Random Friday Thoughts — October 30, 2020

It’s that time again — the weekend and a few of my “Random Friday Thoughts”.

Thank you for checking out what’s on my mind.

Trust me, it’s twisted, naughty, dangerous, and sweet!

So, Happy Halloween!

POPULAR CANDY BY STATE

I guess you won’t be finding these candies in your neighborhood stores at half price November 1st since they’re the most popular!

Of the states I’ve lived, I totally agree with Snickers in Minnesota and I could deal with Milk Duds in Maryland.

But, I’m definitely unsure about Mars bars in Ohio (not sure if I’ve ever had one), M&Ms in Florida and Texas, and Pretzel M&Ms in Wisconsin.

The one that baffles me most is Swedish Fish in Kentucky!!! Seriously? Give me chocolate anytime!

And, Jolly Ranchers in Illinois? Again, give me chocolate!

Final thought: If Swedish Fish makes the list only in Kentucky, where are Twizzlers?

Your thoughts on your state’s favorite candy?

MOST POPULAR HORROR VILLAINS

With more than 100,000 tweets and hashtags tracked since October 1st, here are the most popular horror villains by state this Halloween!

Michael Myers (“Halloween”) and Jason Voorhees (“Friday The 13th”) are tied with 12 states each, followed by Pennywise (“It”) with 10 states.

Freddy Krueger (“Nightmare On Elm Street”) won in 7 states.

Other winners include: Chucky (“Child’s Play”) and Hannibal Lecter (“The Silence Of The Lambs”) both with 3 states, and Leatherface (“Texas Chainsaw Massacre”), The Candyman (“Candyman”), and The Babadook (“The Babadook”) each won in one state!

Go on with your bad selves Michael Myers and Hannibal Lecter, two of favorite villains! 🙂

HALLOWEEN POLITICAL HUMOR

President Richard Nixon can rest easily in his grave this Halloween!

MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD TUESDAY!

“I AM WOMAN”

The Helen Reddy biopic that I’ve been talking a lot about lately, “I Am Woman”, is now on Netflix. I’ll be watching it this weekend!

“DEXTER”

Showtime announced that one of my favorite characters (Dexter Morgan), series (“Dexter”), and actors (Michael C. Hall) are coming back next year for another season!

I can’t say how happy this makes me. While I loved the series, I hated how it ended!

When Dexter returns, I want my favorite serial killer doing what he does best — killing! (Well, that and looking damn fine!)

Here are my thoughts and my grades on the eight seasons:

Season 1: (A+)  — Three words:  Ice Truck Killer!  Plus, I love Sergeant Doakes (“Surprise Motherf***a”)!

Season 2: (B) —   I gave it a higher grade for Doakes and a lower grade because of Lila (you gotta love Paris)!

Season 3: (B-) —  This season had so much potential especially when Assistant District Attorney Miguel Prado (Jimmy Smits) saw Dexter kill someone early on, but the show lost its way for most of the season.

Season 4:  (A) —  The Trinity Killer & Rita taking a much deserved bath!

Season 5:  (B-) — Lumen got old fast, but having Jonny Lee Miller (Jordan Chase) on the show saved it from getting a “C”.  However, the story line was weak.

Season 6:  (A-) —  The “Doomsday Killer” and the Book of Revelations killings were intriguing.   The “Nebraska” filler episode dropped the season back a partial grade.

Season 7:  (A+)  — The dynamics of Dexter and Debra this season after she witnessed his kill at the end of season six were incredible.  Debra’s fragility of discovering what Dexter is and having to compromise her position with Miami Metro to save her brother was a powerful story to watch unfold.   And, it was fun seeing Dexter as the mouse in the “cat and mouse” game with his every move being watched by not only Debra, but also by Isaac Sirko and the Koshka Brotherhood (the Ukrainian based international crime syndicate).  If that wasn’t enough, he and Debra then had to come up with a strategic plan after Captain LaGuerta found evidence that Doakes wasn’t the “Bay Harbor Butcher” and she started investigating Dexter!

Season 8:  (B) — (Despite that main character’s death and with “that” series finale, I’m surprised this season didn’t grade lower!) The only reason it scored higher was because I loved Sam Underwood, who played Zach Hamilton. Also, the character of Evelyn Vogel, the doctor that came up with the “code” for Harry and Dexter to follow with Dexter’s need to kill.  Additionally, the “Brain Surgeon” was an interesting villain for the season and the return of one of Dexter’s old girlfriends was fun.

“THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF SERIAL KILLERS”

This summer I read this 1992 book by Brian Lane and Wilfred Gregg. Just imagine how many more are known now in the past 28 years!

While the more popular ones live on in infamy, it was interesting reading about other twisted killers that aren’t as well known.

Here are some interesting things I learned:

Aileen Wuornos (Charlize Theron won an Oscar playing her in “Monster”) was the most well-known female serial killer.

While women only make up about 8% of serial killers in the U.S., they make up 76% of the world’s total!

Albert De Salvo, “The Boston Strangler”, was likely responsible for the deaths of 13 women in a reign of terror from June 1962 to January 1964.

“Likely”? That’s because he confessed to the killings, but he NEVER stood trial for the murders since there wasn’t one piece of direct evidence to connect him to the crimes!

He was jailed on a 1965 rape charge and was murdered in prison in 1973.

I guess I’m a little twisted because I laughed at a couple of responses from serial killers!

German Christa Lehmann confessed to intentionally poisoning three people and accidently killing a fourth person (a friend that ate a poisoned truffle intended for someone else).

When she was led into prison, she reportedly said, “I don’t suppose I should have done it. But with the exception of Anni, they were all nasty people. Besides, I love to go to funerals.”

And, there’s Mary Elizabeth Wilson, who was also known as the “Merry Widow of Windy Nook” in England in the 1950s.

After her first husband of 43 years died painfully from phosphorous poisoning, she went on to murder three husbands in a span of just a few years. One died just 12 days after marrying her!

At her final wedding reception, a modest affair, she “jokingly” told the caterer, “Save the leftover cakes, they will come in handy for the funeral.” She added later, “Better not save them, I might give him a bit longer to live.”

He died within the year and she didn’t even attend the funeral!

“WHEN THE MOB RAN VEGAS”

Back in my former life, there was talk of “us” moving to Las Vegas and that Christmas Santa brought me three books on my favorite American city.

I finally got around to reading them! (More on the other two at a later date!)

This 2007 book by Steve Fischer is subtitled, “Stories of Money, Mayhem and Murder” spelled out how the Mob ruled Vegas in its gambling boon, in the 1950s and 1960s.

While I was too young to be a fan of Frank Sinatra during his heyday, he’s definitely portrayed as a scumbag!

Here are some of the fascinating stories Fisher shared:

Sinatra was at the “Havana Mafia Conference” (to perform?) at the Hotel Nacional over Christmas 1946. This was the “meeting” where it was decided that Bugsy Siegel would be killed. This happened six months later in Los Angeles!

While gruesome, this photo actually appeared in the morning Los Angeles Times!

Las Vegas was a very segregated town. While black performers, such as Sammy Davis Jr. and Lena Horne, could perform in the casino showrooms, they COULDN’T walk through the casino or stay in the Strip hotels.

The Moulin Rogue was the first integrated (multiracial) casino and hotel. It opened in mid-May 1955. It was so progressive and successful that it mysteriously closed just six months later!

More widespread integration began on the Strip hotels around 1960.

The Teamsters Union and Jimmy Hoffa loaned millions of dollars to Strip casinos during the 1950s and 1960s through its Pension Fund.

Now that I think about it, could Hoffa, who disappeared in the summer of 1975, be buried under one of the spectacular Strip Casino and Hotels?

And, finally, I find this story very interesting. Reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes spent millions to buy up several Strip casinos and hotels in the 1970s.

Hughes was a very paranoid man.

He believed the huge shoe 65 feet off the ground atop the Silver Slipper’s billboard had a photographer hidden inside taking his picture on the Penthouse floor of the Desert Inn.

Why? Because the shoe would stop in his direction!

Hughes wanted the hollowed out shoe “filled in”. When that was denied, he just bought the Silver Slipper Casino for $5.4 million and stopped the “Slipper” from rotating forever!

But, here’s the best story and it’s naughty. So, you may only want to read part of it. 🙂

In March 1951, the Senate Committee on Organized Crime hearings were broadcast live on the early days of television and everyone was glued to their sets.

Not only were many people learning about the Mob for the first time, they also witnessed a very funny, vulgar exchange.

While I’ll censor the word (it’s inappropriate, but the quote is totally hilarious), some may just want to stop here and have a great weekend! 🙂

Remember this was on live television with no way to edit it!

While being questioned about her income, Senator Estes Kefauver asked Virginia Hill, the girlfriend of the late Bugsy Siegel, why so many men gave her so much money.

He said there was a doctor in Chicago, New York mobsters, Ben Siegel, a concert violinist in New York, and a millionaire in Mexico, giving her money for no reason.

She toyed with the Senator and asked if he was “SURE” he really wanted to know. He said, “Of course, I want to know, Miss Hill.”

Hill replied, “Senator, they give me the money, because I’m the best damn ****sucker in the United States.”

Well, wasn’t than scandalous! 🙂

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony

Random Friday Thoughts — October 23, 2020

Can you believe that Halloween is right around the corner?

Much colder air is invading the Midwest, so maybe rain will force me inside some this weekend to watch a horror movie or two!

I usually make it an annual tradition to watch “Hellbent”!

Thank you for taking the time to check out my Random Friday Thoughts. If you disagree with me, no problem. Just do it diplomatically!

CHRISTMAS STUFF — WHO GIVES A F***?

As many of you know, I decorate for Christmas on November 1st and leave it up until the end of January.

I know which Scrooge I won’t be inviting to my decorating party — First Lady Melania Trump.

Guess what, I’m one of those that “gives a f*** about Christmas stuff and decoration”! 🙂

Who knows, this might be the last Christmas you’ll have to worry with it in your current capacity!

VOTING

This may not appeal to your side of the aisle or your way of thinking, but it did make me laugh. 🙂

Who comes up with these things?

Regardless of who you vote for…

THE WOMAN THAT INSPIRED ME TO GO INTO TV NEWS

I can’t believe it’s now been 37 years since the woman that inspired me to get into the television news “rat race” was tragically killed in a car accident and drowning.

Jessica Savitch got her start, in radio, as a teenager, in New Jersey in the late-1960s.

Her first two televisions jobs were in Houston, Texas, in 1971, (as a reporter and the South’s first anchorwoman), and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the fourth largest television market in the country, in 1972. She started as weekend anchor, but was promoted to the main co-anchor.

From there, NBC News came calling in 1977 and offered her a position as the Washington correspondent.  She eventually worked her way up to weekend anchor.

On October 23, 1983, Jessica, her Siberian Husky, Chewy, and her boyfriend, Martin Fischbein, were in New Hope, Pennsylvania, for dinner at Odette’s Restaurant.

When they left in heavy rain, she got in the backseat with Chewy. 

In the bad weather and low visibility, Fischbein missed the posted warning signs and the car dropped fifteen feet and sank in the mud to the bottom of the old Pennsylvania Canal’s Delaware Division.

All three were instantly killed!

On a happier note, Jessica inspired me to want to be a television weatherman.

This is me at Murray State University in 1985!!!

Here is the complete blog I wrote about Jessica on the anniversary of her death in 2012. (If you click on the link, it’ll open in a new window.)

https://anthonypeoples.wordpress.com/2012/10/23/remembering-the-woman-that-inspired-me-to-go-into-television/

MORE CHICAGO CURIOSITIES!

Here are few more interesting things I found reading the 1991 Chicago Sun-Times book by Don Hayner and Tom McNamee called “Metro Chicago Almanac”.

• While Illinois had a public school enrollment of 66% white students and 34% minority students, in Chicago’s public schools, minority students made up 88% of the count!

• O’Hare Airport’s code is ORD because it used to be farmland and the airport’s first name was Orchard Place.

• The incredibly silly motto of Park City, Illinois, in Lake County, incorporated in 1958, is: “Thanks to God and Our American Constitution that Righteousness and Our American Law Made Park City Possible“! Um, okay!

• Four-time Grammy Award winning gospel singer Mahalia Jackson moved to Chicago at the age of 20 and called it home.

While she played all over the world, she NEVER sang in a nightclub or establishment that sold liquor. And, she never would sing jazz or blues!

And, since Christmas is now two months away. 🙂

SINCE I OPENED THE CHRISTMAS PANDORA’S BOX…

Here are two latest holiday offerings from the USPS — well, one is holiday and one is winter.

These are much better than the past few year’s stamps!

I really like these winter ones.

But, I still may choose these that I used in 2018.

As I stated in previous blogs, “I’m very intrigued by Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights… It symbolizes the spiritual “victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance”.  We could really use that in the world these days!!!!!!!!”

Diwali (also known as Dipavali) is celebrated in the fall in the northern hemisphere.  This year, it’ll be on Saturday, November 14th in the U.S.

“FRIED GREEN TOMATOES”

NBC is bringing the 1991 Oscar-nominated movie to television as a series with Reba McEntire!

Reba will play Idgie Threadgoode, who was played by Mary-Louise Parker in the movie. 

In this version, she returns to Whistle Stop after being away for a decade.

“Entertainment Weekly” reports “Upon her return, she must deal with a changed town, her estranged daughter, a faltering cafe, and a life-changing secret.”

NEW “FANCY” REMIX VIDEO

While I shared Dave Aude’s new “Fancy” remix by Reba McEntire a few weeks ago, there’s a new video out now!

It’s an incredible look at Reba as “Fancy” over the years!

HAPPY HEAVENLY BIRTHDAY HELEN REDDY

Iconic Grammy Award winning and legendary feminist Helen Reddy passed away in late September at the age of 78.

In her career, she charted 14 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 (three made it all the way to #1) and she was referred to as the “Queen of ’70s Pop”.

In honor of her birthday on October 25th, I’m counting down my 10 favorite Helen Reddy songs!

#10  “YOU AND ME AGAINST THE WORLD”

#9     “AIN’T NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY”

#8    “EMOTION”

#7   “PEACEFUL”

#6  “I DON’T KNOW HOW TO LOVE HIM”

#5 “LEAVE ME ALONE (RUBY RED DRESS)”

Interestingly enough, Helen condemned the song “Leave Me Alone” as repetitive and points out that you hear the title of the song 43 times in the single.  I bet you’ll go back and listen to it now and count along! 🙂  

When I saw her in concert in 2013, she didn’t perform it.

She once told an audience that it is “one song I will never ever sing again” and “that sort of songwriting doesn’t do much for me, but it was a hit. However, I don’t have to sing it anymore if I don’t want to, and I don’t want to.”

#4 “ANGIE BABY”

#3 “DELTA DAWN”

#2 “KEEP ON SINGING”

#1 “I AM WOMAN”

RIP Helen! I already miss you!

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony

Random Friday Thoughts — October 16, 2020

Here’s wishing you a great weekend and thank you for checking out what’s on my mind this week.

I’ll go ahead and get the heavy stuff out the way and move on to happier thoughts!

“SEXUAL PREFERENCE” & “CHOICE”

Those two terms, when talking about people in the LGBTQ community, are outdated and if you use them, it shows you’re misinformed and out of touch!

It’s especially alarming when an unqualified candidate to become a Supreme Court justice uses them!

I never made a “choice” and “preferred” to be discriminated against as a gay man and to be a “second class citizen”!

When did you choose to be straight?  You don’t remember? 

Of course not, it wasn’t a choice!  You were “born this way”, just as I was “born this way”!

WHY ARE PEOPLE SO DISGUSTING?

What kind of world do we live in?

It saddens and angers me when some in the “basket of deplorables” (yes, I said and I own it!) plotted to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer!

Just look at this disgusting group!

I agree with Governor Whitmer that “words matter” and they are domestic terrorists!

Virginia Governor Ralph Northam was also targeted.

Ironically (???), both are Democratic governors!

I know there have been assassination attempts and plots in my lifetime against American presidents and politicians.

However, this insanity has to stop. I hope the first step is taken November 3, 2020!

“THE BOYS IN THE BAND”

The latest Ryan Murphy television event debuted a couple of weeks ago on Netflix and it’s fantastic, caustic, and catty!

It’s a remake of the 1968 Off-Broadway play by Mart Crowley, which was made into a 1970 movie directed by William Friedkin (“The Exorcist”).

Before adapting this into a movie, Murphy brought a revival of the play to Broadway in 2018 with the same cast members — Jim Parsons, Matt Bomer, Zachary Quinto, Andrew Rannells, Robin De Jesus, Michael Benjamin Washington, Charlie Carver, Tuc Watkins, and Brian Hutchinson.

Jim Parsons deserves an Emmy nomination in 2021 and my favorite character in the movie was the flamboyant and effeminate Emory, played by Robin De Jesus.

My best friend asked me which characters were us in our younger days. For me, I’d say a combination of Bomer’s (chill, but not depressed) and Carver’s (naive, but not an escort) characters.

However, in my 20s, I didn’t have the sexiness of either! 🙂

GRADE: A

RAINBOW OREOS

There’s a new Oreo cookie, but you won’t be able to buy it in stores!

OREO and PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) are releasing the limited edition rainbow cookie in celebration of LGBTQ+ History Month.

The cookies will be given away to fans as a “reward acts of allyship for the LGBTQ+ community”.

The cookies are part of the new Proud Parent platform, “a long-term campaign shining light on the importance of a supportive family in fostering greater LGBTQ+ acceptance.”

“LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE”

This eight-episode Hulu original series is based on Celeste Ng’s 2017 critically acclaimed novel. It’s great!

While Reese Witherspoon (Mia Warren) and Kerry Washington (Elena Richardson) are amazing in this series, it’s the young stars that carry much of the weight in this drama that takes place outside Cleveland, Ohio.

Lexi Underwood, Mia’s teenager daughter Pearl, Gavin Lewis (Moody), and Megan Stott (Izzy), two of Elena’s kids, are incredible young actors.

You’re captivated by them in every one of their scenes.

And, your heart breaks whenever Huang Lu, who plays Bebe Chow, a co-worker of Mia’s in Shaker Heights, is on screen.

Not to be outdone by the female leads and the younger cast, Joshua Jackson’s tighty whities got a lot of press from that one scene! 🙂

Jackson handled the attention like a star, “Who knew that all these years what was missing from my career was parading around in my tighty-whities… I’m in my 40s now. I enjoy getting objectified!”

Now, I’m going to read the critically acclaimed book.

GRADE: A-

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month!

UNTIL #PUG2021, THIS WILL DO!

With Covid-19 and things, I’ve pushed back getting my pug until the spring or summer of 2021.

So, #Pug2020 is now #Pug2021. Until then, this will have to do! 🙂

CHICAGO CURIOSITIES

I recently read the 1991 Chicago Sun-Times book by Don Hayner and Tom McNamee called “Metro Chicago Almanac”.

It was autographed by McNamee to Ann and Bill and a gift from Doug! I guess they didn’t want it anymore! 🙂 I picked it up at a yard sale.

Anyway, here are some of the more interesting factoids I learned. *Keep in mind that this is a 29-year-old book and the stats may be outdated. I didn’t check for their current validity — that’s another benefit of Google if you choose to check!* 🙂

• The suburbs once had a Romeo and Juliet in the pioneer days! In 1845, “Juliet” became Joliet and “Romeo” was renamed Romeoville in 1895.

• One of the nicknames of Mayor Jane Byrne, the first woman elected to the office, was “the Snow Queen”.

• After the “Chicago Blizzard of 1979”, Byrne used the ineffectiveness of Mayor Michael Bilandic to clear away the snow and it helped her beat Mayor Daley’s “Democratic Machine”!

• In that 1979 election, Byrne received more than 700,000 votes (82% of the votes cast). No other mayoral candidates have gotten that many votes in an election since!

• While it was costlier, “The Great Chicago Fire” (1871) was not the deadliest fire in the city. On December 30, 1903, 602 people were killed in the Iroquois Theater Fire.

• In its 105 years of operation, more than a billion (that’s with a “B”) creatures were slaughtered at The Union Stockyards. Its busiest year was 1924 — it received 18.65 million head of livestock! This help earn Chicago the nickname, “Hog Butcher for the World”! (Now, I’m going to read Upton Sinclair’s 1906 book, “The Jungle”.)

• The Hostess Twinkie was invented in Schiller Park in 1930 by James Dewar. Dewar ate two Twinkies each day and lived to be 88!

• Other foods that got their start in Chicago: Cracker Jack (19 tons a day made at the plant in Northbrook), Tootsie Roll and Tootsie Roll Pops (20 to 30 million pieces made daily at the Cicero plant), and Vienna hot dogs (104 million made in 1991 on Damen)!

MY FAVORITE BIRTHDAYS

While I had a birthday earlier this week, it was just another day of work, walking, and reading. My sister is making a birthday dinner for me this weekend! 🙂

As I reflect back, my four most recent favorites were in 2011 — my last with my golden retriever, Miss ABBA.

In 2012, I enjoyed an endless mimosa brunch topped off with carrot cake at the Stratosphere in Las Vegas.

That night, I partied with Madonna! Actually, she was on stage and I was hanging out with 13,000 of her friends!

My most memorable birthday ever (and I doubt this will ever be topped) was in 2014, when I turned 50.

At midnight, I was sipping champagne sitting at a stage table at the Moulin Rouge in Paris, France after a dinner cruise on the Seine River and looking out at a foggy city from atop the Eiffel Tower!

The next day, it was off to my dream birthday destination, Tel Aviv, Israel!

And, in 2018, while in Morocco, my tour guide and my group surprised me with a birthday cake!

While this birthday was uneventful, here’s to many more healthy and more exciting ones in the future — like, seeing Kylie Minogue in concert in some fun foreign city in 2021 for the “Disco Tour”!

If you haven’t seen the two new Kylie videos from the upcoming “Disco” album (November 6, 2020), here they are!

If you love disco or dance music, these will make you happy! 🙂

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony

Random Friday Thoughts — October 9, 2020

What an interesting week across America! And, hello to my friends beyond our borders! 🙂

Thank you for taking the time to check out my thoughts. While we don’t have to agree, we must do it diplomatically!

“HAPPY HOLIDAYS” DOESN’T REALLY COVER IT!

Let’s start off light and cheery! I found a new greeting to get us through the next three months!

And, this is still one of my favorites!

COVID-19 LATEST

I’ve been trying really, really hard to stay out of the fray that is the past four years of 45’s presidency.

But, just when you think nothing else can shock you, SURPRISE!

What? WTH? WTF?

More than 212-thousand people in the U.S. have died this year from Covid-19 and more than 7.6 million have tested positive for it and he tweets, “Don’t be afraid of Covid.” and “Don’t let it dominate your life.”!

While I’m no doctor or medical expert, I feel pretty confident in saying that many people testing positive for Covid-19 are doing so because they’re following pathetic advice like that and not following safety protocols!

This GIF has nothing to do with his comments, but it works!

“VOTE NOT GLOAT”

“Halloween” movie icon Jamie Lee Curtis tweeted an incredible and powerful message last Friday after Donald and Melania Trump tested positive for Covid-19.

As you can see, I approve this message!

PROOF THAT MASKS SAVE LIVES!

If you don’t believe that masks save lives, I have two words for you –Hannibal Lecter!

Now I want to watch 1991’s Oscar winning Best Picture, “The Silence of the Lambs”, again!

#1 SELLING NON-CHOCOLATE CANDY BAR

I recently read the 1991 Chicago Sun-Times book by Don Hayner and Tom McNamee called “Metro Chicago Almanac”.

Since Halloween is nearing, I’ll share this candy stat from the book.

It states that PayDay is the top selling non-chocolate candy bar in the U.S.!

If you love that candy bar, but you crave chocolate, too, a new PayDay was introduced in August — Chocolatey PAYDAY!

What are your favorite candy bars?

Mine are (#4) Milky Way, (#3) PayDay, (#2) Snickers, and at (#1) Zero!

By the way, the original Zero candy bar was produced in Centralia, Illinois!

HAPPY HEAVENLY BIRTHDAY MARY GRIFFITH

Mary Griffith died earlier this year at the age of 85. She shared the same birthday as me (October 13th).

Most of you don’t know the name. But, in the 1980s, she became an icon after she saw the light and became one of the strongest advocates for the LGBTQ community.

However, it took a tragedy for that to happen.

Because of her faith in religion and the Bible, she terrorized her gay son, Bobby, constantly with Bible verses and with the fear of God after he came out to her.

Bobby ended his life is the summer of 1983 when he jumped off a Portland, Oregon, overpass into the path of an 18-wheeler!

Over time, Mary realized that God didn’t need to change Bobby because her son was perfect just as God created him — gay!

Through heartache and pain, she became a staunch advocate for PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) in her northern California chapter.

Mary, now that you and Bobby are reunited, I hope you’re enjoying the happiness you never found together on Earth.

I’m honored to share a birthday with you!

If you want to read Mary’s story, Leroy Aarons’ book, “Prayers For Bobby” is excellent.

And, there’s a great Lifetime movie with Sigourney Weaver.

“LOVE, VICTOR”

When this project was announced, I was excited thinking it was a movie and a true sequel to 2018’s “Love, Simon”. When I found out it was a 10-episode Hulu series and would not be a Nick Robinson-series, I was less excited.

So, I waited a almost three months after it premiered. Boy, was I wrong!

“Love, Victor” has a great cast including the adorable lead, Michael Comino as Victor, Anthony Turpel as his best friend, Felix, and George Sear (Benji) and Rachel Hilson (Mia) as his two crushes.

And, it’s a well-rounded story that just doesn’t just focus on Victor’s coming of age story and coming out. His parents have their own drama!

Plus, Nick Robinson does make a brief appearance in a later episode.

“Love, Victor” was renewed for a second season.

There were many funny one-liners including this one from Benji to Victor about Dolly Parton:

“She’s actually one of the few things that gay sons and straight guys agree on!”

“LOVE, SIMON”

This was my #10 movie of 2018 grossing $66.3 million in theaters. When I saw it March of that year, I gave it a grade of B+ and wrote:

“LGBT icon and trailblazer Harvey Milk once said, ‘You gotta give them hope.’ The new romantic dramedy, ‘Love, Simon’, gives LGBTQ teenagers and young adults a lot of hope.

Nick Robinson is adorable as closeted high school student Simon Spier living in an Atlanta suburb.  He has a great family and a group of close friends at school, but he a “huge ass secret” — he’s gay.”

I went on to add, “I loved the movie and the message it presents to youngsters and young adults (and their families).

However, as a realist and an older gay man, the movie was wrapped up a little too perfect even with the drama Simon experienced.

But, regardless of age, we all want a happy ending!”

SELENA

One day I was singing a Selena song and then in a scene that night in “Love, Victor”, his mother was singing one of her songs!

It took me back to my 1997 Lubbock, Texas days when I was a reporter and weekend anchor at the CBS affiliate, KLBK.

That was the year that the movie, “Selena”, with Jennifer Lopez came out. I felt like I was on the Selena “beat” because it seem like I was always doing stories on the movie.

And, I remember interviewing Jackie Delgado, who I honestly believe was Selena’s biggest fan in West Texas!

In 1994, I became a Selena fan when I moved to Chicago and bought her fourth album, “Amor Prohibido”.

At the time of her death, at the age of 23, in the spring of 1995, Selena was working on her English language debut album, “Dreaming of You”.

That album debuted at #1 that summer and produced her only Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 (the title track).

“SELENA: THE SERIES”

This new series debuts December 4, 2020, on Netflix with Christian Serratos (“The Walking Dead”) playing Selena.

“A HOLLY DOLLY CHRISTMAS”

This is Dolly Parton’s first new Christmas album is 30 years.

I loved the duet with Michael Bublé, “Cuddle Up, Cozy Down Christmas”, and the duet with Willie Nelson on his holiday classic, “Pretty Paper”.

Also, her upbeat duet with her brother, Randy, “You Are My Christmas” is great. And, her giddy versions of “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” and “Holly Jolly Christmas” are fun.

I also liked her originals “Christmas on the Square”, “Circle of Love”, and “Comin’ Home for Christmas”.

Now, the downside, her duet with Billy Ray Cyrus would have been much better as just a Dolly song. Despite his success in the 1990s, who said he could sing? And, the pairing with Miley Cyrus was forgettable.

However, the most unforgivable song on the album is Dolly’s remake of Mariah Carey’s Christmas classic, “All I Want For Christmas Is You”, with Jimmy Fallon!

While I love Dolly and I like Fallon, this song is iconic and it shouldn’t have been so gimmicky!

All I can say is “Mariah, I’m sorry!”

After the first listen, I didn’t feel too cheery. On the second listen, the grade went up some. I hope it continues to grow on me!

GRADE: B

HARVEST SEASON

It’s harvest season, so watch out for farmers and farm machinery on the roadways.

Also, you never know what you might find in your gardens! 🙂

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony

Random Friday Thoughts — October 2, 2020

The holiday seasons are fast approaching with Halloween up next!

I’m sure you’ll agree that it’ll be nice to put 2020 behind us and hope for a better 2021!

Just a clarification before you read it. I’m calling someone “scum of the earth” and I’m following my own advice of being “diplomatic”. The words I’d like to use would show far less diplomacy! 🙂

But, first…

HELEN REDDY, YOU’RE ALREADY MISSED!

International superstar, Grammy Award winner, Golden Globe Award nominee, and feminist Helen Reddy passed away earlier this week at the age of 78!

A movie honoring Helen and her iconic song, “I Am Woman” is out now and will be released on DVD on November 3, 2020.

I submitted an entry this summer on what Helen’s music and that song meant to me for an advertising campaign promoting the movie. I was chosen! 🙂

Here’s my original and unedited 1 minute, 10 second submission!

Here’s a little bit about my favorite Helen Reddy song!

While the song was included on her 1971 album, she re-recorded it and it was shipped to radio in May 1972. 

It stalled out at #97 and dropped off the chart! Months later, it was released again.

This time, it took off and by the end of 1972, “I Am Woman” topped the chart becoming the first #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 from an Australian-born artist and the first song written by an Australian to win a Grammy Award!

Helen, thank you for the music and you’ll be missed even though you’ll be in our hearts and souls! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

SCUM OF THE EARTH

Read this clearly: Most of us already know which candidate we’re going to vote for on November 3, 2020, so this isn’t about Joe Biden or Donald Trump!

But, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is scum of the earth!

In no time following the recent death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, McConnell was on the fast track to have her replacement named and confirmed before the 2020 Election — just a little over a month away!

Again, I don’t care if you’re supporting Biden or Trump (well, I really do, but that’s not the point of this post!), it’s the principle.

SCALIA’S DEATH

Because it was a presidential election year, when Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, McConnell was such an obstructionist!

He and the Republican-controlled Senate declined to take any action on President Barack Obama’s nomination, Merrick Garland, one month later.

That nomination expired with the end of the 114th Congress in January 2017 and #45’s nomination later that month was confirmed in the spring.

The bottom line is that “what’s good for the goose is good for the gander”!

While a nominee has already been announced, we SHOULD WAIT for the outcome of the 2020 presidential election to move this process forward. The winner should be nominating the next Supreme Court justice!!!

THE “MILLENNIUM” SERIES

Although this Swedish crime series came out more than a decade ago, the three books have been sitting on my bookshelf.

I finally read the Stieg Larsson’s series — “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”, “The Girl Who Played with Fire”, and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest” — and loved them!

The first book was my favorite and I felt the quality dropped off a little with the next two books.

I also watched the first two Swedish movies based on the books and Noomi Rapace was amazing as Lisbeth Salander.

I remember seeing David Fincher 2011’s English version of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” and it not making an impression on me. I’ll have to watch it again now that I’ve read the books!

“BETWEEN SUMMER’S LONGING AND WINTER’S END”

Leif G.W. Persson’s 2002 book was translated to English in 2010.

On the back cover, here how it’s described: “acclaimed as one of the greatest Swedish crime novels of all time” .

Well, based on the four that I’ve read, after the three “Millennium” books, I disagree! Halfway through the 638 page book, I was ready to discard it!

So, skip it!

There are definitely better Scandinavian crime novels out, like Norwegian Jo Nesbo’s “The Snowman” (2007, translated to English in 2010)!

And, totally irrelevant, 60-year-old Nesbo is so hot! 🙂

That’s just a bonus! 🙂

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

I normally read autobiographies, biographies, and books on real events, so my familiarity with fiction isn’t that great.

However, in the four Scandinavian crime novels that I read this year from Stieg Larsson and Leif G.W. Persson, one thing I appallingly noticed was the degradation and the violence directed toward women.

But, just the description of women in these books was gross and unjust.

Is it a crime novel thing? Heaven forbid, I can’t imagine that Scandinavian women would put up with this from men! Now, granted, these four books were written before the “Me Too” movement.

However, earlier this year, this was addressed by Nesbo in an interview with “The Guardian”.

He says, “Violence against women is a problem in society – it is something we should talk about. I would be more worried if there was an absence of violence against women in fiction, because it’s a problem in real life. Of course, it’s a question of how you do it, but in general I would be more worried if fiction pretended it wasn’t a problem.”

“MAGIC”

On a lighter note and one that excites me so much, Kylie Minogue treated us fans to the second single from her upcoming “Disco” album coming out November 6th!

“Magic” is the new single!

“MAGIC” BONUS TRACK!

I hope you took a few minutes and watched the amazing Kylie video.

So, now you know it’s not a remake of Olivia Newton-John’s four-week #1 smash from the “Xanadu” soundtrack from 1980!

MEGYN KELLY “SETTLE FOR MORE”

I enjoyed reading Megyn Kelly’s 2016 autobiography.

Along with stories about her childhood, her career as a successful lawyer, and how she gave it up to become a television reporter and anchor with no experience (really, I mean no real experience!), she spent a lot of time talking about her abuse from Donald Trump and his supporters in the 2016 presidential election!

She also talked about how great of a guy that toxic, creepy, nasty, dead pervert Roger Ailes was! He’s the one that sadly brought Fox News and Donald Trump into our lives!!!

By the way, “toxic, creepy, nasty, dead pervert” are my words, not Kelly’s!

It wasn’t until the end of the book that she addressed the sexual allegations that brought Ailes down. It felt more like, “Oh, I should mention that!”.

In fairness, Kelly shared a 2006 meeting with Ailes in his office when he once again came on to her. She said he tried “to grab me repeatedly and kiss me on the lips”.

Kelly got away from him and as she moved toward the door, Ailes allegedly (I’ll say that word for legalities even though the scumbag likely said it with venom) said, “When in your contract up?”

She also states that Ailes earlier said, “I don’t like to fight, but when I do, I fight to kill.”

MORE THINGS SHE SHARED IN “SETTLE FOR MORE”

When she moved to Chicago in 1995 to take a law firm job, she looked out her Navy Pier apartment window drinking white Franzia boxed wine and listened to Tina Turner’s “I Don’t Wanna Fight” CD. She said that her “real life” was starting! (I only shared this one because I loved Franzia boxed wine!)

She told Roger Ailes that while she was raised in a Democratic household, she was “apolitical”. She went on to share a passage from her 1988 journal, “Am I a Republican or a Democrat? I seriously don’t know.”

There were rumor of her having an affair with married Fox News anchor Brit Hume. He thought it was funny and said people wouldn’t believe it. She disagreed by saying, “people love to dismiss potentially threatening women as ‘nuts or sluts’. Evidently, I didn’t pass as a nut, so I was to branded a slut…”

“BOMBSHELL”

If you haven’t seen the 2019 movie, “Bombshell”, check it out.

Here’s what I said about it in January.

“Even after seeing ‘The Loudest Voice’ on Showtime last year, watching ‘Bombshell’ was a different viewing experience about the toxic environment at Fox News.  (Oh, and about the toxic, creepy, nasty Roger Ailes!)

While John Lithgow was incredible as Ailes, it was definitely the women who made the movie — Charlize Theron (as Megyn Kelly), Nicole Kidman (as Gretchen Carlson), Margot Robbie (as a composite character created from many of the women that Ailes victimized), and Kate McKinnon (a co-worker, Jess Carr).

I expected Oscar nominations for Theron the Best Actress category and for Robbie in Best Supporting Actress category and they got them!”

GRADE:  B

“Bombshell” was my #13 movie of 2019!

“CHOW DOWN”

Although this parody of Wilson Phillips’ #1 1990 debut hit, “Hold On”, came out in 2012, I can’t watch it enough — even today! 🙂

The drag queen trio of Willam Belli, Detox, and Vicky Vox take on the anti-gay agenda of the Georgia chicken restaurant chain, Chick-fil-A.

Disclaimer: Yes, it’s hilariously funny and R-rated.

***It includes adult language and adult situations***!

The bottom line and I couldn’t have said it better myself:  “we just want a little meat without your Bible!”.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AGAIN!

While I wished my idol, President Jimmy Carter a Happy 96th Birthday last week, I’ll do it again since his birthday was October 1st!

In 2016, I left this message for the Carters when I visited the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, Georgia.

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony