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Spit take
I watched a lot of television growing up. During prime time, I watched the “must see TV” shows and I spent the rest of the time wading through some not-so-worthy programs that littered the TV landscape. After school, I watched reruns of older shows like The Brady Bunch, I Love Lucy, and Gilligan’s Island. I found that sitcoms in particular—everything from gems like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Seinfeld to stinkers like ALF and Small Wonder—warned me that life might be full of any number of zany twists and turns. For example, I lived in fear of being trapped in a meat locker or suffering amnesia after getting bonked on the head. I’ve never in my life made a soufflé but if I did, I’d know that an unexpected loud noise would surely cause it to collapse. I’ve spent a good amount of time needlessly strategizing methods for getting myself out of a pit of quicksand and I’ve thought very hard about what I would do if my friends and I suddenly decided to put on a talent show for charity. I surely never had two dates to the junior prom, but if I did, I would know how to go back and forth between them without either person catching on (until much later, when hurt feelings would be mended over a slice of pizza). Television comedies have prepared me for doppelgangers, evil twins, goofy neighbors, funny sidekicks, dream sequences, flashbacks, hiding in closets, inadvertently catching someone in the shower, burning dinner, and a whole lot more. When things get serious and crazy antics make way for heartfelt conversations, I know just what to do. If the situation is too heavy for shenanigans, I think about the wisdom I gleaned from those “very special episodes”. In sitcoms, all can be resolved in 22 minutes. In real life, things just might take a bit longer. In either case, a pie in the face can lighten the mood.
Stay safe and healthy,
Tracy Jacobs
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Thursday, October 16
5:30–6 p.m. Welcome Reception
6–8 p.m. Program
Towson University Union
$25 per person*
Are you fascinated by criminal investigations? Have you ever wondered how crimes are solved when there is minimal evidence left behind? Find out what the television shows and podcasts get right (and wrong) about forensic science. Learn about the varied aspects of real-world forensics including the tools and techniques used both locally and abroad. Join Dana Kollmann, Ph.D., to learn more about the intriguing world of forensics. *Fee includes parking and reception.
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The Penn Museum in Philadelphia
Friday, October 10
$86 per person
Open to Osher members and guests
Join us for the upcoming trip to the Penn Museum in Philadelphia, where we’ll have a guided tour featuring the museum’s highlights. The Penn Museum is home to over a million extraordinary artifacts and archaeological finds from across the world. After the guided tour, explore other areas of interest in the museum and enjoy lunch on your own in the Museum Café.
The bus will depart from 2801 Smith Avenue, Pikesville, MD 21208 at 8:00 a.m. and will return at approximately 5:30 p.m.
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International Observe the Moon Night
Saturday, October 4, 7:30 p.m.
Science Complex Atrium
You do not need to register for this free event.
Towson University invites you to celebrate our closest celestial neighbor, the Moon! The evening kicks off with NASA’s “What’s Up in the Night Sky” in the Atrium, followed by a special lunar-themed planetarium show presented by Dr. Alan Jackson and Prof. Chris Ready. We will finish the night by turning our telescopes to the Moon for breathtaking views you won’t want to miss (weather permitted).
Enter the campus using Research Way from York Road. The Science Complex is on the right. Free parking is available after 3 p.m. on Friday through Sunday in the Glen Parking Garage, directly across from the Science Complex.
Learn more about the TU Planetarium.
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Join The Baltimore Hebrew Institute at Towson University for
A Night at the Museum
Thursday, October 9
6–8 p.m.
The Jewish Museum of Maryland, 15 Lloyd Street, Baltimore, MD 21202
Reception to follow. Dietary laws observed. Free parking available in neighborhood and community lot.
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50 Years of SNL:
From Sketchy Beginnings to a Sketch Comedy Legacy
Friday, October 10, 4 p.m. ET
Saturday Night Live turns 50 this October. When the show debuted on October 11, 1975, no one at NBC thought it would last. Stiff buttoned-down NBC executives found creator Lorne Michaels and his ragged counterculture team repugnant. That the show made it to 50 weeks (much less 50 years) is a bit of a miracle.
This special Osher Online community event will feature Jeff Weingrad, journalist and co-author of Saturday Night: A Backstage History of Saturday Night Live, the definitive account of the show’s tumultuous beginnings. First published in 1986, the book has been reissued in a special 50th-anniversary edition with a new forward. Weingrad’s career has included reporting for outlets such as The New York Post, The Associated Press, and TV Guide. His work offers a vivid look at how Saturday Night Live overcame its rocky start to become a cultural institution. The presentation will be 60 minutes followed by Q&A.
Community events are FREE and available to ALL members of our participating Institutes, even if they are not enrolled in an Osher Online course. Events are presented in webinar format.
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There are some things humanity isn’t meant to know
Ever wonder about living on Mars? Is there an intelligent species in another world with purple skin? Will humans ever communicate telepathically? What would Earth be like if the Spanish Armada had defeated the English? Do aliens live among us, and if so, do they think we're good to eat? For the answers to these and other burning questions, join your new local friendly Osher Science Fiction Book Club! Science fiction isn't only for nerdy teen boys or people who love "Star Wars" or "Star Trek." It's for anyone who's curious about the world around them and wants to exercise their imagination. Those who've never read something in this genre are welcome, as are those who've been reading it for decades. Join us, as we explore the Universe and push the limits of our own minds, in the Osher Science Fiction Book Club. This book club will meet on Zoom starting in November. Free to current Osher members.
To learn more, send an email to SF_OsherTU@yahoo.com, or talk to Dori Grasso.
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Grow It. Protect It. Pass It On.
Daily live webinars, October 20–24, 12–1 p.m. ET
Free for students, alumni, parents, faculty, and staff across the University System of Maryland.
Estate planning is more than a will. From getting an early start on your financial plan (hello, compounding!) to naming someone you trust for health care and financial decisions—plus ways to create a legacy for the people and causes you care about—this free series during National Estate Planning Awareness Week covers the essentials and beyond. (Reminder: if you don’t make your own arrangements, the courts and state will decide for you.)
Across five hour-long sessions, our experts will help you see the full picture:
- Build and protect wealth—and why starting early lets the power of compounding work for you
- Plan beyond wills and trusts
- Empower trusted helpers (financial power of attorney, health care proxy, advance directive, HIPAA releases)
- Navigate special family situations
- Define your vision for intergenerational wealth
- Include the charities that matter most to you
- Choose—or serve as—an estate representative
Who can attend? Anyone with a connection to the 12 institutions that make up the University System of Maryland. Can’t join live? Sign up anyway—we’ll send the recordings to everyone who registers so you can watch anytime.
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If you would like to honor a friend or loved one with a donation in their memory, please consider supporting Osher at Towson University with a gift to the Osher Excellence Fund.
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