Remembering Ed Asner-- Part 4: 'Rich Man, Poor Man,' 'Roots,' 'Elf' and 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'

He also played Axel Jordache in the 1976 "Rich Man, Poor Man" TV miniseries.  He played the role of the clan's tyrannical, German-born patriach.

Then came the role of Captain Thomas Davies in "ROOTS."  Here he played the morally conflicted Captain Davies who commanded the slave ship that brought LeVar Burton's Kunta Kinte to America.  He earned another Emmy for the three nights he was on that show.

SANTA CLAUS in "ELF"

He played Santa Claus in the 2003 Will Ferrell comedy.  It was a relatively small role, but a climatic one where he was marooned in New York's Central Park by a lack of Christmas spirit with Buddy the Elf aiding him.

MR. WEINER in "Curb Your Enthusiasm"

In a 2001 episode.

--CootAs

'A Christmas Story's' Indiana Connection-- Part 7: WJOB

WJOB RADIO STATION

6405 Olcott Avenue, Hammond

In 2023, WJOB will celebrate a century of being on the air's birthday.  Jean Shepherd began his broadcast career there before heading to to Cleveland, Cincinnati, and ultimately, New York City at WOR to earn acclaim.

The 1,000 watt transmitter and 400-foot tower behind the studio built in 1956 make the WJOB station easy to spot.

The original station studios were in Downtown Hammond at 402 Fayette Street at the intersection of Hohman Avenue.  Later, the studio moved to 449 State Street, where the young radio hopeful, Shepherd, gained experience doing sports broadcasts before the station and tower finally settled at the Olcott Avenue location.

--CootBBGun

'A Christmas Story's' Indiana Connection-- Part 6: Downtown Hammond

DOWNTOWN HAMMOND

5206 Hohman Avenue

While Jean Shepherd changed the name of his hometown of Hammond to fictional "Hohman, Indiana," in his published works, it is easy to see how he dreamed up that name, given the name of Downtown Hammond's primary stretch of road is Hohman.

Now long gone, the Cam Lan restaurant once stood at 5256 Hohman Avenue, and is depicted in the film's final Christmas dinner scene.

Just a block away, also on Hohman, is where Goldblatt's Department Store stood until 1993, the site of the wishful young Shepherd's now infamous moment giving his gift wish list to the grumpy Santa while sitting on his lap.

Though the store no longer exists, you can still see Goldblatt's iconic clock focal point in the lobby of the Hammond Public Library, just a few blocks away at 564 State Street in Hammond.

You'll Still Put Your Eye Out Kid!  --Cooter

'A Christmas Story's' Indiana Connection-- Part 5: Warren G. Harding Elementary and Miss Shields

WARREN G. HARDING ELEMENTARY

3211 165th Street, Hammond.

The original wood-framed school building constructed in 1927 where Jean Shepherd attended from 1928-1933 was demolished in 1948 to make way for a new school, and even that building was torn down to make way for a more modern elementary school which opened in 2006.

This new school still bears the name the name of the 29th president, and, of course, there's a flagpole out in the schoolyard.

During a March 10, 1982, guest appearance on the late-night talk show of fellow famous Hoosier David Letterman, Shepherd said his elementary school "was named after the worst president in history."

HOME OF SHEPHERD'S ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER MISS SHIELDS

51 Lawndale Street, Hammond.

Shepherd made many references to his teacher growing up, Miss Ruth Shields, in his books and broadcasts, and she plays a key character in "A Christmas Story."

--CootPutYourEyeOut.

'A Christmas Story's' Northwest Indiana Connection-- Part 4: About Flick and Schwart's Houses

SHEPHERD'S PAL SCHWARTZ'S CHILDHOOD HOUSE

6810 Arizona Avenue, Hammond.  

While Ralphie's long-suffering friend in the story is named Scott Schwartz, the real life counterpart from Jean Shepherd's youth was Paul Schwartz, who lives just a few blocks away.

In the movie, Schwartz is taunted by bullies and, though innocent, is punished by his mother after he  is blamed for teaching Ralphie the "big one" of swear words.

SHEPHERD'S OTHER PAL FLICK'S CHILDHOOD HOME

3024 Cleveland Street, Hammond.  

Classmate Jack Flickinger lived just down the street from Shepherd and is forever associated with accepting the triple-dog dare to stick his tongue on a frozen flagpole in the schoolyard.  Jack's father owned a local tavern in Hammond called  Flick's Tap.

--CootTripleDogDare

'A Christmas Story's' Indiana Connection-- Part 3: His House

"While over the years, Shepherd earned a reputation for criticizing Hammond and his hometown roots, he still always remembered his connection to northwest Indiana," said Nick Mantis, who is negotiating with networks about the first airing rights to his documentary "Shep."

"Shepherd was once quoted as saying that when you really loved something enough, then you can joke about it as a form of appreciation.

In the next several posts the old haunts of Jean Shepherd which served as inspirations for the movie will be listed.

**********************************

SHEPHERD'S CHILDHOOD HOUSE

2907 Cleveland Street, Hammond.  A large privacy hedge nearly obscures that famous open porch and the living room window where Shepherd, as a boy, daydreamed of the adventures that awaited with his adult career in writing and broadcast.

While the families' last name in the movie is changed to Parker, it's still a nod to Shepherd, whose middle name is Parker.

--CootStory

'A Christmas Story's' Indiana Connection-- Part 1

Well, 'tis the season of my favorite Christmas movie of all time, "A Christmas Story" and, gosh, TBS is even showing it a couple times tonight ahead of its 24-hour tradional marathon starting Christmas Eve.  I'll try to watch some of it in between all the college football conference chanpionship games.

From the December 24, 2020, Chicago Tribune "Indiana sites a reminder of 'A Christmas Story' " by Philip Potempa.

Cleveland, Ohio, enjoys a holiday claim-to-fame connection with "A Christmas Story," since the 1983 movie was filmed there on location.

However, northwest Indiana still has better bragging rights, since the teller of BB guns, bullies and parental soap-in-mouth punishment, Jean Shepherd, scribe and radio broadcaster, fashioned the story and memorable characters from his own youth on Cleveland Street in Hammond, Indiana.

Ther movie's late director Bob Clark acknowledged in interviews that it was his preference to shoot the film in Shepgerd's all-too-familiar northwest Indiana.  However, studio location scouts preferred the landscape of Cleveland, even though Shepherd's actual childhood home still stands at 2907 Cleveland Street in Hammond.

Remember What Might Happen To Your Eyesight With the Soap Treatment.   --CootStory

'It's a Wonderful Life' Returning-- Part 4: There's a Tear in My Eye

Jimmy Hawkins, who played 4-year-old Tommy Bailey, said people have come up to both of them and said that watching the film kept them from killing themselves.  It's message is about how important you are to those around you even if you don't think so.

And, even at the age 79, he said he feels like he's 4 all over again when he thinks about the movie.  "When people ask us questions about being on the set, you clock back into it," Hawkins said.  "It's so vivid.  It seems like a million years ago or just yesterday."

The movie itself is pretty dark on multiple levels, and Karolyn Grimes thinks people coming out of World War II, weren't quite ready for it yet.

Jimmy Stewart himself wasn't sure he wanted to even act again after flying naval planes over Germany but, as Hawkins said, actor Lionel Barrymore, who plays the miserly Mr. Potter, convinced Stewart to do it.

I don't know about you, but I have never been able to watch the movie's conclusion without getting a tear in my eye.

And remember, you can see the movie on NBC on December 4 and 24.

--Cooter

'It's a Wonderful Life' Returning-- Part 3: How Each Person's Life Touches Another

And, I see my local Walgreen's has one of those 100-page memory magazine/books for sale in honor of this movie's longevity.  I will be buying one.

In 1980, Karolyn Grimes had no idea how journalists tracked her down because her name had changed and there was no Google.  But the publicity enabled her to reunite with Steward and Reed, and she then became an unofficial ambassador of the movie.

Over the past four decades, she has attended countless screenings, benefits and conventions.  She helped create a museum for the film and returns each December to Seneca Falls, New York, the model for the movie's small-town Bedford Falls, for the "It's a Wonderful Life" Festival.

For grimes, the film's message is timeless:  "How each person's life touches another, and we're given an opportunity to make a difference. That's so important."

Again, my third all-time favorite Christmas movie.

--Cooter

'It's a Wonderful Life' Returning-- Part 2: Little Tommy and Zuzu

The movie is also a treasure to two surviving cast members.  Jimmy Hawkins, who played 4-year-old Tommy Bailey and Karolyn Grimes who played 6-year-old Zuzu Bailey and uttered the famous line, "Look, Daddy.  Teacher says, 'Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.' "

The movie, however, was just a footnote in their lives until the late 1970s.  Jimmy Hawkins said, "I started hearing more about it then.  People were holding trivia parties."  He remained an actor in the 1950s and 1960s and worked with Reed on the "Donna Reed Show" from 1958 to 1966.

Karolyn Grimes got out of show business in her teens after her mother died from early-onset Alzheimer's disease and her father was killed in a car accident.  She didn't even ever see the movie until she was 40 years old.

"I was enthralled with the messages from that movie when I first saw it,"  Grimes said.  "I knew then it was very special, and I could understand why I started getting fan mail and people wanted to have interviews with me."

And, remember, it will be on NBC December 4 and December 24.

--CooterOldManPotter

'It's a Wonderful Life' Set to Return-- Part 1: Didn't Renew the Copyright

From the November 24, 2021, Chicago Tribune "Magic still resonates for two actors in 'It's a Wonderful Life" by Rodney Ho of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"It's a Wonderful Life," Frank Capra's story about redemption and a life fulfilled, bombed at the box office when it was released in early 1947.

For decades it was largely forgotten until 1974 when Republic Pictures failed to renew copyright protection and the film lapsed into the public domain, meaning that anyone could show the film without obtaining permission or paying royalties.  

As a result, it was shown a whole lot on TV and its growing popularity gave it a second life.

Now, it is hard to imagine American life without it.  It was ranked No. 20 of the 100 greatest films in 2007 by the American Film Institute.  Frank Capra and stars Donna Reed and Jimmy Stewart said it was their favorite film they ever worked on.

It is my third all-time favorite Christmas movie.

And, It Will be Shown on TV This Coming December 4 On NBC.  --Cooter

About 'It's a Wonderful Life'-- Part 2: Becoming a Classic

When it was first released in 1946, as I said earlier, the movie was not intended to be a Christmas movie.  And, it initially flopped at the box office.  The film's copyright was not renewed.

So, in the 1970s, "It's a Wonderful Life" was free for broadcasters to air repeatedly.  And they did and did and did and did.  So much so, that it either became a classic for some or made others, like my wife, gag.  Fortunately, for some reason, I didn't see it that much.

But, for those of us who are fans of it, we began to notice that this less-than-jolly-ho-ho-ho movie was a great one.  And, a Christmas tradition was begun.  I am surprised that we don't have a cable station offering a 24-hour array like TNT and TBS  do for "A Christmas Story."

NBC currently owns the rights to the film and broadcasts it on Christmas Eve every year (and several other times beforehand).  In 2016, Variety reported that the network's  42nd Christmas Eve showing had  4.5 million viewers.

NBC will again rebroadcast the movie this Thursday from 7 to 10 CST.

--DaCootLife

About 'It's a Wonderful Life'-- Part 1: My Top Four Christmas Favs

From the December 19, 2020, CTV News "How the Second World War shaped 'It's a Wonderful Life' by Rachael Scott.

This is my third favorite Christmas movie, even though when it was made, it was not slated as a Christmas movie.  (My top four Christmas movies:

1.  "A Christmas Story"

2.  "Christmas Vacation"

3.  "It's a Wonderful Life"

4.  "Miracle on 34th Street"

I have seen all but the 1st and 4th ones, but hope to see the 4th this week and know that I will see the 1st several times between Christmas Eve and Christmas night for some reason.

--Cooter

Quiz: Just How Well Do You Know Movie "Christmas Vacation"-- Part 2: Aunt Bethany

Answers below.

6.  What does Aunt Bethany recite when others ask her to say grace before the Christmas meal?

7.  How many lights does Clark use on his house?

8.  What kind of vehicle does Cousin Eddie drive?

9.  What classic holiday movie is Clark's son Rusty watching on TV when the in-laws arrive?

10.  What does Clark do to amuse himself while he is stuck in the attic?

Answers below.

****************************************************

6.  The Pledge of Allegiance


7.  25,000   I missed this one.


8.  RV


9.  "It's a Wonderful Life"


10.  Watches home movies.


"Four-flushing, low-life, snake-licking."

We're Gonna Do This Big.  --CootEddie

Quiz: Just How Well Do You Know 'Christmas Vacation'?-- Part 1: What Team's Hat Did Clark Wear?

From the Dec. 15, 2019, Chicago Tribune from the Austin American-Statesman.

This is my second all-time favorite Christmas movie which I have seen twice so far this season.

Let's see how well you do.  I didn't get them all correct, however.  (But, I did get most of them, though.)   Answers are below.  I will also indicate the ones that I missed.

1.  What Christmas carol are Clark and Ellen singing at the beginning of the movie as they head out into the woods to cut down the Griswold family Christmas tree?

2.  Which sports team hat does Clark wear at various times in the film?

3.  What item does Clark forget to bring on the tree-hunting expedition?

4.  What does Clark plan to do with his Christmas bonus?

5.  What does Clark receive instead of his bonus?

Answers below.

*******************************************************

1.  "Deck the Halls"


2.  Chicago Bears


3.  axe or saw


4.  Buy a family swimming pool.


5.  Yearlong subscription to Jelly of the Month Club.   I missed this one.  Thought it was wine of the month..

"Cheap, Lying, No-Good, Rotten."   --CootWold

DID YOU KNOW:   There is a seven letter word in the English language that contains  ten words without rearranging any of its letters.  That word is "therein."  See if you can list the words.

Ten Things You Didn't Know About "Miracle on 34th Street"-- Part 1: A Real Parade

From Country Living.  Has pictures and more information.

This past Monday, we watched the remake and colorized versions of the movie.  It is my fourth favorite Christmas movie.

1.  Co-stars were good friends off screen: Maureen O'har (Doris), Edmund Gwenn (Santa) and John Payne (Fred)

2.  The Thanksgiving Day Parade scene was actually completely real.

3.  Edmund Gwenn's cousin, Cecil Kellaway, almost played the role og Kris Kringle.

4.  The film's writer dreamed up the idea for the movie while waiting in line at a department store.

5.  John Payne really wanted to do a sequel.

Little Girl gets House and Father.  --DaChristmasCoot

What Makes a Classic Christmas Movie?-- Part 2

"A CHRISTMAS STORY" (1983).  As usual, this classic was shown 12 times in 24-hours going from Christmas Eve to Christmas.  This year on both TNT and TBS.  Mr. Spitz regards this as "arguably the last bona fide classic, given its longevity and stature.

This is also my all-time favorite Christmas movie.  I, of course, watched it once all the way through and then turned back to watch parts off and on during the marathons.

"NATIONAL LAMPOON'S CHRISTMAS VACATION" (1989)  In pursuit of the perfect suburban Christmas (including all those lights.  My 2nd favorite Christmas movie.

"JINGLE ALL THE WAY (1996)--  No

"THE POLAR EXPRESS" (2004)--  Yes

"FRED CLAUS" (2007)--  Probably not  (But I liked it as a different approach to the tale.)

"LOVE ACTUALLY" (2003)--  Yes  (Not familiar with it.)

"THE SANTA CLAUSE" (1994)--  Yes  (I liked all three of them."

"THE BEST MAN HOLIDAY" (2013)--  To be determined.  (I've never heard of it.)

I'm surprised he didn't include "Miracle on 34th Street."

--Cooter

What Makes a Classic Christmas Movie-- Part 1

From the December 4, 2014, New York Times "Enties in the Silver Bell Sweepstakes" by Matc Spitz.

Mr. Spitz is looking for "Classic Christmas Movies."  He looked at several well-known Christmas movies and made a decision as to whether they were classic or not.   He gave a lot of information about each one of the movies he looked at.

"It's a Wonderful Life" (1946)  Probably the most celebrated one.  Originally a commercial flop, but made money from reruns on TV and was even in the public domain for awhile so stations did not have to pay to show it.  NBC has shown it a couple times already and it will be shown against tonight, Christmas Eve.

This movie still gets me at the end as I tear up.  It is just too much.  And, I love all the small town America circa the 1940s.

"ELF" ( 2003)--  Starring Will Farrell as Buddy, a human raised by Santa's elves at the North Pole and his difficulty fitting in with humans.  Spitz says classic.  I do also.  Kind of a "Big" of a different sort.

And then there's the one I'll watch tonight and off and on the next 24-hours, "A Christmas Story."

I'll talk about this one tomorrow.--DaChristmasCoot

"A Christmas Story:" 30 Years Later-- Part 4

Of course, sevral years ago, TBS began showing the movie in a 24-hour marathon starting on Christmas Eve and going through Christmas. This has become "must-see" viewing for families across the country and me. I always try to watch it at least once straight through, then catch segments off and on. I do not get tired of it.

This anniversary of the movie, its 30th, will be marked beyond Cleveland with stage versions from Boston to California, including here in Chicago.

I'm not sure it is still there, but for many years, the first Indiana exit of I-80 at Hammond in Indiana going east from Illinois, had a whole recreation of it at the welcome center. This was taken from the windows of Macy's in New York City.

"A new bronze statue of the 'triple dog dare' tongue-grabbing scene is now on display in time for the holidays in Hammond, Indiana, the hometown of Jean Shepherd, whose stories inspired the 1983 movie." He has a cameo in the movie telling Ralphie and Randy that the line starts back there when they mistakenly get in line. Of course, we all that famous scene. The statue was dedicated in October and has been popular ever since.

However, beware. Nicki Mackowski of Hammond's tourist agency warns, "We're working on putting up signs as the cold weather gets here. You know 'Lick at your own risk' kind of thing."

Not to Mention the Germs You Can Get From Licking. --Cooter

"A Christmas Story": 30 Years Later-- Part 3

The Horseshoe Casino Cleveland this year decorated for the season to highlight the movie with leg lamps atop some of the slot machines.

And, then, there is "A Christmas Story House" in Cleveland, the one which was used for exterior scenes and, evidenly interior as well. Visitors can duck under the sink where Randy hid when he thought "Daddy's gonna kill Ralphie" and run out the back door where Ralphie ran through fake snow to try out the best Christmas gift he ever got. Entrepreneur Brian Jones has developed the house into an attraction.

The snow seen in the movie was actually mostly firefighting foam that had to be used because of an unusual snowless stretch in Cleveland during filming.

Jim Moralevitz, now 73, lives down the street from "A Christmas Story House" and got a cameo role delivering the crate containing the infamous leg lamp. Brian Jones gave him a leg lamp seven years ago and it's mounted in a 6-foot plexiglass box outside his home near the peak of his front roof. People sometimes mistake his house for "A Christmas Story House" and stop for a visit. He likes to boast that he has the most drive-bys.

I'm Thinking That He Was Not the Head Delivery Guy Who Talked With the "Old Man." --Cooter