A Medium Well Done ... is Rare!

Ladies and gentlemen...

there is electricity in the air tonight.

I am excited and honored to welcome back that
great visitor from the East... the famous seer...
sage... soothsayer... all knowing... all seeing...
all omniscient... and former road manager
for Shecky Shady's Caravan of Cackles...

Carnac..... the Magnificent!

Oh mighty Carnac,

I hold in my hand... the envelopes.

They have been hermetically sealed

and kept in a mayonnaise jar on Doc

Severinsen's porch since noon today.

NO ONE knows the contents of these envelopes.

BUT YOU!... in your divine and borderline
mystical way, will ascertain the answers
without ever having seen the questions.
Is that not so, oh great one?

You are correct, Budweiser breath.

Let there be silence. I must have
complete silence as I concentrate
on the first envelope.

Hermetically sealed.

That's correct.

Since noon today.

Look, if they haven't bought
the premise by now...
they're never going to!

(ED laughs loudly) Hi-Yo!

Now let there be silence in the room...

(long pause)..... Gingersnaps.

Gingersnaps.

That's what I said, Spuds MacKenzie.

Is there an echo in here?

(Ed chortles as Johnny rips the end
off the envelope, blows it open and
removes the slip of paper)

What does Ginger do when
she's ticked-off?

(Ed laughs loudly)

On October 1, 1962...

...when The Tonight Show Starring

Johnny Carson made its debut...

this danceworthy ditty was rockin' you!

"Let's Dance" - Chris Montez

(Oct. 1962, highest chart pos. #4 Hot 100/#6 Cash Box)

On May 22, 1992...

when Johnny hosted his final Tonight Show,
this R&B sizzler was riding high on the chart!

"My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)"

En Vogue (Apr/May 1992, highest chart pos.

#1 Cash Box and R&B/#2 Hot 100)

I hold in my hand..... the last envelope.

(crowd cheers loudly)

May a weird holy man turn your

sister's bedroom into a sweat lodge.

Give him a big round of applause,
ladies and gentlemen...

Carnac...

the Magnificent!

JOHNNY CARSON & CAROL WAYNE - ART FERN'S TEA TIME MOVIE SKETCH

 HAPPY 

 APRIL FOOLS' 

 DAY! 

SCROLL DOWN

Friends, would you please help a fellow blogger?

My dear friend Mary Kirkland and her daughter Lizzie

are going through tough times, dealing with separate

serious medical crises.  Lizzie is hospitalized and

unable to work. A Go Fund Me page has been

set up to collect donations for Lizzie.  Click

on Mary's picture (below) to read about

Lizzie's situation and donate to her

help fund. Thank you!

Call Girls Vol. 1 - Calling All Call Girls!

Welcome to Call Girls...
a new Shady's Place series inspired by

... a feature that I ran on my old blog years ago.

It's another Brain Buster Quiz that tests your music I.Q.

Can your noggin make the grade?

Put on your thinking cap.

  Think hard!

A headache is better than the shame and

embarrassment of the dreaded dunce cap!

Put that away! You won't find the answers in there, toots!

The game is simple. There are 3 hidden songs.

To introduce the songs, I am calling upon the Call Girls -

vintage women shown talking on the telephone,

a common theme in photos of the period.

 The Call Girls are staffing a phone bank located

in the penthouse suite of Shady Towers. 

The phones are ringing off the hook as the ladies take

song requests called in by SPMM radio listeners.

 Based on those phone requests, each Call Girl will play a song for you.

 She'll tell you the name of the artist and provide other clues.

The pictures and illustrations that go along with each

song intro also hint at the title. All you need to do is

When you think of the answer, simply click on the designated image.

You will find out if you are correct and be able to listen to the song. 

 

Check the scoring chart at the end to learn how you rate as a music trivia buff.

 

Okay, it's time to play the game. 

 SONG #1 

Call Girl Betty

Hi! I'm Call Betty, one of Abigail Ambrosia's assistants on the Shady's Place

series Ask Abigail and moonlighting as a Call Girl. I have a listener on the line

who wants me to play a popular song of the mid 60s. Co-written by Marvin Gaye,

it has stood the test of time as one of Motown's signature songs. It was originally

recorded by Martha And The Vandellas, resulting in a #2-charting crossover hit

for the girl group in 1964. My caller wants to hear the groovy cover waxed

by The Mamas And The Papas and released in November, 1966, on the

B side of their single "Words Of Love." By early 1967, this killer bee

had caught on with listeners to become a minor hit in its own right.

As you gaze at these three vintage magazine covers...

you will notice that they are various issues of Calling All Girls.

That is another clue to help you guess the title of the

requested song which begins with the powerful words:

 CALLING OUT AROUND THE WORLD 

 ARE YOU READY FOR A BRAND NEW BEAT? 

Think you know the answer? Can't wait to shout it out loud?

Click on the third issue of Calling All Girls below

to make sure you're right and listen to the song.

 NAME THAT TUNE! 

 MYSTERY SONG #1 

 CLICK ON THE IMAGE ABOVE! 

 SONG #2 

Call Girl Anita

Hello, I'm Call Girl Anita. If you're just tuning in, I'm seated with other

Call Girl women in the phone bank at Shady Towers, taking requests and

playing songs. At this very moment, I'm fielding a call from a listener

who wants to hear a song written by British composer Tony Hatch

for Petula Clark and first recorded by Pet in 1965. Covered that

same year by LA-based middle of the road singer and guitarist

Chris Montez, the song became an Easy Listening standard.

Before I play the song, see if you can guess the title. 

The images I'm showing you depicting vintage women

using the telephone should give you the clues you need.

I can also tell you that this song is not to be confused with

the Blondie hit of the same, the theme from American Gigolo. 

This song contains the lyrics:

 IF YOU'RE FEELING SAD AND LONELY

 THERE'S A SERVICE I CAN RENDER

Now gaze at the last image below and...

 NAME THAT TUNE! 

 MYSTERY SONG #2 

 CLICK ON THE IMAGE ABOVE! 

 SONG #3 

Call Girl Loretta

I'm Call Girl Loretta, and I'm checking this next artist's name

because I never heard it before. I've got an old-timer on the phone

with me. He says he loves rockabilly and would like me to play

a song by, just a moment while I check again, Carl Dobkins Jr.

  Apparently, the song was a top 3 hit in the summer of 1959. 

As you examine this last set of images...

of vintage women and schoolgirls... 

engaging in one of their favorite activities...

note the way the text appears, the one the girl is focusing on.

 It is an important clue to the title of the song.

Here are the opening lyrics: 

 DON'T BELIEVE ALL THOSE LIES

 DARLIN', JUST BELIEVE YOUR EYES

AND LOOK... LOOK...

 NAME THAT TUNE! 

When you've come up with the answer, click on the pic

of the girls below to make sure and to hear the song.

 MYSTERY SONG #3 

 CLICK ON THE IMAGE ABOVE! 

How many Call Girl classics did you guess correctly?

Check the scoring chart below to learn your status.

ALL 3 SONGS CORRECT?

Congratulations!

You are a song scholar

and Call Girl Champion!

2 SONGS CORRECT?

Well done! You are a

promising Call Girl pupil!

1 SONG CORRECT?

Nope! Nope! Nope! 

But there's still hope.

See Shady after class

for remedial tutoring.

0 SONGS CORRECT?

YOU'RE KIDDING,

RIGHT?

(SCROLL DOWN)

Tie  a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree a string around your finger

to remind yourself to be here for the next edition of

Call Girls

... another Shady's Place exclusive!