The Long and Winding Road (to a Vancouver Record Store)
It’s amazing that people keep finding lost Beatles stuff. This time it’s the original demo tape from 1962 B.R. (Before Ringo).
Uploaded to YouTube by Global News
No Wonder People Don’t Go to the Movies
Movie theater ticket sales are down 33 percent from 2019. So, what do theaters and movie studios want to do to get people back in the seats? Encourage smartphone use during the movies, of course!
Yes, it sounds ridiculous to me too, but the movie studio Blumhouse has teamed up with Meta (nothing good ever happens when you team up with Meta) to launch Movie Mate, a chatbot where you can chat with other moviegoers in real time, see funny remarks from others about what’s happening in the movie you’re watching, and get trivia. They’re doing it to “get audiences back in theaters.” And also to get other people to stay home and watch movies on their big-screen TVs.
Sure, people already use their phones during movies, even though they’re not supposed to. But theaters actually encouraging it? That’s when people stop going to the movies not just “because it’s easier and more comfortable at home” but also “because I hate movie theaters.”
Can’t we do one thing without it being connected to our phones?
Next up: Buy a large popcorn and we’ll give you a free gigantic hat to wear so the people behind you can’t see the screen!
The Spitfire Women of WWII
CBS ran a terrific story on a part of World War II that until now I didn’t know anything about.
Uploaded to YouTube by CBS News
Something I Learned This Week
I was watching an episode of one of my favorite shows last weekend, History Channel’s The Food That Built America, and this one was about cake. Specifically, it was about how Betty Crocker and Duncan Hines got their start and their battle for supermarket boxed cake dominance.
How did Betty Crocker get their start? In the Post! The back page of the November 12, 1921, issue had this ad from the Washburn-Crosby Company (later General Mills). It was a jigsaw puzzle you had to cut out and put together. When you mailed it in to the company, they’d send you a small pincushion pillow in the shape of a Gold Medal Flour bag.
I guess pincushions in the shape of flour bags were popular because a lot of women sent in their completed puzzles. The women who sent in the puzzles included questions about baking with their entries. The company got so many questions that they decided to answer every single one of them and had one of the employees act as the fictional “Betty Crocker.” They named her Betty because it sounded friendly and traditional, and Crocker was the last name of a company executive who had recently retired.
By the way, Duncan Hines was a real guy. He was a travelling salesman who ate at so many restaurants around the country that he came out with his own popular guides. He was the authority on eating, and that later led to putting his name on supermarket products.
RIP Jill Sobule, Ruth Buzzi, Andrew Gross, Julia Parsons, and Bobby Lozoff
Jill Sobule sang such pop songs as “I Kissed a Girl” and “Supermodel.” She died last week at the age of 66.
Ruth Buzzi was a regular on the comedy sketch show Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and also appeared on The Lost Saucer, Sesame Street, and That Girl, and did voice work on many cartoons. She died last week at the age of 88.
Andrew Gross started out in the world of clothing but later became a best-selling writer of thrillers. He died last month at the age of 72.
Julia Parsons was a World War II Navy code breaker. She died last month at the age of 104.
The cocktail that bartender Bobby Lozoff invented, the tequila sunrise, not only became a classic drink, it became part of the pop culture lexicon and inspired various songs and movies. He died last month at the age of 77.
This Week in History
Roger Bannister Breaks Four Minute Mile (May 6, 1954)
He did it at the Iffley Road Track in Oxford, England. The official time was 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds.
Coca-Cola First Sold (May 8, 1886)
The public first got to taste the soft drink at Jacob’s Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia.
This Week in Saturday Evening Post History: “Child Psychology” by Richard Sargent (May 3, 1952)
I wonder what a fourth panel depicting moms in 2025 would look like.
Recipes For Mom
Mother’s Day is this Sunday, and while I don’t know your mother – she may be happy with corn dogs and French fries – I’m going to assume that at least one day of the year she might want something a little more special.
Like these Failproof Crepes from Smitten Kitchen or the Eggs Benedict from Taste of Home. Food Network has recipes for Chicken Alfredo Manicotti and a Creamy Peach Salad, while The Pioneer Woman has Baked Salmon and Tea Sandwiches. And for dessert, Half-Baked Harvest has a Strawberry Shortcake Sheet Cake and White Chocolate Raspberry Swirled Pistachio Cookies.
And make her a tequila sunrise too.
Next Week’s Holidays and Events
Clean Up Your Room Day (May 10)
Hey kids, this could be your Mother’s Day gift.
PGA Championship (May 12-18)
It’s being held at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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Comments
Rob Frith really came across an important Beatles artifact with that demo tape from 1962, pre-Ringo. I think It sounds really good, and I’m sure is probably quite valuable. I like the fact he said if Paul McCartney were to come in regarding it, he’d give it to him. Still, I think Paul would want to reward him. I do.
The movies/theaters (like the film industry) are in an irreversible decline and fall they’re not coming back from. The admission prices are outrageous, never mind the price of a popcorn and drink for something that will be streaming for free, or at a low price, soon anyway. The industry is admitting their films are clones of each other that don’t require any attention, and the only screen the audience is actually interested in is on their phones!
Love the story on the ‘Spitfire Women of World War II’. DEI was the last thing these extremely qualified, brave women were; solid pilots that weren’t afraid of the real risks they took flying (including bad weather) to get the job done. In the new Administration, women are in key positions of power like never before because they’re the best and most qualified people FOR the positions. That goes for the men too, as it should, or they’re out.
LOVE Ruth Buzzi, who was a personal favorite of the women of ‘Laugh-In’. In my mind, I can picture an alternative 1968 Post cover of her as ‘Gladys’ in that hair net. No question about it! Speaking of vintage covers, the one above by Richard Sargent is one of his best, and most though provoking.
The Trump regime will consider the story about the “Spitfires” women to be “DEI” and give them no recognition.
Hi Bob. I’ve got an idea what the fourth panel of the “Child Psychology” Saturday Evening Post cover would look like. Picture this, mom in front of the washing machine showing junior how to pre-treat and wash his own towel. That’s a life skill that would certainly benefit any young person. I continue to enjoy your column and make it a point to read it as soon as possible every week. Good luck with your fund raiser!