RIP Gloria Winters

Gloria Winters, who played Penny King in the 1950s television series, Sky King, died two weeks ago at age 78 or so.  Oddly, when I was a kid, I barely paid heed to this series, since it aired on early Saturday afternoon, and was already dated by 1965 or so.  No new episodes had debuted since early 1959, and other episodes dated from as early as 1951.


But a funny thing happened last year.


I discovered a young girl named Jill Oppenheim had a guest role in the fall of 1952, in an episode named "Two Gun Penny."  John Hart, who would replace Clayton Moore in The Lone Ranger, had a role as a villain.  But this little girl was special, because she would go on to much bigger things.


And as Jill St. John!  She would help launch the 1966 Batman series, and then would play the female lead in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever, five years later.


I had thought it would be novel to see them reunite at some comic con but I guess this will not happen now.  But I will say that, if I was not interested in the show back in the Sixties, I am now in 2010.  I would not mind seeing Encore Westerns showing this series, just as they did with Bat Masterson not too long ago.


RIP, Ms. Winters!

Back from the Capital District

Green Island, New York, 18 August 2010

I got back from the Capital District yesterday, and it was a semi-stressful trip.  Driving down Central Avenue in Albany was the worst, as I nearly got into an accident.  But I got some clarity in things, and saw two laptops I want to obtain for future film making.


One thing the trip gave me was a new appreciation for such underappreciated towns such as Green Island, Mechanicville and Stillwater.  One pet dream I have is to get a video studio set up, and given the properties that exist in such places, that dream might actually be obtainable.


We might—might—have our lead character cast.  Stay tuned for more details!

Happy Birthday Jill St. John!!!

I find it so hard to believe actress Jill St. John is 70 today!


But I'd better, since she is only two years younger than my own mother, and was a child actress in the late 1940s.


Born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim in Los Angeles on 19 August 1940, she made an impact on me on 12-13 January 1966, when I first saw her in the pilot episode of Batman.  I was 6½ years old at the time, but the episode was a powerful one for me.

Jill St. John, circa 1958

Somehow, I ended up with a love affair that rivals that of mine with the City of Albany, NY (and that dates back to at least 1964)!  By the time I got interested in her again in 1981, she had done Diamonds Are Forever, and I was a student at Syracuse University.  I did research on her at Bird Library at the university, and learned a lot in the process, including the process of researching.


I do not have pictures of her posted all over the place.  Indeed, she has her own life, out West, while I reside in New York.  But the "pretty lady" is a real creative inspiration for me, and thinking of her has helped me through hard times, both in the 1980s and again in the early 2000s.  She has her own section in my Catwoman fan site as well.  And she is the inspiration for the Carrie Kelley Robin who is the focus of the planned fan series as well!!


Happy Birthday, Ms. St. John!!!  May you have many more!

Off to the Capital District again

Next week I go off to the Capital District of New York to begin my job campaign. This might seem trivial, but it has a direct impact on the fan series, since I plan to film it there (as well as in Canada).


And it also matters, because there is a stronger economy there than there is in the Binghamton, NY area, where I currently reside.


Normally, I am off on Sundays and Mondays, but I have to work on 15-16 August at the store I work at.  While I prefer attending church, this is an opportunity to begin the process of looking for decent employment.


While I am on the topic of religion, I may as well have a few words about the topic.  As a comic book fan, I am only too well aware of the concern over idolatry.  I had that concern even as a child, when I was watching Batman on television.  It is safe to say that I grew up with an understanding that Sunday was a sacred time, and that I had to keep things in perspective.


As I get older, I find that churches that "entertain" are a turn off.  I have preferred churches with ritual, since I grew up as a Roman Catholic, and then turned Eastern Orthodox.  As I am involved in the entertainment field myself, I find it a relief to go to church on Sunday and to get spiritual enlightenment, since I am a spiritual person.


Not that it is an easy process.


It's not.


I recently had a conflict with a bishop over whether or not I could remarry with the blessing of my church.  He said I could not, which means I would have to have a public official such as Albany Mayor Gerald Jennings performer the ceremony.  While this is a cause of some concern, it also means I have more options over whom I can marry.


It's not easy.  And I understand why atheism is gaining ground in the US.  It is a reaction to churches getting involved with politics, and to the Religious Right, which emerged 30 years ago.  Still, there are reasons I remain involved, and I will have a lot to chat about with my current priest tonight.

Cat Blog 2—Outtakes from Batman 1969 (9 August 2010)