Retro Symbiosis

My symbiotic connection to the 1950′s continues to amaze even me.  I don’t honestly know how this bit of trivia escaped my notice until now, but here goes:

I’ve been a die-hard fan of the Ozzie and Harriet TV show since I was a teenager.  The early shows are undoubtedly the better shows for a variety of reasons, which include the appearance of Don DeFore as the Nelsons’ friendly neighbor, Thorny.  He has truly always been my favorite character on the show.

Don DeFore is a little-known name among most people today, but he appeared in many movies and TV shows and served as the President of the National Academy of Television Arts from 1954-1955.  He was instrumental in bringing the Emmy awards to be broadcast on television.  He has a star on Hollywood’s walk of fame, and Judy Garland was maid of honor at his wedding.

In addition to his career in Hollywood, Don DeFore holds the distinction of being the only sole proprietor to ever run a business inside Disneyland.  From 1957 to 1962, Don and his brother ran Don DeFore’s Silver Banjo Barbecue in Disneyland in a space formerly occupied by a mexican restaurant called Casa De Fritos.  After 1962, the building became Aunt Jemima’s pancake restaurant, which eventually became what it is today – The Riverbelle Terrace.

Where do I fall into this story?  Well, in 1988, and 18-year-old kid (an unlikely fan of Mr. Don DeFore) got a job at Disneyland bussing tables.  Guess where my most regular assignment was.  The Riverbelle Terrace.

I sent an email to Ron DeFore, the son of Don DeFore to inquire about any existing reproductions of Silver Banjo memorabilia.  Apparently there are none…only the original sign, menu,  etc, which are in his basement.  He suggested if I was a millionaire collector, I might offer him an exorbitant sum.  Alas, I am not and cannot.

It’s cool to think that in some dimension of fate, my life is linked to the 1950′s era I love so much.  The Lost Transmission-Ozzie and Harriet connection is just the latest in my own “six degrees of separation” story to mid-century American culture.

Eureka!

Lately I’ve had some real groovy luck in my quest for cool records.  One day alone was like striking black gold (of the vinyl variety).  Let me share…

Maybe you thought $2 for Les Paul was cheap, but lay your peepers on this gem I picked up in a record shop in Alabama for $1.00!  The Rockats Live at the Ritz.  I felt like I righted a great wrong that day.  This baby was the Rockats debut album in 1981, and it’s in near mint condition…for a dollar!!   My father-in-law (who was with me) incredulously exclaimed, “How in the world do you hear about these bands?”  I just lead a charmed life, I guess.  What a great album!

But wait, there’s more!  Next I found a 1957 original in the same $1.00 bin as the Rockats.  Louis Prima’s classic album “The Wildest!”  This is 1950′s adult cool at its best.  The cover’s not in the best shape, but I think it gives it character.  Whoever bought this item in ’57 played it, and it still sounds great today!  Also check out the cool ’50′s Las Vegas graphics from the flipside cover.

 

But this ain’t over by a long shot.  Next up is a rockabilly band even I had never heard of, but just spotting the cover of this platter was all I needed to know I was hot on the trail of another tasty rock and roll morsel.  Kevin Fayte and Rocket 8.  What?!  On Nervous Records from 1985.  Wasn’t sure this looked too promising.  This album had 20 songs on it!  I figured, how good could this be?  Know what?  It’s not bad!  I was pleasantly surprised.  For $5.95, I picked up an ’80′s rockabilly band I’d never heard of on a near-mint original LP, and enjoyed some good rockabilly to boot!

 

Well, that’s all for now.  I have a few more little items to share from this adventure.  All in good time.

Keep rockin’!

Capitol H416

Antique stores are a mixed bag.  Sometimes they’ve got junk at exorbitant prices.  Sometimes they’ve got treasures at dirt cheap prices.  This week I encountered the latter.

Check out Capitol Records EP H416, Les Paul and Mary Ford * The Hit Makers.  This record is vintage 1953 and the cover is in superb condition.  Awesome guitar and jukebox graphics on the reverse side and a rockin’ font type.

I snatched up this wax for $2.75.  The record has a crack through one side, but plays like a dream anyway.  The cover was worth the purchase alone.

It’s ok to drool, daddy-o.

 

Taco Casa

Pretty awesome modern-day, retro-style signage in Birmingham, AL.

Going to Adventureland

I’ve always been fascinated by the old Disneyland attraction posters that hang in the tunnels under Main Street Station as you enter Disneyland. Nothing was more exciting as a kid than seeing these great pieces of art beckoning me to ride the Columbia, set sail with the Pirates of the Caribbean, brave the Jungle Cruise, bobsled the Matterhorn, etc.  The images still give me butterflies in the stomach.  Even reproductions of these posters are quite expensive, so I’ve set my mind on a previously-unattempted feat for me.  I’m entering an “Adventureland” of sorts.  I’m going to try to paint my own poster – acrylic on canvas.

Perhaps I’m crazy, but it’s worth a shot.  Just for a teaser and to get me in the zone, I free-handed a copy of the old Jungle Cruise (Jungle River) poster tonight using pencil and Crayon on a piece of off-white construction paper. Check it out and compare with the original below.  Not bad for an accounting major, huh?

Some of the details are missing in mine (the bird on the hippo’s tooth and splashes in the water at the bow of the boat), my scale is off (my boat canopy isn’t positioned quite right), and the small wording at the top is off-kilter, but I did this pretty fast.  Besides, this was just my trial run.  The colors aren’t quite perfect either, but hey, I raided my kids’ crayon stash. I was somewhat limited to colors like “Burnt Sienna”,  ”Maize”, “Gray” and “Green”.  I’ll do my best to get the lines and colors dead-on for the final product.

Overall, I am very happy with how this turned out, so this will probably be the first poster I attempt. However, I’m not as confident with paint and brush. I’ll post the results when I’m done.

Wish me luck…

  

Cut Paper and Stuff

This week I’ve been reminded how many kindred spirits there are out there who are obsessed with mid-century American pop culture – the happy, whimsical and colorful images from commercial advertising, entertainment, tiki culture, and Disneyana.  Some other folks just don’t see these images the same way.  To them, mid-century art is just old.  They might easily toss out as trash an old magazine or candy wrapper from the 1950′s, but not me.  For me, it’s home. Maybe it’s a sign of the time of my birth.  Being born in 1970 placed me pretty close to those golden days – the stuff was all around me.  Maybe it’s a southern California thing, where the art and architecture of the 1950′s and 1960′s seemed to take a special foothold.  Maybe it’s a combination of both time and place.  I recorded a song about this called “Katella“, if you’re interested in hearing it.  If not, keep on reading.

Anyway, one particular artist who absolutely gets it is another southern Californian and a Disney designer/artist – Kevin Kidney. If you haven’t seen this talented gentleman’s artwork, go here.  I’ve also added his blog to my favorite blogs on the right hand side of the Lost Transmission blog.

He seems especially drawn (no pun intended) to work in tiki artforms, which is how I first discovered his work.  He has recreated many of the figures and images from Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room in various forms.  Incidentally, the Tiki Room is my top favorite Disneyland attraction.  A close second is the Haunted Mansion.  I have waffled for years between these two for this place in my heart, and I always come back to the Tiki Room in the end…but I digress.

Mr. Kidney does incredible work in cut paper, and his blog includes links to some other incredible artists and Disney sites.  I asked him a question about his paper art, as my 7-year-old son is currently fascinated with creating paper images of nearly everything.  Kevin was very gracious in his reply and very encouraging to my son, who’s latest creation was a construction paper version of Brainy Smurf (I’d prefer Deputy Dawg, but at least he’s trying).

I hope I’m raising a budding mid-century-inspired artist.  I’ll keep you posted.

Lost Transmission…Where Arrrre Yoooooou?

So it’s been 5 months since my last post.  Sorry about that.  There’s this pesky thing called “life” that gets in the way of my blogging about useless trivia and my quirky interests.  Do not despair.  As Douglas Macarthur said, “I shall return.”

In the meantime, browse around.  Click on “podcasts” in the category cloud on the right to listen to my Lost Transmission episodes or my Hey Dad radio show.  There’s lots to do here…from days gone by!

Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na, FATMAN!!!!

Adam West sucks in his gut with all his might

So I was driving in the car with my three sons the other day when the subject turned to Batman.  They had recently seen Tim Burtons’ Batman movie for the first time and were introduced to Batman with ridiculously-chiseled abs and pecs.  Previously, their live-action Batman experience had been limited to  Adam West from the 1960′s TV show.

So one of my sons says, “I like the new Batman better.”  Another one says, “Yeah, the old one was fat.”  The third chimes in, “And he always ran like he was tired.”

I laughed out loud at this last comment.

Then they moved to the costume.  “He looks like he’s wearing a diaper”.

Here at Lost Transmission – a bastion of retro appreciation – I do have a sense of humor.  It’s true about Batman.  Adam West was a bit frumpy, and he did run like he’d just polished off a couple of Chicago dogs for lunch, but you have to love the original Batman.

Here’s one thing my kids agreed on…the old Robin was pretty good, but the villains in the original Batman were awesome.  In fact, the boys are already plotting a “Batman villain” Halloween for 2011.   They will be going as the Joker, the Riddler, and the Penguin…the TV versions.

I guess dad will have to dress up as Adam West.

Goodnight, Folks

On January 11, 2011, the last member of the original Ozzie and Harriet Nelson family passed away into history.  David Nelson died at age 74. 

Sadly, his passing went without much fanfare.  His star had dimmed long ago, as had the rest of the Nelson family’s.  Many Americans today probably have no real idea who he was.  However, the impact of David and his family can still be felt in America.  The phrase “Ozzie and Harriet” has become an American idiom meaning “the ideal family existence”, based on the longest running non-animated TV sitcom in history, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.

We all have our favorite TV shows from the 1950′s and 1960′s.  For some of us, it’s Leave to Beaver, The Donna Reed Show, Gunsmoke or others.  For me it will always be The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. David’s passing leaves me feeling a bit sad, but also nostalgic about how deeply the Nelson family sitcom is woven into my consciousness.

I first started watching Ozzie and Harriet (O&H) in the 1980′s, when the Disney Channel began airing episodes.  At that time, the Disney Channel was a great place to catch classic films and TV series from the 1950′s – things like Swamp Fox, Davy Crockett, The Mickey Mouse Club, and old animated short films.  Its so sad the folks at the Disney Channel have forgotten their roots.  Anyway, I taped dozens of episodes of O&H and still have them.

O&H was not a top-ten TV show.  The Nelsons didn’t have the showbiz feel of Lucille Ball or Milton Berle.  Even the Cleavers had a polished, Hollywood air, but the O&H show had an oldtimey, family feel.  In fact, it felt more like radio on TV.  That may not sound like a compliment, but it is.  The dialogue carried the show.  It had a few sight gags, but they were secondary to the straight-man and joke-man act of David and Ricky – great lines like these:

Ricky:  …have you seen my muscles lately?

David:  Whats the matter, can’t you find ‘em either?

The sitcom was a showcase for Ricky’s musical talents, of course, skyrocketing him to rock and roll greatness in short order.  O&H have been credited for creating the first “music videos” 30 years before MTV.

I spent so much time with the Nelsons, I am confident I use lines from the show almost weekly (as well as comedic lines from Jack Benny, Abbot and Costello and others located in my vast store of useless knowledge).  By the way, I just realized “my vast store of useless knowledge” is a line from an episode of O&H delivered by Thorny (Don DeFore).

The most recent outbreak of my O&H obsession came in the form of my own version of an oldtime radio show…Hey, Dad.  You can listen to my own family carrying on the tradition of the Nelsons at the link above or here.  I hope to provide a new episode every now and then.

It’s a sad week for America, losing the last of the Nelsons.  I hope their brand of optimistic, ideal family living and simple, dialogue-driven comedy is never completely lost from our collective consciousness.  It won’t be from mine.

In tribute to David and his family, I’ll just say what Ozzie used to say at the end of the final Hotpoint or Eastman Kodak commercial.  “Goodnight, folks.”

Retro Disneyland Find

I was in a local antique store a couple weeks ago and ran across a bunch of old postcards from the 50′s.  Well, being me, I couldn’t pass these up without browsing through all of them…when lo and behold, I struck pay dirt.

My original Disneyland postcard booklet is in excellent condition.  The pictures on the inside flaps are clean and vivid.  This booklet sold for 15 cents at Disneyland.  The date is definitely pre-1971, when the Indian Village met its demise (reportedly after a labor dispute with the real native Americans Disneyland had contracted to work this area).  I haven’t been able to nail down a certain date, but I found another similar 15-cent postcard set online on which someone had written “1960″.  I know the Mine Train was upgraded to include Rainbow Caverns and the geysers in 1960 (both depicted here), so the booklet was obviously produced in 1960 or later.

I think my favorites are several images from the Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland attraction, which I remember well from my boyhood days – especially the waterfall at Rainbow Caverns, the spouting geysers and the bears in the water beneath the bridge.  It was a great attraction and is a favorite of Disneyland old-timers.

This train ride eventually closed in 1977 and was converted to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  I can vividly remember the commercial for Big Thunder Mountain from its debut in 1979.  Here it is:

Enjoy these images of this great antique store find.  And check out that awesome hand-drawn painted desert scene with the obligatory 3-armed saguaro cactus.  So cool!