Jerry Lewis is still doing that Labor Day telethon thing and yesterday he slipped and uttered the word "faggot". We all remember what befell Isaiah Washington of "Grey's Anatomy" after he used the same expression. I don't think I've ever used the word, but I remember shit hitting the fan
It's hard to believe an entire decade has elapsed since Princess Diana's death. I remember that night well. Taryn and I were watching the coverage of her car crash on tv in the bachelor apartment we were renting at Charles Street and Yonge. I fully appreciated the significance of the
Today I thought about someone I hadn't thought of in years. I thought about Elwy Yost. Elwy Yost hosted Magic Shadows and Saturday Night at the Movies on TVOntario for most of my life. He focused on classic films, and I was too young to appreciate it, but he was
I miss Mother's Pizza. As a kid, that was the local family pizzeria we'd visit and memories of the restaurant are hot and fresh. I remember the location on Dundas Street and The East Mall where the Bert & Ernies is and how disappointed I was when the franchise went
"My life is a stereo, turn me on and let's go. Turn me up louder, I'll scream as loud and clear as I can scream. And if you like what you're hearing, please hang on to me." ~ The Watchmen - Stereo Different periods of my life have been defined by
As you might have noticed from my TV Time Machine, my childhood television diet was comprised of shows aired on TVOntario. TVO gave me Fables of the Green Forest, Jeremy, Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings, Read All About It, Dr. Snuggles, Barbapapa and Polka Dot Door. Immediately following
I saw my brothers on the weekend, and we ended up talking about Jeremy Hotz. Jeremy Hotz is a Canadian comic who did a great set at the Just For Laughs comedy festival many years ago. We recorded this performance and watched it several times. This weekend, we recited it.
Back in 1989, I was a member of Columbia House. Almost all of my disposable income was going toward CDs, so I whipped out a calculator and figured the 7 discs I'd get for a penny made up for the 4 or so I'd have to buy at $20 a
When I was in grade three, I fractured my foot and wore a cast for six weeks. There was a playground at St. Pius X that featured a fireman's pole. St. Pius X now has a new playground, but this was the old one we built with money raised by
Bush's "Little Things" came on my iPod Shuffle during my lunchtime walk. Hearing this song only reminds me of one thing: playing hours and hours of NHL 95 on the Super Nintendo. I think NHL 95 and Bush's Sixteen Stone came into the house at the same time, because I
Honest Ed Mirvish passed away earlier today, and that's got me thinking about the man and what he meant to this city. His annual Christmas turkey giveaway is legendary and Mirvish Productions has brought a great deal of theatre to Toronto, but I'm going to focus on more personal memories
After Cheers on Thursday nights it was time for Night Court. I actually preferred Night Court to Cheers, but that's mainly because of Dan Fielding. Night Court was supposed to be about Harry Anderson, but it ended up being about John Larroquette's character. Dan Fielding was "a sex-obsessed narcissistic prosecutor
Yes, I watched Who's the Boss. After Daisy Duke I think Samantha Micelli was my next crush. This was a show that hinged on one, simple premise. Tony and Angela had the hots for each other but they could never act on it. Once they did, the show would be
As a kid, I was enamoured with a little cartoon called The Transformers. You may have heard a thing or two about this franchise. I followed the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons closely, cheering on Optimus Prime and the good guys and taking note of their need for reinforcements
I needed to take a few things for a quick overnight camping trip, so I threw it all in my trusty Adidas bag. It occurred to me as I lugged around this old bag that I've been using it for what seems like forever. I believe I received it as
Edna Garrett left Diff'rent Strokes to become a housemother to seven young girls at the Eastland Academy in Peekskill, New York. The rest, is Facts of Life history. One of those seven girls was Molly Ringwald, but after season one, they trimmed the roster down to Natialie, Blair and Tootie
Just about every weekend growing up, we played wall ball. Some called it box, but we always called it wall ball. Wall ball was usually two against two and you pitched to the batter who stood in front of a box painted on a wall. The box was the strike
Next to The Beachcombers, Danger Bay was CanCon at its finest. Doc worked at The Vancouver Aquarium and he and his kids were always saving the world from one ecological disaster or another. I wonder what has become of Christopher Crabb. Ocean Hellman was a cutie, where's she at these
I was a pre-teen when Pee Wee's Playhouse started airing, but I was instantly drawn to this show. It was supposedly aimed at kids, but there was a hilarious subtext to it all that slayed me. I watched Pee Wee's Playhouse every Saturday, waiting for the secret word, awaiting visits
Probably my favourite television show as a young dude was The Dukes of Hazzard. Daisy was my first crush, and I thought Bo and Luke Duke were the coolest. And as cars go, there was no cooler a car than the General Lee. Here's a great montage of General Lee
I watched this show every Saturday morning growing up. Zack was a cool cat and it was a light and fluffy half hour. At least it was light and fluffy until Jessie Spano started doing drugs. No, it wasn't smack, it was the dreaded caffeine pills. My favourite episode was
I loved Diff'rent Strokes. Us kids looked up to Gary Coleman. Not literally, we were all taller than the little dude, but he was a mentor of sorts. Who wasn't upset when Mr. Drummond was told he couldn't BBQ on the balcony? Who didn't fear for Arnold Jackson when he
Family Ties was a key part of the NBC Thursday night lineup, and can't miss television for a period in the 80s. It launched the career of Michael J. Fox but in our house the focus was on Meredith Baxter-Birney who many thought looked like my mom. My favourite episode
I loved WKRP in Cincinnati. It was a great collection of characters and it made radio seem so cool. I frequently recall moments from those four seasons and smile. If anyone has the closing theme song in MP3 form, throw it my way. Here's the extended opening theme from season
For no other reason other than I feel like it, I'm going to start sharing the opening theme songs from shows I used to watch. This will likely be a little heavy on nostalgia and therefore full of 80s sitcoms. We'll start with Growing Pains, a show I used to
