Switched to The Monkees while getting organized. Rip Taylor makes his first of two appearances on the show in "Monkees On the Wheel." The groovy quartet are playing a gig in Las Vegas when drummer Micky Dolenz wins a pile of money on a rigged roulette wheel, to the consternation of its fussy operator (Taylor). The cops think the boys were in on it, so they dress as gangsters and get in with the real ones to learn more about their scheme.
The moment Mike and Micky finally figured out how to say "Save the Texas prairie chicken," I rushed out the door. Hurried to the PATCO station, bought my ticket, and dashed up the stairs. Thankfully, the train to Lindenwold was right on time. I made it to the NJ Transit station with literally no time to spare. They're also in the midst of remodeling, and there's only one ticket machine. I was the second one in line. If I'd been even the third in line, I probably would have missed the train. It arrived less than a minute after I bought my ticket.
No trouble whatsoever after that, other than it was quarter of 12, and the train was full of lunchtime commuters on their way home or to Atlantic City. The only seat I could find was along the wall in the way back. At least the train was on time the entire way there. I lay back and listened to my iPod until it pulled into the station at the Atlantic City Convention Center.
I haven't visited Atlantic City in almost a decade. I figured I was overdue for a stroll on their famous boardwalk. That, and it was too nice of a day to do anything else. It was so nice, I changed into capris before I left. The sky was blue, the wind was cool and fresh, and the combination of salt air, grease, and fried food felt great. Given the stunning weather, I wasn't surprised to see how busy it was. Crowds of people strolled alongside me, rode in tram cars down the boardwalk, or were pulled in rolling carts.
My first order of business after getting on the boardwalk was finding somewhere for lunch. This was easier said than done. Most places on the boardwalk are way overpriced, especially for pizza. I ended up doing a little bit of shopping first. Shopping wasn't really my goal for today. I really came to soak up the atmosphere, but I did want a t-shirt. Most of the Atlantic City t-shirts I saw on the boardwalk were gaudy multi-colored affairs that were a bit much for me. I finally found a simpler tan shirt with a nifty sea-themed Atlantic City logo and a bottle of Gatorade Zero at a gift shop called Ilene's.
Ended up having lunch a few doors down from Ilene's at Billy's Gyros and Souvlaki, a narrow bar and diner between larger shops. I plopped down on a chair and next to a wall that were papered over with what looked like prints of dollar bills. Made up for the overly expensive pizza with a pizza burger, fries, a salad, and coleslaw. The salad and slaw were nothing special and the fries, despite having their skins, were bland. The burger was enormous, and so dripping with mozzarella that I ate cheese for five minutes before I even got to the patty. Though the patty was a little thin, it was also nicely cooked and juicy.
Started out again after lunch, heading towards the Hard Rock Casino and Steel Pier. It's not really "The Showplace of the Nation" anymore, but it is the only amusement park in Atlantic City. They were busy with many families whirling around in kiddie rides like the balloon wheel and the bumper cars. I was surprised to see how crowded it was for a Tuesday, until I noticed rides only cost two tickets each on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.
I'm saving my riding for next month when I visit Lauren, so I started out playing games first. I couldn't sink any baskets in the first game, but I still got a small stuffed cow. I did well enough in the throw the bean bag at the balloon game to trade up the cow for a slightly larger blue and magenta metallic dolphin, whom I named Atlantica. Had far less luck playing against a large family on a water gun game.
There was one ride I couldn't leave Atlantic City without trying. I read about their huge observation wheel at their website online. I'm so glad I did that. The view from that gondola was spectacular. You could see for miles, from the Borgata and Golden Nugget in the Marina District on one side to the vast green Atlantic on the other. Steel Pier looked like a model of an amusement park from above, populated by tiny moving action figures. Even the view of the beach from the deck under the wheel was amazing. I was surprised at how many people were jammed on the beach. I figured it would be too chilly for the beach and swimming today. There were a lot of folks in the water, too.
It was past 3 when I got off the wheel and lost at the water gun game. Time to start heading back. I wanted my favorite fruit gel slices, but I couldn't find the at the two Fralinger's stores I stopped at. I ended up buying them and a decent lightweight emerald green Atlantic City hoodie at Peanut World, the jumble of ancient junk and racks of Atlantic City clothing about a block from Bally's. Stopped at Rita's and got a Pina colada Misto Shake to wet my whistle.
Since the arcade on Central Pier was closed when I went by, I decided to try the new Dave & Buster's a few blocks from Caesar's that opened last year. They were smaller than they looked from the outside. No room for skee ball, but I saw plenty of everything else. Had a lot of luck with the wheels in particular, probably amassing 500 points just from them. Played Mario Kart Deluxe too, Yoshi this time. Thought a nifty underwater-themed course was appropriate. I came in second. I just couldn't pass Mario.
I was barely there 40 minutes, and I still earned enough points for another big Care Bear. This Dave & Buster's had a much better selection than the one at Blackwood. I walked out with a sweet Wish Bear.
(I didn't find out why the Central Pier was closed until I went online. Alas, the arcade side of the pier burned down in a massive fire this past April. Apparently, they're still doing repairs.)
Had just enough time to stop at Starbucks for a Pineapple Refresher and an orange cream cake pop before heading a block down to the Atlantic City Convention Center. This time, I got there with plenty of time to buy my ticket. Once again, there was no trouble. The trains were on time, they were full but not too crowded, and I was able to get a normal window seat on the Transit and the PATCO. The PATCO wasn't even crowded when I got off at Collingswood.
Went straight into Satin and Spurs when I got home. I go further into the first 90 minute TV "spectacular" featuring Betty Hutton as a brash cowgirl who falls for a photographer in New York at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.
Finished the night with more of my recent record finds. It's a Short Summer, Charlie Brown is the Vince Guaraldi underscore from one of two summer camp-themed Peanuts specials, along with cuts from a few other lesser-known specials. In addition to the familiar "Linus and Lucy" and "Charlie Brown Theme," Freida, the girl who is always preening about her naturally curly red hair, and Peppermint Patty gets their own themes here. I will absolutely be picking up You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown on record when that comes out next month, and I think I'll finally get It's the Great Pumpkin, too.
Wish You Were Here holds a unique place in the annals of Broadway history. It's the only musical I know of to revolve around a swimming pool and actually have one onstage. It's also one of the few musicals that ignored a critical bashing to become a hit, lasting almost 600 performances in 1952. It revolves around the members of a summer camp for adults who are looking for rest and a little fun in the sun. Harold Rome's first score for a book musical is no masterpiece, but it does have some pleasant tunes, including "Goodbye Love" as the women decide to forget their guys back home for the summer, the bouncy "Summer Afternoon," and hilarious "Don Jose of Far Rockaway."
The big hit from For Your Eyes Only was its slinky, passionate Sheena Easton title song. Most of the remaining score heavily reflects the early 80's when it was made. There's still a lot of disco influences here, especially on side one with "Melina's Revenge" and "Gonzales Takes a Dive."
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