In My Footsteps: A Gen-X Nostalgia Podcast

Episode 120: Help Woodsy Spread the Word, Cape Cod's First Automobile, Forgotten(but Great) 80s Musical Artists, Windsor CT(11-15-2023)

• Christopher Setterlund • Season 1 • Episode 120

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Episode 120 is chock full of fun, facts, and foolishness.
We go way Back In the Day to look at an informative and well-intentioned, yet slightly fever dream-ish 1977 educational short film starring environmental PSA icon Woodsy Owl. Give a hoot and check the full video out here: Help Woodsy Spread the Word
Today automobiles are commonplace with most people owning one. However a little over a century ago 'horseless carriages' were new and novel. When the first automobile came to Cape Cod it was front page news. Literally. Learn the story of the first car on the Cape and the way the newspapers went wild over it.
For every musical artist that crosses over into legend or icon status, there are many more that fall between the cracks. Some truly talented artists have been forgotten when they should be remembered. This week's Top 5 looks at some forgotten 1980s musical artists that should be remembered more.
This week's Road Trip brings us to the oldest English settlement in Connecticut as we visit the town of Windsor. With one hand holding onto its roots and the other hand ushering in the present day Windsor is full of history, scenic riverfront views, delicious places to eat, and much more.
The brand new This Week In History and Time Capsule looks back at journalist Nellie Bly's attempt to go around the world in less than 80 days to defeat the protagonist in Jules Verne's literary masterpiece.
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Speaker 00:

Hello world, and welcome to the In My Footsteps podcast. I am Christopher Setterlund, coming to you from the vacation destination known as Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and this is episode 120. It's going to be an episode filled with fun, facts, and foolishness. We're going to kick it off with the facts as we look back at the story of when the automobile first came to Cape Cod. And yes, this was major news. We're going to take a road trip to the oldest town in Connecticut, that being the town of Windsor. We're going to go way, way back in the day and look at the oddly funny and slightly fever dreamish 1970 short film PSA starring Woodsy the Owl. There's going to be a brand new top five that are the top five forgotten musical artists of the 1980s that probably should be remembered more. And there'll be a brand new This Week in History and Time Capsule all coming up right now on episode 120 of the In My footsteps podcast yikes I don't know where all of you are from who are tuning in this week but on Cape Cod in New England we went from a secret final summer stretch to the dead of winter in the flick of a light switch it felt like one day it was almost 70 and beautiful and then the next night it was 28 degrees and I still stand by that this is my favorite time of year, from when Labor Day ends to the end of the year, New Year's. But I'd be lying if I said I love that initial transition into the more wintry weather. Those first few times when the temperature gets down into the 30s, it's a shock to the system. You ever notice that when the high temperature is 50 degrees in early November, it feels colder than when the high temperature is 50 degrees, say, in late January? Funny how that works. So thank you all for tuning into the podcast. Like I said, we got some fun, we've got some facts, and we got some foolishness this week. So if you enjoy it, please feel free to share with others. And if you really enjoy my work, you can always go become a subscriber on Patreon or Buzzsprout. The second members-only podcast episode went up on the first of this month. So if you like fever dreams, like what we're going to go through with the Woodsy Owl PSA film, you'll really love those podcasts. One little bit of news I wanted to share before we kick the show off... I've been really getting into audiobooks, especially those read by the authors themselves. My plan by the end of this year is to record the introduction and first two chapters of my Searching for the Lady of the Dunes book into kind of a free trial audiobook to get more eyes and ears on it. Most likely, I will do that and then share it on YouTube with captions so that you can listen to it, but you can also kind of read it. It's going to be just over 5,000 words, which, according to my audiobook research, should be about an hour's worth of my voice talking. I also plan to make an audiobook out of my very first short story entitled Eight Hours that I wrote way back in 2005-2006. That will likely be released as a members-only perk for my Patreon subscribers, at least at first. But if there's demand for it, I'll release it to everyone. So yes, I'm planning to take my first dive into audiobooks coming up at the end of this year. But for right now, let's take a dive into when the automobile first came to Cape Cod. And this was major headline news at the turn of the 20th century. So let's turn the key and see if the engine will start on a cold, chilly morning as we kick off episode 120 of the podcast right now. Whether it's a car or truck, SUV or van, hybrid or electric, automobiles come in all shapes and sizes. They are also common in the 21st century. Several generations of people have grown up taking rides in the family car. In fact, as of 2021, there were just over 278 million registered vehicles in the United States, with that trend increasing. Most people in the country have a vehicle. Some people have two or more. Despite them being ingrained in society for well over a century, there was a time when the automobile was novel and rare. In 1893, the first American-made gasoline-powered automobile was created in Springfield, Massachusetts by Charles and Frank D'Eria. It is highly likely that one of these vehicles was the first to ever traverse the roads of Cape Cod. However, this will be the history of the first Cape Cod resident to own a gasoline-powered automobile. His name was Dr. James Hayden Higgins, and here is his story. Higgins, the man who would become a highly decorated physician, was born in Marshfield, Missouri on February 2, 1871. His parents were Delia and David Higgins. His father was a Civil War veteran and also a watchmaker. James Higgins attended the Boston College of Physicians and Surgeons, which ultimately closed in 1948. While in school, he interned at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence in 1891 and 1892. Higgins graduated with a degree as a medical doctor in 1894. Shortly after graduating, the newly minted Dr. Higgins came to Cape Cod. In 1894, he set up a general practice in medicine and surgery in Marston's Mills. His skill and geniality made him immensely popular as a doctor and as a resident of the village. In September 1895, Higgins married Grace Babbitt in Boston. The couple would eventually have five children. Grace received the William Marston House at 71 Katuit Road as a gift from her father, Dr. Henry Babbitt, in 1896. The home sat on four and a half acres of land, a budding mill pond. Dr. Higgins eventually set up his office on the property. Though the internal combustion engine had been in development as far back as 1860, it was not until the 1890s, and specifically 1897, where it was put to use in a horseless carriage, as the original automobiles were sometimes known as. Twin brothers Freeland and Francis Stanley from Kingsfield, Maine, set out to make a vehicle which would become known as the Stanley Steamer. The brothers had already become wealthy from developing the airbrush and a dry photograph plate coating. The latter invention would make George Eastman a fortune when he founded his Eastman Kodak Company in 1892. The Stanley brothers sold 200 of their steam-powered autos in 1898 and 1899. It outsold all other makes of vehicles in that period, despite the fact that it cost $3,950, or about $146,477 when adjusted for inflation to 2023. One of the people who bought one of the Stanley Brothers steam-powered autos was Dr. James Hayden Higgins. The steam-powered car came full of issues, though. It could take up to half an hour to start, had a high water consumption, and worst of all, could freeze up in the winter. Though not the worst place to spend winter in America, Cape Cod provided enough cold for Higgins' Stanley Steamer to freeze up. At this point in time, with two young children and a third on the way, Dr. Higgins decided to take a look at the new rage, gas-powered automobiles. Higgins' automobile arrived on Cape Cod on January 19, 1900. Arriving at the West Barnstable Railroad Station, it was driven to his home. This caused an immediate buzz among the locals. The arrival of the vehicle was big news in the local newspapers, with stories of the day charting where Higgins would drive his vehicle. Can you imagine in your daily life where you drive your car becoming a story in the newspaper? So-and-so drove his car to the local convenience store, and that was news. Dr. Higgins drove his automobile from Marston's Mills into Hyannis, attracting excited onlookers along the way. Accompanied by his wife Grace, he stopped at the Barnstable Patriot newspaper offices and brought the editor out for a quick drive. He gave several friends the chance to ride along with him on that day as well. Though still a relative novelty, Higgins would be joined in the ranks of automobile owners on Cape Cod by people like Dr. Asa Pate of Falmouth and William Herbolt of Provincetown. Yes, these were charted in the newspapers, who was getting cars. By the end of the year 1900, there were 8,000 registered vehicles in the United States. That number would cross the one million mark in 1913. And from there, the automobile became a necessity more than a novelty in America. Dr. James Hayden Higgins would become far more well-known on Cape Cod for his work in the medical field rather than being simply the first automobile owner. For 20 years, he was a member of the Barnstable Board of Health and was the town and school physician for many years as well. On Christmas Day 1913, he and his family left Cape Cod for the island of St. Lucia on account of health problems. His stay would be brief, and he was back in Marston's Mills within a year. During World War I, Dr. Higgins served as the food administrator of Barnstable under governor and future president Calvin Coolidge. In total, Dr. Higgins served as Marston's Mills' local physician for 35 years, and Higgins' son Donald would become a doctor himself, serving as Kutuit's town doctor from 1936 to 1969. After years of failing health, Dr. James Hayden Higgins died in Cape Cod Hospital on April 7, 1942, at the age of 71. Fittingly, Higgins had been a charter member of Cape Cod Hospital and its staff upon its opening in 1920. Despite his decades of service to the community as a doctor, A hugely important part of his obituary was the fact that he had owned the first automobile on Cape Cod. However, despite the good doctor's connection with the introduction of the automobile to Cape Cod, one must first off remember his contributions to the health and well-being of people young and old that once called this area home. That is the true legacy of Dr. James Hayden Higgins. And if you're into history and curious... If you visit the Marston's Mills Historical Society website, which I'll share in the description of the podcast, there are photos from that fateful first trip of Dr. Higgins driving his brand new car, which still is mind-blowing when looking through it of the lens of the 2020s, where automobiles are so commonplace, to think that there was a time when a person purchasing an automobile was front-page news in the newspapers. It's part of what I love about history. It goes back to what I said a few minutes ago. Could you imagine when you got your first car if that ended up being in the newspapers? Or if trips you took in your vehicle, mundane ones to the next town over, ended up being stories in the newspaper? That just fascinates me. But I know history's not for everyone. This week's road trip takes us to the state of Connecticut and more specifically to the oldest English settlement in the state of Connecticut, that being the town of Windsor. Windsor itself is only a few minutes drive north of the city of Hartford. It's about 100 miles southwest of Boston and about 125 miles northeast of New York City. So it's not far to travel there from most places in New England and even New York. As of 2020, the population of Windsor was 29,492. So it's a mid-sized town. It's located in and around where the Connecticut River and the Farmington River connect, leading to lots of areas along the rivers where you can drop in a canoe or a kayak or a boat and just enjoy some of these views in central Connecticut. Although a modern suburb to Hartford, Windsor definitely embraces its status as the first English settlement in the state of Connecticut. In 1633, when word got back to Plymouth Colony that the Dutch had set up a trading post in and around Hartford, a group of colonists from Plymouth led by William Holmes sailed up the river past the Dutch colony and arriving in what is now Windsor, Connecticut on September 26th, 1633 to set up their own trading post. And within two years, a group of settlers from Dorchester and another group of settlers all the way over from England came to join these original English settlers in Windsor. Even though it's getting chilly this time of year, maybe if you're listening to this podcast in the future and it's spring or summer and it's nice out, A perfect place to start exploring in the town of Windsor is Northwest Park. It's located at 145 Lang Road, and it's a 473-acre park where much of the land was former tobacco farmland, which I found interesting because, I don't know, I thought tobacco farming was more in the south, but I guess it was up in Connecticut as well. There's 12 miles of hiking trails, a nature center, and even a functioning maple sugar house in addition to soccer fields and playgrounds and such. They have a county fair on the park grounds typically in September, so it's just passed. Unfortunately, sorry. For more information about Northwest Park, what it's all about, what it has to offer, visit northwestpark.org. That's run by the Friends of Northwest Park, which is a membership organization that raises money for the upkeep of the park. One spot that may or may not appeal to you, but definitely would appeal to me in Windsor, is the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum. It's located at 115 Pearson Lane. They're also at vrcmct.org. I love history, so the history of communication just falls right in that wheelhouse. It's way more than vintage radios, although that's a big part of it too. They've got old Morse code transmitters, like I said, vintage radios, old TVs, computers. Seeing where we came from always makes me appreciate where we are. I think that's part of my love of history. The museum first opened in 1990 in New Britain, Connecticut, but within a couple of years it needed to expand to a bigger place. It's 20,000 square feet of all sorts of fun technology. Like I said, Windsor really hangs its hat on its first settlement in Connecticut status, and it's got a big grasp on history in general. The Vintage Radio and Communications Museum is one such place, but another is the Oliver Ellsworth Homestead, also known as Elmwood. This is a historic home located at 778 Palisado Avenue. The home was built in 1781. Although you don't likely know who Oliver Ellsworth is, and I really didn't know until I researched Windsor for this segment, he actually helped to draft the United States Constitution. and then served as the third Chief Justice of the United States under President Thomas Jefferson. The two-and-a-half-story white wooden home is a throwback to the late 18th century, and you don't have to know who Ellsworth was to appreciate the artifacts in the home. Oh, and if you were wondering why it's also known as Elmwood... It's due to the 13 elm trees that Oliver Ellsworth had planted on the grounds, each representing one of the original 13 colonies of the United States. There's lots of farmland in Windsor, lots of beautiful places to walk and to see and to kayak and canoe. So you may end up working up an appetite. There's no better place to go than Tunxis Grill and Pizzeria. They're at 3 Tunxis Street and tunxisgrill.com. It's spelled T-U-N-X-I-S, so I hope I'm pronouncing it right. I think it's close. It's a pizzeria, but it's also fine dining in a century-old building. Specialty pizzas, burgers, salads, sandwiches, custom cocktails. You can even order online, which is pretty good for a kind of fine dining place. They also do events and catering, so you may not be thinking about going to dinner today, But there may be an event that comes up that you're holding in Windsor or in the surrounding areas that you could cater and hold there. As far as places to stay when going to Windsor, because they're located right off of Interstate 91, there's a lot of chain hotels. Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt. I had trouble finding more local establishments because that's what I like to push on the road trip segments. But I will say, if you go to Airbnb, they have lots of interesting places. If you just take a few minutes to look, you're going to find a lot of unique places that can only add to the overall ambiance of the trip. And like I always say with these road trips, I can only give you so much. You know, I research things that I think you'll like and things I know I'd like. But sometimes the best thing to do is to take your car and go. Maybe find a place that looks inviting and park and just walk. You can go to the Connecticut State Travel and Tourism site, ctvisit.com, and find Windsor there and find other things you might want to do. Or the Windsor Chamber of Commerce, windsorcc.org. Because I know the Chambers of Commerce, one of their main things is to bring attention and to bring visitors to their towns. For a few years, I was part of the Yarmouth Chamber of Commerce on Cape Cod, so I kind of know the ins and outs. That's why I always push the chambers with most of these cities and towns. It was first settled 390 years ago as the first English settlement in the state of Connecticut. It's got a firm grasp and a firm love of that history, but it's also got its feet planted firmly in the 21st century. A stone's throw from the city of Hartford, a hop, skip, and a jump from New York City and Boston. There is so much to see and do and enjoy in the town of Windsor, Connecticut. And I'll be back in the next road trip with another one of the hundreds and hundreds of beautiful cities and towns that the six states in the New England region have to offer. This week in history, we are going back 134 years ago to November the 14th, 1889, and young American reporter Nellie Bly beginning her around the world race. There's a lot to unpack here, but essentially what Nellie Bly was trying to do was circumnavigate the world in fewer than 80 days. as had been written in Jules Verne's book Around the World in 80 Days in 1872, with main character, the wealthy English Phineas Fogg, taking a bet that he could not make it around the world in 80 days. It was any form of transportation just to get around the world. Nellie Bly was already famous as a reporter, and she was only 25 years old when she began this trip around the world. She was born Elizabeth Jane Cochran and Nellie Bly was her pen name. And she became known for doing things that women weren't supposed to do in the Victorian era, including this trip around the globe in 72 days. One of the many crazy things about this story was that it was only two days notice before Nellie Bly boarded the steamer Augusta Victoria in Hoboken, New Jersey on November 14th. So this was pretty quickly planned. The full journey that she undertook that took 72 days was 24,898 miles. Bly had suggested to her editor at New York World about a year before that maybe she should try to do the trip around the world that was suggested in Jules Verne's book to see if it could possibly really be done in the real world. And while she was on the journey to keep it kind of in the front page and in the minds of everybody, New York World organized a Nellie Bly guessing game where readers would try to guess Nellie Bly's return time to the second with a grand prize consisting of first a trip to Europe and then spending money for that trip to Europe. One big thing about this trip is that during her journey around the world, Nellie Bly actually met author Jules Verne in Amiens, France. And just over 72 days later, Nellie Bly was back home in New York. Incredibly, only a few months later, a man named George Francis Train completed a trip around the world, beginning and ending in Tacoma, Washington, in 67 days, 12 hours, and one minute. So Nellie Bly's record trip around the world, it only lasted a few months. And if you were curious what the world record time is for a trip around the world, it was set on December 7th, 2022 by a pair of men from India, Sujoy Kumar Mitra and Dr. Ali Irani. How long do you think it took? It was three days, one hour, five minutes, and four seconds. And Nellie Bly said, Famed American journalist began her 72-day trip around the world 134 years ago this week in history. And now it's time for another brand new time capsule. We're going back 48 years ago this week to November the 14th, 1975. Let's see what was going on in the world of pop culture back then. The number one song was Island Girl by Elton John. This was off of his album Rock of the Westies. The song spent three weeks at number one and was Elton John's final number one song as a solo artist for 22 years, with his cover of Candle in the Wind for Princess Diana after her death going to number one in 1997. The number one movie was Dog Day Afternoon, and you could get into the theater with a ticket costing $2.03. This movie stars Al Pacino and is about three amateur bank robbers whose plan to pull off a heist goes wrong when everything that could go wrong happens. The movie is based on American bank robber John Stanley Joseph Wojtowicz. I hope I said that right. It made close to $56 million at the box office on a budget of just over $3.5 million dollars. and is currently 96% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The number one TV show was All in the Family, because it's the 1970s, and of course All in the Family would be number one pretty much through the whole decade. This is one of the most famous sitcoms in the history of television about American bigot Archie Bunker and his family, Edith, his wife, that he calls the Dingbat. daughter Gloria, her husband Mike that he calls Meathead. If you've never seen this show, you should definitely check it out. All in the Family ran for nine seasons, with it being number one in the ratings every year from 1971 to 1976. All in the Family also has the distinction of having the most spinoffs from its show, with five, including Maud, Good Times, The Jeffersons, Archie Bunker's Place, and Gloria. And if you were around back then, November 14th, 1975, maybe you had just turned 18 because that was the drinking age. You wanted to go to the store and get a six-pack of one of the most popular beers at the time, maybe Schlitz, maybe Rheingold, or maybe Budweiser or Michelob. The average six-pack of beer cost $2.55. And a fun little fact, according to a study, the average number of beers sold per person ages 15 and up was 306.9 in 1975, with that number peaking at 337.7 in 1981. Interestingly, that number had dropped to 256 in 2017, which was the last year of the study. So that's a lot of beers per person. But that wraps up a brand new time capsule in This Week in History. But now, as they used to say on the radio, let's crank up the volume and rip the knob off as we look at the top five forgotten musical artists of the 1980s that probably deserve to be remembered more right now. Oh boy, this top five here is going to be comfort food for the 80s kids soul. Although you won't have to have been a child of the 80s to appreciate these forgotten musical artists of that decade that probably should get remembered more. I had a lot of fun going through and finding these artists, listening to some of their music and remembering how much I enjoyed it or how much I still do enjoy it. Some of these artists are still in rotation in my musical playlist to this day. So as with most of these top five lists, they're in no particular order, and there are some honorable mentions to kind of get your mind ready for the top five itself. What I'm going to do differently with these honorable mentions is give you, in my opinion, the song these artists were most known for. So then if you want to pause the podcast after the top five and go make yourself a playlist on Spotify, you can. Okay, here we go. Honorable mentions for the top five forgotten musical artists of the 1980s include Banana Rama, who sung Cruel Summer, Jodie Watley, who sung Looking for a New Love, Billy Squire, who sung The Stroke, The Jets, who sung You Got It All, Fine Young Cannibals, who sung She Drives Me Crazy, Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, who sung Lost in Emotion, and Da Barge, who sung Rhythm of the Night. Those people all had other hit songs, but those are the ones that I most associated with them. Maybe you've got different favorites. Because this list isn't one-hit wonders, so all of these artists had at least two, maybe three big hits. Did any of those artists bring back memories, get those songs playing in your head? Well, let's get ready and dive into the actual top five, starting with number one, Survivor. Most 80s kids, especially boys, will remember Survivor singing Eye of the Tiger in Rocky III. And yes, they also sung Burning Heart in Rocky IV, which both of those were big hits. Their 1984 album Vital Signs saw them get two other top 10 hit songs with High On You and The Search Is Over. All in all, Survivor had five top 10 hits, including Eye of the Tiger that went to number one. So that's pretty impressive for any band. But yet they're not really remembered much, except for maybe fans of the Rocky movies. But it did surprise me that they had five top 10 hits. Number two is Exposé. They're an all-female group that was formed in Miami, Florida in 1984. Young girls and teenagers of the 1980s and into the early 90s will probably remember Exposé. And if not, I'll just remind you with their list of hit songs, including Seasons Change, Let Me Be The One, Come Go With Me, Point of No Return. and I'll Never Get Over You Getting Over Me, although that was 1992, but still. Their 1987 debut album, Exposure, made them the first all-female group to have four top ten hits on their debut album, including Seasons Change, that went to number one. The album went on to sell more than two million copies, and from 87 to 92, 93... Exposé was one of the biggest groups in the world. And although I'll Never Get Over You Getting Over Me was another top 10 hit in early 1993, by that point, Exposé had been passed by Wilson Phillips as the biggest female singing group in the world. Number three is Tears for Fears. They are an English pop rock band. They were formed in 1981. They hit the big time in 1985 with their album Songs from the Big Chair that yielded two number one singles, Shout and Everybody Wants to Rule the World. That latter song is probably one of the most famous 80 songs there is. That album alone has sold well over 9 million copies worldwide. They also had another top five hit in 1989 with the song Sowing the Seeds of Love. So for a time, they were one of the biggest bands in the world. But much like many of these other artists on this list, their fame seemed to quickly fade as the decade turned to the 90s. They had a minor hit, a top 40 hit in 1993 with Break It Down Again. But otherwise, Tears for Fears was gone from the main spotlight within a few years of the 80s ending. Number four is Roxette. They were a Swedish pop duo that formed in 1986. Their big breakthrough came in 1989 with their album Look Sharp, which included two number one songs, The Look and Listen to Your Heart. The Look Sharp album has sold more than 9 million copies worldwide, and that success only continued into the 90s. Their song It Must Have Been Love from the Pretty Woman soundtrack in 1990 became their third number one song. They released their follow-up album Joyride in 1991, and that title song became their fourth number one single. The follow-up song Fading Like a Flower went to number two. But after those dizzying highs, it quickly ended. And within a few years of that Joyride album, Roxette was basically a memory. And sadly, any reunions can't happen because sadly, singer Marie Fredrickson passed away in 2019 after battling cancer for 17 years. And finally, number five on the list of the top five forgotten musical artists of the 1980s is Taylor Dayne. She made her debut in 1987 and in total had seven top ten hits. Including her debut song, Tell It To My Heart, Love Will Lead You Back, Prove Your Love, With Every Beat Of My Heart, and I'll Always Love You. The single Love Will Lead You Back actually went to number one. Much like Expose, much like Roxette, Taylor Dayne's popularity was late 80s into the early 90s, but quickly faded. In 1993, she released a cover of Barry White's Can't Get Enough of Your Love. That was a top 40 hit, but that was basically it. She's one that if you go and look at her catalog, especially if you've never heard of her, you younger listeners, you'd be surprised how many big hits she had in such a small period of time. But that'll wrap up the top five. How many of these artists, whether in the top five or the honorable mentions, do you have on your playlists on Spotify, iTunes? I know I'm biased as a child of the 80s, but I had a lot of fun going through all these artists and listening to some of these songs. Like I said, chicken soup or comfort food for the 80s child soul. When I first started this podcast just over three years ago, I said I had done enough research and gathered enough topics that I could do this podcast for four years with no problem. And that was if I didn't find any other topics to share on the podcast. Needless to say, in the three years since I have found so many other topics that I could easily do another three years on top of the three that I've done. And new ideas always spring up during my research. One recent set of topics that came to my attention and quickly became a series that I want to do a lot on the podcast is old educational short films. In episode 101, I did the Ounce of Prevention video that was Looney Tunes-centric from the early 80s. In episode 114, I did the Snuffy the Talking Fire Engine, Snuffy's Fire Safety Brigade video from the late 1970s. And I've got a whole list of more to review, because they're fun slices of life from the time that they were filmed. Most of them have good messages to them, and some are just weird fever dreams. One such film that is all three of those descriptions and more is a video entitled Help Woodsy Spread the Word starring Woodsy Owl from 1977. Kids of the 70s, 80s into the 90s, you likely know who Woodsy the Owl is. He was one of the mascots of the U.S. Forest Service, kind of like Smokey the Bear. I think he was even introduced as a friend of Smokey's to kind of give him street cred. This video is just about 16 minutes long and can be found on YouTube at the U.S. National Archives channel. Much like with the Snuffies Fire Brigade, this is a musical short film. And in fact, there's a man named Mr. Music in it. He's very much a snapshot of the 1970s with his clothes, with the big wide bell-bottoms. The man known as Mr. Music was Canadian R&B singer Billy Newton Davis. He's 72 years old now, so he was 26 when this came out. His biggest claim to fame was performing a duet with Celine Dion, Can't Live With You, Can't Live Without You, off of his 1989 album Spellbound. In this video, though, he's playing the Help Woodsy Spread the Word song that you probably know from all of those shorter PSA films, except this version is a longer one. Usually, Woodsy would say, "'In the city or in the woods, help keep America looking good.'" Which they do, but then there's also another verse. They sing, "'In the snow or on the sand, help keep America looking grand.'" And the video starts off with beautiful scenery, with Woodsy the Owl walking around, looking at the forest and the mountains.

Speaker 01:

Hello, world. What a beautiful place to be.

Speaker 00:

And Mr. Music describing who Woodsy Owl is to those of you watching. And even says he's Smokey the Bear has a friend that's always on the prowl. Woodsy the Owl.

Speaker 01:

Smokey Bear has got a pal who is always on the prowl. Woodsy is his name, you know, he's the anti-pollution owl. Hi, Woodsy Owl. What's new with you? Do I detect a frown or two? Hi there, Mr. Music. You know, I've just been enjoying our beautiful forest and I've been wondering how we can keep it this way.

Speaker 00:

And after the song and Woodsy takes off and Mr. Music says bye to him, it goes to these random kids that are wishing they could see Woodsy Owl and wondering what he's like. But instead of Woodsy showing up, Mr. Music pops out and it's definitely a bit on the creepy side as he's very animated in the way he moves and he speaks in rhyme and tells the kids that he'll go find Woodsy so they can meet him. And the kids immediately make a bad impression by throwing a can on the ground and that's how Woodsy shows up. Excuse me, is this yours, young fella handing the can off?

Speaker 01:

Well, what have we here? Is this yours, young fella?

Speaker 00:

In total, I think there's five kids and it looks like one older woman. Well, not older, but like in her 20s, it might be a teacher. Maybe that explains why these kids are just wandering through the woods. And then it's time for another Woodsy Owl song. And after singing, Woodsy leads him to these rocks that have been spray painted and the kids are all upset and he teaches the kids how to get rid of spray paint off of the rocks. He's got buckets and sponges and soap and sandpaper just with him. An interesting thing here for kids that know Woodsy Owl and grew up with him, during the 70s and 80s, most of the PSAs with Woodsy Owl were voiced by either Sterling Holloway, who did Winnie the Pooh's voice, which if you hear it, it's the same exact voice, or Frank Welker, who's a really famous voice actor. In this short film, it's none of those people, so Woodsy's voice is totally different than you'd ever remember. It's a man named Angelo Rossito, who's an actor. An interesting thing is that he was a little person. And I believe he probably was in the Woodsy Owl costume in this movie because I noticed Woodsy was a lot smaller than he would be in the normal PSAs where he was a seven foot mascot owl. But anyway, the kids sing and they clean the rocks off and everyone's happy. But it's not over yet because there's still more mess to clean and there's oil in a stream. which I get it for helping to clean the environment, but where they're located, it seems like it would be almost impossible for the oil to get there. And then when they're starting to clean up the stream, they can't really get the oil, but there's bottles in there. Then it's time for the song again, help Woodsy spread the word. And it's really weird and creepy because Woodsy the owl asks the teacher who is named Miss Parker if he can dance with her.

Speaker 01:

May I have this dance, Miss Potter? Why, thank you, Woodsy. I'd love to.

Speaker 00:

And then Mr. Music grabs one of the kids, one of the girls who's probably 11 and starts dancing in a very exaggerated way. I'm sure at the time then it seemed far more innocent, but you look at it from the lens of 2023 and it's like, God, it's very creepy and definitely very dated to the late 70s. Then after yet another song ends, then they go more into town. and they show all the horrible stuff, air pollution, noise pollution, and something called sight pollution, which hearing them say it, it brought back flashbacks of being a kid and seeing the woodsy owl PSAs. I would have thought air pollution would be sight pollution, that things that got in the air would mess with your eyes. So I had to look up what it meant, and sight pollution is the deterioration of natural and human-made landscapes. So basically when Bill buildings start to crumble. That's site pollution, like it upsets you to see these buildings looking like that. Have any of you ever used the term site pollution? Or is that just a woodsy owl thing? And the kids get mad about loud cars and loud motorcycles. And the kids walk around this park and there's a picnic table that's all carved up and then people have carved their initials into trees, which really upsets woodsy. So all these kids and their teacher are reformed from the one little boy that threw the can on the ground at the beginning to now being environmental warriors that Woodsy can count on. And then just to make sure that it wasn't weird enough through some of these creepy things and this random fever dream that was this Woodsy Owl short film, it ends with all the kids and the teacher at this random carousel. And the kids and teacher all get on the horses and Woodsy says goodbye. And there's this extra long scene of the kids all riding the carousel with Mr. Music and they're all waving to the camera repeatedly.

Speaker 01:

Just think about what you can do to stop pollution in your own backyards, at school, or, well, just anywhere you go. Hey, come on, kids. There's a place I know. Let's have some fun before we go. All right!

Speaker 00:

And finally, Mr. Music and Woodsy are back in the middle of the woods overlooking the mountains, talking about what they've learned and how you can help keep the forest clean and beautiful and your own area clean and beautiful. And naturally, the Help Woodsy Spread the Word song comes on again. It reminds me of Top 40 Stations these days with the same song playing two or three times an hour. But I'll tell you what, if you didn't know the lyrics to the Woodsy Owl theme song, you're going to have them stuck in your head if you watch this video.

Speaker 01:

In the woods, help keep America looking good. Looking good, now you've got it. Thanks, Mr. Music. See you later. I've got to go now, and I'm flying high. But I'll be back, and you know why. Give a hoot. And

Speaker 00:

that's how it ends. I tried to do some research to find if Billy Newton Davis did any interviews about what it was like doing this Woodsy Owl film, but there's nothing. I also couldn't find anything about the kids that are in this. They're all very much stereotypical late 70s kids from the clothes and how they talk. And they look like they're all anywhere between 9 and 13. And even though I laugh a little at reviewing this for you, it was fun to watch and brought back a lot of memories. And I'm glad I could share a little bit of clips from this. And I'll link to it in the description of the podcast. So if you want to watch it yourself, you can. I'm going to do more of these old school educational short films. They may not all be 70s and 80s. I might dip back to the 50s and 60s for some really weird slices of life. But if there are any that you think I should review, definitely shoot me a message. I've got my list and I'm still researching, but you never know what ones I might miss. And remember, help Woodsy spread the word, never be a dirty bird, and give a hoot, don't pollute. And that'll wrap up episode 120 of the podcast. Thank you all for giving a hoot about this podcast. Find me all over social media. Subscribe to my YouTube channel. I put up full length audio of the podcast up there and even a few individual segments trying to push more eyes and ears to this podcast. I'm on threads. I'm on Instagram. I'm still on X. You can always shoot me an email, christophersetterland at gmail.com. Become a subscriber through Patreon or Buzzsprout to get access to exclusive member-only podcasts. So far, they're monthly, but I might end up doing more. And like I said, I'm going to try to experiment with audiobooks, parts of the Searching for the Lady of the Dunes book. And I'll tell you why it's part so far. In doing my research for audiobooks and how to record them, etc., I've come to find that likely doing the entire Searching for the Lady of the Dunes book, 92,000 words, would be about 11 hours worth of me talking. And that's if I do it right, not rushing it. So it might be best for me to do bits and pieces, and then when I'm done with it, stitch it together. You can get your own copy of Searching for the Lady of the Dunes at the website I built, theladyofthedunes.com. I'm going to be doing a free trial test drive of the book. The same stuff that I'm doing for the audiobook. So the intro and the first two chapters, so just over 5,000 words. Hey, you get to test drive a car before you buy it, so I figured why not let people test drive the book and get a little taste. I wanted to make sure that I sent special birthday greetings to my mom, Laurie. Her birthday would have been the day before this podcast went live, which is why this week in history, the time capsule was specifically about someone turning 18 on that day because that would have been when she turned 18. But she's always been my biggest fan, my biggest supporter. And that's from day one. I've had a lot of great supporters in my life, but very, very few have been since day one, at least in my life or in their lives for those that are younger. And a lot of what I do with this, the podcast and content creation and my writing is trying to achieve a modicum of success to kind of validate that support that I've gotten from my mother and from select few others. So yeah, I'd love to become a huge success doing this for me. But a lot of it is I want to become a huge success to validate those that have supported me, even in the times that I haven't deserved it, or at least haven't felt like I deserved it. So happy birthday to my mom. I hope she enjoyed the presents I gave her. By now, I'll know if she did or not. But I hope all of you out there are lucky enough to have mothers like mine that support you. And if you do, let them know how much they matter. Next week, we're going to keep the train rolling with episode 121 of the podcast. This will be the monthly bonus episode. The one topic we're going to dive deep into this month is going to be some famous things that were invented in New England. Thanks for watching! Thank you for watching. One such thing for me was the recent release of the final Beatles song, Now and Then. It was actually dropped on my birthday, November the 2nd. So it was an early present to myself to listen to it. If you're a Beatles fan, you've probably already heard it. How did you like it? I got a lot of feels from it. It definitely really hit me right where I needed it. I didn't grow up with the Beatles, naturally. I was born in 1977. But one of my earliest memories of life... was John Lennon's Double Fantasy album in 1980. And Lennon's always been a huge influence on my writing. Right up there with Kurt Cobain, Maya Angelou. Yeah, I know, I've got eclectic tastes when it comes to people I emulate. But whether the new Beatles song was something you enjoyed or there's something else that brings you good mental health, lean into that because winter's on its way. It won't always be snow and cold, but it'll be a lot of it. But the podcast will keep rolling, so at least you still got that. And remember, in this life, don't walk in anyone else's footsteps. Create your own path and enjoy every moment you can on this journey we call life because you never know what tomorrow brings. Thank you all again for tuning in to episode 120. This has been the In My Footsteps podcast. I am Christopher Setterlund, and you already knew that. And I'll talk to you all again soon.

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Christopher Setterlund

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