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Friday, May 04, 2012

The Tanner-Gibbler Connection


Today is Friday, and it also happens to be the final day of BEST FRIENDS WEEK.  I hope all of you have enjoyed this theme week.  I know I enjoyed this week.  It’s always nice to talk about the subject of friendship, and I managed to find a friendship theme in each theme day.

But, all good things have to come to an end. 

For the final day of BEST FRIENDS WEEK, I thought I’d put the focus on a pair of teenage girls who happened to be next door neighbours, and who were largely inseparable.


These two girls appeared on the television sitcom “Full House” for its entire eight season run.  One of the girls was a regular from the very beginning, while the other ended up becoming a regular character in 1991.  These two girls might have had some misunderstandings and fights over the years, but despite that, their friendship was absolutely genuine.

It’s just a shame that one girl’s family found the other girl to be the very definition of annoying.


Today’s subject is about the friendship of “Full House” characters Donna Jo “D.J.” Tanner and Kimberly “Kimmy” Gibbler, played by Candace Cameron Bure and Andrea Barber.


D.J. and Kimmy became friends with each other ever since D.J.’s family moved onto Gerard Street in the city of San Francisco, California.  When “Full House” debuted in September 1987, D.J. and Kimmy were both in the fifth grade.  It was a particularly rough time for D.J. Tanner when the series first started.  Her mother, Pam, was killed by a drunk driver earlier that year, and she was still trying to adjust to the loss.  To make matters worse, D.J. found that she was having difficulty adjusting to the new changes in her life.  Her uncle Jesse and Joey had moved in to help her father Danny out with taking care of the house, and as a result of this, D.J. was forced to share her room with her younger sister, Stephanie.

Somehow, D.J. managed to get through it.  And, I think a part of that came from her friendship with Kimmy Gibbler.  Although we never did get an episode of “Full House” that showed D.J. meeting Kimmy for the first time, I’d like to think that Kimmy was right by D.J.’s side when she had to grieve the loss of her mother.  In fact, it very well could have been Kimmy’s support of D.J. through the terrible time in her life that changed their relationship status from neighbours to best friends forever.

Now, you’d think that D.J.’s family would be absolutely supportive of her friendship with Kimmy.  Unfortunately for Kimmy, the opposite ended up happening.  Kimmy was seen as a thorn in the side of the entire Tanner family household, and at some point, Kimmy would end up offending almost everybody in the household.


Danny always saw Kimmy as a slob who kept popping over unannounced.  Joey seemed to be indifferent to Kimmy’s presence, but he too was annoyed by her in certain circumstances.  Jesse and Kimmy had a bit of a love-hate relationship.  Sometimes they aggravated each other, but they also respected each other.  And D.J.’s sisters, Stephanie and Michelle often made fun of Kimmy, and the three of them would usually end up fighting more than anything.  Really, only D.J.’s aunt Becky was the only member of the family to show any kind of respect towards Kimmy.  Not that Kimmy really noticed either way.

And, you know, I can see why they might be annoyed by Kimmy.  Kimmy seemed to spend more time at the Tanner residence than she did her own home.  She ate their food, watched their television, and could clear a room with the offensive odour of her sock feet.  It wasn’t a pretty sight.


But that’s the beauty of their friendship.  D.J. knew that Kimmy Gibbler had her obvious faults, but that didn’t affect their friendship one iota.  D.J. loved Kimmy for who she was, and Kimmy, in turn, did exactly the same for D.J.

Of course, the friendship between Kimmy and D.J. wasn’t exactly perfect all of the time.  These two ended up having quite a few conflicts with each other that could have potentially ended their friendship forever.

Birthdays were a particular sore spot in the friendship of D.J. and Kimmy.  One time, D.J. threw Kimmy a birthday party with the intention of giving her a day to remember.  But when Kimmy brought a couple of junior high girls to the party who didn’t really appreciate her at all, D.J. spoke out against them, and Kimmy ended up leaving her own party, ending the friendship with D.J.  The very next day, Kimmy realized that her new “friends” were only using her, and she and D.J. made up again.


Just a few years later, D.J. was so involved with her new boyfriend that she actually forgot all about Kimmy’s birthday that year.  Knowing that Kimmy had expected D.J. to do something special for her birthday (it was her sixteenth), D.J. managed to throw together a party with the help of her family in just a couple of hours.  Sure, the decorations were from Christmas and Halloween, and the birthday cake was made of ketchup and hash browns, but Kimmy was completely touched, and D.J. would have gotten away with it, had loose lips not been flapping and Kimmy discovered the truth.  Kimmy was deeply hurt, and she fled the party in tears, and D.J. was upset that Kimmy didn’t see the effort she put in.  But after a talk with Danny, D.J. realized that she could have treated Kimmy a little better, and again, they made up.

And then there was the time that D.J. tried to help Kimmy out by making her the sports editor of their high school newspaper with some rather mixed results.  Click HERE to watch a clip.

You mean people DON’T use napkins for word processing?  Who knew?

But, again, you know the drill.  D.J. and Kimmy never stayed mad at each other for long, and they made up.

And, that was always a good thing, because Kimmy and D.J. ended up bailing each other out of some really tricky situations.

Take D.J. for example.  Kimmy Gibbler should count her lucky stars that she had a friend like D.J. to help her out when she needed her.

Some examples include the following;


Kimmy was trying to get a good grade in her Spanish class so she could go to Spain for the summer with D.J., D.J. worked with her to make it happen. 


When Kimmy ended up getting drunk at a fraternity party that she and D.J. were invited to, D.J. took Kimmy home and let her sober up in her bedroom while she slept on the sofa.  Kimmy was initially angry with D.J., but later understood that D.J. saved her life. 

And when Kimmy was depressed about not getting into college and decided to elope with her boyfriend to Nevada, D.J. got her ex-boyfriend to drive her down so she could prevent Kimmy from making the biggest mistake of her life.  Now THAT’S friendship.

And, don’t think that the friendship between D.J. and Kimmy was completely one sided either.  Kimmy ended up being a guardian angel of sorts to D.J. as well.  D.J. and Kimmy teamed up together to deal with a situation involving a bratty kid and a staircase banister.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1kWrXOarRI

(Okay, maybe not the best example.)

But Kimmy helped D.J. hook up with her first boyfriend, Steve.  Kimmy helped D.J. with the “Stay in School” campaign that she started up.  When D.J. and Steve broke up, Kimmy was there for her.  And, when it came time for D.J.’s senior prom, and D.J. ended up without a date, Kimmy stepped in and helped her out in a huge way by convincing Steve to be D.J.’s escort.


D.J. and Kimmy’s friendship on the surface was not much different than friendships between other sitcom characters.  But if you dig a little deeper, you notice that D.J. and Kimmy’s bond was probably one of the strongest friendships on “Full House”.  It was stronger than the bond that Michelle shared with her friends.  It was stronger than the bond that Stephanie had with her friend, Gia.

No, what D.J. and Kimmy had was one hundred per cent genuine friendship.  It didn’t matter to either one of them that they were absolute opposites.  D.J. was quiet and shy while Kimmy was loud and boisterous.  D.J. dressed sensibly and appropriately, while Kimmy’s wardrobe looked as if a box of Crayola crayons barfed all over it.  D.J. was a good student whose grades were almost always stellar, while Kimmy only got good grades by looking off of D.J.’s test papers and homework assignments.

But who knows?  Maybe those differences were the very things that helped cement the friendship.

Thursday, May 03, 2012

The REAL People of Walmart


This Thursday Confession is going to work a little bit differently than others in that I won’t be revealing the confession until the very end of this blog entry.  The reason why this is the case is because I want to set up the confession with a few personal tales about myself.  I did say that this week’s Thursday Confession would be one of my most personal ones to date, and that’s a promise that I intend to keep.

I’m sure that some of you might have seen this video floating around the Internet through YouTube and other video sharing sites.  I debated whether or not to post the video for a couple of days, but decided that it was necessary as part of my confession.

So, here’s the video...but be warned, some of the images in this video range from eccentric to just plain obscene.


The video is based on a particular website known as “People of Walmart”, which basically showcases people all over the United States inside various Walmart locations in all their glory.  Apparently someone decided to write a song about these various people, and as of right now, it has over six million hits on YouTube.

I’ll readily be the first to admit that some of these images are quite shocking and disturbing.  But, again, that’s just my opinion.  To the people in the video, they seem absolutely fine with how they appear, and don’t really care what other people think of them.  I suppose in that aspect, I can respect that about them.  I honestly have to admit that I kind of wish I had that “don’t care” attitude on certain days.

And I get that the song is largely poking fun at these people, but there’s a subtle hint of positivity mixed in with the mark downs, roll backs, and shopping carts, in particular with the bridge of the song.  The first part of that bridge goes “where people are accepted for who they are, where no one’s gonna stop them from following their heart.”

I know it seems a bit crazy to admit this, but that portion of the song is actually a great life lesson to take away.  I’ve never really seen anybody banned from any Walmart based on their physical appearance.  People really are accepted for who they are no matter what they wear.

(Well, all right, I’m pretty sure that most Walmart locations require their patrons to wear pants at least.)


But, this blog entry really isn’t about those people of Walmart.  Rather, I’d like to take this opportunity to recognize the ‘Real People of Walmart’...in particular, some of the people who work at Walmart locations all over the world.

And, I suppose that I would be an expert on this subject because my day job happens to be at a Walmart.  Has been for 7 ½ years now.


I’ll admit that there are times in which the job has its highs and lows.  Every job in the world has its challenges, and no job is perfect.  But, since I want to keep this blog on the positive side, I’m not even going to bring up any negativity whatsoever, nor do I want anyone else to do this either.  I realize that people do have strong opinions about the company, but I don’t want that to be the focus of today's entry.

No, I want to instead take the time to recognize the people who are out there stocking the shelves, scanning the items at the register, and running up to the courtesy desk to grab cold pick-ups.


I’ll be the first to admit that when I first started my current job in December 2004, I honestly didn’t think that I would last six months.  The work itself wasn’t bad, but I wasn’t used to working in the world of retail, nor was I used to dealing with the general public.  After all, I did spend quite a number of years isolating myself from the general public, so to say that I was out of touch with customer service would be an understatement.

There was some good news though.  I actually had people around me who were willing to help me out and that helped me deal with the general public a lot better.  Whether it was the girl behind the layaway desk, the cashiers who called for a carry-out, or even some floor associates who helped me find items for customers on the sales floor, it was of huge help to me.  Before, I likely would have gotten frustrated and given up, but these co-workers of mine were quite persistent, and refused to let me do exactly that.

Oh, sure, my time at my job hasn’t all been peaches and cream.  There have been some moments in which I’ve had to deal with some interesting situations.  I bet I’m the only person who has had to dodge flying objects at work aside from being the human target of a knife thrower at the circus.  And, even now, I can laugh about it instead of being bitter.

I attribute that to the patience of the people who I work with. 

You see, when I started my job at Walmart, I was in a really bad place in my life.  I was feeling lonely, depressed, and I didn’t feel as though I had a single friend in the world.  I also had incredibly low self-esteem, and I really didn’t like myself very much. 


And, I’ll be the first to admit that when I began at Walmart, I hardly spoke a word to anybody on the sales floor.  For the first three months or so, I just went in, did the job I was supposed to do, and went home without making the effort to socialize with anyone.  Come to think of it, I think that when I had my three-month evaluation, I was told that I would be staying on, but needed to show more warmth. 

I know...it sounds like such a random comment.  Though, looking back on it, it was true.  I was extremely guarded, and I had trouble trusting people, so I didn’t really share much with anyone for the fear that somehow it would get turned against me.  It likely lead to a few moments in my time at my job that I’m not particularly proud of.

However, some of the people who I worked with during that time were very supportive of me, and despite the fact that I might have come across as cold during my first year there, they still stood by me.  I still remember cracking jokes with door greeters at the front door of the store while I waited for a carry out.  I still remember the shoe department ladies who always had a kind word to say to me every time I walked by there.  Moments like that helped me realize that there were some good people there.  Mind you, since then all of those people have moved on to other careers, but their impact on me was great.

(The actual store I work at!  Well...before the 2012 renovations...)

A little over six years ago, I was moved to the food department after pushing shopping carts in the parking lot for a little over a year, and once I was placed there, I thrived in the excitement.  For one, I worked mostly in the dairy and frozen departments.  It sucked in the winter, but in the summer, I have the coolest job in the whole store. 

Like most jobs in the store, the food area had its challenges and its cons (I still hate it whenever chocolate milk goes on sale).  But it also had a lot of perks.

And one of those perks was having a team who was hugely supportive of me.

Really, I cannot think of a better group of people to work with.  Not everybody in the world can say that they have coworkers that they can absolutely trust, so I consider myself extremely fortunate in that regard.  And through them, I ended up learning a lot about myself.

I learned that I shouldn’t put myself down so much.  I am deserving of having happiness, and I am deserving of having fantastic friends in my life. 

I also learned how to better relate to the public.  You know, treat them the same way that I wanted to be treated.  I’ll admit that I had difficulty with that at first, but with the help of my co-workers, I’m getting better at it.

And, you know what?  I also learned the value of friendship just by working at Walmart (I bet you were wondering how I’d tie this into BEST FRIENDS WEEK, didn’t you?)

Sometimes, I’d have some bad days at work.  And, I went in the next day expecting to get disciplined for it.  But, to my surprise, I found that a lot of people were understanding, and really listened to me.  More importantly, I found that many of them listened in complete confidence.  Granted, some didn’t, and that was on them...but most did.  It made me feel better about myself, and gradually, the bad days became less and less.

Sometimes, I’d make a mistake at work, and as a result, we’d end up getting not enough stock to take us through a big sale.  But, the threat of getting fired was never a concern to me, because my coworkers never allowed me to feel sorry for myself.  Instead, they sat me down, went over things in a calm manner, and offered advice on how to fix the problem.  They didn’t bail me out, but they didn’t leave me hanging either.  Again, this helped improve my confidence.

And, I don’t think I even have to talk about how my coworkers were there for me when I endured a major health scare in 2011.  I’ve talked about it before on this blog this past Valentine’s Day, so I won’t post the details here, but I was off work for two months as a result of it.

They came and visited me in the hospital, called me at home to check up on me, and even sent me a card with well over one hundred signatures!  I come to later learn that some of it was spearheaded by my fellow dairy/frozen coworkers, but the vast majority of the attention given to me were from coworkers who I didn’t really know or work with who were genuinely concerned about me and my well-being.  When I came back to work two months later, everyone welcomed me back with open arms. 

It was in that moment that I realized the truth.  These people were friends.  In fact, I’ll even go one step further.  These were some of the best friends that I have ever had in my whole life.  They stood by me when others turned their backs on me, and they have always been a consistent positive force in my life.  They not only helped teach me what the value of friendship was, but they also became like family to me. 

My dairy/frozen coworkers are like the older brothers that I never had growing up (in some cases, much older brothers, mind you), and I will stand by that statement forever.  They helped me see myself for who I really am, and their friendship means the world to me.


I can honestly say that the vast majority of the people I work with at Walmart are good people.  They are people who work tirelessly to raise money for charitable organizations.  They are the people who set up barbecues and pot luck dinners to raise money for associates who happen to be in a terrible situation.  They are the people who I have done the Walmart Walk for Miracles every summer since 2009.  They are the people who helped me on my weight loss journey, which despite gaining back a few pounds as a result of my surgery I’ve done a good job maintaining.

Most importantly, they are the people who selflessly offered their friendship to someone who didn’t think deserved it...and they are the people who helped this blogger see that there truly are good people out there in this world.

Those are the REAL people of Walmart, as far as I’m concerned.

You know, the people I work with often get a lot of flak.  In some cases, it could be justifiable, but in others, these judgments are made by people who simply don’t want to understand what goes into working at a Walmart, or any retail establishment for that matter.  A lot of times, my coworkers and I have to deal with impossible situations, and for the most part, I am honoured to say that most of my coworkers handle these situations with dignity and class.  I can only speak for my store, of course, but I’m honestly proud to be associated with the group of people that I have worked with over the last 7 ½ years. 

So, to conclude this piece, I will now offer up my confession.

THURSDAY CONFESSION #18:  I have so much pride in my Walmart family (and yes, to me they ARE family).  They are some of the best people that I have ever known in my whole life, and I will stand up for them no matter what.  So, don’t mess with them...or else you’ll have to deal with ME.

That’s all.  J

Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Betty and Veronica - Best Frenemies Forever


Way back in September, I wrote a little piece on the concept of a ‘frenemy’, which is best described as two people who support and love each other while simultaneously attempting to discredit them at the same time.  The example that I gave to illustrate this concept back then was Garfield and Odie.  It must have been a great subject, because as of May 2, 2012, it is my most viewed blog entry.

(If you’d like to read that Garfield and Odie article, locate the blog entry dated September 27, 2011.)

For today’s entry, I thought I’d revisit the ‘frenemy’ angle, and talk about a couple of teenage girls (who were really ‘born’ 70 years ago but don’t look a day over sixteen-and-a-half) who also happen to share what one would call a ‘frenemy’ type relationship.

But, wait!  Isn’t this supposed to be BEST FRIENDS WEEK and not BEST ‘FRENEMY’ WEEK?

Yes.  This is very much the truth.  But, what if I told you that there’s a lot more to these girls than you think?  What if I told you that 90% of the time, these two teenage gals love, respect, and have fun with each other?  Even better, what if I actually gave you a direct CAUSE behind why these two friends sometimes backstab each other, or spread catty gossip about each other?

This blog entry is all about the relationship between two of Riverdale High’s most beautiful girls.


Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge.

Now, Betty and Veronica have had a rich, detailed history in the world of Archie comics since they were created by artist Bob Montana seventy years ago.  Betty Cooper arrived first, in Pep #22 (the same issue that saw the debut of two other Riverdale pals, Archie and Jughead).  Veronica came a few months later in Pep #26.  While their outfits, hairstyles, and teenage slang may have been updated and modernized over the years, Betty and Veronica have carried their basic personality traits and backgrounds through seven decades.


Let’s look at Betty Cooper for instance.  Betty could very well be considered the girl-next-door type.  She has long blonde hair (which she mostly wears tied back in a ponytail), she is a bright student, she can cook almost any meal in any cookbook from scratch, and she can even repair a car engine without getting her hands covered in oil.  Now that’s talent!  Betty grew up the youngest of three children, and enjoys a typical middle class upbringing in a two-parent household.  Although the Cooper family didn’t have a lot of disposable income, Betty kept a mostly positive attitude.  She took on babysitting jobs, made her own clothes, shopped at discount stores, and basically had fun living on a shoestring budget.


Compare that to the mega spoiled upbringing of Veronica Lodge.  With incredibly dark hair and a wardrobe filled with Paris originals, Veronica’s spending habits have saved the Riverdale Mall from going bankrupt at least a dozen times, if not more.  Much to the chagrin of her wealthy business tycoon father, Veronica takes after her mother in the fine art of credit card splurging.  Veronica isn’t exactly a model student in school, nor would she be caught dead in any of the stores Betty shops at.  After all, she is Veronica Lodge, and she is only used to having the very best money can buy.

So, as you can see, Betty and Veronica are about as different as day and night.  At first glance, you wouldn’t even think that they’d even speak to each other, let alone become best friends.

But, they did.

In fact, I’d have to say that the majority of the time, Betty and Veronica get along quite well.  They go to the mall together, they eat ice cream at Pop’s Chocklit Shop together, they work on class assignments together.  They basically do everything together.


But, don’t think that their friendship is all Brady Bunch like.  Sometimes, Betty and Veronica can get quite competitive with each other.  If both of them happen to enter a beauty contest together, you know that one (or both) will end up falling into a swimming pool at some point.  If both of them are working at the same job at the same business, you know that Veronica will try her best to get one over on Betty.  If both of them are running for school president against each other, you know that they’re not going to make it easy for the other one.  In fact, if you click HERE, you can see what happens when Betty and Veronica tried to run against each other in an election from the 1987 cartoon “The New Archies”.  Pay close attention to the ending of the episode though.  If anything, it will only prove my point.

And the point I want to prove is this.  Betty and Veronica may fight at times, but in almost all cases, they forgive each other because their friendship means more to them than a pageant title, part-time job, or school election.

And when it comes down to it, Betty and Veronica have gone above and beyond to help the other one cope with a problem they may be having, or if they are just in need of a friend.  Here are a few examples that I’d like to point out from various Archie stories that I have read over the years.

-      When Betty was sick with a contagious virus for a week, she was upset that nobody had come to visit her.  Veronica was out of town for a week, and had no idea that Betty was even sick.  When Veronica discovered that she was Betty’s first visitor, she rallied everyone else to send her get well cards and flowers, which cheered Betty up a lot.

-      When Veronica was having difficulty with the fact that her father was losing money, Betty calmed her down.

-      When Betty went to New York to compete in an essay writing contest, Veronica helped expose the scheme of a couple of girls who wanted to sabotage Betty’s chances of winning.

-      When Veronica wanted to stand up against her father when he announced plans to bulldoze a forest for one of his building projects, Betty wasted no time in standing up for her.

-      When Betty’s father ended up losing his job, it was Veronica who helped Mr. Cooper find one, thanks to her talking to her father about it.

-      Whenever Veronica goes on a trip to somewhere in the world, a good portion of the time, she’ll bring Betty along for the trip.

So, as you can see, the friendship between Betty and Veronica is one that I’m sure a lot of people have, or would like to have.  Their friendship has been one of the most enduring ones in the history of comics.  Their friendship survived World War II, the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal, the fall of the Berlin Wall, Operation: Iraqi Freedom, and the recession of 2008! 

However, there is one variable out there that prevents Betty and Veronica from having an absolutely perfect friendship.  There’s one little thing that can transform Betty and Veronica’s friendship into an instant rivalry.  Something red that can turn Betty and Veronica green with envy.


Enter Archie Andrews.

You know, looking at Archie up close, it’s a wonder Betty and Veronica seem to have any interest in him at all.  Yes, he seems like a nice boy (and most of the time, he is), and he is, after all, the character whom the publishing company that prints Archie comics is named after. 

Unfortunately, he is the major catalyst in the whole rivalry between Betty and Veronica.

There’s just something about this red-headed, freckle-faced, black and white sweater vest wearing teenager that makes both Betty and Veronica swoon with delight.  Both girls are crazy about him, and they waste no time in letting him know.

But, here’s where the problem lies.  For seventy years, Archie has been cursed with the gift of indecision.  He has not been able to decide whether or not he loves Betty or Veronica more.  And, this has lead to more than a few fights between Betty and Veronica.


More often than not, Betty and Veronica will try to sabotage each other’s chances at getting a date with Archie (though to be fair, the ratio is about 75:25 in favour of Veronica plotting against Betty).  They did almost everything possible to each other include ruining the other person’s fancy clothes, sending them on wild goose chases, and even dressing up as each other to confuse poor Archie to no end.  It was madness to see just how low Betty and Veronica would go to try and win Archie’s heart.


It all came to a head during the “Love Showdown” storyline of late 1994.  Through four different comic book issues (Archie #429, Betty #19, Betty & Veronica #82, and Veronica #39), Betty and Veronica fought against each other tooth and nail, practically forcing Archie to make a choice between them both.  And, Archie made his choice, all right.


He picked the red-headed buxom bombshell Cheryl Blossom.

Cue the steam rising out of the ears of both Betty and Veronica.

Both of them tried so hard to get Archie to notice them, and what was it for?  In the end, Archie Andrews ignored them both just to be with a woman who made a few brief appearances in the 1980s.

If I were Betty and Veronica, I probably would have cut my losses, and left Archie and Cheryl be.  Instead, they chose to be gluttons for punishment and actually teamed up together to break Archie and Cheryl up!

Insanity, thy names are Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge.

Though, I suppose if you really looked at it up close, Archie choosing Cheryl seemed to thaw the animosity between Betty and Veronica.  Instead of hating each other, they mended fences and became closer...over their dislike of Cheryl.

So in conclusion, Betty and Veronica’s friendship is a strong one...provided that Archie is millions of miles away.

But, of course, that was 1994.  Eighteen years later, it seems as though Archie and Cheryl’s spark had fizzled, as you don’t really see them dating any more.  But, Cheryl still pops up in the world of Riverdale.  While the animosity between Veronica and Cheryl is still very much present, Cheryl and Betty have forged a truce with each other, and treat each other in a friendly manner. 

Three years ago, the Archie title finally offered up the answer to “what would it be like if Archie married either Betty or Veronica?”


In issues #600-602, Archie was married to Veronica.  In issues #603-605, he tried married life with Betty.  And in both issues, when Archie proposed to one of the girls, the other one did not take it well at all.

But one final point to add.  Once the initial shock that Betty and Veronica experienced went away, they were more than supportive of their friend.  Betty happily stood beside Veronica as her maid of honour, while Veronica arranged a special wedding reception surprise for Betty and Archie. 

So, who knows?  Maybe in their adult lives, Betty and Veronica ended up adopting a mature attitude in regards to Archie, and realized that their friendship was more important than a guy.

But as long as Betty and Veronica are still appearing as teenagers in the regular comics and digests, I’m sure that they’d always maintain a little rivalry with each other, especially where Archie is concerned.  Deep down though, they love each other the way that sisters would, and when the chips were down, Betty and Veronica could count on each other to help them through.

If they could only get over their ill-conceived love affair over the most indecisive teenager in comic book history, their friendship would be unbreakable.




Tuesday, May 01, 2012

May 1, 2010


Welcome to the first day of May...or May Day, as some would like to call it. As it so happens, May 1st happens to fall smack dab in the middle of BEST FRIENDS WEEK. Today's look back through time happens to be quite recent, but I couldn't think of a better subject to focus on in regards to the spirit of the day.

(No, seriously, May 1st may have had a lot of significant events associated with it, but only one that I could find seemed to work with the theme of the day.)

We'll get to that a little bit later, but right now, why don't we do a little retrospective of some of the significant happenings of the beginning of May, shall we?

305 – Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor

1707 – The Act of Union joins the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland together to form the Kingdom of Great Britain

1751 – The first cricket match is played in America

1759 – Josiah Wedgwood founds Wedgwood Pottery Company

1786 – Opening night of opera “The Marriage of Figaro” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Vienna, Austria

1840 – The “Penny Black”, the first adhesive postage stamp created, is issued in Great Britain

1844 – Asia's first modern police force is established in Hong Kong

1852 – Philippine peso is introduced as currency

1884 – Moses Fleetwood Walker becomes first black person to play in a professional game of baseball in the United States

1900 – Scofield mining disaster; 200 men lose their lives in the fifth worst mining disaster in United States history

1915 – RMS Lusitania departs New York City to set sail across the Atlantic. Six days later, the ship would sink after being torpedoed off the coast of Ireland, killing almost twelve hundred people

1930 – Pluto, a dwarf planet, was officially named, only for it to lose its planetary status eight decades later

1931 – The Empire State Building is officially dedicated

1940 – The 1940 Summer Olympics are cancelled due to World War II

1956 – Polio vaccine developed by Jonas Salk becomes available to public

1971 – Amtrak takes over operation of U.S. Passenger rail service

1982 – 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee begins

1989 – Disney-MGM Studios opens at Walt Disney World

1991 – Two baseball records set on this date; Rickey Henderson steals 939th base, and Nolan Ryan pitches his seventh career no-hitter

1994 – Three-time Formula One racer Ayrton Senna is killed in an accident at the San Marino Grand Prix

2003 – U.S. President George W. Bush declares “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”

2011 – U.S. President Barack Obama announces the death of 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden (bin Laden was actually killed on May 2, but due to the time difference, North America heard the news the night of May 1)

So, that's quite a lot of news happening on this day in history, but none of it felt appropriate for Best Friends Week.

Looking at the list of celebrity birthdays today, I didn't have much better luck. But, a very happy birthday to the following famous people today; Judy Collins, Rita Coolidge, John Woo, Paul Teutel Sr, Dann Florek, Ray Parker Jr, Charlie Schlatter, Tim McGraw, Darius McCrary, and Farah Fath.

So, the only other possibility that I could think of was to see if someone passed away on May 1st. Someone who left behind a long-standing legacy in the world of pop culture and entertainment. Someone who best fit the theme of BEST FRIENDS WEEK.

And, after doing some research (which included talking to my mother about it, as today's feature happens to be based on the soap opera she watched religiously for the show's entire run), I think I have come up with a topic.



Today we're going back just a couple of years to May 1, 2010.

On May 1, 2010, the daytime community said farewell to a legend.



Many of you reading this blog might not know the name Helen Wagner, but she had a career that most actresses only dream of. And perhaps the role that she was most famous for was that of Nancy Hughes, matriarch of the Hughes family on the long-running daytime drama “As The World Turns”.

Sadly, neither Helen Wagner, nor the show that made her a star are with us today. The show that Wagner starred in was cancelled just five months after her passing, in September 2010. But, Helen Wagner's contributions to the program were nothing short of extraordinary, and when I was studying up on it, her time with the show was quite an interesting piece of history that was begging to be explored more.

Helen Wagner was born on September 3, 1918 in the community of Lubbock, Texas. Although I couldn't find a whole lot on her early life before she got the role of a lifetime, I did find out a few things. She married her husband, Robert Willey, in 1954, and the marriage lasted four decades before his death in 2004. And prior to joining “As The World Turns”, Wagner had acted on several soap operas. She played Trudy Bauer on the soap opera “Guiding Light” in 1952 (the same year the show transitioned from radio to television). She also had a role in the shorter-lived serial “Valiant Lady”, as well as guest appearances in such programs as “The World Of Mr. Sweeney”, “Mister Peepers”, and “Inner Sanctum”.

But it wasn't until 1956 that Wagner would land the role that made her a household name for fifty-four years. On April 2, 1956, two new daytime serials debuted on CBS. One was “The Edge Of Night”.



The other one was “As The World Turns”.

Helen Wagner was cast as Nancy Hughes. She was 37 years old when she was cast in the program. She also held a rather interesting claim to fame when the show debuted. It was Nancy Hughes who spoke the first line ever on “As The World Turns”.



TRIVIA: That line was “Good morning, dear. What would you like for breakfast?”

Who knew that simple line would be the beginning of a record-breaking career?

The thing with Nancy Hughes was that her character was never really involved in the more scandalous storylines that “As The World Turns” was known for. In fact, Wagner herself admitted that Nancy was more or less a “tentpole character”, who listened and counselled other characters about how to handle their own conflicts, rather than get involved in them herself. But, that was fine with Wagner.

Nancy spent most of her time in the fictional Oakdale, Illinois as a housewife, married to her husband Christopher, and raising their children together. In her later years, she worked as a volunteer at the hospital where her son, Dr. Bob Hughes, worked at the chief of staff.

Certainly, Nancy's impact on the citizens of Oakdale was immense, and a lot of it was due to the actress portraying her. But, would you believe that she was almost fired six months into her stint on “As The World Turns”?

It seems hard to believe, especially since the reason appears to be so petty now, but show creator Irna Phillips was not pleased with the performance of Wagner, and sacked her on the spot.



The reason? Phillips didn't like the way that Wagner was pouring the coffee.

Now, I suppose this might have been a great reason to fire someone if they worked at a Starbucks or Tim Hortons...but on a soap opera set? It seems ridiculous, right? But Phillips insisted that Wagner be released, because of it. Her argument was that Wagner wasn't bringing enough believability to the role, and she said that it was an important task for a character who provided a sympathetic ear and a shoulder on which to cry on.

Are you buying this? I certainly don't. And thankfully for Wagner, fans didn't buy the explanation either, and she was subsequently rehired shortly after.

A few years later, Helen Wagner found herself on the backburner again when she and Don McLaughlin (who played Nancy's first husband, Christopher Hughes until his death in 1986) were let go from the show in the early 1980s by a producer who wanted to focus on the younger cast. Once again, Wagner voiced her displeasure, stating that she had only been given one line in a three-month period.

It wasn't because of health reasons either. Many sources state that Nancy Wagner was in peak physical condition for most of the time she appeared on “As The World Turns”. It all basically came down to storylines...or lack there of.

Despite this though, Nancy did end up having a few big storylines of her own, and she was brought back to the show in spurts over the next few decades. Losing her first husband was a devastating blow for her, but she knocked her scenes out of the park. Then when her second husband, Dan McClosky, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in late 1993, Wagner showcased just what talent she had as an actress in scenes that I've pointed out below this paragraph.



Even as late as 2006, Nancy Hughes found herself caught in the middle of a mystery after a novel entitled “Oakdale Confidential” surfaced in stores, which spilled secrets about some long-standing characters of the show.



TRIVIA: That book was actually printed and sold in bookstores all across the United States right around the time the storyline was airing.

Now, I bet you're asking yourselves. What does this have to do with the subject of friendship? It's quite simple, really.

Although I can't really relate to this, I imagine that some of you might be able to. How many times have you dropped by someone's house for a cup of coffee and a chat about various subjects?



Well, for the citizens of Oakdale, Nancy Hughes was that friend.

Nancy Hughes would always be available for anyone. She gave out some great advice over the years, whether it be about taking a new job, helping someone who was having marital problems, or in the case of this Thanksgiving themed clip, helping someone get over losing a loved one.



Even on Helen Wagner's final appearance on “As The World Turns” (which aired exactly one month after her passing), she was doling out advice to the characters of Allison, Casey, and Katie. You can watch her final scenes below.




I think that's why so many people loved Nancy Hughes. She was always there to lend a helping hand no matter who they were, or how big the problem was. And that was to the credit of the actress playing her.

Many critics at the peak of Wagner's fame in playing the role of Nancy Hughes praised her portrayal. In 1984, Melinda Henneberger, of the New York Times described Nancy Hughes (and Helen Wagner) as an “icon for a generation of women”, and that she was “Donna Reed with real problems in the days before soap characters traveling through time, engaged in espionage, or almost routinely were reunited with evil twins.”

Jason Bonderoff, managing editor of Soap Opera Digest, agreed, stating that Wagner was “daytime's answer to Angela Lansbury”. And after Wagner's death, New York Times reporter Dennis Hevesi stated that “Ms. Wagner's Nancy lasted (as long as she did) precisely because she remained solid; she wouldn't join the country club because she considered it elitist, and insisted on cleaning her house because she felt uncomfortable being bossy.”

Now, to some of you reading this, these might seem like negative qualities, but I don't see it as such. Nancy was happy just being herself. She was happy to do what she wanted to do because it brought her joy. It was also a testament to Nancy's character as well.

After all, Helen Wagner said it best when describing Nancy in an interview. “The show today may be very au courant, but Nancy isn't, which is a good thing – her values are still about honesty, integrity, and courtesy.”

The very qualities that make up a long-lasting, fulfilling friendship, might I add.

It's been almost two years since “As The World Turns” ended, and exactly two years since we lost Helen Wagner to cancer at the age of 91. But, Wagner's legacy lives on. Her role on “As The World Turns” earned her a record in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the longest serving character played by one actress on television, appearing in some 19,700 scenes between April 1956 and June 2010. And, in 2004, Helen Wagner was rewarded for all her hard work with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmy Awards.

Just before the show ended, “As The World Turns” dedicated two episodes of the program to Helen Wagner, as the character of Nancy Hughes passed away on the show. You should look up both of these episodes on YouTube and watch them because I think the show did a great job in honouring both Nancy and Helen Wagner.

One bittersweet moment as we close this look back on May 1, 2010. The show's cancellation was announced in April 2010, and writers and producers had always intended for Nancy to have the final line in the series (since she had spoken the first), but she passed away before that was to happen. So, when the series finally ended on September 17, 2010, it was Bob Hughes who uttered the final words of the series. Those words?



Good night.”

Monday, April 30, 2012

My Girl




ARTIST:  The Temptations
SONG:  My Girl
ALBUM:  The Temptations Sing Smokey
DATE RELEASED:  December 21, 1964
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  #1 for 1 week

I think this might be one of the few times in which I’ll start off a blog entry with a music video.  While the song itself isn’t the subject of discussion for today, it is linked to the Monday matinee for today.  And, it’s also a movie that fits into the special BEST FRIENDS week.

This song by the Temptations hit the top of the charts in early 1965, and it happened to be the band’s first number one hit.  It also happens to be a song that is heavily featured in the soundtrack of today’s movie.

Set in the summer of 1972, our feature presentation focuses on an eleven year old girl and the various adventures that she has with her best friend.  But Vada Sultenfuss isn’t your typical preteen girl.  She has a few...quirks shall we say.

And we’ll be taking a look at every single quirk that made Vada who she was, as well as the only friendship that she had by her side.


The movie we’re going to be looking at happens to be named after that famous Temptations hit.  That would be the 1991 coming of age film, “My Girl”, starring Anna Chlumsky, Dan Ackroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Macaulay Culkin.

The film was released on November 27, 1991, and did fairly well at the box office, making almost $60 million on a budget of $15 million.  The movie was Anna Chlumsky’s first role as a major star (her debut was a bit part in the movie “Uncle Buck”, which coincidentally also starred Culkin), and she actually won an MTV Movie Award for her role in the film (which she shared with Culkin...but more on that a bit later).


The movie takes place in the town of Madison, Pennsylvania, and almost immediately, we notice that Vada Sultenfuss (Chlumsky) is not like the average young girl.  Rather than play with Barbie dolls and easy bake ovens, she’s more at ease being a tomboy.  Her most prized possession is her mood ring, which for some reason always stays black in colour, but nevertheless, she’s never seen without it.

Oh, and she happens to live in a house that doubles as a funeral parlour.


Vada’s father, Harry (Ackroyd) works as a funeral director, and because the Sultenfuss residence happens to be the place where Harry works, Harry often brings his work home with him.  While Vada eats breakfast in the kitchen, there’s at least one dead person just a couple of rooms over.

Sounds a bit creepy, right?  I know I would be freaked out over it.

If you thought that living in a funeral home would affect Vada’s childhood, you’d be correct in your assumption.  Because Vada was surrounded by death on any given day, she sort of developed a bit of an obsession with death.  She also developed a case of hypochondria, believing that she was coming down with various diseases or deformities, likely as a result from hearing about how the people who were being prepared for funerals had died.

But we also learn that Vada’s feelings about death began at a very early age.  When Vada’s mother gave birth to Vada, there were severe complications, and she ended up dying.  Vada had believed that she had killed her mother, but she never really talked about it with anybody.  As much as she tried to talk to her father about things that were troubling her, her father seemed uninterested, and he didn’t know how to relate to her.  It was a frustrating situation for Vada, but she coped as best as she could.


Luckily, she could count on her one true friend, a young boy close to Vada’s age named Thomas J. Sennell (Culkin).  Although other kids made fun of Thomas for being geeky and unpopular, none of that stuff mattered to her.  Thomas J got who she was and liked her anyway.  To Vada, Thomas was “intellectually stimulating”, and that was good enough for her.


As the summer of 1972 kicked off, Vada was in a good place.  Although she still visited the doctor’s office at least once a week for a new “health scare”, Vada was determined to make this summer a good one.  She became friends with her father’s newest co-worker, a young woman named Shelley DeVoto (Curtis).  Shelley came on board as the hair and make-up artist for the Sultenfuss funeral parlour, and immediately grew close to both Vada and Thomas J.  Vada also discovered that the teacher that she was crushing on was teaching a creative writing course during the summer, and Vada was determined to secure herself a spot in the class...even if it meant raiding Shelley’s trailer for the $35 necessary to enroll. 

But Vada was also starting to see her friend, Thomas J, in a whole new light. 

Sure, at the beginning, the two of them did the same things that most eleven year olds did.  They rode their bicycles, went fishing, and drank soda out of the same aluminum glasses that I remember my grandparents owning at one time.


But, Vada and Thomas J shared something very close and personal.  They even became “blood brothers” for life.  I wonder how many kids during the early 1970s did the same thing that Vada and Thomas J had done?

As time passed, things began to change for Vada.  Shelley and Harry started dating each other, and Vada was stunned to hear that they were engaged after just weeks together.  Vada wasn’t sure exactly how to handle this bit of news, and she sought advice from Thomas J, which eventually would lead to this moment.


Everyone remembers their first kiss.  And for Thomas J, it was a fantastic moment for him. 

(It was also a fantastic moment for Culkin and Chlumsky, who won the MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss in 1992!)

At that moment, he began to see Vada in a whole new light, and Vada’s reaction to the kiss pleased him enough that he had to do something nice for her. 

Thomas J remembered that during an incident where they shot each other with water guns and threw rocks at beehives, Vada lost her prized mood ring, and Thomas J thought that it would make Vada incredibly happy if he found it for her. 

Sadly, Thomas J would end up meeting a horrible fate.  The bees didn’t take too kindly to the two kids destroying their home, and they swarmed a defenceless Thomas J, who unbeknownst to him had a severe allergy to bee venom.

Suddenly, Vada’s whole world comes crashing down.  The one person who always believed in her, who was always nice to her, who always stood by her no matter what was gone.  She had no idea what she was going to do without her best friend.  Despite Shelley bending over backwards to console her, and despite a little neighbourhood girl named Judy offering up her condolences, Vada was inconsolable.  It all came to a head when Vada made an appearance at Thomas J’s funeral.


All the while, Shelley was growing increasingly frustrated at Harry’s lack of understanding towards Vada.  She got into a huge argument with Harry at Thomas J’s funeral, where Shelley begged Harry to see that life wasn’t always about death, and that he shouldn’t ignore the living...especially when Vada needed him the most.

Now, you might believe that I have spoiled the ending of this film by revealing the ultimate fate of Thomas J.  However, there’s so much more to this film than that.  In the end, Vada comes to a few conclusions about herself, and she comes to an understanding with each person that she was close to.  Oh, and there’s one final “goodbye” to the past, and I’ll give you a hint.  It involves the prized mood ring that Vada loved...the same ring that played a role in the terrible fate that befell Thomas J.  I've also enclosed a chart below corresponding with mood ring colours, and well...if you watch the movie, this becomes an important piece of symbolism.


I’ll be the first one to admit it.  This movie really did move me.  I remember watching the movie for the first time when I was right around the same age as Vada and Thomas J (I was ten when it was released in theatres), and immediately getting choked up.  I didn’t care.  It was such a powerful film, and Anna Chlumsky did such a fantastic job as Vada.  You really felt her emotion and her pain over losing such an important person in her life.

It’s tragic enough to lose a dear friend who you have shared so much with.  I felt that same pain this past December when I had to say goodbye to someone who I had known for well over ten years.  But to have to go through that pain as a child is absolutely unimaginable.  For Vada Sultenfuss, it was probably the single worst moment that she had ever had to face in all of her eleven years.

But despite losing her best friend, Vada still cared very deeply for Thomas J.  Although Thomas J was physically gone, Vada knew that somewhere out there, he was always watching over her. 

I think “My Girl” is the kind of movie that demonstrates the very friendship that all of us want to have in our lives.  And even if something happens where one of the friends passes away, as long as the other one keeps holding on to the memories, and remembers all the good times that they shared, does this really mean that the friendship is truly over?  A point to ponder for sure.


But consider this.  A sequel to the film, “My Girl 2” was released three years after the first.  And in the sequel, Vada has now become a livelier and more mature teenage girl.  But, Vada never did forget about her fallen friend.  And, if you watch the sequel really closely, you’ll see that Thomas J was never far from her mind.

Seriously, watch “My Girl”.  I can’t think of a better film that showcases the subject of friendship.  But, you may want to buy a box of Kleenex before viewing.