{"id":6351,"date":"2019-04-23T01:05:23","date_gmt":"2019-04-23T01:05:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.heroes4fun.com\/home\/?page_id=6351"},"modified":"2026-03-04T05:48:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T13:48:15","slug":"wallysweek","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wallyontheweb.com\/home\/wallysweek\/","title":{"rendered":"Wally’s Week"},"content":{"rendered":"
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May 26 – June 07 (2026)<\/h2>

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK<\/h3>\n

MAN! Those were the days!!!<\/p>\n

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I’ve always loved the sound that the 70’s group Three Dog Night had going. The different vocalists, the harmonies, everything was just golden! “Family Of Man”<\/span> came up on my device this past week and I was rockin’ out!<\/p>\nhttps:\/\/www.wallyontheweb.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Family-of-Man.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

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Tuesday the 26th \u2013 PACKING, PUPPETS, PREP, & MORE! \u2013<\/span> A few weeks ago I went to the U-Haul store where I\u2019ll be renting the van to move everything over for Monsterpalooza, and bought a bunch of boxes in different sizes for the various Muppet replicas I\u2019ll be bringing to the convention. I also bought a fair amount of bubble wrap to pack them. They have all been waiting patiently in my garage until their time to shine, so tonight I brought them all up into my living room to begin staging for the big event. I also brought up some luggage so I could start packing a few items for the weekend. I\u2019ve got a LOT to do! But it\u2019ll be worth it. I wrote Wally\u2019s Week, did some auditions, took my nightly WOG (walk\/jog), and continued packing.<\/p>\n

Wednesday the 27th \u2013 ON THE ROAD! \u2013<\/span> Because one of my checking accounts had suffered some forgery and fraud recently (see last week\u2019s Wally\u2019s Week) I had to find a notary to notarize some paperwork to help set up my new bank account. What a pain in the neck! After I finished, I figured I deserved some nice chili cheese dogs with kraut, so I headed over to Wienerschnitzel to get some lunch. I\u2019m currently not doing any sugar and I\u2019m trying to do very low carbs, but those hot dogs are YUMMY! However, I\u2019m still staying away from the fries and the banana split, which I used to enjoy with every set of hot dogs! I went over to Foam Mart to talk to Leland, one of the guys who works there. He did a beautiful job on the barrier walls that I had fabricated for the Monsterpalooza exhibit. However, as I was readying them for transport, the blocks of rigid foam that he used as stands had just popped right off. So the glue he used to attach the rigid foam blocks to the back of the walls wasn\u2019t very good at all. I wanted to ask him what I should do, as the show is two days away! He showed me the glue he used and said it\u2019s very, very expensive. It\u2019s odd that it wouldn\u2019t have worked a little better, being so costly. But he said to get some good old-fashioned white glue and that should do the trick. So I went across the street to Hobby Lobby to grab some. While I was there I also bought some suitable fabric for a sash I\u2019m having made for the upcoming Laurel & Hardy convention in San Diego. I want to have Alex In Wonderland make a replica sash (as seen in the \u201cSons Of The Desert\u201d movie) that I can wear at the convention. It doesn\u2019t need to be a bang-on replica, but just something that suggests the sashes that were worn in the film. I headed back home and started working on the Muppet exhibit for Monsterpalooza. I printed some packing lists, did some packing \u2013 it was all VERY exciting! I also heard from my daughter Lacey that their family was on the road to L.A. and everything was going well! I rested for a bit, and then kept on packing. Then I started packing up all the puppets in their individual boxes. It was WILD! My living room was filled with puppets, boxes, bubble wrap, packing tape, and tools! Doing this exhibit is MUCH more work than doing the Roger M00re exhibit from last year, but it\u2019ll be worth it! I didn\u2019t take a WOG tonight because I was much too tired! Tomorrow\u2019s the big day!<\/p>\n

Thursday the 28th \u2013 MONSTERPALOOZA: DAY 1! SET UP DAY! \u2013<\/span> My eyes shot open early in the morning because I was too excited to sleep. Joe and Zandra Pendleton texted me to say they were on their way and should arrive just before noon so we can go get the moving van we\u2019re renting to haul everything to the convention. They arrived, parked their car, and hopped in the Grey Ghost. We drove to the U-Haul facility and gave them our information. Then Joe and Zandra hopped in the van and followed me to my house. At first I didn\u2019t think the van was going to be big enough to hold all the stuff we needed to take over, but Joe assured me that he had driven one of these babies before, and they had PLENTY of room! He was right, too. We got everything loaded, and still had a little room to spare! I put some stuff in the Grey Ghost as well, including my travel bags. We hit the road and got over to the Pasadena Convention Center. Joe and Zandra arrived just before I did. Because of the layered dynamic of my exhibit, we had to load in from back-to-front. This meant that the first thing to go in was the backdrop and the backdrop frame. I learned from last year NOT to load everything in first, and THEN set up. It made the area very cluttered, and it made set-up very difficult. So we just loaded in what we needed piece by piece. I assembled the backdrop frame and attached the backdrop. I found the power outlets and tied into it with a strip. Luckily Joe had brought an extension cord! Then I stood it up and set up the light that would backlight the portrait of Jim Henson that was in the backdrop\u2019s design (brilliantly designed by my pal Scott Sebring!). Once that was up, we brought in the back platform and the puppets that would be displayed on it. Luckily I had pre-assembled all the platforms at the house, and we transported them to the convention that way \u2013 so there wasn\u2019t any assembly to do once we got there. It was a little more difficult to transport them like that, but well worth it! The puppets on the back were Super Grover, Frogenstein (Kermit dressed as the Frankenstein monster, and Herry Monster. There was a considerable amount of work to do posing the armature wires that would keep Super Grover in his \u201cready-to-take-off-and-fly\u201d pose, but it went well. I\u2019m SO glad I did a dry run of everything at my house a few weeks ago so I could anticipate any problems. Frogenstein went up very well, as did Herry. So\u2026it was on to the middle platform. We also brought in Oscar in his trashcan, Gonzo, Rizzo, Mahna Mahna, Gleep aka Green Grover, and Animal. They all set up relatively well, but getting Animal posed perfectly took a little bit of time. It was already looking amazing! In order to make the exhibit interactive, I kept Mahna and Gleep loose on their display rods and didn\u2019t attach them down. This would allow me to step behind the barrier wall at any time, grab a puppet and do some impromptu performing for anyone who might be interested. Then it was onto the front platform. Last year during set-up, it was really, really hot. The convention center didn\u2019t want to have to air condition the entire place just for 100 vendors who were setting up, so it was a good thing I dressed coolly! But this year they also decided to keep the lighting very low, to prevent it from becoming too hot. I appreciated their efforts, but it made setting up fairly difficult. It was hard to see the details of the exhibit that needed attention. The front platform was brought in along with Cookie Monster, the Count, the Bat Pack (the 3 bats I had made that each bore the names of my grandchildren), and Beautiful Day. Those were fairly easy to set up, but once all the platforms were set up and ready, I had to adjust their placement. Some of the characters in the front platforms were blocking some of the characters on the back platforms. I made sure that each of the platforms had varying heights to try and prevent this, but they just needed to be moved a few inches from side to side to accommodate this issue. Luckily my neighbor who had exhibit space next to mine is my good friend Kelly Delcambre, and he wouldn\u2019t have cared if I had to skootch over a smidge here and there. We also decided to move Oscar the Grouch a little more forward, and the picture was complete! Then we bought in the faux brick barrier walls and set those up, and everything was picture perfect. Except for the fact that when I re-glued the rigid foam stand onto the back of the walls, I got them switched accidentally. Oops! I was in such a rush to get everything ready I hadn\u2019t paid much attention to it. Luckily Leland and Foam Mart had a booth at Monsterpalooza, so Leland said he would come rebuild them and fix my mistake early the next day. Whew! But because the lighting was so dim in the museum room, I would have to come in the next day when the lighting was better to do the detail work. We were essentially done, so Joe and Zandra headed across the street to the Yard House restaurant to get a table for dinner, while I pulled the Grey Ghost from the convention center parking lot into the hotel parking lot, and checked into my room. I joined them for dinner and we had yummy steaks (we deserved it after all that work!). We were joined by my pal Amanda who was in town and wanted to stop by and say hi. After dinner I headed back to the hotel, put away my clothes and belongings, and started planning for the next day \u2013 which was going to be VERY exciting!<\/p>\n

Friday the 29th \u2013 MONSTERPALOOZA: DAY 2! DAUGHTER DAY! \u2013<\/span> When I went over to the exhibit early in the day it was completely dark! So much for doing last-minute detail work on the puppets! Luckily I remembered I had brought along my headlamp in my tool bag, so I grabbed it. This allowed me to spritz some of the puppets’ hair, tweak their poses, and just do a thing they call \u201clast looks\u201d in the movie industry. That little headlamp SAVED the day! I got back to my room to do a private signing for my friend DahVeed who owns Toyzilla toys. He wanted me to sign 100 of the new Renji Abarai Funko Pops that had just recently been released. I hadn\u2019t signed any of these yet, so he did a live stream to commemorate the moment. The guys came up to certify the signature, and then I was on my way back to the show for final tweaks \u2013 just a mere hour before opening! When I got back to the exhibit I was shocked and amazed! The lighting pros had lit up the exhibit marvelously. It looked terrific! There was a little overhead light that was shining on the display, but they installed really cool flat lighting panels just behind the barrier wall that weren\u2019t visible to the public. They projected the lighting up on the puppets from down below \u2013 PERFECT \u201cmonster\u201d lighting! They looked great! We were now officially ready to open! I did a few last-minute tweaks and went over to the hotel lobby to meet my gal Angi. As I was walking her up to the top level in the parking garage, we ran into the genius actor\/composer Paul Williams! I told him I was coming to his table to have him sign my \u201cMuppet Movie\u201d vintage one-sheet poster. What a nice guy! Angi and I headed over to the convention, which was now open for business! It was great fun seeing friends and chatting. It was also wonderful seeing so many people enjoy the exhibit. There was one guy who asked specific questions about the exhibit, and even asked \u201cWhy do the bats each have name plaques?\u201d I told him that the bats bore the names of my grandchildren who would be visiting this weekend. One of my favorite things to do was to stand back and observe people as they rounded the corner and saw 15 Muppet replicas all gathered together. Their reactions made me smile. It was also fun watching what they were focusing on when they took pictures on their phone. The star far and away was Frogenstein! They loved him! I took my vintage \u201cMuppet Movie\u201d one-sheet poster over to Paul Williams\u2019 table and had a remarkable interaction. He asked, \u201cIs it OK if I sign it \u2018Someday we\u2019ll find it\u2026?\u2019\u201d I immediately went into my Kermit the Frog impression and answered back with a musical \u201c\u2026the Rainbow Connection. The lovers, the dreamers, and me.\u201d He said, \u201cWOW! Your Kermit the Frog is PERFECT! Can I write that?\u201d Taken aback I said, \u201cSure! That would be great!\u201d I told him about the exhibit. Then I told him the whole story about me wanting to be a Muppet performer when I was 20, and sending in a videotaped audition (in which I utilized all of my homemade Muppet replicas I had fabricated with my mom) to Henson Associates in New York. But instead of getting a job offer back in the mail, it was a Cease and Desist! They were shutting me down! Mr. Williams, as well as the rest of his line, were listening to my story and laughing at my jovial recollections. So at least I got to provide him with some comedy! But WOW! What a compliment! Back in the museum, one of the volunteer show controllers told me how much she always loved Oscar, and that seeing him in person was thrilling (even though he wasn\u2019t the real one). I told her to get her phone out, and I stepped behind the barrier wall, grabbed the Grouch and did some performing for her. All the other cameras came out to capture the moment as well, and it was a dream come true! If I do another exhibit for the Monsterpalooza museum, I definitely want to make it interactive somehow. It was magical! And Payson (that was her name) really loved it! Angi and I went back to the hotel to ask a question about something, and as I was standing there I heard a voice to my right saying, \u201cComplaining again, huh?\u201d I wasn\u2019t complaining at all, so I thought that was odd. I looked to my right at the lady standing next to me, and I tried to place her face. In a split second my mind immediately went to \u201cis this gal a make-up artist I know?\u201d Then, I realized it was my eldest daughter Lacey\u2026she made it!!! I gave her a hug and introduced her to Angi and the gal behind the front desk at the hotel. Lacey said her husband and the kids were exhausted and I\u2019d see them tomorrow, but Lacey was ready to go check out the convention for a little bit. She was tired, but she was running on pure adrenaline and excitement about the convention! We went over and got her wristbands, and headed in. The first thing I wanted to do was take her to the museum and show her the bats with the kids\u2019 names on them! She loved it! We did some looking around and shopping, but she was running low on energy. I walked her back to the hotel and told her to get some sleep. By then the show was shutting down anyway, so I turned off the Henson light in my exhibit, and Angi and I headed to the hotel bar to get some food. Whew! What an amazing day!<\/p>\n

Saturday the 30th \u2013 MONSTERPALOOZA: DAY 3! GRANDKIDS! \u2013<\/span> As I was getting ready in my room in the morning, I had some music playing from my phone on a Bluetooth device. As I always say, \u201cGod is my D.J.!\u201d And it\u2019s true! The most random songs always come up to underscore specific moments in my life! First, \u201cMonster Mash\u201d popped up on my phone, followed by the 1984 song \u201cTenderness\u201d by General Public. As Lacey would have been 1 and a half years old when that song came out, she and I would always dance around to that song. Amazing. And now here she was in L.A. 42 years later! I went over to the convention to turn on the Henson light and get set up for the new day. Once the show opened to the public, I pulled Oscar out of his can and did a little performing for a kid who was interested in puppeteering. I really do love the interactive quality of the exhibit! Then, Lacey texted me to let me know she and the family were heading down from their room, so I headed over to the hotel to greet them. My 8 year old granddaughter Natalie was dressed as \u201cThe Little Pale Girl\u201d from the \u201cTerrifier\u201d movies\u2026which was appropriate because the actress who played that character in the movie was at the show signing autographs! My grandsons Devin and Elliot came off the elevator as well, as did my son-in-law Andy. The gang was all here! Fabulous! After a lot of hugs and chatter, we walked over to the convention. Natalie met Amelie McLain, who played the character that Natalie was cosplaying. Since the movie is not really suitable for an 8 year old girl, Natalie has only seen clips. But she thought it would be a great character to cosplay, so Lacey bought her the costume. Amelie couldn\u2019t have been nicer, and she even took a selfie with Natalie for her OWN social media site! Natalie had a blast meeting her! And being 17 and very attractive, my 15 year old grandson definitely took notice! He quietly said, \u201cWow. She\u2019s really beautiful!\u201d We walked around the convention and took in the sights. I had a great time introducing them to my Monsterpalooza friends. They all enjoyed learning that Lacey is an autopsy tech back in Sioux Falls, and while we\u2019re surrounded by fake brains and bones at the convention, Lacey deals with the real thing every day! Lacey\u2019s entire family is very artistic, so my grandson Devin really wanted to meet a specific artist at the show whom he followed on-line. The artist is known as Meat Canyon. But his line was continually very long, so we went to get lunch in hopes that when we returned his line wasn\u2019t quite so long. My pals Sara Raftery and Chris Malmin also came to the show, and it was the first time meeting the grandkids. Chris was doing a cosplay of Peter Criss from KISS, and he looked fabulous. When we went to the hotel restaurant to get lunch, actress Lin Shaye was at a nearby table. So was Lori Petty \u2013 both were taking a break from signing at the show. But all of a sudden in walks rock legend Alice Cooper (who was also taking a break from signing) and he took a table about 50 feet from us. WOW! He looked at us and nodded hello. What a cool guy! We headed back to the convention and Elliot purchased a 3D printed helmet of Master Chief from the videogame \u201cHalo.\u201d I told him that Steve Downes, the voice of Master Chief, would soon be a guest at our children\u2019s cancer charity \u201cVoices Against Cancer\u201d in Sioux Falls in a few weeks, and he should get the helmet signed! Luckily, a friendly show controller informed me that Meat Canyon would be leaving early. I phoned Lacey and told her to skedaddle over to Meat Canyon\u2019s booth immediately so Devin could meet him before he took off. Thankfully they arrived just in time, and the show controller got us in line (even though she had previously capped the line to all others). Whew! Devin got to show his hero his sketch book of art, and Meat Canyon (real name is Hunter) was VERY complimentary and encouraging. He signed a poster for Devin and we were on to the next thing. I could tell that Devin was happy to get the validation. Almost like his Grandpa having his Kermit the Frog impression validated by the guy who wrote \u201cThe Rainbow Connection,\u201d eh? I stepped back into the museum and noticed a little girl staring at the puppets. I asked her if she liked puppets and if she would like to meet one of them. I pulled Beautiful Day off his display rod and her mom started recording. The little girl was playing along wonderfully, chatting with B.D. like he was her long-lost friend. It was hilarious. Then she started telling him that there were monsters and ghosts all around. Beautiful Day started quaking in fear\u2026\u201dM-m-m-monsters? G-g-g-ghosts?\u201d She was laughing at the fact that he WAS a monster, but yet he was scared of them. It\u2019s a little bit I stole from the famous \u201cMonster At The End of The Book\u201d story. I also performed a little bit with Mahna Mahna, as the rest of the people present would answer back with the obligatory \u201cDoot doo, da doo doo!\u201d What great fun! A few months ago, long before they sold out, Lacey had purchased a photo op ticket with David Howard Thornton who would be appearing in character as Art the Clown from the \u201cTerrifier\u201d films. Thankfully David\u2019s manager Bob said it would be OK for the entire family to be in the photo! The grandkids absolutely loved seeing their name plaques on the Bat Pack in the museum exhibit, and we kept going around the convention until it closed at 6pm. We cleaned up a little bit and then headed over to the Yard House to get some dinner. What a day! The kids were all recounting all of the cool stuff that they saw at the convention. This was a dream come true. It\u2019s odd to think that my first visit to L.A. happened in 1976 when my family came out for a vacation\u202650 years ago! And now my grandson Elliot is 15 and is visiting L.A. for the first time. I just wonder if the visit will have the same life-changing impact on him that it did with me. Only time will tell. I walked them back to the hotel and they all turned in for the night. As their body clocks are all set on Central time, it was pretty late for them. But for me? It was time for our traditional \u201ccigar circle\u201d outside of the hotel. This is where several of my monster pals sit around and smoke cigars and talk about monsters, movies, Laurel & Hardy, and more. Great fun! I came back inside, packed up some stuff for my Sunday exit, showered, and hit the hay!<\/p>\n

Sunday the 31st \u2013 MONSTERPALOOZA: DAY 4! THE LOADOUT! \u2013<\/span> The gang and I met up for lunch in the hotel restaurant, but unfortunately we weren\u2019t joined by any celebrity diners. Once we ate we headed to the convention to enjoy the final day. It had been quite the weekend! Toward the end of the day Joe and Zandra arrived with the U-Haul van and looked around the convention a little bit. When the convention closed at 6pm we got busy breaking everything down to haul it away. Now that the show was over, Joe disassembled all of the platforms for easy transportation home. He could always use the wood for other purposes. I removed the puppets from the display rods, packed them in the boxes, while Joe and Zandra carted everything to the van and packed it up. It took us about an hour and a half to break everything down and get packed up. As I was heading to the Grey Ghost to take my leave, I noticed that actress Lin Shaye was with her manager loading stuff up, and Lin was leaning slightly on my car. As I walked up she apologized for leaning on my car, and said she didn\u2019t scratch it. I said, \u201cIf you did, I\u2019d make you sign it. It would be a great story!\u201d She laughed and we talked about the weekend\u2019s festivities and compared notes. I told her I had the Muppet exhibit in the museum and she replied that she really loved it. She had met Jim Henson a few times in her travels, and said the experience was magical. Then she said, \u201cYou kind of remind of me Jim.\u201d WOW! Nicer words I have never heard! I headed toward home and Joe and Zandra were close behind in the U-Haul van. We unloaded the barrier wall in my garage, and we took the boxes of puppets inside to my living room. Then we headed to Little Toni\u2019s to get some food. We were all exhausted, but happily so. I got back home, went inside, cleaned up, and passed out. What an amazing experience. It was only just beginning. I had a HUGE week ahead of me!<\/p>\n

Monday the 1st \u2013 GET POPPED! \u2013<\/span> The family met me at the Funko store in Hollywood. Angi soon joined us as well, and we all got \u201cpopped.\u201d This means that you can get custom Funko Pops made of yourself by simply picking out various pieces on a kiosk. It\u2019s quite brilliant, actually. I had one made of me a while back, but this time Angi got a two figure set of her and I. But unlike last time, the computer kiosk refused to accept the word \u201cWally\u201d \u2013 citing that it was a bad word. What? I know in the U.K. the term Wally is used in a certain way, but my U.K.-native son-in-law Andy confirmed that it\u2019s really not that bad. Oh well. The attendant at the counter said to spell it a different way, and she would correct it on her end before they assembled the piece. Strange! I guess I\u2019m a naughty word! Lacey and the gang had a great time selecting all of their characteristics for their custom pop. Then we looked around the store while the staff worked away at finishing up the process of building our customs. I found the new Renji Funko Pop and proudly showed the kids that grampa\u2019s character had a new Funko that was just released. I also made friends with Sebastian the manager, who was able to find me a few Riddler Pops that I am going to sign for our Voices Against Cancer charity event in a few weeks. Turns out he was a big fan of The Riddler in the \u201cArkham\u201d games. We enjoyed an outdoor lunch in Hollywood at Chicken Guy restaurant, and then we went across the street to Amoeba Records, a huge physical media store in Hollywood that\u2019s legendary. I picked up a new CD of the \u201cEpic: Elvis Presley In Concert\u201d soundtrack, and Lacey found a vinyl release of her favorite band Sleep Token. Then, I took Devin and Natalie, the two youngest grandkids, off to Madame Tussaud\u2019s Wax Museum. Lacey, Andy and Elliot headed to the Museum of Death further into Hollywood. As an autopsy tech she was curious about the museum, but we figured it probably wasn\u2019t appropriate for the two youngest members of our crew. So we went over to the wax museum to have some fun. Besides, Devin is very interested in sculpting, so I wanted him to see the amazing sculptures in the museum. When we were done I took the kids to their hotel to meet up with Lacey, Andy and Elliot. Then I headed home to start getting my house in order. It looked like a disaster area after returning from the weekend at Monsterpalooza. I had a lot of work to do! I napped for a bit, did my nightly auditions, and put all of my Muppet replicas back in their rightful display space. Since Herry Monster was the new addition, I hadn\u2019t had time to install a display rod for him yet. I buy these neat little flanges that will hold a 1\u201d diameter flag pole, and you can tilt them in any direction you want with a thumbscrew. But mounting it posed a problem. The screws just pulled right through the drywall. I put in some wall anchors, but they were weak and pushed right through the drywall. Then I got out some monster wall anchors, and those worked really well. FINALLY! Third time\u2019s the charm. By the time I hit the hay I was exhausted! And tomorrow was Universal Studios day!!<\/p>\n

Tuesday the 2nd \u2013 THE OLD STOMPIN\u2019 GROUNDS! \u2013<\/span> Lacey and the gang headed to Universal Studios early, but I told them I would meet up with them later. They wanted to do the Harry Potter area, but I wasn\u2019t that interested (having not seen any of the films), so I told them I\u2019d join up with them for lunch and spend the rest of the afternoon with them. I parked, had my pass scanned (which Lacey was kind enough to pre-purchase for me) and walked into the park. I hadn\u2019t been there in years, and the place had really changed. And it was REALLY different from when I used to work there about 30 years ago doing Beetlejuice! In fact, if it hadn\u2019t been for a few still-standing landmarks, I would have been totally lost! It was THAT different! I walked in and saw one of the park\u2019s actors dressed in an old-fashioned policeman\u2019s uniform. I said hello, and he said hello back. Shortly after that I felt him come up behind me\u2026pacing me. He said, \u201cWhat are we doing in the park today?\u201d I told him my daughter\u2019s family was visiting from South Dakota and I would be joining them for the afternoon. He said, \u201cAre we celebrating anything special?\u201d I told him, \u201cNo, just being together. You won\u2019t believe this but I used to work here 30 years ago.\u201d He said, \u201cI know. Doing a certain \u2018ghost with the most,\u2019 right?\u201d How did he know I used to be Beetlejuice. Amazing! I told him he was right, and he must have remembered me from working there. He also confided in me that he was a fellow Sons Of The Desert member! He said, \u201cIf you need anything, just ask for Officer Lansky!\u201d I hadn\u2019t been at Universal Studios for 10 minutes, and already my day was made! I found Lacey\u2019s crew in the Harry Potter area, and we decided to have lunch in the Harry Potter restaurant. I marveled at the architecture of the place, which was amazing. I asked Andy if they really had places like this in the U.K. and he confirmed that they absolutely did! The lunch was delicious and then we moved on to the Simpsons ride. Then it was time to take the studio tour. A lot of stuff I loved and remembered had been removed from the tour, which was too bad. Lacey remembered the King Kong ride boasting a huge animatronic King Kong that she loved. But now it\u2019s just a movie that you watch while the track bumps and shimmies underneath you. Not quite as impressive, sadly. In fact, a lot of the tour\u2019s charm has gone away. But when we saw the \u201cJaws\u201d section of the tour, the tour guide mentioned that the ride is now 50 years old, as it opened in 1976. I told my grandson Elliot that I was here that summer, and saw it then. Unreal. Now HE\u2019S 15 years old, experiencing L.A. for the first time. Funny how things work out. We all went on the Jurassic World ride, and we all got soaked. It\u2019s a LOT wetter than it used to be. Unfortunately Natalie didn\u2019t like the final plunge and she was a bit frazzled from it. But I was amazed at something called the Raptor Encounter, which features a person in a VERY realistic raptor costume interacting with the park guests. I couldn\u2019t take my eyes off it, trying to figure out how they did it. We went to Nintendo World, which I had very little interest in. So I just sat on one of the mushroom stools while the gang went to do some rides. I just sat there and people watched. It was quite fun. We went to the section devoted to the films made by Illumination, which contained a water park and a delightful Minions ride from \u201cDespicable Me.\u201d Then it was over to Miceli\u2019s restaurant to get some dinner, and we were joined by my assistant Emily and my pals Mark & Connie. What fun! After dinner I bid them all goodnight, and headed home to work again. I still had a few things to do before the house is ready for the big tour tomorrow!<\/p>\n

Wednesday the 3rd \u2013 LUNCH, LAYING LOW, & LAUNDRY! \u2013<\/span> Everyone was pretty exhausted from the previous day, so we took it easy. My pal Jim Ojala gave everyone a tour of his effects studio, and they all enjoyed seeing how make-up effects are created. Lacey, being an autopsy tech, exchanged numbers with Jim in case he needed her opinion on creating realistic brains, bones & wounds! We had lunch at Ernie\u2019s Taco House, and then headed to my house for the big tour. It was so amazing showing Lacey my house for the first time, and showing the grandkids the collection. Devin responded, \u201cWOW! This is a collector\u2019s dream!\u201d That it is, kiddo. Lacey said they needed to do some laundry so I offered my washer and dryer for their needs. It gave us the chance to sit around the house and chat, which was really nice. That evening we all had dinner at Paty\u2019s with my pal Ruben Procopio, legendary animator for Disney and Warner. My two grandsons are quite interested in drawing and animation, so Ruben had some great advice for them. They sat around the table sketching and chatting. What a night! Then I headed home, picked up my pre-packed overnight bag, and headed to the Hilton Garden Inn in Anaheim. I wanted to spend the night close to Disneyland so I could be there first thing in the morning for our day at Disney, without having to deal with morning traffic. I got to the hotel, showered, and collapsed!!<\/p>\n

Thursday the 4th \u2013 DISNEY DAY! \u2013<\/span> My good pal Sergio Lopez met me at the hotel and we enjoyed breakfast before starting the day. He\u2019s worked at Disneyland for a long time, so he was our escort through the park for the first part of the day. We met up with Lacey and the gang around 8:30am. The first thing I wanted to show the gang was the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, because I wanted them to hear grampa in the auction section of the ride. Unfortunately, the ride was closed for refurbishment\u2026which is odd for early summer. Don\u2019t they do refurbishment in the off-season? Rats! Oh well. We went to the Haunted Mansion and had a great time. I was a little worried about 8 year old Natalie, given that she had a slightly difficult time on the Jurassic World ride, so we rode together on the Doom Buggy. She was utterly charmed by the ride and had a great time! We headed over to the Tiana ride and got in line. But just as we got ready to load on the ride, it broke down. Quite a bummer given that we had stood in line for about 45 minutes! We waited another 20 minutes and when the ride still wasn\u2019t working, we exited. Double rats! We walked over to the Smuggler\u2019s Run ride and got in line. Seeing a giant Millennium Falcon was impressive! Getting on the ride itself, and getting to lounge around for a bit in the central part of the Falcon was like being on the movie set! Amazing! The ride is very impressive and we all had a great time. It was time for lunch, so we ate at the barbecue restaurant and relaxed. It was pleasant watching the pirate boat and the riverboat cruise by lazily on the water. Plus, the sun was starting to come out after a hazy \u201cJune Gloom\u201d morning. But we hadn\u2019t done any \u201cprincess\u201d stuff yet for Natalie, so I suggested we go to Fantasy Land. We saw a marching band parade by, and we stopped to enjoy the music. Natalie got some Sleeping Beauty Mickey ears, and she was elated when Sleeping Beauty waved at her in the parade and pointed to her ears! Core memory made! The gang went on the Dumbo ride, and we all went on the Snow White ride. But I found that the signs which posted the current wait times were a bit deceiving. A 25 minute wait was more like a 45 minute wait! We did a LOT of standing in line. We headed over to the Wishing Well, which Lacey (a long-time Snow White fan) used to really love as a little girl. The well is still there, but it no longer sings \u2013 which Lacey was disappointed by. Then we headed over to Star Tours, which was amazing. The last time I had been on it Paul \u201cPee-wee Herman\u201d Reubens was doing the voice of the pilot robot. But the ride is completely different now, and it features C3PO accidentally piloting the ship. It also features an encounter with Darth Vader and Boba Fett, and even features appearances by Yoda and Admiral Ackbar! It was great to see the legacy characters in this ride! Impressive! Most impressive! It was getting late in the afternoon, and Andy wanted to ride the train around the park to have a look. But while the posted wait time for the train was 10 minutes, it took more like 50. What was going on?! After that ride I said my farewells. They continued onto California Adventure, and I hit the freeway to head home. I got back home around 7:30pm and was exhausted. I napped for a bit.<\/p>\n

Friday the 5th \u2013 FOR THE \u201cPIER\u201d ENJOYMENT OF IT ALL! \u2013<\/span> One of the things the gang really wanted to do was to swim in the ocean. My pal Mark suggested that the best place for that would be the Santa Monica pier. There were restaurants, rides, games, and of course, the majestic Pacific Ocean! By the time I arrived the gang had already staked out a place on the beach and was having a great time in the surf! I bought a blanket from a passing vendor and put it on the sand next to Lacey\u2019s. This was one of my favorite days so far. While the kids frolicked in the water with their dad, I got a good chance to just sit with my eldest daughter and chat \u2013 something we hadn\u2019t had the chance to do so far in the trip. It was great! We saw a nearby couple with their cat on a leash, but the cat was NOT enjoying the beach experience at all. He kept wanting to jump into the lap of his mom. He didn\u2019t like the sandy ground at all! Lacey laughed when I said, \u201cC\u2019mon kitty. This is the world\u2019s largest litter box. Enjoy!\u201d Lacey spotted a hawk eating a pigeon on the beach. Ugh. But it was getting late in the day, so we went onto the pier to get lunch at a Mexican restaurant. I told them I\u2019d meet them later at the Bob Baker Marionette Theatre for our final excursion before the left L.A. on Saturday morning. I drove home and got cleaned up for the \u201cChoo Choo Revue\u201d show at Bob Baker. I drove to Highland Park to meet them, and they had come directly from the beach! They didn\u2019t have time to get back to their hotel to change clothes. But they were enjoying themselves nonetheless! During the pre-show the host pointed me out as the \u201cvoice of the theatre\u201d and introduced me to the rest of the audience. That was REALLY nice! After the show (it was my second time seeing it) Alex Evans, the head of the theatre, gave us a tour of the backstage area, and he gave the kids a personal puppeteering lesson. They were having a great time working the puppets, though some of the bigger ones were quite heavy for them. What an amazing day. What an amazing week! One for the books!<\/p>\n

Saturday the 6th \u2013 FAREWELL\u2026BUT NOT FOR LONG! \u2013<\/span> Angi and I got up early so we could see the gang off at their hotel in Universal City. They had planned on driving for three days to get back to Sioux Falls, but they were missing their fur babies so badly that they decided to buckle down and make it back home in TWO days! They had a few long days of road time ahead of them! I\u2019ll be seeing them in a week when I go to Sioux Falls for our Voices Against Cancer children\u2019s cancer charity event \u2013 the 605 Pop Culture Con! I\u2019ll be leaving Wednesday and staying for about 5 days. After we said our goodbyes I got some groceries and put some gas in the Grey Ghost. When I got back I met up with the maids so they could clean Planet Wallywood. I grabbed a short nap, and then I went to my stylist Andie\u2019s salon to get a touch-up on my color. I picked up a few more grocery items that I had forgotten earlier, and then I went home to work on some paperwork for the people investigating the fraud and forgery that recently occurred with my checking account. Completely spent, I took a nap. I got up and went outside to start my WOG (walk\/jog) routine again. It was nice to be back out! But given the amount of walking I had done the past week, I probably walked about 40 miles in total! The nighttime weather was warm and breezy, so after my WOG I spent some time in the anti-grav chair in a state of gratitude, reflecting on the amazing week I just had. I enjoyed an iced tea and a nice cigar. Then I went inside to do some work around the house. As it was the first Saturday of the month, it was time for my monthly \u201cLaurel & Hardy Theatre\u201d ritual. I watched two films \u2013 \u201cHelpmates,\u201d and \u201cTowed In A Hole,\u201d both amazingly funny films! I also watched the commentaries for both films. It was relaxing, funny, and pleasant!<\/p>\n

Sunday the 7th \u2013 BACK AT IT – FOR A FEW DAYS, ANYWAY! \u2013<\/span> I had been looking forward to my normal \u201ccomatose Sunday\u201d for several days. I took full advantage of having nothing to do and relaxed, rested and refreshed. I kept working on the bank paperwork and prepped all my stuff for the new week. I had to cram a lot of stuff into Monday and Tuesday before I leave for Sioux Falls on Wednesday. Later I did a few auditions, took my WOG, and hit the hay.<\/p>\n

LIFE IS WONDERFUL!<\/p>\n

PIX FROM THE WEEK<\/p>\n

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All the puppets are boxed up and ready to roll for Monsterpalooza!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Friday afternoon in my hotel room I did a private signing of the new Renji Funko Pops for my pals at Toyzilla!<\/p><\/div>\n

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It’s time to put on make-up! It’s time to light the lights! The convention center staff lit up the Muppet monsters with amazing “monster” lighting effects!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Here’s how they looked with the flash turned on.<\/p><\/div>\n

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This is an AMAZING use of a William Shatner mask…”The Devil’s Rain!”<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

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After a busy day at Monsterpalooza, my grandaugther Natalie (in her cosplay costume) concentrates on coloring at dinner.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Natalie was jazzed to meet a fully animatronic Grogu!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Monsterpalooza…where monster kids of ALL ages meet!<\/p><\/div>\n

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“These aren’t the grandsons you’re looking for!” YES! Yes they are! Fun at the Funko store in Hollywood!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Natalie loves stranger things…including “Stranger Things!”<\/p><\/div>\n

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You never know WHO you’re going to run into at Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum! Devin and Natalie have several “celebrity” encounters!<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

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A troupe of troublemakers, to be sure!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Fun while waiting in line….<\/p><\/div>\n

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Natalie ponders joining the Rebellion.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Fun while waiting in line….AGAIN!<\/p><\/div>\n

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My daughter hasn’t visited the Pacific Ocean since she was a little kid. She remembers the sheer power and majesty of the ocean!<\/p><\/div>\n

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What would a trip to the beach be without getting buried in sand!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Ready for “Choo Choo Revue” at the Bob Baker Marionette Theatre!<\/p><\/div>\n

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An amazing cast of characters!!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Theatre head Alex Evans gives the grandkids a personal lesson in marionette puppeteering!<\/p><\/div>\n

https:\/\/www.wallyontheweb.com\/home\/wp-content\/uploads\/video\/Week%20with%20the%20grandkids.mp4<\/a><\/video><\/div><\/p>\n

Week with the grandkids!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>

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