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Showing posts from 2009

A Dollar in the Jar: Tribute to Leonard Bishop

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Beginnings When I rang the door bell in the summer of 2000, a plump man in his late seventies answered. He looked similar to Rodney Dangerfield, especially in the nose. We had never met before, and I wasn’t certain if my friend, who had initially invited me, informed him about my arrival. The writer’s meeting was supposed to start at 7:30 p.m. every Thursday. It had been a ritual for nearly a decade. He tilted a half smile anyway, eyes beaming at a pretty girl, and invited me in. His white T-shirt and dark, crinkly slacks was not the style I had envisioned. Also, it was evident he needed a hair cut because the length reached over his ears. I had envisioned a distinguished beard or pipe or even a brown sweater with leather patches at the elbows. After all, wasn’t that a standard for aging writers? I followed him into his dining room, a short distance from the front door. He had a slight limp, which later I learned about his club foot, one of the many difficulties he overcame

What If Buddy Holly Had Lived?

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February 3rd defined the anniversary of Buddy Holly’s death, as well as Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper . The legendary plane crash in Clear Lake, Iowa continues to trouble our conscious souls; otherwise our society would not persist in honoring these celebrated artists. For example: Hollywood’s somewhat biographical depiction of The Buddy Holly Story , an actor’s brief rendition of Buddy in La Bamba , Broadway’s production of Buddy- The Buddy Holly Story , an Australian musical which opened on Feb. 3rd of 2009, the movie dedicated to one of his songs, Peggy Sue Got Married , and of course, the ever-so infamous song, "American Pie." And certainly there is a much longer list of pop cultural influences such as Pulp Fiction, The Simpsons , and Quantum Leap , but I think you get the picture. Dying at the age of 22, (and how many of us dare to remember our early twenties?), his life had just rose the anchor before sailing off into uncharted waters. He began hi