Dolls On National Night Out

Began the morning with breakfast and Little Bear. "Auntie Hen" is preparing her home for lunch when Little Bear brings her chick nephews and nieces to visit. They wreck so much havoc inside, they end up eating at Hen's picnic table. Little Bear would love to "Play Ball," but he's angry that Emily took his ball without asking. Emily's angry at him for making fun of her baseball uniform. It takes the actual game to patch up their hurt feelings. "Lucy's Okay," even after Duck accidentally sits on her and they hold a mock funeral for the doll.

Had no trouble getting to the Acme on time this morning and on my bike. That's about the only thing that did go right at work. Work was a pain in the rear end from beginning to end. It's the beginning of the month and the day seniors get a discount. I had no help, either. The bagger who was supposed to help ended up in a register again. I kept getting behind on carts. I'd fill them, and they'd vanish again. I was very happy when I finally finished and got out of there.

At least the weather was pleasant. In fact, I think this is supposed to be the nicest weather we have this week. Sunny, breezy, hot, a little humid, but nothing like yesterday! For all the trouble, I did have a pleasant ride home, and it wasn't bad gathering carts when I could get out.

Returned to cartoons during lunch with Paw Patrol "Sea Patrol" episodes. "Pups Save a Water Walker" when Mayor Humdinger steals Francois Turn'bot's new water walking boots, intending to turn Turtle Island into part of Foggy Bottom. Not only did he completely ignore the fact that the island is a turtle habitat, but he can't control the boots. The pups have to go after him. "Pups Save a Windsurfer" when they save an older lady and her friend from an underwater and island volcano that are about to go off.

Switched to the 2002 Strawberry Shortcake as I finished eating. Peppermint Fizz is the only one who refuses to accept newcomer Rainbow Sherbet. She lives on a houseboat, and her life revolves around the water. She's too different for Peppermint. Strawberry holds "The Costume Party" to show why differences are nothing to be afraid of.

Dressed the dolls for August next. Kit, Samantha, and Molly wear their historically-accurate bathing suits I found on eBay. Jessa's purple tropical-print modern bathing suit also came from eBay. Ariel and Whitney's bathing suits were gifts from Lauren. Lauren also gave me the purple sundress with the lace jacket and hot-pink pineapple print. I can't find a historically-accurate bikini for Barbara Jean, so she gets to wear that for a summer date. 

Josefina and Felicity come from time periods where swimming and bathing weren't considered ladylike. Felicity wears her lavender striped Traveling Gown and second "meet" outfit. Josefina is in the pretty beige flowered dress and beige moccasins I found her in.

Listened to CDs while I worked, starting with finally getting all the way through American Musical Theater Vol II. The Cradle Will Rock, an opera about a steel worker who attempts to unionize against a miserly boss, was so politically charged the government tried to shut it down before it opened. Writer Marc Blitzstein ended up playing the piano for the cast while they sang their parts from the audience. Howard DaSylva gets dark title song. They weren't the only show to have trouble, either. Porgy and Bess wasn't a hit in its original 1935 run, though songs like "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" eventually put it over by 1940. Pins and Needles was a very similar revue from around the same time, though far more comic in nature. Ruth Rubenstein sings about being a "Chain Store Daisy" who has to sell to men instead of chase them. 

Two of the big names in this time period couldn't have been more different from another. Kurt Weill specialized in groundbreaking concepts and odd fantasies featuring brittle leading ladies like Gertrude Lawrence, who introduced "Jenny" in Lady In the Dark, and Mary Martin, who joined Kenny Baker to introduce "Speak Low" in One Touch of Venus. He also wrote the wistful "September Song," which was introduced by Walter Huston in Knickerbocker Holiday. "Tchaikovsky" had very little to do with Lady In the Dark, and everything to do with the performer who introduced the wild patter number about Russian composers - Danny Kaye. Cole Porter, on the other hand, went in for goofy shows with sassy belters like Ethel Merman. She introduced the title song of Anything Goes and "Friendship" with Bert Lahr in DuBarry Was a Lady. Mary Martin became a star singing Porter's sexy "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" in Leave It to Me. 

All of that changed when Oklahoma debuted. Rodgers and Hammerstein's romantic comedy-drama led a revolution where stories got meatier and songs and dances now had to have some relevance to the plot. The version of "Soliloquy" heard here is from the original cast album of Carousel and has a passage Hammerstein cut after opening that is heard nowhere else. For some reason, they use the 1966 revival of Annie Get Your Gun with Ethel Merman, Bruce Yarnell, and Jerry Orbach singing "There's No Business Like Show Business" instead of the original. Irving Berlin himself sings his own comic number from This Is the Army, "Oh How I Hate to Get Up In the Morning." St. Louis Woman wasn't a hit, but it did give us the gorgeous ballad "Come Rain or Come Shine."

Put on Diana Krall as I cleaned up the dolls' boxes and shoe hangers. Quiet Nights mean just that, soft ballad and bluesy numbers. There's standards here, too, "Where Or When," "Too Marvelous For Words," "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry," and a really lovely version of "I've Grown Accustomed to His Face." Of the newer numbers, I liked the title song and "So Nice" the best.

Rested while watching the first three episodes of Remember WENN. Decided to rewatch my favorite TV show in honor of its 30th anniversary this year. "On the Air" introduces Betty Roberts (Amanda Naughton), who has just arrived at Pittsburgh radio station WENN in 1939. She won a writing contest, but erudite station manager Victor Comstock (John Bedford Lloyd) isn't impressed until her script saves a broadcast.

"Klondike 9366" brings in perky ingenue Ceila Mellon (Dina Spybey) and shows us more of husband-and-wife acting team Jeff Singer (Hugh O'Gorman) and Hilary Booth's (Melinda Mullins) contentious relationship. Celia is tossed into the fray when she and Jeff host Victor's latest radio creation, a late-night call-in talk show. It just ends up with crossed lines, until they help a little boy (Nick Holmes) keep a prowler at bay. 

Victor and Betty are caught between "A Rock and a Hard Place" when wealthy Mr. Action (Barton Heyman) wants to create a slam-bang action show. However, that would mean canceling Pittsburgh Public Library Theater and upsetting another influential sponsor, Mrs. Mellon (Irene Worth). While Victor tries to figure out how to appease both of them, Ceila tries desperately to avoid Mrs. Mellon...and Betty learns she wasn't entirely upfront about how close she was to the Mellon family. Good thing Betty can keep a secret (something she'll be doing a lot more of in the later seasons). 

Headed out after "Rock and a Soft Place" ended. I dropped off a book at the kiosk in front of what used to be the Oaklyn Library, then headed down to West Clinton. The Oaklyn Police Department held their National Night Out at the parking lot between the school and Tonewood Brewery. They were giving out free bags of popcorn, water ice, hot dogs, bottles of water, and very thin slices of pizza. I had two slices of pizza and one of everything else. Ate while watching older kids slide around and jump triumphantly out of a sports-themed bounce house. There was a Mickey Mouse-themed bounce house for the younger kids. 

I had just come back for cherry water ice when the police announced a pie-eating contest. Actually, it turned out to be more of a Reddi-Whip-in-the-pie-pan eating contest. Two cops competed against a line of kids. They were all utterly hilarious to watch, kids and cops alike! I think one of the older boys ended up winning. I finally went home as mothers wiped their children's whipped cream-covered faces and the cops grabbed lots of napkins.

Caught the last Match Game '76 episode of the night when I got in. Jimmie Walker spent a lot of the week enamored with a very pretty contestant who made her own clothes. Richard Dawson was happier to be between Elaine Joyce and Fannie Flagg (and their shapely figures).

Put on more WENN after Match Game ended. Movie and theater star Grace Cavendish (Patti LuPone, the first of three Broadway divas to appear on the show) makes a special appearance at the station in "There But for Grace." Hilary Booth is furious. She never forgave Grace for stealing her part in Razzle Dazzle. Grace is really there to see Victor, whom she once had a relationship with. Betty's not too happy either when she catches them renewing said relationship. Victor, however, is married to the station and the artistic freedom it brings. Meanwhile, Hilary is determined to get rid of this interloper, or at least give her the stomach ache of her life. (Look for LuPone's performance of the title song, the first of two times on the show you'll hear its lyrics.)

Finished the night at PBS Kids with Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Strawberry Shortcake and her friends aren't the only ones who learn that it's not so bad for our friends to have different interests. It's "Pizza Day at School." Dan wants to be "pizza buddies" with Prince Wednesday, but doesn't understand why he prefers broccoli over green peppers. Likewise, Miss Elainia tries to get Katarina to try finger painting, but she prefers painting with a brush. "Daniel and Jodi Like Different Things" when they play at the beach. Dan doesn't like to be squirted with a squeezy whale. Jodi's brother doesn't want his feet covered with sand, but he loves to help make sandcastles! 

Rainy Day Games

Started the day with breakfast and Monchichhis. It's a "Double Play" when the Grumplins create a machine that can turn a Grumplin into a Monchichhi. They target Patchit, the Monchichhis' inventor, repair-monkey, and head of the Happy Works, capturing him when he goes out for a ride on his new helicopter. When the others realize that's not Patchit, they go after him, only for him to rescue them when they're captured and sent to the Grumplins' mines.

It was pouring like crazy when the cartoon ended. I had to call Uber. There was no way I could take the bike...but I called too late. They couldn't arrive for 20 minutes! I ended up being very late, more than 20 minutes. At least there was no such trouble later. The second driver arrived in 9 minutes. No trouble on the road, not even flooding. 

Thank heavens that was the worst thing that happened all day. The rain stopped shortly after I arrived. It started again around 11. As you can imagine, the store wasn't busy. It didn't even pick up a little bit until almost before I was done. Another bagger came in and helped with the carts after around 10 as well. I was in and out with no trouble. Even picked up Bob's Red Mill instant oatmeal on clearance.

Instead of going straight home, I had the Uber driver drop me off at WaWa to use the ATM machine. Grabbed a Caramel Coconut Smoothie, Chicken Teriyaki Wrap, and Miss Vickie's chips there, too. The smoothie was frankly a bit watery, but the sandwich was yummy when I got home. Thankfully, the rain was long gone by the time I was at WaWa, though it remained cloudy and thickly humid. I did get home dry.

Did something different when I got in and watched Sesame Street. The brand-new special "Storm On Sesame Street" has everyone in the neighborhood preparing for a major storm that's supposed to hit New York. Elmo's dad asks him to find three objects that will help make everyone feel better. He's joined by Abby Cadabby, her mom, and her stepbrother Rudy. Rudy's very nervous about the storm, so Elmo tries to distract him. He's helped by Bert and Ernie (who took in animals) and Big Bird (who is lining up stuffed animals for hugs, including his own Radar teddy). Later, after they see the havoc the storm wrecked on Sesame Street, they play superheros to fix everything, but learn that even the smallest help can have the biggest impact.

Switched to records while vacuuming, dusting, Swiftering, and taking the laundry downstairs. Since I just watched Sesame Street, I started off with Sesame Street Story Time. Luis, Maria, and Bob narrate short original fairy tales featuring the Muppets. Most of them, like "The Legend of the Lovely Linda," "Ike and Ilk," "The Story of Ira and Inex," and "The King Banishes the Letter 'P'," teach letters and their sounds. "The King's Picnic," "The King's Nose," and "The King and the Fireman" go more into the roles of kings and what they do. The theme of "The King's Problem" is very similar to "Storm On Sesame Street," showing how you don't have to be big or fast to do something important.

When We Were Very Young is an adaptation of a book of poetry by Winnie the Pooh author A.A Milne, and is in fact where Pooh made his debut. While ironically they don't use the poem that introduced Pooh ("Teddy Bear"), some of the others are lovely. "Daffydowndilly" and "The Mirror" have a sweet edge of melancholy to them, while "Disobedience," with its reverse of a child trying to care for a wayward parent, has an almost macabre ending. 

Salad Days was a long-running hit in London during the mid-50's, and frankly one of the most peculiar hit musicals I've ever heard. College students Timothy and Jane get married secretly, due to his disapproving family wanting him to find work. They eventually agree to watch a homeless man's piano for a month. It seems like an easy assignment, until they realize the piano makes anyone who hears it want to dance. One of Timothy's many uncles is a government official who bans the piano. After it goes missing, another uncle who is a scientist takes them in his flying saucer to find it.

Um, er, yeah. Good thing the music is genuinely charming, because the story is plain bonkers. Eleanor Drew and John Warner get the sweet "We Said We Wouldn't Look Back" and "Oh, Look at Me," while the more lively "Out of Breath" and "We're Looking for a Piano" are the closest this show gets to chorus numbers. Drew gets two solos, "I Sit In the Sun" and "The Time of My Life." This isn't a big show. It's played on the one piano. It is pretty cute, though, and apparently continues to remain popular with amateur groups in England and the UK. If you like British musical comedies, you'll probably want to hear this, but it's not for someone looking for a meatier story or one that makes sense.

I almost passed out listening to Salad Days. Switched to the American Musical Theater CD...and I did pass out there after the third song. I went down at around quarter of 5 and finally got up around 6:30. I'll listen to the rest of it later this week. 

Watched Match Game '76 during dinner and after I brought the clothes upstairs. Most of the episodes covered the week with Scoey Mitchelll and Susan Howard. The last half-hour took us into the next week, with Orson Bean, Betty White, and the only appearance of character actress Pat Delaney.

Finished the night after a shower honoring the 100th anniversary of NBC this year with some of their most memorable game shows. Password, for instance, started on CBS when it began in 1961. Password Plus moved the franchise to NBC in 1979, and it would stay there for Super Password starting in 1984. Although Super with Bert Convy was the bigger hit, Plus introduced the format both shows used that had contestants not only guessing words, but how they were all connected into a word. (And Password has gone back to NBC for its current version after Million Dollar Password ran on CBS in 2008.)

NBC wasn't nearly as good at keeping its shows around as CBS. Most of the Chuck Woolery and the early Pat Sajak daytime episodes of Wheel of Fortune are gone for good. The episode I have here from 1979 is one of the survivors. They're missing a lot of Hollywood Squares, too. We do have this episode from early in its short-lived nighttime run with Buddy Hackett in the center square, when it was one of the funniest and hippest game shows on TV.

You Bet Your Life was more fortunate. Groucho Marx's son was able to save most of his father's show from being junked. He absolutely made the right call. Not only is this one of the few surviving game shows from its era, but Groucho grilling contestants and tossing out quips to wanna-be comedians and inventors is still hilarious over 70 years later. 

By the time Classic Concentration debuted in 1988, NBC had largely begun to drop daytime game shows. It would be one of the last game shows on the network, running until 1991. The success of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire at ABC in 2001 prompted NBC to bring another popular British game show stateside. The Weakest Link is even darker as stone-cold hostess Anne Robinson presides over a group of people who vote off the worst player or "weakest link" after every round. The show ran into audience fatigue with "big money" game shows and didn't run a year. It did much better in its revival with Jane Lynch starting in 2020.

Celebrate NBC's centennial with some of its most beloved and popular games! 

You Bet Your Life (1950)

Hollywood Squares (1968)

Wheel of Fortune (1979)

Password Plus (1982)

Super Password (1987)

Classic Concentration (1991)

The Weakest Link American Premiere (2001)

Nighttime Matches

Started off a quiet morning with breakfast and records. Dream a Little Dream of Me is actually more of a greatest hits collection, released by Pickwick a few months before Cass's death in 1974. The sweet hit title song is probably the best known number, but she put out a few other good ones. I also thought "Move In a Little Closer, Baby" and her version of the standard "I Can Dream, Can't I?" were lovely.

George Harrison had just as many problems with Somewhere In England. Apparently, Warners thought it wasn't "commercial" enough. The murder of John Lennon during its creation devastated him...but it also resulted in this album's hit and my favorite Harrison solo song, the jaunty tribute "All Those Years Ago." Darker numbers like "Life Itself," "That Which I Have Lost," "Teardrops," and "Writing's On the Wall" also reflect the difficulties Harrison had in the early 80's. 

Headed off to work after Somewhere In England ended. I did get there on time, which was a good thing. We were busy all day. It's the beginning of the month. I had fewer problems when the Sunday morning bagger took the inside work and trash this morning. Turns out the other new bagger had been trained as a cashier and ended up there all day. By 3 PM, the morning bagger went home, and his replacement was the older man who can't push more than 1 to 3 carts at a time. He even complains about having to take a break when he doesn't want to! I had a harder time keeping up with the carts after that. 

The weather didn't help. It was initially sunny, breezy, thickly humid, and very hot, in the upper 80's. Clouds rolled in by the time the older man arrived. It started showering lightly as I rode home. The rain was getting heavier just as I arrived, though I think it's long stopped.

I changed, made a fast dinner, and put on the Match Game YouTube marathon. The nighttime episodes were in the spotlight here with some of their biggest wins, fiercest battles, and most famous episodes. My personal favorite episode of the entire nighttime run was the infamous Admiral __ Audience Match from 1975. Gene bet Richard his answer "Admiral Color TV" wasn't on the board, but...well, Gene learned the hard way that you don't ever bet against Richard in the Audience Match. Brett and especially Betty were really having a great time during that episode too, especially with a question involving what a heavy-breathing caller would say to Betty late at night.

That wasn't the last time Betty had fun in the nighttime shows. In 1976, she and Richard played Charles and Brett when Gene answered the lower tier a question. They had so much fun, they even borrowed their glasses, Brett's "Russian club soda," and Charles' hat and scarf. Richard was probably more accurate than Betty (whose voice was too deep to pull off Charles), but it was still hilarious.

Some later nighttime shows could be blankin' hilarious too. There was the episode in 1979 that started off with Elaine Joyce and Gary Burghoff making out on the bottom tier. Or the one from the week in late 1978 where Jack Klugman and Brett Somers appeared on the show together for the first time since their divorce. There was also the time in 1976 where a lady completely struck out in the Audience Match. Ira was nice enough to let her match the panelists on a question instead. She left with $600 and a smile on her face. Suzanne Sommers objected to the answer "Dumb Bunny" for __ Bunny in the Audience Match on her one nighttime show. Or the one where the panelists on the upper tier saluted a handsome Scottish officer in full parade dress. Bob Barker really loved whispering into Loni Anderson's ear in another 1978 show. 

Bet on the nighttime shows to give you more bang for your TV buck! 

Match Game Sunday Classics - Match Game PM: BLANKOFF Showdown

Rat Pack Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and Bluey. After Bandit ignores Bingo's domino heart, "Fairies" suddenly appear and wreck havoc. Bandit has to make it up to Bingo and outsmart the fairies. Bandit is initially the boss of "Work." When Bluey takes over and fires him over dancing, he ends up outside, selling drainpipes with Bingo...until a "ballerina" (Chili) sees them dancing and decides he's her perfect partner.

Not only was it late by the time I got dressed, but my heel is still sore. I called Uber. That might not have been a bad idea. The one going to work came in 6 minutes. It took me a while to get a car going home, but when I did, they arrived in 3 minutes! No trouble going to work. The driver had a few nervous minutes edging around the bus on Nicholson Road, but other than that, there were no problems.

Work didn't begin well. Cleaning up a leaky soda cooler put me behind with the carts, and I never did get to sweeping that hour. Things went better once I had more help and it slowed down after around 1. One college boy arrived around 11 AM. The other came at 2. They took over the sweeping and trash. By 2 PM, it was so quiet, and there were so many carts, I spent the last two hours inside putting away loose items. 

When I got home, I changed, took a shower, made a tuna sandwich and cherries for dinner, then made use of that Cherry Coke Zero I bought the other day to have an ice cream soda for dessert. When I got back upstairs, I watched Paw Patrol. "Rescue Knights: Pups Save a Dozing Dragon" when Claw and the Duke of Flappington steal a cauldron that can create a sleeping mist if a dragon breathes on it. Claw gets Sparks to create the mist, but he doesn't consider what would happen if he fell asleep while in the air...

Spent the rest of the night watching the Saturday Match Game marathon. Joey Bishop was long past his days with the Rat Pack when he made his first Match Game appearance in mid-1976. He was a cranky contrast to some of the snarkier or more upbeat panelists. 

He was there for the New Year's Eve week with Charles' friend Elizabeth Allen and saw sweet George keep winning games. He and Mary Wickes made jokes about Gene's green and yellow plaid coat (Joey was right - it did look like it came off of a car seat) and the infamous red coat mentioned last weekend. To tell the truth, I'm not entirely sure he got the show's humor. He kept trying to kiss contestants, even when they didn't get their answer from him. The ladies were happier with the handsome white-haired contestant who somewhat resembled Allen Ludden. Brett and Mary in particular seemed pretty interested in him. The guys were more interested in the cute woman who wore shirts that said "Glamour" and "Foxy Lady." 

To give Joey credit, he had a point about some of his complaints. There was the time Ira, the show's judge and producer, wouldn't pass "wipe" for clean. He also would call out audiences that were unruly by even the show's standards, claiming there was one guy booing him who kept moving around. I believe he was also the first person to point out that there were three standard answers for Match Game - women's chests, Howard Cosell, or relieving oneself. 

Get to know the mind with the dirty man in these festive and hilarious episodes!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Joey Bishop Marathon

All Around the Town

Began the morning with breakfast and Monchhichis. TooToo, the sweet white Monchhichi in the pink skirt, wants to help her friends more than anything, but her aid tends to end in disaster. Feeling unwanted, TooToo runs away to the Underground, joined by fast-talking Thumkii. She gets into "TooToo Trouble" when the others have to rescue her from wart hogs who make her their queen and sacrifice to a huge dragon-like creature.

It was so late by the time I got up, my schedule had been posted at the Acme's website. I am not happy at all. On one hand, far more hours...too many. My only day off is Wednesday, and I have an 8 1/2 hour day next Saturday! The head bagger must have gone on vacation. I didn't expect this. They just hired all of those new baggers, and they couldn't spread things out? What are they going to do when she finally gets to retiring? I have two jobs. I can't always be there. 

I wasn't in the best mood when I headed out to run errands. It was so late, I figured I'd just get lunch somewhere. Had pizza at Montegrillo, the narrow, brand-new restaurant in Collingswood. A slice of regular cheese, a slice of chicken and vegetables, and a bottle of water cost me $8. I enjoyed it in peace and quiet other than two pre-teen boys chatting quietly in the back.

Moved on to the bank next. I made too many transfers online and was hoping to get money out of my savings account, but...I can't on an ATM machine, there's no tellers at the Collingswood branch anymore, and I didn't really want to hike all the way down to Haddonfield. I'll get money on Monday.

I was mostly out to do this week's grocery shopping. The Westmont Acme was closer, so I went there first. They had buy one, get one free blueberries and dollar Chobani yogurt. Picked up two bagels for lunch this weekend and found inexpensive slices of strawberry cake roll for a special dessert tonight. Good sales on granola bars and Special K crisp bars, too. Restocked granola, soda, Swiss cheese, and tuna. Rode up to Sprouts after that for sugar cookies, oat milk, dried mango slices, plums, and more of those 99 cent containers of prebiotic dried berries and pineapple. Zevia diet soda was buy one, get one half-off. 

By the time I finished at Sprouts, it was starting to get busier. The Acme was relatively busy, too. It was almost 3:30, the start of rush hour. Not to mention, it was hot, sunny, and killer humid. I waved to the kids at the daycare program at the Westmont Plaza (including one from Thomas Sharp who cheerfully greeted me) and made my way home.

I was so tired when I got home, I managed to put most everything away, but passed out before I could put the container with the granola bars back. I did start to finally watch The Movies Begin. This Kino Lorber DVD covers some of the very first experiments with moving photography in the late 1890's (some of it quite racy and involving a lot of nudity), a lot of shots of everyday life at the turn of the 20th century, and two distinct early pioneering efforts, Georges Melies' iconic early sci-fi tale A Trip to the Moon and the influential western The Great Train Robbery.

Switched to Storybook International at Tubi while I got organized. "The Foolish Lad" is a cross between the series' earlier "Simpleton Peter" and the German tale "The Princess Who Never Laughed." George can never seem to figure out how to do things, but he always manages to come out on top anyway. He tries to sell butter to rocks and manages to find money under them. He tries to sell dairy to the river and rescues a wealthy man from drowning. He tries to sell sausages to a dog, then goes to the mayor in the hope that he'll make the dog pay. The mayor has his own worries about his melancholy daughter...but she's feeling a lot better after she hears George's tale.

Watched Match Game '76 during dinner. The week ended with that long curly wig migrating to the head of Fannie Flagg. It made her look (and sound when she attempted a bad Brooklyn accent) a lot like Maple LaMarsh on Remember WENN. Bonnie Franklin made her debut on the show the next week, joined by Scoey Mitchelll and Patti Deusch. Gene had a cold, so Richard had to give Bonnie her welcome-to-the-show kiss (the only time he would get to do that). He also tried to get Scoey to blow his cigar smoke in another direction.

Finished the night back at Tubi for The Iron Mask. This would be Douglas Fairbanks Sr's last big swashbuckler. In something of a follow-up to his earlier Three Musketeers, Fairbanks once again plays D'Artagnan. This time, after his friends are forced to leave Paris and his beloved Constance (Marguerite De La Motte) dies, he becomes the father figure to Louis XIV (William Bakewell). Though Cardinal Richeliu (Nigel De Brulier) has died, he made sure to hide that the queen had twin boys. When Louis' twin appears, the villainous Count De Rochefort (Ullrich Haupt) puts Louis in an iron mask and his brother on the throne. D'Artaganan fakes his death to find out what's really going on here. 

Alas, I saw the 1952 re-release with Douglas Fairbanks Jr. providing a rather intrusive narration. The original full silent movie with titles is currently available on Kino Lorber DVD and on YouTube. 

Walking In Woodcrest

Started off the morning with breakfast and Little Bear. Little Bear, Duck, and Emily accidentally go "Rafting On the River" when their raft breaks free and heads downstream. Cat, Duck, and Owl race them to see whether land or water are the fastest ways to travel. "Little Bear's Kite" was made by him and Grandfather Bear on a fine windy day. Little Bear has fun imagining all the places it can fly too, until it runs into another kite...one that happens to be attached to a familiar friend. It's the "Night of the Full Moon." After Father tells Little Bear the story of monsters that appear during the full moon, they pretend to be monsters and try to scare Mother Bear. Mother, however, knows what the full moon can do to people and bears...

Headed out after the cartoon ended. Rode straight to the Collingswood PATCO. Fortunately, the train to Woodcrest arrived not more than 8 minutes after I sat down. The train wasn't busy at all. I think there were two other people going there with me. 

I got a very big shock when I got off. The Woodcrest PATCO station is twice the size of the ones further up the line. There was ample seating inside and out, a long row of ticketed swing doors, and someone was even in the ticket booth. I have never once in the 20 years I've lived here seen someone actually selling tickets in the Collingswood booth. It was even nice outside...at least until you turned towards the street, where they seemed to be doing exterior and track work. I had a hard time just finding my way out of the sprawling parking lot. 

As it turned out, the bridge over the train tracks did have sidewalks. I was easily able to walk over them, passing corporate buildings and towering luxury apartment buildings. I was surprised to see sponge manufacturer Scrub Daddy's offices in another building. I had no idea they were a local business. They're sold pretty much everywhere around here, from Dollar General to Target to the Acme. Passed them, then went by tall pine trees and a leaning sidewalk that went around the Cherry Hill Fire Hall. Thank heavens Haddonfield-Berlin Road was the only traffic-laden street I encountered on this trip. I tried to be careful crossing, especially given it was past noon by the time I did. 

Passed by a green-roofed shopping center for the time being, continuing down Browning Lane. Fortunately, the Centura Condominium complex wasn't even a block from the shopping center. Centura is a gated community, so I couldn't walk around the outside like I did elsewhere. I did see two kinds of buildings through the wrought-iron fences. One half the complex buildings were more like generic 70's townhouses. The other half were older, probably from the 50's, with a Spanish theme complete with cream-colored stucco walls. There was a sunken-in brick area with a charming fountain in front of the guard house. 

As far as I could tell, everything was very clean and well-maintained. The balconies sported either porch furniture and small grills or potted plants, no junk. I did hear there's a pool and tennis courts. Couldn't get around to the back to see what the trash areas were like. The lawns were spacious and velvety green, except for under the towering pine trees near the front. The rest of the neighborhood were the 60's and 70's tract houses that seem to be typical construction through most of Cherry Hill. I was a little annoyed that only the house side of the street had sidewalks. While Browning Lane wasn't mega-busy, it wasn't a quiet country road, either.

Backtracked to the Woodcrest Shopping Center after I saw all I could of Centura. This looks almost identical to the Plaza at Cherry Hill before it's recent makeover, a 70's-era outdoor mall with a green roof. Dunkin' Donuts was one out parcel. The other was an escape room that was definitely housed in a former Rite Aid/Eckards. I was so hot, I grabbed a tasty and sweet SunCloud Coconut Limeade at Dunkin's before deciding I was hungry enough for lunch.

I ate at Asad's Hot Chicken. They looked like a more colorful Crown Chicken and Gyro with an all-chicken menu. I went with two sliders with Cole slaw and pickles, fries, and a Sprite Zero. The girl said she gave me mild, but...yow! It wasn't mild at all! It was way too spicy for me! I did manage to eat one slider, but I couldn't finish the other. Too bad the fries were covered in spices, too. The ones I dug around for without them were really good. They were nice, but I don't think I'll be eating there again. Next time I'm in the area, I'll go to the pizza place across the street.

Explored a few other stores in the mall. Bought a gift card for my nephew Skylar's birthday and a box of Orange Cream cheap hydration mix at Dollar Tree. Wandered around an Asian Indian market, admiring the unique fruits, vegetables, candies, and baked goods. Peeked at Top Deck Games, a card and board game store. Most of their stock was overpriced, which was a shame. They had some nifty stuffed Pokemon. I saw a Strawberry Shortcake Candy Land game that I may see if I can pick up somewhere cheaper along the line.

After I left Top Deck Games, I started back...but I was thirsty again, and I really had to go to the bathroom. It was windy, cool, and cloudy, but also thickly humid. I asked two nice ladies sitting at a picnic table where the coffee shop in one of the corporate buildings was. I'm just glad no one called me on not belonging there. I bought a very tasty matcha latte from the dark and tan wood Terry's Cafe. Found the bathrooms not far from the nifty modern lounge area, with its soft dark blue velvet seats and weird chairs made of blue cloth straps and blue and orange wire flowers on the walls. 

Thankfully, I had no trouble after that. I ducked out of the bathroom and returned to the bridge. Spotted a set of concrete steps with yellow railings that went down to the parking lot. Once again, I got lucky and didn't have to wait long for a train. Took an only slightly busier train to Collingswood, then took my bike home.

Listened to the soundtrack from Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter as I got organized. I reviewed the movie two years ago, and found that it's a charming British MGM musical wrapped up in a vehicle for Peter Noone and Herman's Hermits. You get that sense here as well. In addition to the hit title song and "There's a Kind of Hush," we have the sales pitch "Lemon and Lime" and "The World Is For the Young" as Stanley Holloway, Sheila White, and Marjorie Rhoades discuss how the youth think they know everything about love. 

Switched to Descendants: Wicked Wonderland next. I go further into the latest movie in the Disney Channel fantasy crossover series at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Musicals On TV - Descendants: Wicked Wonderland

Watched Match Game '76 during dinner and after a much-needed shower. Lee Merriweather spent a lot of the week sporting a wig with luscious auburn locks. The others spent it answering questions about what beauty queens do when they get older.

Finished the night at the Roku Channel for The Rockford Files. "The Dark and Bloody Ground" is the first time lawyer Beth (Gretchen Corbett) hires Jim for a case. Here, she convinces him to help a woman accused of her husband's death in a fire accident. Turns out not only was her husband not who he claimed to be, he was the writer of a best-selling book that's being made into a movie. Jim and Beth have to dodge killers taking pot shots and trying to run them off the road when she discovers a loop hole that will allow a company to own the rights to a book if the author's dead. 

Quiet Summer

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and Bluey. Bandit needs a "Taxi" on a rainy afternoon, but with Bluey driving, Chili as the GPS system, and Bingo as a demanding passenger, it may be a while before he gets to the airport. Bluey discovers the solo delights of "The Beach" when she follows her mother for a walk and explores on her own.

It was so late, I called Uber. That might not have been a bad idea. The driver going there and home both took six minutes. No trouble getting there or back. I got to work just in time.

I could have been infinitely late. We were quiet the entire morning. Not only was there not much to do, but one of the college boys arrived around 11:30 to help me with the carts and took over sweeping for the last hour. The weather was gorgeous too, off-and-only cloudy and relatively cool for July, with an absolutely delicious wind. There was no trouble whatsoever, and I was in and out quickly.

Changed when I got home, then made buckwheat pancakes with cherries for lunch while watching He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Skeletor steals eggs from a mother dragon and accelerates their growth to create "The Dragon Invasion." He thinks this will distract He-Man while he and his minions invade Castle Greyskull and he uses the Dragon Pearl to imprison the Sorceress, but He-Man finds a way to get past Beast Man and gain the dragons' trust.

Listened to the Top TV Hits CD set I found at Abbie Road on vacation while reading the cozy mystery Midnight Snacks are Murder. This is an Entertainment Weekly release from 1995, when every company existing (no matter what else they normally did) released some kind of CD collection. As you can guess from the title, this is a two-disc collection of beloved theme songs from TV shows. Most of them are still recognizable today, like "Hey Hey, We're the Monkees," the "nananana" theme from the 60's Batman, the smash instrumental themes to Mission: Impossible and Hawaii 5-0, another hit from a superhero show "The Greatest American Hero," and Will Smith telling the hip-hop tale of "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air." 

Others are less well-remembered now. Andy Griffith whistled "The Fishin' Hole" from his own long-running Andy Griffith Show. The instrumental themes from Barney Miller, S.W.A.T, and Hill Street Blues are funky jazz and disco riffs that were hits at a time when vocal music was increasingly dominating the airwaves. "Welcome Back" from Welcome Back Kotter, "Without Us" from Family Ties, and "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" from Cheers are charming soft rock numbers from beloved sitcoms. (I would have preferred the original "Love Boat Theme" to the updated disco version they have here, though.) 

Two of the best songs came from shows that are practically unknown now. Square Pegs is now considered a cult classic teen comedy-drama, but barely lasted a season in 1983. It's certainly not the fault of its very modern New Wave Waitresses title song. The Heights, a drama about a wanna-be rock band, was a flop in 1992...but its theme song "How Do You Talk To an Angel" went to number one and still can be heard on classic rock stations to this day. 

After the CDs ended, I took a much-needed nap. I've been up too late and getting up earlier, and it's taking its toll on me. I was so tired, I went down at 3:30 and didn't get up until almost 6 PM.

Went straight into dinner and Match Game '76 after I rolled out of bed. The first two episodes finished out the week with Isobel Sanford and Marvin Hamlisch. Having created a song for the contestant with Charles earlier in the week, the duo went on to create one for Brett in the last episode. Brett couldn't resist tossing in her foghorn contralto. Elaine Joyce and Jimmie Walker were on the next week, along with lots of Jimmie's signature catchphrase "Dyn-o-mite!"

Finished the night at YouTube with the last three episodes of Daredevils of the Red Circle. I really give Republic credit here. While this lacks the familiar characters of something like Captain Marvel or Spy Smasher, it also has some of the best stunts of any serial, and one of the more creative plots. I also love who the Red Circle turned out to be. Animal fans will enjoy seeing that the Daredevils' collie Tuffie is just as heroic as his masters and is as much a part of the gang as the guys. I wish the same could be said for the black valet Snowflake, who is annoying comic relief at best, a dated stereotype at worst. Thankfully, he's not really on all that much. 

While it seems this is available on Blu-Ray from Kino Lorber, the entire 12-chapter serial can be easily found for free on YouTube. It's well worth your time if you love vintage serials or classic action. 

I've Still Got My Health

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and Paw Patrol. "Rescue Knights: Pups Save a Tournament" from Claw's attempts to cheat when he competes against Sweetie and a "mystery knight." "Rescue Knights: Pups Save the Baby Dragons" from Claw and the Duke of Flappington attempting to kidnap them. The Pups have to rescue the little ones before their mother gets there and wrecks even more havoc.

After the cartoon ended, I called Uber. Not only was it getting late, but I didn't like the look of the weather. It was cloudy, cool, hazy, and heavily humid. No trouble getting there or home. The one going there came in 8 minutes. The one going home came in 5. 

Got to Riverwalk Dental at the Westmont Plaza with five minutes to spare. Thank heavens after I got that tooth pulled in late April, there was no trouble here. It was just a routine cleaning. I was in and out within a half-hour, and I won't be going back until early November. 

Went next-door to Target after my teeth were squeaky clean. I was hoping to find more heel gel inserts or dividers for my record collection, so I know which letter in which crate and genre, but...nope. I did pick up nectarines, cheaper anti-bacterial wipes than I've seen elsewhere, and more of those Nature's Valley wafer bars for a decent price.

Since it still wasn't raining, I walked down the hill, past the Haddon Township Library, and down to the Westmont for lunch. Tried their garden omelet, along with more of those cheesy grits and soft mulit-grain toast. The grits weren't bad, but the omelet was watery and tasteless without the vegetables. Having enjoyed their chocolate cake a while back, I gave their carrot cake a shot. (Good thing I did. The waitress said they were already out of the chocolate cake, and I was there around 1:30.) Yum! Huge (seven layers!), thick and so moist, filled with raisins and lots of cream cheese frosting. 

After I got home, I was so tired, I just spent the next few hours listening to music. Beaches, with Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey as close but unlikely best friends, was a huge hit melodrama in 1988. I remember how big it was during my late childhood. The inspirational ballad "The Wind Beneath My Wings" was everywhere on the radio all through the late 80's and early 90's. Though "Wind Beneath My Wings" is pretty, I prefer some of the more upbeat numbers. Midler has a lot of fun with "I've Still Got My Health" from the Cole Porter show Panama Hattie and two hilarious chorus number spoofs Midler wrote herself, "Otto Titsling" and "Oh Industry!" She also does well by Randy Newman's "I Think It's Going to Rain Today," but the duet "I Know You By Heart" is so 80's it hurts. (Oh, and there was a stage musical version on Broadway earlier this spring, but it was said to be terrible and didn't last a month.)

Cole Porter Vol. III is one of the later releases in Ben Bagley's long-running Revisited series of little-known numbers by beloved songwriters. There's some really hilarious performances here. Elaine Stritch gets to tear into "Find Me a Primitive Man" and "When Love Beckoned." Lynn Redgrave does surprisingly well by "I Want to Be Raided By You" and a medley of marriage-themed songs from Let's Face It and the original Gay Divorce. Dolores Gray gets the ballads "You're Too Far Away" and "Who Would Have Dreamed," while I can't help but wonder if Bagley was right and sweet Georgia Engel didn't quite understand what was going on with "I Like Pretty Things."

Little Me is an even goofier satire. Hollywood star Belle Potrine (Nancy Andrews) recalls how, in her younger years (Virginia Martin), went from Belle Schlumpfert from the wrong side of the tracks who was determined to win wealthy Noble Eggleston (Sid Caesar) to a performer who had everything but her true love. Caesar played almost every man she pursued or married, from the aptly-named wealthy young man she adored to the miser whom she begged to save her family's home to a Maurice Chevalier-esque entertainer and a doomed flyer on his way to World War I. Wild though the satire is, the Cy Coleman-Carolyn Leigh score actually produced two standards. Caesar got to introduce the charming "Real Live Girl," while Sven Swenson, as a gambler who also loved Belle, pointed out "I've Got Your Number." Most of the other songs don't get close to those two, though Martin's "Poor Little Hollywood Star" and her "I want" song "The Other Side of the Tracks" are fun. 

(A revival with Victor Garber and James Coco in 1983 barely lasted a month and wasn't recorded. The second one from 1998 with Martin Short taking all the Caesar roles and Faith Prince as Belle didn't do much better run-wise, but both stars were said to have been excellent in the leads. Bruce Forsyth was an even bigger hit as Belle's lovers on the West End.)

Switched to Match Game '76 while making a quick dinner. The first hour finished out the week with Jody Donovan, including Dick Martin getting his first right answer. The first full week of 1976 brought in Isobel Sandford at the start of The Jeffersons' long run and songwriter Martin Hamlisch, just as A Chorus Line was starting its own long run on Broadway. Hamlisch brought along a small toy piano and spent the week creating songs on it, including one he called "Fog Cloud" after a nervous contestant's answer to the Head-to-Head Fog __.

Finished the night at PBS Kids with more Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Margaret and Jodie's little twin brothers are upset when their dads go to the Clock Factory while they take lessons from Music Man Stan. Stan, Daniel, and Jodie remind them that "Grown Ups Come Back to the Music Shop," especially to join a dance party! Katarina enjoys playing with O and eating X's soup, but she misses Henrietta when she goes out for the evening. The two owls do their best to cheer her up and remind her that "Katarina's Mommy Comes Back Home." 

Oh, and the storms didn't finally arrive until around 8 PM. They were coming down pretty good for a while, but they seem to be gone for the moment. 

Going Global Games

Began the morning with breakfast and Monchhihis. This is another Hanna-Barbara cartoon I watched as a kid, mostly during its later run on the USA Cartoon Express. I have no idea how they turned Japanese monkey dolls into little monkey-like creatures who live in trees and need Tickle Crystals to run their Happy Works, which makes them happy. The first episode, "Tickle Pickle," seems more like the half-hour specials for characters like Strawberry Shortcake. After the grump gray monkey-monsters the Grumplins attack their treetop kingdom and shatter the tickle crystals, five of the young Monchhihis take it on themselves to find more before the Grumplins do.

Headed out on the bike after the show ended. Ran some brief errands on the White Horse Pike first. My nephew Skylar's 22nd birthday is Friday. I picked up a card for him and a Propel at Dollar General. Neither they nor Family Dollar had much in the way of foot or heel aids. After the fuss in Dollar General the last time I went in there, at least a lady was nice enough to let me go on ahead.

There was no more putting it off. I rode up to Cooper Urgent Care in Audubon to finally get my heel looked at. I've had a bump on my right heel for weeks that's been fairly painful. I was hoping it would go away, but...it hasn't. Thankfully, unlike when I went there in early March, they only had three other people in the waiting area. After signing in and telling them about my heel, they brought me in within five minutes. 

After they took my blood pressure, I watched Lilo & Stich: The Series (a clumsy alien Lilo dubs "Whoops" wrecks havoc on Pleakley's Domino Rally game) and Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir (Ladybug deals with her friend Kagumi's frustrations over her mother being strict with her and a pair of mud-flinging villains called "The Dirtifyers") on The Disney Channel before the doctor came in. I explained my problem. My heel has had that lump for weeks, and it gets worse when I use it for a long time or push it hard.

After she felt around my foot, a sweet young woman took me to the x-ray room. I sat on a table so they could take shots of my heel. Returned to the room and to watching Ladybug and her buddies until the doctor returned. Verdict - heel spur and Achilles tendinitis. I'm to get antibiotics, continue to wear the heel lifts in my shoes, and go to Cooper Bone and Joint next week for a follow-up appointment.

After I got out, I went next-door to WaWa. I had considered eating out, but I didn't like the look of the weather. It was sunny when I started, but by quarter of 2, clouds were gathering, and it was humid and much hazier. It's a good thing I did settle for buying a roast beef and provolone wrap, a bag of PopCorners (popped corn chips that taste like a cross between rice cakes and tortilla chips), and a matcha pineapple smoothie. It started showering lightly almost the moment I stepped out of WaWa. I was just heading down East Clinton when I arrived and the showers got heavier.

(Thankfully, they didn't last long after that. There would be some pretty noisy storms later around dinnertime, but they seem to have subsided for the moment.)

Watched rain-themed cartoon episodes during lunch. Minnie and Daisy are dismayed that there's no rain for their flowers in Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Professor Ludvig Von Drake gives them the formulas to make clouds the right shape for their gardens that would rain on them, so they can have their flower show. Mickey, Pluto, and Goofy end up saving them when the Glove Balloon gets stranded on a cloud and they need help to create "Minnie and Daisy's Flower Shower."

Switched to PBS Kids for Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Katarina and O and their parents and uncle sleep over the Tiger Family's house when they're evacuated due to "A Storm In the Neighborhood." The loud rain and thunder scares the kids, but their parents assure them that they have a plan to keep them safe. "After the Neighborhood Storm" everyone pitches in to clean up, including the firefighters who help remove a tree from in front of the Clock Factory.

Listened to records while doing the laundry and resting my foot. The Broadway revival of The Boy Friend from 1970 was supposed to be headlined by Judy Carne of Laugh-In as sweet Polly Browne. Sandy Duncan was the one who got the lion's share of good notices as Maisie, the boldest of Polly's friends who sings "Won't You Charleston With Me?" and "Safety In Numbers." Jeanne Beauvais as the girls' teacher Madame Dubonnet also does well by "Fancy Forgetting" and "Poor Little Pirouette." 

Put the laundry in the dryer as I moved on to children's albums. Beryl Berney was apparently a journalist, artist, and puppeteer who worked on children's shows in the 1950's and 60's when she did a series of storytelling albums for kids-based Rocking Horse Records. Snow White and Dick Whittington are pretty much the traditional version of those stories, other than Snow White has a unique ending. The Wicked Queen turns so ugly, she destroys her mirrors when she looks into them, including the magic one. 

The Story of Robin Hood is a condensed retelling of the 1952 live-action Disney movie of the same name. The movie itself is good but not great, and that's reflected here. I do like the build up for Prince John and King Richard's mother Queen Eleanor as Maid Marion's boss, and some of Robin's men can be pretty funny. This is nice to hear if you love Robin Hood stories or Disney's 50's and 60's movies, but far from essential. Dal McKennon narrates here. 

Moved to Match Game '75 as The Story of Robin Hood ended. Richard Dawson's then-girlfriend Jody Donovan was such a doll during the week of New Year's, I wish she had come back, no matter who she was dating. New Year's Eve 1975 was celebrated with noisemakers, balloons dropping, and hats for everyone. (Jody's glittering headband and short hairstyle made her look like she'd just walked out of The Boy Friend.) Charles popped a Match Game '75 balloon to reveal '76...then popped that one to show '77, then showed '78 drawn on his thumb.

Finished the night with game shows from Richard Dawson's native England, starting with the two that have been running on Buzzr this month as part of their "Buzzr Goes Global" marathon. Freemantle, Buzzr's parent company, is British, and thus has no shortage of shows from that country. Going for Gold had seven contestants from across the UK and Europe answering questions and playing against each other to see who would continue in the tournament. The show ran for a decade as people tuned in to see who would be moving on to the next week. The episode I have here from 1990 includes a blind contestant and his seeing eye dog who is not only introduced in the opening, but does quite well, making it to the end of the show.

Small Talk is probably one the most hilariously adorable game shows to come out of Britain. Three adults guess how a panel of 9 kids will answer a certain question in this variation on Child's Play. No wonder this ran for two years on the BBC and Buzzr chose it for their marathon. The kids are a riot, and jovial host Ronnie Corbett is obviously having a ball watching them. 

Double Your Money goes way further back. This hit from 1955 was apparently based on The $64,000 Question, but more closely resembles an early form of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Couples answer questions for escalating amounts, leading to the "1,000 Pound Treasure Hunt." This was an early hit for ITV and is one of the earliest surviving TV game shows in England.

3-2-1, based on a Spanish format, may be one of the most unique game shows ever in England. The first half starts as a straight quiz, with couples answering questions. The second half looks something like a cross between Monty Python, Let's Make a Deal, and Beat the Clock. The winning couple does stunts based on the theme of the day (cartoons, in this case), then watch a series of wacky skits and give answers based on clues given by an actor from the skit, a prop they bring over, and what they can remember from them. The winners from that have to choose between a series of prizes. The bad prize on this show will land them "Dusty Bin," the show's robotic comic mascot and official "klunk." Maybe we ought to try mixing variety shows and game shows more often over here in the US, because this was really fun, especially that wacky second half.

Chain Letters is a far more traditional game show. In this 1987 series, three contestants change letters on a computerized word to make another word. The second round had them trying to predict what word one of the contestants would make. The third round had them changing certain letters from a word on the screen. The winner would see how many words they could form by changing one letter in 60 seconds. This was also lot of fun, and pretty challenging. It was enough of a hit for ITV to pull it out again for two series starting in 1995.

The British get far more into their comedy panel shows than we Americans do. Case in point, the irreverent and utterly hilarious Never Mind the Buzzcocks. Two panels of rock musicians guess what will happen in a music video, facts about other musicians, and try to remember the next line of a song. Celebrity guests will pop in to help answer questions and sing the first bars of a popular rock song. The real attraction was watching all of these musicians make jokes about their fellow performers and be delightfully witty. They had such a good time, this ran for almost two decades on the BBC from 1996 to 2015 and was revived successfully for four years starting in 2021. 

Take a summer trip across the Atlantic to make letter chains, dodge moving trash bins, double your money, and watch some of the funniest kids and musicians on either side of the pond.

Double Your Money (1955)

3-2-1 (1978)

Chain Letters (1987)

Going for Gold (1990)

Small Talk (1994)

Never Mind the Buzzcocks Premiere (1996)

Sunshine Matches

Started off the morning with breakfast and Bette Midler Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook. Having had success with songs performed by Rosemary Clooney, Midler moved on to the discography of an all-together different performer. Though Lee is probably best known today for performing and writing the songs from Lady and the Tramp, including "He's a Tramp," from the 50's through the 70's, she mostly sang languid ballads like "Is That All There Is?" and "Fever" or uptempo numbers from Broadway and movies like "Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe." Midler has a charming duet with her long-time friend and pianist Barry Manilow on "I Love Being Here With You."

Headed out to work after the CD ended. It didn't start well when I ran straight into a slippery puddle of floral-smelling blue goo oozing out of the trash in the back employee room. Someone must have dumped a bottle of dish washing liquid in the trash. Not only did it take forever to clean up, but several large, half-full soda bottles had broken the bag, making it nearly impossible to get out of the container. The frozen food manager had to help me get it out, then put two more bags around it to keep it from leaking. I was not a happy camper after all that. 

Thankfully, I spent the majority of the rest of the day outside, pushing carts and enjoying another gorgeous day. It was once again sunny, though a bit warmer and more humid than yesterday. There were two other baggers helping me as well. At least I had more to do. It was off-and-on steady, a bit busier than earlier in the week, but not overwhelming. I had no problems later in the day.

Though I did have dinner and took a shower later, I mostly spent the rest of the day watching tonight's Match Game marathon. Richard continued wearing his infamous red jacket through about 1976. Probably the most famous episodes he could be seen wearing it that year were the ones featuring the blond beauty Darlene, who definitely had a crush on him. She called him "Dickie Doo" and "The Red Devil." Richard also wore it on the New Year's Eve 1975 episode, when his then-girlfriend Jodie Donovan was on the panel. 

Even after he finally gave it up, Gene came up the slack with a bright red jacket of his own. That jacket was a lot more conspicuous than Richard's. Joey Bishop and Mary Wickes quipped about him looking like a matador in one episode. Richard opened another by wondering if he'd just come from Disneyland. Gene had more luck with a red vest he wore occasionally, notably on the famous 1978 Christmas Day show where Charles dressed as Santa and Brett was a bratty girl on his knee and when he carried Gary Burghoff and Patti Deusch into the studio earlier in 1978 imitating their children. 

Gene and Richard weren't the only ones who wore red on the show. Elaine Joyce wore red outfits on episodes of the syndicated show that looked fabulous on her. She and Eva Gabor wore red, and Gene sported a coat in a more subdued shade of red, on the episode where a young artist showed off his gorgeous renditions of woodland birds and the ladies held them up for all to see.

One of the funniest episodes of the entire nighttime run had Gene showing off a pair of bright red suede shoes he was enormously proud of. Those shoes got tossed around a lot when Charles argued the answer for  "The Eyes of ___" on the Audience Match with him. He, Brett, and Richard Paul sang "The Eyes of Texas" while the contestant ended up in Jamie Lee Curtis' lap and an amused Steve Kanaly (of Dallas) looked on. 

Red is the color of the panel's wardrobes and some of Gene and Richard's most outrageous jackets in this wild marathon!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Richard and Gene's Red Coats & Vests

Sleepy Time Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and Paw Patrol. "Rescue Knights: Pups Break the Ice" after Claw gives Sparks blue marshmallows that allow him to breathe ice. He freezes the clock tower, then Skye's helicopter. The others keep Claw and the bratty Duke of Flapppington busy and defrost the Paw Patrol Castle while Skye finds some very special helpers. Chase thinks in "Rescue Knights: Pups Save Excalibark" that he's pulled a fabled bone from a stone and is now the Royal Knight. He wants to help the others when Claw attacks again, but he ends up being a bigger help than he could know when he's the one who discovers that the so-called magic bone is a scam.

Hurried out to work after that. Thankfully, I did get there on time. The older man who now works as a bagger will only push carts, and only a few at a time. He doesn't do inside work, so I swept the store and helped him with the carts and did returns and gathered the outside trash. I wasn't too happy when I came inside and didn't realize until the security guard kindly pointed out that the trash bag was leaking! At least I didn't get far into the store. She cleaned it up, and doubled the bags. At least the weather was nice for all the running around. It remains warm, sunny, and dry, probably in the mid-80's. 

As soon as I got home, I changed, brought the new sneakers I ordered for work from Amazon upstairs, and went into bed for a nap. I couldn't sleep for more than an hour this time, and it didn't really help. I was still tired when I rolled out of bed and went online to watch tonight's Match Game marathon.

Richard Dawson had several jackets he wore a lot, but he was especially fond of a bright red jacket. He wore this one a lot between 1973 and 1975. It first turned up in a 1973 episode that also featured Pat Harrington and a Naval officer as a contestant. He also wore it on Arte Johnson's first episode, one of the days on the only week to feature football star Rosy Greer, and the first day for one of the biggest winners of 1974, police officer C.B Farnsworth. 

It was most commonly seen in 1975. In fact, Rich wore it in some of the best episodes of the year, like when Gene said "Schnick Snack" instead of "blank" the way the original German version of the show did, or Dick Martin's first episode. He wore it when Gary Burghoff wore a shirt that looked like a tuxedo and when Ron Valenti, the handsome teacher Fannie Flagg seemed to have such a crush on, first appeared. There was also when ingenue Melinda O. Fee got her first right answer, when Brett gave "Racer" as an answer for "Speed __" and she was the only one who knew it was a beloved early anime (she probably watched it with her sons), or when funny older man Bill gave some really hilarious answers. 

He also wore it on nighttime shows, notably the episode where he and Charles wore wide-brimmed straw hats. They claimed they were part of "Your Basic Big Picture Hat Society." Those "basic big picture hats" came in handy when Gene and Richard used them to hid their kissing the winning contestant after the Head-to-Head!

The redcoats are coming...to Television City to kiss behind hats, match policemen, and show off the many lives of one "schnick snacking" bright coat!

Match Game Saturday Classics - The Red Coats of Richard Dawson are Coming!