Week Twelve: Try-Your Luck Party

Are you one of those who like to try your luck?
Do you blame it on Dame Fortune when you're stuck?
If you are lucky, you will join us Friday night --
You will have a chance to try your luck all right.
Bring your rabbit's foot and be on hand at eight;
The place is Harry's and 'twill be unlucky to be late.

So, obviously, the first requirement for the Try-Your-Luck Party is that you either change your name to Harry or become close enough friends with a Harry that he'll let you throw a party as his place. This, however, is becoming increasingly difficult in this day and age, as the name -- and even the nickname -- of Harry is falling out of favor. Maybe Prince Harry will host this one?

No matter. And certainly no matter on the decorations, per Cokesbury:

Crepe paper streamers would be sufficient for decorations. As there is no particular color scheme, any kind of decorations, such as potted plants or flowers, would be suitable.

How lamentable. Of course, this is before Las Vegas -- but only just. Nevada rancher Phil Tobin -- himself no gambler -- helped push through a bill to legalize gambling int he state in 1931, the same year Las Vegas got its first paved road and first traffic light. So it goes without saying that any thought of decorating then with a Las Vegas theme would have brought blank stares. Thus the potted plants. We may be a little luckier today. Let's start that luck with a little Frank Sinatra:



But back in 1932, Frankie was just an amateurish singing snot getting kicked out of school, so Cokesbury can't even turn to him to liven things up. So what's the big Try-Your-Luck draw at Cokesbury? A Try-Your-Luck Shorthand Puzzle.

Have the following letters written on a blank sheet of paper. Guests are asked to write out common combinations of latters, as F.O.B., etc. You will not that there are seventy-seven of these latter -- that is, seven times eleven:

B W P A Y M U W S U C
T K A A B V A O L M K
C A E C B A O R E C K
S Y O I O I O F Y R F
S A V R P C O A D W D
O S D T S U P D A O A
P O D P P F K D U B K

The following are combinations that can be made from these letters. The letters should bchecked off as used, for none can be used more than once:

CE, USA, MD, AWOL, SOS, COD, IOU, AD, OK, BPYU, WCTU, RSVP, PS, PTA, FOB, AAA, YWCA, BPOE, IOOF, BVD, KP, YMCA, FRD, KKK, DAR.

Enough of these are obscure enough most everyone won't know what they stand for, but somehow I wonder if luck can really be associated with the Womens Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), the Baptist Young Peoples Union (BYPU) or the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE). And as for luck associated with the KKK, well, I'm not even going there.

Let's move on to something a bit more sophisticated:

Try Your Luck on Ringing Rosy. Divide the group into two parts. This may be done by number off and two and letting the ones form one group and the twos another. Have a boy, perferably a slim one, to dress up in some kind of comic girl's costume and pose as Rosy. Each group is given a large barrel hoop, and from a point about ten feet away each tries to ring rosy. Give a prize of lollypops to each one of the group that rings Rosy the most times.

Fundamentally, there are several things wrong with this. Do you really want to encourage people to lob barrel hoops at a person from ten feet away? Remember, these things are lightweight, but tehy are made of metal. How many hits to the face does Rosy have to take until Rosy is allowed to retire and nurse his wounds? The winers may get lollypops, but the one who really deserves the prize is Rosy.

If you want a better game, try this one:

Brunswick Stew. Pin on the backs of guests the names of te ingredients of Brunswick stew, as beef, potatoes, turnips, carrots, salt, rice, pepper, onions, water, celery, tomatoes, aitchbone, pork, parsnips, butter. There are fifteen ingredients. The guests that gets them all written first wins. Of course this will be difficult to do, as one must try to keep others from reading what is on his back.

Now this has that good Las Vegas feel, as in there may be occasions in crowds when you wouldn't want to turn your back on people. But really, for a true Las Vegas gaming night, you might want to choose, as is my experience, from the following activities:

Guess Why Your Feet Are Black. Guests walk around barefoot on the carpet of their cheaper hotel for five minutes. Everyone sits and displays their feet, which should be black on the bottoms. Try to guess why.

Dodge the Fish Slappers. When you're walking from attraction to attraction, try to avoid eye contact with the numerous individuals passing out laminated cards on which are advertised the latest in pornographic Las Vegas offerings. They get their Fish Slapper monickers from the fact that to get your attention, they slap the bundles of cards they're holding on their legs.

I know, I know. It's not a Las Vegas party. It's a Try-Your-Luck Party. But it's just not all that lucky, because if I hadn't tied in the Las Vegas stuff, this post would be very short, because the only thing we have left to write about are the refreshments - which, Cokesbury advises, should be provided from a scrambled menu so your guests won't really know what they're getting. Once the fun is over, Cokesbury advises ice-cream and cake or hot chocolate and sandwiches. After a party like that one, I think i'd recommend booze.

That's it until next week, but next week will be, as Babbitt might put it, a "real corker!" It's an All-Fools' Party. Until then, luck be a lay-deeeee, tonight . . .