Raye Hollitt, Actress and Bodybuilding Champion (1964 - )

I'd like to give a HUGE Thank You to Raye Hollitt for generously giving me permission to include photos from her awesome official website (www.rayehollitt.com) in our blog.

Everyone is entitled to be a little bit envious of Raye Hollitt. She's gorgeous, she's a champion bodybuilder, she was an original American Gladiator, and she continues a successful acting career in Hollywood that began 20 years ago. What's even more incredible is that Raye Hollitt is a native of the Wilkes-Barre area.

Raye Hollitt was born in Wilkes-Barre on April 17, 1964. She grew up in the Harvey's Lake area of Northeastern Pennsylvania.

In 1982, at the age of 18, Hollitt moved to Los Angeles, where she became a competitive weighlifter and bodybuilder, competing in and winning numerous bodybuilding titles in Los Angeles, California and Reno, Nevada. Among her titles are 1988 Ms. Los Angeles Weightlifting and the 1989 Women's Extravaganza Strength title winner. She has also appeared on the cover of 14 national bodybuilding magazines throughout her career.

In 1987, Hollitt began her acting career in the action film Penitentiary III, playing a female boxer.

Hollitt gained worldwide recognition for her role as Lonnie Jones, a bodybuilder with a lust for womanizer John Ritter in Blake Edwards' 1989 comedy Skin Deep. Another interesting note: out of a cast of nine women who play girlfriends and ex-girlfriends of hard drinking, womanizing writer Zach Hutton (John Ritter), Hollitt was the only cast member besides Ritter featured in the trailer for the film's release. In the film's most famous scene, Zach strips and crawls into bed, waiting anxiously for his date Lonnie Jones to emerge from the bathroom. As Lonnie emerges, she states that she has worked 5 years to develop her body, "but for one night, it's...all...yours." Then Lonnie proceeds to flex and pose her incredible physique, asking Zach, "How do you feel about THAT?" Zach's response: "Like Mrs. Arnold Schwarzenegger."

Following Hollitt's success in Skin Deep, she continued to act in several Hollywood films (including 1991's The Last Hour, 1993's Hot Shots: Part Deux, and 1994's Cyborg III) and guest-starring on several popular television shows (from JAG to Baywatch to Manhunt--and even an episode of Muppets Tonight).

In 1989, Hollitt gained an extra massive fan following as Zap in the hugely successful show American Gladiators, in which professional athletes competed with average people in stamina-testing challenges such as Power Ball, Assault, The Wall and Hang Tough. Hollitt starred in the series from 1989 through 1994 and competed in almost 100 episodes of American Gladiators. The show remains a mainstay in popular culture and was even recently revived this past year on NBC.

During her time with American Galdiators, Hollitt became the official spokesperson for Ye Olde Clock & Gift Shoppe in Dallas, PA, and her commercials continue to air on local television stations to this day.

Hollitt contines to act in Hollywood, and she will next been seen in Nilanjan Neil Lahiri's upcoming drama The Ode.

Hollitt also continues her successful bodybuilding career in Los Angeles. She also operates her official website, http://www.rayehollitt.com/ and her MySpace page.

Skin Deep is available to borrow on DVD from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold, click here.

Thank you again to the amazing Raye Hollitt for letting me use photos from her official website for this reference.

www.rayehollitt.com

www.myspace.com/Raye_Hollitt

"Timothy" by The Buoys (1971)

Thomas Coley from Parson recently sent me the following email:

"I came across the blog while searching for a music group from Wilkes-Barre who were a one hit wonder in the late 60's early 70's.


"I went through the blog archives and did not see any reference to The Buoys who had a controversial hit with Timothy in 1971. I remembered them, as they used to practice some times a block from my home in Parsons, and always liked the song."

The Buoys was a progressive rock band from the early 1970s. Based in Wilkes-Barre, band members included Bill Kelly (later of the 1990s group Dakota), Fran Brozena, Jerry Hludzik, Carl Siracuse, Chris Hanlon, and Sally Rosoff. Many of their songs (including their major hit Timothy), were written by and featured piano by Rupert Holmes, best known for the 1979 hit Escape (The Pina Colada Song) and the Tony-winning musicals The Mystery Of Edwin Drood and Curtains.

The Buoys are primarily know as a one-hit wonder for their 1971 hit Timothy, which reached number 17 on the Billboard charts. Set against a groovy beat, Timothy tells the story of three men stuck in a mine after a cave-in. At the conclusion of the song, only two men leave the mine alive--with full stomachs--and Timothy is never heard from again.

When released in 1971, those listeners who thought Timothy was just a song with a good beat were quite shocked when they discovered the theme of cannibalism in the lyrics.

To read the complete lyrics of Timothy, click here.

There is a certain enigma and mystery about Timothy, due to several rumors--from Rupert Holmes being inspired to write the song after reading about a mine cave-in in Sheppton, to Holmes's primary intention in writing the song was specifically to get it banned from radio. Information about the history and theories of Timothy can be found by clicking here.

Though The Bouys also had a huge hit in Europe with their song Give Up Your Guns, The Buoys are primarily known in the US as a one-hit wonder for Timothy; The Buoys broke up in the early 1970s.

Timothy was released on a CD compilation titled Have A Nice Day: Volume 6. To place a hold on the CD, click here.

I could find very little published information on The Buoys; so anyone has any other facts or information about the group or their song Timothy, please email me.

A great big Thank You again to Thomas Coley for this Wilkes-Barre reference.

Andy Buckley from NBC'S The Office To Appear in Scranton St. Patrick's Day Parade Saturday, March 15th

My colleague (and Angela look-alike winner at last fall's Office Convention in Scranton) Amy Buntz has told me that actor Andy Buckley, who plays Dunder Mifflin CFO David Wallace on NBC's The Office will be appearing in the Scranton St. Patrick's Day Parade on Saturday, March 15th.

http://www.stpatparade.com/

MORE GOOD NEWS: New episodes of The Office

will begin airing Thursday, April 10th!

The Irish In Us (1935)

The fantastic Barb Williams from Memphis, Tennessee, a regular contributor to the movie blog, emailed me yesterday about a Scranton reference in a James Cagney boxing movie from the 1930s:

"While I was home with the flu last month, Turner Classic Movies showed The Irish in Us with James Cagney. Scranton was mentioned two times while Cagney's boxing protege was being prepped for a bout. The opposition's handlers, as I recall in my flu-dazed state, were telling Cagney's fighter (named Carbarn Hammerschlog) that the guy he is slated to fight killed his opponent during a boxing match in Scranton."

The Irish In Us features an impressive cast including James Cagney, Olivia de Havilland, Frank McHugh and Pat O'Brien; it was directed by Lloyd Bacon (42nd Street, The Fuller Brush Girl starring Lucille Ball).

The Irish In Us tells the story of three Irish brothers--policeman Pat (Pat O'Brien), fireman Mike (Frank McHugh) and boxing promoter Danny (James Cagney)--who live with their Ma. Though his brothers try to convince Danny to settle down with a secure job, Danny believes his boxing ingenue Carbarn (Allen Jenkins) will soon bring him fame and fortune. To complicate matters, Pat's fiance Lucille (Olivia de Havilland) starts falling for Danny. Also of note is The Irish In Us is said to feature an abundance of New York Irish stereotypes.

Though the film has never been officially released on VHS or DVD, an independent company (www.freemoviesondvd.com/) that sells copies of out-of-print and hard-to-find classic films does offer copies of The Irish In Us for sale on DVD. To purchase a copy, click here.

Much thanks again to Barb Williams for this Scranton reference. Barb, I hope you've fully recovered from your recent bout with the flu! Keep em' comin'!

Dance, Fools, Dance (1931)

I'm not sure if this film would qualify as an authentic Scranton reference, but 1931's Dance, Fools, Dance includes a character named Bert Scranton, played by Cliff Edwards.

Fearing her brother Roddy (William Bakewell) has become part of a bootleg gang, cub reporter Bonnie Jordan (Joan Crawford) volunteers to cover the follow-up story to the murder of the paper's star reporter, Bert Scranton (Cliff Edwards), while he is investigating a Prohibition-era massacre.

Bonnie is a former socialite who, after her father lost all his money in the stock market crash, has to find work.

Posing as a professional dancer, she infiltrates the gang of Jake Luva (Clark Gable), working in one of his speakeasies. Flirting with Luva, she finds out to her horror that her brother was not only involved in the gangland massacre, but was the one who murdered Scranton. Luva finds out who she really is, and he orders her killed. Luva, however, is killed after she shoots her brother.

Bonnie, rather than hiding her brother in the newspaper story she writes, tells the whole truth. In so doing, she wins the respect, admiration, and love of Bob (Lester Vail), the man who previously rejected her as a silly flapper in the days when she was wealthy and didn't make any contribution to life.

Though not available on DVD, Dance, Fools Dance, was released for a brief time on VHS as part of MGM's Forbidden Hollywood Collection. To purchase a copy of the video, click here.

Also, Don McKeon recently emailed me and told me he caught Dance, Fools, Dance on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Scranton is said many, MANY times.

The clip below features a passing character saying, "Hello, Scranton!"

Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich (2005); Originally Published as Ivan Takes A Wife (1989)

My Judilicious colleague Judi K., who is a HUGE fan of mystery author Janet Evanovich, was so excited to tell me that Evanovich included a reference to Scranton in one of her earlier books-- a romance novel titled Love Overboard.

Originally published in 1989 under the title Ivan Takes A Wife, Love Overboard was the second of a series of 12 romance novels Evanovich penned before gaining fame with her numbered mystery series featuring Trenton bounty hunter Stephanie Plum.

Love Overboard also features a Stephanie as its main protagonist--Stephanie Lowe, a woman who agrees to help out on a voyage of Ivan Rasmussen's Maine coastal cruise, and she goes from considering him "Ivan the Terrible" to falling for his looks, touch, and heart.

The Scranton reference occurs on page 104 of the paperback version. Stephanie tries to hide the fact that she is upset that another woman, Melody, is on board the boat with Ivan.

"'Does it bother you to have Melody on board? I can make more of an effort to get rid of her--'

'No. She really wants to finish the cruise. She lied to Ace about her age. She's only eighteen. Graduated from high school in June. But she was telling the truth about the band. She's from Scranton, and I don't think she saw too many options open to her.'"

Love Overboard is available to borrow in many formats from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold on the paperback, click here. To place a hold on the large print edition, click here. You can also get Love Overboard as an audio book on CD, audiotape, or as a download from Overdrive.

Much thanks again to the eternally-lovely Judi K. for this reference.

Poem: "The Crow-Mother Tells All" from "The Art of Subtraction: New and Selected Poems" by Jay Parini (2005)

UPDATED JUNE 3, 2008

I received an email today from Peter Metrinko, a regular contributor to our blog, about a poem written by a Pittson native that was published in the Washington Post -- the poem featured a notable reference to Scranton in the second line:

"I came across a reference to Scranton in the Washington Post today, which published a poem by noted writer Jay Parini, born in Pittston and raised in Scranton. (Parini even has a Wikipedia page.)

The poem is titled "The Crow-Mother Tells All" and was originally published in Parini's 1998 collection "House of Days." It begin:

"The empty oil drums rattled in the yard
that day in Scranton, and the ham-red hills
would shudder in the distance, thunder-chilled. "

Jay Parini was born in 1948 in Pittston, Pennsylvania and raised in Scranton. After graduating from LaFayette College in 1970 and earing his doctorate from University of St. Andrews in Scotland in 1975, Parini taught at both Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and Middlebury College in Vermont; he has been a professor at Middlebury since 1982.

During that time, he began his professional career as a published and critically acclaimed poet. In addition to four volumes of poetry, Parini has also published six novels, two books of literary criticism, and biographies of John Steinbeck, William Faulkner, and Robert Frost. In 1976, he also co-founded the journal New England Review. In addtion, Parini was appointed literary executive for legendary author Gore Vidal.


"The Crow-Mother Tells All" is in two volumes of poetry that can be borrowed from the Lackawanna County Library System. To place a hold on 1998's Best of Days, click here; to place a hold on 2005's The Art of Subtraction, click here.

To read "The Crow-Mother Tells All" in the Washington Post article published January 27, 2008, click here.

Much thanks again to Peter Metrinko for this great Scranton reference.

UPDATED JUNE 3, 2008 Peter emailed me today with an update on this entry. According to an article on CNN.com, Jay Parini (a professor at Middlebury College in Vermont) has been given a unique assignment. When more than two dozen young adults vandelized Robert Frost's former home, their sentence was to take a two-day course on the poems of Robert Frost--which Panini is teaching. To read the full article, click here.

"Journeys: 36 Hours / Scranton, PA" from The New York Times (Friday, November 1, 2002)

Yes, Scranton even made the New York Times!

A few years before The Office made certain local landmarks famous, the New York Times profiled Scranton in their Journeys column in the Travel section on Friday, November 1, 2002. The article, titled "36 Hours / Scranton, Pa., profiles a weekend visit to Scranton (Friday night through Sunday morning) and highlights local landmarks and restaurants.

To read the full article from the New York Times website, click here.

Comedy Troupe Behind YouTube Sensation "Heynabonics" To Perform Saturday Night at Odyssey Fitness Center in Wilkes-Barre

One Laugh At Least, the local comedy troupe behind the You Tube sensation "Heynabonics," will perform improv (AND the “Heynabonics” skit, YAY!) LIVE this Saturday, December 22nd at the Odyssey Fitness Center in Wilkes-Barre at 8:15 PM. Tickets are $12 for the general public or $10 for Odyssey members.

For more information, call (570) 829-2661 or visit the troupe's official website at www.onelaughatleast.com.

One Laugh At Least was recently profiled in both the Citizens Voice and The Scranton Times-Tribune. Also, one of the members of One Laugh At Least is Mr. Jack Gibbons (pictured in the articles with the boxing gloves), who is the husband of our very own Evelyn Gibbons (who also contributes regularly to the entertainment blog).

Blog: "From Crystal Club Soda to Gertrude Hawk Chocolate"

Fellow blogger Jason Schwass recently emailed me a link to his awesome Scranton blog. Titled From Crystal Club Soda to Gertrude Hawk Chocolate, the blog is a " a tongue in cheek look at Scranton, Pennsylvania." from eBay auctions of Scranton memorabilia to local news to local elections and politics.

http://crystalclubsoda.com/

"Nickelodeon's KaBlam!: A Girl Named Fuzzball" by Kevin Dougherty

Kevin Dougherty, a Wilkes-Barre resident and filmmaker, emailed me yesterday about an animated short he did that aired on Nickelodeon's KaBlam!:

"'Fuzzball' takes place in the mythical "West Valley, Pennsylvania" and features church carnivals, bowling alleys...most of the locations are directly based on local stuff. If you look closely, you can see flyers on telephone poles for Cafe Metropolis in Wilkes-Barre (where I work)."

Kevin also added: "And speaking of Wilkes-Barre natives, I am finishing up a 3-page comic strip bio of Ham Fisher, creator of Joe Palooka. It is scheduled to run in Electric City paper December 28th. Its an interesting tale."

The short is awesome, by the way, so check it out.

Thanks to Kevin Dougherty for this reference.

Stephen Karam, Playwright

In a letter published in the "Your Opinion" section of this morning's Scranton Times-Tribune, Vincent J. Vanston wrote a letter titled Rising Star about an off-Broadway play in New York titled Speech & Debate that he highly recommends. Of particular note is that the playwright, Stephen Karam, is a former Scranton resident.

A few weeks ago, one of our patrons, Gloria McDonough, also told me that Stephen Karam was a student at Scranton High School and his father was a principal. She also told me Mr. Karam went to Brown University and spend a semester at either Cambridge or Oxford University in the UK.

Currently playing (and recently extended) until February 24, 2008 and presented by the Roundabout Underground Theatre Company, Speech & Debate is a black comedy that tells the story of three misfits in a Salem, Oregon high school who reluctantly form their school's first debate team--only after discovering they are all linked together by their small town's sex scandal.

Karam's previous plays include Columbinus, a drama (co-written with PJ Paparelli) inspired by the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School.

Much thanks to Gloria McDonough for this reference.

UPDATE 1/14/08 My new fantastic colleague in Reference, Michele L., told me tonight she went to Scranton High School with Stephen Karam and was even on the high school debate team AND in chorus with him. She also said that he is an incredibly funny person, even acting in the high school production in Once Upon A Mattress.

Chelsea Lately (Friday, December 7, 2007)

I'm not sure if this qualifies as a local reference or a simple "plug" but, being that it was heard on the only television channel I ever watch, I thought I'd include it.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a HUGE fan of E! Entertainment Television. The E! True Hollywood Story, E! News, The Daily 10, The Girls Next Door and MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE The Soup -- what more can you ask for?

Last night, I was watching a repeat of E's new late-night half-hour talk show Chelsea Lately starring Chelsea Handler (the episodes featured guests Bridget and Kendra from The Girls Next Door). Towards the end of her panel discussion that begins each show (usually with 3 guest comedians), Chelsea said, "By the way, I'll be at the F.M. Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre (she pronounced it Wilkes-BARRA) this Saturday night and if you can't make it...then suck it."

Also of note, a few days after The Office Convention in Scranton, The Office's Melora Hardin (Jan) was a guest on Chelsea Lately. During the interview, Chelsea asked her, "Wasn't there some sort of convention you just got back from?" Though they discussed the convention for five minutes, neither Chelsea nor Melora mentioned Scranton by name.

To read the concert review from Citizens Voice, click here.

To read an interview with Chelsea from The Weekender, click here.

Chelsea Lately airs weeknights at 11:30 PM on E!

Amen (Season 1, Episode 22 - April 22, 1987) -- And a THANK YOU!

Don McKeon from Scranton, one of our regular contributors to the blog, emailed me a few days ago with the following:

"I was watching a show from the 1980's sitcom: Amen with Sherman Hemsley (from The Jeffersons), and the name of Scranton came up. The plot of the show featured the Deacon, Sherman H., trying to win a humanitarian award so he and his daughter could win the grand prize, a trip to the Holy Land. Sherman says to his daughter not to worry if they don't win the trip because, THERE'S ALWAYS SCRANTON!"

Amen aired Saturday nights at 9:30 PM on NBC from 1986 to 1991. Sherman Helmsley starred as Ernest Frye, the lawyer and scheming deacon of First Community Church of Philadelphia, who loses some semblance of control when the new minister, Rev. Reuben Gregory (Clifton Davis), had other ideas; every week, the two would have some sort of conflict over the runnings of the church. In addition, Frye's 30-year-old romantically frustrated daughter, Thelma (Anna Maria Horsford), developed a massive crush on the new pastor. The show also featured other great characters like sisters Amelia (Roz Ryan) and Casietta Hetebrink (Barbara Montgomery).

The Scranton reference appeared on the final episode (number 22) in the first (1986-87) season of Amen; titled "What's Up, Deacon?," it originally aired Saturday, April 22, 1987.

Thanks again to Don McKeon for another great Scranton reference. Keep 'em coming!

I also wanted to quickly add that I noticed that the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in Entertainment blog has passed 10,000 hits. Now I know that 10,000 hits over two years may seem a little low compared to daily hits for YouTube videos or visitors to Britney's website (heh heh); but honestly, when I began this blog, it was simply a labor of love for a movie fan who was fascinated how much the cities of Wilkes-Barre and Scranton (both pre- and post-Office) have permeated all aspects of entertainment and, quite frankly, I had no idea that other people would dig it as well.

So, to everyone who contributed to the blog, to everyone who has looked at it, and to everyone who told me (either in person or via email) how much they enjoy it, I just want to say THANK YOU!!!!!!!! You really made my day :-)

Entertainment Weekly (November 30, 2007, Issue 966/967)

If you happen to catch a look at this week's Entertainment Weekly, be sure to check out pages 54-55. On a US map detailing the Most Entertaining Places of the Year, spot number 14 is:

14. Welcome to Scranton, Penn.

Pennsylvania Native: Hollywood Star To Be Presented Sunday, December 2nd (UPDATED 11-28-07)

Albright Memorial Library presents:

Pennsylvania Native: Hollywood Star

Sunday, December 2nd, 2007

2:30 PM - 4:00 PM

Albright Memorial Library - Director's Office

500 Vine Street

Scranton, PA 18509

(This program is handicapped accessible)

Dr. Moylan C. Mills will lead a discussion of Pennsylvania stars, their lives and careers, including M. Night Shyamalan, James Stewart, Richard Gere, and Grace Kelly among others.

Presented by the Pennsylvania Humanities Council

Please call to register at (570) 348-3000 ext. 3043

UPDATE 11-28-07

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

The Woods by Harlan Coben (2007)

A few months ago, during the Reference Internships our department conducts every year for other librarians in our district, one of the attendees (and if you're reading this, PLEASE email me with your name so I can give credit where credit is due) told me about a recent bestseller, The Woods by Harlan Coben, that she read which references the city of Wilkes-Barre.

In The Woods, county prosecutor Paul Copeland of Essex, New Jersey is inadvertently tied to a murder investigation that he believes may be related to his sister's case--which has remained unsolved for over twenty years.

The reference occurs on page 373 of the novel, which relates the biography and career of Dr. Tara O'Neill, a pathologist:

"But during her years in Philadelphia, O'Neill had returned home every weekend. She eventually ran for coroner and made extra money working for a pathologist in Wilkes-Barre."

To place a hold on The Woods, click here.

For more information on The Woods (including video clips of author Harlan Coben discussing the novel), click here.

Again, I completely forget the name of the person who gave me this reference, but I know it was one of the following: Mary Jablonowski, Denise McManus, Justine Yeager, Meg Galenas, Mary Wickizer, Terri Collins, or Julie Pacheco. So THANK YOU!

F***: A Documentary (2005)

While on vacation this past week, I finally got a chance to watch a documentary I purchased on DVD some months ago. I was intrigued by the title of the film---of which only one letter of the four-letter title can appear in my blog. The film is titled F***: A Documentary, and even more shocking than the number of times the f-word appears in the film (the word is said or printed over 800 times) was the fact that the city of Wilkes-Barre, PA made an appearance on an intertitle card.

Originally released to much critical acclaim at various film festivals in 2005, Steve Anderson's F***: A Documentary details the history of the use of the f-word in our culture--from music and films to politics and t-shirts. The documentary features an impressive roster of interviewees---including Sam Donaldson, Kevin Smith, Alanis Morissette, Drew Carey, Ron Jeremy, Miss Manners, and the late Hunter S. Thompson. The film also features animated sequences by Oscar-nominee Bill Plympton.

In a section of the film about cable television, the following title card appears:

HBO was launched in 1972 to 365 subscribers in Wilkes-Barre, PA.

Today, HBO has over 38 million.

Back in September, blog fan Peter Metrinko also emailed me this fact; Peter also wrote that HBO (a unit of Time Warner) had primarily a sports focus when it first premiered.

For more information on the history of HBO and its commection to Wilkes-Barre, visit www.mackinac.org/article.aspx?ID=7981

The DVD for F***: A Documentary is not available to borrow from the Lackawanna County Library System--and I doubt it will be in the immediate future. But it's definitely worth a look.

For more information on the documentary itself, visit www.fourletterfilm.com/ ; WARNING: Please note, however, that the site does use the entire uncensored title of the film.

Also, a big Thank You to Peter Metrinko for the information and the link about HBO.

Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties Ghosts, Legends & Lore (2007)

Just because Halloween is over doesn't mean you can't curl up in front of the fire with a nice, scary book---particularly if the ghosts in the true stories inhabit places in Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and other familiar places in Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties.

In the 25 books he wrote over a 35-year period, Charles J. Adams III has been researching and documenting ghosts and other paranormal events throughout the state of Pennsylvania (as well as Cape May, NJ and the Greenwich Village section of New York City). Adams has also made appearances as a ghost expert on television shows ranging from The History Channel's Haunted America to shows on The Travel Channel and MTV.

His recently published collection, Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties Ghosts, Legends, & Lore decribes both well- and little-known true stories of ghosts and other paranormal occurences in the local area. The Ghost tales inculded in the book detail hauntings in Scranton (The Everhart Museum; The Lackawanna County Courthouse; Car No. 46 at The Electric City Trolley Museum; Marywood University; Lake Winola), Wilkes-Barre (Kirby Hall at Wilkes University), Forty Fort (cemetery on Wyoming Avenue; Nathan Denison House) Hazleton (Key Theatre, now the Cinema & Drafthouse; Penn State Hazleton Campus) and much more. The Legends section includes information on Francis Slocum, The Witch of Black Creek Township, Blood Rock in Wyoming, and banshees in Archbald. Lore, the final section of the book, chronicles the the Carbondale UFO incident of 1974 and the Pyramid of Light in Olyphant.

A copy of Charles J. Adams III's Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties Ghosts, Legends & Lore is available to borrow from Valley Community Library. Also, a copy of the book will soon be available to browse in the Local History Collection of Albright Memorial Library.

To purchase a copy of the book from Exeter House Books, click here.

Childrens Librarian Amy Buntz Wins Angela Lookalike Contest at The Office Convention

Congratulations to one of our own, Amy Buntz from the Lackawanna County Children's Library, for winning the Angela Lookalike contest at this past weekend's The Office Convention in Scranton.

Thanks to Amy Buntz for giving me her permission to post this awesome pic of her and The Office's Angela Kinsey in my blog.

Saturday Night Live: Season 25, Episode 6 (November 20, 1999)

The kickin' John F. Monahan from Wilkes-Barre -- who is also the Assistant Sports Information Director at Goucher College in Towson, MD -- sent me an email on Sunday about a 1999 episode of NBC's long-running Saturday Night Live (hosted by Friends star and Brangelina victim Jennifer Aniston):

"Hey:

I love your blog. There's a Saturday Night Live reference about Scranton that I think you've missed. It's from a Nov. 20, 1999 episode featuring Jennifer Aniston as a guest host. The skit is called 'Roberta's Thanksgiving.'

John from Wilkes-Barre"

"Roberta's Thanksgiving" was the final segment of the November 20th, 1999 episode of SNL hosted by Jennifer Aniston (whose long-running sitcom Friends included a Scranton reference in its first season) and (featuring Sting as that week's musical performer). It featured Aniston as Sarah, Cheri Oteri as Roberta and Ana Gasteyer as Mother. In the segment, a family (Aniston, Gasteyer & Darrell Hammond) are made uncomfortable during their Thanksgiving dinner when the father (Chris Parnell) is bullied into inviting a socially inept and annoying coworker (Oteri) to spend the holiday with them.

The segment below features the Scranton reference (from Cheri Oteri's Roberta):

Mother: Oh, that's so exciting! Our Sarah jetting off to Paris!

Roberta: Have ya ever been to Scranton?

Sarah: Nope.

Roberta: Don't count it out. The beauty of the skyline alone made me do a double take. (demonstrates) I stayed, I stayed at the airport Ramada.

Sarah: (sarcastic) Oooh, Ramada.

Roberta: It's funny, because they hadn't washed the sheets.

Sarah: I'm sorry, how was that funny?

Roberta: You didn't let me complete the tale. Apparently the previous guest shot himself in the head.

To read the transcript for Roberta's Thanksgiving, click here.

To read the transcript for the entire November 20th, 1999 episode, click here.

To view transcripts from every episode of every season on SNL from 1975 to the present, click here.

A great big ol' Thank You again to Mr. John F. Monahan of Wilkes-Barre for this fantastic Scranton reference.

"Halfway to Scranton" by Kneebody (2005)

While browsing the Jazz CDs in the library collection, I unexpectedly came across a CD with a song titled "Halfway to Scranton." The song comes from the 2005 debut CD of the critically acclaimed group Kneebody.

Based in both New York and Los Angeles, Kneebody consists of five friends (Adam Benjamin, Shane Endsley, Karah Rastegar, Ben Wendel and Nate Wood) who share a love of music and improvisation, mixing genres such as jazz, hip-hop and rock to create a style and sound all their own.

After signing with the Green Leaf Music label in 2005, Kneebody released their debut self-titled CD to critical acclaim, some comparing their original style to Bitches Brew by Miles Davis. Track 9 on the instrumental CD is titled Halfway To Scranton. For six minutes and thirty-one seconds (the longest track on the CD), the track takes listeners on a musical journey that is sometimes fast, sometimes slow, and very unpredictable in its sound. Halfway to Scranton has a feel of a enjoyable roadtrip.

I emailed the band and asked them what inspired the use of Scranton in the title of the song. Trumpet player Shane Endsley, who wrote Halfway to Scranton, generously sent me the following reply (thanks, Shane, for permitting me to reproduce your response in the blog):

"Hi Bill,

I am the trumpet player in the band and "Halfway to Scranton" is my piece. It's titled after a romantic rendezvous with my then girlfriend, now wife and mother of our daughter. We both went to school at the Eastman School of Music, in Rochester NY but I graduated a year earlier than she. I had moved to NYC and Scranton was a 1/2 way point that we chose to meet one weekend.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thanks for asking,

Shane"

Kneebody released their follow-up CD, Low Electric Worker, in April of 2007.

To place a hold on Kneebody's 2005 debut CD, which features Halfway to Scranton, click here.

To purchase a copy of Kneebody's 2005 debut CD, click here.

You can also purchase the MP3 track of Halfway to Scranton at Amazon.com, iTunes or Musicstem.

I can't recommend their CD highly enough!!!

www.kneebody.com

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (1957)

The eagle-eyed groovy gal Barb Williams from Memphis, Tennessee (who is becoming one of our regular contributors to the blog) recently sent me the following email:

"Bill,
I was just looking over the site to see if you had the Scranton reference in 'Atlas Shrugged' accounted for. I'm rereading it now to find it. I'm pretty sure it's in the last third of the book, so it may take me a while to get there. My best recollection is that it comes in a quote fom heroine Dagny Taggert saying something about how important it was to get coal moving from Scranton."

First published in 1957, the classic novel Atlas Shrugged was Ayn Rand's last work of fiction before concentrating her writings exclusively on philosophy and politics. It tells the story of a powerful railroad executive, Dagny Taggart, who struggles to keep her business alive while society is crumbling around her. According to a joint survey conducted by the Library of Congress and the Book of the Month Club, Atlas Shrugged is the "second most influential book for Americans today" after the Bible.

Scranton is mentioned on page 836 (the book totals 1168 pages):

"Miss Taggart," said Eddie, in a resonant tone of severity, the tone of slapping the man into the manners of a drawing room he had never entered, "may I present Mr. Meigs?"
"How d' do," said the man without interest, then turned to Eddie and proceeded, as if she were not present: "You just take the Comet off the schedule for tomorrow and Tuesday, and shoot the engines to Arizona for the grapefruit special, with the rolling stock from the Scranton coal run I mentioned. Send the orders out at once."

A film version of Atlas Shrugged is in preproduction and is slated for release sometime in 2008, with Angelina Jolie currently in talks to play the role of Dagny Taggart. Only a year to wait and see if Scranton will be mentioned in passing in the film.

To place a hold on the novel Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, click here.

Much thanks again to the incandescent Barb Williams for this Scranton reference. Keep 'em comin'!

Rocky & Bullwinkle (1959-1973)

The eagle-eyed Bob Yannes emailed me this weekend about a Wilkes-Barre reference he remembers from the popular Rocky & Bullwinkle character Boris & Natasha.

If you were like me and spend most of your childhood morning watching Miss Judy on WNEP's Hatchy Milatchy, the cartoons that they showed (Rocky & Bullwinkle and Underdog, just to name two) were the highpoint of your day---especially the cliffhangers that never seems to get resolved, no matter how many days you watched.

Before reruns on shows like Hatchy Milatchy, the characters of Rocky & Bullwinkle first appeared on Rocky & His Friends, which ran from 1959 to 1960. A year later in the fall of 1961, the newly-titled The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle (AKA The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show) premiered and ran until 1973. Lots of other regular characters began to appear in both series, including the bubbling spies Boris and Natasha.

Bob Yannes told me of one direct reference to Wilkes-Barre in the original incarnation of the R&B series Rocky & His Friends when the character of Boris (voiced by Paul Frees) was assigned to the fictional town of Moosesylvania, which is someplace no one in their right mind would want to go (for details on Moosesylvania itself, click here). When he learns of his assignment, Boris begs his superior not to send him:

Boris: Send me to Siberia, send me to Wilkes-Barre, but NOT Moosesylvania!!!!!!!


I'm not sure if it's a compliment or not when one groups Siberia with Wilkes-Barre, but what can I say?



Mr. Yannes also wrote me told me that, in one of the episodes of The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle, Boris & Natasha have the following exchange:



Natasha: Boooooris, I didn't know you went to college. Penn State?


Boris: No. State Pen.


Episodes of Rocky and Bullwinkle are available on both DVD and VHS from libraries throughout Lackawanna County. To check our catalog, click here.

A GREAT BIG OL' THANK YOU again to Bob Yannes for this kickin' reference.

The Twilight Zone: Episode 1.12 "What You Need" (December 25, 1959)

The brilliant Peter Metrinko from Chantilly, Virginia recently emailed me with a Scranton reference featured in an episode of the very first season of the classic CBS television series The Twilight Zone.

Narrated by Rod Sterling, The Twilight Zone focused on ordinary people who suddenly found themselves in extraordinary (sometimes supernatural) situations. The stories would typically end with an ironic twist that would see the guilty punished. It premiered on October 2, 1959 and ran for five seasons on CBS until 1964, running a total of 156 episodes (138 half-hour shows and 18 hour-long episodes). The final episode aired June 19, 1964.

On Christmas night, Friday, December 25th, 1959, an episode titled "What You Need," was first broadcasted. "What You Need," the 12th episode of the inaugural season, told the story of an old eccentric Pedott (Ernest Truex), who wanders the streets and in bars offering people "what they need," whether it be matches, shoelaces, scissors--he seems to have exactly the item he forsees a person will need in the immediate future. When a grifter (Steve Cochran) at the bar sees his clairvoyant powers firsthand, he starts manipulating Pedott for his own financial gain.

The Scranton reference occurs in an early scene at the bar where the skeptical conman Fred sees Pedott's accurate predictions firsthand. A bartender relates a story about one of the patrons sitting at the bar, a down-on-his-luck former baseball pitcher named "Lefty" whose professional career has ended with his pitching arm nonfunctioning and him drowning his depression in the bar every night:

Pedott: I know what it is you need. Right here. (takes a piece of paper from his basket and hands it to Lefty) Take it.

Lefty: Bus ticket?

Pedott: That's right. That's what it is. A bus ticket.

Lefty: Bus ticket to Scranton, Pennsylvania. (laughs) Now what's in Scranton, Pennsylvania, old man?

Pedott: One never knows.

Bartender: (laughs) Coal mines. That's what's in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Nice, lovely, beautiful coal mines. You can't pitch with that arm anymore, Lefty. Maybe you can dig with it. (laughs)

Suddenly, Lefty is called to the pay phone. When he returns to the bar, the good news from the phone call is revealed.

Bartender: Dead rich uncle? Or did your horse come in?

Lucky: No. Crazy. Real crazy. Old manager of mine, been looking for me for three weeks. Got me a job. Coaching job. Minor league club in Scra... (looks at the ticket in his hand) Scranton, Pennsylvania. Wants me to take a bus there. He wants me to take a bus there, how 'bout that?

For a complete description of the episode "What You Need," click here.

Season One of The Twilight Zone is available on DVD. VHS copies with 4 classic episodes from the series on each tape, including the episode "What You Need," are available to borrow from Valley Community Library. To place a hold for the VHS ("What You Need" is the third episode on Volume 1 of the set), click here.

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU again to the incredible Peter Metrinko for this Scranton reference. I promise to post all the other Scranton references you included in your email to me as time permits.

Bestselling Author Lauren Weisberger at The Scranton Cultural Center, Thursday, September 6, 2007

Blogger Bill C. with bestselling author (and Scranton native) Lauren Weisberger before her lecture Thursday night.

Photo by Mary Barna.
Bill C. and his brother JR with Lauren Weisberger.
Photo by Mary Barna

The extra-ultra-fantastic duo of Mary Garm and Mary Barna gave me the wonderful opportunity of meeting bestselling author and Scranton native Lauren Weisberger (The Devil Wears Prada, Everyone Worth Knowing) before her lecture Thursday night. Lauren was incredibly sweet and posed for pictures with me and my brother JR.

Over 400 people were in attendance at last night's event. The lecture itself was a Q&A between Lauren and Library System Administrator Mary Garm. Through Mary's question, plus questions that were submitted in advance by email, Lauren shared her experiences as a writer living in New York City, her similarities to her characters, and her experiences growing up in Scranton. The lively talk was followed by questions from the audience.

After the lecture, Lauren signed copies of her book for over an hour and kindly posed for pictures.

For more pictures of last night's event, click here.

A big thanks again to the incredibly groovy Mary Garm and Mary Barna.

The Office: Season Three Nifty Gifty Box Set (Only at Target)

UPDATED 9/16/07

Check out the packaging of "Nifty Gifty" edition of Season Three of The Office, sold exclusively at Target. Not only does the deluxe packaging include a script for the premiere episode of season three and a bonus Q&A DVD, but the packaging includes a quote (featured quite prominently) on the packaging that reads:

"The Office put Scranton on the map."--David Falchek, The Scranton Times-Tribune

The quote is also included on regular editions of the DVD for Season Three of The Office, but is displayed less prominently.

In addition, on the audio commentary of the episode "The Coup," Angela Kinsey says she "just got back from Scranton...it was WILD," referencing her trip to Scranton in May with Brian Baumgartner. Kinsey also mentions her trip to Scranton on the commentary of the episode "Women's Appreciation."

To place a hold for the DVD of Season Three of The Office, click here.

UPDATE 9/16/07 Also included with Target's "Nifty Gifty" edition of Season Three of The Office is a bonus disc featuring a 22-minute group interview with the cast and writers as part of The William S. Paley Television Festival 2007. The highlight is Rainn Wilson describing his experiences visiting Scranton and The Mall at Steamtown. He states that he was "driven through the city of Scranton in a stretch Hummer by the mayor." He also says that people are "so ga-ga in that city for that show." And regarding the crowds at The Mall at Steamtown there to see him, "I felt just like Justin Timberlake." In addition, he proudly states that he was made an honorary sheriff for the City of Scranton as well as an honorary security guard for The Mall at Steamtown.

The Nanny Diaries (2007)

UPDATED 12-8-07

My dear friend and colleague Evelyn Gibbons showed me this week's Electric City and, in the movie section, a review for the recently released The Nanny Diaries. The first paragraph of the review is devoted to a reference to Scranton in the film.


The Nanny Diaries is based on the bestselling novel by Nicola Kraus and Emma McLaughlin and stars Scarlett Johansson, Laura Linney, Paul Giamatti, and songstress Alicia Keys. The Nanny Diaries tells the story of Annie (Scarlett Johansson), a recent college grad living in New York City who gets a job as a nanny for snooty socialites Mr. & Mrs. X (Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney).


The Scranton reference is said to take place early in the film when a woman from New Jersey describes her ex-husband as taking up "in a double wide in Scranton." Not exactly a picturesque reference, but a Scranton reference nonetheless.

DVD copies of The Nanny Diaries are available from the Lackawanna County Library System; to place a hold, click here.


Thanks again to Evelyn Gibbons for the scoop.


UPDATED 12-8-07 I purchased a copy of The Nanny Diaries DVD this past week and thought it a pretty good flick (plus I'm a HUGE fan of Laura Linney and she was great as Mrs. X). The Scranton mention takes place within the first four minutes of the film, where the recent college grad Annie is having lunch with her mother, who presents Annie was a business suit as a graduation present:

Annie

Mom. Gosh. C'mon. It's one meeting at Goldman Saks. It's highly competitive. I'm probably not going to get the job.

Mom

All right. Stop with the negativity. Your father was always negative and look what it got him...a double-wide trailer in Scranton.

On a side note, when Annie first takes a train to NYC for her interview, she leaves from the Lackawanna RR (but from New Jersey).

Coincidentally, in a later scene, one of the characters is reading a copy of The Devil Wears Prada by Scranton native Lauren Weisberger.