HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Holy crap! Ron Canova is 50???? Where does the time go. A booming Happy Birthday to the only little brother in the group who could drive before we could!
SPEAKING OF IMPORTANT DATES
Happy 33rd Birthday to JAWS, which hit theatres on June 20, 1975.
RHYMES WITH GAY
Now that same sex marriage is legal in California, "Star Trek's" George Takei has announced that he and long time partner Brad Altman will be getting married in September. Walter Koenig will be Takei's best man with Nichelle Nichols agreeing to be matron of honor.
BEST FILMS
Continuing their love of lists, the American Film Institute has released their lists of best films in various genres. A sampling:
BEST ANIMATED FILM: SNOW WHITE (actually, Disney/Pixar scored 9 out of the 10 films chosen. Only "Shrek" made the list as a non-Disney/Pixar production.
BEST FANTASY FILM: THE WIZARD OF OZ
BEST ROMANTIC COMEDY: CITY LIGHTS
BEST GANGSTER FILM: THE GODFATHER
BEST WESTERN: THE SEARCHERS
BEST SPORTS FILM: RAGING BULL
BEST MYSTERY: VERTIGO
BEST EPIC: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
BEST COURTROOM DRAMA: TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
BEST SHARK MOVIE: JAWS
The last category was not real...except for me!
PASSING ON
Last week I failed to mention the passing of longtime ABC personality Jim McKay. A native of Baltimore, I was very fortunate to meet Mr. McKay several times when he and his family would attend a film at my theatre. I still remember as if it was yesterday McKay's informing the world of the tragedy at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games.
Though her name gave her an international flair, Cyd Charisse was born and raised Tula Elice Finklea in Amarillo, Texas. A star of such MGM musicals as "Singing in the Rain" and "The Bandwagon," Charisse worked unti 1995 in her chosen profession. I had the great opportunity of seeing Ms. Charisse on Broadway opposite John Schneider in "Grand Hotel" in the early 1990s.
MMMMMMMMMMMM...QUISP
Recently I caught a blurb online lamenting the lost cereals of our youth. 60s and 70s staples like "OK's," "Kaboom" and others have come and gone. One cereal mentioned was Quisp, which, along with Quake, was one of my favorites as a youngster. Imagine my shock when I read in the article that Quisp is still manufactured in small batches. I searched every grocery store in Kansas City over the next few weeks in vain for even one box of that sugary goodness. Then, while in a Dollar General store the other day, who should be looking at me from off the shelf but my old space buddy Quisp. I immediately stocked up (11 boxes) and now am happily reliving my Saturday mornings with a big bowl of Quisp. All I need is Johnny Quest on the television to complete my transformation to age 12 again!
WHO SAYS WE AIN'T COOL?
Last week, while attending a screening of "The Incredible Hulk," I learned that a member of the audience was popular rapper Tech Nine. My son, Phillip, is a long time fan of his, even going so far as to travel to Arizona to catch him in concert. He also named his dog, Nina, after him. Her full name is Techa Nina. He was much younger then. I waited after the film to get Phillip an autograph and Mr. Nine (I guess that's what you'd call him) even posed for a photo to give me some street cred.
AND THE OSCAR FOR 1991 SHOULD HAVE GONE TO...
