Showing posts with label News and Observations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News and Observations. Show all posts
Thursday, November 05, 2026
Monday, November 02, 2026
A Tass-le Tale!
This tale from the Tulsa World harks back to the end of the Evil Empire. If you don't know what that is historically, thank your grandparents and great-grandparents who both held marches for peace, and manned nuclear silos.
This is from the October 10, 1989 World. The "official" collapse of the USSR happened a couple of years later.
By the way, pay no attention to that globe behind the curtain! See you Thursday.
This article mentions a plethora of weird tales that have been emanating from the Soviet Union around this time. Could it be that these tales of outré events were part of a disinformation scheme to distract the tovarisches (comrades) from their own real-world miseries?
Friday, October 30, 2026
New, Just for You -- BOO!
Three new Halloween music comps, part of the backlog of items not shared before.
It was fun to come across and include some of the underscores for Scooby-Doo.
Yup, it’s another buncha Halloween songs from the Seventies! The country preacher in the middle of Track 7 is so out there, I’m envious!
Track 4, “Bone Shaker,” is a fun reimagining of Carl Stalling’s “Skeleton Dance,” the first Silly Symphony.
01 - The 4-D Man - Dor and the Confederates - 1959 (1:57)
02 - Ghoulman Confidential - The Fleshtones - 2013 (2:31)
03 - Frankenboogie - Frankie Stein - 1973 (2:23)
04 - Spooky - Count Stephen - 1961 (2:35)
05 - Mothra - Those Darn Accordions! - 1996 (3:18)
06 - “Scooby Doo Where Are You?” Underscore 1 - Nichols-Curtin - 1969 (2:41)
07 - Frankenstein - Subsonics - 1997 (3:07)
08 - King Kong's Monkey - Gary (US) Bonds - 1964 (2:22)
09 - Werewolf - Harla Horror - 2005 (4:21)
10 - My Were Wolf Mama - Lenny Bruce - 1957 (2:21)
11 - I'm a Witch - Joyce Terry - 1959 (2:06)
12 - Frankenstein Cha Cha Cha - Sigue Sigue Sputnik - 1980 (3:39)
13 - Halloween - The Coffinshakers - 2000 (3:08)
14 - The Vampire's Ghost - Jimmy Bowers - 1958 (2:50)
15 - Oh Frankie - Chuck McCann - 1962 (2:39)
16 - I'm a Werewolf, Baby - The Tragically Hip - 1987 (3:21)
17 - Spooky Spider - The Buddies - 1961 (2:55)
18 - Dracula's Wedding - Lord Chatterley & the Transylvanian Septet - 1959 (2:36)
19 - The Bat - Frank Rondell and the Chancellors - 1964 (2:16)
20 - Mr Were Wolf - Ricky Durham - 1961 (1:58)
21 - Dr Jekyll or Mr Hyde - Babs Tino - 1963 (2:10)
22 - The Eye - Edwin & Alvin - 1959 (2:20)
23 - A Tribute to Dracula - The Streaplers - 1965 (2:27)
24 - “Scooby Doo Where Are You?” Underscore 2 - Nichols-Curtin - 1969 (2:45)
25 - Will the Real Dr Frankenstein Please Stand Up - The Zanies - 1971 (2:12)
26 - Monster Beach - The Surf Trio - 1986 (2:41)
***
01 - Trapped Like a Rat - Gerhard Helmut - 1979 (1:58)
02 - Frankenstein Pt 1 - Chuck Osbourne - 1975 (3:06)
03 - Dracula (Part 2) - The Jimmy Castor Bunch - 1976 (4:38)
04 - Too Many Skeletons in the Closet - Nat Fross - 1970 (2:33)
05 - Frankenstein's Heartbeat (live) - The Art Attacks - 1977 (2:58)
06 - Playing Golf (with My Flesh Crawling) - Family Fodder - 1979 (4:32)
07 - The Exorcism - Tommy Scott and Scotty Lee - 1975 (3:31)
08 - The Legend of Bigfoot - Chuck Lawson - 1975 (4:39)
09 - Mummy Drag - Jerry White - 1975 (2:58)
10 - Werewolf - Michael Hurley - 1971 (4:31)
11 - Bela Lugosi - Mick Farren - 1978 (2:02)
12 - Horror Movie - Skyhooks - 1974 (3:46)
13 - Jekyll and Hyde - Mighty 'Em - 1973 (3:14)
14 - Dracula's Undying Love - Children of the Night - 1976 (3:11)
15 - Monster Au-Go-Go - The Suicide Commandos - 1976 (2:06)
16 - Bigfoot - Earl Shepherd - 1975 (2:48)
17 - Dracula's Daughter - Thunderthighs - 1974 (3:48)
18 - Grave Yard Creep - James Duhon - 1974 (2:36)
19 - The Hippys Graveyard - Johnny G - 1978 (2:58)
20 - Take Me with You - Destroy All Monsters - 1974 (2:33)
21 - Descent into the Maelstrom (live) - Radio Birdman - 1976 (4:18)
22 - Old King Kong - George Jones - 1977 (2:18)
23 - Meat House - Negative Trends - 1978 (3:05)
***
01 - What Would Hallowe'en Be - Gil Slote and the Children of New York PS 24 - 1964 (1:11)
02 - Amityville (The House on the Hill) - Lovebug Starski - 1986 (5:45)
03 - Grave Digger - The Morticians - 1967 (2:20)
04 - Bone Shaker - Zerox - 2024 (1:53)
05 - Horror Show - Stompin' Riffraffs - 2010 (1:49)
06 - Panic at the Horror Disco - The Southern Tenant - 2022 (3:18)
07 - Ghost Division - The Creation - 1996 (3:56)
08 - All Hallows - Aviators - 2019 (4:50)
09 - Meet the Creature - Buchanan and Ancell - 1957 (2:44)
10 - Regan - The Demonics - 2000 (3:15)
11 - The Boogie Woogie Boogie Man - The Brian Sisters - 1942 (1:51)
12 - The Haunted - Forbidden Dimension - 1990 (2:01)
13 - Skin and Bones - Dean Gitter - 1957 (1:10)
14 - Halloween - Bob Malone - 2007 (3:54)
15 - Waking the Dead - The Busters - 2009 (3:16)
16 - Taboo - Gene Summers - 1964 (2:01)
17 - Zombie Skank - The Jesters - 1998 (2:23)
18 - Rotting Pumpkin - Animal Liberation Orchestra - 1998 (4:07)
19 - Hell's Bells (Silly Symphony) - Carl Stalling - 1929 (5:51)
20 - Come to the Sabbat (live) - John the Postman & the Legendary Lost - 1988 (3:56)
21 - Headless Horseman - Marcel Bontempi - 2014 (3:16)
22 - Graveyard Sale - Black Panties - 2013 (2:01)
23 - Bomp in the Night - Bruce and the Heartbeats - 2005 (2:50)
24 - Halloween - Abstractions - 1985 (3:59)
***
Well, Fiends and Slaybors, this is the end of another grave-poppin', Moon-freakin', cracker-jackin' Halloween season. Thanks for riding along! See you on Monday for a new something pulled from the hat.
Monday, October 26, 2026
Maruned with the Gasser!
Scary Books, Kiddies!
The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: Dispelling the Hysteria. By Scott Maruna. Swamp Gas Publishing Company, 2003. Cover art by Michael Schwab.
Yes, friends, my parents’ hometown was the site of an intrusion of the outré into WWII middle America.
The Mad
Gasser incidents stirred up a fuss all over the country, but the actual
so-called attacks happened in two brief months in the fall of 1944.
Believe me,
Mattoon, Illinois is not a big town.
It’s the anchor of a hundred square miles of farmland. Nowadays it has a few hotels along the
interstate, and some chain restaurants.
But in 1944 it was not that big.
It had a population just over 15,000 in the 1940 US census. In 1944, Ralph Smith became Mattoon’s first
black mailman. Mattoon’s first radio
station was WLBH (1170 AM), signing on in November 1946. During the Mad Gasser days of August-September
1944, radio signals streamed in from Chicago, but otherwise the Mattoon Journal-Gazette
was the prime local “official” source of information.
Maruna does
a good job of describing the incidents and their surrounding hysteria. Something happened and made a few
people turn dizzy. Then public panic and hysteria popped up. What? Why? Who?
Well,
Maruna has a theory, involving a town pharmacist and his son. Is this likely what happened? I don’t know.
What do you think? (By the way, if you want to sound like an authentic Mattooner, you refer to the local paper as the “Gaze-at-it.”)
Friday, October 23, 2026
Frolic in Unsettled Doom
Three more Halloween compilations for your disgusting delectation ...
MA-23 is one of my early aggregations, dating to around 2011.
This one is new to you. Please note that several vinyl-sourced tracks have surface noise or pops ...
01 - Count Chocula Intro - Count Chocula - 1979 (0:41)
02 - Trick or Treat - Halloween - 1984 (3:12)
03 - Have You Ever Seen? - Boss Martians - 2000 (3:15)
04 - Spook Opera - The Hawaiian Pups - 1982 (3:02)
05 - TV Monster Show - The Munsters - 1964 (2:05)
06 - Land of the Dead - Voltaire - 2007 (1:58)
07 - Dracula's Deuce - Freddy & the Four-Gone Conclusions - 2000 (2:36)
08 - It's Spooky in Here - Baha Men - 2001 (2:42)
09 - The Green Slime - The Green Slime - 1969 (2:19)
10 - My Body's a Zombie for You - Dead Man's Bones - 2009 (4:28)
11 - Spooksville - Nu-Trends - 1963 (2:37)
12 - The Mummy - Radio Ad - 1959 (0:49)
13 - The Ballad of Vlad the Impaler - Bettie Blackchurch - 2010 (1:32)
14 - Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? - Matthew Sweet - 1995 (3:12)
15 - Exorcist Theme - Halloween Remix - unknown - 2012 (5:00)
16 - I'm Gonna Scare You - Sue Rose - 2001 (2:40)
17 - The Bat - Children of the Night - 1976 (2:33)
18 - Munsters Theme Halloween Edit - Figure - 2007 (2:43)
19 - Return of the Living Dead - Ghoultown - 2002 (3:32)
20 - Martian Hop - Ran-Dells - 1963 (2:10)
21 - Halloween Party Music - Andrew Gold - 1996 (3:01)
22 - The Haunt of Room 402 - Wally Wingert - 2001 (2:57)
23 - Cockroach That Ate Cincinnati - Rose & the Arrangement - 1973 (2:08)
24 - Rockin' in the Graveyard - Jackie Morningstar - 1959 (2:40)
25 - Banditos Halloween Mash - Jonathan Rubinger - 2010 (4:48)
26 - Phantom of the A-Go-Go - Don Hinson & the Rigamorticians - 1964 (2:33)
27 - Castin' My Spell - Marci Lee and Johnny Otis - 1959 (2:10)
28 - Attack of the Killer Tomatoes - Lewis Lee - 1978 (2:50)
29 - Werewolf - Five Man Electrical Band - 1974 (3:29)
MA-23 is one of my early aggregations, dating to around 2011.
***
01 - You Have Booped Your Last Boop - Helen Kane - Bela Lugosi - 1933 (0:31)
02 - Trouble - Bonnie McKee - 2004 (3:59)
03 - The Devil Train - Rhys Evans - 1957 (2:19)
04 - Diggin' That Grave - Jesters of Destiny - 1986 (4:52)
05 - Frankenstein (live) - Kaye Stevens - 1963 (2:12)
06 - Ilonka's Dance (from House of Frankenstein) - Hans Salter - 1944 (1:45)
07 - Teenage Brain Surgeon - Eddie Davis - 1958 (2:04)
08 - Dr Poop - Howie Post - 1969 (2:09)
09 - The Headless Ghost - The Nightmares - 1959 (1:43)
10 - A Practice of Evil - The Fraudulent Frauleins - 1967 (2:52)
11 - Doin' the Zombie - Chubby Checker - 1997 (3:12)
12 - Night of Fear - The Move - 1966 (2:15)
13 - Things Go Bump in the Night - Mel Street - 1969 (2:06)
14 - Is There an Exit? - Absolute Body Control - 1981 (4:10)
15 - Bloodsuckers of the Universe - Spider Babies - 1984 (2:15)
16 - Haunted House - The Raftsmen - 1967 (3:59)
17 - Night of the Living Dead - The Alley Cats - 1982 (4:03)
18 - Hello There Mr Grave Digger - The Creators - 1962 (2:26)
19 - The Graveyard Hop - The Chants - 1959 (2:37)
20 - Can You Get Me Out of This Place - Four Commandments - 1968 (3:13)
21 - You're Gonna Die (live) - Destroy All Monsters - 1979 (2:50)
22 - My Friend the Ghost - Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra - 1955 (2:55)
23 - Ghost Hunter - No Strings Attached - 1968 (2:47)
24 - I Love My Monsters - The Voronas - 2004 (4:21)
25 - Danse Macabre - Sylvia Houtzager and Band - 1991 (2:54)
26 - You'd Scream If You Knew What I Did Last Halloween! - Zombina and the Skeletones - 2003 (1:45)
Track 1 is lifted from a 1933 short, Hollywood on Parade. Track 6 is the delicious Gypsy dance from House of Frankenstein. Track 8, “Dr Poop,” has nothing to do with body functions! Track 10 has an interesting witch-trial interlude. Track 25 is a breathtaking take on Saint-Saëns’ “Danse Macabre.”
Have fun discovering the charms of the other tracks!
PS yes, the staked vampire featured on the disc art is yours truly!
***
01 - Voodoo Doll - The Interiors - 1959 (2:36)
02 - Ghost on the Highway - The Gun Club - 1981 (2:45)
03 - Demons - The Clique - 1967 (2:21)
04 - Jack the Ripper - David Lastie and His Rippers - 1961 (2:46)
05 - Godzilla - Kicks - 1980 (4:31)
06 - It Was a Nightmare - The Beach-Niks - 1966 (2:14)
07 - The Raven - Bobby Russell and the Impollos - 1958 (2:26)
08 - The Face of Death - The Soft Boys - 1989 (3:14)
09 - I Created a Monster - Glenn Barber - 1967 (1:51)
10 - Green Slime (live) - Last Four Digits - 1982 (1:54)
11 - The Gates of Hell - Sorrells Pickard - 1968 (3:40)
12 - It Was a Dream - Billy David - 1959 (2:05)
13 - Dr Terror's House of Horror - Roy Castle - 1965 (3:58)
14 - Vampirella - Copy Cats - 2000 (4:27)
15 - Long Black Veil - Paul Thomas - 1959 (2:14)
16 - Nightmare - The Marvels - 1962 (2:38)
17 - Death on the Elevator - Super Heroines - 1981 (1:28)
18 - The Halloween Dance - Reverend Horton Heat - 1998 (3:09)
19 - Undead - The Undead - 1991 (2:33)
20 - Superstition - The Green Beans - 1965 (1:47)
21 - Who Is My Killer - Charlie 'ungry - 1980 (5:40)
22 - Pumpkin Punk - John Bartles - 1986 (2:09)
23 - Wolf Man - Laurie Allen - 1962 (2:03)
24 - How to Make a Monster - Zombina and the Skeletones - 2014 (3:05)
25 - Heads Will Roll - Yeah Yeah Yeahs - 2009 (3:41)
26 - Honky Tonk Halloween - Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures - 2009 (3:05)
Here is another unshared-before frisky fresco of spooky sounds, with musical genres running from Sixties psychedelia to Western swing, hard rock to doo-wop.
Have a wild weekend, my creepy cousins!
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Frights from Fifty Years Ago
Fifty years ago I clipped thus Sunday panel of Blondie from the Sunday Oklahoman.
Specifically, it was September 19. Wish I could be that scary!
See you on Friday for three more Halloween comps.
Friday, October 09, 2026
I COMPILE You to Listen!
Three more comps of Halloween (or ALMOST) music from all kindsa places.
ALL CLASSICAL, ALL FUN!
1 Halloween Sale Goodwill 0:59
2 Attack Of The Fifty Foot Woman The Tubes 4:25
3 It's a Nerdy Halloween Herbert Midgley 2:42
4 Frankie-Stein Robbie Robison 2:58
5 This Is Halloween Panic! At the Disco 3:27
6 I Only Have Eyes for You Spike Jones 3:26
7 Horray For Horrorwood Frankenstein Drag Queens 2:18
8 It's Halloween Greg Conley 3:07
9 Zombie Dance The Cramps 1:51
10 Mummy Beach Hot Lava 2:59
11 Love Song For A Vampire Annie Lennox 4:12
12 Creature with the Atom Brain JezusFactory 2:40
13 Saturday Evening Ghost Frankie Stein and His Ghouls 2:01
14 Halloween Song Evangelicals 2:15
15 Mummy Walk Contrails 2:36
16 Main Theme Dracula Twins 1:32
17 Vincent Price Zombina & the Skeletones2:19
18 Monster Mash Misfits 2:34
19 Kids Halloween 10/30/2008 ASK U 1:14
20 Halloween Linda Book 2:52
21 Feed My Frankenstein Alice Cooper 4:40
22 Dead Man's Curve Jan & Dean 2:25
23 Creature from Outer Space Big Eyed Beans from Venus 3:05
24 Bo Meets the Monster Bo Diddley 3:03
25 TV Theme Gigantor 0:52
26 Frankenstein Stomp Count Lorry & The Biters 2:01
27 The Skeleton In The Closet Louis Armstrong 3:08
28 Frankenstein Twist The Crystals 2:53
29 Frankenstein Meets The Beetles Jekyll & Hyde 1:51
Someday I may tell the story of how these VERY EARLY and VERY ECLECTIC comps came to pass.
Until then, ponder our next slab of slime ...
***
01 - Riboflavin-Flavored, Non-Carbonated, Polyunsaturated Blood - 45 Grave 1980 (2:53)
02 - Halloween - Distant Drums 1982 (3:36)
03 - Monster Island - The Dickies 1985 (1:56)
04 - Bates Motel - The Hitmen 1981 (3:19)
05 - Monster Rock - Screaming Lord Sutch 1982 (2:25)
06 - Jazz Butcher Meets Count Dracula - The Jazz Butcher 1983 (2:52)
07 - The Cabinet - Das Kabinette 1983 (3:57)
08 - Lycanthropia - Harry 1988 (5:00)
09 - Shaking of the Sheets - Steeleye Span 1989 (4:10)
10 - Horror Stories - Dance on Water 1984 (3:39)
11 - Final Scene - Greg Vandike 1980 (2:43)
12 - Like a Ghost - Ignatius Jones 1981 (3:22)
13 - The Masque - The Dark 1982 (3:42)
14 - Horror Movies - The Bollock Brothers 1983 (5:09)
15 - Dead Things - The Gorehounds 1987 (2:49)
16 - Halloween - The Wigs 1985 (2:28)
17 - The Vegas Vampire - Jim Parker 1983 (2:18)
18 - Count Duckula Theme - TV Soundtrack 1988 (1:09)
19 - Stuck in a Nightmare - Tooth & Nail 1988 (3:54)
20 - See You in the Boneyard - The Flesh Eaters 1981 (3:31)
21 - Scared of the Dark - Unit 5 1981 (4:00)
22 - I Kill with Warning - Rash of Stabbings 1983 (2:38)
23 - Something in My House - Dead or Alive 1987 (3:49)
24 - Slave Beyond the Grave - Johanna Went 1981 (2:51)
All of the above meditations, as you should have deduced, were released in the 1980s.
***
01 - Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 - Johann Sebastian Bach (8:27)
02 - Nightmare Fantasy Rag - A Night on Rag Mountain - William Albright (10:09)
03 - Piano Sonata #2 In B Flat Minor, Op. 35, B 128 - 3. Marche Funèbre - Frédéric Chopin (8:57)
04 - 3 Ghost Rags No. 1, Graceful Ghost Rag - William Bolcom (4:30)
05 - 3 Ghost Rags No. 2, The Poltergeist - William Bolcom (3:28)
06 - 3 Ghost Rags No. 3, Dream Shadows - William Bolcom (7:23)
07 - Carnival of the Animals - Zoological Fantasy XII. Fossils - Camille Saint-Saëns (1:22)
08 - Violin Sonata in G Minor, The Devil's Trill - Giuseppe Tartini - 1997 (18:49)
09 - A Rag-Time Nightmare - Tom Turpin (1:15)
10 - Ave Satani (from The Omen) - Jerry Goldsmith (2:32)
11 - Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14 - 5. Songe D'une Nuit Du Sabbat - Hector Berlioz (10:21)
These classical pieces may remind you of Halloween, even if they weren’t specifically intended that way when composed or published. When I hear them or see their titles, I get a small smile reminding me that Autumn (aka Halloween Time) can be a state of mind, not just a date range on a calendar.
You can listen to this one and call it a presage of Halloween, a foreshadowing if you will. And if you’re like me, YOU WILL! Listen to MA-234 and feel your mouth curling up, your musical horizons broaden, and a lift to them gloomy ole Halloween spirits.
See you Monday!
Monday, September 28, 2026
New Fuel from, or for, Fools
Here's an in-depth (for a newspaper) disturbing bit o' news regarding obvious monkey business with evidence in the JFK murder.
This is from the February 16, 1992 OKC Oklahoman.
Those matte elements for making fake Oswald-in-the-backyard are very suspicious. Some trickery like what's described in the article is, IMO, surely what produced those pix. However, what bunch of stupid ne'er-do-well spies would leave the evidence behind? And leave it at the home of the guy they were framing?
All of us cynical types have always suspected that the "three tramps" were probably spooks, or even real bums who were paid to wander around the railroad area, so as to draw attention and resources from the actual crime, its perpetrator(s) onsite, and its cleanup.
What do YOU think, fellow truthseekers?
PS see you on Thursday for the commencement of this year's BLOG-O-WEEN!
Thursday, September 24, 2026
Book Unreview: HEADLIGHTS by CJ Leede
I
had my doubts about this book from the first few pages. Another emotionally damaged first-person
narrator, yawn! It might be a
generational thing, but I am very tired of this device.
Read
the book flap. My disbelief started
there. Reading inside, I learned that
the amnesic people wandered FOR MILES before being found with that human hair
tied around their tongue.
Oh,
come on! That’s so patently
improbable! Think about it, dear
reader. Haven’t YOU ever found yourself
with a hair caught in your mouth? Maybe
off a brush or your hand or a towel or something? Tell me:
are you likely to go around for hours with that thing in your mouth driving
you crazy? NO!
Much
less somebody drugged or incoherent! The
first thing they would do upon regaining control of their body would be to get
that irritating thing out of their mouth!
Another
thing that rings my improbability bell is the oh-so-disturbed narrator, who is
described on nearly every page as having interruptions in his reality and being
unable to distinguish memories from present-day life.
This
person—THIS person, I say—is going to be accepted into active military duty, or
allowed to pack heat for the FBI? Even
AFTER evidence of such dislocation from reality is displayed to other
characters? UHH-UHH.
See you Monday!
Monday, September 21, 2026
Book Review: Colin Wilson's THE OUTSIDER
My first encounters with Wilson the writer came about in relation to good ole Aich Pee-Ell; Wilson’s "The Return of the Lloigor" was in an anthology of Cthulhu Mythos tales.
After that, I encountered Wilson’s three novels The Philosopher’s Stone, The Space Vampires, and The Mind Parasites. Especially the last, these books contained impassioned explications of the notion that mankind’s will, properly focused, could achieve staggering things, thing that might be considered supernatural by the poor average human.
Then I came across references to a non-fiction book by Wilson. That book was called The Outsider, and it surveyed significant people who did indeed feel or act as “outsiders” of common behavior and practice.
In the
Outsider’s eyes, common man and women live enslaved to custom. They’re limited in their intellectual and
moral visions by the blinders of accepted behavior and too-strong ties to the
material world. Often the Outsider has a
sudden revelation that “other people” are wandering through life like
sleepwalkers, concerned only with the having and getting of things.
Meanwhile,
the Outsider sees numinous significance in nearly everything, and is frustrated
by the tedious humanity around him.
Outsiders
have been artistic types like van Gogh or Blake, or others who come to a sudden
break with reality (or appear to have always been able to see things askew). Other examples are TE Lawrence, Nijinsky, or
various prophets. As Wilson writes:
---- If we
tried to express the prophet’s purpose in its simplest graspable form, we could
say that it was a desire to shout “Wake up!” in everybody’s ear. ----
I’ve felt
that way sometimes, haven’t you?
Usually the Outsider comes to a bad
end, dashing himself against the “normal” practices of society or accepted
behavior. Often she or he becomes bitter
or withdrawn, even choosing self-death as an end to the struggle.
Occasionally
the Outsider finds some gratification or success, like England’s religious
visionary George Fox. But often any
acceptance is limited to a few followers or fellow free-thinkers.
I read a
physical copy through ILL (interlibrary loan).
The particular volume I received was a rebound copy of the first edition. According to the library stamp, the copy was acquired in November 1956. Look in the right-hand corner. It’s likewise interesting that when the book was entered into the OSU (Oklahoma State University) library, the school went by the name of Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College.
I was
intrigued to come across some proofing errors.
Once “beetle” is spelled “bettle;” five times, the name Steppenwolf is
spelled “Steppanwolf.” And on a few
pages here and there, the indentations around block quotations don’t return to
full text width.
If you know
how picky librarians can be, you might be as bemused as I was to see the copious
underlining – above is an example, seen through mostly the front half of the
book.
And for you
children unfamiliar with the concept of re-binding a book, look in the middle
seam of these two pages. Those are the
threads holding the pages together.
When a book
get overworn, or a cover or page comes loose, and the book otherwise has some
life in it, the library sent it to a place which removed the covers, sliced the
glue and/or threads from the bound pages (thereby shrinking the inner margins),
and re-bound the pages with generic cloth-covered cardboard. On the new spine were the title and author,
almost in a typewriter-style lettering, usually gold in color.
Since the earliest date on this checkout slip is “only” 1993, this slip is obvious the last in a long line!
Please dive into some eruditious reading soon, fellow book-gobblers! Then share the goods and bads with your friends! See you Monday.
Friday, September 18, 2026
Tune In!
Here is Part 8 of the publicity packet for the Superboy TV series' second season. The radio folder!
Now that's a solemn pronouncement of heroes! Below are scans of the two reel-to-reel tape spools included in the whole Season Two package. If only I had a player, I would dub to MP3 for you super cats!
See you Monday.
The folder containing the radio scripts is above.
Monday, September 14, 2026
Heroic Legacy
Here's a spiffy article by Jimmie Tramel of the Tulsa World, from the June 24, 2026 issue.
I sent a note to Tramel, complimenting him on the list, and he replied like a real Super Fan. Now read this article and become a better Super Fan, too!
Monday, September 07, 2026
Peru-sing the Papers ...
I've always been prone to clipping odd reports. I was a Fortean long before I knew the word, or the guy it was named after!
Ever since I read a Scrooge McDuck comic-book story about the gold mines of South America, I knew why the conquistadores went wacky.
This article was clipped from the December 7, 1989 Daily Oklahoman. Can anybody tell us if there's more to this story?
This article was clipped from the December 7, 1989 Daily Oklahoman. Can anybody tell us if there's more to this story?
See you Thursday!
Monday, August 31, 2026
Sharing More Favorites
From long ago and far away, here are some of my faves from mostly pop-culture closets.
1 - Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere Neil Young with Crazy Horse (2:29) 1969
1970
2 - Let It Be Beatles/BRG/Veech (3:59)
3 - Your Song (live) Elton John (3:48)
4 - Lay Down (Candles in the Rain) Melanie (3:49)
5 - (I Know) I'm Losing You Rare Earth (3:36)
6 - Everything Is Beautiful Ray Stevens (3:33)
7 - We Can Work It Out Stevie Wonder (3:11)
8 - Moondance Van Morrison (4:31)
1971
9 - Let Your Love Go (album version) Bread (2:22)
10 - What Is Life? George Harrison (4:15)
11 - Footstompin' Music Grand Funk Railroad (3:46)
12 - Here Comes the Sun Richie Havens (3:43)
1972
13 - Immigration Man Crosby & Nash (2:57)
14 - The Sage (live) Emerson, Lake & Palmer (4:01)
15 - The Six Wives of Henry VIII (live) Rick Wakeman (6:29)
16 - Thomas The Rhymer Steeleye Span (3:12) 1974
17 - Life's Been Good Joe Walsh (8:03) 1978
18 - Juke Box Fury Rickie Lee Jones (4:12) 1990
19 - Pity Jude Beatles/BRG/SB (7:41) 2005
Don't take Track One personally. But take Track 19 to the bank as a great mashup of two suspiciously similar songs!
***
01 - Be What You Is - The Flys - 1966 (2:02)
02 - Hook in Your Heart - The Shades - 1980 (2:28)
03 - Norwogian Weed - The Beatles - Sacred Cowboy - 2014 (2:06)
04 - I'm Alive - The Hollies - 1964 (2:25)
05 - Contact In Red Square - Blondie - 1978 (1:59)
06 - Creeps - Q4U - 1982 (1:49)
07 - Love in a Vacuum - 'Til Tuesday - 1985 (3:36)
08 - Run Home to Your Mama - Evie Sands - 1965 (2:31)
09 - Every Kiddie Gets A Prize (live) - Xiro - 1988 (2:27)
10 - Hey! Puppet Man - Bob Morrison - 1965 (2:27)
11 - It's So Difficult - Dislocation Dance - 1980 (2:58)
12 - Tell Me in the Sunlight - Margie Day - 1963 (1:54)
13 - Mind - Kas Product - 1990 (2:42)
14 - Grin and Bear - Screaming Sneakers - 1982 (4:37)
15 - Magnetic Heart - VS. - 1980 (2:16)
16 - It Was a Happening - Unknown Detroit Artist - 1966 (2:05)
17 - Too Much to Take - Stark Raving - 1987 (3:40)
18 - No One Listens - Legal Weapon - 1981 (2:49)
19 - Allergy - The Petticoats - 1997 (2:18)
20 - (Drowning Out the) Big Jets - Action Pact - 1983 (2:01)
21 - It's a Groovy World! - The Unifics - 1968 (3:20)
22 - I Hate Myself for Loving You - Joan Jett - 2014 (4:10)
23 - (Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep at All - The Fifth Dimension - 1972 (3:12)
24 - Can't Take It - Barb Wire and the Fences - 1982 (2:28)
25 - Maybe Tomorrow - Angel Pavement - 1969 (4:07)
26 - Wrong Yo Yo - Carl Perkins - 1957 (2:35)
27 - Keep Your Hands Off My Baby - Gore Gore Girls - 2002 (3:02)
Thursday, August 27, 2026
Exporting Eighties Erosion
Two comps of musical glory and oddities.
01 - Start from the Start - Nervus Rex 1980 (3:01)
02 - Pretty Boys - Jimmy and the Boys 1981 (2:44)
03 - Wings Over America - David Reilly 1982 (3:59)
04 - Neighborhood Kids - The Lads 1983 (3:32)
05 - The Raft - Pink Industry 1983 (1:36)
06 - Get My Message - Shoes 1984 (3:41)
07 - The Gang on Fortune Hill - The Nobodys 1984 (4:02)
08 - Eldorado - March Violets 1985 (4:14)
09 - Too Hot to Stop - Benjamin Orr 1986 (4:14)
10 - Ghosts Can´t Run Away - Foreign Affair 1989 (4:04)
11 - (Don't Talk to Me) I'm Shy - The Passions 1981 (2:16)
12 - Drowning in Berlin - Mobiles 1981 (3:26)
13 - Play This Song (on the Radio) - Sorrows 1981 (2:54)
14 - The Late Mistake - Comateens 1983 (2:30)
15 - What's There Left - Nine Circles 1982 (5:19)
16 - Black Mirror - Get Smart! 1984 (2:15)
17 - She Went Pop - Iam Siam 1984 (4:45)
18 - Innocent, Not Guilty - Garland Jeffries 1980 (2:14)
19 - Jukebox (Don't Put Another Dime) - The Flirts 1982 (3:39)
20 - Boys Will Be Boys - One to One 1985 (3:27)
21 - Lies to Live By - The Del-Byzantines 1982 (3:59)
22 - Memory Lane - The Sinceros 1981 (2:47)
***
01 - Catch a New Wave - The Metropolitans 1986 (3:59)
02 - Boys Can Cry - Catholic Girls 1982 (2:43)
03 - Mad Heat - The Popular Sex 1984 (3:22)
04 - Paralyze - Drama 1985 (3:41)
05 - The Serpent - Fantasia 1989 (3:16)
06 - First to Know - Doubledare 1986 (3:25)
07 - E102 - BMX Bandits 1986 (3:41)
08 - Cubismo - Data 1985 (3:47)
09 - Lies - Frame by Frame 1985 (4:04)
10 - Pretty Day - Mary Möör 1982 (2:58)
11 - I'm a User - Donnie Iris 1983 (2:27)
12 - Nobody Told Me - The Monitors 1981 (3:36)
13 - Been Teen - Dolly Mixture 1981 (2:25)
14 - Practical Girl - The Clique 1983 (3:09)
15 - City of Fame - Hillary Laddin 1980 (2:19)
16 - Johnny Quest - Pack Nine 1982 (2:54)
17 - Not Goin to Work - Boy Girl 1986 (3:00)
18 - Television Satellite (extended version) - Sophie & Peter Johnston 1987 (3:45)
19 - Waiting for Tomorrow - Shadowboys 1983 (3:34)
20 - Living in a Movie World - In Fear of Roses 1988 (2:17)
21 - Power of TV - Sandglow Marinas 1982 (3:22)
22 - Running Past - Strike 1980 (3:05)
23 - Keep Going - Fou Gorki 1984 (3:38)
24 - On Your Video - TV Smith 1983 (3:07)
If only it were this easy to catch a new wave! Don't worry, it will keep going on your video!
See you Monday for the last installment in this catching-up month of comps!
Monday, August 24, 2026
You're All Aglow
We got here a couple of Neutronical, Atomical, Positronical collections of pop music, one early and one latter.
MA-20 - The Fallout Follies:
MA-106 - Uppin' Atom!:
You can take an Atomic Bounce into the World Beyond and be thankful that it's only fiction. See you Thursday!
1 - Talking Atom Pete Seeger 1947
2 - The Fall of the Planet Earth The Moonbillies 1960
3 - Talkin' World War III Blues Bob Dylan 1963
4 - Mushroom Clouds Love 1966
5 - Handsome Johnny Richie Havens 1967
6 - Thank Christ For The Bomb (edit) Groundhogs 1970
7 - King Of The World Steely Dan 1973
8 - Atom Satillite Del Byzanteens 1979
9 - Face The Fire Dan Fogelberg 1979
10 - Uh-Oh Plutonium Anne Waldman 1982
11 - Two Suns In The Sunset Pink Floyd 1983
12 - I Hate You (from STAR TREK IV) Edge of Ettiquette 1986
13 - After the War Gary Moore 1989
14 - The Bomb Song Corey Dwyer 1990
15 - Enola Gay Utah Phillips 1991
16 - Hot Frogs on the Loose Frank Small 1993
17 - Duct Tape John McCutcheon 2004
18 - Feed the Bomb Project Bluebird 2009
19 - Whistling in the Nuclear Wind Karl W Mahlmann 2011
20 - Time Enough at Last The Twilight Zone 1959
While waiting for time enough at last, beware of hot frogs on the loose!
*****
01 - Got My Call Card - LB Lawson and James Scott Jr 1951 (3:27)
02 - Uranium Miner’s Boogie - Riley Walker and His Rockin-R-Rangers 1954 (2:53)
03 - Atomic Bounce - Johnny Latorre and the Rhythm Rockets 1955 (2:31)
04 - The Merry Minuet - Bud & Travis 1960 (1:53)
05 - Overseas Blues - Memphis Willie Borum 1961 (3:10)
06 - It's Good News Week - Hedgehoppers Anonymous 1965 (2:04)
07 - Thirteen Women - The Renegades 1966 (3:28)
08 - The World Beyond - Bobby Goldsboro 1968 (2:17)
09 - Fireside Favourite - Fad Gadget 1980 (4:22)
10 - Man at C&A - The Specials 1980 (3:35)
11 - Yes to the Neutron Bomb - The Moderates 1980 (4:15)
12 - Final Day - Young Marble Giants 1980 (1:40)
13 - Last Rockers - Vice Squad 1981 (4:16)
14 - Our Condition - FK9 1981 (2:38)
15 - Back in 1984 - Cerebral Hemorrhage 1984 (4:58)
16 - Pictures - Atoms for Peace 1985 (3:44)
17 - Atom Drum Bop - The Three Johns 1986 (4:10)
18 - Yellow, Black and Rectangular - Negativland 1987 (2:14)
19 - Discussing Missile Size - Dada 1988 (2:51)
20 - Symbols of Our Fear - Rage 1988 (3:31)
21 - We're So Small - The Epoxies 2002 (2:41)
22 - Nuclear War (On the Dance Floor) - Electric Six 2003 (1:16)
23 - Safe - M83 2004 (4:12)
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Stalk or Defy?
Two comps of Seventies relics. Pretty active relics, I say!
01 - Don't Dictate - Penetration 1977 (2:54)
02 - (They Long to Be) Close to You (album version) - Carpenters 1970 (4:32)
03 - Computer Games - Mi-Sex 1979 (4:01)
04 - Gidget Goes to Hell - Suburban Lawns 1979 (2:03)
05 - Clap Your Hands - Bonnie St Clair and Unit Gloria 1972 (3:58)
06 - The Man Who Sold the World - Lulu 1974 (3:46)
07 - Convention '72 - The Delegates 1972 (5:07)
08 - Then Came You - Dionne Warwick and The Spinners 1974 (3:57)
09 - I Hate School - Suburban Studs 1978 (2:38)
10 - I Gotta Get a Fake ID - Barnes & Barnes with Friends 1979 (3:07)
11 - Overture from “Tommy” - The Assembled Multitude 1970 (2:30)
12 - Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy - Elton John 1975 (5:42)
13 - I Only Want to Be with You - Bay City Rollers 1976 (3:33)
14 - Ain't Gonna Bump No More - Joe Tex 1977 (3:32)
15 - 2000 AD - The Rezillos 1978 (3:00)
16 - Heartbreaker - Jenny Darren 1978 (3:05)
17 - The Wild One - Suzi Quatro 1974 (2:51)
18 - Baby Don't Go - Karla Bonoff 1979 (3:16)
19 - They Don't Know - Kirsty MacColl 1979 (3:02)
20 - Waldorf - Edith Nylon 1979 (2:28)
21 - Too Young to Date - D-Day 1979 (2:35)
22 - Teenarama - The Records 1979 (4:00)
23 - Part-Time Punks - Television Personalities 1979 (2:39)
***
01 - The Mel Brewer Show (edit) - National Lampoon - 1975 (0:07)
02 - Impossibilities - The Bastards - 1979 (2:55)
03 - Disco Fever - Monroe - 1978 (3:17)
04 - Rock and Roll Housewife - The Vinny Band - 1978 (3:15)
05 - TVOD - The Normal - 1978 (2:53)
06 - Don't Bother Me - Simpletones - 1979 (2:15)
07 - Hello, I Love You - Novak - 1979 (2:28)
08 - Do You Have a Job for a Girl Like Me - The Delinquents - 1979 (2:07)
09 - Disco Love - The Molesters - 1979 (2:32)
10 - Who Needs Wildlife Anyway - The Grackles - 1979 (1:56)
11 - Pogo Dancing - Chris Spedding and the Vibrators - 1976 (3:05)
12 - What Happened to the Moon - The Late Show - 1977 (2:05)
13 - Irrelevant Battles - Patrick Fitzgerald - 1978 (1:54)
14 - They Saved Hitler's Brain - Unnatural Axe - 1978 (2:49)
15 - TV Adverts - The Nerves - 1978 (2:48)
16 - One Chord Wonders - The Adverts - 1977 (2:34)
17 - I've Got a Crush on You - The Rentals - 1979 (3:06)
18 - Magazine Girl - The Rousers - 1979 (2:53)
19 - Stuck on You - The Toasters - 1979 (2:55)
20 - TV Pox - No Way - 1978 (1:46)
21 - We Are the One - The Avengers - 1977 (2:40)
22 - I Can't Stand My Baby - The Rezillos - 1977 (2:36)
23 - Life's a Gamble - Penetration - 1978 (2:57)
24 - Hedi's Head - Kleenex - 1978 (2:11)
25 - The Day the World Turned Day-Glo - X-Ray Spex - 1978 (2:50)
26 - Everybody's Happy Nowadays - Buzzcocks - 1979 (3:11)
27 - Shout Above the Noise - Penetration - 1979 (4:02)
28 - Quality Crayon Wax OK - Essential Logic - 1979 (3:06)
29 - Living in the Eighties - Blue Peter - 1979 (2:08)
30 - Faerytale in the Supermarket - The Raincoats - 1979 (2:58)
They's a lotta good music in hyar. I used to be in the "Disco sucks" club. Now IMO it's just a trope usually wasted on groove and not ideas.
See you on Monday, fellow refugees from the Seventies!
Monday, August 17, 2026
Two Spaced-Out Comps
Both of these comps contains songs about outer-space topics.
1 - (When You) See Those Flying Saucers The Buchanan Brothers 1947
2 - Rocket Joe Bennett & The Sparkletones 1957
3 - Tiny Space Man Bill Carlisle 1957
4 - The Flying Saucer Goes West Buchanan and Goodman 1958
5 - Outer Space Santa The Lennon Sisters 1958
6 - Mope-itty Mope Boss-Tones 1959
7 - Asteroid Hop Jimmie Haskell And His Orchestra 1959
8 - Beep Beep Loiuis Prima 1959
9 - Beep, Beep Tom Glazer & Dottie Evans 1959
10 - UFOs Soul, Inc 1967
11 - Have You Seen The Saucers Jefferson Airplane 1970
12 - Supersonic Rocket Ship The Kinks 1972
13 - UFOs Undisputed Truth 1975
14 - Waiting For The UFOs Graham Parker 1979
15 - Flying Saucer Safari Suburban Lawns 1981
16 - The Alien song (for those who listen) Milla Jovovich 1994
17 - Subterranean Homesick Alien Radiohead 1997
18 - Fell In Love With An Alien The Kelly Family 1997
19 - Space Robot Five Brave Saint Saturn 2000
20 - Outer Space Song Pinky and Perky 2002
21 - UFOs, Big Rigs And BBQ Mojo Nixon 2005
22 - Devil Woman From Outer Space Rezurex 2006
23 - Space Craze Rick McGuire 2006
24 - Pluto Clare and The Reasons 2007
25 - The Planet Mars The Corillions 2007
26 - Robot Monster Damon Alexander & the Ten Cent Rentals 2008
27 - The Ballad of Davy Crockett (In Outer Space) They Might Be Giants 2009
********
01 - Friction Heat - Bonnie Lou with Lew Douglas, His Orchestra and Chorus - 1958 (2:12)
02 - Science Friction - XTC - 1977 (3:12)
03 - Zoom, Zoom, Zoom - The Mask - 1967 (2:29)
04 - Our Spaceman Did Come Back - Jeff Hughes - 1963 (2:37)
05 - U.F.O. - Gene McKown - 1968 (2:19)
06 - Something Going On - The Unknown Band - 1979 (3:38)
07 - Florida Rocket (Number Ninety-Nine) - Charlie Hines - 1959 (2:00)
08 - Space Shuttle Stowaway - X-Dreams - 1984 (1:43)
09 - Journey to Mars - The Perfectors - 1979 (1:58)
10 - Satellite No 2 (unissued) - Carl Mann and the Kool Kats - 1957 (2:15)
11 - Space Ship Blues - Billy Lane - 1962 (2:26)
12 - Rockin' in the Rocket Room - Frances Langford - 1956 (2:33)
13 - Space Rock - Danny Valentine - 1960 (2:06)
14 - Man on the Moon - Shelly Stuart - 1976 (3:07)
15 - Strangers from the Sky - Kim Fowley - 1967 (2:55)
16 - The Last Astronaut - Slick Slavin - 1962 (3:43)
17 - Twisting on the Moon - Sammy Marshall - 1966 (1:55)
18 - A Surprise Visitor from Outer Space - The Five Crowns - 1959 (1:54)
19 - Monkey on the Moon - Gene Hall - 1962 (2:32)
20 - Gonna Build a Rocket - Galen Denny - 1958 (2:08)
21 - Rocket Ship - Vernon Green & the Medallions - 1960 (3:00)
22 - U.F.O. - The Monos! - 1979 (3:42)
23 - Moon Doll - Ralph Young - 1961 (2:30)
24 - Energy in Northampton - Linda Jardim - 1980 (3:23)
25 - Sirius - United Balls - 1980 (2:49)
26 - Girl from Mars - Rudy Gaddis and His Lone Star Rangers - 1954 (2:08)
27 - A Menacing Glow in the Sky - Player (1) - 1979 (3:06)
28 - Secret Saucer Man - Barry McGuire - 1968 (2:45)
Be aware that since these sources are physical media, surface noise is present in places!
Track 4, “Our Spaceman Did Come Back” is a riff on “My Boomerang Won’t come Back.”
Albert van Strongheart, “The Last Astronaut” of Track 16, seems an impersonation of Jack Benny’s voice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
