Michael Bond died recently and as I was listening to one of the more important obituaries, I was disappointed to hear that Bond was best known for his series of Paddington Bear books. As a kid I’m sure I read at least the first book explaining the origins of Paddington Bear. Perhaps if I hadn’t grown up I might have read the entire series as it was published. But sometime in the early 1980s I was sitting on the floor knitting a pair of socks while my then wife, the librarian, was reading a book and giggling like someone was tickling her unmercifully.
The book was the first Monsieur Pamplemouse novel and instantly immersed my mystery funny-bone in the adventures of Michael Bond’s greatest character: Monsieur Pamplemousse and his well-fed hound Pommes Frites.
I’m still sorting this out. The gist, I guess, is that America now has gay health care. I haven’t reviewed the fine print but, as I understand it, you may now marry the doctor of your choice.
When I was in grade school—probably the fourth grade—the teacher brought a copy of Stan Freberg’s (soon to be) classic comedy routine, Saint George and the Dragon. Now back then Dragnet was big on the radio and even on television (we didn’t have one yet) and Jack Webb had perfected his snappy monotone delivery which was ideal for spoofing. Along came one of the comic geniuses of my time, Stan Freberg, and the result was this now nostalgic recording.