It is the penultimate day of Christmas. Today’s gift count (286): you currently have 11 pipers piping, 20 hyperactive effete British gentlemen, knocking furniture over, 27 Pole dancers (draw the shades, the neighborhood kids are staring into your windows), 32 organized dairy workers striking for better working conditions, 35 Swans making a racket, befouling yourContinue reading “The commotion is beginning to resemble a Roman orgy”
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I trawl the outer banks of the intraweb for trivia.
Today is National Trivia Day. It is observed across the United States each year on January 4. We observe trivia day, everyday here. Most Muppets are left-handed! That’s because the puppeteers who help the soft cloth heroes act in TV shows and films use their dominant hand, which is in most cases their right, toContinue reading “I trawl the outer banks of the intraweb for trivia.”
Blondie premiered
January 4, 1957 – The sitcom based on the comic strip, Blondie, starring Arthur Lake and Pamela Britten premiered on NBC TV on this date. The popular movie series (28 in all) seemed like a shoe-in for a TV series. Unfortunately, when they made the series about a decade later, it only lasted a singleContinue reading “Blondie premiered”
Sea Hunt premiered
January 4, 1958 – The TV series, Sea Hunt, starring Lloyd Bridges premiered, in syndication on this date. Lloyd Bridges decided to leave the show after four seasons because the producers wanted to emphasize cops-and-robbers plots, while he wanted to focus more on environmental themes.
The Peanuts for the last time
January 3, 2000 –The last daily Peanuts strip ran on this date. The comic strip, which centered around the iconic Charlie Brown, his dog Snoopy, and their friends, had been running since 1950. Almost 20,000 strips were published in total, not to mention the musicals, movies, and television specials that featured the Peanuts gang. DemandContinue reading “The Peanuts for the last time”
First US peek at The Beatles
January 3, 1964 –A month before The Beatles make their iconic live debut in the US on the Ed Sullivan Show, Americans get their first look at the Fab Four when Jack Paar shows a film clip of the band performing She Loves You on his TV show. In the fall of 1963, TV hostContinue reading “First US peek at The Beatles”
Dragnet series premiered
January 3, 1952 –The ominous, four-note introduction to the brass and tympani theme music, then the staccato voice over intoned, Ladies and gentlemen: the story you are about to hear is true. The first regularly scheduled episode of Dragnet premiered on this date (Badge 714 is the name of the syndication version of the series.)
By now, your neighbors hate you
Today’s gift count (220): you currently have 10 Leaping Lords, (the ten lords represent the Ten Commandments,) 18 Rockettes, 24 young milkmaid, 28 Swans making a racket, 30 geese a’ laying, 30 golden rings, 28 calling birds, 24 French hens, 18 turtledoves and 10 partridges in their respective pear trees. Today is also the feastContinue reading “By now, your neighbors hate you”
The day which we fear as our last is but the birthday of eternity.
Today is Memento Mori Day, a tradition started in ancient Rome that serves as a reminder that we will all die, one day soon. It is said that in ancient Rome, when a victorious general would return to the city for his triumph (victory parade), a slave would walk behind him, whispering in his ear:Continue reading “The day which we fear as our last is but the birthday of eternity.”
Blake’s 7 premiered
January 2, 1978 –The influential science fiction TV series Blake’s 7 premieres on BBC1 in the UK on this date. Paul Darrow (Kerr Avon), Michael Keating (Vila Restal) and Jacqueline Pearce (Supreme Commander Servalan) are the only actors to have stayed with the series throughout its entire run.
