Two Leftuggies™
Someday I'm going to make a fortune with my trademarked Leftuggies™. I just need to monetize them. BUT HOW?
Speaking of Leftuggies™, I have two of them for you right now! This first one is dated "September, 1959", and shows a nice lady posing in Tomorrowland. There's the mysterious UN logo, presumably placed there for United Nations Day. Children all over the world placed tinsel on their Rand McNally globes, and they drank warm buttermilk with a cinnamon stick placed in the mug. They also watched lots of TV, but they did that every day. The lady gets two extra points for not folding her souvenir guidebook, but then one point is subtracted because her sweaty hands will cause the paper to warp.
Next, from what I am guessing is "sometime in the 1970s" (look at those sideburns) is this picture of the Dapper Dans, serenading us with a lively song. Perhaps "Toot, Toot, Tootsie (Goo'bye)!"? Whatever the tune was, they are having a lot of fun, and so are WE.
15 comments:
Major-
"Someday I'm going to make a fortune with my trademarked Leftuggies™. I just need to monetize them. BUT HOW?"
Oh, that's easy: Souvenir popcorn buckets-!
"That" lady also scored extra points for those cool mid-century glasses frames; but she loses a point for her overly-long top, covering up far too much of her shorts. Her outfit is all out-of-balance.
Thanks, Major. P.S. That linked photo is a beauty-!
Any picture of the Dans is a good one! The feller on the left is daring us to reach through the screen and pull his finger. And I love the nice Tomorrowland lady's earrings; I need a pair of those for myself.
The next time I need to come up with an excuse for not going somewhere, I think I'll just say, "I'm sorry I can't make it; I have to stay home and put tinsel on my Rand McNally globe."
^ Haha!
The Nice Lady has a bit of a Bette Midler vibe... on one of the Divine Miss M's incognito days. The linked photo (to that weird website) looks MUCH better than today's photo! Then again, one shouldn't look a gift Leftuggie in the mouth. Leftuggies are like pot luck; you never know what yer gonna get.
When I look at a photo of a barbershop quartet, I sometimes try to guess which one is the bass, which one is the tenor, etc.. One would think that the girthy guy on the left is the bass, but he could just as well be a tenor. For some reason, I think the #3 guy (from the left) is the bass... No idea why.
Thanks for the sweet and savory Leftuggies, Major.
"Then again, one shouldn't look a gift Leftuggie in the mouth."
Giftuggies!
Nanook, you and Mr. Blackwell should get together and trade notes.
Nice Leftuggies today. Thanks, Major.
For some reason I’m drawn to the “theme-free” Tomorrowland ticket booth. I’m sorry folks, the Future is All Business. What a popcorn bucket that would make.
The singers look like they are enjoying their work. I prefer these costumes to the contrived striped suits used today, which look an ad for some kids candy, Skittles, I think.
Thanks Major!
JG
Nanook, genius! I’m probably the last person to jump on the popcorn bucket bandwagon, but I’m sure there’s money to be had. I’m also going to have a podcast, the defining feature is that every other word will be “Ummmm….”. And I will ask, “Know what I mean?” at the end of every sentence. You’ll love it! The linked photo was from an anniversary, but even so, I think it’s one of the best in my collection.
Melissa, NEVER pull a finger, I don’t care what reason they give you. It’s just not worth it. Helpful hint for putting tinsel on your Rand McNally globe… a generous coating of lard will help the tinsel stay put.
JB, gosh, I did not get “Bette Midler” vibes from that lady, she seems a bit mousy. I’m sure she was a lovely person! I agree that today’s first photo is not as “WOW” as the linked photo, but you can’t have it all. And yes, I have no doubt that the fellow to the left is the bass.
Melissa, quick, trademark that word before I do!
K. Martinez, Mr. Blackwell, what an odd character. Famous for saying mean things about celebrities once a year. Did he do anything else? I could look him up, but… you know. It’s Mr. Blackwell.
JG, I suppose the ticket/information booth was kind of “Bahaus” in design? Which looked modern, even though Bauhaus went back to the 1930s (I think). I want a ticket booth popcorn bucket! I agree, I am not crazy about the bright “Fruit Stripe Gum” costumes the Dapper Dans wear today, it screams “cheesy amusement park crap”.
JG, I can spell "Bauhaus", I swear. I did it once in the previous paragraph!
Major-
Ahhhh... Mr. Blackwell. Over the years, Harry Shearer (on his radio show Le Show) has satirized him in wonderful ways. One of my favorite bits was having Mr. Blackwell interview a performer, 'Bobby Bouche' (played by Tom Leopold), starring in a dinner theater production of Irma la Deuce, supposedly at the 'James Franciscus Dinner Theater', in La Mirada. The premise and execution was so brilliantly out-there, about mid-way through the interview it was learned that Bobby Bouche was actually the 'love child' of Marilyn Monroe and John F. Kennedy. Truly a brilliant spoof, definitely worthy of the [seemingly] crazy things Mr. Blackwell did on his own radio show - for real.
Nanook, I didn't know that Mr. Blackwell had his own radio show! Was it a "celebrity gossip" kind of show? The guy was such an oddball, and yet, I gotta hand it to him, I know his name, so he must have done something right. As for "Le Show", I've been aware of it forever, but have never heard a single episode. I see that it has been going for over 40 years!
Nanook, that's hilarious! My late aunt had a cat named Mr. Blackwell (Blackie for short).
Nanook,
That Harry Shearer "Le Show" satire sounds hilarious. I wonder if YouTube has any of his material.
Major,
I think Mr. Blackwell had his own style and played it for all it was worth. He had an intelligent wit and snarky personality. And to think he was one of the "Dead End Kids".
Major-
Ken described Mr. Blackwell beautifully. As with everything successful, Blackwell honed his ‘gimmick’, bringing him great notoriety and fame. I never listened to his radio program on KABC and the KIEV, on the air from 1972 - 1981, but it apparently discussed fashion and everything that went with it.
Other Mr. Blackwell ‘spoofs’ on “Le Show” often found Blackwell conducting interviews from the examination table in a plastic surgeon's office, while Blackwell was undergoing some sort of ‘beautifying’ “procedure”-! Very surreal and brilliantly hilarious.
When “Le Show” was still being broadcast from the studios of KCRW, I ‘gifted’ the one and only Mr. Blackwell record album release to Harry - the album entitled: ‘The Mr. Blackwell Show’, where he sang [I believe] original tunes. (I only bought the album for the cover art and the oddity of it - not for its musical “possibilities”).
Harry Shearer also used bis Mr. Blackwell impression a few times on The Simpsons, where he is a regular voice actor.
K. Martinez, you'd think there would be some sort of website for old "Le Show" episodes, but maybe they would be behind a paywall. How's Harry Shearer going to eat when all he has is that Simpsons money? I knew that Mr. Blackwell had once been a Dead End Kid, it seems hard to believe.
Nanook, jeez, you'd think that Harry Shearer would have been pretty thrilled to get that album. I'm surprised that the album consisted of original tunes instead of pop standards, but there are those pesky rights issues to grapple with.
Dean Finder, after over 760 (!!!!!) episodes of The Simpsons, I am not at all surprised that Harry has used his Blackwell impersonation!
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