Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Goodbye, Cruel World (1961)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) This week's song has a circus theme. Have you ever been to a circus? If yes, did you enjoy it? Yes, when I was very little (pre-school? Kindergarten?). No, I didn't enjoy it. It was an old-school three-ring circus and it was too much for me, I didn't know what to focus on and it upset me. Also, the candy vendor only had those marshmallow peanuts. I remember thinking they were yucky. Everything was yucky. I realize the problem wasn't the circus, it was that I was too young.

They didn't taste like peanuts at all!

2) James Darren sings that he's running away to join the circus. When you were a kid, did you ever run away from home? Yes. I was a little older than I was when we went to the  circus, but not by much. I packed underpants, a jar of peanut butter and a spoon in a tote bag. I told my parents I'd taken the peanut butter and the spoon and explained my intent. They told me they understood, and that I was welcome to come back home anytime. Then my plush Lassie dog and I were off. I made it about two houses away, realized it was dark and scary, and came back. I told my parents I planned to take off again in the morning. Of course I did not. I know this story so well because my parents loved it and retold it countless times. Apparently it was hard for them not to laugh at how earnest I was that I was not stealing the peanut butter. My favorite part of the story is that, unbeknownst to me, my dad was outside in the bushes watching me, ready to stop me if I headed toward the busy street. He was not a very hands-on father, and the thought of him crouching among those pine shrubs touches me.

 

3) While he understands intellectually that this girl is no good for him, he tells us his heart is stubborn. Do you have a stubborn streak? Yes. My two biggest faults are that I am stubborn and lazy. Not an attractive combination and I'm working on it.

4) Though he had three top 20 singles, including this one, James Darren found more consistent success as an actor. Between 1959 and 1963, he played surfer Jeff Matthews, aka "Moondoggie," in three Gidget movies. Have you seen any Gidget movies? What about the TV show, starring Sally Field? Yes. Enjoyed them all in their time, though I don't watch them now.

5) "Moondoggie" got his unique nickname because he enjoyed surfing in the moonlight. Looking back on Summer 2023, did you visit the beach (by moonlight or otherwise)? Not in the summer. But in March I went to Tampa to visit my Cousin Rose. She took me to John's Pass, which is touristy but delightful (after all, I was a tourist!) and I wiggled my toes in the sand and then we took a boat ride.

 

Greetings from the Gulf of Mexico

6) While he was playing Gidget's teen dream, he was a married man. He wed Danish beauty queen Evy Norlund in 1960. They met when she came to Los Angeles to pursue a career and they were both working at Columbia Studios. More than 60 years later, they're still together. Tell us about the longest-married couple you know. I guess that would be Mindy and Alan. They were married in (I believe) 1987. I remember when they met on a blind date set up by a woman Mindy met at a photography class. They have been through a great deal together -- infertility and health problems, financial setbacks -- but they have seemed happy with each other throughout.

7) James Darren also played Officer James Corrigan on ABC's police drama, TJ Hooker. Have you ever considered a career in law enforcement? Nope. I'm too chicken.

 

8) In 1961, when this song was on the radio, matching his & hers mohair sweaters were on trend. Do you have a favorite sweater? Yes. It's very loose and long and blue. I got it from Goodwill! I went through the store after I dropped off a box of my own gently-used items. I wanted to see the prices in the store so I could accurately value my donation at tax time. Anyway, I saw it hanging on the end cap and I fell in love. I've had it so long that I've had to mend it, but I don't care. It's forever my fave.

9) Random question -- They say we're all young at heart. In what ways are you childlike? I believe I do good in the world. I know my contributions are not mighty or noteworthy (sending postcards for candidates/causes I believe in, writing Letters Against Isolation) but I believe if we all do what we can we make the world a better place. I know how corny that sounds, but I have believed it since I was a little girl and first heard, "Ask not what your country can do for you ..."