Rant #3,673: Movin' On Up

I am so busy with the move that I don't have any real time to write a proper Rant.

Boxes on top of boxes on top of boxes ... our current apartment looks like who did it and ran, but that is how it is when you are moving to a new dwelling.

I can't find anything now, even though all the boxes are clearly marked.

I will find everything when we meticulously empty each box, but right now, it's like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack.

Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will this new apartment look like it should for some time.

At least I can help put a bit more this time.

Next subject ...

And then we come to a whirlwind that can make any living space into utter chaos.

"Dennis the Menace" remains one of the most popular comic stripes of all time, and the character of Dennis Mitchell epitomizes the kid in all of us.

The TV show of "Dennis the Menace" was one of the most frenetic comic strips-to-TV adaptations ever, and the show had probably the best casting ever, with the actors, by and large, looking just like their comic strip counterparts.

And the TV cast was led by Jay North, one of the most talented--and we later found out, one of the most tortured--child stars of all time.

North died at age 73 the other day, so another Baby Boomer hero has left us way too soon.

When the show had its four-season run from 1959 to 1963, North became a huge star, paired with Joseph Kearns as Mr. George Wilson initially and then Gale Gordon as Mr. John Wilson later on when Kearns died.

We laughed at the antics of Dennis and his buddies and their relationship with Mr. Wilson, but evidently, there was much more going on behind the scenes than anyone knew at the time--even to most of the cast.

North, according to appearances on TV shows like "Donahue" decades later, was an abused child, pretty much forced into acting to be the high wage earner of those who were supposedly responsible for him in lieu of his actual parents.

Years later, as an adult and away from show business, he still couldn't handle the abuse he had endured years earlier.

With the help of therapy and former show biz kids like Paul Petersen of "The Donna Reed Show," he was able to get his life together.

He married, became a correctional officer, and yes, was even able to appear at numerous TV-related conventions and events.

North was just 73 when he passed away, but he had exorcized his demons.

To him, he would probably say that the second half of his life was way better than the first half, but that first half lives on in countless TV reruns for all to see.

Jay North, R.I.P.

Now, back to packing ... .