Month: November 2017

Old Time Radio Wednesday – Jack’s Christmas Open House

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This episode of the Jack Benny Show aired on December 25, 1938. That’s right in the middle of the events of Homicide for the Holidays, and Vivian would have certainly been listening (along with almost everyone else in the country). If you’re not familiar with Jack Benny, his schtick was that he was a cheapskate and sort of an arrogantly loveable loser. So it’s no surprise that when he invites the celebrity couples of the day (Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor, Carole Lombard and Clark Gable, Ginger Rogers and Ronald Coleman) to his Christmas open house that none of them show up.

Listening to Jack Benny is like getting a big, warm hug for me – especially his Christmas shows. So get yourself some hot chocolate (or a hot toddy), put your feet up, and escape to Christmas 1938 for 30 minutes or so.

Another kind of debut

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It took much longer than anticipated to get this little guy up and running, but our little free library is now open for business! Too bad that the weather has turned colder, and we no longer have the kind of foot traffic past our house that we do in the warmer months. Still, it’s adorable, isn’t it? I saw a girl from down the street stop on her way to the bus and pick out a book yesterday morning. That made my day.

It even has motion-activated lights inside so people can browse at night.


Kate is beyond thrilled. She made invitations (with her dad’s help) for all the kids in her class to come visit and share their books. Here she is checking it at night before bed in her jammies and winter coat.

If you’re inspired to put up your own check out the resources on the Little Free Library website. You can see if there are any near you on their map.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

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And I have a HOMICIDE FOR THE HOLIDAYS Pinterest board! If you’d like to peruse what the holidays looked and sounded like in late 1930s Chicago – go have a look. There’s also some gorgeous 1930s fashion, Chicago locations – and some hints about some pop culture mentioned in the book (I’m lookin at you, Rudolph Valentino).