Monday, July 29, 2013

I'll Be With You In Summertime....

Started the day with another episode of Lois & Clark. Superman is the only one who can stop a comet from hitting Earth...but he gets "All Shook Up" when it proves to be even more than he can handle. Clark ends up with amnesia and has to try to retrace his identity...both of them. Meanwhile, a fragment of the comet is still on its way to Metropolis and could do some serious harm.

Headed out to do the laundry around quarter of noon. I read LuLu In Hollywood as CBS blared news of the house explosion in South Philly. The laundromat wasn't too busy for the lunch hour, despite the absolutely amazing weather. I didn't have a huge load, anyway. I was in and out in less than an hour.

The day couldn't have been nicer, especially compared to yesterday's deluge. The sun was out, the sky was blue, the clouds were tiny puffs, and the breeze felt wonderful. While there's a few dry patches in areas that get unrelenting sun, most of the grass and trees are still green, far more than normally for this time of year. Gardens are flourishing; the flowers not only haven't wilted, but look stunning in shades of flame red, sunset orange, sun yellow, and pale lavender. While the community pool was surprisingly quiet for a nice day (everyone must have been eating lunch), there were quite a few people out doing their yards and cleaning up from the mess left by flood waters.

I ran Buck Privates as I made Blueberry Corn Muffins for lunch, using a recipe that requires fruit concentrate instead of sugar. Comedy duo Bud Abbott and Lou Costello became one of Universal's most popular attractions in this 1940 vehicle. The duo are con men who join the army to avoid being arrested...only for the cop who was after them (Nat Pendleton) to end up being their superior officer. Meanwhile, a playboy (Lee Bowman) and his former chauffeur (Alan Curtis) go after a pretty female officer (radio singer Jane Frazee). The company cook (Shemp Howard) has to deal with Lou on KP, while the Andrews Sisters are mainly around for some memorable background numbers.

Actually, this is probably best-known today for introducing the Andrews Sisters standard "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B" and their hit rendition of "I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time." At the time, it was the blockbuster smash that launched Abbott and Costello as Universal's top non-horror box office draws, prompting two more Armed Services comedies featuring the two and a direct sequel, Buck Privates Come Home. For fans of those two, the Andrews Sisters, or the swing music of the late 30s and 40s.

I did some work on the computer, then headed to the Acme, still enjoying the late-day sunshine. Everyone else must have been, too. We were steady through rush hour. Things quickly died after about 7. It was so quiet by 10PM, I was able to leave with no relief.

No comments: