Waldina

"The Fatal Marksman" - CBS Radio Mystery Theater - August 28, 1974

Plot:  A regular clerk leaves his vocation to become a hunter - in order to impress the girl he loves. But this breaks a vow he made to his deceased mother. Her vengeful spirit puts a curse on him for doing so and his gun misses every single target. However, another friendly spirit gives him charmed bullets - that come at a price.

"The Deadliest Favor" - CBS Radio Mystery Theater - August 26, 1974

Plot:  A guy is running away from the police and takes shelter in a friend's house. The friend is a novelist and lives with his wife. But from the moment the fugitive appears, problems creep up between the couple.

Today is the 103rd birthday of the composer Leonard Bernstein. His music is part of the American soundtrack, I can close my eyes and hear a piece and picture Mid Century New York City. It has also been well documented that any friend of the Muppets holds a golden ticket into my inner circle of influential people. He is not only a friend, he also had a Muppet inspired by him: Leonard Birdseed. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.

Today is the 76th birthday of the activist Marsha P. Johnson. The privilege you take for granted every day is a gift due to her tireless fight for equality. The world is a better place because she was in it and still feels the loss that she has left.

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://waldina.com/2021/08/24/happy-76th-birthday-marsha-p-johnson/

Today is the 51st birthday of the actor and activist River Phoenix. We are the same age and I even saw him once in Seattle. He is in my favorite Indiana Jones film and my favorite Gus van Sant film My Own Private Idaho. He filmed a movie in Tacoma’s North End and we heard rumors of him being at this coffee shop and sightings here and there, but I never actually saw him. Years later, I did get an autograph (my only autograph of any kind) from his one-time girlfriend and The Goonies alumna Martha Plimpton. It’s written on a Barneys New York thank you card and simply says “screw you!” and her signature.  The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.

Today is the 109th birthday of the triple threat Gene Kelly. He was most active at the height of the Hollywood Musical and it was a perfect time for all parties concerned. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the los that he has left.

"The Case of M.J.H." - CBS Radio Mystery Theater - August 22, 1974

Plot:  A professional swindler seduces a lonely unmarried woman who works as a psychiatrist's assistant. He persuades her to pilfer her employer's patient files in order to extort money from them.

Today is the 158th birthday of the composer Claude Debussy. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.

Opening Song:  Petite Suite-Ballet by Debussy, Performed by Aloys and Alfons Kontarsky

Closing Song:  Sonata for Violin and Piano (first movement) by Debussy, Performed by by Kyung-Wha Chung and Radu Lupu

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://waldina.com/2021/08/22/happy-158th-birthday-claude-debussy-2/

Today is the 117th birthday of the multiple Grammy winning musician and band leader Count Basie. His band’s music is part of the soundtrack of the American story. The world is a better place because he was in it and still feels the loss that he has left.

Opening Song: If I Were A Bell by Sarah Vaughan & Count Basie

Closing Song: Ain't Misbehaving by Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie

This episode is also available as a blog post: http://waldina.com/2021/08/21/happy-117th-birthday-count-basie/

Today is the 69th birthday of the singer, songwriter, actor, activist, and humanitarians that is quoted as saying “The future is unwritten” Joe Strummer. Picking a favorite The Clash song is impossible, listing them is lengthy, remembering them and listening to them is important. The trajectory of his life is beautiful. Angry punk to humanitarian. I love a life story where you can look at the beginning and the end and know he was active, productive, thoughtful, and worked through some shit. The world is a better place because he is in it and still feels the loss that he has left.