You're growing up like flower

So, after how much fun I had writing about Starlight, I decided to report on some of the other random crap that my family loves but it seems like other people ignore. Obviously, I asked my family for suggestions, and my sister, the ever wise, and totally rock star Mary, brought up American Dreams.

OK, so American Dreams was on for 3 seasons. Which means logically, our household could not possibly have been the only one watching it, but it occasionally feels that way. Since anytime I bring it up to other people, they look at me like I'm insane.

American Dreams chronicled the lives of the Prior family, a working class Irish-Catholic family from Philadelphia in the mid 1960s. Father Jack, who owned and operated a TV and Radio shop, Mom Helen, who became bored with her housewife status so went back to school, oldest son JJ, a football star who harbored dreams of being an astronaut, Meg, the good girl daughter who defies her parents by dancing on American Bandstand, genius second daughter Patty and baby Will, who was his brother's reason to dream. Also included were JJ's longtime girlfriend and later wife, Beth, Meg's rebellious best friend Roxanne, Jack's assistant Henry and his son Sam, and Meg's revolving door of boyfriends. (The best being Chris, Milo Ventimiglia on a motorcycle!)

American Dreams was kind of innovative and ahead of its time. Aside from covering the same time frame as the now massively lauded Mad Men, it also featured current reinterpretations of classic songs, since the guests on Band Stand were often played by modern stars, singing the songs, including Kelly Clarkson as Brenda Lee, Usher as Marvin Gaye, Jennifer Love Hewitt as Nancy Sinatra a la Glee. Plus it introduced the world to Brittney Snow, who played Meg quite adorably. Even though Meg was often really unlikeable, Brittney made her feel real.

The show covered some pretty heavy issues, including JJ's stint in Vietnam, were he went MIA, as Beth found out she was pregnant, Sam and Meg being continually attracted to each other, but knowing that even their friendship was taboo, because he was black and she was white. Also, Helen went on the pill after multiple miscarriages, had a gay coworker and helped a classmate after she had an abortion.

Every Sunday the Nayden family gathered for American Dreams. And really, sometimes it did feel like we were the only ones watching.

Which was unfortunate, because MILO on a MOTORCYCLE! With a Beatles haircut. Yeah, you're sorry you missed that.

I am the Starlight...

"What's scary about Starlight Express isn't that Andrew Lloyd Weber wrote it. He is insane. We knew this. What's scary to think about is that there were men in suits in an office somewhere that gave him money to do it." - Allison Andresini, 2004-ish

Ollie: You do know that this is a singing play right? Because one time, Daddy went to go see a singing play and then everybody was on roller skates.
Gertie: Cool!
Ollie: Daddy didn't think so.
-Jersey Girl

"It's just like Joseph but on roller skates. And instead of characters from the Bible, they're all trains. But other than that, it's like exactly the same." - Mike Nayden, anytime he tries to explain it to people who don't know what it is beyond that sketch on Family Guy

"I had this dream, that instead of doing Annie Get Your Gun, Mike convinced us to do an outdoor version of Starlight Express...I'm not sure what that means." - Katie Wiegl, Summer 2009

"Well, I don't know if I can take a whole night of ABBA and it doesn't sound like that subject is appropriate for my 9 year old. This is Andrew Lloyd Weber! The kids liked Cats, they'll like this too." - Irene Nayden, Summer 1999, London, England, Justifying her decision to take her children to see Starlight Express instead of Mamma Mia! (Good Call Mom!)

So, my earlier post today, about Joseph got me thinking about what may be my ultimate guilty pleasure...the musical Starlight Express. If you're unfamiliar (most people are) it's a post Cats pre Phantom of The Opera Andrew Lloyd Weber musical about trains.

Yes, you heard me right. Trains. And all of the characters are on roller skates. Does it sound bizarre? That's because it is. It's also fantastic.

And when I say I love Starlight, I don't mean it in an ironic, it's so kitschy, isn't that funny kind of way.

See, it all started in the summer of 1999. My family took a trip to Ireland and drove around the country for two weeks in a van. Lots of stories there. We ended the trip with four days in London. I was 11, I was in a foreign country for the first time. I was naive. My parents decided to indulge their burgeoning theater geek children by taking them to see a show on The West End, London's answer to Broadway.

Everyone was talking about this revolutionary new show, that took the music of an already established band and built the musical around it. Apparently, this show was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Unfortunately the band it was built around was ABBA, and my parents believe that disco came from Satan. Plus it was about a girl with 3 possible father's and my mom thought it would be inappropriate. So that was out. (In the future, I would often grumble about how I didn't get to see Mammy Mia like four years before anyone in the US had even heard of it)

Instead they got tickets to some show that my dad saw in the 80s and remembered vaguely enjoying and that the concierge at our hotel assured them, "the children would enjoy."

And enjoy it we did. This show had everything! Singing, dancing, roller skates, laser lights, power ballads, spelled out curse words in a a country song, a flimsy plot about a train race, a rap song, a convoluted and illogical love story, jokes about Sylvester Stallone movies...I think you get the point.

And we continued to enjoy it for years. We bought the CD and listened to it over and over and over again. Then high school hit and we got realllllllyyy into theater, and it turned out that this show which we loved, was actually considered a joke. A big stinking turd of a joke. I had many conversations with people who tried to convince me to change my mind, and my response usually went something like this:

"But, but, but, roller skates! And lasers! And...OK, yes, the trains are stupid, but it's for kids! Who cares?"

OK, so before writing this post, I read the Wikipedia article for Starlight Express. Um, it's turns out it wasn't supposed to be for kids. The original plot was way darker, and totally weirder. And then it got edited and changed around and became family friendly. Also apparently, Electra, the electric train, (Nobody sprained any muscles naming these characters, Rusty is an old steam engine, Dinah a dining car etc.) is supposed to be bisexual. Which is what his first song "AC/DC" is about. My 11 year old brain did not process that.

Also, although Americans think that Starlight is a big turd, Europeans love it! It's like the longest running show in German history, and it ran for 7,000 performances or something on the West End. So there.

I did listen to the CD again before writing this too. And I still think a lot of the songs are really good. But yeah, most of it is pretty awful.

Plus when you're just listening, you can't see the lasers.

And almost 10 years later, when we went to go see Mamma Mia! my mom totally loved it.

I'm sailing right behind

Brothers and Sisters is a remarkable show. I've always thought so. Anyone from a mildly close family would relate to the Walker clan. From the first episode I saw my family in it (there are no secrets among the McLaughlins) and granted the story lines have spun out into Soap-land (Rebecca isn't really their sister, William had another mistress, and Nora and Holly can't just let it go, Justin relapses again etc.) the relationships between the characters and interactions are so what a real family is like, and I personally love anything that is in the mainstream media and doesn't demonize the Republican party...hell, Kitty and Robert might be the objectively best people in the Walker family, but I digress. Last night's two hour long "Troubled Waters" was not just an episode of the show, it was the quintessential example of what makes the Walkers great.

The episode begins with a trademark Walker dinner, where Nora announced that she had invited Ryan Lafferty, their real illegitimate sibling, you know, because Rebecca isn't and now she and Justin are a couple. Everyone freaks and starts talking all at once, just like a real family. Then Robert announces that he's running for governor and everyone is thrilled.

The next day everyone is paired off in various ways, Kitty, Saul and Nora and in her kitchen discussing the Ryan situation, Justin is fixing Sarah's sink. Tommy is at work, Kevin and Robert are dealing with the governor business and then the phone rings and it turns out the birth mother of Kitty and Robert's kid is in labor.

Obviously the Walkers go into helpful mode and everyone is scrambling to get things together for the new member of the family.

Robert officially announces his candidacy rather than rush to the hospital and Kitty announces that she's done. She then witnesses the birth of her son while Robert is having a heart attack.

In part 2, Kitty takes care of both her newborn son and her husband who is having open heart surgery, letting go of her anger, but after he wakes up, he assures Kevin that he's still running for governor and once again doesn't tell Kitty.

Oh right and Tommy is now being investigated for his crimes against Holly over at Ojai and Ryan showed up at the house while no one but Justin and Rebecca were home. We got a great set up for the rest of the season.

But it was an incredibly powerful two hours of television. And now that Balthazar Getty (Tommy) is leaving the show, I assume to go to prison, it makes sense that they're bringing Ryan in...but we'll see.