The original seven Mercury astronauts were proud to risk their lives - though they had a hard time explaining why. Uploaded by allstarpics.net.

I’ll read anything Tom Wolfe writes. If I could get my hands on his grocery list, it’s probably more entertaining than 80 percent of the books published today. But my favorite Wolfe book is easy to choose: The Right Stuff.

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It’s the story of the beginnings of the American space program, from test pilots like Chuck Yeager through the Mercury Seven astronauts. He told the story of their bravery, of what motivated them to be willing to test the limits of flight and to be strapped to a rocket and risk their lives for the thrill. It’s brilliantly written (of course), contrasting the bureaucrats of NASA with the machismo of the pilots.

Philip Kaufman did an excellent job of translating the book to the screen, writing the screenplay and directing the film as well. It had a great cast – Sam Shepard, Fred Ward, Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, and Dennis Quaid in the lead roles – and it was by turns funny, frightening, and dramatic. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards, and won four. As with all movies adapted from books, some changes were made to fit the medium. Interestingly, Tom Wolfe didn’t like the movie, because he didn’t care for Kaufman’s editorial choices.

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The number one female legend and the number one male legend, together at last. Uploaded by ovguide.com.

The African Queen pairs the number one male screen legend with the number one female screen legend. Or at least, that’s how the AFI’s 100 Years…100 Stars ranked them. And you won’t get much of an argument from me. (Though frankly, I’d probably put Bogart at number 3, behind Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant. Katharine Hepburn is undoubtedly the number one actress, though.)

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John Huston directs this action adventure with the kind of opposites attract romance you knew had to occur between Bogart and Hepburn. He was a gin drinking riverboat captain, she was an uptight missionary. It took the breakout of World War I, and the death of her brother and fellow missionary, to bring them together so that sparks could fly.

Bogart was the main beneficiary of the pairing, The African Queen bringing him his only Oscar. In addition to recognizing the stars, the American Film Institute’s original 100 Years…100 Movies list named it the number 17 film of all time. (For reasons I can’t fathom, the 10th anniversary of the list dropped the movie to number 65. Someone at AFI needs to be horsewhipped.)

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Neil Diamond has an excellent voice, but he’d have been successful as a songwriter if he couldn’t sing a lick. Uploaded by chartstats.com.

Earlier today, I went to check something on my post about Neil Diamond – and found I hadn’t written one. While everyone will acknowledge that Diamond tends to be just a little bit on the Cheez Whiz side of the music continuum, there’s no denying his ability to write and sing good, catchy pop music.

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No denying his accomplishments, either. He’s the third-most successful Adult Contemporary artist of all time, trailing only Barbara Streisand and Elton John. And he’s sold over 115 million records worldwide. Here are his hits that made the Top 10:

• “Cherry, Cherry” (#6, 1966)
• “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman, Soon” (#10, 1967)
• “Sweet Caroline” (#4, 1969)
• “Holly Holy” (#6, 1969)
• “Cracklin’ Rosie” (#1, 1970)
• “I Am…I Said” (#4, 1971)
• “Song Sung Blue” (#1, 1972)
• “Longfellow Serenade” (#5, 1974)
• “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” (#1, 1978)
• “Love on the Rocks” (#2, 1980)
• “Hello Again” (#6, 1981)
• “America” (#8, 1981)
• “Heartlight” (#5, 1982)

As you can see, that’s a long, successful career. Diamond is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011. That’s some pretty good Cheez Whiz right there.

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Julius Erving brought the concept of playing "above the rim" to basketball. Uploaded by basketballwallpapers.com.

My first instinct was to say, ‘Without the talents of Dr. J, the NBA wouldn’t be what it is today.” But it’s not fair to blame him for that fetid rotting corpse of a sport. Dr. J helped to popularize the “above the rim” athletic style of play, but he did it with grace and artistry.

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I got to see Dr. J play a time or two when he was with the Virginia Squires, his first pro team. That was in the old ABA, in which Erving played for the first five seasons before its merger with the NBA. Most people believed that his entry into the older league was the best thing it got out of the merger.

Dr. J played with the Philadelphia 76ers his entire NBA career, during which he won an NBA title, an MVP award, and was an 11-time all-star. The NBA named him a member of its 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. He’s been a true ambassador for the league, as you can tell by quotes like this: “Respect is a lot more important, and a lot greater, than popularity.”

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Chris Farley, like John Belushi, showed huge talent, and equally huge personal issues. Uploaded by canthavetoomanycards.com.

Unless you’ve been living in a van down by the river, you know that the casts of Saturday Night Live from 1990-95 were among its best. Regulars included Adam Sandler, David Spade, Julia Sweeney, and Rob Schneider. Phil Hartman and Dana Carvey were there for most of the period. But one guy who stood out in lots of ways was the brilliant Chris Farley.

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He had some terrific continuing bits, including motivational speaker Matt Foley, a brilliant Chippendales skit with Patrick Swayze, and the Chris Farley Show. That’s when Farley would interview a celebrity, and inevitably get tongue-tied and end up asking trite and stupid questions. (My favorite was with Paul McCartney.) Following SNL, Farley made several movies, the most memorable of which was Tommy Boy.

But Farley had major problems with his health and drug use. He went to one type of rehab or another 17 different times. His problems soon interfered with his work, and one day his brother came to his apartment to find him dead of an overdose. Much like John Belushi in an earlier era, Chris Farley’s death was such a waste of talent – but while he displayed the light of his talent, it didn’t just shine – it sparkled.

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A generation of children grew up with Howdy Doody as a regular visitor in their homes. Uploaded by rollingduck.com.

“Hey kids, what time is it?” Everyone who was a kid during the 1950s knows the answer to that question: “It’s Howdy Doody time!” The Howdy Doody Show was a children’s TV program that ran from the very earliest days of the medium (1947) until 1960.

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The show mixed two rather disparate themes – the West and the circus. Howdy was created by Roger Muir (who went on to create game shows such as Concentration and The Newlywed Game) and voiced by Buffalo Bob Smith. Howdy Doody had other marionette friends, including Princess Summerfall Winterspring and Mayor Phineas T. Bluster. The show had other  adult characters as well, including Clarabell, a silent clown initially played by Bob Keeshan (later Captain Kangaroo) and Princess Summerfall Winterspring (a human and a marionette – don’t ask). Howdy Doody had a live audience, known as the Peanut Gallery, which sang the show’s theme song and became involved in the show’s plot.

In the show’s final episode, Clarabell made it known that he could speak. Everyone was flabbergasted by this development, Buffalo Bob saying, “You can talk? If you really can talk, prove it! Let’s hear you say something!” Clarabell then quietly spoke the final words in the series’ history: “Goodbye, kids.”

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Everyone thinks they have something in the closet that may be worth a fortune. On Antiques Roadshow, they find out. Uploaded by interactivewxxi.org.

I have a beautiful dream. In my dream I take that dingy old painting in the gaudy frame out of the closet. I take it to Antiques Roadshow, where an art appraiser tells me that I have an original Rembrandt. What’s more, the frame comes from the palace of Louis XVI, and is solid gold. Together they’re valued at…

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That’s when I wake up. Because I have no dingy painting. I own no gaudy frame. I am the closest thing to an antique in my house. Still, I dream of striking it rich. Like the person who brought some teacups to a Tulsa show, to find out they were carved from rhinoceros horns, and are worth up to $1.5 million. Shoot, I’d be happy if they dropped the last three zeroes.

The best part of Antiques Roadshow, though, is the stories people tell. Seems like almost everyone has something in their home whose value surprises them. Say…when is the Roadshow coming to North Carolina? I have a 2008 phone book in near mint condition.

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The unique architecture of New York's Flatiron Building, one of its first steel-frame skyscrapers. Uploaded by nycvintage.blogspot.com.

Not as tall as the Empire State Building or as graceful as the Chrysler Building, the Flatiron nevertheless stands as one of America’s most unusual – and revered – skyscrapers.

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It’s only six feet wide at its apex, and rises only 21 stories above ground. Hardly a competitor in the skyscraper derby, even upon its completion in 1902. But it has a grace, a flair, and a power that somehow embodies the New York spirit. Designed by Daniel Burnham, who also designed the Marshall Fields store in Chicago and Union Station in Washington, DC, the Flatiron has lent its name to its Manhattan neighborhood.

Legend has it that the shape of the building caused unusual wind gusts, often lifting ladies’ skirts in the wake. Men sometimes gathered to watch this phenomenon, and policemen would make them leave by using the building’s address – 23rd Street. “23 skidoo,” they said. Well, it makes a nice story.

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Graceland was Paul Simon's seventh solo album, and his best. Uploaded by interactive.wxxi.org.

From the title track on, “Graceland” showcased Paul Simon’s willingness to experiment. Much of it was recorded in South Africa, bringing the group Ladysmith Black Mambazo to an international audience. But lest it be stereotyped as Simon’s “African” album, it also includes Zydeco, Tex-Mex, The Everly Brothers, and Linda Ronstadt.

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I remember listening to this album for hours on end, fascinated by unfamiliar rhythms. And by terrific lyrics. Among my favorites: “Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard. I need a shot at redemption. I need a photo opportunity,” (“You Can Call Me Al”). And: “Medicine is magical and magical is art, the boy in the bubble and the baby with the baboon heart,” (“The Boy in the Bubble”).

“Graceland” did well in the Grammy Awards, winning both Song of the Year for the title track and Album of the Year. Rolling Stone named it number 81 in its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

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Oklahoma was the first time Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein worked together. Fortunately for us all, it wasn't the last. Uploaded by dvd.net.au.

Mr. Rodgers, please meet Mr. Hammerstein. You’ve worked well with separate partners, but the stars have aligned for the two of you to join forces. In the coming years you’ll have huge hits and experience unprecedented success. And here’s your first project – a hayseed musical you’ll call “Oklahoma!”

Rodgers and Hammerstein. Uploaded by mapsites.net.

Turns out that the working preferences of Rodgers & Hammerstein blended perfectly. Hammerstein wanted to do complete lyrics before music was added, and Rodgers preferred to set completed lyrics to music. In “Oklahoma!,” their songs included “Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’,” “The Surrey with the Fringe on Top,” “People Will Say We’re in Love,” and the title song.

Success was immediate. The show debuted in 1943 and ran for 2,212 original performances, not counting repeated revivals. Its film adaptation starring Gordon McRae and Shirley Jones was a big hit. And Rodgers and Hammerstein were given a special Pulitzer Prize for their creation in 1943. “Oklahoma!” was definitely the beginning of more than a partnership – R&H had a meshing of talents unlike any in the twentieth century (with the possible exception of Lennon & McCartney).

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