memories of the ’70s – James at 15

Uprooted from his familiar surroundings of Oregon, a young teen finds himself living in Boston, and not fitting in at all. This drama of teen angst and all the pressures of being a young man were epitomized in the series James at 15.

Created by journalist Dan Wakefield, James at 15 was based on his book Going All the Way, a novel about a displaced teenager of the 1950s. Wakefield was asked by NBC to create the series, and set the show in Boston in order to get out of Los Angeles, like every other show on television at the time.

Actor Lance Kerwin was chosen to be James, an unsure boy who wants to become a photographer and isn’t too impressed with the choices of his Dad, a college professor, and their move to the big city. NBC originally asked for a tv movie, which did well and led to the debut of the series in 1977.

Unlike many other dramas, the show was highly realistic and described the true life of being an adolescent, as opposed to being a show that was created to attract adolescents. Wakefield’s creation of the character seemed inspired by the realism that was happening in the world of ’70s films.

James’ friends included Sly,  an African-American who middle class family surrounds him in classical music and Marlene, whose blue-collar plumber Dad makes more money than James’ university Dad, both shattering the conventions of the time for many characters on primetive tv. Critics adored the show, and James’ sensitive ways made it a favourite of tv viewers.

In the second half of the first season James at 16 becomes the new name as James begins a relationship with Swedish exchange student, who becomes pregnant. Wakefield quit the show over a dispute with the network of how James should react to the pregnancy. The show only lasted one season, but left a lasting impression. Kevin Williamson, creator of Dawson’s Creek, cited James at 15 as his influence, for its unique depiction of teenage life.

I liked James at 15 – although too young to truly understand his angst for moving and now living in a big city, since that’s exactly what I wanted – to move from a small town. I appreciated the feeling of being an outsider, wanting to fit in and wanting to be true to oneself.

Lance Kerwin kept acting, appearing in tv and films, but kept away from series television after his experience with James at 15, a show that broke ground, and led the way for many other series to contemplate the teenage years as not a silly party time on tv, but faced with serious issues of self-worth and responsibility. The network may have felt the audience wasn’t ready for James at 15/ James at 16, but it makes you wonder what would have happened if we’d been allow to see how James handled his change from teen to man.

Winter wonderland

The beauty of the mountains near Aspen Colorado January 2008 by WH

Happy face

A happy-faced dragon created out of snow at Carnaval de Quebec. Quebec City, January 2009 by WH

memories of the ’80s – Bo Derek

The ideal beauty for the 1980s was a California girl – she epitomized the sexy beach culture and was the source of many a man’s fantasy: Bo Derek.  

Her role in Blake Edwards film 10 launched her into the world as the latest sexy starlet. Bo Derek was the pinup girl that made many a man and teenage boy dream of beach bunnies, with her long blonde hair and buxom body.

Mary Cathleen Collins was a California girl, growing up at the beach and wanting to be a surfer. In order to pay for a new surfboard, Collins started modelling, and then started doing commercials. Collins got herself an agent and on an audition, met director John Derek.

Derek fell for the 16 year old model, divorcing his wife, actress Linda Evans, and moving to Germany with the young Mary, in order to avoid statutory rape charges in the United States, as she transformed from young surfer to Bo Derek. At age 18, the couple returned to the US,  and in 1976 were married, when Bo was 20.

Bo appeared in the 1979 film 10 – as the fascinating sexy beach girl who captures the attention of actor Dudley Moore. Her cornrowed hair and gold tanksuit catapulted Bo to become a favourite of the male-dominated media and  for women across North America the inspiration to want their hair braided.

She made her first appearance in Playboy Magazine in 1980, in a 12 page pictorial showing her frolicking with her dog at the beach, photographed by her husband John. She appeared twice in the pages of Playboy in 1980 and several times over the next five years.

Her poster (sourced from the film 10) was a favourite for teen boys to have on their wall, and her image was a popular style influencer to the 20-something woman of the 1980s. But her acting ability, in such gems as Tarzan, the Ape Man and Bolero, led Bo to be awarded two Golden Raspberry Worst Actress Awards.

Derek was also a producer on these film projects; and named in a lawsuit by the Edgar Rice Burroughs estate over the creation of Tarzan, the Ape Man, for its weak depiction of Tarzan and its emphasis on her character.

I remember my friends and I trying to figure out how to cornrow our hair, and realizing it was more difficult than it initially seemed. My Mother wasn’t too impressed with the four or five cornrowed strands in my hair, and certainly didn’t want me to think Bo Derek’s hairstyle was something to be emulated.

Derek didn’t act again until the end of the decade, in a film produced by her husband, Ghosts Can’t Do It, which earned her a third Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress. She continues to act in small roles, and has been less seen in public since her husband passed away in the late 1990s. Bo Derek may have never conquered Hollywood’s A-list as an actress, but Derek certainly was the epitome of a 1980s sex symbol with her come-hither aura of a California girl.

Hockey parking only

A back porch sign emphasized by some art embellishment. Toronto October 2009 by WH

memories of the ’70s – BJ and the Bear

A trucker and a chimpanzee, travelling across the US, getting in trouble and helping people out? Yes, the premise of BJ and the Bear does seem odd, but it was a favourite of 1979 when it debuted starring 1970s hearthrob Greg Evigan.

This hour long drama (!) focused on the travelling ways of Billie Joe McKay and his pet Bear, named for the famed coach of the Alabama football team, Bear Bryant. Evigan had done theatre and small parts on television, but when NBC decided to green-light this series after its successful ratings as a tv movie, Evigan became the focus of teen girls, who clamored for his posters found in Tiger Beat and Teen Beat magazines.

The series co-starred Claude Akins, who played the stereotypical sneaky and mean Sheriff Lobo, who doubted that a man and chimp could be doing anything on the up and up. Akins’ popularity caused a spinoff – The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo – where he transformed from small town sheriff to the head of a task force.

After the first season and a hiatus, BJ and the Bear changes its premise – with BJ living in Los Angeles and running Bear Enterprises, a trucking business with a new enemy: a nemesis called Rutherford T. Grant, who was a corrupt politician. Due to the conflicts with Grant, BJ is ‘forced’ to hire seven women drivers as his crew, creating its own comedic and dramatic twists and turns.

Evigan lasted three years as BJ, hoping to parlay his success into another series – which he did in the 1980s in My Two Dads and Tek War. I occasionally watched BJ and the Bear in its first season, more intrigued by a chimpanzee being a best friend and ally on tv than in the apparent good looks of the freewheelin’ trucker and stories that occurred with his unconventional friends.

Evigan still appears regularly on television, and although he is long from his first series on television, the oddity of a man and a chimp starring on a primetime show may have been a first in the 1970s, but certainly after Clint Eastwood’s film Every Which Way But Loose (1978) with his co-star Clyde, an orangutan, the audience felt this was an acceptable buddy part for primates wanting a Hollywood lifestyle.

Winter push

Snow and ice sculpture at the Quebec Winter Carnival, Quebec City January 2009 by WH

A wee devil

A wee devil spotted while wandering Toronto – November 2009 by WH

memories of the ’80s – Live Aid

Spurned on by success in illuminating the famine in Ethiopia with Band Aid, Bob Geldof decided to create something bigger and bolder with the creation of Live Aid. This multi-venue rock event held on two different continents raised the awareness of the world to the plight of starving Africans.

Geldof, who had been inspired to create Band Aid’s Do They Know its Christmas for Christmas 1984, continued on with his devotion to helping the people of Ethiopia with the planning of Live Aid.

The concerts aired on July 13, 1985, starting at Wembley Stadium in London and finishing at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. An estimated 400 million viewers in 60 countries watched the broadcast, the biggest audience for a television program at that time.  

Featuring a who’s who of the music industry, Geldof called in all favours to feature in London bands such as Adam Ant, The Style Council, Ultravox, Nik Kershaw, Spandau Ballet, Elvis Costello, David Bowie, Sade, Bryan Ferry, U2, Dire Straits, Sting, Queen and a finale featuring Paul McCartney.

In Philadelphia, organizers featured Joan Baez, The Hooters, Rick Springfield, Black Sabbath, Bryan Adams, Judas Priest, Simple Minds, Madonna, Cars, Santana, Power Station, The Pretenders, Thompson Twins, Run DMC, Duran Duran, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Lionel Ritchie, Patti Labelle, Hall & Oates, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

Drummer Phil Collins was the only musician to appear at both concerts, playing in London with Sting and taking the Concorde and playing with Eric Clapton in Philadelphia.

Ironically misinformation happened several times during the day, with Geldof being wrongly informed that only 1.5 million British pounds had been raised. He famously interrupted a BBC interviewer to demand more money from the viewers, using the word ‘fuck’ live on tv. It was estimated at the time that 150 million British pounds was raised between the two concerts, with the largest contribution of one million British pounds from the ruling family of Dubai of the United Arab Emirates.

I was a very passionate teen, who got up early and started watching the Brit musicians from London on MuchMusic in Canada, and staying glued to the television throughout the day until late in the evening performances in Philadelphia. I was supportive of the need to help my fellow people and sent a donation to receive a Live-Aid concert t-shirt, which has never been worn, and I still have, tucked away in my dresser. As someone who was born on the continent of Africa, I’ve always been aware of its extremes – the wealth of my home country South Africa versus the continuing ravages of colonialism in countries such as Ethiopia, Congo, Rwanda or Mozambique.

Live Aid showed many that a group of people could make a difference and that one person’s voice as a call for action encouraged all of us to rally together to help those who needed us to reach out. As years have gone by, numerous disasters have struck our planet, but the generosity of its citizens has always come to give a helping hand.

Joy of winter

Sculpture on Main Street, downtown Park City, Utah. January 2010 by WH