Thanksgiving 2012
December 10th, 2012
Thanksgiving snuck up once again in 2012, falling on Thursday, November 22, this time around. I was somewhat ready for it I suppose, feeling good about what I had accomplished this year and ready to begin the big final-month wind-down. Naturally I was off this day, so I spent a somewhat lazy morning watching some TV. Leslie stopped by for a bit to bring some muffins and watch a couple episodes of Police Squad. Then I tuned into Cheers and took a brief nap. Read the rest of this entry »
I always enjoy a good time travel caper and thusly often enjoyed the TV series Quantum Leap, which ran for five seasons from 1989-1993. I had previously met Dean Stockwell who played the role of Rear Admiral Al Calavicci (as seen 
Because of the potential for horrid weather coming our way from Hurricane Sandy on the scheduled Trick or Treat date of Tuesday, October 30, 2012, it was postponed until Saturday, November 3 – effectively moving Halloween – or at least everything I associate with it – to November. In addition, as you’ll read, I attended a reunion of the film franchise Halloween, also oddly placed into November. In any case, it was a nice way to spend the weeks that fell between the real Halloween and the next of the ‘Big Three’ holidays, Thanksgiving. 
Jamie Lee Curtis really doesn’t need an introduction, but in case you’ve been living in a shoebox for the past 30 years, I’ll remind you that she has been known as the quintessential ‘scream queen’ of horror films ever since her appearance in the original Halloween film in 1978. She went on to more roles as the stalkee of some maniac or other in Terror Train, Prom Night, The Fog, and three additional Halloween films. Soon enough she would settle into more traditional roles in films like Trading Places, My Girl, True Lies, A Fish Called Wanda, and the new version of Freaky Friday. 
The prospect of meeting famed director John Carpenter was certainly exciting and he was the major draw for attending the Flashback Weekend event in Chicago on Sunday, August 12, 2012. After all, he had directed what was probably the most famous and acclaimed of all horror films, Halloween. Sure, he’s had more than his share of clunkers, but scattered between them were blockbusters and cult classics such as Escape from New York, The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China, Christine, and They Live. He even tried his hand at comedy by directing Memoirs of an Invisible Man with Chevy Chase. Carpenter is also a talented composer and has written music for many of his and others’ films.