Author Archives: dcaligari

I understand that this is complicated but please follow along – Today is National American Beer Day: National Beer Day,is celebrated on April 7.International Beer Day,is celebrated on the first Friday in August.National Drink Beer Day,is celebrated on September 28, celebrated around Octoberfest, which is celebrated in Munich. While beer is not my go toContinue reading “It will all be clear in the end”

October 27, 1954 –“… It was all started by a mouse.” Walt Disney’s first TV show, Disneyland, premiered on ABC-TV on this date. All of the ABC episodes were filmed in color, even though they aired in black and white. In general, ABC did not broadcast in color until the mid 1960s. During the yearsContinue reading “I’m sure you’ve all seen this”

October 27, 1964 –Another Paddy Chayefsky scripted classic from the 60s (although unappreciated), The Americanization of Emily, starring James Garner and Julie Andrews, premiered on this date. Producer Martin Ransohoff removed director William Wyler from this movie, as Wyler wanted to change Paddy Chayefsky’s script. It was a rare instance in which a producer supportedContinue reading “The Americanization of Emily opened”

October 27, 1966 – The third Charles Schultz Peanuts special, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, (directed again by Bill Melendez,) premiered on this date. https://archive.org/embed/its-the-great-pumpkin-charlie-brown_202310 This is the only special where Pig Pen is shown wearing glasses. You can see them when he is with the other kids at the Halloween party around theContinue reading “Satanic worship surrounding an enormous squash”

October 27, 1982 –Prince’s fifth album, 1999, was released on this date. It becomes his breakthrough, selling well over 5 million copies worldwide, thanks to Little Red Corvette and the title track. The album helped propel him to superstar status, a title he lived up to with electrifying live shows and a startlingly prolific outputContinue reading “I was dreamin’ when I wrote this”

October 26, 1972 – Ringo Starr and singer Lulu appear in non-speaking cameos on the Monty Python’s Flying Circus episode Mr And Mrs Brian Norris’ Ford Popular on this date. The tramp (Michael Palin) enters and sits between them and begins his introduction, in David Frost style: “Hello, good evening, welcome … It’s …” aContinue reading “You never know who’s going to show up”

October 26, 1959 –A gentle and yet still relevant Cold War comedy, The Mouse that Roared, opened in the US on this date. While filming, Peter Sellers was acting on stage in the comedy Brouhaha, which also dealt with a mythical kingdom whose ruler develops an outlandish plot to secure U.S. aid. Five days aContinue reading “The Mouse that Roared debuted”

October 26, 1970 –Elton John released his first hit single Your Song, on this date. This was one of the first songs John wrote with Bernie Taupin. They met after a record company gave John some of Taupin’s lyrics to work with. Eventually, they both moved into John’s parents’ house, where they started working together.

October 26, 1965 –Queen Elizabeth decorated The Beatles with the Order of the British Empire, at Buckingham Palace, on this date. The Beatles, ever polite, allowed Her Majesty to add chintz curtains and tufted sofas in their living rooms.

October 25, 1986 –For the first time in the Billboard Chart’s history, the top three positions are all held by solo female artists: No. 1 was Cyndi Lauper’s single True Colors, Lauper’s good friend Gregory Natal had recently died of AIDS when Lauper heard the demo of the song. She was thinking of Natal whenContinue reading “A trifecta of hits”