I Dream of Jeannie’s Autograph
Thursday, March 4th, 2010
As a huge fan and collector of all episodes of I Dream of Jeannie, I am thrilled to have autographed photos all three of the principals of the show. In fact I met Larry Hagman and his co-star Bill Daily both in 2009. Unfortunately, I have not been so lucky with Barbara Eden. She was, however, kind enough to sign a nice cheesecake photo of herself back in the latter part of 1997. It is unfortunate that I didn’t get her to sign the photo from the show first- and then add Hagman’s signature later. As it is, I’ll have to be satisfied with the lone autographed photo from Barbara Eden seen below. At least her belly button is visible. Read the rest of this entry »
On July 4, 1996, I made the notation in my little Sunshine Pocket Planner that read “D.I. Day on I.D”. For those not accustomed to Bradspeak, this indicated that I had put the finishing touch on my latest edition of Dante’s Info on Independence Day. This issue had been a long time coming and had begun earlier in the year when I was still living at Woodman Park. Amidst the move to Peppertree, it took forever to finally get it finished – all of which is indicated in the Sim Sala Bim Editor’s Notes. I have no doubt that the final puah came from wanting to get this done before the convention began less than two weeks later. Things wouldn’t get much easier, and there would only be one more issue of Dante’s Info over the next six years - by which time the publication would undergo radical changes…as my life had. 
Dick Van Dyke is obviously one of the most well-known names in television, having received three Emmy Awards for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series in The Dick Van Dyke Show, and then going on to star in the long running medical drama Diagnosis Murder. He is known for his filmwork in the Disney Classic Mary Poppins and his roles in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Bye Bye Birdie, and his more recent appearances in the two Night at the Museum films. 
Although she was not a particularly prodigious actress due to the fact that she preferred to spend plenty of time with her husband, Eva Marie Saint had quite a few notable film and television roles over the last 60 years. In fact, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in her feature film debut in On the Waterfront. Her various roles can be traced through the decade in such films as A Hatful of Rain, Loving, Nothing in Common, and Superman Returns. On TV, she might be seen in Suspense, The Love Boat, Frasier, and a recurring role on Moonlighting. 
After the rapid-paced pre-Convention activities at Walt Disney World, Mom, Denise, John Poe, Lisa, and I were ready to depart on our cruise out of Miami, which was doubling as the 10th International Convention of the Sons of the Desert. After taking a bus from Orlando to Miami, we boarded the afternoon of Monday, July 15, 1996. The first order of business was a lifeboat/life-vest drill and then we set sail at around 4pm.