Category Archives: Uncategorized

Here's Walt Disney as the Mystery Guest on the 11/11/56 episode of What's My Line? Years ago, I met an animation art dealer who had acquired, at great expense and trouble, a 16mm print of this appearance. He was in the business of authenticating Walt's autograph and this was the one example he had of a Disney signature that he was absolutely certain was Walt's. As you might imagine, there are a lot of forgeries around…including many that came from Mr. Disney's office but were signed by someone else.

Note if you will that Walt says something about not wanting to disguise his voice with a falsetto because that would be "The Mouse." I'm not sure if he was afraid of being too recognizable if he did a voice in Mickey's range or if he just didn't want to be seen on TV with that voice. With one or two minor exceptions, he always avoided doing Mickey in front of audiences or cameras. The Disney organization was thrilled to have Clarence Nash demonstrating how he spoke for The Duck. They even kept him on the payroll to do that. But Walt seemed to think it was undignified for him to be seen talking like Mickey Mouse and there's very little footage of him speaking in that register.

Also: By 1956, he'd pretty much given up doing Mickey's voice, passing the mantle on to Jimmy MacDonald and occasional others. One of the last times he spoke for "The Mouse" was in the wraparounds that were animated for The Mickey Mouse Club in 1955. The little films where Mickey welcomed viewers or told them to make sure to watch tomorrow were Walt's last real performances as his studio's superstar.

Here he is trying to stump a panel that included Mr. Jerry Lewis…

Here's a profile of my Congressperson, Henry Waxman. In the next few years, you're going to hear a lot about this man.

I think he's terrific. A few years ago, I ran into him at the Souplantation and told him as much. My Very Conservative Friend Roger once made the comment that he wished his Congressman was just like Waxman in terms of integrity and militancy…but of course, applying it all towards an opposite set of goals.

David Bauder on how folks running for office generally like to appear with the likes of Leno and Letterman, as opposed to folks who might ask hard questions. That's long bothered me, though I must admit that even the folks who ask hard questions don't ask very hard questions. I can't think of many that were asked in the recent election. Most of the newsmaking answers that candidates gave were actually clumsy responses to pretty easy questions.

So…what's going on with that Senate recount in Minnesota? Al Franken is ahead by about four dozen votes out of almost three million cast but this could change. This article seems to be a good summary of where this all stands and where it's going.

My favorite restaurant in the country may just be Peter Luger's Steak House in Brooklyn. I used to say it was a place that made you never want to eat steak anywhere else but a few other eateries have since popped up (like the small but growing Wolfgang's Steak House chain) and provided close alternatives.

Still, there's something very special about Peter Luger's. Here, from the New York Times site, is a 360° tour of the Peter Luger steak vault. This is one of those links that may require registration. (And hey, if it bugs you to have to register for a website and you fear them sending you unwanted e-mail, get yourself a GMail account and just use it for sign-ups.)

Oh…and while you're over there, read the related article.

A song parody called "Barack the Magic Negro" is making the rounds, and was even distributed within the Republican National Committee. It's a riff, of course, on "Puff the Magic Dragon," the hit song by Peter, Paul and Mary. Here's what Peter has to say about it. To all his other complaints, he might have added that the guy who wrote it doesn't know how to write lyrics that scan.

The consensus — that George W. Bush has been a real terrible president — is growing. It's gotten this bad…

First Lady Laura Bush disagrees with critics who call the presidency of George W. Bush a failure. "I know it's not, and so I don't really feel like I need to respond to people that view it that way," Mrs. Bush said in an interview that aired Sunday. "I think history will judge and we'll see later."

In other news, my mother thinks I'm the best writer in the business.

Today is Stan Lee's birthday. Boy, I hope when I'm that age, I have one-third the energy, one-twentieth the fame and one-thousandth the number of people who love what I've done. Happy Stan Lee Day, Stan…from the first person you ever designated with the Hallowed Marveldom Rank of F.F.F. (Fearless Front Facer).

I didn't see this because it was over in the Sports section, where I have never before ventured. It's an article about a new online serialized graphic bio by Trevor Von Eeden. It's a portrait of John Arthur Johnson, the first black heavyweight champ. And if reading the article makes you want to read the comic, here's a link to the first chapter.

Wish I'd known about this before 12/25 so I could have had it up here for Christmas but better late than you-know-what. This is another one of my appallingly-talented friends…singer-impressionist Christine Pedi with moments from her recent holiday cabaret show in New Yawk. Showing guts of steel, Christine invited members of the audience to call out names of celebs and she performed "The 12 Days of Christmas" as those folks. The video ain't great but she is.

At least three people I could name, all of whom routinely attend the Comic-Con International in San Diego each year, will be happy to know that the Kansas City Barbecue Company has rebuilt and reopened. According to this article, they've considerably upgraded the place, which scares me a little. But I sure intend to try it again, next time I'm down there.

I read the New York Times so you don't have to…

• David Hadju remembers Will Elder.
• Adrian Nicole LeBlanc remembers George Carlin.
• George Burns remembers his favorite New Year's Eve.
• And Leslie Berlin remembers when there was a newspaper strip business.

Like most of the N.Y. Times links I post here, these have been configured such that you shouldn't have to register for the Times site to read them. But sometimes, the workaround doesn't work. If they do ask you to register, don't be horrified. It's not all that awful.

Five minutes of baby pandas playing in a crib. Don't say I never gave you anything.

The straight skinny from Bruce Vilanch, who is neither.

Hey, here's something you'll enjoy…if (big IF) you can hear it. BBC Radio 2 has broadcast a holiday concert of music from Disney movies. It's performed by a bevy of Broadway and West End stars, backed by a 70-piece orchestra, and hosted by Josh Groban, who closes the proceedings with an amazing rendition of "When You Wish Upon a Star."

The show runs about an hour and 45 minutes and can be heard at this link until January 2. That is, if you can get the Real Player interface to work, which is probably a 50-50 shot. Give it a try because if you can hear it, you'll probably enjoy it a lot.