Winter

In Ohio, our backyard was a Winter Wonderland. Here, The Mother Kitty braves the wind and checks things out. (I have a feeling she won't be out for long!) 



(Illustration Friday: December 24, 2010)


Happy New Year, everyone!

Mail

He puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore. Then Norman thought of something he hadn't before! Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas... perhaps... means a little bit more!

And what happened then? Well, they say that Norman's small heart grew three sizes that day! And then, the true meaning of Christmas came through, and Norman found the strength of 10 Normans--plus two!

(Illustration Friday: December 17, 2010)

I'm off to spend Christmas with my family in Ohio. (Maybe we'll get to watch my favorite Christmas cartoon, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!)

©1966 Chuck Jones/Time Warner

Max, The Grinch, and little Cindy Lou Who

Happy holidays, everyone!

Phenomenon

I was stuck on Illustration Friday's topic last week, but I think it was due to my mid-week deadline to create a Christmas postcard for Johnny Depp. As soon as I was done with that all-consuming task, The Kitties oldest phenomenon popped into my head: The inability of all kitties to ignore The Ribbon.

(Illustration Friday: December 10, 2010)

Am I right?

Merry Christmas, Johnny!

As I mentioned last month, Johnny's Angels--Depp Fans for Charity, a fan-run website that offers Johnny's fans a meaningful way to honor his charitable efforts, is running a holiday fundraiser benefiting Children's Hospice and Palliative Care Coalition. Johnny's Angels offered supporters the amazing opportunity to send a Christmas postcard to Johnny himself! Due December 15, who knew I'd obsess down to the wire over this little postcard?! 

Well, I guess that's not surprising. I hope he likes it! 

Here it is--minus my private little note to Johnny, of course. What do you think?

Although the postcard submission deadline has passed, the Johnny's Angels holiday fundraiser continues through December 31. Supporting this wonderful cause will make these kids holiday season extra special! Read more about it here and donate today. The children and their families will thank you!  

Happy holidays, everyone!

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp--21 Jump Street (Season 3)

What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details. 

A little older and wiser...

©FOX

Things changed in Season 3 of 21 Jump Street. Everyone seemed older. They all grew out their hair (except for Holly Robinson, who cut all of hers off). Peter Deluise’s Penhall stopped acting like the class clown, got a new job over the summer as an intelligence officer, grew a beard, and looked like a mountain man for the first few episodes. In his place, a new officer, Dennis Booker (Richard Grieco), was introduced as Hanson’s partner.  

DEPP? GRIECO?
No contest.

©FOX

I never liked Dennis Booker. I admit, it was an instantaneous, irrational reaction. Fox advertised their new co-star with pulsating flashes of competing last names: DEPP! GRIECO! DEPP! GRIECO! DEPP! GRIECO! The in-your-face repetitive ads were shown so often that Saturday Night Live even made fun of them. I found them irritating for other reasons: Who is this guy? How dare he even try to be as cool as Johnny?! How do they compare?! 

For Johnny Kitties, I decided to wipe the slate clean and give Booker another chance. Watching these episodes again now, I found that--to my surprise--Hanson couldn't stand Booker either! I have no memory of that being the case in the '80s, but Hanson’s lack of endorsement must have solidified my opinion of his new partner. Booker was a wiseguy; Hanson didn't trust him. At the end of his first episode, Booker takes him to a seedy bar for a beer. “I’ve got a question for you, Booker.” Hanson says. “Do you act like a creep because you really are a creep or it’s just fun to act like one?” He never gets a straight answer.

I learned recently that Richard Grieco was brought into the cast because of Johnny's increasing frustrations with the show. (Fascinating!) Johnny started refusing to participate in episodes that he felt didn't adequately cover topics or had story lines that he was against. Some cases Booker took on involved the killing of an innocent teen and hate crimes. Okay, the addition of Dennis Booker may have had a legitimate purpose, but I will never forgive him for getting Hanson arrested for murder by the end of the season. Thanks for ruining my summer!

Season 3 of 21 Jump Street continued to tackle such subjects as racism, gangs, and drug use. But many of the episodes delved into the personal lives of the main characters. Aside from Hanson's little legal problem, Penhall struggles with his new job, Blowfish cheats on his wife, Hoffs becomes a victim of sexual harassment, and Ioki is shot while undercover. 

This season's guest stars included Dom and Michael Deluise, Bridget Fonda, Peri Gilpin, Kelly Hu, Christopher Titus, and Russell Wong.  

Here, The Kitties share the highlights from 21 Jump Street, Season 3. 

• Episode 36. Fun with Animals: The first episode of the season reveals a noticeably aged cast. Maybe the stress of having Hanson's new partner Dennis Booker around caused this change.

• Episode 37. Slippin' into Darkness: In this episode, Hoffs and Ioki join a gang of vigilantes dedicated to keeping the streets crime-free. Check out Ioki's cool moves here! This show also marks the first of many times that Captain Fuller gets in on the action. From now on, he becomes much more involved in all of the cases, checking in on his officers, making arrests, and generally helping to save the day.

• Episode 38. The Currency We Trade In: Aside from an annoying new partner, Hanson also gets a new girlfriend this season. Jackie (Yvette Nipar) and Tom hate each other at first, but then they decided to go for it. Jackie, who works in the DA office, lasts for quite a few episodes, and I even started to like her. But then, she shared some private information from Tom with her co-workers. While her intensions were good, she gets Captain Fuller in trouble, and Tom can't forgive her for that. They break up.

• Episode 41. Hell Week: This episode, in which Hanson and Ioki go undercover on a college campus to investigate a fraternity, is one I remember very clearly. During initiation into this fraternity, Hanson is forced to eat several raw eggs, drink excessively while climbing a ladder (and carrying the drunk guy who passed out before him), and slide into a pool--blindfolded with his hands and feet bound. He ends up saving someone from drowning after that. No wonder I never joined a sorority.

• Episode 44. Swallowed Alive: In one of my favorites, Hanson is left undercover in juvenile lock-up and begins to question what good he's doing by sending teen offenders there. 

• Episode 45. What About Love?: While Hoffs deals with the serious problem of an angry ex-boyfriend, the comic relief in this episode came from Penhall and Ioki. Recently kicked to the curb by his girlfriend Dorothy, Penhall has been crashing on Ioki's couch. A real odd couple, the arguments are on the rise. Undercover here to catch a flasher, Penhall asks for Ioki's forgiveness for his latest batch of messes.

• Episode 46. Wooly Bullies: In another favorite episode, everyone recounts their worst case of school bullying. In fourth grade, little Tommy Hanson was tortured by the taller and meaner Maureen Moroney. Despite being rejected during dance practice, as pictured, he wins her over in the end. Did you ever doubt it?

• Episode 51. High High: The best scene in this drug-related episode is the morning Hanson reports to work in a disheveled suit with his hair pointing in every direction, kind of like Beethoven after a rough night. His reasons remain a mystery.

• Episode 52. Blinded by the Thousand Points of Light: This story follows a group of teenage runaways, one of whom goes missing. He meets an disturbing end. The good that came out of it is that his girlfriend--played by Bridget Fonda--decides to go back home. Here, she and Hoffs muse about the stars in her backyard.

• Episode 54. Partners, Part 2: In an ongoing story, Booker wrongly arrests Hanson for murdering another police officer while investigating gang shootings--during one of which Ioki is critically injured. In his last episode for the season, Hanson is convicted and sent behind bars. Oh the horror!  

If you have a favorite episode from Season 3, please share! 

So, will Hanson ever get out of jail? Will Johnny ever get off this show? To find out, tune in next month for highlights from Season 4 of 21 Jump Street!

Prehistoric

I finally watched Avatar this weekend, which--while not a prehistoric story--may have sparked The Mother Kitty's dream.  



(Illustration Friday: December 3, 2010)


I considered consulting with my 7-year-old nephew Liam about my drawing for this week's Illustration Friday topic. After all, he is full of encyclopedic expertise when it comes to dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals. In the end, though, I decided to make up my own creatures. Liam is through with dinosaurs and is probably busy casting Harry Potter's spells.

Savour

Dad makes such good sandwiches that the rest of us always said he should open a shop. He hasn't done that yet, so only we get to enjoy his special talents for now. 

For Thanksgiving, Mom made a delicious dinner for about 16 people when there were really only 6 of us to feed. 

We had turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, stuffing, turnip greens, shrimp covered in her own marinara sauce. The few things Mom didn't cook herself were the pumpkin pie with homemade whipped cream, cranberry sauce and Gram's cheese pie.

Taking the cue from Dad, Norman took a stab at creating his own sandwich with a little bit of everything that was leftover. 

(Illustration Friday: November 26, 2010)

We're not yet sure how good this sandwich will be, but he'll probably eat it anyway. 

Can you hear Norman's pre-feast chant? Savour the sandwich...Savour the sandwich....