“Dear Mr. Vernon …” On March 24, 1984, five students sat through detention in the Shermer High School library. Now, I take a look at my favorite movie of all time, The Breakfast Club. I break down the movie’s plot and give my review, sharing what makes it so special.
You can listen here:
Pop Culture Affidavit podcast page
In the episode, I mention a piece I wrote and posted last year about my changing feelings about Mr. Vernon. Here it is: Sympathy for Richard Vernon
After taking a look at The Things They Carried, it’s time to return to The ‘Nam with issue #14, “Fatigue Duty.” We spend our first issue after Ed Marks’s departure getting to know some of the other boys of the 23rd courtesy of Doug Murray and Wayne VanSant. As always, in addition to the summary and review of the issue I’ll be talking about the story’s historical context as well as taking a look at the letters, ‘Nam Notes, and ads.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
In Country Episode 15 direct link
Also, here is a link to The History Place, which is one of the resources I have been using for some of the historical notes in this episode: The History Place
After a year in The ‘Nam, I take a break to review and discuss Tim O’Brien’s 1990 novel, The Things They Carried, which is a seminal work in Vietnam War literature.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
In Country Episode 14 direct link
Furthermore, here is a link to the New York Times article I reference at one point: “A Storyteller for the War That Won’t End”
And here is the YouTube video that I referenced in the episode, which is part of a series of interviews with O’Brien …
Ed Marks’ tour in Vietnam ends in this issue as does Michael Golden’s tenure as the book’s penciller. Join me as I take a look at “… And a Wakeup,” the end of the first year of “The ‘Nam” courtesy of Doug Murray, Michael Golden, and Bob Camp. As always, in addition to the summary and review of the issue I’ll be talking about the story’s historical context as well as taking a look at the letters, ‘Nam Notes, and ads.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
John Severin does a fill-in issue on art and Doug Murray gives us a letter home from Ed Marks as the boys of the 23rd take part in Operation: Cedar Falls. It’s “From Cedar Falls, With Love” in “The ‘Nam” #12. Plus: Meatloaf, Humongous Rock Star of the Universe!
As always, in addition to the summary and review of the issue I’ll be talking about the story’s historical context as well as taking a look at the letters, ‘Nam Notes, and ads.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
The interior of Sayville Bowl. Image courtesy of MapQuest. Year unknown.
I went to a kid’s birthday party a few weeks ago. Normally, these are held at one of those huge playland places that have ball pits, inflatables, kiddie habitrails, and that have names like Bounce and Play or Adventure Central. This party, however, was at the local bowling alley, and as I watched my son bowl (well, more like drop the ball in the lane and rush back to the chair so he could see the computer animation), I couldn’t help but think of the number of bowling birthday parties I attended as a kid.
My birthday parties–and most of my friends’ birthday parties–were pretty standard back in the 1980s. We’d go to the birthday kid’s house, play a few games, eat pizza or hamburgers and hot dogs, drink way too much soda, and finish off with Carvel cake. Then everyone would go home with goody bags that matched the decorations–cups, plates, paper tablecloths, etc–for Star Wars, He-Man, or whatever the party’s theme was. Sometimes, the party would be a sleepover and we would put the parents through hell because hours of fun and hours of soda and candy equals no actual sleeping at the sleepover. The parties were straightforward and always fun.
But bowling parties were a reality and we considered them some of the most memorable at the time, even if they don’t measure up to the standards of today’s epic theme parties and play apparatus. Bowling at a birthday party in the early 1980s was some of the most fun you could have as a kid for a few hours, and Sayville Bowl was the typical AMF bowling center whose decor would remain so unchanged for years that when I was in high school and college it seemed like 1979-1983 were being preserved for posterity. I don’t remember being a particularly good bowler–it was a lot of gutterballs and not enough Superman III–but I remember having an enormous amount of fun anyway.
Sigh … it’s never Superman III. (more…)
The portrait studio section of an unknown Sears.
My sister and I cannot smile.
Okay, that’s not entirely true–we have the muscle function that is necessary to smile, but if you ask us to sit for a picture and smile for the camera, it’s likely you won’t get a genuine smile out of either of us. Instead, you’ll get what we refer to as “The Panarese Smile.”
A smile that is not so much an expression of happiness or delight as it is a grimace of discomfort or pain, The Panarese Smile has been a constant presence in family pictures since around the time the two of us were teenagers. Any time we got together with our extended family–usually a holiday like Christmas or Easter–all of the cousins would be corralled into one area of the house and have to sit for pictures. And when those pictures came out, you’d see that nancy and I looked like having our pictures taken was the absolutely last thing we wanted to do. In fact, in some of the pictures taken when I was in high school or college, I not only look like I’m in pain but my expression is downright hostile, as if I were saying, “You dragged my ass all the way out here and now you want me to pose for a picture? How dare you!”
I have no explanation as to why I was such a bitchy teenager. My life wasn’t hard and I had no reason to truly rebel. But I was just moody and bitchy half the time, and it would be especially so among my family during picture time. More than likely, I was annoyed that taking pictures meant that I had to put my book down or that I had to stop watching whatever game or movie I’d parked myself in front of to endure what seemed like endless torture at the hands of my mother and aunts.
Until I had to endure the portrait sessions of weddings, I had no idea how painful a photography session could be, but at fifteen or sixteen I wasn’t there yet so there was nothing more annoying than being asked to sit on the front porch of my grandmother’s house with the sun shining directly in my eyes while people with cameras yelled “Over here! Tommy! Look over here! Now over here!”
Actually, that’s a lie. There was one thing worse than several of those sessions put together. The Sears Portrait Studio. (more…)
1966 draws to a close as Doug Murray and Michael Golden bring us Christmas in the ‘Nam with issue #11 and “‘Tis the Season,” a story that shows that sometimes your favorite holidays can get interrupted by Charlie when you don’t really want them to. As always, in addition to the summary and review of the issue I’ll be talking about the story’s historical context as well as taking a look at the letters, ‘Nam Notes, and ads.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
Episode 10 of “In Country” covers issue 10 of The ‘Nam, where Ed Marks copes with the death of Mike Albergo from the previous issue while on patrol in the city. Plus, we get a little more insight into the character of Ramnarain in “Guerilla Action” by Doug Murray, Michael Golden, and John Beatty. As always, in addition to the summary and review of the issue I’ll be talking about the story’s historical context as well as taking a look at the letters, ‘Nam Notes, and ads.
You can download the episode via iTunes or listen directly at the Two True Freaks website
In Country Episode 10 direct link
Also, here is a link to 11th Cav ‘Nam, the site I used for some of the research in this episode: 11thcavnam.com
The latest episode is a little late but I promise you it’s well worth it. This time around I take a look at one of my absolute favorite rock and roll stories, Eddie and the Cruisers. I delve into P.F. Kluge’s original novel; talk about the 1983 feature film starring Michael Paré as Eddie Wilson, along with Tom Berenger and Ellen Barkin; and I even cover the sequel, Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! So come along for a rock and roll ghost story for the ages!
You can listen here:
Pop Culture Affidavit podcast page
Here is the trailer for Eddie and the Cruisers:
Here is the trailer for Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives!:
And just because it’s so cool, here’s the full Eddie and the Cruisers poster:
Pop Culture Affidavit 