I just finished getting my toro snowblower out from the back of the shed and found a few baby dolls out there in storage. It reminded me of when I was about three years old and I won a doll at my Grandfather’s Christmas Party. Her name was Patti Playpal. She was 35″ tall and was introduced in 1959 by the Ideal Toy Company. She was as big as I was and I still remember her. I have a picture of her with my Grandpa and me at the party. When I find it again, I will have to upload it!

As Christmas gets nearer, I start to think about the toys that I had when I was a kid. One of the toys that I loved was Colorforms. Colorforms were invented by Ogden Kniffin. They were die-cut vinyl sheet images and shape that could be applied to a shiny cardboard scene board. The images stuck to the background due to static cling and were repositionable. The first box set appeared in the 1950s and consisted mostly of shapes. Later Colorforms included Popeye, Gumby, Miss Weather. My favorite was Miss Weather, you could change her into various weather related outfits!

Colorforms is now owned by University Games and continues to produce products.

Americans are all about fast food. It doesn’t matter if you are taking the best best vitamins for women, men or children, putting too much unhealthy food in your mouth is going to make you sick.

In the movie Super Size Me, Morgan Spurlock explores the consequences on his health of a diet of solely McDonald’s food for one month. The results are very interesting indeed! I wonder what would happen if everyone in America stopped eating fast food for a month?

Before you do a job search for finance jobs, watch a few of these top finance movies. Maybe they will give you a little insight into the world of finance!

Trading Places – starring Dan Akroyd and Eddie Murphy. Funny, funny comedy.
Wall Street – Greed is Good in this movie.
Barbarians at the Gate – All about the Fall of RJR Nabisco
Rogue Trader – How one man gets involved in illegal trading and tries to cover it up.
Pi – A mathematician searches for a number that will unlock the mysteries of the universe.
Other People’s Money – corporate raider vs. mom and pop.
Boiler Room – College dropout becomes trader, but is it legit?
Glengarry Glen Ross – sell, sell, real estate that is.
American Psycho – investment banker hides his psychotic alter ego
Pretty Woman – prostitute meets wealthy financier and things click.

Julie Dawn Cole played Veruca Salt in the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory that premiered in 1971. Julie was born October 16, 1957 and is an English theater, movie and television actor. She was 12 years old when she was first cast in the movie. She was only payed 600 pounds (about $950 in today’s money) for the movie. She still has two of the original props: the Golden Ticket and the Everlasting Gobstopper.

Of the five children in the movie, Julie is the only one who has continued acting.

I didn’t realize this, but some of the original text of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl was changed. Dahl faced criticism from the NAACP and others due to the portrayal of the Oompa Loompas as dark skinned and skinny African pygmies who work in the chocolate factory for cacao beans.

Some text was changed and so were some of the illustrations and a new version released in 1973.

In the new version, the Oompa Loompas are funny, long golden-brown hair with rosy-white skin. Instead of originating in Africa they were moved to the fictional Loompaland.

Is this just a case of censorship?

I think there are a lot of people out there that want to be on the television show The Biggest Loser. Well now you can, sort of. The Biggest Loser has opened two ranches in Malibu, California and Ivins, Utah. You can pay for one week at the ranch or more. You will pay $2,195 for one week in the Utah facility or $8,000 for two weeks for a private room. This may not be the fastest way to lose belly fat, but I bet it will get you into pretty good shape. Unfortunately, there are plenty of people in this country who would benefit from the program but will not be able to afford it. No wonder rich people are so thin!

Some celebrities may have embraced being bald (think of Bruce Willis), but others are still trying to find the best hair loss products. The list of celebrities that might (or might not, maybe they are just having a bad hair day) include Marv Albert, Pat Boone, Sam Donaldson, Chuck Norris and David Lee Roth.

If you want to see the whole list and some great pictures, you can find them at Pop Culture Dish.

I always find it interesting to research movies filmed in tiny towns or small cities. It gives the films such charm instead of being filmed on a Hollywood set. The film Nights in Rodanthe starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane was filmed in North Carolina. Some of the scenes were filmed in Manteo (information from Askville):

Start your movie trail in the town of Manteo, where some scenes were shot at the boat slips downtown. Both Richard Gere and Diane Lane were spotted here often during filming, as both stayed at the Tranquil House Inn on Manteo’s waterfront. Treat yourself like a movie star by dining at the Inn’s restaurant, 1587, or explore the town’s rich history and boutique shopping.

As with many towns around the US, you will find a number of Manteo foreclosures, but if you are looking for a cute town to retire to, lower housing prices could be right for you!

Whatever happened to the cute little girl who played ZuZu in It’s a Wonderful Life?

Karolyn Grimes was born July 4, 1940 in Hollywood, California. Her mother started her in the acting business She appeared in her first film in 1945. Some of her other films included Blue Skies with Bing Crosby (1946), The Bishop’s Wife with Cary Grant (1947) and Hans Christian Anderson with Danny Kaye (1947). Due to her mother’s failing health, she wasn’t able to act as much. Her mother died in 1954 and her father died a year later in a car accident.

Karoyln was sent to live with an Aunt and Uncle in Missouri in what she called a “bad home.” After completing high school she got married, attended college and became a medical technologist. She has suffered from serious setbacks in her life including the death of her first husband, a son’s suicide and death of her second husband. However, after a financial setback in the 2000s, she decided to make a career of advocating the film “It’s a Wonderful Life.” She travels, give speeches and memories about the films and signs autographs.

One of her favorite memories about the film is at the end when Jimmy Stewart is holding her and they are singing Auld Land Syne. Karoyln did not know the words and so was pretending to sing along. Stewart found it amusing and you can see him laughing in the film.