I landed a plum role this week. I was the mystery reader in Alexia’s first-grade class. Not sure how ‘mysterious’ it was, since Alexia apparently figured out it was me hours before I showed up. Each week, the kids hear three clues (submitted by the mystery reader) and try to figure out the identity of that person.… Read More Reading Is FUNdamental
This year’s presidential election is receiving unprecedented media coverage. Which means even if you’re six years old, you probably know about the two candidates vying for the most powerful position on the planet. But my oldest daughter Alexia is mainly focused on learning more about the outgoing president. Alexia has known who President Barack Obama is for… Read More Adventures in Parenting: Talking Politics with the Kids
One of the many great things about New York City is, no matter how obscure an item of interest to you may be, there’s a store for that. Case in point: C.W. Pencil Enterprises on Forsyth Street on the Lower East Side is a pencil store. That’s right, they sell pencils. Not just 20-packs of Dixon… Read More The Write Stuff: NYC’s Top Pencil Pusher
(SPOILER ALERT: tread carefully if you don’t want to know details about the movie) The movie theater is a sacred temple. That’s how I’ve always viewed it, because I learned very early on that one goes to the movie to sit and enjoy the visual splendor on the screen, not to have a play date… Read More Adventures in Parenting: The Girls See Pete’s Dragon At The Theater
At this point, there is no way the people in charge of the DC movie universe can’t be in a state of panic. And they should be. Because “Suicide Squad” is yet another massive misfire for Warner Bros. Worse than “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.” Heck, it’s a mess on par with “Green Lantern.“… Read More Suicide Squad Is A Tremendous Disappointment
I spent so much time at the movies as a kid, the ushers should have collected a babysitting allowance from my parents. At the old Loew’s Westchester Twin Theater, I saw countless classics — and many others that most certainly were not classics — in the late 70s and early 80s. Those regular visits the movies… Read More Whatever Happened To All The Great PG-rated Movies?
The last movie night at my house was an unmitigated disaster, with Alexia running to her mom in tears over the surprising sadness from the strained mother-daughter relationship in “Brave.” I am happy to report Friday night’s screening went much better — although, really, it couldn’t have gone worse than “Brave” did. The movie this… Read More Adventures In Parenting: E.T. Saves Movie Night
I can only hope my kids one day get gobsmacked by a toy commercial the way I did when I first saw this TV spot for a toy I had never heard of: Ever since the toy’s debut in 1979 — it was such a breakthrough for the time it even made the cover of… Read More ROM And The Power Of Nostalgia
One of the more interesting interviews I did while at the San Diego Comic Con was talking to the cast from Fox’s upcoming midseason drama “Riverdale.” It’s based on the beloved characters from Archie Comics, but if you were expecting to see a cheesy, charmingly quaint rendition of those iconic characters, think again. If you’ve… Read More “Riverdale” Is Not Your Father’s Archie
The days just before the San Diego Comic Con, for those who are part of the media, can be as stressful and chaotic as the actual convention. Talent booking questions, production issues, last-minute logistical concerns, they all pop up in that day or two before one heads west to the biggest pop culture event on… Read More Adventures In Parenting – My Shopkins Comic Con Experience
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