March 24 – March 30 (2025) – Wally On The Web

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

Since I was anxiously anticipating seeing my ol’ Voice Acting pal Candi Milo on the Cartoon Voice Actor panel at WonderCon, I dug out this picture of her and I at the San Diego Comic Con back in 2014. Good memories! Over 10 years ago!

It always amazes me when I’m in a store or restaurant and the overhead music system plays a really obscure tune that I love. It happened recently when I heard Pat Benatar’s “Le Bel Age” in a store. It wasn’t a big hit, but there it was! Amazing. I wonder if there’s some sort of device that scans a person’s phone when they walk in to access their music list. And then the store’s device will play a song that’s on the person’s list, knowing that this will make the person want to stay longer and shop some more. If a device like that doesn’t exist I’d be really surprised. Maybe I should invent one! Well, when we were at Polly’s Pies for dinner the other night, the song “Wish I Knew You” by the Revivalists came on. I was blown away! I’ve been humming it ever since!

Monday the 24th – SPOOKY ISSUES: DAY 1! – After picking up a package at my box, and getting some lunch at McDonald’s, I went over to my accountant’s house to drop off my tax stuff. He recently had major surgery and he’s still recovering at home, so he asked that I drop everything off at his house. Then I went back home and packed up my cat Spooky for a vet visit. He’s had a “leaky bottom” issue for a while and I’ve got to find out what’s causing it, and how to end it. It’s causing a fair amount of mess around the house and it’s hard to stay ahead of. He’ll be 20 in July, so I’m not sure if it’s even fixable at his age. But I’ll find out today, hopefully. I took him in to see a vet tech last week to have his rear end glands cleaned, but that didn’t seem to be his problem. So today we’re seeing the doctor. Spooky has been seeing the same vet since I adopted him as a kitten. Dr. Steve is the best. He knew right away what Spooky’s problem was, and what the root cause of the problem was. Come to find out, because of his age-related kidney insufficiency, Spook’s pretty constipated. The lack of good hydration in his system prohibits his waste disposal system from working efficiently. It’s because of this very issue that he’s got rear end leakage. As it was the end of the day, Dr. Steve suggested bringing him in early the next morning for an irrigation, to remove all the blockages. They’re also going to take some X-rays as well to get a good idea of what’s going on. They took some of his blood and will have a better idea of what’s going on the next day when the results come in. The Dr. fears that the end may be near for ol’ Spook, so it’s not exactly the news you want to hear – though not totally unexpected. Sad, I took him home and gave him some food. Because of the medication I gave him earlier in the day to make him tranquil, Spook ate and went right to sleep – as did I. Later I did some auditions and emailed them in to my agent. It was a nice, hot day. As I relaxed around the house I thought about Spook and the likelihood that any sort of procedure would actually help him. If he has kidneys that are shutting down, then this will just be happening over and over – and that’s no kind of life for him. The Dr. kept referring to Spook’s “quality of life,” and I have to logically assess if any procedure will be good enough to prolong his life, or if we should just plan on saying goodbye soon. Needless to say, it was not a good day. Later I wrote Wally’s Week, took my nightly WOG (walk/jog), and since the night was gorgeous, I spent some time outside in the anti-gravity chair pondering my options. Under the circumstances, I didn’t sleep very well.

Tuesday the 25th – SPOOKY ISSUES: DAY 2! – Bright and early, at 7am, I sprang awake to take Spooky to the vet again. As I did the day before, I had to give him some more medication to keep him docile and tranquil for the examination. Today they’d be flushing his system and taking some X-rays. Hopefully the results of the blood test will be in so we can ascertain how to proceed. I prepared myself that this could be the day we say goodbye, if the blood tests results yielded bad news. Sad, I brought Spooky in to discuss options with the doctor. Dr. Steve said the blood test results were supposed to be in at 6am, but hadn’t arrived yet. Tearfully, as I could barely speak, I asked the doctor what he would do in my position. He said he would proceed with the irrigation and try Spook on daily stool softeners, and see how that worked. I put on my brave face, left Spook in their care, and headed home to sleep on the couch by the phone in case they called with news. It wasn’t a very restful day. My day was populated with a lot of “cat naps,” (no pun intended) as every time the phone would ring, I’d wake up to see if it was the vet or not. When I wasn’t napping I tried to keep my mind occupied with other stuff. I wasn’t hungry, so I spent the whole day and hadn’t eaten a thing. I was literally preparing for the worst news. I recorded some auditions, which helped to ease my mind. I like working. Finally, at 4:45 they called and I went to pick him up. The Dr. said the irrigation went fine, and he was REALLY blocked up. He showed me the before and after X-rays and it was night and day. He said about mid-afternoon Spook’s blood test results had come in, and his kidney values weren’t as bad as he was expecting. GREAT NEWS! Dr. Steve said Spook will probably be around a little while longer. He called in a prescription for liquid stool softener which I need to give him twice a day. I was relieved to hear all that, and it was a happy end to the day! I took Spook home to let him sleep off his traumatic day. Then I called my pal Chris Malmin and asked him to meet me at Paty’s for dinner on the patio. Then I came home and did some work, recorded my auditions, relaxed a bit, and did my nightly WOG. This day ended up turning out a lot better than I had originally thought when I woke up this morning.

Wednesday the 26th – A SURPRISE ANGI DAY! – Early in the day my gal Angi called and said she wouldn’t be going to class that day. So I suggested that she come over with her dog Khloe and we spend the day together. Khloe had just endured some pretty serious dental surgery, so she had a cone on her head. Between the two of us, our pets have had quite the traumatic week of medical stuff! My main errand of the day was to go get my Mustang out of storage and take it to the mechanic for an oil change. While it was in the shop I also wanted them to take a look at the brake sensor to see why getting it shifted from P into D was sometimes sticky. So Angi drove me to the post office to mail some stuff, then to my box to pick up some packages. I got some navy blue corduroy fabric for the suit jacket for the Guy Smiley replica Muppet I’m having made. I also received a dress shirt that was made for a toddler that will end up being the shirt for the Guy puppet. I have a red tie on order, and then it will be complete. In the early versions of this puppet, they had a small pocket square in the pocket of the suit jacket, and I really like that look. My seamstress Alex at Alex in Wonderland suggested that I buy another identical tie so she can tear it apart and make a small pocket square. Classy! Only the best for the “World’s Greatest Game Show Host” Bernie Liederkranz! (If you’ve ever seen “Sesame Street” you’ll totally get this reference.) She drove me to the auxiliary garage to get my Mustang and it started right up. It felt good to be in the cockpit again, and I smiled all the way to the mechanic’s shop. It wasn’t having a problem shifting into gear, so the problem seemed to not be an issue right now. Isn’t that always the way? When you take the car into the shop to show the mechanic the problem, it never exhibits the issue when you want it to! I dropped the Mustang off and Angi and I drove off to Coral Café to have lunch. By the time we finished “lunch” it was 6pm! Time really flies when you’re having fun in good company! The passage of time is unreal! Angi wanted to stop by the cleaners to take a dress in for some alterations. The cleaners I always go to has a popcorn machine and they always have fresh popcorn for their patrons. Of course I grabbed a bag and ate some while Angi was being fitted. When we got back into the car I finished the popcorn, and I happened to look in the back seat at Khloe. She was staring at me intently, hoping I would give her some popcorn. But given her recent dental surgery, she couldn’t have any. I felt bad and put the bag away. But her keen nose had smelled the wonderful odor of popcorn, and she hadn’t forgotten about it! Angi took me back home and as she and I were saying goodbye, I glanced up at her car and I could see Khloe in the backseat giving me the “stink eye.” She was not happy that I was hugging and kissing on her mommy! It was so freakin’ cute I just burst out laughing which, given my past few days of stress, I really needed. I love dogs! I went inside and did some work, shot a video for the upcoming Nostalgia Con in Denver, where I’ll be appearing at the end of April, and then relaxed. I got up later to do my nightly WOG, and then I drove over to Denny’s to get some food. I worked around the house a bit, and then watched a few more episodes of “Have Gun – Will Travel” while I ate my dinner.

Thursday the 27th – COMATOSE THURSDAY! – Since my normal “Comatose Sunday” wasn’t possible, considering I was doing the Sacramento Comic Con all day, I made the executive decision to enjoy a “Comatose Thursday” instead. I needed the rest! I got up for a while mid-afternoon to do a few last-minute auditions, and then I made some calls related to our Voices Against Cancer charity in June. But my voice was pretty rough, so I decided that all of the vocal stress I’ve recently endured required some more rest and relaxation. Later I prepped for the maids on Friday, and Saturday’s appearance at WonderCon in Anaheim.

Friday the 28th – VADER IS COMPLETE! – The day started with a phone conversation with my pal Joe Garner about the Christoween stories. Then the maids came over to give Planet Wallywood a much-needed cleaning. When they left I sped off to Alex In Wonderland so Alex and I could start planning the design for the Guy Smiley puppet. She also gave me the finished pieces for my Darth Vader costume, and he’s now complete! All the alterations have been finished! I drove to Carl’s Jr. to get some dinner to go, and then headed home. I prepped for my visit to WonderCon to participate in this year’s Cartoon Voice Actor panel with Mark Evanier. It would be fabulous! I’d be bringing Cookie Monster along for a surprise appearance! I did my nightly WOG later, and then hit the hay!

Saturday the 29th – WONDERFUL WONDERCON! – This made two Saturdays in a row that I had to be up early for a convention appearance. I’m not used to being up early on a Saturday, but conventions are always a great reason to break my routine. Emily dropped over to house sit for the day, and I packed up the Gray Ghost and headed south. It took me about an hour and 20 minutes in traffic to get to Santa Ana to meet up with Officer Mark and Miss Connie. Her parents live near the Anaheim Convention Center, so instead of wading through all of the traffic to find a parking place, Miss Connie just drops us off. Once we found out where we needed to be to get our passes, we laid our hands on them and hit the convention floor. I texted Mark Evanier to let him know I was there, and he had me meet him at a specific booth where he was hanging out. We chatted a bit about the upcoming panel, hatched a few comedy bits, and Officer Mark and I did a little shopping around. It was super busy and chaotic. We had a few hours before the panel, so we walked over to the Marriott hotel to have some lunch poolside. It was amazing! My pal Joey Torino came over to join us, and walked with us over to the convention center to find the room where the panel would be held. I also got to meet George, the CEO from Baby Tattoo, a publisher whom I’m trying to get interested in helping to launch the Christoween story series. Everybody found their seats after the previous panel broke up, and we got ready for the magic. I would be joined by fellow Voice Actors Daniel Ross (the voice of Donald Duck, among others), the lovely Kimberly Brooks, and the legendary Candi Milo! What a great group! Fun was about to ensue! After Mark Evanier asks each panelist a bit about their careers, he passes out a short radio play they he wrote. This seems to be everyone’s favorite part of these panels; the “Cold Reading” part – where the actors improvise, flub, and create a general sense of chaos. Mr. Evanier and I had concocted a place toward the end of the radio play where he would fire me from my responsibilities, and hire a NEW narrator – and that’s when Cookie Monster would make his appearance! Doing Muppets is my way of cosplaying these days, and it makes me SO happy to do so! After all, I’ve been doing it since I was a kid. And seeing people’s reactions to a Muppet character never gets old. He sprang up from behind the table and the room went crazy! Cookie read the rest of the radio play, complained that the play focused on porridge (it was a 3 Bears play) and not cookies, and ate a page of the script. What fun! After the panel was over, the actors went out into the hallway to pose for pictures and sign autographs. Shortly into the first part of the panel Angi had slipped in and took a seat up front. I’m glad she was able to make it in time to see most of the panel. Several of us went over to hang out in the Marriott to chat with George about Christoween. I saw my pal Richard Halpern dressed as Austin Powers, heading to the convention. We chatted for a bit and got caught up. Then I saw a kid with a puppet (I believe he was at our panel earlier) and we got some shots of his puppet (which he had just purchased at the convention) with Cookie Monster. I asked him if he wanted to try operating Cookie Monster, and without ANY hesitation he said, “YES!” He was 9 years old and obviously a puppet fan. I flashed back to when I was 9 years old, and if some guy had offered to let me operate a full size puppet like Cookie Monster, I also would have leapt at the chance! I hope that moment inspired him to explore the art of puppetry even further! You just never know when those little “life changing” moments are hatched. We finished up our meeting with George and Angi drove Officer Mark and I over to Polly’s Pies, a local eatery that I really love. We met up with Miss Connie and her parents for a wonderful dinner, but I was exhausted! I was worried about the long drive home, but I’m sure I’d be OK. On the way back to my house, my timing was perfect. As I was on the freeway I noticed up ahead that the nightly fireworks display at Disneyland had just started! I drove directly toward the glittering display in the sky and it was pure magic! Just as I had driven under them the exhibit had stopped. The timing was all perfect! I made it back home around 10:30 and took a nap! Later I needed to hit the grocery store for some much-needed supplies, so at 4am I drove over to get my items and came home to put them away. I made my usual Saturday Night Super Salad and watched another episode of “Boris Karloff’s Thriller.” Unfortunately, the episode was awful. There were a lot of good ones in the first season, but the second season produced more “misses” than “hits.” I’m almost done with the series, so I’m turning my attentions toward what my Saturday night viewing habits will be when this series is completed.

Sunday the 30th – SUNDAY SPRITZ! – Eventually I got up in the evening to do a little work. My friends Joe and Zandra Pendleton were in town, so we met for a late night dinner at Little Toni’s. Then I came back home, recorded some auditions, and took my nightly WOG. It was spritzing out, but not too badly. Earlier it was raining a bit heavier, but luckily it subsided just long enough for me to do my exercise. I came back inside to do some editing work, and then I hit the hay. I’m looking forward to a nice, relaxing week that I can catch up on a few things.

And how was YOUR week?!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

My old pal, and one of the co-hosts of the “Monster Party” podcast, James Gonis does a great Jor-El!

Another old pal…Scott Zillner…is busy as always!

On the way up the escalator to find the panel room!

George, the CEO of Baby Tattoo publishing, comes to talk about Christoween!

Hilarity ensues on the Cartoon Voice Actor panel!

Panel participants (from left to right) Mark Evanier; the moderator, Candi Milo, me, Daniel Ross, and Kimberly Woods.

Always great to run into another Muppet fan at conventions!

Was this guy cosplaying as Frank Oz? Cookie Monster thought so! Come to find out he’s the dad of fellow Voice Actress Kaitlin Robrock! He was a good sport!

It was a real pleasure to meet Isaiah and “Cookie Mom!”

My pal and puppet seamstress Maggie Roberge was there with her cosplaying puppet Hunter!

Cookie and I are always ready to take a selfie with a musician!

Wally and Wall-E? Great seeing my old con pal Diana!

My pal and Gran Torino brother Joey Torino is his usual jovial self!

So Donald Duck and Cookie Monster walk into a convention…

I thought this pic would be funny – the Voice Actor gang doing a kick line. But when I saw Michael Myers checking his texts in the background, I realized we had been deliciously photobombed!