This is the second of a multipart series inspired by the hit movie musical “Wicked–Part 1.” This series will be about musical theater, fairy tales, and fantasy in general.

Hello, this is Chris Young. Welcome to Episode 82 of Contemplating Life. This is the second in a multipart series inspired by the hit movie musical “Wicked–Part 1”. In this series, we will explore my relationship with musical theater, fairy tales, and fantasy in general.

My original plan for this episode was to do a brief epilogue to last week’s episode about Disney’s Snow White and then move along the story of the 1965 production of the made-for-TV musical “Cinderella” by Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II. But have you ever known me to do anything brief? Digging deep into the research for that allegedly brief epilogue hit another vein of storytelling treasure I couldn’t leave untouched. The script was nearly double the length it should have been, and I left some things out. Being an obsessive completist, I split the episode into two parts and fleshed out the missing sections of the first half. Cinderella will have to wait until next time.

All that talk about Disney last week meant we had to tell the story of my most significant connection to the Disney franchise: my first TV appearance. (Yes, there were more appearances later on. Those will wait for another episode someday.)

My best estimate is that I was eight years old when I was in the audience of a local children’s TV show called The Mickey Mouse Club.

An old joke goes, “I was on TV one time… My mother made me get off because I was scratching the set.”

Younger members of my audience won’t get that joke. TVs used to be housed in fine wooden cabinets. Climbing on top of such a piece of furniture would draw ire from one’s parents.

Disney produced the original “Mickey Mouse Club” for ABC from 1955 to 1959. I was too young to remember the original show. However, from 1962 to 1968, it was shown in syndicated reruns, and that is when I became a fan. A cast of teen and young adult performers known as Mouseketeers sang, danced, and introduced animated shorts.

Although the show was theoretically aimed at a preteen audience, many teen boys were fans of its female cast members. The most popular was Annette Funicello, who appeared on the show from age 13 to 16. She was well-endowed, with an ample chest highlighted by her tight-fitting white Mouseketeer sweaters. She went on to become a bigger teen idol in a series of beach party movies starring Frankie Avalon.

I was a bigger fan of Darlene Gillespie, who was also shapely for her age, if not as prominent as Annette. She later went on to a career in nursing. Little did we know that Mouseketeer Doreen Tracy would feel trapped by her childhood role. In an attempt to break out of that stereotype, she later appeared nude in men’s magazines. I linked articles about these stars in the description.

The Mickey Mouse Club has had several reboots over the years. It has launched the careers of some very famous people, including Ryan Gosling, future NSYNC members Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, actress Keri Russell, future En Vogue member Rhona Bennett, and Hallmark movie star Nikki DeLoach.

Local TV channel 13, which in those days went by the call sign WLWI, produced a local show with a studio audience of kids. Local live segments were interspersed with segments of Mickey Mouse Club reruns. I estimate my brief appearance in the audience for one episode was sometime in 1963

I couldn’t remember the host’s name, but some deep dives into Wikipedia and help from two different Facebook nostalgia groups helped me piece together the following information.

The show was hosted by Bill Jackson, who started his TV career with a children’s show in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and then moved to Indianapolis to host a show for three years from 1963-1966. It was initially titled “The Mickey Mouse Club” but was eventually renamed “The Bill Jackson Show.” I couldn’t recall what happened during the local segments, but the nostalgia groups reminded me they would pick a panel of children from the audience. Bill would draw a cartoon character on a large paper easel, and the kids would buzz in and guess the character he was drawing. Prizes usually consisted of a large case of candy bars or root beer.

Many people in these Facebook groups said they or their family members were in the audience as part of a Cub Scout, Brownies, or Camp Fire Girls troop. At the time, I was in the Cub Scouts as a member of a troop of disabled kids from Roberts School. I theorize we were invited because we were in scouting.

There were probably 50-75 kids in the audience seated in bleachers. I sat in the front row on level ground with a handful of other kids in wheelchairs. None of us were picked to be on the panel.

I recall the studio lights were extremely bright and hot. They would turn them off during the Mickey Mouse segments and then on again when it was time for a local segment. They advised us to close our eyes tightly while they turned the lights on and then gradually open them. That technique was so successful that I’ve used it for my entire life anytime I’m in a dark room, and someone is about to turn on the lights. I highly recommend it.

In 1965, Jackson moved to Chicago, where he had great success with a program called “The BJ and Dirty Dragon Show.” While in Indianapolis, he created the Dirty Dragon character based on a friend he met here. In 2021, Jackson was diagnosed with COVID-19 but was released from the hospital. He died shortly after in January 2022, but his official cause of death was not released.

My queries about the local Mickey Mouse Club sparked a lively discussion in the Facebook Indy nostalgia groups. The early 60s were a treasure trove of locally produced children’s television in Indianapolis.

People shared fond memories of Janie Woods Hodge, who hosted a show called “Popeye and Janie,” later renamed just “Janie.” I was a frequent viewer of the show, which aired from 4:30-6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday on Channel 4 WTTV from August 1963 until 1972. She then returned to her original profession as a music teacher. See the article linked in the description, which details her career. She also has a Facebook page. However, the latest post is from 2022. Google searches did not include an obituary, so I presume she is still alive.

Also fondly remembered was Bob Glaze, who performed under the name Cowboy Bob. Wearing a cowboy hat and a shirt with fringe, he played acoustic guitar and sang. Glaze began his television career as a cameraman for WTTV. He made personal appearances with Janie as Cowboy Bob and was later invited to perform on her show. In January 1970, he was hired to host “Chuckwagon Theater” as a replacement for Mary Ellen Reed on her show “Lunchtime Theater”. Glaze passed away in 2016. See the linked article for details about his career.

Also of note was personality Hal Fryar, who performed under the name Harlow Hickenlooper as the host of “The Three Stooges Show” on Channel 6. In those days, the call letters were WFBM. He shared hosting duties with country singer Curley Myers and Captain Star (Jerry Vance, a.k.a. Larry Vincent). Together, they sang songs and did skits for a live studio audience of children. Fryar fell into the Stooges’ slapstick comedy routines with passion. In comedy sketches, he regularly ended up with a (shaving) cream pie in his face.

In 1965, Fryar played Outlaw Johnny Ringo in the Three Stooges feature film “The Outlaws Is Coming.” I recall thinking it was a pretty big deal that a local TV host who showed Stooges shorts was cast in an actual Three Stooges film. I seem to recall that he took a local TV camera crew with him and shot some behind-the-scenes footage of his experiences on the film. Many viewers were disappointed he was not wearing his signature battered straw hat and striped coat. They were expecting to see Harlow Hickenlooper, but what they saw was Hal Fryar portraying an outlaw.

Fryar succumbed to bladder cancer in 2017 at the age of 90.

Any discussion of Local TV personalities in Indianapolis would be incomplete without mentioning Bob Carter, who hosted Friday night scary movies under the stage name Sammy Terry throughout the ’60s, ‘70s, and briefly in the 1980s. He was immensely popular, and many hold strong nostalgic feelings towards the character. Bob Carter died on June 30, 2013. Wikipedia reports his son, Mark Carter, has appeared occasionally as the character since 2011 and has an active Facebook following. I had heard it was his grandson, and not his son, carrying on the character, but I could be wrong.

His late-night show was typically past my bedtime, but I have fond memories of the evenings when my parents went all out to dinner and a movie, and I would have my grandmother and great-aunts as babysitters. They would let me stay up late and watch scary movies hosted by Sammy Terry.

My favorite recollection of Sammy Terry was as an adult. My family and some family friends were at our cabin on Cordry Lake one weekend. Among those gathered were Nancy and Jerry Bishop and their children. Jerry worked as a firefighter with my uncle John. We were all playing cards in the dining room while the kids watched scary movies hosted by Sammy Terry in the living room. Jerry was a consummate prankster. He put a sheet over his head, put a ladder up to the front porch of the cabin, and suddenly appeared in the living room windows making eerie noises. My sister, cousins, and the Bishop kids screamed in terror. One of the Bishop girls continued crying for some time, even after Jerry took off the sheet and tried to reassure her, “It’s just daddy playing with you.” She didn’t care. She was equally angry and still scared for quite some time.

Anyway, I’ve linked articles about these characters and personalities and links to Wikipedia pages about the TV stations mentioned here. I was fascinated by the history of how the network affiliations of the stations have swapped over the years.

Before moving on to our next fairy tale in the form of a famous musical production, I want to explore my musical history and early indoctrination into the joys of Broadway musicals by my mother.

Mom enjoyed playing show tunes and pop songs on the organ. She grew up with a piano in the house and learned to play a little bit. I don’t believe she ever had any formal lessons. She was self-taught with some assistance from our friend Stu Byram, who was also self-taught. She learned to read sheet music but only the right-hand treble clef. She could not read the left-hand base clef. Instead, she would get sheet music that included chord symbols for the guitar.

When I was about 6 or 7 years old, my family bought a Sears Silvertone Chord Organ. The organ had a keyboard with 44 keys. On the left was a series of buttons to play chords. You would push a button for the base note with your thumb, and then there were columns of other buttons for major, minor, seventh, and diminished cords you would push with your fingers. It would only play chords A, D, G, C, F, and B-flat.

I searched for a photo of our model and stumbled across a YouTube video by a guy who discovered such an instrument sitting on a curb, waiting to be picked up as trash. He took it home and restored it. It was fascinating to see its inner workings, and it brought back many fond memories.

He identified it as a model 4751 Silvertone. It was a variety known as a reed organ. A blower would pressurize a wooden air chamber. When you pressed a key, it opened a valve, allowing air to pass across a metal tang. This is the same way harmonicas and accordions produce sound. It sounded very much like an accordion. Two microphones inside the cabinet were connected to a vacuum tube amplifier and a 6-inch speaker. A foot pedal called “an expression pedal” varied the amplifier’s volume. But even without amplification, you could still hear the sound produced by the metal reeds.

I had enough use of my hands in those days to play a little bit. Although I never learned to read music, I have a good ear for music and had no difficulty picking out melodies by ear.

I believe we only had the instrument for a few years before getting a good deal on a used Hammond M2. It had two keyboards and an octave of foot pedals for base notes. You control the nature of the sound with the famous Hammond drawbars, which allow you to adjust the primary frequency volume and several harmonics.

I also played the Hammond from time to time. Primarily, I played single-note melodies, sometimes using both hands. But for a couple of tunes, I could occasionally play some harmony. Unfortunately, I lacked sufficient dexterity to play full cords. The most complex piece of music I played was an arrangement of the Christmas hymn “What Child is This?” I would play the melody with my right hand and a base note with my left hand. Mom had an arrangement with many chord changes – more than one would typically find for that music. I thought it sounded pretty good. I enjoyed playing Christmas music, pop songs, and an occasional show tune. I had a pretty good rendition of “The Impossible Dream” from “The Man of La Mancha.” I could also play a multi-note arrangement of the Beatles’ “Let It Be,” which I was quite proud of.

In addition to hymns, Mom played a variety of standards from the American songbook. Her favorites, however, were show tunes from Broadway musicals–especially by composers Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II. At an early age, I became quite familiar with the major songs from “The King & I,” “South Pacific,” “Showboat,” “Oklahoma,” “Camelot, “West Side Story,” and “Fiddler on the Roof,” just to name a few. In later years, she added songs from “Jesus Christ Superstar,“ “Phantom of the Opera,” and “Les Miserables.”

Growing up in this environment gave me a deep appreciation for Broadway musicals, which lasts to this day. Just for fun, here are my top 10 favorite musicals.

10. The Wizard of Oz–We will cover this in an upcoming episode.

9. Guys and Dolls—I discovered this show when I took my high school sweetheart, Rosie, to a production put on by Northwest High School. I later enjoyed the 1955 film starring Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando.

8. Cinderella– This made-for-TV musical by Rogers and Hammerstein will be the major focus of our next episode.

7. Fiddler on the Roof– This is one of Mom’s favorites. I saw a production of it perhaps 30 years ago at Clowes Memorial Hall at Butler University. It was part of a package I had to purchase to get tickets to Phantom of the Opera. I occasionally quote lyrics from the show when teaching religion classes at my church.

6. Hamilton– With great difficulty, I memorized the opening song. I once wrote a parody of that song dedicated to a friend of mine. Now, if I try to sing the song, my parody is the only version I can remember. I have seen the version that aired on Disney+, but I would love to see it live someday.

5. West Side Story– Another of Mom’s favorites. I’ve seen a live production at Clowes Hall, as well as the 1961 film and the 2021 Spielberg remake. I love them all.

4. South Pacific– One of Mom’s favorites. I enjoyed watching some of my high school friends in the Northwest High School production and greatly enjoyed the 1958 film and the 2001 made-for-TV production starring Glenn Close and Harry Connick Jr.

3. Phantom of the Opera – I saw a memorable production of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s masterpiece by a touring company accompanied by my friends Judy and Anne. I love the film and have listened to the soundtrack dozens of times. I once wrote a parody of “I Dreamed a Dream” as a love song to a girlfriend, turning it into a positive song about how she fulfilled my dreams.

2. Les Miserables– This is the first professionally produced musical I ever saw in person. I’ve seen it live three times and watched the movie dozens of times. I own three different versions on CD. I could sing many of the songs on demand.

1. Jesus Christ Superstar – I fell in love with the original album and have listened to it easily 100 times. I saw a touring company production with Ted Neely as Jesus. He played Jesus in the 1973 film and devoted his entire life to playing the part. I’ve seen that film version perhaps 50 times, the 2012 Arena Tour version twice, and the 2018 TV concert version possibly eight times, and it still resides on my DVR. I could sing the entire rock opera front to back.

I once saw someone in an online discussion say that Broadway musicals were ridiculously unrealistic. “Nobody suddenly bursts into song in the middle of an ordinary day.”

Someone replied, “You don’t know my mother.”

I chimed in, “My mother, too.”

Mom loved to sing show tunes. She could get triggered by the most mundane things. My dad, sisters, and I learned to be careful what we said. We had to avoid saying anything that contained a phrase from a musical. For example, any mention of the word “tradition” would trigger the song from “Fidler on the Roof.” One dared not mention the state of Oklahoma.

Sometimes, the triggers were unavoidable. At about 6500 N. Georgetown Rd., there is an apartment complex called Lake Camelot Apartments. We frequently traveled Georgetown Road en route to St. Vincent Hospital and several of our doctors’ offices. As annoying as it was to have Mom burst into the title song of the 1960 musical Camelot by Lerner and Loewe every time we passed there, sometimes, when I go by the place today, I can’t resist humming a few bars in memory of my mom.

These are just more examples of how fantasy, musicals, and fairy tales provide us with rich inspiration as we continue contemplating life.

In our next episode, I will discuss a memorable made-for-TV production of Cinderella that still moves me to tears. In future episodes, we will take our first journey to Oz, courtesy of the 1938 classic film The Wizard of Oz. Only with that background and context can we appreciate the 2024 musical film Wicked Part 1 and the origin of the alleged Wicked Witch, Elphaba.

That should take us into my annual series on the 10 Oscar-nominated films of the year. Note that the voting period and nomination announcement have been extended because of the Los Angeles area fires. The announcement of the nominees scheduled for January 17 has been pushed back to January 23, and the trophies will be awarded as scheduled on March 2.

If you find this podcast educational, entertaining, enlightening, or even inspiring, consider sponsoring me on Patreon for just $5 per month. You will get early access to the podcast and other exclusive content. Although I have some financial struggles, I’m not really in this for money. Still, every little bit helps.

As always, my deepest thanks to my financial supporters. Your support means more to me than words can express.

Even if you cannot provide financial support. Please, please, please post the links and share this podcast on social media so that I can grow my audience. I just want more people to be able to hear my stories.

All of my back episodes are available, and I encourage you to check them out if you’re new to this podcast. If you have any comments, questions, or other feedback, please feel free to comment on any of the platforms where you found this podcast.

I will see you next time as we continue contemplating life. Until then, fly safe.