The most important thing about the Star Hustler, beyond the fact that he walked among the planets, was that it was hard to say when he’d appear on TV. On WQED, it seemed like he never had a set time slot; he’d just show up when a show ran short and they needed to fill airtime. Even a couple years ago, I tried to nail down his regular time and was told that it was Saturday nights just before 11 — but that wasn’t always true. Then I’d see him on, say, a Wednesday night at 10, precisely when I didn’t expect him.

I can even remember encountering him on the little black-and-white set we had at our cottage, where they only station we could get was WPSX-3, the PBS station in State College. He came in after dark like a dream, explaining where to find Orion’s belt — and when we were there, in the woods, it was actually possible to go out and see what he meant.

It shook me up a little to find out this weekend that Jack Horkheimer — star gazer, star hustler, TV character, underground(?) legend — died at age 72. His 5-minute astronomy spots were a strange holdover from the years when broadcast TV was a little less structured, and there was room for that kind of eccentricity. He had an innocent charm and different-ness that was quieter, more genuine than most of what we find on TV today.

I never knew quite when to find him, but I’ll miss him nonetheless — and I’ll keep looking up.

I’ve always loved this, since I was a wee one — it’s so clearly partially improvised, as the skit moves along. There’s such a natural interaction between the two puppeteers. There are playful attempts to throw each other off: “I don’t see anyone eating the food, Bert!” “Well, it’s brunch right now, they’re not that hungry.” AND “Who’s that that’s coming over to Talbot?” “That, uh . . . his wife. That’s Talbot’s wife.”

I CAN WATCH/LISTEN TO THIS OVER AND OVER FOREVER.

On a related note: I may do another post next week rounding up some other favorites I’ve been reminded of in the process of putting these five together. And, I was going to post a video of the creepiest skit I remember from childhood, but I can’t find it online. So if you know where to find a video of the stop-motion skit with the chair who can’t find his classes and keeps running into things — hook it up. I could use a good scare.

There’s a simple genius in the premise of this Love Boat spoof — what if The Love Boat were really just about loving the boat?

By the time I was coming up and watching this skit, The Love Boat was basically kaput (the series ended in 1986), which I think added to the bewilderment this skit infused in me as a kid. I didn’t get what was being spoofed at all — to me, it was just Ernie, lovin’ a boat. And the blue-head guy getting angry, then admitting that he loves the boat to. And the fish loving the boat.

I dunno. It’s like Apple Jacks, dude. I can’t explain WHY I like it. I just do.

One of the tracks I brought along but didn’t actually play — but that you should still check out — was by locals Satin Gum, who rule. I saw them Sunday night at Brillobox opening for Bad Veins and We Are Scientists (who, by the by, have incredible stage banter) and they were tight as . . . as . . . I feel like I can’t make an analogy here without it ending up inappropriate. They sounded good, is what I mean.

I also played that Jaill song that I embedded here a few posts back. Go listen to that song again. It rules.

New Sesame Street post later.

Seriously. Smokey being stalked and molested by a tarted-up foam “U” disturbed me as a child. At the time, I didn’t even register the genius of lines like

“U” stands for “uptight”/ That’s how I’m feeling
Being grabbed by a letter is/ Unappealing.

It’s so true, Smokey. Sing them blues.

I bring you: A B C D E F Cookie Monster!

So many wonderful things here. I think what puts it over the top into the “classic” category for me is how the letters flash on the screen as she sings, and a line-drawn Cookie Monster appears when she says “Cookie Monster.”

This one also appeals to me because it’s hard to be sure how much of it was scripted and how much was ad-libbed. There are some skits like that — where it seems, or even is clear, that the puppets or kids have gone off script, but the skit ended up great anyway. It’s unclear whether this is one of those, but it’s charming either way.

Here, though, we have the best course of the fall:

“Learn about the hotels, parks, tickets, dining options, and hidden extras from someone who has been there more than 35 times.”

Today’s entry: Me and My Llama. When I was a child, I did not question whether or not it was appropriate for a young girl to be traipsing about the streets of New York in the morning with a llama. Nor did I question where she kept it. It just made sense: llamas have to go to the dentist too, right?

It was the first of its kind, and the first competitive crosswording I’ve ever done (perhaps you’re surprised to hear that?)

I went with Brian and Mike C. and we all ended up around the 50th percentile give or take. Which satisfied me — I can’t speak for those two goons. The setup: three 20-minute crosswords, and after all of those were complete, the three top scorers were invited to the front to do the final puzzle on whiteboards in front of everyone (if you’ve seen Wordplay, you know the drill). None of the three of us, of course, ended up in the top three. There were SERIOUS NERDS here, people. We’re just part-time nerds.

My first puzzle went great (it was a Monday NYT joint). The second I did well at, but missed one letter, as I later found out (I actually thought I’d gotten it right — I said “PLOT” instead of “PLAT”). The third was iffy; it took me a long time and I definitely flubbed on at least one letter (“natives Columbus encountered” should’ve been “CARIB,” not “CARII.” I was getting desparate there).

Pluses: seeing old people and eccentric smarties having fun, eating candy, doing well on the extra trivia section (though I didn’t win that either, not by a long shot). Also, contributing to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. They did an intro talk on the LLS, and it made me think of my friend Rick, who, longtime readers will know, passed away last spring from Hodgkin’s. I got a little misty-eyed, but recovered, because there’s no crying in crosswords.

Let me leave you with this totally unrelated song that I really love right now:

In other news, the show on Friday was AWESOME and I thank everyone who made it out. We’ll try to have, like, a website and recorded music and all that business soon. The weekend was actually pretty great: Bookstock on Saturday, Yo La Tengo on Sunday (they gave a shout out to Private Taco Club!)

THUMBS UP! <3