The Other First Lady

Rob & Laura Get Married Again



In keeping with the spirit of "Who's Still Alive and With It" among those we Boomers remember from childhood, I've come across another shining example of a real pacesetter.

We Boomers who were in grade school in the Early 60's certainly remember the Kennedy Era- a young and growing family in the White House, an attractive, educated, fashionable, and spirited First Lady -remember the pics of Jackie Kennedy in a leg cast after a touch football scrimmage with the Kennedy Clan?

TV sitcoms were still the entertainment of the day, but they were already taking on a different character. TV couples were a lot more vivacious and starting to have challenges that Ward and June Cleaver never dreamed of! Just take a look at the above clip from The Dick Van Dyke Show, one of the most popular shows of the 60's. Rob & Laura (Mary Tyler Moore) Petrie are up against a real challenge here--having to get married all over again. But of course they come through with shining colors in true sitcom fashion.

How we did loved Laura, though! She was a perfect lady in Jackie Kennedy-styled tailored suit, pill box hat, pumps and all. She could get goofy, sing, dance, lose her temper, cry, however human she wanted to be, and never come across as a dizzy broad or a staid suburban housewife that was simply an appendage of her wise and wonderful husband. A few years later in the Early 70's, Mary Tyler Moore became the spirited, independent, single (not divorced from Rob, heaven forbid) professional, Mary Richards in her own show, The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Again, Mary was the Woman of the Day, facing life's challenges in an imperfect world that we were finally admitting is imperfect.

So what's The Other First Lady doing now? True to form, she's still active. In the past few years, Mary has been active in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Has testified before the Senate Committee of Governmental Affairs, coming out in favor of stem cell research. Mary herself put it best: "I'm not an actress who can create a character. I play me."

BRAVO! Mary, you know how to be a First Lady.

Mary Tyler Moore Show Reunion

Happy Birthday Kinsey!

Happy Birthday, Kinsey Millhone!

For us feminist, murder mystery fans, today's a happy day. Sue Grafton's free-thinking, maverick, feminist, private investigator, Kinsey Millhone of the so-called Alphabet Series is celebrating a birthday today. Which one, I'm not quite sure--the series has progressed to 1987, but in reality we're in 2007. Since Kinsey was born in 1950, she's either 38, maybe 37 still, or 57. Frankly, I prefer to stay in the context of the series and keep Kinsey in her late 30's--with fresh memories of childhood traumas and the 70's counter culture. This way, I'm reasonably sure that all of the characters I've come to know and love, many who are well above the trustworthy age of 30, are still alive and well.

Kinsey's a woman after my own heart--she's learned the lessons of the swinging 70's and is coming to terms with the Yuppie ethos. But with all that, she has a mind of her own, and knows how to use it to her advantage--the gal's an inspiration. Just wish that I'd had her focus and determination back in the 80's...

Onward & Upward,
~Paula

Live It Up, Boomers; Live It Up!

If you tried to give rock and roll another name,
you might call it Chuck Berry. ~John Lennon


For the past few years, all too often when we Boomers tune in the news, we learn that yet another symbol of our Generation has passed on. Come on, we made it through the Sanguine Sixties--political assassinations, Viet Nam, Kent State. Wasn't all this violence over and done with after John's murder in 1980? Guess again... Like previous generations, we're fated to witness the passing of the generation before us--yes the very one with whom we had that proverbial Gap--humm, interesting thought; so where does that leave us now?

In any case, for these past several years, I sometimes feel a little slump when the fact that my mental associates of youth are rapidly disappearing. Where'd the time go? Has it really been more than 40 years since the British Invasion? Has Hendrix been gone almost 37 years already--whew--it wasn't always an easy haul! Come on, really, I don't plan on spending the next 20+ years muddling along and wondering what happened.

So, to stave off Alzheimer's as well as give all us Boomers a lift, decided to surf around to find out who's still with us. And guess what--the man who started it all, even before Elvis was anybody is still with us and going strong--in spite of his 80 years. Chuck Berry gave a concert in Rome just a few days ago, and was in Istanbul back in March! Amazing, hey? The Prime Minister of Rock & Roll, the man who got it all rolling is still doing it--'till 120, Chuck, 'till 120.

Follow this link to read more...

Rock On, Boomers, Live It Up!
~Paula