Famed TV Producer Sidney Sheldon has Died!

Sad news.  TV producer as well as author, Sidney Sheldon, has passed away at the age of 89 years old.  He produced two classic TV shows: "The Patty Duke Show" and "I Dream of Jeannie."

He'll be missed.  Generations of TV viewers grew up watching his shows.

RIP, Sidney

The Patty Duke Show Theme Song



I Dream of Jeannie Season 2 Opening

Happy Hoax Day in Boston, MA, Thanks to the Cartoon Network

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is not amused that ten devices were found around the city of Boston caused a security scare throughout the city today.  Bridges and subway stations were evacuated because of these devices.

It turns out that the devices were promotional devices for a show on the Cartoon Network.

I was listening to the whole thing this afternoon on my radio at work.  Even Boston Mayor Tom Menino was steamed about what happened today.

Happy Birthday to An Easy Lover

Happy Birthday, Phil Collins

"Easy Lover" with Earth, Wind, & Fire's Philip Bailey




"You Can't Hurry Love"

Eileen Explains Asperger's

Eileen Costello, co-writer of the book Quirky Kids, has written an op-ed piece about Asperger's in today's Boston Globe.  It is titled "The Facts and Myths of Asperger's Disorder.  She wrote this in response to the tragedy that happened at Lincoln-Sudbury High School in Massachusetts nearly two weeks ago regarding a student with Asperger's allegedly stabbing a fellow student.

It is an excellent piece.  Thanks, Eileen.

"Thwarting the Bullies in Our Schools" is article written by Jack Levin which is a companion piece for Eileen's op-ed essay.

Happy Birthday, Hawkeye!

Happy 71st Birthday,
Alan Alda!
Star of M*A*S*H

Clip from a M*A*S*H documentary

Vote for Clint Eastwood!

Attention all Clint Eastwood fans.  Clint's movie, The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly, is in a FILM vs. FILM CHALLENGE at the IMWAN website in their main forum called the Playroom.  It's going against The Godfather starring Marlon Brando.  Joining IMWAN is easy and free of charge.

Direct link to the FILM vs FILM Challenge:
http://www.imwan.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=10283&start=22

Please, help Clint out.  Also, Clint Eastwood's Letters from Iwo Jima won a Golden Globe recently.  Way to go, Clint!

Voting ends on Sunday night at midnight.

The Duel Scene from "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly"

Letter to the Editor "Understand Asperger's"

I found this in today's Boston Herald.  It is a letter from a parent who has a child with Asperger's Syndrome.  It is very good.  I decided to paste this into my blog because what he wrote is so true about how difficult it is to be a teenager with Asperger's.

Understand Asperger’s
By Steve Sherman/ Letters
Tuesday, January 23, 2007

As a parent who has both lost a child and who has another child with Asperger’s syndrome, I would like to offer some comments on the killing of the student at Lincoln-Sudbury High School (“School stabbing,” Jan. 20). First, I extend my condolences and deepest sympathies to the Alensons.
    Secondly I have to both criticize and praise the Herald’s coverage. As a parent, I have seen how Asperger’s affects every aspect of a child’s life and have witnessed the ostracism and outright cruelty these children are subjected to.
    Asperger’s is a brain disorder and a disability - not learned behavior. For the Herald to uncritically print comments that the boy was “the guy people make fun of” and “was a really creepy kid” without mentioning that these children are commenting about a child with a disability is irresponsible. Kids can be cruel but adults should know better. Would the Herald print comments like that about a child with MS?
     I will commend writer Jessica Heslam in acknowledging that these children are not well served by public schools. This is the understatement of the new century. In reality the treatment of these children in the school systems is disgraceful and inexcusable. I have been engaged in a five-year battle to obtain proper placement and support for my son. With few exceptions, the reactions and responses from the staff have been somewhere between trivialization and indifference toward the problems.
     In no way would Itry to rationalize or excuse the tragic killing of the Alenson boy because the other child had a disability. However, I would emphasize that the treatment of children with Asperger’s in the schools is abysmal and the toleration of the bullying of these children is beyond disgusting.
    Steve Sherman, Roslindale

http://news.bostonherald.com/letters/view.bg?articleid=178621&format=text

Paul Not Free As a Bird!

Paul McCartney is not yet officially divorced from Heather Mills.  Her lawyer denies that the settlement has been made for the divorce between the former Beatle and his wife of four years.  A newspaper report on Sunday declared there was a settlement reached, but her lawyer said, "No, no, no, nnnooo."

39 Years Ago Today...TV History was made!

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In made its debut on NBC TV on this day back in 1968.  One of the best TV variety shows in TV History.  It replaced the cancelled Man From U.N.C.L.E. series on Monday nights.  Laugh-In went off the air in 1974.

Clip from October 1969 featuring Mike, Davey, and Mickey of the Monkees

What Kind of SCI-FI/FANTASY Character Am I?

Another cheerful something.  I'm not very familiar with this character though.

What Kind of 1960s Person Am I?

Something cheerful for a change.

    

                    

    

        What kind of Sixties Person are you?    

    

You are a Mod. Yeah baby.
Take this quiz!

Quizilla | <a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"  ="" target="quizilla" href="http://www.quizilla.com/redirect.php?statsid=21&url=http://www.quizilla.com/register">Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

Tragedy at Massachusetts High School

I was stunned to hear that the 16-year-old student who is being held without bail after a fatal school stabbing has Asperger's Syndrome.   I remember when I was in high school that I was picked on and teased without mercy.  They wouldn't even stop after knowing how depressed I was after my older brother Alfred died in a car accident in 1980.   What the boy did was wrong, but I feel sympathy for him because life in high school is hell when you have no choice in being different from everyone else.

All that teasing and taunting of me escalated into a war between me and them.  I put some of them into the nurse's office after punching them out.  They would have ice packs on their broken noses.  Of course, I was punished.  When I was still in junoir high school, I once got suspended from school for a day.  My parents did nothing about the problems I was having with my fellow students.  In fact, my father referred to my suspension day as my day off from school, and my mother took me shopping (I bought a Wings 45 record called Goodnight Tonight on the A side and Daytime Nighttime Suffering on the B side, and also the Earth, Wind & Fire Greatest Hits album).  No wonder my situation in high school was so bad.  Nothing was being done to help me cope with the feelings of anger and depression.

I was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome in 2002 when I was 37 years old.  When I told my parents about my condition, my mother didn't believe it and still doesn't.   My father even has surprised and I had to remind him that I always had trouble socializing with people.

I always wondered why the teasing and bullying was tolerated when I was in school.  They would always tell me to just ignore it because it would all go away some day.  It didn't.  It persisted all the way to graduation.  Those years were torture.  I carried so many emotional scars from that experience that I have been seeing therapists for most of my adult life.

The tragedy at the Lincoln High School has been mentioned on Charles Laquidara's blog as well at http://www.bigmattress.com/mt-archives/2007/01/monday_again.html

RIP Papa Denny

I heard about the sad news this morning that Denny Doherty of the Mamas and the Papas had died yesterday.  I cried.  They are one of my favorite groups.  Denny was 66 years old.  That now means that three members are now dead.  The other two were Cass Elliott (died in 1974) and John Phillips (died in 2001).

When the group was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame several years back, I was thrilled.

RIP Denny

"I Saw Her Again Last Night" by the Mamas and the Papas

Inside Story about an Autistic Savant

Daniel Tammet has written his memoir called Born on a Blue Day.  He is an autistic savant like Dustin Hoffman's character in the movie called "Rain Man," but he is capable of living independently.  He is good at calaculating what day of the week a certain day will be and with prime numbers.  He is also able to learn a new language in one week.

His memoir explains how his mind works.  Worth checking out.

Ex-Talking Head Guesses His Younger Self Was "Borderline Asperger's"

David Byrne of the Talking Heads fame was interviewed in the New York Times about what he is doing these days.  When he talked about the fact that he was peculiar young man back then, he guessed that he was "Borderline Asperger's."  Byrne has been living in New York working on a bunch of creative projects.  Unfortunately, he is not interested in doing any reunions with his ex-Talking Heads members.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Martin Luther King!

Happy Dr. Martin Luther King Day!

Living the Dream at AOL NEWS!

Liz Delivers!

The Meals On Wheels program in Wellesley, Massachusetts, have teamed up with the Autism Services Association in helping both the elderly and people with autism and Asperger's Syndrome.   As of last June, people with autism and Asperger's Syndrome have been delivering the meals to the elderly.  It is helping them learn job skills.

Liz Andress who won the Worker of the Year award from the Autism Services Association last year is one of the workers in this program.  Way to go, Liz!  Thanks for your help!

RIP Yvonne DeCarlo

I was saddened to hear that Yvonne DeCarlo, Lily Munster of the TV show the Munsters, had died at the age of 84 years old.  I must admit that I loved watching that show a lot while I was growing up.  Whenever someone at school said to me that the name Yvonne wasn't common, I would tell them there are actresses in Hollywood that have that name.  One was Yvonne Craig (Batgirl) and the other was Yvonne DeCarlo (Lily Munster).

She'll be missed.  At least, she is reunited with Al Lewis and Fred Gwynne.

A Day In The Life for a Female with AS

The Boston Globe today has two of articles about Asperger's Syndrome.  One of them is about a fellow member of the Asperger Association of New England.  They describe her day in Cambridge. 

The other AS article in the Globe:

Paths to Self-Discovery Differ for Two Students

Happy 60th Birthday, David!

Happy 60th Birthday,
David Bowie!

I had a huge crush on him when I was in college.  I was hoping to be the next Mrs. David Bowie.  Btw, he was born with the name "David Jones," but he had to change because of the famous Monkee.

"Modern Love"





"Space Oddity"

Happy Birthday to The King of Rock!

Happy Birthday,
Elvis Presley!
He would have been 72 years old.

"Jailhouse Rock"

Congrats to The Ronettes, Van Halen and R.E.M. for Getting into the Rock Hall of Fame

The best news this year is that the Ronettes, along with Van Halen and R.E.M., are being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March.  The Ronettes had the hit songs: "Be My Baby" and "Baby I Love You."  They were part of the Phil Spector Wall of Sound. 

I had the honor back in 1993 to meet Ronnie Spector, the lead singer of the Ronettes, when she did a concert at City Hall Plaza that July.  When I got her autograph and told her my name, she told me that Yvonne is her middle name.  That was so cool.  I also met up with her the following summer and got her to sign the 45 record she did with Eddie Money called "Take Me Home Tonight," which was a hit song back in 1986 when I was a disc jockey.  She also signed the Phil Spector Christimas album that she and the Ronettes did with The Crystals, Darlene Love and others back in 1963.

Congrats, Ronnie!

Also, Patti Smith and Grandmaster Flash are being inducted on March 12.

"Be My Baby"

Dear Abby Learns about Asperger's

Two mothers who have children with Asperger's Syndrome write to Dear Abby informing her of the neurologicial disorder.  It's in response to a prior Dear Abby article about a teenager who has problems with empathy.  It's a good read.  They give Abby good advice.

Tragedy for Burt and Angie

I was sad to learn about the suicide of Nikki Bacharach, the daughter of songwriter Burt Bacharach and actress Angie Dickinson.  Nikki had Asperger's Syndrome.  When Nikki was born prematurally three months early, Burt wrote a ballad named after her.

While it is true that people with Asperger's Syndrome have difficult struggles in life, suicide is not a solution.  My condolences go out to Burt and Angie and their family.

Rest in Peace, Nikki.

A Clockwork Orange (Or How I Should Stop Bringing My Netflix Rental With Me When I Visit My Parents)

When I visited my parents for Christmas, I brought along my current Netflix DVD rental, A Clockwork Orange, with my other DVDs.  I was sick for most of my visit so I was lying down in the couch in the basement of my parents' house looking at DVDs.  When I was watching Clockwork Orange, my parents were walking in and out of the basement area.  The stairs to the upstairs part of the house are in the room where my parents' DVD player is.

My father, to my surprise, recognized the movie when he heard Malcolm McDowell say those immortal words, "In out in out."  Then, he told me that when he saw the movie back in 1971 when it came out originally.  He insisted that the movie he saw didn't have the sex scene with the Lone Ranger music playing and the scene with the naked woman standing over Malcolm McDowell's character.   I told him that there wasn't any different versions of this movie to the best of my knowledge.

I had no problems with my father with Clockwork Orange, but my mother, on the other hand, had problems with it immediately.  When she started asking me questions about the film, I told her that it's a Stanley Kubrick film that came out in 1971 and the star is Malcolm McDowell.  She snapped at me and said that they are only doing this for a living.  I said back to her, "What does that have to do with Clockwork Orange?"

She said she had no idea who they were and that Kubrick and Malcolm were not members of our family (Aren't Kubrick and Malcolm so lucky that they're not?).  I mentioned to my mother that Kubrick directed Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove, the movie that made Peter an international star.  She huffed and said that the Pink Panther Movies made Peter Sellers famous.  I told her about what a famous director the late Stanley Kubrick was, but all she said she never heard of him even though she had seen Dr. Strangelove several times on TV.

I told her about Malcolm McDowell who was a young actor when he did the movie and is the ex-husband of Mary Steenbergen who is the current wife of Ted Danson of the TV show "Cheers."  She told me that she never liked that show, which was news to me.  I do recall her watching the show in the past.  I told her that she saw Mary in the 3rd Back to the Future movie.  She asked me if Malcolm was the one with the long grey hair.  "No, that was Christopher Lloyd," I replied.

"Do you know when the Civil War was?" she asked.

"What does the Civil War have to do with the movie I'm watching?" I asked.

She repeated the question to me and I said the 1800s.  She grunted.

Then, I said, "1861 to 1864.  I took a course about the Civil War at Emerson.  Do you have so little faith in me?  You asked me about Clockwork Orange, and I told you what I know about it and its star.  I don't know everything about them."

That quieted her down and she soon left the room.  I was sorely tempted to tell her that she did, in fact, seen Malcolm McDowell in Star Trek: Generations, but I didn't because she hated that movie and complained to me while we were watching it on cable a few years back.  I also didn't bother to tell her that the weightlifter in the glasses in Clockwork Orange is David Prowse, the actor who later became Darth Vader, because my mother would start complaining again and asking me questions that have nothing to do with the topic we were talking about.

It's another example of why my mother and I don't do a lot of things together.

Just before I left to return to Boston, my mother asked me when I was going to visit her again.  I simply said, "I don't know."

Information about A Clockwork Orange: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066921/

It's Official! Deval's Our New Gov!

It's INAUGURATION DAY!

Today, Deval Patrick was sworn in as the new governor of the state of Massachusetts on the steps of the State House this afternoon.  First time this was done outdoors.  The weather was great.  Patrick is the first African American to be the governor of this state and the second African American to be governor in this nation (the first one was the governor of Virginia).

I only wish I was there, but I still have this cold bothering me even though I was well enough to go to work.  I watched part of the ceremony on TV in the cafeteria at work.  Deval looked great.

Deval talked about change.  I hope he can change the unemployment and underemployment situation for people with Asperger's Syndrome.

Metrowest Daily News article about Deval's Day

Text of Deval Patrick's Speech

Shine A Little Love To Another Belated Birthday

Happy Birthday,
Jeff Lynne
Of Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)

He shares a birthday with two Monkees on December 30.

Shine A Little Love

Belated Birthdays

I was too sick on Saturday, December 30, to do this.

Happy Birthday,
Davy Jones and Mike Nesmith
of the Monkees!

Davy's and Mike's Screen Tests





What Am I Doing Hangin' Round?