Maura and I had to drive out to Springfield on Tuesday. The trip took about an hour and a half each way, which meant quite a few searchers for the Least Shitty Song on the satellite radio’s roster of preset go-to stations and their shallow playlists. Somewhere on the outskirts of Auburn, I switched to […]

On an overcast afternoon, some time in 1980, my father picked me up at elementary school and dropped me off at my maternal grandparents’ place. I can’t remember the reason for this break in regular routine, but there did always seem to be some minor crisis going on with my family in those days. The […]

I’ve learned over the years that childhood ownership of the Remco monster toys — either the Mego-scale dolls or Star Wars scale figures — conveys membership in a secret cult of Spooky Kids whose interests and practices transcend both space and time. Maura still has hers in our attic somewhere. Also, my maternal grandfather bought […]

The past holds innumerable strange and disturbing monstrosities…and some of them are glorious. Recommended watching and listening: The sanity-wracking quintessence of 1980 captured on magnetic tape.

As my collection of K-Tel compilations began to grow, I realized my old assortment of platters included one of the label’s most celebrated releases. Rock 80 was a two-time hand-me-down. An older cousin passed it on to a tween-age Maura, who in turn handed it off to me during the early days of our relationship. […]

(from “How To Trap An Orchid!” by E. Nelson Bridwell, Ramona Fradon and Vince Colletta in Super Friends #31, April 1980) Many enthusiasts have been shocked to discover a supposedly “dead” specimen suddenly spring back into full bloom.

(from “How To Trap An Orchid!” by E. Nelson Bridwell, Ramona Fradon and Vince Colletta in Super Friends #31, April 1980) Bats and orchids have a bizarre and complicated relationship.

I recently discovered that American Radio History has a full of Panorama scans, which was the best Christmas present the internet could give me. Panorama was TV Guide‘s short-lived attempt to publish a mildly upscale monthly periodical covering various aspects of the television industry, it emerging technologies, and its important figures. The mag’s design and […]

Gee, Mr. Donald Lachie of Youngwood, PA, perhaps you are right. In our rush to display our hip cynicism, we could very well have condemned an important cultural work without taking a moment to reflect upon its virtues and the truths it expresses about the human condition. Let us put aside our received wisdom and […]

“This home electronic stuff going over like gangbusters, people. How can we cut ourselves a slice of that pie?” “But, Boss, our firm makes recipe cards and recipe card boxes. It’s not really in our wheel–” “You’re fired. The rest of you better have a workable idea on my desk by tomorrow morning. Hop to […]