More sad news: Soupy Sales died

All of you boomers must remember Soupy Sales. We watched his show in the 60's which was really meant for kids but drew more adults to his irreverent program. A survey in 1962 showed that more than a third of his viewers were adults. It became a status symbol to get hit in the face with a pie on Soupy's show and many big names requested that honor including Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Bob Hope. His show was suspended several times due to "off-color" dialogue and routines, but was always reinstated by popular demand. Those shows of the 50's and 60's had no props to speak of, no special effects (Soupy's buddies White Fang, Black Tooth and Pookie were just hairy arms that appeared at the edge of the screen), and like Kukla, Fran and Ollie and Captain Kangaroo, they will be remembered and cherished long after today's animated kids' shows are gone. "Soupy was unrepentant and inspired our generation to anarchy."

An unexpected bump (lump) in the road

Well, here goes. I have breast cancer. I've already had surgery, had my first chemo treatment yesterday and will have a combination of chemo and radiation for the next year. I am doing November Carson on the 14th and 15th, "with a little help from my friends," so if you are planning to attend the show, come by and say hello (but no hugs, please). I'll be the one in the Carmen's Veranda booth with a hat. I'm a good patient and a good healer so this is an temporary inconvenience, not a change of lifestyle. I'm also planning to do Stampaway in Cincinnati next August, teach a class, and I've already spoken to Connie Williams about it. Most disappointing aspect of this is the interruption in my progress at Chapman University, but I can go back once this is behind me. Any of you who know me know what a control freak I am so one of my oldest friends, upon finding out about the cancer said, "you can't go anywhere, who will be in charge?" So I'm taking charge of my treatment (again with help from my husband and friends), but as for everything else, you're all on your own for a while. Keep a good thought and be sure to have your mammograms!!!!

It's the end of an era. The Century Lounge near LAX is closing.

I just read in the LA Times this morning that the Century Lounge by LAX has closed and will be torn down for more Wally Park parking. For the benefit of those of you who aren't Angelenos, for many years it has been a somewhat embarrassing landmark near LAX, adjacent to many of the large hotels and parking lots along Century Boulevard. The exact words used in the Times article were, "...an LA area strip club that has titillated and disgusted tourists for decades with its blinking 'Nude Nude Nudes" sign will be demolished and replaced by a parking lot..." The club reached an all-time low in 2005 when it erected an 18 foot high sign on its facade stating "Vaginas R Us." I guess that sign crossed the line of decency and it didn't last long, just long enough for us to see it a few times on our way to and from Wally Park. Just the other evening the club was alluded to on the TV show Two and A Half Men when Charlie's nephew, Jake, referred to it as the "Live Nudes" club near the airport and he expressed his desire to visit. For those of us who fly in and out of LAX at all hours of the day and night, the marquee was a beacon of uncivility on the way to the airport but also a recognizable landmark. The parking lot of the club never looked full, but I'm sure they must have done a brisk business or they would not have lasted so long. Or, the guests of the adjacent luxury hotels just walked over or were dropped off by cabs... One of my favorite memories of "Live Nudes" was a late night (or pre-dawn) run to LAX on our way to catch a plane for a stamp show. I had picked Mary Jo up in Whittier and we were making our way to Wally Park and LAX. We were stopped at the light at Century and Aviation waiting to make a left turn. It was pretty dark but the street lights illuminated the road. About 50 yards ahead, across Century Boulevard, we saw what we thought was a black cat crossing Aviation heading toward "Live Nudes." Eventually we realized by its "gait" that it wasn't a cat but a very large black rat, leading us to believe that apparently not everything at "Live Nudes" was alive...I guess the city fathers finally prevailed and unanimously agreed that another parking lot was preferable to nudes, dead or alive...

Carmen returns to Carson Nov 14 & 15

I just received word that I am "in" the November Carson rubber stamp convention. Due to school, etc. I have not been able to do this show for 2 years so an very happy to return. The show is on Saturday and Sunday November 14 and 15 and I have two year's worth of new images to share along with the old favorites, grab bags, some great new JUMBO poster paint markers, and other fun stuff! I hope that if you live in Southern California or are visiting around this time that you'll try to get to the show at least one day to say hello, support the vendors and Kat, and shop. We've lost so many stamp stores in the last year or so that the conventions are once again "showcases" for new products and stamps. The cost of admission to the show is small compared to the cost of gas to drive around SoCal to visit a handful of stores, and you get all the free demos, make and takes and great ideas from samples that you can absorb. Be sure to bring a camera to the show and also be sure to ask vendors if it's OK to take photos -- 99% of them encourage it. I'll be in the main hall -- look for "Carmen" and me.

Anniversary #40 August 23

I can't believe it's been 40 years...and they said it wouldn't last! Here we are a couple of years ago on our anniversary at one of our favorite restaurants, Cafe Sevilla, a Spanish restaurant in Riverside. We're actually going back there on our anniversary this year and also spending a night at the historic Mission Inn. Mike's high school reunion is this weekend and we're looking forward to seeing many of our old friends and I thought I better post this photo so they'll recognize us. He hasn't been to a reunion in 20 years and he's changed slightly...I haven't...

New images and GRAB BAGS available now

Many of the stamp images shown in the samples from Stampaway are now available for purchase, unmounted only. I have scanned all my newest images and can provide you with pricing info. Please contact me at my regular email (elainemadrid@att.net) if you are interested. Also, GRAB BAGS are still available. More than $100 worth of USDA choice rubber for $25 plus $6.50 shipping (they weigh about a pound apiece). I've been asked about the Riverside show and will probably go back -- still holding out for November Carson, too, but that is up in the air. Would hate to miss my SoCal customers completely...

New images (double click to enlarge)