A Top Ten Memoir: 1970 - “There’s nothing sadder than the tears of a clown when there’s no one around.”

I turned 7 in 1970 and had my annual birthday party, a sign that we were trying to get back to normal after my father’s death two months earlier.  These were always big events and usually each of my siblings and I had our own celebrations.  Mine came first in February, followed by my brothers in March, and my sister in early April. It was always great h…