Animation Salutes the Troops

Began the day with breakfast and a quick Bluey episode. Bluey and Bingo aren't happy when their parents tell them they'll be spending time alone while the girls are at their grandmother's house. They pass the time in the car telling a story of how the parents "Escape" the kids in cars, airplanes, helicopters, and giant house-cars (complete with butler). 

Unfortunately, I overslept and got a late start, and thus, was late to work. I ended up cleaning the men's bathroom, too. The head bagger cleaned the women's bathroom. Otherwise, there were no major problems. This time, the head bagger swept, and I otherwise worked on carts. It was surprisingly quiet for Senior Discount Day. The carts weren't really that bad. It did start picking up a little by noon, but I was almost done by then anyway.

After I changed, I picked up a few gifts. My younger sister Anny's birthday is today. I grabbed a card and a gift card for her. Since I had an American Greetings online coupon, I also bought the most adorable little bright yellow and orange stuffed lion as a Christmas gift for my baby nephew Elijah. I did get stuck briefly in line when one lady had trouble with the free turkey, but thank heavens another line opened.

Headed to Oaklyn next to have lunch at Phillies Phatties. They only had cheese pizza out, but I did ask them to add mushrooms to one slice. Washed it down with a bottle of Diet Coke. They were surprisingly busy with older kids and adults picking up lunch while watching the news in Spanish on Telemundo. 

After that, I treated myself to a maple oatmeal cookie at Common Grounds. Actually, it was more like a crunchy whoopee pie, with not-too-sweet maple cream between two chewy maple oatmeal cookies. Yum! I was more in the mood for baked goods than ice cream. 

Since it was still a bit early, I went for a long bike ride around Oaklyn and West Collingswood after I finished my cookies. It was too nice not to! The weather couldn't have been more perfect for November, bright, breezy, sunny, and in the mid-60's. Unlike the last few weeks, it's supposedly not staying that way. The rain will be returning by Thursday. 

Even with the extra ride, I still got to Thomas Sharp a little early. This time, I was able to join the teachers as the first kids arrived. The head teacher read them Planting a Rainbow, then had me take my group to the bathroom. I will say the kids are getting better in the bathrooms. There's not quite as much fooling around as there was at this time last year. (Though I do need to talk to them about blocking the door to the hall when the custodians have to get in. Their office is between the boys and girls' bathrooms.)

After snack, I sat down and colored with the kids. Most of the kids begged to color a print of a sweet-looking fairy...including me. I turned mine into a fall fairy in orange and red, with yellow and green wings. Most of the kids went for rainbow colors and wild skin tones. Some of the boys did the title character of Blaze and the Monster Machines instead. One of the girls even gave me her fairy artwork later.

With the weather so gorgeous, it would have been a crime not to get out to the playground early. When we first got out, I jumped in the small pile of leaves that had blown against the chain link fence with some of the kids, and we inspected leaves to find the coolest shapes and the prettiest colors. When they did get on the swings, they spent more time wrestling too close to the swing set than actually swinging. Three of the girls switched shoes, so each of them wore two different ones. They probably thought it was funny, but I was afraid they'd stretch their shoes and got them to switch them back.

When we went back to the library, some of the kids resumed coloring. Others made art with rubbery stickers shaped like fall leaves and pumpkins. Other kids danced to songs from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and PJ Masks. I left after I finished my own fairy artwork.

Took out the trash when I got home, then had a tasty tomato and Swiss omelet for dinner. Spent the rest of the night watching war-related classic shorts in honor of Veteran's Day. Though Bosko did the World War I short "Bosko the Dough Boy" in the early 30's, most of the Looney Toons war efforts were pure World War II propaganda. In fact, they were so hot on the war, they jumped into it before it even came to the US with "Rookie Revue" and "Meet John Doughboy." Daffy joined the Army as "Daffy the Commando." "The Draft Horse" is eager to join, until he learns that war is a lot more than glamour and shooting at guys when he gets caught in the middle of war games. The last war short went to Bugs, as he bedeviled none other than Hermann Gobeling in "Herr Meets Hare." "Weakly Reporter" (city and suburbs)  and "Wacky Blackout" (country) were sketch comedies revolving around life on the home front. "The Duckinators" and "Fifth Column Mouse" acted as allegories for how the US got into the war, and how they intended to end it.

Three of my all-time favorite Looney Tunes shorts were war propaganda from none other than the truly wild mind of Bob Clampett. Bugs becomes a "Super Rabbit" when he eats a chemically-enhanced carrot. He does battle with a rabbit-hating cowboy (who sounds a lot like a prototype of Yosemite Sam) and his horse, but when push comes to shove, he dons the uniform of a real hero - a Marines officer. "Draftee Daffy" would do anything, and I mean anything, to dodge that remarkably persistent Little Man from the Draft Board! 

My favorite Clampett short, Warners wartime short, and Bugs Bunny short is "Falling Hare." For once, Bugs deals with an antagonist who gives as good as he gets when he catches a Gremlin sabotaging planes. This little fellow is no dope and does everything he can to get Bugs off that plane...until it goes into a freefall...

The Toons weren't the only ones who jumped into World War II before the US did. Popeye also got an early start in "The Mighty Navy." It was so early, the enemy wasn't even named. By the time of "Blunder Below" and "Fleets of Strength" he's definitely fighting the (heavily stereotyped) Japanese. Popeye didn't just go off fighting, either. He and Bluto found time to argue over Olive Oyl, whether they were doing "the Conger" with her in "Kicking the Conga Around" or competing to show her around their boat in "Olive Oyl and Water Don't Mix."

Finished the night online with the Superman shorts of the early 40's. Given the tenor of the comic books at the time, it would have been surprising if Superman hadn't fought the Axis. He has to rescue Lois when "Japoteurs" sabotage an experimental plane. "The Eleventh Hour" features gorgeous, shadowy animation and a surprisingly mature story that has Superman doing his own sabotage in Japan while he and Lois are held prisoner there. "Jungle Drums" has Lois saving papers from a Nazi agent using natives and their temple to down Allied planes. Superman rescues her from being burned at the stake. "Secret Agent" is the only short not to feature Lois. Here, Superman protects a double agent who found out information about a spy ring from the men who want to stop her from delivering information on them to Washington. 

Veteran's Games

Started the morning with breakfast and Richie Rich. Irona thinks she isn't wanted when the Rich family gives her a vacation at a spa and hires a temporary replacement maid. It becomes "Irona Vs. Demona" when Richie suspects Irona's replacement is more interested in filching cash than dusting cabinets. The first Gem has Santa asking Richie what he can bring him. Dollar has a close encounter with the artwork hanging on the Rich's walls in the second. The imaginative canine is more interested in catching fish in Richie's pool in the Treasure Chest story "Chef's Surprise." Richie, Gloria, and Dollar save the Rich mansion from "The Snow Bounders" when a criminal mastermind sends a snowstorm to literally freeze their assets.

Spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon printing out the remaining paperwork for the Cherry Hill low-income housing. I thought I couldn't find the John Hancock quarterly statement originally, and it took me forever to print out all of the bank notices and pay stubs I needed. I did finally get them done and in the Priority Mail folder right before lunch.

Had a quick lunch while watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus. Mickey goes on "The Friendship Day Adventure" as Kansas City Mickey to find a special heart-shaped jewel for Minnie. When he trips a Tricky Trap and gets stuck in a temple, Kansas City Minnie goes after him.

Hurried out even before the episode ended. I did stop at the post office and got the package sent out to Cherry Hill...but that also made me five minutes late to Thomas Sharp. The kids were in the library, sitting in front and listening to the head teacher read a story about a caterpillar and her friends becoming butterflies. I got mine to the bathroom fairly quickly, and we had snack time even faster. There were 18 kids today, and they were all pretty noisy.

We got the kids out around 3:30 on a windy, cold, cloudy fall day. I let them on the swings 20 minutes later. Probably just as well that the line wasn't nearly as long as usual. One of the teachers started a game of hide and seek and was running around with them. The kids ended up on top of each other at one point when they were in line. I did tell them to be more careful! After the sun started going down and we went back inside, we colored. There were six older kids and three younger ones left when I headed out.

When I got home, I did some chores downstairs, took the laundry down, and watched Match Game '78. I saw the hilarious Christmas episode with Charles as Santa and Brett as a little girl on his knee. Despite what Brett and Charles claimed later, I thought their skit was hilarious and made this by far the best of the Match Game Christmas episodes.

Since Match Game jumped way back to 1973 after that episode, I finished "The Friendship Day Adventure," made the bed, changed the sheets, took a shower, brought the laundry upstairs, and switched to YouTube. I found a series of documentaries about moves of the 1920's that are now lost. Of the ones discussed in the episodes I saw, I'm most interested in Hollywood, a comedy which apparently had 60 cameos from beloved stars of the time, the early talkie revue The Fox Movietone Follies of 1929, the lost Colleen Moore romantic comedy Sally, and the Miss America-in-Technicolor tale The American Venus. 

Stayed at YouTube to finish the night with Family Feud. The show revived its Armed Forces week tournament in 2004 after the Iraq War started the year before. This time, it was considerably streamlined. There was no big final tournament episode, and the Coast Guard didn't join in. The episode was just as much fun to watch. The Marines once again wound up being the big winners (and the best trash-talkers), though they had a harder time with the Fast Money bonus round. Richard Karn was a lot more animated than usual as he put them through their paces.

Honor Veteran's Day and the veterans of the Iraq War with this week of Armed Services feuds!

Day 1 - Army Vs. Navy

Day 2 - Marines Vs. Air Force

Day 3 - Navy Vs. Air Force

Day 4 - Army Vs. Air Force

Day 5 - Marines Vs. Army

Day 6 - Marines Vs. Navy

My Heart Belongs to Matches

Started off the morning with breakfast and "Miss Kitt to You." This greatest hits collection for Earth Kitt mainly features songs from the height of her early success in the 50's and 60's. Seven of the songs come from Broadway musicals, two of which, New Faces of 1952 and Shinbone Alley, Kitt herself starred in. "Monotonous" was her big number from New Faces. "A Woman Wouldn't Be a Woman" is from the little-known flop Shinbone Alley. There's a lot of numbers sung in or partially in French, too - "Je Churche Un Homme," "C'est Bon," "Avril Un Portugal," "Tojour Gai." "St. Louis Blues" and "Just an Old-Fashioned Girl" are also fun.

Hurried off to work after I finished eating and just barely got there on time. Thank heavens that was the worst thing that happened all day. I spent the entirety of a gorgeous, sunny, breezy afternoon outside pushing carts. The Sunday morning bagger and afternoon bagger helped me with carts and took over the indoor chores, including sweeping and the trash. I wasn't too happy when one older man who thought he was funny made snide comments wondering why the Acme had a woman pushing carts. This was offset by a lovely Hispanic woman who complimented my haircut and a nice older lady who was genuinely grateful when I offered to put her cart away for her.

Went straight home to finish the night with dinner and Match Game. For a daytime program from the 1970's, there was an awful lot of talk about, well, how to put this delicately? About throwing up. It was mentioned in a 1973 episode with game show hostess Ruta Lee and in a 1976 episode that introduced an adorable little old lady named Johnnie. In 1975, a lady contestant gave Gary Burghoff, whose character Radar on MASH was known for his fondness for his teddy bear, a cute little bear of his own. 

The funniest episode of the entire 1973 - 1979 CBS run hinged around an upchucking question. Gene was only asking the celebrities on the lower tier a question, so they took the roles of their counterparts over their heads. Richard Dawson did make a funny Brett, but the real winners were Jo Ann Pflug's wide gleaming smile as Dick Gautier and Fannie Flagg's utterly perfect Charles. 

Some funny nighttime shows featured similar questions. Another memorable contestant from a 1977 nighttime show was a little old gentleman named Henry with a twinkle in his eye and a crush on Brett. He was thrilled to give Brett a kiss, and they enjoyed it so much, Gene had to separate them. Elaine Joyce somehow ended up making out in the opening of a show from 1979. 

Settle your stomach troubles with these wild episodes that will go down smooth and not come up in the morning.

Match Game Sunday Classics - The Upchucking Marathon

Foot Stompin' Matches

Started off the day with breakfast and He-Man. Orko releases "Daimar the Demon" from a book to play with him. He doesn't realize that Daimar's presence wreaks havoc on Eternia, and that Daimar won't stay small and cute forever. Skeletor intends to use the demon's power to gain control of the planet, but Orko is the only one who can really return Daimar to where he came from.

Hurried off to work after the cartoon ended. Got there just in time. Good thing, too. The carts kept disappearing. The head bagger was there, but...she didn't do the sweeping, and she didn't tell me she wasn't. She was inside and not on the registers, so I assumed she was doing it. I missed three sweeps and felt really bad about it. I did it during the second half of my shift. She did do the outside trash, but they sent out one of the college boys to help me with the carts. At least it was a nice day for all of this. Sunny, windy, and relatively cool, probably in the mid-60's.

Went straight home after work. Changed, then watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus. Mickey wants to get Minnie a special heart-shaped pink jewel for Friendship Day. As Kansas City Mickey, he heads to a temple to retrieve it. When he gets trapped in the room with the jewel, Kansas City Minnie goes after him for "The Friendship Day Adventure."

Finished the night with dinner and YouTube for today's Match Game marathon. There was a lot of talk about feet on this show, starting with Brett constantly complaining about Charles not wearing socks. Charles would occasionally respond by swinging his sockless feet on the desk, to Brett's annoyance. Once, a lady gave Charles socks. (Richard was hoping she'd send him underwear.) Another time, Gene gave an audience member his argyle socks after Betty rolled up his pants legs to expose them. Someone sent Gene socks with toes in them; Richard ended up with them. 

Betty rolled Gene's pants legs up and his socks down at least five or six times during the run of the series. Gene complained a picture of him with his rolled-up pants made it to the cover of at least one TV guide. Betty wasn't the only one who did it, either. Richard and Lee Merriweather did it at least once, and I'm pretty sure Patti Deutsch did it, too. 

Then there were just the shows with references to socks or feet, like on the syndicated week with Gary Crosby and Rita Moreno. There was one in the hilarious nighttime episode from 1977 where Richard and Betty White pretended to be Charles and Brett to answer a question, too. Another nighttime episode had Gene showing off his red suede shoes. Brett, Charles, and Richard Paul were more interested in singing about "The Eyes of Texas" while the contestant ended up in Jamie Lee Curtis' lap. 

Have a foot-stompin', rip roarin' time with these hilarious episodes...and watch out for panelists who are all-too eager to roll down socks!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Socks and Smelly Feet Marathon

Dolls and the Autumn Storms

Began a gloomy morning with breakfast and more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus. Little Helper and Pluto are "Home Aloners" when they get stuck in Minnie's Clubhouse while the others take paper airplanes to the park for an air show. Mickey and his friends go looking for them, while they just have fun goofing off and making a mess.

It was pouring when I woke up this morning, and would rain in one form or another for most of the day. We even got some really noisy thunderstorms, especially this morning. I never went further than the porch to get the mail.

Dressed the dolls instead. Nicole is already in her workout gear, but I did put her silky dark-brown hair in a side ponytail. Barbara Jean wears a pink and black Our Generation mini dress with an attached white satin pin-tuck blouse and bright pink stockings. Jessa's working on a new project in the Artist Outfit from 1999. Samantha, Molly, and Josefina are all in their original "meet" outfits. Sam wears hers with black stockings and boots. Molly borrowed Sam's "BeForever" strap shoes and wears her red argyle socks. 

Ariel wears a pretty blue and turquoise square-neck peasant blouse Lauren sent ages ago with the beaded flared jeans from the 2004 modern meet outfit and the boots Whitney came in. Whitney is in the really cute white and red flowered dress with the attached red cardigan I found at the Marlton doll resale store before it closed last year. Felicity doesn't really fit into her blue and gold BeForever meet outfit, but she looks so pretty in it, it's hard to complain. Kit wears a hand-made knitted burgundy sweater and plaid wrap skirt from eBay.

Started off listening to the soundtrack from A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum. I know a lot of Sondheim and stage fans are down on this one, but I think it's a blast. A pack of professional hams have way too much fun with some of the most hilarious music Sondheim ever wrote. Special kudos to Michael Crawford's awkwardly adorable "Lovely" and Zero Mostel and Jack Gilford's even funnier reprise.

The cool thing about the Original Cast! 100 Years of the American Musical Theater CD series is, in addition to the usual hits like Beauty and the Beast and La Cage Aux Folles, it includes songs from flops that may be obscure even to some major musical fans. My favorite number from those little-known flops was the gorgeous "Anyone Who Loves" from Dance a Little Closer. It's too bad this updated musical version of Idiot's Delight was apparently overproduced and had major backstage problems, because that song really is very touching. 

Other flops with songs worth hearing included the charming "Married Life" from the failed Thin Man adaptation Nick & Nora and the sweet "Romantic Notions" from Romance/Romance, a small-scale show with two different musicals in each act. At least two flops, Falsettoland and Merrily We Roll Along, are far better regarded today than they were in the 80's and early 90's when they debuted. (Merrily even had a hit revival just a few years ago.)

Closer Than Ever from 1989 also gives us some unique material for a stage musical. Having been burned by the failure of their Baby in 1983, Maltby and Shire took their next show off-Broadway. It's about as simple as you can get, a revue with songs representing different aspects of (then) modern life. I'm impressed with many of these songs. Numbers like "Life Story," about how a 70's feminist responds to the more conservative 80's, "One of the Good Guys," "Miss Byrd," "Patterns," and "Fathers of Fathers" discuss people and situations that don't normally turn up in big Broadway shows. Shire even wrote "Another Wedding Song" for he and his wife Didi Conn to sing at their own wedding. Very recommended if you're looking for a low-key show on subjects that you won't hear discussed in any other musical.

I had buckwheat pancakes with dried cherries for lunch, then checked my schedule. In good news, more hours. In frustrating news, two double days, Tuesday and Wednesday, and an early Saturday next week. The head bagger must have needed time off again.

Switched to The Price Is Right (an encore of the episode with the "story" Showcase that had Princess Holly kissing Frog Prince Johnny Olsen) after Closer Than Ever ended. Had dinner while watching Match Game '78. Eva Gabor wondered if it was really her when she started actually matching answers, while David Doyle had too much fun whether he matched or not.

Finished the night with a more recent Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode. Emily and the 'bots got to roast The Shape of Things to Come, a 1979 Canadian sci-fi flick that owed far more to Star Wars than H.G Wells. When even Jack Palance (as the head of a planet looking to take over Earth) chews all the scenery in sight and still isn't all that interesting, you know this is B-movie cheese of the lowest order. The movie is terrible, and I honestly wouldn't recommend it without the robot comments unless you're a huge fan of 70's-80s sci-fi cheese, but the episode is one of the best from Emily's run. 

Where Is the Home for Me?

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Plus. Chip and Dale want to go on "The Big Acorn Hunt" to collect food for the winter, but Dale comes down with the sniffles. Mickey and the others gather the acorns for them while Chip tends to his ailing friend.

I didn't finish the episode before calling Uber. It took 12 minutes to arrive, and I was late leaving...which proved to be a moot point. The housing counselor called when the driver was just coming out of Pennsauken and said it was a phone meeting. I told her I was on my way and had things to show her. I got there in 15 minutes.

Yes, we did talk. I did tell her I have to be out in a few months. She's still pushing the rental waiting lists. I don't want to rent. I want to buy a condo. I've moved too many times. We did finish the application...and she said my pay stubs had to be updated. I printed them out weeks ago. I also needed to finish things online. She gave me lists of participating lenders and said we'd meet again in a little over a month and a half. 

Since it's next door to the building where Clarifi is, I made my way over to the Cherry Hill Library after the appointment ended for their last book sale of the year. They were busy, especially around where the CDs, DVDs, and records are...and no wonder. I didn't dig up any records or DVDs and only one book for me, but I did come up with 8 CDs for me and five country CDs for Lauren, plus books for Aurora and Khai. The one book I found for me was Betsy-Tacy Go Downtown by Maud Hart Lovelace. They had the whole series, but I only have room for one right now. I'll take the rest out of local libraries. The CDs for me were: 

Sally Mayes - The Dorothy Fields Songbook

Soundtracks for Into the Woods, Mrs. Henderson Presents, and the score for Dick Tracy

The original cast albums for Rags, The Light In the Piazza, Spring Awakening, and Side Show, and the 1962 studio recording of the revue Pins and Needles with Barbra Streisand

Called Uber after I bought my purchases. I had far fewer problems getting home. The lady arrived in 6 minutes. There was some traffic around Cuthbert, but it could have been worse. I was home by 2 PM.

Ate lunch and got organized while watching more Clubhouse Plus. Finished "The Big Acorn Hunt" and went right into "Mickey's Get-Up-and-Go Day." The crew has a very busy and productive day when it's time to get ready for a pool party. They have to mow and rake the lawn, gather pool toys and lawn chairs, and get into their swimsuits! Good thing they're around to help each other and make their chores a lot more enjoyable.

"Three Knights are We" say Daisy, Minnie, and Goofy when they go on a quest to become Queen Clarabelle's most recent knights. They have to prove they are strong, brave, and clever in a series of challenges around the castle...but things get personal when they have to rescue Mickey Hood and Friar Donald from the tower!

Headed back out, this time on my bike. Despite it being cloudy and spitting, I wanted to get the grocery shopping done. It's supposed to be worse tomorrow! I honestly didn't need a ton anyway. Ginger molasses cookies are on clearance at Sprouts. Got golden raisins, oat milk, and that tasty Nektar Pop soda there, too. Restocked yogurt, soda, granola, tuna, and bagels at the Acme. Had an online coupon for the Like Air Puffcorn. Pears were cheaper than apples; I got two of them. 

By the time I got done with that and chores, it was so late, I went straight into Match Game '78. The first half of the night finished out the week with Avery, Barbara, and Betty. The second half kept Betty, but brought in David Doyle and Eva Gabor, along with Betty doing another striptease.

Finished the night with Thanks a Million on YouTube. I go further into this unique political fable from 1935 at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Election Day Special - Thanks a Million

Harts On a Warm Fall Day

Began the morning with breakfast and Little Bear. Little Bear, Emily, and Granny make "Gingerbread Cookies" that somehow manage to run off, forcing the trio to chase them. Father Bear teaches Little Bear and his friends how to play "Marbles." Mitzi wins them all, but Little Bear knows how to get them back. Little Bear and No Feet start "The Garden War" when they find a mole in the garden, but the mole proves to not be scary at all.

Hurried out after the cartoon ended on the bike. Got there just in time, which was a good thing. We were a lot busier than we normally are on a Wednesday. No idea what was going on. Senior Discount Day is Tuesday, the next major holiday is next week, and we're not close enough to Thanksgiving for most people to be buying dinner. I had a hard time keeping up with the carts and wasn't too unhappy when I finished. Grabbed a Caesar salad wrap, chips, a banana, and soda, and headed out after I changed.

The weather remains too nice to eat inside! I enjoyed my sandwich at the small park around the War Memoral across from Oaklyn School on West Clinton. It's still in the mid-upper 70's, sunny, and breezy. A little too warm for November, to be honest, but we might as well enjoy it before it finally cools off. It was so nice, I ended up cutting through Oaklyn and West Collingswood and stopping at the benches outside of Zena's Mediterranean Restaurant for a few minutes before I got to Thomas Sharp right on time.

Good thing, too. We had 16 hyped-up kids today. They were really excited about their two days off for New Jersey's teacher convention. At least they weren't that bad in the bathrooms. I did have to help one poor miss who had an accident. We finished in the bathroom just as the other kids were going outside. 

You won't be surprised to hear that we got the kids outside the moment they finished snack time. It was too beautiful for them to be inside, too. There was a long line for the swings when I let them on, all of them fussing over wanting to swing with their best friend and no one else. I finally got fed up and told them they'd go on with whomever they happened to be next to. The point is getting to swing. At least all but two or three kids did get on, and they all seemed to have a great time once they did. One of the moms ran around briefly with them, too. We finally took them in when the sun started going down, after which I went straight home.

Came in for the second half of The Price Is Right. I arrived right as a gentleman played Walk of Fame. He did manage to get bakeware and a pool table, but not a dune buggy. The next lady did about the same on Switcheroo. She got two small prizes, but no car. The gentleman eventually joined a younger Air Force officer in the Showcase. Here, we had a rare case of the generic "department store floors" Showcase having the car. The story Showcase was that big camera and the prizes that could improve their lives, including a trip. The officer went over on his trip; the gentleman got living room furniture and his car.

Let it run into Match Game '78 while I ate a big dinner. The first half of the night finished out the Joe Gargiola week with a man whose pregnant wife was in the audience and in labor. Gene and the panelists were far more nervous than the man and his wife were! No idea why they skipped the next two weeks. They picked up with Barbara Rhodes, Betty White, and Avery Schriberer showing off the new duds his stint as the Frito Bandito in commercials bought him. Betty was more interested in doing her idea of a striptease for a question.

Finished the night with Hart to Hart. Jonathan and Jennifer get involved in "The Raid" when a Hart Industries researcher and his pregnant wife are kidnapped while working in South America. After Jonathan learns that their kidnapper is an old enemy of his, he and Jennifer personally deliver the diamonds the man requests. After they make sure the researcher and his wife are sent home, Jonathan insists on calling in some old friends to get those diamonds back. 

You're Not Elected In New Jersey, Charlie Brown

Began the morning with breakfast and Doc McStuffins. "Doc McStuffins Goes to Washington" when she wins a contest to tour the White House, with none other than then-First Lady Michelle Obama (herself) as her guide. She fixes the stuffed otter belonging to another girl on the tour, then has to find the otter when it goes looking for her owner. "Winded Winnie" is a wind-up tiger used to blow up balloons. Doc's brother Donny is upset when Winnie just wheezes instead of blowing out air. Doc discovers she has dust in her lungs from being in the attic for years. Unlike her brother Donny, who needs a doctor visit to clear his asthma, Winnie just needs her air tube dusted and washed.

Switched to Happy Days while I scanned and printed out the final paper (my quarterly notice for John Hancock). Richie learns about "The Not-Making of the President" when he falls for a girl who is campaigning for Adelai Stevenson. Mr. Cunningham is shocked anyone in his family could go against Eisenhower. He's even more horrified when his son speaks for the Democrats at a youth rally, until he sees that Fonzie is speaking for the Republicans.

Mike Nesmith throws his wool hat into the ring on The Monkees when their elderly neighbors are thrown out of their homes to build a parking lot. This "Monkee Mayor" discovers just what a dirty game politics is when he and the others try to get the goods on a corrupt businessman (Monty Landis) who controls the current mayor.

Politics isn't any easier for the cops on Barney Miller. "The Election" gets pretty wild at the precinct when they have to deal with a shoplifter who stole ladies' undergarments and a woman (Brett Somers) who threw a toilet out the window when her husband wouldn't let her vote. There's also the local cop who is running for public office and discovers the hard way that working the beat doesn't automatically make you popular with the voting public.

Headed out after Barney Miller ended. I was originally going to eat out at one of the local diners...but the weather was so gorgeous, I decided on a picnic instead. I bought a turkey and bacon hoagie at the Shamrock Deli (and snitched a small free bag of Halloween pretzels) and took them to the playground in Newton Lake Park where the stone pavilion is. I sat at a brand-new picnic table, enjoying my sandwich in the bright sun. It was in the mid-70's, breezy, sunny, and warm as can be. The light sparkled on the lake and made the flame red and gold trees around me glow like stardust.

Rushed home briefly to use the bathroom, then rushed back out to the school. I just made it on time, and it was a good thing. We had 20 kids at the outset today. They started off in the cafeteria, due to the music class on Tuesdays. My group was a little rowdy in the bathrooms, especially the girls, but I did manage to get them in and out in good time. I colored more pumpkin emotion pictures with them after snack time. 

We're trying to get the kids out a little earlier now that the sun is going down by 5 PM. The line for the swings was long at the outset, but once one of the teachers started a game of "Red Light, Green Light," that ended that. There was still some squabbling over best friends wanting to swing together, but in the end, I think all but maybe two or three kids got on the swings...and the others were having so much fun chasing the teachers around, they didn't really care. There were four boys and one girl left when I headed out to beat the sun home.

By the time I finished my chores and took my shower, Match Game '78 was into its second half-hour. They finished out the week with Helaine Lembeck and moved on to the only week for game show host and baseball great Joe Garagiola. He wasn't too thrilled when Gene leaned in for that "new kid on the block" kiss, but had fewer problems when Brett kissed him. Debralee Scott and Betty White were more interested in the unique camera angles they tested that week. (Charles didn't like how they showed his toupee.)

Put on You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown after Match Game ended. The votes are in at Charlie Brown's school. There's no way he'd get nominated for school president. but Linus might have a shot. Other than a radio interview that doesn't go well, he looks like a lock...until he starts lecturing on his favorite subject, the Great Pumpkin.

Ended the night with Remember WENN. Married acting couple Hilary Booth and Jeff Singer are "Strange Bedfellows" when they join opposing parties in the race for Pittsburgh City Council. Con man station manager Scott Sherwood sees this as the opportunity for a big debate with lots of publicity. Hilary and Jeff spend most of it arguing, until the third candidate, folksy former baseball star Luke Langley (David Canary), remind them that politics is a full-time job that has a lot more going on than just pretty speeches. 

Fantasy Games

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and Richie Rich. "The Blur" is the Riches short. A strange blur steals all the jewels and valuables in Rich Manor, until Richie, Gloria, and Dollar figure out what it really is and put a stop to it. The first Gems short has Richie doing calculations on an enormous (and smart-mouthed) computer. He pulls money out of a huge piggy bank for Dollar in the second. Dollar hides from his "Cur Wash" in the Treasures Chest story, but he keeps getting dirty. The Zillion Dollar Adventure takes Richie, Gloria, and Dollar to Australia when Richie's friend says his father has been arrested for stealing gold from the Rich Australian mines. Richie learns "The Kangaroo Hop" to find out who's really behind the thefts.

After I made the bed, I spent the next few hours taking down the Halloween decorations and putting up what I have for Thanksgiving. I've really found some great stuff for this holiday from thrift shops in the past few years. The small Pilgrim teddy I picked up in Philadelphia this summer is joined by a larger girl Pilgrim bear that Jodi gave me from Dad's collection after he died. Three stuffed turkeys, one smaller, one with dangling beaded legs, also came from Dad's house. Cartoony Plymouth the Turkey and more realistic Mayflower are leftover from when I collected Webkinz in the late 2000's-early 2010's. The small stuffed Pilgrim and Indian girl and Pilgrim resin figures are thrift shop finds, as are the porcelain turkey Pilgrim salt and pepper shakers.

Listened to records while I worked. Story and Songs About Walt Disney's Three Little Pigs is what it says on the tin. Sterling Holloway lends his folksy voice to vocal versions of the three Silly Symphony cartoons. The pigs have normal female voices and the wolf a rather goofy, deep voice, neither from the original cartoons. The stories are pretty much more-or-less as they are in the shorts...alas including some of the more disturbing attributes of the final short, like Practical using a lie detector on the wolf and having him spanked. 

Despite being listed as "the voices from the original soundtrack album," The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm is really more of a book and record. Charles Ruggles narrates the three stories from the film, "The Dancing Princess" (a version of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses"), "The Elves and the Shoemaker," and "The Singing Bone," along with the wrap-around story detailing how the Brothers Grimm became better known for their fairy tales than their scholarly works. I reviewed the film back in 2021 and thoroughly enjoyed it. (And I'm not the only one. They did finally release that Blu-ray I mention in the review later in 2021, and it apparently came out beautifully.) 

You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown isn't one of the better-known Peanuts specials today, but its soundtrack does have a few numbers worth checking out. "Joe Cool" made its debut here, in a vocal version performed by Vince Guaraldi himself. "Incumbent Waltz" and "Cookin' Snoopy" are also fun, and there's the bonus "African Sleigh Ride" on Side B.

Hurried off even before the record ended. I needed money at WaWa. Since I hadn't eaten, I grabbed a "mini meal" pack with a boiled egg, cubed cheddar, grapes, sliced apples, and really tasty chia corn chips too. Grabbed them and headed down the White Horse Pike to Thomas Sharp.

Good thing I made it just in time. 18 kids were waiting in the hall for the music class to end when I arrived. At least there was a ton of help dealing with them. In addition to me, the head teacher, and two regular teachers, there was the woman helping with one of the kindergarten boys. I ate lunch as they had their snacks, then colored with them until it was time to go outside. Even with all of the teachers there, they spent way too much time squabbling over who would swing with whom. They all want to swing with their best friends, which means people whose friends would rather be running around have no one to go on with. I'd go on with them, which would bring someone running over to the swing. At least all but one kid made it on before the sun started going down and we had to go inside. There was so much help, they let me go early after I finished coloring a cute picture of pumpkins showing off different emotions.

I did chores and brought the laundry downstairs, then went upstairs to watch Match Game '78. Buzzr skipped ahead into the first episodes of the new year with Gary Burghoff, Jo Ann Pflug, and Fannie Flagg. Female Sweathog Helaine Lembeck turned up the next week, with Dick Martin and Betty White.

Finally brought the laundry upstairs, then finished the night with some of the more unique American Gladiators imitations of the 1990's. The show debuted in syndication in 1989, and with its normal people fighting colorfully-dressed "gladiators" in wild stunts, rapidly became one of the most popular syndicated shows of the early 90's. Its wild success inspired other fantasy competition shows in the early-mid 90's, like Knights and Warriors from 1992. This one takes a medieval theme as the comedic "gladiators" are replaced by stereotypical fantasy villains, like evil princesses and crazed barbarians. The stunts also have a mild fantasy theme, including the attempt to joust and knock a villain off a pedestal and shoot the "villains" with bows and arrows. 

Wild West Showdown from 1994 was one of the more interesting of the fantasy action game shows. Here, the villains are outlaws and the contestants are three cowboys and cowgirls riding in to clean up the fictional western town. This is by far my favorite of the four shows I watched tonight. They really get into the theming here, with a reporter interviewing the contestants after the round to get their opinion, a cowboy narrator explaining the back story behind the town, and creative stunts that mirror what a real western sheriff might have done. 

Also from 1994, Beach Clash stayed outside but moved to the beaches of Los Angeles for outdoor stunts played by two teams from different American cities. In the episode I have, the Seattle Sea Otters battle it out with the Tallahassee Tiger Sharks for dominance in volleyball, riding around waves on a raft, kayaking, and climbing "hills." 

Battle Dome debuted in 1999, long after American Gladiators and its imitations had come and gone. This one really owed more to the popularity of another violent sport, professional wrestling, in the 90's than to Gladiators. Contestants debuted to noisy, bombastic theme music and had their own female partners. Unlike the other shows, the only women who competed were in a one-off week. Men fought in far more dangerous stunts like the "battle wheel" and Arial Kickboxing. Despite being late to the party, it did manage to run two years, mostly on the strength of cross-promotions like their rivalry with the WCW.

Battle in a medieval castle, the Wild West, the beach, and a wrestling arena and see what it takes for these cowgirls and cowboys, knights, and beach bums to come out on top!

Knights and Warriors (1992)

Beach Clash (1994)

Wild West Showdown (1994)

Battle Dome (1999)

The Boss and the Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and Madonna. Something To Remember is actually a collection of Madonna's more popular ballads, plus two movie songs that hadn't been seen elsewhere, "I'll Remember" and "This Used to Be My Playground." "Rain," "Crazy for You," and "Live to Tell" were three more earlier hits that made it here. The big hit recorded directly for the album was "You'll See." She also does well by an eerie version of "I Want You." 

Called Uber even before Madonna ended. I didn't want to take my bike after a seven-hour shift. I think I made the right call. The one going to the Acme arrived in 5 minutes. The one going home came in 6. No trouble there. I was even a little bit early.

That was about the only thing that did go right during my entire shift. The entire day was a mess. It wasn't bad when I got in at 9, but by 10:30-11, we were mobbed. I was alone for most of the morning and kept falling behind with the carts. Even after they pulled one of the college boys to help, we were still behind. I had to clean up a ginger ale spill alone at one point. Later on, one lady refused to pay for her large order and just dumped the cart up front, which meant I lost that college boy when he had to put it away. About the only good thing I can say is the weather continues to be nice, and in fact, too warm for this time of year, in the lower 70's. Otherwise, I was very happy to get out of there.

In fact, I was so tired and angry and fed up when I got home, I went straight into bed for a nap. I went down at 4:30 and didn't get up again until almost 6. I did feel a little better afterwards, but I'm still pretty tired.

Tonight's YouTube marathon had already started when I got on. Producer Mark Goodson was the face of his company for many years. He was the one who actually went on the shows, made announcements and appeared with the staff. He was a Mystery Guest or panelist many times on What's My Line, including once where he appeared with his long-time partner (who mostly handled the business side of things) Bill Todman. In fact, Goodson proved to be a charming host in his own right when he hosted What's My Line at 25 with John Daly and Arlene Francis, a special showing often-hilarious clips from the best moments in the very long history of that show.

He turned up three times on Match Game. The first was in 1974, to give Gene a bag for his needlepoint in honor of the great job he was doing and how popular the show was. He appeared a little later in 1974 to sit in briefly for Charles Nelson Reilly when he was late to a taping "getting his hair nailed on." His last appearance was New Year's Eve 1976 with a speech thanking everyone for the show's continuing success and to read a joke question about "old man Gene" hosting Match Game '99. (Which, alas, he did not. Goodson died in '92, Gene in 1999.)

Goodson was generally only seen during big anniversaries and major events. He appeared on The Price Is Right for their 19th and 20th anniversaries. In fact, their 20th anniversary show in September 1991 was one of his last appearances before he died. Earlier on Family Feud, he crowned Richard Dawson king on their 7th anniversary, praised the job the staff was doing on their 5th, and read the results of a poll on Richard's habit of kissing all the ladies. Goodson also anchored the male team during the Feud "Hollywood Walk of Fame" week. Betty White anchored the ladies.

Speaking of Betty, one of the few surviving episodes of the 1971-1975 ABC Password run is the series finale. Sam Mellville and Kate Jackson of The Rookies were the last two celebrities helping ladies guess and bet on different words. When they finished, four members of the staff (many of whom would eventually work on Feud as well) played each other. Goodson gave Allen the Tank Watch he talked about so much during his and Betty's week together in 1975 on Match Game. Betty was there by Allen's side as they talked about how they met on Password and the show came to an end. 

In 1991, Goodson got another chance at the host's chair when Alex Trebek ran out of To Tell the Truth because his wife was having a baby. Goodson proved to be quite suited to it, actually. He certainly did the show no harm. He actually got some interesting stories, including one about a woman who became a Wall Street broker while still in her teens and a millionaire by 21 and a man who flew around the world on a seaplane. 

Find out more about the face behind so many beloved shows in this often hilarious and sometimes touching marathon!

Sunday Game Show Classics - Mark Goodson on Set

Halloween Harvest

Started off the morning with the Halloween material from Colliers Harvest of Holidays. "The Blue-Nosed Witch" is a scatterbrained young sorceress who is always late to her flight formations. She sets her clock so far back on Halloween, she ends up trick-or-treating with the local kids. A young witch and her friends accidentally make "The Water Nixie" appear when they really want a fairy. She's more concerned about how she's going to get past her older witch guardian and go to school. There's also two long poems on Halloween spooks and trick-or-treating.

Watched The Scooby Doo Show at Tubi during breakfast. "The Headless Horseman of Halloween" invades a party Mystery Inc is attending at Crane Manor. Turns out the manor was built on the very place where a Hessian solider lost his head during the Revolutionary War. When the head and a priceless diamond necklace go missing, Mystery Inc explores a spooky graveyard to figure out what's going on.

Hurried out after the cartoon ended. I had a lot to do today, starting with a quick stop at PNC for money so I could hit the Collingswood Farm Market. I haven't been there in ages! The late fall produce is out now, cauliflower, hearty greens, cranberries, apples, potatoes, pears, and winter squash, but there were still plenty of late summer fruits and veggies out, too. I ended up with little apples, cranberries, Cherry tomatoes for sandwiches and snacking, red table grapes, and spelt wheat bread from one of the bakery booths. Got a pumpkin spice latte cream bar from the Bubba's Creamery cart for a treat. Said "hi" to one of the little girls from the after-school class, her baby brother, and her mom and wished them Happy Halloween!

Headed to the Westmont Acme next. They were a lot busier than I thought they'd be, considering it's the last day of the month. I did dodge shoppers long enough to restock yogurt, soda, Swiss cheese, cookies, and fruit preserves. I didn't want to buy 4 granola bar boxes, but the Nature Valley Wafers were a fairly reasonable regular price. Grabbed caramel apple lollipops and Starburst green apple lollipops (the later already on clearance) to give trick-or-treaters. Veggie chips were also a really good regular price.

Target was almost as busy. They have Slice flavors that are exclusive to them. I grabbed their version of Mountain Dew, Pacific Pop. Granola bars are cheaper here, too. Got another bag of candy here as well, white "Ghost" Reeces cups. Also got a small Iced Pumpkin Matcha Latte at Starbucks.

Sprouts was only slightly less busy than everyone else. Mainly picked up oat milk and bulk dried cranberries here. Found bakery chocolate chip cookies and Bob's Red Mill granola on really good clearance sales. Got the shredded chicken here when I couldn't find it at the Acme.

When I got home, I put everything away, then ate a quick lunch while watching the first of two Match Game Productions Halloween marathons on YouTube today. The one early in the afternoon showcased a wide variety of Halloween game show episodes. I came mid-way through the 1991 Family Feud episode with Ray Combs dressed as a very unlikely Robin Hood. Stuck around for the classic Match Game '90 Halloween episode and the 1988 Super Password Halloween episode with Christoper Hewitt and Edie McClurg. They were just starting the Classic Concentration Halloween episode when I realized how late it was getting. 

Here's the entire marathon anyway, so you can celebrate Halloween weekend game show style!

Trick or Treat: Happy Halloween (Spooktacular Marathon 2026)

I got into my black cat costume and put on the makeup, then took the candy and Mystery Bags, my stuffed black cat Luna, the purple pumpkin I used for my black cat table yesterday, and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories and went outside to sit on the stoop. It was a gorgeous day to just sit on the stoop and read, regardless of what else was going on. It was in the upper 60's, sunny, breezy, and bright blue. Couldn't have been a nicer Halloween.

Due to it being Saturday, Oaklyn's trick-or-treat started at 1...but the kids didn't really start coming out until around quarter of 3. And when they came, they came in droves. I saw so many great costumes! There was a teen Scooby Doo group, with Velma and Shaggy and Fred. There was a darling pink and blue spider princess, a girl Chuckie, a mom witch and Chuckie, and a little girl Jessie the Cowgirl. One little boy really got into his Ghostbusting, pretending to "bust" the ghost hanging on the house behind me. Saw Spider Man, Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and a Winnie the Pooh group with a dad Pooh, mom Piglet, sister Tigger, and baby Eeyore. The toddler boy from the Incredibles group was so eager to use his jack o'lantern sticker, he stuck it on the side of his pumpkin candy bucket right away. (I hope he didn't lose it.) There was a random Gandolf with a huge walking stick and an adorable mini Meridia with her parents as bears and lots of pretty princesses. 

There were so many kids out, I was giving candy away right up until 10 minutes before it was supposed to end at 6. The Mystery Bags vanished in less than an hour. In fact, we gave away all the Mystery Bags, all of the leftover jack o'lantern stickers and spider rings from the Mystery Bags, the five bags of candy I bought today, and candy leftover from a friend's party yesterday that she gave me. All that was left by the time I finally got out the door was a quarter of the huge bag of candy my friend had.

The sun was just going down when I started across the White Horse Pike to West Clinton. Had a really quick pizza dinner at Phillies Phatties. I ate a slice of cheese and a slice of mushroom while listening to a family in Star Wars costumes (a Leia mom, a Jedi dad, and two brothers as Darth Vader and a stormtrooper) and three teen girls in very short skirts as characters from Clueless. I loved the huge flowered hat I suspect was home-made that one girl wore with her houndstooth suit. 

I was surprised to see the parade was already lining up when I finished dinner. For some reason, it started at 6:30 this year instead of 7. Maybe they didn't want the kids waiting around that long. I'd never seen so many people at the Halloween Parade! There was a tiny, adorable Elmo, Willy Wonka and Veruca, a girl Stitch, a dad Sonic, a little boy Shadow, two elementary school Pikachus, and another Spider Man. One boy wore a really nifty home-made volcano costume. Another was dressed as a Krispy Kreame donut box. One of the pre-teen girls was a gorgeous dead bride. There was a mini toddler cop, Lightning McQueen in a Cars push-cart, and an utterly adorable two-year-old Maverick from Top Gun with his Kelly Preston mom. 

Another pre-teen girl was a spot-on Mary Poppins (and deserved the 1st place prize she got), and there was a darling Batgirl, a cute mini Dolly Pardon, and a lovely little Cinderella. A Nintendo group had a bubbly Princess Peach mom, a Mario dad, a big sister Luigi, and a little sister Toad. Jack Skelleton towered over the crowd on stilts, accompanying an adorable little Sally. A mom and dad were Seymour and Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors, complete with a plastic Audrey II in a flower pot. Twin Wolverines showed off their claws for the crowd. An elementary-school age Lisa Simpson played her inflatable saxophone. A really creative Beetlejuice group had a mom bride Lydia in red, a dad Shrunken Head man, and a teen sister Beetlejuice. One of the teenagers was a severed head on a plate. (Incidentally, the Shrunken Head Man deservedly won the adult division, followed by Audrey and Seymour.)

(I am disappointed that I never ran into Rose and Finley tonight. Maybe they were busy, or they didn't realize the parade started at 6:30 instead of 7. I'll have to call Rose soon to see what's going on with her.)

Did a few chores when I got home, washed off my makeup, and put the pieces of my black cat costume away before watching this year's Match Game Halloween marathon. The closest they got to a Halloween episode on the 1973-1982 run of the show was the episode where Charles showed up late and Mark Goodson sat in for him. They asked a question about what Charles would dress as for Halloween. Questions about vampires, monsters, Frankenstein, and what they all did in their spare time abounded, though, especially as it allowed Gene to indulge in his idea of a Bela Lugosi accent. Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour actually started on Halloween. The rare pilot episode is included here. 

Halloween 1990 wasn't the only episode where people dressed in costume, either. Gene turned up in an old man wig in one syndicated episode, claiming he was Old Man Periwinkle. (He was really showing off his wig for a stage Christmas Carol he did with Bill Cullen.) Another time, his head was wrapped like a mummy. Jon Bauman did the Match Game '78 and syndicated episodes in his goofy greaser "Bowser" persona, complete with jokes about his heavily pomaded hair. Gary Burghoff imitated Frankenstein in one episode, lumbering after Gene. 

Nighttime episodes had even more fun with Halloween jokes. There were Dracula questions on the PM episode with the contestant who looked like Barry Manilow. Bill Anderson, Debralee Scott, and Jonelle Allen did a hilarious spoof of the then-common commercials for K-Tel rock collections. Brett and Charles used the Audience Match "__ Minded" to tease each other in another episode.

Come to the wildest Halloween party ever at Television City and Prospect Studios with these ghoulishly hilarious episodes!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Halloween Costume Party Marathon 2026

Finished the night with It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Linus is excited about this year's big (non) visit from the Great Pumpkin and spends his Halloween waiting for the elusive visitor in a "sincere" pumpkin patch. Against her better judgement, Sally joins him. Meanwhile, Charlie Brown has trouble trick-or-treating, Lucy gets zinged at a costume party, and Snoopy spends Halloween preparing for Veteran's Day fighting the Red Baron.

And I hope you have a wonderful Halloween weekend, with all the ghouls and goblins you love to match with!