The Cubby Experiment continues, with the imaginary "Cubster" gathering information every day. What's that? Input like "Gilligan's Island" and "Scooby-Doo" doesn't sound very edifying? Well, they were always on in the afternoon when I came home from school, so -- why not?
FORTY-FOURTH DAY (Nov. 13)
“Royal Death Plot” (7/24 – 11/11, 1939), Superman comic.
Lone Ranger, “Pete and Pedro”; Jonny Quest, “Calcutta Adventure” – origin of Hadji.
Scooby-Doo, “Hassle in the Castle”; Gilligan, “Home Sweet Hut.” I haven't mentioned that, due to Gilligan, Cubby now knows who Jim Backus is, who was mentioned in a newspaper clipping way back on the second day.
Mazeppa, “Chinchilla Attack #3”; Superman, “Billion Dollar Limited”; Zorro’s Fighting Legion, “Chapter Three: Descending Doom”; The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923 historical).
Thistle & Shamrock #694, “A Robust Tradition” – harp music.
Captain America no. 109 (Jan. 1968) – “The Origin of Captain America!” A 2002 reprint of a 1968 issue retelling events from a 1942 comic – all drawn by Jack “King” Kirby! A direct sequel to the Doc Savage/Shadow comic (retroactively), with “Dr. Reinstein” perfecting his Super-Soldier serum.
Excerpt from Furred Animals of Australia by Ellis Troughton – the mysterious Marsupial Tiger-Cat!
“Close Encounter of the Third Kind at Kelly Re-Examined,” from The International UFO Reporter Vol. 3, no. 5 (May 1978) – article on the Kelly/Hopkinsville case.
FORTY-SIXTH DAY (Nov. 15)
“Underworld Politics” (11/13 – 12/16, 1939) and “Unnatural Disasters” (12/18/39 – 1/6/40) finishes off Superman: The Dailies 1939-1940 Vol. 1.
“West Virginia’s ‘Mothman’”, article/chapter from John Keel’s Strange Creatures from Time & Space.
Unsolved Mysteries, “Agatha Christie,” “Skunk Ape,” “Mothman” – because Nov. 15 was the 45th anniversary of the appearance of Mothman, more-or-less. Cubby recognizes Agatha Christie as the creator of Miss Marple (though the film Murder She Said was not a very close adaptation).
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Saturday, November 12, 2011
37th - 42nd Day
THIRTY-SEVENTH DAY (Nov. 6)
“The Most Deadly Weapon” (5/1 – 6/10, 1939); “Superman and the Runaway” (6/12 – 7/22, 1939) – Superman comic strip.
Journey, “Infinity” (cassette)
Unsolved Mysteries, “Grace’s Ghost,” “Voice from the Grave,” “Ghosts Go to Court,” “The Entity,” “Ghost Boy”
Silent Invasion, Stan Gordon (fortean) – Waited thirty-seven years for this one, so read it even though it’s a bit advanced for Cubby. A major flap of UFOs, hairy monsters, mystery men, and various weird occurrences from the wild year of 1973.
FORTIETH DAY (Nov. 9)
“The Crowd,” “The Long Rain,” “The Sound of Summer Running,” Ray Bradbury.
“Call of Cthulhu,” H. P. Lovecraft – pretty scary, that vast shifting corpulence, Cthulhu!
The Family Circus By Request, Bil Keane (comic strips)
Tales of the Green Hornet no. 1 (Jan. 1992) and no. 2 (Feb. 1992) – The story of how newspaper publisher Britt Reid became the masked crime-fighter, the Green Hornet. Say! He has the same last name as the Lone Ranger!
Red Skelton, “The Iceman Goeth”; Twilight Zone, “One for the Angels” – Death comes after you? No fair!
“Another Whitechapel Murder,” from the London Times, Nov. 10, 1888, p. 7 – The Ripper strikes.
“The Whitechapel Murder,” the Times, Nov. 12, 1888.
“Supposed Murder at the East End,” the Times, 11/14/88 – Body found floating in the Thames. Nothing to do with ol’ Jack, just an interesting Victorian item.
“A Detective’s Diary a la Mode” plus Review of the play Uncles and Aunts, from Punch, or the London Charivari (Sept. 22, 1888). “Detective” is a satire on the search for Jack the Ripper. The review happened to be on the same page. I wonder if anyone else on earth today has read this 123-year-old review, or ever heard of this play?
Excerpts from Jack the Ripper by Daniel Farson (1972) – telling of the Ripper’s effect on people beyond London. Read these items today because November 9 is the anniversary of the Kelly murder.
Thirty-six books = 3/400 of the way done.
FORTY-SECOND DAY (Nov. 11)
The Shadow and Doc Savage no. 1 (July 1995) and no. 2 (August 1995) – “The Case of the Shrieking Skeletons” brings back Doc, whom we saw in The Man of Bronze, plus a new mysterious character called – The Shadow!
“The Cask of Amontillado,” “The City in the Sea,” “Annabelle Lee,” Edgar Allan Poe.
Wild Life in the Alps, Gerth Rokitansky – a small volume translated from German, with the occasional “ob” and “und” left in. Ibexes, marmots, ptarmigans, and the golden eagle – we’re learning more about nature.
Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls, George Jonsen – pamphlet of Troll tales, including “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.”
All Creatures Great and Small, “Dog Days” – brother Tristan appears.
Victory at Sea, “Midway is East”; NASA, “Gemini VIII”
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?, “What a Night for a Knight”
Gilligan’s Island, “Two on a Raft” plus pilot episode with different actors.
Unknown World (1951 sf) – Explorers seek an underground haven to escape an atomic war. No dinosaurs, mole men, or lost civilizations, and very cheap, but not too bad.
“The Most Deadly Weapon” (5/1 – 6/10, 1939); “Superman and the Runaway” (6/12 – 7/22, 1939) – Superman comic strip.
Journey, “Infinity” (cassette)
Unsolved Mysteries, “Grace’s Ghost,” “Voice from the Grave,” “Ghosts Go to Court,” “The Entity,” “Ghost Boy”
Silent Invasion, Stan Gordon (fortean) – Waited thirty-seven years for this one, so read it even though it’s a bit advanced for Cubby. A major flap of UFOs, hairy monsters, mystery men, and various weird occurrences from the wild year of 1973.
FORTIETH DAY (Nov. 9)
“The Crowd,” “The Long Rain,” “The Sound of Summer Running,” Ray Bradbury.
“Call of Cthulhu,” H. P. Lovecraft – pretty scary, that vast shifting corpulence, Cthulhu!
The Family Circus By Request, Bil Keane (comic strips)
Tales of the Green Hornet no. 1 (Jan. 1992) and no. 2 (Feb. 1992) – The story of how newspaper publisher Britt Reid became the masked crime-fighter, the Green Hornet. Say! He has the same last name as the Lone Ranger!
Red Skelton, “The Iceman Goeth”; Twilight Zone, “One for the Angels” – Death comes after you? No fair!
“Another Whitechapel Murder,” from the London Times, Nov. 10, 1888, p. 7 – The Ripper strikes.
“The Whitechapel Murder,” the Times, Nov. 12, 1888.
“Supposed Murder at the East End,” the Times, 11/14/88 – Body found floating in the Thames. Nothing to do with ol’ Jack, just an interesting Victorian item.
“A Detective’s Diary a la Mode” plus Review of the play Uncles and Aunts, from Punch, or the London Charivari (Sept. 22, 1888). “Detective” is a satire on the search for Jack the Ripper. The review happened to be on the same page. I wonder if anyone else on earth today has read this 123-year-old review, or ever heard of this play?
Excerpts from Jack the Ripper by Daniel Farson (1972) – telling of the Ripper’s effect on people beyond London. Read these items today because November 9 is the anniversary of the Kelly murder.
Thirty-six books = 3/400 of the way done.
FORTY-SECOND DAY (Nov. 11)
The Shadow and Doc Savage no. 1 (July 1995) and no. 2 (August 1995) – “The Case of the Shrieking Skeletons” brings back Doc, whom we saw in The Man of Bronze, plus a new mysterious character called – The Shadow!
“The Cask of Amontillado,” “The City in the Sea,” “Annabelle Lee,” Edgar Allan Poe.
Wild Life in the Alps, Gerth Rokitansky – a small volume translated from German, with the occasional “ob” and “und” left in. Ibexes, marmots, ptarmigans, and the golden eagle – we’re learning more about nature.
Favorite Tales of Monsters and Trolls, George Jonsen – pamphlet of Troll tales, including “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.”
All Creatures Great and Small, “Dog Days” – brother Tristan appears.
Victory at Sea, “Midway is East”; NASA, “Gemini VIII”
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?, “What a Night for a Knight”
Gilligan’s Island, “Two on a Raft” plus pilot episode with different actors.
Unknown World (1951 sf) – Explorers seek an underground haven to escape an atomic war. No dinosaurs, mole men, or lost civilizations, and very cheap, but not too bad.
Monday, November 7, 2011
33rd - 36th Days
THIRTY-THIRD DAY (November 2, 2011)
Murder, She Said (1962 mystery) – Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple. Like The Lady Vanishes, the mystery involves a train and a missing woman. Cubby will have to spread out, mystery-wise.
Excerpt from In Northern Mists, by Fridtjof Nansen (1911) – a mention of Dog-Headed Men in Norway.
THIRTY-FIFTH DAY (Nov. 4)
“First Person,” first-hand accounts sent to Strange Magazine, now on their website. Monsters and ghosts, including the infamous “Giant Shrimp in the Laundry Room.”
Kolchak: The Night Stalker, “Horror in the Heights” – I intended to watch TV shows in a sort of historical order, beginning with Twilight Zone and going on to Night Stalker later, but I decided on a bit of “random access” viewing. The Rakshasa is quite a nasty customer in this episode!
“The Picture in the House,” H. P. Lovecraft (horror ss)
“The Rag-Thing,” David Grinnell (Donald Wollheim) (sf ss)
THIRTY-SIXTH DAY (Nov. 5)
Pockets World History, Philip Wilkinson – A tiny paperback, but it gives us an outline of history from cavemen to 1996 when it was published. Now Cubby knows all the basics of history, and how the fragments and bits he has learned fit together! It’s like a couple of pages of Life Story multiplied a thousandfold, yet it is itself very sketchy (Ancient Rome gets two pages, The Cold War and The Space Race get a page each, etc.). Nothing to do but expand more into history!
Lone Ranger, “War Horse”; Jonny Quest, “Treasure of the Temple” – Maya-type ruins and gold treasure remind us of the Doc Savage book.
Unsolved Mysteries, “Friendly Ghost,” “Resurrection Mary,” “Matchmaker Ghost,” “Queen Mary Ghosts”.
Rocketship X-M (1950 sf) – Could almost be considered the first of 1950s SF. It was filmed quick in order to get it out before George Pal’s announced Destination Moon. Though cheaply made and rushed, it’s not too bad. Would have been #1 in “Fantastic Theater,” except I just found it.
Thirty-four books = 1/144 of the way.
Murder, She Said (1962 mystery) – Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple. Like The Lady Vanishes, the mystery involves a train and a missing woman. Cubby will have to spread out, mystery-wise.
Excerpt from In Northern Mists, by Fridtjof Nansen (1911) – a mention of Dog-Headed Men in Norway.
THIRTY-FIFTH DAY (Nov. 4)
“First Person,” first-hand accounts sent to Strange Magazine, now on their website. Monsters and ghosts, including the infamous “Giant Shrimp in the Laundry Room.”
Kolchak: The Night Stalker, “Horror in the Heights” – I intended to watch TV shows in a sort of historical order, beginning with Twilight Zone and going on to Night Stalker later, but I decided on a bit of “random access” viewing. The Rakshasa is quite a nasty customer in this episode!
“The Picture in the House,” H. P. Lovecraft (horror ss)
“The Rag-Thing,” David Grinnell (Donald Wollheim) (sf ss)
THIRTY-SIXTH DAY (Nov. 5)
Pockets World History, Philip Wilkinson – A tiny paperback, but it gives us an outline of history from cavemen to 1996 when it was published. Now Cubby knows all the basics of history, and how the fragments and bits he has learned fit together! It’s like a couple of pages of Life Story multiplied a thousandfold, yet it is itself very sketchy (Ancient Rome gets two pages, The Cold War and The Space Race get a page each, etc.). Nothing to do but expand more into history!
Lone Ranger, “War Horse”; Jonny Quest, “Treasure of the Temple” – Maya-type ruins and gold treasure remind us of the Doc Savage book.
Unsolved Mysteries, “Friendly Ghost,” “Resurrection Mary,” “Matchmaker Ghost,” “Queen Mary Ghosts”.
Rocketship X-M (1950 sf) – Could almost be considered the first of 1950s SF. It was filmed quick in order to get it out before George Pal’s announced Destination Moon. Though cheaply made and rushed, it’s not too bad. Would have been #1 in “Fantastic Theater,” except I just found it.
Thirty-four books = 1/144 of the way.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
27th to 31st Days
TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY
You’ve Done it Again, Charlie Brown, Charles Schulz – Finally we see what that one comic strip from AD 2000 referred to. Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and other characters from Sunday “Peanuts” strips.
“The Damned Thing,” “Mysterious Disappearances,” Ambrose Bierce (h ss) – More scary tales, these by a fellow named Bierce.
Psycho (1960 horror) – Another Hitchcock film, this one the ancestor of all sorts of serial killer and slasher movies. Maybe Cubby is reading and watching too many scary things!
“The White River Monster of Jackson County, Arkansas: A Historical Summary of Oral and Popular Growth and Change in a Legend,” William Harris – an article of folklore from Mid-South Folklore, Vol. 5, No. 1, Spring 1977. A monster in an Arkansas river? Hard to imagine!
Thirty-Two books read = 1/150 of the way done.
TWENTY-NINTH DAY
“Some Haunted Houses,” “The Ways of Ghosts,” “The Death of Halpin Frasier,” Ambrose Bierce (h ss).
“The Borden Case,” a sizable portion of Studies in Murder by Edmund Pearson, plus “Legends of Lizzie” from More Studies in Murder.
Unsolved Mysteries, “Ghost Writer,” “The Marie Celeste,” Myrtle Plantation,” “General Wayne’s Inn.” More scary ghost stories!
Lone Ranger, “The Rustlers’ Hideout”
Jonny Quest, “Riddle of the Gold”
Legend of Boggy Creek (1972 horror) – docu-drama about the Fouke Monster in Arkansas. Certainly unique with its folk-song interludes!
THIRTY-FIRST DAY
Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949 animated) – A Disney more-or-less feature film. A rather hurried version of Wind in the Willows, but great adaptation of “Sleepy Hollow.” A harrowing final chase by the Headless Horseman at the end!
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966 animated short) – plus extras. We see more of those “Peanuts” kids (and that World War I flying ace, Snoopy) as they prepare for “Tricks or Treats.”
The Colour Out of Space, H. P. Lovecraft (h ss) – As much sf as horror, this story about something nasty in a meteorite brings us one HPL story before the end of the first month.
Excuse Me While I Wag, Scott Adams (comic strips) – this new comic collection introduces us to Dilbert, Dogbert, and co. – and what a workplace is really like.
Observations on the First Month: Cubby has seen, heard and read quite a bit during his first month. TV shows and movies, from the educational to pure entertainment, from funny to frightening. History: still mostly from Victory at Sea; the 9-11 LIFE magazine showed the modern world. Nature: Well, we learned a lot about whales and dolphins! Science: NASA shows and the Golden Book of Stars are still the leaders here.
Cubby’s read through most of the juvenile books I have. Next come more challenging books. He has read a few poems and one novel (a pulp Doc Savage though that was). Music is probably the smallest category in my personal collection, but, besides the CDs Cubby has listened to, he’s heard music in every DVD and VHS he’s seen.
I couldn’t help leaning toward horror tales and monsters as we swept towards Halloween. Cubby’s read about and seen ghosts and monsters, imaginary and (supposedly) real. A single issue of Famous Monsters gave him a passing acquaintance with all the Universal monsters like the Wolfman, the Creature, the Mummy, etc. He’s read stories by Bradbury, Wellman, Jackson, and others. Space travel he knows from Bradbury and the reality of NASA films. Wells introduced the concept of time travel. Monster movies were a staple in my own diet when I was young, then I made the leap into science fiction literature. That comes next!
You’ve Done it Again, Charlie Brown, Charles Schulz – Finally we see what that one comic strip from AD 2000 referred to. Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and other characters from Sunday “Peanuts” strips.
“The Damned Thing,” “Mysterious Disappearances,” Ambrose Bierce (h ss) – More scary tales, these by a fellow named Bierce.
Psycho (1960 horror) – Another Hitchcock film, this one the ancestor of all sorts of serial killer and slasher movies. Maybe Cubby is reading and watching too many scary things!
“The White River Monster of Jackson County, Arkansas: A Historical Summary of Oral and Popular Growth and Change in a Legend,” William Harris – an article of folklore from Mid-South Folklore, Vol. 5, No. 1, Spring 1977. A monster in an Arkansas river? Hard to imagine!
Thirty-Two books read = 1/150 of the way done.
TWENTY-NINTH DAY
“Some Haunted Houses,” “The Ways of Ghosts,” “The Death of Halpin Frasier,” Ambrose Bierce (h ss).
“The Borden Case,” a sizable portion of Studies in Murder by Edmund Pearson, plus “Legends of Lizzie” from More Studies in Murder.
Unsolved Mysteries, “Ghost Writer,” “The Marie Celeste,” Myrtle Plantation,” “General Wayne’s Inn.” More scary ghost stories!
Lone Ranger, “The Rustlers’ Hideout”
Jonny Quest, “Riddle of the Gold”
Legend of Boggy Creek (1972 horror) – docu-drama about the Fouke Monster in Arkansas. Certainly unique with its folk-song interludes!
THIRTY-FIRST DAY
Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949 animated) – A Disney more-or-less feature film. A rather hurried version of Wind in the Willows, but great adaptation of “Sleepy Hollow.” A harrowing final chase by the Headless Horseman at the end!
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966 animated short) – plus extras. We see more of those “Peanuts” kids (and that World War I flying ace, Snoopy) as they prepare for “Tricks or Treats.”
The Colour Out of Space, H. P. Lovecraft (h ss) – As much sf as horror, this story about something nasty in a meteorite brings us one HPL story before the end of the first month.
Excuse Me While I Wag, Scott Adams (comic strips) – this new comic collection introduces us to Dilbert, Dogbert, and co. – and what a workplace is really like.
Observations on the First Month: Cubby has seen, heard and read quite a bit during his first month. TV shows and movies, from the educational to pure entertainment, from funny to frightening. History: still mostly from Victory at Sea; the 9-11 LIFE magazine showed the modern world. Nature: Well, we learned a lot about whales and dolphins! Science: NASA shows and the Golden Book of Stars are still the leaders here.
Cubby’s read through most of the juvenile books I have. Next come more challenging books. He has read a few poems and one novel (a pulp Doc Savage though that was). Music is probably the smallest category in my personal collection, but, besides the CDs Cubby has listened to, he’s heard music in every DVD and VHS he’s seen.
I couldn’t help leaning toward horror tales and monsters as we swept towards Halloween. Cubby’s read about and seen ghosts and monsters, imaginary and (supposedly) real. A single issue of Famous Monsters gave him a passing acquaintance with all the Universal monsters like the Wolfman, the Creature, the Mummy, etc. He’s read stories by Bradbury, Wellman, Jackson, and others. Space travel he knows from Bradbury and the reality of NASA films. Wells introduced the concept of time travel. Monster movies were a staple in my own diet when I was young, then I made the leap into science fiction literature. That comes next!
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