October is always been a bad time of year for my family this one is no exception, for some strange reason a lot of my family has died in the month of October. I usually go into a depressive funk this time of year because of those I have lost in this month. This year has been an exception and I'm glad to say that even though things haven't gone my way this year and October hasn't been any better I have had a pleasant October this year.

My favorite holiday has always been Halloween

it's not just because Candy is dandy even though it truly is. I have always loved the replaying of old comical horror movies from the 30s 40s 50s and even the 60s I have made it a tradition of sitting and watching such classics as Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein and even newer classics such as Halloween town, the ghost and Mr. chicken and so many more mixed in with some of my really scary favorite such as, the uninvited, the thing from another world and forbidden planet just to mention a few of my favorites. It's hard to make a good movie that people consider classics but just consider trying to make a scary comedy movie that makes it into the classic arena. One of the unsung heroes of my scary but comical movies was one of the movies that helped inspire the more modern of the genre’s the Ghostbusters they even had somewhat similar names.

Ghost Breakers with Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard who also starred in The Cat and the Canary which help boost the popularity of funny old dark house movies.

There are so many of these movies to choose from that are good but don't have that special spark that makes them classics Abbott and Costello were truly gifted in making this kind of movie they not only made Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein but also Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy and the invisible man which I consider to be three of the best horror comedy classics.

Not all of the comedy classics were from the horror genre, a  science-fiction picture that I put alongside of these that was created for American international pictures that not only reaches a comedy classic horror movie pinnacle it happened when they were trying to make a serious sci-fi movie and something happened during the production that made it one of the funniest movies ever made by American international pictures and it too is one of my classic picks for Halloween.

I have always been drawn to the comical movies and even the comedy television shows. W am talking to you about comedy Halloween movies so now let's talk about those that were television series that also fit within the genre the two favorites of everyone will be the Munsters and the Addams family.

I too was also a huge fan of these two television shows their campy but unique take on the horror genre was absolutely hilarious. Some of the greatest comedic actors from television and movies made guest appearances along with the talented stars such as Yvonne De Carlo, Fred Gwynne, Howell Lewis, Butch Patrick, John Astin Caroline Jones Ted Cassidy Jackie Coogan Lisa Lauren can Weatherwax Blossom Rock and Felix Sila. Not only did the comedy stars take to the genre but such great horror stars as Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff starred in these parties of their alter egos Dracula and Frankenstein.

I know I have told you before that I felt a kinship to Frankenstein's monster because I felt that way from the sixth grade till about the eighth grade because I was so much taller and bigger than all of the other kids that I went to school with. I did not understand that being different than meant being special until I grew up and as we said in the 60s found myself.

These and other classic movies were an escape from being made fun of and being bullied because of my size I to because I was bullied started bullied others to make myself feel better. I grew quickly out of that phase because I did not like making anyone feel pain be it mental or physical. I had way too much pain growing up to dish out the same things that I was feeling I grew empathetic toward others and their pain which made me feel what they felt and I never liked pain.

Even today these strange but funny movies are a haven for me to release my anguish and problems and let them fly away with the laughter and the happiness that they bring me. I once tried to tell a friend of mine Daniel Roebuck who is an actor what their work meant to me he didn't understand and I didn't know how to put it into words. He thought that I meant I put them on a different level than I do normal people and he explained to me that they were just normal people making a living and raising a family. He didn't understand that I know that and I respect that as much as I do their acting careers. I wish I could tell him and others what it means to be able to sink yourself into a movie to the point that you forget about your daily troubles and white troubles might come my way tomorrow and just have a laugh or two with friends or family in the theater or at home, when the pressures of the world are weighing you down. The gift that they gave me during my childhood by doing their jobs was immense.

I never saw Frankenstein's monster as a monster, I saw him as a misunderstood creature that because of the circumstances of his birth was put up on and finally destroyed by those that did not understand him. So many times in life I have been misunderstood and people have taken my words or actions as to mean harm or distress to them and believe me that is the furthers of my intentions toward anyone or anything.

I don't want anyone to think that the only thing that I watch horror movies are comedies it is not the movies that I watch are from all genres but I do have a habit of watching seasonal movies at holiday times such as Christmas movies during Christmas and Halloween movies during Halloween. That doesn't mean that I don't watch the occasional movie out of its seasonal sequence because I do. I do however like the occasional romantic comedy in the wintertime rather than the Springtime just because a young man's fancy seeks romance not only in the spring of the year and I have also been known to watch a movie about a

winter wonderland during the summer because it's just so stinking hot sometimes.

I also like one of the 20 worst movies ever made more than anything else in the world gives called the ghost of dragstrip hollow and it has a lot of redeeming qualities but one of my favorites is when the monster in the picture removes his mask to reveal one of the best monster makers of the 1950s Paul Blaisdell. The movie is also the ending of the 1950s black and white teenage schlock movies into the 1960s beach party movies with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello.

The passing of the baton from one generation of actors to another is sometimes more than just an emotional it can be extremely painful for those who are left behind Paul Blaisdell was one of those that the industry seems to abandon after American international pictures changed its direction and that was a loss to all of us who loved the monsters in our closets after watching one of his creations frighten us.

So just remember the knock on your door this Halloween isn't from some space alien wanting to suck out your brains it's most likely the kid down the street wanting his share of your candy.

He He He!

 

Most of my friends and relatives think that they know what traveling East Tennessee has to offer, but there are hidden gems that beckon the traveler that you may not have ever known. Sometimes you just want something more than theme parks or the go kart tracks of Pigeon Forge or even the shopping of Gatlinburg. You need something educational or different to engage your mind and body, exactly like the place I'm going to tell you about that my wife and I experienced today. You may or may not have heard of it but I don't think you really realize the significance of this particular tourist destination. It is both a dig site and a natural history Museum and, as a matter of fact, one of the largest archaeological dig sites east of the Mississippi River.

The museum explains in detail the work that goes on at a fossil dig site and gives the visitor a firsthand look at what happens and how fossils are found at a dig site. The dig site, like most dig sites in the U.S., is only operated during the fair weather months and must be closed down and protected from precipitation and extreme weather to preserve what has not been uncovered yet. The museum however is open year-round.

Not only is this the largest dig site that exists east of the Mississippi, it has been rumored that they may even have found a new species of mastodon never before catalogued. This dig site is from the Miocene-era and those scientists that have examined and surveyed the area for the fossils think that an underground limestone cave collapsed, created a sinkhole, and trapped such animals as saber tooth cat, tapir, alligators, rhinos, short faced bear, red pandas, and mastodons.

This is like seeing one of the natural wonders of the world when looking at the jaw of one of the mastodons that has been unearthed. The incredible size of this creature is more than half the size of a normal elephant of today. Watching the students and their professors taking great pains to put these fossils back together so that we can see whole skeletons of the animals that they have found is just remarkable.

You must find an area that is perfect for the fossil to be preserved, because there are so many factors as to why you don't find as many fossils as you would think, the acidity of the ground, the moisture content of the ground, the type of rocks and even the climate of the area can determine whether the remains of animals over 4.5 to 7,000,000 years old can last long enough to be dug up and preserved by these scientists. Only one percent of this dig site has been excavated thus far, so it is still an active site.

We even saw how they were closing down the dig site because they are preparing the dig site for winter. If you left a dig site of this importance open to the ravages of winter without preparing it, you would lose some of the fossils that you are trying to remove, so instead of keeping it open during harsh weather they close it down and cover it and prepare it for inclement weather to come. This way they are saving most, if not all, of the fossils within this remarkable dig site.

The caverns below the watering hole of these mammals that used it for food and water were also what preserved them so well for future generations to study. It seems while feeding and drinking at least one or more of these limestone caverns collapsed underneath a heard of mastodons preserving their bones and fossilized them for our scientists to study today.

Just to give you a for instance, one of the bear skeletons found in this amazing dig site, when standing on all fours, would've been 6 foot tall or over. That would dwarf the black bears of the Smoky Mountains and would've made them almost 3 times larger than our North American black bear of the Smokies. Before man had taken his first breath these animals perished and were quickly covered over with various sediments that help preserve their bones.

I'm not going to give you any more spoilers of what they have found because the size and quantity of their find will blow your socks off. I will tell you that our guide John was knowledgeable and professional and I absolutely would recommend this to anyone visiting East Tennessee.

Gray Fossil Site and Museum is located near Johnson City in upper East Tennessee at 1212 Suncrest Dr., Gray, TN 37615 and the phone number is (423)439 – 3659. Operating hours are Tuesday through Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM, Saturdays from 10 AM to 5 PM and Sundays from 1 PM to 5 PM.  They are closed on holidays. Prices are extremely reasonable, self-guided general admission is five dollars each, guided Museum tour and dig site tour is eight dollars. Members receive free unlimited admission for one year. You can check at the desk for membership pricing or online. Discounts can be had for groups larger than 10 with a reservation.

Goodbye to my Batman

Generations of young boys have played and mimicked their heroes. When we were young boys we portrayed ourselves as Batman and Robin as we played throughout our neighborhood, keeping Gotham's villains from taking over. I'm sure those in our neighborhood remember Keith Shaw and me riding our bikes with our Batman T-shirts and towels tied to our neck as we played Batman and Robin.

Our Batman and Robin were different than the comic books and the Batman movies that have appeared in recent years because our generation’s television programs were more innocent than what is being portrayed on television and movie screens today. I, for one, am thankful that the Batman than I remember was happier,friendlier and, yes, campier than anything done today.

I have heard younger people say that the acting was terrible and that it was too silly, boy, do I disagree. Some of the greatest actors of the 40s, 50's and 60's appeared on the 1960's Batman television show. Some of these actors were for the first time introduced to a completely new generation of children which spawned the rebirth of their careers at a time that Hollywood and television had turned its back on older actors and actresses. Many of the older critically acclaimed actors were doing their best to get cameos in the new Batman movie or even on the Batman TV series in hopes that it would spark a new beginning for their careers.

 I do understand that Batman the TV show of the 60's could not be made the same way for television today as it was back then. As I see it, the actors that portray Batman today, I can't help but feel that there's something missing, something that's just not there. I think back to the days that I couldn't wait a whole week to see my Batman and then the network got it, they understood what it meant to my generation of young boys and they actually put a television show on two nights a week. I was born in 1956 that makes me 61 years old and I do not remember ever seeing a show scheduled for two nights a week other than the 1960's Batman. The thing that is missing today is the innocence of youth that was still intact in the 1960's.

There is always someone that is the number one actor in a TV show or movie which, by the way, my Batman had movies and a television show. That actor usually is well-known and respected in the industry. The actor that played my Batman was known and respected but not so much to the public at that time, so when these two actors came to play the dynamic duo they had no idea that they would be remembered so fondly some fifty-something years later. I have gone to autograph shows to get as many of the autographs and meet the people that were on my Batman. I have collected at least seven or eight autographs from these actors. I even told the person that played my Batman about how my best friend at the time Keith Shaw and I went with my parents to the drive-in movies to see the new Batman movie. The drive-in movie theater was giving out a black and white 8 x 10 glossy picture to each car that came to the movie on this particular day but it was only one picture per car so of course, my parents gave it to my friend. I told him how I cried because I didn't have a picture of Batman, but now not only do I have a picture and autograph, I have one of my fondest memories of meeting Adam West, my hero, and my Batman.

It was such an honor to meet Adam West and many of the cast of that original 1960's TV show Batman. Unlike the 1960's we now can own every single episode of that original Batman TV show without commercials. Adam West embodied what was good about the Batman he played. He has done many voiceovers for cartoons over the years and done parodies of that original TV show where he played Batman, but he has always kept a campy dignity surrounding the persona of the Batman he portrayed that the young boys of my generation loved so dearly. Adam West had a place in all of our young hearts and all of our minds and even our dreams and hopes for the future. Adam West is one of those actors that will never be totally missed because his body of work lives on through the magic of reruns, videotape, DVD's and Blu-ray's, but there is a much greater magic within those young boys of my generation and that's the undying gratitude and love of the fun and adventure that he gave us that still lives on through us today and forever.

Even though the bat signal has gone dark we wish you Godspeed and Bat thrusters on full, Adam West to your next adventure. 

September 19, 1928-June 9, 2017

I have grown up in some very strange times that confuse me about what freedom is all about. I was born in the mid-50s and I'm still kicking as they say, but I must tell you not as high as I used to. 

I remember when if a girl got pregnant out of wedlock she was ostracized by the community and abandoned by her family. Now it's not only preferred by the masses that she keeps it, but they try and legislate her right to choose.  I have never thought killing an unborn Child should be used as a form of birth control so I'm not confused about why people feel so strongly about abortion, but what I am confused about is the changes in what is considered right and wrong in this case. I am also highly confused about why someone's right to choose to keep a baby or not keeping a baby is considered so horrible. I would understand it if they gave a better alternative then Abortion to the poor girl who is going through so much emotion and heartache. I have never heard of a group of the right to life organizations building orphanages or making adoption organizations for this specific purpose. I see people so profoundly entrenched in a faith that would condone the murdering of doctors that perform abortions and not give alternative choices to those that seek abortions because they think it is their only recourse to an unwanted pregnancy. When you give someone a choice you have to give them a better choice than they are looking at. You have to give them a choice that gives them dignity in that choice and you have to make it readily available to them without any consequences otherwise you don't give that person a choice.

I also don't understand the phrase that guns don't kill people. Yes, I agree that a gun on a shelf never touched will hurt no one. The thing that I don't understand is how you can’t see that if there was never a gun on the shelf we wouldn't be having this conversation. I do however believe in the privilege for everyone to own a firearm if they are law-abiding and mentally competent to do so. The other thing I don't understand is all of those people who rightly owned guns and have no malice in their hearts for anyone want absolutely everyone in the world to own a gun. I know people that I am glad that they own a gun most of them are police officers and law enforcement personnel. I also have appreciated and love the right and privilege to hunt however I have never been a sports Hunter, when I go hunting it is for food and not the thrill of killing. As a matter of fact, I pray and give thanks to God for the animal that I harvest and also feel some anguish for killing one of God's creatures. Yes, you can call me a bleeding heart because I do have one and I intend to defend my family because they are my heart. We have seen too many mentally ill people obtain guns legally I feel that this must stop. My right to owning a weapon does not trump any one's right to safety however I personally feel that my right to own a firearm is not the problem I feel that our laws are not being enforced properly and if you are on a terrorist watch list you should never be able to legally purchase a gun in the United States. If you are not mentally stable enough to own a firearm you should not be able to legally purchase a firearm in the United States. The excuse that criminals can find a gun illegally is not only absurd it is inhumane to use such an excuse to justify anyone killing someone in a country that is free minded people can come together and create the proper solutions without taking away anyone's freedom.

I also believe in the right of choice of just about anything and everything. Yes, I do believe you have the choice to be stupid, but I believe the only stupid choice is to close your mind down and not consider everyone and what they have to say. I don't think that our government is perfect and I definitely don't think the candidates running for president are our best choices. I do however think that they represent what our country has come to in these days of no compromise and no compassion. It's okay to be hateful to one another in a political campaign and its okay to call your neighbor stupid or ignorant or uneducated because he likes the opposite candidate to your choice. I see a country and a great division and the choices that we may have made this rip in the fabric of America, not to leave out those of you who say I don't vote so it's not my fault, it's more your fault that it is those that vote. A wise man once said that no one from a foreign land could set foot on this nation and destroy the ideas and the democracy that we have created, he said that it would have to come from within the United States itself, if we were to lose this great country that we have made and fought for these many years. The divisions in our country have always been this wide and we have been able to build bridges of compromise across the divisions of political ideology, religion, and philosophy to keep this country running straight and narrow toward a positive future. Every time someone has put obstacles in our way we have been able to remove those obstacles because we work together and compromised and made this country a better place for every single human being occupying our land. I see just as I did in the 60s people of color feeling as if they are being targeted by the very government that we instituted to protect them and no one should ever have that feeling. I am a white male and definitely over 21 and 

I have felt discriminated against my entire life because I did not come from an affluent family, no my family didn't have money and they didn't have power so everyone thought they could roll right over the top of me without any opposition. Those of you that know me know that's not the case. I tried to stand up for what is right and that doesn't mean that I think that everything is in black and white everything has a colorful story to its core and I try to see the entire picture before I make my decisions.

I met a gentleman just the other day that explained to me that he learned better with his hands than he ever did with his eyes, in other words, he had trouble reading.  I guess I'm getting ahead of my story here, so let me start from the beginning.

I knew from a very early age I saw the world differently than others. I could take things apart and put them back together much easier than I could read a book. I remember sitting down on the couch with my mother going over my spelling words[G1] .  I would misspell them knowing that I had all of the letters in the word but did not put them in their proper order or I would try and spell the word before or after that particular word. Things just didn't look the same to me as they did to my mother. I learned that if I concentrated with all my might and everything that was within me on each letter and each word in its own turn I could see them as others saw them. If I lost concentration or didn't try hard enough things would look almost backward to me. I would try to read the assigned books that we had for each class each year.  It would take me so long to read one book out of the 5 to 10 that we were supposed to read that I started using Cliff notes and I could barely keep up.  I guess my teachers probably thought I was not very smart.[G2] [G3] 

It wasn't until I got into junior high and high school that I figured out that people read a book with two minds, one that spoke the words and the other mind was like a movie that went on in your head showing you the picture of what was going on according to what you were reading. I had to concentrate so hard on being able to read each word in each sentence that I was losing the ability to comprehend it as just a fictional book and to enjoy it. It took me much longer than high school to figure out how to do that. Yes, I could read comic books because of the pictures, and the fact that the words were not in huge paragraphs, they were just what the character was saying or doing in that particular frame and that made it much easier for me to understand. It wasn't until I started reading Disney news magazines that I could glimpse that movie within my mind of what I was reading and I could concentrate as much on one side of the equation as I could the other. It was still extremely hard and time consuming for me. I made a major breakthrough when I started reading J.K. Rowling’s series about Harry Potter. I had watched the movies so I had the foresight of the movies to help me with the picture going on in my mind of what I was reading.  It was like an epiphany for me to actually see in my mind’s eye for the very first time complete scenes and complete stories of what I was reading on the page.  It was wonderful to finally understand how someone could enjoy reading a book because I never could until then.

The gentleman that I had met was telling me the story of myself. He said that he had dyslexia and I believe with all my heart, even though it's never been diagnosed, that that is what I have. He explained to me that he learned so much more quickly by touch than he ever did by reading anything and that was my story. He explained to me how this dyslexia would come and go according to how much concentration he put into it at the time, keeping his mind and his eyesight straight. It's exactly how I have to do things. I jokingly shook his hand and said: [G4] “hello long-lost brother”.  He laughed too because he knew what I meant. I told him of the story about an actor who had written a screenplay about a wrestler and he wanted to do a read through with his friends. He called on me to read a particular part and I told him that I was embarrassed about it but that reading was hard for me. He looked at me and he said “you have dyslexia, don't you” and I kind of took a step back and realized that for the first time I admitted it in public. He said, [G5] “that's okay, I will give you a few minutes to read over your lines and help you with them”. This made me determined to find a way to beat my affliction and enjoy reading.

I now understand that there are so many actors, writers and others that enjoy the written word that has dyslexia. I have never had anyone help me with my affliction[G6] . Teachers nor doctors really understand it when I was in school. I have gone it alone and tried to understand and find out how to read and enjoy reading without having to concentrate so hard. Even though it is easier now than it ever has been, it is still extremely hard work for me to read.  I have now read and finished a few books from cover to cover.  I never could do that before.  I love the Harry Potter series and love to read them. I read and now write blogs, as well as other literature and I can actually say I read and enjoy it.[G7] 

I can remember people telling me that they had just bought a huge novel a few weeks ago and they had read it from cover to cover and at that time I'm thinking, you're a liar, how can you read a book like that in just weeks. It takes me months, if not years to get through a book that thick. Now I can get through a standard novel within about 60 days, maybe sometimes a little longer, but in a reasonable length of time so that I don't forget what happened at the beginning of the book by the time I get to the end of the book. To me, that is a miracle and, yes, I do mean a miracle. I love to write, I love to read and, by doing so, it has opened up an entire world to me that used to be closed. I always read the short synopsis of books but there were always those books out there that I'd always wanted to read, like books about my hero Walt Disney or A.A. Milne’s The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and I just couldn't. It wasn't that I didn't try because I did but just calling out words is not reading. It was difficult to concentrate so hard to keep everything in its proper alignment so that you could read a couple of words or a sentence and then have to concentrate again to read the next line but you didn't have the strength of mind to carry on.

Just to give you an inkling of how hard it was, have you ever tried to make an object move with your mind and you’re concentrating so hard to get it to move, [G8] you get a headache. That is what I went through, that is why school was so hard for me.  I don't know if it's age or if it was the trying over and over again that helped me defeat my problem. Don't get me wrong, I have not completely defeated it because if I do not concentrate on what I'm reading I will transpose letters, words and even sentences, so you see, I still have to work at it. It's so much easier today than when I was a child in school. It's as if someone turned the light on in the room and I can see the written page.

So you see the man (at the beginning of my story) that learned with his hands better than from a book, he and I have something in common, we both have dyslexia. This is a story that teachers and doctors alike should be aware of because, as a kid, you don’t know you have this problem, and you are not able to explain it to anyone.  Many children have probably gone undiagnosed just because they could not tell anyone what was wrong.

---

Hey Hey They are the Monkees

  I really don't know how critics get their credentials. I was just listening to NPR where a critic and writer of the history of rock 'n roll was reviewing the Monkees 50th. His review was basically listing facts about how the Monkees got the best writers in the industry to write for them and I took away from it that his conclusion was that's why they had such a great sound. I could not believe my ears! He even said that he had no frame of reference toward the Monkees when they originally came out, because he was into the underground sound at that time that had just gotten started. His review showed that he had no frame of reference for the Monkees television show at all.

I have made the statement that we were from the Ed Sullivan generation because we would listen to music that was so different like the acts that Ed Sullivan had on his show, from Beverly Sills to Janis Joplin, from Perry Como to Mick Jagger, not to mention the Beatles, who the TV executives of the time wanted the Monkees to emulate. The television show the Monkees auditioned as many young men as they possibly could and they came up with four young men that seemed to have nothing in common or you might say that they were all from different backgrounds. That, in most cases, might spell disaster for the chemistry with actors on a sitcom. The TV show the Monkees however was not a sitcom, it was not a musical variety show, it was something the likes of American television had never seen before. You might say the television show the Monkees was a gumbo of a mixture of British and American pop culture in a soup base that had some of the best songwriters in the world simmering into an extremely good pop rock band.

  I myself loved the Monkees, their hijinks and off-the-wall acting wasn't meant to be the great American drama and it wasn't. It was entertaining to the kids of that day. The music that was presented by the Monkees to sing was fantastic. It was from the best songwriters around, of that there is no doubt. I however want to make this perfectly clear to everyone, if you would have put this same music in front of a mediocre group of young men who had no talent and didn't care, it would have been horrible. I do not think that you could have any better chemistry for a band as you did with Michael Nesmith, Peter Tork, Davy Jones and Mickey Dolenz. I don't care what was going on behind the scenes, I don't care if they didn't like each other, I don't care about the lawsuits, that's not what I'm talking about. What I am talking about is the simple fact that this group of young men came together and became a part of rock 'n roll history. Say what you want to, they were a good part of rock 'n roll history.

  The music that they put out had at least seven number one hits as far as I can remember. You can say what you want to about them having great songwriters which they did, but my contention is if they had not been a good band, they would not have been able to secure one number one hit let alone seven. All of this in just three or four years during and after their TV show. I, for one, believe that there was magic in the chemistry they produced on TV and stage.

Just to give you a for instance, there is a video circulating on YouTube from just a couple of years ago that shows Paul McCartney and his band, walking down the halls to the stage of one of their concerts, singing “Here we come,  walking down the street, we get the funniest looks from everyone we meet, Hey Hey we’re the Monkees…..”. I ask you, what greater tribute to the Monkees could there be than  Paul McCartney knowing one of their songs and singing it with his band for the fun of it.

I would also like to say that the songs they sang are caught in our minds forever. How many of you out there remember all the words to at least one of the Monkees’ songs. I personally know the words to at least three of their songs.

  It just makes me mad when someone thinks they have the right to review a group and still say that they have no point of reference of that group's heyday. This person listened to their music in retrospect today to review it in the context of what they know now. You can never have that appreciation for a piece of art if you never heard it when it came out. I'm telling you right now I love the Monkees television show. I had all of their albums and I also listened to the underground sound of the 60’s. I am part of the Ed Sullivan generation, I listened to almost every kind of music there was from the time I was a child till today and I'm 60 years old and I have never been able to understand how a reviewer can review a concert or review an album and come up with a totally different opinion of that music than those that appreciate it. I also believe that if you look at the modern abstract art and you don't get it you're not the person that should review it.

  He also kind of skipped over reviewing the movie Head that the Monkees put out after their TV show had ended, by saying that there are those that will defend it. I will not defend it, other than to say that looking at it today I see what they were striving for but the Monkees were never a psychedelic band, they're acting in the Monkees show was never part of the drug culture,  it was pop rock culture. I put the blame own it not being a hit, which it wasn't, on the directors and producers, especially the director who had absolutely no clue. Am I saying that I dislike Head, yes I probably am, but it is a part of rock 'n roll history and I'm sure there are people out there that did enjoy it, but I was thoroughly disappointed with that attempt.

  The Monkees shortly thereafter disappeared except for the occasional reunion concerts and the passing of Davy Jones seemed to have put an end to the concerts till here recently. Both Peter Tork and Mickey Dolenz have gotten together again for at least one last Monkees romp and I am happy about it.

For all those we’ve lost in 2016

When we lose an actor we don’t just lose that person, we also lose all of the characters they would have given us.  When we lose a musician or singer we lose the beautiful sounds that were yet to come.  When we lose a songwriter we lose those wonderful lyrics that will never be.  When we lose a writer we lose the stories that will never be told.  When we lose those historic icons of history we lose the possibilities that they might have achieved.  When we lose an athlete we lose the victories that might have been.  When we lose a soldier we lose a hero.  When we lose those we love we lose the possibility of telling them one last time how much we love them. 

                For all those we’ve lost in 2016 we will never lose the feeling of how much we will miss you

The Call of the Mountain

The Call of the Mountain

I walk the trails that lead through these mountains and I feel our ancestors that walked these trails before me. I hear the echoes of the birds in flight calling their mates from the other side of the mountains from days gone by. I can hear echoes in time of bears feasting upon the fruits that the mountain gives to its woodland creatures.

I hear the voice of the Cherokee who were the first to speak to the mountain and called this place home. I feel the winds that have blown through these mountains and carried the voices of the early settlers through its valleys to the tips of its chimney tops.

This land we call the Appalachians is a gift from God for His creations. It is up to us to talk to the mountain and keep it company for it has been there for us in good and bad times, keeping us fed, and blessed with its abundance of riches. We have quenched our thirst in the streams that come from the winter snows on its caps and, with the power of her fast-moving streams coming from its highest points,

We powered our mills to grind the grain that makes our bread that we farmed in the valleys around our beautiful mountains. Our ancestors settled within the borders of these mountains we call the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. We have not only worked this land to feed our families, we have also bled from our hearts into the very dirt and rocks that make up these mountains.

We have borne our children and buried our parents within its soil. It is not just a tourist attraction for those that live in distant places, this is where we call home. The history and the ministry that lay before us in these mountains is our destiny and we would have it no other way, for we are mountain strong.

Good by Debby

God is calling a generation of people home. I see so many of those that I admired and watched on a flickering screen in the dark movie theater or on my television set in my own home. He is also calling home those that I have never seen before. I feel the loss of every single man woman and child that has been called to our father side whether I knew them are not.

It is only human nature to hurt so much more when you feel that you knew them. Family members or people that you grew up with seem to hurt the most. I have always had a special bond in my heart for those that made the movies that gave me my escape from the harsh realities of daily life, almost as if they were part of my family.

Losing Carrie Fisher was a heartfelt blow to me. Now losing her mother Debbie Reynolds has torn a chunk from my heart, because I actually spoke with her and touched her hand. She was so giving a person and I hope I don't bore you but I would like to share a little of the story of our meeting.

It wasn't a one-on-one meeting where we were having coffee and cake or anything like that. It wasn't ultra-personal at all. Debbie Reynolds had come to pigeon Forge to announce that she was opening a movie memorabilia Museum and did a show at a theater in Pigeon Forge. After the show she stayed around and talked about the fact that she had purchased amazing amounts of movie memorabilia when the studios were closing their back lots and liquidating all of their assets. She also signed autographs and spoke to each one of us that had stayed personally. If you've never seen the news clips of what Debbie Reynolds purchasing her collection at those auctions when the big studios were closing down their back lots and liquidating their assets, let me just tell you two things that are so rare that she had it boggles my mind. She had Carmen Miranda tutti-frutti hat and she also had the one-of-a-kind ruby slippers that were made with the toes curled up like elf style ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz.

Not only did she have rare Hollywood treasures, she was also a rare Hollywood treasure. You see Debbie Reynolds was not only a part of the royalty of Hollywood she also was an admirer. She could step back and look at the movies and appreciate everything about them like I can or you can. She even tried to get the heads of the studios to open up the studios to the public and charge admission so that the back lots and the studios could remain intact for future generations. But as progress always has, it never looks at what the past can do for us. Progress in this country is always been a bulldozer that destroys everything in its path.

Because of Debbie Reynolds many Hollywood props and even clothing that the stars wore was saved from being destroyed the museum in pigeon Forge never happened, because that's when our economy collapsed. Unfortunately Ms. Reynolds had to sell her massive collection. I only wish that she could have seen her dream come true of allowing the public to enjoy the history of movie making as much as she did.

We have come to the final scene of the movie and the life that was Debbie Reynolds and like the character she played in the unsinkable Molly Brown she has left us with a treasure of movies that will keep her alive for generations to come.

God bless the Reynolds and Fisher families and comfort them I know their pain is great, because the two people they lost were great themselves.

Goodbye Carrie Fisher

Today there was a massive disturbance in the force, as if a billion or more hearts were broken all at the same time. Princess Leia a.k.a. Carrie Fisher left the bonds of this world to become an angel in God's heaven. Those of us geeks that loved the performances of Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia in the three best Star Wars movies had our hearts broken with the passing of the actress that will always be a legend in our hearts and minds. She did not have a varied acting career, but she was an entertainer all of her life, because she came from entertainment royalty. She was the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher who were 1940s and 50s Hollywood royalty.

I don't think there's a person that went to see the first Star Wars movie that did not fall in love with the feisty girl dressed in white with a funny hairdo, at least any of the boys that went to see it. Star Wars will be missing a huge part of its being from now on. Her last line in Star Wars, The Force Awakens, was a passing of the baton to a new generation of actors, as she said, "may the force be with you". I can't help but think and pray for her and her family and paraphrasing the line she spoke may God be with her and her family.

I own several replicas from Star Wars, from a light saber, to R2-D2 and a millennium falcon, because Star Wars was the movie that changed cinematography for a whole generation of moviegoers. The acting and the storylines in the original Star Wars trilogy was the catapult for the technological leap in moviemaking and yet that was not the thing that put it in the depths of our hearts as moviegoers, it was three young previously unknown actors that won of our hearts and not the least of them was Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia.

I regret out of all the people I have met that I never got to meet her, I did however meet her mother at a show she put on in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee and I hope neither one of them would mind if I say that I actually could see both of them on the stage that night, because I saw so much of her daughter in Debbie Reynolds on that stage. After returning home from seeing Debbie Reynolds I was curious so I put on Star Wars A New Hope and I especially watched Carrie Fisher's performance and I was right, I saw a lot of Debbie Reynolds in Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia .

These people that we hold so dear that we call actors, I wonder if they know how much they mean to us, they come into our lives to give us hope and an escape from reality for a couple of hours in a darkened movie theater. I wish I had had the chance to tell Carrie Fisher thank you for all you do. I don't think most actors really understand how much they do for us and yes, I do know that they are only human beings that have their frailties and are trying to make it from one day to the next. There is always that inspiration, that glimmer of hope and the expectation of excitement that these people we call actors give us and we love them for it.

It's not as if a member of my family has died or someone that was really close to me has passed away. Even with saying that it still feels extremely sad to lose someone that has brightened my existence with the things that they had said and done and written. It's hard to imagine a world without these wonderful people that have given of their time to entertain us and give us a smile.

I have always prayed for everyone to be blessed by God and for those that need comfort or need His help, but I pray that God would bless this lady who has given us each a blessing with the work she has left and for God to comfort her family today and the days that come because no matter how much I or my fellow geeks will miss her I'm sure her family is hurting so much more. God receive this angel into your flock and comfort her mother and family who need you the most.

Keiths Memories In Time: "Summer Holiday" Voice from the Past

Keiths Memories In Time: "Summer Holiday" Voice from the Past: I made the most amazing discovery last night that I could not believe. I did not recognize this person that I have watched for more than th...

"Summer Holiday" Voice from the Past

I made the most amazing discovery last night that I could not believe. I did not recognize this person that I have watched for more than three years on Sherlock from the BBC. The actress was Una Stubbs

and the discovery brought back memories of a movie that I saw when I was only a teenager and fell in love with it was called Summer Holiday: starring Sir Cliff Richards and The Shadows as well as Una Stubbs. I know most of you are scratching your head going what is he talking about well let me explain Una Stubbs plays the character of Mrs. Hudson on the BBC's Sherlock and she also played Sandy in Summer Holiday.

I know you are still wondering why this would really matter well let me give you just a brief history, in the United States in the late 50s early 60s we had a young gentleman known as Elvis Presley who dominated the music scene and in the United Kingdom they also had a young man who dominated the music scene and his name was Sir Cliff Richards he was what we would call the Elvis Presley of Great Britain. The only time that I ever really saw anything of Sir Cliff Richards was from the movie summer holiday in 1963.

It was about three young men trying to show the British transportation system that they could make money with a double-decker bus touring the European countryside. On their summer holiday they took a double-decker bus to show British transport that it would be possible.  While on their holiday they ran into a trio of girl singers that desperately needed a different mode of transportation than what they had the gentleman offered to take them for a ride.

It is a British style beach party you know the ones with Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. Yet however it was very British and the dark bobbed haired girl was known as Sandy in the movie, she was Una Stubbs

that was the star of the trio of girls as she is a brighter personality than the others just as Mrs. Hudson in the BBC's Sherlock is a bright personality.

The reason I found out who she was from my past was I was searching through the BBC's who do you think you are on YouTube and found that she was one of those that they had picked for their version, which by the way is the original version, the American version is not the original it is a copy of the British version of who do you think you are. They had stars like Robin Gibbs from the Bee Gees, Martin Freeman from the BBC's Sherlock, Graham Norton talk show host from the BBC, Stephen Fry from the BBC's Dr. who and Sherlock Holmes game of shadows and last but not least Julie Walters Mrs. Weasley from Harry Potter.

These are shows that we have never seen and it tends to aggravate me immensely that we never see them. I was so happy when I saw a few years ago that we were getting BBC America I thought wow we will now get to see some British programming, but there is very little British programming on the BBC America it is mostly American programs such as Star Trek the next generation. It was a complete letdown for me that I seldom watch it anymore.

Una Stubbs was one of those dancer actresses that got her start because she was multitalented I was so ashamed that I did not recognize her, but I knew that her voice was so familiar. Who do you think you are had a small clip of her dancing on one of either hers are Sir Cliff Richards British TV special together and I recognized her immediately and it came to me like a bolt of lightning that voice, her voice was that of Mrs. Hudson's voice and was the same as Sandy on summer holiday I knew it immediately my wife double checked on the Internet movie database.

I was astonished I could not believe that I had not recognized her on my own. She has not changed really like all of us she has gotten older but she still has that bright bubbly personality she puts in her acting.

I have always admired the British actors and actresses for their down-to-earth approach to acting and also when they are not in character. It's a different world for actors in Britain than it is in the US. I hope someday I might have some of my favorite British actors and actresses autographs. Any time we go to Great Britain I scour the markets to find those that have autographs and pictures of the British actors and actresses, because we never seem to have any of them at our autograph shows other than the most famous.

Just another of my memories in time that I love to think about.

The season of holidays is now upon us and families prepare for feasts and reunions that go along with these holiday seasons. I'm so deeply afraid that the young people today don't follow those traditions as our parents did and we tried to do. As I have gotten older it is harder to make the trips to see my family, but somehow I endeavor to try at least once a year to make contact with those still living in my family.
I came from a large and loving family from both sides of my parents and if you've ever seen me in the last few years you'll understand when I say that they were some of the greatest cooks I have ever known.I can't help myself I love the style of the southern cooking ladies that made up the chefs of my family.
I know I have told you all the stories of trying to make the buttermilk biscuits or the turkey and dressing with giblet gravy. that brought me to tears when I finally discovered how to make them taste as my family had made them taste when I was just a child. The flavors the smells and yes even the arguments that seem to happen every year are some of my fondest memories of my mother and father's family and of my mother and father.
You can say what you will about them but my family was not wealthy and they may not have been prim and proper all the time, after all they came from a long lineage of indentured servants and farmers that travel to this country as early as the 1620s. What my family did have was a strong and abundant love for family. Family always came first in our house when I was a child and the love shown to me was extremely great and fulfilling to one so young.
I feel the sadness come over me every year in October because that's when I lost my mother and a lot of my family, but that sadness did not come this year. The tears that I cry each October did however come but as I remarked to a very dear friend who lost their mother just a day ago. This time when the tears came they came with overwhelming joy knowing how much my mother loved me knowing how much my family love me no matter how much of a pain I seem to be to them. I have learned that these silly little things that sparked the memories that made me sad were not put in my life to make me sad they were put in my life to remember who I am and where I came from. They were put in my life help me remember my mother and my family.
This holiday season I am hoping that you have family surrounding you with love and I hope that your family remembers that our time with them is growing short. I, as you, am the patriarch of my family, that you tell your children and your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren how much you love them and that when you're gone and they remember you because of some silly little thing, that the memory that comes flooding to their mind is not there to make them sad it's put their to remind them that you walk with them side by side and you are still with them in their heart. These memories that they will carry with them the rest of their lives are not sad memories but happy memories of the magic of the love that you and they made for each other

Keiths Memories In Time: Rockin

Keiths Memories In Time: Rockin: Okay, I'm bringing this to y’all and y'all can tell me if I'm crazy, and if I'm making this up. I'll start by telling y...

I came from Memphis Tennessee and the area that is now known as Orange mound and later was known as the Charjean neighborhood and I have always referred to it as the Airways neighborhood because of the junior high that brought my generation together. There was another force that brought a lot of us together for a cause of good and Christianity, so in this story I will refer to it as the Charjean neighborhood because it was a small neighborhood church that brought a lot of us together and saved us from a life that might have destroyed us. I'm sure even in the Charjean area there were other small churches that a lot of us clung to for spiritual nourishment, but Charjean was the one that I remember the fondest. I know that the elders of the church were not pleased with the influx of kids that were not financially supportive of the church as much as they would have been if our parents had been members of the church as well, but there was a group of us kids that became members of Charjean Baptist Church in spite of some of the elders and there were those elders of the church however that opened their arms to us and were like second, third or fourth parents to us. For all of those elders of the church that did welcome us I could never thank you enough for what you gave us. It seems that little church has passed into history but not from my memory. It gave us sanctuary in times of need and it also gave us friendship of the best people I ever knew. We grew up in a neighborhood that was made up of working-class people that were not always the kindest our best people you would want to hang around with, but when it came right down to it they were good people and without the guiding light of God that these small neighborhood churches like Charjean Baptist Church gave us, I ask you where would we be and who would we be and if we would even be? God gave me a mandate to love everyone, even though I try I just as many of you fail to follow in the footsteps of our Savior way too often, I still pray for the strength and wisdom that it takes to love everyone. I ask God to bless all of those who went or attended or were members of Charjean Baptist Church and all of the little neighborhood churches in the Charjean neighborhood with health, wealth, wisdom and love for everyone. I would like to remind you without God there would be no wisdom. I would like to remind you without God there would be no wealth. I would like to remind you without God there would be no love. But I would like to especially remind you without God there would be no you or me. Thank you Lord for the tiny little Charjean Baptist Church. Thank you Lord.
As a side note I googled Charjean Baptist Church looking for a picture of our church to post I did not find one I liked, but one picture stuck out above all the others it was a picture of Ramona Haney. I don't think any more needs to be said, When you look for a picture to restore your faith it will be given to you.