Billy Joel’s “The Longest Time”: Remembering a sleep over

Junior high seems so close yet so far away at the same time. It’s not so much about time, but how much happened when I went to high school.

Going to a brand new school for Grade 10, offered the opportunity to re-invent myself. It was a chance to meet new people who had similar interests to mine, not just hang out with people I had known since Grade 1.

Back in junior high I was kind of trapped on the farm. No licence, and hard to find a ride to town.

So, one of the things I just valued so much was the sleep over in town. I didn’t have to hop the bus after school, but got to stay in town and hang out with my friends.

There is one sleep over I remember specifically, in Grade 9.

Every time I hear “The Longest Time” by Billy Joel, which was all over the radio waves at the time, I think back to that sleep over in Coaldale.

Sleep over
I am not quite sure how I became friends with Joe Darveau. We just seemed to start hanging out together, because I think we were interested in the same things, such as computers, science fiction, and video games.

We talked about all that stuff at school but, because I had to go home on the school bus every night, never got to see it at his house.

One day, he invited me over for a sleep over Friday night to Saturday night, and it was a great night. It was while we were walking to his place after school that I started humming “The Longest Time” I had heard it earlier that day, and it stuck in my head like another ear worm.

Lights out
Joe’s bedroom was in the basement, so we had the privacy to stay up and talk as long as we wanted.

He was a really neat guy, always tinkering with stuff. One thing I will always remember was this thing he set up in his room. Using a system of strings, pulleys and stuff from a Mechano set, he rigged up a contraption to turn the bedroom lights on and off without getting out of bed. There were two metal pads he could reach from his bed. When he pulled one day, the lights went off. When he pulled the other one down, the lights came back on. It was so cool.

The big screen
We both aspired to design video games, and talked about it at school. Joe had a Commodore VIC-20, which was one of the original, accessible, easy-to-program home computers. It didn’t have a lot of memory, but Joe did some neat things with graphics.

He also had this text adventure game he played. Back then, with so little memory, there were adventure games, patterned on a quest like the ones in “Dungeons and Dragons”, that were all text. When you played, you literally typed in your next move, and the computer responded. The different characters, because more than one could play, were in different coloured letters, and the computer was in a different colour again.

Joe wanted to show me this game. He usually used a small, black and white TV as a monitor in the basement of his house. However, his parents would let him use their big colour TV in the upstairs living room if no one else was using it. So he plugged it in, and we could see the game in action in colour. I had seen it on the black and white TV too, and the colour one made a huge difference.

By the way, I had this idea of creating adventure games like that one, with graphics. I wasn’t the only one with that idea, because it is a multi-billion dollar industry now.

Trek time
Before we hooked the Commodore VIC-20 into the big TV, we watched something on Channel 9. It was the “Mudd’s Women” episode of “Star Trek”. Up to that point I had heard about “Star Trek”, read a lot about it, even read novelizations of episodes, but never seen a live action episode on TV.

That was the first, and it was as cool as I imagined.

Dungeons and Dragons
Watching “Stranger Things” has brought back a lot of cool memories of the 1980s, especially junior high. Recently, I saw an episode where they were playing “Dungeons and Dragons”, and it reminded me of that sleep over.

In the afternoon, our friend Shawn Kingston came over, and I got to play my first ever game of “Dungeons and Dragons”. Joe was the dungeon master and he and Shawn taught me how to play. They had been playing for awhile, and even played at noon hour at St. Joe’s. Shawn used an exercise book for all his “Dungeons and Dragons”, I remember that, because I thought that was cool. He had everything in one spot, and could always look back.

So, they helped me create my first ever character. I was a cleric, and what I remember most was that I could not use bladed weapons, which made it tough in battle. It was only later that I put together that a cleric was a priest, or holy man. At the time I just liked the sound of it. Once I discovered the meaning, I liked it more. I even created a cleric character in a fantasy novel I wrote a few years ago.

The song
“The Longest Time” was the fourth single off Billy Joel’s 1983 album “An Innocent Man”. It was released in March of 1984 and went all the way to number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Parting thoughts
Like anything, the sleep over came to an end. My parents picked me up late Saturday afternoon, and it was back to the farm. I never stayed over to Sunday, because I had to go to church with my Dad Sunday mornings.

Shawn and Joe stayed really good friends of mine through Grade 9. We even all ended up sitting at Grade 9 grad together with our parents.

Every time I hear “The Longest Time” and, when I see the guys playing “Dungeons and Dragons” on “Stranger Things”, I think back to that sleep over, when I hummed that song while doing all these cool things.

“Break My Stride”: Remembering my first ghetto blaster

 

It was the Christmas that changed everything. In 1984, I got a ghetto blaster from my Mom and Dad, that just helped my interest in music just explode.

Yet, it was not so much the medium as the message. With all due respect to Marshall McLuhan, it wasn’t the recorder, but the music that mattered. The ghetto blaster just recorded it for posterity.

Recently, I found on YouTube a list of top 100 songs from 1984. Hearing one led to memories of others.

That’s because the first thing I recorded in earnest, was the year-end countdown on LA-107 FM.

And it all started with “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder.

The gift
One of my closest friends, Mat, had a good job in Grade 10 and bought himself a ghetto blaster from Simpson Sears. It was state of the art at the time with two tape decks and this feature called synchro-dubbing. If you were taping one tape off the other, you could press the pause button and both tape decks would pause.

He was really good with technology. Mat would tape songs off the radio and use that ghetto blaster like a surgeon and trim away any hint of commercials or talking. He would buy these chromium dioxide tapes from Radio Shack and make these great mixed tapes. He even made one for me. He then added to it when I asked if he could tape “Out of Touch” by Hall and Oates. Sure enough he did – perfectly.

Christmas was coming, and I mentioned to my Mom how much I like Mat’s ghetto blaster.

Sure enough, that ghetto blaster was sitting under the tree when I opened my presents on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1984.

Whole new world
Having that ghetto blaster opened up a whole new world to me. I could tape anything I wanted off the radio, other tapes, or even the TV, whatever I wanted.

I did a little bit of that, but Christmas break was busy with family and other things.

That changed on New Year’s Eve.

The top 100
I may not have necessarily been recording a whole bunch, but I was using the ghetto blaster as a radio a lot. It was perfect for background noise while I played Intellivision in my room or designed programs on my Commodore-64 personal computer.

Initially, I bought into the hype of some of my classmates, who loved LA-107 FM, and didn’t like 1090 CHEC its equivalent on AM. Mat, on the other hand, did listen to CHEC a lot, and soon I came around to listening to both.

One day, when I was listening to LA-107, they were promoting their year-end countdown. LA-107 was an album-oriented rock station, meaning they focused on albums more than singles. That meant they would play more than one song from an album.

It also meant their year-end countdown was the top 100 albums of 1984, not singles.

I planned on checking it out.

New Year’s Day
Back then, more than now, New Year’s Day meant college football bowl games. We didn’t get much college football on peasant vision, just bowl games. It was limited. The Cotton Bowl was on CBC Channel 9, while on CTV Channel 13 were the Rose Bowl in the afternoon and the Orange Bowl in primetime.

I tuned in to the top 100 when it started and discovered something I had never really contemplated. The countdown would take the better part of the day. In fact, I think it was set to conclude at midnight.

Initially, I had thought I could get every song I really wanted by listening to the countdown, but that was only possible if I sat by the radio for the next eight or nine hours.

I started to do that, taping songs that I liked.

After awhile though, I wanted to watch the Orange Bowl because the team I liked then, the Oklahoma Sooners, were playing the Washington Huskies.

I still wanted to monitor the countdown. In our farm house, we had this room off the side of the house we called the veranda. It wasn’t very big, and served mostly as a greenhouse for my Mom’s plants. It also had the best view to watch for the school bus in the morning.

So, I set up my ghetto blaster on the floor of the veranda and periodically popped in there to check on the top 100, and if a song I liked was playing so I could record it. Usually, that was in the commercial breaks of the football game.

The songs
Some of the songs I taped are still pretty vivid in my mind and I believe I still have that tape sitting in a case in my garage.

The ones I recall are “Meet Me in the Middle” by the Arrows; and “Don’t Stop” by Chilliwack.

There was also “Dear Darling” by Dennis DeYoung. He was best known as the lead singer of Styx, but had put out a solo album that year called “Desert Moon”. The single of the same name was awesome. I had hoped to tape it when I heard “Desert Moon” was the next album on the countdown. However, this was the thing about album-oriented rock. LA-107 did not play “Desert Moon”, but opted for another song. It was called “Dear Darling”. I had hit record in anticipation of “Desert Moon”, but let it keep recording because “Dear Darling” was a great song too.

Of course, the other song I recall recording was, “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder.

I don’t recall where his album charted on the LA-107 top 100, but “Break My Stride” went all the way to number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming a hit for him in late 1983 and the Spring of 1984.

Parting thoughts
That ghetto blaster was a game changer for me. It opened up the music world to me, not only providing access to music, but the chance to record it for posterity – and I have.

That all began really, with that top 100 on New Year’s Eve of 1984.

For whatever reason, “Break My Stride” is the song that sticks out among all the songs I recorded.

Every time I hear it, as I did on that YouTube compilation from 1984, it reminds me of that moment in time.

It’s fitting that a top 100 in 2023 reminds me of a top 100 in 1984.

“Twist of Fate”: Remembering a time of transitions

It would be a reminder of things that changed forever.

“Twist of Fate” by Olivia Newton-John was playing when I had my last sleep over with an old friend, and also the moment my Mom came to realize her dad was no longer capable of doing the things he had always done.

So every time I hear that song, I enjoy it, sing along, and also remember a time of transitions.

Bus rider
In Grade 10, I was still hanging out with the guys I hung out with in junior high at St. Joe’s Elementary Junior High. That would soon change for a variety of reasons.

Yet, in the spring I was still friends with Joe Darveau. He was an interesting guy who did interesting things. He played Dungeons and Dragons, and he had a Commodore VIC-20 he played on. He was always tinkering with things, played video games at McLennan’s, the arcade in Coaldale, and watched “Star Trek”.

We arranged for him to sleep over at the farm, so we could play Intellivision, design video games on my Commodore 64, watch TV, and roam the farm.

So, he rode the school bus home with me, which was pretty common then.

When we got in the front door, I saw something that, as it turned out, was a life changer.

My grandfather
We were greeted by my Opa Jetz, my Mom’s father. He was working on this stand alone closet we had in what we called the porch of our house. It was the long room you entered when you walked through the front door. Opa was a little out of breath and packing up his tools. He said goodbye to us and soon left.

Later, Mom would tell me she shouldn’t have asked her dad to do that. He was so out of breath, and struggled to do the simplest things. He had emphysema and that was becoming more and more obvious. He was obviously slowing down, and the worst part was he knew it.

That would be the last time he ever did any sort of carpentry, or work for that matter, for us.

Mom had resolved not to ever ask him again.

The weekend
Joe and I had a good weekend, playing video games, trying to design our own, wandering the farm, and watching TV. He was kind of disappointed by TV because he lived in town and had cable TV. We lived in the three channel universe on the farm.

Joe also seemed different too. He seemed preoccupied because, kind of like he really wanted to be somewhere else.

My Mom offered him some lunch on noon of the Saturday. He said he was not interested, unless it was baloney and mustard. I told Mom that. A few minutes later she called us for supper. Joe again declined. She said she had baloney and mustard. I told him, and he jumped up and to the kitchen table in an instant.

At that point, I realized we were no longer in the same place in our lives.

The song
“Twist of Fate” was playing the day Joe came home on the bus with me. I remember the song running through my head, and singing the chorus that whole afternoon – on the bus, walking down the driveway, and talking to my Opa Jetz. It was what we now call an ear worm.

The song was recorded by Olivia Newton-John for the movie “Two of a Kind”, in which she reunited with co-star John Travolta. They had also appeared in the smash hit “Grease” in 1978.

Wikipedia reveals “Twist of Fate” was produced by David Foster and, when I read that, it does have that David Foster feel and sound to it. In 1986 Olivia Newton-John would team up with Foster on a duet called “The Best of Me’.

“Twist of Fate” was released in October of 1983 and went all the way to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was Olivia Newton-John’s last top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Parting thoughts
Joe would never come to visit again, and he disappeared from my life soon after.

We had just grown apart, in different directions. He had new and different friends, and so did I.

The high school lunch room: Remembering “The Warrior” by Scandal

The high school lunch room may have been one of the most intimidating places in high school, for a Grade 10er at least.

It wasn’t so much there was any bullying or harassing going on. There were just so many people and I didn’t know any of them. It wasn’t like elementary and junior high where we ate in our classroom and knew everyone.

Then, one day, someone from my class, a fellow Grade 10, walked through the front doors of the school and into the lunch room, with his ghetto blaster blaring “The Warrior”.

It may have been no big deal to anyone else, but to me it is still a very vivid image. It still comes to mind when I hear the song.

Hanging out
His name was Jayson Meyers and he was a really good guy. Once he came through the front doors, with that song playing, he sat at the same table I was at and just started talking to the whole table, not any one or two people in particular.

He said he recorded the song off the radio on this tape he bought at the SAAN Store with pre-recorded music on it. It was one of those cheap K-tel-like greatest hits tapes. He said it was a perfectly good tape, so he just taped over all the K-tel selections with his own music.

One of the songs was “The Warrior” by Scandal featuring Patty Smythe.

The song
“The Warrior” was released in June of 1984 and went all the way to number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Wikipedia reveals one of the song writers, along with Holly Knight was Nick Gilder. When I was growing up he was best known for a number one hit of his own called “Hot Child in the City.”

Moving on
In second semester of Grade 10, so the early part of 1985, I stopped eating in the lunch room. I had joined the “Reach For The Top” team and they practised in the coach, Mr. Ryan’s room, over lunch hour. So I started eating there.

Eventually, we migrated to his office, and spent our lunch time there. It was a lot more fun, less intimidating, and chaotic than the lunch room.

By Grade 12, I had a licence and some of my friends did too, so we were doing other things at noon time. I had left the lunch room behind forever.

Parting thoughts
It is such an odd, but vivid, memory of Jayson Meyers walking through he doors into the lunch room with that ghetto blaster and “The Warrior” playing.

Yet, when I hear it, I am back in the lunch room at Kate Andrews High School in Coaldale in late September of 1984.

It may have meant nothing to everyone else but, to me, it symbolized the fact that no one really cared. There was no bullying, no mocking, scoffing. Some liked the song, some didn’t, and most didn’t care and went on with what they were doing.

It just made the place a little less intimidating for me.

“Miss me Blind” by Culture Club: The Germans are coming

It was the song playing on an old transistor radio hanging on a wall in an upholstery shop in Lethbridge.

That shop was the conclusion of a long journey of a branch of my family from Germany to Lethbridge. Oh not the same immigrant experience my own family had.

No, this was immigration 1980s style that began with a summertime visit.

The song playing the day we went to visit my Mom’s cousin at his upholstery shop was “Miss Me Blind” by Culture Club, and it takes me back to the journey of the Goetz family.

Twisted family tree
My Oma, my Mom’s mother, had several sisters. The youngest was Elizabeth Goetz, who had been my Mom’s favourite aunt. Elizabeth had been married to Michael Goetz who was killed in the war. Oddly, he was my Opa’s nephew.

This is how twisted my family tree is. My Mom’s cousin on her Dad’s side was married to her aunt on her mom’s side. That means her cousin was her uncle by marriage, and her aunt was her cousin-in-law. For my Opa, his nephew was also his brother-in-law, and his niece-in-law was also his sister-in-law. Incredibly this happened two more times, so my Mom had three cousins from one side married to three aunts on the other side.

Anyway, Elizabeth had two sons, but one was tragically killed when he was hit by lightning. The other was Eugan, or Eugene in English. After the war, the two of them lived with my Mom’s family.

The Goetzes were actually there to see off my family when they boarded a ship bound for Canada.

Chances were, they would never see them again.

My Canadian cousins
That all changed in the summer of 1982, I think. Eugan had actually married and had three children. Elizabeth, Eugan, his wife Sylvia, and their youngest daughter Bianca came to visit. Elizabeth and Bianca stayed with us, while Eugan and Sylvia stayed with my Uncle Witold and Tante Lotte just up the road on their farm.

We toured them all over the place, and I played games with Bianca, including Yahtzee; and chess, which she called Schach, the German word for chess.

We also played my new toy, Intellivision, and the game “Space Armada”, which was just a knock-off of “Space Invaders”. The game had two settings. Game was normal speed, while Practice was slower. Bianca did not speak a lot of English so I called Practice “Langsam”, which is the German word for slow, and Game “Schnell”, which is the German word for fast. It worked well enough.

Bianca would also ride around the farm on my bike, which was decked out like a motocross bike with pedals.

Meanwhile, my Mom spent a lot of time with her aunt, and Eugan and Sylvia would come over all the time as well. They were your stereotypical loud, gregarious Germans. You could almost hear “Roll Out the Barrels” every time they came in the room.

After what seemed like a couple months, they went back to Germany.

Unbeknownst to me at that point, they would be back.

Coming to Canada
Talk had already begun about Eugan and his family immigrating to Canada. It was exciting. I was only 13 maybe 14, so I really wasn’t in the loop. I do recall hearing updates, including Eugan going to Bonn to fill out some papers. That seemed so cool and exotic, because Bonn was the capital of West Germany back then.

Anyway, eventually the idea became reality. Eugan was coming to Canada with his son Ingolf, who was the oldest; daughter Michaela, the middle child and oldest daughter; and Bianca.

It turns out, Ingolf was up for mandatory military service in West Germany, and they wanted to avoid that. I cannot blame the family. The family had been scarred by the Second World War, with Eugan’s father killed in the war; the rest of his family being displaced; and Eugan having to do military service himself.

By the 1980s, Canada was taking a different type of immigrant beyond the labourers my own family were. Eugan had a trade, as an upholsterer, which was desirable for the Canadian government.

Finally, the day came. We all went to the Calgary International Airport and picked up them up. It was a weird feeling, because I had never met two of my second cousins. They were just an idea to me.

It took awhile to grab their baggage. I recall Ingolf even forcing open this door and pulling a bag out.

The bags themselves were even interesting. They were durable white canvas, and we ended up using one at our place for years. Eugan had made them himself, customized to their needs. He did incredible work.

So, we loaded everything up and headed to Lethbridge.

We all went to my Uncle Ed and Aunt Johanna’s house to just relax for a few minutes. I remember Michaeala being so tired, she sat in Uncle Ed’s recliner and dozed off immediately. Soon, it was time for them to go to their new home.

Bianca walked up to Michaela and kept saying over and over, “Wir fahren! Wir fahren!” It literally means “We’re driving”, but she was really saying they were just going.

My Oma and Opa Jetz, my Mom’s parents, had a full basement suite in their house, big enough for a family of five and Eugan’s family would live there.

The two oldest would go to high school at Winston Churchill, the same school my cousin Carl went to. In fact, he even had a class with Michaela and told the story of how their teacher could not pronounce her name. Bianca would go to elementary school at Galbraith then junior high at Wilson.

Eugan would work as an upholsterer, eventually opening his own shop in the Lethbridge industrial park, fittingly called “Lethbridge Upholstery”.

My Mom was a good cousin, and regularly visited Eugan, usually at work, when my parents were in Lethbridge Thursdays doing the weekly shopping.

One time, I had the day off school. It must have been teachers’ convention because that was the only time I would have a Thursday off school.

We stopped by “Lethbridge Upholstery” for a regular visit.

There, doing something on a work bench, was Bianca.

A radio was playing and Bianca was mouthing the words to “Miss Me Blind” by Culture Club.

The song
“Miss Me Blind” was the third single off Culture Club’s album “Colour by Numbers”. It came out on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, 1984, and went all the way to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This was Culture Club’s sixth straight top 10 hit.

Parting thoughts
I am not sure how long Eugan’s family stayed in Lethbridge. Eventually, they left to pursue an opportunity in Barrie, Ontario. The last I heard, Eugan passed away a few years ago.

I don’t think about them often, because there is a lot more to the story, but whenever I hear the song, I can still picture Bianca mouthing the words, “I know ya miss me, I know ya miss me, I know ya miss me blliiiind.”

Remembering Bob Barker

Bob Barker hosted the gamer show

"The Price Is Right", and did so much morte.

Source: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0054837/?ref_=mv_close

(May be subject to copyright)

“The fact that Bob Barker dying at 99 means he got as close to 100 without going over, gives me comfort”.

That meme, shared by my spouse on social media, pretty much describes the experience many of us had with Bob Barker.

Although he hadn’t been on TV for years, when I heard today that Bob Barker had died, it really was the end of an era.

The man told us who was closest to the actual retail price, when to spin the big wheel, and asked whether you wanted to bid on the first show case or pass.

Beyond hosting “The Price Is Right” for the better part of 35 years, he did much more.

You can fit a lot in when you live to be 99 years old.

Truth or Consequences
From the time I started watching “The Price Is Right”, Bob Barker would periodically make some mention of his time hosting another game show called “Truth or Consequences”. I had never actually seen the show, but was familiar with the name because a couple different cousins of mine had the board game.

Wikipedia reveals Barker hosted the show from 1956 to 1975, and the premise of the show was mixing the original quiz show element of game shows with wacky stunts.

It kind of sounds like “Trivial Pursuit” meets “Truth or Dare” to me.

An odd side note. I had this friend Corinne, whose roommate Barry, used to travel a lot. He was in the United States one trip, and sent a post card back to Corinne. It was pretty non-descript except for one thing. The post mark read “Truth or Consequences, New Mexico”. A town in the States had actually re-named itself after the game show. Barry sent the post card, with the post mark as proof.

The Price Is Right
Bob Barker started hosting a revival of the TV game show “The Price Is Right” in 1972 and would continue on until June of 2007.

Miss America
Bob Barker was also well known for hosting the Miss America pageant from 1967 to 1987. He mentioned it occasionally on “The Price Is Right” but, because it was rarely broadcast on peasant vision, I don’t recall ever seeing him host Miss America.

Taking a stand or several
Bob Barker used his position and stature to make a statement and take a stand on several occasions that I recall.

He was an advocate for animal rights, and Wikipedia revealed he was a vegetarian. In 1982, he began to sign off each episode of “The Price Is Right” with, “This is Bob Barker reminding you help control the pet population – have your pets spayed or neutered.”

I had never heard those words before, much less knew what they meant. I learned from Bob Barker.

In 1987, he requested the removal of fur prizes from the Miss USA pageant. When the organizers refused, he left the show, never to host the pageant again.

That year, he made another statement on “The Price Is Right”. Unlike so many other game show hosts, Bob Barker stopped wearing hair dye. At first the gray hair was shocking, because he looked so different. Not bad just different. It was a good look, and a great statement about just being who you are. Quite frankly, it broke down a bit of the stigma around gray hair, aging, and it being a bad thing.

The dark side
Bob Barker was no angel though. There were dust ups with the models on “The Price Is Right” who, back in the 1980s, were all female and collectively referred to as “Barker’s Beauties”. Two models sued. Dian Parkinson sued for sexual harassment but later dropped the suit, citing its negative effect on her health. Holly Hallstrom sued, and won. She said she was not fired because of a weight gain due to medication she was taking, which is disturbing enough. Instead, she said she was fired because Barker was mad she would not give misinformation to the media about Parkinson’s lawsuit, after he asked her to do so. He counter-sued for slander, but Hallstrom prevailed and won a settlement.

The lighter side
In 1996, Barker appeared as a parody of himself in the movie “Happy Gilmore”, where he gets in a fight with the title character played by Adam Sandler. Barker ends up punching out Sandler.

A few months later, I happened to be watching “The Price Is Right”, and Barker was explaining the “Hole-In-One” game. At one point he made a comment about putting, and model Janice Pennington said, “I know, I’ve seen that movie.”

Everyone laughed.

Parting thoughts
Bob Barker did some good things in promoting animal rights and taking a stand against the stereotypes of aging. He was a good host in all he took on.

Yet Bob Barker was far from perfect. He had his faults, many were aired publicly, and that is not a bad thing.

In the end, justice was served, in the eyes of the law.

Condorman: Remembering the movie party

"Condorman" came out in 1981, starring Michael Crawford and Barbara Carrera.

Source: https://www.intofilm.org/films/13192

(May be subject to copyright)

You ever wonder what it would be like to be a spy and use incredible inventions to save a damsel in distress? I have, back in 1981.

It was the first time I ever had the chance to go out to a movie without my parents or any member of my family for that matter. Although just a baby step, it was another step towards independence.

It was Grade 7, and the junior high students at St. Joseph’s School in Coaldale were going to a movie in Lethbridge as a group.

The movie was called “Condorman”, and it was playing at College Cinema in the Woolco Mall.

Grade change
It’s a funny thing going to a Kindergarten to Grade 9 school. When you finish elementary school in Grade 6, it marks the end of one thing and the beginning of something bigger – junior high. Yet, in a K to 9 school, you stay in the same building, and just move to a different part of the school. It didn’t seem like much of a change.

That was until I actually started Grade 7. Not only were classes different, with things like options, but there were more activities like school sports and students’ council.

It was students’ council who planned all kinds of interesting things from school dances to theme days, and something I got really excited about – the theatre party.

Going to the movies
I don’t recall all the logistics of that first theatre party. Unlike later ones that I remember well, where we voted on one of two choices for the movie we were going to see, in this case the movie was chosen for us.

It makes sense, because it was a Disney movie.

We all met at the school, piled into a school bus and drove the fifteen minutes to Lethbridge and the Wololco Mall. We kind of all went in a bunch through the doors of the mall down the concourse and to the theatre. We all paid individually if memory serves, although teachers may have either paid in bulk or got us coupons we redeemed.

In any event, once we were through the ticket counter, we could sit wherever we wanted.

That was important, because everyone preferred different places in the theatre.

I sat with my dear friend David Perlich and we settled in. I remember him putting his feet up and between two empty seats in front of us, only to have the usher to tell him to take them down. It has been the only time in my life an usher has given heck to me or anyone I have been with in the theatre.

Show time
The movie was called “Condorman”. It tells the story of cartoonist Woody Wilkins who draws the character “Condorman”. He is approached by government officials to help Natalia Rambova, a Soviet spy, to defect to the West. In the process, he uses all these gadgets and gimmicks he dreamed up. In the end, they even left the door open for a sequel. Woody is sitting with Natalia when he gets a call, that looks to be another potential assignment.

I always remember the theme song simply called “Condorman”. In fact, that’s the only lyric I can remember, yet I find myself humming it to myself every time I think of this movie.

Michael Crawford starred as Woody Wilkins who draws Condorman, and Barbara Carrera was Natalia Rambova, the Soviet defector.

Parting thoughts
When I started seeing commercials on TV for “The Phantom of the Opera”, in concert and recording, the singer looked familiar. His name was Michael Crawford and I was sure I had seen him before . I thought he was “Condorman”, but I just could not reconcile the fact the award-winning operatic singer could also be the lead actor in a cheesey Disney movie.

Yet, in fact it is the same Michael Crawford. In fact, he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical and a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for “Phantom of the Opera”.

Seeing that commercial reminded me of that theatre party so long ago, and the first time I went to the theatre by myself.

It really was a baby step to independence.

Remembering the incredible Jeff Healey and an old friend

Jeff Healey, who was blind, was an inspiring performer in the 1980s and beyond.

Source: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0372254/

(May be subject to copyright)

It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen a musician do. There he was, legally blind, sitting stationary on a stool on stage playing his guitar. He had been in that same position for the entire MuchMusic Cross Canada Road Show.

Then, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Jeff Healey stood up and started walking into the crowd. He kept right on playing and singing, did not miss a beat, and sent the crowd at Edmonton’s Cook County Saloon into a frenzy.

It was just incredible, just like the man himself.

Awhile back, I saw “Roadhouse” first the time, and fell in love with the man, the artist, the inspiration all over again.

Debut
It was late in 1988 and I was living on Fifth Kelsey in the student residence on the campus of the University of Alberta. I used to stay up late, well past midnight. Often, MuchMusic was playing in the background as we talked, did homework or whatever,

I am not sure if I heard it on my own, or if someone pointed it out to me, but I think it was Dave Turnbull who called my attention to the TV screen.

There was this blind musician giving it everything with this bluesy song I had never heard before.

It was Jeff Healey singing, “Confidence Man” and it was awesome.

The song, from Healey’s debut album called, “See the Light”, did not chart in the United States and peaked at number 36 in Canada.

His next song would just explode internationally.

Looking to heaven
The next time I heard Jeff Healey was at the end of that school year, in 1989, with a soulful ballad where, again, he gave it everything.

“Angel Eyes” was the second single off “See the Light” and it is one of those rare songs that did much better in the United States than Canada. That is rare because, with Canadian content regulations, Canadian songs just got a lot of air play generally enabling them to find an audience and subsequently some success.

“Angel Eyes” peaked at number 16 in Canada. In the States, it went all the way to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

Seeing success
Wikipedia reveals “Hideaway”, another song from “See the Light” was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

“See the Light” went all the way to number 22 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Healey won the Juno for Canadian Entertainer of the Year in 1990, and “See the Light” was nominated for a Juno for Album of the Year, also in 1990.

While they were recording “See the Light” in 1989, they were also filming “Road House” with Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliott. The movie would give Jeff Healey a significant amount of exposure as well.

The years after
Jeff Healey kept releasing great songs over the next couple years.

“While My Guitar Gently Weeps” came out in 1990 and went to number 27 in Canada, and to number seven on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. I did not realize this song was originally released by the Beatles in 1968.

“How Long Can a Man be Strong” came out in 1991, peaking at number eight in Canada and number 34 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.

Jeff Healey would keep on writing and recording until, tragically, he died of cancer in March of 2008.

He was 41 years old

In 2014, he was inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame.

Parting thoughts
It was the summer of 1990, and I was living in student residence while I went to summer school. This fellow was living next to me, named Darien Colp, but he pretty much kept to himself. Eventually we got to talking and became friends.

Then one day, out of the blue, he asked me what I was doing in a couple nights.

He had won two tickets to the MuchMusic Cross Canada Road Show at Cook County Saloon. Jeff Healey was playing, and did I want to go with him?

At that point in the summer, I had very little money, just enough to eat, but not much more.

Darien was fine with that, and ended up buying me a couple beers.

We got there and discovered something else we shared – a mutual dislike for MuchMusic veejay Steve Anthony. We both joked about tripping him up on national television and more.

Soon, Jeff Healey came on stage and was incredible.

It was a great night.

As much as I was inspired by Jeff Healeyt, I will also remember that night with a really great guy. Darien and I would see each other quite a bit the next school year. I got to know him and his girlfriend Sandy, who became his wife. I even convinced him to sit on the food and maintenance committee I chaired for the students’ association.

We were both in our final year of Education. The last time I ever saw him was at our convocation in the summer of 1991, where we wished each other luck.

So, whenever I think of Jeff Healey, I also think of an old friend and a night he made just a little more special with his kindness.

That is the power of Jeff Healey.

Bruce Willis: Much more than “Moonlighting”

Bruce Willis, at left, starred with Cybill Shepherd in "moonlighting".

Source: https://www.vulture.com/2023/09/

(May be subject to copyright)

He started out as a wisecracking, never to be taken seriously private investigator and ended up taking down a group of terrorists who were really just thieves. Along the way he made a splash on the radio too.

Such was the journey of Bruce Willis through the ‘80s.

I recently heard he has dementia, and it made me think of how far he came in a relatively short period of time.

Moonlighting
“Moonlighting” debuted as a mid-season replacement in the spring of 1985, on Channel 7 of the peasant vision dial. It moved to Channel 13 for the next season and beyond, until it went off the air in 1989.

It was kind of an odd show, even for the ‘80s. The premise was solid. Actress Maddie Hayes, played by Cybill Shepherd, discovers she has been victimized by an embezzler, losing virtually everything. She discovers, however, that she owns a detective agency. With nothing really left, she pays a visit to the “Blue Moon Detective Agency”, and discovers an odd cast of characters.

Topping that list is David Addison, played by an up and coming actor named Bruce Willis. Addison is kind of hard to like, because he is just talks non-stop, constantly schmoozes, and is really difficult to take seriously.

Pretty much instantly, the sparks fly between Maddie and David. One of the hallmarks of “Moonlighting” was the rapid-fire dialogue. I bought the series on DVD and, on one of the extra features, the creator talked about how many dozen more pages of dialogue and script each episode had, compared to the average show.

Willis would be nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 1986, and again in 1987 when he won. He was also nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical in 1986, 1987, and 1988, winning in 1987.

Going all Shakespeare
“Moonlighting” did some interesting things, in the two seasons I watched it before moving on to other things. The one I remember most, I ended up taping, and watched parts of it over and over with my best friend of the time Chris Vining.

The episode was set in Shakespearian times and was a re-telling of “The Taming of the Shrew”. Maddie was in he role of the shrew, while David was Petruccio, who tamed her.

There were several great moments. When Petruccio made his entrance, his horse was wearing sun glasses too, and Petruccio announced, “What’s shakin’ – ye all?”

The other was when Maddie exclaimed, “Your head is swelling beyond all proportion,” David responded with a smirk, “I should hope so.”

The end
“Moonlighting” was successful, but was also beset by some interesting issues. Shepherd and Willis didn’t get along. Then Shepherd got pregnant which affected the show. On screen, Maddie and David finally did get together, Mark Harmon was introduced as a competing love interest, and the show faded away.

That was okay, because Bruce Willis had some other irons in the fire.

We talk about Bruno
Bruce Willis’ nickname was “Bruno” so in 1987, when he released a solo recortd album, it was called “The Return of Bruno“. That was when we could still talk about Bruno. It was in line with his David Addison character who would be seen singing into a spoon or some prop.

Willis would have one hit off that album, called “Respect Yourself”. It was a cover of a hit song originally released by Staple Singers, and went all the way to number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Wikipedia reveals something I did not know. In 1986, Willis began a short-lived singing career as the fictitious Bruno Radolini. In 1987, he released “The Return of Bruno” as a companion to an HBO special of the same name that aired shorty after the album’s release. “Respect Yourself” also has the Pointer Sisters on backing vocals and a verse sung by June Pointer.

That would be the height of his singing success, but Bruce Willis soon found another opportunity beyond “Moonlighting”.

The movie poster for "Die Hard" starring Bruce Willis in 1988.

Source: https://diehard.fandom.com/wiki/Die_Hard

(May be subject to copyright)

The big screen
A new theatre complex opened in Lethbridge in 1988 and that summer I went to a lot of movies with friends.

I recall my friend Bill suggesting we go see this one with Bruce Willis. That was not a selling point for me, but I thought I’d give it a chance. Besides it was a chance to hang out, and movies were cheap to go to.

It was called “Die Hard” and it completely changed my opinion of Bruce Willis. John McClane is not David Addison. Gone is the blasé, smirking, hard-to-take serious, prancing private investigator. Instead, there is an intense cop who cracks a good joke, but is serious too.

McClane is estranged from his wife at Christmas time when he finds himself trapped inside a building, taken over by terrorists. It turns out they are actually thieves, looking to steal something in the building. McClane does not take the situation lying down. Instead, he goes on the attack and picks the bad guys off one at a time. It is an incredibly well-paced action movie with good one-liners for comic relief, not as the main part of the show.

Bruce Willis was absolutely awesome.

Although he had his first lead role in 1987 with “Blind Date”; played Tom Mix in “Sunset” in 1988, a movie Bill and I also saw at the new theatres; and was the voice of the baby in “Look Who’s Talking?” in 1989; it was “Die Hard” that sent Bruce Willis’ film career on its way.

The years after
Bruce Willis would appear in dozens of amazing movies over the next 30-plus years, including “Die Hard 2”, “Look Who’s Talking, Too”, and “The Bonfire of the Vanities” all in 1990; “Hudson Hawk”, “Billy Bathgate”, and “The Last Boy Scout” all in 1991; “The Player” and “Death Becomes Her” in 1992; “Pulp Fiction” and “Nobody’s Fool” in 1994; “Die Hard With a Vengeance” and “12 Monkeys” in 1995; “Last Man Standing” in 1996; “The Fifth Element” in 1997; “Armageddon” in 1998; “The Sixth Sense” in 1999; “The Whole Nine Yards” in 2000; “The Expendables” in 2010; and so much more.

He also appeared on TV in episodes of “Roseanne”; “Mad About You”; “Ally McBeal”; and “Friends” for which he won a Primetime Emmy in 2000 as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.

He retired from acting in 2022, after announcing he had aphasia, then in February of 2023 he was diagnosed with dementia.

Parting thoughts
Bruce Willis is another actor who I really had to warm up to. His role as David Addison was fine, but it was very much a caricature and cartoon of a real person. It was very difficult to take seriously.

A few years ago, on New Year’s Eve, I watched the pilot of “Moonlighting” again, and I have to admit my opinion softened a bit on Bruce Willis as David Addison.

But it all really changed with “Die Hard”, which showed Willis’ versatility as an actor

It also signaled a transformation into roles that were far from funny, such as in “Armageddon”, “The Sixth Sense”, and “12 Monkeys”.

As I was putting together that list of movies he’s been in, I only listed the ones I have seen, and there are a lot of great movies.

He put together a stellar career.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: Memories of an old friend

A movie poster for "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" in 1984.

Source: https://www.lyrictheatre.com/past-show/9753-free-movie-summer-indiana-jones-and-the-temple-of-doom

(May be subject to copyright)

Though I haven’t seen the latest Indiana Jones movie, just hearing the name “Indiana Jones” takes me back to junior high and a friend who was pretty close in junior high, and I maintained a connection with for a couple years after high school.

That’s what can happen when you change schools, your horizons broaden, and you meet different people.

Junior high confidential
For almost 10 years, I went to the same school. From pre-school – there was no Kindergarten until I was in Grade 1 – to six years of elementary school right through three years of junior high, I went to the same school – St, Joseph’s School in Coaldale.

Our class was big, sometimes up to 32 students in elementary school. That got even bigger in Grade 7 when three country schools closed – McNally, Sunnyside, and Readymade. A lot of the students came to St. Joe’s. the odd student also came over from John Davidson, the public elementary school. The result was the grade was split into two classes.

Friends
One of the guys who came over from John Davidson was Shawn Kingston. We quickly became friends, and started hanging out together. We both liked science fiction and fantasy, reading, and some sports. He really got into “Dungeons and Dragons”, and I would have too, but the guys who played all lived in town and played after school or in the evening. I had to go home on the bus and was trapped on the farm, except for the occasional sleepover.

We started going over to the high school for shop class in Grade 8, and we’d often stop at Shawn’s house to eat our lunch. He had a microwave that made the Kaiser buns with cheddar cheese my Mom packed for lunch just that much better.

I also went over to a birthday party of his, where his mom, Marilyn Kingston, made these amazing personalized pizzas and we watched “The Road Warrior” afterwards.

We also played basketball together, and were the tallest guys on our team the St. Joseph’s Jayhawks, who became the Jaguars in Grade 9.

One time, we were at a tournament in Stirling and a guy walked past us, stopped, and looked back and forth between us.

“I am trying to figure out which is which,” he said. “You guys are twins right?”

We both laughed and, when we told him we weren’t even related, he couldn’t believe it.

Shawn wasn’t like a brother to me, but he was a good friend.

Sleep over
Every so often, I would sleep over at his place. Usually, I would stay after school on Friday, and go home on Saturday. My parents went to Lethbridge Saturdays, so they would just swing by and pick me up. Alternatively, sometimes my Dad would come to town and pick me up.

Then, one night, I was at Shawn’s and was phoning for a ride. As I was talking to my Mom, Shawn’s Dad got my attention.

“We’ll give you a ride home,” he said.

I passed that message on to my Mom.

“After we go to a movie and get something to eat,” he said. That just sounded awesome to me.

I passed that on to my Mom and she was fine with that too.

Victor Kingston was a nice man. He was funny, loud, gregarious and very kind to me.

Night out
So Shawn, his younger brother Craig, and I piled into Mr. Kingston’s truck and we went to Lethbridge. I will always remember the Kingston brothers both wearing camouflage. Odd what you remember.

“Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” had just come to town, and Mr. Kingston bought the tickets. I am still grateful for that.

The movie was the much awaited prequel to “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, and it was good. In fact, I saw it again in the theatre with some others. But it was not great, and definitely not as good as “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, or its sequel “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”.

In fact, I remember more about the night out than the movie.

Afterwards, Mr. Kingston asked me if I liked Chinese Food. I sure did.

So we went to this restaurant on the north side, on 13th Street to be exact, called Henry’s, and had a great meal. Mr. Kingston ordered two glasses of orange pop, I remember that. The only other person I ever remember doing that was my Dad.

We talked and we laughed and I just remember thinking how great a night it was when they dropped me off at the farm.

Evolving friendship
When high school started, initially we all kind of hung out in our junior high groups. Soon, everyone began to spread out and we began to mix, mingle and become one big class.

Through Grade 10, I still hung out with Shawn. I got a ghetto blaster for Christmas in Grade 10, and one of the first tapes I bought was from Shawn. It was “An Innocent Man” by Billy Joel. He had really got into heavy metal so he was looking to get rid of it, so he sold it to me for $8.

He had always wanted to play on the football team, and he did. In first semester of Grade 11, the cheerleaders were putting on a fundraising spaghetti supper and I remember going with Shawn and his bestie Mike.

After that, we began to go in separate directions. He got a job, played football, started dating and, because he had a licence, had much more mobility. I started hanging out with Chris Vining, who quickly became my best friend, Mat Ebner who had always been my bestie, and some others.

In Grade 12, Shawn and I had a couple classes together. I sat behind him in Social 30 first thing in the morning first semester, so we chatted regularly. We also had Math 30 together second semester, and he drove out to the farm one night for some math help.

We’d also gone to one bush party together first term with our mutual friend Dave Perlich, out at Indian Hill.

Beyond that, we really didn’t hang out together anymore.

Yet we did have an odd bond.

I recall writing him a letter from Edmonton in my first year of university in 1987-1988, and running into him a couple times at Alley Oops, a bar we went to in Lethbridge after first year of university in the summer of 1988.

The last time I ever saw him was the summer of 1989. I was home for a visit, looked him up, and we went to see “Batman” in Lethbridge.

I haven’t seen him since, but he did post condolences on Facebook when my Dad died.

Parting thoughts
The memory is a funny thing. I don’t often think of Shawn anymore because it has been more than 34 years since I last saw him. We are Facebook friends, but we don’t message.

Yet, whenever I see Indiana Jones, I recall that night his family took me out for a great night in the city. It was so very kind and generous.

And for that, I will be eternally grateful.

Paul Osbaldiston: One of the best

Paul Osbaldiston (#3) is one of the best

place kickers in the CFL of all time.

Source: Facebook/Fans and Friends of Joe Kapp and the History of the CFL

(May be subject to copyright)

He seemed destined to be the fill-in kicker. The guy who teams called on to fill in for their hall-of-famers, but only until they came back from injury.

Eventually, Paul Osbaldiston got his shot, and made the most of it, propelling himself into Grey Cup championships, all-star selections, and the Hamilton Tiger-Cat Wall of Honour.

Last week, he was on hand as the Tiger Cats inducted Darren Flutie into the wall of honour at Tim Horton’s Field in Hamilton, when they hosted the Edmonton football club.

Seeing him brought back some memories.

Bouncing around
The year 1986, Paul Osbaldiston’s rookie season, was one of flux for the kicker and punter. Born in Oldham, Lancashire, England, playing college ball at Western Montana and junior football for the Richmond Raiders, Osbaldiston was drafted in the seventh round of the 1986 CFL Draft, 63rd overall by the B.C. Lions.

He then found himself suiting up with the Lions, filling in for the legend and hall of famer Lui Passaglia, who was injured. Osbaldiston appeared in three games for the Lions, making five of nine field goals, kicking four singles, going six for six on convert attempts, and had a 42.7 yard punting average with a long of 56 yards. The hall of famer would return, and Osbaldiston was released.

The next thing I knew, I was watching the Winnipeg Blue Bombers play, and who’s kicking for them? None other than Paul Osbaldiston, filling in for the injured place kicker Trevor Kennerd. Osbaldiston appeared in five games for the Bombers, making nine of 15 field goals, kicking four singles, and making 17 of 17 convert attempts. He didn’t have to handle punting duties because Winnipeg had Bob Cameron as their regular, full time punter. Kennerd too would return, and again Osbaldiston was released.

Again, I tuned into a Hamilton Tiger-Cats game and who comes trotting out to try a field goal – Paul Osbaldiston.

This time he stuck.

Magical run
Osbaldiston appeared in the final nine games of the 1986 season for Hamilton, taking over for yet another injured legend – Bernie Ruoff . He would go 23 of 30 in field goal attempts with seven singles, and 16 of 16 in convert attempts, while turning in a punting average of 39.1 yards with a long of 59 yards.

The 1986 Hamilton Tiger-Cats were due to win a Grey Cup. They had fallen short the previous two seasons, to Winnipeg in 1984 and to B.C. in 1985 in the two previous Grey Cups.

They finished second in the East Division with a 9-8-1 record, and would face the Toronto Argonauts. That year the top two teams in the East played in a two-game, total-point series. Hamilton hosted Game 1, losing by a score of 31-17. However, they won Game 2 in Toronto by a score of 42-25, to win the series by a score of 59-56.

The Tiger-Cats entered the Grey Cup against Edmonton as 12-point under dogs, but just dominated the Eskimos, jumping out to a 29-0 halftime lead.

Osbaldiston kicked six field goals to tie a Grey Cup record for most in a single game, and won the Dick Suderman Trophy for Most Valuable Canadian.

It was a great way to end a rookie season in the CFL.

The rest of the decade
Paul Osbaldiston would go on to play 18 years in the CFL, the final 17 exclusively with the Tiger-Cats. By the end of the 1980s, he had firmly entrenched himself with the team and become a well-respected, consistent punter and place kicker.

In 1987, Osbaldiston made four of eight field goals with five singles and was one for one in convert attempts. His punting average was 35.5 yards with a log of 68 yards. The Tiger-Cats tried three kickers at the position with long-time Hamilton kicker Bernie Ruoff playing 11 games, veteran Roy Kurtz playing three games, and Osbaldiston playing three games.

Yet, Osbaldiston was back for the 1988 season, playing in all 18 regular season games, kicking 36 of 56 field goals with 21 singles and going 49 for 49 on convert attempts. His punting average was 37.8 yards with a long of 83 yards.

In 1989, he was 54 of 74 in field goal attempts, with 24 singles and 47 of 47 in convert attempts. His punting average was 40.1 yards with a long of 73 yards. He was also an East Division All-star.

He helped the Tiger-Cats advance to the Grey Cup where they lost a thrilling classic to Saskatchewan on a last minute field goal.

As the 1990s dawned, the future looked very bright for Paul Osbaldiston.

The years after
Paul Osbaldiston would continue to play right through to the end of the 2003 season.

He would be a CFL All-star in 1996, 1998 and 2001; an East Division All-star in 1989; 1990; 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001. He would also win the Lew Hayman Trophy in 1990 as the Outstanding Canadian in the East Division. He is tied for the record for most field goals in a game with eight, and is fourth overall in total points with 2,932. He also helped the Tiger-Cats defeat the Calgary Stampeders to win the 1999 Grey Cup.

He holds virtually all the Hamilton club records including career scoring, 2,856; single season scoring, 233; career converts, 652; single season converts, 63; single game converts, nine; career field goals, 655; single season field goals, 54; single game field goals, eight; career punting yards, 88,542; career punts, 2,127; and single season punts, 165.

In 2011, Paul Osbaldiston was added to the Tiger-Cats Wall of Honour.

Parting thoughts
One of the constants for so long in the CFL was the kickers. While other position players came and went with regularity, kickers and punters stayed. Both jobs used to be done by one person, but that has changed over time too.

Yet, in the 1980s, the 1990s and into the 21st Century, Paul Osbaldiston was synonymous with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

He literally spanned generations, playing on both the 1986 Grey Cup Championship team, and the 1999 Grey Cup team.

Plus he did it with class and dignity.

Paul Osbaldiston was one of the best.

Steve Fonyo: A heartbreaking ending

Starting in 1984, Steve Fonyo ran across

Canada to raise money and awareness

for cancer research.

Source: https://www.pressreader.com/canada/ottawa-citizen

(May be subject to copyright)

It was one of the most heartbreaking things I had ever seen.

I was working on the painting crew for Housing and Food Services at the University of Alberta in Edmonton in the summer of 1993. We were taking a break by the shop and I noticed this pile of junk.

Back then, the university had these signs they used to identify buildings and facilities. They were brown square posts with white lettering running down the side.

At the bottom of that pile of junk was a beat up, slightly twisted sign with “Steve Fonyo Track” stencilled on it.

All I could think was, “How sad is that.”

Marathon of Hope
One of Canada’s greatest heroes was Terry Fox. He had lost his leg to cancer, but would not let that define him. Instead, in 1980 he vowed to run across Canada to raise money and awareness of cancer and cancer research. His goal was to raise one dollar for every Canadian. His journey was called he Marathon of Hope.

Then, just outside Thunder Bay, Ontario, with the Marathon of Hope gaining momentum, the cancer was now in his lungs. He stopped his journey, but vowed to be back.

Terry Fox died a few months later.

The question was, would someone pick up the torch and finish Fox’s journey across Canada.

The answer would be yes, and his name was Steve Fonyo.

Journey for Lives
Steve Fonyo, like Terry Fox, had lost a leg to cancer. When he was 12, his left leg was amputated above the knee to prevent the spread of bone cancer.

When he was 18, he decided to run across Canada to raise money and awareness for cancer research.

He called his effort “The Journey for Lives”. On March 31, 1984 he dipped his toe in the Atlantic Ocean and filled a jar with ocean water.

Fonyo proceeded to run across Canada, and I recall the news chronicling his journey every step of the way. A total of 425 days later, on May 29, 1985, he arrived at the Pacific Ocean in British Columbia.

The event was broadcast live on national television and I clearly remember watching it. He approached the water, and dipped his foot in the Pacific Ocean.

Then he dumped the jar of water from the Atlantic Ocean into the Pacific Ocean.

Steve Fonyo had made it. He had run across Canada.

In the process, he ran 7,924 kilometres, which equates to 4,924 miles, and raised $14 million for cancer research.

In 1985, he was named a Member of the Order of Canada, the youngest person to receive that honour to that point in time. The running track at the University of Alberta had also been named the Steve Fonyo Track.

Fall from grace
In the years to follow, Steve Fonyo would succumb to drug addiction, run into trouble with the law, do some time in jail, suffer a brain injury as a result of an altercation, and fall prey to mental illness. As a result of his legal difficulties, he had his Membership in the Order of Canada taken away.

On February 18, 2022, Steve Fonyo died in hospital. He was 56 years old.

Parting thoughts
The story of Steve Fonyo is a tragedy that I have seen in a different light over the years. He did run afoul of the law, but he battled addiction and mental health issues. In the light of today, he would be treated with more sensitivity, sympathy, and understanding, because we know far more about addiction and mental illness.

Yet, Steve Fonyo was the victim of what we now call “Cancel Culture”. He had his Order of Canada stripped away, and his efforts and achievements have been cast on the scrap pile of history – literally.

Whether fairly, or not, he was always compared to Terry Fox, and that was like battling a ghost. Terry Fox is one of Canada’s greatest heroes, and he died in the pursuit of his goal to help others. That is impossible to live up to.

And no one should have to, or be expected to.

The other thing I have thought about in researching this post is something Scott Radley of the Hamilton Spectator talked about. He said we are supposed to be more enlightened about addiction and mental illness. Yet the cancellation of Steve Fonyo seems unfair, given he was raising money for charity. He wondered if this would have happened if Fonyo had not attracted the pressure of fame and expectations he was not equipped to handle.

I agree with Scott Radley.

It makes seeing that Steve Fonyo sign, literally at the bottom of a junk pile, so heart breaking.

James Bell: A happy ending

Sometimes stories do have happy endings.

This is one about a football player who gets injured, remembered, then…

I actually didn’t know how it ended.

That injury was just the first chapter in a story that would continue when I moved to Edmonton in the Fall of 1987 to go to university, right into the present day.

Then, after more than 35 years I found out how it ended.

Tragedy strikes
It all started in the 1986 Canadian Football League season, Sept. 19 to be exact, when I was watching the Edmonton Eskimos play the B.C. Lions in Vancouver. Edmonton was on their way to another Grey Cup appearance and had re-tooled their defence.

They had this defensive back named Jamed Bell. He went to make a tackle and hit the ball carrier awkwardly. He crumpled to the turf, and was down on the field for a long time. It did not look good at the time at all.

Those games were always late starts at like 8 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. so the game did not actually end until close to midnight.

It turned out that, in tackling Lion Jan Carnici, James Bell had damaged his vertebrae and essentially suffered a broken neck.

He never played football again, and was told he would most likely be a quadriplegic, paralyzed for life.

Sticker shock
I went to Edmonton in the Fall of 1987 to attend the University of Alberta. I met some guys in the student residence I lived in, who were huge football fans. My best friend of the time Chris Vining and I went with them to the West Division Semi-Final on November 15, 1987 at Commonwealth Stadium.

The game did not turn out as we had hoped. Our beloved Calgary Stampeders lost to Edmonton, who would go on to beat B.C. in the West Division Final then win the Grey Cup, defeating Toronto in a thriller at B.C Place in Vancouver.

However, what I do remember fondly was what happened at the outset of the West Division Semi-Final.

As we entered the stadium, we were given stickers. They were in the shape of a golden bell, with the number “17”. They were to commemorate James Bell and raise funds to offset his medical expenses.

To be honest, that seemed so long ago, I had almost forgotten, but recalled instantly when they mentioned it on the loudspeaker.

After that, I never found out what ever became of James Bell.

The rest of the story
That was until I was leafing through the weekend Toronto Globe and Mail, something I did religiously for a long time. It was the October 20, 2015 issue where I found out the rest of the story.

James Bell was rushed to a hospital in Vancouver with no feeling in his neck, and there was too much swelling to operate. He was transported to hospital in Edmonton and began physical therapy.

A few months after the hit, some feeling returned to Bell’s feet. Then he was holding on to hand rails, and taking his first steps.

Meanwhile, the people of Edmonton got behind James Bell. That fundraising campaign helped defray his medical costs. Eskimo players made a music video to raise funds, and the team gave him a Grey Cup ring for the championship they won at B.C. Place.

He stuck around Edmonton, but eventually had to go back to the United States to find work. He fell on hard times, and had to sell that 1987 Grey Cup ring for $5,704.

Eventually he found himself in Port Arthur, Texas where his girlfriend was from. He got a job at a car dealership. His manager at the dealership noticed Bell walked with a limp and had some trouble shaking hands because he couldn’t quite turn his wrist. He later found out Belll's story.

He contacted the Eskimos to see if they could all work together to bring Bell back to Edmonton. Bell still had two daughters there, so it would be two reunions, not just one.

So James Bell, returned to Edmonton in October of 2015 where, miraculously, he walked back out onto the field to thank the team and the city one more time.

Parting thoughts
Alan Maki wrote that article for the Globe and Mail, and one of the themes is that Bell and his story faded into the past, and he was all but forgotten.

I have to admit, I hadn’t thought of him in years.

Yet, when I saw his name in the headline when I was skimming the newspaper, I wondered if it was the same James Bell. Then I thought, I never found out what ever happened to him.

I never read that article though. I wanted to save it for when I finally wrote a blog post about James Bell.

Well, I was reminded again of Jams Bell, when I was cleaning out my Mom’s basement and I found the Bell-shaped sticker.

So, as I wrote this post, I read Alan Maki’s article.

Now I know what ever happened to James Bell.

And the story has a happy ending.

Meeting Brent Korte: A lesson in being humble

Brent Korte played for the University of Alberta football

team in the '80s, and now helps coach them.

Source: https://bearsandpandas.ca/sports/football

(May be subject to copyright)

In a world where a lot of professional football prospects can be arrogant and think they are above it all, I recall a time in the summer of 1989 where I experienced exactly the opposite.

Recently I was watching a game between Edmonton and Hamilton, and I saw the last name Korte stencilled on the back of one of the Edmonton players.

I wondered if it could be, and the Internet told me it really was.

Mark Korte, an offensive lineman with Edmonton, is the son of Brent Korte.

It brought back all these memories of a game of two-on-two basketball back in the summer of 1989, and a lesson in humility I will never forget.

Shooting hoops
One of the cool things about the University of Alberta campus back in the 1980s was there was no shortage of places to play basketball, be it pick-up, two-on-two, three-on-three, or shooting around. My favourite haunt was the outdoor courts beside the physical education building, in the shadow of the Butterdome. A close second, were the portable baskets inside the Butterdome beside the indoor running track. They allowed us to play basketball even when it was 35 degrees below Celsius outside and the outdoor courts were covered in snow.

In the summer time, it was just as much fun to play at the portable hoops to escape the heat, rain or whatever else the elements presented.

One of the guys I used to play with was my friend James Taylor, who I had played a bunch of intramural basketball with.

He and I would play in one of the most memorable games of my life.

Hoop memories
Taylor and I were shooting around one summer day when these two guys came through the doors and started warming up.

One of them came over, and was really polite.

“You guys wanna play?” he asked.

Taylor nodded he was in and so did I.

The guy looked kind of familiar, but I was not 100 hundred percent sure from where.

“My name is Brent and that’s Jim,” he said. “What’s your name?”

“Rob,” I replied. “And that’s James.”

I asked him where he was from – Peace River – and I told him I was from Coaldale and Taylor was from Winfield.

“Rob and James, pleased to meet you,” he said.

Then it clicked

This was Brent Korte. He was a pass rusher for the U of A Golden Bears football team, and at the time I heard he was definitely going to be drafted by the CFL.

I had seen him play, and he was ferocious on the field. I loved watching him in action.

So, I guarded him and Taylor guarded Jim.

The first time I collided with Brent, I instantly knew he was a professional calibere athlete. He was all muscle. Jim was like that too, when he set a screen and knocked me sideways.

I couldn’t tell you the score, or who won, but I had a lot of fun, because they were really classy guys.

After we finished, Brent asked us what we were studying. We told him we were both in Education, although Taylor was actually done. Brent told us what he had studied and that Jim was finishing his elementary education degree.

I could not resist seeing if Brent was as nice and humble as he appeared.

“How about you?” I asked. “Where are you working next year?”

I didn’t let on that I knew he was a football player.

He just shrugged.

“I have a few resumés out, but nothing definite,” he said.

“Really?” I persisted. “You seem like you’d be good at that.”

He smiled.

“Thank you,” he said.

Then he wished us both luck, shook our hands, and they were gone.

I turned to Taylor and he instantly had identified Brent and Jim. I told Taylor I tried to get him to admit who he was, by asking him where he was working next year, but all he said was he had a few resumés out.

“Ya, in the CFL,” Taylor smiled.

The years after
I heard Brent Korte got drafted by Edmonton, but I never heard too much after that. It turns out he was taken in the fifth round, 37th overall. He went into coaching after playing, but I don’t think he ever suited up in the pros.

Parting thoughts
I will always remember how humble Brent Korte was. Not only did he not throw around the fact he had a shot at playing professional football, but he never even allowed that he played the game.

More than that, he was interested in me and my friend.

That makes him the exact opposite of egotistical and self-centred.

Meeting him really was a lesson in being humble.

Kate Bush: Running Up That Hill Again

Recently, I found an episode of Casey Kasem’s Coast to Coast Top 40 from late 1985, and it was very informative.

He introduced this singer from England who had started writing songs in grade school. They were so good, the teacher could not believe they were not written by an adult, much less that that particular student had written them.

But, in fact, Kate Bush had written those songs.

Casey was telling this story to introduce Kate Bush’s entry in the top 40 that week.

The song was called “Running Up That Hill” and that would not be the last we heard of it.

The song
“Running Up That Hill” is a haunting song, that has kind of a lyrical quality. When I hear it, I imagine mist rising off water and a silhouette of a young woman running.

The song was the first single off Bush’s new album “Hounds of Love”. “Running Up That Hill” was released on August 5, 1985 and went as far as number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Kate Bush’s first top 40 hit in the United States.

Wikipedia reveals she performed it live in 1987, accompanied by David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, and did not perform it again until some concerts in 2014. A remix of the song with new vocals premiered during the closing ceremonies of the 2012 Sumer Olympics in London as well.

Re-birth
A few months ago, I had CBC News on in the background when I heard the strangest thing. It was “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush.

My first thought was that Kate Bush had died. That seemed to be the only time old songs were played. That was the case with Gordon Lightfoot and would later be the case with Robbie Robertson.

But that was not it.

No, “Running Up That Hill” was back on the charts and was at number three on the latest Billboard Hot 100 charts. Incidentally, that would be the peak position it would reach.

As it turned out, “Running Up That Hill” had been on the fourth season of “Stranger Things”. The song was having a re-birth, as it was introduced to a new generation of fans.

Parting thoughts
It is interesting that Kate Bush did not license her songs for use in a lot of movies and TV. However, she is a fan of “Stranger Things” and consented.

The result was renewed interest in the song, unprecedented chart success, and a whole new group of fans.

Once more, everything old is new again.

Whoop-Up Days: Making memories

A view of Whoop-Up Days in Lethbridge from decades ago.

Source: https://globalnews.ca/news/5802161/history-of-lethbridges-whoop-up-days/

(May be subject to copyright)

It was full of thrills, spills and excitement. A chance to get away from the farm, and have a great time.

When I was a kid, one of the highlights of the summer was going to Whoop-Up Days in Lethbridge in mid-August.

Lethbridge is gearing up for the latest edition of the big show, and it reminds me of summers with my friends, my family, seeing performers, going on rides, playing midway games and, heck, even working for Whoop-Up Days one summer.

The parade
As long as I could remember, we went to Lethbridge every year for the Whoop-Up Days parade. I am not sure what the actual route through the city was, but we always watched from the same spot. We would park at the Simpson Sears, or Centre Village Mall in North Lethbridge, and sit on a street corner on 13th Street, usually by the Bill Kergan Centre.

The highlight for me was trying to catch candy, which I did with varying levels of success.

However, as I got older, I paid more attention to the entries. The one that really stands out was an old school bus that carried veterans of the First World War. As the years went on, there were fewer and fewer veterans until it just disappeared. Now, there isn’t a single live veteran of the First World War on the planet.

It was also cool when I actually knew people in the parade. Back then, there weren’t a lot of them, but I was always excited to see someone I knew. The best example was my good friend David Perlich, riding with his parents and two sisters on their horses in matching outfits. Dave always waved to me, and that was so cool.

The rides
Whoop-Up Days was held at the Lethbridge Exhibition Grounds. It always seemed kind of magical to me especially at night when the rides on the midway lit up.

Rides such as the “Octopus”; “Zipper”; “Round-Up”; “Ferris Wheel”; “Tilt-A-Whirl”; and others, as well as the roller coaster, were all covered in lights that just illuminated the night sky.

My Mom always discouraged me for going on any rides that were at all scary or just pretty much left the ground. That meant I would go on this one with plastic motorcycle looking cars that went in a circle slowly; this one that simulated the inside of a rocket ship that just rotated slightly; and the carousel where I often rode a horse or a zebra. She wouldn’t even let me ride the bumper cars. Not even when I was taller than the line that illustrated the minimum height to go on them.

You see, when my Mom was a little girl in Germany, she went on the ferris wheel and got motion sick. She told me that story so often it made me scared of any ride that moved. More than 30 years later, I went on all those rides with my spouse at Whoop-Up Days and had a blast.

The games
Another big part of Whoop-Up Days for me was the games, and the chance to win prizes. The game I loved most was shooting a basketball. One time, I just kept making shots, spending all my money, in an effort to win one of the huge stuffed animals hanging from the ceiling of the booth. However, that only got me as far as a stuffed animal that wasn’t as big as those.

That same year, I was with my second cousin, Karen Hohensee who was visiting from Germany. The first time I made a shot, the prize I won, because I didn’t choose to continue shooting, was a pink, plastic pig that was a bank. There was no actual way to get out any money you put in, aside from cutting a hole in it. Yet, Karen just loved the pig, so I won her one, and she cuddled it like a teddy bear.

Another year, one of the prizes I coveted was a Houston Astros batting helmet. To win this prize, you had to knock over these two obviously weighted bottles with this weird feeling baseball from quite a ways back. You had to throw under hand too. It was a lot harder than it sounds. I couldn’t do it, either time I tried. Mom gave it a try and won. I still remember the guy running the booth just shaking his head as he set the bottles back up.

Then he gave her the prize batting helmet – but it was the Cincinnati Reds not the Astros. I was disappointed for a minute, but came to like that Reds helmet. Mom even wore it on the grounds for a minute or two as we walked around.

The prizes were always intriguing, and a little bit weird and ragged. One of the coolest was the pop bottle that had its neck stretched and twisted four or five inches, with coloured liquid inside. I looked at those for years, and finally won one on this ring toss game. I got it home and, maybe a couple weeks later, promptly broke it.

There were a lot of posters of all kinds, records of unknown artists, hats advertising companies I had never heard of, heavy metal shirts, and these mirror tiles that had heavy metal band logos on them. It turned out, because the Midway was from the States, the unknown logos were actually just from American companies.

Winning prizes was the end game, but I myself wanted to win them. Sometimes my Mom got carried away with the winning part, so she had my Dad compete for me.

One time, there was this game where you shot water from a gun into the open mouth of an animal like a gorilla or monkey. It was a race and I remember cheering for my Dad, but kind of wishing I was there instead.

Another time, we were playing skeet ball where you roll balls up this ramp and into concentric circles with increasing point values as the circles got smaller. One year Dad did really well. The next year, he had totally forgotten the last time he played and threw the balls under hand instead of rolling them. He had to be corrected by the carnie. I always liked that game, and in that case played it alongside my Dad.

The food
The aromas of the fair grounds was another big part of Whoop-Up Days. Walking around, you were just surrounded by the smells of onions, fries, meat sizzling, fries cooking, and so much more. We didn’t eat a lot of meals on the Midway, but there were certain things I liked there.

There was ice cream on a stick dipped in chocolate covered in peanuts; this big barrel of root beer that quenched the thirst; and tacos like none I had ever tasted before.

Going inside
Another part of Whoop-Up Days was what was going on in the Exhibition Pavilion. In the winter the pavilion served as the site of Ag-Expo, full of farm equipment, displays and more.

For Whoop-Up Days, it was more varied. They had entertainment, such as “Catch a Rising Star” which was a combination talent show and battle of the bands. There were the Gauchos, personal favourites of mine, who danced and used these bolos to entertain. And there was all kinds of dance and more.

At each end of the pavilion, there was a kind of concession or cafeteria. Right in the front, at the east end, it was an older one that had like pop, popcorn, chips and stuff like hot dogs. It was older, with the traditional Coca-Cola sign displayed. After you went through the pavilion, at the end was an actual cafeteria with a kitchen that was much more brightly lit.

That’s where we would eat. I really liked the fries and gravy.

Show time
At the far end of the Exhibition Grounds was the Grandstand. It overlooked a horse track, and a stage. I never once saw rodeo or chuckwagon races in the Grandstand. The closest I came was the chariot races, which were kind of cool.

We did see a lot of concerts over the years, of artists I have come to appreciate more and more as I have gotten older. The big one for me was Rick Nelson, who was a bigger deal than I thought at the time. He had a lot of top 10 hits and was good. The other one was Tommy Hunter, who was familiar to anyone of that era, because he had a TV show Friday nights on CBC, Channel 9 on the peasant vision dial. A frequent guest on “The Tommy Hunter Show” was fiddle player Al Cherney, and we saw him play at the Grandstand a couple times too.

A family affair
One of the coolest parts of Whoop-Up days had nothing to do with what was on the grounds. Instead, it was going with my cousins. Early in my childhood, I went with my cousins Nina and Carl, who lived in Lethbridge. They were both older than me, so pretty soon they went their own way, preferring to hang out with their friends.

That was okay, because not too soon after, my cousins from Brooks started coming out to the farm to stay for a week or two every summer. In particular, my cousins Fred, Henry and Chris came out just in time for Whoop-Up Days, and it was always fun.

I just remember having a good time with those guys.

Midnight Madness
Something my cousin Carl talked about going to was Midnight Madness. It was the Friday night of Whoop-Up Days and meant you could buy a pass and go on the rides all through the night until like 6 a.m.

I wasn’t able to go until the summer after Grade 11 for a number of reasons. My parents obviously would never go with me, and there was no one else to go with, even if my parents had allowed me to go, which was doubtful.

Then, I met Randy Skiba, and we went to Midnight Madness together. There was an added twist. We each liked a different girl, and heard rumours they would be at Midnight Madness. In the end, the girl I liked wasn’t but we did see the girl he liked.

The next year, I went again, and suffered a crushing defeat. I had dated this girl a couple times, and even took her to my grad. Things really didn’t click, but I was too stupid to stop.

I called her to see if she wanted to go to Midnight Madness. She passed. Then, when I was walking the grounds at Midnight Madness, I saw her get on a ride. I thought I was just seeing things, but then I saw her again. It was crushing, at least for the moment.

Working for the week
I also got a job that summer of 1987 working at the Exhibition Grounds, but that has to be for another time because I experienced a lot in a short week.

Parting thoughts
Whoop-Up Days was one of the things I looked forward to every year growing up. It was a chance to get off the farm, hang out with my cousins, and later friends. It was also an opportunity to play games, see some shows, eat some carnival food, go on some tame rides, and just see and do things I never did any other time of year.

This year, I heard they did not charge admission to Whoop-Up Days.

I thought that was awesome, because everyone should get the chance to make the kind of memories I did.