Las Vegas pix

Las Vegas

Got back from weekend in Las Vegas, then down to the Lake for an off-site planning retreat. Playing hell with the blogging. Barb’s are sure to be better and I’ll add them when we can find time to coordinate. She’s been busier than I. And, yes, I know I haven’t captioned or titled the flickr images. I’ll get to them eventually.

I also grabbed some video but that’s gonna have to be a weekend project. Gonna try to give the new iMovie another try. Watch this space for big announcement on Friday. I’m all tingly.

The Basement Diaries Redux

L-R: Richard Peck, Jim Bob Green, John Robison, Charlie Peck (seated), Jane Marshall, Joe Browning (seated), Lynn Strickland

I’m committed to the do-over for The Basement Diaries but I’m quickly discovering it’s going to take a lot longer than I anticipated. I keep discovering pages that had fallen behind the digital chest of drawers. I’m starting with just recreating all of the pages and getting them linked. I don’t want to think about re-scanning hundreds of photos. This is the signature image for The Basement Diaries. Everyone has a snapshot like this, that captured a time and place.

Next summer will be the 40th anniversary of “the basement summer,” so I’ll have to have the site back up before then. Which means even less blog time for smays.com.

Clyde Lear: Mac Guy

Learfield CEO Clyde Lear proudly displays his new MacBook Pro. Clyde insists it’s for his lovely wife Sue. If that’s true –and we hope it is– Clyde will soon be trekking back to the Apple Store in St. Louis. I think it would be nearly impossible share a MacBook.

For now, we’ll add Clyde to our gallery of Mac Sliders. Someone call Cupertino, we’re gonna need more Kool Aid.

“Science Fiction Punk Psychedelia”

“I google-image searched “Hippy Witch” and came across this picture. I think it’s a fantastic image!!

Halloween 1974

Anyway, I’m a musician and I wanted to use it as the sleeve for a single I’m doing for a label called “HoZac.” The name of my “band” is Blank Dogs, it’s a home-recording thing and this picture fits the sound perfect. I guess I’d describe it as “Science Fiction Punk Psychedelia.”

It wouldn’t be used ironically, or poked fun at, I just think it’s a super-great photo and I was wondering if I could get your permission to use it. It’s an indie label and they wouldn’t be able to pay anything for it’s use, but maybe you think it’d be cool!”

Radio Announcers (John Mays and Mr. Rudy)

That’s what they called them when my father and Mr. Rudy (Pylant) were on the air at KBOA in Kennett, Missouri. Pop and Mr. Rudy have since made the transition to Pure Amplitude Modulation but the audio waves of their wonderful voices are still streaking through space.

I had never seen this photo of John and Rudy standing in front of the KBOA studio but, based on the automobiles behind them, it could have been as early as ’49 or ’50. The station went on the air in July of 1947 and my father started in 1949. Any of you car freaks able to ID the year of the car at the right edge of this photo?

Mt. Flushmore

Mt. Flushmore

Longtime pal Randy Evans shares the delightful image above. It is the handiwork of one of the talented photographers at The Des Moines Register (where Randy toils as Assistant Managing Editor). Jerry Perkins, father of Learfield’s John Perkins, is George Washington; Randy is in Abe Lincoln’s spot and Thomas and Teddy are a couple of other Register ragamuffins. This puts my sad little effort to shame.