Holiday Leftovers

Here's some holiday season leftovers from last year for your viewing pleasure...

In 1978, the SESAME STREET gang celebrated Christmas TWICE - Once at home on PBS...

and also on CBS with special guest stars ranging from Michael Jackson to Ethel Merman!!!

'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS was a Rankin-Bass animated special that still airs annually on cable. I always found it charming except for it's odd depiction of Santa's red nose and cheeks. He looked freakish to me.

What do you think?

Meanwhile, back in the Stone Age, The Flintstones are celebrating the birth of Christ before it even happened.

In fact The Flintstones celebrate Christmas through time travel as seen here where they frolic with  anthropomorphic animals from the 1960s and the Jetsons, from the far future.

Even 'tweenage Peebles and Bamm-Bamm get in on the holiday fun.

Betty Rubble is absent from this gathering, she must be baby-sitting Boo-Boo Bear who is also not present.

Here Yogi Bear, sans Boo-Boo is taking a turn at playing Santa.

And here Yogi is "helping" Santa...or is he helping himself to Ranger Smith's new skis?

And finally here's Yogi and Boo-Boo decorating their tree with painted snowballs. Shouldn't they be hibernating?

Looks like Tom & Jerry have put all their feuding aside for the holidays - and Jerry's found himself a little gray mousefriend to celebrate with! Hope all my readers and friends have a wonderful holiday season whether they are spending it on Sesame Street, in Bedrock or in Jellystone Park. Peace on Earth and all that.

Liberating The Gay People

With the legalization of gay marriage in New York and Pride celebrations continuing this month all over the place - I thought it was time to share this odd little pamphlet that an old friend gave to me a few years ago.

What might a first seem to be pro-gay propaganda, this many-fonted curiosity is actually a anti-gay diatribe from the Word of Life Fellowship in Schroon Lake, NY. Published in 1973, this bible quote filled booklet states "Not only do you find the Gays being worked into the scripts of popular radio and television shows, they even have their own programs!" In 1973? What was this guy Jack Wyrtzen watching? THE ODD COUPLE? SESAME STREET? THE MERV GRIFFIN SHOW? Oh, thats right THE PAUL LYNDE SHOW aired on ABC back then.

He says that its not his intent to condemn homosexuality, though then he goes on for 13 pages about God creating Adam and Eve, not "another man" and that "in God's eye's this was sin" and "when man ignores God and flaunts what God calls evil, God sometimes takes violent action". He then states that tolerance should not be allowed. So Christ-like. Wyrtzen died in, 1996, after leading the giant freak Tiny Tim to Born Again Christianity. Jack left behind eight children and 55 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I hope at least 10% of the Wyrtzens are big flaming homos like Paul Lynde. Thanks for liberating us, Jack.

Aliana Reed Hall 1946-2009

Happy 40th Anniversary SESAME STREET

The PBS show turns 40 today. I guess time flies when you are having fun and learning. There's lots of media coverage of this event, so I'll just simply say "Happy Anniversary" and "thank you" to the Childrens' Television Workshop for changing the face of kids TV.