Screen Director's Assignment. Production: this blog. Star: me. Director: me.

I have kind of an obsessive personality. Not about all things. There are just certain ideas that I get into my head that I can't let go of. This blog, for instance. When I decided to create it, I had a concept. Posts about specific episodes, each with a headline that referenced Old-Time Radio in some creative way.

Then the unthinkable happened.

I had been using the same cassette and record player contraption for more than a decade. It also has an 8 track attached, but I've never used that. I use the record player from time to time, mostly for Christmas music and a Best of Mamas and Papas album. The cassette player I used on a nightly basis. I would choose a tape one night before bed, probably a favorite that I've listened to for years, and then I would listen to the tape for usually a month, maybe two. Like I said, obsessive.

One night in December, I went to push play on The Screen Director's Assignment of Miracle on 34th Street, and no noise emerged from my two-feet tall speakers, est. circa 1985. I took out the tape, assuming it was on the wrong side. It wasn't. I put a new tape in, pushed play and examined. Nothing moved. It just sat there, silently. I checked the tape, I hit the tape player a few times, because that usually fixes things. Nothing.

She lived a good life. She lived in seven houses, two cities and two states. She was kind of like a security blanket for me, or at least the device that delivered the blanket to me each night. She will probably be replaced by some lame-ass boombox from Goodwill, whenever I get around to going there. Maybe today. I wanted to show you a picture of her, but I haven't taken the picture yet, so that's why I couldn't download it. So that's Edmund Gwenn. He played Santa Claus in the 1947 film version and in the radio one that I haven't been able to listen to in over a month.

During Christmas I wanted to post about my favorite Christmas shows, I wanted to provide exact quotes but I couldn't. Instead of writing perfectly good posts quoting my shows with near perfect precision, I just didn't write at all. I didn't write anything. I can quote those shows backwards to front, but I wanted more. Because I have an idea and I want that idea to be executed perfectly. I need to get over that. It's really annoying.

Someday I'll provide you with a rundown of my all time favorite Christmas shows, but I'll surprise you with it. Who doesn't need a little Christmas spirit in, say, April?