Mystery of the Toby Mug

Michael T Kennedy says on Amazon of Twelve O'Clock High: "I was disappointed when the DVD version of this film was released. I saw it in theaters in 1949 (probably 10 times) and still recall several missing scenes that are important to the plot. When the DVD came out I was excited thinking that surely they would have been restored in this format without the space constraints of VHS. I was wrong. The current cut, for example, does not explain the significance of the Toby mug that Dean Jagger finds in a London shop and replaces on the airbase officers' club mantelpiece. There are others, such as what happens to the young navigator and why. Obviously, I think this is one of the greatest war movies of all time. I just hope someday a director's cut is released with all the missing scenes restored. It's still worth buying but the film is incomplete without the missing scenes."

Bryce: In the original Vanishing Point Dean Jagger portrays a snake wrangler who sells the venomous creatures to Jesus freaks who are starting a megachurch in the California desert. It's really his best role besides Brigham Young. He has a wonderfully raspy voice and the face of an old prospector. San Francisco just had its annual Dodge Challenger Film Festival at at Thee Parkside Theater including Starsky & Hutch, Death Proof (which references Vanishing Point), Vanishing Point as well as the Viggo Mortensen Vanishing Point made for TV.

All about Bryce

There is an official government list of acceptable Norwegian names. A law from the 1800s is intended to protect children from any Norwegian names that sound or look strange. - Babynames.org

Bryce is not an acceptable Norwegian name by law. Indeed, it does look and sound strange. In order to avoid difficulties my parents referred to me in public as "Busby." When a family member calls me Bryce I don't know to whom they are referring. Patronomic last names result in lot of people with the same last name because of the limited number of legal first names. For instance one's grandfather Gunnar might have a grandchild name Gunnarsen. There are a lot of Gunnarsens. This confusion was somewhat solved by people adding the name of their farm to the end. So my official name is Bryce (Busby) Gunnarsen Digdug.

Distribution of Digdug families in the United States:

It's raining umbrellas

No, that was not me on Guerrero Place in San Francisco this morning in the rain carrying a Hello Kitty umbrella. Because of the intensity of the storm I had to bring my huge, non-character-related, orange umbrella and leave the Sanrio collectibles at home. Another adult was using her Hello Kitty umbrella though 2 points off for not carrying the kind with ears. I once knew an Executive Director of a certain Compass-related nonprofit who carried the kind with ears. So, shall we rank the umbrellas? Well, anything HK trumps my practical orange device which keeps me dry. But I think my orange comes in second ahead of the Eiffel Tower. Now, if her umbrella had been in the shape of the Eiffel Tower or had ears...

You may say, Bryce, umbrellas are in the shape of the Eiffel Tower. Well, yes, but only when they are half open.

Fallas Festival in Valencia - a Ninot

Der Bingle and La Bowie

Mouse put up the video of "Little Drummer Boy" by La Bowie and Der Bingle on her site. Don't miss Junk Thief's slide show of classic Christmas cards. They don't make them that way any more. My mother always read us stories of the mischievous Brownies. She was still snapping us with her Kodak Brownie camera all the way into the 70's. There is a Brownie Lake, the last "link" in Minneapolis' Chain of Lakes. The Brownies are the younger version of the Girl Scouts, though Palmer Cox's cartoon characters were all little men. Speaking of The Royal Tennenbaum's house on Archer Avenue, Palmer Cox' Brownie Castle in Quebec has a turret and a Brownie flag flying on top as well as a Brownie weather vane on the barn. (Okay, okay, the Tennenbaum's house at 144th and Convent has a cupola). I never been able to forgive the Girl Scouts for eliminating trans-fat from Thin Mints. I mean really, is nothing sacred? Of course the Girl Scouts don't have a problem with Lesbians unlike the Boy Scouts having problems with openly gay scouts. The Addam's Family line of promotional tie-ins manufactures "Thing Mints." I love both the Paul McCartney and John Lennon Christmas songs. Phil Spector's Christmas album is the greatest of all time. Mr. fake Afro can really produce...not withstanding his personal life being a disaster. "Let It Be" is my favorite Beatles album. I think an un-Spectorized version came out later. They should have let it be.

Speaking of halter tops

Singing at a cigarette-burned piano

A flawless, haunting song. In the 70's I dressed like her bowling boyfriend sans 'stache in my pink cords and white platforms (size 13) and danced at a disco called "The City" here in the city to the Three Degrees. I rocked the boat. Like Tracey, Pet Clark knows where the boys go when they are lonely. The lights are much brighter there (they are? maybe she means strobe lights). You can forget all your troubles...forget all your cares and go...DOWNTOWN. Rip Taylor appeared downstairs at the City. I didn't see his act, but Larry dragged me to meet him. I think Lar' was trying to tell me something. Let the confetti fly! Most of the time instead being my flamboyant self on stage I feed punchcards into a machine. There's gotta be a way out of this place if it's the last thing I ever do. Maybe a get-rich-quick scheme like in the noirs (don't miss "Gun Crazy"). Speaking of bowling, the original Road House is a bizarre movie but entertaining, thrilling and fun. Both men can certainly fill a pair of of bowling slacks, shoes and argyle socks. Ida Lupino's profile reflected in the shimmering boards of her lane is not to be missed. She plays a tough club singer who wows them singing at a cigarette-burned piano. But the real action is between the sultry brunette Cornell Wilde and the blond, Richard Widmark.

Can it be said, then?

QUOTE: Torrance CA: Alpine Market in Alpine Village in Torrance won The Best Sausage in Show at the Annual State of California Meat Processors competitions held over March 5th weekend in Reno, Nevada. Master Sausage Maker Alex Lagger came home with BEST OF SHOW SAUSAGE (out of all 16 different categories)

Three for Thee

Are you familiar with The Three Magnets, The Three Qualities, and The Three Degrees?