The Saturday Seven: Funny Dead Comedians

This past week at work was stressful and hectic. I put in some seriously long hours at the office, and working from home late evenings as well. I made it through the week by remembering that laughter is always the best medicine. I've always enjoyed a good laugh-from a TV sitcom or movie to a stand up stage act. There have been so many talented comedians over the years. In particular, I've always had an appreciation for the older comedians from way back. These are guys who were masters of double entendre, had perfect timing, and could work an audience with just a look or facial expression. These are guys who didn't need to use vulgarity to get the laugh. This brings me to another scintillating edition of
The Saturday Seven: Funny Dead Comedians
#1 George Burns: "Don't stay in bed, unless you can make money in bed"

#2 Peter Sellers: "Conversation like television set on honeymoon... unnecessary"

#3 Groucho Marx: "Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?"

#4 Benny Hill: “I'm not against half naked girls - not as often as I'd like to be"

#5 Red Foxx: "Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.”

#6 Jack Benny: "Give me golf clubs, fresh air and a beautiful partner, and you can keep the clubs and the fresh air.”

#7 Paul Lynde: "Host Peter Marshall: What are “dual-purpose cattle” good for that other cattle aren’t? Paul Lynde: They give milk and cookies – but I don’t recommend the cookies"

Bonus entry: Rodney Dangerfield: "I don't get no respect"

Thanks for stopping by The Saturday Seven today. Who are your favorite dead male comedians? Some other week I'll tackle the ladies, and also the living funny guys. But today, it's a mini-tribute to those who are gone. Happy Saturday! -Rick Rockhill

These Boots Are Made For Walkin'

For some reason Nancy Sinatra popped into my head today, so she is the topic of this post. Nancy, of course is daughter of legendary singer Frank Sinatra and is probably best known for the song "These Boots Are Made for Walkin", which became her signature hit. I've seen Nancy in Palm Springs before, and she still looks great. Every so often when I'm in a mood for some groovy tunes from the 60's I'll play some Nancy. (My iPod includes the album "Nancy Sinatra: The Hit Years" which is a great collection of her career. Hope you enjoy this video from our friends at youtube.

Happy Friday! I'm headed to Lake Tahoe this weekend, so stay tuned for an update from my travels.
-Rick Rockhill

The "Amazing Sea Monkeys" Project

Regular readers of this blog may recall a recent post of "The Saturday Seven: Favorite Comic Book Ads". After writing that post I received a number of e-mails about the ad for "Sea Monkeys". It prompted me to go online and order Sea Monkeys for myself. I was delighted when they arrived early this week, and I decided to set up the tank on my desk at work. Carefully following the instructions, I began the adventure of growing REAL SEA MONKEYS. I was fascinated to learn that there were several steps involved. Step one was to prepare the water by adding a special "water purification" powder, which apparently also included a "secret hatching catalyst". I had to wait 24 hours before proceeding to envelope #2: "Instant Live Sea Monkey Eggs". So yesterday morning I added the eggs and "magic crystal powder" to the prepared water. Now I wait. I eagerly await the arrival of tiny Sea Monkeys as my new office companions.
ACTION PHOTOS:


Above: Step One, the water purification process & Step 2, the "Instant Live Sea Monkey Eggs"
Stay tuned for more updates on my "Amazing Sea Monkeys"...
-Rick Rockhill

Wisdom Wednesdays: Featuring Dr Sidney Wang

ASK DR WANG
This week's letter comes from MaryAnne in Lynhurst, Indiana. MaryAnne writes:

Dear Dr Wang,

Six months ago I started catering and baking cupcakes for extra money and saved over $5,000 so far just from small jobs. There has been a steady flow of catering work that I mainly do nights and weekends around my full time job. I am at the point where I have to turn down some catering projects because they interfere with my day job. I'd like to quit my regular job and go into catering full time. I want to know what the future holds for me, and if I'll be able to support myself at some point.

Regards, MaryAnne

Lynhurst, IN

Dr Wang responds: Dear MaryAnne,

First of all, I must congratulate you on the success of your part time career so far. The Great Bubble Wall indicates that you clearly have a knack for the baking, but you are not yet skilled enough as a chef. I suggest you enroll in a culinary arts school to gain more specific culinary skills. In the meantime continue making cupcakes as a side business. You will begin making X-rated cupcakes for a premium price. There is great potential for bachelorette parties and more. You will need to find extra tall bakery boxes for these x-rated cupcakes, which will be hard (to find).

Starting your own catering business requires a significant investment. In addition to The Great Bubble Wall, I consulted a deck of Tarot cards to be certain. Your "significator card" is The Wheel of Fortune (see my photo above, behind the plant). The Tarot indicates that you are about to inherit a small sum of money from a distant relative. This will provide you with seed money to start your catering business. Be sure to write a full business plan and present it to a local commercial banker. You have exceptionally good luck in your future, follow your instincts with this catering business.

Keep swimming upstream,

-Dr Wang
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"Wisdom Wednesdays" features the sage advice of our resident oracle, psychic betta fish "Dr Sidney Wang". Believed to be a reincarnated descendant of King Rama II of Siam, Dr Wang responds to e-mail submissions with advice, predictions of the future and conveys ancient proverbs to provide guidance and support. Dr Sidney Wang's 24 Hour Wisdom, Advice and Inspiration service is also available from the left side navigation for this feature

Retro Hairdos

Yesterday afternoon I stopped for a cup of tea at the local overpriced coffee joint. As I handed over the $3.00 it occurred to me that I could buy a whole box of Twinings tea bags for the same price. But I digress. The point of this story is that the woman who took my order looked familiar. I glanced at her name badge, which read "Diane". That wasn't it, I thought. I was sure I knew her. Then it hit me: she was Donna Reed. Well not exactly, I mean Donna Reed is long dead now, this woman just resembled Donna Reed. It was her hairdo. As I stood waiting for my $3 cup of tea, I wondered why this woman was still wearing a hairdo from the 1950's. Then I realized, retro hair styles are back in fashion! So I felt compelled to create this post around retro-hairdos (sorry about the long set up). Here are a number of retro "way back" styles I found interesting:
Above: "The Donna Reed Look"

Above: Smart, Confident and Stylish

Above: Innocent, Naive and and Gullible

Above: "Modern", Independent and Practical

Above: Dignified, Devoted and Doting

Above: Hip, Sassy and Whimsical

Above: "Femme Fatale", Glamorous and Drama Queen

Above: Tragically Geek and Square.
Which category was your Mom when you were growing up? Leave a comment, it's totally FREE today!
-Rick Rockhill

Matt Damon Monday

I have designated today as Matt Damon Monday, even if it is just for one day. What the heck, it's my blog. Hope you enjoy these photos I pilfered from around the web in a shameless attempt to attract new visitors to my blog. One day in the near future I hope to post some photos of Matt Damon taken from my own camera. I have a habit of meeting some interesting people, so stay tuned...

Above: Wow it's Matt Damon. Hey is it hot in here, or is it just me?

Above: Matt Damon from The Departed and the "Bourne" series

Above: Matt Damon, George Clooney and Brad Pitt from Oceans 13
Thanks for stopping by to checkout Matt Damon. I wonder if I used the name Matt Damon enough times here to increase ranking of the Matt Damon searches on the web.
-Rick Rockhill

Backstage at Monty Python's SPAMALOT

Last Wednesday, while in Las Vegas I went to see the Broadway musical comedy Spamalot, from the Monty Python gang. The show has a permanent home at the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, but is also running in London, New York, Melbourne and a traveling show across the US.
I've been a Monty Python fan for a long time, and the stage show was quite funny; it kept me laughing continuously. It helps if you are familiar with the MP films The Holy Grail and Life of Brian, as well as the TV show itself. There are many familiar sketches and characters, all centered around King Arthur and his quest for the Holy Grail. It is cleverly written and presented, making hilarious jibes at everyone from the French, the English, Jews, Gays, Germans and many other groups. I laughed out loud throughout, it was lighthearted and fun. After the show I met some of the cast for a VIP back stage visit and tour.

Above left: Guards at the French castle, & above right: King Arthur's knights of the round table. The Vegas version of the show has the round table that looks like a roulette wheel, which was fun.
The Back Stage VIP Tour

Above left: Me clowning around with actor Justin Brill, who plays the role of "Patsy". He is holds the "vicious bunny" prop, with its bloodied fangs, feigning an attack on me. Oh yes, I was a natural on stage as I gave a dramatic shriek in horror. Above right: Me standing inside a giant tin of Spam, with friends Tim and Tim.

Above left: You can see, I was meant for the stage, posing on the set of the castle doors, & above right: Back stage in front of some costumes.

Above: Show props, & above right: One of three sections of shelves with Wigs used for the production. They are all custom made in London for each actor.

Above: Backs tage props and signs for the show.
The tour was really cool, and Justin Brill was a really nice guy. Aside from seeing how things on stage work, we saw the entire back production process, history of the show and met several actors. I highly recommend Spamalot, particularly if you were a fan of this super silly British comedy team.
-Rick Rockhill

The Saturday Seven: Rules for Good Manners

At the risk of sounding like a curmudgeonly old man, I am astonished by the number of people in our society who lack basic good manners. I'm not suggesting that we practice Victorian-era manners, but things like holding a door open for someone behind you, or saying please and thank you go a long way. Or how about smiling more? Whenever I answer my phone at work, I always say "Good morning this is Rick". I just don't think people even exchange the good afternoon/good evening expressions anymore. I admit I am somewhat of a fossil at times, but the other expression I enjoy using is when I meet someone for the first time. When introduced, as I shake hands, I say "How do you do?" instead of just "hi". Invariably, this takes the other person by surprise and forces them to reply with a "oh, very well thanks for asking" type response. Now I realize that saying "how do you do" is very old fashioned, but hey I'm an old fashioned kind of guy. Being an animal lover, I often look to the animal kingdom for such cues. I'll go out on a limb and say: everything you need to know about life you can gleam from your dog. This brings me to another scintillating edition of:
The Saturday Seven: Rules for Good Manners
#1 Respect your elders- they've been around longer and seen it all. Besides, you'll be old one day soon enough.

#2 Don't speak loudly- why stress people out so much. It comes across as aggressive and forceful.

#3 Don't interrupt others- Let them finish speaking, then you get your turn. just like in kindergarten, remember?

#4 Don't stare at people- Glance if you must, but at least be discreet if you must!

#5 Don't lose your temper- Show some restraint. Keep it cool, practice deep breathing and let go of the anger.

#6 Don't spit in public. Oh how gross. Unless you drank a mouthful of poison, otherwise go to the restroom or somewhere out of view.

#7 Always be Polite- use common sense, act according to where you are and who you are with.

Bonus Entry- Don't curse- Is it really necessary? Can't you express yourself using standard words from the English language? Try going a week without swearing, see how you do. Unless of course, you are in a bar with the guys telling "fish stories", then that's OK I guess!

Another Bonus entry: Take pride in your appearance- How you look and what you wear. It won't kill you to dress up once in awhile.

-Rick Rockhill