November 2, 1967: Little Candy Man

Letter postmarked November 2, 1967 (dated November 1):

(FYI, the previous post was number 100.)

The CCZCC now stands at 2.

With this letter we are back on full size sheets of paper and writing in pen. However, this one is printed instead of in cursive writing. Can we have a little consistency, please?

Dear Mother and Mike,

Well, Halloween finally got here! David Wayne had been marking his calendar for three weeks and yesterday he was really excited. He had two costumes to wear - a ghost one that I had gotten several weeks ago and a pirate one that Mrs. Jennings had sent. He wore them both during the evening but not at the same time. He carried a decorated trick or treat bag (a small one because I didn't think he's get much this year and as a result he had to come home and empty it three times) and a flashlight with a ghost face.

[Just imagine how much more efficient I could have been while trick-or-treating if I didn't have to empty my bag three times.]

[Here are two pictures of me in my Halloween costumes, which some of you have already seen on Facebook.]

[By the way, thanks to Mom's captions on the Halloween pictures we now know the witch's name is Hazel.]

As I said, I didn't think he'd get much, but he got a lot more than he did last year. Being the only child in the apartment house (which by the way has only one vacant apartment now) does have advantages. Everyone had gotten something special just for him and they all gave him quite a bit of candy, too. One couple upstairs were gone when we made the rounds there, but as soon as they got home the man came down to get David Wayne. They had gone especially to the store to get something for him and they just moved in this week. David Wayne makes friends fast. I found out last night that he knew everyone here and they all knew him by name. (Dave and I sure don't know everyone here.)

[Wasn't I just the social butterfly in the apartment building? Maybe during all those times I was wandering around outside pretending to visit various places around the globe (see letter postmarked October 5, 1967) I was actually befriending all the other people living in the apartments.]

His biggest treat last night, though, was when the couple in number 9 had him come into their apartment and see their baby girl. He came out just beaming - I wish you could have seen his face.

After finishing the rounds here, all three of us walked over to the Hansen's (people Dave works with). David Wayne led the way with his ghost flashlight and kept saying we were going to a Halloween party. We were afraid he would be disappointed, but he wasn't. Barbara had bought him a whole box of Halloween candy and even had it wrapped like a present. We all had a lot of fun. Dave even played "horsey" with him coming home and carried him on his back. Dave couldn't talk, though, because David Wayne kept saying, "God didn't make horses to talk."

[I was not familiar with the television series Mister Ed at that time.]

All in all, he had a wonderful Halloween - thanks to the people that live in our apartment house and the Hansens. Thanksgiving will be a big treat, too, this year as we are going to see his friend "Clip" in San Francisco.

["Clip" was a coworker of Dad's named Cliff. I always called him Clip when I was younger. I guess he was also on an out-of-state assignment in California during this time, since I only remember him living in Texas.]

We also got the idea last night that since everyone here is so fond of him, we would invite the whole apartment house to the "pinata breaking" on Christmas. We can hang it off the balcony and let him stand downstairs with a stick (blindfolded, of course). I imagine that with more people cheering him on, it would be twice as exciting for him. It won't take the place of getting to be with the family, but maybe he'll forget it for a little while that way.

You remember I wrote you that the people that moved in upstairs must be changing the location of their kitchen because of all the noise. I wasn't far from wrong. They redecorated the whole place, including putting up their own curtains. (wall to wall yet!) Also, they built a dog pen (inside) - for their dog - a beagle named Heidi. According to Mr. Sabo they have finished the redecorating, but the noise continues. So I figured out that the man must be a carpenter and his shop is upstairs - he doesn't or hasn't yet gone to work. David Wayne has offered to babysit with their dog - no wonder he makes friends fast.

We are still having a lot of bad fires here - really bad. The fires are burning $100,000 to $75,000 homes and it just makes you sick to read about the loss these people suffer. One old couple said they didn't mind so much their furniture and clothes because those things could be replaced, but never would they be able to replace the pictures of their children and home movies of their grandchildren. Isn't that sad? When I read about the fires, smog, riots, hippies, etc. I just can't help but wonder what the big attraction is in Los Angeles. Give me the wide open spaces and northers in Texas any time - even east Texas, ugh!

[Fifty years later, and southern California fires are still burning homes.]

I don't know what our plans are for the weekend - probably nothing as we are still slightly shaken over the experience at Fisherman's Wharf last week. Friday the couple from Texas will be here and we may just help them get settled into an apartment.

Run out of things to say so I'll say goodbye. Write when you can.

Love,

Linda

PS - You can see anything in this town. Last week I saw a very pregnant woman wearing a micro-mini skirt. Very interesting!

October 30, 1967: Dirty hippie turtle

Letter postmarked (and dated) October 30, 1967:

The CCZCC takes the first step toward a potential new record. It now stands at 1.

Unlike all the previous letters, which were written in ink on letter-sized paper (8.5" x 11"), this letter was written in pencil on some 8.5" x 5.5" stationary.

Dear Mother and Mike,

I got tired of writing in pen so that's why this is in pencil. I really don't have much to tell you today.

[Pen vs. pencil mystery is solved. We still don't know why there was a sudden change in paper size, though.]

We stayed at home Saturday much to my disgust. I guess Dave was just tired. Also, it could have been that we didn't have much money. Since I've been doing the Christmas shopping, Dave's been giving me extra money.

[Let's hope this potential money issue doesn't impact MY Christmas too much.]

Sunday I talked Dave into taking me to Fisherman's Wharf - believe me we should have stayed at home. It was dirty, it stunk like dead fish, and there were only low, low class of people there. We didn't tarry there long. We did take a boat ride out in the ocean which was nice.

[I'm on a boat! I'm on a boat!]

[I don't look too thrilled about it, though. I don't know if I'm getting seasick or giving Dad a death stare for some reason.]

We also went in one store and bought David Wayne a starfish and a turtle bank.

[I had that starfish for many many years in my room. It was yellowish-brown, with about a six inch wingspan. I don't think I have it now, and I'm not sure if it even survived the Great Purge when I moved out of the house to go to college. But I do still have the turtle bank. Here are two pictures of it, both with the obligatory quarter for scale. This one is glazed ceramic, with no chips or cracks that I can find. There is nothing identifying it as coming from Fisherman's Wharf, but there is a bit of adhesive on one side that looks like a sticker or label may have been there at one time.]

[That second photo is not from the top. Mr. Turtle is actually doing a three-point stand while balancing a quarter on his head. Impressive, eh?]

We saw two hippie couples on motorcycles cut in front of this man and get a parking place he was trying for. Naturally, it made the man mad and he said something to them. They walked over to their vehicles, took the tire chains off and started following the man and his family (including four little kids). I don't know what the outcome was, but I hope the people got away. It just made me and Dave sick and we got out of there quickly!

[That is another story Mom often told about our time in Los Angeles, and that's pretty much how she told it, too. Mom and Dad were really scared when they saw that. Thankfully I don't have any memory of it.]

The Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco is a delightful place and I never dreamed that this one would not be just as good. Oh, I wish we were home - safe and far away from all these kooks!

[Culture shock has not worn off yet. I don't know how Mom knew about Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco since she hasn't mentioned it in any letters so far. There are some pictures in the photo album that specifically say they were from Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, so maybe that will be mentioned in an upcoming letter.]

Halloween is tomorrow night and David Wayne is beside himself with excitement. I'm only going to take him trick or treating at a few apartments in this building. (I even asked these people if it would be alright.) Then we are going to the Hansen's (people Dave works with) and the Sivell's. I hope it won't be a let-down to him, but I just don't feel safe going to strange doors in this town.

[Well that stinks. Don't be such a worry wart, Mom. I neeeeeeed candy!]

It wouldn't be any better in Carrollton though. Patsy wrote me that people there had been warned to keep the kiddies home because some people were giving candy with LSD on it to kids. David Wayne cried when I told him Roger and Steve couldn't go out on Halloween. I had to promise him that next year if it happened, we would just have a party for the neighbors.

[Oh, good grief. It's amazing the scare stories about tainted Halloween candy that go around almost every year. When I was growing up it was razor blades in apples. I read an article years ago about a group that actually searched newspaper articles over many decades for stories about Halloween candy that was intentionally modified to harm children, and they pretty much came up empty. "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."]

We got that big turtle Friday night. We (David Wayne, that is) named him Mickey Mud Turtle. I went to Farmer's Market on Friday and at a pet shop I bought a big fish bowl to keep the turtle in. Snappy stays out of his shell all the time and he loves for us to talk to him. This new turtle isn't very friendly yet - in fact he spits at us if we get close to him. I'm not too fond of it, but the boys love it. From the reptile book you bought we found out it is a slider.

[Well heck yeah, who wouldn't like to have a big spitting turtle to play with?]

I bought Tracey a cute little Indian dress at Farmer's Market. All the shopping I need to do now is Wayne, Judy, and the Jennings. I got a beautiful glass piano for Aunt Osie and a set of glass swans for Aunt Mary. I wish I could go ahead and get all these things mailed.

[Aunt Osie and Aunt Mary were Dad's aunts.]

Dave is on a diet and has lost some weight - not enough, he still looks pregnant. I still haven't felt the baby moving and the doctor says I should - that has me worried. Other than that, I feel great.

Well, I said news was short and it is. Write soon.

Love,

Linda

P. S. - I bought David Wayne a Batmobile that shoots rockets. It is the same size as the matchbox cars and I imagine it will be a big hit on Christmas!

[A Batmobile that shoots rockets? This is going to be the best Christmas ever!]

October 24, 1967: I yust go nuts at Christmas

Letter postmarked October 25, 1967 (part 2):

This is Part 2 of the letter Mom wrote on October 23, 1967 that was postmarked October 25.

Today I am going Christmas shopping so remember don't open any packages. I am just a blank on what to get Mike - any suggestions? I want to send everybody something from here, but I can't think of a thing for Mike. What does he need or want in the way of clothes?

For David Wayne you might get him some more of those Matchbox cars. I have already bought him a "Build A Road" set that is made for Matchbox cars. There is a service station set and a fire house set that he would enjoy. Everything else that he talks about is advertised on TV - "Tricky Tommy Turtle," "Incredible Edibles," "Mattel's Fright Factory," etc. - and all the toys on TV are pretty expensive. He told the Santa Claus at Santa's Village he wanted a Slap Trap game so I know I will get him that.

[Some of these toys I don't recall at all, which means I probably didn't get everything I wanted for Christmas. Isn't that sad? But thanks to the interwebs we can find some information on all of these toys, including, in most cases, the TV commercials that convinced five-year-old me I wanted them for Christmas. First, here's the link to a commercial for Tricky Tommy Turtle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLGiI_ltQRE]

Tricky Tommy Turtle goes
When your magic whistle blows
He wobbles along, clippity clop
Blow the whistle. He stops!

[With such a catchy jingle and amazing technology, it's no wonder I wanted one of those.]

[Here is a link to a great video from a guy who found a complete Incredible Edibles set in almost mint condition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd_NFpQ62JQ. He and his brother had a set when they were young, and he agrees with most other online comments I read that everything tasted pretty awful.]

[Here's a web page with a lot of information on Mattell's Fright Factory, including advertisements, the instructions, and a commercial: http://collectingclassicmonsters.com/monster-toys/vintage-advertising-mattel-fright-factory-toy/]

[And finally, here is a commercial for the Slap Trap game, with its own catchy non-rhyming jingle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWOXd8C2Pvk]

[Christmas Day might be a bit of a letdown with all these spoilers from Mom.]

Right now we are getting ready for a big Halloween. In our front window we have a skull and an owl. When the windows are open we even put our three-foot pinata witch up and a pumpkin. Halloween night we are going to go to a few apartments in this building, then go to the Hensen's (people Dave works with), and finally to the Sivells - that old, old couple. It should be quite a night!

[That's pretty neat that my parents put a little effort into Halloween, even though we lived in an apartment and they only had a five-year-old. Also, note that the Sivells are not just an old couple, they are an old, old couple.]

Last week we had some good news. Another Texas examiner, Gene Dirr, and his wife are going to be in Los Angeles on November 3. The company Gene will be on is very close to us and we hope that they will rent an apartment at our place - or at least real close. I have never met the girl, but she is a school teacher and probably we will be good company. I have been lonesome without anyone to gossip with and I'm looking forward to seeing them.

[It sounds like Mom is really looking forward to having someone she can spend some time with. We'll see how that pans out.]

Well, I'm getting anxious for Linda Kay to have my niece or nephew. I still keep wondering how _I'm_ going to get the news quickly - say like five minutes after the doctor knows! If Linda and Wayne could be around David Wayne right now, they would decide, like we have, not to teach their child how to talk. David Wayne asked me yesterday, "Why isn't the world on anything?" Last week it was, "Mommie, why don't fish get sea sick?" I am losing my mind and when I answer him, I sound like a preacher at a revival - ". . . because God made it that way." At Jungleland yesterday, he asked me the name of some animal and before I had time to answer he said, "Never mind, I'll ask Daddy. He knows everything and you don't know anything." This is great for Dave's ego, but mine has been smashed.

[Wow, I asked some really good questions. I especially like "Why isn't the world on anything?" I guess I can't fault Mom for being unable to explain celestial mechanics to a five-year-old. I'm not sure I could do that either, which according to Richard Feynman means I don't really understand it.]

Dave's ego had a lift last night, too, and I am glad. Something woke David Wayne up again (in the middle of the night!) and when he came into our room, he was calling "Daddy" instead of "Mommie." This just thrilled him - it was the first time David Wayne had ever called for Daddy when he was hurt or scared. Dave was still beaming about it this morning.

[Awwww, that's pretty darn sweet.]

Well, I will close this journal now. David Wayne is still sleeping, but he should be awake soon and then I won't be able to think. Mike, you are always referred to as Knucklehead by David Wayne and we can't break him of it. Really it is a compliment as this Knucklehead is a favorite puppet of David Wayne's. So Mother, take care of Knucklehead.

Love,

Linda

P. S. - Thanks for the info on Leon Taliaferro. I will relay this to Mr. Sivell as soon as we see them.

P. P. S. - I just mailed your Christmas present - don't open!

Also am enclosing catalog from Nut Shop.

[Leon Taliaferro is still a mystery to me. Maybe I'll find him among the genealogy stuff my grandmother had.]

[The catalog Mom sent was from a place called The Magic Nut and Candy Kitchens. The business was one of the original tenants in the Los Angeles Farmer's Market in 1949, and according to their web site (www.themagicnut.com) they still have the same two stalls there. They seem to focus on a wide variety of nuts and candies, offering various gift packages and sample platters.]

[Here are scans of the front and the first page of the catalog, which is about 4" x 9" when closed. (Note that "Epicurean" is misspelled.)]

[The catalog has a little over 20 pages, most of which are descriptions and prices of the various gift packs and nut selections they offered. You could also send as a gift a 3- 6- or 12-month membership in The Magic Nut of the Month Club. For a little under $4 per month the lucky recipient would receive one pound of a different type of nut, nut mix, or candy.]

[Another page of the catalog has a picture of a grandmotherly figure hand-dipping something in chocolate.]

[(Yes, that picture should remind you of the episode of I Love Lucy where Lucy and Ethel go to work at the chocolate factory.) Below that is a statement about automation not yet being used in the Magic Nut Kitchens and they doubt it ever will. I wonder if they use any automation now, 50 years later?]

October 19, 1967: Creepy visitor

Letter postmarked October 18, 1967:

The CCZCC now stands at 10. Double digits!

This letter is being posted one day after the date of the postmark because the October 17 letter was split into two posts.

Dear Mother and Mike

This may not be legible - I have written three letters already this morning and I'm lying in bed and I've got Kleenex in both hands. No, I don't have a cold - I'm just trying to filter the air as I take it into my lungs. Coming from a family of breathers I find it hard to exist in this climate. I think within a few years the population in Los Angeles will have gills instead of the regular breathing apparatus. Either that or they shall all surely suffocate. The smog really isn't too bad now - by that I mean you can see "Mr. Sun" peeping through, but we are due for another siege on Thursday.

[That ongoing smog problem sounds awful. Reading Mom's firsthand account of her difficulties dealing with it has given me a little more appreciation for the tighter restrictions on things like automobile emissions in California.]

[The handwriting in this letter is definitely different than the handwriting in previous letters. The most noticeable thing to me is the lack of a slant in this letter. I have scanned in samples of this letter and the previous one so you can see for yourselves.]

Handwriting sample from letter postmarked October 17, 1967.

Handwriting sample from letter postmarked October 18, 1967.

Of course, we could go to the mountains again like we did last Saturday, but then we might be called upon to fight the forest fires that are surrounding us. They (the police) have arrested several known "fire setters" this week and I wonder if our little handyman will show up for work today. (That's another reason my hands are sorta shaky, I suppose. I get just a teeny bit nervous on Wednesdays.)

[Forest fires in California. Imagine that. (Those of you reading this way in the future can google "2017 California forest fires.")]

David Wayne said for me to tell Nana that Mike is a Knucklehead. He really misses his Uncle Mike and is always talking about fighting with him when we get home. So tell Mike he better get in shape - David Wayne is a lot bigger now than when he last saw him. Also, David Wayne keeps in practice by fighting with Dave. They are constantly rolling around on the floor and I wonder how many lamps we will have to replace.

Dave and I have something in common with the Johnsons. We also have a child that makes visits during the night. It's a little eerie to wake up and find someone standing by your bed, but it is better than him getting out the door and chasing him down the street. You should tease Dave in your next letter about our having the same experience as the "cookoo Byrds."

[I didn't find anything to confirm this, but I suspect the Johnsons Mom is referring to here are President Johnson and his wife Lady Bird Johnson, or perhaps their first daughter Lynda Bird Johnson. That seems like a logical reason for the "cookoo Byrds" comment.]

[I wonder if I ever woke up Mom and Dad yelling "Red Rum!" repeatedly?]

Joan Baez is going to be giving more free concerts for the next ten days - this time to the men in jail where she will be in residence. It seems that she was a ringleader in a big riot on Monday. I think this riot or sit-down or whatever happened in front of an army induction center where they were protesting against the draft system. Anyway, the police drafted her and her mother to jail for ten days. I wish I could go to jail with my mother for a few days - I think our relationship is lacking in some way, don't you?

[Joan Baez gave a free concert for an estimated 30,000 people at the Washington Monument in Washington, DC in August of 1967, to protest the Vietnam War. The arrest Mom is referring to here occurred in Oakland.]

[Fun fact: It was during this jail sentence that Joan Baez met an inmate named David Harris, whom she would marry in March of 1968 and divorce in 1973. She was pregnant with their son Gabriel when she performed at Woodstock in 1969.]

We are busily getting ready for Halloween. David Wayne was driving me nuts asking how many more days, so I made him a calendar and he is marking off each day. The witch pinata we got on Olvera Street is really cute and we have decided not to break it. I don't know how we will get it home but Dave says he'll figure something out.

You just thought you bought the little turtle for David Wayne . . . but Dave is the one who pays the most attention to Snappy. He even talks to it! Sunday, on Olvera Street, they were displaying some turtles that were ten times bigger than Snappy and Dave wanted to buy one. I wouldn't have minded, but I know he would have come straight home and played with it the rest of the day. I imagine we'll get one this weekend. By the way, how is your livestock? Any little hamsters yet? Adelia wrote David Wayne that they were expecting twin goats and that if we had twins she would swap him for one. He thought that was a great idea, naturally.

[Adelia, in case you have forgotten, was my grandfather's second wife. They lived on a farm in Sanger, Texas at the time.]

I will close for now. Please write soon as I have started accusing the postman of losing my mail. You wanna hear something funny? I get so much mail from Mordecais that the postman wished me a "Happy New Year" a couple of weeks ago. I took me a while to figure out that greeting. Another funny thing . . . Dave cooked outside on Yom Kippur (the day of Jewish fasting) and we got some mighty dirty looks that day! I'm afraid we have a lot to learn about living around Jewish people. Maybe we will learn since we're going to be here so long.

[Mordecai is apparently a traditionally Jewish name, but as far as I know you have to go back quite a ways in our family tree to find a Mordecai who was Jewish. Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) in 1967 was on October 5, and Yom Kippur was October 14. So here's some more exposure to other cultures that Mom and Dad were not exposed to very much while growing up in small Texas towns.]

Love,Linda

P. S. - Does Linda Kay have one of those electric baby food warmers? They are something new . . . at least I don't think they had them five years ago. It saves putting water in a pan to heat the jar of food. Anyway, I would like to get one for her, so find out if she has one please.