I badly needed, including my train tickets for vacation in two weeks, the packet from Clarifi, and my tax return. I'm nervous. I don't know how to tell Clarifi that I don't have that many expenses. I live in an attic, and I only buy clothes and toiletries when I need them, not every month. I spend way too much money per month, too, especially on food. 

Listened to CDs from my July vacation as I worked. Yellow Submarine was the last original Beatles album I didn't have before July. The Beatles may have considered enjoyable music hall-style ditties like "All Together Now" and "Hey Bulldog" to be throwaways, but I think this is one of their most fun albums. In addition to the title song "All You Need Is Love," we also have George's pointed "Only a Northern Song" and "It's All Too Much." The Songtrack CD includes all of the music from the movie. Most of it is taken from the Beatles' earlier albums, with "Nowhere Man," "Think For Yourself," "Eleanor Rigby" and "Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds" coming off the best. George Martin's score from the film is lovely in its own right, notably "Pepperland" and "Sea of Monsters."

The Beatles were on the verge of splitting up as the songs on AM Gold 1969 debuted. Most of these are way lighter than you'd think coming from such a troubled year. As a kid, I always thought "This Magic Moment" and "Wedding Bell Blues" were from the decade before. Broadway got on the charts with three hits from Hair, its title song by the Cowsills, "Easy to Be Hard" by Three Dog Night, and "Good Morning Starshine" by Oliver. The Supremes also had two huge hits, "Someday We'll Be Together" and "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me," the latter with the Temptations. Dionne Warwick gets more romantic with "This Girl's In Love With You."

Ate a quick peanut butter and jelly lunch, then hurried out to Thomas Sharp. Fortunately, I got there in plenty of time. We had 20 younger kids today, 7 at my table again. The kids were fine in the bathroom, but things got a little crazier after lunch. For one thing, it was past 4:30 before any of them went outside. It was just too hot and humid for them to be running around. For another, they were there when the older kids were eating lunch in the cafeteria, which means everyone was yelling at once. I did read three different stories (and sang the lyrics to "Zip-E-Dee-Do-Dah" and "How Much Is That Doggie In the Window" in a Disney Princess board book) to two girls who kept holding each other rather tightly.

Things calmed down a bit when the older kids did go out on the blacktop. The younger kids didn't join them until past 4:30, when there were only five left. (And one stayed inside to read.) I had a wonderful time hopping from one number in a colored circle to another, following a very funny little girl across the board as boys shot hoops behind us. I was too hot and tired to chase her across the blacktop, though! In fact, they were just taking the last of the older kids inside when I left; the last younger kid went home when I did. I wonder if they should have gone inside a lot earlier. The older kids kept coming inside to fill their water bottles, and their faces were red as tomatoes.

Settled down with the second half of The Price Is Right when I got home. I arrived just in time to see a woman win at Penny Ante. I think she only used one giant penny. She also won the Showcase Showdown and made it to the Showcases. These Showcases were kind of on the chintzy side for Price. The story Showcase (about the other models trying to help Dian with her headache) ended with the girls taking Dian on a Mediterranean cruise. The big prize on the non-story showcase was a snow mobile.

Match Game '76 was a lot more fun during dinner. Gary Burghoff is joined by two hilariously crusty older character actresses this week, Mary Wickes and Betty White. Richard was happier to help a very sweet Asian student win money for her education.

Finished the night with High School Hero at Tubi. I go further into this school-set B-comedy about teens trying to give their school football team a boost at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Back to School Again - High School Hero

Ring-a-Ding-Ding Matches

Started the morning with breakfast and Doo-Bop. This jazz-hip-hop-R&B fusion would be the last Davis album released during his lifetime. In fact, "Fantasy" and "High Speed Chase" were recorded with unused trumpet solos after he died. Davis wanted to capture the sounds of the streets he heard from his New York apartment. This must have mostly been electronica and rap, since these songs definitely have rap beats to them. This album is very, very 1991, and to be fully honest, it hasn't aged that well. Some of the songs aren't bad - I liked "Chocolate Chip" and "The Doo Bop Song" - but mostly, they just sound alike.

Didn't even finish the album before I headed to work. Work was...kind of boring. There were two other college-age baggers there who did everything inside and a lot outside. That didn't leave me with a lot of cars to push. At least it was a gorgeous day for it. It was even nicer than yesterday, sunny, bright, breezy, and dry as can be. It had been busy off and on all day and was just starting to pick up when I finished.

Changed into a regular shirt, then headed across Audubon to the Legacy Diner. It was almost 2 PM at this point, and they surprisingly weren't that busy. I enjoyed my three enormous coconut-pineapple pancakes and crispy bacon. In fact, the pancakes, tasty though they were, were also a little too big. I didn't end up finishing them.

Stopped at the Oaklyn WaWa on the way home. They just rolled out their fall flavors, including their basic pumpkin spice smoothie. In all honesty, it tasted more like spices than pumpkin. It was also cold and wet, which is what I really cared about after riding across Audubon and down the White Horse Pike.

The Match Game marathon had just begun when I got home. I spent the rest of the evening having dinner and watching Jerry Lewis and the Rat Pack on various game shows, Match Game included. Jerry Lewis' famous Labor Day Weekend telethon wasn't the only TV show he appeared on. He turned up on an early episode of What's My Line as a member of the panel...and needless to say, that episode was hilarious and especially wild for that show. Frank Sinatra was the first of two guests on a Line episode from a decade later...because the other Mystery Guest was his then-wife Mia Farrow, just after making Rosemary's Baby from her super-short hair. 

That wasn't the only game show the Rat Pack turned up on. Password was so wildly popular in the early 60's, even members of the Rat Pack wanted to play. Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr. played Polly Bergen and Janet Blair in a black and white episode...and to the ladies' chagrin, the boys mopped the floor with them. Lawford proved to be such a great player, he joined the equally good Carol Burnett for a "Tournament of Champions" in a later color episode from 1966. 

Richard Dawson was friendly with several members of the Rat Pack, especially Sammy Davis Jr. Sammy appeared at the start of a classic 1978 episode of Family Feud, and even got to host a question. I don't know who had more fun, the contestants, Sammy asking the questions, or Richard laughing hard as he watched his friend's antics.

Cranky Joey Bishop was the only member of the Rat Pack to appear on Match Game. I'm not entirely sure how much he understood the humor, but he did seem to play well enough. He was less appreciative of the audience and their perpetual booing. He claimed one guy in the audience booing him kept moving around. Most of the Rat Pack references on Match Game involved Dean Martin and his perpetual drinking spree. Even Foster Brooks made a comment on it during his first episode. Charles Nelson Reilly, who worked with him for years, was quick to point out that he'd cut down by the time of the late 70's. 

Celebrate Labor Day playing games with the members of the Rat Pack and remembering Jerry Lewis and his long-running telethon in these classic episodes!

Game Show Sunday Classics - Jerry Lewis & the Rat Pack Marathon

Hot Day On the Swings

Started the morning with breakfast and more of the Monchhichis. Thumkii accidentally cracks one of the "Jingle Pods" used in the Happy Works after he gets caught in the pipes. Moncho and Kyla have been arguing over who is in charge after Wizzar goes on vacation, and it does them no favors when they use his magic to retrieve a pod, only to be captured by moving musical notes who are the land's guards. Moncho and Kyla finally figure out how to work together when they have to save Thumkii and the prince of Harmony.

Spent the rest of the morning listening to A Bing Crosby Collection, Volume 1. According to the back of the album, these are songs recorded from 1928 through 1932 that either hadn't been released at all or were wildly out of print by the time this record came out in 1978. It's interesting how often the liner notes complain about pretty songs like "With Summer Coming On" and "Rose of Mandalay" being old-fashioned and banal. Maybe they were in the disco era, but nowadays, they sound charming. Some of these songs, like "Lazy Day," "I Found You," and an otherwise-lovely "Love Me Tonight" have major sound problems that are acknowledged on the back of the album. "Waiting at the End of the Road" and "You're Still In My Heart" sound better. We even get what amounts to comedy recording, Bing laughing in the background of one of those "smile and go on" numbers of the early Depression, "We're a Couple of Soldiers."

Rushed out at noon. It was too late to eat lunch out, so I stopped at Speedy Mart and bought an enormous blueberry muffin and an apple. Got bagels for lunch this weekend there, too. I just made it there in time. I was grabbing my apple just as a big group of teenagers out of Collingswood High School down the street arrived looking for snacks. I bought my lunch and the bagels and rushed out, arriving at Thomas Sharp just in time.

We had the same amount of kids today, 12, but this time, we started with 7 older kids and five younger ones. I spent a lot of the afternoon reading books in the after-school program's book bins and the Muppet Babies fairy tale book I bought in Philadelphia during vacation to two enthralled little misses. One of the girls did request we skip "Little Red Riding Hood" because the wolf scared her, even though I showed her that Piggy and her granny were ok in the end. Otherwise, they both loved it.

We still had all 12 kids when we went outside this time. On one hand, I could understand why the wanted to take the kids out earlier. It was a gorgeous day. Sunny, hot, and humid, but not to the degree of yesterday. On the other hand, there were too many of them to go on the swings right away...and most of them weren't happy about that. They asked us "can we go on?" every five minutes until we let them on. And then, all they did was argue. There's only two swings, and they're very popular. At least they all got on at least once before we all went back in. I drew with one of the little girls on a sheet of paper taped to a table in the cafeteria. By the time they let me go at quarter after 3, there was one younger kid left and five older ones.

I rode across Newton Lake Park, down Lees Lane and across Cuthbert to Westmont Plaza. Started this week's grocery shopping at Sprouts. In all honesty, I didn't really need much there or at the Westmont Acme. Picked up oat milk, buy-one, get-one soda, and half-price bakery vegan chocolate chip caramel cookies at Sprouts. I didn't like the price on their shredded chicken, so I thought I'd try sliced turkey steaks instead. Restocked yogurt, tuna, granola bars, and granola at the Acme. I had online coupons for grapes and apples, and Olipop soda was on a really good sale. They still have slices of that "patriotic" red, white, and blue cake left from the big 4th of July celebrations on clearance, too. 

Cut through Newton Lake Park going home. Everything is so fresh and green! The path over the hill to the Haddon Township Environmental Center smells so wonderfully earthy. The woods were dark, with cool breezes rustling through the deep green leaves. The rain has really done the grass and trees some good. I was just glad it wasn't so dry anymore, even if the ground under me was a bit muddy.

Ran the second half of The Price Is Right on Buzzr while I put everything away. Started off with a college girl who claimed she didn't know anything about The Clock Game, but won her two prizes in excellent time anyway. Likewise, the lady after her kept getting the rules wrong in The Race Game, but she still won all four prizes on her second try. The third lady didn't have nearly as much luck with Plinko. She only managed 100 dollars. The generic Showcase had trips to England, India, and Japan and a fancy globe. The "story" Showcase let Professor Johnny Olsen go back in time to show flapper Janice how a stereo was an improvement on a Victrola, and a sports car could outrun any gangster! Janice must have really gotten into being a flapper. She kept doing the Charleston to the Dixieland music, even as the credits ran.

Got my schedule at this point, too. In good news, slightly more hours next week. Bad news, I work on Labor Day...and I work more hours than I should be. I'm supposed to only work 9 to 1 on weekdays. They have me at 9 to 2. I need to remind them that I can't always do that. 

Let it continue into Match Game '76. Bert Convy, Patty Duke Astin, and Fannie Flagg joined in for the entire two hours. Charles brought the pregnant contestant a suitcase after she won the Head-to-Head a third time, "just in case something happened." Bert kept trying to kiss and hug the contestants, even when he wasn't the one giving answers on the Audience Match.

Finished the night with more fourth season Remember WENN. "The Follies of WENN" is the burlesque show Scott puts on when a friend of his offers him $1,000 to stage a girlie show on a Sunday. The station intends to use the money to save Mr. Winthrop's (the nervous sponsor from the first season) school. Meanwhile, Betty and Maple want rooms in the new wing of the boarding house where Betty lives, but they're both afraid that the people who run it won't approve of their jobs...until the head chairman (Mickey Rooney) claims he wants to take the show to Broadway!

The station may be heading for a "Pratfall" when they're nominated for 16 Golden Lobe Awards, Pittsburgh's prestigious radio award. Eugenia tries for truth in radio and actually work out during her exercise program, while Scott looks for a letter from Victor and Hilary tries to butter up the others when she finds out someone at the station is in charge of the nominations for the Lifetime Achievement Trophy.

Be True to Your Pre-School

Began the morning with breakfast and Little Bear. It's "A Whale of a Tale" when Father Bear tells Little Bear how he helped Mighty the Whale when he was trapped on the beach years before. Mighty and his own baby get to return the favor when Father Bear's fishing ship is caught in a storm. "Mitzi Arrives"...bubbly Mitzi the Money, that is. She wants to fit in with the others, but Emily and Duck don't appreciate her jump rope rhymes that make fun of them. Mitzi finally makes it up to them with a rhyme that admits she was wrong. "Granny's Old Flying Rug" can seemingly take Little Bear, Emily, and Tutu the dog anywhere, until they're stranded on a deserted island. Little Bear's mermaid friend helps them out.

Listened to CDs while I worked online and made the bed. Hot! Hot! Hot! is a collection of tropical-themed songs put out by Pier 1 Imports, of all places, in 2002. There's a lot of familiar songs here, from the infectious title number by Buster Poindexter to Elton John's hit "Island Girl" to the darker "Caribbean Queen" by Billy Ocean. Of the more recent songs and covers, I liked Baha Men's spicy version of "Kokomo" and the appropriately titled "Feel Good Island Music" by Ho'omu'a.

Rewind is one of the many, many Rolling Stones greatest hits collections. I believe I have the original US CD version that starts off with "Miss You" and includes "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" and "Hang Fire." I bought it mainly because it has two of my favorite Stones songs, "It's Only Rock and Roll" and "Brown Sugar.

Didn't even finish the Stones before I headed out. I wanted to have lunch before the after-school program started. Since it's down the street from the school anyway, I ate at Crust N' Cravings on Collings Avenue. Had two slices of cheese pizza and a can of Diet Dr. Pepper outside at the picnic tables on their patio. It wasn't really that bad of a day. It was hot, yes, and killer humid, but there was a really nice wind that helped cool things off considerably.

As it turned out, there wasn't much to worry about at Thomas Sharp, at least not today. We had 12 kids all together, 9 pre-school and kindergarten, three older. I suspect most of the kids went home with their parents or are still on vacation. Two older kids and two younger ones left within a half-hour of their arrival. We had to start in the library, due to a gym class running late. By the time we moved the kids to the cafeteria for lunch, we were down to one older kid and 8 pre-schoolers. They played with magnetic tiles and bristle blocks and brand-new Barbies for about an hour and a half while listening to "Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride" from Lilo & Stitch and songs from K-Pop Demon Hunters and Encanto. 

There were six kids left when we took them out to the playground. Since they all ran to the swings anyway and there were so few of them, we let them use the swings from the outset. In fact, there were so few kids, there wasn't even much arguing over them. One girl was initially upset when she couldn't go on right away, then probably had more fun finding bugs in the mulch anyway. She found what I believe to be a bug's outer exoskeleton and chased one of the boys with it. The head teacher came out around 3, by which time we were down to three kids, two younger girls and the one remaining older boy, and his dad was on his way. They let me and the head teacher for the older kids go early. 

Since I got out earlier than expected, I decided I deserved a treat. I thought of riding to WaWa for a smoothie, but it really was getting hotter and a lot more humid by that point. Stopped at Dunkin' Donuts instead for a Berry Daydream Refresher. Turns out that basically meant "mixed berry drink topped with marshmallow foam." As such, it was a little sweet, but not that bad. 

Put on Remember WENN after I got home while writing down all of the qualities I wanted in a friend. "Hilary's Agent" is looking for a new job after he fails to realize she's gunning for one of the title roles in a Broadway production of Caesar and Cleopatra that's trying out in Pittsburgh. Hilary poses as her own fictional agent to get said role, then drives everyone crazy with her demands, even producer Rex Noble (Daniel Benzali).

"The Birth of a Station" was considered controversial in the WENN fandom when it first debuted. Cora (Debra Wiseman), a very hungry expectant mother, turns up at the station looking for Dr. Talbot. Trouble is, he's a character on their medical drama Young Dr. Talbot. Jeff poses as the doctor for her, while the others try to figure out how they can get her to the hospital during a transportation strike.

Finished Rewind next, then switched to records. Fire Into Music is a unique collection of instrumental jazz/R&B fusion tracks. Fun, funky numbers like "Supership" by George Benson and "Such a Night" by Esther Phillips sounded like nothing else I ever heard. Deodato turned out a truly epic jazz version of "Also Sprach Zathura," while Stanley Turrentine's "I Told Jesus" has mild gospel overtones.

Watched Match Game '76 during dinner. We finished out the Ron Pallilo/Mary Wickes week tonight. A cheerful contestant with a mile-high Afro didn't end up getting his money (rumor has it he may have been related to a CBS employee). Richard was far happier to help a very pretty and very pregnant young woman.

Moved to Wake Up and Live on YouTube next for Labor Day Weekend. I go further into this adorable Fox comedy with Alice Faye and Jack Haley at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Happy Labor Day! - Wake Up and Live

Finished the night with more records I picked up during my July vacation with Lauren. Dave Grusin did the atmospheric score for Murder By Death. To hear atmospheric, moody pieces like "Broken Bridge" and "Gather at Table," you'd think this wasn't a hilarious parody of mid-20th century murder mysteries. The farce is clearer when the music picks up in the Main Title or at "I'll Park the Car/Cobwebs" and "Lockin' It Up/Twain Tango." Probably not the most necessary thing in the universe, but if you love this movie like I do, the score is worth having.

No one does the classic American songbook like Ella Fitzgerald. Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Songbook kicks off with a gorgeous, bluesy "But Not for Me." Her "The Man I Love" and "He Loves and She Loves" are also lovely. She has more fun with "Nice Work If You Can Get It," "Clap Yo' Hands," and "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off."

Dolls Rock On

Began the morning with breakfast and Monchichhis. Melmot is a "Misfit Grumplin" who is too gentle and friendly to fit in with his fellow nasty Grumplins. He helps Thumkii escape from Grumplor, only for the other Grumpkins to follow him and in an attempt to invade Monchia and make it look like he did it. Thumkii knows better. Melmot finally reminds them that it doesn't matter what you look like if you're a good guy at heart.

Ran a few errands after the show ended. I was hoping to find more moisture eliminators at Dollar General. Nope, but I did pick up the smaller yellow bottle of Tide there. Wanted to see if they had my gum toothpaste at CVS, but they were too expensive. Stopped at Common Grounds Coffee House for a sweet chai latte instead. I just barely got there in time. I had no sooner sat down with my drink than hordes of college kids came in and the line was nearly out the door.

It was too hot and humid to linger outside for long. Besides, it kept saying it was supposed to rain. (It still hasn't at press time.) I headed home for lunch. Ate while watching Paw Patrol. "Pups Save an Elephant Family" when Marshall spies a lone baby elephant near their camp on a jungle safari, then it strands Cap'n Turnbot and Francois in their tree house. After they rescue them, they have to get the elephant back to its mother. "Pups and the Mischievous Kittens" introduces the Kitten Catastrophe Crew, Mayor Humdinger's spoiled kittens whom he's dressed like the Paw Patrol. They help him wreak havoc on Adventure Bay when Mayor Goodway is competing for a Cleanest Town award. Chase's allergies help him figure out what they're doing...and stop the naughty mayor and his kitty friends from causing more trouble.

Dressed the dolls for school and lessons next. Molly wears Kit's School Skirt Outfit, which is really too pink for Kit. She prefers her original blue School Outfit with the plaid jumper. Samantha is in her 2015 BeForever "meet" outfit, the pink Swiss-dotted dress with the wide lace collar and burgundy velvet sash. Felicity will take tea in her yellow Tea Lesson Gown with the embroidered roses. Jess is dressed for after Catholic school her original striped "meet" outfit shirt with jean capris and teal jelly strap shoes. Ariel is in the pale blue Swiss lace sundress with the crocheted vest I found her in. Josefina is ready for the end of summer in her orange and yellow striped Summer Dress. (Unfortunately, the boots that went with it fell apart last year.) Whitney looks chic and ready for class in her "Sweet Memories" purple checked poodle skirt and turquoise scarf. Barbara Jean's nubby pink and gold minidress came from eBay.

Listened to records while I worked. Bless Its Pointed Little Head was the first live album from Jefferson Airplane in 1969...and boy, did they get into this! They really push some of their best-known songs, especially "Plastic Fantastic Lover" and "Somebody to Love," to their absolute limits at the time, going nearly into hard rock. "Fat Angel" and "It's No Secret" also benefit from the harder approach. Apparently, this did well at the time despite critics not knowing what to make of it. Definitely worth looking for if you're into the band's early sound.

Eric Clapton did even better by Slowhand in 1977. The first three songs on this album are among his biggest hits, the hard driving "Cocaine," sweet "Wonderful Tonight," and rollicking "Lay Down Sally." "Next Time You See Her" is a darker bluesy number, while "May You Never" and "Peaches and Diesel" lighten things up a little on side B. One of Clapton's definitive albums is a must if you're a fan of his. 

Moved from Eric Clapton and the blues to the Commodores and R&B for their 1985 album Nightshift. This was their second album after original lead singer Lionel Richie went solo, and it featured what would be their biggest hit after he left. The driving title song was a tribute to Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson, both of whom had died the year before. I remember it being on the radio a lot during the mid-80's, and it still turns up fairly frequently on oldies and 80's radio stations to this day. I vaguely remember "Janet" being fairly popular at the time as well. Most of the other songs aren't at their levels. This album is extremely of its time, with electronic dance riffs like "Animal Instinct" and "Play This Record Twice." You may be better off looking for "Nightshift" and "Janet" on 80's playlists unless you're a huge fan of the band.

Switched to Remember WENN while vacuuming and Swiftering the floors and dusting the rooms. "The Ghost of WENN" seems to be walking the halls of the station when Hilary hears a mysterious voice during a late-night horror broadcast. Betty joins her in trying to figure out what's going on, and why this ghost has a thing for cranberry jelly. Meanwhile, Mackie is more nervous about the broadcast and the old story that an actor died when reading his lines on page 13.

"Caller I.D" distills the magic of radio better than any other episode of the series. Mackie's running records for a late-night music show when a secretary named Jane Smith (voice of Alice Playten) calls in and says she's sitting on the edge of a building, ready to jump. Seems she's tired of her humdrum job and is convinced that if her life can't be like the glamorous radio shows she listens to, she doesn't want to live. The WENN staff throw together some of their most popular show to talk her down...then realize that they're now the "passionate listeners" who care as much about Jane as she does them.

The third season ends with the literal bang that is "Happy Homecomings." Betty worries about Victor's safety when she hears another voice performing Jonathan Arnold on the shortwave and spends the episode trying to open that strongbox. When she finally does, Victor's contact isn't who she expects...and Victor isn't what he seems to be, either. Meanwhile, Jeff comes home as well, but Hilary is still furious about the Pavla mess and refuses to work with him, and Scott has discovered that yes, there are still codes going out over the airwaves, but not in what they've been performing. He's about to tell Betty when he walks into the Green Room and ends up with a gun in his face...held by Victor Comstock...

Hoooo boy. This is the cliffhanger that left the entire WENN fandom, including me, screaming for six months straight. Longest six months of my life until the housing fracas in 2021-2022. All I wanted from December 1997 to June 1998 was to pass my college classes and find out the endings to those blasted cliffhangers! This is why the third season is far and away my favorite. On one hand, Jeff is missed, and this is a lot darker than the seasons that came before it or after it. That's why I like it. This is where the show dares to go places that sitcoms don't often explore even now, from betrayal to death to the importance of the imagination. "Who's Scott Sherwood," "Happy Homecoming," "Caller I.D," and "From the Pen of Gertrude Reece" are my favorite episodes here, though I also love "Mr. and Mrs. Singer," "In the WENN Small Hours," and "A Girl Like Maple." Those cliffhangers signal a lot of changes for the fourth season, not all of them welcome...

Moved to Match Game '76 after I took a shower. By the time I got to there and dinner, they were finishing out the Pat Moriata week. Robert Hedyges of Welcome Back Kotter made his only appearance on the show the next week, joined by Fannie Flagg and Broadway legend Ethel Merman. Richard was more interested in kissing and hugging the contestant, whether she won the Head-to-Head or not.

Finished the night with quiz shows for children, teens and college kids. Quiz shows for kids go back way further than you might imagine. One of the most popular game shows on radio in the 40's and 50's was Quiz Kids. A panel of five children answered questions sent to host jovial Joe Kelly by listeners. The kids were chosen for their high IQs, personalities, and poise in front of a mic, or later camera. It wound up being one of the most popular game shows on radio in the 1940's, endlessly parodied and praised. Though it was one of the earliest game shows moved to TV, it never did as well here. I have an episode here from 1949, one of the earliest surviving episodes of a TV game show. I can see why this was so beloved. The kids are genuinely funny and smart, and substitute host Fran Allison seems to genuinely enjoy listening to their answers.

GE College Bowl was almost as much of an institution in the 50's and 60's. This is about as simple of a quiz show as you can get. Teams from two colleges play answer tough questions in a heated battle of the minds. It's a battle to prove size doesn't matter in the colorized episode I have, as small private New York University squares off against big state college University of Oklahoma.

College Bowl became the standard against which every high school bowl game was set. Practically every local public broadcasting station in the 70's and 80's ran some variation on College Bowl with local high school teams pit against one another. Many of those shows proved to be so popular, they're still running to this day. The version I have here, High School Challenge, started in 1984 on the Flint, Michigan PBS station and has apparently been running there ever since. 

Producers Barry and Enright noticed how popular their kids' weeks were on their The Joker's Wild and created the kids's-only Joker! Joker! Joker! in 1979. Kids get to spin the famous wheel and answer questions from subjects like "Disney Characters" or "Superheroes" tailored to them. I really wish the current owners of the show would do something like this again. The kids are hilarious, and host Jack Barry really seems to enjoy guiding them and their parents through the show.

Jeopardy would do something similar for Game Show Network almost two decades later. Jep! from 1998 had kids tossing out the questions to the answer. However, two wrong answers, and they get something dropped on them, like colorful balls or socks. Three wrong answers, and they're pulled out of the game for a turn. This pretty much screams "late 90's." I will say that, while not great, it is better and a lot more fun than Merv Griffith's too-cheesy attempt to make a kid's Wheel of Fortune around the same time. 

Nickelodeon did better by Make the Grade in 1989 and 1990. Though there are stunts in the form of "Fire Drills" that allow them to switch seats and get more squares, most of the emphasis here is on what the kids know. Three kids answer questions from school related topics like math, science, English, phys ed (sports), and current events. There's also one random "elective" topic usually revolving around Pop culture (in the episode I have here, famous redheads). The kids have to answer one question from each topic and from grades (difficulty levels) 1 through 12 to win. This is one of my favorite game shows Nick did in the late 80's along with Double Dare. It's almost refreshing to see a show on Nick put emphasis on what the kids know, rather than how well they can throw a gunk-filled balloon. 

Teens had their own fun in syndication in 2000 with Pressure 1. An offshoot of an earlier syndicated show for teens Peer Pressure, this one emphasized questions rather than stunts. Four kids answer questions. Those who answer two right move on. The one who don't has to relate their most embarrassing moment. In the next round, the first winner gets to choose a subject with a punny title from which to answer questions. The winner gets to pick the next topic. Two move on to the final round, where they have to answer the most questions correctly in 60 minutes. Interesting idea, but a bit on the cheap side - you can tell this was intended for syndication. The kids do seem to get into it, though, especially in the lightning round. 

Go back to school with these hilarious quiz kids as they try to make the grade under pressure and show they have what it takes to really rule the airwaves!

Quiz Kids (1949)

GE College Bowl (Colorized) (1960)

Joker! Joker! Joker! (1979)

Make the Grade (1990)

High School Challenge (1996)

Jep! (1998)

Pressure 1 (2000)

Larger Than Life Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and the soundtrack to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This was Tim Curry's big break, and one of his first major roles for most American audiences. And what a way to debut! He gets one of the big numbers from this, "Sweet Transvestite," as the mad scientist who thinks they've created the perfect man. The chorus numbers are probably even better-known today, including "I Can Make You a Man" for Curry and his hangers-on, "Wild and Untamed Thing," "Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a Touch Me," and of course, "The Time Warp." This is probably more fun at a midnight showing, but the music is good enough to rate a listen around Halloween or whenever you're feeling in the need for some really, really unique dance music.

Called Uber after Side A of the record ended. It was hot, humid, and supposed to rain later. I think I made the right call. The driver going to the Acme arrived in 11 minutes. I called early enough that I got there in plenty of time. The one going home arrived in 10 minutes. No trouble either way.

No trouble at work, either. I swept and pushed carts for the entire six hours. I was on my own during the morning. One of the college boys came out to help me after about 1 PM. Good thing, too. It wasn't busy when I arrived, but it picked up around 11 and stayed busy the rest of the day. We're coming up on the start of September and the school year, and Labor Day is next weekend.

Finished Rocky Horror when I got home while reading Topped Chef by Lucy Burdette, then switched to the original cast CD for the musical version of My Favorite Year. Curry got a Tony nomination in the Peter O'Toole role as the sozzled Errol Flynn-esque swashbuckler star. Lanie Kazan repeated her role as Benjy Stone's (Evan Pappas) mother Belle and also got a Tony nomination; listen for Mary Stout (Eugenia on Remember WENN) also reprising her role as Benjy's aunt in the "Welcome to Brooklyn" number. Lynn Aherns and Stephen Flahtery have an incredible opening number, Benjy's description of live television right before the show starts, "Twenty Million People," but most of the other chorus numbers are just there to give the chorus something to do. Neither Curry's "The Night Is Young" nor "The Gospel According to King" are all that interesting or have much to do with the story. 

The character numbers are better. Belle describes how she fell in love with her scrappy Philippine husband in "Rookie In the Ring," Curry tears into "If Life Were Like the Movies," and Benjy explains why he adores Swann's films in "Larger Than Life." Andrea Martin did get a Tony as the female sketch writer in an expanded role, including her big number "Professional Showbizness Comedy" with King Kaiser (Tom Mardrosian). I love this, but I'm also a big fan of Aherns, Flahtery, and the original movie. If you love Martin, Curry, or the film it's worth checking out just for those character numbers. 

Moved to YouTube for not one, but two marathons. Country singer "Whisperin'" Bill Anderson was just celebrated for being the oldest current member of the Grand Ol' Opry. He was also the only country star to be a semi-regular on Match Game. The self-effacing, down-home charm he brought to the Opry made him unique on Match Game amid the crustier or more urban panelists. He first turned up on Bonnie Franklin's second week in mid-1976, as she reminded Gene that he hadn't been able to kiss her the first time she was there. 

Bill's most famous episode came later in 1976. Brett and Charles dressed as cowpokes to be his back-up singers as he performed his own song for Debralee Scott, who sat under him that week. She was deeply touched, and I thought the whole thing was adorable. He was also on the week in 1978 with Brett and Jack Klugman after their divorce, including the PM episode where Jack said if you asked his ex the time of day, she'd tell you how the clock was made. (He was right.) He brought along a picture of his darling new baby boy in a syndicated episode. He appeared right until the end of the syndicated series in 1982, making his final appearance on a week with another country superstar, Irlene Mandrell. 

His last Match Game appearance was during a week of Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour in 1984. He brought along a Casio keyboard to work on new songs while helping a man from Manchester, England get to the Hollywood Squares segment. Joining him that week were Edie McClurg in a tiara, Fred Travalena and his one-man White House, Linda Dano, Soupy Sales, and Joe Santos. 

Lift a twangy guitar to the man whose career has spanned six decades in this hilarious and tuneful marathon!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Bill Anderson "Country Star" Special Shows

Jaye P. Morgan is best-known nowadays for her stint on The Gong Show, but she did do Match Game just as it started again in mid-1973. In fact, her one week introduced eventual series regulars Brett Somers and Charles Nelson Reilly and semi-regulars Bert Convy and Betty White. Morgan is the only one that week who wouldn't come back, but she had a lot of fun anyway. She got to hear Brett claim for the first time that Charles wasn't wearing socks and had Bert flirt with her about "turning her on" when she complained that the light on her desk wouldn't turn on.

Bang the gong for this singer, actress, and talent show judge in one of the funniest early weeks of the show!

Match Game Sunday Classics  - Jaye P. Morgan Tribute

Finished the night with the all together quieter Miles Davis rendition of Porgy and Bess. This may have been recorded in anticipation of the 1959 Goldwyn film version of the landmark Gershwin opera, but it honestly came out better than that troubled movie did. In fact, this remains one of Davis' best-selling albums. His "Bess, You Is My Woman Now," "Gone," "Summertime," and "I Loves You, Porgy" capture the tough-tender feel of the opera far better than Goldwyn's overstuffed extravaganza generally does. 

Hard Candy Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. "Donald Hatches an Egg" when Goofy mistakes a unique long, slender egg for a rock and it gets attached to Donald. Mickey, Goofy, Daisy, and Don talk to birds and chickens in an attempt to find its mother, but it's really closer to a type of lizard egg.

Called Uber after that to get me to work quickly. It sure did the trick. The one going to work came in 7 minutes, and I actually arrived early for a change. The one going home was more of a problem. It kept fluctuating, but I think it finally took about 8 minutes. No problems on the road.

No problems at work, either. I spent the entire day scrubbing the shelves filled with Acme generic soda and chips that are the first things you see when you enter the store. Whatever was on there before made them grimy and sticky, especially under the soda! It was so bad, I needed Easy Off spray and at least five boxes of eraser sponges, and the last two shelves never did come fully clean. At least the head manager seemed to think it came out well. I ran a feather duster over end cap shelves in the back for the last half-hour.

Grabbed a few things after work that I forgot yesterday. The Westmont Acme didn't have the pulled rotisserie chicken from the deli, and I totally forgot that I needed Swiss cheese slices. Grabbed coconut macaroons off the bakery clearance racks.

Went straight in the shower to wash off all that grime when I got home, then put on the soundtrack from The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas. Honestly, it's a shame Dolly Parton didn't do more musicals. I've loved this version of the hit 1979 Broadway show since I was too young to understand what was really going on at the Chicken Ranch. It used to turn up a lot on cable in the early and mid-80's. Charles Durning, as a politician denying he was using the Chicken Ranch's services, has so much fun with his one number "Side Step," he got an Oscar nomination. Dolly does better by the one standard to come from this score, "Hard Candy Christmas," and her own additional "I Will Always Love You."

Speaking of Dolly, tonight's Match Game YouTube marathon honored Dolly with episodes featuring mentions of her or questions where she was an answer. By 1978, she'd replaced Raquel Welch as the du jour performer to make chest area jokes about. Almost every question where she was an answer got a chest joke in there somewhere. Some of the best episodes of the later series and syndicated run had Dolly references. There was a reference in the infamous episode where a contestant answered "Friend and Ollie" to "Cuckoo ___" and another during the Game Show Host Week with panelists who either were game show hosts (Bill Cullen, Peter Marshall) or would be in the future (Betty White, Elaine Joyce). There were references to Dolly as late as the first week of Match Game '90 with Joe Alasky and Sally Struthers. 

Celebrate the life and legacy of this beloved lady with this hilarious marathon you'll go "Cuckoo" for!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Dolly Parton Tribute

Finished the night with The Exciting Lena Horne. This one looks like it goes way back, probably to the early-mid 50's. For all the "exciting" claim, most of the songs here are pretty dark, from "Nobody Knows the Troubles I've Seen" to "Little Girl Blue." I prefer the slightly more upbeat "At Long Last Love" and "More Than You Know." 

Sweet Cream Summer

Began the morning with breakfast and the third season opener of Little Bear. "Owl's Dilemma" is he can't find a quiet place to sleep. Birds chirp at his treehouse. Frogs croak at the pond. Mother Bear and Little Bear make too much noise moving dishes around. Owl finally settles things with two cupcakes. Emily and Little Bear open their own "School For Otters." The goofy otters don't seem to show much interest in learning, but they reveal just how much they were listening when they show them what they love to learn. Little Bear and Father Bear goof off a little too much while "Spring Cleaning," so they make Mother Bear a picnic.

Finished my grocery list, then headed out to run errands. Made a brief stop at the Oaklyn Post Office to send a bill before dodging noon traffic on Cuthbert and riding down to Haddon Ave. I wanted to find a record I saw listed at Phidelity, but...they were closed for the day. I was really disappointed, but then I looked across the street. Groups of people were gathered around the entrance to what had been McMillan's Bakery before they closed last year. I finally decided to cross Haddon Avenue and check it out.

I crossed even as official-looking men cut a wide scarlet red ribbon. Turns out DiBartolo's Bakery, another recently-closed family bakery, and Mt. Ephraim bakery Del Bueno's bought and heavily remodeled the building. Talk about the best of all possible worlds. I parked my bike and joined the crowds checking out the new digs. It was twice the size of the old McMillan's, taking over the entire first floor of the building. Everything was white and chrome and shiny and clean. Even the floor had a unique satiny silver-gray finish. One door led to bins and bins of rolls and shelves of Del Bueno's Italian butter cookies. I think the famous Del Bueno's machines spitting out fresh rolls may have been in the other I didn't explore. 

I couldn't decide, so I went with a plump cream donut. Oh yuuuuumm! Turns out one of the grandsons of the original McMillan's is working at the bakery. He must have shared his family's recipe for the best darn cream donuts in South Jersey. It was so full of thick, buttery cream, it came out the sides. Totally amazing, and it more than made up for Phidelity's day off. I stopped at WaWa for a Cherry Cream Float Coke Zero to wash it all down.

Doubled back to the Westmont Plaza for lunch. I hadn't eaten at the Westmont Bagel Shop in a while. Kept things simple with my favorite spinach and feta omelette, a toasted everything whole wheat bagel, and home fries. Oh, this was yum, too. I finished everything but half of the home fries. Bought two bagels for lunch this weekend on the way out.

Did my grocery shopping next. I didn't really need a whole lot at either store. Picked up oat milk and dried mango slices. Cookies and soda were buy one, get one 50 percent off. I'm so glad their ginger molasses cookies are out again! I had to get two. One of the Nixie diet sodas came with a coupon, so I got two of those. 

Dodged more traffic and road repair on Cuthbert going down to the Westmont Acme. They were only slightly less busy than Sprouts. Grapes and large containers of blueberries are on really good sales. Restocked yogurt, prebiotic soda, granola, and granola bars. Had good online coupons for the Acme's generic organic blue corn chips and an online rewards coupon. I also got my $60 for the week here, instead of waiting for Sunday.

The road work on Cuthbert was such a pain, I cut across Collingswood to the park instead of going straight there. Newton Lake Park is largely in better shape. I think they're just adding railings to the new fishing piers now. It was a hot, sunny, incredibly humid day. There were only a few people out walking dogs as I made my way past children playing at the playground on my way back to East Clinton.

When I got in, I put everything away while watching Paw Patrol. "Pups Save a MerPup" when Cap'n Turbot insists he saw one during the Mystical Merpup Moon. Chase the cop thinks they're just stories. The others, especially Skye and Zuma, believe the stories. Zuma and Skye stay awake to see a merpup...and get their wish when one not only comes to them for help, but turns them into merpups so they can go under the sea. The Merpup's baby is trapped in a shipwreck that may collapse any minute! They have to call the others to help out, then to help Zuma when he's trapped. 

Got my schedule at this point. It's thankfully back to weekends and early Wednesday. There's enough hours on the weekend that my paycheck shouldn't take too much of a hit, but not so many that I'll be overwhelmed. School starts next Thursday, too. I put in for my late September-early October vacation time with Healthy Kids, too. (I'll put in for the Acme vacation time next week.)

Went down for a nice, long nap at 3:30. I was so tired, I didn't get up until 5:30. Spent an hour finishing Reel Murder by Mary Kennedy, then watched Match Game '76 during dinner. Most of the night finished out the week with Bennye Gattleys and Bill Daily. Fannie Flagg stuck around for the next week, joined by two cute, funny, and diminutive actors, Sarah Kennedy and Gary Burghoff. 

Finished the night with Remember WENN. Hilary is "Courting Disaster" when Jeff's supercilious lawyer Drake Stanley (Andrew Seear) claims his client is suing her for $100,000 in damages. Maple and Betty know something isn't right and get Stanley to appear on their court show Tell It to the Judge. While Scott defends Hilary, Gertie helps the ladies get through to Jeff and find out what's really going on.

The cast says "And How" when they're chosen to broadcast the last episode of the network western The Strange Loner featuring it's original stars. Unfortunately, when the Loner himself turns up drunk and unable to perform, the others have to figure out how to replace him. Betty's more worried about helping Joseph Greyhawk, the kindly Native American man (real Native American activist Russell Means) who plays the Loner's Native sidekick, keep his role. Meanwhile, everyone's thrilled with Eugenia's new discovery, an Italian pie called pizza. 

Listened to the soundtrack from Casablanca after the episodes ended. I pretty much had to after "Pen of Gertrude Reece" yesterday. This Rhino CD includes all of the music and a lot of the dialogue, along with an alternate version of "Knock on Wood," a Dooley Wilson number that was cut from the film ("Dat's What Noah's Done") and the full, gorgeous rendition of "As Time Goes By." 

Beautiful Day In Audubon

Began the morning with breakfast and He-Man. Queen Elmora becomes the "She-Demon of Phantos" when Skeletor hypnotizes her and steal the precious metal she gave the Eterniana for weapons. He-Man, Man-At-Arms, Battle Cat, and several others go after her. Teela comes along as well, even though her father is concerned for her safety.

Headed off to the Acme after that. No trouble whatsoever today. I arrived on time. The Acme was quiet as can be. It's the end of a month that's not known for being busy to begin with. If people weren't at work, they were on vacation or getting kids ready for school. Once a college boy came in to handle the carts, there was even less for me to do. I spent the last half-hour putting away unwanted items. No trouble whatsoever.

Changed my shirt after my shift ended, then headed out. It was too nice of a day to sit inside. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and the breeze felt great. I rode across Audubon to Simply Soups and More. I hadn't eaten there in ages. This small cash-only hole in the wall features different soups every day of the week. I went with sweet potato. Oh yum, that was good. It tasted like a liquid sweet potato, thick and sweet and earthy, with caramelized pecan bits and bits of ham. Sat at one of the chrome-trimmed tables in the window, daydreaming as I ate.

I kept getting turned around, so it took me a few minutes to arrive at the Audubon Library after lunch. This tiny 50's-era building is only slightly bigger than the Oaklyn Library before they closed. Their adult non-fiction selection isn't great, but they do have a rather nice children's section. I ended up settling down to read The Secret Garden On 81st Street, a graphic novel modern retelling of The Secret Garden. 

I've seen this around, but had never read the full book until now. Here, Mary Lennox is a video game fan who basically lives online. Her parents work all the time and are too busy for her, until they die in an accident and she's sent to live with her uncle in New York. The unwanted garden is on the roof, there's a cat leading her to it instead of a bird, Molly is her babysitter and she and Dickon are neighbors, the gruff old man is a garden store owner instead of a gardener, and Colin can walk just fine but has horrible panic attacks following the death of his other father. The anime-esque artwork was lovely and colorful, and the entire story was well-done and very charming. (I saw a modern Little Women graphic novel that I might have to take a look at someday as well. Later research revealed a modern Anne of Green Gables set in Philly, and there's apparently a modern Little Princess coming out next spring.)

After I left, I went down the street to the Audubon WaWa. Thought I'd do something I hadn't in a while and mess around with the Coke Freestyle machine. Mixed Tropical, Lime, and Cream Coke Zero. Not bad. I think the cream really came across more than anything tropical or citrus. Returned briefly to the Library after I left when I realized I left the bag with my work shirt there. 

Since the Child Safety and Development certificate hadn't gone through, I just did the entire class over. Listened to the soundtrack from Working Girl while I did the class. Movie and soundtrack are long-time favorites of mine, one of the few romantic comedies I ever liked (and one of the first R-rated movies I watched as a kid). Carly Simon's Oscar-winning "Let the River Run" and Chris de Burgh's "Lady In Red" were the hits here. We also have the Pointer Sisters' "I'm So Excited" and a few more numbers from Simom, notably the instrumental "In Love." 

Watched Steel Magnolias next in honor of Dolly Parton, who passed away yesterday. Parton plays Truvy, a "glamour technician" whose beauty shop is the epicenter of their small Louisiana town. Her best friend is M'Lynn Eatenton (Sally Field), whose adored daughter Shelby (Julia Roberts) is about to get married when the movie starts. Truvy hires shy Annelle Dupuy (Darryl Hannah), who just arrived in town to escape her criminal husband, to work in her store. There's also Clariee Belcher (Olympia Dukakis), wife of the former mayor, and grumpy Ouiser Bourdreux (Shirley MacLaine), who are both regulars at the shop. Delicate Shelby has Type 1 Diabetes, but she and her husband Jackson (Dylan McDermott) desperately want to have a baby. M'Lynn thinks this is a bad idea...and proves to be right when Jackson Jr. comes out ok, but she has to donate a kidney to Shelby afterwards. When even that doesn't help, M'Lynn's friends are there to comfort her and let her know that she isn't alone in her grief.

This is one of my mother's favorite movies. Sally Field is her favorite actress. Mom grew up in Virginia and West Virginia around women very much like the ones in this movie. Honestly, the best thing about this are MacLaine and Dukaukis. They steal the show as two of the coolest and funniest older southern ladies you'll ever meet. Roberts got an Oscar nomination and early exposure as the youngest of the women who literally gives her life to have a child. The melodrama in the second half can be a little much now, especially for those who have lost a grown child, but for the most part, this remains a lovely and charming look at one small southern town and how six women grow together in the course of a few years.

Switched to Match Game '76 during dinner. They're on to the Joey Bishop-Mary Wickes week that was on the Joey Bishop YouTube marathon a few weeks ago. Mary and Brett had a bit of a crush on a handsome contestant that looked a lot like Allen Ludden. Joey actually gave the guy a kiss at one point, saying he was tired of not getting to kiss somebody.

Watched more Remember WENN next. Betty lets Mackie manage WENN while she's at a convention. It goes to his head, until gangster Palermo Racine (Phillip Bosco) turns up at the station. He was once Racine's driver, until he got him into trouble after he robbed a warehouse and Racine in turn claimed he was in on it. He thinks he'll have to be "A Star In Stripes Forever" and go on the lam after Racine starts asking for favors, but the others know how to expose Racine's ruse without revealing Mackie's secret.

Former stripper Maple LaMarsh is tired of being regarded as "A Girl Like Maple," the station's tomboy and loose woman. She's thrilled when a handsome congressman (Broadway star Boyd Gaines) flirts with her when she takes over temporarily for Hilary on Men In the Headlines. Trouble is, she used a much different voice from her normal Brooklyn accent, and now he thinks she's a cultured lady. The others try to help her preserve the illusion (Hilary reluctantly), until she realizes that the guy is far from what he claims, and she's fine just being herself. 

Finished the night with the CD All My Tomorrows. Grover Washington Jr. was "the most popular saxophonist in jazz" when he made this album in 1994. No wonder, with his gorgeous renditions of "When I Fall In Love," "For Heaven's Sake," and the title song. We also gets some nice vocals on "I'm Glad There Is You" and "Overjoyed." 

Busy Summer Finale

I got a quick start this morning and didn't have time for much of anything but breakfast and calling Uber. The driver going to South Jersey Radiology took 9 minutes. The one going to the Oaklyn School took 7. I was slightly late both times, due to my leaving late for the gynecologist appointment and to heavy road work being done on Cuthbert Road near the Westmont Acme and right in front of the Oaklyn School on Kendall Boulevard. The drivers were really sweet, too, especially the one going to Oaklyn. 

Got a little mixed up and went into South Jersey Radiology downstairs before I remembered the gynecologist is upstairs. Thankfully, I didn't wait more than 5 minutes before they called for me. I'm not going to go too far into the actual procedure because it's kind of personal, but it did go much better than last year's appointment did. Two sweet young interns, probably no older than Betty Roberts on Remember WENN, took my vitals. I was able to tell them about how last year's appointment went, and they must have told the doctor. He did mention he was concerned about my blood sugar levels and suggested injections or weight-reduction drugs. I'd rather just stick to watching my diet and exercise. Since it's downstairs, I even made my mammogram appointment after I finished.

It took me a minute to figure out which door to go into, but I did finally make it to the Healthy Kids orientation. At least it's only one day this year, and not as close to the start of the school year. Everyone was also sitting with their co-workers at their respective schools. I was glad to see we had most of the same teachers as last semester, considering how much turnover we've had at Thomas Sharp in the past year. The head of the program had us write down what we'd get if we could get one thing from Amazon for an entire year, then had to guess who said it. Most of the remaining two hours were spent discussing the basics of the program and meeting the new assistant program manager, a much younger man who looked just out of college. We even had free pizza, salad, and soda for lunch (once the delivery man could find his way around the road repair on Kendall Boulevard).

Since it's only two blocks down West Clinton from Oaklyn School, I stopped at Common Grounds Coffee House next. Just got myself a nice, refreshing matcha latte, oat milk, no sugar. It was too nice of a day to take Uber home! Besides, the school is only a five minute walk from East Clinton. I strolled home with my latte, enjoying the dry, sunny day and fresh breezes.

Next up was renewing my child safety and development certificate. I thought I did this in May, but I guess not. The website for NJCCIS said it would take two hours. It barely took me an hour, especially since I'd done all this before. The certificate won't show up for another 24 hours, so I'll send it to the head of Healthy Kids tomorrow after work.

Went into Match Game '76 while eating dinner. Sweet and smart ingenue Donna Mills made her only appearance this week, and big George Kennedy made his first. No wonder Kennedy became a semi-regular later in the series and during the syndicated run. He got most of the answers right during the entire week. Brett couldn't help pointing out the contrast to Dick Martin, who was on the week before and barely got anything right.

Watched Remember WENN next...and I started with a pivotal episode. By the start of "Mr. and Mrs. Singer," Hilary hasn't heard from Jeff for several weeks, and she's worried. When he does finally get through to her, he tells her he has something important to tell her, then gets cut off. That "something important" turns out to be Mrs. Singer...Czech refugee Pavla Nemcova (Karen Travers), who claims she married Jeff in London. Hilary's devastated, until the others help her expose Pavla for the gold-digger she is.

"Nothing Up My Sleeve" debuted during the tail end of Seinfeld's run and was one of the most heavily advertised episodes of the entire series. Allan Ballinger (Jason Alexander) is a mentalist and magician appearing with Hilary on Magic Time. He charms a vulnerable Hilary, but Maple has her own reasons for thinking Allan's act is more con than illusion. Meanwhile, Mackie keeps trying a magic trick of his own, with less-than-magical results.

Finished the night listening to two classic albums from the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Jazz Impressions of Japan is the third of four Brubeck albums of the late 50's and early 60's revolving around different cities or countries. In all honesty, only the first three songs, "Tokyo Traffic," "Rising Sun," and "Toki's Theme," really sound all that Asian. There's still some good stuff here, notably "The City Is Crying" and the melancholy "Osaka Blues." 

Quiet as the Moon came out much later, in 1991. It's actually the soundtrack for the This Is America, Charlie Brown episode "The NASA Space Station." Now I wish Brubeck had done more Peanuts specials. There's some lovely work here, from his arrangement of "A Bicycle Built for Two" in the opening to the charming title number and the eerie "The Desert and the Parched Lands." 

Dance Into the Matches

I got caught up reading Bayou Book Thief this morning and didn't have much time for anything else. Since it was sunny out this time, with no sign of rain, I wanted to take my bike. Unfortunately, I got too late of a start, which meant I was late to work.

Thank heavens that was the worst thing that happened all day. With the Sunday morning bagger around to sweep and do the trash, I was mainly outside pushing carts. It was a gorgeous day for it, too. Humid, yes, but also sunny, breezy, and searingly blue. I did bring back a few cold items inside, but other than that, I was out with the carts enjoying the weather.

I came up with an idea after work. I grabbed a Roar blueberry lemonade hydration drink and two slightly damaged boxes of chocolate fudge pudding mix off the clearance racks for half-off, mainly so I could take out money for the week. From now on, I'll take out $60 during the weekend, and that's what I have for eating out. If I spend it before the end of the week, I don't eat out anymore. I really need to start saving more money for vacation and to buy a condo.

Also, I've had enough condo-hunting when I can't go in them yet. I was going to check out condos in Voorhees, but first of all, that's further out and even more sprawling than Cherry Hill. Second, these walking jaunts tend to be rough on my bad heel. Third, I'm just getting kind of bored with exploring. I'll trade them with checking out libraries until I have a better idea of what kind of condo I can afford and where.

Stopped at the Yummies Palace in Oaklyn for a cool water ice treat after work. Their coconut water ice was deliciously sweet and creamy. It really hit the spot on a fairly hot day. I got to watch parents with two little girls decide what the young ladies wanted as I ate. The lady at the counter let them try their Fruity Pebbles ice cream flavor. The older girl went with a cone of that. Her little sister stuck to a vanilla cone with sprinkles.

Changed when I got home, then spent the next two hours finishing Bayou Book Thief while listening to Batman soundtracks on CD. The 1989 soundtrack was something of a comeback for Prince after his previous album and a concert film were flops. To be honest, most of the songs are more Prince than Batman and weren't in the movie. "Batdance" in the finale was just as big of a hit in 1989 as the movie, but I prefer his less goofy ballad "Scandalous" and the opening dance song "The Future." 

I actually think Batman Forever has the better songs. U2's hard rock raver "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" and Seal's classic R&B ballad "Kiss From a Rose" were massive hits in mid 1995. Other good ones here include "Where are You Now?" by Brandy, "Smash It Up" by the Offspring, and "Bad Days" by the Flaming Lips.

Finished the night after the CDs ended with today's Match Game YouTube marathon. Dancer Bobby Van was a friend of Richard Dawson's who made occasional appearances on the show from 1973 to 1977, with and without his wife Elaine Joyce. In fact, he and Elaine made their debut on the show together, sitting next to each other in 1973. That week is best-known now for the answer to a question about what Batman and Robin's relationship is that now has it banned from the airwaves.

Van would appear in less controversial episodes later on. One 1976 episode had a question about what he does when he can't get his toes to behave. That was also the one where Brett introduces her lovely grown daughter Leslie in the audience. He saw a very happy lady in 1974 win enough money to buy the piano her daughters had requested. Elaine Joyce sat under him in the ingenue seat for the first of two times that week. In 1975 there was Henry, the funny older man with a slight crush on Brett. Also in 1975, Betty White rolled Gene Rayburn's pants legs down to expose argyle socks. Somehow, a lady in the audience ended up with them. Prince Charming Richard put Gene's shoes back on. 

Several times he was praised for his work hosting Showoffs, the short-lived 1975 charades game show (that, alas, is mostly lost today). There were also several references to the notoriously bad Lost Horizon, where Van's dances were among the few stand-outs. 

Dance your way into the end of summer with these delightful episodes featuring one of the great "Showoffs" of musical film!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Bobby Van, Elaine Joyce's Husband, Marathon

The Hosts With the Matches

Started the morning with breakfast and Rockin' Easy. This 2-disc Warners collection of "laid-back hits" from 1975 features quite a few songs and covers that were entirely new to me. I didn't know Jackson Browne recorded "Take It Easy" and Linda Rondstadt did a rather nice "Desperado," for instance. Bonnie Raitt's "Everybody's Cryin' Mercy" and the America version of "Muskrat Love" got into country turf. Randy Newman's "You Can Leave Your Hat On" was more of a novelty song. Better-known hits from this set include "She's Gone" by Hall and Oates, "The Right Thing to Do" by Carly Simon, "Without You" by Harry Nilsson, "You've Got a Friend" by James Taylor, "Diamond Girl" by Seals and Croft, "Then Came You" by Dionne Warwick and the Spinners, "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" by the Bee Gees, "Until You Come Back to Me" by Areatha Franklin, and "Sentimental Lady" by Fleetwood Mac.

Called Uber even before the last record ended. No trouble here. The first one came in 8 minutes. The one going home arrived in 7 minutes, and that was with the heavier shower. No traffic, either, and I arrived right on time.

No trouble at work, either. In fact, it was a bit boring. We were busy between about 10:30 and 1, and then it died out. Not only was it relatively dead, but there was actually too much help, for once. The Sunday bagger was already there when I came, and the afternoon bagger arrived around 11. They took care of sweeping, carts, and the trash. I was so bored by 2:30, and there was so little to do outside, I spent the last hour putting away unwanted items. 

The weather didn't help. It was just humid and in the lower 70's when I arrived at work, chilly for August. It showered lightly around 10, but that barely showed up on the sidewalk. The rain didn't really start coming down until I went home around 3:30. It's been showering heavily off and on ever since.

I needed a few things I forgot on Friday after work. I had a good online coupon for honey, and bagged spinach is part of the same dollar produce sale as those small containers of blueberries and raspberries. Got more shredded chicken for dinner later this week, too. 

When I got home, I changed, put everything away, finished out Rockin' Easy, then spent the rest of the night watching today's Match Game YouTube marathon. Game show hosts of the time were a common sight on Match Game panels well into the 90's. It was often hilarious to see them divorced from their own shows and watch them keep up with the matching.

Four of the most popular became semi-regulars in their own right. Bob Barker of The Price Is Right first appeared during the second week of the show in 1973 and would continue turning up through the early syndicated run in 1980. He usually spent his episodes joking about selling refrigerators to the crowd and ogling women, like when Gene told a cue card girl to cover her slit skirt because Bob was drooling. Dancer Bobby Van appeared sporadically from 1973 through 1977, with and without his wife Elaine Joyce. He went on to host Showoffs and Make Me Laugh. 

Genial Bill Cullen, the Dean of Game Shows himself, first turned up on a memorable week in 1973 that also featured "Mama" Cass Elliot and Brett sitting next to her then-husband Jack Klugman. He continued to appear on the show through the later syndicated episodes in 1981. Bert Convy of Tattletales and Super Password first showed up on the same week as Charles, Brett, and Betty in 1973. He lent his debonair presence frequently through 1975, with his final appearances being early in the 1979 syndicated run. 

Other hosts of the time showed up for one or two weeks. Comedian Robert Q. Lewis had a lot of fun during his one week late in 1973. Likewise, Jack Narz of Concentration and Now You See It had a ball during his one week near the end of 1974. Legendary announcer Gene Wood, who also turned up in 1974, hosted Beat the Clock after Narz dropped out in 1972. Wesley Eure, who would later go on to host the Nickelodeon show Finders Keepers, cuddled with Brett in 1980. Tom Kennedy, Narz's younger brother and host of Name That Tune, Body Language, and the later seasons of Password Plus, made his only appearance near the end of the syndicated run in 1981. 

Steve Allen hosted a few game shows in the 50's and had been a mentor to Gene Rayburn. He made his only appearance during a memorable week early in 1974. Everyman Larry Blyden of Broadway and the syndicated What's My Line also turned up early in 1974. Peter Marshall, master of the Hollywood Squares, did two hilarious weeks during the syndicated run in 1980. (He and Gene insisted during his first week that they looked alike. Personally, I don't see it.)

They're the hosts with the mostess on the ball in this hilarious marathon that lets favorite vintage hosts and announcers match their blank off!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Game Show Host Marathon

Laughing Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and the 2011 revival cast album of How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. John Larroquette won a Tony playing Biggley, the stuffy president of the World Wide Wickets Company to Daniel Radcliffe's ambitious window-washer J. Pierpont Finch. They're both having a lot of fun here, especially on "Grand Old Ivy" and the big finale number "Brotherhood of Man." Larroquette also does well by the spoof ballad "Love From a Heart of Gold" with Tammy Blanchard. As good as the original cast is, this certainly has its virtues as well, especially if you're a fan of either star.

Called Uber after I finished breakfast and got dressed. No trouble here. The driver going to work came in 9 minutes. The one going home came in 5. No traffic either way, and I got to work in plenty of time.

No trouble at work, either. On one hand, it's still hot and thickly humid, but it was also sunny all day, without a cloud in the sky. I had more help this time, too, and for longer. The Sunday morning bagger is usually pretty reliable. Once he left, I had help from one of the college boys for the last 45 minutes. I spent the entire afternoon pushing carts...but I made sure to pace myself and go inside and get a drink of water from the bottle in my locker or empty trash cans or fill the toilet paper in the women's bathroom every half-hour or so. 

Listened to The Hit List after taking a much-needed shower. This K-Tel 2-disc set features some of the biggest hits from 1982. The first disc has most of the better-known songs today, including "867-5309/Jenny" by Tommy Tutone, "Keep On Loving You" by REO Speedwagon, "Caught Up In You" by 38 Special, "You Better You Bet" by the Who, and the first hit from Huey Lewis and the News, "Do You Believe In Love?" Most of the songs on the second disc are less familiar today, other than "The One That You Love" by Air Supply, "Slow Hand" by the Pointer Sisters, and "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" by The Police.

Finished the night at YouTube watching the Sunday Match Game marathon while eating dinner. Brett Somers started off on the third week of the show and quickly became the show's second regular. Though she originally sat next to Richard Dawson in the ingenue seat, she was eventually moved upstairs to the second seat and would remain there for the rest of the original run. By the end of 1973, she'd been joined by Charles Nelson Reilly on her right. They became the best of drinking buddies and played hilariously off of her, whether he was making fun of her jewelry or she made fun of his toupee and his never wearing socks.

Brett had a comic feud with the person who handled the buzzer that ran through most of late 1973 and 1974. It got so ubiquitous, there were even questions about what she'd do the buzzer holder if she could get her hands on them, or how she'd stop them from buzzing her. Her complaints would often end up with a joke "buzzer" being used, like a raspberry noise or a cow bell. If Brett wasn't trading quips with Charles, she was doing it with Betty White. The two of them loved teasing each other about their ages and about the hold Betty had on her husband host Allen Ludden.

There were times when Brett could get a little too salty for her own good, like the 1977 episode where her answer about what movie Lassie didn't like making was censored. There was also the time in 1976 when she used her rear end as an answer to a question, or when she flipped off the audience. On the other hand, for all the jokes about her bad answers, she was sometimes the only one to get a question right, like during the syndicated run in 1980 where she was the one who finally got an answer after three tiebreakers and received a deserved standing ovation. 

Brett's then-husband Jack Klugman was the one who recommended her to the show in the first place. They appeared three times together in 1973 and spent all three weeks fighting. They got so bad, comedian Stu Gilliam asked why they put him on the "military level." By the time Jack reappeared on the show in late 1978, they'd been divorced or separated for at least three years. That didn't stop Jack from practically climbing on Brett during a question, or the others holding a mock wedding for them in the finale.

No one had more fun on the show than Brett! Belly laugh your way through the hot summer with these hilarious episodes!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Brett Somers Marathon: Laugh Your BLANK Off & Flip You Off!