The Little Drummer Boy

Christmas time has always been my favorite time of year. I have many wonderful memories of Christmases of the past.

One year my parents gave me a car for Christmas. Another year Chris gave me a daughter for Christmas.

However, there have been moments of pain amidst the Holiday revelry. I remember one such moment very well. I was 6 years old and very excited about Christmas, especially one of the presents that I had asked for.

This particular year had a new twist. My brother, my cousin and I were going to get to speak with Santa Claus on the telephone. I don’t know how this was arranged but there was somebody on the phone claiming to be jolly ole’ St. Nick. My skepticism, which has increased in the ensuing years, was generated by my conversation with him. As my Mom handed me the phone, butterflies danced to Christmas carols in my stomach. In between his "Ho, Ho Ho’s", “Santa” told me that he knew I had been a good little boy. His words stroked my 6 year old ego. The obligatory, “What would you like Santa to bring you”, followed. There was no doubt in my mind or hesitation in my reply.
“I want a Monkee Drum” I said excitedly.
“A What?”, a confused “Santa” inquired.
“A Monkee drum” I said as clearly and adamantly as I could.
“What’s a muhkeydwum?”
“No! A Monkee Drum!”
“What?” He struggled to understand.
My young mind was flooded with confusion. Why can’t he understand me? What is wrong with him? He knows when I am sleeping and knows when I’ve been naughty or nice so why can’t he understand what I am saying. Doesn’t he understand English. What language do they speak up in the North Pole?
“Monkee Drum! I want a Monkee drum!”, I continued to exclaim.
“I’m sorry I don’t understand”
“Monkee drum from the Monkees!” Didn’t this guy watch television. Didn’t he get my letter? I started to get really upset and the butterflies in my stomach turned nauseous.
“What’s muhkeys?, He said, still attempting to comprehend and redeem this conversation.
Great, I thought, I’m going to get a muhkeydwum for Christmas and not my beloved Monkee Drum! In utter frustration, as I held back tears, I handed the phone to my mother. She clarified that I wanted the kids drum set that I had seen in the Sears catalog adorned with the faces of the 4 Monkees and their guitar logo.

She explained that this was evidently one of Santa’s helpers and not the real one, who would have had no trouble understanding me. Good help must have been hard to find. In the ensuing years I’ve listened to an audio cassette recording made by my mother that Christmas. On the vintage recording she can be heard asking my brother and I what we got for Christmas that year. When I heard the six year Jeff gleefully announce his Christmas bounty, I could not understand what he was saying either. For some reason I was using an unusual dialect that was a hybrid of baby talk and a New England accent. I have no idea how my parents understood what the heck I was saying.

I did get my Monkees Drum set and a matching tambourine. I spent many hours generating enough racket to make my parents regret clarifying my wish to Santa.

Do You Believe In Angels?

“Do You Believe In Angels” was the bold question posed in the subject field. The email blast from JCPenney was advertising their Angel Giving Tree Online Program. I took the question seriously and answered affirmatively, audibly. Sure, I believe in angels. There are the ones down in Anaheim. Then there are Michael, Gabriel and their cohorts in the Bible. Of course, there are the ones who look like Roma Downey and Della Reese. What about real angels in the present day?

All I can do is answer from my own experience. The Bible talks about entertaining angels unaware. There are times in my life that I believe my might have encountered an angel.

When I was in my mid 20’s, I was going through some extremely difficult times in my professional life. In the midst of the chaos that I found myself in, I was engaging in a typical transaction with a gentleman. A few minutes later, he returned to say, “I have a message for you”. I looked up to meet his eyes as he continued, “Be encouraged, Jesus loves you and will get you through this!” I babbled a confused., “Uhh…thanks”. Before my mind could form any other actual words, he was gone, never to be seen again. He might have not been an angel but he had right message that I needed to hear at the right time. That is a pretty gifted messenger.

Several years later, I received a frantic call from Chris. She had a flat tire on the freeway. A policeman had followed her as she drove on the rim off the freeway and into the first parking lot off the freeway. I valiantly dashed to my car to come to my love’s rescue and change the flat. We had a Toyota Minivan and tire changing was a difficult exercise. On this day I learned the crucial detail to a successful tire changing experience with that type of car was to only attempt it on a flat surface. As I cranked the crazy scissor jack on the uneven Home Depot parking lot, I was able to extract the deflated tire. However, it became clear that I was not going to elevate the car up high enough to get the inflated spare on. Nonetheless, I kept winding the jack as high as it would go and it slipped out from underneath the car. The tireless wheel dropped and landed on the asphalt. This was not good. I determined that if I could get a board underneath it could level the area the jack needed to be and could raise the jack a bit more off the ground. I ventured into the Home Depot. While I was gone, a truck with two men appeared out of nowhere. Chris explained what I said was needed. They jumped out of the truck reached into the back and pulled out the exact boards that were necessary and raised the car and changed the tire in seconds. On the way back from my quest for wood, I could see these guys talking to Chris. I put on my “tough guy” face and rushed over. Chris, amused by my “tough guy” face, assured me that things were fine. One of the guys tipped his cap as they jumped into their truck and sped off. We found it curious that these did not go into Home Depot. Why were they randomly driving through the parking lot with exactly what we needed? Who were these guys?

Well, I do believe in angels but I am not certain that these were angelic encounters. Either way God sent help in my time of need. So I am satisfied.

Have you entertained any angels unaware?

Waiting for Patience

“Patience is a virtue”-Late 14th century proverb.

"Genius is eternal patience"-Michelangelo

"All things come to him who waits - provided he knows what he is waiting for."-Woodrow T. Wilson

"Blessed are all who wait for Him!" Isaiah 30:18

“The waiting is the hardest part"-Tom Petty

"I want it now!"-Jeff Craft


Why is it so hard to wait? Patience is a good thing but there is life to live while I'm waiting for patience.

My first recollection of having to really wait for something, was waiting for something in the mail. Of course, I remember waiting for the bell to ring signaling the end of an endless school day, but I’m talking about patiently awaiting the arrival of something very special. A very special hat.

I grew up reading Archie comics. My parents had read them in their youth and felt compelled to continuously furnish my brother and I with the latest antics of Archie, Jughead and their cohorts from Riverdale High. When I was 7, Archie was hot. Not only did The Archies have a number one hit record, best selling albums, a top rated animated TV series but they were pitchmen for Post Cereals.

It was on one of the Cereal boxes at a Lucky's supermarket that I gazed upon the mail in offer for Jughead’s hat. With several box tops from a Post cereal and 50¢ I could own my own hat just like Jughead's. I knew that I wanted that hat. I needed that hat. I would live happily ever after if I had that hat!

My Mom graciously agreed to my acquisition plan and purchased a box of cereal that I didn’t really like (probably Alpha-Bits). I had to promise to actually consume the required cereal to obtain the necessary box tops. By the time I had eaten and collected all that I needed, the deadline arrived. My order form was mailed on the day of expiration. Now I had to find the patience to wait for something that might not actually come because it took so long to eat all that cereal.

After only a couple of weeks, I began my daily ritual of rushing home from school and checking the mailbox. I knew that it was a 6-8 week thing but I checked anyway, hoping for some sort of favor from some unknown postal fairy. As time went on, I started to resign myself to the possibility that it would not come. I would never have that silly beanie. How could I go on with out it?

Finally, one day after school, I entered our house and a box on the dining room table caught my eye. Was my wait over? I expectantly glanced at my Mom, who grinned widely. I can remember the butterflies I felt in my stomach and the blood rushing to my face. I ripped the box open and gingerly removed my Jughead hat. I surrendered to the excitement that I had held at bay. I engaged in a brief, awkward, happy dance (I’ve never been much of a dancer!) I loved that hat and wore it everywhere all the time. If you're living the life of a Jughead you might as well have the hat for it!


As an adult, I’ve become more discerning about my headgear choices but it is still hard to wait. Time seems to go by faster when you're older so waiting for inevitable things is easier. We even pay places like Disneyland for the privilege of waiting in lines all day long. We know that eventually we will reach the front of the line. Waiting for things that might not come or events that might not happen is still extremely hard. That’s where faith comes in. True patience for me only comes in trusting in God’s timing.

“To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under the heaven…” Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

I’ve posted a picture of myself wearing my beloved Jughead hat. (I’m evidently trying to strangle my neighbor Gus)






I am, of course, still waiting for "dumb" to become a term used for greatness. If you haven't read my blog on the new "dumb", click here: My Dumb Blog

My Dumb Blog

Have you ever heard anyone refer to something good as “Sick”, as in “That song is sick”? If someone says to you, “Do me a solid”, are you confused or do you, through the process of osmosis, just know that a favor has been requested? Instead of the standard exclamation, “Oh no!” do you hear a “Oh Snap!”? I have and it has made wonder who gives these words new meanings. Somebody had to be the first one to use or misuse a word and make it mean something completely different. How do the first recipients of these communications of new slang understand the words and why do they have the inclination to make them part of their vocabulary? Negative words used as slang for good have always been around but how do they spread? These questions have plagued me for some time and I’m finally taking action.

I am challenging my readers to join me in my campaign to coin a new bit of slang by twisting the English language for the greater good. Yes, It will be swell, cool, neat, ginchy, fab, gear, sweet, bad, groovy, far out, sweet, tough, tight, dope, mad and sick. You’ll be a participant in the birth of something momentous. We’ll not only pump new life into a tired old word but also spoof the whole concept of frivolous metaphors and, as a result, perhaps, save the English language from further perversion.

My new superlative for something great, and outstanding is...drum roll…“Dumb”. Yes, “dumb” can be the new “dope”, the new “tight” or the new “neato”. If "bad" can mean good, why can't "dumb" be good as well? I know if sounds revolutionary but as another decade winds down, it’s time to stand for something …dumb! Are you brave enough to join me as I try to make the world a little more dumb?

I need your help. In conversations, in texts, on Twitter, MySpace and Facebook let's make dumb mean good, great and the best. Think it, use it, say it, write it and live it. Dumb is the word! Remember no more “Oh, that’s nice”, “She is so sweet” or “That dress is beautiful”. Now it’s “Oh, that’s dumb”, “She is so dumb” and “That dress is beautiful”. Statements like that will make great conversation starters!

If we work together, we can make “dumb” slang for the next generation. We can prove that slang like this is really dumb. Are you dumb enough to unite with your dumb brothers and sisters and change the world just a little?

Thank you for you time and attention. Have a dumb day!

Jeff's Jukebox

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love music. Anyone who knows my music knows that I have an offbeat taste and seem to gravitate towards obscure songs and artists. As I was looking at my current playlist, I noticed a mix of new and old, obscure and known, cool and embarrassing. So what better way to use my blog than to let all of you capture a glimpse of what my favorite songs are right at this moment in time. You could call this Jeff's Time Capsule of Music. You could, but I'm calling it Jeff's Jukebox. Here are my current faves, in no particular order:


1. Flying On the Ground Is Wrong-Buffalo Springfield
2. Sister Golden Hair-West Coast All-Stars
3. One Reason-Chynna & Vaughn
4. Runaway Heart-Alathea
5. Angel Band-The Monkees
6. Where the Streets Have No Name-Chris Tomlin
7. Fallin’ For You-Colbie Caillat
8. Counting On God-Phillips, Craig & Dean
9. I Don’t Want to Hear Anymore-Paul Carrack
10. Couldn’t I Just Tell You-Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet
11. Safe-Phil Wickham & Bart Millard
12. I Wish-Cindy Morgan
13. My Heart’s Cryin’ Tonight-Richie Furay w/Timothy B. Schmit
14. The Other Side of the Rain-the Rubinoos
15. Alright-Rynn

I Was A Teen-Age Balloon Boy

With all the media attention about the so-called Balloon Boy over the past couple of days I felt compelled to come clean. It is time to spill the beans, let the cat out of the bag and throw myself on the mercy of the court of public opinion. I am guilty. Guilty of more than using a bunch of tired clichés. I am guilty of being a Teenage Balloon boy. To be more precise, I was an accomplice of a Teenage Balloon Boy.

For a short period of time in the 70’s you could purchase small cans of helium at toy stores. They were the size of a can of Wizard Air Freshener and contained only enough helium for about a dozen balloons. That was all that was needed for our Great Balloon Hoax.

My cousin received a couple of cans of Helium for his Birthday. You would have thought it would have been for the balloons for his party, but no, they were for him to have fun with. This was the days 1970’s years before Xbox, Wii and Guitar Hero. Boys had to have something to do. After the party, his plan was revealed. He would fill several balloons with helium and let them go in hopes of ascertaining how far they could go. How could he track them in the days before sophisticated equipment you may ask. Well that is where the hoax comes.

Each balloon contained a note that promised the finder a cash prize by calling the number enclosed. As we watched each latex sphere ascend into the air, our excitement increased. We never really thought about what would happen when or if someone actually found one of the balloons or it’s remnants. After a few days we found out. A woman called my cousin asking for the award that was promised to the finder of a balloon. When my Aunt discovered the hoax she was not happy. She had to apologize to the disappointed balloon recipient. The hoax did accomplish the desired result as we did discovered how far the balloons would travel. The balloon that the lady found traveled only a few miles.

It feels good to get that off my chest. Of course, all I did was watch the balloons take off. That and laugh when my cousin got into trouble. It’s not as funny now. Actually, helium is not a good thing for kids to play with. It was a much simpler time and we were just simple enough to get a thrill of watching balloons float into the sky.

Lost & Found

Have you ever had a weird moment. A moment where you experienced something odd that you could not fully understand. I had such a moment on Friday.

My family and I had just enjoyed a showing of the Toy Story 3D Double Feature Event at the Long Beach Towne Center. My son and I were entering the restroom when I noticed that my cell phone was not attached to my pants. I furiously checked my pockets to no avail. I alerted my son of the situation and we quickly headed back to Theater 14. On the way, I remembered leaving the theater to take a call. However, I was sure I had secured it back into it’s holder upon completion of the call.

Just as the theater came into view, I was stopped by a tall burly man. He asked me if I had found a jacket. I assumed he mistook the Pillar sweatshirt I was holding as the jacket he was looking for. I informed him that I did not find a coat and showed him what I was carrying. As I started to head towards Theater 14 to renew my quest, the sight of a cell phone and holder that looked a lot like mine was in this guy’s hand. Not knowing what to say, I just blurted out “I did lose my phone…”, as my eyes were focused on the phone in his hand. He held it up and asked, “Is this your phone?” I began to reach for it but before I could take possession he said, “Monkees, right?”. I then knew that this stranger has either opened my phone and saw the Monkees wallpaper or took a call and heard my Monkees ringtone. I uttered an affirmation and grabbed my phone. He said that he was on his way to turn it in. I thanked the man and he walked away.

From the moment he stopped me and I saw my phone I thought it was peculiar. I was coming in the opposite direction of the theater that he found the phone in. Why did he pick me out to ask about his jacket. It seems like such an odd coincidence that he would stop the person that had lost the phone he found. Both of my kids thought it all made perfect sense. Chris thinks he was angel. I don’t know what to think.

What do you think?

Endless Possibilties

When I was about ten years old, I discovered the joy of opening a fresh sketch pad. Nothing felt better than holding 50 blank pages with endless possibilities. By applying a pencil and my imagination, from nothing I could create something. I could create anything. Fred Flintstone, Archie & Jughead, Dodger players all appeared in my sketch book. I eventually came up with my own characters. When I was finishing up a pad, all I could think of was getting a new one to dive into.

A few years later, fresh legal pads brought be that same feeling. Writing song lyrics was my passion. I was never intimated at staring at a blank page because I knew that there was always a chance that something special could emerge. Even if the result was mediocre at least something would appear. I learned that rewriting afforded the opportunity to improve the result. Rewriting became as important as the writing. A second chance. A do-over. The song wasn’t final until it was on vinyl.

As I have grown older, I have begun to see each day like the blank canvases with endless possibilities that excited me in the past. With each morning, I get a fresh opportunity to create a day of significance. I can try to meet challenges with a touch of grace. I can be a blessing to the people that I come in contact with. Depending on intent, word choice and tone, each interaction has the potential to be something exceptional or it can end disastrous or somewhere in between. Even though today does not allow for erasing, rewrites or do-overs, tomorrow presents a fresh chance to do something meaningful. As I despised wasting my blank pages, I dislike wasting moments and I hate wasting days.

I am not as successful at all of this as I would like but I am trying. I’ve only just recently perfected my Fred Flintstone drawings, so some things take time.

My Top Ten Favorite CDs

I recently blogged about my favorite vinyl albums. But what about my CD collection? What are my favorite CDs? To satisfy the curiosity of my readers, I have compiled a list of my favorite CDs. There are some obscure titles that are out of print but here they are in chronological order:

Lead Me On-Amy Grant-1988-This CD has been voted the best Christian album of all time. It is a classic and sonically ahead of it‘s time. The lyrics delved deeper into the Christian experience than any of her other recordings before or after.

Door Into Summer- Jacob’s Trouble-1989 The title track was a Monkees cover so I could not resist. The debut album from this trio from Georgia contained 60’s flavored pop-rock with a distinct 12 string flavor. Terry Taylor from Daniel Amos produced this album. Third Day covered “These Thousand Hills” from this CD and made it a radio hit.

For The Sake of The Call-Steven Curtis Chapman-1991-In my opinion, Christian music’s best lyricist followed this CD with more sophisticated works but this meant a lot to me when it came out. I remember getting goosebumps listening to the title track. The outstanding music inside makes up for Steven's mullet on the cover.

Consider the Cost-Steve Camp-1991- I discovered this CD from the Radio hit Guard the Trust. The 80’s keyboard heavy arrangements of the songs now seem a bit dated but the lyrics are still great. Scripture based and challenging. One of the best songs was written with Steven Curtis Chapman.

Let The Truth Run Wild-Jacob’s Trouble-1992- The Christian trio expanded to a quintet on what may have been their best CD. I’ve exchanged emails with one of the members and he posted some of my comments on his webpage. I guess that could be considered my first blog.

Songs-Rich Mullins-1996-A greatest hits album with 3 new recordings. Those recordings became his last as he died shortly after it’s release. A great collection by a great artist. Not one weak song on the entire album. Contains the classic “Awesome God”.

In My Father’s House-Richie Furay-1997-Worship music done in a country-rock style by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member. I bought this CD when the founding member of Buffalo Springfield and Poco performed at my Church.

Paleophonic-The Rubinoos-1998-The 70’s power-pop cult favorites return from a 15 year hiatus for this CD full of joyous music. Although they are now famous for suing Avril Lavigne for plagiarizing one of their songs. I only knew the group from a 1983 EP collaboration with Utopia. I saw this CD in a used bin a few years ago and plucked down the $1.50. It was new in shrink wrap. Every track is fabulous except for one which contains a voice mail message with a vulgar phrase. I skip that one.

Rich Young Ruler-Rich Young Ruler-2000-What a great sound on this Terry Taylor production. This band from La Mirada made this classic CD mixing sparkling catchy 60’s sounds with modern sensibilities. Beatleseque melodies and Beach Boys style harmonies permeate every track. Hey, it features a cello on several tracks. Sadly out of print and selling on Amazon for a penny.

Truth, Soul and Rock & Roll-the Elms-2002-A little Beatles, a little Raspberries, a little Who mix in some Tom Petty and give it current twist and you have this album. Their best.

It Might Get Loud

I watched the documentary "It Might Get Loud" the other night with my family. It featured Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White in a guitar-slinger summit. The three musicians from three generations and three countries spoke of their love of the guitar and their passion for music.

I'm not really of fan of any of these guys' bands but that was not necessary to enjoy this film. The bands that they were members of are responsible for some of the most memorable music in the last 40 years and this film offers an inside look to what makes them the musicians that they are.

Jack White is by far the most eccentric of the three and therefore the most intriguing. The scenes featuring him were often captivating.

It was hard not to smile when Jimmy Page beamed as he played a vinyl record from his youth. I also found it interesting as the three played together on each others songs, when Page began playing the riff to “Whole Lotta Love” the other two just stopped, watched and smiled widely.

The Edge spoke at length about his use of technology in his performances. His guitar sound was definitely much copied over the last 20 years. I found it humorous when he shared a anecdote about Bono and in the story Bono called him “Edge“. I guess that means that his friends call him “Edge” and everybody else calls him “The Edge”.

There was a lot of separate footage of the individual artists alone but the best moments were when the three were playing together or speaking with each other. Music is a force that can bring very different people together and give them an inexplicable connection. That connection was extended to the audience of this very entertaining film.

I’m hoping for a sequel about drummers. I was thinking maybe Jughead Jones, Guy Patterson and Bamm-Bamm Rubble.

What I Like About You

This blog entry is about a very special person I know.

This lady has devoted her entire life to her family. She has always placed others above herself. I’ve been impressed as I’ve watched her face major trials of life as her faith carried her through and refined her. She dedicated herself to educating her children by home-schooling them while spending a great deal of time each week working and doing a myriad of things at Church without fanfare.

I’ve always been aware of how special she is. However, I have developed a greater appreciation for her as I have marveled at the way she has met recent struggles and heartbreaking disappointments with such Christ-like grace.

Instead of growing bitter, she has grown as a person, daily demonstrating the faith that she professes. She has amazed me during this difficult season, as she has selflessly poured herself into assisting others, doing things that only she can do. Words do not exist that could fully describe my deep admiration for her.

I am her biggest fan.

I am also blessed to be her husband. From the moment she turned down my first request for a date and then 2 months later proposed to me, life with her has been an extreme adventure that I am grateful for. Even though she will probably say this blog was not entertaining enough or wasn’t funny enough, my hope is that I was able to pay tribute to her in a way that captures at least a portion of the lady that she is. Needless to say I love her and I think she is really swell.

Watching TV at the Movies

As I watched "Star Trek 2:The Wrath of Khan" the other night, I started thinking about movies featuring TV casts. The original Star Trek cast transitioned to the big screen more successfully than any other, starring in 6 theatrical feature films. What about the other TV shows that have been made into films with at least some of the original TV cast? Join me, on my way to the local cinema, traveling through the vast wasteland known as Television.

The first TV show to appear at the local Theater was “Dragnet” in 1954. The Jack Webb creation started as a Radio series before moving to TV. I’ve never seen this movie but I’m guessing it is very "Jack Webb". That is all you need to know.

The next TV transition was “Our Miss Brooks” in 1956. This movie appeared after the demise of the series and featured the original TV cast. For some odd reason the film ignored the story lines of the series about a schoolteacher.

Universal drafted the crew of the black & white 60’s sitcom, McHale’s Navy for the big screen in two low budget Color feature films during the run of the 1962-1966 series. They made one of them without McHale!

The Munsters followed their TV series with a lame feature film set in London but filmed at Universal Studios. 1966’s “Munsters, Go Home!” was the Munsters’ debut in color. Did we really need proof that Herman was green?

The year was 1966. America was experiencing the height of Batman-mania. The TV show Batman was airing on ABC twice a week to huge audiences. That summer FOX released “Batman” starring Adam West, Burt Ward and 4 Arch Criminals from the TV show in what was probably the most successful TV Show movie of the 60’s. This was a fun movie that captured some of what was great about the series. There is a hilarious scene with Batman trying to dispose of a giant bomb on a busy pier.

Speaking of bombs, the Monkees segued from their canceled TV show to the theaters with a bizarre movie called “Head”. Words can not adequate describe this very strange film that was written by Bob Rafelson and Jack Nicholson. The extreme lack of filmgoers led to this movie being pulled after one week. The few people who did see the film left dumbfounded. It has attracted a cult following over the years and is required viewing in film schools.

Anybody remember the Saturday morning show, H.R. Pufnstuf? Well, the talking dragon mayor of Living Island frolicked at the movies with Jimmy, Freddie the Flute and Witchiepoo in “Pufnstuff”. Mama Cass Elliot from The Mamas & The Papas also starred in this 1970 musical.

In 1980 Maxwell Smart returned from an extended stay in an undisclosed location for “The Nude Bomb”. Don Adams was amusing but none of the classic characters from “Get Smart” appeared in this not so nude bomb.

Police Squad! was a very funny and very short-lived series from 1982. With only 6 episodes produced this was probably the least successful show to be made into a feature. 1989’s “The Naked Gun: From The Files of Police Squad!” became a big box office hit and spawned 2 sequels.

Twin Peaks, a series I’ve never seen, was a big hit in 1990. It’s day in the sun was brief as the ratings plummeted in 1991. That did not stop David Lynch from bringing the show and most of the cast to the movies with “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me” in 1992. Unfortunately, he could not bring a sizeable audience to this critically drubbed prequel.

In 1994 the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation made the giant leap to cinematic glory with "Generations", the first of four features based on the syndicated hit. It actually featured cast members from the original series as well. Shatner is always better on the big screen!

The hottest kids show in the mid-90's was the Power Rangers. So hot that FOX was compelled to bring them to the cineplex with 1995's "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie". It was actually more enjoyable than the series. The movie was a marginal hit and led to a low budget sequel in 1997.

In the middle of the X-Files’ successful run on TV, “The X-Files: Fight the Future” arrived at the local cinemas. This 1998 film was moderately successful in the US but was a big hit internationally. 2008 saw the release of "X-Files: I Want to Believe". They could not find enough believers.

Strong DVD sales of the short-lived FOX Sci-fi series Firefly, led to a big screen version entitled “Serenity”. Praise from critics and Joss Whedon fans did not translate into big box-office numbers for this 2005 futuristic western.

I’ve ignored the movies made from Cable TV shows because 3 of them I really don’t want to write about.

Animated TV shows also moved to the movies. Yogi Bear, The Flintstones, Alvin & The Chipmunks, The Jetsons , Goof Troop, Duck Tales, Batman:The Animated Series and The Simpsons all were adapted to the big screen with the voice talents from the TV Shows. “The Simpsons Movie” was a huge hit while most of the others were as flat as Hanna- Barbera animation. Batman was pretty cool though.

Theatrical features starring TV casts have been around as long as TV. I believe I’ve hit on all the U.S. shows that were adapted to features. The question always arises about why would someone pay to see something that they could get for free. In most of the cases listed above, they wouldn’t. Maybe Hollywood got it wrong. Maybe they just picked the wrong shows. Of all the shows that have ever aired, McHale’s Navy gets two movies? Come on! I went through my TV Encyclopedia searching for the one show that would have been a surefire hit movie. After hours of meticulous research I found it. Not Bonanza, not Dallas, not Punky Brewster, not MacGyver, not Golden Girls and not According to Jim. The show that would have been a blockbuster movie is “Saved By the Bell”! Screech on the big screen. It would have been Oscar time in Bayside!

Doctor, My Eyes

I’ve had a bad time recently with my eyes. I don’t know about you but I use my eyes a lot. Everyday in fact.

Back in February, I sprayed nasal spray into my eye. It was an accident, my eye never sneezes. A trip to the Eye Doctor and some eye drops did the trick and I was soon scoping out the world good as new.

However, back in May, I was using a spin toothbrush and shot some Sensodyne toothpaste into my eye. My eye was irritated and bothersome. During the two weeks of maneuvering through insurance red tape, my eye had improved but still was not right. When I finally saw the ophthalmologist, his first words were, “Why did you wait so long to come in, Mr. Craft?”. My eye pain prevented me from giving him the dirty look that he deserved. His examination revealed that I and my eye would survive. He gave me some drops and told me to use them in both eyes because the other eye looked irritated as well.

Faithfully following the Doctor’s instructions, I used the drops until my eyes had a reaction to them 2 days later. I called the Doctor and he said, “Stop using those drops!” Thanks Doctor I already knew that. Now both eyes were sore and worse than before. This time the red tape only took a week. The Doctor gave new drops but my eyes improved only slightly. Another visit resulted in a diagnosis that I now needed new eyeglasses.

The next day I went to a Wal-Mart Vision Center and ordered 2 pairs of glasses. When they arrived a week later, both pairs were wrong. By then my eyes were so strained, everything in life was difficult. Reading, driving, watching TV just caused me frustration. I was just miserable. I began to realize what a blessing vision is and wondered if my old clear vision would ever return.

When my newest new glasses arrived a week later, one of the pairs still caused me issues. A recheck revealed that the prescription was not the correct one. I then had to wait another week for another new pair. My spirit was low but I soldiered on. The final pair of progressive lenses arrived. After 2 weeks of getting used to them and having the optician adjust the frames, I could see again. God’s colorful creation was now once again there from me to gaze upon. Wow, I thought, the kids have grown, Chris is even more beautiful and I need a haircut! But then…! But then, one of the nose guards fell off my glasses. I took it to a different Vision center to have them replace it. It should not have been a big deal. It was. The person replaced the guard with the wrong size and for some reason readjusted the lenses. The frames no longer fit on my face the way progressives need to. I could not see properly again!

My old friends at my original Vision Center replaced the nose guard and readjusted the frames. Things are once again good.

During this season of eye issues, I began to think about the old hymn, Amazing Grace. The line about “was once blind but now I see” ran though my mind frequently. It made me think about how my life changed when I became a Christian. I had been blind and began to see things in a whole new way. Life did come in focus. I think about that each time I put on my specs. I also close my eyes before I use my nasal spray or use my spin toothbrush!

Two Hours Of My Life I’ll Never Get Back

I have always enjoyed my visits to the cinema. As a kid, my parents would take my brother and I to the drive-in to see the latest Disney releases. The title didn’t matter it was just fun. Some of the those Disney films like “The Computer Who Wore Tennis Shoes” were pretty lame. But I never noticed and certainly didn’t care. As I got older, I would “go to the movies” picking whichever movie was starting at the desired time or what looked like the best of the bunch playing that night. I have, therefore, seen some pretty bad films.

My family and I have had many conversations around the dinner table discussing bad movies. My daughter actually develops animosity towards films that waste her time and money. “That’s two hours of my life I’ll never get back” is a frequent phrase she uses. Both kids want to avoid films that might not meet all their expectations. My trips to the theater have grown scarce over the years. I now “go to see Star Trek” or “go to see Up!” and therefore most of the movies I see I am pretty sure I’m going to like.

I was thinking about the worst films that I have paid to see and decided to list the Top 10, in chronological order. So grab a flat soft drink, stale popcorn and some melted chocolate and revisit the best of the worst with me.

Viva Knievel!- 1977
This played with Rocky, which had won Best Picture a few months earlier, in a strange double bill at Lakewood Center. Evel Knievel played a fictional version of himself jumping his motorcycle, fighting drug traffickers and reconciling Gene Kelly and his estranged son. Leslie Nielsen, Lauren Hutton and Frank Gifford also appeared. Evel was a showman but he was no actor. Even if he was, the dialogue was so horrific that even Olivier would have induced laughter. However, this is one of those movies that is so bad it’s good. One night a few years ago I watched this on a Spanish language station. It was even better dubbed in Spanish and I don’t understand the language.


Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band-1978
The Bee Gees, Peter Frampton, Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Earth Wind & Fire, Steve Martin & George Burns starring in a film that is told only using Beatles songs from Sgt. Pepper and Abbey Road. No dialogue at all. Sound interesting? Think again. I admit enjoying the film the first time and returning to throw my money away a second time. By then people were going to see it just to hiss and boo. In the climatic scene where Billy Shears, played by teen magazine cover boy Peter Frampton (think Joe Jonas), is distraught over the death of his sweetheart at the hands of Steven Tyler. As he stood on a ledge contemplating suicide, people in the audience were chanting, “Jump!” in unison. Maybe this is where Van Halen got the idea for their song, Jump!. Billy Shears survived but the film killed Peter Frampton’s career.

Thank God It’s Friday-1978
This was my worst movie experience ever. First, I upset my best friend for bringing a girl along to the guy’s night out. Then “Grease” was supposed to be the word but at Alondra 6 that night it was sold out. We had to settle for this Disco drivel. The threadbare plot about a night at the hottest Disco in town had several interlocking storylines. One included Donna Summer, as an aspiring singer, trying to get her big break. Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger and the Commodores also starred in this movie that played like a lame episode of The Love Boat. Where was Gopher when we needed him? I disliked Disco with a passion so I was not the target audience. I kept praying for the movie to end. It finally did and then I wished it hadn’t. On the way home, I got my first ticket. I had my license for only a month. The movie did win a Best Song Oscar for Last Dance. I hated it anyway.

Goin’ Coconuts-1978
I actually took a date to see a double bill of Goin’ Coconuts starring Donny & Marie and Jaws 2. I was either the bravest or the dumbest teenage boy. Believe it or not she spoke to me the next day. The plot, if you could call it that, involved Donny & Marie, playing themselves, getting involved in stopping jewel thieves. The story was lame. The jokes were stale, the acting was bad, the direction was lacking and Donny & Marie were…Donny & Marie. What more do I need to say? By the way I blamed Donny & Marie for the brevity of my relationship with the young lady.


Nude Bomb- 1980
Don Adams returned to the role of Maxwell Smart for the first time in a decade in this miserable follow-up to the classic Get Smart TV series. It was fun to see Smart back in action and on the big screen. Get Smart, however, without Agent 99, Hymie, Siegfried or the Chief isn’t really Get Smart. This movie, which reportedly was filmed as a TV movie but released theatrically, only included Max and Larabee from the series. They story concerned a villain who develops a bomb that when detonated destroys clothing. I was treated to this movie as a Birthday present from one of my High School buddies (He forgave me for the TGIF debacle).

"The Nude Bomb/" Opening Titles


Caveman- 1981
A prehistoric leading man vehicle for Ringo Starr. This film had no dialogue in English, just grunts and caveman gibberish. Maybe this is where Mel Gibson got the idea to do Passion Of the Christ in Aramaic. That’s basically all you really need to know. Randy Quaid and Shelly Long co-starred in this and their careers managed to survive. This is the only film I’ve seen that I had to fight to stay awake. The other 4 people in theater lost the fight.

Neighbors- 1981
This film starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd was so disappointing. A comedy that is not funny. Black comedy or not, I did not laugh. The film made a lot a money on opening weekend because it was not shown to reviewers. Once word of mouth got around the film bombed. The story was about neighbors. Bad neighbors. Bad movie. Sadly, Belushi died about 3 months later. This was his last film.

Man With One Red Shoe-1985
Tom Hanks belly flopped in his follow up to Splash. This was an unfunny spy spoof co-starring Jim Belushi, Dabney Coleman and Carrie Fisher. I was expecting so much more. I refuse to wear red shoes to this day in protest.

Harriet The Spy- 1995
I shied away from listing films that we went to see for the kids benefit. Films like Andre, All I Want for Christmas, Spice World, and From Justin to Kelly, etc, could have all been contenders but I enjoyed the family movie going experience so much that I cannot be objective. However this was a film that we took the kids to the drive-in to see and I could not wait for it to be over. Michelle Tratchenberg and Rosie O’Donnell starred in this film about a kid who writes observations down and then loses her notebook.

Carman The Champion- 2001
Christian singer Carman, who was so big at one time, he could go by just one name. Unlike singularly named Cher, Carman did not make a graceful segue into films. His acting was actually not the worst part of this film that recycled plotlines from the first 5 Rocky films. It was painfully predictable and plodding. I saw this with Chris, the kids and my Mom. We were the only ones in the theatre so we could laugh freely at the unintentionally comical scenes.

Year One- 2009
The 11th film in my Top 10. Jack Black, Michael Cera directed by Harold Ramis. I expected to be rolling on the floor laughing. I did no rolling. I did no laughing. Jack Black is always mildly amusing doing anything, however I did not go to see this to be mildly amused. A comedy that did not make me laugh. I chuckled once. At $12 a ticket I need more than that.

I have to say that Viva Knievel was by far the worst of my list. It is also my favorite. Unfortunately there were so many other contenders. What were the worst movies you paid to see?

Jeff's Top Ten Vinyl Records

A week spent excavating my vintage record collection generated nostalgic memories so strong that I had no choice but to share them on my blog. Each LP seemed to have it's own backstory. The covers brought to mind anecdotes that need to be told. So here is my ten most memorable records. These were my favorites during the vinyl era. Even though I have most of these on CD, I rarely listen to them. Most of them have seemed to have lost their luster. But I loved them all at one time. Sit back for my trip back to my youth!

1. More of the Monkees-The Monkees 1967
The first album I ever owned. It’s one of the biggest selling albums of the 60’s. I played this record a million times. “I‘m A Believer" was the big hit but as a kid I loved it all except for a lame Davy Jones spoken word track. Over the years I’ve received a vinyl re-issue and the various CD re-releases. Last Christmas, upon presenting me with the 2 CD Collector’s edition, my Mom asked, “Exactly how many versions of this album have I given you?” The answer is 5.

2. Up To Date-Partridge Family
Real men are not afraid to admit their embarrassing childhood interests. This record, like the other 7 releases from the lipsychning faux family band, featured music from the ABC-TV 70’s sitcom and I loved them all. I revisited these albums in the mid 80’s and beyond the singles, I found the music trite and uninspired. However, over the last few years I bought the CD’s and could not stop smiling as I listened to this polished pop from a simpler time and place.

3. A New World Record-ELO 1976
The catchy Beatlesque pop melodies of Jeff Lynne presented with a full orchestra and choir reached an apex with this release. The first radio hit “Livin’ Thing” caught my attention and then an appearance on Midnight Special performing other songs like “Telephone Line” and “Do Ya?” sold me. Instantly this became my favorite LP before being shortly replaced by #5.

4. Their Greatest Hits 1971-1976 -Eagles 1976
I bought this at K-Mart on the same day as “A New World Record” and it blew me away. I loved every song. Catchy, melodic country rock with intelligent lyrics. I had heard most of the songs on KHJ the top radio station in LA at the time but had never really paid much attention until I heard them all together. This is the biggest selling album of all time in the US but “Thriller” will probably pass it soon for obvious reasons.

5. Hotel California-Eagles 1976
Despite “New Kid in Town” hitting #1 on the charts it wasn’t until some of the other songs started getting a lot of airplay on FM stations that I was convinced about spending the $4. It was a bargain. The addition of Joe Walsh to the line-up made a good band great. The level of songwriting inspired this fledgling lyricist tremendously. This was my favorite album of the Vinyl era. I actually wore this album out by continuous playing. The mood and many of the themes and lyrics are really too dark for me now to enjoy. I haven’t listened to it in it’s entirety in many years. “New Kid in Town” is still a great song.

6. Out Of The Blue-ELO 1977
It was a cold November afternoon when my brother came to the rescue with a loan during a trip to Licorice Pizza in Downey. I discovered this 2 record set and realized I could not afford it so I brother kicked in some greenery. I had spent my money on tickets to a School dance and my parents had bought me a suit to wear. (A leisure suit! Hey, it was 1977!) I loved it so much( the record, not the suit) that I would not relinquish the record player for my brother to play his new record, some Jimi Hendrix thing. “Mr. Blue Sky” and “Sweet Talking Woman” still bring a smile to my face.

7. Hot Streets-Chicago 1978
This group has released 30 albums and this one was the only one not to have a number in the title and the only one to feature their mugs on the cove. It was their lowest selling album to date. In retrospect this was a pretty weak album, but I couldn’t get enough of it at the time. For days I anxiously awaited the group's appearance on “Dick Clark’s Live Wednesday” to promote this album. Just as the band took the stage to sing “Alive Again” the phone rang. My brother begrudgingly answered the phone and informed me that my youth pastor was the caller. A dilemma for young Jeff! Do I have my brother lie to the pastor or miss Chicago in the pre-VCR days. I did not want my brother’s nose to grow so I missed the performance. As I was writing this, I checked You Tube and found the clip and watched it for the first time. Check it out below.

8. All Things Are Possible-Dan Peek 1978
My first Christian album. My classmate Treasure (yes that's really her name) loaned her copy to me. I loved hearing songs about Jesus being sung by a familiar voice in a style that sounded cool. Peek had been a member of the group America. My Mom bought me my own copy that Christmas. The title track became the first song on a Christian label to make the Billboard charts.

9. The Innocent Age-Dan Fogelberg 1981
I hesitated at the hefty price tag this 2 record concept album came with but my Mom blessed me with the dough because I had been helping out so much at home while she tended to an ill relative. The eloquent singer songwriter hit his peak creatively and commercially with this LP. The writing stuck a chord in me and influenced my lyric writing quite a bit. It contained 4 hits including, “Leader of the Band” and “Same Old Lang Syne”.

10. Utopia -Utopia 1982
I almost didn’t buy this after being disappointed with their previous release. The bonus songs on the extra disc enticed me enough to throw down the cash. I bought this at Licorice Pizza in Bellflower and kept it spinning on the turntable for weeks non-stop. This album of premier Power-pop contained a couple of FM radio hits and a minor Hit Single. This was my favorite LP for many years. Utopia became my favorite band and I enjoyed their next 2 records as well but this was their best, by far. When I met my wife Chris, she scored major points by not only knowing who Utopia was, but she had seen them in concert in ’78. One of my first dates with Chris involved Pizza and watching a rented VHS video of Utopia performing these songs from the first ever Live Concert presented on Cable TV.

11. Inamorata-Poco 1984
The 11th album in my Top Ten. I had become a fan of this pioneering country rock band with their hit “Legend” LP in 1979. This album did not contain any country or much rock. Some have called it “Poco meets Toto” but it hit the pocket for me at the time. Three former members including Pastor Richie Furay and Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles returned to recreate the classic Poco harmonies. This is probably the least successful of any the records on my list. It’s lack of success led to the group losing it’s record deal. These songs were part of a mix tape that Chris and I listened to on an ill-fated Las Vegas trip. The transmission malfunctioned on the way and we spent 8 hours going 20 miles an hour with the Poco tape in repeat. Chris gets angry every time she hears any of the songs but I still sing along.

Chris severely chastised me for not including any Beatles albums on this list. She said that I should not be allowed to use the term "Beatlesque" if they are not included. My vow to my blog readers is to always tell the truth. So if "Beatles Love Songs" is number 12 it is not going to be in my Top 10 or 11. Hopefully she understands the integrity of a blog.

Please enjoy the videos below. I'm going to go listen to my IPOD.

Finyl Vinyl?

Recently my family and I acquired a turntable device that play the prehistoric black round 12" platters known as records. As the kids sat amazed watching the record spin around and around and the stylus run in the grooves that emitted the sounds of wonderful vintage music, I began to wax nostalgically about vinyl records.

For over 50 years the vinyl record format ruled. Growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, those records played a big part of my life. From my Mom’s Elvis LPs to my father’s Johnny Cash records, to Paul Revere & the Raiders owned by my brother, music was playing frequently in my childhood home. My Monkees and Partridge Family records dominated once I was tall enough to reach the stereo. I totally rejected the 8-Track or cassette formats and spent my money only on vinyl. However, I could never come up with a way to play my records in the car.

Surprisingly, years after it’s death caused by the compact disc, vinyl is making a comeback. Sales of vinyl records has doubled in 2009. Record companies are reissuing classic albums from the past as well as pressing current hits on vinyl. Stores like Barnes & Noble and Best Buy have added record sections. Used records stores are still around. Amoeba Records in Hollywood stocks thousands of used albums and is seeing increased business. (At Amoeba Chris was able to score a sealed copy of an album of hymns from the 70’s sung by Pastor Chuck Smith)

Our kids had purchased some collectible vinyl recordings of some of their favorite artists and were looking forward to having a record party. I’ve been able to get most of my favorite records on CD or MP3 over the years. However there are some that have never been released in a digital format. It has been interesting to listen to some things that I have not heard in close to 20 years. Of course, I had to endure derision from Chris about my musical choices of the past. She had the audacity to greet the playing of my Kelly Groucutt album with the comment of “How horrid!”. This was spoken by the person who owns the disco version of the Theme from Chips and every Donny Osmond album ever released. I don’t need to go into what she said when I put on the Soundtrack to the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club movie.

My kids got a kick out of going through our collection of over 200 old records asking about the ownership of each one. They were able to guess a lot of them. Poco, Dan Fogelberg, America and Eric Carmen is Dad’s. Culture Club, The Motels, Bette Midler and Carole King is Mom's. Questions like who is Dan Peek, Joe Vitale or Randy Meisner came up frequently. The 10 minute dance remix of Dancing in the Dark just bewildered them. Much to her chagrin, Chris’ Mustard Seed Faith was never located. The kids, however, discovered a copy of Thriller that Chris had forgotten she even owned. The enlarged area for lyrics and graphics were intriguing to my son & daughter. They understood where the term “liner notes” came from after this.

It was a lot of fun because we spent time listening to music together. In this personal IPOD, individual earbud age we live in, the experience of communal music listening is often neglected. The pops, scratches and surface noise that used to drive me crazy felt soothing and comfortable. As I joined the kids watching the records spin, feeling the music more, I was a part of the experience. I was involved and not just listening to a sound piped directly into my ear from a sterile, cold and impersonal little 4 inch POD.

Do you have any vinyl memories?

Playing Songs On My Guitar

I’ve worked with a lot of different people over the years. When you stay at one place for a long time you see a lot of people come and go. Friendships are made and work is done and then people leave and someone new arrives. There is always a mix of different personalities and different talents that hopefully will grow into a productive unit. Every so often, I’ve wound up working with one or two special people that fit well and more work and better work was the result. Lately, I have found myself in a situation where the entire staff working under me has been special. The strengths and qualities of the very different people have meshed and extraordinary things have been accomplished. Everyone worked together as a true team to complete the tasks at hand. In some very difficult situations, these co-workers went above and beyond the call of duty. They sacrificed and never complained. Well, they complained a little. Actually, some complained a lot. But the work always came first and they always cared about the quality of what we were doing. What impressed me most was the dedication to our mission. Not discounting the contributions of any other staffers, as a whole, this is the best “team” that I been blessed to work with.

Sadly, I’ve learned that our team is breaking up. Shortly, I will be saying goodbye to these fine young ladies. This is difficult for me. Probably because of the hard work we’ve had to do in tough situations, I’ve grown closer to this bunch than I have most co-workers. Actually, it’s probably because these are very special people that I am talking about. Their work is outstanding because they are outstanding people that I am privileged to know. Frankly, I may just feel closer to them because of Twitter and Facebook and I always know what they’re eating, what they’re doing or what they’re thinking.

So to Brenda, Valerie, Morgan, and Clarice I thank you and I salute you. My tribute to my favorite, your mother hen, Calvary Bird is forthcoming. The Lord used our teamwork in so many ways to reach so many with our efforts. It has been an extreme pleasure to see you guys grow and mature into the young ladies of God that you all are. I will miss each of you, professionally and personally, more than I can say.

Coincidences?

Are there really random coincidences? I’m going to address two recent events that may not be coincidences but then they are Twilight Zone moments.

Saturday night when I was finishing up my tongue in cheek post about missing the Monkees’ appearance on “The Johnny Cash Show“ when I was child, I checked a reference book to verify the date. I was shocked to find out that it was exactly 40 years to the day. Wow!

People have been talking about the phenomenon of remembering where they were or what they were doing when they got news of the deaths of famous people. In my lifetime that would be Elvis and John Lennon. Oh, I do remember where I was when John Kennedy was assassinated. I was in a crib sucking on a blue bottle.

I recall the August day in 1977 when I was across the street from my childhood home. Nancy, my classmate and family friend, was entertaining my teenage crush of the summer and myself . I attempting to charming, witty and suave when my cousin James came speeding up on his metallic blue Schwinn bicycle, pedaling as fast as his legs would allow. “Hey dude, Elvis died!” He exclaimed. As the sky began to sprinkle in the muggy August heat, I bid farewell to the ladies and headed home to break the news to my Elvis fan mother.

32 years later, I was visiting the dentist on my lunch hour. My dentist happens to be Nancy’s brother. As I waited to pay, Nancy, an assistant in the office, approached and asked if I had heard that Michael Jackson had died. In my surprised state, I said, “When you say Michael Jackson, you mean Jackson 5 Michael Jackson?” She confirmed this as I felt silly, realizing she would not have announced to me that long time local radio personality Michael Jackson had died. I have seen Nancy less that ten times in the last 25 years so I find it amazing that I learned of these 2 breaking news stories in her presence. So for the sake of celebrities worldwide, I must find another dentist!

Regrets

Regrets, I've Had a Few.

I'm sure everyone has second thoughts about decisions made in the past. Fork in the road moments that we pray about and then ignore any direction we might receive are common. However, there are decisions that impact life changing moments that we live to regret.

I have one that I want to confess. One that I need to get off my chest. It seemed to be the right choice at the time. It made sense from every angle. There was no way on earth that this could go wrong. My decision had "genius" written all over it. It is clear that I could have not been more wrong. Yes, I regret this one particular choice and have no idea what I was thinking at the time. How could I have been so wrong? Why was I so blind?

Picture, if you can, little Jeff, age 7. I was the sweetest boy that you could imagine and I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of Saturday July 19th, 1969. My parents had promised to take me and my brother to the Rosecrans Drive-In to view a re-release of the Walt Disney classic "Peter Pan". The day before this momentous occasion, my Mother informed me that The Monkees were going to appear on "The Johnny Cash" TV show at the same time we would be in flight to Neverland. The Monkees were my group. They were my introduction into music. My first album was "More Of The Monkees". Their TV show captured the magic of music, the fun and camaraderie of friends creating songs. It had been off for over a year. This was only their 3rd TV appearance since the demise of their show. This was days before VCRs, DVR's and any timeshifting device. My parents said that we could postpone the drive-in extravaganza until the next week so I could see the Pre-fab 4(reduced to 3 at the time) perform on the Cash show.

Here was the first dilemma of my first young life. Give up the movie that I had excitedly awaited for what seemed like an eternity or stay home and watch the Monkees with Johnny Cash. I debated in my clearly not fully formed mind. In a decision that I have regretted for 40 years, I succumbed to the allure of pixie dust and chose the Lost Boys over the Long Haired Weirdos.

I did enjoy the movie going experience and the Ghiridelli Chocolate Flicks. The next morning the regrets began. My uncle came over to visit my Dad and began recounting the Johnny Cash show from the previous night. He told him that it was classic and we should have stayed home and watched it. Johnny sang a verse of Last Train To Clarksville and then after a great new Michael Nesmith song, he sang a novelty number with them. He said that they were hilarious. I pretended to be asleep on the living room floor because the realization of my horrendous blunder was already causing me embarrassment and shame. I had figured that the show would be repeated. My young mind did not understand that, for some reason, variety shows rarely were repeated.

As the years progressed my decision haunted me. In the Fall of that year, the Monkees series began reruns on CBS Saturday Mornings. This pleased me because I was only 4 when the series started so many of these episodes were new to me. But as each rerun aired, although I enjoyed the shows, I had a weekly reminder that I missed the Johnny Cash appearance. The Monkees began appearing in commercial spots for Kool-Aid and Nerf products. So numerous times each day, I was reminded of my mistake. The Monkees show left Saturday mornings in 1973 but went into syndication in 1976.

As I grew older I realized that Neverland was just a myth, but The Johnny Cash show with the Monkees never aired again and the song they sang was not released until 1987. Peter Pan became available on VHS video and I purchased it for my young daughter remembering my gaffe each time we watched it.

My trauma was exacerbated in 1986 when 3 of the Monkees reunited for the highest grossing tour of the year. I had tickets for the final show of the tour. However the success of this revival, fueled by MTV rebroadcasts, caused the tour to be extended and my show became the next-to-last night. No big deal except at the final show, the next night, all 4 Monkees were reunited for the first time since 1968 and I missed it.

Recently, someone posted the Monkees appearance on You Tube. I got to watch it, finally. The monkee was finally off by back. The flim clip did not seem as spectacular as my uncle's 1969 review but the 7 year old Jeff would have loved it. On the 40th anniversary of my tragic mistake, I feel free.

Do you have any regrets?

Jeff's Jots

• I heard a ABC Radio Network entertainment reporter on local radio talking about a story in New York Magazine about the Eclipsed Celebrity Death Club. She described the basis of the story about certain famous people who did not get the attention they would have when they died because a more famous person died right before or right after. She cited several cases that were listed in the story and mentioned Farrah Fawcett, who overshadowed Ed McMahon for a few hours before her attention was eclipsed by Michael Jackson. Then she went on to say, "When it comes to death, you have winners and you have losers". That would be a hilarious statement if it wasn't so ridiculous. She mentioned former Oscar winner Karl Malden's death was overlooked because he died after Michael Jackson and then admitted she did not know who he was. I've heard the craziest things on radio and TV over the last week or so.
  

• I watched an interesting DVD tonight. It was called "Red White & Blue: A Tribute to America". It featured clips from the Ed Sullivan Show. The common theme was Patriotism. Henry Fonda, Charlton Heston and Carl Sandburg were featured reciting Lincoln speeches. When was the last time you heard a speech recited on network television? Roy Rogers & Dale Evans performed a melody of Patriotic songs. Lorretta Lynn, Wayne Newton, Kate Smith and Joel Grey also sang songs about America. Sgt. Barry Sadler was featured performing the Ballad of the Green Berets which was one of the most bizarre songs to reach the top of the charts. The most surreal moment occured when Irving Berlin sang a version of his God Bless America accompanied by Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Brownies and Girl Scouts. You jst don't see that kind of stuff anymore!
  

Covers Uncovered

I received some interesting comments about my blog about cover songs. I discovered that I'm not the only person on the face of the earth who enjoys them. I decided to list my current favorites. I did, however, surprise myself at the sheer volume of cover songs on my 1GB IPOD shuffle. My list only scratches the service and almost all of them are pretty obsure. Read on if you dare.


My Favorite Cover Songs On My IPOD. Original Artist in parenthesis.

1.Here Comes The Sun (Beatles) by Mayfair Laundry
2. Livin’ Thing (ELO) by PFR
3. On the Way Home (Buffalo Springfield) by Poco
4. God Only Knows (Beach Boys) by Phil Keaggy
5. Needles & Pins (Searchers) by The Raspberries
6. Different Drum (Linda Ronstadt) by Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet
7. Love Is the Answer (England Dan & John Ford Coley) by Cindy Morgan
8. Valeri (Monkees) by The Rubinoos
9. In My Life (Beatles) by Phil Keaggy with Randy Stonehill
10.Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper) by Nicole Nordeman
11. Someday We’ll Know (New Radicals) by Jon Foreman & Mandy Moore
12. I Won’t Back Down (Tom Petty) by Mercy Me
13. When You Walk in The Room (Jackie DeShannon) by Paul Carrack
14. Don’t Dream It’s Over (Crowded House) By Sixpence None the Richer
15. You Are Everything (Stylistics) by Timothy B. Schmit
16. I’ll Be Around (Spinners) by Tammy Trent
17. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) (Proclaimers) Steven Curtis Chapman
18. No Matter What (Badfinger) by The Knack
19. I Go To Pieces (Peter&Gordon) by Del Shannon & Tom Petty
20. We Can Work It Out (Beatles) by Prelude
21. Bless The Broken Road (Rascal Flatts) by Selah
22. I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever (Delirious) by Sonicflood/Lisa Kimmey
23. Can We Still Be Friends? (Todd Rundgren) By Mandy Moore
24. I Woke Up in Love This Morning (Partridge Family) by Doug Powell
25. Lonely Too Long (Rascals) by Richie Furay

And in the “don’t laugh I really like these” category:

So Sad About Us (The Who) by Shaun Cassidy & Utopia
Hello Goodbye (Beatles) by Jump 5
Do You Believe In Magic? (Lovin' Spoonful) Ally & AJ

Uncovered Trivia

#5 The Searchers had the hit version but the actual original artist was Jackie DeShannon
#7 England Dan & John Ford Coley had the hit version by the original artist was Utopia
#19 Del Shannon wrote the song 25 years before he covered with Tom Petty shortly before his death. This was also covered by Tom Petty & Stevie Nicks in the '80s.
#21 Several artists recorded this before the hit version by Rascal Flatts. The original artist was Melodie Crittendon who also sings on the Selah cover version.

Saturday Morning Cartoons

I purchased a 2 DVD box set from Warner Home Video entitled, “Saturday Morning Cartoons, The 1960’s”. It contains 33 cartoons from the 1960’s. Famous titles like The Flintstones, Yogi Bear and the Jetsons are included but it is also full of lesser known characters.

The majority of these animated treasures are the work of Hanna-Barbera productions. They were innovators in the very limited animation style that made cartoons affordable for weekly productions. What their creations lacked in movement they more than made up for with imagination.

What’s more entertaining that an ant with superhuman strength or I guess it would be super ant strength. Atom Ant was that ant. What could be funnier that a spy spoof starring a squirrel wearing a mask and a trench coach. Secret Squirrel filled the bill with his faithful sidekick Morocco Mole. Frankenstein Jr. was a crime fighting robot. Frankie Jr. not only wore a superhero costume, he also wore a mask. I guess the 8 foot robot wanted to keep his real identity concealed so he could go about town unnoticed. Ricochet rabbit was the western sheriff. Peter Potamus was the globe trotting hippopotamus explorer who traveled in a hot air balloon with his best friend So-So the monkey. The Impossibles were a Rock trio but also superheroes in their free time. That sounds pretty impossible. Although, I have heard that Springsteen can leap tall buildings in a single bound. I think that is an urban myth.


I am actually too young to remember watching most of these shows on Saturday mornings. I watched most of these show in their syndicated incarnations, after school on local LA TV stations in the early 1970‘s. Before the days of Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Kids WB, Fox Kids and Disney Afternoon, cartoons on TV were regulated to after school reruns on local stations and the Saturday morning show on network TV. Local Stations would have a host who would appear between the cartoons telling kids to drink their milk and look both ways before crossing the street. I would get confused and look both ways before drinking my milk. I did have my favorite hosts. Hobo Kelly had these magic glasses that she wore and pretended that she could see the kids watching. That would creep me out. Sheriff John would read the names of kids on their Birthdays. One year my Mom sent in my name for a Birthday announcement. For years I thought that meant I had a police record!

The nostalgic trip down memory lane was fun but I have to admit that these cartoons do not hold up well. A lot of them have aired in recent years on Boomerang but it’s been many years since I viewed most of these. The cartoons that my kids watched growing up, especially the ones from Steven Spielberg, Warner Brothers and Disney will have more longevity. They were created for adults to enjoy as well as kids. Atom Ant and Frankenstein Jr. and the rest were great for it’s time but that time is over. It was fun turning the clock back for a weekend. I think I’ll go have some milk and cookies and crank up Quick Draw McGraw.

The Edited Version of My Latest Blog

Since Thursday I had been working on a blog that would contain my thoughts on the reaction to Michael Jackson’s death. As I was finishing it I decided that my rants about the insensitivity of the media’s coverage seemed superfluous and a little too late. I believe that the end is all that I need to post. So my extensive blog boils down to:

Despite our grand plans for the future, we are not promised tomorrow. We need to live each day to it’s fullest and hold our loved ones close. We need to make sure our houses are in order practically and spiritually.

A little bit more that 140 characters but not much.

Jeff's Jots on Disneyland

• I find it interesting that people wave to strangers riding the different modes of transportation at Disneyland but would never dream of it anyplace else.

• Wouldn’t the world be a better place if people wore the silly hats that they wear at Disneyland out in public? With their names engraved on the back, of course. It would be great if friends and family got to pick which hat suited a person best. I’m sure I would be required to wear a Dopey or Goofy hat.

• The return of Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln is coming soon. It makes me wonder where exactly Mr. Lincoln has been during his 3 year hiatus. I can just picture him kicking back in the den of some Disney employee. Nothing livens up a party more than an audioanimatronic dead President. The Gettysburg Address is a great icebreaker.

• If Mickey Mouse is in Toon Town all day long, how can he also be in the parades and roaming the park at the same time.

• Tomorrowland is so yesterday.

• Why does food seem to taste better when it is in the shape of a mouse head. Especially the white fudge covered pretzels.

• Food eaten at Disneyland has no calories. Or is that an Urban Myth?

• On a hot summer day nothing tastes better than a $3 bottle of purified tap water.

• In our age of such sophisticated technology why do Fireworks still continue to amaze?

• What makes images projected on a mist of water so interesting?

• It's amazing to me that people can feel comfortable leaving their stroller parked and not worrying about it's safety.

• I’m waiting for Disneyland to discover how to charge extra for air inside the park.

• In Disneyland it really is A Small World After All. Until the clock strikes 12.

• Life is the ultimate theme park. A lot of time spent waiting for those special moments that make it all worthwhile.

Love Covers A Multitude Of Sins

I like cover versions of songs. A lot of the artists that I like have recorded cover versions of songs that I enjoy. Great artist, great song, seems to make sense to me. So Mercy Me performing Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” or Adie Camp’s take on the Byrd’s “Turn, Turn, Turn” find a place on my IPOD.

For some reason the contents of my IPOD shuffle has become the source of much humor and ridicule from various family members. It seems that the high percentage of cover versions of hits by other artists seems to trouble and cause concern to my wife and brother in particular.

The main purpose of my IPOD is to provide a custom listening experience for me while I take my daily lunch time walk. It does not include what are necessarily my favorite songs, but what I have found to be perfect traveling tunes.

My mistake however was connecting the IPOD to the stereo in the car while driving with my wife. “That’s on there?”, “You like that song?” or “Who’s singing that?“ followed every song. When Prelude’s cover of “We Can Work It Out” and “And Your Bird Can Sing” by Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet played, I know I tumbled a notch off my husband pedestal. “Here Comes the Sun” by Mayfair Laundry was immediately followed by her next question, “Exactly how many versions of Beatles songs do you have on there by THE BEATLES?!”. I sheepishly admitted that there were none.

My brother doesn’t care if I have any Beatles songs at all. He was always ambivalent about the Fab Four. His concern seems to be that I have cover versions of classic songs and not the originals. “Why do you want to hear some obscure artist covering a hit instead of the original?” is what he keeps inquiring before he begins his mocking of Amy Grant’s cover of “The Things We Do For Love” or Nicole Nordeman’s cover of “Time After Time”.

Cover versions have a long history in popular music. In decades past the composers and arrangers were almost as famous as the artists. Before the 50’s it was rare for an artist to compose his own material. “Hound Dog” and “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis were covers as was “Twist & Shout” and “Roll Over Beethoven” by the Beatles.

After a lot of careful consideration, I have decided to stand my ground. I refuse to succumb to IPOD peer pressure. I have to be who I am and let my music be what it is. I have to be true to the music that was made for my ears. If I give in to the taunts and derision of music elitists, music freedoms will be set back decades. I demand my right to covers!