HAPPY NEW YEAR 2020!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! I hope it's full of success, happiness and great things to come! From all of us at 20 Years Before 2000, we wish you all the best!

Throwback Jam of the Week: 12/30/19

Throw on your Party Suit and get ready to travel through time as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Will Smith feat. K-Ci

Song: Will2K

Album:  Willenium (1999)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 25

Bonus Fun Fact: The music video for this song features cameos by DJ Jazzy Jeff, Eve, Tisha Campbell & Duane Martin. This song features samples from The Clash's "Rock The Casbah" and "Superrappin" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

Comic Book Pick 12/26/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

SPIDER-HAM #1 (OF 5)

APORKALYPSE NOW! Not a dream! Not a hoax! Not an imaginary tail! Spider-Ham finally has his own series! (Again!) Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham finds himself jumping through time, side-by-side with Peter PARKER, the Spectacular Spider-MAN! ZEB WELLS and WILL ROBSON bring you the Ham and Man story you've been waiting for!

(W) Zeb Wells (A) Will Robson (CA) Wendell Dalit

SRP: $3.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Merry Christmas 2019!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I hope it's full of joy, happiness, family and of course FREAKIN' AWESOME PRESENTS!!!!

Throwback Jam of the Week: 12/23/19

Throw on your Sunglasses and think about what Christmas means to you as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Stevie Wonder

Song: What Christmas Means To Me

Album:  Someday at Christmas (1967)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A

Bonus Fun Fact: This Christmas album was released under the Motown Records imprint Tamla in 1967 and was Stevie Wonder's 8th studio album.

A look at YET EVEN MORE ornaments!

 Christmas is almost here! It is one of my favorite times of the year! I actually got all my shopping done recently for my kids and my family back home. I still have to shop for my wife though! Anyway, one of the best parts of the season is going out with the kids and picking out a tree for our home. Then my wife puts up the lights! She is so specific about how the lights have to look, that I don't even ask if I can help anymore. After the lights are up then it's time for the best part... the ornaments! Each year we purchase a new ornament to put on the family tree. Here are some of my faves that we have amassed over the years.

 Captain Hook (Hallmark, 2015)

 New York Mets Jersey Ornament

 Kringleville: Kissmas Cottage (Hallmark, 2010)

 Penguins: Ice Castle Antics (Hallmark, 2018)

Hand made Ninja Turtles

(My kids made these for me! 2014)

 

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my favorite Christmas Tree Ornaments. Now, get your tree ready for Santa, enjoy the holidays and open some presents! Merry Christmas!

Check out some more awesome ornaments from 2016, 2017 & 2018!

Comic Book Pick 12/18/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

BATMAN #85

The stunning conclusion to "City of Bane" is here! How will Flashpoint Batman be vanquished from our dimension? What will become of Gotham Girl now that she's betrayed all she knows? How will the Bat team cope without Alfred? Will Catwoman stick around? Who will rebuild Gotham City? Is Batman ever going to be Batman again? The event of the summer now closes out the year, setting the stage for a whole new path for the Dark Knight Detective. You don't dare miss the extra-sized concluding chapter to Tom King's epic run on Batman-and it all leads to the new Batman and Catwoman series! 

(W) Tom King (A) Mikel Janin (CA) Tony S. Daniel 

SRP: $4.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 12/16/19

Throw on your White Beard and creep downstairs to take a peek as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Jackson 5

Song: I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

Album:  Jackson 5 Christmas Album (1970)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A

Bonus Fun Fact: This Christmas album has sold almost 4 million copies and was the #1 Christmas album on the Billboard charts for 4 weeks in 1970.

Holiday Christmas Comic Covers!

I love collecting comic books and I love the holiday season. So when it comes to comic books with special holiday stories or variant covers, you can almost bet that I will pick those up. I was going through some of my long boxes of books this past weekend and pulled out these issues just to show you some of the cheer that can be found inside the pages of these heart warming graphic novels. Can't wait to read some new stories this year! So let's visit with the Ghost of Christmas past and take a look at some of these classic holiday covers from the days of yore! ENJOY!

Comic Book Pick 12/11/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

TMNT ONGOING #100

Things have never been worse for the TMNT and their allies, but there's still one desperate gambit to try if the family can come together in time. Will it be worth the cost? Over eight years of TMNT storytelling have led to this game-changing moment! Don't miss it!

(W) Tom Waltz, Kevin Eastman (A/CA) Dave Wachter

SRP: $7.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 12/9/19

Throw on your Mittens and head over to the North Pole as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Jon LaJoie

Song: The Best Christmas Song That Ever Existed
Album:  The Best Christmas Song That Ever Existed (2012)
Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A

Bonus Fun Fact: LaJoie is best known for his character Taco that appeared in the television program "The League".

Whatever Happened to the Little Nero's Pizza Guy?

We all know the story of a certain home defense specialist, Mr. Kevin McCallister and the documentary they filmed about his life and times titled "Home Alone", but what about the unsung hero of this film? The outstanding deliverer of za who believed he was taking a bullet in order to deliver a box of delicious perfection to a small child who just wanted a freakin' cheese pizza. What happened to the heroic actor who played the Little Nero's Pizza guy?

This iconic food service character was played by D. Danny Warhol aka Dan Charles Zukoski to perfection. When watching Home Alone, you really believe he was a true pizza delivery person. He was that good! So, since I have been so taken by this performance for decades, I decided to do some digging and found out that D. Danny had roles in some other iconic films! 

He was the "Teen in Red Sweater at Party" in Poltergeist III (1988), a "Stadium Fan" in Red Heat (1988), "Train Passenger" in Backdraft (1991), a "High School Student" in Beverly Hillbillies (1993), "Engineering Crewman Running in Hallway" on Star Trek: Generations (1994) & Star Trek: First Contact (1996), a "Power Corp Member" in Double Dragon (1994), a "Vampire" in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), "White Guy #3" in The Pest (1997) and a "Toy Factory Worker" in Monkeybone (2001)! With 64 acting credits in his career spanning 3 decades, this is just a sample of what this guy has done! That is a crazy amount of range for one actor, but who can forget his nerdy recurring performance as Irwin Consodine in the original Saved by the Bell series! 

Although these are all fantastic roles in solid movies, nothing will ever touch the greatness that Warhol achieved with his acting chops as the Pizza Delivery Guy in Home Alone. He is a large part of one of the highest grossing comedies of all-time and no one can take that from him. According to his IMDB web page, Warhol has not acted in a film since the 2004 short film "Forever is a Long, Long time" where he played a bowling alley patron. Will we ever see the legendary D. Danny Warhol act again? I have heard rumors that he has been working at a pizza place in the Chicago area a a manager. 

I have also heard he works at a home improvement store, but I'm just going to keep checking the background characters in the next few big budget blockbusters I watch hoping to see him pop up! Okay enough of this gooey sh... Show of emotion! Who's hungry for a lovely cheese pizza delivered fresh from Little Nero's Pizza? Don't forget to tip!

Photos Courtesy: IMDB

Comic Book Pick 12/4/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

POWER RANGERS/TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #1

THE MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS AND THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES MEET FOR THE FIRST TIME! The Power Rangers arrive in New York City to find Tommy Oliver (a.k.a. The Mighty Morphin Green Ranger) but soon discover he's joined forces with the villainous Shredder and the Foot Clan! As the Rangers are sent reeling by this betrayal, they 're confronted by another (fr)enemy... the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Can these heroes find a way to work together to defeat the bad guys and save the world from total destruction?! Written by Ryan Parrott (Power Rangers: Necessary Evil) and illustrated by Simone di Meo (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Venom Annual), the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers fight - and maybe team up with - the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the first time.

(W) Ryan Parrott (A) Simone Di Meo (CA) Dan Mora

SRP: $4.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 12/2/19

Throw on your Santa Hat and head over to Hollis, Queens as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: RUN DMC

Song: Christmas Is
Album:  A Very Special Christmas: Vol.2 (1992)
Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A

Bonus Fun Fact: This song was the follow up to RUN DMC's classic holiday song "Christmas in Hollis". 

A Celebration of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

A few years ago I received this LIFE "America's Parade" book as a gift through work. I hadn't read it in years and as luck should have it, I stumbled upon it again while searching for my Wii Zapper for my son! It was in the back of a long forgotten cabinet in the kids playroom in the basement. I started flipping through it and remembered how cool this book was! It tells the story of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from it's small start as an idea imagined by a few immigrants working at Macy's to express gratitude toward their new American heritage in 1924 to the huge spectacle it has become today. Here were some of my favorite shots from the book.

The stories in this book are great, the history is interesting and the behind the scenes images are priceless. If you are a fan of this parade, I suggest you take a look at this book. Now stop reading this awesome blog and enjoy some time with your family! From everyone here at 20 Years Before 2000 .. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!

Comic Book Pick 11/27/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

PUNISHER 2099 #1

The future has arrived, but world peace certainly hasn't! In fact, with the streets of Nueva York more crime-ridden than ever, who will rise up to defend the vulnerable population from the corruption? Looks like it's up to Punisher 2099 to clean up the block - the only question is, who's behind the mask? Don't miss out on your glimpse into the future from rising stars, LONNIE NADLER & ZAC THOMPSON (Age of X-Men, Guardians of the Galaxy Annual)!

(W) Lonnie Nadler, Zac Thompson (A) Matt Horak (CA) Ron Lim

SRP: $4.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 11/25/19

Throw on your Puffy Pastel Shirt and get on The Soul Train as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Ohio Players

Song: Jive Turkey
Album:  Skin Tight (1974)
Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 47

Bonus Fun Fact: This song is off the Ohio Players fifth studio album. The original release of this song on 8-track cassette featured quadraphonic sound. 

Going Home: Part 4

 A few weeks ago my family and I embarked on a journey back to my home state of New Jersey. The best part of the trip in my opinion was taking my kids to some of my favorite places to eat in the Garden State. Of course we stopped by Cliff's Dairy Maid on Route 10 in Ledgewood, NJ. I used to love their Smurf ice cream, but this time around I got some double peanut butter fudge and it was AMAZING! The kids loved it, but the lack of a bathroom posed a problem for my son. 

There are no 7-11's near where we live, so we had to make a stop at the 7-11 in Panther Valley so the kids could get a taste of mixing all the flavors together in 1 cup! Also, I had been craving some good pizza from people who know how to make pizza! It is hard to find a good slice where we currently reside, so I had to order a "Garbage Pizza" from Dominic's in Blairstown, NJ. It was topped with pepperoni, sausage, meat balls, onions, peppers and onions. In addition to that I had to get some hoagies to fulfill my cravings!

Speaking of cravings, I took the family to White Castle for lunch one day during our trip. My daughter loves onions, so I knew she would enjoy the little steamed burgers of goodness. After we ate, I had the kids pose like the Beastie Boys in front of the restaurant. We were filled and moved on to the next destination. 

I have a friend who works at the M&M Mars factory in Hackettstown, NJ and he tried to get us a tour, but failed in doing so. I still wanted to show the kids where some of their favorite candies come from, so we stopped by and walked around the campus for a minute while taking in the wonderful aroma of chocolate being made.

This next spot has nothing to do with food, but my son wanted to go to a Gamestop for some reason, so we hit up the one in Ledgewood, NJ. As we were walking out, I had to show them Santana's Hair Salon which is owned by WWE legend Tito Santana. The kids and wife were not as impressed by this as I thought they would be.

The last stop before heading home was a 3 hour layover in Minneapolis. Since we had a ton of time to kill, the kids grabbed some McDonald's for lunch and we walked around the airport. We saw this cool Snoopy statue and visited the Prince store. Sadly they did not have the one Prince album for sale that I was looking for...the BATMAN movie soundtrack. Overall we had an AMAZING time going back home to my old stomping grounds, but unfortunately all good things must eventually come to an end. As we left, I started feeling homesick, because as this old picture that has been hanging in my Mom's house for as long as I can remember says...

Comic Book Pick 11/20/19

This week the comic book I am most excited to read is...

HE MAN AND THE MASTERS OF THE MULTIVERSE #1

The scourge of Anti-Eternia is unleashed on the Multiverse! Blazing a trail across the dimensions, he's devastating each version of Eternia and stealing its power. Now it's up to a ragtag team of surviving He-Men to recruit the one man in existence who might save them: Prince Keldor, the man who would be Skeletor! This all-new miniseries features the most iconic eras and beloved takes on the Masters of the Universe!

(W) Tim Seeley (A) Dan Fraga, Richard Friend (CA) In-Hyuk Lee

SRP: $3.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 11/18/19

Throw on your Gold Rings and head to a villa in Costa Rica as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: AZ

Song: Sugar Hill
Album:  Doe or Die (1995)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 25
Bonus Fun Fact: This song features guest vocals by singer Miss Jones.

Going Home: Part 3

A few weeks ago my family and I embarked on a journey back to my home state of New Jersey. After we hit up the Blairstown Diner on our second day back on the east coast, we took the kids to Footbridge Park. They really enjoyed seeing the different kinds of trees and we had some close foot races on the long bridge. With nothing on the agenda for that evening I decided to take the kids to Bel-Pike Lanes in Belvidere, NJ. Me and my friends would spend hours there bowling, playing pool and putting quarters into the arcade machines. Now the arcade has been transformed into a restaurant, but we still got in a few games of bowling. Notice how my son did not remove his Link hat during these trips. He practically lived in that thing during our vacation.

My parents live about an hour away from NYC and we couldn't pass up the chance to take the kids into the city for their first time. My wife was able to find us a hotel room about 2 blocks away from the Museum of Natural History. So after finding a parking garage and a short trip on the subway, we made it into NYC. 

We had watched the movie "Night at the Museum" to get the kids excited for this trip and when they saw the Easter Island Head on display all of them had to say "Give me Gum-gum" at least 100 times each. We got to see most of the museum that day, but due to an event they were closing early and we missed the ocean animals display. 

At least we did get to see what we all came for...Dinosaurs by the boat load! After the museum, we took a walk through central park and then hit the subway back to Jersey City to retrieve our car.

Of course we had to see the Statue of Liberty. Once again my wife did an excellent job of booking us ferry tickets that left from Jersey City. We stopped at Ellis Island first and took the tour while the kids participated in the Junior Rangers program so they could earn a Ranger badge. Then it was off to see Lady Liberty! Once again the kids did there Junior Ranger thing and we were able to take a tour of the Statue and visit the newly built museum on the island. It was great to see their reactions to how AWESOME the sight of this American icon was. Back in Jersey City we walked around the 9-11 "Empty Sky" monument. Then headed back to my parents place.

On our drive back, I took the kids past the Land of Make Believe amusement park in Hope, NJ. I really wish it was open when we were home, because the next time we visit I'm pretty sure the kids will be too old to enjoy it. My Dad was driving pretty fast, so forgive the crappiness of the picture above. While on this scenic drive, we also took the kids down one of the most haunted roads in the United States aka Shades of Death Road and Ghost Lake. Let me tell you, it is not scary at all in the daytime. For more info on this road check out the video below.