1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 102

    I know I've not been around very much the past week or so. I didn't mean to be away but some things at my work got really, really serious and not in a good way. Playing on my anxiety disorder heavily, the events at work have taken it's toll. I've been afraid of my shadow- but I've also been working to get out of the situation as well. 

   In some ways, it has sparked a sort of mid-life crisis. 

   Last year, I got my dream job as a culinary instructor. Right now, I can only teach part-time but with some certifications and more education, I can increase the number of hours I can be a chef instructor. Well, I am convinced after the troubles I have been having at work and the meeting I had a couple of days later when the dean of culinary, that God is telling me it's time to focus on the ultimate goal- teaching full-time.

    In 2 weeks, I will be free from my current full-time position. But the fear and anxiety still linger there. Oddly enough, the thought of going part-time, becoming a house-husband, and going back to some sort of schooling doesn't add to it. I hope I will be able to post again daily (not just A Madman Turns 40 but my reviews of books and other things geek.) But it's also been hard not to want to hide under a rock. But today's post is a start.

   I'll be back soon...

   Until next time.

1977: A Madman Turns 40:2017 Day- 95

    Folks, some days you just don't feel up to posting. I had a really rough day yesterday and I'm not really having such a great day after. No, I'm not starting to feel the affects of turning 40. This is all professional and being someone with an anxiety disorder, the looming hours till my next shift is starting to weigh on me. 

    So, forgive me for not sharing some big moment in 1977 history today. In fact, I may not get a chance tomorrow either...

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 94

    I've been eagerly awaiting the day to do this post. 40 years ago today, the Toronto Blue Jays played their very first major league baseball game. The event took place in Toronto, where the Jays defeated the Chicago White Sox 9-5. 

A snowy opening day.

    This game is most notable as is was actually delayed by the weather; not for rain but for snow! Played in outdoorsy Exhibition Stadium, it was because of white that the score was so high. It's really hard to see a tiny white baseball in the snow properly. Eventually, snow wouldn't be a problem as the stadium would be replaced with the Rogers Centre, AKA Skydome: a stadium with retractable roof, build-in hotel, and impressive shopping accommodations. 

    The Blue Jays have a special place in my heart. When I first started collecting baseball cards to be like the other fellas, I didn't know which team to choose. So, I decided that I would buy a pack of cards and the first team I got would be my favorite team. (Just please, don't be the New York Yankees!) 

    Well, my first card was a 1988 Topps card of George Bell of the Toronto Blue Jays(#718, All-Star Game Card.)

 I didn't know where Toronto was, so I decided to give it one more try. Card #2 was of Jimmy Key, a pitcher with the Toronto Blue Jays. Figuring life was trying to tell my something, I became a Blue Jays fan.

    Being the fan of an obscure team isn't easy as a kid. But it paid off as in 1992 and 93, the Blue Jays won the World Series. ('91-'93 was a pretty good year for me as my favorite teams the Duke Blue Devils, Toronto Blue Jays, and Pittsburgh Penguins all won back-to-back championships in those years!!!) Feeling vindicated, I wore my World Series Championship shirts with pride and maybe the scorn of my fellow classmates.

Blue Jays Anniversary Patches over the years.

   Over the years, I would fall out of touch with the Blue Jays. I still like them and I was rooting for them when they were in the Playoffs last year. As an adult, I'm Pittsburgh Trinity all the way- Pirates, Steelers, Pens. However, I married into a Yankees family and have to put up with that fandom begrudgingly. (Go METS!!!) But, you never forget your first love and I will always have a fondness for the boys in blue- Go Blue Jays!

   Until Tomorrow...

    

  

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 93

The iconic Lucky Strike smoke stack
and Lucky Strike tower, Summer 1977.

   

  Today I start teaching for the Sprint Quarter at the Art Institute of Raleigh-Durham. It's where I went to culinary and I just love teaching. This branch is located at the American Tobacco Campus in Durham, NC.

   Folks if I have to pick a favorite place in the world- it's the ATC. I have such fond memories from my time working for the Durham Bulls and going to Ai. Now I continue to make those memories as I work there.

Ads such as this 1977 Benson & Hedges one
were crafted at the American Tobacco Campus.

   

 So I thought for today's post I would take a brief look at American Tobacco circa the year of my birth- good ole 1977. I know it's fudging the rules a little bit. But hey, it's my journey as I turn 40...

Until tomorrow...

Star Trek Gold Key 100 Page Spectacular #1

     Collecting some of the earliest Star Trek issues by the now defunct Gold Key Comics. The point of this 100-page special isn't so much as being able to full some key missing issues in your collection- though that helps. Instead, this special highlights some of the very odd discrepancies between the classic sci-fi series and the comics.

     Continuity and production errors include:

• Captain Kirk and Sulu's tunics were green- NOT Gold!
• Scotty looks less like James Doohan and more like Robert Stack of Unsolved Mysteries fame.
• In most panels, Spock's ears take over 3/4 of the side of his head.
• The nacelles of the Enterprise spits fire.
• The Klingons all look like Mr. Clean in purple onesies- in other words: white, bald, and in need of a diaper change. 

     I could highlight some further errors, but I don't wanna spoil all the fun.

     The problems that occur in these issues is something I never really thought about, but it explains a lot. Comics based on movies and TV shows usually go into production before the product ever airs. So all the writers and artists had to go on are production photos, some rough drafts, and maybe some sketches. The rest is just made up. Thankfully, if a series gets popular, the production team of the comic book can start to make the two entities sync up

      This was a very interesting read, especially the essay at the end of this volume that delves into the backstory behind the early days of the very first Star Trek comic book. As a fan of MST3K, I had a lot of fun with this book in which you can't really complain about the flaws as that's really the whole point of this special.

      As I had mentioned earlier, this collection also isn't really ideal if you are looking to complete your Gold Key run. But as the first issue, collected here, is valued at anywhere between $500-$1600 depending on edition and condition, this is an affordable way to get your hands on the story without breaking the bank. 

    Worth Consuming

    Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

   

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017: Day 92

  
 Today in Madman history, the race horse Red Rum won it's historic 3rd Grand National Race in Steeplechase at the Aintree racecourse. For those of you not in the know, steeplechase is when a jockey riding atop a horse runs a course littered with little walls made of differing materials. 

   
    Now, I'm not picking this event in 1977 history because I'm a fan of horse racing or anything like that. I've seen races on TV and I could probably tell you the names of a handful of horses and probably tell you even less of their accomplishments. But it was the name of the horse that struck me- Red Rum!

   Red Rum is murder spelled backwards. Well, this was the horse's 3rd championship and by 1977 Red Rum was already 10 years old. But if you remember in January, I did an article about the Stephen King novel The Shining and it's debut. In the book, young Danny Torrance sees the word 'Murder' spelled in blood on his wall. But the kid sees it from the reflection of a mirror across the room from his bed. So he keeps screaming 'Red Rum... Red Rum...'

   I thought Stephen King was the first to figure that out. Well, obviously, at least the owner of the race horse Red Rum figured it out first.

    Well, that's my look at 1977 history for today. See you tomorrow when I'll be showing up somewhere else in A Madman Turns 40...

1977: A Madman Turns 40: 2017- Day 91

  It was a very busy day in Madman History today- I just hope I can cover them all:

A shining star snuffed out too soon,

• The Big Bang Theory of the creation of the universe was first address by physicists in a physical review by scientists in Europe.
• The ruins of Pompeii, destroyed centuries earlier by the blast of Mt. Vesuvius were rediscovered by Spaniard Rocque Joaquin de Alcubierre.

He looks like a happy birthday boy doesn't he?

• Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak found Apple Computer in Jobs' parent's garage.
• New Orleans businessman Oliver Pollock invents the '$' sign.
• It was a busy day for births of famous people as Donut maker Otto von Bismarck, American writer Brad Meltzer, and Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV was born today while the world mourned the loss of Elanor of Aquitaine, Scott Joplin, and Marvin Gaye.
• Tragically, the passing of the Hale-Bopp comet saw dozens of cult members take their own lives in an effort of being beamed aboard the space ship riding the heavenly bodies tail.

• In the realm of love and marriage, Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye tie the knot and never have a moment of infidelity or strife while sadly Duff of Guns N' Roses separates from his bride.
• Lastly, Jon Favereau's live-action version on the Jungle Book opened and was the biggest draw for the weekend.

     Well, if it seems like April 1st, 1977 was busier than usual- that's cause it was. All of the events happened on the first day of April. But they happened in different years.

     APRIL FOOL'S EVERYBODY!!!