June, 1969

With the addition of my new little brother Matthew, my grandparents and all the kids now being out of school the house has become a frenzied place. Everyone agrees that Matthew is adorable and they all cannot help but remark on how much he looks like his father. I suppose this is a compliment to both my little brother and my father. Meanwhile, I have become my grandmother’s shadow and it was her that heard me say my first word: nanna. It was a word in my grandmother’s ear at any rate. I suspect that most first words uttered are largely based on the interpretation of whoever first hears it. Fathers hear dada, mothers hear momma, grandmothers hear nanna and no doubt the dog hears ‘walkies’. Whatever the sound, it was clear that my grandmother was becoming the maternal force of my life.

To help reign in some of the chaos of the house, my grandparents have suggested taking the kids to see a movie. The local movie house was closed so my grandparents piled all of us into the car and my drove off to the next town 30 minutes away. There were no movieplexes in those days so whatever was playing is what you got to see. It may have better served my grandparents to call ahead first to check out what was on but I don’t think it really mattered to them. So, with a brood of kids that included a 15 month old me, everyone settled in to catch Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity. For my first movie-going experience I would not be offered typical kids fair of flying elephants, purple roosters or singing bears. I would get to enjoy what was essentially prostitutes trying to coax men - via song - into a fuck and a young girl’s hope of finding the right guy to save her from this life all done to the Frug. I have no recollection of that day and I was told that I fell asleep in my grandmother’s lap. Not Even Sammy Davis Jr. could keep me awake.

Whether or not the movie and Fosse’s sexy dance numbers were appropriate for family viewing was never addressed and, frankly, I doubt anyone cared. This would have been the first music I would have heard not from the radio or TV and whether or not the film left an imprint in my life is, well, yet to be seen. All I know is that the rhythm of life is a powerful beat.

Rhythm of Life from Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity
Performed by Sammy Davis Jr.