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19Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Ancient Greece Comes To North Hollywood

19Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Ancient Greece Comes To North Hollywood

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There’s a block of Lankershim in North Hollywood, CA that’s littered – I use that word lovingly – with square brick buildings adorned with Greek and Roman plaster columns, gods and godesses split in half and glued against the buildings in attempts to make them look like ancient Greek and Roman temples. I love this kind of architecture, especially when most of the time they’re trying to make strip joints look classy and exotic. That’s the case here.

It’s next to another edifice of similar antiquity:

I love North Hollywood!

18Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day -1961 “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis” Comic Book

18Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day -1961 “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis” Comic Book

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There’s no question that Dobie Gillis, which ran from 1959-’63, was just about my favorite TV show ever! I was coming of age, wanted to be Thalia Menninger and date Dobie just like every other young nubian my age. I loved how preppy Dobbie was in his starched khakis but had the good sense to have Beatnik friends like Maynard G. Krebs. I didn’t catch Warren Beatty as the rich kid, Milton Armitage, so much but after he left the show I was heavily into his cousin, the ultra-snot, Chatsworth Osborne, Jr. And, of course, all hail Zelda Gilroy aka Shelia Kuehl, whose nerdiness paid off when she became a US senator in real life in 2000.

This comic book was put out every other month by National Comics Publications, Inc.. This one is No. 6 from 1961. The pages were filled with teenage angst…:

And there were ALWAYS ads in 50’s and 60’s comic books to build whimpy muscles up, in this case by emulating Joe Weider, who went on to mentor such muscle maniacs as Arnold Schwarzenegger and also to get sued for a variety of weight loss and bulk up products that didn’t quite live up to their claims.

There were also ALWAYS ads to earn money. A very popular one is this one where you banked coins by selling popular patriotic and religious mottos, just what every kid wanted to do. But, most importantly, there were ALWAYS prizes to win…

Comic books offered lots of ways for an industrious kid to make money. I myself did the one showed below several times. I loved the little packets of seeds and I was obsessed with getting the prizes. For sure I got the pocket radio but you had to sell about 4 tons of seeds to get the three speed bicycle, the full string guitar (did they also have prizes of guitars with no strings?!), the typewriter, the movie projector or anything else that was of real value. Although I had big entrepreneurial plans most of the seeds ended up getting planted in my backyard. I think an onion grew once but that was about it.

17Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – NEW Pigmy Will! “Diet Pie”

17Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – NEW Pigmy Will! “Diet Pie”

16Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day -Leave It To Beaver Coloring Book

16Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day -Leave It To Beaver Coloring Book

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When I was a kid I was SO into Leave It To Beaver, probably as much because of the glow from the Sylvania Halo Vision tv I was watching it on and the Velveeta sandwich on white with one thin leaf of Iceberg draped across it that was the ritual meal of my childhood. I’m sure I’ve seen every single show of the original series that ran from 1957-’63. I was also into Lassie, My Three Sons, Dennis The Menace and other series that showed life from a kid’s point of view but I always liked Beaver because he was so inquisitive and annoying.

As an adult, once I moved to California I was elated to find a very kitschy restaurant in the middle of a golf course at the end of the runway of the Van Nuys airport owned by Beaver star, Barbara Billingsley, and named, appropriately enough, Billingsley’s. It was a steakhouse built in 1969 that served blue Jell-O for desset and remained pretty much intact until it finally and sadly closed a few years ago.

I went to Billingsley’s constantly on Sunday nights because of the great Graydon Wayne, ex- Three Suns member who faithfully sang and played three organs at the same time holding court around a classic piano bar. But as much as I loved listening to songs I otherwise never would’ve listened to while munching Surf ‘n Turf and sipping drinks out of a seashell I never lost sight of what excited me most – the fact that The Beav’s mom owned the joint.

P.S. I didn’t do any of this coloring. I was the type who always liked my colors very bold so there wouldn’t have been any of this frail, lighter-than-a-feather technique in any crayon execution of mine:

15Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Happy President’s Day! – Obama Chia Pet

15Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Happy President’s Day! – Obama Chia Pet

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In the kountry of Kitsch, there’s no higher honor bestowed upon a President than that of being commemorated as a Chia Pet. Now Chia Obama joins Chia Washington and Chia Lincoln in achieving that honor.

This Special Edition “Chia Obama” comes in two different moods, Chia Obama “Happy” and Chia Obama “Determined”.

Both come with with enough seed packets for three separate plantings with full growth expected in one to two weeks.

My hope on this President’s Day is that things like job creation, health care and other aspirations of Actual Obama get the watering and tender lovin’ care they deserve so they can achieve full growth too. Come on now and hail to the Ch-Ch-Ch- Chief!

14Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Happy Valentines Day! Say It With Hamm’s, 1970’s Style

14Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – Happy Valentines Day! Say It With Hamm’s, 1970’s Style

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Not quite sure why no chair was provided for the female of the species as by the time this photo was taken for this vintage Hamm’s beer sign in the late ’70’s feminism had surely raised its voice loud enough to demand equality in seating arrangements. At least they’ve got a few beers to tip back this Valentine’s Day so her muscles won’t cramp in that position. Maybe one of her gifts to him is a pedicure. In addition to candy and flowers I hope one of his gifts to her is a nice, comfortable chair.

12Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – The Day After… The Color Purple Opens In LA

12Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – The Day After… The Color Purple Opens In LA

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Can’t even move I’m so stiff and a little pissed as well as me who usually travels around with four cameras, different resolutions for different occasions, only had one on me last night at the opening of my musical, The Color Purple, back in LA for the third time, and after many years of faithful service this camera just handed in its resignation and quit. I suppose that could be considered Kitsch, the co-author of the show’s camera rebelling at the opening no less, leaving a master archivist, me, with little other than words to describe the UNBELIEVABLE NIGHT it was.

Alas, I’m at the mercy of friends sending me photos, all of which I hope will arrive sometime within the next 48 hours but not in enough time to have THE killer shot to head this blog post as I suspect my buds feel like me this morning after haaaard whooping and partying til 4 am. last night resulting in numb brain, feet, hands and anything else I can remotely feel still thumping. So pretend you see me in beautiful photos with some of last night’s guests including Quincy Jones, Chaka Kahn, Aaron Sorkin, Tisha Campbell, Loni Love, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Della Reese, Michael Colyar, Monique Coleman and my little party of Jai Rodriguez, John Lloyd Young and Luenell. I know I’m missing tons of folks but aforesaid brain is still soaked and without photos for reference I can’t make the ids.

Happy Purple. Please see the show if you’re in LA. Mommy’s very proud of the baby.

With some of the cast:

With Quincy Jones, Luenell and Constance Tillotson:

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With John Lloyd Young, who was brilliant as Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys which opened a couple weeks before us on Broadway:

With my TCP collaborator, Brenda Russell and Luenell, and a fabulous singer whose info I sadly lost as soon as she gave it to me, lead singer of Honeycomb, one of my favorite 70’s Soul groups (While You’re Out looking For Sugar”, “Want Ads”):

With Michael Colyar and Luenell:

With Charles Phoenix:

With my TCP collaborator, the Pulitzer prize winning Marsha Norman:

Three of my dates last night : Jai Rodriguez, Brian DeShazor, Charles Phoenix:

Me and Luenell on the red (should have been purple) carpet:

With Prudence Fenton and Luenell:

11Feb 2010

“Shug Avery (and The Color Purple) Comin To Town”

11Feb 2010

“Shug Avery (and The Color Purple) Comin To Town”

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No official Kitsch O’ The Day entry today as I’m getting ready for the opening tonight of the last stop on the first national tour of my musical, The Color Purple. The second tour begins in March but it’s a whole new production and whole new cast. I will miss my amazing Color Purple family of the last five years BEYOND IMMENSELY!

Here’s me and my two music/lyric collaborators, Stephen Bray and Brenda Russell with Stephen’s daughter Milena and our fantasically amazing Celie, Fantasia, last night after previews.

The show runs from now through the 28th at the Pantages in LA.

10Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – 1960’s Ponds Cold Cream

10Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – 1960’s Ponds Cold Cream

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Seeing as the Lustrous Lipstick display was so popular yesterday I moved my vintage Ponds face cream up in KOTD status to grace the shelves at The Allee Willis Museum Of Kitsch today. Along with Jergens, Ponds ruled the middle class moisturizer market in the 1950’s, 60’s and 70’s. Growing up, I don’t ever recall going into a friend’s house whose mom didn’t have a jar of this stashed next to the cotton balls.

Made by Chesebrough-Pond’s Inc., NY,NY this is the 10.4 oz. economy jar, the product’s most popular size. Pond’s famous Seven Day Beauty Plan included slathering this stuff on twice nightly for “smoother, lovlier” skin.

I remember stocking up on Ponds for college but then being too embarrassed to abide by the Pond’s famous Seven Day Beauty Plan for fear of having to walk my dorm around looking like this woman:

Here’s a 1960’s Ponds ad:

This commercial wasn’t for Ponds but for a competing more boutique line of facial cosmetics in the 1950s. It’s astounding to watch because of one of its secret ingredients, radioactivity!

09Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – 1980’s Revlon Lustrous Lipstick Display

09Feb 2010

Allee Willis’ Kitsch O’ The Day – 1980’s Revlon Lustrous Lipstick Display

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Lipstick names absolutely slay me. Lipstick displays with all the little color shafts lined up like cosmetic soldiers slay me even more. Favorites here, some of which are still made, include Love That Pink, Paint the Town Pink, Foxy Brown, Million Dollar Red, Love That Red, Certainly Red, Red Hot Red, Cherries In The Snow And Cherries A La Mode. With this said, all I ever wear is Mac Morange.

If I could wear this lipstick display around my neck this would be my most favorite pendant ever.