Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo by William Joyce

As mentioned in the podcast, Kate and I truly will be in San Diego at the upcoming ALA Annual Conference to record an episode of our podcast WITH a special secret guest. Many thanks to the very kind Travis Jonker (alumni of my sister’s college, we discovered) for sharing his recording booth with us. Today’s book was a Reading Rainbow book back in the day. I detect some similarities to The Mysterious Tadpole by Steven Kellogg, we talk Gertie the Dinosaur, and try to understand why members of a baseball team would look at an animal and instantly think, “Shortstop!”

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Show Notes:

I didn’t know it when I was recording, but yes, the Dinosaur Bob statue in Abilene, Texas was saved (by schoolchildren, no less). You can learn more about it here. And you can see a full list of the town’s kidlit statues here.

And here is Gertie the Dinosaur, the very first animated film (by Windsor McKay of Little Nemo fame). I see some distinct similarities.

Welp, we give up. Help us out. Where does one locate sunglasses that will fit a dino at such short notice?

Kate noticed that the lifeboats on this boat appear to be on the deck, and we have voiced some concerns with the safety of this seaworthy vessel.

We also have some safety concerns, though of a different variety, as they pertain to feeding a newly discovered dinosaur 400 double Dutch chocolate cakes. Isn’t Bob an herbivore? Do you really want to be trapped on a boat with a dino with an upset tummy? Why risk it?

While reading this book, Kate attempted to pin down its approximate year. No easy task, but between the roadsters and the movie marquee, we think we’ve pinned it down to probably the 1930s or so. For the record, I tried to see if there ever actually was a film called “Girl Chasers of 1929”. Turns out that’s just an example of the delightful output of Joyce’s brain.

Concerning the Lazardo’s bodyguard, who appears to do everything from serving drinks to pitching, “I don’t even know what he makes and it isn’t enough.”

You know when you’re watching a film and you come to really like a background character? That’s how we feel about this Sam Spade type in the window, watching the action below. What’s his story?

There are many small details to point out and enjoy in this book, but none so keen as this advertisement for pop. “Yup!”

Says it all.

I have a suspicion that this guy linking arms with the other fella was some kind of an in-joke. Our current working theory is that this is Bill Joyce and his nephew, and the bald fellow is this book’s editor or something. Tell me why I’m wrong about this.

The problem with these itty-bitty, teeny-tiny details is that we can’t make out the itty-bitty, teeny-tiny details. What is going on with the turban or hat or whatever this is? Is it unraveling? Is it a snake?

Filed under: Fuse 8 n' Kate