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.

Comic Book Pick 11/13/19

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

DC SUPER HERO GIRLS GIANT #1

New cover by Yancy Labat! This issue includes two new stories: "Panic at the Disco," a 16-page story written by Amanda Deibert with art by Erich Owen. It's time for the greatest teenage tradition of them all: the school formal! But when Livewire attacks and sets everyone's toes a-tapping, the girls will have to put their dancing shoes to make it through the night! "Harvest Festival," an eight-page story written by Amy Wolfram with art by Agnes Garbowska. The girls are excited about this year's Fall Festival, but Harley Quinn has other plans! Will Bumblebee be able to stop her and keep the pumpkins from flying? Plus reprint chapters from DC Super Hero Girls: Hits and Myths, DC Super Hero Girls: Summer Olympus, and DC Super Hero Girls: Past Times at Super Hero High.

SRP: $4.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 11/11/19

Throw on your Best Track Suit and head to The Street with your cardboard as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Newcleus

Song: Jam On It
Album:  Jam On Revenge (1984)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: 56
Bonus Fun Fact: The group was formed in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood in New York and they created this song as an anti rap joke.

Going Home: Part 2

A few weeks ago my family and I embarked on a journey back to my home state of New Jersey. We spent some time with my older brother and his family in Pennsylvania so we could do some catching up and so our kids could play around with each other. One of the things we planned on doing was going to Mazezilla at Klingel's Farm in Saylorsburg, PA. Well, the weather had other ideas, so we found an indoor activity to entertain the kids. We went skating at the BIG WHEEL in East Stroudsburg!

When we got inside there were very few people out in the skate rink, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. We had so much fun and took part in the limbo line (Spoiler: I lost), quick stop game and sock races. There was a birthday party going on, but they were confined to the party area in the back and only came out for the special contests.

Another cool thing about that day that we went to the BIG WHEEL was that they had the place decorated for Halloween and had given some of their usual decor a scary makeover.

This Dracula face was pretty cool. After about 4 hours skating it was time to leave. I always remember hearing commercials for this place on the radio, but never went. Now I can check this off my bucket list.

Until next time...goodbye BIG WHEEL. Eventually later in the week the weather improved and we had time for Mazezilla!

This place was AWESOME! Before you go into the maze they give you a punch card showing different things you had to find within the maze. It wasn't just a quick start & finish task which spread out how long it took us to complete. 

I think we were in those 11 acres of corn for over an hour and a half before we exited. And when we returned to the light of day we were greeted by a glorious sight...

Carnival food stands featuring everything from corn dogs to cotton candy to funnel cakes! I had missed my opportunity to get a deep fried Snickers bar at the fair this year, but I would not make that mistake again! It was gooey, warm and delicious and I'm pretty sure it caused a cavity or two.

There was also a petting zoo, where my kids spent most of their time feeding the goats and pigs, rubber duck races, slides, ball bounce area and this stack of old tractor tires. Heading here was well worth the wait. Now checkout this commercial for BIG WHEEL. It doesn't have that classic jingle, but you get to see some of what makes this place so cool. If you want to hear the jingle click HERE or visit BigWheelSkating.com.

Comic Book Pick 11/6/19

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

BATMAN #82

"City of Bane" part eight! Batman and his allies wage war on the City of Bane, but an unexpected turn of events will send everyone reeling. Will there be another death in the family, or can the Dark Knight break Bane's iron grip over Gotham City?

(W) Tom King (A) Mikel Janin (CA) David Finch

SRP: $3.99

Synopsis Provided By: PreviewsWorld.com 

Throwback Jam of the Week: 11/4/19

Throw on your Leather Jacket and head to The Street  as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Michael Jackson

Song: Speed Demon
Album:  Bad (1989)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A
Bonus Fun Fact: The video for this song was directed by legendary Claymation artist Will Vinton and features a cameo by The Noid. This song was never released as a commercial single which led to it receiving minor airplay.

Going Home: Part 1

About two weeks ago my family and I embarked on a journey back to my home state of New Jersey. The first night we arrived we spent some time with my parents and my Mom made us a home cooked meal of meatloaf, mashed potatoes and a lasagna! It was delicious, but I was wanting to bring my kids to some of my favorite eating establishments from when I was growing up and the next day our first stop was the famous Blairstown Diner!

Of course this diner was famous for being one of the filming locations for the original Friday The 13th movie in 1980 and it has changed over the years, but basics stayed the same. It was a small, family owned restaurant that serves great diner food.

My kids and I looked over the menu and my twins ordered pancakes with blueberries and one with chocolate chips. My oldest daughter ordered a cheeseburger. They all enjoyed their meals and we still had enough leftovers for them to have another helping the next day for lunch.

I was torn between what I should order. When I used to come here with my dad over a decade ago, I would order the Cowboy Burger, but since I was in the Halloween mood I could not pass up the Jason Voorhees inspired fare and I went with...

THE SLASHER BURGER!!! This burger had cheeses, lettuce, tomato, pickles and a fried egg on top. I have had variations on this burger at other places before, but there is something to be said about the ambiance of a diner. It just seems to make everything taste better, especially when you visit one after 2am! 

I really enjoyed my meal much like the rest of the family and after a fun stop up the street at Footbridge park with the kids, we headed home. On the way I pointed out some other Friday The 13th locations to the kids. We passed by Hartung's General store on High Street in Hope, NJ.

And we also made time to swing by the gates of the old Moravian Cemetery on the corner of High Street and Mount Hermon Road. It had been almost ten years since I had been back home and I was soaking in every bit of it. I hope my kids enjoyed the trip as much as I did.

Back at my parent's house my brother mentioned if I had picked up one of the anniversary shirts they were selling at the diner. I must have missed them when I was there, but I said "It would have been cool to get one". My Dad said "Really?" and left the room only to come back with this shirt for me! Aren't Dads the best!

In other Jason related news, I finally found the Toony Terrors Jason Voorhees action figure at Walmart in the ITC in Flanders, NJ!!!