Comic Book Fantasies

Kicked off a gloomy morning with breakfast and To Tell the Truth. Three women with Slavic accents and high cheekbones claimed to be a Russian refugee whose family was exiled to Siberia for being Jewish in 1939. She escaped as a teen, only to be caught again and sent to prison, only to later be released and write a book about her experiences. Everyone thought it was #2, including me, who certainly looked the part and spoke knowledgeably about Siberia and Russia...and yes, we were all right.

Work was a lot easier to deal with than yesterday. We weren't busy in the morning at all, allowing me to empty the inside recycling and round up carts with no trouble. It picked up quite a bit later...but this time, I was the only bagger. The head bagger was in charge of self check-out today, and most of the other baggers work in the afternoons and evenings or on the weekends. It did get harder to keep up with the carts and the sweeping later in the day, when we got closer to rush hour. Other than that, no trouble whatsoever, nothing compared to yesterday. I suspect a cloudy, humid day with rare light showers may have scared people off, too. 

Changed, then watched Press Your Luck while having a snack. Very close game today, especially in the second half. One of the ladies hit a car tile...but she turned her spins over to the one guy, who kept winning prize after prize. He ended up with a game table, a spa, and a trip to Hong Kong, among others. 

Developed a new Match Game idea at work today. I've struggled with the Western fanfic, and while I still like the idea of a Match Game western, I don't know if I'm really "feeling" it right now. I read in the Allen Ludden biography that he had a brief role as Perry White in the 1975 TV version of It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman. I got to thinking how the idea of laid-back Ludden as a crusading newspaper editor was hilarious, and that made me wonder how I'd update or change the musical to make it more relevant to now and the actual Superman franchise. 

And then I remembered that Ludden and Loretta Swit were semi-regulars, and I thought...well, why not make this the Match Game superhero fanfic I planned on doing? It still revolves around the School Riot episode...only now, Richard's reading his sons' comic books instead of western novels, and that leads to the story. 

He's a super-being looking for a job after he comes to Los Angeles with his two sons who ends up as a reporter at The Match-Up Times. Top journalist Lee Merriweather isn't happy with him constantly scooping her on stories about this fascinating new hero in town. As it turns out, he's not the only super-being, or at least genius, at the Match-Up. There's other heroes around too, including the fussy theater critic and restaurant critic who mostly reviews bars and are perpetually at each other's throats. Ira Skutch takes the Max Menken role, a gossip columnist who doesn't trust all these super great people and regularly shills for his boss, Mark Luthor. 

I basically used the same set-up as the Western, with the western references changed to Superman references. Didn't get much further than that. We'll see what I can do tomorrow.

(Oh, and speaking of superheroes, Jodie brought in my latest eBay order. The 1975 It's a Bird, It's a Plane... is on YouTube. It's terrible...but I thought that would make a perfect match with the notoriously campy Australian superhero musical The Return of Captain Invincible from 1983. Look for Superman tomorrow and Captain Invincible on Thursday.)

Broke for dinner at 6:30. Had quick leftovers while watching Match Game '79. Brett admires Gene in his new suit, while Gene admires a blonde contestant who loves bodysurfing but doesn't give the best answers. We also get a rare instance where Joe Santos of The Rockford Files, who is an amiable guy but doesn't play the game that well, actually matched the contestant. 

Made chocolate-chip oatmeal cookies while watching Match Game PM. The Audience Match in this one got a little crazy. The question was "Alfred __," and the bottom answer was "Alfred Einstein!" Gene had to call up there to ask the late scientist when he changed his name.

Sale of the Century skipped ahead six months to Thanksgiving week. Once again, it started close, but this time, the only man bought an Instant Bargain, won the Speed Round hands down, and got the Bonus Round at the last minute.

Finished the night online after a shower with an episode of The Amazing Spider Man. Unlike Wonder Woman and The Incredible Hulk, this live-action Spider Man show just never seemed to get respect or full seasons. It ran as a replacement for other shows for 13 episodes. I vaguely remember catching it in re-runs as a kid. Rose was especially fond of it, but she's been a Spider Man fan for years. 

I can kind of understand why it didn't work. It's a little bland, compared to green guys smashing things and a buxom Amazon who can out-run and out-swim any guy. Take "The Kirkwood Haunting" from Season 2. Peter Parker is sent to help an old friend of his boss J. Jonah Jameson who believes her mansion is haunted. Peter's not so sure and turns to a paranormal psychologist for help. Meanwhile, his fellow reporter Julie Masters desperately wants to get in that mansion and get the story, even after being chased by a bear and saved by Spider Man.