i’ve mentioned before that i’m the product of four uber-hardworking parents. because of this i was one of those tv-as-babysitter kids. i learned, from a very early age, who was who in Genoa City, because my grandfather and i would watch Y&R together. i knew the price of fabric softener and bleach from watching the Price is Right every. single. day. with my grandmother. talk shows, game shows, soaps, sitcoms, dramas, i watched it all. even Divorce Court. (bubbie was a big fan of the court shows)
i didn’t just like TV. i was obsessed. I was also a huge fan of the movie. My dad wasn’t much of a talker (still isn’t…but he did say, “i love you, Alicia” last night for the first time, possibly ever, and it melted my heart) but he was a big movie-watcher. so, that was one thing he could do with us. so, he took us to movies. a lot. in fact, the first movie i can remember him taking me and my sister to was Flashdance. i was five. certainly age appropriate. ahem.
again…i didn’t just like movies. i was obsessed. and would become obsessed with certain movies and watch them over. and over. and over.
strange movies. among my childhood obsessions…
Annie. i still know every. single. line. to this movie. i swear. i could act out the entire movie. sadly.
Space Camp. Joaquin Phoenix back when he was calling himself Leaf…and pre-OC Tate Donovan. LOVE.
The Goonies. it’s where i learned to do the Truffle Shuffle and where i learned the phrase ‘jerk alert’….and trust me, i learned the hard way that this is not an appropriate greeting for when your mom comes home from a hard day at work.
Beaches. this was the first movie i saw in the theater without a parent. I convinced my dad to find me a bootlegged copy of it in NYC and i watched that vhs tape until it literally broke.
Alex: the Life of a Child.
The Neverending Story. there are no words to express the love i had for this movie.
The Cutting Edge. i drove my siblings CRAZY by throwing a random ‘toe pick’ line in every. single. conversation.
Can’t Buy Me Love. oh, how my sister and i LOVED this movie. we prayed and prayed that we would one day get to drive the car of our dreams. the white Volkswagen Cabriolet.
The Man in the Moon. Old School Reese Witherspoon. before anyone knew who she was.
oh, i could keep going. Karate Kid. Back to the Future. The Breakfast Club. Weird Science. St. Elmo’s Fire. Footloose. Sixteen Candles. Grease. Poltergeist. Rainman.
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