Thanksgiving Day: My Thanksgiving Day went very well, how did yours go?
My wife was the designated chief cook and bottle washer for the day, and as usual, she came through with flying colors.
We had a houseful of people, including her father, who has been in the hospital for months, and everything went well.
The bird was good, all the side stuff was fine, and everyone had a great time.
Thanksgiving really is the best holiday of them all, because it is the one national holiday where we truly celebrate family. And yes, I continued my holiday tradition, by watching ...
"March of the Wooden Soldiers": This is truly one of the greatest movies of all time, maybe not as good as "The Wizard of Oz" but as a fantasy movie, it runs second to that one in both whimsy and fun.
Laurel and Hardy are truly at their best in this film, and I look forward to watching it on Thanksgiving Day, but this year, I did it a little bit differently.
Usually, I just watch it locally here in New York on Channel 11, where they show it in color.
This year, I watched it on YouTube in black and white, casted to my TV through Chromecast.
This really is a movie that demands to be watched in black and white, because the color of the story and performances really shines without the actual color.
And when it was over, I turned over the Channel 11, and lo and behold, it was still on, so I watched its last 20 minutes or so again, with commercials.
It really is a great film, and no, even though I love Annette Funicello, I cannot bear to watch the horrid remake, "Babes in Toyland,"which to me, is more like "Boobs in Toyland" than anything else.
Give me the original any time. Which leads me to this entry ...
"Creed": We go from a movie made 80-some years ago to one made this year, and I have to say, the dropoff isn't as bad as one might think.
We saw the latest installment in the "Rocky" series, "Creed," and I have to say, if you see one movie this holiday season, this one has got to be it.
First of all, the film makes perfect sense, unlike other films released today that we shake our heads approvingly at, but really, they make no sense at all.
This one does, and that is the beauty of the whole thing.
Rocky Balboa--Sylvester Stallone, who else?--becomes the trainer and mentor for Apollo Creed's illegitimate son, who is played with absolute gusto by Michael B. Jordan.
Yes, there is a big fight at the end, but the camaraderie between the two leads builds to the point where both are fighting their own battles, which I won't spoil for you here.
It is pure entertainment--like all the Rocky movies are--and you will not be disappointed.
Finally, a film where I truly believe my money was well spent.
And then we come to today, after the holiday weekend, where my own personal "Rocky" reaches another milestone.
My Father Turns 84 Today: Yes, my father turns 84 years old today, and while he isn't 25 anymore, he remains the strongest person I know.
He--and my mom--taught me everything I know about everything, and what I didn't learn from them I learned from the school or hard knocks, where we all had to learn something.
He still drives a New York City licensed cab, and today, I am happy that he is taking the day off from the rigors of that profession.
He is just taking it easy, because he deserves to.
He was a Marine during the Korean War, and he believes in himself, his family and his country to the Nth degree.
He hates phonies, and I think I got that hatred from him. He can see them a mile away, as I can.
Whatever the case, his family always comes first, and I learned that from him too.
The photo above comes from the early 1970s. It is one of my favorite photos of him, and so appropriate for today, as he was celebrating a birthday back then, too.
Happy birthday, dad, and many, many more!
I have something important to do tomorrow, so I will have to skip a day with this column and get it done, so I will speak to you again on Wednesday.
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