I'm a sucker for certain movies. I could post a list of some i have watched a dozen times or more. The other night was a bonanza, and not the Ben Cartwright family kind. Nope, this was two back to back of my favorites; Dirty Dancing and Pretty Woman. You know you've watched them too many times when you say many of the lines along with them. I was thrown for loop, as i caught the very beginning of Pretty Woman; usually i catch it part of the way though. I laughed out load when Richard Gere got off the phone with his girlfriend back in New York who told him she was leaving him because she spoke more to his secretary than him. At which point another old flame walked in the room and asked her if that was true. Totally deadpan she turned to him and said she had recently married and his secretary was one of her bridesmaids. The line still kills me. Anyway, i just posted a photo from the Museum on Facebook, Sun City Chat Arizona. I do one every day with brief cut lines. Today's was of Jo Ann Castle on the stage of the Sun Bowl in 1968. There was a massive crowd seated in the bowl behind her. While writing the summary, the music from Dirty Dancing popped into my head, yet again another sickness of mine. The movie is coming to an end and Johnny (Swayze) has been fired from the resort he worked at. He always closes out the show with a dance routine. He left, but returned to the stage and brought "baby" (Jennifer Grey) up there with him. They play the incredible 1987 Golden Globe award winning song "Time of My Life" on and finish up with a spectacular dance routine. Campy, corny and utterly mesmerizing. BTW, the song was performed by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes. So, what the hell does this mean about anything? Posting the Castle picture took me back to 1968 and what could only be described as "the time of their life." Sitting in the Sun Bowl, enjoying the show, sharing their new active way of life with all of the other Sun City residents, had to be a remarkable experience. Fast forward to March 6, 2022. Today, tonight starting at 6 pm, that experience will be repeated in a venue that has showcased talent for 30 plus years. Performances that have left smiles on faces and joy in the hearts of thousands and thousands of Sun City residents year after year. Tonight it will be a George Straight tribute band who has played here before and the crowd loves them. Country music at its finest. The Sun City Advocates took a poll asking what people liked about Sun City. The answers were voluminous. The list was long and there was nary a critic in the bunch. But, what is there not to love? A community built by the members for the members has given us all the "time of our life." The Sun Bowl part of it. If you go to the show tonight, get there early. Remember, it is for Sun City residents and their escorted guests. I would recommend arriving around 5 pm to place your lawn chair, earlier if you want to be close. Bring your photo RCSC ID. Food trucks will be in the food court or you can bring your own picnic snacks and beverages. Plan on having fun. You will have the "time of your life." Just to help insure, here's the youtube link from Dirty Dancing (click anywhere on the sentence).
I just clicked on the link to make sure it worked and was stunned to see 400,000,000 plus views. Yikes. Better yet when i watched it, the doctor's wife in the movie told the good doctor (Baby's dad) to "sit down Jake" when he got up to confront the couple in the final dance scene. Classic line that hits home. She also told her husband as Baby was dancing, "i think she gets it from me." So simple, short and sweet. I've learned to appreciate the simple things in life. To take enjoyment when it's right in front of me, all i needed to do was listen. The other thing about that "low budget" movie was it grossed over two hundred million dollars. Go figure. As long as i mentioned tonight's Sun Bowl show, let me touch on the event held yesterday. The Classic Car show was there from 9 am till 1 pm. I wasn't going to go, but i did. One of the best things i could have done. Almost 250 classic cars and the most of them stunning. The place was crowded, but not as many as i would have expected. In the coming years, this annual event should promoted and those living in and around Sun City should be encouraged to attend. Restoring that sense of community, belonging and ownership should always be front and center. We all need to do a better job of working together to recreate the sense of belonging.
