Author Archives: dcaligari

October 4, 1961 – Dave got to yell at Alvin nationally when The Alvin Show debuted on CBS-TV on this date. While it only lasted one season in prime time, the show was first show to feature the singing chipmunks. The Chipmunks’ names were taken from the names of three executives at Liberty Records, whereContinue reading “The Alvin Show premiered”

October 4, 1951 –Vincente Minnelli’s gorgeous technicolor valentine to the movie musical, An American in Paris, opened in NYC on this date. Even though Vincente Minnelli is credited as the sole director, he was sometimes tied up with his divorce from Judy Garland and other directing projects, leaving Gene Kelly to take over the directingContinue reading “An American in Paris premiered”

October 4, 1959 –We all got to meet Mr. Wilson’a favorite neighbor when Dennis the Menace, based on the Hank Ketcham comic strip, starring Jay North, Herbert Anderson, Gloria Henry, Jeannie Russell, Joseph Kearns, and Sylvia Field, premiered on CBS-TV on this date. Ironically, Jay North, who played a rascal and a mischievous child characterContinue reading “Dennis became a menace”

October 3, 1954 –Another in the series of alcoholic actors playing model Dads, Father Knows Best, starring Robert Young first aired on this date. The setting is very possibly Springfield, Illinois, since there is mention of a wedding in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a new girl from Chicago, and in one episode, Bud’s homing pigeon is releasedContinue reading “Father Knows Best premiered”

October 3, 1961 –The Dick Van Dyke Show premiered on this date. The show wasn’t an immediate success but became a hit. Carl Reiner asked network censors for permission to show Laura and Rob sleeping in one large bed together, reasoning (quite sensibly) that he and his wife did so in real life. The permissionContinue reading “We met the Petries for the first time”

October 3, 1964 –According to noted food historian, Calvin Trilling, the first buffalo wings were served on this date. The wings were reported to have first been made in Buffalo, New York, by the Bellissimo family at the Anchor Bar. They were served with blue cheese dressing and given away for free. The bar nowContinue reading “Game day was never the same”

October 3, 1953 – The final installment of the Looney Tunes “Hunting Trilogy“, Duck! Rabbit, Duck!, premiered on this date. Bugs Bunny stuck out four signs to lead Elmer Fudd to shoot Daffy Duck. In order they are: 1st GOAT SEASON OPEN;2nd, DIRTY SKUNK SEASON;3rd, PIGEON SEASON;4th and last, MONGOOSE SEASON.

October 3, 2003 –The documentary film directed by David Leland about the tribute concert for George Harrison held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on November 29, 2002, This was the first time that Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr performed together on stage since the breakup of The Beatles.

Rosh Hashanah begins this evening, so we here at ACME are wishing our friends L’shanah Tovah. As you hear the shofar this evening, remember to start writing 5785 on your checks. Also, I hope your sins are not so numerous that you really couldn’t cast them upon the water.

Three of the past century’s finest comedians were born on October 2: Groucho Marx (1890), Bud Abbott (1895), and Mahatma Gandhi (1869). Groucho and Abbott were funny enough, but they pale beside the towering comic greatness of Gandhi. “When I despair, I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have alwaysContinue reading “A trifecta of birthdays”