This Day in History/Take Five: Underrated Sesame Street Muppets

Today is an unprecedented combination Day in History/Take Five post! This is fitting, considering the special occasion it marks. On November 10, 1969, Sesame Street made its debut. For forty-five years and counting (AH HA HA!), the show has delighted and influenced children and adults alike…especially yours truly. While I can’t resist the appeal of longtime favorites such as Grover and Elmo, not to mention newer Muppets such as Abby Cadabby, many Muppets have fallen off the collective radar during the show’s lengthy run. I will now attempt to correct this injustice somewhat by introducing you to five of my unsung favorites below.

CHRISSY OF CHRISSY AND THE ALPHABEATS

Sesame Street has produced some memorable music in its day. While I love Joe Raposo’s Tin Pan Alley-style tunes, the surprisingly gritty rock songs penned by Christopher Cerf have always been my favorites. Since 1973, Cerf has been the voice of Chrissy, lead singer of the Alphabeats. (I’m surprised to see him billed as Little Chrissy on YouTube and Muppet Wiki, since all my Sesame Street albums refer to him as plain old Chrissy. Perhaps they are confusing him with Little Jerry of the Monotones, another classic Sesame Street garage band.) In the 2005 anthology Lost In The Grooves, I raved about the Alphabeats’ presence on the 1983 Born To Add album. Below, thrill to the Alphabeats’ “You’re Alive!” (not to mention Chrissy’s awe-inspiring hair):

FERLINGHETTI DONIZETTI

How could you not love a Beat-inspired Muppet? This character from the mid-1980s always spoke in rhyme. (I still remember when he ordered a sirloin steak and one corn flake from a very bemused David at Mr. Hooper’s Store.) Below is his shining moment, “Rappin’ Alphabet,” boosted by fantastic b-boy moves from Grover:

THE GONK:

While this skit was before my time, I remember being fascinated by the reruns when I was little. I’ve always had a soft spot for the forlorn little Gonk, but I admit that I can’t pass a fruit stand to this day without hollering “Have a nectarine, Gonk!” a la the Geefle:

THE JACKET:

This is one of Sesame Street‘s missed opportunities. I really believed that this talking pink jacket was going to be the show’s next breakout character. Fueled by Stephanie D’Abruzzo’s endearing performance, she charmed me in an “Elmo’s World” segment in the early 2000s (excerpted in the following YouTube clip):

The character became Zoe’s jacket in two subsequent episodes, and was nothing short of adorable. Her delivery of the phrase “I’d stake my reversible lining on it!” always slays me. So, why did the jacket fade into obscurity? My guess is because NO ONE BOTHERED TO GIVE HER A NAME. For heaven’s sake, they could have called her Jackie if they were that desperate! I shake my head at what could have been.

LOLA FROM PLAZA SESAMO

Purists will consider this cheating, since Lola is a mainstay of Plaza Sesamo, the Mexican equivalent of Sesame Street. I do wonder why the US show hasn’t had any crossover episodes with the Mexican show yet, since there have been joint projects with foreign productions in the past. With her Seussian hair tufts and boundless enthusiasm, Lola would be a great visitor to the US street. (I still regret not buying a Lola stuffed toy when I saw one in a Long’s Drugs toy bin in Mountain View fifteen or so years ago.) Behold Lola below (potential earworm alert):

I could go on like this all day, but instead I’ll open the floor to you. In the meantime, happy anniversary to Sesame Street, and here’s to another 45 years!

 

 

 

 

Take Five: San Jose’s King Library

Yesterday I went to San Jose to see the new exhibition at the San Jose Museum of Art, and I ended up at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Library afterward. Two weeks ago, I went to a Sharks game, and popped into the King Library beforehand. In fact, I can’t get within the San Jose city limits for any reason without being drawn to the place. Unbelievably enough, even though I live too far away for it to be practical, I usually leave with a book (or five), too. Why does the King exert such a pull on me? Here is a sampling of five highlights for the uninitiated.

ANY OF THE FIRST FIVE FLOORS: You are allowed to eat and drink in the library! I’ve never dared to do such a thing, but it’s refreshing to have the option…

FIRST FLOOR LOBBY: Along with the tempting array of new books in the browsing area, the King Library has one of the best selections of modern power-pop and indie rock I’ve seen. From the Candy Butchers’ Hang On, Mike! to Ken Stringfellow’s (excellent) Soft Commands, the CD aisle is clearly curated by a true fan and expert.

FIRST FLOOR FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY ROOM: Many libraries have just a couple of shelves of lackluster donations comprising a store, but the King’s room is spacious and well-stocked. I hit pay dirt a couple of years ago when I paid 50 cents for a VHS copy of Sesamstrasse, Germany’s Sesame Street.  While the Sesamstrasse Muppets didn’t resonate with me the way that their counterparts in Mexico and India have (partial teaser of Monday’s post!), the dubbed versions of classic Sesame Street sketches are sublime. “I Love Trash” in German is so fantastic that I’ve been scouring the Internet for an mp3 ever since.

THIRD FLOOR INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGES SHELVES: This incredible variety of foreign-language material doubles as a great source for indie movies. While you’re only allowed to borrow non-documentary films for three weeks, it’s still useful if you’re visiting overnight and your hotel has a DVD player. Once I stumbled onto The Ice Rink, which features Evil Dead‘s Bruce Campbell and the Lithuanian national hockey team! The ending underwhelmed (if that’s a word), but I had to give it points for originality…

FIFTH FLOOR: Here you will find the various cultural displays. Yesterday I noticed a Day of the Dead exhibition (which closes today), and a very thorough treatment of Grateful Dead memorabilia. The fifth floor is also home to the Ira F. Brilliant Center For Beethoven Studies, which is always worth a visit. (It produced what is to date my favorite exhibition ever.)

That just scratches the surface, since there are eight floors to explore. Come to think of it, I’m surprised I’ve ever come home…

Interview in the Register-Pajaronian

On Tuesday, I was interviewed by Tarmo Hannula of the Watsonville Register-Pajaronian about Going Coastal. Apparently, the article is out today! I’d imagine that the full version will be online soon, but in the meantime the R-P has posted a teaser paragraph (along with a picture of me with Pajaro Valley Historical Association archivist Regan Huerta–I’m on the right, holding my book in true product-placement style):

New book a unique view of the Central Coast

More details to follow…sorry for the late notice, everybody!

Take Five: Whirlwind San Francisco Trip Food Highlights

I found myself in San Francisco this past Wednesday. Here’s a rundown of the culinary highlights. Since I don’t believe in comparing apples to oranges (so to speak), I’m not ranking anything. No need to count down—just take all five!

The veggie roll at Domo, 511 Laguna Street, Hayes Valley

Even though I’m not a vegetarian, I often order vegetarian sushi for some reason. The shiso leaf and daikon sprouts were a refreshing counterpoint to the avocado. The happiest surprise was that the asparagus and shiitake mushrooms were fried in tempura batter. No sushi bar has ever slipped stealth tempura into a standard veggie roll in my previous experience, so I was grateful. The hearty fried items and the relatively generous size make the $7 roll a bargain in that notoriously pricey city.

The dark chocolate, caramel, and passion fruit mini cube cake at Craftsman and Wolves, 540 Valencia Street, the Mission

William Werner’s bakery has become one of my favorite spots in the city, and I can never resist the cube cakes when I go there. Passion fruit curd is a wonderful condiment (I’ve been known to make some myself when I can find any puree), and Werner’s is exceptionally flavorful. In fact, his is flavorful to the point that it overpowers the caramel and chocolate somewhat, but I enjoyed the combination anyway. The cube cake is also beautifully composed; who wouldn’t be charmed by the tiny madeleine on top?

Essays “By The Book” and “Not A Dinner Party” from Julian Barnes’ The Pedant In The Kitchen

I can hear the Muppety cry of “Essays! But you can’t EAT those!” now. (Actually, if you’re Cookie Monster, you can, but that’s for another post entirely.) I read a library copy of this slim but thought-provoking volume during my trip, and found it the perfect accompaniment to snacking. Barnes tends to be more neurotic about cooking than most people are, but these pieces on (respectively) the joys and hazards of cookbook collecting and dinner guests struck a chord with me.

The mint tagliatelle at Delfina, 3611 18th Street in the Mission

The wild nettles are the secret weapon here…imagine spinach, but with finer texture and more oomph. (La Posta on Seabright in Santa Cruz introduced me to the wonder of wild nettles a couple of years ago. Coincidentally, it and Delfina are two of the only places where I will order pasta with enthusiasm.) Add mint and chanterelles, and the dish becomes a completely unexpected combination that works beautifully.

The Russian honey cake (aka the Krasinski torte) at 20th Century Cafe, 198 Gough Street, Hayes Valley

Original Delfina pastry chef Michelle Polzine is one of my baking heroes, so I assumed I would love her restaurant when I first read about it months ago. I admit that I wasn’t sure I would love the honey cake as much as the reviews promised, given that it contains many layers of honey buttercream. (I bake  quite often, but stay far away from buttercream, finding it complicated and cloying with most cakes.) I lifted my fork, fully expecting the cake to be too sweet and too rich. How wondrously mistaken I was! Now I jones for a slice when I’m anywhere near the city limits. (On this trip, my slice was procured for me by Polzine herself. She was very gracious as I stumbled through my fangirl moment.)

 

So it begins…

Hello, and welcome to my blog!

That’s a phrase I never expected to write.

Don’t get me wrong, I spend as much time on the Internet as anyone (possibly more). It’s just that my relationship with technology is…fraught. My favorite video games are still Pitfall! and Pac-Man, even though they haven’t been popular (or common!) in decades. When friends move away, I joke that I’ll need a long piece of string to connect the two tin cans I’ll be using to phone. I’ve stayed away from Twitter and Facebook as a matter of course. (I’m grateful to the people who live-tweet their breakfasts with accompanying photos, because it takes some of the pressure off me.)

It’s not that I resent the shiny new gadgets in our lives; I just find that the older ones have a certain charm. This turned out to be an unintended recurring theme in my newly released book, Going Coastal. There, you’ll find an ode to the mix tape, a directory of Santa Cruz record stores, and stories about exhibitions dedicated to retro technologies. As the feature on the Hidden Heroes museum display and website points out, many old-school gewgaws (such as paper clips and earplugs) aren’t even outdated. They’re an integral part of our lives to this day; they’re just not discussed the way flashier objects are. In college, I was a devoted reader of the zine Beer Frame, edited and published by Paul Lukas. Dubbed “the journal of inconspicuous consumption,” it paid homage to such marvels as the Brannock device. (It’s what’s used to measure feet at shoe stores.)

So, please bear with me as I navigate my corner of cyberspace. I’m happy to have you aboard! Besides my blog’s birthday, today marks the 25th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake. Tomorrow, I’ll share a few memories of that eventful day in 1989.