On The Shelf: Free Comic Book Day 2024, conclusion

 One last stack of Free Comic Book Day entries to review. Your actual mileage may vary, of course.

Disney's Darkwing Duck isn't the only superhero duck.

Arcana Studios' Ultraduck mines the same comedy-adventure vein, but with more of an emphasis on the latter. Ultraduck isn't as polished as he would like everyone to believe, but he's trying. Meanwhile, he may just have some competition waiting for him if/when he ever returns home. The artwork by Omar Lozano & Bere Muniz complements Edgar Delgado's script beautifully. I think this series comes out in graphic novels only.

Rating: A.

Gemstone Publishing is the current home of the Overstreet Comics Price Guide, and is back to publishing comics, something they hadn't done since holding the license for Disney in the 90's for a hot minute.

Romeo vs. Juliet, a Kill Shakespeare Adventure brings one of The Bard's most famous tales into the 21st century, but we are so not digging the concept.

Rating: C.

Boom! Studios' 10th anniversary Boom Box compilation is a legitimate mixed bag. Leading off is a Lumberjanes short making good use of manga artwork in an American book, albeit a preview of a pending trade. We've been curious about Zawa & The Belly of The Beast, which has some appeal, but, like the Lumberjanes entry, is too short. Not really sold on The Midas Flesh or Giant Days.

Rating: B.

Also from Boom! is The Worlds of James Tynion IV, showcasing three series he's writing for the publisher, most especially Something is Killing The Children, a dark, disturbing series geared for high schoolers.Memetic and The Woods follow the same pattern. 

Rating: B.

American Mythology serves up Cursedverse, which represents their original works as opposed to their licensed titles (i.e. The Three Stooges). You get to meet characters like the Night Terror, the Cemetorian, Witch Hammer, and Bombshell & TommTomm. For people who are into the Tynionverse at Boom!, but with better artwork.

Rating: A-.

Marvel's Voices takes readers on a world tour previewing their Community 1-shot, featuring Ghost Spider (Spider-Gwen), Spider-Man, and the Spider-Man of India in separate tales, plus Gambit and Shuri. If these 1-offs weren't so expensive, it'd be easier to recommend.

Rating: A.

Video game fans will enjoy Street Fighter vs. Final Fight (Udon). Yes, they're still doing Street Fighter after all these years. It's indie titles like these that need more attention, since they don't stand out on the shelves, blocked by the bigger labels.

Rating: B+.

For the small fry:

Unicorn Crush (Andrews McMeel) continues the series of stories of Phoebe & Her Unicorn by Dana Simpson. If your public library gets these graphic novels, we suggest borrowing them for 2 weeks to maximize your child's enjoyment.

The same goes for Random House's two-fer of Max Meow and Katie The Catsitter. Delightful fun for grade schoolers.

Rating for both: A.

The jury has spoken. Of course, the defendant is defiant

 Especially when that defendant is Donald John Narcissus Fauntleroy Trump.

This afternoon, a NY jury found Trump, who will be 78 next month, guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide the fact that he made payments to an adult film actress he had an affair with, just months after wife Melania had given birth to Barron, with an eye toward protecting his eventual successful campaign for president in 2016.

Unsurprisingly, as Brian Tyler Cohen will show us, Trump remains defiant, and, because he can't help himself, addressed the media.

Sentencing is scheduled for July 11, six weeks from today, not five as Brian incorrectly asserted. An appeal is sure to be expected in the interim. During that time, expect a lot of this:

"WAAAAHHHHHHHH!!! I'm innocent! I'm innocent! WAAAAHHHHH!!"

So why did you pass on testifying in your own defense? Because your lawyers know you can't be trusted to avoid lying while under oath.

Trump will still be able to run for president, becoming the first candidate since Eugene V. Debs 104 years ago to run despite criminal charges. Debs was jailed on charges of sedition in 1920, as a member of the Socialist party, and the fact that he was in prison, unable to campaign, was a huge factor in costing him the election.

Can someone give Trump the number of a good psychologist? He may need one sooner rather than later.

Notes from around town

 Just what downtown doesn't need, another empty storefront.

CVS Pharmacy announced a couple of weeks back that they were closing their location at the Frear Building on 3rd Street, even though their mailing address is 49 4th Street. The closing is June 26, and customers with prescriptions in the pharmacy will see those prescriptions transferred to either of CVS' locations in the immediate vicinity, either in Wynantskill or Lansingburgh.

It is, perhaps, a case of the other shoe dropping after renovations on the store took place a number of months back. The Frear Building had been sold by Troy native David Bryce to an unknown entity after Bryce's plan to tear down the neighboring Uncle Sam Atrium (which would explain 49 4th Street) was cancelled. The downtown CVS stopped carrying food items, such as TV dinners, ice cream, bottled water, milk, & soda, which, in turn, turned away a lot of customers who were shopping for those particular items or other food stuffs. That, by itself, might've been the turning point.

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Earlier this month, we reported on the Albany Alive at 5 concert series for 2024, which kicks off in 2 weeks. Now, it's Troy's turn.

The mid-week Rockin' on The River series has been trimmed to just 4 weeks this year, with concerts on alternate Wednesdays:

June 26: Skeeter Creek w/Road Soda Pop.

July 10: Chris Busone, fresh from the River Fest earlier this month, returns, this time with The Fleshtones & the Albany Rock Pit Showcase Band.

July 24: Blues For Breakfast w/Side B.

August 7: Crash My Party, a Luke Bryan tribute band, w/Joe Adee & The Lug Nuts.

All shows being at 5:30 pm at Riverfront Park.

The annual Powers Park Saturday series (not Thursdays as incorrectly reported in some papers), opens on July 13:

July 13: Brian Kane & The Beginning.

July 20: Super 400.

August 3: Triffid.

August 10: Grit & Whiskey.

August 17: Matt Mirabile Band.

August 24: E-Block.

Shows start at 6 pm. Not sure if July 27 was intentionally left open. If they're looking for someone, I can recommend a friend....!

Twisted Fiddler has taken over the old Slidin' Dirty space on 1st Street, and will have block parties on alternate Fridays, starting tomorrow:

May 31: Rob Compa w/Mike Oehman.

June 14: Chef Dave's Blues.

June 28: Glen David Andrews.

July 12: Super 400.

July 26: Tim Palmieri, Zdenek Gubb, & Adrian Tramontano.

August 9: The Deadbeats.

August 30: Beau Sasser's Escape Plan.

All shows start at 7 pm.

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Some jabroni posted a crudely illustrated flier the other day protesting Stewart's milk, claiming it's actually goat's milk, judging from the illustration. Maybe they got sick from the milk, but that's no excuse to defame Stewart's. 'Sides, I've seen better drawings.

What Might've Been: Happy Hour (1999)

 USA Network wanted a piece of the late night action on nights other than Friday & Saturday. After Monday Night Raw expanded to 2 hours, the network sought to find a show that would pick up the wrestling fans and keep the ratings going into the night.

Unfortunately, Happy Hour lasted 13 weeks.

It was part variety show, part game show, with the latter presented as an all-star remake of the 70's flop, The Better Sex. Dweezil Zappa (Duckman, ex-Normal Life) teamed with brother Ahmet (ex-2 Hip 4 TV) as co-hosts.

This sampler opens with Ahmet covering the Ides of March's 1-hit wonder from 1970, "Vehicle", though one word is changed, contrary to the lyrics appearing on screen. Dweezil's guitar solo is just boss. Our panel includes Kathy Griffin, Adam West, and Diedrich Bader.

I don't recall if Ahmet actually did any recording with or independently of Dweezil and their sister, Moon Unit. Not too bad as a singer, though.

Rating: B-.

Sports this 'n' that

 Controversy magnet Angel Hernandez has announced that he is retiring later this week after more than 30 years in Major League Baseball.

Cuban-born Hernandez, 62, debuted in 1991, but despite the fact he lost a lawsuit over being passed over for a promotion a couple of years back, Hernandez has been regarded by players, managers, & fans alike as one of the worst umpires in the game.

File photo courtesy Yahoo!.

While umpires in general have been stereotyped as having vision issues, dating back to the Golden Age, Hernandez, it appears, lives up to the stereotype, calling strikes when the ball is well out of the strike zone. You can argue that his definition of the zone might be a little more three dimensional, and that he's calling the pitch, regardless of where the catcher receives it, by the definition of the zone.

Now, fans will have someone else to jeer when a bad call is made.

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Basketball lost one of its more colorful characters with the passing of Bill Walton, 71, over the weekend.

Walton, during his playing career, won championships with Portland & Boston after a stellar college career at UCLA under John Wooden. Walton was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993, and into the Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame 13 years later.

After retiring, Walton moved to the broadcast booth, calling NBA & NCAA games for NBC, ABC, & ESPN, earning an Emmy award in 1991.

Rest in peace, Bill.

Videos of Summer: Summer Song (1992)

 Joe Satriani should've gotten more airplay on MTV and/or radio with 1992's "Summer Song", an instrumental track off his album, "The Extremist", which was released the next year.

Musical Interlude: Sign of The Times (1966)

 From The Ed Sullivan Show:

Don't know if the cars used in this clip were from Plymouth (which used "Sign of The Times" as a slogan before or after this), but here's Petula Clark....

Proof that certain politicians can't take what they dish out

 It's been over a week since Empty-G (Marjorie Taylor Greene) had it out with Jasmine Crockett on the House floor, and accused Crockett of wearing false eyelashes (like, there's nothing wrong with that), only for Crockett, aided by Alex From The Block (Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez), to serve up a receipt, putting the Cross-Fit workout maven on blast.

Farron Cousins fills us in on the continuing fallout.

Like other GOPers, Greene can dish it out, but when it heads back her way, she whines & cries, like the bully she presents herself to be. It won't teach her or other Republicans to put an end to the performance art we've had to endure, but if she actually bothered to do her job for the people that elected her, she could move past the performance art and the perception of being a walking stereotype. But, she won't.

Was this the inspiration for Monty Python?: Self-Made Maids (1950)

 The answer to that rhetorical question, of course, is no. The Monty Python troupe gained inspiration from Shakespearean theatre, where men playing female parts was very common.

In 1950's "Self-Made Maids", The Three Stooges play all the primary parts, thanks to some clever trick photography.

The gimmick of the Stooges playing their own children had been done before, and would be done again. They would repeat the tactic of playing all the main parts 8 years later in "Oil's Well That Ends Well" (with Joe Besser).

Rating: B--.

Musical Interlude: Sinner Man (1966)

 In the 60's, there were a few record labels with ties to movie and/or TV studios. Some, you know, like Warner Bros. Records. Colpix was the recording arm of Columbia Pictures and its then-TV division, Screen Gems, home to The Monkees, for example. I think I read somewhere that Paramount had a piece of Dot Records, though I might be wrong, and ABC Records, which shared the TV network logo, was later bought out by MCA, which explains why there are reissues of records by some of ABC's biggest recording acts, including Jim Croce, Steely Dan, and Three Dog Night, under the MCA banner.

Speaking of Three Dog Night, we chronicled a while ago how singer Danny Hutton started as a singer-songwriter for Hanna-Barbera's music division, and his hit, "Roses & Rainbows", was used on The Flintstones during that series' final season (1965). Future bandmate Cory Wells had relocated from Buffalo to Los Angeles around that time, and in 1966, with his band, the Enemys, recorded "Sinner Man", on Valiant Records, which, at the time was the music arm of Four Star Television, which would explain the studio's foray into producing a music series like Hollywood A-Go-Go, a 1 season wonder in syndication.

Wells found himself on a Four Star show, namely, Burke's Law, and also turned up on The Beverly Hillbillies, but I have no memory of "Sinner Man" being used on either show.

As of now, there is no video footage of the Enemys performing "Sinner Man", so this audio will suffice.

By the way, Valiant's releases were distributed by Warner Bros. Records, which bought the label outright in 1966. Valiant's best known band, though, was The Association. I once owned via, like, 5th hand, if you will, an early Association album under the Valiant label. MCA acquired the rights to "Sinner Man", reissuing it, along with "Roses & Rainbows", as part of a Three Dog Night box set a few years back.

It's never a good idea to rag on a film you haven't seen before it's released

 But that's what Steven Cheung, Donald Trump's press shill, did after the movie, "The Apprentice", which takes its title from Trump's NBC reality series from a few years ago, opened at the Cannes Film Festival the other day.

Here's what Cheung has said:

"This ‘film' is pure malicious defamation, should not see the light of day, and doesn't even deserve a place in the straight-to-DVD section of a bargain bin at a soon-to-be-closed discount movie store, it belongs in a dumpster fire." 

That, Mr. Cheung, would be putting the cart before the horse. "The Apprentice" details the early years of Trump's business career under the tutelage of right wing lawyer Roy Cohn. Sebastian Stan (The Falcon & The Winter Soldier) and Jeremy Strong (Succession) are the stars. The film received an 8 minute standing ovation at Cannes, so why is Cheung complaining?

Before we get to that, let's consider that it's doubtful Cheung or anyone else in the former president's inner circle has actually screened the movie. Trump, obviously, hasn't, as he's been busy with a court case in Manhattan over the last few weeks, and the filmmakers have said that Trump would actually be surprised by the final product, which is reportedly set to show up on a streaming platform later this summer. "The Apprentice", as yet, does not have a distributor.

What Cheung is expecting, I think, is this:

No guarantee that'll actually happen. The film chronicles how Trump allegedly raped his first wife, Ivana, in the late 80's, though Ivana herself backtracked from that in 2015. Cheung has threatened a lawsuit on behalf of Trump, but don't expect it to actually go anywhere. Cheung thinks he knows how Trump thinks and how he would react, and a lot of the statements he's made suggest he is parroting a lot of the former president's talking points, but this time, he jumped the gun way too early.

That said, Cheung ends up with a set of Weasel ears for taking umbrage over something he hasn't seen. We should point out that former Washington Commanders owner Daniel "Napoleon" Snyder, who was part of the investment group that funded the movie, is also raging against it because of his own friendship with Trump. You can't have it both ways, fella. You've got your own burdens.

Sports this 'n' that

 A couple of weeks ago, I had written that there was a possibility that we would see New York vs. Boston in the Eastern Conference finals in both the NBA & NHL.

Not happening this year, but maybe next year.

First, it was the Boston Bruins who couldn't hold their end, losing to the Florida Panthers in 6 games, meaning the Panthers are tasked to try to slow down or stop the Rangers, who are inching closer to their first Stanley Cup since 1994.

Then, on Sunday, a hand injury knocked Knicks star Jalen Brunson out of the game in the 3rd quarter of game 7 vs. Indiana. Game, set, & match to the Pacers, who now advance to face the Celtics after winning handily, 130-109.

Wait 'til next year. Photo courtesy Yahoo!.

And that ain't all that's wrong in New York these days.......

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Mets closer Edwin Diaz has blown three straight save opportunities in the last week. 2 vs. Philadelphia, and 1 on Saturday vs. Miami. One wonders if Diaz, who missed all of last year due to a freak injury at the end of the World Baseball Classic, wasn't truly 100% healthy when the season started.

Part of it may be psychological, too.

After showing they could hang with some of the best in the majors in the first month of the season, New York has come crashing down to earth, falling to 4th place in the East before beating Miami on Sunday. Mets fans are not used to seeing Diaz blow back-to-back opportunities to close games, but three in a row? Unsurprisingly, some fair weather "fans" on a Reddit message board were quick to jump and hate on Diaz for no other reason than to have something to whine about. The pressure has gotten to Diaz, at least mentally, but physically is another story we're waiting to hear about.

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Fox won't be doing business with WWE come mid-September, when Smackdown moves back to USA Network after 5 seasons. 

Still, there's no better time than now to engage in a little cross-promotion.

For that reason, wrestlers JD McDonagh and Baron Corbin were given front row seats at a PBA tour event airing on Fox on Sunday. Corbin, for his part, looked like he actually was interested, and, like a lot of us, has bowled in his spare time. McDonagh (Jordan Devlin) from Ireland? Not sure.

You were expecting them to show up at a UFL game? I think even they know that league is in trouble.....!

Musical Interlude: Down by The Lazy River (1972)

 A few months before their ill-fated Saturday morning show hit the air, The Osmonds appeared on a Bob Hope special to perform "Down by The Lazy River", which peaked at #4 on the Hot 100, off the album, "Phase III". Merrill sings lead. Donny's behind him on the keyboards.

Intro by Hope.

Commercials are getting to be for the birds (2024)

 By now, you've seen this commercial in heavy rotation, one of at least three for DirecTV.

Two Noo Yawk boids desoive Noo Yawk voices. Namely, Steve Buscemi (ex-Boardwalk Empire), and Da Fonz himself, Henry Winkler (ex-Happy Days, Arrested Development, etc.). Like, who knew?

Oh, yeah, we'll give Progressive's birds equal time soon enough.......

WWE's fall schedule: shuffling channels and a Monday holding pattern

 Over the last couple of weeks, WWE and its broadcast partners have finalized plans for the company's three primetime programs.

Monday Night Raw will finish its 2nd tour of duty on USA Network in December, not September, as the deal with Netflix doesn't kick in until January, which would've left the flagship of WWE-TV in limbo for three months. Realizing this, NBC-Universal-Comcast, USA's parent company, and TKO Holdings, WWE's parent, agreed to leave Raw where it is until the end of the year, meaning the earliest it'll debut on Netflix would be January 6.

NXT will leave USA following the September 24 episode---we think---to transition to the CW. CW President Mark Schwartz, who had Smackdown on his roster from 2006-10, said the bookend shows would have taken the network over budget. Since NXT originates from one venue only, in suburban Orlando, it saves money for both WWE & the CW. Remember, too, that CW is now owned by Nexstar Media, which owns some stations, including WTEN in the 518, and has a lower operating budget than Paramount or Warner Bros. Discovery, the previous co-owners of the network.

As you can see, CW has not established when NXT, one of the linchpins of their developing line of sports programming, will launch there. It'll be either October 1 or 8 as of now.

Smackdown shifts back to USA, where it aired on Tuesdays from 2016-9, on September 13, and will stay on Friday nights. Fox will fill the void on Fridays with college football, giving them back-to-back nights of NCAA action, and, the shift from Fox to USA also means Smackdown will no longer have to be bumped to a cable channel when the World Series or a college bowl game takes place.

Moving Raw to Netflix was the riskiest part of this deal, but as long as WWE wants to try to revisit the Attitude Era (1998-2002), this would be the best place to make the flagship more adult in content. However, I would suspect that if there are fans who don't have access to Netflix, WWE would be wise to angle for repurposing rights with either Peacock or another streamer......!

Besides, Raw traditionally gets killed in the ratings in the final 3-4 months of the year due to Monday Night Football and other factors, so that's eliminated with the move to Netflix.

To clear room for NXT, the CW is moving Superman & Lois, entering its 4th & final season, to Thursdays for a 10 episode run (October-December---we think). Well, at least I'll have two reasons to watch CW.....

Notes from around town

 The Daily Gazette, the #2 daily newspaper in the 518, is in the process of changing ownership.

Founded by the Hume-Lind family in 1894, the Schenectady daily is set to be sold to publisher John DeAugustine, ending an effort dating back to 2012 by the family to find a buyer for the paper. DeAugustine has been with the Gazette for 11 years. Under his leadership, the Gazette added the Nippertown website, founded by the late Blotto frontman, Greg "Sarge Blotto" Haymes and his wife, singer-songwriter Sara Ayers, and the Amsterdam Recorder, with both sites accessible on the Gazette's webpage.

The Hume-Lind family had previously announced last month they were planning on selling their Schenectady headquarters, with CDTA a potential buyer. The building is still up for sale, but we'll see where that leads.

Stay tuned.

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In addition to a new hockey-centric arena, Schenectady is getting an aquatics center in downtown.

County legislators on Tuesday evening approved a measure, which would be the consummation of a deal between the county, SUNY-Schenectady, and the Adirondack Aquatic Center.

Have to believe Union College and Schenectady High are already looking at the prospect of swim meets at the new center.

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Hudson Valley Community College President Roger Ramsammy had just ended his 7th season with commencement exercises on May 11. Now, he's gotten himself in some serious trouble, or so it'd appear.

Ramsammy was placed on administrative leave by the school's board of trustees Wednesday after allegations surfaced that Ramsammy allegedly engaged in sexual harassment of a female employee. Louis Coplin, who recently had retired from his post as VP-Student Affairs, will serve as officer-in-charge until the investigation is concluded.

While media reports detailed Ramsammy's accomplishments, it neglected to remind that under his watch, Robert Conway Ice Arena was closed prior to the 2022-3 season, leaving Frear Park as the only venue in the city, as of now, with public skating, and forcing LaSalle & HVCC's hockey teams to find new venues. If it happens that Ramsammy is forced to depart, that could change, but that's now not an issue.

Weasels of The Week: Republicans playing hooky from Washington

 As Donald Trump is on trial for falsifying campaign records to cover a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, a number of prominent GOPers, and Trump's dimwitted eldest sons, Dumb Donald II & Stupid-E, have shown up at trial proceedings in New York, and have spoken on behalf of the defendant, railing against the fact that ol' Orange Narcissus is being "persecuted", when he clearly is not.

So far, the GOPers who've made the trip have included:

Senators Rick Scott (Florida), Tommy Tuberville (Alabama), & JD Vance (Ohio).

House Speaker Mike Johnson (Louisiana).

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgam.

Burgam aside, these lawmakers are playing hooky from their responsibilities to their constituents in order to support the former president, and, on his behalf, trashing Judge Juan Merchan and his daughter, as well as DA Alvin Bragg, and Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen, who was on the witness stand the last two days.

So where do the real-life Beavis & Butt-Head (Don, Jr. & Eric) fit into the picture?

Stupid-E, for one, violated court protocols by whipping out his cell phone on Monday to trash Cohen, and Dumb Donald II went whining to Fox No News. In effect, circumventing the gag order Merchan issued against their father.

As Farron Cousins explains, that could put the Archduke of Affluenza even further in trouble.

What this all tells us is that Trump is SO scared of going to jail, and, perhaps, losing the GOP nomination, that he'll employ any means at all to try to discredit Cohen and others. Good luck with that.

Scott, Tuberville, Burgam, Vance, and the Trump brothers all get Weasel ears for not knowing any better.

Creepy TV: Maniac Mansion (1990)

Maniac Mansion, based on a 1987 video game developed by LucasArts, was adapted for television three years later, airing in Canada on YTV, and here in the US on the Family Channel (now Freeform). The series ran for 3 seasons, usually airing on a weeknight with a rerun on Saturday mornings.

The series also had a decided Second City bent to it, with members of the troupe's Toronto branch making up much of the cast, led by Joe Flaherty. Eugene Levy not only was an executive producer and writer, but was credited with composing some of the music as well.

The satirical premise was what if a man named Edison had invented weirder things than Thomas Edison had. Two experiments led to Fred Edison (Flaherty) giving his toddler son an adult body, but with the child's mind intact, and tramsmuted Harry, giving him the body of a fly, poking fun at a movie franchise that had been revived four years earlier. In fact, Harry, the fly (John Hemphill, a later member of Second City), is the focus of an episode. Here's a sample episode:

The title song was performed by singer-songwriter Jane Siberry.

No rating. Never saw the show. 

Notes from around town

 You know summer's around the corner when the City of Albany announces the annual Alive at 5 concert series, set to launch June 6. 8 shows over a 9 weeks period (no show on July 4 since the action will be at the Empire State Plaza).

This year's lineup:

June 6: Pride night, headlined by Let's Sing Taylor, a Taylor Swift party band making their 2nd appearance in the 518 already this year. They were at the Troy Music Hall in March.

Update, 5/30, 11:06 am.: Sydney Worthley has been added as the opening act.

June 13: Classic Rock night with Dokken & special guest Hark. 

June 20: Latin night with Tito Puente, Jr. & special guest Bronte Roman.

June 27: Pop night with Vanessa Carlton & special guest Canella.

File photo courtesy WYJB-FM.

July 11: Hip-hop night with former Boogie Down Productions leader KRS-One.

July 18: Reggae night with Third World & special guest Upstate Reggae Posse.

July 25: Rock night with The Record Company and local favorites Sirsy.

August 1: Funk night with Galactic, featuring Jelly Joseph with Hilltop.

All shows are scheduled for Jennings Landing. Rain site, as always, is the Corning Preserve boat launch. Show time is 4:30 pm each week.

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WROW morning host Ben Patten had a little egg on his face after Monday's show. As reported over at Tri-City SportsBeat, Patten was giving away tickets for a scheduled May 19 Albany Firebirds game vs. Philadelphia, but the Soul folded well before Patten did his giveaway. This morning, there were no prizes to be had for the "Almost Impossible Question".

If you haven't noticed already, Patten is reading news copy from WRGB & CBS Radio between 5 & 8:30 am weekdays after WROW discontinued airing the live CBS radio news briefs a few months back. When Patten is away, they'll go right to a feed from WRGB.

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Here at home, the annual Troy River Fest shifts to a single day event this year, taking place on Sunday, with local vet Chris Busone among the headliners. Just 1 stage, 4 acts. Something tells me organizers didn't exactly have a burgeoning budget to allow a 2nd stage. Just sayin'.

Plumbing for trouble: Vagabond Loafers (1949)

 The Three Stooges are back in the plumbing business, however reluctantly, in 1949's "Vagabond Loafers", a remake of the classic "A Plumbing We Will Go". Dudley Dickerson appeared in both films, and would make this his last film, although stock footage would be used in subsequent shorts.

Knowing they're hard up for money, why would Shemp & Larry choose to forego a reward? Hmmmmm.

Rating: B.

Musical Interlude: Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? (1961)

 The Shirelles' 3 biggest hits of the 60's----"Soldier Boy", "Dedicated to The One I Love", & "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?"----are in regular rotation on oldies channels. One here in the 518 also plays the Mamas & The Papas' cover of "Dedicated" on a consistent basis, too.

But, the original "Tomorrow", with Shirley Alston Reeves on vocals, is an all-time classic.

I've talked about this before. 20 years after "Tomorrow" hit #1, my high school sweetheart, with a lone guitarist accompanying her, sang a solo version at our senior class talent show. It was one of the highlights of the evening. If only there was video or photographic footage to mark the occasion, though.......

What Might've Been: Normal Life (1990)

 CBS programmers seemed to have velcro walls for their schedule in 1990. They couldn't find a suitable lead-in to Dallas, for example, on Fridays, after 2 comedy-dramas had bombed in the first three months of the year.

Wednesdays weren't much better.

2nd generation rocker Dweezil Zappa, who'd seen his brother, Ahmet, bomb with a Saturday afternoon show a year and a half earlier (2 Hip 4 TV), teamed with producers Brad Grey & Bernie Brillstein to develop a series based on his life, and that of his family.

Normal Life got 13 weeks, and Zappa, who also composed the show's theme music, fronted an ensemble cast that included his sister, 1-hit wonder Moon Unit, and veterans Cindy Williams (ex-Laverne & Shirley), Jim Staahl (ex-Mork & Mindy, Laugh Trax), and Max Gail (ex-Barney Miller, Whiz Kids). One must assume Gail was meant to be an analogue for Frank Zappa.

Dweezil looks like a natural here. In this sampler, his band is hoping for its big break, and auditions to open for Van Halen. College, it seems, has to wait......

In case you wonder, I think Max Gail might've had some martial arts in his background. On Barney Miller, for example, his character was depicted practicing some moves in the open. This was the first time Gail wore a karate gi on camera since that time. With that salt & pepper beard, some folks might've seen the above screencap and got Gail confused with Rob Reiner, but who knows....

Rating: B-.

When Icons Meet: Gary Cooper on The Jack Benny Program (1958)

 My brother tipped me to this next item.

Movie legend Gary Cooper made his first guest appearance on television on The Jack Benny Program in September 1958, and, right off the bat, Cooper shocks everyone when he announces he wants to sing.

Jack calls for the Sportsmen, his vocal quartet, who bring a guitar, leading to a hilarious cover of the Everly Brothers' "Bird Dog". Something to behold. Cooper was promoting his film, "Man of The West", so, of course, the main event was a Western skit.

Scope!

As you can tell, Don Wilson was given the night off, with a studio announcer filling in.

On The Shelf: Free Comic Book Day 2024, part 2

 40 years ago, American audiences were introduced to the Transformers, as Hasbro acquired the rights to produce the fabled toys here after they were originally introduced in Japan.

Today, Hasbro & Image Comics are developing a shared universe that also includes G. I. Joe and Robert Kirkman's latest, Void Rivals.

Transformers leads off the Energon Universe 2024 Special, written by Daniel Warren Johnson & illustrated by Ryan Ottley. Unlike the average, creator owned Image title, there's no coarse language, largely because Hasbro won't allow it, since it's being marketed not just to teenagers, but pre-teens as well. Older fans can probably picture Optimus Prime still with the voice of actor Peter Cullen, who's still going strong 40 years after that first Transformers cartoon here in the US.

Your actual mileage may vary.

Void Rivals gets just a measly 6 pages by comparison, and this is the new kid on the block, by comparison. I don't have high hopes for the Energon line to survive, but Kirkman's books do tend to have a long shelf life (i.e.The Walking Dead, Invincible), so this could outlive its initial directives.

Over in G. I. Joe, one of Cobra's long time lieutenants, the Baroness, is being recruited to join the Joes. Joshua Williamson's excerpt gets 8 pages. I think I know how this is going to go. Can you say, "Trojan horse"?

Overall rating: B-.

Hellboy is back, but a story written, but not drawn, by series creator Mike Mignola, hits different. Mark Laszlo's cleaner style aspires to have a Silver Age vibe, but falls short. I'm not a fan of Stranger Things, which acts as the backup feature here. I haven't seen Jonathan Case's work (related to Richard Case,perhaps?), but it, too, tries for that Silver Age vibe. 

Overall rating: B.

Disney Junior is no longer available on Spectrum Cable, and you'd have to have Disney+ just to access any of their shows. That said, the 2nd annual Spidey & His Amazing Friends entry presents a seemingly reformed Rhino as a supporting character. A character change waaaaaaaaaaaay overdue, in this writer's opinion. Seeing Rhino & Hulk play home run derby is one of the highlights.

Rating: A.

While Marvel has a full line of Star Wars books for teens & up, Dark Horse has Young Jedi Adventures for the elementary school set. An entertaining primer to warm the kiddo's up for the core line as they get older.

I don't recommend Plants vs. Zombies, though.

Overall rating: B--.

Speaking of Star Wars, Marvel's core title continues the company's tradition, dating back to the original series in the 70's & 80's, with the franchise, and the ads are inviting new readers to check out as much of the line as their hearts & wallets desire.

Rating: B.

To close this edition, John Patrick Green's InvestiGators are back with a preview of Class Action, a graphic novel due from First Second Press in September. Delightful fun for the kiddo's. I'm just surprised no one's tried to adapt this into a cartoon for streaming. Yeah, Netflix, I'm looking at you.

Rating: A.

It's past time the adults in Congress took over

 House Speaker Mike Johnson is safe for the moment.

The GOP representative from Louisiana survived a motion to vacate brought against him by Georgia Misrepresentative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia on Wednesday, and, in the words of Keith Olbermann, Greene's motion was beaten like a rented goalie, as Democrats & Republicans united to vote down the measure.

While the measure could be brought back at a later date, there's no point. Greene's upset that Johnson worked with Democrats on funding for Ukraine, among other things, and, depending on what media sources you read, her #1 patron, a certain defendant in New York, appears to have soured on her as well, perhaps jealous that her need for the spotlight has become just as addictive as his own.

We sought to get a statement from Empty-G's press secretary, and got this:

"No comment."

Gee, what a surprise.

The message being sent to Greene and other "extreme" members of the GOP is that the time for posturing for the cameras is over, and the real work in the House needs to be done, preferably yesterday. Johnson, in his defense, is trying to steer the GOP back toward traditional governing, if only he could convince the nuttier members of his party to stop trying to win points with the oldest bloviator in the country.......!

Pop Tarts turns 60 (1964)

 Kellogg's doesn't make concord grape flavored Pop Tarts anymore, contrary to the following ad, but when the product was introduced 60 years ago, there was more of a market for grape flavored items, such as soft drinks, than there is today.

Character actor Olan Soule (The Andy Griffith Show) is the narrator.

What Might've Been: Manhunt (2001)

 Before John Cena entered the WWE in 2002, he made his television debut on a short-lived reality series for UPN, Manhunt, which lasted just a month on the air before being cancelled.

Almost unrecognizable with bleached blond hair, which he had in Ohio Valley Wrestling around that time, Cena is "Big Tim", the "host" of the show. Check out this sample clip.

I tried watching this show. This was nowheresville right from the go, but, as we all know, Cena would bounce back, and he'd resurrect his acting career a few years into his WWE tenure.

Rating: D.

Back when Canada Dry meant more than ginger ale (1972)

 In the 70's, Canada Dry experimented with expanding its line of soft drinks beyond ginger ale.

Sport, with actor-comedian Wally Cox doing commercials, disappeared around the time of Cox's passing in 1973. However, there was more, a full line of flavored sodas, as demonstrated in this 1972 spot with Jackie Earle Haley, two years before he began a brief career in cartoons, and four years before the original "Bad News Bears".

Most of those sodas are gone now, and you'd be hard pressed to find anything with the Canada Dry logo other than ginger ale and seltzer.

What Might've Been: Fast Draw (1969)

 Before Win, Lose, or Draw was even an idea, before Pictionary could be adapted for television even the first time, WNEW (now WNYW) tried to syndicate a game show built around simple drawings for adults.

Fast Draw, however, lasted just 1 season, and never made it to the 518 that I know of.

Veteran announcer Johnny Gilbert (no relation to ye scribe), who'd emceed the occasional show in the 50's & early 60's, was given the MC's job here. Johnny's still going strong well into his 90's, as the announcer of the Jeopardy! family of series for ABC and in syndication.

This sample episode features Anita Gillette & Robert Alda.

Basically, it's a rebus puzzle, or, Concentration with pens. 

No rating.

Could we see New York vs. Boston in the NBA and/or NHL playoffs?

 Everyone knows that the Yankees vs. the Red Sox is one of baseball's oldest rivalries. The Patriots vs. either the Giants or Jests doesn't even come close, despite all three teams now struggling to achieve relevancy on a consistent basis.

But what about the Knicks vs. the Celtics? Or the Rangers vs. the Bruins?

All four of those teams are on course to meet in their respective leagues' Eastern Conference finals, contingent on advancing past the division semi-finals.

Tonight, the Knicks, the #2 seed in the NBA's Eastern Conference, open a series vs. old nemesis Indiana.

The days of the Knicks being destined to be a lottery team have ended, at least for now. Mercurial owner James Dolan is finally letting the Knicks play without him grabbing headlines by being a world class jerk. His Steinbrenner-esque impulses have been curbed for the moment.

Dolan also owns the Rangers, and has never been one to meddle in the team's affairs unlike with the Knicks. It has been 30 years since the Rangers last won the Stanley Cup, with Mark Messier and company hoisting the Cup and ascending into NYC sports lore.

On Sunday, the Rangers began their 2nd round series by beating Carolina, 4-3. Momentum is on their side. The Boston Bruins open with Toronto tonight. If they knock the Maple Leafs out, and New York dismisses Carolina, they're going to go bananas in New York & Boston for sure.

Back to the Knicks. Indiana won 2 of 3 during the regular season. New York can change that with a win at home tonight, to set the tempo. Boston begins their 2nd round series with Cleveland tomorrow night. The same scenario is there. Knicks-Celtics and Rangers-Bruins in the post-season? MSG & TD Garden will be sold out for the conference finals if it happens.

If it happens that this is TNT's final NBA season, with rumors that NBC wants back in, they couldn't ask for a better scenario. I'm not sure if they'll have a share of the NHL conference finals, but it'd be a bonus.

The real winners, though, will be the fans in New York and Boston and their respective states. Twin playoff series in May could blow Yankees-Red Sox out of the water. Be prepared.

Weasel of The Week: Fibber Jordan

 To paraphrase Lionel Richie & The Commodores, Jim "Fibber" Jordan is once, twice, three times a fool.

After having been told to pound sand for trying to interfere with investigations into Donald Trump in New York & Atlanta, Jordan, attempting a hat trick of futility, is trying again, this time targeting prosecutor Matthew Coangelo, one of the lead prosecutors in the current hush money trial in New York. The result is going to be the same.

Farron Cousins explains:

For someone who ignored subpoenas into 1/6/21 and a sexual harassment scandal at Ohio State, Jordan should know better than to continue with his wild goose chase to try to save the former president. He gets a set of Weasel ears and a tail for his foolishness this time. Farron had asked if Jordan has mirrors at home. I recommend a certain closet.........

On The Shelf: Free Comic Book Day '24, and new releases

 Let's start with some new releases over the last few weeks.

Marvel has revived its MAX imprint, now known as MAX Comics, with the release of Get Fury, a miniseries that is focused more on a pre-Punisher Frank Castle, who is finally depicted as a Marine.

Set in Vietnam in the 60's, Nick Fury has been captured by the Viet Cong, and Castle and his unit have been sent to not so much extract him, but kill him if he is forced to give up important secrets. The MAX line allows Marvel to go R-rated (listed as explicit content), which is right in the wheelhouse for writer Garth Ennis (The Boys, Preacher, etc.). Artist Jacen Burrows uses a mix of styles, somewhere between Darick Robertson and the late Darwyn Cooke, and paints a clean picture for the reader.

Get past the F-bombs being used on virtually every page, and you'll be fine.

Cover artist Dave Johnson paid homage to Castle's 1st ever cover as Punisher (Amazing Spider-Man back in the 70's) with the 1st issue cover.

Rating: A-.

It is said that Dick Tracy creator Chester Gould meant for his hero to be a satire of standard crime drama conventions, but readers ate it up just the same.

Former Archie Comics writer/editor Alex Segura saw an opportunity to bring some realism to Tracy. Paired with co-author Michael Moreci, Segura accomplished his mission with Tracy making his Mad Cave Studios debut that explores just how Tracy built himself into legend status, and, as well, his infamous rogues gallery, set in an unnamed city circa 1947. I can't say enough about artist Geraldo Borges, really, that would do him justice.

Segura was in town yesterday for Free Comic Book Day, and I was kicking myself for not bringing my copy of the 1st issue for an autograph. I did give him a tip on a certain shop across the river that I frequent.....!

Anyway, whatever your reservations, this is a good read, since the Tracy strip is no longer available locally in the newspapers, and can be found online. (MSN.com would be a good start).

Rating: A.

Space Ghost Coast-to-Coast, the flagship of [adult swim] in its early years, turns 30 this year. Space Ghost as a franchise turns 60 in 2 years. 20 years after DC had Joe Kelly & Yanick Paquette create an origin for the Phantom of The Spaceways, Dynamite, the current license holder, had David Pepose & Jonathan Lau create a more definitive origin, specifically how Space Ghost met his young wards, Jan & Jace.

In any case, this is the Space Ghost most of us grew up with via reruns in the 70's (I was but a toddler when the series first aired in 1966). Local artist John Hebert contributed what is touted as a retailer exclusive that he's likely showcasing at the Philadelphia Comic-Con this weekend. An excerpt of this issue can be found in a Dynamite entry for Free Comic Book Day, which we'll talk about shortly.

Rating: A.

===================================================

Speaking of Free Comic Book Day:

Fall Out Boy frontman Pete Wentz has hooked up with Vault Comics for his first comics project.

Dying Inside is a graphic novel being previewed, and tells the story of a teenager who idolized Elliott Smith, and, at the same time, wants to end it all. This black & white tome, co-written by Hannah Klein & illustrated by Lisa Sterle, is meant to be a cautionary tale against teen suicides, but as the cover suggests, also addresses the usual debunked stereotypes about rock music.

Rating: B.

Popeye returns to comics, this time at Massive, with Lie-Eye Popeye, which officially launches next month. The book is written & drawn by Marcus Williams, with the artwork in a manga-inspired style, and they cite Dragon Ball & One Piece as sources of inspiration, but there is one flaw.

With 9 panels to a page, the lettering should be a little bit bigger so the reader doesn't have to squint like Popeye to read the dialogue. The plot is all about trying to explain how Popeye lost his right eye, and a protege of the Sea Hag is in the midst of it all, with Bluto putting aside his feud to help Popeye.

Well, blow me down. It was just 25 years ago that Peter David married Popeye & Olive off, and Williams doesn't really establish if that marriage made it into his plot.

Rating: B-.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles first appeared some 40 years ago. As IDW marks 25 years of publishing, they're rebooting their Turtles series to #1 in July with a new creative team of Jason Aaron & Joelle Jones (meaning it'll be at least bi-monthly, given Jones' inability to keep deadlines at DC), and, at the same time, previewing a miniseries that presents one of the boys as a Batman parody, the Night Watcher. Half the fun is figuring out who it is. 

Rating: B.

Archie is getting a ton of mileage out of their horror line, and darkening second and third tier characters to make them presentable to grim-dark obsessed readers who don't know any better.

The Cursed Library continues the darkening of Jinx Holliday (formerly L'il Jinx), who has been repackaged as the daughter of the devil. Oh, please. Give me a break. In the context of this 0 issue, Jinx is holding Madam Satan prisoner, with the villain's face wrapped in bandages for whatever. Editor-writer Jamie Rotante uses excerpts from recent 1-shots to help frame the story.

Personally, I've got a better idea on how to use Jinx, and not like this.

Rating: C.

For months, Dynamite withheld the creative team for their adaptation of Jonny Quest, who turns 60 this year. Veteran writer Joe Casey, aided by artist Sebastian Piriz, sends the Quest team on a time trip. I think I already know who the villain is, and it ain't Dr. Zin.

The backup features are excerpts from Space Ghost (see above) and ThunderCats. The 1st issue of Jonny Quest is promised for July, but is not being solicited in Previews, which suggests a delay to August.

Chris Samnee provided the cover, inspired by Jonny's creator, Doug Wildey.

Rating: Incomplete.

Fantagraphics is working with Marvel on a trade collection of reprints from the Atlas era of the 50's, featuring the art of the likes of Joe Maneely, Bill Everett, Basil Wolverton, and Gene Colan. Wolverton's "Where Monsters Dwell" inspired the Marvel anthology of the 70's.

Rating: A.

Over at Titan, someone got a clue and decided to try to create a shared universe of Robert E. Howard's characters, including Conan The Barbarian, Solomon Kane, and others. This will start in Savage Sword of Conan in September, and there are plans for a Conan miniseries later this summer. The preview, Conan: Battle of The Black Stone, sets the tone. I'm interested.

Rating: B+.

Mad Cave previewed two forthcoming series, and gave away its publishing schedule for the summer.

Flash Gordon, last seen at Dynamite, returns in a new series by Jeremy Adams & Will Conrad, but the opening arc is meant to be a shocker. One of the variant covers for the first issue, due in July, pays homage to the infamous 1980 movie. The plan is to have the 2nd issue come out in September, then finish the arc on a monthly schedule, while a second, quarterly title, also debuts. Hmmmmmm.

Gatchaman debuts next month, with issue 2 out in August, and a miniseries built around the villains debuting in July. If you thought you knew G-Force from the American adaptations dating back to Battle of The Planets in 1978, you're in for surprises, and a treat. That's all I'll say.

Ratings:

Gatchaman: A.

Flash Gordon: Incomplete.

More FCBD next time.

When Icons meet: Two pop legends croon for Diet Coke (1990)

 Pepsi had Michael Jackson & Madonna, but they never did a commercial together.

 Diet Coke did them one better, and paired up Paula Abdul and Elton John.

If you're not digging, check your pulse.

The shame of the suburbs is a Congressional embarrassment

 We've long established that NY Misrepresentative Elise Stefanik of Schuylerville boarded the Trump Train to advance her career. Rumors are that she is in the running to be the GOP VP candidate, running alongside the Archduke of Affluenza come this summer's convention.

Well, she is at it again, trying to save the Orange Brat from prosecution, although, technically, the horse left the barn long ago, as Farron Cousins explains.

While Trump has seen his carefully cultivated public image self-destruct the last few years, and he continues to embarrass himself on a daily basis, Stefanik, in a desperate attempt to lock up the VP nod, is grasping at straws and tossing darts at a velcro board, hoping her complaints have merit, when they clearly do not.

You know what she's getting:

The GOP is better served cutting their losses, and taking Trump off the ballot, and letting someone else challenge Joe Biden in November. If they don't, Trump takes a chance on joining Eugene V. Debs as the only presidential candidates to campaign inside a prison cell. As for Stefanik, she nearly lost her seat in her last re-election bid. Someone will come along and give her a reality check. Preferably sooner rather than later.

Forgotten TV: Let's Call it Quits (1974)

 The American Cancer Society, in collaboration with Paramount Television, produced this half hour PSA about smoking, Let's Call it Quits. Partially filmed on the set of The Brady Bunch, which had ended production, Quits is headlined by Tom Bosley & Marion Ross (Happy Days), joined by Vic Perrin (ex-The Outer Limits), Tracy Reed (ex-Barefoot in The Park, Love, American Style), Normann Burton (later of Wonder Woman), Brad Savage (ex-Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice), & "Cousin Oliver" himself, Robbie Rist.

50 years later, the message is still relevant.

No rating. Just a public service.