Sunday, June 21, 2026

WE'VE GOT A REALLY FULL AGENDA TODAY!!! Happy Father's Day ... Happy First Day Of Summer (courtesy of Chuck Buell) ... And Looking Back At June 21st, 1966

Today, Sunday, June 21!  Two Holidays in One!  A Holiday Twin Spin!

 

So here, to help make you a more sparkling conversationalist at today’s “First Day of Summer Combo Dad’s Day Bar-B-Que” or “Pic-nic!” here a few fun facts ...

Nobody knows exactly who looked at a graham cracker, a piece of chocolate, and a campfire and decided to combine them. But the very first official recipe did appear in a Girl Scouts handbook in 1927. Because the treat was so delicious, scouts constantly begged for "some more," which was eventually shortened to simply “S’more!”  ( True! )

 

In 1883, a massive storm flooded the boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey, soaking candy seller David Bradley's entire stock of taffy with ocean water. When a young girl walked up and asked to buy some, Bradley jokingly told her to grab some "Saltwater Taffy." The name stuck, and the soggy accident turned into a massive American seaside tradition.  ( True! )

 

In 1905, an 11-year-old boy named Frank Epperson in San Francisco left a cup filled with powdered soda, water, and a stirring stick out on his porch on a particularly cold night. It froze overnight, resulting in a fruity, icy treat. He originally called it the "Epsicle" (a combination of his name and icicle) before it was eventually rebranded as the classic “Popsicle.”  ( True! )   

( Coulda been the “Sodasicle! ) 

 

In the late 1950s, Omar Knedlik, a Dairy Queen franchisee in Coffeyville, Kansas, didn't have a working soda fountain. To chill his colas quickly for customers, he started leaving them in the freezer. The soda became slushy, but customers loved the half-frozen drinks so much that he designed a specialized machine to mass-produce the icy treats, ultimately leading to the invention of the “Slurpee.”  ( True! ) 


While ice cream dates back centuries, the cone became a massive summer hit at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. An ice cream vendor supposedly ran out of paper dishes, and a nearby waffle vendor stepped in by rolling his warm waffles into “Cones” to hold the scoops of ice cream.  ( True! )  


And it was sometime a little later on that Irish immigrant John H. Mulholland, who worked in advertising, befriended the president of Breyers Ice Cream. At the time, the tin spoons people used to eat single-serving ice cream were sharp and left a metallic taste in the mouth. Mulholland discovered that sweet gum trees were perfect for laminating and pressing into small, flat wooden spoons. His invention allowed ice cream companies like Breyers to sell individual, single servings of ice cream with a disposable, paper-wrapped flat wooden spoon tucked inside. This quickly became a staple for packaging individual-portioned "cup" frozen treats! 

 


 



Ah, yes!

 

I Scream!

You Scream!

We all Scream

For the Origin of the I Scream Sandwich!



 


 

 

 
( I’d go with . . . “Not!” )

 

Whatever your or Dad’s Summertime Treat, Tutti Frutti, Lollipops, Popsicles, a Chili Dog, Rocky Road Ice Cream, and a Drink, that’s fine!  Happy Father’s Day on this First Day of Summer!

 

And now, here’s today’s “Special CB Dad’s Day Treats Extended Play Minute Medley!”


 

CB ( which stands for “Chuck-Chuck-tk-ChuckChuck! Boy!” ~AND~ Your Official “Confections Boy!” )

 

And ... since it IS officially THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER, let me direct you to the ULTIMATE Summer Songs Countdown!

https://fhsummerfavorites.blogspot.com/ 

(In fact, this would be PERFECT PROGRAMMING for the 4th of July Weekend, since the 4th actually falls on a Saturday this year ...

Why not treat your listeners to the ULTIMATE Summer Song List as we celebrate America's 250th Birthday this year!)  kk

 

60 YEARS AGO TODAY:

(It was a big Pop Culture News Day Sixty Years Ago Today, too!)

 

6/21/66 – Singer Tom Jones crashed his Jaguar in London, ultimately needing 14 stitches.


Also on 6/21, Jimmy Page makes his live debut as a guitarist for The Yardbirds.


Also on 6/21, the film “Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf,” starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton opens in theater.  It is Director Mike Nichols’ first film … and Taylor will win the Best Actress Oscar at next year’s Academy Awards for her performance.

Also on 6/21, The Beatles record “She Said She Said” … it will appear on their next LP, “Revolver”.

Also on 6/21, "Shock Rock" DJ Mancow Muller is born.



Saturday, June 20, 2026

The Saturday Survey

As expected, The Beatles follow The Rolling Stones into the top spot on this week's Super Chart.  "Paperback Writer" jumps from #7 to #1 while "Paint It Black" slips to #3.

In between them is another music icon, Frank Sinatra ... his latest record, "Strangers In The Night," now sits at #2.

In fact, this week's chart is filled with music icons ... some long standing, some first making their mark.

Simon and Garfunkel, The Lovin' Spoonful, Dusty Springfield and The Four Seasons all have Top Ten Hits. 

The Animals, Tommy James and the Shondells, The Temptations, James Brown, Ray Charles, The Association, The Dave Clark Five, The Platters, Jan and Dean, Johnny Rivers and Marvin Gaye each have hits scattered throughout The Top 40.

This week's top debut belongs to Paul Revere and the Raiders as "Hungry" premiers at #63.

 

60 YEARS AGO TODAY:

6/20/66 – Bob Dylan’s “Blonde On Blonde” album is released


 

Harvey Kubernik looks back at "Blonde On Blonde," 60 Years On ...

https://ugly-things.com/articles/stories/ 

Friday, June 19, 2026

The Friday Flash


Walt Parazaider, a founding member of the rock band Chicago, died on Wednesday, June 17th.  He had been ill for quite some time and stepped away from touring back in 2017 when he was diagnosed with a heart condition.  A year earlier, after a couple of decades' worth of unwarranted snubs, he and his bandmates were FINALLY inducted into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.  Complications from Alzheimer’s Disease is given as the cause of death.  (He was first diagnosed in 2021)

Walt was born and raised in Chicago … and played saxophone, flute and clarinet for the group.  Chicago’s horn section was legendary.  Trumpeter Lee Loughnane remains the only original member still performing with the band today, originally formed in 1967 when all three of its horn section members (trombonist James Pankow being the other) were still students at De Paul University.  (Walt always cited first hearing The Beatles' "Got To Get You Into My Life" as the impetus for creating a rock band built around and driven by horns.  Blood, Sweat and Tears may have beat them to the punch on the pop charts ... but they never had the sustainability that Chicago reigned.) 

Although always still deeply rooted to the city from which they came, the band had to venture out to California to make it, first as The Big Thing, then as Chicago Transit Authority and then finally as Chicago. The group would score 36 National Top 40 Hits between 1970 and 1991. (kk)

Shelley shares some other sad news this morning ... 


DIDJAKNOW?:  Yesterday's Birthday Boy, Paul McCartney is the ONLY artist to ever hit #1 in the US as a solo, a duo, a trio, a quartet and a quintet???  Yet another amazing fact in an amazing career.  (kk)

Here's a great concert review by Greg Brodsky of Dion's recent appearance at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture on Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village ...

https://bestclassicbands.com/dion-stuns-in-concert-review-2026-tour-6-17-26/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=2026-06-18&utm_campaign=Dion+Stuns+in+Concert+How+is+He+86+Review 

 

MUST VIEW Clip of the Day:

A long-time British Invasion Favorite ...

Sing Along!!! 

Just follow the bouncing ... err ... you'll see ... 

Volkswagon ran a few very bold and clever ads back in the day ... but I don’t think ANY of them stacked up to this one, sent in my Timmy …

Yep, I sure do remember it!  (kk)


 

60 YEARS AGO TODAY:

6/19/66 – Comedian Ed Wynn dies