Florida's Film, Television and the Arts Magazine
THE PENSACOLA CONNECTION For June 2026
This month: A review of ‘Pensa-Keyla Day’ on “American Idol,” an update on the road to “Kookville,” and a strange new sitcom discovery from classic radio…
FIRST: What an incredible month of May it has been for the City of Pensacola, and "American Idol" Season 24 finalist & hometown music teacher Keyla Richardson. First on May 6th, a special mural of Keyla was spray-painted on the 17th Avenue Graffiti Bridge, then the city threw an afternoon downtown parade in her honor, with signage of “PensaKeyla” all over town, then a special evening live televised vocal performance for the “American Idol” show at the Maritime Community Park Amphitheater on the Bayfront behind the Wahoo Little League Baseball Stadium. Almost a week later, the episode streamed on the “American Idol” season finale show on May 11th, with watch parties all over the City of Five Flags. Still, for all the ballyhoo and high spiritual support from family, friends and fans, Keyla finished in 3rd Place, behind Jordan McCulloch in 2nd Place, and Hanna Harper in 1st Place, according to panel judges Lionel Richie, Carrie Underwood, and Luke Bryan. All 3 performed a trio cover of Carrie’s “Champion.” (Of course, Keyla’s mother insisted: “My baby was robbed!”) Still, she did get the Keys to the City from Mayor D.C. Reeves. Plus: she still has a solo concert at the Saenger Theater on South Palafox Street coming up on July 25th. So as far as this reporter is concerned, for anyone from Pensacola to rise as far as Richardson did, on “American Idol” or any other such TV talent competition, is an historic milestone for Northwest Florida, and a lasting credit to herself, and to God and country. CONGRATS to a living local legend! ‘PENSA-KEYLA!!’ (See video links below...)
“Champion” group number: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM33wI1NQSc&list=RDvM33wI1NQSc&start_radio=1
WEAR-TV Channel 3 News spot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0xWsVAXFpA
Hometown Concert & Parade segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5kFZdz4vc4
NEXT: Well… Looks like the road to “Kookville” just got…kookier. In case you’re wondering: that’s the original Pensacola-based low budget adult humor sitcom series with local cast, crew and locations, that is the brainchild of Northwest Florida native writer, director & producer Milan Smith. He stars as Dominic O’Conner, an Atlanta-based newspaper reporter who is assigned by his lady boss, to go and investigate the fictional small town of Plainsville, Florida, where all the locals are---yep---kooks; or rather, total eccentrics, each with their own wild story to tell. Whether its 2 redneck brothers hunting the elusive Skunk Ape, a queenly hometown paper editor boss lady, a homicidal community stage theater, or a crazy old man who imagines himself a king and orders a “running of the jackasses” race, Dom has to get to the bottom of things, before he goes crazy, too. This has been an ongoing project for Smith since 2022, and is independently funded by online view donation sites like Filmhub or GoFundMe.com. And most recently: Smith has announced that Amazon Prime Video has picked up the first 2 episodes of his series for global internet streaming. Here’s wishing Milan all the best with his show, before the paddy wagon with the white coats & straightjacket come hunting for him and the rest of the town. For more information, please visit the group’s Facebook page, or go to their website, at: https://kookville.com.
AND FINALLY: It is absolutely amazing what you can spontaneously discover, just from messing about on a computer on a lazy afternoon. There I was: casually browsing YouTube for any more movies or TV shows with Pensacola connections...and what do you think I come across? An old 1940’s radio sitcom mentioning Pensacola. Yes, I said ‘sitcom,’ not 'news documentary' or 'motion picture.' It was the rare old 1949 series “Our Miss Brooks” starring Eve Arden as a former hospital nurse turned Madison High School English teacher, with little Walter Denton and their landlady Mrs. Davis. At first all I found was just a sample clip, but it lit such a fire under my seat, I just HAD to find the rest of it. Anyway, in Episode 51 of the series: Mrs. Davis tells of a cookie recipe she received from a friend in Florida, called: “Pensacola Popovers.” She bakes up a batch and tells of the ingredients, leaving Walter and Miss Brooks feeling a little more than sickly. Brooks decides to take a batch to work to share with the boss and his pet monkey…with mixed results. I’m not exactly going to bake up a batch myself. Still, this is certainly an amazing find to me, and very well preserved & restored. I wonder how many more such radio footprints are still out there, and in more than just music and news now. A new trail to blaze in the near future, and perhaps another new scrapbook of Pensacola connections to chronicle. Meanwhile, just check out the links below:
Old Tyme Comedy Radio sample clip: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1229187632454489
“Our Miss Brooks” Episode 51: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfNATEfqKzk
Okay, that’s it, June bugs! Summer’s off to a hot start.
Until it’s 4th of July in the sky, Later, Gators!
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Sincerely yours, KENNETH L. MANNING
Your Pensacola Connection
49 Murphy Lane, Pensacola, FL 32505
Phone: 1-850-287-2581
Email: [email protected]
