R.I.P. Ali-Ollie Woodson

Temptations singer Ali-Ollie Woodson dies at 58 DETROIT (AP) — Ali-Ollie Woodson, who led the legendary Motown quintet The Temptations in the 1980s and '90s and helped restore them to their hit-making glory with songs including Treat Her Like a Lady, has died, a friend said. He was 58. Woodson died Sunday in southern California after battling cancer,…

Chuck Norris Ate My Blog Blogathon: Breaker! Breaker! (1977)

For Thrilling Days of Yesteryear’s entry in the Chuck Norris Ate My Blog Blogathon contest, we must step inside the WABAC machine and travel back to 1977—a time of blissful contentment in the movies, because the god-awful disco obsession that would threaten to take over films, television, and popular music was still in its nascent stage (though that would,…

R.I.P. Dennis Hopper

You turn off the computer in the hopes of getting something else accomplished today, and WHAM! another show business celebrity goes on to their rich reward. This time it’s actor-director Dennis Hopper, who died today after a long fight with prostate cancer at the age of 74. The director and co-star of the landmark counterculture classic Easy Rider (1969) had…

“Something tells me this is going to be one of those ‘I don’t have a post’ posts…”

…and you would be right. Here’s the thing. The time that I usually spend catching a classic movie or two has been occupied instead by reruns of a sitcom showcasing the smartest and wittiest ensemble in television history. That’s right, my box set of NewsRadio: The Complete Series arrived last week and the other day I decided to put a…

Now the world don’t move to the beat of just one drum…

Just learned from both Toby O’Brien of Inner Toob and Hobbyfan at The Land of Whatever of the passing of former child star Gary Coleman, who died from a brain hemorrhage earlier today. He was 42. Toby muses that the first show on which he remembered seeing Coleman make an appearance was Fernwood 2-Night—for me, it was an episode of Good Times (he appeared…

People are funny? You bet your life…

I don’t have a post to go with the above picture—and please don’t think I’m morphing into another If Charlie Parker Was a Gunslinger… ('cause I certainly don't want to be a dead copycat). But I dearly love that photo. I just happened to stumble across it while reading this Los Angeles Times link to an appreciative article written by Robert Lloyd on…

“What a day this has been/What a rare mood I’m in…”

Yes. It has been one of those days. Allow me to elucidate. This morning, my Mom makes a cameo appearance here at Rancho Yesteryear with a 12 pack of Pepsi One and some fried chicken she scored at Publix (eight mixed pieces for $3.99; a deal you can’t even to begin to beat with a stick). She…

R.I.P, Art Linkletter

Today is indeed a day of sadness for fans of old-time radio and classic television—broadcast pioneer Art Linkletter, at one time called “America’s top master of ceremonies,” has passed away at age 97. During Radio’s Golden Age, Linkletter was the announcer/host of two immensely popular programs—the daytime House Party (1945-67) and the nighttime “stunt show” People are Funny. The latter…

Of course you realize—this means war

Cartoon Network plans major anti-bullying campaign NEW YORK (AP) — Next fall, when millions of kids tune into Cartoon Network to watch Bugs Bunny, Scooby-Doo and other favorites, they'll encounter something new — an ambitious campaign to enlist them as foot soldiers in the fight against bullying. Unlike many bullying programs, this one is geared toward…

Let the chips fall

The other day on Facebook, I was combing through the “archives” of one of my friends—a gal I matriculated with in the halls of Ravenswood Penitentiary—to determine how she sustained an injury to her ankle (she had just got the cast off) when I saw that she became a fan of (or “likes”—the Facebook people…