Reefer Boy

I'm hearing that Michael Phelps may be losing his big endorsement contracts with Kelloggs and Subway. Two brands that I think would profit from stoners with the munchies. Hypocrites. Oh well, in my continuing tribute to Phelps, here an old pulp novel I came across.

That's NumberWang!

A ridiculous, hysterical game show parody from THAT MITCHELL & WEBB LOOK.
Another episode with NumberBounce!

The 9,341st program...with NumberScoff!

The German version with NumberHosen!

The home game...complete with two 400-sided dice!

Black Diva History Month, Part 1 (1894-1929)

No disrespect to Black History Month proper, but I've decided to use February as a time to look at some of my favorite divas of color. Unlike most gay men, my favorite black female singers for the most part have not had a hit on the charts in probably the past two, or even three decades. Most have never recorded an MTV video and a good percentage of them are no longer among the living. Most are from the US, though few are from other places–either by birth or by choice. Whether they sang jazz, the blues, soul, R & B, funk or good old standards from the American songbook, what these amazing, strong women have in common is that they helped shaped music history and a few of them are still out there, still working hard to secure their place in the tapestry of American experience. I don't consider this a complete list, but rather a tribute to the fine women whose work I have enjoyed over the years.Bessie Smith (1894 -1937) was an blues singer famous for recording WC Handy’s St. Louis Blues and performing it in the 1929 film of the same name. Dying from injuries sustained in a car accident, Smith’s grave went unmarked until 1970 when Janis Joplin paid for a tombstone. Ironically, Joplin would die later that same year.Alberta Hunter (1895 - 1984) was an blues singer, songwriter, and registered nurse! Her career had started back in the early 1920s, and she became a recording artist, retiring in the 1950s. Alberta then entered the medical profession, where she stayed for over 20 years, only to resume her singing career in her later years!Ethel Waters (1896-1977) was an blues and jazz singer. She was also nominated for an Academy Award for her acting in the film 1949 film PINKY. Her most famous recording was the spiritual His Eye is on the Sparrow, though her version of Irving Berlin’s Heat Wave is a personal favorite of mine.

Maxine Sullivan (1911 —1987) was an blues, jazz singer and muscian. In the mid 1950s (similar to Alberta Hunter) became a trained nurse. In 1968, she made a comeback, singing at music festivals and even playing brass instruments. A swinging version of he Scottish folk song Loch Lomond was her signature song.Billie Holiday (Eleanora Fagan Gough 1915 –1959) was a legendary American jazz singer and songwriter. Lady Day’s tragic story was famously told in the 1972 film LADY SINGS THE BLUES. Her recording of “Strange Fruit” about lynching is one of the most powerful songs ever recorded. In a 1958 interview, she complained that many people did not inderstand the song’s message: “They’ll ask me to ‘sing that sexy song about the people swinging.’”Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) One of the few ladies on my list that I had the pleasure of seeing perform live. Ella earned the title “First Lady of Song.” Winning countless awards and honors, her well-deserved mainstream success made her a sought-after guest on numerous TV shows. There will never be another Ella.Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (born June 30, 1917) is an American singer and actress. She has recorded and performed extensively on stage, in film and on TV. She is most famous for performing Stormy Weather. As of this writing, Ms. Horne is still alive - living in New York City and enjoying her retirement.Pearl Mae Bailey (1918-1990) was an much-loved singer and actress. She appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway and in films. In 1968, she won a Tony Award for the title role in the all-black production of HELLO, DOLLY! She then appeared with Carol Channing in a memorable 1969 TV special. Pearl was a regular fixture on TV talk shows in the 1970s.Carmen Mercedes McRae (1920 – 1994) was an American jazz singer, composer, pianist, and actress. Her recording of Imagination is one of my favorite songs of all time. I recall seeing her performing live and she profusely thanked her Japanese fans for supporting her over the years, when American audiences turned away from jazz.Dinah Washington (1924 – 1963) was dubbed the original ”Queen of the Blues”. Her recording of What a Diff'rence a Day Makes is an all-time classic and Drinking Again is a personal favorite of mine. Sadly, she died at age 39, from an overdose of diet pills mixed with alcohol.Sarah Lois Vaughan (nicknamed "Sassy" and "The Divine One") (1924 –1990) was a legendary American jazz singer. I was lucky enough to see Sarah live at The Blue Note in NYC in the 1980s, as she celebrated five decades of outstanding performance. Sitting less than a foot away from her, as she crooned all the classics- I was overwhelmed by her presence, it felt like being among royalty.Big Maybelle (Mable Louis Smith, 1924-1972) was one of the top Rhythm & Blues singers of the 1950s. She was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999, for her hit single Candy.Willie Mae ("Big Mama") Thornton (1926 -1984) was an American rhythm and blues singer and songwriter. She was the first to record the hit song Hound Dog in 1952. Eartha Mae Kitt (1927 – 2008) was an actress, singer, and cabaret star. She was perhaps best known for her 1953 Christmas song Santa Baby and her role of Catwoman in the third season of the BATMAN television series.Ruth Brown (1928-2006) "Miss Rhythm" Brown was the top-selling Atlantic Records recording artist and was dubbed “the girl with the teardrop in her voice”. Ruth was featured in the original John Waters’ film HAIRSPRAY (1986) as Motormouth Maybelle. She also won a Tony Award for her performance in BLACK AND BLUE. I had the honor of seeing Miss Brown perform live several times, including in the off-Broadway show STAGERLEE.Etta Jones (1928-2001) was highly underrated jazz singer whose relative obscurity earned her a reputation as a "jazz musician's jazz singer". She was often confused with Etta James.Koko Taylor (Cora Walton, 1928-) is an blues musician, also known as the "Queen of the Blues." Her trademark rough and powerful vocals have made her a living legend.

Betty Carter (Lillie Mae Jones, 1929 -1998) was a jazz singer who was known for her unsual improvisational technique . Her first solo LP, Out There with Betty Carter, features the classic You’re Getting To Be Habit With Me and her album of duets with Ray Charles in 1961, include the popular tune Holiday tune Baby, It's Cold Outside.

More to come...

Michael Phelps' Next Product Endorsement?

If Olympic champion and reluctant "role model" for America's youth was photographed drinking a beer, it would  have been a product endorsement. They (the media) say he may lose some of his product sponsorships because of this so-called "scandal". So I wonder what's up next for young Mr. Phelps? Maybe U.S. Bongs is looking for an all-American spokesperson to replace retiring Uncle Sam? I could picture it now...

Happy Birthday Farrah!

California blonde superstar Farah Fawcett turns 62 today. We wish Ms. Fawcett the happiest of birthdays and hope that she has many more. Farrah has appeared in some of my favorite films, including 1970's MYRA BRECKINRIDGE.In 1976, Farrah was seen the sci-fi classic LOGAN'S RUN.
Her fresh breezy style helped her land a lead role on CHARLIE'S ANGELS.
But her bathing suit nipple poster made her into an icon.
Her image could be seen everywhere. From coloring books to Halloween costumes and fashion dolls.
Farrah shocked critics and gained legions of new fans when she scored the lead role in the controversial NBC TV-movie, THE BURNING BED. Suddenly, Farrah was a highly sought after actress!After a few more acclaimed film and TV roles, Farrah pulled a 180 and decided to pose nude for Playboy magazine.
The Playboy spread and accompanying body paint videos erased some of the credibility that she had established over the previous few years.
Sadly personal tragedies and illness have plagued Farrah over the past few years, but Dougsploitation hopes we have not seen the last of the fabulous Ms. Fawcett. The world loves a comeback, and Farrah baby, you are overdue.

See Sal from "Sonseed" LIVE on stage in NYC This Week!

That's right kids, friend of Dougsploitation, Sal Polichetti from "Sonseed" with be performing "Jesus is My Friend" LIVE on stage this Wednesday night, Feb. 4th  at St Mark's Church in Greenwich Village. The address is 131 East 10th Street (near 2nd Avenue). Sal will be playing with a band called Bronze Fondue. For more info on this rare event go here. Admission is $5.00 (BYOB) and the festivities begin at 8:30PM.

Wouldn't it be great to show up wearing an official unofficial Sonseed t-shirt?

Best TV Commercial Ever

With all the buzz about this year's Super Bowl ads, I've been thinking about a classic TV commercial that I recall as being one that I actually wanted to see over and over again. The Great American Soup commercial from 1970 featured the great American MGM star Ann Miller as a talented housewife, and had the production values of a feature film.Budgeted at $154K, this one minute homage to Busby Berkeley musicals was directed by satirist Stan Freberg and took over four weeks to produce. It was the most expensive TV advertisement ever produced up to that point.The spot employed big band conductor Billy May and a 24-piece orchestra.
Academy Award-winning  choreographer Hermes Pan was brought on and he hired 20 tap-dancing chorus girls to bring the story to life.
Such attention to detail created a most memorable advertisement that ran for years. Unfortunately the product, priced much higher than Campbells and made by Heinz, faded away.

The commercial became so popular that it was referenced in most obituaries for Ms. Miller, who died 5 years ago in January 2004.

Know Your Crisis, Part 2

DC Comic's FINAL CRISIS finally ended this week. Thank Darkseid! What started out as a promising epic adventure turned out to be a convoluted, confusing, confluence of conundrums. In other words–what the fucking fuck?

In preparation for FINAL CRISIS, I've previously recounted all the other major DC Universe crossovers from the best to the worst-and at least I was able to explain briefly what happened in those stories.

Ask me what FINAL CRISIS was about and I can only tell you what I think happened, but I'm not really sure. But maybe I'm too stupid to understand what Grant Morrison was trying to say???

I think it was about the dead New Gods coming back to life in the form of regular folks and an Anti-Life virus infecting the human race. Along the way, Martain Manhunter gets cooked alive by an old JLA villain from the 70s named Libra, Lois Lane gets blown to bits (she gets better), the Flash known as Barry Allen returns to the land of the living and Batman gets either killed or sent back in time to become Captain Caveman.

There's also some nonsense involving a group of obnoxious Japanese heroes called Super Young Team, a "fight club" for teen age super-heroes, some drama involving the Green and Alpha Lanterns, the introduction of a mysterious new Aquaman, an ugly punked-out makeover for Mary Marvel and poor Wonder Woman's transformation into a hideous beast along with Batwoman, Catwoman and The Doom Patrol's Elasti-Girl! Whew!

Oh yeah - Darkseid's son Kalibak gets reincarnated as a tiger and has a battle with Shazam sidekick Mr. Tawny, Superman goes on an acid trip and meets about 50 other Supermen from different worlds, the Monitors stand around talking a lot and lots of important people, places and things get blown up.

Other stuff happens too, but I'm sure you're already as confused as I am. Don't even get me started on where all the tie-ins fit in. ROGUE'S REVENGE? RESIST? SUBMIT? REVELATIONS? LEGION OF 3 WORLDS? Maybe I just need to sit down and reread everything and it will all make sense. But I feel like why should I have to work so damn hard to enjoy a comic book story? Ugh!

With BLACKEST NIGHT looming on the horizon, my event fatigue is getting even stronger. What will it take to make me start loving comics again??? 

Yeah, it would take something really special–like the return of LADY COP.

Happy Belated Birthday, Betty White

Damn! I totally intended to run this on Ms. White's birthday on January 17 - but I guess something suddenly came up. Well, here it is, two weeks late. Happy Birthday to our favorite old broad. Whether she's baking pies and acting all sexy on MARY TYLER MOORE or dumb and dumber on GOLDEN GIRLS-Betty is a real class act. We love her on soaps (ANOTHER WORLD, BOLD & THE BEAUTIFUL) , game shows (PASSWORD), talk shows (ELLEN), even in movies (LAKE PLACID). I wish more old people would be as cool as Betty White. I wonder if Fox will ever release her short-lived, fondly-remembered 1970s THE BETTY WHITE SHOW on dvd. Well, cheers to Betty - 87 years young and still making us smile! Here a fun clip from before the election. The set up here is that Betty is John McCain's speechwriter.

The MISMATCH GAME Returns This Weekend Only

The weekend, I'll once again be the contestant wrangler for The MISMATCH GAME–A live, on-stage parody/homage to TV's Match Game! 

If you're in LA this weekend, come out and play.

METROSOURCE LA calls it "A low-tech screamer...not to be missed." 

With your host, Dennis Hensley, and an All-Star Cast.

SCHEDULED TO APPEAR:

FRIDAY, JANUARY 30 - 8 PM

Jack Plotnick as Paul Lynde

Ted Biaselli as Miss Piggy

Tony Tripoli as Charles Nelson Reilly

Jackie Clarke as a mystery guest

Felix Pire as Ricardo Montalban

Madeline Long as Shelley Winters

plus John Carrozza as Greg Evigan

SATURDAY, JANUARY 31 - 8 PM

Jack Plotnick as Paul Lynde

Tony Tripoli as Charles Nelson Reilly

Tom Lenk as Margot Kidder

Oscar Quintero as Charo

Madeline Long as Shelley Winters

plus John Carrozza as Greg Evigan

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 1 - 7 PM

Drew Droege as Karen Black

Tom Lenk as Heidi Klum

Tony Tripoli as Charles Nelson Reilly

Nadya Ginsburg as Cher

Felix Pire as Ricardo Montalban

plus John Carrozza as Greg Evigan

For clips and more, visit: myspace.com/mismatchgame

The Renberg Theatre • 1125 N. McCadden Place, Hollywood

(One block east of Highland, just north of Santa Monica Blvd.)

Tickets $15 • Call 323-860-7300 • By tickets online