That area has a DS connection for me. It's hard for me to be sure, but I think the store at the bottom left of the pic was a used bookstore in the 70s. I found Barnabas, Quentin, and the Serpent. I called to see if they had any DS books, and he said he had "a bunch". He had two. One was a double, but i bought it any way. The rest were other Ross paperbacks.  One was enough for me though. I'd raced down there on my bike, trying to beat imagined hordes of people who were trying to race me to complete their DS collections. The Newport Creamery is across from the Tennis Hall of Fame. There was an Almacs there at the corner. Across from Almacs (not visible in the photo) was another Newport Institution.  I don't remember the actual name of the place. We just called it Chariles Five and Dime.  He sold a bunch of junk with occasional treasures. I found many Ross paperbacks there.  It's amazing how relatively little the area has changed. I mean it's different, but it's recognizable. 

I rely on my memory much less than I used to. Not only am I getting older, but I've also read a great deal about how memory works. We reconstruct events rather than simply replaying them on a recorder. Therefore, what we THINK happened is often a mish mash of actual memory and reconstructions to fill in the gaps. So honestly, I don't really know what I can reliably say to add to the discussion. David's account is much more recent. And as was brought up, we often can't even rely on a first hand account. It's been literally 40 years now (this fall) since 1840 aired.

I just wish these had come out when the Planet of the Apes and Star Trek MEGO figures had been released. I used to love playing with those. I was 13 when DS was syndicated the first time, so I'd have been a tad old to strictly PLAY with them, but I'd have probably built a Collinwood set or something. My friends and I tried to do an 8mm movie with the Marvel figures, but had problems with the camera. We did some scenes and the picture was totally out of focus. Of course I'd never have gotten the Angelique figure then. GUYS DON'T PLAY WITH GIRL DOLLS!!!(LOL).  I had the Fantastic Three. Reed, Ben and Johnny but Sue was apparently invisible. 

I doubt this will happen, but it would be nice if they went the classic GI Joe/Barbie route and sold clothes separately. When I was a kid I had a generic GI Joe with blonde, painted hair. When they came out with the astronaut, "Santa" had the choice of making  me another GI Joe with the space gear or just fashioning the suit.  If you had the figure, you could buy any number of uniforms and gear. Do they still do this for Barbie? Or do you have to buy the doll every time you want a new motif?  I later got the GI Joe with a beard, fuzzy hair and KUNG FU GRIP!  He also talked. That guy was a real James Bond type. He could go into the jungle, dive, walk on the moon, and whatever else I wanted. I wish I had not let me mom talk me into giving all those figures away. 

If I remember correctly, she was allowed to leave, still under contract, to shoot "Sam's Song" with Robert De Niro. Her contract ran for two years and she was called back for 1840.  I used to keep in contact with her, and I'm pretty sure that's what she told me. 

Louise Jameson has been announced for the July dramatic reading! She'll be playing Rosie Faye, a relative of Pansy Faye, and Leticia too?  I'm excited about this casting.  Louise was always part of a Gilligan's Island type dilemma. Some people lusted after Ginger and Marianne. For me it was Sarah Jane and Leela from Doctor Who. Sarah Jane was the nice proper lady and Leela was the savage exciting one.  It'll be nice to hear her in another role.  I'm sure she'll be wonderful.

The trailer sounds great!!

I believe Thayer did the voice of the comic book character "The Kingpin" on a "Spiderman" rock and roll album released around 1972 as well. I have it and it's pretty funny...

For years I took it for granted that Grayson Hall was on that Disney Haunted House album. I was shocked to learn that she was not. I'm 99.99999999999999999999999999% certain that Thayer David played the Kingpin on the Spiderman Rockomic album, but it was uncredited. Does anyone have absolute confirmation that he was indeed on it? Was his role referred to in any interviews or publicity for the record, etc?