August 30 – September 06 (2021)

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

When I was designing my plush Donnie Druthers figures for my collection of available Christoween merchandise, I happened upon this picture of a Fonzie plush from the 70’s. It served as a perfect prototype for what I was trying to do. I LOVED this type of merchandise from the 60’s and 70’s!

Talk about smooth! This song by Real Estate came up on my iPod the other night and it always puts me in a great mood, no matter how I’m feeling at the time. This is “Paper Cup.”

Monday the 30th – SOMEONE WHO CAN KEEP UP! – There were some bills that needed paying, so I cut some checks, got them ready for mailing, and did a last-minute audition. My neighbor Bob and I were talking about going for a brisk walk, so we decided to do it. I knew he was a voracious walker, like me, so I suggested we go together sometime. Very few people I walk with can keep up with my rapid pace, but at last I’ve found someone who can! We plan on going for more walks like this on a regular basis so we can get out and sweat, and get our heart rates up. During the evening it started a cooling trend, and the weather this week is going to be very nice. Almost Fall-like. Since I put in a good couple of miles I rewarded myself with a Domino’s pizza. I prepped for a session I’d have on Tuesday night. I did my nightly auditions, typed out Wally’s Week, edited some quickie Christoween merch videos that I’d be posting on Instagram and Twitter, ate some leftover Domino’s pizza and watched another episode of “Mod Squad.” When I walked Roxy on our late-night stroll through the neighborhood it rained very briefly. But it sprinkled just enough to make everything smell good!

Tuesday the 31st – LATE NIGHT SESSION! – The weather was very odd for this time of year. In Los Angeles in August it’s supposed to be very hot. But the skies have been overcast and it’s been cool. Are we in for an early Fall? I worked on-line for a bit, and then got ready for my evening session in Burbank. The client for this video game was overseas, so the session times were all in the evening in the U.S. to accommodate their schedule in the different time zone. It was OK with me, as I prefer working at night anyway. I drove to my mailbox to pick up my packages, got a quick salad at Paty’s for dinner, drove to Hobby Lobby to pick up a plastic storage case that I needed, and then headed to Skylark studios to record the video game I had been booked for. Not only did I have my own reserved parking space, but my own bathroom as well! I didn’t deceive myself into thinking I was anybody of particular importance who deserved such a privilege, because it’s more about being Wu Flu compliant than anything. We worked for a fun 2 hours and I was on my way to the grocery store to get supplies. I got home and did my nightly auditions, worked around the house, and finished my Cookie Monster cap with actual working, twirling eyes! I put a small piece of foam underneath his top lip so the top of his face would protrude a bit. It was a real improvement!

Wednesday the 1st – BAZOOKA JOE-VIAL! – My pal Bob and I walked over to Big 5 to get him a new pair of walking shoes, and we took the long way home to maximize our exercise time. My heart rate was up and I was sweating like crazy! A GREAT walk! I got cleaned up and my pal Michelle arrived so we could go to dinner at Vitello’s in Studio City. We’d be meeting with our new friends Seig and Denise, and 102 year old WWII vet Bazooka Joe! If you remember, we met them at Barone’s several weeks ago and I was taken by Joe’s clarity and memories about his amazing life. As we pulled up, we saw Seig dropping off Denise and Joe at the front entrance. Since parking over there is problematic, we had to drive a few blocks away to find parking. Seig got a space right next to me, so Michelle, Seig and I walked down the back way to get to Vitello’s. As we walked through the parking lot of a strip mall I noticed that the only store still open was a shoe repair shop. I had recounted a tale of visiting that shop a while back to have the leather strap for my satchel repaired. It had gotten quite frayed. But the owner of the repair shop said, “Why not just get a new strap?” EUREKA! That was a brilliant idea. He had a lot of random leather straps in his shop and we found a perfect match. It was then that Michelle mentioned that the vintage shoes she was wearing had a problem with one of the heels. The little rubber traction pad on the bottom of one heel had come off, and it made her walk funny. So I suggested, since we were right in the area and the store was still open, that we stop in and see what he could do for us. Seig went on ahead to let Denise and Joe know that we’d be a few minutes late, due to a shoe emergency. Mike, the owner of the shop, said he’d do a repair on the spot. She removed her shoe and he said, “How is the other one?” She showed it to him and she said, “It’s fine.” Mike said, “No it’s not.” Come to find out, the rubber traction pad on the other shoe was almost completely cracked off. So we watched him remove the cracked pad, cut a new set of pads out of new rubber, Barge glue them onto the heel, trim them to the contour of the heel, and sand them to size. I love watching a trained craftsman work! Then, he polished them up, buffed them and sprayed them with a protectant. This man knew his shoes! He knew that the brand was a very expensive label and that they were vintage. What a great circumstance. As soon as Michelle put the shoes on she noticed an immediate difference! We got to Vitello’s and had a wonderful dinner with our friends that lasted almost 3 hours. And in those three hours lots of stories were told. I was amazed that, at the age of 102, Bazooka Joe didn’t repeat himself even ONCE during the dinner! Amazing. His mental sharpness and clarity are amazing for somebody of ANY age, let alone 102! During the conversation he told me about the numerous cars he had restored in his life, and many of them had won awards! I got to thinking. He would be a GREAT one to take on a tour of Jay Leno’s Garage. When I got home I sent a note with details and a photo of Joe and I to Jay’s assistant. If you don’t ask, you don’t get. Right? I did my auditions and called it a day. A wonderful, FANTASTIC day!

Thursday the 2nd – ANDY BEHIND THE SCENES! – The day started with my pal Brittney Powell coming over to do a brisk walk. The weather was gorgeous and it was the perfect day for it. We hit the post office so I could send off some signed photos. Then we went to the bank so I could make a deposit. We stopped by at CVS to pick up some supplies, and then we walked over to Kit Kraft to see how everything was going. This amazing, legendary “mom and pop” craft store is closing for good after many years in business. It’s very sad. Brittney and I walked over to the cigar store so I could pick up a few nice cigars to enjoy on the few warm nights we have left in the season. We stopped at the Studio Café for some lunch. As we were finishing, my doctor called me for my telemedicine consultation. I tried to move to a quiet area on the restaurant’s patio, but he heard laughter coming from some people at another table. He was wondering if he had caught me at a bad time. I told him no, it was just some of the other customers. He said, “Well, they all sound healthy and happy.” We finished our call, Brittney and I finished our lunch, and I paid the check and we got up to leave. I told the laughing people, “I just spoke to my doctor who heard you laughing. He said you all sounded healthy and happy, and to keep laughing!” They chuckled and appreciated the sentiments. We walked over to Rusty’s Pets to pick up a few more “puppy loafs” for Roxy. These are refrigerated loaves of meat and veggies made exclusively for dogs. Roxy LOVES them! I got home and got prepped, and my pal Officer Mark stopped over so we could go to dinner at Bob’s Big Boy. Since I had just eaten a salad, I wasn’t that hungry. So I just enjoyed some soup and a few chicken strips. We got back to Planet Wallywood after dinner and shot a few segments for my ‘embellished’ “Andy Kaufman: E! True Hollywood Story.” A few weeks ago I dug out my old VHS tape of the show, in which I performed as Andy and Tony Clifton in the reenactment segments. I also narrated it. I figured since people hadn’t seen it in a while (or maybe they’ve NEVER seen it), and that E! is no longer running these, I would dub it on DVD and rip it to a video file and post it on my site. Unlike a mostly-fictitious biopic of Andy, this show had a lot of real information about Andy and his life. But as I watched the show again (I hadn’t seen it in about 2 decades) a lot of fun stories and memories started coming back. I thought it might be nice to tell a few of those stories and add it to the end of the show as sort of a “bonus” feature. Mark shot the segments and sent them to me later so I could edit them into the timeline. I got an e-mail from Jay Leno asking for my number so we could arrange a tour of his garage for Bazooka Joe! Fantastic! He’s going to love it! Later that night I did my nightly auditions, made some chili and watched “Mod Squad” before bed.

Friday the 3rd – JAY LENO CALLING! – My maids arrived late in the afternoon to clean up Planet Wallywood, and I started working on the finished edit for the Andy Kaufman special. I also recorded a bit for the “Ellen” show, as they would be starting up their filming again after Labor Day. This will be their final season. I got a call from Jay Leno to set up the tour for Bazooka Joe. I got a call from an unrecognized number, which I usually don’t answer, but I figured what the heck. “Hey Wally. Jay Leno. So, you wanna bring the old boy over tomorrow at 11?” FABULOUS! I told him I’d check with Joe’s family, but I’m sure it would be a go. I confirmed with Denise that Joe was available, and I called Jay back and set up the tour for 11am the next day. This will be amazing! I took some armature wire and made a little stand for my newly-finished Cookie Monster cap to display in the Puppet Room. I’m not sure I’ll ever wear it, but it was easy enough to make, and I like how it turned out.

Saturday the 4th – POOR STONED SPOOK! – Right around 9:30 I woke up and got prepped to drive to Jay’s Garage to meet up with Bazooka Joe and his family. Joe had no idea what the surprise was and it was going to be fun to see his reaction. We arrived at Jay’s just before 11 and we pulled into his lot. He brought up a golf cart so Joe and his family could ride around with Jay as he told fun stories about some of the cars in the garage. And Jay enjoyed hearing Joe’s stories about all the cars he restored and some of the funny tales surrounding their history. I honestly believe that Jay loves giving tours to real hardcore car fans who totally understand the enormity and importance of the collection he’s built. He definitely had that in Joe. I like cars as much as the next guy, but to me cars are a lot like women. I like how they look, I like how they feel, and I like how they drive. But dammit – I just don’t understand how they work. After the tour we met at Paty’s to get some lunch. Joe had to get home quickly because he needed to prepare for an evening of dancing he had planned at the Smokehouse. 102 years old. Amazing. I picked up my packages at my mailbox and went home to drug my cat. Because of Spook’s rather caustic attitude at the vet’s office, when he needs his annual exam, they require me to give him a tranquilizer to make him more amenable to the process. I have to give it to him 2-3 hours before the appointment. His appointment was at 4, and I gave him the pill in a big blob of EZ Cheese at 1:30. While his meds kicked in I went over to CVS to pick up a prescription and have the photos of Jay and Joe enlarged to 8 X 10. I got home and waited for Spook’s meds to completely take effect. I stuffed him in his bag and we drove to the vet’s office. Spook protested a little (one loud ‘meow’) but after that he just went with it. He was pretty mellow after that. Because of his age (16 years old) they checked his blood and urine. I took him back home and gave him a nice meal, and let the meds wear off. I worked around the house, and put up the new Atomic Clock I had just gotten in. I wanted to have one in the bathroom in the Tranquility Zone, as I already have one downstairs in my office area. I really love it. But the cord wasn’t long enough to reach the outlet. Luckily I had bought an extension for that type of power supply, and I tacked it to the wall perfectly. I cleaned up a few other things and then started to get really tired. It had been quite a day! I napped for a bit, and then got up later to finish up a few things and prep for my “first-Saturday-of-the-month” Laurel & Hardy Theater. I had planned on watching three films, thinking they were all two-reelers (which are about 22 minutes each), but I had forgotten that “Pardon Us” was their first feature. I had also forgotten how funny “Our Wife” is. But I’m afraid “Pardon Us” didn’t age very well. The editing was odd, and it seemed to be full of padding. Almost as if they had a very funny concept for a two-reeler, but got the order to make it a feature, and had a difficult time trying to pad it out to 65 minutes. Features back in those days were only 65 minutes. Given the fact that they had a 20 minute newsreel before every screening, and normally there was also some sort of cartoon, a 65-70 feature film padded out the 2 hour experience nicely in the old theaters. As usual with my Laurel & Hardy Theater presentations, I made a Chef Boyardee pizza, had a banana Twinkie, some popcorn, and a large Oliver Hardy mug filled with ice cold Diet Pepsi. This approximates what I used to eat when I’d watch “Laurel and Hardy Theater” as a kid in Aberdeen, South Dakota on Saturday nights. Good memories!

Sunday the 5th – TOO HOT TO TROT (OR WALK!) – My pal Chris and I had planned on taking a brisk evening walk to go get dinner, but even at 6pm the temp was still in the high 90s. So we postponed it to another day. The beginning of the week was cool, but we hit a hot spell. I like the hot weather, personally. I did some work around the house, and the vet called to tell me that Spook was slightly anemic, but nothing to worry about. All of his other levels were pretty good for a cat his age. I guess ol’ Spook will continue to be around a long time yet. Later in the evening I did my auditions, and then I walked Roxy on our late-night stroll through the neighborhood. The stars were bright and the sky was clear, so I decided to set up my hammock on my patio and enjoy some patio time. It had been a while since I spent some quality time on my hammock, and I had forgotten how cold it can get on my backside! The floor of my patio is all bright, and it radiates cold. So as I’m lying there in the hammock relaxing, the cold from the brick floor radiates up through the hammock and chills my backside! Then I remembered that when I had hammock time last year, I put a blanket on the hammock and then laid down on it. But it still was very pleasant! I made some hot dogs on the grill, as is my tradition on Memorial Day (the beginning of summer), the 4th of July, and Labor Day (the end of summer), and watched an episode of “Mod Squad.” In the story, some guys stole some Army trucks to pull a bank robbery. The license plate on the back of the Army trucks read “4077.” Hmmm…where have I heard that before? As a 20th Century Fox show, “Mod Squad” obviously borrowed some of the trucks used in the film “M*A*S*H” a few years earlier!

Monday the 6th – HAPPY WORKER BEE DAY! – As I mentioned before – to me, every Labor Day signifies the end of summer. Unfortunately summer is ending too quickly. I really enjoyed it, and I’m not ready for it to be over yet. I also reflected upon the times when I was young where I had to do work involving manual labor. From mowing lawns as a kid, to working at a hatchery cleaning out chicken cages, to carrying a multitude of newspapers for different companies, to my short-lived career in the restaurant business as a busboy. But I got into radio as a full-time DJ at the age of 16, so I’ve been very lucky. Someday I’ll tell some stories about all of those early gigs, as many of them were pretty funny. But yeah, I have the utmost respect for those laborers who have to perform manual labor tasks every day to feed their families. Later in the afternoon my pal Bob and I did a brisk walk. I spent the rest of the evening retouching photos, and I typed out Wally’s Week. I made a huge salad and watched another “Mod Squad” episode.

And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

Here’s 102 year old WWII vet Bazooka Joe Pietroforte and I after a yummy dinner at Vitello’s!

It’s fun watching Bazooka Joe meet his public!

The plastic eyes I found for my Cookie Monster cap were eye pieces that were designed for teddy bears and plush animals. I sanded them a bit, primed them, and painted them white. Then I drilled in tiny screw holes for the wiggle eyes.