Welcome to the Open Mike Blog where author and comic Mike Carlon shares reflections on life, liberty, and the pursuit of laughter. Sometimes the joke is on him.
The Daily Smile Day 5: Columbo
There have been many game changers in the police procedural genre. I remember when NYPD Blue debuted and it was so "edgy," what with the foul language and nudity that was so racy for network TV. Law and Order and its ripped from the headlines take on plot lines...
The Daily Smile Day 4: The Love Boat
I have a confession to make, I've never been on a cruise. When I lived in Florida, my mother and father took my older brother and sister on a cruise on a ship called The Flavia. Jimmy and I didn't care because we were afraid of anything that went on the open seas....
The Daily Smile Day 3: What’s Old is New Again
I became the father of triplets at the ripe of age of 27. When you have triplets, you realize that you've been lied to your entire life. I'm sure that, at some point in your life, you were told, "There's no such thing as a stupid question." That's a lie, there is....
The Daily Smile Day 2: Pippilino
We are dog people. There it is, I said it. Despite the fact that our father always proclaimed, "I don't like dogs, but dogs like me," all of the Carlon siblings are dog people. Even my older brother Greg, who fought hard against getting a dog, is now the pet parent of...
Introducing, The Daily Smile
So, I really feel as if this picture summarizes it all. Brotherhood. Love. The carefree days of our youth. We remain close as adults and, even though we don’t see each other as much as we’d like, we can easily pick up where we left off.
Dare to be Great
In March of 2004, I was working for Unilever and was fortunate enough to attend our annual sales meeting. It was held in Kiawah Island, South Carolina that year and the theme was Dare to be Great. I’m not sure who came up with the theme, but remember Mark Bernard...
The Diane O’Connell Interview
“All I had to do was love them.”
His name is Mike and he likes computers
When my wife and I were going through premarital counseling, we had to attend a workshop with other engaged couples. On the first night of that workshop in 1998, all of us had to introduce our future spouses to the group. When it was my wife's turn to introduce me,...
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
The set designer expertly recreated what I remember from my childhood and I found myself getting emotional during the film. I watched Mr. Rogers Neighborhood religiously as a kid in the 1970s. It got me thinking of how much simpler of a time it was then the time in which our kids are living.