Author Archives: dcaligari

January 6, 1945 – This Chuck Jones’ Looney Tunes outing, Odor-able Kitty, premiered on this date. This was Pepe LePew’s debut. The only time we see that Pepe already has a wife and children.

January 6, 1963 –See Jim try to swim to his dugout canoe through a lake of piranhas, while I watch safely from the studio, confirming the second pitcher of martinis is properly chilled. Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom with Marlin Perkins began on NBC on this date.

January 6, 1973 –The animated lesson series Schoolhouse Rock premiered on ABC with the Multiplication Rock series. You have to love a children’s cartoon that celebrates ménage à trois.

January 5, 1973 –Produced by Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos, Bruce Springsteen’s debut album, Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J., was released on this date, but sold just 25,000 copies in its first year. After eight years playing in bars where audiences usually didn’t listen to or couldn’t hear the words, Springsteen used his first albumContinue reading “Revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night”

January 5, 1944 –Another great movie from Preston Sturges, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, premiered on this date. Although Preston Sturges was working at an unusually frantic pace, he still kept tight reins on the production, ensuring that neither Eddie Bracken nor anyone else became the main attraction. Sturges favored ensemble pieces, and even theContinue reading “I still can’t believe they got the premise past the censors”

January 5, 1961 –Mister Ed, the talking horse (with a daily diet was twenty pounds of hay, washed down with a gallon of sweet tea.,) debuted on CBS-TV on this date. The horse wouldn’t respond to any of his co-stars, just his trainer, Lester Hilton. This meant that Hilton had to be on the setContinue reading “I wonder which producer had to muck out his stall”

What were the gifts of the Magi (what were the names of the Magi?) Bonus question: There was a fourth gift – what was it and who was it from?

It’s the 12th day of Christmas. – the final gift tally (365 gifts): you would have received 12 drummers drumming, 22 flutist, 30 members from the house of Lords, hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock, 36 Fan dancers, 40 angry dairy workers, on permanent coffee break, 42 Swans, trying to mate in your diningContinue reading “Perhaps you should stop celebrating Christmas”

January 4, 1941 – The animated short Elmer’s Pet Rabbit was released on this date: it marks the second ‘official‘ appearance of Bugs Bunny and the first to have his name on a title card. It was directed by the legendary Chuck Jones. (Note that Bugs hasn’t developed his characteristic buck teeth yet.)