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Sunday, February 03, 2013

Etta James - At Last


So, today is Super Bowl Sunday, and the teams that are playing in this year’s go round are the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens.  And, to be honest with all of you, I really don’t care if I miss the game or not.  I’ve probably talked about this before, but I am not a fan of watching sports on television at all.  The way I see it, you see one touchdown, you see them all.  But to those of you who will be tuning into the game at some point this afternoon, I’m sure that you will have fun watching the plays, critiquing the commercials, and stuffing your faces with all the pork rinds and chicken wings you can get your hands on.



I, on the other hand, have a blog entry that needs to get done up.  And, since this month is Black History Month, you already know that the subject for this blog is going to be a major influence on the music scene, and that the subject in question just happens to also be African-American.


And, considering that today is the Super Bowl, I imagine some of you might be thinking that I have selected Beyonce Knowles as today’s subject.  It certainly makes sense.  Beyonce is the halftime performer at the big game this year, and I’m sure that millions of people will be watching her sing lipsynch perform at the game.

While it’s true that the 31-year-old Knowles has made a big impact on the music scene with both “Destiny’s Child”, and her solo singles which include “Irreplaceable”, “Naughty Girl”, “Crazy In Love”, “Single Ladies”, and “Halo”, she is not the subject for today’s blog.

However, Beyonce does share a link to today’s blog subject...and that link was subject to a little bit of controversy back in 2009.


Now, everyone remembers the beginning of 2009, right?  It did only happen four years ago.  Back in January 2009, Americans tuned in to watch the inauguration of the country’s first African-American president, Barack Obama, and whether you respect the man or not, you have to admit that it was an historic event in American history.  Well, in 2009, one of the performers at the inauguration ball was Beyonce Knowles, and the song that she chose to serenade the couple with during their first dance was a song that was first released in 1941, but became a smash hit in 1961...the same year that Barack Obama was born.


USELESS TRIVIA THAT ONLY I FIND INTERESTING:  My Uncle Kevin and Barack Obama have the same exact birthdate...August 4, 1961.  Not that you needed to know that...I just found it cool.  J


That song was a little song called “At Last”.  It wasn’t the first time that Beyonce had sang the song...she also performed the song in the 2008 film “Cadillac Records”, in which she starred alongside Adrien Brody, Cedric the Entertainer, Jeffrey Wright, and Eamonn Walker.  And, she sang the song playing the very person who made the song a huge success in early 1961.


ARTIST:  Etta James
SONG:  At Last
ALBUM:  At Last!
DATE RELEASED:  November 15, 1960
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS: #47
PEAK POSITION ON THE R & B CHARTS:  #2



Now, “At Last” has been a song that has been covered by many, many people.  Even Etta James’ version was considered a cover version (the original version of “At Last” was released in the early 1940s).  But it can be argued that Etta James sang it best.

That’s not to say that Beyonce didn’t do a good job singing it.  I thought that she did a wonderful job putting her own spin on a classic song, and certainly when she sang it in the film “Cadillac Records”, James was overheard saying that she had thought that Beyonce had sang the song beautifully, and was more than impressed.

Less than six months later, James appeared to sing a different tune...one that basically had James throwing her under a bus!

Approximately a week after Obama’s 2009 inauguration, Etta James was performing a concert in Seattle, Washington where she let loose about her feelings about the performance, telling the crowd the following...

“I tell you, that woman he has singing for him, singing my song, she gonna get her ass whipped...I can’t stand Beyonce, she had no business up there singing my song that I’ve been singing forever!”

Can you say, “Ouch”?  Certainly an about face from just a few short months ago, when Etta James couldn’t say anything but kind things about Beyonce Knowles!  Or, was it?

James later admitted that the whole thing was a tongue-in-cheek joke and that she meant no harm towards Beyonce.  Her explanation for it was this...

“I didn’t really mean anything.  Even as a little child, I’ve always had that comedian kind of attitude.  That’s probably what went into it.  Nobody was getting mad at me in Seattle.  They were all laughing and it was funny.”

And, you know something, I believe that her intention wasn’t to be mean at all towards Beyonce or anybody else involved.  I really do believe that she was trying to be funny, and that it got a little bit blown out of proportion (as pretty much 95% of all Hollywood based gossip tends to get these days).  Though, Etta James did say that she did feel a little hurt that she wasn’t invited to the inaugural party.


At any rate, it seems hard to believe that Etta James’ life began in Los Angeles, California on January 25, 1938 under her birthname of Jamesetta Hawkins.  But, then again, I suppose we know now how she took her stage name...rearranging the syllables of her first name.

Jamesetta’s childhood was a rough one.  She was born to a single 14-year-old mother, and grew up never really knowing who her dad was (though she always suspected that he was legendary pool player Minnesota Fats), and she was shipped off to a series of foster homes due to her mother’s frequent absences from home.

When Jamesetta was five years old, she began vocal training under the tutelage of James Earl Hines, then the musical director of the Echoes of Eden choir, and became a regular performer at the St. Paul Baptist Church in south central Los Angeles.  But this also had a bit of a negative effect on Jamesetta, as one of her foster parents actually tried to profit off of her singing.  He would often have poker nights with his friends where they would get completely drunk, and he would often wake up Jamesetta in the middle of the night to sing for his friends (which proved even more embarrassing when you consider that in her childhood, Jamesetta was a bed-wetter, as told in the book “Rage to Survive:  The Etta James Story”).  This caused a lifelong reluctance to sing for anybody on demand...and when you consider what happened, can you blame her?


By 1950, Jamesetta was back in the care of her birth mother, and the two visited San Francisco’s Fillmore District, where a then twelve year old James immersed herself in the doo-wop culture.  By fourteen, she had formed her very first girl group, “The Creolettes”.  She met musician Johnny Otis during this time period as well, and Otis ended up taking special interest in “The Creolettes”, being a key figure in their eventual signing to Modern Records, the group name changing to “The Peaches”, and being the one who transformed Jamesetta Hawkins into Etta James.

The group’s first hit was in the form of an answer song to the 1954 hit “Work With Me, Annie”, 1955’s “Dance With Me, Johnny”.  The song hit the top of the R & B charts, and helped the group secure a spot touring with Little Richard as his opening act.

Etta James left “The Peaches” shortly after that, and embarked on a solo career, with her next release being “Good Rockin’ Daddy”, but all subsequent releases seemed to remain stagnant on the charts.  The struggle was so great that James opted not to re-sign with Modern Records when her contract expired in 1960, and instead signed on to Chess Records.


And, upon signing to Chess Records in the early 1960s, James had success with several singles including “If I Can’t Have You”, “Spoonful”, and “All I Could Do Was Cry”, which peaked at second place on the R & B charts.  In 1960, Etta James released her first full-length album, “At Last!”, and the album spawned three hit singles...”A Sunday Kind of Love”, “I Just Want To Make Love to You”, and of course, “At Last”.

Although “At Last” only managed to barely crack the Top 50 on the Billboard Charts, it became another #2 hit for James, and almost everyone would likely consider the song to be her signature hit.  Even Etta James herself would have told you that it was the song that helped cement her place in music history.  But, Etta James wasn’t the first person to sing it, and she obviously was not the last.  Some other artists who have covered the song aside from Beyonce include Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Ben E. King, Nat King Cole, Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, Jason Mraz, Cyndi Lauper, Elvis Costello, Michael Bolton, Aretha Franklin, Liza Minnelli, and Christina Aguilera.


In fact, Christina Aguilera ended up paying tribute to Etta James by singing “At Last” at her January 28, 2012 funeral.  Etta James passed away on January 20, 2012 following a battle with leukemia...just five days shy of her 74th birthday, and just three days after the death of the man who discovered her, Johnny Otis. 

But, really, even though it has been a year since Etta James passed away, her legacy will never be forgotten.  “At Last” may not have been originally performed by Etta James, but her version was one of the most well-known.  You certainly can’t take that away no matter how many times Beyonce Knowles sings the song. 

And besides, with a 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a 2001 induction into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, and six Grammy Awards, seventeen Blues Music Awards, and being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame twice, she will forever have a place in music history.


At last...

Saturday, February 02, 2013

Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids


When I made the decision to make February Black History Month, I knew that there would be some instances in which depending on the day of the week, I would find the choice of topics quite limiting.

Some of the theme days are easy to pick topics for. The Sunday Jukebox has millions of songs and artists to choose from. Monday Matinees are just as easy. And, though I had to do a bit of research, I even managed to get all my choices for the Tuesday Timeline to look back on an event within black history (even if the most recent example happens to be from a quarter-century ago).

But, Saturdays...boy, oh boy, let's talk about Saturdays.

For some reason, I had a huge amount of difficulty finding four different topics to discuss for this special month. As far back as I could remember, I couldn't really think of many examples of cartoon or educational series that had predominately black characters...and those shows that I could name off, I already did a feature on last year. So, I really had a tough time with this particular day.

Of course, this doesn't mean that I don't have anything to talk about. In fact, today's blog topic could easily be considered one of the longest running animated series in the history of Saturday Morning Cartoons.

Although the show took breaks in between filming, it aired on CBS off and on for twelve years, plus one additional year in syndication. It ran for one hundred and ten episodes, plus four special prime-time episodes.



And, that show is “Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids”, in which comedian/actor Bill Cosby voiced no less than three of the main characters, including himself!



I'll be the first one to admit that I was not introduced to “Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids” until late in life. The show debuted on CBS on September 9, 1972 (nine years before I was born), and ended in syndication on August 10, 1985. Because my family did not have cable when I was toddler-aged (we used rabbit ears well into the early 1980s), I completely missed out on this program during my childhood. I think I was eighteen when I first watched this program for the first time...and to be honest, I feel like I missed out on something because it really was a great show.



The idea for the show was born at least five years prior to the first episode airing on CBS. The character of Fat Albert was incorporated into Bill Cosby's stand-up set in 1967, and appeared on his comedy album “Revenge”. The stories that Cosby joked about in his routine regarding Fat Albert were based off of his own childhood, growing up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Two years later, in 1969, Cosby teamed up with Ken Mundie to bring Fat Albert to life (albeit in an animated format). The one shot prime time special debuted on NBC, and was entitled “Hey, Hey, Hey, It's Fat Albert”. The special was a bit unique at the time as it combined animation with live-action segments.

TRIVIA: The entire musical score for the 1969 Fat Albert special was composed by Herbie Hancock, who some of you might know as the composer of this instrumental.





As far as the character design of all of the main characters from Fat Albert...well, those were courtesy of Amby Paliwoda, who formerly worked for Disney. He designed all eight main characters of the Cosby Kids, and also painted a group portrait of all of the characters, which appeared on the front cover of TV Guide just before the special aired.



And, just who made up the gang known as Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids? Well, I'll tell you. First of all, you can't have a gang named the Cosby Kids without a Cosby. And, Bill Cosby voiced...Bill Cosby.

I know, shocker, isn't it?

I suppose it made sense though. After all, the majority of the Cosby Kids were based off of actual characters that Cosby befriended in his childhood. On the animated series, Bill plays a lot of sports, and is somewhat of a decent athlete. And, he seems to be more or less the voice of reason a lot of the time. But despite the fact that Bill Cosby created the Fat Albert Gang, he was not the main character.



That honour, of course, belongs to Fat Albert (also voiced by Bill Cosby). And, despite the fact that Fat Albert would be classified as morbidly obese and would likely be considered the poster child of bad health in today's society, Fat Albert was surprisingly agile and athletic for his size.

(Let this be a lesson to all of you to NEVER judge a book by its cover.)

Fat Albert has a huge heart underneath his body, and he often uses it to solve problems, listen to people, and come up with ideas that make people twice his age stare at him in awe. Oh, and the one thing that sets apart Fat Albert from the others is his trademark saying.  "Hey, hey, hey!!!"



The other members of the Fat Albert Gang each have their own distinct traits. Mushmouth (voiced by Bill Cosby) has trouble communicating with others because his voice sounds literally like he has a pound of marbles stuffed inside his cheeks. I suppose you could compare him to Kenny McCormick from “South Park”, only Mushmouth doesn't get killed off at the end of each episode.



Dumb” Donald (Lou Scheimer) is not exactly the shiniest penny in the bunch. In fact, one could call him the dimbulb of the whole group. He also has the wildest sense of style, as you can see from the image above.



Russell Cosby (Jan Crawford) is Bill's younger brother, and Bill is often exasperated over the schemes and the trouble that Russell often causes. He may be the youngest member of the gang, but he's also the mouthiest...and sometimes his big mouth gets him into trouble with the other members of the gang...especially with one member in particular.



Rudolph “Rudy” Davis (Eric Suter), is kind of like the Reggie Mantle of the Cosby Kids. He's got style, he's got swagger, and he's got EGO! But he also has a conscience and a kind heart, so any time he ends up getting into a jam because of his attitude, he almost always learns his lesson.



Weird” Harold (Gerald Edwards), is the klutz of the group, always clumsily bumping into things and knocking things over.



And, lastly (but not least), we have Bucky (Jan Crawford), a boy with a large overbite, whose quickness and flexibility have gotten the Cosby Kids out of some tough jams.

The television special was a big hit on NBC in 1969, and in the wake of the success of the special, it was discussed to bring a cartoon series to the airwaves. But would you believe that NBC decided against airing the cartoon on Saturday Mornings because it was...get this...too educational?!?

I mean, heaven forbid a child LEARN something from Saturday Morning cartoons! Boy, how times have changed!

Fortunately, with backing from Filmation, Cosby and Mundie shopped the show around to CBS, who agreed to put the show on the schedule for the 1972/1973 television season. Little did they know that the show would last on and off for the better part of thirteen years!

TRIVIA: The series took hiatuses from making new episodes in 1974, 1977, 1978, 1981, and 1983.

Now, the way that a typical episode was structured was that the kids often faced an issue or problem that children would normally deal with. Most of the time, the issues they faced were hygeine, stage fright, first love, medical issues, and other moments that might be featured on NBC's “One To Grow On”. In some rare occasions, the issues would be more serious in nature. Sometimes they talked about racism, vandalism, stealing, child abuse, sexually transmitted diseases, and there was even an episode where the kids visited a prison where the prisoners could be heard uttering salty language (such as 'damn' or 'bastard'). Though to Cosby's credit, he did warn people of the fact that the words would be said to give kids a more realistic perspective, which I can appreciate).

But the way that the show handled these situations was brilliant. They wanted to offer up solutions in a realistic way, but they didn't go so far out of the box that it scarred kids for life. It was a rather ingenious show that was slightly ahead of its time.

Oh, and at the end of every episode, the group would form a band known as the “Junkyard Kids” and sing a song about what they learned. Each Cosby Kid played their own instruments which were constructed out of garbage lying around (hence the name of the band). So, I thought that I'd end this entry off by listing the instruments that the band played, as well as a couple of songs that they played on the show.



THE JUNKYARD BAND

FAT ALBERT – lead vocals, bagpipe-accordion
MUSHMOUTH – homemade bass guitar
DONALD – homemade trombone
BILL – homemade drums
RUSSELL – tin can xylophone
WEIRD HAROLD – bedspring harp
RUDY – homemade banjo (but plays an electric guitar when alone)
BUCKY – stovepipe organ



Oh, one last thing...in 2004, a live-action movie starring Kenan Thompson as Fat Albert was released in theatres. The film also starred Kyla Pratt, who ends up holding a main role in next Saturday's topic. But you'll have to wait for that one.

Friday, February 01, 2013

Roots: The Saga of an American Family


I always like trying new ideas for this blog in order to get more of a wider audience.  Some ideas that I have come up with have been incredibly successful and piqued people’s interests.  And, there are a few ideas that have admittedly flopped.  But that’s the fun of trying new things.  You learn very quickly what works and what doesn’t.

I’ll admit that the thought never crossed my mind to devote an entire month to a specific topic when I first began this blog.  I had expected to do theme days, and occasionally, I’ve tried my hand at a few theme weeks (September Switcheroo in September 2011, Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This Week in April 2012), but the closest that I ever came to an entire theme month was two months ago in December 2012, when the first twenty-five days of the month were transformed into an advent calendar.

Well, this month, I have decided to try my hand at another theme month.  For the next twenty-eight days, each blog entry will have a common thread linking them all together, and at the end of February, I hope to have shared a lot of information with all of you in regards to a very special month.


Did you know that February is officially recognized as Black History Month?  In Canada and the United States, the month of February is reserved for teaching people about the historical events, discoveries, and triumphs that were achieved by people of the African diaspora.  Black History Month is also recognized in the United Kingdom, only they celebrate it during the month of October.

The origins of Black History Month date back to 1926, when a man by the name of Carter G. Woodson teamed up with the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History to create the precursor to Black History Month, “Negro History Week”.  It took place during the second week of February because it always passed through the birthdates of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.  Woodson had created the week-long event in hopes that one day it would be eliminated as black history would be incorporated into the regular curriculum. 

It’s interesting to note that when Negro History Week was made official, it was met with a lot of enthusiasm from students, teachers, and progressive white people.  It sparked a renewed interest in history classes, and at high schools all across the United States, black history clubs were organized as extracurricular activities.  It became so popular that the decision was made in 1976 to expand the Black History Week to cover the entire month of February, which has remained in place ever since.

So, I thought to myself that if history classes and textbooks can celebrate Black History Month, why not A Pop Culture Addict’s Guide To Life?

From February 1 – 28, 2013, this blog will be celebrating Black History Month, as every single topic will feature some sort of reference to the contributions and inventions created by African-American citizens (and African-Canadian, African-European, etc).  But, don’t you worry, fellow pop culture addicts...there will still be the references to movies, music, and television that you all grew up with!  Even the Thursday Diary entries will have something to do with Black History Month...even though at this time, I’m trying to figure out a way to make that happen. 

So, how do I kick off such an event?  Well, today happens to be Friday, which means that a television show will be featured.  But, because it’s the beginning of a month-long event, why not begin with a bang?  Why don’t I start off with a television miniseries that ran for eight consecutive days in the winter of 1977?  Why don’t I talk about a miniseries that had huge Hollywood stars signed on to star in at least one of the episodes of the series?  A miniseries that was nominated for thirty-six Emmy Awards, winning nine?  A miniseries in which all eight episodes ranked within the Top 100 American television episodes of ALL TIME?



Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sure that you’ll all agree that I can’t kick off Black History Month without talking about the 1977 miniseries “Roots”.  Based off of the novel “Roots: The Saga of an American Family” by Alex Haley, the miniseries aired nightly between January 23 and January 30, 1977 on ABC, and the conclusion of the series remains the third highest-rated American program in the history of television (just falling behind Dallas’ “Who Shot J.R.?” episode and the series finale of “M*A*S*H” – sporting events like the Super Bowl aside, that is.)

The eight-part miniseries boasted a “Who’s Who” list of names.  The miniseries was the breakout performance of LeVar Burton, who portrayed the younger version of Kunta Kinte, and also featured a pre-Growing Pains Tracey Gold in the role of Young Missy Reynolds.  But just listen to some of the other names associated with the project.  You had Ben Vereen, Vic Morrow, John Amos, Lorne Greene, Ed Asner, Louis Gossett Jr., Robert Reed, Sandy Duncan, Leslie Uggams, Georg Stanford Brown, Lloyd Bridges, Carolyn Jones, Cicely Tyson, Ralph Waite, Richard Roundtree, Roxie Roker, Maya Angelou, Burl Ives, Todd Bridges, and Yvonne De Carlo all having huge parts, secondary roles, or at the very least a cameo appearance.  It’s hard to deny that much star power having an impact on the overall success of the miniseries.

However, the success of Roots was not solely the casting (although each member of the cast acted their socks off).  It was the story.  And, for many people who watched the miniseries thirty-six years ago (and for people who have since watched it on the DVD release in 2002 for its twenty-fifth anniversary).

“Roots” is set over a period of one hundred and twenty years (1750 – 1870), and the majority of the movie deals with the hardships and ugliness that was slavery.


I’ll say this.  After watching the entire series, it’s absolutely horrifying to have watched what black slaves experienced during that time period.  It certainly makes one realize that the whole world has come a long way when it comes to how we treat other people (and yet in some places, we clearly still have a long way to go yet).  And, although some people have some issues with the actual historical accuracy of the miniseries (and book for that matter), the author of the book, Alex Haley claimed that “Roots” was based on his own family’s history, which began with Kunta Kinte, a descendent of Haley from a span of seven generations apart.

I won’t really go into too much plot detail here (because no amount of words that I could say can give the horrifying scenes and the small victories that each of the main characters experience in a world of slavery and fear).  But, I can offer you a little bit of what to expect (along with a couple of video clips).


The main character for the first arc of the series is obviously Kunta Kinte (played by both LeVar Burton and John Amos), and the story begins when he is captured and sold to a slave trader.  He spends the next three months on a ship bound for Colonial America where he is purchased by John Reynolds (Lorne Greene), a plantation owner from Spotsylvania County, Virginia.  He also gives Kunta a new name, Toby.  Reynolds assigns an older slave, Fiddler (Louis Gossett Jr.) to teach him English, and to train him for his new job as a chattel slave.  Of course, this was of little comfort to Kunta, who just wanted to escape and go back home to Africa.  Unfortunately, each time he tries to escape, he ends up getting caught.  To make matters worse, Kunta refuses to change his name, as he wishes to preserve his heritage, and this prompts the scene to shift to this disturbing scene.  You may watch it below, but I must warn you, it’s not for the faint of heart.


Kunta and Fiddler stay on the property as property of John Reynolds until Kunta reaches adulthood.  From there, they become the property of John’s brother, Dr. William Reynolds (Robert Reed), and once more, Kunta tries again to escape.  This time, the punishment is severe, as Kunta ends up getting nearly his whole right foot amputated, in order to prevent him from trying to escape again.

At this point, Kunta decides to give up the fight for freedom and makes the decision to continue serving as a slave.  Fortunately, not all is bleak.  He ends up falling in love with the cook of Dr. Reynolds’ household, Belle, and they end up getting married.


But if you think the story ends there, think again.  The tale picks up with the story of Belle and Kunta’s daughter, Kizzy.  In fact, that’s where “Roots” ends up getting its name.  The story traces through several generations of family beginning with Kunta Kinte and passing through Kizzy, Kizzy’s son, George, and George’s sons, Tom and Lewis.  It’s a beautifully told story, and it keeps the audience captivated from beginning until end.  Certainly, there are some hard scenes to watch in the miniseries, and of course there are some really terrifying and grotesque scenes that will absolutely break your heart...but there are also some moments that are heartwarming.  The wedding day of Belle and Kunta, for example. Or, Kizzy being taught how to read and write by Missy Anne Reynolds (well, before Missy Anne betrays her, that is).  Or, “Chicken George” using the sport of cockfighting to win a prize more valuable than money.

Really, I could go on and on about this miniseries, but I don’t want to spoil the whole thing for you.  Believe me, I could not begin to use enough words to justify how powerful and moving this entire miniseries is.  So, go out and watch it.  You won’t regret it.

Now, to cap off this look back on “Roots”, I thought that I’d post a little bit of trivia about this miniseries.  You already know that it was a ratings powerhouse, that it was LeVar Burton’s first starring role, and that it won nine Emmy Awards, as well as a Peabody Award.

But did you also know that...

...two sequels to “Roots” were produced?  One was made in 1979 (Roots: The Next Generations), and the other one was made in 1988 (Roots:  The Gift).

...the actor playing Tom (Georg Stanford Brown) was three years OLDER than his on-screen father, George (Ben Vereen)?

...that author Harold Courlander launched a lawsuit against Roots author Alex Haley for plagiarizing events that took place in his own novel “The African”?  And that Courlander ended up winning a settlement of $650,000 out of court?


...only two actors from “Roots” (Georg Stanford Brown and Lynne Moody) reprised their roles in the 1979 sequel?




...Sandy Duncan admitted in an interview where Oprah Winfrey talked to the cast of "Roots" thirty-five years after the miniseries aired, that she is still unable to sit through the whole twelve-hour miniseries?  I suppose it didn't help matters much that by her final appearance, she ended up becoming one of the most hated characters in the whole show...

...two of the actors from “Roots” (LeVar Burton and Louis Gossett Jr.) reprised their roles in the 1988 film “Roots:  The Gift”?

...an ABC executive described the success of “Roots” by stating that “a third of America was snowed in, a third of America was black, and a third of America watches ABC anyway”?

...Vic Morrow is the only cast member to appear in more than three episodes of the miniseries (he appears in four of the eight)?

...Quincy Jones and Gerald Fried composed the musical score for the first episode of the miniseries?

...the total budget for the miniseries was $6.6 million?

...an estimated 36 million households watched the series finale?

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Valentine's Day On A Shoestring Budget




Hey, guys! I thought that I would start this blog entry off by posting the temporary new logo for “The Pop Culture Addict's Guide To Life”. It'll run from now until Friday, February 15. I thought that I'd try to make the blog a bit more holiday friendly, so I've been at work making themed logos for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and Easter, thus far. As we go ahead with the year, I'll be creating more logos for use. I hope you enjoy it.

The fact that I even decided to do a Valentine's Day logo for this blog in the first place surprises even me, as I've made no secret about disliking everything that the day stands for. So, in this edition of the Thursday Diary, I work out why that is. Trust me, it's not what you might think.

Oh, and the reason why I'm doing a Valentine's Day entry two weeks before the day actually happens? Well, I have a theme month planned out for February. You'll find out more about that tomorrow.

January 31, 2013

Is it just me, or did January just seem to drag on?

I think part of the reason why January seems to have lasted twice as long as other months I can remember is the fact that the weather has been crazier than ever before (I think that this January in particular seems as though we experienced all four seasons at once). And the fact that almost every single person that I know had to cope with cold symptoms or were sidelined by that really nasty flu virus that is going around certainly didn't make this month pass by any quicker.

But tomorrow we're entering the month of February...the shortest month of the entire year (even on leap years). And, this year, I say bring it on.



February's been a month that in recent years has had a lot of meaning for me. After all, I did get my gall bladder removed in the month of February two years ago. And because my surgery took place two days before Valentine's Day, I did end up getting something red for the holiday.



Mind you it was in the form of a blood transfusion, but hey, I'd rather have something that can save my life instead of roses, chocolates, and gold jewelry.

At least on that particular year, I ended up not hating Valentine's Day with nearly the passion that I had prior to that event. Though, in my defense, I was too sore and too weak to really care about what the day was on the calendar when the day did roll around.

And, you know, I'll be honest with you...in the last couple of years, I've been more embracing of the day than I have been. I still don't like it as well as Christmas, Halloween, or even the civic holiday in August that was only created because every other month had a holiday...but I'm more accepting of it.

Hence the reason why I came up with a Valentine's Day logo for this blog for the first part of the month.



Prior to 2011, I hated Valentine's Day with the fire of a thousand suns. To me, staring at all of those red and pink teddy bears, heart shaped boxes of chocolates, and lavish bouquets of red roses made me want to take a flamethrower to them.

And, you know, to be honest with you, there was a time in which I believed that the reason behind my dislike for Valentine's Day was because of my single status. I mean, I'm not going to lie to you, sometimes being single on Valentine's Day isn't the easiest thing to deal with. But, at the end of the day, you get through it...even if you find yourself surrounded by the red and pink foil wrappers of the entire bag of Valentine's Hershey Miniatures that you ate while watching an anti-Valentine's Day movie like “Fatal Attraction”.

(And, don't judge. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who has done this, and I highly doubt that I'll be the last.)

But the reason why I didn't like Valentine's Day wasn't so much of the fact that I was single on Valentine's Day. It's because of the fact that many people don't seem to understand what the whole purpose of Valentine's Day is.

I did a little bit of research on the day, and here's what I found. Valentine's Day began as a liturgical celebration of a Christian saint named Valentinus. The story of Valentinus is that he was imprisoned for performing weddings for soldiers who were forbidden to marry, and for ministering to Christians who were persecuted under the Roman Empire. It's said that during his incarceration, he had healed the daughter of the very person who jailed him, Asterius. The legend states that before he was executed, he wrote a letter of farewell to her, signing the letter “From Your Valentine”.

Okay, so that legend was kind of morbid...but it also makes a lot of sense when you compare that legend to how Valentine's Day is traditionally celebrated. After all, who doesn't remember being a kid in class stuffing those Valentine's cards into your classmates' Valentine's Day boxes with messages saying things like “You send me over the moon, Valentine”, or “Let's Be Best Friends, Valentine”?

It really wasn't until the mid fifteenth century that Valentine's Day became associated with romantic love, and evolved into a day in which lovers expressed their feelings for each other by sending them confections, flowers, and handmade cards.

Now, can I tell you the honest truth? I honestly don't even think that you need the flowers and the chocolates to be able to have a happy Valentine's Day.



And, you'll notice that I never mentioned jewelry at all during either one of those legends. I tell you, I don't care if he went to Jared, or if every kiss begins with Kay, or if you're being told by Charm Diamond Centres to buy a sterling silver charm bracelet so that you can charm your lover off of her feet. The materialistic stance that jewelry stores take around the fourteenth of February is less than charming in my personal opinion.

I guess I just don't understand what makes Valentine's Day so special that it is the one and ONLY day that we have to show somebody that we love how much we care about them. We have three hundred and sixty-five days this year to show a spouse, lover, or life partner just how much they mean to us and how much we care for them.

So, you want to know what I think? I think that we should laugh in the face of the hearts, flowers, and likenesses of Cupid. Seriously, Cupid is nothing more than a dude in tighty-whities shooting arrows at random people. If anyone tried that in the real world, I'm pretty sure that they would end up institutionalized. Let people know that you're not going to become a slave to the materialistic madness that includes dinner reservations at overpriced restaurants, using charge cards to buy an entire truckload of roses, and making twenty easy payments of fifty dollars to afford the fancy earrings you bought just because the calendar says it's the fourteenth of February.

However, if you insist on celebrating the day the way that the people in the 1400s did, might I recommend a few ideas that are a little more cost-efficient, but still allows you to show your significant other just how much you care. I know that if I had someone special in my life to spend Valentine's Day with this year, I most certainly would be trying some of these ideas out myself. But, again, these are just suggestions that I've come up with. I encourage all of you to be creative and come up with your own inexpensive ways.



01 – GO OUT FOR A WALK TOGETHER

I know it sounds very simple and common, but if the weather permits (and given how unpredictable February can be, that can be a bit dicey), it's probably one of the most intimate activities that two people can share...well, in public, that is. In all seriousness, sometimes taking a trip down memory lane in some of the places that mean a lot to both of you can be more sentimental and thoughtful than spending a lot of dough on disposable stuff. A heart shaped box of chocolates may last a day...but the place where you shared your first kiss, or went on your first date? Priceless.



02 – DO SOMETHING TO HELP OTHERS

I'm a huge believer in giving to others in need. I think that the feeling that one gets when they donate their time or their money to a worthy cause is like no other. That's why I recommend that on Valentine's Day, you and your loved one do something that benefits someone else. Years ago, I remember one episode of Beverly Hills 90210 in which Brenda and Dylan spent Valentine's Day donating blood. Back then, I thought it was a bit strange...but now I think it's a rather ingenious idea. As someone who ironically ended up getting a blood transfusion on Valentine's Day, I appreciated the fact that someone took the time to donate their blood so I could have another shot at life. Wouldn't it be the coolest thing to donate blood with the person you love? And, besides, you get food and drink after donating! What could be better?

Of course, if donating your blood doesn't sound like the best idea, there's other ways you can donate your time. Volunteer your time together to a charity, or take the money that you were going to spend on Valentine's Day celebrations and donate it to a worthy cause, and stay in for a quiet night in. Trust me, Valentine's Day may be a day to show each other that you care, but there's nothing stating that you can't share that love with other people.



03 – MAKE A GIFT

This is probably one of the best ways to beat the materialism that seems to be forced down people's throats during the Valentine's Day season. I'm probably a guy who would appreciate the idea of someone going to a lot of trouble to make something special that they would know that I'd enjoy. And, I absolutely love being able to use my creative skills to come up with gifts that are personal, yet inexpensive. And, there's no shortage of ideas. You can make them a homemade Valentine's Day card. If there's a photo of the two of you that you both love, design and make the perfect picture frame to go around it. One idea I heard of from an acquaintance was that they grabbed a photo out of a wedding album, blew it up, had it made into a thousand piece jigsaw puzzle, and spent the whole night putting it together. I'm not sure if anyone would have the time to put together a thousand piece jigsaw puzzle these days, but I must admit I love the idea. Even a simple activity like baking chocolate chip cookies together is an awesome idea...and you can eat your creations later on in the evening.

Just let your creative side flow. Remember, any gift that comes from the heart will be well appreciated.

Those are just a few ideas to consider. If you have any more ways you can take the cha-ching out of Valentine's Day, feel free to share!

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

How Spirograph Turned Me Into A Pen Hoarder


I’ve got a confession to make before kicking off Wednesday’s featured toy entry for this week.  It’s more of an admission that I want to get off my chest, and I worry that by making this admission, it may change the way you all look at me.  In fact, you might never look at me exactly the same way again.  But, as someone who has been more open than he ever thought he would be in this small nook in cyberspace, I suppose one more confession won’t hurt.


I am a hoarder of pens.

I’m not talking about pens that farmers use to house their pigs, goats, roosters, and hens.  I’m talking about ball-point, felt tip, fountain, gel, calligraphy, and tri-colour pens.

For as long back as I can remember, I have always been fascinated by pens.  In fact, I think that I know the exact moment in which I developed my obsession with pens.  But, we’ll get to that a little bit later in the discussion.


As I type out this entry on my laptop, my attention is fixated on the container of pens that I currently have stored nearby.  I haven’t exactly counted every single one of them, but I would estimate that I have at least five hundred of them on hand.  I have pens made by PaperMate.  Pens made by Sharpie.  Pens made by Bic.  I think that I even have a few pens that have the Staples logo on them.

And, there’s also something interesting about the huge amount of pens that I have accumulated over the last few years.  If you examine them very closely, there are only a handful of royal blue pens, and only the occasional black pen.  The others are a variety of different colours.  I have red, green, purple, pink, gold, orange, silver, burgundy, aqua, cyan, magenta, fluorescent yellow, and even white! 

(Don’t laugh at the white pen...it came in handy one year when I sent out Christmas cards with dark green envelopes.)

A lot of people have asked me what I have against “normal” pens.  They want to know why I insist on using bright colours whenever I do sign something, or take notes, or any other activity where one uses a pen and a piece of paper.  To set the record straight, I have nothing against what is considered to be a “normal” pen.  I happen to use black pen in many circumstances.  Most financial institutions want you to validate a cheque using a black pen (because as much as I want to, I don’t think emerald green would fly).  It’s the same deal with filling out important paperwork for tax refunds, applying for a passport, or filling out a job application.  I’ll also use black pen (or at the very least, dark blue) when filling out a card of condolence for someone who recently lost someone close to them.

For everything else, I break out the colour, and make no apology doing so.  When someone is having a birthday and a card is going around, I sign in colour (in some cases, if I know that I’m signing something ahead of time, I will try to bring the person’s favourite colour and sign it in that).  Most people who have gotten Christmas cards from me will attest to the fact that I tend to sign them in various colours.  In fact, there was one instance in which I actually went to sixteen different stores (including two in the United States) before I found a pen that had the right shade of maroon to match the card design on the outside.

(Yeah, yeah...not only am I obsessed with pens, but I’ve probably given up my “man card” in the process.  But, hey, at least everyone who received a Christmas card from me in 2007 appreciated the effort.  J )

And, I also very rarely use the same colour two days in a row.  Yesterday, I used a light blue coloured pen.  Today, I’ll probably choose purple.  And, tomorrow, I’ll decide on pink...which will make my pink hating co-worker grimace in disgust.  It’s not like I have a shortage of colours to choose from.  I have hundreds of pens. 

But how did I develop such a fascination with pens?  In particular with pens that were unusual colours?


Well, I think it started right around May 1987.  That was the month that I turned six years old, and my family threw me a surprise birthday party that year.  That particular year my birthday fell on Victoria Day (which meant no school), and the living room was decorated with banners, party decals, and balloons (as long as they were hanging up out of reach of anyone accidentally popping them, I was fine with them being in the room).  

I honestly was too young to remember everything that I got for my birthday that year, as my sixth birthday was well over a quarter-century ago.  In fact, there were only two major details that I remember from that birthday.  The first was the happy face that was made completely out of balloons (which actually looked very cool).  And, the second detail was the fact that I had gotten this for a present.


Spirograph.  The toy that kickstarted my coloured pen habit.

And what a fun toy that Spirograph was too!  My Spirograph came with four different colours of pen...black, blue, red, and green.  And, if I remember correctly, the red and green ones were the first ones to lose all of their ink.  I was absolutely fascinated by the green one in particular, as I had never seen a pen write in that colour before in my life.  Shortly after that, my parents took all of us to the Woolco store on their famed $1.44 days, where they had a selection of coloured pens on sale (which included new colours like purple, pink, and orange), and of course, I used some of my birthday money to buy some of these pens so I could have more colours at my disposal.


(It’s really scary how I can remember miniscule events that took place 26 years ago, but can’t remember what I did 2.6 seconds ago.)


Oh, that’s right...we were talking about Spirograph, weren’t we?

Everyone who has ever played with a Spirograph knows how the toy works right?  In addition to the pens, a Spirograph comes with a set of plastic gears and various shapes that all have jagged edges.  When a pen is inserted in one of the holes cut into the gear and spun around, the force exerted will allow gears that are touching it to spin in a different direction.

To be able to use the Spirograph the way that it was meant to be used, you’ll have to get a piece of paper that is placed on a heavy cardboard backing (this prevents the paper from moving around with the spinning gears).  One of the gears (the stator) is pinned to the piece of paper, and another plastic piece (the rotor) is placed so that its gears line up alongside the stator.  When the pen is moved, the line that the pen makes becomes a curve.  The pen is actually used as a method of providing locomotive force, as well as drawing the intricate curves and patterns that appear on the paper.  Though, I will warn you, it takes a LOT of practice before you can get a design that you’re remotely happy with.

It took me about a year before I learned how to master my Spirograph...and honestly, I think I would likely need a refresher course.

But if you have a Spirograph, and have mastered the difficulty of keeping the momentum going, the payout can be amazing.  Just have a look at some designs that were created using a Spirograph below.


The Spirograph toy was developed by British engineer Denys Fisher, (taking inspiration from the mathematician who created the invention known as the “spirograph”, Bruno Abakanowicz).  Fisher demonstrated the toy at the 1965 Nuremburg International Toy Fair, and the design was so successful that manufacturing began almost immediately.  The distribution rights to Spirograph were bought by Kenner (which in turn was bought out by Hasbro), and by 1966, Spirograph was marketed as an educational toy for kids to play with.


Or, for those kids who were just a smidgen too young to have fully developed motor skills (a.k.a. anyone younger than three), there was also the toy known as the Spirotot, which Kenner released in 1968.

At any rate, Spirograph was a great toy to play with...even if I didn’t really understand how it worked.

The Wikipedia entry on Spirograph actually has a mathematical formula posted within the description, but I decided not to post it because of the fact that it might bore some of you, and I have absolutely no idea how to decipher the algebraic code.  Mathematics and I do not get along.  But, if you’re really curious, or enjoy math, you can click HERE to find out the mathematical properties. 

And, if there’s one thing that I took away from the Spirograph, it’s that green pens were always cool.  I should know...I likely have about a hundred of them by now.