Thanks for the Memories

Thanks for the Memories Whitney Houston

WHITNEY HOUSTON: SHE ALMOST HAD IT ALL



Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

It finally happened. Whitney Houston has died. It’s a miracle she lived this long, considering her self destructive predilections. But it’s awfully sad because she was once a great beauty and a formidable talent. We thought Simon Cowell had lost his mind when he considered hiring Whitney to be a judge on X-Factor. It COULD have been a new start for her, but most likely would have turned out badly. Our sympathies to her family and especially her daughter Bobbi Kristina. (Above – probably the last photo taken of her)

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By Janet / February 11, 2012
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Don Cornelius Fashion Ladies Man Soul Train Thanks for the Memories

DON CORNELIUS: THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES


http://youtu.be/zKJzRNwe5dg

Don Cornelius, who took his own life yesterday, probably because of health issues, did the world a favor when he introduced his “Soul Train” dance show to TV in 1970. He revolutionized the appreciation of black music, fashion, and culture. He certainly did himself a favor too. Don became a major ladies man always clad in immaculately accessorized custom made suits. He became a fixture at the Playboy mansion parties and enjoyed flirting outrageously with pretty women at TV tapings and award shows. Fans everywhere greeted him with enthusiasm and he had an amazing life worth celebrating. (Above, get in line for Jungle Boogie, 1973, and enjoy the platform shoes and elephant bells)

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By Janet / February 1, 2012
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Christopher Hitchens Thanks for the Memories

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS WAS ONE OF THE MOST BRILLIANT JOURNALISTS OF OUR TIME

We’re still reeling from the loss of brilliant writer Christopher Hitchens because he fearlessly verbalized the things many people hesitate to say. His common sense, his intellect, and his way with words made him a hero. He had fierce opinions on many subjects and managed to make anyone he debated look foolish and pushed everyone to THINK more. What a great world this would be if his book “god is not great: How Religion Poisons Everything” were required reading in all schools. The U.K. born Hitchens treasured the freedom of speech amendment and loved America so much that when he died, he died an American citizen. Fortunately many of Hitchens best debate moments are available on Youtube.

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By Janet / December 17, 2011
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Album Alcohol Amy Winehouse Thanks for the Memories Tony Bennett

“LIONESS: HIDDEN TREASURES” – AMY WINEHOUSE DOES IT AGAIN

We loved writing about the soap opera life of Amy Winehouse before she tragically died of alcohol poisoning last July, and we appreciated her original style. In the five years after she released her huge album “Back to Black” she didn’t seem to do much singing, but 12 songs from various recording sessions over the last decade, including a duet with Tony Bennett, are featured in her new posthumous album released today. The album, “Lioness: Hidden Treasures,” is getting good reviews and reminds us of what a one-of-a-kind talent we lost.

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By Janet / December 6, 2011
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Birthday Roy Rogers Thanks for the Memories

HAPPY TRAILS TO ROY ROGERS, KING OF THE COWBOYS

We’ve had a crush on Roy Rogers since childhood and thought we’d pay tribute to the cowboy star, who would have been 100 years old on November 5. Before his career peaked in western movies, Roy cleverly had it written into his contract that he owned the rights to his likeness, voice, and name for merchandising. He did it all before the Kardashians. Roy Rogers games, action figures, lunch boxes, books, comics, clothing etc. flooded the market and kids lapped it up. Rogers was second only to Walt Disney in the amount of items featuring his name, so he was an early marketing genius. We always thought he was the best dressed cowboy and envied all those gorgeous elaborately fringed shirts…

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By Janet / November 4, 2011
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Apple Steve Jobs Style Thanks for the Memories

STEVE JOBS GAVE TECHNOLOGY BOTH FUNCTION AND DESIGN

Steve Jobs was more than just a brilliant CEO and billionaire – he gave us innovation AND style. Something sorely lacking in technology. We first fell in love with Apple products when these fruit colored computers came out – in blueberry, strawberry, tangerine, lime, and grape. Jobs proved that machines can be beautiful. We dumped our Dell computer and never looked back. (Above, Steve in 1999 with an early iBook portable computer) Check out this old Apple iMac computer commercial.

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By Janet / October 5, 2011
32 Comments
Bob Hope Collectibles Dolores Hope Nazi Thanks for the Memories WWII

BOB HOPE’S WWII NAZI COLLECTION IS COMING ON THE MARKET

Now that Dolores Hope has passed away, Bob Hope’s massive collection of WWII and Nazi memorabilia worth millions will be sold, and collectors are already licking their chops. The collection has long been housed in a vault in Palm Springs, and it’s legendary among knowledgeable dealers. Hope was in Europe performing with the USO for years, and he was given many souvenirs by the allied forces at the end of WWII. These included personal property confiscated from captured Nazis- – uniforms, medals, weapons, I.D.cards – even Hitler’s stationery. Some of the rare articles – like Hope’s Nazi decanter, were left behind in Hitler’s bunker after allied troops overran it. Bob was certainly never a Nazi sympathizer, but he saw the historic value of the items he collected. Dolores didn’t want to deal with the valuable collection while she was alive even though Jesse James, among others, made attempts to buy it. (Above, Bob and Dolores in 1939 in the S.S, Normandie on their way to Europe.)

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By Janet / September 19, 2011
15 Comments
Husband I Love Lucy Lucille Ball Thanks for the Memories

LUCILLE BALL PICKED THE RIGHT HUSBAND THE SECOND TIME AROUND

Memories of Lucille Ball: Lucy was born on August 6, 1911 so Saturday would have been her 100th birthday. After she divorced Desi Arnaz , Lucy married 13 years younger stand-up comic Gary Morton, and he seemed to be the perfect husband for the rest of her life. We remember seeing them together at Pips playing backgammon, and once we ran into Lucy and Gary shopping in Carl’s Market. Gary pushed the cart and Lucy pointed to the things she wanted and he scooped them up. They bought lots of canned tuna on sale. Another time we were hovering outside her dressing room at some event and we overheard that distinctive deep, gravelly voice of hers saying “Gary freshen my drink, will you?” We always wondered what made her voice become so deep – smoking, drinking? We also visited Lucy’s Beverly Hills house before it was sold and destined to be torn down. She had a hidden bar- you pushed a button on the den wall and a well-stocked hidden bar popped out. We miss Lucy.

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By Janet / August 8, 2011
29 Comments
Hair! Jimi Hendrix Mad Magazine Thanks for the Memories

AN INTIMATE MOMENT WITH JIMI HENDRIX


Photo via: The WOW Report

It’s always a thrill to discover a photograph you’ve never seen of someone you admire – especially if he’s been dead for many years. Jimi Hendrix is one of our all-time crushes and we still consider the one concert we saw of his to be the BEST EVER. We swooned when we saw this photo of Jimi having his hair teased while he reads Mad magazine. The hairdresser with the beehive looks like she’s struggling to keep her composure, and you can see Jimi’s feather boa draped across the lamp.

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By Janet / August 1, 2011
14 Comments