Category: History

ONE YEAR! ONE MEASELLY FREAKIN’ YEAR!

Here’s TACKY RACCOON’s Very First Post from 3 August 2007. I didn’t know what I was doing at the time, and I’m still not entirely sure that I know now.

The image of the laughing (?) raccoon is from (appropriately enough) SayNoToCrack, Anita Bath’s original clean humor website.  She got me started on all this absurdity, then I stepped in it and tracked it all over the carpet.

Thanks gobs for all your encouragement, help, and stuff, and especially for all y’alls comments and linkoids.  Do we keep on keepin’ on?

In no particular rank or order, thanks to Anita Bath, Ben Dover, sarahenity, Diesel, Miss Cellanea, Marshal Penguin, Alpaca the Awesome, Angry Duck, M.Wolfe, SpartanWolf, VE, raincoaster, Phil Cordery, Amy Oops, Casual Jan, archiearch, Dan Rockhopper, Kitty, PlaneTross, Tony, SinisterDan, Bobby Bieber, yellowjkt, Janessa Vapors, Slippy Lane, Wendy, Dolph, Bonnie Phumph, suchabastard, Gregoire, Necromancer, Lannie Foosers, Cheese Duck, S. Le, Pete Aldin, Tooncie Crumbler, Queen Rosebud, The Hypocritical One, Valdoor, kanadianbakin, Fake, Howlin’ Betty, tbonky, Damon, Chiqui, Jody Foster, Robert Foster, Foster Brooks, Albert Brooks, Lonnie Brooks, Brook Shields, Cheesy007, Shar Pei, Kung Pao, Chez Yuan, Stiletto, Walter C., and way too many others to name…

Like James S., Wheels, nothere, Pancho Opcionweb, Rickspoems, Feng, Cornel,  jah, sandy, Weird, Tanja Forster, osa glass,  Courtney M., Mishele, Jack, Ben Vereen, Fluffman86, Nick Adams, Monique, wrekehavoc, Vincent Castro, tara, James, KFC Rules, Saha, Layla,  indianamatt, hustler 1, Fritz, DUDR_1, Beeper, BB King, Albert King, Albert Alligator, Albert Ammons,  Meade Lux Lewis, Philip Johnson, Robert Johnson, Johnny Johnson, Chuck Berry, Haile Berry, Barry Mann, Barry Goldwater,  Chuck Norris, the Captain and Toenail, Walt Kelly, Kelly Blue-Book, Booker T., Mr. & Mrs. T, T-Bone Walker, Johnny Walker, Walker Texas Ranger, Jim Baldwin, johnrobert, Frankie, jayle, Tarlow, Elle, Butch, Sue Dunham, ineedacar, GH, Mark, Moon, l3utterfish, Moneymoose, tarbabyjim, RosebudDLS, Meg, minotaurny, B Dear, Jeff, anomalous4, Criss Angle, Reuben Miller, fenderflip, Alex, Nessa, Trailer Thoughts, Haus Cremlingen, Girl Fren, Jayne, Lee, Gumpy Weeblers, and the very first commenter on this website, BOSSY.

Thanks also to Eoin Shaloo for helping me with my irrational and compulsive research for this post.

Cordially & Sincerely,
BUNK & THE FAMILY STRUTTS

[Vote for Tacky Raccoons at Humor-Blogs.com!]

Saturday Matinee – Nobody Like Me + Slide City: Cooder, Raitt, Hooker, Block & Coetzee (and then the B-52s)

Before we get to our main feature, I found this at the last minute.  For those of you that think the “Summer of Love” was all hippies and beads and tie-dye and bell bottoms and pot, check this out:
IT’S 1967 AND PITTSBURGH ROCKS!

(Note that the Dickies covered “Nobody Like Me” in 1983, George Thorogood covered it in 1982, which had been covered by the Human Beinz in 1967, originally recorded in 1962 by the Isley Brothers.  As if you didn’t know.)

Ry Cooder is considered the greatest slide guitarist of the last 30 years. Here’s his version of “Jesus on the Mainline.”

The great Bonnie Raitt (also considered the greatest slide guitarist of the last 30 years) sleazes it up with the great John Lee Hooker (considered to be the greatest slide guitarist of the last 1,000 years) on “I’m in the Mood.”

Nice slide from Rory Block with her cover of Robert Johnson‘s “Terraplane Blues.”

Hannes Coetzee: No bottleneck git-fiddle here, just a soup spoon.  [If it doesn’t play, try here.]

Who doesn’t like the B-52s, especially a catchy song with no rhymes at all?  [Found here with lyrics.]

First Known Earth Fart Discovered (and Ignited); Gas Burns for Decades


DARVAZ’ HELLFIRE
Soviets found an earth fart and lit it.
Uzbekistan, Ukraine – (Strutts News Services)

According to various reports, a massive gas vent was discovered and subsequently ignited in 1973 by Soviet geologists in search of other stuff.  Some sources indicate that the global flatulence may have been ignited earlier than was initially reported.  From the amazing website English Russian:

“This place in Uzbekistan is called by locals “The Door to Hell”. It is situated near the small town of Darvaz. The story of this place lasts already for 35 years. Once the geologists were drilling for gas. Then suddenly during the drilling they have found an underground cavern, it was so big that all the drilling site with all the equipment and camps got deep deep under the ground. None dared to go down there because the cavern was filled with gas. So they ignited it so that no poisonous gas could come out of the hole, and since then, it’s burning, already for 35 years without any pause. Nobody knows how many tons of excellent gas has been burned for all those years but it just seems to be infinite there.”

Local immigrant resident Joey “Boris” Catawba summed it up.  “I’ve lived here for almost 10 years.  Everything always smells like burnt cheese and vinegar.  Someone should do something.  This really sucks.”

[More images here.]

Happy Independence Day!

Folks, I’m glad to be back on this glorious day. Marshal Penguin has obviously done an excellent job while I was gone, and I thank him for his professional services while I was relieving the officers in charge of the eastern front. Gramma Strutts is in the early stages of alzheimer’s, and I had to view the frontlines. All in all, it was a successful mission. We have a plan, and it is being implemented.

While on my excursion, I read a book that my lovely wife, Mrs. Strutts, had given me for Fathers’ Day.

I finished reading it in two days… and then read it again.

“Lone Survivor” by Marcus Luttrell is a must read for everyone over the age of 16. Luttrell describes his training as a Navy SEAL in the first half of the book. That training regimen is amazing by itself. These guys are the best of the best.

The remaining portion describes the experiences that he and three other Special Ops warriors experienced fighting the Taliban in the brutal mountains of the Hindu Kush, four against 200 enemy fighters. The true story is a can’t-put-it-down white-knuckle read.

Forget the opinions of CNN, nightly news, BBC, Associated Press, Reuters, NY Times, etc. This is the real deal; an amazing glimpse into the mind of a true warrior, his training, and what he was capable of doing with that training. Honest. Get it and pass it on.

Your Pal Bunk

Kirk vs. T vs. Norris: Battle of the Titans (Part 3)

Chuck. You don’t even have to say his last name before he roundhouse kicks you for even thinking that he might be not be invincible. Chuck vs. Jim vs. Mr. is an awesome conundrum, mainly because all three are good guys who wouldn’t be pounding each other down for the count. They’d join forces and pound ME down for even suggesting such an absurdity. They would, but they won’t. They’re good guys, just like me.

IF there was a three-way match up between Captain Kirk, Mr. T, and Chuck Norris, CN has a definite edge.

Firstly, he’s got all THE FACTS on his side. THE FACTS are a formidable weapon by themselves, and basically negate any argument regarding the possibility of Norris being somewhat inferior to Kirk and T.

Secondly, he’s still got all THE FACTS. No argument.

Thirdly, all THE FACTS are true.

Looks to me like Chuck Norris wins the tournament, as he’s standing right behind me as I post thIN NO WAY COULD CAPTAIN KIRK OR MR. T BEAT ME EITHER INDIVIDUALLY OR IN A TWO-ON-ONE MATCH SIGNED CHUCK NORRIS. TYPE IT AND POST IT. NOW. GET AWAY FROM YOUR KEYBOARD. I’LL HIT SEND.

[Related posts here and here. Related archive here.]

Saturday Matinee – SpinCycle, Howlin’ Wolf, Howlin’ Lou,Henry Mancini & Roy Buchanon

[Found at Arbroath.]

 

Twilight Zone-ish.

 

Interesting documentary… Interviews of some of the patrons of the “Spin Cycle” laundromat somewhere in St. Paul, Minnesota.

 

Oh, yeah. “Ya ya ya aya…” Gotta post some music. Do not mock those who try. [Also found at Arbroath.]

Howlin’ Wolf’s classic “Smokestack Lightning.”

[UPDATE: The bass player in this clip is Willie Dixon. THE Willie Dixon. Sorry I missed giving him credit. Dixon wrote a number of songs that later became rock standards. He recorded some albums himself, and didn’t stutter when he sang. More after the break below.]

“Theme to Peter Gunn.” Here’s Henry Mancini’s live version, introduced by Steve Allen. (The horn section rocks, whether you like it or not.)

Last Post on THIS Spin Cycle: The Late Great Roy Buchanan‘s explosive take on Mancini’s “Theme to Peter Gunn.” (This one’s for all you Aussies – Thanks for the hula-hoops, mates!)

Continue reading “Saturday Matinee – SpinCycle, Howlin’ Wolf, Howlin’ Lou,Henry Mancini & Roy Buchanon”

Saturday Matinee – Stuff + 3xSmoke + HRL

“Germany’s Funniest Home Videos?” [Via Phils Phun.]

Politically ignorant animation, but Bunk finds it funny (coupla entirely unnecessary F-bombs, though). [Via Kitty’s Saloon.]

“Smoke Smoke Smoke.” Here’s Tex Williams’ original deal. (Tell me that rap didn’t start in 1947.)

Commander Cody’s 1973 take… Here’s to Dolph for those two.

Commander Cody & the Lost Planet Airmen: Excellent cover of Phil Harris’ “Hot Rod Lincoln.” (Video cuts off that last “Hot-Rod-Lincoln” with the coda. That’s just not right.)

What a slick prank. [Via Bits & Pieces.]

17 June 2008 – Mark your calendars for the Firefox Guinness Book of World Records Download! Pass it on!

Pretty Awful Album Covers

Actually, I kinda like “Limbo” and “Bongo Date.” Click on the images and collect ’em all.


I don’t remember where I found these, but they didn’t come from MY collection.

[Related posty here. Still blogsitting Finicky Penguin’s Corner if you want a double dose of Bunk.]

[UPDATE: A loyal reader (see comments below) alerted me to another Pretty Awful Album Cover that should be included — last one in the stax o’ wax above. There are way too many PAAC’s to include them all, but here’s another. Thanx, Dolph.]

Hotski Linkskis

Amazing mnemonics are archived in the comments section here, including this excellent non-sequitur from Miss Cellania:

“Thirty days hath September
April, June, and no wonder
All the rest eat peanut butter
Except Grandma,
She rides a bicycle.”

I’m not related to Bunk Johnson as far as you know, but you can hear, here.

Visit the exact center of the internet. Be sure to click on it.

Dr. Diabetes (via Diesel).

Les Swazzo’s DooWop Cove Radio has live DJs with a wide variety of tastes/programming style from early ’50s through the ’60s. Excellent, and if you send in a request, tell Les that Bunky sent you.

THIS is one amazing web page. By the time you read this, I’ll have already stolen and posted some .gif’s from it. Simple, but with animations en masse.

See the Tacky Raccoons website as a map. Then load up your own and watch it bloom. [via GrowABrain].

Odd forest of Plantage.

Giant squidgoatse… here.

Make your own animated kaleidoscope.

New talent spotted: Cool Aggregator has a good eye for quality webmining; he linked to TR. (Y’all should follow his example and link here, too.)

Jen at Casual Slack has a nice tribute to Mel Blanc, who would’ve been a h-h-h-h-undred years old Friday 20 May 2008.

Go for it, dude. Macho Macho cones here.

Wanna be part of a new Guiness World Record? Click here for details. I’m in.

ATTENTION WORDPRESS BLOGGERS: RIPOFF ALERT: As this website is approaching its domain name renewal date, we received a notice via snailmail from a company called “LibertyNames of America” of Niagra Falls NY. They offered to renew the domain name for $29.00 for a year’s registration. WordPress offers the same renewal for $15.00 via email notice with link to PayPal. Sump’m just don’t feel right. If you’ve received a similar message, let WordPress know.

[Update:  Apparently this is a common scam, discussed here.]

D-DAY 6 June 1944 – Remember Always