My infatuation with the 1950s housewife

Just what is it about the perfectly idealised American housewife of the 1950s that so appeals to me? Yes, I'm gay, but does that really make much sense for a reason? I mean, wouldn't it make more sense if I was straight? I am, after all, attracted to images of women dressed in some of their finest wardrobe, cooking and cleaning to their heart's content.

I guess when it's put that way it does sound pretty gay, huh? Oh, well.

Fun with Dick and Jane

I love the innocence of things like Dick and Jane, but I also can't help twisting it around and corrupting it a bit. Here's a mere sampling...

Everyone was impressed with the size of Dick's package.

But, most of all, Jane was surprised to learn that Dick

had such feelings for her...



My work is already done, here.









































I'm so immature... and I like it! What about you? Do you enjoy being silly and irreverent? If so, tell me all about it. I'm sure the rest of our readers would get a kick out of it, too!

"Hey, Santa! Whatcha sellin'?" - The jolly old elf in advertising.

How can anyone say "No" to a face like that? Besides, it's freakin' Santa Claus! And WHO doesn't like him?? Well, if YOU don't, go play on the freeway. You're dumb! Plus, you'll probably get coal in your stocking...

Anyway, for the rest of us who DO still like good ol' Saint Nick, I've compiled a gallery to display just some of the finer examples of his contribution to advertising. This would also be considered an "old skool" edition, mostly because I don't think any of these ads date past the 1960s. Oh, and F.Y.I., these are only the tip of the iceberg. As I continue to sort through and find more gems, I'm sure the urge to share will be much too hard to resist! So, for now, please enjoy what I've collected below.






I really like how colorful this is! And how great is it that
the "train" is actually one of the Christmas crackers?!





























I think the detailed artwork in this is very
impressive! Love the lettering font, too!

































As if Santa wasn't already huge enough with
everyone, here he's quite literally HUGE...
He's a GIANT! Just look at how he towers
over those rocky mountains beneath him!
And I'm sure it's because he eats lots and
lots of Sunkist Seedless Navel Oranges!

 



































I can't even tell you how MUCH I absolutely
LOVE this image! It just makes me HAPPY
in all sorts of ways! Even just the name
"Ribbon Candy Rocket" makes me giddy...
Yep, I'm gay.



































I like this, but what I DON'T like is how
Jack and Betty just demand, "Bring us
Tinker Toys." WHERE, may I ask, is the
"Please" in that request? Hmm? I think
Santa ought to skip their house!



































Isn't this great? I just hope that was the
LAST house on Santa's route...
































Again, another very pleasing one to me!































I don't know about you, but a Thermos has
NEVER been on MY Christmas wish list.



It'd sure be a shame if all Santa was carrying
in his bag-o-tricks was Colgate products, huh?
He'd BETTER have some toys in there, too!

  































Not sure if this is from the 1950s or '60s, but it
rings early '60s to me, for some reason. Is Santa
actually demonstrating that the television is
slightly narrower than his own waistline?
Could that really be a selling point?



































This is quite nice.
It reminds me of Santa's Village!






























Well, that'll do it for today's gallery, kids. Check back again, real soon, to see what else is NEW at the circus! In the meantime, try to relax and enjoy the holiday season. "See" you later!


~ All images taken from the book, 'Christmas: Vintage Holiday Graphics'. Edited by Jim Heimann. Published by Taschen. ~

Movie Moments: 'Bigger Than Life'

I don't usually buy a movie sight unseen. In fact, I'm pretty sure this is the very first one. Back when VHS tapes were so common, and therefore so relatively inexpensive, my mom used to buy movies left and right that she'd never even seen because to her it made more sense than going through the "trouble" of renting them. Forget that it wound up costing her much more in the long run. Much more. Not to mention the fact that most of those movies were never even liberated from their original shrink wrap! Oooh, I could go on... But what was my point to all of that? I know! It was because of my mother's whole weird, illogical movie collecting obsession that I swore to myself I'd never buy a movie I hadn't already seen and felt I had to own. Well, I stuck to that until just recently. After all, rules were made to be broken... Right?

Enter 'Bigger Than Life'. I can't really remember how it came across my radar, but once I heard about it, I just knew I would dig it. It was released in 1956, it's full of melodrama, and it was filmed in dynamic CinemaScope. Those few details alone pretty much sold it, but it was this plot summary that really drove it home for me:


"When a friendly, successful suburban teacher and father (James Mason, in one of his most indelible roles) is prescribed cortisone for a painful, possibly fatal affliction, he grows dangerously addicted to the experimental drug, resulting in his transformation into a psychotic and ultimately violent household despot. This Eisenhower-era throat-grabber, shot in expressive CinemaScope, is an excoriating take on the nuclear family. That it came in the day of 'Father Knows Best' makes it all the more shocking and wildly entertaining."


Now, how could I have possibly passed that up?? Once I knew that I wasn't getting it for my birthday (it was on my wish list), I ran out and got it for myself. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. Well, actually, I did expect James Mason's character to be a bit more violent, but I think that's only because times are so much different now and I've become just as conditioned (or jaded) as the next person by today's high level of violence in almost every form of entertainment. Still, even with little to no physical violence, this flick gets pretty intense anyway! Most of the intense drama happens because of the psychotic mood swings of Mason's character and the resulting chaos. And what's not enthralling about watching a squeaky-clean, upstanding citizen (who's also a father and a school teacher) become an entirely drug-addicted psycho monster?? It's good, wholesome Family Film Festival fare, I tell you! No, not really...








Here we see Ed Avery (James Mason) at work,
grasping at the back of his neck in severe pain.
It's one of the first early signs we see that Ed is
going to need some serious medical attention,
and that something awful is about to start...







Here's Ed as a patient in the hospital. Looking on
quite concerned, is his wife Lou (Barbara Rush),
son Richie (Christopher Olsen), and Ed's two
attending doctors.







Now, this was a cinematic moment!
After returning home from the hospital, Ed (Mason)
expects to continue being pampered like he was by
the nurses. After about the umpteenth special
request he asks of his wife Lou (Rush), she just loses
it and she's the one who flies into a rage,
slamming the medicine chest so hard it shatters!
Needless to say, Lou's actions leave Ed a bit stunned,
and he takes a moment here to "reflect".







Did I mention mood swings?
Fortunately, the movie isn't just an intense downer.
It also has happier moments, like the one we see
above, when Ed happens to be experiencing an
upswing sort of mood. I love this scene because it's
so iconic, you know?







This is another great, happy scene. At least, it
is at first. See, Ed is treating Lou to a shopping
spree and it's all very exciting until... Lou thinks
about what it's all going to cost and that they really
can't afford it. The cinematography here is
just awesome!







I will not spoil the end for you, but I will tell
you that's a Bible and a huge pair of scissors
Ed is holding...





If you like drama and movies set in the 1950s, I'm almost positive that you'd enjoy this gem! Also, if you do decide to search it out, make sure and pick up the Criterion Collection version as it's absolutely pristine looking due to a high-definition digital transfer restoration. Plus, the DVD has all kinds of Special Edition extras!

Until next time, movie buffs, I hope all of your moments are happy ones!



~ All photos via Google Images ~

Board Games That Don't Bore Me: Scrabble

SCRABBLE is a fun, thinking person's word game. You either like the challenge, or you don't. To me, it's that plain and simple. Of course, having a "thing" for letters, words, and wordplay doesn't hurt, either! Another factor that appeals to me about this game (and this shouldn't come as any surprise to my regular readers), is the sense of order which is created as each player places their letter tiles on the big board's symmetrical grid. And, yes... I do prefer the raised-grid version of the playing board. Otherwise, your letter tiles go all wonky, and where's the order in that??! I'll tell you. Nowhere.

Even though I've played it for many years, I've never managed to score a Bingo. You know, that's when you play a word that uses all seven letters on the rack, and it earns you a bonus 50 points. I have witnessed my mother-in-law do this, however. Aaand more than once! Seriously, she kicks major SCRABBLE-butt!

Speaking of butts... Did you know that SCRABBLE was invented by an out-of-work architect named Alfred Mosher Butts? Funny last name, but obviously a pretty smart guy. Attempting to create a game that would use both chance and skill, Butts combined features of anagrams and the crossword puzzle. He first called it LEXIKO, but then changed it to CRISS CROSS WORDS. To decide on letter distribution, Butts studied the front page of The New York Times and did painstaking calculations of letter frequency. His basic cryptographic analysis of our language and his original tile distribution have remained valid for more than 50 years and billions of games played! (Now, if that alone doesn't make him a smarty-pants...)







Alfred M. Butts, sittin' pretty
atop Alphabet City.

(Is that a leisure suit?!)







CRISS CROSS WORDS, an early version
of SCRABBLE, featured a game board
made of architectural blueprint paper
glued over an old chess board.

(THAT'S ingenuity for you!)





At first, all established game manufacturers rejected Butts' invention for commercial development. Then, Butts met game-loving entrepreneur, James Brunot, who completely loved the concept. Together, they made some refinements to the rules and design, and most significantly, changed the name to SCRABBLE, a real word which means "to grope frantically." The game was finally trademarked as SCRABBLE Brand Crossword Game in 1948, but the first four years were pretty hard. The Brunots rented an abandoned schoolhouse in Dodgington, Connecticut, where with friends they turned out 12 games an hour, stamping letters on wooden tiles one at a time. After a bit, boards, boxes, and tiles were made elsewhere and sent to the factory for assembly and shipping. By 1949, the Brunots had made 2,400 sets on their own and lost $450. As is typical of the game business, the SCRABBLE game gained slow but steady popularity among a comparative handful of consumers. Then in the early 1950s, legend has it that the president of Macy's discovered the game on vacation and ordered some for his store. Within a year, everyone "had to have one" to the point that SCRABBLE games were being rationed to stores around the country.

In 1952, the Brunots realized they could no longer make the games fast enough to meet the growing demand. So they licensed the well-known game manufacturer, Long Island-based Selchow & Righter Company, to market and distribute the games in the U.S. and Canada.

Is all of this just totally boring to y'all? I like nitty-gritty details, so I tend to get carried away... Seriously, let me know in a comment whether you enjoy detailed posts like this occasionally, or if you'd rather I just "SHUT UP, already!"

Well, long story a bit shorter... In 1986, Hasbro purchased SCRABBLE and has owned it ever since. The End. No, not really. It wasn't "The End" for Alfred M. Butts until he passed away in April of 1993 at the age of 93! Of course, he did enjoy spending the later half of his long life playing SCRABBLE with family and friends. I wonder if during his very last game he was able to go out with a Bingo on his rack like:

I1 A1 M3 D2 E1 A1 D2







Super-Duper-Pricey-Fun-Time SCRABBLE!

For only $600 you can have this deluxe version that
includes a wood-framed board w/raised grid and
turn-table base, 100 letter tiles individually minted
and encrusted with 24k gold, and, of course, spacious
drawers to store them in.

(I want! I want!)







Tiles with style!

Here are the 24k gold encrusted letter tiles. A bit
garish, yes, but also very shiny and quite golden.




I'd better go now. It's my turn to make a word, and I see the perfect opportunity to use a Triple Word Score space...


~All photos via Google Images. History and information via the National Scrabble Association.~

My very first art film, 'The Red Balloon'

I must begin by clarifying that my post title is not intended to infer any involvement on my part with the creation of this wonderful film. That credit goes to the Academy Award winning writer/director of 'The Red Balloon', Albert Lamorisse. Besides, I wasn't even around when it came out in 1956! But 21 years later, sitting in a darkened 2nd-grade classroom, I had my first experience viewing this memorable piece of foreign cinema and it made a real impression on me.

Even at the tender age of 7, I realized on some level that this film was special. Or, at least, it was special to me. It really struck a chord, deep within...

I received the newest, restored and digitally transferred edition of the film on DVD as a gift a while ago, but hadn't actually sat down to watch it until yesterday. Boy, I was so glad I finally did because it was even better than I had remembered it! I mean, I was grinning ear-to-ear from the very start. It certainly took me to my "happy place".

I found it interesting that the film was brighter and more colorful than I remembered. I guess that could be directly due to the restoration and high-definition transfer, but all these years I had thought of it as having much darker tones in both mood and color. Except for that BIG red balloon, of course! In fact, Tommy told me I'd have to watch the DVD without him because he hated watching the film back in elementary school. "It was too depressing", he said. And I was like, "Are you freakin' kidding me?! You're completely missing the entire point of the film, dude!" Well, I might be paraphrasing a bit, but that was the gist of our differing opinions on the matter.

I do feel passionate about this little french film. And I think that anyone who watches it can see the amount of passion that Albert Lamorisse must have felt for the project, as it plays like a cinematic love letter to the city of Paris. The shooting location couldn't have been better, either. It was in the Menilmontant section of Paris, a labyrinth of narrow alleys, cobblestones and steep streets. Since this was my first impression of Paris, I know that if I ever do travel there I will want and expect to see all of the key scenic backgrounds featured or I won't be satisfied... NOTE TO SELF: Prepare for disappointment.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the simple story of this precious gem, here's the brief synopsis right off of the DVD:

"Pascal, a young Parisian boy, retrieves a balloon tied to a lamppost, only to discover that it seems to have a mind and personality of its own. At times the balloon follows him around like a loyal dog, at others like a teasing best friend. The two form an almost inseparable bond, one that only an uncaring world would dare untether."

I couldn't help giggling as I typed that description because I kept hearing Mr. Deep-Voiced-Movie-Trailer-Announcer-Guy saying it! Then I had to actually try doing the voice! Good thing I'm alone, right now... By the way, does anyone know what that guy's name is? Oh, wait. I think I heard somewhere that he died. Oops, here I am making fun of him. Do you think that whoever gave the eulogy at his memorial service delivered it with a similar deep voice, like it was also a movie trailer? That would've actually been pretty damn cool, huh? Some might think it was in poor taste, but not really, if you think about it. Of course, it would sort of depend on whether the guy had a sense of humor...

Sorry, about that! It's getting late, and the A.D.D. is kicking into high gear. Where was I before all of that? Oh, yes. I was going to share a gallery of production stills.


So here's the gallery...





On his way to school, Pascal (played
by 5 1/2 y.o. Pascal Lamorisse, the
director's son) discovers something...







The temptation is just too great. Aaaand since no
one's around to stop him, he shimmies on up the
lamppost to take down that shiny, red floaty-thing.







Pascal and his new "friend", running late for school!







Street corner shenanigans...







"Now, don't go anywhere! I'll be right back."

While passing a boulangerie (bakery) shop window,
Pascal sees something he'd like to have. So he leaves
his balloon outside the shop for only a moment...
Just long enough for some bratty kid to sneak up
and take off with it!







I don't have a picture, but Pascal manages to get his
balloon back. Here, he's desperately running down a
narrow alley to escape the gang of mean bullies that
took it from him! Oh, what now? A fat, old woman
carrying groceries?! Come on, give the kid a break!







Sadly, they do catch up to Pascal. They completely
outnumber him (the gang of bullies is much larger
than pictured), too, which is totally unfair!
But, then... so is life.







After much bullying ensues, a real nasty boy pulls
out a slingshot! Then, as you can clearly see, he turns
'The Red Balloon' into... the dead balloon.







Do not despair! Yes, Pascal just lost his best
"friend", but somehow, magically, all of the
other balloons in Paris start floating right to
him! So many, they're overwhelming. Then...








It's up, up and away!



If you've never seen this award-winning film, you should check it out. Even if you have, but it's been many years since (like about 30, in my case), I highly recommend watching it again! Especially this latest restored, high-def print on DVD. I'm gonna try talking Tommy into watching it with me because I really don't think it's as depressing as he remembers it being, but that might be fruitless effort on my part. He'll probably just shoot me down like that poor balloon...


~All photos via Google Images~

I Love Lucy!

I'm well aware that my love for the classic 'I Love Lucy' television show is not at all unique. I mean, isn't it like the absolute most popular t.v. sitcom of all time?! As far as I know, it's still always playing somewhere on some t.v. channel, in some country around the world. I'm not sure of the actual statistics, but I think that 'Lucy' has been loved by millions, if not billions of people since the show's debut back in the 1950s! Wait, am I overestimating a bit with the billions part? I've never been good at numbers. I just know that a whole LOT of folks have been big 'Lucy' fans over the years!

Of course, I've purchased all 6 seasons and all 13 Lucy-Desi Comedy Hours on DVD. I can watch them repeatedly, and never tire of them! In fact, it's one of my favorite things to do with Tommy. We just laugh, and laugh... And it doesn't seem to matter how many times we've seen an episode. I think that's quite a testament to the show's quality. The writing, the acting, the comedy, EVERYTHING was well-done!

It goes without saying that Lucille Ball was a comedic genius, and she was largely responsible for the show's success, but she also had a stellar ensemble cast to both back her up and play off of. I don't think they got enough of the credit they deserved, either. A lot of the show's funny bits happened between Lucy and Ethel, especially whenever they were being catty with each other, or even in a feud and not speaking. Plus, there was always some crazy scheme of Lucy's that Ethel would get reluctantly drug into. Vivian Vance was a great actress with excellent comedic timing and delivery. Sad thing was, privately she struggled with depression. And it certainly did not help matters any that Miss Ball insisted her female co-star be heavier, and look less attractive than her. Poor plump, not-as-appealing Viv... I've always thought you were pretty. Pretty darn funny, too!






"Zorch!" "Grebbitch!"
"Itza moo-moo."

Picking only ONE favorite 'Lucy' episode would be very hard
for me, but if my life depended on it, this might be the one
to receive that honor! It's Episode #89, titled 'Lucy is Envious'.
The above still is from its classic sequence where Lucy and
Ethel are doing their best lady-martian impersonations atop
the Empire State Building. Their hilarious attempt to "scare"
N.Y.C. tourists with this publicity stunt for an upcoming sci-fi
movie ('Women from Mars') is just SO bizarrely funny and
strange, that I couldn't even imagine another comedy team
doing it. Period.






"Lucy... You got some splainin' to do!"

Most anybody who's seen at least one episode is likely familiar
with this recurring confrontation. I like how you can obviously
see here that Lucy's brain is working overtime to come up
with something, ANYTHING, to tell Ricky that'll get her out of
the pickle she's gotten herself into.




Who could forget Ethel's stodgy old husband, Fred? I don't remember if they ever said what the age difference was supposed to be between those two, but it always seemed to me that Fred could almost be Ethel's father. He was such a grumpy character, too. The more I think about it, I realize Fred Mertz is probably the one character in the entire cast that I like the very least. Mostly, I think, because he was hardly ever nice to Ethel! In fact, Fred was always putting Ethel down, making fun of her weight and just humiliating her at every turn. I always wondered what would make a self-respecting woman stay married to an awful man like that? At least, Ethel did shoot back some real "zinger" lines of her own, once in a while! I do know that it was all just pretend, and that Fred was written to be that way, but it's also known that the actor, William Frawley, didn't talk to anyone (including his co-stars) if they weren't actually filming scenes for the show. He would just arrive shortly before an episode's filming, keep to himself, perform his scenes and then leave. Needless to say, Mr. Frawley was not one to suffer small talk gladly. Or much talk at all, for that matter. Just knowing this behind-the-scenes factoid tells me he must've been a real old, grumpy man! Wouldn't you agree?






I had no idea there were 'I Love Lucy' comic books!
I wonder if Little Ricky collected them?




I always liked the concept of Ricky Ricardo's character: A suave, handsome, charming and confident Cuban who also happens to be a talented bandleader that can both sing and beat a mean conga drum. Now, notice how I said I liked the concept. Actually, I do think that Desi Arnaz represented most of those qualities pretty well, but I never have thought his voice was very good. And I can't stand it when he sings in Spanish. Terrible of me, I know...

But I DID like the way Ricky dressed and styled his hair!





"I love Lucy
and
she loves me..."

I can see why the ladies were attracted
to Desi Arnaz. But it was awful and very
sad for Lucille Ball that he was such a
womanizing Casanova-type in real life,
and couldn't ever resist temptation.






"Babalu, Babalu,
Babaluuuu Aye..."

I like watching Ricky go totally nuts on his conga
(bongo?) drum. He gets so into it that he's usually
out of breath by the number's end, and his perfectly
coiffed hair becomes a total mess. That's what I
call passion!






"Yes, can I speak to a Mr. Jass?
I believe his first name is, Hugh."

Often times, Lucy used the good old telephone as a tool
for her plotting & scheming. Could you imagine the sort
of trouble she'd get into today, with a computer and
the internet?!




Here's a couple of funny Lucy-related toys that I found around the interwebs and thought would be fun to share... But don't fight over them, children.






My Little Lucy, My Little Lucy
What will today's adventure be?

I just had to include this one for the crazed adult
MLP collector in my life! You're welcome, Tommy.






Close your windows!
Lock your doors!
They're coming...
The Dolls from Mars!

These Kelly dolls totally cracked me up! What a
great idea. I'm thinking that I might actually need
to have these.




My second favorite episode would probably have to be Episode #147, titled 'Lucy Gets a Paris Gown'. That's the one where they're all in Paris as part of their European vacation, and Lucy decides to go on a hunger strike until Ricky agrees to buy her a Jacque Marcel dress. Ricky ends up feeling sorry for sad, starving Lucy and gives in. Then he comes to find out that Ethel had been smuggling food in to Lucy the whole time! Well, of course, he had to get even. So Ricky and Fred get a local tailor to make a couple of wacky outfits from burlap potato sacks, and a few hats out of a horse's feedbag and a restaurant ice bucket. Then they just sewed in the Jacque Marcel labels. The funniest part was watching Lucy and Ethel strut down the Paris street like they were a couple of haute couture models, or something! Classic.






"Do you like our
Jacque Marcel originals?
They are the latest
high-fashion in all of Paris."

It's too bad Lucy and Ethel decided to burn these.
But then, how could they have known that the
REAL Jacque Marcel would steal their husbands'
crazy designs and pass them off as his own?




For the longest time I felt quite strongly about wanting to meet Lucille Ball just so I could give her a BIG hug and thank her personally for all of the laughs and happiness she brought into my life. It never did happen, but I think Miss Ball knew how much she and Lucy Ricardo meant to the fans of 'I Love Lucy'. I just hope that, before her death, she fully understood how profound her impact was on both show business and pop culture.


~All photos via Google Images~

It Sure is HOT, Esther! Let's Go For a Dip...

Photo via Google Images

It's Summer, and the days are starting to really heat up here, in Southern California. So, taking a cue from some of my fellow bloggers who've also done water-themed posts, I thought that it might be fun to dive in the pool for a refreshing dip with Hollywood's bathing beauty of the 1940s and '50s, Esther Williams. Come on, put on your swim cap and let's jump in...

Photo via Google Images

So pretty in pink!

What'll the boys think?

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Wow, all of that time in the water

must've shrunk Esther!

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Strike a (pool) pose!

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Men, keep that in mind...

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Long before dolphin-safe tuna, it wasn't

uncommon for fishermen to find Esther

tangled in their nets. Why they were

fishing in swimming pools, is anybody's

guess...

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

"Vacation, all I ever wanted..."

Photo via Google Images

Even underwater, this lady looked good!

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Cool, relaxed and... shiny?

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

Far from singing her "swan song", Esther

poses with a fellow swimmer.

Photo courtesy of Luis Aquino

"Would you like a beverage? It's cool and

refreshing Lipton iced tea. You'll love the

brisk Lipton flavor! When I'm not

swimming, you'll always find me drinking

a delicious glass of Lipton iced tea!"

Photo via Google Images

Even Tom & Jerry made a splash with Esther!

Alright, out of the water! We've gotten enough sun for the day, and the bus is heading back to 2009. Grab your towels, and don't leave your inflatable toys in the pool!

Wave good-bye to Esther, everyone!

I hope you all had a fun time! Come back again, soon, and we'll take another trip somewhere... Have a great weekend!