Greetings from Enterprise, Oregon!
My travels continue. I spent a few wonderful days in Spokane, Washington, where I discovered that it's grown up and increased it's coolness considerably since I last visited back in '92. Who knew?
I stayed at a friend's place in the Browne's Addition neighborhood and enjoyed morning walks around the eclectic and historic homes and the proximity to Spokane's downtown and Riverfront Park.
A roundabout route headed back to Boise has taken me into Wallowa County, in the northeast corner of Oregon.
Amazing scenery in a quiet and idyllic location off the beaten path.
This is where my Dad grew up, and I'm happy to say I can see what he saw in it.
Travels continue next week, when I'll be heading off to Seattle and that neck of the woods.
Meanwhile...
1. Several showbiz folk have passed away recently, and it affords some brief opportunities to remember their work.
An interesting assortment of passengers aboard the trams headed for Judgement City; In addition to Harvey Korman and director Sydney Pollack, we've also just lost contemporary folksman / activist
U. Utah Phillips, jazz organist supreme
Jimmy McGriff, and composer Earle Hagen.
(I still maintain that there's a way to combine Hagen's famous 'Harlem Nocturne' and his theme to 'The Andy Griffith Show' into one
whistle-accented southern-noir tune.)
One departure I just heard about was that of film actor
John Phillip Law.
He died a couple of weeks back, at age 70.
- Follow link to John Phillip Law's obituary at The Independent
Law is best remembered for the small splash he made in some memorable 1960's and early '70's films that have attained cult status, including 'Barbarella', 'Skidoo', 'The Golden Voyage of Sinbad' and in the title role of 'Diabolik'.
For me though, he'll always be Kolchin, the young Russian sailor of 'The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming' in 1966.
As a kid, as much as I'd laugh at my older sister and her friends for swooning over how 'dreamy' he was, it wasn't hard to see what they meant.
John Phillip Law sort of disappeared after that period, though mostly it was from American screens as he found more regular work in European film.
It was a huge treat to see him show up in Roman Coppola's 'CQ' back in 2001, as that film was such an homage to exactly the sort of fare that had made Law famous.
2. Speaking of late celebrities, please take a trip over to Bedazzled! for a look at Merv Griffin's headstone and an embedded mp3 of his cautionary drug anthem 'Have a Nice Trip'.
3. Some very welcome impending release news came through recently from TVShowsOnDVD.com, stating a September arrival for a DVD set collecting the first two seasons of the diabolically funny 'Duckman' animated series, going back to the mid-nineties.
Hurray! Can't wait!
4. Skipper Bartlett, everyone's pal, and like, the mayor of Like...Dreamsville has broadened his blog scope.
Skipper has extended an invitation to join him now in
The Rumpus Room.
A first peek at it's early stages reveals plenty of eye-candy. Currently on view is plenty of retro space-age stuff.
Follow the link and check it out! Blast off!
Greetings from Enterprise, Oregon! 
One departure I just heard about was that of film actor 
