Took the laundry downstairs, then spent the next hour and a half or so vacuuming, Switer-ing, and dusting my rooms. Watched Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl on Netflix while I worked. Wallace (Ben Whitehead), a cheerful cheese-loving British inventor, has just invented a garden gnome named Norbot who does all the garden work, to the consternation of his dog Gromit who loves his garden work and wishes Wallace would be less reliant on technology. Turns out Gromit has a point when penguin criminal mastermind Feathers McGraw of the short The Wrong Trousers hacks into his computer and takes over Norbot. Norbot builds a whole army of garden gnomes to steal items from around town that will allow him to escape prison. After the police confiscate Wallace's inventions, the duo look for low-tech ways to pursue this webbed-footed criminal, before he makes off with the Blue Diamond.
As usual, we have a corking good mystery with two of the funniest animated characters from jolly old England. Aardman Animation always manages to do amazing things with these two, especially the silent Gromit (who doesn't even have a mouth). I haven't seen The Wrong Trousers in ages, so I don't really remember what happened with Feathers McGraw to land him in prison, but I do know he's a truly unique and very funny villain with plans that are even more elaborate than Wallace's. We also get some funny bits with an older Inspector (Peter Kay) and his eager new recruit (Lauren Patel), who ardently pursue the duo when they think they'll lead them to the diamond. If you loved the previous Wallace and Gromit adventures or are a fan of British animation, or just want to show your elementary schoolers a really funny mystery, this one is highly recommended.
Switched to Hart to Hart while getting ready for school. "You Made Me Kill You" is one of the most terrifying episodes of the entire series. Johnathan is completely unaware that his kindness to a woman in his accounting department (Kathleen Lloyd) has her completely infatuated with him. She's obsessed with getting rid of Jennifer so she can have him all to herself. She attempts to gas Jennifer at a party, then attacks her in her car. Johnathan has to pursue them, before this insane stalker wrecks any more havoc on his life and Jennifer's.
Hurried out a little early to have lunch at Common Grounds Coffee House on the other side of Oaklyn. They were relatively busy for past 2 PM when I arrived, though I did get a seat near the bench. This time, I had my Pear Spiced Chai warm, along with a slice of vegetable medley quiche and a "morning dew roll" (aka a knotted pastry with cinnamon - not bad). Ate very quickly, as it was almost time for me to go to work.
Though we did color pictures with pumpkins and turkeys and Pokemon when I arrived, we once again spent most of the afternoon outside. I had a nice long chat with several of the girls, including an older one who claimed she was sitting aside because her stomach felt funny (though she seemed fine later when she was running around with the others). We admired the leaves falling from one of the big trees in the playground area, looked for ladybugs, and saw a bug that had made itself resemble the mulch, likely for protection.
After I got home, I finally put the laundry in the drier, then went straight into Match Game '76. I saw the first episode on the Disney marathon yesterday. The remaining episodes brought in Fannie Flagg and Dick Martin. A sweet male contestant accidentally tried to kiss Fannie instead of Brett, who actually gave him the top answer for the Audience Match. He got his wish for Fannie when Richard used her as his "surrogate kisser" after the Head-to-Head.
Went to Shout TV for Mystery Science Theater 3000 after bringing my clean laundry upstairs. Eegah (Richard Kiel) is a caveman who falls for a very pretty young lady (Marilyn Manning), kidnapping her and her father (Arch Hall Sr.) and holding them in the desert. Eegah doesn't really cause any harm until the girl's boyfriend (Arch Hall Jr.) shows up with a gun. Eegah is determined to get his lady love back, even if it involves him wandering around civilization and grabbing her in broad daylight.
This ripe 60's cheese is, for all the bad acting, surprisingly sweet. The relationship between Eegah and Roxy is kind of oddly adorable. Certainly, Kiel is a lot more interesting than the dull, rather unattractive Hall Jr. The robots spend the movie pretty much pointing out the same thing. Not a masterpiece or anything, but worth checking out if you love mid-century horror or "so bad it's fascinating" B-flicks.
Finished up Maplepunzel while the movie was on. The evil is vanquished. Queen Gertie and King Tom (Eldridge) arrive with the restored Hope Springs army and Pruitt, putting him under arrest for treason to the crown. Maple gets her voice back, and Mackie explains about her heritage. Victor and Walter the Bear Cub are kissing her when...Maple awakens in her own bed. Her fever has broken, and she does feel better. She hears Betty and Scott performing on the radio when there's a knock at the door. Victor brought her lunch after his train was delayed. He can't stay, but Maple still hopes there will be something between them someday...
Though it didn't take anywhere near as long as Hilary and the Beasts, it still took longer than I thought it would. I had a lot of distractions, though, including vacation. My next story should take less time...because it's a re-write of The WENN Nutcracker Suite. I was never quite satisfied with how the original comic version from 1999 came out. I'm going to redo it, deepen the stakes and characters, and bring it closer to the original The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E.T.A Hoffman. I intend to keep some of the original, including the opening, so hopefully this one shouldn't take quite as long to write. I'm going to try to start it tomorrow or Wednesday. Maplepunzel should be posted at my writer's blog tomorrow.
Finished the night at YouTube with musical game shows to honor the discovery of previously-lost Musical Chairs episodes last month. This variety-game show made history as the first game show with a black host, singer Adam Wade. Wade and a rotating assortment of guest stars would perform a song for the contestants. The contestants would either guess which lyric came next, or who originally performed the song. Players would be eliminated until the winner went on to the bonus round, where they had to put the lyrics of the song in the right order.
Though the singers include the Spinners. Alaina Reed, Bobby Rydell, and soap star Mary Stuart, this was probably too complicated to make a dent in a crowded game show market. It ran for four months as an unlikely lead-in to Match Game and was gone by Halloween 1975. Too bad. The game is kind of fun to play along with, and it is great to hear all those singers.
Face the Music from 1980 gets even weirder. Ron Ely leads three of the strangest contestants in game show history in guessing which celebrity a series of songs are relating to. Honestly, the game is strange enough. The oddball contestants are the cherry on top. Here, we get an older lady who is frankly a little too enthusiastic, scaring the young Asian man next to her.
The Pop n' Rocker Game from 1984 is very similar to Musical Chairs, though as you can guess from the title, the focus is more on rock. Jon Bauman got his first hosting job outside of his "Bowser" persona as the host asking rock trivia questions. The Bangels are among those making musical appearances here.
The most famous "guess the song" game show is likely Name That Tune. One of its most successful versions was in the late 70's, when Tom Kennedy helmed the hit syndicated show. Two contestants Dare each other to guess what song is playing in the fewest notes possible. Winner goes on to guessing the Golden Medley, as series of songs going by in rapid fashion. I love every version of this venerable favorite, and this one is no exception. Kennedy had one of his best-known gigs here, and that "Golden Medley" is genuinely exciting.
Sing and play along with some great shows and better music with these tune-filled games!
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