Saturday 9: See You Later, Alligator

Crazy Sam’s Saturday 9: See You Later, Alligator (1956)

Every Saturday I take time off from written on serious topics to have some fun…
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Crazy Sam's mother is terrified of alligators. Just looking at a photo of one of those scaly reptiles gives her the creeps. Is there a member of the animal kingdom that scares you? 
Yes, any animal with sharper claws than mine.

2) Gators are carnivores, but they aren't picky. If meat isn't handy, they'll munch on fruit. Are you particular about your diet? For example, do you try to eat gluten free, low sodium, etc.?
I try to eat low carb foods. Did you know that vodka has zero carbs?

3) In Spain, this song was a hit under the title, "Hasta Luego, Cocodrilo." Say something else in Spanish.
Hola, claro?

4) When this week's artist, Bill Haley, was a little boy, he made a guitar out of cardboard and pretended to play that until his parents got him a real one. Tell us about something you wanted so badly when you were a kid.
A Porsche… well you didn’t say how young.

5) Early in his career, Bill did whatever it took to get the gig. When singing cowboys were popular, the Michigan native pretended to be a cowpoke and renamed himself, "Silver Yodeling Bill." Have you ever fudged on your resume or fibbed in an interview?
Well… Once in March a good number of years ago I had to send a bio for a workshop I was giving in October and I had applied to a be on a government committee and the chairperson was a friend and said that they were just waiting for my paperwork to go through. So on my bio I said I was on the committee figuring that by the time the conference came I would be on the committee. But, you always know that there is a “but,” the chairperson was replaced and I didn’t get the position. I contacted the conference with a revised bio, but they were an unorganized bunch of volunteers and it never got changed even though I emailed them several times.
What I learned from that, “Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched.”

6) When his career was going well, Bill was generous and loved to give extravagant parties at his home, which he called Melody Manor. Do you enjoy playing the host? 
Yes, but… sometimes it runs you raged.

7) Bill was blind in one eye, the result of a botched operation when he was a child. Since the blind eye wandered and didn't focus, he always wore a curl over the opposite eye, hoping to draw everyone's attention to the other side of his face. What is there about your appearance that leaves you self-conscious?
My stomach. It kind of sticks out more than any other feature if you know what I mean.

8) On the other hand, what is it about your appearance that pleases you, and that you would never change?
My smile.

9) In 1956, when this song was a hit, Elvis Presley exploded onto the music scene and displaced Bill as rock's top artist. The press and public assumed Bill was jealous of Elvis, but in reality he liked Elvis a great deal. Are you jealous by nature?
No, it takes to much work to be  jealous.