BILLIE MAE RICHARDS, the voice of RANKIN/BASS' RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER, passes at age 88

It is a very sad day in THE ENCHANTED WORLD OF RANKIN/BASS...actress Billie Mae Richards passed away today at age 88 (She would have been 89 in November). I just got off the phone with her daughter, Cyndi Richards-Jamieson, and she said she passed this morning quietly in her sleep. It was peaceful and at home. I did many radio show appearances with my friend Billie Mae over the years and she sounded as youthful as when she did the voice of RUDOLPH in 1964. She always sang a few bars of "We're a couple of misfits." Our last show together was in 2009 and we were planning a possible appearance at a Canadian film festival this Christmas. She was a wonderful person and will always be remembered for the life she breathed into RUDOLPH! Besides doing the voice of RUDOLPH, she did many other RANKIN/BASS voices including Bobby Bond (THE KING KONG SHOW), Willy McBean (RANKIN/BASS' WILLY McBEAN & HIS MAGIC MACHINE), many voices in RANKIN/BASS' FESTIVAL OF FAMILY CLASSICS and so much more. She was one of a kind!

c. 1964 RANKIN/BASS PRODUCTIONS/RICK GOLDSCHMIDT ARCHIVES (From THE ENCHANTED WORLD OF RANKIN/BASS: A PORTFOLIO)

Melissa Forman is hosting A FAMILY AFFAIR MARATHON with Kathy "Sissy" Garver on ME TV this Sunday from 5-7pm!

www.timeandspacetoys.com HOLIDAY specials!

from Ron Murphy

www.myspace.com/rgoldschmidt

email me at Rickgoldsc@aol.com

UNIVERSAL MONSTER GOLD! I absolutely love this NEW packaging of one of my favorites...THE WOLFMAN. It's complete with a documentary on the great JACK PIERCE!

from Ron Murphy

NEW version released today! GREAT EXTRAS including a commercial introduced by ED (In Color) for my BEATLES inflatable LUX/DOVE Soap dolls (Shows the store display too), ED interviewing THE BEATLES in England on the set of A HARD DAY'S NIGHT and many clips of ED talking about the BEATLES on his show with a clip of him and TOPO GIGIO dressed up like the BEATLES.

www.cartoonresearch.com Jerry Beck does some Quality cartoon research! The Burl Ives photo featured on his page is from my latest edition of THE ENCHANTED WORLD OF RANKIN/BASS: A PORTFOLIO. When I updated the book a few years back, I changed the photos on the BURL IVES FOREWORD page and this is one of the photos I used. It wasn't in the original editions of the book.

A visit to Olympic Skatepark Schaumburg, IL

A very Happy Labor day!

Backstage with Robin and Gary at SEPTEMBERFEST in Schaumburg, IL

My pal Robin Wilson (GIN BLOSSOMS) and Josh at Northbrook Skate park in Northbrook, IL

My daughter Sara and her boyfriend Joe!

GIN BLOSSOMS play SEPTEMBERFEST in Schaumburg, IL

Robin took us to this delicious restaurant!

September 28th (Same day as GIN BLOSSOMS "No Chocolate Cake")

The BRIGITTE BARDOT look is back at URBAN OUTFITTERS!

Tom (Dom Deloise) Frederick

HAPPY LABOR DAY!

R/B Labor Day sale! Email Rickgoldsc@aol.com