• Comedians Jimmy Durante and Eddie Cantor were very giving of their time to good causes. On New Year’s Day of 1943, Mr. Durante met Mr. Cantor while taking a walk. “Eddie,” Mr. Durante said, “I’m just thinkin’. This must be a tough time for the guys over there in that hospital. Here it’s New Year’s Day, they’re sick, some of ’em have amputations. What do ya say we go over and entertain?” The two comedians rehearsed for a short time, then entertained at the hospital from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Afterward, Mr. Durante said hoarsely to Mr. Cantor, “Eddie, tell me, don’t a t’ing like dis make ya feel good?”
Practical Jokes
• Tim Conway used to hang out with some friends in a projection room at a television station in Cleveland, Ohio. At night, the telephone switchboard was closed, so the calls were routed into the projection room. Mr. Conway sometimes pretended to be an answering machine. He would answer the phone and say, “When you hear the tone, leave your name, number, and message.” But then he would beep before the caller had finished talking and say, “No, you didn’t say it fast enough. You have to get your message in between the tones. Now try it again.” Again, he would beep before the caller had finished talking. Callers would try to talk faster and faster until they finally realized that they were the victims of a practical joke.
• Mark Twain was at the races outside London, where he met a friend who had lost all his pocket money gambling and who asked if Mr. Twain would buy him a ticket back to London. “I’m nearly broke myself, but I’ll tell you what I’ll do,” Mr. Twain replied. “You can ride under my seat, and I’ll hide you with my legs.” The friend agreed, but unknown to the friend, Mr. Twain bought two train tickets. When the train inspector came by to collect the tickets, Mr. Twain handed him the two tickets, then said, “My friend is a little eccentric and likes to ride under the seat.”
• As a teenager growing up in Indianapolis, Indiana, David Letterman worked in a grocery store. One day, he was ordered to stack up cans in a display. He did stack the cans—all the way to the ceiling, using an arrangement in which if a customer removed one can, the entire stack of cans would fall down. On another occasion, he got on the intercom and announced a fire drill. The customers left the store, and not all the customers laughed when they discovered that the fire drill was a hoax.
• When Sheldon Leonard co-starred with Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man, a dialogue coach made his life miserable, insisting that he was performing the dialogue incorrectly no matter how he said it. After some time, when Mr. Leonard was ready to kill the dialogue coach, Mr. Costello revealed that it was a practical joke—the dialogue coach was just an actor he and his partner had hired to plague him.
• Humorist Robert Benchley invited Frank Case, the manager of the Algonquin Hotel, to dinner, and when Mr. Case arrived, he discovered that almost everything in Mr. Benchley’s home had come from the Algonquin Hotel—the towels, the soap, the tableware, the napkins, everything bore the insignia of the Algonquin Hotel. (Mr. Benchley had secretly arranged with Mr. Case’s staff to borrow a bunch of Algonquin stuff for the dinner.)
• When famous movie stars Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford were walking together in Hollywood, they would occasionally be recognized and crowds of fans would follow them. Because the movies back then were silent, none of these fans had ever heard them speak. To amuse themselves and astonish the fans, Mr. Chaplin and Ms. Pickford sometimes spoke to each other using high, squeaky voices.
• Practical joker Hugh Troy used to give dinner parties at which he served oysters on the half shell. Frequently, one of the guests found a pearl and Mr. Troy congratulated the guest. Unfortunately, when the guest visited the jewelry store the next day to get the pearl appraised, the guest would discover that the “pearl” had been purchased at a five- and ten-cent store.
• David Brenner is funny in real life. Once, he was riding on a crowded subway. The only available seat was stained, so he put his newspaper on the seat, then sat down. A man asked, “Are you reading that newspaper?” Mr. Brenner replied, “Yes,” then stood up, turned the page, and sat down on the newspaper again.
Reddy Kilowatt is a cartoon character that acted as corporate spokesman for electricity generation in the United States and other countries for over seven decades.
Reddy Kilowatt is drawn as a stick figure whose body, limbs, and hair are made of stylized lightning-bolts and whose bulbous head has a light bulb for a nose and wall outlets for ears.
Reddy Kilowatt made his first published appearance on March 14, 1926 in an advertisement in The Birmingham News for the Alabama Power Company (APC). The character was the brainchild of the company's 40-year-old commercial manager, Ashton B. Collins, Sr.
Source
Billy in Cypress was first, and correct, with:
Reddy Kilowatt
Mark. said:
Reddy Kilowatt.
Randall wrote:
Reddy Kilowatt
Alan J answered:
Reddy Kilowatt.
Mac Mac replied:
Reddy Kilowatt
Jon L responded:
I remember him as Reddy Kilowatt.
zorch said:
Ready Kilowatt.
mj wrote:
When my mom took us with her
To pay the utility bills, there were cards on the counter with energy
saving tips and recipes designed for "the modern electric ranges". They
all featured pictures of Reddy Kilowatt.
Jacqueline answered:
Teddy Kilowatt
Stephen F responded:
Reddy Killowatt
Dave replied:
Reddy Kilowatt. I haven’t seen Reddy in a long time. I think the company that now is called Consumers Energy in Michigan used him for a while.
Roy, still a leftist scumbag in Tyler, TX wrote:
That's good ol' Reddy Kilowatt. I knew that ('cause I'm really old), but I can't recall if he offered tips on how to lower the 'lectric bill or just told us to shut it off if you ain't using it.
Jim from CA, retired to ID, said:
Reddy Kilowatt is spokesperson for PG&E......Happy New Year
Deborah, the Master Gardener responded:
That looks to me like Reddy Kilowatt, a rep for an electric company whose name I don’t know.
Rain dumped overnight and moved out, leaving a cold north wind in its place. Definitely wintery for these parts.
Stay safe and warm tonight, folks.
Rosemary in Columbus said:
Reddy Kilowatt
Barbara, of Peppy Tech fame wrote:
The answer is Reddy Kilowatt.
Happy New Year to you and all your readers!
Joe answered:
All I can think of is Reddy Kilowatt, I may have spelled it wrong, but you get my drift. I won't be up to greet the new year this year for the first time I can remember. So happy New Year Marty and all.
Leo in Boise responded:
Reddy Kilowatt.
In 1963 I had a job at Lockheed Aircraft in Marietta, GA. They had a campaign that pushed for every employee to turn off lights when they weren’t being used. The campaign had it’s own cartoon spokesman, Turner Awf.
Daniel in The City took the day off.
David of Moon Valley took the day off.
Dave in Tucson took the day off.
DJ Useo took the day off.
Bob from Mechanicsburg, Pa took the day off.
Michelle in AZ took the day off.
Kevin K. in Washington DC took the day off.
Ed K took the day off.
Doug in Albuquerque, New Mexico, took the day off.
-pgw took the day off.
Kenn B took the day off.
Micki took the day off.
Angelo D took the day off.
Harry M. took the day off.
George M. took the day off.
Gary K took the day off.
Roy the (now retired) hoghead (aka 'hoghed') ( Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid. ~Frank Zappa ) took the day off.
Saskplanner took the day off.
Gateway Mike took the day off.
Steve in Wonderful Sacramento, CA, took the day off.
MarilynofTC took the day off.
Paul of Seattle took the day off.
Brian S. took the day off.
Gene took the day off.
Tony K. took the day off.
Noel S. took the day off.
James of Alhambra took the day off.
BttbBob has returned to semi-retired status.
~~~~~
Artist Location: Formerly San Diego, California; now Vermont
Info:
“Pony Death Ride is a comedy / cabaret / punk rock duo from San Diego, Ca. Songs range from piano and ukulele ditties you may find at a burlesque or variety show to punk-rockish stuff all wrapped in a neat comedic bow.”
“If you're here to f*** then you're outta luck! This accordion heavy song by musical comedy duo Pony Death Ride explores the dark world of cuddle parties. So many rules!”
Price: $1 (USD) for track; $7 (USD) for 14-track album
Lots of fireworks and booms most of the night - the shittens were dismayed but adapted.
Tonight, Friday:
CBS begins the night with a RERUN'MacGyver', followed by a RERUN'Magnum PU', then a RERUN'Blue Bloods'.
On a RERUNStephen Colbert (from 12/15/20) are Anderson Cooper, Andy Cohen, and Whoopi Goldberg.
On a RERUNJames Corden, OBE, (from 9/17/20) are Neil Patrick Harris and Ziggy Marley featuring Ben Harper.
NBC starts the night with a RERUN'Weakest Link', followed by 'Dateline'.
On a RERUNJimmy Fallon (from 11/13/20) are Post Malone, Phoebe Robinson, and 2 Chainz.
On a RERUNSeth Meyers (from 12/14/20) are The Chicks, Jamie Demetriou, and Christina Aguilera.
On a RERUNLilly Singh (from 9/30/19) are Barbie Ferreira and Alexa Demie.
ABC opens the night with a RERUN'Shark Tank', followed by '20/20'.
On a RERUNJimmy Kimmel (from 12/15/20) are Carey Mulligan and Alanis Morissette.
The CW fills the night with 'The Rose Parade's New Year Celebration'.
Faux fills the night with FRESH'WWE Friday Night SmackDown'.
MY recycles an old 'L&O: CI', followed by another old 'L&O: CI'.
A&E has 'The First 48', another 'The First 48', followed by a FRESH'Live Rescue'.
AMC offers the movie 'Rocky III', followed by the movie 'Rocky IV', then the movie 'Rocky Balboa'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] DOCTOR WHO - THE WOMAN WHO FELL TO EARTH
[7:30AM] DOCTOR WHO - DEMONS OF THE PUNJAB
[8:36AM] DOCTOR WHO - KERBLAM!
[9:41AM] DOCTOR WHO - SPYFALL, PART 1
[11:08AM] DOCTOR WHO - SPYFALL, PART 2
[12:34PM] DOCTOR WHO - NIKOLA TESLA'S NIGHT OF TERROR
[1:45PM] DOCTOR WHO - FUGITIVE OF THE JUDOON
[2:56PM] DOCTOR WHO - CAN YOU HEAR ME?
[4:06PM] DOCTOR WHO - THE HAUNTING OF VILLA DIODATI
[5:16PM] DOCTOR WHO - ASCENSION OF THE CYBERMEN
[6:27PM] DOCTOR WHO - THE TIMELESS CHILDREN
[8:00PM] DOCTOR WHO - REVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS
[9:50PM] DOCTOR WHO - RESOLUTION
[11:15PM] DOCTOR WHO - THE HAUNTING OF VILLA DIODATI
[12:25AM] DOCTOR WHO - ASCENSION OF THE CYBERMEN
[1:36AM] DOCTOR WHO - THE TIMELESS CHILDREN
[3:10AM] DOCTOR WHO - REVOLUTION OF THE DALEKS
[5:00AM] WEIRD WONDERS (ALL TIMES ET)
Bravo has a FRESH'Below Deck', followed by the movie 'Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix'.
Comedy Central has an hour of old 'The Office', followed by 3 hours of 'Schitt's Creek'.
FX has the movie 'The Hangover Part III', followed by the movie 'The Equalizer 2', then the movie 'The Equalizer 2', again.
History has 'The UnXplained', another 'The UnXplained', followed by a FRESH'The UnXplained', and 'Ancient Aliens'.
IFC -
[6:00am] Mystery Science Theater 3000 - The Crawling Eye
[8:10am] Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Bride Of The Monster
[10:20am] Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Santa Claus
[12:30pm] Warm Bodies
[2:45pm] Zack And Miri Make A Porno
[8:00pm] The Brady Bunch Movie
[10:00pm] A Very Brady Sequel
[12:05am] This Is 40
[3:10am] Zack And Miri Make A Porno
[5:30am] Saved By The Bell (ALL TIMES ET)
Sundance -
[6:00am - 12:30pm] the andy griffith show
[1:00pm - 1:00am] law & order
[2:00am] columbo
[4:15am] columbo (ALL TIMES ET)
SyFy continues with the annual 'Twilight Zone' marathon.
Only one project lured two-time Academy Award winner Glenda Jackson back to the screen after an absence of 25 years: “Elizabeth Is Missing.”
The film is a mystery but so much more — a powerful and moving look at dementia, a pressing emotional and financial issue for many nations with aging populations. Jackson plays a woman lost in the fog between the past and present.
“This is something that as a society, we have to look at seriously,” the actor told The Associated Press by phone from England. “It’s a big black hole.”
The 90-minute film aired in the UK in 2019 to great acclaim and American viewers get a chance to see it starting Sunday via Masterpiece on PBS.
Jackson, 84, plays the role of Maud, who is in the throes of Alzheimer’s disease. Her home is covered with taped-up reminders and instructions — “Don’t forget to lock up” and “No more bread” — and her pockets are stuffed with scrawled notes she wrote to remind herself of events and appointments.
James Corden has said that the coronavirus pandemic has made him more homesick than ever, as he went further than he has done before in discussing the idea of returning to the UK.
The Late Late Show With James Corden host has often talked about missing home in interviews, but in comments this week, the actor and presenter said Covid-19 has intensified these feelings.
“I have a couple of years to go on this contract. Ending the show will always be a bigger family decision than a professional one,” he said of his deal with CBS in quotes carried by British newspaper The Sun.
“It will be about people at home who we miss very, very much, who we are homesick for. I also feel like my wife and I have three young children, and they are three young grandchildren that we’ve taken away from people.
“This probably feels particularly magnified now during the pandemic, but I have an overwhelming feeling that our family has walked to the beat of my drum for a very long time.”
Even as vaccines are being rolled out to battle the coronavirus, wordsmiths at Lake Superior State University in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula say they want to kick any trace of it from the English language.
“COVID-19” and “social distancing” are thrown in with “we’re all in this together,” “in an abundance of caution” and “in these uncertain times” on the school’s light-hearted list of banned words and phrases for 2021.
Out of more than 1,450 nominations sent to the school, about 250 words and terms suggested for banishment due to overuse, misuse or uselessness had something to do with the virus.
Seven of the 10 selected are connected to the virus, with “COVID-19” leading the way. “Unprecedented,” which was banished back in 2002, has been restored to the list.
The school in Sault Ste. Marie has compiled the list each year since 1976 it says to “uphold, protect, and support excellence in language by encouraging avoidance of words and terms that are overworked, redundant, oxymoronic, clichéd, illogical, nonsensical — and otherwise ineffective, baffling, or irritating.”
Donald Trump (R-Failure)'s first UK golf resort has lost money for the eighth year in a row as it faces an uncertain future due to Brexit and Covid.
The outgoing US president's International Golf Club in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, recorded a loss of £1.1m for 2019 despite an 18 per cent increase in revenue, according to the latest company accounts.
Its total debts now stand at £44m against assets of £32m, and the company relies on interest-free loans of £40m from Mr Trump and £3.4 from Mr Trump's company, DJT Holdings LLC.
Trump International Golf Club Scotland, which has not posted a profit since it was opened in 2012, said "significant progress" had been made on a plan to build a 550 unit residential village beside the resort.
If successful, and the houses are sold at their advertised prices, the project could earn a profit of more than £100m for Mr Trump, who put the course in a revocable trust on becoming president.
A Republican governor has cancelled his inauguration ceremony amid threats from armed protesters who have appeared outside his home in anger at a mandate on mask wearing.
Chris Sununu, who was due to be sworn in again as New Hampshire’s governor on 7 January, 2021, announced the mask mandate to stop Covid-19’s spread on 22 November.
One person was arrested on Monday outside Gov. Sununu’s home with ammunition, Newsweek reported, in what was said to be the third demonstration against his mask mandate in the past month.
Nine other individuals were issued with summonses by police under an anti-picketing ordinance passed by the local select board, on which the governor’s brother sits.
Frank Staples, a founder of the Absolute Defiance group who were behind the protests, said Gov. Sununu’s property was “the Statehouse”, because he had allegedly shut down the state.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed retired Rear Adm. Margaret Grun Kibben as the next House chaplain Thursday, making her the first woman to serve as chaplain in either chamber of Congress.
Kibben, who entered active duty in the Navy in 1986, served as the Navy's 26th Chief of Chaplains and as the 18th chaplain of the Marine Corps. She also served as the senior chaplain in Afghanistan.
Kibben, a Presbyterian minister, holds a bachelor's degree from Goucher College, a master's in divinity and a doctorate in ministry from Princeton Theological Seminary and a master's in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College.
The role of the chaplain has been around since the Continental Congresses and continued with the election of the Rev. William Linn as House chaplain on May 1, 1789.
The chaplain is responsible for opening all House proceedings with a prayer, as is required by House rules. The chaplain also provides members of Congress and their staffs with spiritual counsel, maintains the Congressional Prayer Room — a private place for members to pray — coordinates the scheduling of guest chaplains and arranges memorial services for the House.
Donations have topped $40,000 to help rebuild a Missouri mosque destroyed by fire this week.
The Islamic Society of Joplin launched a social media fundraiser Tuesday, a day after a fire in Noel, Missouri, destroyed the African Grocery Store and the mosque next door, the Joplin Globe reported. Both the store and the mosque were gathering places for refugees.
The fundraiser is a combined effort of the Islamic Society of Joplin, the Muslim community in Noel and the Bentonville Islamic Center in Arkansas. The fundraising goal is $100,000.
The mosque and the store, which sold a range of products from Africa and the Middle East, were gathering spots in Noel. The town of 1,800 in the far southwest corner of Missouri has a large immigrant population including Pacific Islanders, Sudanese, Somalis and refugees from Myanmar. Most were drawn to Noel by jobs at a Tyson Foods chicken processing plant.
The incident hits close to home for the Islamic Society of Joplin, whose own mosque burned to the ground in 2012. Joplin resident Jedediah Stout pleaded guilty to arson and was sentenced to prison in 2016.
Sometimes, the Universe provides just the perfect method for expressing our feelings.
A space cloud 7,500 light-years away has given us the most appropriate farewell we can think of for this whole dumpster fire of a year, 2020.
This small clump of material is part of a much larger cloud complex called the Carina Nebula, and under normal circumstances would not be given a nickname of its own. But its distinctive shape has led scientists to nickname it the Defiant Finger.
And that's exactly what it looks like - the age-old obscene gesture of "go do ghastly things to yourself", and "go away, but in much ruder words".
Actually, the Defiant Finger is what is known as a Bok Globule. These are small, dark, dense knots of dust and gas that are often the birthplaces of stars. As denser regions of the cloud condense further, they can collapse down under their own gravity, and start spinning into a star.
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was first, and correct, with:
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
Sometimes, the Universe provides just the perfect method for expressing our feelings.
