Around the Blogosphere This Week

Miscellaneous bits of news and fun stuff from around the Internet...

...Paradise Bay at Disney's California Adventure, which has been empty for months for World of Color construction, will be filled soon. Click the title of this post for the story.

...Mother's Cookies, which returned earlier this year thanks to Kellogg's, can now be bought on Amazon. Now if only they'd bring back the Cookie Parade bags and Fudge Flaky Flix...

...Amy Sherman-Palladino, creator of GILMORE GIRLS -- one of my all-time favorite shows -- is working on a new project for HBO. It will be about a literary family whose members all live in the same NY apartment building.

...The Movie Projector has an interesting analysis of Billy Wilder's LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (1957), one of so many movies still on my "to see" list. Gary Cooper and Audrey Hepburn star.

...Amazon and Wal-Mart are having a price war...which has led to Amazon selling preorders for Sarah Palin's upcoming book for just $9.00. It's currently Amazon's No. 1 best seller.

...Obtaining your health insurance at the DMV? It sounds like a bad joke, but unfortunately it's in the bill approved by the Senate this week.

...Classic Hollywood Nerd profiles actor Alan Curtis. I didn't know much about Curtis previously, despite having seen him in three very good films this year: WALKING ON AIR (1936), YELLOW JACK (1938), and PHANTOM LADY (1944).

...ANYONE CAN BAKE from Better Homes and Gardens looks like a neat book. I was impressed with the illustrations when I looked it over while browsing recently at Barnes & Noble.

...I certainly felt a pang of regret when Gourmet magazine's final issue, with a beautiful Thanksgiving cover, arrived in today's mail. Ruth Reichl, editor of the now-defunct magazine, has given interviews to the New York Times and New York Observer. Ironically, a new PBS series, GOURMET'S ADVENTURES WITH RUTH, begins airing in various markets over the next few days.

...The Self-Styled Siren shares her thoughts on 1947's THE MAN I LOVE, a movie I really enjoyed a couple years ago.

...Over at Thrilling Days of Yesteryear, Ivan writes about an interesting film noir, 99 RIVER STREET (1953), starring John Payne and Evelyn Keyes. The post reminded me that Payne's KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL (1952), also made with director Phil Karlson, is in my mile-high stack of unseen movies.

...Great news for fans of the '80s show FALCON CREST starring Jane Wyman: TV Shows on DVD reports the series is coming to DVD in 2010. I particularly liked Ana-Alicia, who played Melissa, and even met her once at Garden Grove's Strawberry Festival...where is she now?

...For Dodger fans, the L.A. Times chronicles the team's greatest come-from-behind wins of the past season.

...The Disney Parks Blog profiles Art, the longtime greeter at Disney World's Beach Club. Like countless guests, our family had our photo taken with Art when we stayed at the Beach Club a few years ago. Happy retirement, Art!!

Have a great weekend!