Wrapping In the Rain

Began a gloomy morning with breakfast and the 2018 Muppet Babies. Bunsen's latest invention is an Elf-Bot, which can turn their art supplies into any gift they want, in "It's a Wonderful Elf-Bot." They're supposed to be making a present for Statler and Waldorf, but end up making presents for them instead...until the Elf-Bot gets overloaded and they run out of supplies. Bunsen thinks he can launch all of his unwanted shrimp milk boxes into outer space in "A Merry Little Christmas," but he ends up making a mess on Planet Gonzo. The other Muppets join him to clean up the planet.

It wasn't raining hard when I went to work, but it was supposed to rain all day. This was no day for riding the bike. I called Uber. The drivers going to and from work picked me up in 7 minutes. I even had the one going home before. I got there and back within five minutes and had no trouble whatsoever. 

No trouble at work, either. Between the rain and this being the middle of the week and the middle of the month, we were dead all morning. It was so quiet, at one point, I did returns because the carts were full. And no wonder. It was gloomy, gray, and too warm for this time of year, probably in the 60's. The rain wasn't bad at work, but it did shower off and on for the entire morning. I was in and out with no trouble whatsoever.

(Thankfully, the rain wouldn't pick up until about a half-hour after I got home. It's been raining off and on, sometimes heavily, since then.)

Had lunch while watching PAW Patrol. "The Pups Save Christmas" when they have to rescue Santa after he has a crash-landing during a storm. Rocky and Rubble repair the sleigh. Chase rounds up the reindeer and helps Santa find the magical Christmas Star that allows them to fly. The others deliver the gifts around Adventure Bay. 

Spent the next four hours wrapping gifts and boxing them. I want to send out any boxes that need to be mailed first thing tomorrow. There is one present left I need to pick up, but it's not something that's going in the mail. I'm hoping to find it in Collingswood tomorrow. At the least, I was right to buy another roll of wrapping paper. I did use up most of the gold reindeer paper.

Watched It's a Wonderful Life as I started the wrapping. George Bailey (James Stewart) has spent his whole life working for his family's building and loan in a small New York State town. He loves his wife Mary (Donna Reed) and their kids, but envies his brother Harry (Todd Karns), who had so many opportunities he was forced to give up in order to keep their business out of the hands of miserly Mr. Potter (Lionel Barrymore). He's horrified when Uncle Billy (Thomas Mitchell) loses the money they're supposed to deposit in the bank and is ready to commit suicide, until he's stopped by sweetly eccentric Clarence (Henry Travers). Clarence is an angel who has watched George his whole life. When George makes a passing remark about how everyone would be better off without him, Clarence gives him a chance to see what those he loves would be like if he'd never been born...and learns why he truly has a wonderful life.

This has been one of my favorite movies for years, if for no other reason than it features one of the greatest collections of character actors in any Hollywood movie, from Lillian Randolph as Annie, the Baileys' hilarious housekeeper, to Beulah Bondi as George and Harry's mother, to Ward Bond and Frank Faylen as George's buddies Bert and Ernie. It's not for those who don't agree with director Frank Capra's pro-small town sentiment, but if you're a fan of Stewart or any of the cast, you'll absolutely want to check this out.

"It's a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special" is a pitch-perfect spoof of Wonderful Life, down to Buster attempting to jump out of the film when Montana Max takes over directing the Toons' holiday show. A certain very tall rabbit named Harvey shows Buster what it would have been like if he'd never been on the show...and it's not much prettier than what happened with George.

Stayed with the Looney Tunes as I packed the presents for Anny and her kids, Lauren and her parents, and the family in Virginia in boxes to be shipped out tomorrow. Bugs Bunny's Christmas Tales is an anthology of three original holiday shorts made directly for TV. The first is a version of Christmas Carol with Yosemite Sam as Scrooge, Porky as Cratchit, and Bugs as Nephew Fred and the ghosts. The second takes Wil E. Coyote and Road Runner out of the desert and into the snowy mountains for some fun with ice. Bugs has to defend his home against a hungry Taz wearing a Santa suit in the third.

Had just enough time to add the first three Goodyear Great Songs of Christmas albums to the Seasonal inventory, then had dinner while watching Match Game '75. Carol continues her winning ways in the first episode, though she doesn't have as much luck with Brett in the head-to-head this time. She finally loses during the first day of the next week with Sheldon Leonard and Louisa Moritz. Bob Barker turned up again in the last episode from 1977 with Eva Gabor.

Finished the night after a shower with more family favorites. March of the Wooden Soldiers is the Laurel and Hardy version of Babes In Toyland. I went further into this film in a Musical Dreams Movie Reviews entry from late November 2018.

March of the Wooden Soldiers

Inspired by Linda Young's comment on yesterday's blog, I looked up the original Raccoons specials on YouTube. The Christmas Raccoons introduces us to Ralph, Melissa, and Bert, who lose their fir tree home after Cyril goes on a sawing spree and destroys half of the Evergreen Forest. The human children and their sheepdog Schaeffer (Carl Banas) take it home to be their Christmas tree. Schaeffer chases them when they try to get back to it, but helps them out when they explain what happened and what Cyril is doing.

The Raccoons On Ice is pretty much what it is on the record, with the addition of a few low-key songs by Rita Coolidge (who voices Melissa in these first two specials) and Leo Sayer (who took over for Rupert Holmes here) as background. It's even funnier when you can see everyone's expressions, including the big hockey game in the end. 

Silver Bells and Holiday Stories

Began the morning with breakfast and The Scooby Doo Show. It's "A Scary Night With a Snow Beast Fright" when Mystery Inc are invited to the North Pole by Professor Kruger, only to find him and the head of the Inuit town where he works missing. The town was attacked by an enormous snow beast who chased the residents away. While Shaggy and Scooby dodge the Beast, the other three wonder what those totem poles and underground pipes are hiding.

Headed out after that to deliver a small bag of donations to Goodwill and finish my Christmas shopping. I started around front at Goodwill. They were incredibly busy when I got there with people on their lunch breaks. The only thing I found was a copy of the two-disc Woodstock DVD set...but the line was so long at that point, I decided to go back later.

Did better at Marshalls. Found a really nifty gift in a book-shaped tin for a friend of mine. Thankfully, the line there wasn't anything resembling as long. I was able to buy my present and elegant boxes for gift cards with little fuss.

Had lunch at Tang Asian Buffet after checking out Five Below really quick. They were surprisingly busy as well for 1:30 in the afternoon. In addition to the rice noodles and vegetables and chilled mussels I love, I tried a cheese and spinach casserole, a seafood and cheese dish, sugar-covered donuts, egg rolls, two little spring rolls, slightly dry sweet barbecued beef, a cream cheese and clam appetizer, steamed vegetables, and a strange custard-y egg and crab dish. Had two little slices of strawberry and espresso mousse cake, a dry slice of cake roll, and a bit of banana pudding cake for dessert.

Ducked back into Goodwill after lunch. Thankfully, the line was a lot shorter this time. I was able to pick up Woodstock with no trouble. Grabbed an Oreo Coke Zero from Five Below on my way home. At least it wasn't too cold for running around. It was wet when I went out - it must have rained last night or early this morning - but the sun was trying to come out when I was at Audubon Crossings. It was relatively warm for mid-December as well, probably in the lower 50's.

(Incidentally, that only leaves one person for me to shop for, and I know what I want to get them. I'll pick it up on Thursday.)

Soon as I got home, I went online and watched The Lemon Drop Kid on Amazon Prime. I go further into this Bob Hope comedy about a con-man who poses as a corner Santa to make money to pay back a gangster at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Lemon Drop Kid

Worked on the seasonal inventory during and after the second half of the film. I really got a lot done today. Added the remaining soundtracks and cast albums, including Scrooged, Here's Love, the 1970 Albert Finney Scrooge, and the original animated How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. I also got Christmas In France and all seven Firestone Your Christmas Favorites albums in there. Scrooge, Christmas In France, and the Firestone albums go back the furthest. I don't remember where I got Scrooge and Christmas In France from. I think they were Abbie Road or thrift shop finds. Two of the Firestone albums came from a yard sale in 2011, two from what was the Bellmawr Goodwill in 2014, and one from the Collingswood Library's book sale in 2009. 

Switched to The Price Is Right and Match Game '75 after the movie ended and as I had a quick dinner. Match Game '75 was the hilarious week featuring Bob Barker and Arlene Francis where contestant Carol Bartos became the all-time biggest winner up to that point with over $20,000. After Fannie got her the winning Head-to-Head match, she threw her bow tie onto the stage and everyone started kissing everyone else! Later on, for some reason, Gene had a hammer in his coat and Bob decided to auction it off.

Finished the night with old and new children's Christmas albums. The Pac-Man Christmas Album features a goofy story about how the Pac-Family befriends the Ghosts on Christmas Eve, but it also has a couple of decent songs. I like the opening "The Magic of Christmas" for Mrs. Pac, "Snowflakes and Frozen Lakes" for the Pac couple, and "Friends Again" as they explain to the Ghosts why they gave them gifts.

My family owned four of the 6 Little Golden Book Stories for years. I wouldn't be surprised if Mom or one of my sisters still had our copies of Jingle Bells, Frosty the Snowman, The Night Before Christmas, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer around. The Twelve Days of Christmas sounded really strange recited rather than sung. The only one that's new to me is How Lovely Is Christmas, the story of a pioneer boy who dreams of being able to clear land for his parents...and gets help from some of the most famous characters in American western legend.

The Raccoons On Ice is also familiar from my childhood. The Disney Channel used to run this Canadian special every year during Christmas and the winter. The Raccoons - Bert and his married friends Ralph and Julie - love skating on the local pond every year. They're horrified when they learn that wealthy aardvark Cyril Sneer intends to pave over the pond to make an industrial complex. Bert challenges Cyril to a hockey game, but Cyril corrals a team of professional hockey-playing bears. The Raccoons may lose their beloved pond, unless they can convince Cyril's nerdy son Cedric to join them. 

We used to love the show and the specials when I was a kid in the 80's, and they're still a lot of fun to listen to. This one does seem to be missing the songs from the special, but otherwise, it's pretty intact. Rich Little does the slightly bemused narration. Probably not the most necessary thing in the world if you don't have fond memories of the show like I do, but I'm still glad I found it. 

Oh, and the rain finally hit around 10-11. It's supposed to pour all night and into tomorrow. That's going to be a problem with work. I may have to take Uber. 

Dreaming of a Wet Christmas

Began a gray, rainy late morning with breakfast and Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus. This 1974 special based on the real-life story of the little girl who wrote to the New York Sun in 1897 asking about Santa was directed by Bill Melendez, of Peanuts specials fame. It definitely shows in the very similar rounded, sketchy animation and even the kids' voices. It's a charming Emmy-winning short that definitely deserves to be better-known.

The rain slowed enough by noon for me to head out and run a few errands. Mainly needed laundry detergent at Dollar General, though I also bought a birthday card for my nephew Collyn. Didn't like the price of toothpaste at CVS, but I did get a gift for my sister Rose and her husband Craig and a Cherry Coke Zero. Though the rain was gone by the time I got out of CVS, it remained wet, cloudy, and warmer than it has been, in the lower 50's. I thought of going for a longer walk, but I didn't trust the weather and ended up just going home. 

Had lunch and put the laundry in the washer while watching Christmas Past, one of three holiday documentaries Linda Young sent me way back in 2007. We learn about Christmas history in England, via narration describing how pagan holidays evolved into Christmas in more modern times. I especially loved hearing stories told by older people who were around in the early 20th century, like the Lord who remembered his childhood Christmases in a manor house, the female Father Christmas, the Scots who recalled their first real Christmases after World War II, and the woman who spoke of her first big Christmas after being evacuated to the country.

Spent the next few hours after I ate working on my Christmas cards. I'm hoping to get everything that needs to be mailed out by the end of this week. I'll hand out the cards that get delivered to people who live in the area the week of Christmas, but the others will be going out tomorrow or in packages on Thursday or Friday.

Christmas Unwrapped is a History Channel documentary from the late 90's. This one gives us more general holiday history from the American point of view, from how December 25th ended up being chosen for the date to why the Victorians loved Christmas trees and mistletoe. It also goes further back in holiday history, discussing medieval Christmases and how the Puritans tried to outlaw the holiday in the 1670's, and how it was revived in the US during the early 19th century.

TV Guide Looks at Christmas, a USA Network special that's also from the late 90's, gives us the history of the holidays on the tube. My favorite segment discusses Christmas variety specials. The homey hour-long extravaganzas with crooners and their families singing heartfelt carols were just starting to go out of fashion during my early childhood. The only one I remember from when I was a kid was Peewee's. I'm glad they've started to turn up on YouTube and elsewhere in the past decade, giving me a glimpse of what the holidays were like on TV for my parents when they were younger.

Switched to White Christmas as I put the laundry in the dryer and worked on the Seasonal inventory. I went further into this classic holiday musical featuring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog way back in December 2018. 

White Christmas 

Got a lot done with the inventory today. Added all of the children's Christmas albums, the Care Bears and Pac-Man and the Cabbage Patch Kids and Looney Tunes, plus two soundtrack albums. I've had the Looney Tunes Holly Daze and Disney Nutcracker Suite albums for so long, I have no clue where they came from anymore. The Care Bears and Pac-Man were freebies I rescued from a box on the side of the road in 2019. No idea where Charlie Brown Christmas came from, either. It's the original release, not the deluxe re-release from when they started putting out the other Peanuts soundtracks. 

Watched Match Game PM during dinner. Buzzr is honoring birthday boy Bob Barker all week, so the episodes all featured him. The first one from 1977 was the episode where Eva Gabor insisted that Barker is considered a sex symbol in her native Hungary. There was also the one from 1978 where Barker kept whispering in Loni Anderson's ear.

Finished the night after a shower with game shows featuring another beloved host who had a birthday this month. Peter Tomarken got his start not in TV, but in advertising. He worked in the advertising departments of several magazines before doing commercials for his own advertising firm. He proved to be so personable in front of the camera, his agent suggested he try hosting game shows.

Peter did a few pilots that didn't get picked up before producer Jay Wolpert hired him for Hit Man in 1983. Tomarken narrated two mini-documentaries for three contestants, who would then answer questions about what they saw in the segments. The third round played like a video game of the time, with the contestants answering questions to eliminate their men. Winner went to the bonus round, where they'd have to make rows of "hit men" by answering questions, sort of like a trivia-oriented Connect 4. 

Hit Man barely lasted four months, but that freed up Peter for what would become his biggest hit. Producer Bill Carruthers tagged him as the host for Press Your Luck. It would be far and away the show Tomarken remains the most identified with. He always seemed to have so much fun hosting, whether he was reacting to the Whammies' antics or the players not answering his questions right in the quiz rounds or reading those final poems sent in by viewers. 

Tomarken never had another hit on that level after Luck ended in 1986. He hosted the pilot for Wordplay in 1986, but not only did Tom Kennedy host the regular series, it barely lasted a year on NBC. Bargain Hunters was a poorly-received Wheel of Fortune clone that ran on ABC during the summer of 1987. It was so bad, Tomarken himself was said to have hated it. The syndicated trivia show Wipeout from 1988 had players answering questions to eliminate all but the wrong answers. Not only was it on the cheap side, but game shows were starting to fall out of fashion by 1988. 

Tomarken would never host another network series. After attempting a series of failed pilots (including the version of Monopoly that eventually aired during summer 1990), he gave up hosting entirely except for one Fox Family game show Paranoia that barely lasted a month. His last appearance before his untimely death in 2006 was hosting one of the pilots for Whammy! The All New Press Your Luck on Game Show Network in 2002 and a special on the Michael Larson Press Your Luck scandal. 

Chase down hit men and learn word meanings with this advertising executive turned master of the Whammies!

Hit Men Series Finale (1983)

Press Your Luck Premiere (1983)

Press Your Luck (1985)

Press Your Luck (1986)

Wordplay Pilot (1986)

Bargain Hunters Premiere (1987)

Wipeout (1989)

Whammy! The All New Press Your Luck Pilot #1 (2002)

Jazz Up the Holidays

Began the morning with breakfast and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. "Mickey Saves Santa" when he's stranded on top of Mistletoe Mountain. Donald goes with Mickey and Mrs. Claus up the mountain, hoping that Santa will give him everything on his long wish list. Mrs. Claus keeps admonishing him to "be nice!", but that's not the easiest thing in the world for Donald!

Hurried off to work soon as the episode ended. Once again, the rush wasn't necessary. Not only were we pretty quiet, but the morning bagger was there the entire time I was. We were joined in the last hour by the afternoon bagger, too. In fact, I have no idea why they had three baggers today. It got a little busy before the Eagles-Panthers game started, but once the game began, our customers ended. 

The nice weather might have helped, too. It was gorgeous today, sunny, windy, and in the mid-50's, much warmer than it has been! Not a cloud in the pale blue sky. You'd never know it's supposed to rain tomorrow and Wednesday. 

I heard part of the Eagles game at the Christmas tree lot in the back of the parking lot, but it was on Fox and I wasn't able to watch it at home. I read later that the Eagles didn't do that well against a team that isn't great to begin with, but their defense held the Panthers back long enough for them to win 22-16. 

Spent the rest of the afternoon after I got home and changed adding more records to the Seasonal inventory. Finished the albums for the fall holidays and added the Christmas albums with non-vocal jazz, classical, or new age music. All of the records I added today were purchased within the last two years but the original A Winter's Solstice, which I picked up from an Oaklyn yard sale in May 2012. 

Listened to more Christmas albums while I worked, and later as I had dinner. I've had the soundtrack from A Charlie Brown Christmas since at least the late 2000's. It was one of the first Christmas albums I bought after I started collecting records, and it remains one of my favorites. "Christmastime Is Here" and "Linus and Lucy" are the best-known songs, but my favorites are the opening "O Tannenbaum" and the song that plays while the kids are "Skating." 

New England Sleigh Ride seems to have been made for sale at Mobil gas stations, probably sometime in the 50's-early 60's from the front cover. I have no idea who Robert Way is, but some of the songs on this jazzy recording are really well-done. Favorites of his original songs likely written for the recording include "Christmas With You" and "Snowflakes On the Windowpanes."

Home for Christmas is a 3-disc Columbia collection with a lovely photo on the front cover of a red sleigh passing a snow-covered farm against the backdrop of a radiant blue winter sky. It was missing Record One when I found it years ago, but there's some good material to be found on the other two albums, including a nice "Ave Maria" by the Philadelphia Orchestra, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" by Burl Ives, and music  boxes playing "The Holy City."

I found Jingle Bell Jazz at Innergroove Records in June, and I'm glad I did. There's some terrific material in this 1980 re-release of a 1962 album, along with a really nifty stark black-and-white cover depicting a city blizzard at Christmastime. The hilarious "Deck Us All With Boston Charlie" by Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross is the clear winner here. Duke Ellington opens the album with a nice "Jingle Bells," Carmen McRae gets "The Christmas Song," and we have a rather surprising version of "If I Were a Bell" from Guys and Dolls performed by the Manhattan Jazz All-Stars.

Finished the night at YouTube with tonight's Match Game Sunday Classics Marathon. Match Game often featured hosts from other shows. Usually, they were just there as a publicity stunt, as when Jack Narz plugged Now You See It in 1974 and Tom Kennedy advertised Password Plus in 1981. Peter Marshall turned up on two weeks of the syndicated run because Gene Rayburn was a friend of his, and Gene apparently appeared on one of the last syndicated weeks of Hollywood Squares. Amiable Bill Cullen was the only classic host to be a semi-regular, starting in 1973 and continuing on through the run of Blockbusters in 1981. Other hosts and announcers who made appearances on the show include Robert Q. Lewis in 1973, Gene Wood in 1974, and Bob Eubanks and Chuck Woolery on The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour. 

Match along with your favorite classic game show hosts in this frequently outrageous marathon!

Match Game Sunday Night Classics - Game Show Hosts/Hostess Special On Match Game

The Holidays are Coming

First of all, here's my review for Moana 2, which I saw on Tuesday. Yes, I did enjoy it...mostly, anyway. Find out more at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog! 

Animation Celebration Saturday - Moana 2

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and Charlie & Lola. Lola keeps begging her brother "How Many Minutes Until Christmas?," even when they're opening the doors on an advent calendar. She's upset when her letter to Santa gets mixed up with her card to Lotta, and then when her grandparents can't come...but the worst comes when they can't find the door in the calendar for Christmas Day. They create their own, then imagine themselves in the North Pole, helping Santa when he runs out of wrapping paper.

Rushed out after that and just barely got to work on time. That was the worst thing that happened all day. We were quiet in the morning and when I left. It did pick up during the noon rush hour, but by the time of the evening rush hour, I was finishing. I was alone for my first couple of hours, but had help from the afternoon bagger after 1 AM. It also remains bitterly cold and clouded up later in the day, though the wind has since vanished. 

I had a few Christmas gift cards I wanted to pick up after work that I intend to send out in the mail this week. I needed gloves for work, too, and a warm headband to wear when I ride my bike (my hats are too thick to work under my bike helmet). Grabbed a Christmas present for my nephew Collyn as well, along with more of those pumpkin spice sandwich cookies on the bakery clearance rack.

Went straight in the shower when I got home, then had dinner while watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in honor of its 60th anniversary this year. I went further into this at my Musical Dreams blog way back in December 2018. 

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Since I was doing Rankin-Bass, I ran one of their later animated specials next. I went further into their underrated animated version of A Christmas Carol, The Stingiest Man In Town, at Musical Dreams in December 2020.

The Stingiest Man In Town

Worked on the Seasonal Inventory while the cartoons were on. I did albums for spring, summer, and the first two for Halloween. The two Columbia Records spring collections go back the furthest. I'm pretty sure I found The Music of Spring and the Halloween jazz album Witchcraft...! in 2013, either at yard sales or the church thrift shop in Audubon. 

Finished the night at YouTube with the Match Game Saturday Night Marathon. Many a handsome leading man of the big and small screens tried their luck at this show. Michael Landon, Pa Ingalls himself, was on the very first week in 1973. Mork and Mindy star Jim Staal and Love Boat purser Fred Grandy turned up during syndication. Brett was more than happy to kiss Robert Urich of Vega$ and Spencer for Hire during his one week in 1975. Leslie Nielson and William Shatner also made appearances later that year. The Flying Nun's favorite Argentinian Alejandro Rey turned up for a memorable week in 1974. Scoey Mitchelll also made his first appearance in 1974. 

Take a gander at your favorite male star of the small and big screen in this hilarious and sexy marathon!

Match Game Saturday Night Classics - Male Heartthrobs On the Panel

Put a Little Love In Your Heart

Began the morning with breakfast and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. "It's Snowflake Day," and Dan is excited about the Neighborhood's big winter festival. He's going to be the snowflake narrator of the kids' play this year, if he can get over his stage fright. Later, after the lights go out, he's the one who suggests the adults use their Snowflake Day lamps to give them enough light to get through the rest of the show.

It was so late by the time I finally got downstairs, I ended up calling Uber. Thank heavens, they picked me up in less than two minutes and got me to the Acme in less than five. I got into work right on time.

Which is really the worst thing that happened the entire day. We were once again quiet. We're between holidays. Most people won't come out of the malls and start thinking of Christmas baking until next weekend. I did have to do the trash at one point and mop the women's bathroom, but I was mostly outside with the carts. I had plenty of help, too. The head bagger was there for an hour or two until she had to go in a register, and then the afternoon bagger came in. 

Maybe the weather scared them off. It was sunny, but bitterly cold and very windy early in the morning. The wind did die down as the day continued, but not the biting chill. At least it was bright and sunny, without a cloud in the sky.

Grabbed my schedule before lunch. Not as many hours next week, but more than I was getting a few weeks ago. Monday off instead of Sunday and a perfectly normal six hour day next Saturday. Good. I'll have plenty of time to finish Christmas shopping, wrap presents, and get cards and gifts out in the mail. 

Did a little grocery shopping next. Mainly restocked yogurt, fruit, soda, and granola bars. I had online coupons for Kind bars, bags off clementines, and the new Chobani protein yogurt. Had an online coupon for the bakery cookies, too. I got the soft, very chocolaty brownie cookies. Grabbed two bagels for lunch this weekend. Since they were only a $1.50, I picked up a roll of pretty green wrapping paper with a Christmas flower print.

Had more trouble getting an Uber driver going home. It was 5:30 by then, well into rush hour. It took me ages just to get a driver, and they took 24 minutes to pick me up. At least there was no traffic when she did finally get me and we got home quickly after that. 

Switched to A Charlie Brown Christmas while getting organized. Most of the Peanuts are excited about Christmas, but Chuck isn't feeling in the spirit. He's tired of all the grabbing around him. Lucy convinces him to direct their local Christmas pageant, but the other kids seem more interested in turning it into a jazz concert. Chuck thinks a Christmas tree will set them right. The others make fun of the tiny tree he brings home, until Linus relates bible verses to remind them of what the holidays are really all about.

It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown is really more a series of skits about the Peanuts' later holiday adventures. Linus tries to get Sally to ride down a hill in a cardboard box, but she's not crazy about that idea. Charlie Brown attempts to sell wreaths in order to earn money to buy a gift for the Little Red Haired Girl. Snoopy puts up with Lucy's complaints about his bell as a sidewalk Santa. Peppermint Patty attends the Hallelujah Chorus with Marcie, tries to avoid Christmas break homework, and is horrified when Marcie gets to be Mary in the school pageant, and she's only a sheep. Sally tries to remember her one line for the pageant and is embarrassed by what she does say when onstage.

Worked on the Seasonal inventory next. Added the soundtrack from Get Crazy and my Guy Lombardo album for New Year's, an Al Hirt Mardi Gras album, and George Winston's Winter Into Spring. Al Hirt goes the farthest back here. I found it at the Logan Presbyterian Church Thrift shop in December 2011. 

Finished the night with dinner and Scrooged on Paramount Plus. Frank Cross (Bill Murray) may be the youngest president network IBC ever had, but he's also one of the biggest jerks on television. He pushes his live Christmas Carol show on Christmas Eve hard, overworking his secretary (Alfre Woodard) who needs to get her mute son to the doctor, firing another employee (Bobcat Goldthwait) who protests his overly violent commercial for the special, and ignoring his brother James (John Murray). His social worker girlfriend Claire (Karen Allen) wishes he'd treat people a little better, including her. Frank finally learns his lesson when a zombie version of his late boss (John Forsythe) and three rather noisy and violent ghosts pay him a visit during the broadcast, showing him his difficult past and present and reminding him of what will happen to those around him if he doesn't change his ways. 

I think you can guess this version of A Christmas Carol is not for everyone. My own family was divided on it when it came out in 1988. Dad thought it was funny as heck. Mom thought it was too mean-spirited. I agreed with Mom in the late 80's, but it's grown on me over the years. Honestly, I've seen holiday comedies come out since then where people acted five times worse than Frank in the beginning. Bill Murray is firing on all cylinders as the ultimate cynical executive, with Allen sweet and endearing as his social worker love interest and Carol Kane hilarious as a truly unique (and very violent) Ghost of Christmas Present. The makeup work on the ghosts and Jacob Marley characters are among the best in the 80's, equal to any high-budget sci-fi movie of the time.

If you're looking for something a lot darker than your average Hallmark Christmas movie or are a fan of Murray, director Richard Donner, or black comedy, head to New York to spend Christmas Eve learning about the true meaning of Christmas with Frank and three of the scariest and most unusual ghosts ever. 

The Oaklyn Christmas Parade

Began the morning with breakfast and A Pink Panther Christmas. Pink spends his Christmas Eve wandering around New York, looking desperately for any kind of a meal. He tries to work as a Santa in a department store, but gets thrown out for stealing the kiddies' treats. An old lady asks him to shovel snow, but it gets covered again before she can pay. Stealing the carrot off a kid's snowman only ends with the carrot in the belly of a horse. Even his attempts to get arrested so he can have a real meal ends with him catching an actual robber. It's not until the end, when he shares his last crumb with a hungry dog, that he's reminded that giving is its own reward.

Headed out after that, first to run errands at Sprouts. I mainly needed coconut milk and apples. They were having a sale on Pink Lady apples there. Grabbed dried orange-flavored cranberries, which were on sale, too. Got a box of granola bars, more because they were on sale than anything else. Those Nixie sodas still had coupons attached.

Hurried to the Haddon Township Library for my session with Dawn. I did apply for a job early-on, but we mostly had no luck. Not only is it hard to find jobs during the holidays, I'm just too darn picky. I'm not interested in doing medical work, working for the post office sounds too close to retail, and I really have no desire to be a stewardess. I wish I had more skills! I need to find free or cheap offline computer classes. Having a teacher there will help keep me on track and make me focus. 

Stopped at Genova Pizza for lunch on the way home. Decided to do something different and had a vegetable Stromboli. It was a little browned on the top and bottom, but edible, especially dipped in marinara sauce...and unlike the Stromboli at Phillies Phatties, it wasn't too much to eat in one sitting. They were largely quiet at 2 PM except for one random older guy sitting in the corner whom I suspect was more there for warmth than food.

After I got home, I settled down and watched The Young Girls of Rochefort. I go further into this charming Jacques Demy musical from France with dazzling dances by Gene Kelly at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Young Girls of Rochefort (Les Demoiselles de Rochefort)

Began the Seasonal Album inventory next. This will include all seasonal and holiday music, including everything I have for Christmas. Started it off with my four winter titles, Jazz at the (Winter) Olympics, Winter Memories, December by George Winston, and Holiday Symphony. The last-named is a selection of  instrumental numbers meant to revolve around patriotic holidays. I have it listed for President's Day, but it also has songs for the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, and Decoration Day (what's now known as Memorial Day) too. December goes back the furthest here. I picked it up from a yard sale in 2012. I found the others at record stores and Goodwill within the last five  years. 

Watched Match Game Syndicated while I worked and had a really quick dinner. In the first episode, Gene teased big George Kennedy about carrying a purse onstage. The second had Gene rambling on to Dick Martin about the cosmos for so long, the rest of the panel walked off the stage and the lights went out!

Bundled up and headed out around quarter of 7. Tonight was Oaklyn's Christmas Parade and tree-lighting. It was bitterly cold out when I made my way down the block, and gale-force windy, too. The only people there when I got there were those giving out treats. I went for a walk around the block...and when I got back, the fire station parking lot was hopping. I'm glad I was able to get creamy hot chocolate and M&M, white chocolate-macadamia nut, and perfectly moist double chocolate cookies topped with powdered sugar from the Civic Association. Grabbed bags of foam for craft project for a friend and her daughter, too.

Thankfully, the parade started right on time for once. It wasn't long after 7 when the first lights-covered fire truck was seen gliding down West Clinton. There were a lot of trucks this year, more than I figured there would be with the windy weather. One truck had a shivering snowman huddled on the steps entering the vehicle. Another was topped with a wooden sleigh pulled by dalmatians. There was also the one that sprayed fake "snow" into the air, to the delight of the kids. They all shrieked with delight when Santa came by, including the gaggle of pre-teen boys next to me who likely did it as a joke. 

After Santa finally joined us, some of the kids from the Oaklyn Elementary School performed "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" and one other song. It might have been "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town," but their voices were drowned out so badly by the crowd, it was hard to tell. 

Most of them ran over to the very tall town tree after they finished. Some of the littlest kids literally put their arms around it and gave it a hug. They were so noisy, I never did hear who the Volunteer of the Year was. Nothing happened for a minute after they counted down...before the tree finally blazed forth in glowing shades of red, yellow, and blue. The moment the tree was lit, I walked home.

Finished the night after a shower with more Christmas CDs while I worked on the review. My most recent Happy Holidays acquisition from eBay is Vol. 26 from 1991. By far the most unique track here is Willard Scott's opening spoken version of "The Night Before Christmas." Other songs are a bit more traditional, including Bing Crosby's "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and the Nat King Cole rendition of "The Christmas Song."

A Christmas Carol: The Musical is the show from Madison Square Garden that would be filmed by NBC in 2004. I didn't like the music much better on the cast album than I did in my review of the film back in 2018. "Abundance and Charity" is still a bit too brassy, and the Ghost of Christmas Past still sounds like she's a bit too naughty in her number. And I still don't understand why they used Charles Dickens' past for Scrooge instead of the one from the book.

I'm so glad I found Radio City Music Hall Presents Songs of Christmas! Stockton's Media Center had it when I was in college. I used to listen to it every year on my last day of work before Stockton let out for Christmas break, and I've missed it ever since I graduated. The "Christmas In New York" medley is especially charming. 

Christmas Favorites and Monkee Adventures

Unfortunately, I overslept this morning and barely had enough time to grab breakfast and rush to work. Even with the rushing, I was a minute late. Fortunately, that was the worst that happened all morning. We were dead the whole four hours. We're between holidays, and even with it being the beginning of the month, a lot of people may still be getting rid of Thanksgiving leftovers or focusing on other shopping. It remained sunny, but still really cold, and much windier. Cold aside, I had no problems, and I was in and out.

Changed when I got home, then put on The Monkees. Davy discovers that rock contests can be a real drag when the guys get him into a dress for a mixed-gender contest in "Some Like It Lukewarm." To his dismay, not only does Jerry "Geater" Blavat (the real-life Philly DJ) fall for him, but he falls for the seemingly male member of their female rivals The Westminster Abbies. It's not until he sees her again in the dressing rooms and they admit that they've done something wrong that the duo come up with a solution to bring both groups together. (And look for Davy and Wiz creator Charlie Smalls working on a soul song of their own in the last sequence.)

Peter's in trouble again in "Monkees Blow Their Minds." This time, he goes to devious mentalist Oraculo (Monte Landis in his last role on the show) and his lackey (TV director Jim Frawley) in order to get help releasing a writer's block. Oraculo decides to steal their gig instead and gives him a potion that makes him into his slave. Mike tries to find out what they're doing to Peter, but he falls under his spell, too. It's up to Micky and Davy to save their friends and prove that Oraculo is more fake than fabulous. (Look for Mike and Frank Zappa playing each other and destroying a car in the opening.)

"The Frodis Caper" ends things on a seriously weird note...which shouldn't be surprising, given it was written and directed by one Micky Dolenz. Peter and almost everyone in Malibu Beach has been hypnotized by a pulsing eye on their television screens. Micky, Davy, and Mike discover that the evil Wizard Glick (Rip Taylor) is using an alien plant (voice of Micky) to control everyone on Earth and try to foil his plot. Honestly, Tim Buckley singing his own "Song of the Siren" in the finale makes more sense, even if Micky did manage some nifty directorial touches (like the "Good Morning" sequence in the opening).

And other than the Christmas episode, which I'll run when we get closer to the holiday, that is that. The show only ran two seasons because the guys wanted to do a variety program and NBC wanted things to stay the way they were. Personally, I thought they had a good balance at the end of the second season, with the guest stars at the beginning or end. I wish the guys could have gotten off their high-horses and compromised, but it was clear that they and the show's creators had pretty much lost interest by the time "Frodis Caper" aired. 

I largely prefer the second season over the first. The first is a better introduction to the guys...but while the second season has some pretty awful lows, it also has some of the best episodes of the entire series. My personal favorite episode, "The Devil and Peter Tork," is from the mid-second season. I also love "Fairy Tale," "It's a Nice Place to Visit," "Some Like It Lukewarm," and "Hitting the High Seas." 

I really wish the DVD sets for this show weren't out of print and the Blu-Ray wasn't incredibly expensive. I've had my DVD sets for 20 years now. If you're a classic rock fan or have fond memories of when this was on TV originally, in re-runs on cable and Saturday morning, or on digital channels, you'll want to see if you get music-based digital channel AXS TV (where this is apparently re-running now) and check out the adventures of the funniest fictional band who pushed themselves into reality. 

Put up the remaining Christmas decorations while I watched the guys. This is all of the little bits and bobs I've found or been given over the years, like the Santa and Mrs. Claus porcelain salt and pepper shakers Mom gave me, the mini light-up ceramic Christmas tree I bought in Collingswood two years ago, and the "Falalala" and "Hohoho" signs Linda Young made for me years ago. The mini tree from college goes with the smaller stuffed animals on top of one of the book shelves in my bedroom, along with the Whitman's tin I got from Mom a few years ago. There's a whole army of Beanie Baby Christmas toys, including two angel bears, and the stuffed tree, candy cane, and star Beanie-type toys Eckards sold in the late 90's during the height of the Beanie Baby craze. 

Spent the rest of the evening first doing job hunting, then finally finishing out the Cast Album inventory. Added the stage version of Victor/Victoria, a collection of songs from Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals, A Year With Frog and Toad, and the 1999 revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. The Very Best of Andrew Lloyd Webber goes back so far, I'm pretty sure I got it from my mom in the mid-late 90's. Lauren sent me the Year With Frog and Toad CD after we became friends in 2004. 

Since I'm already listening to Christmas music, I'll do the inventory for that next. I don't have nearly as many of the holiday albums as I do rock or cast albums. It shouldn't take long to do.

Listened to said Christmas albums while I worked. Christmas In France seems to be part of a series of albums featuring songs from various European countries Capitol released in the 60's. The Child Singers of Versailles performs the songs here. Though they do give us "White Christmas" and "Jingle Bells," the real interest here are traditional French holiday songs like "In That Stable" and "The Three Kings" that capture what they're still likely singing during the holiday season in France to this day.

Firestone released a series of Christmas albums from 1962 through 1968 that mostly focused on classical music, as per their radio and TV shows of the time, though pop singers like Julie Andrews occasionally turned up as well. I listened to Volume 2 and 3 tonight. Volume 2 belongs to Rise Stevens, Brian Sullivan, and the Columbus Boychoir with traditional offerings like "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," "Angels We Have Heard On High," and "The Twelve Days Of Christmas." Gordon MacRae is joined by three opera singers (including Roberta Peters) on Volume 3. Their offerings skewer slightly more recent, mixing "White Christmas" and "Sleigh Ride" in with "Gesu Bambino," "Go Tell It On the Mountain," and "Panis Angelicus."

(I always loved the covers of these albums, with their simple red ribbons and mistletoe against various colored "brocade" backgrounds. They just looked like Christmas in the 60's to me. Mom inherited two of these from her mother, and we'd listen to them during the holidays.)

Switched to Match Game Syndicated during dinner. In the first episode, Charles kept picking on director Marc Breslow...which meant we saw a lot of Charles' cowboy hat or shots of the side and under him during that episode. Eva Gabor showed off her lovely electric blue dress with the ruffled trim and swirly skirt in the second.

Put on another version of The Nutcracker on Kanopy after I ate. This one came from the Australian Ballet, and up thought the first half, it's pretty traditional. The second half begins with the Mouse King and his people invading the Land of Sweets. Even after they're dispatched, Clara joins the various international candies in their dances.

Finished the night at YouTube with holiday specials from around the world featuring Perry Como. The first was the oldest of the three. Perry's Christmas In Austria from 1976 made a lot of Sound of Music references, including in the opening. We also get to see Tyrolean slap dancers and a sleigh ride to the tune of "Valderi, Valdera."

Perry Como's Early American Christmas from 1978 takes us back to the US for a trip to Williamsburg, Virginia. We get to see how the Colonal colonists celebrated the holidays, with fife-and-drum corps and lots of huge balls and big meals. Diane Canova sings "My Cup Runneth Over," "It Couldn't Please Me More," and joins two ladies for "Making Christmas Dinner." John Wayne toasts Como's good health in the tavern.

Christmas In England from 1984 heads back to Europe, staring with a trip to jolly good London. Ann-Margaret sings "London Is London" before she and Como head off to admire the beautiful and enormous Downton Abbey-style castles and estates. "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" Perry and Ann-Margaret don't. They have an easier time with dancing pub waiters and waitresses in London. 

Oh, and it started raining around dinnertime. I think it rained pretty hard at one point, though it seems to be gone now. At least this is supposed to warm things up a bit. I heard it's going to get into the upper 50's by next week. 

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Got a quick and late start with The Scooby Doo Show. The kids are caught in "A Creepy Tangle In the Bermuda Triangle" when they're stranded on an island in the Bahamas after a major storm destroys their boat. While Shaggy and Scooby try to out-run a trio of skeletons with giant eyes, the other three attempt to figure out what happened to the air traffic controller planes that were seemingly beamed into an alien ship.

It was late and I wanted a better lunch before I saw Moana 2, so I called Uber. Fortunately, the driver arrived in less than five minutes. The ride to Somerdale only took about 10 minutes, and I managed to direct the guy in front before he did what the one who drove me to Wicked did and went around back.

Decided to try lunch at the new Indian restaurant a few doors down from Cinemark. They're in the midst of their grand opening. And they are pretty grand-looking, with Indian art and projections of India on the walls and its bright red and white walls. The tables were dark wood with fancy utensils and napkins that bore the name of the restaurant. 

Unfortunately, most of their dishes were expensive and as spicy as Indian food is wont to be. I eventually ordered a scrambled egg dish with onions and lime-chili powder that was relatively inexpensive, along with saffron tea. I did finish the eggs, but drank a lot of water getting there. I wanted to move on and took my tea to go. At the very least, they did give me a 20 dollar gift card in honor of their opening. Maybe I'll try them again when I'm not quite so rushed. 

Hurried a few doors down to the Cinemark 16 theater next. Had just enough time to pick up a Coke Zero from the concession stand before I made my way to Moana 2. I'll do the full review at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog on Saturday. For now, let's just say I enjoyed it.

Strolled up the hill to Walmart next. Bought a cute Peanuts-themed doll outfit for my niece Lilah, silicone candy molds to make mints later in the month, more of those Junkless granola bars, and another crate for my records. I was originally going to take the bus home, but I was out of change. Called Uber instead. That might have been the better idea. They picked me up in less than a minute and took less than 10 get back to Oaklyn. They dropped me at WaWa once I instructed them to the right WaWa. (For some reason, Uber still listed its original location, rather than the one that opened last year.)

I was mainly at WaWa for rent money. Treated myself to a peppermint mocha hot chocolate to warm myself up on the way home. Oh wow. It was so chocolatey, rich, and pepperminty. One of the best drinks I've ever gotten from WaWa. I will have to get it again at least one more time before the end of the Christmas season.

Took out the trash, then went straight into The Umbrellas of Cherbourg when I got home. I go further into this gorgeous French opera film staring Catherine Denveuve from 1964 at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog.

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies de Cherbourg)

Watched the 2003 version of Strawberry Shortcake while eating dinner and arranging the rock records in my new crate. Pupcake narrates "Toto's Tale," a retelling of The Wizard of Oz. He and Strawberry are whisked to a land over the rainbow, where their berry-shaped house flattens the evil grape witch (Sour Grapes) and rescues the Berrykins. The Berrykins give her the witch's magic shoes to protect her. On the way to the City to meet the Wizard and get home, she encounters the Scarecrow (Ginger Snap), Tin Woodsgirl (Peppermint Fizz), and Cowardly Lion (Orange Marmalade), who all claim they have something they want to change about themselves. After they rescue Strawberry from the witch, they learn that what they really needed all along was a good dose of confidence.

Finished the night with several Christmas CDs. A Broadway Christmas is the holiday release from my old friends Veresae Sarabande. Along with familiar holiday songs from musicals like "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "We Need a Little Christmas," we have a lot of lesser-known material. The sweet "Christmas Gifts" is from a musical version of It's a Wonderful Life that has yet to play New York. "The Happy New Year Blues" is a then-recently discovered lost Irving Berlin number. "Christmas Eve," a gorgeous ballad, was cut from the operetta She Loves Me. The cutesy duet "Lovers On Christmas Eve" is from the now-rarely-seen 70's hit I Love My Wife.

The Judy Garland Christmas Album is actually the soundtrack from the Christmas episode of her TV variety show. This is one of the oldest CDs I own. I bought it from, of all places, a display of Laserlight holiday CDs at Staples in 1994. Judy opens things with a rousing "Consider Herself" with her children. Liza Minnelli joins a young man for "Steam Heat" and sings about her "Alice Blue Gown." The late Jack Jones arrives and performs "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," his hit "Lollipops and Roses," and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" with a very young Lorna Luft. Garland sings "The Christmas Song" with Mel Torme (and muffs the lyrics, as she was feuding with him at the time).

I picked up my CD of John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together from the same display on the same day. This is one of the most beloved holiday albums ever for a reason. The Muppets join Denver for the opening and "It's In Every One of Us," while Piggy and some of the male Muppets do a hilarious "Christmas Is Coming." Denver's best tracks are the lovely "The Peace Carol" and "Noel: Christmas Eve 1913."

Christmas With the Chipmunks is the original release that includes the huge hit "The Chipmunk Song (Please Christmas Don't Be Late)." I'm also fond of their cute "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," with the Chipmunks dragging Dave to the North Pole to meet the most famous reindeer of all and Alvin's hilarious overacting on "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas."

Chilly Games

Began the morning with breakfast and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Minnie Mouse must find "The Wizard of Dizz" when she and Pluto are whisked over the rainbow by a storm. On their way to the City of Handy Helpers, they encounter the Scarecrow Goofy, Tin Mickey Mouse, and Cowardly Donald, who help them on their journey. They all dodge the Wizard Pete, who just wants magic.

Hurried off to work when the show ended...and this time, I wondered why. We were dead for almost the entire afternoon. We did just come off the biggest food holiday of the year. Despite it being the beginning of the month, most people's minds are likely on shopping for everything but food. It didn't pick up until rush hour at 4 PM, when I was an hour from being done. At least the weather was decent, sunny and breezy but very cold, in the upper 30's. 

Changed and did chores when I got home and brought up my Christmas present from Mom. She protested me buying a new Eagles jersey online from the team website. Why not go to the Eagles stadium and buy one? I'm not hiking all the way up to the Linc on a Sunday just to go shopping. They sell the same jerseys online that they do in the stadium, and on really big Black Friday discounts, too. I got a $150 dollar Jason Hurts jersey for $76 with shipping. It's in perfectly fine shape, too. Fits well and has no problems that I can see. 

When I sat down at the laptop, I added Wonderland, the rather peculiar Alice In Wonderland stage musical from a decade ago, to the inventory while watching Match Game Syndicated. Brett and Fannie showed up in blonde wigs on Gene's arm in this hilarious episode, and kept them on for the rest of the show. Charles and Fred Travelena spend the episode tossing out "gorgeous blonde" jokes. There's an actual beautiful blonde on the next show, Charlene Tilton. Goes without saying that Bill Daily is VERY happy to be sitting next to her. Charles is just happy Patty Duke can see his (over) acting.

Switched to The Monkees while eating dinner. Protesting yet another rehashed script, the Monkees flee for a vacation to Paris in "The Monkees In Paris." Girls chase them all over the City of Light...and they only sometimes run away. I know the guys really were getting bored with the scripts at this point, but ironically, watching them get chased all over Paris by random girls is even duller than the rehashed scripts. I do give them credit for attempting an all-pantomime show, and they use one of my favorite Mike Nesmith songs, "Don't Call On Me," which never appeared on any other episode. 

Peter directed "Monkees Mind Their Manor," but alas, it's another rehashed script. Davy is called to an English estate where he once worked when the owner leaves it to him. He's not willing to stay the five years necessary to own it, but the residents are worried that perpetually drunk relative Lance the Sot (Jack Good) will sell it to a developer. The guys hold a fair to earn money, with Davy bested at every turn by Lance's lawyer Sir Twiggy Topham-Middle-Bottom (Bernard Fox), until the manor's oldest resident (Billy Benedict) suggests a singing contest.

Finished the night on YouTube with episodes of Sale of the Century in honor of Cyber Monday. Sale began back in 1969, with actor Jack Kelly hosting. Joe Gargiola took over late in 1971. Three contestants play a trivia show for accumulated points. At three intervals, the game stops for them to buy "bargains," big prizes for small amounts. They keep the prizes no matter what, but it deducts from their overall score. The winner would either take the prize they can afford, or continue on and earn money for bigger prizes. The show was a hit from '69 through 1974 on NBC, spawning a syndicated version that lasted a year. Sadly, nothing exists of the syndicated version at all, and only audio can be found of the original online. 

Australian producer Reg Grundy bought the format for Australian TV in 1980. After that version was a big hit, he brought it back to the US in 1983. It started out with a format similar to the original and what was on Aussie TV at the time. Jim Perry's asking the questions here. He went through a rotating assortment of hostesses until they settled on elegant Summer Bartholmew in 1984. The Bargain Prizes are often introduced as cute skits, with models dressed in costumes to push what they're selling. 

Like its fellow shopping show Supermarket Sweep, Sale of the Century evolved a lot over the years. The Fame Game that allowed people to answer a question about a celebrity and chose a spot on the board to increase their points started with everyone choosing the photo of a celebrity. This was replaced by people choosing numbers to get points or prizes before 1983 even ended. By 1986, they now pushed a plunger to get a random number on the board. 

The Speed Round that decided the winner replaced the last three questions in March 1984. The Bonus Round went from people choosing whether to stay or go ala the Aussie version, to winners matching prizes on a board in October 1984, to them guessing three puzzles at the end in December 1987. In 1986, the third prize was replaced by Instant Cash. The contestant in the lead could buy a chance to check three boxes for whatever amount was listed that day, but they'd have to spend the amount of their lead. 

Both versions of Sale saw excellent ratings, with the 1983 Sale often winning its time slots. It also spawned a syndicated version in 1985, this one lasting two seasons. Alas, it was finally done in when NBC moved it to 10 AM, where local stations often pre-empted it in favor of their own programming. Not to mention, by 1989, NBC had fallen out of love with game shows. It ended Super Password that year as well. 

(And since Reg Grundy was really big on tape recycling, most of the 80s Sale is hard to find as well. Apparently, only the full syndicated show and the daytime show from 1988 onward exists, though earlier episodes do turn up online.)

Sale of the Century would return to American TV again in 2007 as Temptation: The New Sale of the Century. Three contestants answer questions as before, but they also play mini-games that have them eliminating choices from a large board. The Fame Game involves guessing letters to get the answer to the question, and the take the prize or put the money in savings or tomorrow bonus round is back, but they added another Knock-Off mini-game. Overly enthusiastic Rossi Mondale was the host. This one just looked chintzy, with cheap prize packages and Mondale annoying as heck, No wonder it barely lasted a year.

Learn trivia, find out more about pop culture, and pick up a few instant bargains of your own this Cyber Monday with these classic shopping shows. (Warning that the 1969 episode has only audio existing.)

Sale of the Century (1969) (Audio Only)

Sale of the Century Premiere (1983)

Sale of the Century (1984)

Sale of the Century Syndicated Premiere (1985)

Sale of the Century (1986)

Sale of the Century (1988)

Sale of the Century Finale (1989)

Temptation Premiere (2007) 

Christmas With Friends and Eagles

Got a quick start this morning with breakfast and my other Disney Christmas CD. I've had Disney's Christmas Collection since at least the mid-90's. I mainly bought it for "From All of Us to All of You," Jiminy Cricket's big song from the Disney holiday specials. Jiminy also does a very charming recitation of The Night Before Christmas. Unfortunately, the last track is a medley of songs by that supposed all-mouse orchestra from the Merry Christmas Songs double-disc album. They're so annoying and unnecessary, I usually stop the CD after Night Before Christmas.

It's easier for me to meet Amanda at Oaklyn's City Hall than where I live, so I headed there next. It's really feeling like winter now. It's gotten bitterly cold over the past few days, and windy, too. It was cloudy all day, though thankfully it never rained. Amanda was slightly late. She finally picked me up for brunch at 10 after 11. 

We've done brunch at the Legacy Diner the past few years when we've been together. They were incredibly busy, busier than I've ever seen it. Not only is it Sunday, but the diner is a block away from a church. Many people probably go straight from church to brunch. It took a few minutes, but we were finally seated in a relatively quiet booth in the back. Amanda had hot tea and the Brooklyn Dodgers omelet with onions, peppers, mushrooms, and Swiss cheese. I had the apple cinnamon pancakes, three large pancakes filled with what I believe to be canned apple filling. Not bad. We both ate most of our meals, anyway.

Amanda drove us down Atlantic to avoid lunch rush hour traffic on the White Horse Pike and into Oaklyn. She's a big coffee fan, so got hot beverages at Common Ground. I had a chai latte that was a little sweet but not bad. She had a peppermint mocha latte she seemed to enjoy. We chatted for over an hour about her job as a kindergarten teacher in a private school near Vineland and about my trouble finding a job. She likes her kids, but they can sometimes be a handful, and the school is older and in the woods and is frequently beset by mice and bugs. 

Instead of getting dessert at Common Ground, we decided to pick it up to go at The Puddin' Palace. I hadn't gotten anything there in ages. They were out of chocolate pudding, but they did have crushed Oreos. Amanda got an Oreo pudding parfait, and I got strawberry shortcake - vanilla pudding layered with dried strawberries and graham cracker crumbs.

Poor Amanda spent a lot of the time coughing, even more than me with my allergies. She says she's just getting over bronchitis and is still tired, plus she does have work tomorrow. Not to mention, we talked for so long, there wouldn't be time for her to do much else before she headed back anyway. We just exchanged gifts in her car. She bought me a gourmet scone mix, tea in a beautiful wooden box, a candy cane-shaped plastic holder filled with Hershey's chocolate pieces, and the most adorable Hallmark ornament of a kitten trying to get to a cardinal in a bird house.

The kitty went right on the tree when I got in. I spent the next two hours putting the ornaments on the tree and listening to some of my older Happy Holidays LPs. I have so many ornaments, it takes me two hours or longer to get them all on. There's teddy bears, the shopping Cherished Teddies and ceramic bear with a long scarf and an angel Pooh eating honey and Yogi Bear with a pic-a-nic basket full of candy canes. I have beautiful ornaments Mom bought from the Winterwood Christmas Shop in Rio Grande, a glass heart with Victorian-style flowers, a beautiful heavy magenta ball with a creamy white ribbon on top, a ball with a beautiful hand-painted Santa and Mrs. Claus, a glitter-covered glass strawberry, a traditional pickle, a gingerbread man with dangling legs. 

There's characters of all kinds - Pusheen, Lucy Ricardo in a snazzy green dress, a stuffed BB8, Shaggy and Scooby out sledding, glass versions of Mickey Mouse and his friends, Rudolph with the residents of the Isle of Misfit Toys. Even the star on top holds fond memories. I thought the silver tinsel garland-trimmed star was so cute and retro, I bought it from the North Cape May Family Dollar long before I had a tree of my own. 

I've collected Happy Holidays albums from True Value Hardware for a long time. I bought my first one in 1993, when it was the only Christmas music I could afford. I loved that first cassette so much, I would return to the Cape May True Value to buy my annual Happy Holidays cassette or CD every year until they finally converted into an Ace Hardware in 2001. I've been going back and replacing the cassettes with CDs and picking up earlier and later albums in the series for the last few years. The Philadelphia Orchestra does "Angels We Have Heard On High" in Volume 16, joined by "Christmas Is Here Again" by Roger Whittaker, a rollicking "Sleigh Ride" by Ella Fitzgerald, and Lorne Greene's version of "The Night Before Christmas." 

The collection I have the fondest memories of is Volume 23 from 1988. I seem to remember Mom picking this up during an otherwise routine trip to True Value that December. We used to listen to it while decorating the tree in the late 80's and early 90's. It was the first time I heard Bing Crosby sing "White Christmas" somewhere besides the radio. Other good (or very 80s) songs here include "Merry Christmas Baby" by Chuck Berry, "This Christmas" by the Jets, "Jingle Bell Rock" by Brenda Lee, and "Greatest Little Christmas Ever Wuz" by Ray Stevens.

Thankfully, the Eagles-Ravens game was on Paramount Plus. I switched to that when it started at 4:25. The Eagles once again began slow. They didn't score at all during the first quarter. That changed quickly early in the second when they scored two touchdowns almost in a row. The Ravens picked up again in the last quarter of the game, but it wasn't enough to beat the on-fire Eagles. The Eagles finally won 24-19 on Baltimore's home turf.

Continued with the decorating after I finished the tree. Dad gave Mom a big white stuffed bear in a knitted hat and scarf from K-Mart in 1987. Mom dubbed him Chester. She put him on her hope chest, grabbed other bears to go with them, and dressed them all in old hats, scarves, and baby clothes. We'd play with the bears throughout the holiday season, even putting hats and tiaras on them at New Year's. 

By 2001, Mom had gotten tired of putting them out every year, and there was only Keefe left to play with them. When I moved on my own, she turned Chester and the remaining Christmas-only bears over to me. I added many of my own, both from my regular collection and purchased or given to me over the years. I don't have a hope chest, so they hang out under my tree. Amanda gave me the stuffed Charlie Brown and Snoopy in a chef's hat, and I bought the adorable 50's-style Snoopy with a candy cane in his paws from CVS. Found the three McDonald's Christmas Muppet Babies stuffed toys, in their original bags with their hats and tags, over a decade ago at a thrift shop. Jessa gave me the goofy egg-shaped stuffed Disney characters with dangling legs. The Webkinz Starlight the Peppermint Puppy and Clarence the Reindeer I think came from Hallmark.

Took down the laundry, then pulled out the rest of the miscellaneous items after the stuffed animals were under the tree. During the month of December, I replace my usual coasters with red and green squares I crocheted myself a few years ago. The only place I could fit my huge nativity was in back of the DVD player and next to the TV, but it was worth it. It's old and grimy, but I like to think that's what the first Christmas looked like. My artificial greenery garlands are too big for these rooms, so I draped the window in a tinsel garland and big stiff ribbon bows instead. Put all of my new CDs into books so I could have room in front of the CD player. 

Took a badly-needed shower, then put the laundry in the dryer. Had dinner and finished out the night with a marathon of Greed: The Series on YouTube. Chuck Woolery hosted this short-lived but well-remembered Who Wants to Be a Millionaire imitation in 1999. Five people are called to answer a series of questions. One will decide which answers work with the question. The captain (later, the first person called) decides whether the answers are right, or needs to be changed. They go up a ladder until they reach $2 million (or 4 million in Super Greed). 

At random intervals, someone will be chosen to be "The Terminator." They can opt to keep the group dynamic, or choose someone to challenge. If they win the challenge question, they get $10,000 and stay on. If they get the question wrong or their opponent answers the question right, they're the ones who drop out. 

Honestly, it's too bad this only lasted a year, and no one ever won that million-dollar prize. (One man did advance to the last question, only to get the answer wrong.) It's a fun show, one of the earliest and best of the many game shows that debuted in 1999 and 2000 to grab some of Millionaire's thunder. Woolery has a great time hosting it, and some of the contestants were hilarious. Despite it pulling in respectable ratings, Fox had no respect for it whatsoever. Apparently, it was dropped not due to ratings, but due to new management at Fox wanting to focus on scripted programming.

Get greedy with Woolery and ride up the ladder to the big prize in this heart-pounding neon delight!

Chuck Woolery Tribute - Best Episodes of Greed