Here's Mud in Your Eye, Honey!

 Can You Connect These 

 Seemingly Distant Dots? 

 Denny the Dell Rat Wants to Know! 

Put On Your Thinking Cap.

Avoid the Dunce Cap.

Get Ready for

Another Shady's Place

Brain-Buster Quiz! 

That's right, dear friend, It's time to bust your brain

on Shady Del Knight's latest Mom & Pop quiz.

Try to contain your enthusiasm.

Can your noggin pass the test?

 Denny the Dell Rat Wants to Know! 

Hi, I'm Denny

the Dell Rat.

I might be a rat,

but I'm curious

as a cat. I'd like

you to play my

favorite game,

 Six Degrees...

and see if you can

connect the dots.

Tell me if you

can name the

common links

between this

unsavory film

character and

four famous

people.

You takin' a shine to my woman, boy?

Well damned if you ain't!

So that's why you come bustin'

into her room the other night

like some little old banty rooster.

You're sniffin' after her, aren't ya boy?
Answer me! ANSWER ME!

TRIVIA QUESTION:

How is this mean drunk

related to Dennis the Menace,

Tommy Dorsey, Frank Sinatra

and The Monkees?

(SCROLL DOWN)

ANSWER TO
TRIVIA QUESTION:

Character actor Hal Hopper, who played the

despicable lowlife sot Sidney Brenshaw...

 in Russ Meyer's 1965 Southern Gothic film Mudhoney...

was the uncle of Jay North, star of the

family comedy TV series Dennis the Menace.

Jay North (1951-2025)

Sadly, Jay recently died.  He lost his battle with

cancer April 6, 2025, at the too young age of 73.

Hal Hopper and his wife

Marie served as Jay's on-set

guardians during the filming

of the show. Hal also appeared

in acting roles in four episodes

of the series in seasons 2 and 3.

Jay North was a gifted child actor with millions of fans.

He knew his lines, hit his marks and made us laugh.

Cute as can be, Jay was convincing in his portrayal of a happy kid.

But, behind the scenes, Jay was sad and withdrawn, a victim of abuse.

  He was forced to work long hours on the set in violation of child labor laws. 

On top of that, young Jay was constantly reminded that the livelihoods

of a hundred people depended on him making the show a hit and

keeping it that way. No kid needs that kind of pressure!

Jay also revealed that, during the series' four season run,

he was verbally and physically abused by his

aunt and uncle, Hal and Marie Hopper. 

In fairness to Hal, it was Jay's aunt Marie who was mainly

responsible for the abuse. Any time Marie concluded that

Jay's performance in a scene didn't measure up to her

perfectionist standards, she dragged him off to the

dressing room, gave him a tongue lashing, shook

him, grabbed him by the hair, slapped his face

and spanked him. The aunt was careful not to

leave bruises that could be detected by other

members of the cast and crew. Absence of

bruises aside, Jay's years-long ordeal left

lasting emotional and psychological scars.

He couldn't bear to watch reruns of the

show because they brought back

such painful memories.

The original Dennis the Menace TV series premiered

October 4, 1959, the same week R&B blues man

Bo Diddley was climbing the chart with

his top 3 charting hit "Say Man."

"Say Man" - Bo Diddley

(Oct. 1959, highest chart pos. #3 R&B,

#20 Hot 100/#21 Cash Box)

On May 25, 1965, when the lewd and lascivious

Russ Meyer film Mudhoney was released to theaters...

...the kid-tested, mother-approved English pop band Herman's Hermits

were enjoying their fourth week of topping the chart in the U.S. and

 in countries all over the world with their innocent puppy love

ditty-- "Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter."

"Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter" 
- Herman's Hermits (April/May 1965,
highest chart pos. #1, Hot 100 & Cash Box)

The Pied Pipers (Hal Hopper 2nd from left)

Hal Hopper was primarily known as a singer and songwriter.

He was a member of The Pied Pipers, a popular singing

group from the late 1930s through the 40s that worked

with Tommy Dorsey and Frank Sinatra.

The Pied Pipers (Hal Hopper on right)

  Down Beat magazine named The Pied Pipers the best and most popular

group of the year two years in a row - 1944 and 1945. In 2001, the group

was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. In this vintage clip,

you will see Hal Hopper (on the right in the light colored jacket)

and the rest of The Pied Pipers  as they sing Johnny Mercer's

1944 jazz and pop standard "Dream," a song The P-Pipers

released as a single in 1945 and one of their biggest

hits for Capitol Records. (The song was later

recorded by Frank Sinatra and Roy Orbison.) 

"Dream (When You're Feeling Blue)" - The Pied Pipers (1945) 

As a songwriter, Hal Hopper composed

the theme songs of several TV shows...

including the western adventure family series

Circus Boy which aired from 1956 to 1957.

"The Circus Is Coming" by Harold Hopper and Victor McLeod 

  Hal Hopper landed an acting role in a 1957 episode of the show.

Circus Boy featured another cute little lad named Corky.

The child actor in the title role was Mickey Braddock,

not exactly a household name nowadays.  

Mickey Braddock later changed his name and gained

worldwide fame as Mickey Dolenz, the drummer

and one of the lead vocalists of The Monkees.

"I'm A Believer" - The Monkees

(Dec. 1966/Jan & Feb. 1967, highest chart pos.

#1 Hot 100 & Cash Box)

Wanna feel really old, boomer friend? Mickey Dolenz is 80 years old!

Wacky fact: Mickey's real name is George Michael Dolenz. Imagine

if he had chosen George Michael as his stage name!

WHAM!

In 1970, only five years after fleshing out the character

of trash-talking bully Sidney Brenshaw in Mudhoney...

Hal Hopper (1912-1970)

Hal Hopper died as a result of emphysema a week

before he would have celebrated his 58th birthday.

 

   Did you guess

   the correct

  answers before

 scrolling down?

Denny the

Dell Rat

wants to

know!

If you got the answers... good for you.

If not, you know the drill.

Have a Shady day!

NOTE: The character Denny the Dell Rat was inspired

by my high school classmate, fellow Shady Dell regular

and good friend Denny Neiman. 

Dennis "Denny" Neiman

1949 - 2010