jim henson

Today I'm proud to announce that it was one year ago on this date that I posted my first blog entry on 'I'm Learning To Share!'.

That was when I grabbed a nearby jpeg to upload, wrote a few quick lines and posted it all as an initial attempt to figure out how this particular flavor of
e-soterica functioned.

The next few days and weeks were all about attacking the learning curve, as I picked up new skills on the fly and began dragging in bits and pieces out of my various collections to see if anyone out there could be interested in what I had to offer.

One year later, and I'm still happily learning new gimmicks and finding more fun crap to share with you all. It's a blast! - - and a labor of love.

Yes, it's just another silly blog; perhaps the last thing the world really needs, but this blog has become chief among my many obsessions, and the response it gets continues to amaze me and warm my soul.

It's the getting from the giving, and the happy results stemming from the unexpected twists and turns it takes.

On this first of hopefully several anniversaries to come, please allow me to extend my sincere thanks to you all for your visits, thanks for your insightful comments and kind words, and thank you for sharing!

Cheers. Here's to what's ahead.

Okay - - back to it. So much essential ephemera and necessary nonsense to share, so little time...

* (thanks to my friend Topic for the title)

Ever heard of these guys? Me neither...

(click on image below for a slightly larger view)






































































Seeming like they could possibly be the misanthropic relatives of the Keebler Elves, the 'CAMOAH' gang were out to steal power from your car.

They were employed as cautionary reminders by the Packard Electric Company, as affiliated with the Packard Motor Car Company.

As we learn in this 1929 ad, 'C.A.M.O.A.H.' was an acronym representing each member's detrimental persona;

Corona, Abrasion, Moisture, Oil, Age, and Heat.

The acronym use feels reminiscent of the word 'Shazam' in the Captain Marvel comics mythos, as it represents the names of the godly 'sponsors' who supplied his super powers. That bit of comics lore was first crafted in 1939.

(Okay, ahem - - If you'll allow the unabashed comic book geekery, these elves' evil attributes may have more similarities to the sponsors of the Marvel Family's nemesis, Ibac.)

Kellogg's benevolent Rice Krispies elves, Snap, Crackle and Pop, were first created in 1933.

◀ At left is a tiny image of another CAMOAH ad from 1929, ganked from elsewhere online.

Thus far, that's it for any other reference to CAMOAH that I've found.

What about you? Anything to share, anybody?

Does anyone have a copy of the old send-away booklet pictured above, "... In which the motor power thieves are tried for their crimes"?

Sounds like an entertaining read to me...

In these information-saturated times it's just a bit surprising to find so very little data out there regarding Sammy Jonah, his Joy Boys and accomplices.

Like, zilch. Is there anybody seeing this who can drop a line with some history or background info - - ?

Regardless, this is a cozily bent little party record of some playful and jazzy R&B, and that 'heckling' motif tends to make for choice entertainment whenever it's employed...

Listen to:
Sammy Jonah's Joy Boys, with Dixie Trombone by
Dudley Dobbins -
After You've Gone
(Capitol Records 78, circa 1948)

(click for audio)














Listen to:
Sammy Jonah's Joy Boys, with heckling by Hattie Hooper -
House Party Blues
(Capitol Records 78, circa 1948)

(click for audio)