Fools and Games

Took so long finishing Burning Water (which was too dark and bloody for my taste), it was late when I finally got moving. Watched Alice's Wonderland Bakery while I ate. Alice and Fergie are surprised when they learn that "Another Alice" has been delivering subpar versions of her Teacup Cakes. They follow the clues to find out who the imitation baker is. "Fergie Plays the Palace" after the Queen of Hearts hears him playing his trumpet for his friends. The kids try to turn his number into a huge production, but Alice finally figures out that some recipes - and musical numbers - work best with simple ingredients.

Messed around on the computer, then took the laundry downstairs and stripped the bed. The weather is supposed to be off and on warm this week, but even the mid-50's is too warm for turtlenecks and wool trousers. It's time to get the spring and summer clothes out, toss the spring/fall sheets on the bed, and shed a few blankets. It's also time to see what I need for the season. I could use a plainer lightweight skirt that's appropriate for interviews and to replace 

Threw on a couple of animated specials and episodes about baseball and enjoying the game while I worked. I went further into The Berenstain Bears Play Ball (along with the Easter special Peter and the Magic Egg) at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog last March.

The Berenstain Bears Play Ball

Angel Cake has similar problems on the 2003 Strawberry Shortcake. Angel is used to having complete control at her bakery and making each cake look perfect. "Angel In the Outfield" learns that it doesn't work that way with sports when she isn't very good at the ball games her friends play. She tries not to storm off in a huff, but her anger and bad behavior gets worse every time she joins in, until she won't even let them borrow her ball. It takes watching toddler Apple Dumplin' goofing off with her pet Apple Ducking to make her realize that playing games with your friends is about having fun, not being perfect.

It was past 3 PM and I had just put the laundry in the dryer when I realized I hadn't had lunch yet. Not to mention, I had some books to drop off at the kiosk down the block. After I left them there, I headed to Capitol Pizza on the White Horse Pike. They were surprisingly busy for past 3 PM. An older man watched the game show America Says on the monitor; a kid on his way home from school ordered a take-out treat. 

I had a slice of cheese, a slice of mushroom, and a bottle of Diet Pepsi while joining him for America Says. This cross between Hot Potato and Family Feud has two groups of people from different professions each guess the answers to a survey questions. The first letter of the answers are provided. If one group misses an answer, the other can finish the question. The bonus round has the winning team identifying top answers to a survey question, with the answers increasing with every question. No wonder this was a five-year hit for Game Show Network and continues to re-run there. The game-play is fast-paced and funny, and host Joel Michael Higgins is adorable.

Originally thought of getting ice cream, but I still had a lot of work to do at home. I have a lot of oatmeal cookies left, too. Not to mention, though it was above-average warm for late March, in the upper 70's, it was also above-average humid, cloudy, and windy. This was no day to linger. 

Went right back upstairs when I got in, brought the clothes upstairs to sort, and dropped the sheets and blankets in the washer. Put on Hook, Line, and Sinker at Tubi while I worked. Wilbur Boswell (Bert Wheeler) and Addington Ganzy (Robert Woosley) are insurance salesmen who are out selling their wares when they come across runaway playgirl Mary Marsh (Dorothy Lee). Mary just inherited an old hotel from her uncle and wants to do something with it. Addington convinces her to restore it and attract a wealthy and elite clientele. 

What they attract is Rebecca Marsh (Jobyna Howland), Mary's mother, and the lawyer John Blackwell (Ralf Harolde) whom her mother wants her to marry. Turns out John's involved with a group of unsavory gangsters who are after the contents of the hotel safe. Another gang is interested in the smuggled goods stashed in the basement. Both groups do everything they can to scare the guys and Mary off or force them to reveal the password for the safe, including getting into a shootout in the hotel lobby.

I have to admit, Wheeler and Woosley have grown on me over the years. While not all of their movies have dated that well, a lot of their wiseguy schitck still works. Woosley in particular is a riot wooing Howland, and Lee and Wheeler are too cute together. This is in the public domain, so it's pretty easy to find if you're into them or 30's comedy.

Switched to Match Game Syndicated after the movie ended and I brought the sheets upstairs. (I brought the blankets up earlier - the sheets hadn't dried all the way.) I really wish Diana Sorvino had come back. She wasn't a bad player and could be pretty funny, especially when flirting with a handsome young contestant. Betty and Charles even helped her hand around spaghetti and meatballs on the second-to-last day of the week. Former Miss USA Marjorie Wallace returned the next week, joined by Fred Grandy and Gary Crosby. 

Finished the night after dinner and a shower with more very funny game shows. Comedy-driven game shows go back almost to the beginning of television. Groucho Marx's You Bet Your Life started on radio in the late 40's. Groucho would interview goofy or funny contestants, then ask them a few questions for increasing amounts. It was an even bigger hit on TV, where you could see Groucho and his cigar and duck and all the wacky people who flummoxed him. In the episode we get here, he interviews a hilariously down-to-earth older woman from Maine and a guy who does some rather bad celebrity impressions. 

Ernie Kovacs and his wife Edie Adams had just as much fun in the late 50's with Take a Good Look. This spoof of panel shows like What's My Line had Kovacs introduce a celebrity guest, or someone who had done something unusual or had a strange occupation...then join two other actors to perform skits barely related to the subject at hand. Hans Conried, Caesar Romero, and Ben Alexander join Adams to figure out how all this leads to who the person is or what it is they do. 

Two of the undisputed winners among comedy game shows are Match Game and Family Feud. Though Match Game had more of an uphill climb than Feud (which was a hit out of the gate), they both went through multiple incarnations and remain wildly popular in re-runs. (In fact, at press time, Steve Harvey's Feud is still going strong in syndication.) This early Feud episode from 1976 and Match Game episode from its peak in 1977 give us an example of why both shows remain beloved and influential to this day.

The wild success of Match Game prompted the creation of other celebrity-driven comedy panel shows.  Celebrity Sweepstakes ran on NBC from 1974 to 1976. Two contestants try to guess which of six celebrities could correctly answer questions read by handsome host Jim McKreil. It's played as a horse race, with the audience given tip sheets on each panelist's strengths and weaknesses and giving odds on whether they can answer the questions. Not only are their wisecracks funny, but the format is really unique, and I love the colorful set. I hope more of this one turns up eventually.

Purely comic shows had a rougher time of it in the more conservative 80's. The Joke's On Us is something of a comedy variation on Liar's Club. Four comics begin a joke, and the contestants have to decide which punchline is the real one. Not bad. The comics, here including Fred Willard and Soupy Sales, are having a lot of fun, though the jokes range from groaners to corny to still hilarious now. Monty Hall keeps the comics in line and delivers a few groaners of his own. 

Cable channels could get away with a lot more weirdness. Remote Control was the first game show on MTV. Host Ken Ober is a goofball who lives in his basement and obsesses over TV shows. Three college kids are strapped into recliners and answer TV and music video-related questions. The student with the lowest score is dragged into the wall half-way through. The winner moves on to the bonus round, where they have to name nine music videos in 50 minutes. My sisters and I loved this show in the late 80's, and despite the very 80's set and attitude, it remains hilarious to this day. We even get a local battle here, with two of the students being from Drexel and Rutgers New Brunswick.

America Says is far from the first funny show on Game Show Network. National Lampoon's Funny Money from 2003 also involved stand-up comics doing their schtick. This time, host Jimmy Pardo would ask a question. The contestant who answered the question would choose a comedian to perform for 45 seconds. During each performance, when the laugh meter reached the green zone, the contestant would get the advantage on the next question. Round two had the comedians giving funny captions for pictures, with the contestants guessing which would get the most laughs, while the third had them trying to remember the comedians' routines. In the bonus round, they'd get to remove a piece from the board to reveal a scene from a comedy movie every time a comedian hit the green zone.

Complicated, but the comedians and their routines could also be pretty darn hilarious. It's too bad this one doesn't seem to have worked at Game Show Network and only ran a few months. I wonder if they could try reviving it, maybe simplifying the game play and eliminating the National Lampoon name. 

Comedy game shows continue to this day. Funny You Should Ask, a semi-revival of the 1968 series of the same title, started in 2017. Six comedians are asked for their answer to a trivia question. The contestant has to decide if they're right or wrong. The bonus round has the winner answering multiple-choice questions with only one real answer. 

No wonder this is still going in syndication at press time. The gameplay is simple, the set is colorful and stylized, and the panel is hilarious. I especially loved Tiffany Haddish and Jon Lovitz in the early episode seen here. Louie Anderson appeared so often, the chair he sat in apparently now has a plaque that says "Louie's Chair." I'll definitely be looking for more of this one.

Celebrate April Fool's Day tomorrow and the start of spring with some of the wackiest fools to ever grace game shows!

You Bet Your Life (1956)
Take a Good Look (1961)

Celebrity Sweepstakes (1976)

Family Feud (1976)

Match Game (1977)

The Joke's On Us (1983)

Remote Control (1987)

National Lampoon's Funny Money (2003)

Funny You Should Ask (2017)

Oh, and the thunderstorms did finally roll in around quarter of 9. It's been storming off and on - including high winds and buckets of rain - ever since. 

'Til There Were Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and The Best of the Animals. The songs on the 1987 CD release are from the group's original incarnation, before they split up the first time in 1966. "House of the Rising Sun" was a massive hit in 1964, and remains probably their best-known song. My personal favorite is the rebel's declaration "We've Gotta Get Out of This Place." Other well-known tunes here include "I'm Crying," "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," and "Bring It On Home to Me." 

Headed out to work after the CD ended. I got there just in time and spent the entire day pushing carts and gathering trash. There were college boys who could handle the inside chores. I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. It was cold and cloudy when I went to work, but the clouds broke up around noon, and by the time I finished, it was a gorgeous, sunny, warm early spring day. 

After I got home, I changed and climbed into bed to rest and read Burning Water by Mercedes Lackey. Listened to Miles & Quincy: Live at Montreaux while I did. No less than Quincy Jones produced this classic 1983 jazz album for Miles Davis' comeback at the Montreaux Jazz Festival. You can hear why Jones wanted to work with Davis in songs like "Springsville," "The Pan Piper," and a medley of numbers from Porgy and Bess.

Switched to With the Beatles when I went online. This would be the Beatles' second album, almost evenly split between new songs written by Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and George Harrison and covers. In fact, "Don't Bother Me" was George's first composition. "All My Loving" was the hit here; it, "Bother Me," and "I Wanna Be Your Man" are the best of the originals. Honestly, they have more fun with the covers. George gets an awesome "Roll Over Beethoven," John really gets into "Money (That's What I Want)," and Paul sings a lovely "'Til There Was You."

Finished the night at YouTube with tonight's Match Game marathon. There were quite a few male contestants named Robert or Bob who appeared on the show from 1973 to 1982. The most frequent was probably Price Is Right host Bob Barker. He started on the second week in 1973 and continued appearing fairly often through 1980. His first week also featured the only members of The Waltons to appear on the show, Michael Lerned and Richard Thomas. In 1980, he had to deal with a chair that dropped below the desks and wasn't happy when Gene covered the slit skirt on one of the women backstage.

Robert Pine, best known today for starring in the entire run of CHIPs and as the father of actor Chris Pine, did a week in 1980 with Bob Barker. Amiable Robert began late in 1978 and ran through 1981. Robert Donner of Mork and Mindy started late in 1979 and would also continue appearing through 1981. with a few last weeks on The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour. Donner's totally deadpan humor and his nifty artwork on his cards really livened up his later episodes. Hunky Robert Walden was playing a cocky reporter on the drama Lou Grant when he first turned up in 1978. He would continue to turn women's heads (including Patty Duke's) through early 1981. Dancer and host Bobby Van first started in 1973 with his wife Elaine Joyce and would appear sporadically with and without Elaine through 1977. 

Other Roberts appeared less often on the show. Robert Culp had far less fun during his one week in 1973 than the other newcomer that week Pat Carroll. Host and comedian Robert Q. Lewis enjoyed himself more later that year on Joyce Bulifant's first week. Goofy stage actor Robert Morse did one memorable week in 1974, including an episode where he inadvertently blurted an answer and the question had to be replaced. TV star Robert Vaughn first turned up in one of the best weeks of 1973 with Nancy Dussault and McLean Stevenson and would reappear again in 1975. 

What about a couple of guys named Bob? They're all here in this hilarious marathon!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Bobs are Awesome Marathon

A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening

First of all, here's my review for Hollywood Stargirl, which I watched last night. I go further into this sweet 2022 sequel to the Disney Plus hit at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Musicals On Streaming - Hollywood Stargirl

Began the morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Daniel and Miss Elania want to keep playing with their train set, but it's "Quiet Time at School." Miss Elaina takes a nap to rest, while Daniel reads. When quiet time is over, they can resume playing. It's "Naptime at Blanket City" when Jodi and Dan help Jodi's little brothers sleep, then Dan helps Margaret settle down at home.

Since I was meeting Jessa later, I took Uber to work. No trouble there. He arrived within 6 minutes and got me to work in less than 5.

No trouble at work, either. For one thing, we were steady all day, but never really overwhelming. I swept and gathered carts the entire morning. For another, it turns out one of the managers made a mistake with the schedule. I'm supposed to work 8 and a half hours on Wednesday. At least I'll have a better paycheck than I thought. 

I had one more thing to do after I changed but before I met Jessa. I got a phone call last week saying I was past due for a Covid vaccine. I sat down and waited a minute or two for the young pharmacist to be ready. She gave me the injection at the seats across from the pharmacy near the window, put a Band Aid on it, and I was on my way. Grabbed a Cherry Coke Zero on the way out.

I waited for Jessa. And waited. And waited. I finally heard from her at quarter of 3. She said she'd meet me at the Goodwill behind the Acme in 20 minutes. At least it was a nice day for a short stroll. It had been cloudy earlier, but by 3 PM, it was sunny, windy, and warm above average for March, in the upper 70's. 

Things went much better after she finally arrived. In fact, I made some terrific finds at Goodwill. Found two long-sleeved t-shirts in pretty peach and mint green floral prints. Dug another recent American Girl cookbook, this one featuring cupcake recipes, and a collection of Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde and other Robert Louis Stevenson stories out of the books shelves. The last thing I expected to see at Goodwill was one of the Walt Disney Treasures sets. They had Tomorrow Land, the collection of science-related shorts and films from the 50's Disneyland show, for a mere $5.99. Although this isn't one of the rarer titles, it still tends to go for anywhere from $15 to $40 on eBay. Jess found a tall white container to use as an umbrella rack and a pile of clothes. 

We were in and out of Marshalls and Ross next. Jessa bought clothes at both places. Marshalls had the Kind Kids soft bars for $3.99, at least $3 cheaper than the Acme usually has them. I also picked up "masks" for your feet that would slough off dead skin. My feet are horribly dry, but I would prefer not spending time at a spa. Ross never has the selection that Marshalls does. I found nothing there.

We had dinner across the parking lot at the Vietnamese Pho restaurant a few doors down from Tu Se Bella and the Japanese restaurant we ate at a few weeks ago. I wasn't going to attempt Pho again after I could barely get it in my mouth the last time I was there. Jess had beef, vegetables, and rice noodles, and I had shrimp, vegetables, and rice noodles. Yum! It came in a bowl large enough to feed all of southeast Asia, let alone Vietnam. It was spicy but tasty, and that huge bowl provided plenty of leftovers.

After Jessa dropped me off, I put everything away and took a shower, then finished the night on YouTube. Singer and actress Connie Stevens first appeared on Match Game the week of Thanksgiving 1977. She got to hear Orson Bean discuss his role in the animated version of The Hobbit that debuted that week and see Fannie Flagg play nurse for Charles and Brett, complete with costume. (The outfit was actually from her cameo as the school nurse in the beginning of Grease.)

 Connie appeared sporadically from late 1978 through 1981, always sitting in the fourth ingenue seat. Though she wasn't the best at matching, she was pert, funny, and down-to-earth enough to fend off Gene Rayburn's advances. She saw the New Year's Eve 1979 in. Later in the year, Bill Daily threw the top of his chair, then forgot and tried to sit down! He spoke in a soprano for a while as Gene led him offstage. She was there for the final, originally unaired week that saw the contestant Carolyn become the show's biggest winner ever with over $30,000. Marcia Wallace did her best to deal with Bill, while Fred Grandy tossed in his two cents. 

Her last appearance was on one of the later weeks with McLean Stevenson. Charles Nelson Reilly was off directing opera for her last two weeks. Brett was probably very happy to be between Robert Walden and Bart Braverman on the first week. In the second, Bart was in the male ingenue seat, and equally fussy Richard Deacon took Charles' place.

Make your own kind of music with this classic rock sweetheart turned TV favorite!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Connie Stevens: Best Episodes on Match Game

Chocolate Chips and Sweet Springs

Began the day with breakfast and The Busy World of Richard Scarry. The kids and their substitute teacher discover "The Mystery of the Stone Circle" when they accidentally find the way into caves under a group of boulders with pre-historic markings on them. Inspector Sneef saves every holiday shopper in New York after metal objects begin mysteriously floating upwards in "The Big Apple Christmas Caper." "Who's Too Scared to Masquerade?" Not Sally and her friends, who find the perfect spooky costume to wear to a monster costume party.

Let Press Your Luck run as I made my grocery list, then went online to check my schedule. In good news, no early days next week. 10:30 is the earliest. And that's because...no Wednesday, either. I only work Saturday and Sunday. On one hand, that means plenty of time to clean the apartment, prepare for Easter and warmer weather, and figure out where I want to go next with the job hunt. It also means I'm going to have a really lousy paycheck.

Headed out to do my grocery shopping next. Started at Westmont Plaza to beat the high schoolers to Target before they got out. I had an online coupon for Skintimate shaving lotion. I thought I had one for Ivory soap, but it didn't come up that way. Kind protein bars were on sale, too. 

Ducked next door to Sprouts just as the kids started coming up the hill. Fortunately, Sprouts has little that interests them. Grabbed bananas, soda, coconut milk, and granola bars from the regular shelves. It took me forever to find the bulk oatmeal. Turns out it's in barrels in the back of the bulk aisles. Shoveled out the old-fashioned version for a recipe, along with more of the European hot cereal and those yummy golden raisins.

Made my way past the Haddon Township Library and High School to the Westmont Acme next. Needed to restock yogurt, blood oranges, eggs, and soda that Sprouts doesn't have. Picked up bagels for lunch this weekend. Decided to try Dave's Killer Bread chocolate almond bars in lieu of granola bars (none of the one I like were on a good sale).

Took the long way home through Newton Lake Park and over the hill to the Haddon Township History and Environmental Center. It had been off-and-on sunny and relatively warm, in the mid-60's, but the sun was out when I was going through the park. It's really starting to look like spring there now. The leaves are barely sprouting on the trees, but the bushes and vines are lush and lime green. The fountains sparkle in the rippling lake. No wonder I dodged a lot of kids walking home from school and adults going for jogs and strolls. 

Got organized while watching The Price Is Right. The contestants did really well in both shows, including a rare $11,000 wheel win on the first episode. The trouble hit during the Showcases in the second episode. One contestant went so badly over, I knew she had no chance...but the other just barely missed. As Bob pointed out, it was a shame, since all but one person won their games in the rest of the show.

Grabbed my baking ingredients to make one of my favorite recipes after Price ended. I got my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe out of Prevention Magazine in 2010, the year my friend Linda Young gave me a subscription. It requires whole wheat flour, canola oil, egg whites, and oatmeal instead of butter and regular eggs. Not only are they more nutritional, but the oil and egg whites make them extra-chewy. I've very rarely had trouble with this recipe, and this time was no exception. The first batch came out a little dark, but the second was perfect, just sweet and nutty enough. 

Watched Match Game Syndicated while making the cookies, and later during dinner. The first couple of episodes featured Ted Lange of The Love Boat, a sweet Susan Richardson with blonde hair done in a unique curly style, and Joyce Bulifant. Alas, the last two episodes of that week are currently missing, due to them still trying to sort out the red tape with Jimmie Walker. I didn't object too much when they moved straight into the week featuring Diana Sorvino, a friend of Charles Nelson Reilly who would be the only opera singer to appear on Match Game. She got to see Gene show off his body when a contestant make a joke about it...and then Betty White do her own idea of a stripping routine.

Went upstairs for Hollywood Stargirl after dinner. I'll go further into the sweet sequel to Stargirl at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog tomorrow. 

Finished the night with the soundtrack for Licorice Pizza. I haven't seen the 2021 comedy yet, but I can say its soundtrack has an awesome cover, done as a earth-toned version of the artwork on pinball machines in the 60's and 70's. There's also some great music here. As you can guess, it's mostly 70's favorites like "Life on Mars?" by David Bowie, "My Ding-a-Ling" by Chuck Berry, and "Stumblin' In" by Chris Norman and Susi Quatro, though Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters' version of "Accentuate the Positive" does manage to sneak onto side A. We even have lesser-known 70's tunes like "Walk Away" by James Gang and "July Tree" by Nina Simone that I'm glad I got to hear. I almost didn't buy this at Abbie Road, but I'm glad I broke down and grabbed it. Worth checking out whether you've seen the movie or not if you're a fan of the music of the time period and don't already have a lot of these tunes elsewhere.

Ramblin' Woman

Began a beautiful morning with breakfast and What's New, Scooby Doo? "It's Mean, It's Green, It's the Mystery Machine" turns the gang's beloved ride into the monster when it seemingly glows green and drives on its own. Seems it previously belonged to a kid rock group called the Mystery Kids, whose pushy mother is desperate for them to make a comeback. Shaggy and Scooby worry that the ghost of the group's former pianist is possessing the car, but Velma is certain that there's more likely explanations for its behavior.

Put on Frank Sinatra while doing research on Regus and writing down questions to ask during the interview. All the Way is apparently a collection of his later Capitol singles. I couldn't resist a disc that features some of his most beloved songs, including the title ballad, "High Hopes," and "Witchcraft."

The lady from Regus did indeed call at 1 PM. We talked for five minutes. She asked me if I minded doing cleaning and picking up furniture in addition to office duties. I said it wasn't much different from what I'm doing now. I'd be fine. I also explained about needing to use public transportation if I wanted to cover another office. She sounded impressed enough to invite me for a second interview at their campus in Cherry Hill...but when I checked my e-mail about 15 minutes after she got off, there was one from Regus saying they moved on and I wasn't selected for more interviews. I have no idea why she told me otherwise. Either she changed her mind really fast, or someone went over her head. 

Headed out to run errands after I finished checking my e-mail. My first stop was Dollar General. I needed trash bags sized for smaller trash cans. I also bought chocolate chips and canola oil there for a recipe I plan on doing tomorrow. 

Crossed the White Horse Pike and made my way down West Clinton next for lunch. I settled on a carrot cake muffin, slice of bacon and asparagus quiche, and elderflower chai at Common Grounds Coffee House. They were busy, but I did get a table next to the counter. Everything was excellent. The quiche was tasty, the muffin had a dollop of cream cheese frosting in the middle, and the chai was a little sweet but not bad.

It was just too darn nice of a day not to prolong my walk. Chilly, yes, in the lower 50's, and a bit breezy, but sunny and without a cloud in the brilliant blue sky. I wasn't the only person out for a stroll, either. I saw parents pushing babies in strollers and kids on bikes speeding home as school let out.

Made my bed and did things online while watching O'Dessa. I go further into this dystopian rock opera gender flip of the "Orpheus and Eurydice" myth at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

Musicals On Streaming - O'Dessa

Switched to Match Game Syndicated while eating dinner. Fred Travalena lends his many voices (many of them of recent presidents) to this week. Dick Martin was happier to be sitting on the lower tier with Elaine Joyce and Debralee Scott. Brett's less thrilled about the Star Wheel landing in her three times in a row and Charles continually whining for Gene to put Bess Myerson in her place.

Finished the night with more recent music acquisitions as I worked on the O'Dessa review. Made In the Shade is very similar to All the Way, only this time, we get the mid-70's hits from the Rolling Stones. "It's Only Rock and Roll" and "Brown Sugar" were the major hits here, I also like "Dance Little Sister" and "Rip This Joint."

The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz, Volume V picks up in the late 50's and early 60's, as jazz became cooler and legends like Miles Davis and John Coltrane pushed the boundaries of the genre. Coltrane's contribution is "Alabama." Davis gives us the more blase "So What?' There's also the Bill Evans Trio with "Blue In Green." The most recent entry is "Steppin'" by the World Saxophone Quartet from 1981. Jazz made something of a comeback in the 80's as a refreshing contrast to the heavy metal and synthesizer pop prevalent elsewhere. I fondly remember listening to several jazz stations as a kid and thinking  how different and elegant it all sounded, reminiscent of smoky clubs in years gone by. 

Memories of Spring

Got a quick start today with breakfast and the Disney short "Chef Donald." Donald wants to make waffles from a recipe he hears on the radio. That would be a lot easier if he hadn't accidentally gotten rubber cement in the batter. Now Donald has to fight with his own creation while wondering what went wrong.

Work was dead as a doornail. It's the middle of the week, the end of the month, and the only thing going on is college basketball. Not to mention, the weather wasn't the best. It was cold and breezy, and the clouds were in and out all morning. It showered very briefly around noon, but to my knowledge, hasn't done anything like it since. I was in and out with no trouble whatsoever. 

I heard from the office rental place in Cherry Hill during work. I guess they never got my e-mail, because they wanted to know when they could do a quick phone interview. Tomorrow at 1 PM will be fine.

Put on another Disney cartoon when I got home while changing. "Flowers and Trees" was the first short done in the new, wider three-strip Technicolor process, and it won an Oscar in 1933. The still-gorgeous color manages to offset the simple story. Two saplings in love are threatened by an old stump, who burns the woods to take them out. That proves to be his undoing when he remembers that he can burn, too...

Went for a quick walk to A&A Pretzels to pick up lunch. All they had were the stuffed pepperoni pretzels, so I got those, a can of Diet Pepsi, and two of the regular. Though the clouds were breaking up by this point, it remained breezy and chilly for the time of year. 

Had lunch while watching My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. "Games Ponies Play" have Twilight and her friends doing everything they can to impress the Equestria Games Inspector Ms. Harshwhinny to hold the games at the Crystal Empire this year. When they meet her at the train, she seems to be impressed by their huge cheer, but not so much by the endless tours of the castle. Rarity hopes they can stall, so she can do an especially elaborate hairstyle for Princess Cadence. Turns out all of the pomp and circumstance wasn't necessary. Not only are they entertaining the wrong pony, Ms. Harshwhinny is more impressed by those who don't go out of their way to make a fuss.

Went online for Broadway's Lost Treasures Volume II, which can currently be found at the Internet Archive (along with the rest of the series). We have a lot more Tony-winners and nominees here. Thankfully, only three of the songs are from the 1971 "through the years" Tony show, and one, Tom Bosley's lively "The Name's LaGuardia" from Fiorello!, is actually a chorus number. Robert Morse also does well by his "I Believe In You" from How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. Angela Lansbury and Beatrice Arthur have a blast reviving their "Bosom Buddies" from Mame in 1987, when they were major TV stars. We see more of Jerry Orbach than I'm sure most people ever wanted to when he takes it all off for "All I Care About Is Love" from the original 1975 Chicago. 

The undisputed winner among the big numbers was "The Lambeth Walk," energetically performed by the cast of the British comedy Me and My Girl. They have so much fun with the number, they actually take it into the audience. Katherine Hepburn gives us a glimpse of how she managed to keep the Coco Chanel biography Coco up and running with her sterling performance before a lengthy fashion show to "Always Mademoiselle." Patti LuPone kicks things off in high style performing the title song from the hit 1987 revival of Anything Goes. Michael Jeter seems to be made of rubber as he flies through an amazing drunk Charleston with the cast of Grand Hotel in "We'll Take a Glass Together." "One Day More" shows off the entire enormous cast and complicated plots of Les Miserables. 

Switched to Match Game Syndicated during dinner. This was the wild week with McLean Stevenson sitting between Jannelle Allen and Debralee Scott. In the second episode, Charles hits Gene with his card during an argument over the merits of the original Shogun mini-series. Gene collapses onto Jannelle's lap, prompting McLean to take over the next two questions. The none-too-happy host shows up with his head wrapped in bandages in the next episode, leading to a round of mummy and toilet paper jokes before he finally calls the female contestant to help him get it off.

Finished the night back at YouTube with spring childhood memories. From the early 80's through the early 90's, toy companies released half-hour specials based on either a new toy line, or an addition to an existing line. More rarely, there would be something based on a popular book or comic strip, like Fairies from 1981. A teen hunter is brought to the fairy realm to stop the fairy king's shadow from spreading darkness across the land. Despite the fairy tale premise, this actually a bit darker than most of the shows I watched tonight, with almost painterly artwork bringing the fairies and their world to life.

The early Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears specials are a lot more typical. In Care Bears Battle the Freeze Machine, Professor Coldheart lures a bullied boy who wants revenge on the kids who made fun of him into repairing his machine that will turn them into ice statues. The Care Bears know that revenge is hardly the best way to make friends, and the boy learns a lesson when Hugs and Tugs (who make their debut here) are also caught in the machine's rays.

Strawberry Shortcake and Pets on Parade introduces the kids' beloved critters, sweet diet-obsessed Angel Cake and her skunk Souffle, the Purple Pieman's female counterpart Sour Grapes, Strawberry's bike (one of the few toys from her line we had), and the Strawberryland Trolley. Sour Grapes and the Pieman claim Strawberry fixed the pet contest in favor of their crow and snake. Souffle knows what it's like to have people misunderstand you and encourages Strawberry to fight with her greatest weapon - the Pieman's dislike of berry talk.

For every Strawberry Shortcake that's well-remembered today, there's a Herself the Elf or Rose Petal Place that only animation historians, toy collectors, and kids who grew up in the era remember. Herself the Elf is something of a cross between Strawberry and Fairies. Herself and her friends control nature with their magic wands. After Herself is kidnapped by a wicked wizard and his shrill daughter, her friends combine their powers to go after her. Likewise, Rose sings to keep the garden alive in Rose Petal Place, but her friends have to rescue her after she's taken by obnoxious spider Nastina and her annoying fly partner Horace. 

Sweet Sea is entirely new to me. I never even heard of the doll until tonight, and I certainly don't remember the cartoon. Unlike most of the toys advertised in these specials, Sweet Sea was the only doll in her line, a cherubic mermaid. Her friends were sea animals that came as part of outfit packs. In the special, Sweet Sea's parents give her a magic necklace that is supposed to keep an evil sea serpent at bay. When the Serpant's octopus partner gets his tentacles on it, Sweet Sea and her seahorse friend go after them.

I have far fonder memories of The Charmkins. This and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory were the first videos we ever rented in 1985, and we took it out a lot over the years. Despite having never owned any of the sweet-smelling, charm-based toy line, we loved the story of how feisty Black-Eyed Susan and her brother Wee Willie Winkle rescued dainty ballerina Lady Slipper from Dragonweed and his brothers.

Peppermint Rose debuted in 1993, by which time most of the fanciful girl lines had come and gone. It was too late in the day for even the pretty dolls in their flowery Victorian bloomers and Blossom hats to make much of an impression. Too bad, as this special is honestly pretty fun. Rose is recruited by a tiny wizard to rescue the magical peppermint rose bush from beetles who want to devour it. Seeing her go from a whiny kid who thinks she can solve anything by writing a check to a thoughtful young woman who is able to lead her friends in the song that finally defeats the beetles is actually rather sweet. The sequence where she has a rap-off with an insect is as hilariously campy and of-its-time as it is out of left field. 

If you also can't remember a spring without fairy, nature, and Care Bear magic, you'll want to check out these rare 80's fairy tales!

Fairies (1981)

Strawberry Shortcake and Pets On Parade (1982)

The Magic of Herself the Elf (1983)

The Charmkins (1983)

The Care Bears Battle the Freeze Machine (1984)

Rose Petal Place (1984)

Sweet Sea (1985)

Peppermint Rose (1993)

Movies In the Springtime

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and the 1938 Disney short "Boat Builders." Donald, Goofy, and Mickey put together a boat from a box, but there's problems at the outset. Donald has a hard time painting the tail when Mickey's trying to adjust the wheel, while Goofy falls for the pretty mermaid figurehead for the front of their ship. They think they're big-shot sailors, until Minnie christens the boat a little too hard, and it falls to pieces before it gets half-way across the harbor.

Called Uber next. It was getting late, and I wanted to make it to the 11:30 showing of Snow White. The driver picked me up in 9 minutes, but he was a pleasant man who dodged what little traffic there was. I was at the Cinemark theater in 15 minutes. Dashed into Dollar Tree to grab a Diet Pepsi and snacks for the movie before heading into the theater.

I got in probably about half-way through the commercials. I have no more desire to see King of Kings today than I did last week. I really don't need to see a remake of Lilo & Stitch either, but Elio still looks like something worth checking out this June. I wasn't a fan of the Karate Kid franchise in the 80's, and I'm not interested in more films now. 

As for Snow White, I go further into this Disney live-action retelling of their first animated feature at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Snow White (2025)

Also, for the second time in a little over a month, the theater was filled to capacity on a day it shouldn't have been full at all. There were at least three groups packed in the theater with me. I think they may have been special needs or autistic high schoolers, from what I heard their teachers say. At least they were a lot more pleasant than the middle schoolers who saw Captain America: Brave New World with me last month. They didn't talk through the movie, and no one made dumb jokes. (And when they did talk, they often weren't saying anything I wasn't thinking myself.) I was more concerned about their teachers constantly getting up and down to tend to them and disrupting the early goings of the movie.

Dodged all of the groups after the movie and hurried to Applebee's for lunch. Unlike the theater, they were quiet, despite it being 1:30 and still lunch time. I ate a delicious, juicy bacon cheeseburger and well-seasoned fries in wonderful peace.

Made a very brief stop at Walmart next. I didn't even bother with the housewares side of the store this time. I haven't found anything interesting over there in months. I grabbed cough drops and Alka-Seltzer medicine to combat my allergies and moved on. 

It was too gorgeous of an afternoon to go home right away. The sun was shining, the breeze was blowing, and it was soft and warm, probably in the lower 60's. Strolled down the White Horse Pike, stopping at WaWa for a green pineapple smoothie so I could take that allergy medicine. The smoothie wasn't bad, very sweet, but full of earthy tropical flavor.

I hadn't explored Sun Valley Records in a while. They're a small record and head shop on the other end of the White Horse Pike near Lindenwald. While they have a decent used DVD collection, their records and CDs are mostly new, and thus, far more expensive than most of the other record shops in the area. Not to mention, they specialize in rock and jazz, with some R&B mixed in. No cast albums, no country, and soundtracks only if they have songs in the aforementioned genres. I did pick up a few things. The DVD was the 1933 horror film The Mystery at the Wax Museum. The one record was: 

The Beatles - With the Beatles (I haven't been able to find this anywhere else.)

The CD was:

The Animals - The Best of the Animals

Walked back to WaWa to pick up the bus and throw away the smoothie cup. I waited, and waited, and waited. The bus was at least ten minutes late. At least it didn't take long once it did arrive. The traffic wasn't bad for almost 5 PM. I was in Oaklyn and at home by 5. 

After I took out the trash, I put on Snow White and the Three Stooges. Snow White has a lot in common with this live-action version from the 60's, including the prince not being a prince, the comic relief characters being relatively subdued, and the lovely music and production. I went further into this one at my musical review blog way back in November 2018.

Cult Flops - Snow White and the Three Stooges

Finished out the night with two of my recent jazz and vocalist acquisitions. Pearl Bailey was taking Broadway by storm in the black cast of Hello Dolly! when she recorded The Real Pearl Bailey. Her gritty, laid-back style can be heard on songs like "I'm Gonna Keep On Doin'," "The Color of Rain," and "A Tower of Strength." (Interestingly, we have another song from How Now, Dow Jones here, "Walk Away.") 

The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz Volume IV takes us into the post-world jazz scene of hot Dixieland bands and cool modern jazz that became the choice dance music of swinging college students, even as rock began encroaching on its turf. I recognize many of the songs here, like "Criss-Cross" by the Thelonius Monk Quartet, "My Funny Valentine" by Sarah Vaughn, Monk's solo "Bag's Groove," and the Modern Jazz Quartet's "Django." 

Rainy Days and Games

I awoke to a messy morning, with rain coming down in torrents. It would continue in some form through the late afternoon. There was no way I'd be going anywhere today. Just as well. I also had a stuffed-up nose and pounding sinus headache. I wasn't up to wandering around anyway.

Watched Alice's Wonderland Bakery while eating breakfast. Hattie and Fergie love racing to make deliveries for Alice's new food order service in "Order Up!" The guys learn a lesson about going slow and working together when they mistake Dinah for the cake Alice made for the Queen of Hearts and have to swap them at Hearts Palace. Alice and Rosa are caught up in a "Teeny-Tiny Venture" when they're shrunk and have to figure out a way to the palace by midnight for the Knighting Ceremony. 

Switched to The Roku Channel for The Busy World of Richard Scarry. "Mr. Gronkle Moves Away" when he gets tired of the noise in Busytown. Turns out the woods are even noisier. He eventually moves back, but won't answer his door or phone. He finally realizes how important he is to the town when Huckle, Lowly, and Sergeant Murphy come to check up on him. An Indian scribe and his daughter try to convince a wealthy merchant that "Counting Chickens" with numbers is easier than with stones or shells. He refuses to learn the new new system, until the daughter teaches him. Billy Dog is certain he'll never be able to handle "The Spelling Bee." His mother helps him practice, and he not only wins, he gets to the city finals.

Took the laundry downstairs, then did dishes and put them away. After I got all that cleaned up, I watched Broadway's Lost Treasures III. This is one of the three collections of musical numbers aired on the Tonys to have turned up on PBS in the early 2000's. Robert Goulet, Tommy Tune, and Harvey Furnstein hosted. To tell the truth, most of the performances were done years after the shows in question had come and gone, including Julie Andrews and Ethel Merman performing their biggest hits. Debbie Allen and the dancers from West Side Story give us a glimpse of the original lyrics for "America," while the cast of the 42nd Street revival from 2001 open the show by literally dancing on the real Broadway...and then under it on the subway. 

Robert Goulet was seen twice, joined by Inga Swenson and a line of male and female Mounties for a medley of songs from Rose-Marie and in the addition material with two numbers from the flop Kander-Ebb show The Happy Time. Sweetly goofy Kristen Chenowith makes a perfect Sally explaining "My New Philosophy" in the 1999 revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. The cast of the 1989 revue Black and Blue tore up the floor with their vivacious tap routine to "'Tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do." The opening numbers from the original Ragtime and the 2002 Into the Woods revival gives us a good look at those epic shows and how the casts of New Yorkers and immigrants in the turn of the 20th century and fairy tale characters interact. The mid-60's flop How Now Dow Jones isn't well-known today, but that's not the fault of its hilarious and catchy chorus number "Step to the Rear." 

After the show ended and I put the laundry in the dryer, I decided to try my new muffin pan. I wanted to use up the coconut that was leftover from the Irish potatoes last week, and I haven't made muffins in ages. The "Old School Muffins" recipe from Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for More Food became Coconut-Orange Muffins, replacing the yogurt with orange juice. Not bad. I haven't made a bad batch from that recipe yet. I think the orange juice just made them more sweet than orange, though.

Had lunch while watching What's New, Scooby Doo? It's a "Big Scare In the Big Easy" when the gang encounter the ghosts of two brothers who fought on the opposite sides of the Civil War at a graveyard. The owners are being pressured by their next-door neighbor to sell for his water park. When Daphne disappears while investigating, the others rescue her while trying to figure out what this not-so-brotherly duo is really up to.

Brought the laundry upstairs, then listened to Doris Day's Greatest Hits while I folded it. This 1958 album gives us a lot of songs from her movies to that point, like "Secret Love," "It's Magic," "Que Sera Sera," and the title number from Teacher's Pet, but I prefer the non-film songs. Her "Everybody Loves a Lover" is jaunty fun, and we also get a sweet "When I Fall In Love" and "If I Give My Heart to You."

Went online to reply to an e-mail. We finally got a bite. A company that rents out office space needs an assistant and are willing to give me a short phone interview. I told them I'd be ok for Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning.

After I finished that, I went down for a desperately-needed nap. I took allergy medicine earlier in the day, but all that did was wipe me out. I passed out at 4:30 and didn't get up until past 6:30, by which time the rain was long gone and the sun was out.

Took out the recycling, then had dinner while watching Match Game Syndicated. Bob Donner joined in for the first time in these episodes. His deadpan humor and excellent artwork on his cards would really add a lot to the later syndicated episodes and Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour. Joining him are Bill Daily and a pair of Wallaces, Marcia and former Miss USA Marjorie. 

Finished the night on YouTube with flop game shows from the 50's and 60's. Producers were really just trying to see what stuck in the early days of TV. Game shows that worked on radio often didn't land on television, either because they didn't involve enough movement, or they'd just worn out their welcome. Along with panel shows, quiz shows were among the most popular formats during the 50's. They were cheap to produce, could hand out huge payouts, and winning contestants often became household words. 

Penny to a Million from 1955 is one example. Contestants won a penny for each question answered. They could win a maximum of 100 pennies, or $10,000. Yeah, this is dry as a bone. It takes forever for anyone to earn enough pennies for a decent payout, and the format just isn't that exciting. Even jocular radio announcer Bill Goodwin can't drum up interest.

No wonder producers started fixing shows. The Big Surprise from 1956 had celebrities and regular folks who had performed acts of heroism answering questions about their family and themselves to win $100,000. Even giving contestants the answers beforehand and having Errol Flynn as a contestant in the surviving episode couldn't make this one more interesting. It was gone by 1957, well before other shows began blowing the whistle on the fixes.

Dotto started off strong in early 1958. Contestants answered questions that would connect dots to form a picture. If they guessed correctly, they would win fabulous prizes. Within months, the show was the biggest hit on daytime, and Jack Narz was one of the best-known hosts on television. It came crashing down by late July when it was discovered that the show was rigged and contestants were given answers to questions in advance. 

It's too bad. Unlike the previous two shows, this one was strong enough not to need the rigging. I'm surprised no one has tried reviving this or doing something similar, maybe on streaming with digital dots. The two surviving episodes show why it was such a fast success.

By the early 60's, quiz shows were replaced by celebrity guessing games like Password or gimmicky panel shows. The most notorious of the latter was You're In the Picture from 1961. Jackie Gleason hosted this very weird panel show where four celebrities stick their heads through a picture and try to guess what they are while Gleason tosses out quips. Uh, yeah. Not really as horrible as Gleason's later apology claimed, but very, very awkward. Fortunately, both the show and Gleason's apology the next week for how bad it was survived, so you can see the biggest game show bomb of the early 60's for yourself.

Get the Message is an example of the many Password imitations littering the airwaves in the mid-60's. Unlike You're In the Picture, I wish this one had worked out. Two teams of men and women consisting of contestant and a pair of celebrities are shown a message. The celebrities write a one-word clue describing the message and relay it to their contestant. If they didn't guess the message, it passed to the other team. Simple and fun, this is another one I'm surprised no one attempted to revive or revise. 

Game shows in the late 60's became more salacious in response to more titillating programs like The Newlywed Game and Hollywood Squares. He Said, She Said went the Newlywed route as three regular married couples and a celebrity couple matched stories. Gene and Helen Rayburn were the celebrities in the pilot. The regular contestants were dropped in favor of all-celebrities after a few months. Goodson-Todman would continue to tinker with this one in the early 70's, finally finding success with it as Tattletales in 1974. 

Check out some of the most notorious game show flops and scandals of the 50's and 60's, including one that was so bad, it ended after one episode!

Penny To a Million (1955)

The Big Surprise (1956)

Dotto (1958)

You're In the Picture (Including apology) (1961)

Get the Message (1964)

He Said, She Said Pilot (1969)

Mad About the Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz, Volume III CD. Duke Ellington and His Orchestra start things off with some of their biggest hits, ranging from "The New St. Louis Toodle-Oo" in 1927 to "Blue Serge" in 1941. Dizzie Gillespie takes us to the hotter stuff that came out after World War II like "I Can't Get Started" and "Sho' Nuff." Charlie Parker was influential in jazz after the war. The variations on his quartet would spin off talents like Miles Davis and give us "Lady Be Good" and "Parker's Mood." There's also two different versions of "Crazeology" and "Embraceable You."

I managed to get off to work on time and on the bike. It was too nice not to ride the bike. Though it was chilly, it was also sunny and a lot less windy. That may be part of why we were fairly quiet today. It was steady, but not overwhelmingly busy, and nothing like it usually is on a Sunday. I spent the entire afternoon pushing carts while college boys handled the inside chores and was in and out with no trouble.

Put on Ben Bagley's Noel Coward Revisited after I changed and settled down. Coward was probably the best-known British songwriter in the US before the Beatles came across the Atlantic, but there's some of his songs that aren't as familiar over here as they could be. The chorus numbers "London at Night" and "Evening In Summer" make fun of habits and nightlife in England's main city. "The Wife of an Acrobat" features a hilarious turn from Hermoinie Gingold, while Dorothy Louden gets the touching "If Love Were All" from the operetta Bitter Sweet. Nancy Andrews has more fun with "Chase Me Charlie."

Finished the night after a shower with dinner and the Match Game marathon. Crusty character actor Ed Asner was appearing as Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show when he first appeared on Match Game in 1975. He wasn't the best at matching, but his tough common sense made a nice contrast to some of the wilder personalities around him. He and Richard Dawson weren't too thrilled with Lyle, a go-getting contestant from Las Vegas whose cockiness seemed to rub them the wrong way in mid-1976. Early in 1977, he saw the last episodes featuring George, that super-sweet contestant who won more games than anyone. George was also the first male contestant to play another male contestant when they ran out of female contestants. 

Asner is probably best-known with Match Game fans nowadays for taking part in the infamous School Riot during a July 1977 episode. Producer and judge Ira Skutch matched Ed and Brett Somers' "college," but not Richard and Debralee Scott's "finishing school." They both put up a fight, the contestant riled up the audience, and Gene couldn't keep order. Even Brett and Charles' gag about Charles being "the first victim of the School Riot" didn't really make things better. 

Asner's last appearance was in late 1978. It was the only time he sat in the fifth seat that had been vacated by Richard just weeks before. Valerie Bertanelli was barely 19 when she sat in the fourth ingenue seat and wasn't comfortable with Ed and Gene hitting on her all week, which is why she only allowed this week to be seen after Asner's death in 2021. (The nighttime episode still isn't available.) Patty Duke and Nipsey Russell are having a lot more fun in the first and last seats.

It's a riot of hilarity with Mr. Grant  himself in this wild and wacky marathon!

Match Game Sunday Classics - Ed Asner's Best Episodes On Match Game (1975-1978) 

Oh, and the clouds moved in somewhere around the start of the marathon, but the heavy rains didn't arrive until quarter of 1 AM. It's been off and on ever since. 

Just What I Needed

Began the morning with breakfast and "The Band Concert." Mickey Mouse's first color cartoon has him conducting an outdoor concert with Goofy, Horace, Clarabelle, and Peter Pig in the band. Mickey has his hands full with Donald trying to get in on the show with his flute rendition of "Turkey In the Straw," and then a tornado hits as they perform a particularly intense piece and sends the entire band flying everywhere!

Called Uber after the cartoon ended. I'd be meeting Jessa later. He arrived within 10 minutes, and got to work right on time. No traffic anywhere, not at that point.

No trouble at work, either. We were a little busier than yesterday, but nothing crazy. I swept the store and pushed carts with no problems, enjoying the in-and-out sunshine and lower 60's temperatures. 

I needed a few things after I changed into regular clothes. Forgot to pick up my heart pressure medication yesterday. I got that, along with more throat drops (my allergies are acting up again) and a bottle of water that was supposed to be a freebie. (And of course, I got the wrong size.)

Jessa picked me up about 10 minutes later. We first went out to lunch at Rexy's, the bar across the Black Horse Pike from the Acme. I don't think either of us were expecting the elegant, rustic heavy wood-and-brass look or the high prices. I figured it would be a dive. I had an individual pear and Gruyere pizza. She had a bowl of corn chowder. Their "individual" pizza was about the size of most places' small pies, and her bowl could have fit three regular ones. We ended up sharing the pizza, and she took half the soup home.

Our original plan for today was to hit the Cherry Hill Mall. That got a check the moment Jessa drove by and we saw the parking lot was packed to the rafters. We'd be lucky to park across the street at the Hillview Shopping Center. Dodged traffic down Route 70 to hit the Pennsauken Goodwill and 2nd Avenue Thrift instead. They were busy, but certainly nothing like the mall. Jessa got nothing at Goodwill. I found a pretty olive blouse with burgundy and gold flowers embroidered on it, a CD, and a book. The CD was: 

Sanctuary - The 20th Anniversary of Wyndham Hill 2 disc set

The book was: 

Death On the Nile - Agatha Christie

My best find at 2nd Avenue Thrift was a replacement muffin tin. It looked exactly like the muffin tin Craig gave me for Christmas 2016, but in much better shape. I also picked up Broadway's Lost Treasures III still in its original wrapping on DVD (I have the other two and have looked around for the third for ages) and two CDs: 

Barry White - The Ultimate Collection

Andersen's Fairy Tales, a collection of Hans Christian Andersen stories read on CD, made by the same company that put out that lovely fairy tale anthology I picked up last year.

After Jessa dropped me off, I finished the night on YouTube with dinner and this week's Saturday marathon. Eva Gabor didn't become a semi-regular on Match Game until 1977, but she would make frequent appearances on the CBS and syndicated run through 1981. Some people on the chat complained that she tended to not interact with the rest of the cast and her Hungarian accent could get annoying. I thought she was funny and adorable, not to mention a real trooper. She lost her toenail when a handsome Naval officer accidentally kicked it off during a nighttime episode, but she still did the next show with her toe on ice. 

Eva was probably one of the best-known stars to be a semi-regular during the later CBS and syndicated run. One man said he'd pay $100 for a kiss from her, then only ponied up $10. She was there for the hilarious week with Kukla and Ollie, the only puppets to have ever appeared on the show, and got to see Brett flirt with them and march around the studio. She, Brett, and Elaine Joyce showed off a young man's gorgeous paintings of birds on a syndicated episode. Another of her nighttime episodes was only recently returned to the re-run rotation in 2021...and Gene asking an Asian veteran which side he was in the war may have been part of the reason for its disappearance. 

Go from Park Avenue to Television City with the glamour girl of Match Game, dahhling, in this charming and hilarious marathon!

Match Game Saturday Classics - Eva Gabor Marathon - Best Episodes on Match Game

And speaking of charming, here's tonight's Musical Dreams Movie Review, a sweet coming-of-age story Disney put out on its streaming platform in 2020. Look for its sequel, Hollywood Stargirl, next week!

Musicals On Streaming - Stargirl

Chilled Spring

Began the morning with breakfast and Paw Patrol. Daring Danny tries out his new turbo-charged snowboard, but goes out of bounds and ends up in a tree with a bear sniffing around under him. The "Pups Bear-ly Save Danny" from the bear, then save the bears when they end up in the tree, too. "Pups Save the Mayor's Tulips" from a hungry goat and Mayor Humdinger, who sends his Kitty Catastrophe crew to put the pups to sleep so he'll win the garden competition.

Called Uber after that. It was gale-force windy again, and I wanted to get my grocery shopping done later. The morning driver picked me up in 10 minutes; I got to work in just enough time. The afternoon driver got me in 9. No trouble anywhere here. The roads were clear.

No trouble at work, either. We were quiet almost the entire morning. I did put a few cold items away later, but I spent most of the morning sweeping and pushing carts. There just isn't much going on right now. It got a little steady around noon and was dying out when I finished.

My schedule is what I expected for this time of the month and year, which is to say, I don't have much of one. Once again, I just work Wednesday morning and the weekend. Like I said, there simply isn't anything going on. It should pick up the week after when we move into the beginning of April. That's when people get their government money and will likely start thinking of Easter and Passover. 

Got my groceries done soon as I finished my shift. The Slice cans had a buy one, get one coupon attached to them. Grabbed a Poppi too, since I had an online coupon for them. Restocked yogurt, peanut butter, and granola bars. The blood oranges were also on a big sale. Citrus is usually pretty cheap in winter and early spring. Bought two bagels to eat at work this weekend. Picked up one of the new spring tote bag designs that showed a bike with a bouquet of flowers in its basket.

When I got upstairs, I changed, then watched The Price Is Right. Bob Barker did not have one of his better days. He came in claiming it was the Halloween show. Ten minutes in, someone told him it would be shown in November. He kept saying it was different holidays for the rest of the episode. Near the end of the show, he also gave a man his coral-pink shirt, spending the rest of the show in nothing but his tie and jacket. At least the contestants did better. We had five out of six wins, and someone picked up furniture and a trip on the smaller Showcase. 

After Price ended, I rested while watching Double Indemnity. Housewife Phyllis Diedrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) takes out a life insurance claim on her husband with a double indemnity clause, which makes the salesman, Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray), realize that she wants to kill him. They end up planning the murder and making it look like an accident. His boss, Barton Keyes (Edward G. Robinson), doesn't buy the accident claim and starts investigating. Walter certainly has second thoughts after he befriends Phyllis' sweet stepdaughter Lola (Jean Heather) and begins to realize what a scheming, manipulative witch she is. 

Toasty-dark film noir benefits from a crackling screenplay and some of Billy Wilder's strongest direction. Wilder had to talk the leads into taking their roles, but it was worth it. All three are excellent, with MacMurray putting in one of his best performances as the flummoxed salesman and Stanwyck dazzling as the lady who takes him for a ride. This is one of the proto-film noirs, and as such, isn't for people looking for something lighter. If you're up to a dark, twisty tale, there's no better one than this look at the a doomed romance that led to murder.

Switched to Match Game Syndicated and dinner after the movie ended. The first episodes finished out the week with Susan Howard, Dick Martin, and David Doyle. The last hour brought in Fred Grandy, Bart Braverman, Mary Wickes, and Dolly Martin. Dolly had a splint on her finger, and there was much speculation about how she hurt herself (including Dick doing it).

Finished the night with Stargirl. I'll go further into this sweet Disney coming-of-age tale tomorrow at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 

Welcome to Spring

Began the day with breakfast and What's New, Scooby Doo. "Space Ape at the Cape" brings the gang to Florida, where Velma has submitted a project to NASA. The scientists there are more interested in the shuttle that's about ready to launch...or would be, if an alien egg hadn't suddenly hatched and an alien wasn't wrecking havoc! While Fred and Daphne search for clues, Velma attempts to keep a bratty kid away from her project, and Shaggy and Scooby discover the joys of freeze-dried astronaut food.

Let Supermarket Sweep run while I got organized. I came in as they were doing the Five-Second Shoot Out mini-game from the later series. The Big Sweep got really wild. All three teams were relatively close in time and scores. Two of them got the frozen yogurt David wanted, and all found bonuses (including an adorable teddy bear with a mustache in a kilt). The team that won didn't do quite so well at the Bonus Round. The first answer tripped them up...but Arm & Hammer does make a lot of products...

Headed out after that. The weather was off-and-on cloudy, humid, and cooler than it has been, but far from cold. I was fine in my sage green knit sweater. Decided to celebrate the first day of spring with a ride into Westmont and a quick trip to Sprouts. 

My first stop was the WaWa on the corner of Cuthbert and the White Horse Pike for money and a grape Propel. I wanted the money for Salvation Thrift, which doesn't take credit cards. Alas, I found nothing there, no matter how much I dodged the many ladies on their lunch breaks looking for deals. Nothing interesting at Party Fair, either. I eventually backtracked down the block to McMillan's Bakery and treated myself to one of their incredible, overstuffed cream donuts. 

Headed across the street to Phidelity Records next. They were also relatively busy with guys chatting with the owner and looking for rock records and CDs. I eventually came up with three records:

Frank Sinatra - All the Way

Doris Day - Greatest Hits

Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band - Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band

And four CDs: 

Train - My Private Nation

Rolling Stones - Exile On Main Street

Miles Davis and Quincy Jones - Miles and Quincy: Live at Montreux 

The Kinks - Come Dancing With the Kinks: The Best of the Kinks 1977-1986

Made my way down Cuthbert and around kids getting out of Haddon Township High School over to the Westmont Plaza. I needed to get my trip to Sprouts in, since I won't have time tomorrow. Unlike everywhere else, they weren't busy. The kids don't go in here. Sprouts has no seasonal section and only sells toys at Christmas. I was able to restock brown sugar and buy bananas, coconut milk, breakfast cookies, soda, and those raspberry-lemon dried mango slices in peace. 

Went straight home after that. Put on From Justin to Kelly as I put everything away. I go further into this rush-job vehicle for American Idol stars Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guardini that's now regarded as one of the worst films of all time at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

Cult Flops - From Justin to Kelly

Mom called as I was settling down with the movie. I called her earlier to wish her a happy birthday. Neither of us have a lot going on right now. I told her about my stomach problems and long hours last month, my trip into Philly, and getting to see The Day the Earth Blew Up, and she told me how excited she was about the Eagles winning the Super Bowl. We discussed the Looney Tunes and the Eagles' chances of repeating next year as Keefe, Julia, and Aurora arrived home and she went to greet them.

Switched to Match Game Syndicated while eating dinner. The first week I saw featured Dick Martin, Elaine Joyce, and big George Kennedy. At one point, Gene got so into explaining the big bang to Dick, all of the panelists but Dick got up and left...and the camera panned out to reveal most of the crew had also left. The lights even went off at one point! Jimmie Walker's week is still MIA, so they skipped to the next week, with Robert Donner, Marcia Wallace, and a bubbly Betty Kennedy.

Finished the night with cast albums and soundtracks, the first in honor of spring. I have no idea who thought putting Seven Brides for Seven Brothers on the stage was a good idea. The 1985 London mounting lasted two months in two separate limited engagements and seems to have gone over slightly better than the 1982 Broadway cast, which barely made three days and wasn't recorded. Honestly, this is rather charming, with some decent new songs, including Adam explaining that "Love Never Goes Away" to Gideon and Milly and the brides and brothers cooing to the new baby that they're "Glad That You Were Born." Revised versions have done well in regional productions, so maybe this really just needed fine-tuning. 

The reason I bought the soundtrack for the Disney Cinderella wasn't for the soundtrack itself, though I love "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes," "So This is Love," and "Bibbiti Bobbiti Boo." The deluxe CD I dug up from Mostly Books also includes seven songs that were written for the film, but not used. I originally heard them on the 2-disc Cinderella DVD I picked up in 2005, but could never find them on an audio disc until now. Of the cut numbers, the cute "I'm In the Middle of a Muddle" for Cinderella as she wishes she had more help for her chores and the lovely waltz "The Dress My Mother Wore" are my favorites. There's also the mice describing how happy they are to have their new clothes in "The Mouse Song," and "Dancing On a Cloud," which was intended to cover a sequence where Cinderella and the Prince dance into the heavens. 

Oh, and once again, it was cloudy for much of the day, but wouldn't start pouring until well after dark. This time, we even got a bit of a thunderstorm. As far as I can tell, it's long gone now. 

The Warmth of the Sun

Began the morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Daniel loves spinning the wheel at the carnival and doing tricks, but not that he can't imitate Miss Elainia's cartwheel. He finally does "Daniel's Tiger Twirl" when his father encourages him to do his own kind of trick. Jodi is reminded that "You Can Play Your Own Way" when she keeps imitating Miss Elainia when they play school with Daniel. 

Headed off to work after the cartoon ended. Thankfully, I got there just in time. No problems whatsoever today. It's the middle of the month, and we're between holidays. The only thing going on right now is college basketball. Not to mention, it was just too nice for shopping. The weather was sunny, warm for March, probably in the upper 60's-lower 70's, and not windy at all. We were a little steady around 11 AM-12 PM and dying again as I finished.

The traffic on Nicholson Road was backed up half-way past Audubon Park. They were working on the electrical poles on the corner of Nicholson and the Black Horse Pike. I ended up cutting through Audubon Park to avoid the repair trucks and get back on the Black Horse Pike.

When I got home, I changed and grabbed a quick lunch while watching Alice's Wonderland Bakery. "Cookie's Day Off" is supposed to be at Dodo Beach, but then it starts raining. She's so disappointed, Alice and her friends find a way to recreate Dodo Beach at the bakery. Fergie the White Rabbit wants to keep his fur pristine, so he'll be "Picture Furfect" when his family takes a big group photo. Alice and Hattie try to help him keep his fur clean as they make Wild Carrot Turnovers...but he finally learns that what's really important about a picture isn't what's perfect, but the smiles that are seen.

Went back out for a short walk after lunch. I forgot to buy eggs for a friend. They were cheaper at Dollar General than Family Dollar. Got a soda at Dollar General, too. La Morelense Plus, the Hispanic ice cream parlor on the corner of Cuthbert and the White Horse Pike, opened for the season last week. I enjoyed a delicious banana milkshake while resting at a turquoise picnic table and watching cars pass on the Pike.

When I got back in, I spent the rest of the evening finishing out the Card Sharks Host Tournament at YouTube and eating dinner later. Tom Kennedy, Jack Clark, Jim Lange, and Alex Trebek played the second week. Alex was the only host who spent the tournament in casual clothes. As he reminded the others, he was between jobs at that point and had no deal to get him suits. He must have picked up a lot of great trivia from Double Dare and High Rollers, because he did the best that week, followed by Clark. Kennedy was the one who had trouble with the cards that week.

Trebek and Clark played Gene Rayburn and Bill Cullen during the final week. Gene continued to flirt with the hostesses, and did better at that than at the game. He came in fourth. Clark got closer and did especially well on the money round, but not enough to pass third. It came down to two of the most beloved hosts in the business...and Alex just got better cards in the end. He eventually won an extra $25,000 for his charity, while Bill got to play the last Money Round to get his extra cash. 

Finished the night at Paramount Plus for The Love Boat after a shower. Doc falls for a female doctor (Susan Sullivan) who nurses him through the flu and admonishes him "Doc, Be Patient." A woman whose boyfriend stood her up (Arlene Golonka) asks her cab driver (Buddy Hackett) if he's "Going My Way" and is willing to come on the cruise with her. He takes a chance and joins her. A lovely ballerina (Starr Danias) thinks her dancing partner and boyfriend (John Meehan) is throwing her over for his former partner (Carol Lawrence). He'd love to say "Dance With Me," but he has a secret that could jeopardize his career and wants her to dance on her own. 

Looney Tunes at the Movies

Began the morning with breakfast and The Busy World of Richard Scarry. Huckle, Sally, and Lowly see how much alike PS Pig and Mr. Frumble are and decide to play "Match-Makers" for them. Good thing PS thinks Mr. Frumble's bumbling is adorable. "Forget-bur Never Forgets" in Mesopotamia when he creates language in order to remember what he needs to build for the emperor's temple. Hilda has "Toof Trouble," but is afraid of the dentist and doesn't want to admit it. She borrows Bananas' headphones to focus on something more pleasant than the drill...and then has to convince Bananas that he needs to see the dentist, too.

Bryanna picked me up at 10:30. We applied to twenty jobs between the two of us, including two for the Camden County Library again. I'm not sure about those. They're only part-time, and they don't have health insurance or pay much. I badly wish I could find a job that I would like that would give me full-time and health insurance! Bryanna suggested I take a part-time job and keep the Acme job until the health insurance on the other job kicked in. 

I'm not sure about that. I already feel stuck. I'm going to be trapped at the Acme forever, doing the same old job I've been burnt out on for 20 years, just because of the health insurance. If it had to be two jobs, I'd rather have two jobs I want to do. And considering how terrible I am at getting to work, I don't know I could keep up with two jobs. Maybe I could find a second job at home. 

I was thoroughly depressed when I got out of the Haddon Township Library. Walked up to the Westmont Plaza and stopped at the bagel shop for lunch. They were so busy, I took the last booth in the back that had a seat missing. At least the tomato, avocado, and mozzarella omelet and multi-grain bagel were tasty. They filled me up so much, I couldn't finish the hash browns that came with them. 

Bought a quick water at Sprouts, then walked down Cuthbert and across the White Horse Pike to pick up the bus. It was only a minute or two late, and relatively full for quarter of 2. Thankfully, it only took about 15 minutes to get down the White Horse Pike to Somerdale. I got off across from Taco Bell and the big Walmart.

Since I had time before the movies, I took a brief look at Walmart. Not a single thing of interest there...or much of anything in there. The records are totally gone, and most of the TV sets that would interest me have those annoying anti-theft devices on them. Not to mention, I haven't watched most of the TV series sets I have yet. The 18-inch doll clothes are gone, too, though they still have a lot of doll accessories. I don't really need much in the way of food right now, either, and I figured the movie I was seeing wasn't long enough to need snacks. I walked out with nothing.

At least the day was beautiful for all the hiking. Sunny and in the lower 60's, with no wind whatsoever. As perfect of a late winter day as one could wish. It was a pleasure to head down the hill to the Cinemark theater. 

Even with the walk, I was still ten minutes early for The Day the Earth Blew Up. I figured I might as well be early. I went to the bathroom, and the commercials didn't start until a good ten minutes after that. Of the commercials, I'm already hoping to see Snow White for review sometime next week. Elio looks really sweet, too, and worth checking out this summer. I'd be more excited about The Bad Guys 2 if I'd gotten around to seeing the original The Bad Guys. I'm not much for religion, so unless The King of Kings is a musical, I'll likely pass. The Legend of Ochi looks like an imitation E.T, which was never my favorite movie. It's also likely a pass. 

Mixed feelings on The Day the Earth Blew Up. I'm not going to go heavily into the plot here due to spoilers, but, on one hand, I appreciate the well-done hand-drawn animation that feels like a color short of the early 40's and the emphasis on Daffy and Porky's relationship. Daffy has been my favorite Looney Tunes character since childhood, and the whole thing with him and Porky working together was rather sweet. I'm also glad to see Porky's girl Petunia Pig here; not only is she just as cute with Porky, but she's a scientist and probably tougher than both guys. 

On the other hand, this one sometimes gets a little too loony for its own good. It's hard to figure out what audience it's intended for.  I'm not sure how younger kids would handle the heavy violence level reminiscent of older Bob Clampett shorts. As much as I liked seeing Daffy and the pigs in the spotlight, I kind of wished other Tunes like Bugs or Marvin the Martian had shown up, or at least had cameos. For all the great animation, this still feels like something that should have been released on Max, regardless of Warners' lack of respect for animation right now. 

I think your enjoyment of this one will depend on how big of a Looney Tunes fan you are. I've loved the Tunes since childhood and got a kick of out of it. If you're also a fan of Daffy, Porky, Petunia, or the wilder Clampett shorts, you'll want to see if you can find this at a local theater and check it out.

Did the reverse of my usual movie trip and called Uber for a ride home. I didn't feel like hiking up the hill and waiting around for the bus again. The Uber driver arrived in ten minutes, avoided traffic on the White Horse Pike, and got me home in 15. 

Went into The Girls On the Beach when I got in and brought my laundry downstairs. I go further into this female-centric Spring Break Beach Party imitation at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Girls On the Beach

Switched to Match Game Syndicated after the movie ended while I had dinner and put the laundry in the dryer. I arrived in time for the last episode of the week with Bart Braverman very happy to be sitting between Debralee Scott and a cowboy hat-clad Holly Halstrom on the bottom row. For some weird reason, Buzzr skipped way ahead after that, to the week featuring Don Galloway of Ironside, Fannie Flagg, and Bart and Holly returning.

Finished the night working on the review while listening to animation and family film soundtracks in honor of The Day the Earth Blew Up. Gay Purree may not have had the best story or animation, but it does have a really lovely score. Judy Garland's ballad "Little Drops of Rain" was a favorite of hers, while Robert Goulet gets the charming "Mewsette." Paul Frees and The Mellow Men have fun with "The Money Cat."

I could have sworn I read that Reader's Digest Huckleberry Finn from 1974 didn't get a soundtrack, due to Roberta Flack not liking the instrumentation for her big ballad "Freedom" that opens the film and album. I'm so glad I was wrong. "Freedom" is lovely and stirring regardless of the instruments used. Harvey Korman and David Wayne also have a blast with their comic numbers "Royalty" and "The Royal Nonesuch." 

The Carl Stalling Project: Music From the Warner Bros. Cartoons 1936 - 1958 gives the man behind the scores for the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies his due and shows off some of his best work. Only five cartoon scores are heard in full, but they include his wild and energetic music for the original Porky In Wackyland and its remake Dough for the Do-Do, along with Putty Tat Trouble, the Wil E Coyote-Road Runner short There They Go-Go, and his last short To Itch His Own. We also get medleys of other scores from various time periods - the Depression and early 40's, the war years, the early 50's. It gives you a new appreciate of how good his scores were and how much energy they added to the Toons. 

Luck of the Irish

Began my St. Patrick's Day with Murder at an Irish Wedding and the one piece on St. Patrick's Day from Colliers Harvest of Holidays. I didn't know much about St. Patrick himself until I read this biographical essay on his life, other than he supposedly drove the snakes out of Ireland. Apparently, he rose from his roots as a slave who fell in love with Ireland and its culture to drive the Druids and paganism out, too. 

Watched cartoons with St. Patrick's Day or Irish-themed episodes while I had breakfast and got organized. It's a "St. Patrick's Day Dilemma" on Doc McStuffins when Donny accidentally scribbles on her new paper doll Fiona's green Irish dance dress. Fiona won't wear anything but that, until Doc and the others convince her that it's better for you to change your clothes when they're dirty. Doc's new giant doll Gillian is upset that she's too big to play tea party or castle with the other toys...but she's the one who makes "A Giant Save" when Professor Hootenburgh gets stuck in a tree.

Scooby Doo's All-Star Laugh-a-Lympics starts out in "The Grand Canyon" with a burro race that gets pretty sticky when Yogi uses gum to jump ahead and Mumbly gets to the finish by rocket jets. Huckleberry Hound gets luckier when the Rottens' cheating backfires and propels him into first instead of knocking him off the high wire between canyons. Grape Ape and the Blue Falcon work together to save the leprechaun and his gold from the scheming Daltons in "Ireland." Captain Caveman overshoots the ball on the hole-in-one tournament, and Dinky Dawson hits himself in instead of the ball. Cindy Bear has her own unique way of getting that ball in and making sure it stays.

Put together the birthday cards for Mom and Kelly, then headed out to run errands. I realized when I signed their cards that I'm almost out of stamps, so I sent the cards at the post office and picked up more there. I was originally going to make Irish soda bread today, but I forgot the buttermilk at the Acme, and none of the small stores on the White Horse Pike had any. Picked up cream cheese and coconut at Dollar General and butter at Family Dollar. Dropped a book in the kiosk on the White Horse Pike. Grabbed a ham and cheddar hoagie for lunch at WaWa and tried a Mint Smoothie. Not bad. Very smooth and minty, anyway.

The weather was actually rather nice when I came out, sunny and warm. By the time I was on the White Horse Pike, the cold wind had picked up and the clouds rolled in. It was now too chilly to linger. I went straight home, admiring gardens filled with daffodils and green banners waving in the breeze. 

Watched Happy Days while eating lunch. "Joanie's Weird Boyfriend" is a member of the Red Devils, whom she met at the St. Patrick's Day party at Arnold's. Joanie's intrigued at first. She's tired of her parents and brother treating her like a child. She realizes these boys are more than she can handle when they tell her their initiation rights. Good thing her brother and Fonzie follow her and bring along Carmine "The Big Ragu" Ragusa from sister show Laverne & Shirley. 

Spent the next few hours making peanut butter cookies and Irish potatoes. I've been craving peanut butter cookies lately, but the Acme doesn't make them, and the ones at Sprouts were too expensive. Tried the one-bowl recipe in that cookie cookbook Lauren sent me a few years ago. Irish potatoes are easy to make. You just mix cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and coconut and roll them in cinnamon to look like mini sweet potatoes. I think I should have used a bit more peanut butter on the cookies, but they otherwise came out very well. The Irish potatoes were definitely better than the truffles I tried to make at Christmas. At least they didn't involve melting chocolate.

Put on The Quiet Man when I got upstairs and as I ate dinner. Sean Thornton (John Wayne) returns home to 1929 Innesfree, Ireland to buy the home that belonged to his mother when she was a girl. He falls for spirited local lass Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O'Hara), but her brother Will (Victor McLaughlin) wanted the house himself and won't consent to the match. Matchmaker Micheleen Flynn (Barry Fitzgerald) eventually tricks Will into letting them wed, but when Will figures out what's going on, he won't give Mary Kate her dowry or furniture. He does eventually give up the furniture, but still won't turn the money over to her. She won't consider herself to be Sean's wife until he fights for her money. Sean has his own reasons for not fighting and refuses to at first, until Mary Kate tries to leave. His confrontation with Will finally turns into such a huge knock-down, drag-out donnybrook, almost the entirety of Ireland comes out to watch!

John Ford's love letter to the old country is one of the best things he ever did. Ireland glows with a radiance that makes even Oz look pale. Some of the best Irish character actors in Hollywood, including Fitzgerald, Mildred Natwick as the original owner of the cottage whom Will is sweet on, and Ward Bond as the town's fishing-obsessed priest have a grand time with the charming story. McLaughlin made such a wonderful bullying brother, he got one of the film's seven Oscar nominations. Ford won, along with that stunning cinematography. It would be B-studio Republic's only Oscar nomination for Best Picture. A must-see on St. Patrick's Day or if you're a fan of anyone involved or just want to see a really beautiful movie.

Finished the night after a shower with something different. In 1980, the Jim Perry Card Sharks did a three-week tournament featuring some of the most popular game show hosts of the time. I did week one tonight. Allen Ludden killed the competition, winning more than $6,000 for the Los Angeles Zoo. Gene Rayburn and Bill Cullen also did fairly well. Poor Wink Martindale just couldn't get anything going with the cards, but they gave him money for his charity anyway. 

The entire tournament was hilarious, but some of the best moments were in the first week. Gene spent the week flirting with the hostesses who turned the cards. At one point, he actually took Jim's microphone and flat-out hit on the girl. Allen Ludden dazedly claimed he was "between 97 of the biggest teeth I ever saw" when he found himself caught in the middle of Jim Perry and Wink Martindale's dazzling white smiles. 

Here's hoping you enjoy the first week for yourself! I'll be watching the remaining tournament episodes later this week. 

Card Sharks Host Tournament Day 1

Card Sharks Host Tournament Day 2

Card Sharks Host Tournament Day 3

Card Sharks Host Tournament Day 4

Card Sharks Host Tournament Day 5