Classic Musical Comedy Production Number of the Month - May 2025

 It's a five Saturday month...woo hoo...so we get to see a classic number from Broadway.  And concluding the May Mother month...

Dinner last night:  Salisbury steak.

Hollywood Then and Now - May 2025

Or would you believe...Nassau County Then and Now?   Because film locations can turn up anywhere.  Like Merrick, Long Island.  

The homes used for the exterior houses on "Everybody Loves Raymond" really are across the street from each other.

Ray and Debra's house.   And right across the way...

The home of Marie and Frank Barone.

Who would have thunk it?   On Long Island.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich.

Go Figure

 

Truth be told, I never got Pee-Wee Herman.   Never really saw the act or the TV show or the movies.  My biggest exposure (no pun intended) to the originating actor Paul Reubens was whenever he did a recurring role on "Murphy Brown."  This came way after his career hits the skids thanks to his biggest exposure (pun intended).

All this is to say that I was a very unlikely viewer to this new HBO Max 3 hours plus documentary called "Pee-Wee As Himself."  But when you are recovering from hip surgery, you might watch anything the TV has to offer.   I wanted to learn a little about what I did not know.

And, boy, did I ever?   Indeed, this film by Matt Wolf is entertaining, compelling, and ultimately heartbreaking.   This is largely due to the fact that Reubens virtually narrates the whole two episodes.   This is also despite the fact that Paul doesn't really trust the filmmaker he is working with.  Indeed, after shooting forty hours of interviews, Reubens stops the project abruptly.   Of course, one of the reasons might have been his cancer diagnosis, a development he never shared with Wolf.

Nevertheless, this is as comprehensive a look at a major talent that you could conjure up.   Paul is very sharing in all the details of his rise and then the filmmaker is very copious with the details of Pee-Wee's fall from grace.  You may remember the news stories of him getting caught exposing himself in a gay porn house as well as his super-large collection of homosexual books, photos, and magazines.  The latter is what probably tormented Reubens the most in this documentary and is likely the reason he backed away from completion.

Still, while nothing I saw here will prompt me to look for Pee-Wee shows on You Tube, this is a great homage to an amazing and driven talent.   Like him or not, you have to admire his persistence in putting out some super-creative work.  Indeed, the line that differentiates Pee-Wee from Paul is quite blurry.   In some respects, the character had a more charmed life than his originator.   Sad to see, but fascinating to behold.

The last five minutes will grab your heart.   In an audio clip recorded one day before his death in 2023, Paul sums up his life.   It encapsulates the whole amazing story.

Fan or not, check it out.

LEN'S REVIEW:  Four stars.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich and salad.

This Date in History - May 28

 

Happy birthday, Gladys Knight.  We met once in an elevator.  I doubt you remember.

585 BC:  A SOLAR ECLIPSE OCCURS, AS PREDICTED BY THE GREEK PHILOSOPHER AND SCIENTIST THALES.

Was there even anybody around to verify this?

1503:  JAMES IV OF SCOTLAND AND MARGARET TUDOR ARE MARRIED ACCORDING TO A PAPAL BULL BY POPE ALEXANDER VI.

That's a lot of....oh, go ahead and finish it.

1533:  THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, THOMAS CRANMER, DECLARES THE MARRIAGE OF KING HENRY VIII AND ANNE BOLEYN TO BE VALID.

All those wives.  He was quite the player.  Even if he did look like Sebastian Cabot.

1754:  DURING THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR, VIRGINIA MILITIA UNDER THE 22-YEAR-OLD LIEUTENANT COLONEL GEORGE WASHINGTON DEFEAT A FRENCH RECONNAISSANCE PARTY.

It's hard to believe that Washington was anything but an old guy.

1830:  US PRESIDENT ANDREW JACKSON SIGNS THE INDIAN REMOVAL ACT WHICH RELOCATES NATIVE AMERICANS.

They all wound up in Cleveland.

1843:  AUTHOR NOAH WEBSTER DIES.

You can look that up.

1892:  IN SAN FRANCISCO, JOHN MUIR ORGANIZES THE SIERRA CLUB.

Hippie.

1918:  COMIC JOHNNY WAYNE IS BORN.

And, in an ironic twist, he later changed his name to Marion Morrison.

1918:  THE AZERBAIJAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC AND THE FIRST REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA DECLARE THEIR INDEPENDENCE.

All of this happened in Glendale, California.

1934:  THE DIONNE QUINTUPLETS ARE BORN IN ONTARIO, CANADA.

Talk about your instant tax break.

1937:  THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE IS OFFICIALLY OPENED BY PRESIDENT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT, WHO PUSHES A BUTTON TO OPEN TRAFFIC.

I'm pretty sure he was sitting down at the time.

1937:  THE VOLKSWAGEN COMPANY IS FOUNDED.

Here comes Herbie the Love Bug.

1938:  BASKETBALL STAR JERRY WEST IS BORN.

Score the goal.

1940:  BELGIUM SURRENDERS TO NAZI GERMANY.

There goes all that chocolate.

1944:  MAYOR RUDY GUILIANI IS BORN.

 And, in a way, so is the combover.

1944:  SINGER GLADYS KNIGHT IS BORN.

On that midnight train to Georgia.

1951:  THE BRITISH RADIO COMEDY, "THE GOON SHOW," IS BROADCAST ON THE BBC FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Not to be confused with live broadcasts of the British Parliament.

1952:  THE WOMEN OF GREECE ARE GIVEN THE RIGHT TO VOTE.

When will they be allowed to shave?

1957:  BASEBALL PLAYER KIRK GIBSON IS BORN.

I've seen that clip of his World Series homerun maybe two thousand times.

1964:  THE PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANIZATION IS FORMED.

And so it starts.

1977:  IN KENTUCKY, THE BEVERLY HILLS SUPPER CLUB IS DESTROYED BY A FIRE THAT KILLS 165 PEOPLE INSIDE.

I told you not to order the Cherries Jubilee.

1993:  ERITREA AND MONACO JOIN THE UNITED NATIONS.

That first country sounds like a sinus medicine.

1996:  US PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON'S FORMER BUSINESS PARTNERS IN THE WHITEWATER LAND DEAL, ARE CONVICTED OF FRAUD.

Yeah, I know.  He said he didn't do this either.

1998:  ACTOR PHIL HARTMAN IS FOUND DEAD FROM A BULLET WOUND.

I was literally three blocks away when this news broke.  Or so I told the police.

1999:  IN ITALY, AFTER A 22 YEAR RESTORATION, LEONARDO DA VINCI'S "THE LAST SUPPER" IS PUT BACK ON DISPLAY.

Which was probably longer than it took him to paint the original.

2003:  PETER HOLLINGSWORTH BECOMES THE FIRST GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF AUSTRALIA TO RESIGN HIS OFFICE AS A RESULT OF CRITICISM OF HIS CONDUCT.

If this happened in America, there would be nobody running the government.

2010:  ACTOR GARY COLEMAN DIES.

As far as life goes, he came up short.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich.

Cross Purposes

 

In Los Angeles, they are strict about the jaywalking laws. You have to cross the street at a designated crosswalk. You have to wait for the proper command from the sign above. They often time your walk across like you're participating in some goofy stunt on "Beat The Clock."

This ain't New York, folks. You want to know how many times I diagonally ran across Madison Avenue from 47th Street to 49th Street? Hell, I once ran across 42nd Street and Madison. The light was green and I was trying to catch a train.  These days with replaced hips and knees, I wouldn't try it.

But I digress...

Cops will nail you in LaLa Land. Outside my old office building, there used to be a motorcycle cop who hung out behind a bush waiting to nab somebody who doesn't obey the "hand."

Now, this shouldn't be a big problem in your day. After all, there is a button on each corner. You press it and the light changes, allowing you to scoot across the street.

Except for this. You know when you get to the crosswalk of an intersection when a pedestrian is already there ahead of you, and you're tempted to press the button, but you don't do it, because you feel it would be insulting to the person who got there ahead of you? Or you press the button, but you feel a little guilty or stupid about it? And then, the other person glares at you like they think you're the moron.

Anyway, the last three times I've gotten to the crosswalk with other preople there, the knuckleheads haven't pushed the button. They've just been standing there, waiting to cross or Godot, depending upon what shows up first. So, then this forces all of us to scramble through the intersection at Ohtani speed against the omnipresent "red hand."

It's like the squirrels who get out of the way of a car. It should be instinctive. Do your part, folks. Get your heads out of your a.....

Press the freakin' button!

Dinner last night:  Sandwich and salad.

Monday Morning Video Laugh - May 26, 2025

The mystery guest segment of the old "What's My Line" was always a classic.  And this one is hilarious.  They don't make people this way anymore.

Dinner last night:  Chicken sausage and potato salad.

The Sunday Memory Drawer - Every May Like Clockwork

 

I think of it every year at this time.

If you don't know how to properly fold an American flag for this Memorial Day weekend, the animated diagram above shows you how.
The good news is that I've known how since I was ten years old. Was I some sort of an Army brat?

Nope, I learned it all from Grandma.

In the house I grew up in on South 15th Avenue in Mount Vernon, New York, we had a big honking flag pole cemented right in the middle of the front yard. It actually stretched past our apartment on the second floor. It was as big as any you might find in front of the most important of Federal buildings. But it was all ours. Right there where my grandmother could easily see it from her first floor living room window.

More importantly, we used it on all the national holidays. Come Memorial Day or the Fourth of July or even Veteran's Day in November, I would hear the hallway closet downstairs creak open. I'd envision the boxes being moved this way or that. The smell of mothballs would waft up to the second floor.

Yep, Grandma was rooting around for the American flag again.

I'd walk around the neighborhood and not see a lot of the same patriotism on these holidays. Certainly, not an American flag being hoisted up a huge pole at the crack of dawn. But, that's what my grandparents did like clockwork.

After my grandfather died, I could no longer exist in mere passive curiosity.  My grandmother would not allow it.

"You gonna help me now."

Okay, Grandma. I figured it was only going to be a slight diversion to my day of play. Yet, I had no idea how seriously she took this ceremony. The way in which the flag was unfolded. How it was handled with the utmost of care.

And, at the end of the day, the precise folding of the banner. Military style. To the strictest of code. My first few attempts did not go well.

"No, no, no. Not that way. This way!"

The words had a sharp tone. Grandma meant business with this. And I was treating it all like Gomer Pyle, USMC.

After a while, I got it. And we responded on every holiday. Granted we weren't a bunch of Marines following the flag over President John F. Kennedy's casket. But Grandma and I got into a neat rhythm when it was time to put the flag away. We did it as flawlessly as we could. Moreover, we did it with the proper amount of respect.

Several years later, I asked my father about that tradition. What was I missing? What was behind the flag ceremony?

"Well, you do know that's the flag that covered your uncle's casket?"

A funeral held in the south of France where he was killed in the waning days of World War II. A ceremony that nobody in the family had attended. For my grandmother's son. The person I was ultimately named after.

No, Dad, I didn't know that.

In this recent picture of that house years after I left it, the flagpole stands as tall as ever.
Without the flag. Without me and Grandma standing at the base, momentarily watching it proudly flap in the gentle breeze.

Except for the memories, that flagpole stands. Simply and utterly just there.

Dinner last night:   Meat pizza from Maria's.

Classic Movie Trailer of the Month - May 2025

 Mommy May continues with the ultimate mother.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich and salad.

The Holiday Weekend Edition of Lousy Photos

A great rule of thumb: Beware of girls who live in trees.

For this photo only, I absolutely love cats!

So which one did it?

A reminder that the rhythm method doesn't work.

Do you think this girl just loves her Cabbage Patch Kid?

Dinner last night:  Leftover pasta.

All Things Prostate

 

My father died of prostate cancer.  The symptoms showed up very simply.  My dad going down to the men's room every half inning during a September 1986 Met game at Shea Stadium.  He ignored it all until Christmas time when the gland got so big that it cut off his bladder function and landed him in the hospital.  Surgery showed the gland to be cancerous and then ultimately removed.

He did well for two or three years until some pains in the leg were determined to be tumors from the metastasized  prostate cancer that landed in his bone narrow.   Bones broke with abandon.  

The ending was painful to watch.   Essentially from first symptoms to death, it was a little over four years.

My point?

There is a lot in the news this week about Joe Biden and the announcement of his aggressive diagnosis of prostate cancer.   A lethal score of nine and it already has spread to bone cancer.   Comparing my dad to this, I would say the former president has six months on the outside.

Indeed, this prognosis didn't just magically appear last weekend.   He has had this for years.   One pundit announced that Biden's last prostate check was in 2014!!!

This is impossible to believe.  This has nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans.   This is all to do with a man's dignity and his health.   

Why was this hidden?

Why is the American public treated with such blatant stupidity?  

Indeed, now, life and death is being judged by red and blue states.   One dope on MSNBC asked how Biden's wife could miss this.   PS, she didn't.  And please don't ask that question one more time as if she is a medical doctor.   She is not.

And, frankly, if the President was as sick and out of it over the past four years, who the hell was running this country???

We'll never know.   Meanwhile, no matter how old a male you are, get a regular prostate examination.

Dinner last night:  Korean pork noodles.

This Date in History - May 21

 

I remember this like it was yesterday.  The wonderful, penultimate edition of the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson happened on this date in 1992.   I still miss him to this day.

293: ROMAN EMPERORS DIOCLETIAN AND MAXIMIAN APPOINT GALERIUS AS CAESAR TO DIOCLETIAN.

I guess this is a big deal if you live in Rome during the year 203.

878:  SYRACUSE, ITALY IS CAPTURED BY THE MUSLIM SULTAN OF SICILY.

The Orangemen of Italy?

879:  POPE JOHN VIII GIVES BLESSINGS TO BRANIMIR OF CROATIA AND TO THE CROATIAN PEOPLE.

I guess this is a big deal if you live in Croatia during the year 879.

996:  SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD OTTO III IS CROWNED HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR.

So he's running a country even before he goes to the prom?

1554:  QUEEN MARY I GRANTS A ROYAL CHARTER TO DERBY SCHOOL FOR BOYS.

Well, derbys would look pretty stupid on girls.

1758:  TEN-YEAR-OLD MARY CAMPBELL IS ABDUCTED IN PENNSYLVANIA BY LENAPE DURING THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.

The very first amber alert.

1851:  SLAVERY IS ABOLISHED IN COLOMBIA, SOUTH AMERICA.

Meanwhile, it's probably just as tough to be a free man if you live in Colombia, South America.

1856:  LAWRENCE, KANSAS IS CAPTURED BY PRO-SLAVERY FORCES.

That's an awful long way from Colombia, South America.

1863:  ORGANIZATION OF THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH IN BATTLE CREEK, MICHIGAN.

So,  when you're in their church, you don't want to sing "Eight Days a Week."

1881:  THE AMERICAN RED CROSS IS ESTABLISHED BY CLARA BARTON.

Free doughnuts!!!

1898:  BUSINESSMAN ARMAND HAMMER IS BORN.

Love your baking soda.

1901:  ACTOR SAM JAFFE IS BORN.

Man, woman, birth, death, infinity.

1904:  SINGER FATS WALLER IS BORN.

Well, his mother was pregnant.   Somebody was misbehavin'.

1917:  ACTOR RAYMOND BURR IS BORN.

Somewhere there's got to be a photo of this guy wearing a dress.

1917:  THE GREAT ATLANTA FIRE OF 1917 CAUSES $5.5 MILLION IN DAMAGE.  

Jeez, how many times did that town burn to the ground?

1918:  SINGER DENNIS DAY IS BORN.

Hi, Mr. Benny....

1924:  ACTRESS PEGGY CASS IS BORN.

To tell you the truth....

1924:  UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO STUDENTS RICHARD LOEB AND NATHAN LEOPOLD JR.  MURDER 14-YEAR-OLD BOBBY FRANKS IN A THRILL KILLING.

And, for years, I thought these were the guys who wrote "My Fair Lady."

1927:  CHARLES LINDBERGH TOUCHES DOWN IN PARIS, COMPLETING THE WORLD'S FIRST SOLO NONSTOP FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.

Nazi loving shithead.

1932:  BAD WEATHER FORCES AMELIA EARHART TO LAND IN A PASTURE IN NORTHERN IRELAND, THEREBY BECOMES THE FIRST WOMAN TO FLY SOLO ACROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.

Whatever became of her?  It's like she disappeared right off the planet.

1934:  OSKALOOSA, IOWA, BECOMES THE FIRST MUNICIPALITY IN THE US TO FINGERPRINT ALL OF ITS CITIZENS.

I bet their crime rate is low.

1936:  SADA ABE IS ARRESTED AFTER WANDERING THE STREETS OF TOKYO WITH HER DEAD LOVER'S SEVERED GENITALS IN HER HAND.

Well, you gotta hand it to her....

1946:  PHYSICIST LOUIS SLOTIN IS FATALLY IRRADIATED DURING AN EXPERIMENT WITH THE DEMON CORE.

Hence, the word "demon."

1952:  ACTOR JOHN GARFIELD DIES.

At the age of 39.  Now there's somebody who got cheated.

1961:  ALABAMA GOVERNOR JOHN MALCOLM PATTERSON DECLARES MARTIAL LAW IN AN ATTEMPT TO RESTORE ORDER AFTER RACE RIOTS BREAK OUT.

At some point, this will happen to our entire country if we don't pay attention.

1972:  MICHELANGELO'S PIETA IN ROME IS DAMAGED BY A VANDAL, THE MENTALLY DISTURBED HUNGARIAN LASZLO TOTH.

Well, if you have to live in Hungary, you might as well be mentally disturbed.

1979:  WHITE NIGHT RIOTS IN SAN FRANCISCO FOLLOWING THE MANSLAUGHTER OF DAN WHITE FOR THE ASSASSINATIONS OF GEORGE MOSCONE AND HARVEY MILK.

You shouldn't cry over spilled....

1988:  DANCER SAMMY DAVIS SR. DIES.

Meanwhile, his son only lasted two more years.

1991:  FORMER INDIAN PRIME MINISTER RAJIV GANDHI IS ASSASSINATED BY A FEMALE SUICIDE BOMBER.

If you've got the last name Gandhi, things never work out well, do they?

1992:  ROBIN WILLIAMS AND BETTE MIDLER APPEAR ON THE NEXT-TO-LAST JOHNNY CARSON TONIGHT SHOW.

We will never see this kind of television spontaneity ever again.

1998:  IN MIAMI, FLORIDA, FIVE ABORTION CLINICS ARE HIT BY A BUTYRIC ACID ATTACKER.

People who are pro life trying to kill.   Isn't that an oxymoron?

2000:  ACTOR JOHN GIELGUD DIES.

Sir to you.

2005:  THE TALLEST ROLLER COASTER IN THE WORLD, KINGDA KA, OPENS AT GREAT ADVENTURE IN NEW JERSEY.

You will never see me on it.

2005:  ACTOR HOWARD MORRIS DIES.

It's me, it's me, Ernest T.

2011:  BROADCASTER HAROLD CAMPING PREDICTED THAT THE END OF THE WORLD WOULD OCCUR ON THIS DAY.

Wrong!

2013:  BUSINESSMAN LEONARD MARSH DIES.

The co-founder of Snapple.   Which means May 21 should be a national holiday.

Dinner last night:  Salisbury steak.

What's Cooking at Netflix

Most of the original movies made exclusively for Netflix are garbage.   Either pretentious, overly serious "diverse" stories.  Or romcoms that would make the regular Hallmark viewer cringe.

But here's one you won't be ashamed to watch.  Sure, it's formulaic and you know where all the beats are.   But, still, it's enjoyable and the closing credits show you that this is really based on a true story.

Plus the scenes of home Italian cooking in "Nonnas" will make you downright hungry.

Again, this is a true story.   An amazingly subdued...and, gasp, likeable...Vince Vaughn plays an Italian guy in Staten Island who hasn't really ventured too far from his neighborhood.  When his mom dies, he decides to buy an old corner store into a restaurant where all the cooks are local Italian grandmothers.   And, indeed, they dug deep into the IMDB guide for casting.  

Lorraine Bracco.

Talia Shire.

Brenda Vaccaro.

Susan Sarandon.

And, for good measure, although not a grandmother...Drea DeMatteo from the Sopranos.

How Italian can you get?

Of course, it takes a while for the old gals to come together and there is a food fight or two.   Vaughn does his best to play referee and get the business off the ground.   For a little cuteness, he is also reunited with the girl he stiffed for the senior prom.

Sounds simple and trite and very hokey?   You bet it is.  And it's the first movie I've actually enjoyed on Netflix in years.   Yes, there is a happy ending and you could have Googled the actual restaurant to discover that the place is still open and it's tough to get a reservation.

Sometimes, life can be as simple as a harmless movie plot...and a nice bowl of Sunday dinner gravy.

LEN'S RATING:  Four stars.

Dinner last night:  Leftover salad.
 

Monday Morning Video Laugh - May 19, 2025

I just finished a revisit of the complete Frasier series and David Hyde Pierce steals every scene.   Even this one where he is the only actor there. 

Dinner last night: Light snacks post surgery.

The Sunday Memory Drawer - When Cross Country Travel Isn't Perfect

 

Isn't this a gorgeous photo?  May and October are the very best (and only) months to visit New York.   I try to get there in both of those months.   Usually perfect.

Except it's not always without incident.   And you would think that once dislocating your own jaw by coughing would be the lone negative of a spring trip like this.   

Um, not by a long shot.   Because trip to NY about 15 years ago featured perhaps the dumbest thing I have ever done in my life.  And, for those of you keeping score on me, you know I am capable of doing dumb things.   Well, this was the pinnacle of stupidity for me.  I probably shouldn't even share it.   But, hell, my life is an open blog and you need to fill it on a daily basis.  There are no exceptions.

So, let me set the stage.   I had a great night out with an old friend.  I had dropped him off and was maneuvering my rental Jeep through some very quiet and desolate suburban streets.   All was quiet.

I had loaded some junk from my apartment in the back of the car.  I am slowly and systematically paring down the New York abode.  I had meant to dispose of it in the apartment complex dumpster, but I had forgotten to do so.

But, wait.   As I drove down a dark street, I see....a dumpster.   Obviously, at the side of the road because some nice homeowner was doing renovations that they probably saw on HGTV.  This is perfect for me.   I can do my garbage outlay right here and now.

I popped out of the Jeep and walked three steps.   I suddenly realized my mistake.   

I never put the car into "P."  I turned to see the Jeep slowly rolling down the street.

Yes, Dad, I know.   It's funny how his voice still comes in loud and clear as if they allow streaming in Heaven.

I reacted quickly.   I had left the car door open so I grabbed onto the side of the door jamb.  By the way, this is a great way to mess up the muscles in your shoulders as my personal trainer confirmed when I got back to LA.  

The forward motion of the car pulled me down and I was then being dragged on the street as I held onto the car.   By the way, this is a great way to put a gaping hole in your mesh New Balance sneakers, which had to be replaced the very next day.

Eventually, after being dragged ten or so feet, I had to let go.  The Jeep continued on its merry way.   As I rose to my feet in the middle of this loneliness, all I could do was yell "stop."   

After another thirty feet, the car surprisingly did just that.   My father also working in mysterious ways.

I was now a half block away from the dumpster so that idea lost a degree of convenience.  I got back into the car and reasoned how this could have happened.  Okay, when you drive your own car, everything becomes a reflex action.   You go through your motions without thinking.   With a different car, your habits are disrupted.   Things are in a different spot.

Oh, who the heck am I kidding?  This was the dumbest thing I have ever done.  And, in 2025, I have yet to top it.

Thanks, Dad.  Now you will excuse me while I put some more analgesic cream on my shoulders.

Dinner last night:  Chinese chicken salad from Chin Chin.

Classic TV Theme of the Month - May 2025

 Well, May is about Mothers.   And we salute the end of the Conner family with the original mom.

Dinner last night:  Post surgery pizza.

I Miss Fotomat. Well, Not Really...

 

What happens when you give birth on the Food Network.

 Don't you want to see them five seconds after the photo was taken?

Surprisingly, Dad is a professional barber.

Saran Wrap must have been on sale.

The kid's not fond of the new Pope.

I'm surprised they didn't include a photo of the conception.

And, in the role of Judas Iscariot....Uncle Moe.

No wonder they lost the West.

 That boy smells something.

 Can you buy some clothes with that EBT card?

Hair styles by Tupperware.

Nobody wanted to pose with this ugly thing.  And neither did Alf.

Dinner last night:  Pre-surgery cheese and crackers.

Len's Recipe of the Month - May 2025

 

Yes, that is sausage, peppers, and onions.   Yes, you've seen the recipe here before.

Indeed, of all the dishes I have tried in the kitchen, the most perfect meal comes from my version of SPO.   I prefer it "wet," meaning I add some chopped tomatoes or canned cherry tomatoes.  But, regardless, I still do some experimenting and have added a few variations to this recipe that make it amazing.   The Chef's kiss, if you will.

Okay, the basics are there.   Sauteed sweet or hot sausage.   Yellow, red, and orange sliced peppers.  PS, do not use green peppers.   Way too bitter.   Slice up one big sweeet onion.  Mix together with a tablespoon of tomato paste, oregano, salt, pepper, and the aforementioned tomatoes.   Let it slow cook for a few hours.

Now that's the template. But I have been fooling around to perfect this.   First off, I now saute the sausage in an air fryer.   Cook them at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.   Sure, this reduces the flavor retinue that's on the bottom of your Dutch oven.   But the end result is tastier and a lot less greasy.

Now, another secret trick comes from chef Valerie Bertinelli.   A splash of apple cider vinegar has an interesting impact on the sweetness of the peppers.   Go for it.

Lastly, I don't mind a little heat in the SPO concoction.   This time, I added a tablespoon of chopped Calabrian peppers.They are hot but just a little bit perks up your meal.

Hey, stick around.   Who knows what else I will come up with when it comes to SPO.

Dinner last night:  Leftover...ta da...SPO.

This Date in History - May 14

 

Happy birthday to the co-inventor of Facebook.  Click if you like this.

1509:  IN NORTHERN ITALY, FRENCH FORCES DEFEAT THE VENETIANS.

They were blind-sided.  

1607:  JAMESTOWN, VIRGINIA IS SETTLED AS AN ENGLISH COLONY.

By this date the following year, half of the homes are already being flipped.

1608: THE PROTESTANT UNION IS FOUNDED IN AUHAUSEN.

Oh, good.  Now I have some place to go on Sunday mornings.

1610:  HENRY IV OF FRANCE IS ASSASSINATED BRINGING LOUIS XIII TO THE THRONE.

Hopefully, he has a good run as monarch.  But, wait, I've read ahead...

1643:  FOUR-YEAR-OLD LOUIS XIV BECOMES KING OF FRANCE UPON THE DEATH OF HIS FATHER, LOUIS XIII.

Well, I guess 33 years is a long run.  But he's no FDR.

1787:  IN PHILADELPHIA, DELEGATES CONVENE A CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION TO WRITE A NEW CONSTITUTION FOR THE US.  

The Constitution.  Remember when we paid attention to that?

1796:  EDWARD JENNER ADMINISTERS THE FIRST SMALLPOX VACCINATION.

This won't hurt at all.

1804:  THE LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION BEGINS ITS HISTORIC JOURNEY BY TRAVELING UP THE MISSOURI RIVER.

A thought.  Wouldn't it have been easier to go down it?

1870:  THE FIRST GAME OF RUGBY IN NEW ZEALAND IS PLAYED.

This is obviously a big deal if you're a rugby fan in New Zealand.

1889:  THE CHILDREN'S CHARITY NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO CHILDREN IS LAUNCHED IN LONDON.

Wait till you meet Michael Jackson.

1921:  ACTOR RICHARD DEACON IS BORN.

Was there a sitcom he didn't appear on???

1925:  VIRGINIA WOOLF'S NOVEL "MRS. DALLOWAY" IS PUBLISHED.

I'm not afraid of her.

1936:  SINGER BOBBY DARIN IS BORN.

The Knife.  Macked.

1939:  LINA MEDINA BECOMES THE YOUNGEST CONFIRMED MOTHER IN MEDICAL HISTORY AT THE AGE OF FIVE.

Gee, isn't playing with your Colorforms enough?

1940:  ROTTERDAM IS BOMBED BY THE GERMAN LUFTWAFFE.

After which, the German army got bombed in a local tavern.

1948:  ISRAEL IS DECLARED TO BE AN INDEPENDENT STATE.  IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE DECLARATION, THEY ARE ATTACKED BY THE NEIGHBORING ARAB STATES.

Setting up a soap opera that will run longer than the Guiding Light.

1961:  THE FREEDOM RIDERS BUS IS FIRE-BOMBED IN ALABAMA AND THE PROTESTERS ARE BEATEN BY AN ANGRY MOB.

You should have taken the train.

1969:  ACTRESS CATE BLANCHETT IS BORN.

This year's Best Actress Oscar winner.

1970:  ACTRESS BILLIE BURKE DIES.

Go ahead.  Try and click your heels now.

1973:  SKYLAB, THE US' FIRST SPACE STATION, IS LAUNCHED.

I wonder if any child born in 1973 is named Skylab.

1984:  FACEBOOK INVENTOR MARK ZUCKERBERG IS BORN.

He turns 41 and that alone makes me want to unfriend him.

1987:  ACTRESS RITA HAYWORTH DIES.

Va-va-va-voom.

1988:  A DRUNK DRIVER TRAVELING THE WRONG WAY ON A HIGHWAY IN KENTUCKY CRASHES INTO A SCHOOL BUS CARRYING A CHURCH YOUTH GROUP.  27 PEOPLE DIE.

This is not the kind of offense you can erase by going to traffic school.

1997:  MAGICIAN HARRY BLACKSTONE JR. DIES.

And, poof, he's gone.

1998:  SINGER FRANK SINATRA DIES.

Good riddance.  My favorite story about this?  They tried to contact Nancy Sinatra to come to the hospital but she had taken her phone off the hook so she could watch the series finale of Seinfeld.

2003:  BASKETBALL STAR DAVE DEBUSSCHERE DIES.

Of a sudden heart attack.   A neighbor of mine in NY had just gone to lunch with him that very day.

2003:  ACTOR ROBERT STACK DIES.

The undertaker will have to get his hands on the body, so he's not so untouchable.

2013:  NIGERIAN PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN DECLARES A STATE OF EMERGENCY DUE TO TERRORIST ACTS.

Included for one reason only....Good luck with that!

2019:  COMIC TIM CONWAY DIES.

Brilliant.

Dinner last night:  Chinese chicken salad. 

Morons of the Month - May 2025

 

If there's one thing about government, it moves very slowly.   Edicts or laws sometimes take years to have an impact.  This is very different than what the current bozos on the left are thinking with all the changes Trump is trying to install.  Trust me.   True change takes forever.

For instance, you may have heard about all the recent radar outages at Newark Airport.  Systems shut down suddenly.   Flights are grounded or delayed.   People are pissed.

Fucking Trump.

Um, not really, folks.  First of all, Newark has always been the minor leagues when it comes to airport behavior.   I used to fly into EWR all the time and stopped, largely because of the ridiculous and often unexplained delays.   One pilot told me that an eye dropper of water on a runway sends the whole place into utter chaos.

So, all the current problems are not really that current despite what the daily Trump protesters (predominantly older, unmarried women) would like to believe.   According to them, Trump got elected and Newark Airport turned immediately into shit.

Except...

A lot of the systems there have needed an overhaul for the past ten years.   Also, the place is way understaffed with regard to the controllers working the towers. Most of that is left over from the knucklehead Obama years.   Back then, when he was imposing diversity restrictions in government, it was virtually impossible for White or Hispanic air traffic controllers to get jobs if they were put up next to a Black candidate.   Now I'm not saying that all Black controllers are inept.   But, as in any business, you should hire the most capable regardless of race, color, or creed.

Ask any airline professional any of the above.   You'll see their answers match this blog.

But, that's okay.   The idiots and morons with the placards know better.

Fuck Trump.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich.

Monday Morning Video Laugh - May 12, 2025

Well, if you want to "whine" about it..

 

Dinner last night:  SPO.

The Sunday Memory Drawer - A Thought About Mom

 

When I think about it on this second Sunday of May, Mom's been gone for a long while now.  Indeed, all my relatives in my parents' generation...aunts and uncles and the like...have passed on.  They all departed around the same relatively young age of 70.  I would often wonder why.  Then I would look at my dad's old Technicolor slides of family gatherings.  Everybody had a cigarette in one hand and a cocktail in the other.

Message received.

It's Mother Day so memories again come to the forefront.

Here's Mom and me feeding some ducks at Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx. This was a popular Sunday afternoon destination for my family. Our own little theme park.  Six Flags Over Dead People. I have some other photos of us and the ducks and the thing I noted in all of them: my mother's always on the side of the pond in high heels. Barbara Billingsley lives. Except I never saw her vacuuming the hallway in them.

Looking at vintage snapshots, I am always blown away over how well dressed she always was. Now that I recollect, my mother was a clothes junkie. Her closet was constantly filled with new stuff. And shoes, shoes, and more shoes.
I got dragged at least once a week by her as she checked out the new offerings at Bromley's on Fourth Avenue in Mount Vernon. One of those dress stores that made me feel incredibly uncomfortable as I sat there quietly as Mom tried on one outfit after another. I always wondered how we could afford it all.

I got my answer a little later on when the weekly shopping jaunts included a stop at the Mt. Vernon Loan Company on Fiske Place. My mother would go up to the window, hand over an envelope, and then turn back to me.

"Don't tell your father."

Gotcha.

Over time, I noticed that the Mt. Vernon Loan Company never really disappeared from my mother's anointed rounds. When I got a little older, I was entrusted with delivering the little white envelope myself. The loan place was conveniently located in the same office building as my dentist and my orthodontist. One stop shopping. Get the rubber bands or the bite plate adjusted and pay off Mom's deficit. No fuss, no muss.

In retrospect, my mother was one of the original liberated women. Because, as soon as I was about six or seven, she was off to work. First at a pen manufacturer, then at an electrical supply place. Finally, she made the great leap to the big time. Commuting to Manhattan for a job at a major accounting firm. Meanwhile, I was hanging with the grandparents while Mom and Dad worked. And, as long as I can remember, the envelopes to the loan company kept coming.

I never questioned it all. Except I could always tell that money, as usual, always seemed to be a big discussion point between Mom and Dad. Which is why she kept working. Once she was working "downtown," the wardrobe in her closet expanded at geometric proportions. Essentially, Mom never had a dollar she couldn't spend. I learned this more and more years later when she was retired and on a fixed income.

I financially supplemented her a lot in her post-working era. She used her Social Security and her pension to pay for her rent and her food. I covered the other stuff: electric bill, the phone, the cable. It should have given her a comfort zone that was pretty cushy. Except for those months where she ran out of cash before we hit the 30th of the month. And our conversations were always the same.

"Can I borrow fifty dollars? I'm short this month."

I'd dutifully go over everything she paid for and I was always suitably confused. I could never understand how she went over budget. I'd ask the same question and get her knee-jerk reaction.

"No, I'm not paying off the loan company."

After several short months, I started to dig around. In her apartment building, she had a passel of retired friends who were also not doing their best at living check-to-check. But, instead of asking their own offspring for bailouts, they'd come to my mother. And she was more than happy to lend out some cold cash. While the budget in all the apartments on Fleetwood Avenue were balanced, my mother was building a shortfall worthy of the federal government. Forget Reagan. My mother was the true inventor of "voodoo economics."

After squelching the stimulus package that my mom was extending to her cronies, the spending returned to normal for a while. And then short months returned.

"No, I'm not paying off the loan company."

And?

"No, I'm not giving money out to the building."

Once again, I had to impose a thorough investigation of my own mother. It didn't take long to find the answer.

In a kitchen cabinet, I found over five hundred expired lottery tickets. Some weeks, she had spend more than 100 dollars, attempting to "be in it to win it." Outed as the newest member of Gamblers Anonymous, my mother tried to make nice.

"If I win the big prize, I'll give you most of the money."

Nice try, Mom. In retrospect, I guess it could have been worse. It wasn't like she was spending her money on fast living and cigarettes.

Well, she did a little of that, too.  They all did from what the pictures tell me.

Dinner last night:  Made a cameo appearance at a party so just some snacks.