The recent passing of H.R. Pufnstuf puppeteer Van Snowden brings a tinge of sadness. I was fortunate to interview him in 2008, as part of an article on the history of Sid & Marty Krofft’s television shows, of which Pufnstuf was one.
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The Chestnut Prison
I’ve had a lot of stressful things go through my life lately. Some things I’ve mentioned in the blog; some things I’ve mentioned only to my closest friends. Some things I’ve never mentioned to anyone. And lately it’s kicked my insomnia up a notch. It’s affected my emotional well-being and my cognitive reasoning. And in…
Read MoreMemorabilia Fraud: When the Autograph Doesn’t Match Up
I have several autographed items in my personal collection. In terms of sports memorabilia, I own the following: A collection of Albany Patroons trading cards from the 2006-07 season, signed by all players from that season (including Jamario Moon, TJ Thompson, Kwan Johnson and John Strickland) An Albany Senators autographed baseball, circa 1949, signed by…
Read MoreThe last time it was 10/10/10…
This is an interesting numerological date. 10-10-10. This hasn’t happened in a hundred years. So what was the news like one hundred years ago? One quick trip to the Albany Public Library and its microfilmed collection of Times Union newspapers, and I have the answer. It’s October 10, 1910. And here are some of the…
Read MoreDickie Goodman – the music pioneer you never heard of
Once upon a time, back in the 1950’s, two struggling New York City songwriters, Bill Buchanan and Richard “Dickie” Goodman, came up with a musical concept that, at the time, was controversial and litigious – yet today, is as much a part of popular music as an auto-tune machine. Today we call the concept “Sampling,”…
Read MoreThe Housing Lottery
It’s one of the most stressful times in college. You’re finishing your freshman year, and in addition to all your finals and study periods, you have to worry about where you’re going to live next semester. Welcome to the wonderful world of the college housing lottery. As a Hamilton College student, I was well aware…
Read MoreOn the days before…
Barry Bonds slugged three home runs, including his 62nd and 63rd home runs of the season, in San Francisco’s 9-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies. Those home runs were scored in Bonds’ 144th game of the year, eighteen games fewer than the number of games it took Roger Maris to reach 61 home runs in…
Read MoreTwelve Missing Seasons
It’s 2005, and the Albany Patroons are coming back to the Continental Basketball Association for the first time in twelve years. And I’m psyched. Psyched to the point where I wanted to get my hands on old Patroons memorabilia, and next thing I know I”m on eBay snapping up every piece of Pats gear I…
Read MoreThe Night I Made an Illegal Radio Broadcast
After 26 years, I think the statute of limitations has finally run out. So now it can be told. I made a pirate radio broadcast when I was in college. It’s December of 1984. It was my senior year at Hamilton College, and I did not want to go home for the holidays. I had…
Read MoreA Farewell Party for Harriet Gibbons High School / Street Academy of Albany
Forty years ago, on September 21, 1970, the Albany Times Union reported the beginning of a new alternative high school in the district, a partnership between the nuns of the Kenwood Academy of the Sacred Heart and the staff of the Albany chapter of the National Urban League. That school became the Street Academy of…
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Chuck The Writer 
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