The schedule

for putting out papers is different this week, so I'm not writing this

column at the usual time. I think it is very important for writers to

follow certain habits, such as writing in a comfortable space, at a comfortable

time. When I'm doing some creative writing and going really well, I'll

use the same pen until I'm not as "creatively juicy."

But now, it

is Saturday morning and I must pretend it is Monday. How's that for cruel?

That's like pretending Christmas is Arbor Day. Anyway, I still think I

have a good column here, so enjoy.

Recently, I

heard "The Christmas Song" by The Chipmunks and heard that the

person singing and supplying the voices was a young, and apparently struggling,

Luciano Pavarotti. Though you can't tell because the sound has been sped

up, Alvin, Simon and Theodore are all tenors.

I can just

imagine Pavarotti in the studio singing about wanting a hula hoop in his

amazing voice and then the producers speeding up the sound to make the

chipmunk voices. Every little giggle by Theodore was really a deep, hearty

laugh by Luciano. Each time The Chipmnks said "Ok" to Dave,

Pavarotti let out his booming agreement.

Interestingly

enough, the character of Dave, The Chipmunk's owner and producer, was

really played by a parrot named Flaps. Flaps' owner was the producer of

all the Chipmunks' albums and his name was of course, Alvin. By tweaking

the sound of Flaps' shrill shrieks of "Alvin," the producer

came up with the voice of the legendary Dave.

O.K., the last

part may not be true but the Pavarotti thing is. I swear. As proof, I

contacted Pavarotti and interviewed him about this period in his life.

Mike: Mr. Pavarotti,

thank you for talking with me.

Pavarotti:

(deep booming voice) Call me Lucy, please

Mike: I'd rather

not. So, you provided the voice for The Chipminks at the beginning of

their career?

Pavarotti:

Yes. At the time, I was singing showtunes in a strange bar in California,

where the men were better looking than the women. I was not making a lot

of money and I hadn't eaten a good meal in weeks.

Mike: What

did you weigh back then?

Pavarotti:

A buck 50.

Mike: (whistles

like he can't believe it)

Pavarotti:

A producer came backstage after my set one night and asked me to come

down to his studio the next day. He wanted to record some Christmas songs

because if one was a hit, it would be a hit forever and the money would

come in each year. I sang "Adeste Fideles," which I have made

a hit in my own voice recently, and a couple of others. We were in the

studio for hours. During a break, one of the producers, who had been huffing

some model glue, started playing with the knobs during playback. He sped

up my voice during "Jingle Bells" and the rest is history.

Mike: Incredible.

Did you play The Chipmunks on television as well?

Pavarotti:

No. By the time the networks wanted The Chipmunks for TV, the producer

realized that he could speed up his own voice and it would sound similar.

I went