• Edward Lear, author/illustrator of <2i>A Book of Nonsense, grew up in a large family — he was No. 20 in a family of 21 children. (This was during the early 1800s.) His father once bought 12 horses and 12 carriages so that he could take his large family out for a ride on Sundays. As an adult, Mr. Lear devoted himself to art and to writing and to making children happy. He once wrote a friend, “I like to think that if a man ain’t able to do any great service to his fellow critters, it is better (than nothing) to make half a million children laugh innocently.”
• When Madeleine L’Engle, author of A Wrinkle in Time, was eight years old, her father, who was also a writer, took her to see the opera Madama Butterfly. Unfortunately, the opera had an unhappy ending, shocking the young girl. Shortly afterward, her father took her to see another opera, I Pagliacci, and she asked, “Father, does this opera have an unhappy ending, too?” When he told her that it did, she started crying and kept on crying. Eventually, her father took her home — even though the opera had not yet started.
• Children’s book writer Phyllis Reynolds Naylor did a lot of writing when she was young, and she illustrated the stories she wrote. When she learned to draw lace, suddenly the heroine of her stories began to lose her clothing so young Phyllis could draw her lacy underwear. On another occasion, her mother explained the facts of life to her, and so young Phyllis wrote a “Manual for Pregnant Women,” complete with her own drawings. After she showed the book to her mother, the book turned up missing.
• Katherine Paterson, the author of such children’s books as The Sign of the Chrysanthemum and Bridge to Terabithia, wrote a mystery at the request of her children. One night, a power failure occurred, so to entertain her children, she began to read them the manuscript of her mystery, promising to read them more the following night. The next day, she found her 10-year-old son searching for the manuscript because he didn’t want to wait until evening to find out the next development in the plot.
• When author Leroy Jones, later known as first LeRoi Jones and then as Amiri Baraka, was in grade school, his vivid imagination caused him to invent stories that were believed by other people. For example, some grade-school teachers once showed up at his house because, they said, they wanted “to see the snakes.” Investigation revealed that young Leroy had told people at his school that he had rescued his mother from snakes that had invaded his home.
• Harold Dahl believed in a charming superstition. He believed that children could be educated to appreciate beautiful things — while they were still in the womb! Therefore, whenever his wife became pregnant, they would go on what he called “glorious walks.” He would take her somewhere beautiful, and then they would go for a walk. Harold’s only son, Roald, became the author of such noted children’s books as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
• While waiting in line at a post office, gay author Michael Thomas Ford noticed a young boy about seven years old wearing glittery pink nail polish on his toes and on his fingers. He also noticed that the boy’s mother was totally nonchalant about the glittery pink nail polish. The boy may someday discover that he is gay, or he may be going through a temporary phase, but either way, Mr. Ford says, “You go, girl. Both of you.”
• The son of professional writer Arthur Machen once asked him to write a 200-word article on the French Revolution for his school’s magazine, but he warned him that the magazine’s editorial board — composed of children like himself — would have to find the article worthy before it would be published. Mr. Machen was gratified when the editorial board deemed his article worthy of being published.
Launched in 1955, this toy, in which metal filings are moved about with a magnetic wand to add features to a cartoon face, was an unexpected success, selling more than 75 million of them over the years. Originally manufactured in Smethport, Pennsylvania, what is the name of this toy?
Wooly Willy is a toy in which metal filings are moved about with a magnetic wand to add features to a cartoon face. The toy was originally manufactured in Smethport, Pennsylvania and was launched on the toy market in 1955. It remains in production as of 2016.
Wooly Willy is "a face printed on cardboard under a bubble of plastic filled with metal filings that could be moved with a magnetic wand to create features like beards, mustaches, and shaggy eyebrows on the face."
The brothers Donald and James Herzog developed Wooly Willy while working in the Smethport Specialty Company, their father's toy production company, in Smethport, Pennsylvania, United States. The company produced tops, horseshoe-shaped magnets, and other toys until the vacuum forming devices of the 1940s and 1950s allowed the company to manufacture air-tight containers of transparent plastic. Such containers kept Wooly Willy's metal filings from leaking out and moisture that would rust the metal from leaking in. The artwork for the first Wooly Willy was created by artist Leonard Mackowski of nearby Bradford, Pa. His signature is found hidden in the grass on the reverse side. The Broadfield Toy Co., Inc., of Hempstead, New York, United States created a similar toy called Whiskers in 1925.
Priced at US$0.29, Wooly Willy was successfully launched on the market in 1955. A buyer for G. C. Murphy dime store chain initially purchased six dozen of the toy and expected not to sell them for a year. The buyer called Herzog just two days later and ordered 12,000 for nationwide distribution. F. W. Woolworth Company also distributed the toy. More than 75 million Wooly Willies have been sold.
Wooly Willy became a Baby Boomer hit, and remains in production as of 2010 by Smethport Specialty Company, which is now owned by Patch Products. In 2003, the Toy Industry Association added Wooly Willy to its "Century of Toys List", a roll call of the most memorable and creative toys of the 20th century. In 2006, I Love Toys, the eighth in VH1's series of I Love… nostalgia shows, presented a countdown of the 100 greatest toys, chosen partially through public voting on vh1.com and also consideration of "sales, historical significance and longevity," according to VH1. Wooly Willy placed at #81.
Source
Smethport is about 34 miles up the road from where I grew up - beautiful part of the state with lots of great food.
Mark. was first, and correct, with:
Wooly Willy.
Billy in Cypress U. $. A. said:
Wooly Willy
Alan J answered:
Wooly Willy.
Randall wrote:
Wooly Willy
Cal in Vermont replied:
Wooly Willy. On a list of 100 influential toys of the 20th Century, Wooly Willy placed 81st. Kinda generous if you ask me. I would have thought that Mr. Hankey The Christmas Poo would have done better.
Dave responded:
Wooly Willie. I had to look it up. I never saw that toy before, although is was supposedly popular during my ‘being a kid’ era.
Photo: my proposal for the 2nd debate.
zorch said:
Wooly Willy. Haven’t seen one in decades.
Roy, the Snowflake Libtard in Gohmertstan, TX wrote:
Still living the hermit life here in Tyler, TX. I've been having some computer issues which have kept me from exercising my daily trivial pursuit here, but I'm gonna see if I can finish this before the ol' laptop fries again.
My first thought was Etch-a-Sketch, but I thought 1955 was probably about 20 years too soon for that. Then I remembered that primitive thing I had about that time. Is it Wooly Willy?
Jacqueline responded:
Wooly Willy. Apparently still in production
Deborah, the Master Gardener wrote:
I had to look this up: Wooly Wilie. I never heard of it and no one in my family ever had one. Hmmm.
The sun is so red through the smoke it’s like Mars. The wind is picking up, and the heat is coming. And still California burns. Oy vey.
Michelle in AZ said:
Etch-A-Sketch
Daniel in The City answered:
Wooly Willie. I remembered the thing but had to Google the name.
Dave in Tucson replied:
The toy is an Etch A Sketch.
Leo in Boise responded:
Wooly Willy
Barbara, of Peppy Tech fame said:
The answer is Wooly Willy.
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~~~~~
A friend shared the link to this relatively short article. It's good reading--makes me respect Joe more & despise Predator even more. My nephew stuttered when he was a child.
CBS begins the night with a FRESH'The Greatest #AtHome Videos', followed by a FRESH'Undercover Boss', then a RERUN'Blue Bloods'.
On a RERUNStephen Colbert (from 9/29/20) are Sen. Cory Booker and Public Enemy.
On a RERUNJames Corden, OBE, (from 8/27/20) are Kieran Culkin and Maren Morris.
NBC starts the night with a RERUN'American Ninja Warrior', followed by 'Dateline'.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Fallon are Adam Sandler, Millie Bobby Brown, and BTS.
On a RERUNSeth Meyers (from 9/22/20) are Keith Urban, Rachel Dratch, and Keith Urban.
On a RERUNLilly Singh (from 1/8/20) are Rhett & Link.
ABC fills the night with LIVE'NBA Playoffs', then pads the left coast with local crap.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Kimmel are Shaquille O'Neal, and A$AP Ferg featuring Tyga.
The CW offers a FRESH'Masters Of Illusion', followed by a RERUN'Masters Of Illusion', then a FRESH'Worlds Funniest Animals', then a RERUN'Worlds Funniest Animals'.
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 'Seed Of Chucky', followed by the movie 'Halloweeen: Resurrection', then the movie 'Halloween VI: The Curse Of Michael Myers'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - PROFIT AND LOSS
[7:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - BLOOD OATH
[8:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - THE MAQUIS
[9:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - THE MAQUIS
[10:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - THE WIRE
[11:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - CROSSOVER
[12:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - THE MASTERPIECE SOCIETY
[1:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CONUNDRUM
[2:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - POWER PLAY
[3:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - ETHICS
[4:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - THE OUTCAST
[5:00PM] STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION - CAUSE AND EFFECT
[6:00PM] BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA
[8:30PM] THE CONJURING
[11:00PM] THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW
[11:40PM] THE CONJURING
[2:10AM] BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA
[4:40AM] DOCTOR WHO - A CHRISTMAS CAROL (ALL TIMES ET)
Bravo has 'Below Deck Mediterranean', followed by a FRESH'Below Deck Mediterranean', then a FRESH'Real Housewives Of BH', and way too many hours of 'Chrisley Knows Best'.
Comedy Central has an hour of old 'The Office', followed by 3 hours FRESH'Schitt's Creek'.
FX has the movie 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom', followed by the FRESH'A Wilderness Of Error', then another FRESH'A Wilderness Of Error'.
History has 'Ancient Aliens', 'MonsterQuest: Serpentine Creatures', 'MonsterQuest: Chasing Bigfoot', and 'Ancient Aliens'.
IFC -
[6:00am] The Three Stooges - Three Little Pigskins
[6:15am] The Three Stooges - Boobs In Arms
[6:45am] Mystery Science Theater 3000 - The Skydivers
[9:00am] Bad Words
[11:00am] Bachelorette
[1:00pm] The Birdcage
[3:30pm] The Lost Boys
[5:45pm] Tommy Boy
[8:00pm] My Cousin Vinny
[10:30pm] Tommy Boy
[12:45am] My Cousin Vinny
[3:15am] The Birdcage
[5:45am] The Three Stooges - Flat Foot Stooges (ALL TIMES ET)
Sundance -
[6:00am] the andy griffith show
[6:30am] the andy griffith show
[7:00am] the andy griffith show
[7:30am] the andy griffith show
[8:00am] the andy griffith show
[8:30am] the andy griffith show
[9:00am] the andy griffith show
[9:30am] the andy griffith show
[10:00am] the andy griffith show
[10:30am] the andy griffith show
[11:00am] the andy griffith show
[11:30am] the andy griffith show
[12:00pm] the andy griffith show
[12:30pm] the andy griffith show
[1:00pm] law & order
[2:00pm] law & order
[3:00pm] law & order
[4:00pm] law & order
[5:00pm] law & order
[6:00pm] law & order
[7:00pm] law & order
[8:00pm] law & order
[9:00pm] law & order
[10:00pm] law & order
[11:00pm] law & order
[12:00am] law & order
[1:00am] law & order
[2:00am] columbo - Candidate For A Crime
[4:15am] columbo - Playback (ALL TIMES ET)
SyFy has the movie 'The Strangers', followed by the movie 'The Strangers: Prey At Night', then the movie 'Insidious: The Last Key'.
Former President Jimmy Carter marked his 96th birthday Thursday, the latest milestone for the longest-lived of the 44 men to hold the highest American office.
Carter celebrated at his home in Plains, Georgia, with his wife Rosalynn, who is 93. Photos released by the Carter Center in Atlanta showed the couple, married for more than 74 years, seated in lawn chairs at the gates of their residence and waving as local residents honored the 39th president with a parade. The procession featured golf carts and other vehicles festooned with American flags, streamers and balloons.
Both Carters wore masks as a precaution against COVID-19; the former president's face covering was emblazoned with logos of the Atlanta Braves, the former president's favorite Major League Baseball team, which won its first-round playoff series Thursday.
Perhaps most notable among Carter’s 2020 election maneuvering is the Carter Center for the first time designating the United States as a “backsliding” democracy. The Center announced after the Democratic convention that it would devote resources to ensuring free and fair U.S. elections this fall. The Carters founded the Center in 1982, two years after he lost his re-election bid to Republican Ronald Reagan.
The Center has monitored more than 110 elections in 39 countries since 1989, but it was a striking development for the institution to turn its focus to Carter’s home country, the world’s leading democratic superpower since World War II. The development comes as President Donald Trump (R-Pathological Liar) repeatedly casts doubt on the integrity of the U.S. voting system, regularly firing off a cascade of mistruths about the voting process and asserting that the system is “rigged” against him.
Vice President Mike Pence (R-Religiously Insane) didn't know it at the time, but when he delivered his speech at CPAC earlier this year, he was actually taking part in a secret sequel to Borat.
Amazon Prime Video on Thursday dropped the trailer for Sacha Baron Cohen's upcoming Borat sequel, which sees Borat travel to America in an attempt to gift his daughter to "someone close to the throne" in the Trump administration. Because Borat is famous from the first film, he wears various disguises so he won't be recognized. The trailer concludes with footage of Borat at the 2020 Conservative Political Action Conference disguised as President Trump and interrupting Pence's speech while carrying his daughter over his shoulder, yelling to the vice president, "I brought a girl for you!"
As was quickly pointed out on Twitter after the trailer debuted, Pence's speech at CPAC was indeed interrupted by a person dressed as Trump back in February; ABC News reported at the time that "the convention center asked for help" from police "to escort the individual from the premises" and that police were "not pursuing charges against the man."
Dr. Anthony Fauci is the nation’s leading expert on infectious disease, who is navigating a deadly global pandemic amid extreme political acrimony.
So when things get stressful for the White House advisor, Fauci turns to what he calls his “favorite book of philosophy”: “The Godfather.”
Fauci says the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo reminds him of the lesson that, ”‘it’s nothing personal, it’s strictly business.’ That’s just how I look at it,” Fauci told New Yorker reporter Michael Specter.
So how does that thinking apply to an infectious disease expert? Fauci, who has worked with six presidents as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that this quote informs how he works with political leaders.
“You just have a job to do,” Fauci told Specter. “Even when somebody’s acting ridiculous, you can’t chide them for it, you’ve got to deal with them, because if you don’t deal with them then you’re out of the picture.”
Former “Tarzan” actor Ron Ely has accused the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office of wrongfully killing his wife and son, according to a federal lawsuit.
The Sheriff’s Office responded to a disturbance call at the family’s Hope Ranch home on Oct. 15, 2019. Deputies contacted Ely at the home and found his wife, 62-year-old Valerie Lundeen Ely, dead inside with multiple stab wounds, authorities said at the time.
Deputies identified the Elys’ 30-year-old son, Cameron Ely, as the suspect and found him on the property outside. After determining that he posed a threat, the deputies fatally shot him.
Ron Ely, star of the 1960s TV version of the Tarzan story, alleges in the lawsuit that sheriff’s deputies used “excessive and unreasonable" force when shooting Cameron Ely and knowingly denied both Valerie and Cameron Ely of timely medical treatment, resulting in their deaths.
The lawsuit says dashboard camera video indicates that Cameron Ely held his hands up when he approached deputies in the driveway over an hour and a half later. Deputies suddenly opened fire at him while he was bleeding and, it was later determined, also suffering from multiple stab wounds.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany began her press briefing on Thursday by touting the qualifications of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. And while the conservative federal judge has a lengthy list of accolades on her resume, she is not, as Ms McEnany falsely claimed, a Rhodes scholar.
"When you said Judge Barrett was a Rhodes scholar, I don't believe that is true," a reporter noted during the briefing, just moments after the claim was made.
Ms McEnany glanced at her notes and replied, "Well, that's what I have written here."
The reporter then pointed out that Ms Barrett actually attended Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, where she received her undergraduate degree.
"Attended Rhodes College. So, my bad," the press secretary shrugged, acknowledging her mistake.
NASA’s first new space potty in decades — a $23 million titanium toilet better suited for women — is getting a not-so-dry run at the International Space Station before eventually flying to the moon.
Barely 100 pounds (45 kilograms) and just 28 inches (71 centimeters) tall, it’s roughly half as big as the two Russian-built toilets at the space station. It's more camper-size to fit into the NASA Orion capsules that will carry astronauts to the moon in a few years.
Station residents will test it out for a few months. If the shakedown goes well, the toilet will be open for regular business.
The old toilets cater more toward men. To better accommodate women, NASA tilted the seat on the new toilet and made it taller. The new shape should help astronauts position themselves better for No. 2, said Johnson Space Center's Melissa McKinley, the project manager.
Let’s just say everything floats in weightlessness.
Polish divers say they have found the wreck of a German World War Two ship which may help solve a decades-old mystery - the whereabouts of the Amber Room, an ornate chamber from a tsarist palace in Russia that was looted by the Nazis.
Decorated with amber and gold, the Amber Room was part of the Catherine Palace near St Petersburg, but was last seen in Koenigsberg, then a Baltic port city in Germany but now the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.
It was from Koenigsberg that the Karlsruhe steamer set sail in 1945 with a heavy cargo, before being sunk by Soviet warplanes off the coast of Poland.
Divers from the Baltictech group say they have found the wreck of the Karlsruhe.
Archaeologists in Siberia have unearthed a 2,500-year-old grave holding the remains of four people from the ancient Tagar culture — including two warriors, a male and female — and a stash of their metal weaponry.
The early Iron Age burial contained the skeletal remains of a Tagarian man, woman, infant and older woman, as well as a slew of weapons and artifacts, including bronze daggers, knives, axes, bronze mirrors and a miniature comb made from an animal horn, according to the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The Tagar culture, a part of the Scythian civilization (nomadic warriors who lived in what is now southern Siberia), often buried its dead with miniature versions of real-life objects, likely to symbolize possessions they thought were needed in the afterlife. In this case, however, the deceased were laid to rest with full-size objects, the archaeologists said.
The remains of the man and woman, who likely died in their 30s or 40s, were laid down on their backs, with large ceramic vessels next to each of them. The man also had two sets of weapons (two bronze daggers and two axes), and the woman had one set, according to the statement. The woman's weapons, including a long-handled instrument, perhaps a hatchet or battle ax, were an unusual find; the Tagarians often buried their women with weapons, but those were usually long-range weapons, such as arrowheads, noted Oleg Andreevich Mitko, a leader of the excavation and head of archaeology at Novosibirsk State University in Russia.
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said:
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
