The Island Ear, Issue 105E, November 29-December 12, 1982.

This blog has looked at several issues of The Island Ear, Long Island's erstwhile bi-monthly music hand-out (Christmas 1981, March 1983), and this time we're thumbing through the late November/early December offering of thirty-eight years ago.

New Jersey's beloved Uncle Floyd is the cover boy, parked at the ivories in his familiar plaid jacket and pork-pie hat. He was the host of an evening kiddie show for adults (think post-Pinky but pre-Pee Wee), a UHF oddball of the NYC metro area which attracted a cult following in the 70's and 80's. I became a huge fan after initially mocking the show for its cheapness and corny jokes, which of course were what I grew to love about it. I have about four-and-a-half hours of the pre-cable incarnation of the show in my video collection, a rare trove which I acquired from one of the Uncle Floyd Show cast members (who has since passed).
[click pics to enlarge]

The masthead accompanies a list of the Island's top tunes.

The legendary My Father's Place in Roslyn Village takes a full-pager next.

Head over to Hempstead's L.I. Record Collector to check out their ever-increasing LP stock (and to get your skanky albums spiffed up). Futuri was your cuffed-pant zoot suit purveyor of Valley Stream, and Dublin Pub was home to the Boston Burglars, which makes perfect sense since one of the band members owned the joint.

Up next, a queeny quiz and the rest of the Ear-Rings album reviews.

Music Trends, Ltd., was in Levittown's Nassau Mall, as was Toni Basil-touting TSS (but not Record World), and J.C. (?) McNaughton's of Rockville Centre had plenty of room for everyone on its dance floor.

Here's an ad for February's of Elmont, and Pizan's typically subpar Puzzle.

Advertisers on this page: P.O.E.T.S. of Flushing, McHebe's Depot of Hempstead, and The Record Collection of Massapequa Park.

Frida, gone solo from ABBA, is briefly profiled.

Jimmy Byrnes was in Flushing, while Greg Robertson cursively presented Network in Island Park. Like someone gives a shit, Greg.

This Hometown Pride column introduces us to the zany funsters of The Trend.
Look how they're dressed! Fun!

Cheers in North Babylon, Starship in Farmingville.

A live show by Gary U.S. Bonds gets reviewed.

Subz in Middle Village, Slipped Disc Records in Valley Stream, Ken's Record Emporiums of Queens, and Jersey's Almost Backstage.

Island Sound of Merrick, Mods & Rockers in Hicksville, Speakerkits of Bellerose, What Not Shop in Baldwin, and Master Sound Production of Franklin Square. (I butchered the border of this scan a bit, but you get the idea. It still came out better than that guy's poodley 'do.)

Now the cover story--snap it, pal!

We interrupt this article for a word from our sponsors: Heckle and Jeckle's and The Wax Museum Record Empire of Massapequa Park, Richie Rich Records in Queens Village, and Just Shirts of various convenient locations.

Rumrunner of Oyster Bay, Sparks of Huntington.

Spize of Farmingdale, and the United States Air Force of... the sky.

Record World (promoting R.E.M.) and Levittown's Reds.
("Video/Dance Club of the Future." A little bit of it, anyway.)

The Floyd piece finishes alongside some Hot Flashes.

Solomon Grundys Pub in Rockville Centre, Pastime of Amityville.

Zig-Zag Records of Franklin Square shares a page with Larry Kleinman's humor column, "If They Can't Take a Joke..." (I'd have put the ellipsis at the front, but whatever.) I'm assuming Kleinman either lived very close to WNEW or he slept there on Saturday nights.

Sam Ash shills, the top imports are listed, IE looks for a personable car-owner, and Alison and Vince of Yaz dutifully tick off their various faves. (The guy from Erasure's favorite food is veal? Definitely did not see that one coming.)

Where It's At, or more accurately, Who's at the Clubs Who Advertise With Us.

The Bloodlines column takes a quick look at rockabilly icon Eddie Cochran.

Radio stations WLIR, WPLJ, WNEW-FM, and WAPP share their hottest stacks of wax for the week...

...as do lower wattage entries WRCN, WVHC, WBAU, WNYU, and WCWP, plus a rundown of what rock acts would be popping up on the small screen over the next few weeks.

Finally, the back cover features a "Midnight Madness" ad for local United Artists theaters, with an illustration by Pat Starace.

I have the issue for the end of 1980, published in the wake of John Lennon's murder, so I hope to have that one scanned for you before Christmas.

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Newsday TV Book, November 18-24, 1973.

Not much time for chit-chat this time out, so without further ado, here is the Newsday TV Book for Thanksgiving week of 1973, and a cover heralding the premiere of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. I've included the full schedules for Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Enjoy!

[November 2022: Okay, now I got time--commencing chit-chat!]

The description for the holiday special's debut says that when Peppermint Patty invites herself and friends to Charlie Brown's house for dinner, "it throws the little 'Peanut' into a panic." It is not known if this review gave someone at Tomy the idea for the game Peanut Panic, which came out five years later.

In the TV Line column: L.U. of Holbrook has a problem with Jerry Lewis' telethon totals, D.B. of Coram makes some sweet bank off his wife with his recognition of Pat McCormick, while J.J. of Selden needs to brush up on his Ed Nelson-spotting.

Here's Sunday afternoon, with a couple of familiar WPIX 11 holiday flicks.

I'm quite certain I've reproduced this Hicks Christmas ad a half-dozen times on this blog--and dammit, I'll do it again!

I definitely liked Dr. Doolittle as a tot, but it wasn't one of my favorites, exactly. As noted in the review, it was just "pleasant enough." John Cashman's faint praise always felt pretty damning, alright!

King Kong started on WOR 9 at the same time as the Macy's parade! The previous year, Kong didn't come on until 3pm.

The King Family gave thanks, some famous tales were animated (that's a bit too much like school, thank you) and March of the Wooden Soldiers preceded Gulliver and Kris Kringle for an unbeatable afternoon of classic WPIX holiday programming. Note that MotWS is described as being adapted from "Babes in Woodland," which, it seems from searching, was never a thing.

WSNL 67, Long Island's independent station out of Patchogue, began broadcasting this very week, starting Sunday morning (if the TV Book listings are to be trusted as accurate) with this block of kids' shows heading into worship and football: Johnny [sic] Quest, Samson, Dr. Doolittle, Around the World in 80 Days, Marvel Superheroes, and a "Circus Special" from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus called The Restless Giant.
Their first-ever Thanksgiving movie special (with an ad mentioning sponsorship by Roosevelt Field Mall) was also the second-to-last, as WSNL pulled its plug in June of '75 (in this incarnation, anyway).
Jerry Lane (and the Family Fun Time Unlimited Booze Sundays) has been addressed in here before.

Thanksgiving waned with specials on Hawks, Chaplin, and Cosell, plus many films, from sublime to subpar, with John Cashman reviews reflecting the disparity.

No, Godzilla wasn't always on the schedule for the day after, but some early Christmas fodder usually was. In '73, we had the Santa Claus Lane Parade from Hollywood (which I know was hosted at some point by Wonderama's Bob McAllister, though I don't know about this year) and, closer to home, Christmas Festival of Light, with the Jolly Old Elf bedazzling Constitution Plaza in Hartford, Connecticut. This occurred on that city's WFSB 3, a station never actually witnessed by your Non-Parading correspondent.

Julie Andrews and Perry Como join the denizens of Sesame Street (a day late) for the holiday. Fine, as long as she doesn't do her atrocious version of "Sleigh Ride," ecch! In fact, I've decided that, when it comes to Christmas music, I'll even take Debby Boone over Julie. You heard me! (And trust me, Debby's version stinks!)

Look at that--NOW the ol' King of the Monsters rears his bumpy rubber noggin, at midnight on WOR channel 9. You could have tuned in after the fifth installment of Strange Paradise, WSNL's week-nightly "vampire mystery" serial, which sounds like an even lower-rent Dark Shadows.

On the nascent channel 67, Saturday morning brought the premiere of Captain Ahab's weekend super-show--three-and-a-half hours!--Ahab and Friends. If you preferred your humor unintentional, there was Robot Monster smack in the middle of it, over on 9.

After punishing yourself with two hours of East Side/Bowery Boys buffoonery, you could further flog yourself with the Al Adamson/Zandor Vorkov brain-bleeder The Creature's Revenge, on the debut of WSNL's "Shock Theater."

Late Saturday, with Octaman, Fu Manchu, Jekyll & Hyde, not to mention Bela going Devil Bat-ty--which holiday weekend is this, anyway?

No pumpkin pie for me, thanks--but I'll have some half-baked Holiday Spa cheesecake! In Plainview!

Happy Thanksgiving! And don't panic, little peanut, I'll have more holiday hoke coming soon--right here, or on my "Hugo Faces" YouTube channel, or the Facebook page that complements this blog--so keep checking back! And don't forget to share!