We lost one of our childhood friends last week when Tommy Kirk passed away, just 3 months shy of his 80^th birthday.

Kirk was one of handful of child actors (others included Annette Funicello, Tim Considine, Hayley Mills and Kevin “Moochie” Corcoran) that Disney built their live action films around in the late 50’s and early 60’s.

He got his start working in the early days of TV dramas before being cast to play the younger of the two Hardy Boys on The Mickey Mouse Club. That serial clicked and Disney signed him to a long-term contract. While he never appeared as a Mousketeer, Disney kept him busy with a full slate of feature films. He’s best remembered by Boomers as the human alter ego of The Shaggy Dog, the boy who owned Old Yeller and as wacky kid inventor Merlin Jones.

Disney declined to renew his contract when the fact that he was gay became an open secret around the lot. Kirk then migrated to American International Pictures where he starred opposed his old Disney buddy Annette in Pajama Party, playing a hard-partying Martian (no kidding).

A bust for marijuana possession derailed his career at AIP, although Kirk did appear, again as a Martian (typecasting?), in the deathless 1968 opus, Mars Needs Women, but acting roles dried up after that.

Kirk kicked around in various odd jobs including working as a chauffeur until he founded a carpet-cleaning business that he ran for 26 years and afforded him a comfortable retirement.

In his later years, Kirk enjoyed going to nostalgia conventions and taking an occasional acting gig.

Tommy Kirk was inducted as a Disney Legend on October 9, 2006, alongside his former co-stars Tim Considine and Kevin Corcoran. 

It was 54 years ago this week (October 1st) that Florida gained the attraction that has now come to define the state as Walt Disney World opened for the first time.

Initially, just one theme park (The Magic Kingdom) and a handful of hotels, the complex now embraces 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, a huge shopping, dining, and entertainment complex, as well as literally dozens of hotels and resorts. It single-handedly transformed Orlando from a sleepy landlocked retirement community into one of the top 20 cities in America.

Along the way, many attractions within the parks have come and gone, including:

• Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
• Snow White's Scary Adventures
• Mickey Mouse Review
• Swan Boats
• The Tomorrowland-Fantasyland Skyway
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Mission to Mars
• If You Had Wings

And many, many more!

A Whopper? A Big Mac? How about that hairdo?

Watch out Marvel Cinematic Universe. There are some new heroes in town!

As we age, many us complain that we don’t sleep as well or as soundly as we did when we were younger. Here are some of things that may be keeping us up at night:

1. Too much TV or computer time before bed - Most of the screens on our electronic devices emit what is known as “blue light.” The type of light suppresses the body’s production of melatonin, a hormone that induces sleep. So, turn off the tablet, smartphone or TV an hour or two before bedtime

2. Too much caffeine – Okay, so you know enough not to drink coffee before bedtime. But you may not be aware of the presence of caffeine in some many other substances, such as chocolate, tea or soft drinks. Check the ingredients of anything you eating or drinking after dinner.

3. Lack of schedule – When many of us have retired or geared down to an irregular work schedule, we may let our daily schedule go by the wayside. Your body is most definitely a creature of habit. Going to bed at different times may mean confusing it, resulting in difficulty falling asleep.

4. Taking too many activities to bed – Do you like to read or watch Tv while you’re under the covers? Not good for your sleep habits. Do those activities from an easy chair in the living room or den and leave the bed for sleep.

We’ll have more tips in the near future. In the meantime, sleep tight!

In what may be the longest gap between albums, Swedish pop superstars, ABBA have announced the release of their first new studio album in 40 years. Voyage will be released the first week of November. Next spring, ABBA will begin a series of virtual concerts with “ABBA”-tars of the group playing alongside a live band in a specially constructed venue in London, appropriately dubbed ABBA Arena.

The ABBA-tars were created by having the group dress in motion capture outfits. They will appear in the concert looking much younger than their current age – as the band thinks fans would rather see them looking like they did at the height of their fame.

Has the band’s popularity waned any since their glory days? Apparently, not much, Universal Music, which is releasing the album, reported that pre-orders have already broken an all-time record. The concerts – which will encompass nearly 100 performances over 5 months (with tickets prices ranging from $73 to $450 each) are almost sold out as of the time of this writing (September 11) and they’ve only been on sale for a week!

Can anyone doubt there will be a world-wide tour of this show when the London engagement wraps up?

No sooner had we absorbed the news of the passing of Don Everly, then we were saddened again to learn of the death of the Rolling Stones’ drummer Charlie Watts. He passed away at the age of 80. Like Ringo, another great drummer he was often compared to, Watts was not a flashy show-off. Instead, he provided a solid bottom for one of rock’s most enduring superstar bands.

How important was he? Anyone who has seen the Stones in concert will tell you that lead guitarist Keith Richards spent most of his time on stage with his back to the audience so he could take his cues from Watts.

Although Watts preferred jazz to rock, he was the Stones’ drummer throughout their entire recording career. To know the high regard in which he was held, don’t listen to what rock critics and fans have to say, listen to the tributes he garnered from other musicians.

Famous jazz drummer Mel Lewis: “Charlie is a hell of a drummer. He’s solid as a rock.”

Max Weinberg of the E Street Band: “It’s hard to imagine a world without Charlie Watts. I’m just stunned. I can't express what Charlie Watts meant to me as an individual and certainly as an icon of music, and not just in rock.”

Elton John: “Charlie Watts was the ultimate drummer.”

Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine: “Rock n roll would not be rock n roll without the rhythm, the style, the VIBE of this incredible musician.”

Joan Jett: “Charlie Watts was the most elegant and dignified drummer in rock and roll. He played exactly what was needed – no more – no less.”

Paul Stanley of Kiss: “One of the true timeless icons and the backbone of the Stones.”

It is with great sadness that we acknowledge the death of one of rock & roll’s pioneers. Don Everly, half of the legendary singing duo, the Everly Brothers, passed away this weekend at the age of 84. Cause of death has not been disclosed at the time of this writing.

The Everlys’ close harmony style of singing influenced countless rock acts including the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, the Hollies and many more. Don generally sang the leads, while his younger brother Phil contributed the harmony.

Don wrote the boys’ hit, “(‘Til) I Kissed You,” and collaborated with brother Phil to write what would become their biggest-selling record, “Cathy’s Clown.”

They were the first rock act to launch their own record label (Calliope Records), years before the Beatles formed Apple. They also recorded what is commonly recognized as the first “roots” album for a pop act, “Songs Our Daddy Taught Us.” The duo is also sighted as helping to start the country rock trend in the latter half of the 1960s.

They fought as only brothers can, broke up in 1973 (in the middle of a live performance at Knott’s Berry Farm) and successfully reunited in 1983.

The Everly Brothers were among the very first acts enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1986) and the two continued to tour off and on until Phil passed away in 2014.

Rocks stars conquer the cosmos!

The rapid growth of self-storage facilities across the United States is a testimony to Americans having more stuff than they know what to do with. Before you rent a unit for your excess stuff,read this:

Do You Really Need This Stuff? – If you put something in self-storage, it’s obviously not something you’re going to need every day. Think long and hard about selling those extra possession or simply throwing it away. It will say you that monthly rental fee.

Think of Moving to Another Until Every Once in a While – The longer you stay, the more your rental fees are going to increase. Meanwhile, many storage facilities offer significantly lower rates to new customers. So, it pays to shop around every so often.

The Colder the Weather, the Lower the Rates – On average, rental rates decrease in the winter months, particularly in February. Conversely, rates are at their highest in July. So, when you rent is important.

Finally, if you do decide to use a storage facility, check with the agency that insures your home to make sure anything you store in that unit is still covered by your homeowner’s policy.