My dad introduced me to the Three Stooges at a very young age. Over the years I have read quite a few books about them. I read Moe’s autobiography, which was completed after his death by the family. I read Curly’s biography written by his niece. Larry wrote an “autobiography,” but there is controversy about who wrote a lot of it. Then Steve Cox put out the definitive Larry biography a few years back.
Each of those books were good reads for Stooge fans, but what about Shemp? Even the Joe’s got books. So where was the biography of the Stooge who was once named “The Ugliest Man in Hollywood?” Well, it has finally arrived.
Actually, two books have been published recently about him. Geoff Dale’s “Much More Than a Stooge: Shemp Howard” hit shelves just a few weeks before “Shemp!” By Burt Kearns. I just finished the latter, and it was eye-opening. Here is the Goodreads synopsis:
Shemp Howard not only had one of the most distinctive faces of the twentieth century. He was also one of the most influential comic actors of Old Hollywood. An original member of the Three Stooges, Shemp—along with his brother Moe and actor-violinist Larry Fine—perfected a brand of raucous, lowbrow, slapstick comedy that had audiences rolling in the aisles of vaudeville houses, Broadway theaters, and movie palaces, and left an indelible imprint on the face of popular entertainment. Then he walked away… and the new Three Stooges—Moe, Larry, and brother Curly—made history.
But Shemp didn’t disappear. He made Hollywood history on his own, in a successful and until now unexplored career in more than a hundred movie shorts and features. He appeared in comedies, dramas, mysteries, Westerns, and musicals alongside the biggest stars of the Golden Age, including W.C. Fields, John Wayne, James Stewart, William Powell, Lon Chaney, Jr., Myrna Loy, and Marlene Dietrich.
SHEMP! is the first book to challenge the “official” version of Three Stooges history that’s been repeated for decades, shattering myths as it uncovers the surprising and often unsettling facts behind the man’s unlikely how the child of Jewish immigrants, racked with severe anxiety and phobias could conquer vaudeville, Broadway, and Hollywood. And it’s more than a author Burt Kearns digs into the shorts and feature films Shemp did on his own—more than a hundred of them—and, through interviews with fans, family members, scholars, experts, filmmakers, and celebrities, examines the “cult of Shemp” that thrives today.
For years, Moe Howard’s biography was the “official” version of Stooges history. However, when it was written, Moe was in his mid 70’s and his memory may not recall things exactly or over exaggerate stories. That is where Kearn’s book is unique.
Kearns uses theater advertisements, programs, deeds, and other information to set the record straight on what has been passed down through history as truth. He takes on the role of private investigator and discovers many contradictions to the “official” story.
There were quite a few nuggets of info I had never heard before. For example, I had no idea that Moe’s wife Helen had a famous cousin in show business. That cousin was the great Harry Houdini!
Going into this book, I wondered if it was going to rehash the stories that Stooge fans had already heard. I have to say that there was plenty of new information to devour.
Kearns does a great job of letting the reader know exactly where you are on the Stooge timeline. He references what was going on with Moe, Larry and Curly while he was making an Abbott and Costello picture, etc… He also divulges the terms that were agreed upon when he was to “temporarily” step in for Curly while he was recovering from a stroke.
This is a must read for Stooge fans and a great read for someone who loves old comedy.
The Oxford Dictionary defines a “rite of passage” this way: a ceremony or event marking an important stage in someone’s life, especially birth, puberty, marriage, and death.
Wikipedia says: “A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual of the passage which occurs when an individual leaves one group to enter another. It involves a significant change of status is society.“
Some popular rites of passage include:
Getting a driver’s liscence
Completing toilet training
Getting married
Retirement
Getting baptized.
Graduation
While the rite of passage I am talking about today may not be as big an event as the above mentioned, it means a lot to me. It is one that has been passed down to all the males in my family. My grandfather introduced them to my dad. My dad introduced them to me. I introduced them to my two oldest sons, and now my youngest son.
Thursday night, Andrew was fighting wearing his CPAP. This is a regular occurrence that requires some bargaining by mom or dad to get him to do so. Usually, it means he can watch his tablet for a bit or a short show on TV. (Yes, I am aware of how bad TV and screen time before bed it, but a dad’s gotta do what a dad’s gotta do!) My wife’s suggestion floored me. It made me giddy!
“What if dad puts on the Three Stooges for you?”
Did I truly hear what I think I heard? Yes. Yes, I did.
So my son crawled up into bed with us and I found an episode on Youtube.
He chuckled and laughed out loud through the entire episode. Moe slapping Larry or bonking Curly on the head made him laugh almost uncontrollably. I laughed along with him and the two of us, just like his brother’s before him, bonded over slapstick comedy. When I left for work on Friday, he told me that he can’t wait to watch “the three funny guys” again with me.
My wife posted her own picture on social media with the following caption:
“I guess I didn’t know that the love of The Three Stooges was a genetic thing when I married Keith. Now here I am stuck watching this stupidity as a bribe for Andrew to wear his CPAP machine.”
This is a true rite of passage. I couldn’t be more proud! Atta boy, son! The torch has been passed ….
I have been meaning to do a little interview with Eddie Deezen for a couple of years. I was always afraid to ask. You see, we’ve been friends on Facebook for some time and I’ve found that we share a lot in common. He has shared a lot of great personal stories about his interactions with other Hollywood celebrities, as well as some amazing trivia on just about everything.
I had noticed that he did a few podcasts with other Facebook friends and thought, “Maybe, he’ll allow me to ask him some questions for my blog.” As scared as I was to ask, Eddie said yes almost immediately. What follows in the transcript, if you will, of our chat. My questions are in bold and his answers follow.
Today is Eddie’s birthday, by the way, so what better way to celebrate than sharing a few minutes with him?
Keith: You and I have been Facebook friends now for almost 10 years. You have a very active social media presence. For fans like me, it is a wonderful way to connect with you. Like a true friendship, you share your life with us and you share your laughs with us. Many celebrities avoid social media or have someone run their page for them. What is it about social media (Facebook) makes you love it so much?
Eddie Deezen: I love Facebook. I am 100% pure Facebook. I know I could reach more fans and have more followers on other sites, on Facebook I am limited to just 5,000 fans. This is the only thing about Facebook I dislike. The 5,000 friend limit makes no sense to me. I am a compulsive writer and joke writer. I fill up notebook after notebook with my jokes and stuff. With Facebook I have an avenue of people to see my stuff. Before I joined Facebook in 2009, I would write jokes and stories and trivia to a list of about 200 friends. My Facebook friends are wonderful. I love them very much. Also, I get told by people who are not on my Facebook friends list that they read my posts too. So that makes me happy.
One of the things I look forward to on your Facebook posts is your personal stories about your movies, behind the scenes tid-bits, and your interaction with other actors. Many folks know you as Eugene from Grease. You have shared so many wonderful stories about John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John (and others). Do you have a favorite Grease story you love to share?
My favorite Grease story would be how I got Grease in the first place. Ok, I went to my Grease audition in my little suit, with a bow tie and I put Vitalis or some greasy stuff in my hair (The movie was called “Grease”, so I figured Grease in my hair made sense). I went in to Paramount Studios (by the way, Paramount has always been my favorite studio) and the place was packed with guts in leather jackets and girls in poodle skirts and saddle shoes.
I read for Allan Carr the producer), Randal Kleiser (the director) and Joel Thurm ( the casting director). As I was talking to them and reading my two or three lines, I saw them nudging each other. I figured the nudges were a good sign. Anyway, a few days later, my agent calls and tells me I got the part. I was ecstatic, I called my parents and my friends and told them I was going to be in a movie with John Travolta and all.
Then, a few days later, my agent calls me and tells me “Eugene is a small role and the studio decided they’re going to cut out your role from the film”. Of course, I felt like jumping off a cliff. My agent said “We’re going to church to pray”. I swear to God, we go in, my agent gives me a match and tells me to light candies and pray at the alter. I prayed fervently to God. “Please God, let something good happen”. A few days later, the studio calls my agent and tells her they want me back in the movie.
True story. Divine intervention? Or just a lucky break? Who knows? I have wondered about this first 48 years now. You can believe whatever you want, but this really did happen..
That is a GREAT story! I’m glad you got back into the film! Speaking of Grease, you worked with comedy legend Sid Caesar. Did you have any interesting interactions with him?
Well, I was chauffeured home each night with Sid Caesar. I was carefully instructed “Don’t speak to Mr. Caesar unless he speaks to you first”. So I would sit in the back seat and Mr. Caesar would sit in the front seat and I would just sit silently as he spoke to our chauffeur. One day He turned around to me and said “So you’re the water boy, huh?”. I replied sarcastically “ Oh, is it okay if I speak?”. This was very rude of me, but I was a twenty year old kid. Very immature.
Mr. Caesar was a very intelligent man. I would listen to him pontificate about history and religion and stuff. Our chauffeur was named Kirk or Kurt. He was a nice guy.
One of my favorite movies of yours is 1941. What a cast for that movie! You had the chance to work with John Belushi. On Facebook, you have shared that Belushi was actually pretty quiet and was very nice to you. Can you elaborate on that?
John was always extremely kind and nice to me. I loved him so much. We had met previously in New York. He was at the premiere of my movie “I Wanna Hold Your Hand”. At the party after the premiere I sat with John and we chatted for about 15 minutes. He was serious and thoughtful. No jokes. He spoke earnestly. I loved seeing him on the set of “1941”
The last time I saw John was around 1980. I was just leaving a really bad audition. I felt bad and who comes walking down the street but John Belushi. He saw I was sad and said “What’s the matter, Eddie?”. I said, “ I just had a terrible audition, John. These guys hated me”. He replied “They’re assholes”. And he just walked away. That was the last time I ever saw John Belushi.
To John’s credit, he was probably right!
I wasn’t going to ask, but I’d kick myself if I didn’t ask you to share a bit about Murray Hamilton and the dummy from the Ferris Wheel scene….
Murray was a wonderful, very nice guy. We had many great talks up on that Ferris wheel. Murray was a big time smoker. He smoked three or four packs a day. So every once in a while he would have trouble breathing up there. Steven had a. Oxygen tank he kept for Murray. If Murray was having trouble breathing, Steven would let us down and Murray would take a few hits of oxygen.
One of my favorite holiday films is the Polar Express. Your work as the Know It All kid is just wonderful! How did you and Tom Hanks get along? Is he as nice as he seems?
Tom has always been my favorite movie star. The first day of the table read, there were a bunch of us all gathered to greet Tom. He was the biggest movie star in the world. He spots me in the bunch, walks up to me first and says, “Hi Eddie. I’m Tom”. No shit Sherlock.
He was a total pro. Never flubbed a line or missed a cue. One day I made a bad mistake. I screwed up a line or some such thing. Our director, Bob Zemeckis, said “cut”. “What happened, Eddie?”, he asked me. Before I could say anything, Tom cut in. “That was my fault”, he said. He took the blame for my mistake. He was like an older brother to me.
After we finished filming “The Polar Express”, he took me to three Dodger games at Dodger Stadium. We sat in his box seats. We sang the National Anthem and “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” together. He was just as cool as you’d expect him to be.
That’s awesome. What an experience for you!
You got to work with Dick Shawn in an episode of Magnum PI.
He seemed like a pretty unique guy. His comedy was so different and manic at times. I don’t think there is anything I’ve seen him do that didn’t intrigue me. What was it like to work with him?
Dick Shawn was a wonderful, nice, lovely, friendly, terrific, and delightful guy. I loved working with him. My career was pretty much movies, not a whole lot of television. But that “Magnum P.I.” episode I did (“Squeeze Play”) was probably the best thing I ever did on tv. I loved the entire Magnum cast and crew. Dick Shawn was a marvelous comedian and a fantastic straight man too. I loved playing his nephew.
You also shared the screen with two of the hottest gals of the 1980’s: Heather Thomas in Zapped! and Morgan Fairchild in Mob Boss.
Correct me if I am wrong but don’t you have a story about kissing Morgan Fairchild?
Yes, I did a movie called “ Mob Boss” with Morgan. Ok, we had a scene where the nerdy guy (me) kisses the ultra-sexy woman. We embrace and kiss and my glasses are all steamed up. Well, before we did that scene, Morgan said to me, “Eddie, do you want to rehearse?”. YOU THINK?? So she held me and kissed me at different angles and straight on, Etc. By the way, Morgan was a marvelous kisser. Her lips were so soft. She was also the most lovely lady ever. I loved her so much. She was a fabulous comedienne. Great straight woman too.
It was so much fun to work with Heather Thomas, too. Heather was a doll. She was very cool and incredibly nice. The episode of “The Fall Guy” I did with her was very fun to shoot. I loved all the cast and crew of “The Fall Guy”.
As a voice over actor, you have appeared in countless cartoons and series.
I always love when I hear your voice on something my kids are watching. You showed up recently on an episode of Handy Manny and also on Oswald. Do you find voice acting to be easier than acting on screen or are the about the same? Do you prefer one over the other?
Well, I have never been great at memorizing lines. Now, on camera stuff, you have to learn your lines by heart. For “The Polar Express”, our director Bob Zemeckis, knew my problem, and he let me read my entire role using cue cards.
I enjoy voiceovers and doing cartoons because you can just read your role from a script, no memorization involved. But as a performer, you get a bigger rush doing a movie, because it’s fun seeing yourself onscreen.
A show that many folks don’t remember is the Weird Al Show from the late 90’s. Can you tell me how you got to play “Guy Boarded Up in the Wall?”
Yes, Weird Al is a marvelous, very nice guy. He also knew of my problem remembering lines and he wanted me on his show. So he created the “Man in the Wall” character. I was “ on camera” but I was behind a wall, so I could just read my lines. It was a very fun gig.
Your fans are well aware of your love for the Beatles and their music.
A while back, my blogger friend, Dave from A Sound Day ran a feature. He had some of us bloggers write about the Beatles and if they were still relevant today. I wrote my piece about songs I would use to introduce the band to someone. So, if YOU had to introduce someone who had never heard of the Beatles or their music, what 5 (or ten if you wish) songs would you play for them?
My favorite Beatles song is “A Hard Day’s Night”, so I would have to include that one. Now, you did not ask first my favorite Beatle songs, however, you asked first five or ten Beatle songs I would use to introduce a new fan to the Beatles. So here are my choices:
Love Me Do
She Loves You
I Want to Hold Your Hand
Help!
Yesterday
In My Life
Penny Lane
A Day in the Life
Strawberry Fields Forever
Let It Be
There are so many great Beatles tunes to choose from, and you have some classics there!
You and I share many of the same likes, the Beatles being one of them. However, you are also as big a Stooge Fan as I am. I have loved The Three Stooges since my dad introduced me to them as a kid. You have said often that Curly is your favorite.
It is hard NOT to like him. Is there any one thing in particular that makes him your favorite?
Yes, Curly Howard is my all- time favorite comedian. He was as great as Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton physically. Plus, he was a hilarious verbal comedian, something Chaplin and Keaton were not. He made 97 shorts. About 70 or 80 are comedy classics. He was amazingly prolific. He was all finished and retired by the age of 42. 42!!!! He just wore himself out. He was spent and got progressively sicker. The poor guy was gone at the age of 48. 48!!!
You could really see how sick he was in his last few shorts. The world certainly got a lot less “funny” when he passed away. So, do you have a favorite Stooges Short?
My favorite Three Stooge shorts are “Punch Drunks” and “Micro-Phonies”
Those are both in my top ten Stooges shorts, too. One last question for you, my friend. Do you think Shemp gets a bum rap for following Curly?
Well, yes. Shemp is obviously anticlimactic because he followed Curly. That’s Iike following Elvis or Paul McCartney, anyone would suffer in comparison. That said, Shemp was a fair to good comedian. He was not great. He did not have Curly’s innate sense of humor or timing or sense of what makes a line funny or what makes a gag funny.
He had his great moments, yes, but he has a lot of very unfunny scenes too. Plus, his character was not as original or lovable or magical as Curly’s. I always love what Leonard Martin said about him- Shemp was an indisputably good comedian, but he never had Curly’s “otherworldliness.” A perfect word that captures it all. Curly was otherworldly.
I’d forgotten that you wrote a piece about Shemp for Mental Floss back in 2011. It’s a great piece that readers can see on the Mental Floss Site.
Eddie, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. Thank you for your friendship. I truly hope to meet you in person one day. Maybe a trip to the Stoogeum in Pennsylvania one day? I wish you all the best and lots of happiness on your birthday, my friend! Cheers to another year of friendship and laughs!
Thanks Keith. I’m glad to answer these questions for you. You are a wonderful guy and I am proud to have you as a friend both on Facebook and in my life. That trip to the Stoogeum sounds like a plan on my bucket list, so let’s hope! See you on Facebook!
I need to once again extend a huge thank you to Eddie for taking the time to chat with me. If you are a fan, Eddie also does do personalized messages for birthdays and such on Cameo. I had him do one for my dad a year or so ago! You can check out the information on Eddie’s Cameo Page.
Happy Birthday, Eddie! May your day be filled with laughter and happiness!
On this day in 1903, Jerome “Curly” Howard was born. He was a man who made – and continues to make – millions of people laugh! He is considered by many, myself included, to be a comedic genius. He, of course, is remembered for his role as the “third stooge” in the Three Stooges comedy team. He is easily remembered as the most popular, and favorite stooge.
His brother Moe was the leader and often delivered slaps and konks on the head with various instruments. Larry was the stooge in the middle and often overshadowed by the other two. Curly was a whirlwind! He was a ball of energy. He was a childlike force of physical comedy! He commands every scene he is in! Whether he is a “victim of coicumstances”, barking like a dog, “woo woo wooing”, or giving his standard “N’yuk, n’yuk, n’yuking”, he has rightfully earned a place in comedy history.
Ted Okuda and Edward Watz’s book, The Columbia Comedy Shorts, puts Curly’s appeal and legacy in critical perspective:
Few comics have come close to equaling the pure energy and genuine sense of fun Curly was able to project. He was merriment personified, a creature of frantic action whose only concern was to satisfy his immediate cravings. Allowing his emotions to dominate, and making no attempt whatsoever to hide his true feelings, he would chuckle self-indulgently at his own cleverness. When confronted with a problem, he would grunt, slap his face, and tackle the obstacle with all the tenacity of a six-year-old child.
Curly’s legend far outlived him when the otherwise-obscure country-pop Jump ‘n the Saddle Band scored one of the biggest novelty hits of the 1980s with their 1983 single, “The Curly Shuffle.” The video featured some of Curly’s best scenes. One band member claimed they had watched hundreds of hours’ worth of Three Stooges films to find the right clips.
In honor of his birthday, here is The Curly Shuffle
Recently, I asked if anyone would like to participate in a “Guest Blog Series.” I’m happy to tell you that I have enough interest to proceed with the series. I have asked for guest bloggers to write a piece about their favorite childhood toy. They will write about that one special toy that they will never forget. I know many of the writers well, and am looking forward to their piece.
The series will begin on Sunday, October 20th. Each day will feature one of my guest bloggers. There is still time if you would like to participate. Drop me an e-mail at: Nostalgicitalian@yahoo.com if you are interested. I’m excited to walk down memory lane! Stay tuned!
The Silly Monty
On this day in 1969, Monty Python’s Flying Circus Premiered on BBC1.
The sketch comedy show featured the talents of John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, Eric Idle and Graham Chapman. The series stands out for its use of absurd situations, mixed with risqué and innuendo-laden humor, sight gags and observational sketches without punch lines. Live-action segments were broken up with animations by Gilliam, often merging with the live action to form a segue to the next bit.
I recall seeing it for the first time on Channel 9 out of Canada. I remember it was nothing like I had ever seen before. It was completely crazy. One of the first bits I ever saw was called the Funniest Joke in the World. A guy writes a joke that is so funny, he dies laughing. Everyone who reads the joke does the same. The joke is so funny that it is dangerous and it is used as the ultimate war weapon. It was so ridiculous!
Monty Python created some of the funniest sketches in comedy. They include The Dead Parrot Sketch, The Lumberjack Song, The Spanish Inquisition, Spam, Election Night Special, Cheese Shop, The Ministry of Silly Walks and Nudge Nudge. Each of them make me laugh.
The one that kills me every time is the stupidest bit ever. I laugh like crazy when I watch it. So for your enjoyment… The Fish Slapping Dance
The Argument Clinic is a sketch that was done on the show, however, I prefer the recording of it a little better:
The absurdity of the Bookshop sketch shows the brilliance of the writers. Cleese plays a marvelously frustrated book seller who is forced to deal with a very picky customer.
There are so many classic sketches, I could write a whole blog about them, but I will move on.
Life is Just a Bowl of Larry’s
Today is the 122nd birthday of my favorite Stooge – Larry Fine.
I was late to the Larry party. I, like most Stooge fans, loved Curly. However, while working at my first radio gig, a co-worker changed that. My pal, Johnny Molson, was a Stooges fan. I remember him telling me that Larry was his favorite. I couldn’t imagine why. He didn’t really do much … or so I believed. Johnny told me that the next time I watched the Stooges to forget about every thing else going on in a scene. “Just watch Larry,” he told me.
I am forever grateful for that advice. I noticed things that I would have never seen if he hadn’t told me that. Larry’s facial expressions are priceless. His reactions are like no other. Larry added more to those films than people realize. Once I started watching him, I gained such an appreciation for his contributions to the group. Moe and Curly’s personalities are so big that they can easily overshadow the “Larry-ness” that is the glue that holds the team together!
Happy Birthday, Porcupine!
World Teacher’s Day
Today we celebrate teachers all over the world! Whether you are teaching currently or a retired teacher, I thank you for all you do. YOU play such an important role in the lives of your students.
Back in April of 2018, I wrote about some of the teachers who made a difference to me. Some of them have since passed away, but it is worth sharing again.
Its time for another edition of my Friday Photo Flashback. I stumbled upon a photo that brought back many memories making me happy and sad at the same time. Take a peak:
If I was going to put a date on this, it is probably around 1996 or 1997. It looks like it was taken at a home I lived in with my then girlfriend and future ex. It is a terrible picture of me, as I am obviously caught by surprise here. I still have hair and am still wearing glasses. I’m also sporting one of the T-shirts I had made for my DJ business. But it is not me (or the big honking computer monitor) that catches my attention – it is the stuff I can see in the background.
A lot of it I can make out just by looking at it. However, I viewed it by zooming in and a lot caught my attention. The bookshelves alone are full of fantastic memories! The book shelf on the left side of the picture holds a boat load of VHS tapes. On the top shelf I can make out some Soupy Sales Show videos and some videos we must have recorded off TV (hand made lables). On the shelf below that I can make out the VHS tapes of the Three Stooges shorts, Jack Webb’s Dragnet movie, and the Jack Palance version of Dracula. Each shelf would hold two rows of VHS tapes. So I can only see the front rows of what is on the shelf. It seems like the third shelf down is also holding video tapes, but the three hole punch on top of the computer monitor is blocking it.
This photo is obviously taken after 1994. That is when Honey Radio went off the air. Honey stuff is all over this room! Right above the three hole punch, you can make out a black and gold Honey Radio coffee mug. On the top shelf of the right book case, I can see the the Billboard Top 100 Chart book and Pop Singles book. These were part of the Honey on air studio. Behind me on the wall is a chalk caricature that was drawn of me while I was out doing a remote broadcast. I LOVED that thing, and it is long gone now. (This may be the only photographic evidence of it). Next to that is a wooden sign with the Honey Logo on it. Below that sign are two frames. One contains one of the last Honey Happenings newsletters (which has my picture in it) and the other is a shot of me and my old morning show partner.
On the wall behind me in the photo is a beautiful framed photo of the Three Stooges. I received that for Christmas one year from my parents. Under that is the top of a Blues Brothers concert poster. At one point, I used that when my partner Steve and I would don our Blues Brothers hats when we DJ’d. And right below that are the Three Stooges dolls I wrote about in a previous Friday Photo Flashback. You can see the tag on the Curly just behind my ear.
Heading back to the bookshelves. The bookshelf on the right has SO many books that I wish I still had. There is a book on Bugs Bunny, a book on World War II that I had given my grandpa, a few books with Three Stooges scripts, an amazing biography on Curly, and the wonderful Ted Sennett book on the Art of Hanna Barbera.
On the second shelf, I can make out the Milton Berle Joke books I used when I was on the radio, biographies on Stan Freberg and Jackie Gleason, and books I had forgotten about. One example of this is when Thomas Chastain offered up a new Perry Mason novel –
Another example is the books by William Harrington series with Columbo as the star –
The next shelf contains books about movies and TV shows. I had books on Get Smart, Batman, Perry Mason, The Munsters, and more. The coolest of the TV show books were two with trivia and scripts from Monty Python’s Flying Circus.
There are other little trinkets and treasures on the shelves I can see, but the ones on the top of the book cases are ones I wish I still had. I can see my prom glasses up there (yes, they gave high school kids in 1988 wine glasses!), I had two because I went to prom with a gal in my junior year and then my senior prom.
On the left, you can see the boxes that contained limited edition Blues Brothers dolls. I had both Jake and Elwood.
Also on the top of the shelf are Ralph Kramden and Ed Norton figures – limited editions, as well.
I had no idea there was an Alice figure that went with those two until I was searching for pictures.
Finding the photo with all of these memories was such a treat to me. I am sad to remember so many great books and things that are no longer in my possession, but the memories of them remain.
Time for another Friday Photo Flashback. This time around I’m taking you to my room….circa 1990.
The shelf you are looking at sat above my bed (a waterbed…lol). Above it was another shelf with the globe my grandmother had got me for Christmas, some ceramic pieces my mom made me and a few other things.
Just by looking at this picture, I can recall where everything else was in the room. To the right of this picture is the window that looks out to the front yard. On the wall opposite this one, my dresser sat in the corner. Directly next to it was a shelf that my cheap stereo system sat on.
(The stereo had a double cassette deck, turntable, radio tuner, and a place for a microphone. Long before I worked in radio, I made tapes for people with songs I recorded off the radio with me acting as DJ. I know I’d be embarrassed to hear those now!)
The closet was to the left of this picture. All along the walls were photos, posters, and your typical teen wall decor. The shelf pictured here was the focal point of the room.In a way, this shelf encompasses “me.”
Centered on it are the (now long gone) Three Stooges figurines. I really wish I still had them. I marvelled at the detail of the faces when I first saw them. They were fairly expensive when they came out. They represent “humor,” which has always been important in my life. To laugh and make people laugh … It’s a very big part of who I was/am.
Above the Stooges, a treble clef and music notes hang. Both were gifts from my mom. I’m sure the clef hung elsewhere in the house before she gave it to me. Music has always been important to me and continues to be.
To the left of Larry is an award I got in my senior year. I think it was for “Best Dancer” which is ridiculous. I probably only got the award because I did the Curly Shuffle once at a band party. I’ve never claimed to be a dancer. Perhaps when I hit my goal weight, I will think about a dance class with Sam.
To the right of Moe is my high school diploma. I always joke that I was in the half of the class that made the top half possible. I think if it wasn’t for band class, I probably would have done even worse. I was not the ideal student. That experience only helped me when we I finally went to college – I knew what NOT to do!
The two flags were something I got at Epcot one year. They represent my Italian and American heritage. There is more in my background on my mom’s side (English, Scottish, and German), but I tend to embrace the Italian more
The screwdriver on the shelf? I have no explanation for. I’m screwy, maybe? Yeah. That’s true in a lot of ways.
She mentioned the dreaded “Bowl Cut.” When I think of that, my mind immediately goes to Moe from the Three Stooges. Really, he is the only one I think it looks good on! LOL
She went on to ask if anyone has ever had a “home haircut mishap.” Well, it just so happens that I have!
I remember my dad used to have a pair of electric hair clippers. I’m not sure that he always cut our hair, but there were certainly a few times that he did. One time in particular, I remember I was getting my hair cut and my brother was doing something to annoy me. I kept moving around in the chair and wouldn’t sit still. My dad was getting more and more angry every time I moved. He kept telling me to stop moving my head.
What happened next I don’t recall exactly, but I moved my head backward as my dad was getting ready to cut and the guard came off the clippers. I distinctly remember the clippers running right against my scalp. They mowed a HUGE path in the middle of my head! I am sure that my dad said some choice swear words and wondered just how he was going to fix it!
I remember crying when it happened and both my brother and I got yelled at. Rightfully so!
My cousin’s dad was a barber. If memory serves me correctly, he ended up coming over to my grandma’s house with his clippers and bag of barber equipment in hopes of making me look normal. The only choice he had, was to give me the haircut of another Stooge – Curly Howard!
I was the butt of many jokes when I went back to school. It took weeks for my hair to grow back! So I gained a life lesson – sit still while getting a haircut!
To my Facebook friends, most of this blog is a recap of things I have already posted there. However, some of this is stuff I want documented in my blog for future viewing.
Andrew
Ok, I’m not going to lie, this is something that makes me laugh out loud every time I see it. Sam had AJ in a striped onesie recently and I only saw him in it briefly. Then, on one of my days off, I put him in the same onesie. I couldn’t really place what it made me think of at first, and then it hit me! I had to do a “comparison” picture.
AJ and Curly from the short “Dizzy Pilots”
What is even funnier is that I was wearing a shirt that had stripes on it a few years ago in a picture and my dad is the one who told me it reminded him of Curly from that short. Personally, I think AJ’s shirt is much closer to Curly’s. Now, if you are talking hair … then I am closer to Curly!
I’m not sure what it is, but I seem to make AJ smile a lot. Sam even said that I make him smile more than she does. I’m not sure that is the case, but I won’t lie, when he smiles at me – it is one of the many things that make me so very happy.
His hair reminds us of Ella when she was a baby. Depending on the light, it can look brown, blonde, or red. I guess we have to wait a bit to see what color it winds up being!
Ella
So we had a little snow storm here in Michigan this week. I think the “official” total accumulation was about 10 inches where we live. That is about half of what they said it was going to be. Because of the storm, many patients called and cancelled their sleep studies. That meant that I got called off and got an extra night home with the family.
For dinner last night, Ella wanted pancakes. I thought I would be the “cool” dad and attempt to make some Mickey or Minnie Mouse pancakes for her. She’s been watching Minnie Mouse on TV a lot, so I though she would think they were cool! So I fired up the griddle and made these beauties for her:
I was pretty excited about how they came out. I put them on the plate, walk them over to her and say, “Look, baby! What do they look like?”
She looks at them and back at me and replies, “pancakes!”
As one of my Facebook friends observed – “She’s not wrong!”
After dinner, she grabbed a few books to read. She has this Pete the Cat book that had a sheet of stickers in it. She’s been all about stickers lately. We’ve been finding them stuck all over the house in random places – on the bathroom wall, on the living room floor, inside the kitchen cupboard doors, etc…
I was on the floor with her and AJ and she began to place her stickers on a huge canvas …
MY HEAD!
At one point she tried to put one on my eye! I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and as I was walking out, Sam was walking in. She began laughing because when I removed the stickers, I had forgotten one and had actually fallen asleep with it still on my noggin!
Today, before I took my nap before work, I wanted to get out with the snow blower and go over the driveway and sidewalks again. Before I did that, though, we bundled Ella up so she could go outside and play in the snow. I pulled her around on her sled for a bit before we attempted to go out into the snow on the lawn.
10 inches of snow made it pretty hard for her to walk around, so I kept shuffling in my boots to clear a path for her. That allowed her to play in the snow for a bit. She seemed to like falling in the snow better anyway. I showed her how to make some snow angels, but I think she just thought I was being silly. The wind cut our play short. Her nose and cheeks were really red when we went in the house. We were probably only outside for 10 minutes.
What a joy it is to spend some one on one time with her in the snow! She loves being outside!
Sadly, play time ended and when she went inside, I pulled out the snow blower and cleared snow before napping.
So many fun moments with the kids this week! God, do I love them!
I rarely post two blogs in one day, however, my last post made me think about something – hats. The reason for this is the first line of the song “On the Sunny Side of the Street” (Grab your coat and get your hat ….)
I guess I have always appreciated a good hat. I wish that people would dress up like they used to. It seems like there was a time when folks would wear a nice suit and tie and always had a good hat to complete the ensemble. My dad had some pretty cool hats growing up…
My dad and cousin Diane. My dad and grandpa looking swell! Dig that hat!
When I watch an old movie I always am impressed by the way some of the actors dressed. In the Rat Pack film “Robin and the Seven Hoods,” there is a scene where Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Bing Crosby sang a song called “Style.” Frank and Dean are singing about how Bing needs to dress better.
Anyway, there is a line in the song that says, “A hat’s not a hat till it’s tilted.” As I thought more on this, so many of the great actors wore hats and they always tilted them. I love that look! I always wanted to find a hat that I could wear titled and have it make me look good! The fedora seemed to be the choice of many stars ….
Cary Grant was always looking suave –
Cary Grant
Bogey and Cagney knew how to wear a hat!
James Cagney – Humphrey Bogart
Classic Gangster – Edward G. Robinson was almost always wearing a hat….
Edward G. Robinson
Al Pacino looked great in a fedora …
Al Pacino
Harrison Ford brought the fedora back to the screen as Indian Jones..
Even the great Curly Howard from the Three Stooges looks amazing in a hat!
Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra often recorded songs with their hats on …
Speaking of Dean Martin, the first line of his song “Bummin’ Around” says, “Got an old slouch hat ….” I wasn’t aware what a slouch hat was. I looked it up online and it was a sort of military hat. Google said, A slouch hat is a wide-brimmed felt or cloth hat most commonly worn as part of a military uniform, often, although not always, with a chinstrap. This picture came up.
slouch hat
I thought it was just a floppy hat, like Curly wore in Stooges films.
Curly
…or like Cagney wore ….
Cagney
Come to find out, those hats are called “newsboy hats.” The newsboy cap or newsie cap is a casual-wear cap similar in style to the flat cap. This is the hat that I always wear in the winter. Most people call it my “old man hat.” LOL
My daughter LOVES my hat!!
Wearing Daddy’s hat!
Maybe it is just the nostalgia lover in me, but I wish that I could pull off a nice suit, tie and hat and look as good as so many of the actors from the movies ….
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 