Tag Archives: The Enchanted Manor

Danny Kaye’s Birthday

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Danny Kaye (Born: January 13, 1913 Died: March 3, 1987) was born David Daniel Kaminsky.  He was a great actor, singer, dancer and comedian.  In his professional career he was known for his physical comedy and silly songs.  He made 23 Hollywood movies from 1935 to 1969.  He had his own radio program from 1945 to 1946 and television variety show from 1963 to 1969.  Danny Kaye was a talented performer and has three stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in radio, film and music.

Danny Kaye was also known for his charity work for the United Nations and in 1954 he became the first ambassador of UNICEF.  As an example of his varied interests, from 1977 to 1981 he was part owner of the Seattle Mariners baseball team.   He continued to work in television with several guest starring roles and hosted TV specials in 1980 for Disneyland’s 25th Anniversary and in 1982 for the opening celebration of EPCOT.  In 1983 he was knighted by the Queen of Denmark for his portrayal of Hans Christian Andersen in the 1952 film.  In 1984 he was the Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade and also received the Kennedy Center Honor for his work in radio and film.

In February of 1983 Danny Kaye had a quadruple bypass heart surgery and died in March 1987 from a heart attack.  He is buried at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, New York.  At his gravesite is a special bench carved with symbols to show his varied interests, such as a piano and musical notes, an airplane, a flower pot and a baseball, bat and glove inscribed with his name and dates of his birth and death.  It is a fitting tribute to his multi-talented man.

As a child of the 1960s, I grew up watching Danny Kaye movies and when my children got older we watched them together.  My three favorite movies are “Hans Christian Andersen” (1952), “The Court Jester” (1956) and “White Christmas” (1954).  The first two are wonderful movies to watch with the family and “White Christmas” is a holiday classic that we watch every holiday season.

      

I highly recommend these three movies as a wonderful example of Danny Kaye’s acting and musical talents.  As I mentioned before, these movies are great entertainment and would be great to watch with the family especially little children.

Celebration – Dessert Party

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When we lived in California every year we would have a Dessert Party.  It is a fun party where everyone gets together and eats some great desserts.  The basic idea of the party is that you invite a group of friends who make their favorite or best dessert.  They bring it to the party and when they arrive their dessert is given a number, this way everything should remain anonymous.  Guests are given ballots and vote by the number of the dessert.  Awards and prizes are given at the end of the party.

Be creative and find some cute invitations or create your own using some great scrapbook paper and a computer.  Be sure to include the following Dessert Contest Rules so the guests have some idea of the party theme.

DESSERT CONTEST RULES

  1. One dessert entry per person. (Please only homemade desserts, store bought desserts will be disqualified and eaten immediately!!)
  2. Entries will be given a number as you arrive.  This number will identify your dessert.
  3. All entries will be judged by the guests.
  4. Guests will taste each dessert and then judge on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best!
  5. Guests will judge each dessert in the following categories: taste and presentation.
  6. The following prizes will be awarded:
    • Grand Prize Winner
    • Best Presentation
    • Best Tasting
    • Honorable Mention
  7. Please bring a copy of your recipe if you would like to share with the other guests!

These rules are just a guideline; please feel free to come up with your own dessert party rules.  But, try to keep them as simple as possible because your guests want to enjoy the party and not a complicated ballot!  A simple voting process will also limit the time you spend away from your guests to count the votes and determining the winners will take a shorter time.

Set up a specific area to display the desserts, such as: a large table or kitchen counter.  Keep all the desserts in one area and label each dessert with a number as the guests arrive.  Keep track of the guest’s dessert and corresponding number.  Be sure to provide plates, bowls and utensils on the table for the guests to use.  Set up a separate area to provide drinks, such as: water, soda, punch or alcoholic beverages.  There will be very little preparation time involved in setting up this party and you will be able to enjoy the desserts with your guests.

Have fun and maybe it can become an annual event!

Travel – Graceland – Memphis, TN

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Graceland 1

One of our stops on our summer road trip last year was Memphis, Tennessee.  I was a fan of Elvis Presley since I was a child and used to listen to his music and watched his movies.  As a fan, I read some of his biographies and one of the best ones was the 1985 book, “Elvis and Me”, by Priscilla Presley.  I enjoyed reading about their extraordinary life together from the time that they meet in Germany until his untimely death in 1977.  When we decided to go to Memphis on this road trip, I knew we had to go see Graceland, Elvis Presley’s home.  On this trip we were traveling with family member’s that were a wide range of ages from my husband’s mother to our young daughter.  Everyone had such different memories of Elvis and of course my son and daughter were born after he died so they only know him through his music.  We visited at the beginning of June and it was a great time to go because even though it was early summer it was still relatively uncrowded because most of the schools were still in session.  The weather was warm but not too stifling hot!!

2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 8We bought one of the package tours that included the Graceland home tour and several of the various small exhibits located on the property.  We really enjoyed the home tour and it was very cool to see the actual “Jungle Room”.  Let’s just say that Elvis was a great singer and performer but his decorating sense was a very unique nontraditional style.  One of the exhibits that my husband and son enjoyed was Elvis’ car collection and the highlight was seeing Elvis’ pink Cadillac.  There are several gift shops selling all kinds of crazy merchandise but my favorite item was the one we bought for my daughter – it was a teddy bear dressed like Elvis in a black leather jacket!!

HISTORY OF GRACELAND

Graceland is Elvis Presley’s home in Memphis, Tennessee.  Elvis moved into Graceland with his parents, Vernon and Gladys, when their previous home in Memphis proved to offer no privacy from his adoring fans.  He bought the 14 acre estate in 1957 for the amount of $100,000.  The next year, Elvis went into Army and was sent to Germany where he meets Priscilla Beaulieu.  Sadly in 1958 Gladys, Elvis’ beloved mother, died.  Vernon remarried in 1960 continued to live there until purchasing his own property nearby.  After leaving the Army, Elvis returned to Graceland with Priscilla.  They eventually married in 1967 and had a daughter, Lisa Marie, in 1968.  Elvis and Priscilla eventually divorced in 1973.  Priscilla and Lisa Marie moved to California, but Lisa Marie spent a lot of time with her father at Graceland and was at the house in 1977 when Elvis passed away.  After Elvis’ death, Lisa Marie inherited the estate and Vernon served as executor and when he died in 1979 Priscilla took over.

With taxes due on the property and high yearly expenses to maintain Graceland, the bills totaled close to $500,000 and Priscilla was faced with the decision to sell.  Instead she decided to open up Graceland to the public in 1982 and within a month all the debts were paid.  In 2005 Lisa Marie sold 85 percent of Elvis Presley Enterprises including the Elvis trademark, music catalogue and archival documents including photographs and film footage.  Lisa Marie retains 15 percent of the estate, the deed to Graceland and all of Elvis’ personal belongings.  The new management has announced a major renovation which will include a new visitor center, high-tech displays and a 500 room hotel.  This massive project will take over three years to complete.

BRIEF TOUR OF GRACELAND

All tours start across the street from Graceland in the visitor center.  Visitors board a shuttle bus and are given headphones to listen to an audio tour.  As the shuttle crosses Elvis Presley Blvd visitors will notice the fan graffiti on the brick wall at the entrance to the property.  (Strangely, this is very similar to the Beatles fan graffiti on the brick wall outside Abbey Road studios in England)  The shuttle proceeds through the famous Music Gates, up the winding driveway and stops in front of Graceland.

After a brief history of Graceland by a tour guide on the front steps, visitors enter the home of Elvis Presley.  To the right are the living room and the adjoining music room.  The living room contains a 15 foot long white sofa and past the large peacock stained glass visitors get a peek of the music room with a black baby grand piano.  Down the hall is the bedroom of Vernon and Gladys, Elvis’ parents.  Decorated with white furniture and carpet, the bed is covered with a deep purple bedspread and their bathroom is decorated in pink.  Other rooms on the main floor include the dining room and kitchen with the media room and billiard room in the basement.  Probably the most famous room in the house and an Elvis’ fan favorite is the Jungle Room.  This room is decorated in an eccentric Polynesian design with wood carved furniture, shag green carpet and even an indoor waterfall.

2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 2  2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 9a

As visitors exit the house into the backyard, past Lisa Marie’s swing set and proceed into a small white building that was Vernon’s office.  The next building is the Trophy Room which contains a hall of gold records and Elvis’ many awards including his three Grammys.  Also in this building are memorabilia and costumes from Elvis’ movies.  Also displayed are Elvis’ famous gold lame suit, Elvis’ wedding tuxedo and Priscilla’s wedding dress, and Lisa Marie’s toy chest and baby clothes.

2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 6     2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 5

The next building is the Racquetball Court which has displays of many of Elvis’ sequined stage costumes and more awards.  As visitors exit this building they walk pass the outdoor pool area and into the Meditation Gardens.  Elvis Aaron Presley is buried here with his parents, Vernon and Gladys and his grandmother, Minnie Mae.  There is also a memorial gravestone for Elvis’ twin brother, Jesse Garon, who died at birth.  This concludes the tour of Graceland and a shuttle bus takes visitors back to the visitor center.

2011 Memphis, TN -Graceland 7

If you are visiting the Memphis area I would definitely recommend stopping at Graceland.  Unless you are a dedicated Elvis fan, I would avoid the beginning of January for Elvis weekend in Memphis as the crowds can be rather large.  Check ahead for current hours and prices, tour information and special events at www.elvis.com/graceland.

Charles Addams’ Birthday (Addams Family)

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One of my favorite shows growing up in the 1960s was the quirky show, “The Addams Family”.  I loved all the strange characters, such as Gomez, Morticia, Uncle Fester, Lurch, Wednesday and Pugsley but my favorite characters were Thing and Cousin It. Doesn’t everyone remembers that finger snapping theme song!  We now own the complete series on DVD and my daughter enjoys watching the shows.

Charles Addams (Born: January 7, 1912 Died: September 29, 1988) was a freelance artist who created the humorous, dark cartoons called the Addams Family that began appearing in the New Yorker magazine in 1938.  The eccentric, wealthy Addams family delighted in the macabre and they were considered a satirical version of a normal American family.    The members of the Addams family were completely unaware that their behavior, attitude and even their home were both bizarre and frightening to other people. The Addams family has been adapted over the years into a television series, animated cartoon, films and even a Broadway musical.

The Addams Family television show

The television show, “The Addams Family”, is based on the characters from Charles Addams’ New Yorker cartoons.  The original 64 episodes aired for two seasons on ABC from September 1964 to April 1966.  The show was 30 minutes in length and was filmed in black and white.  The Addams home was a gloomy mansion on 0001 Cemetery Lane next to a cemetery and a swamp.

The cast of “The Addams Family” –

Gomez (played by John Astin) is a very wealthy man who never seems to go to work and spends a lot of time with his family.  He is passionately in love with his wife; in fact his passion greatly increases when she speaks French to him.  His hobby in model trains and he enjoys seeing them collide with each other or dynamiting them and watching them explode.

Morticia (played by Carolyn Jones) is often the calm center of the chaotic household.  She is beautiful and loves the arts, raises flesh-eating plants and spends time trimming her roses by cutting off the rose buds and arranging the thorny stems in a vase.

Uncle Fester (played by Jackie Coogan) is Morticia’s uncle.  He frequently places a lightbulb in his mouth and lights it up.

Lurch (played by Ted Cassidy) is the butler.  He is summoned by a hangman’s noose bell pull and when he arrives he always says, “You rang?”

Wednesday (played by Lisa Loring) is the daughter.  She is the youngest member of the family and is a strange but sweet little girl.  She raises spiders and her favorite pet is a black widow spider named Homer.  She also likes to play with her beheaded doll, Marie Antoinette.

Pugsley (played by Ken Weatherwax) is the son and older brother.  He enjoys engineering and playing with his blasting caps.  He has a pet octopus named Aristotle.

Grandma Addams (played by Bloosom Rock) is the mother of Gomez.  She is a witch and likes to tell fortunes.

Thing is a detached hand that appears out of boxes and can go instantly to any box or other container in the house.  Obviously he doesn’t speak but he communicates with his hand.

Cousin It (played by Felix Silla) is Gomez’s cousin who is rather short and covered completely from head to toes by long hair.  He speaks very fast gibberish that the family seems to have no difficulty understanding.

TRIVIA – TELEVISION SERIES

  1. The Addams Family and its rival series, the Munsters, both debuted in September 1964 and both were canceled the following year.
  2. Gomez was originally engaged to Morticia’s older sister, Ophelia, in an arranged marriage.  A few days before the wedding, Gomez meets Morticia and they fall in love and get married instead.  Carolyn Jones played both characters and to differentiate one from the other, Ophelia was blonde with daisies in her hair.
  3. The interior of the Addams Family house was inspired by the real Manhattan apartment of Charles Addams.  Just like the television show, the décor included suits of armor and other oddities.
  4. Ted Cassidy (Lurch) usually was the hand of Thing, unless they were in the same scene together then someone else played the part.  Thing was mostly a right hand and sometimes had an arm when it reached outside the box for something.
  5. Wednesday Addams name is a reference to the nursery rhyme, “Wednesday’s child is full of woe”.

Celebration – Thank You Notes

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The Christmas presents have been received and unwrapped.  All the holiday parties and the celebrations are coming to an end.  Now it is time to write those thank you notes for the presents received and for the hospitality given with parties.

Thank you notes are not sent as often as in the past.  I remember having to write thank you notes when I was a child.  My mother always made us write them, especially for presents received from relatives back east.  Then, when I got married there seemed to be a never ending amount of thank you notes to write for shower or wedding presents received.  When my children were born there were more thank you notes to send for birthdays and special events.  Eventually my children were taught to write their own thank you notes.

Now in today’s world, e-mails or texts are sent instead and they tend to be very short and abrupt.  Gone are the days when people take the time to write a thank you note and acknowledge someone’s thoughtfulness and generosity.

There are four points that should be remembered when writing a thank you note.

  1. Thank you notes should be written in black or blue ink.  It is best to send a thank you note within a week or two after receiving a present or someone’s hospitality.  The note should always start with the date and a simple greeting.
  2. Start the note by saying thank you and be specific as to what you are thanking them for.  Mention the present received or the hospitality given.  If you receive a monetary gift, thank the person for their generosity rather than stating the amount.  It is always polite to mention what the money is being used for.
  3. People always love to receive kind words as long as they are heartfelt, send the gift giver a sincere compliment.  Mention something in the future, anticipate another event coming up.  When writing about a gift, be sure to let them know how or when you plan to use it.
  4. In closing the note, reiterate your gratitude for the present sent.  Concluded the note with a sincere regard.  Don’t forget to proof read the note and check for any spelling or grammar errors.  Make sure to send the note to the correct current address and be sure to include your address.

TIP:  A thoughtful gesture is to enclose a photo, such as: opening the present, holding the present or wearing or using the present.

There are so many wonderful note cards or papers with matching envelopes for sale in retail stores or stationary shops.  By purchasing a supply ahead of time, it is easier to write and send thank you notes in a timely manner.