Annette Funicello was indeed an object of interest to all of us. I remember seeing guests being Honorary Mouseketeer and thinking I'd rather just be a regular Mouseketeer.
Of course, Annette really bloomed in all those beach movies, where Frankie Avalon was always her beau. And recall that Annette always wore a full bathing suit that concealed her navel, while all the other girls were in bikinis. And, wow, what TERRIBLE movies those were, though I'll confess that Eric Von Zipper was my favorite character.
The great sadness is that Annette contracted multiple sclerosis and lost her vision, was confined to a wheelchair by 2000.
L.
"Sometimes they write what I say and not what I mean." -Pedro Guerrero, baseball player, on reporters