The wonderful reactions to our Car Talk animated show continue to roll in. This was sent to Car Talk yesterday from a writer from Mechanicsville, Ga.

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Dear Sirs,

The other day while waiting for my wife tohave some medical test, I was watching the TV in the waiting room when I saw the most disturbing news. A Cable News Network (don't want to mention the Network, but they are on Cable, and report the News) reported that PBS was in the process of developing a new childrens show based on you guys. For some reason, I immediately experienced the same discomfort that my wife was experiencing during her colonostomy.
Coincidence, I think not.

Long time listener, first time caller.

AP
Mechanicsburg, Pa

Another one said the characters look like Cheech and Chong.
Keep those cards and letters coming in!
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Birthdays: William Makepeace Thackeray, Chill Wills, Nelson Mandela, James Brolin, Elizabeth McGovern, Screamin Jay Hawkins, Hume Cronyn, Red Skelton, Hunter H. Thompson, Clifford Odets, Paul Verhoven, John Glenn is 86, Vin Diesel is 40.

Happy Ancient Egyptian New Year! The day when Cirius the Dog Star is seen in the Southern skies heralds the coming of the Nile’s flood. In modern times we call it the Dog Days of Summer.

390 B.C.- THE GAULS SACK ROME.-THE BIRTH OF MONEY- Migrating tribes of Gauls crossed the Alps, defeated the young republic's legions and stormed into the city as the population fled. When Gauls beheld aging, white haired Roman senators at first they thought they were gods. But when a Gaul pulled one of their beards and the man clopped him on the head , they knew they were just old men and slew them. The Gauls took ransom and migrated back up to where France is today. The Romans would not meet them again until 300 years later when their empire expanded north uner Julius Caesar. At one point the Romans holding out on the Capitoline Hill were alerted to a Gaulish surprise attack when the Sacred Geese of Juno started squawking. The Romans knew this must be the Goddess' intervention so they raised a Temple to "The Lady Who Warns" and stamped it on their coins. St. Augustine, the Seinfeld of evangelists, when told this story said: "Yeah, your geese were awake while your gods were asleep ! "" Lady Who Warns" in Greco-Latin was Juno "Monetas" from where we get "Money-Monetary and Mint" ( of course the use of coins as exchange in barter goes back way before this, but still, its a fun story....)

1877- Thomas Edison recorded sound on tin foil cylinder `Mary Had a Little Lamb-'

1939-MGM tried a test screening of the film The Wizard of Oz. Afterwards they debated cutting the song Somewhere Over the Rainbow,as slowing down the pace of the film but finally decided to leave it in. The Wizard of Oz debuted in August to wild acclaim.

1939- RKO pictures signed Orson Welles to direct movies in Hollywood. That Hollywood signed a 24 year old radio star who never directed a movie and gave him final cut and complete freedom is amazing.

1966- Bobby Fuller who made the hit song "I fought the Law and the Law Won" was found in LA in his mothers Oldsmobile beaten and dead from "forcible inhalation of gasoline"- huffing.

1981- John Henry Abbott was a murderer and bank robber doing hard time in prison. He started writing famous author Norman Mailor about life in prison and it turned out he was a pretty good author himself. Through Mailors’ influence Random House published Abbott's book "In the Belly of the Beast" and it got him released. Well, this day despite his literary celebrity status Abbott fell back into his bad habits and murdered another person- a Richard Adan at the Bonibon Café in New York. John Abbott was went back to prison for life and committed suicide in 2001. Norman Mailor refused to concede it may all have been a mistake- "Culture is worth a little risk."