From 1983: Radio Free Europe

I know, I know.  I'm on a major 1983 kick right now.
Hang in there with me; it'll pass.

I'm posting this clip simply because I can't stop watching it.
It's just that good.

p.s. This was one of the earliest examples of me falling madly in love with a gay man.  Man, Michael Stipe was such a cutie, with all of that angst and gorgeous curly hair.

Donuts + Ukelele Music = Great Party

Hooray for donuts!

Hooray for parties!

Hooray for Young America!

(This message is brought to you by the Bakers of America.  Yes, readers: always look for that red, white, and blue seal.) 

Edited to add:
I totally want to have a donuts and ukelele party now.
It sounds like a lot of fun.
Yes, really.

For All Of My Special Valentines...

...thank you for making A Touch Of Tuesday Weld part of your lives.

The only way that I could think to show my love is to give you the kind of thing you guys like best. So here's The Who tearing up the stage in 1977, shortly before Keith Moon's death. Of course, the genius of Keith Moon was that he could drum at all at this point in his life, but damned if he doesn't give one of the performances of his illustrious career.

Thank you, my Valentines.

This PSA Is A Hell Of A Lot More Effective Than That Constipated Moralistic Nancy Reagan Nonsense

As you can see, this was aired sometime in 1972, as you see a snippet of The Price Is Right with Bob Barker. Dig the miniskirt on one of Barker's Beauties!

From 1982: A Clip Full Of Awesome From The Valley Of The Sun

Phoenix, Arizona. random super 8 movies shot by 15 yr old Timothy Ralston. Some starring 9 yr old Andrew Ralston. 5301 E. Fellars Drive, Scottsdale. Circa 1982. Contains: Driving to Phoenix airport from near Paradise Valley Mall. N. 52 St. Lots of Benny Hill type sped up Shenanigans. The song is "Twilight" from the album "Time" by Electric Light Orchestra.

Laura's Note: my favorite YouTube video of all time. Enjoy.

From 1958: When Mental Illness Manifests Itself Through Skincare Rituals

Jean is crazy...crazy about beautiful skin, that is!

From 1967: When Bands Rip Off The Sgt. Pepper Cover

Coppertone QT For Cutie

Recently, I had a self-tanning mishap that left my right leg with various golden-tan stripes and my left leg looking downright crispy. I don't think that I will ever get a self-tanner right, but at least my clumsy attempts must have been better than what you could get from Coppertone QT. I imagine that the end result made you blend right in with the oranges at the grocery store.

A real gem from the mid-60s. Enjoy.

From 1954: Life On A Submarine Has Never Been So Colorful

There is something so joyous about this cover,
I just had to post it here!

Prom 1977: All The Dancing Queens Got To Give It Up Before They Are Blinded By The Light On Those Southern Nights

Just breathe in the glamour (the scent of pot, Wrigley's spearmint gum, and horniness, coupled with Love's Deep Earthy Musk or Love's Musky Jasmine...or Yves Saint Laurent Opium, borrowed from Mom for this special night).

#1 on the Billboard chart, April 2, 1977



#1 on the Billboard chart, June 25, 1977




#1 on the Billboard chart, February 19, 1977




#1 on the Billboard chart, April 30, 1977

Prom 1977: All In The Family

Kids in 1977 knew that prom traditions often involved the family, be it borrowing your old man's Chevy for an evening of revelry, or posing with your mother under a tree for a photo.

Mom in the second picture incarnates why I love vintage things so damned much. Did she go to the beauty parlor herself that morning to have her hair teased so that a good foot was added to her overall height? Did she use spit to style her bangs?

As for the youth in the first picture, did his family move onto the Clutter Family farm after the cops and Capote left, or something? Talk about a desolate prairie. It looks like perhaps some sort of shantytown exists in the background. Perhaps this young man was going to prom at Jonestown! How did he get such a fashion-forward tuxedo in Guyana?

How could I forgotten today's prom tune? Here's The Sylvers with "Hot Line." This song peaked at #5 on the Billboard chart for two weeks in January/February 1977.

Prom 1977: Girls In Long Sleeves

Quite an elegant, romantic look, I think.

Perfect for that first slow dance: Mary MacGregor's "Torn Between Two Lovers," which spent two weeks atop the Billboard chart in February 1977.

Prom 1977: Candid Couples

Sometimes it's best to let photos speak for themselves. I love how natural the girls look, with soft pretty hair and understated makeup. The young girls who go to prom today...well, it's all just so much of a production; the drag queens on RuPaul's Drag Race have nothing on today's generation of prom-going girls!




Turn the volume up loud...you know you want to! This song hit #1 on the Billboard chart on January 15, 1977.

Prom 1977: First In A Five-Part Series Extravaganza

Just sit back and soak in the glamour that only orange blossoms fashioned from tissue paper can bring.

A coordinated tuxedo to his gal's pretty pink dress? You cannot beat that for style! She's so winsome and lithe; he's so Everybody's All-American. I wonder if her mother made her dress all special? Do you notice that it kind of resembles the Carrie White glamourwear?

(p.s. As is the case with all of my bloggings, I make fun of my subjects, but deep down within, there is a healthy respect...for the effort that was made, for the history involved, for the sheer charm that comes from innocence and youth. Such is the case here. I'm teasing about them, sure; but can you imagine the glamour and excitement of that dance? Those orange blossoms were fashioned with such care! Such a lovely chuppah for the prom couple to pose under! Can you just hear the thump thump thump of the disco beat on the dance floor? I'm talkin' burn, baby, burn...Disco Inferno! Burn, baby, burn...burn that mutha down!)

Nothing Cures A Vegas Hangover Faster Than Pretending Yourself Into An Alternate Universe Where You Are Bonnie Franklin

That dress that Ann Romano is sporting just rocks. I wonder if Ken would consent to being Schneider for Halloween, if I can get my hands on some red hair dye (no problem) and a long pine green polyester housedress with a Lynyrd Skynyrd album cover motif airbrushed onto it (might have to scour a couple of Savers locations).

No yucky comments about Mackenzie Phillips and her father, please. Although it is hard for me to resist the line, "I'm a freak and a weirdo."

Now I am off to find the nail-biting episode arc where Julie and Chuck run away.

You Take The Good, You Fire The Bad, You Add One Jo, And There You Have

Sort of the original cast of The Facts Of Life (the first four episodes featured actress Jenny O'Hara, as sass-talkin' young teacher Emily Mahoney)

Summer 1979

Here, the show tackles the sensitive topics of hidden lesbian love, African-American children with growth disorders, girls who grow up to put hot sauce on the tongues of their innocent children and hold up video stores, and too much eye shadow ("but it's the look that sells!").

Because We Need A Little Tuesday This Tuesday. Dick Clark And Misunderstood Youths Are Just Icing On This Cake Full Of Angst.

1960