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Cotillion was a study in an upside-down Fellini movie. Let us de-brief: I guess the biggest thing was a sense of ‘that wasn’t so bad.” Us white-blooded males soberly realized we had changed. The touch of a girl’s hand, the feel of her soft dress, the way she moved with you in sync (granted, in… Continue reading So, what have we learned?

“Ladies, I’m seeing many of you don’t feel the need to talk to your partner. It is your responsibility to initiate conversations with the gentleman who has chosen you as a partner. And gentlemen, this does not leave you off the hook. Talk about school, teachers, the weather, your friends. And you know, it wouldn’t… Continue reading Cotillion Mary

Second session (November) she delivers announcements, paying Homage to Charlton Heston’s Moses. The Chess game is on, she’s going straight for a quick checkmate. “Anyone caught on other floors of the hotel will be expelled. Your parents will be called to get you.” (What stupid shits, I thought. You go running around a hotel, knowing… Continue reading The Politics of Dancing

I dig a pygmy by Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf-Aids. Phase One in which our hero eats his toes. At first cotillion there was a girl in what we called ‘the creamsicle dress.’ It was delicate orange, standing out like a rose in a patch of weeds–the exact shade of a vanilla Popsicle that was… Continue reading Tasting your foot in your mouth

If there is one sacred rule that has been passed through the ages since Moses descended from the mountain, it is this: The boys don’t want to be here, and they will try with all their adolescent might to only dance with 3 or 4 girls all night long. While I grant you dancing with… Continue reading Games People Play (at Cotillions)

Lesson over, the hostess announces: “It’s time to get started! Gentlemen, rise and go to the ladies.” No one moves. Our feet are frozen. The air is thick with pre-teen angst. To our horror, from under her dress she produces a cattle prod. Oh, you don’t believe that, huh? Hey, give me credit for trying.… Continue reading Meanwhile, back at the Cotillion….

Big news for our little corner of suburbia. You have to understand that at this point, the county was still 80% rural. There was a ‘farming/agriculture’ section in the weekly paper as well as special features on Sunday. Market prices for Produce and meat were posted daily. These generations of farmers/rural dwellers were now senior… Continue reading There’s a House in the Street (Part 2)

The winds they talk of changes coming. One street down from me, there was a large split-level on the corner of the main road, larger than most of the two- and three-bedroom post-war abodes on the block. The boy in the house was ‘one of those.’ He was younger and he’d ride up to the… Continue reading There’s a House in the Street (Part One)

OK, I know you recognize it. We’ll get there…. An ‘it’ girl in the 60’s was usually very young , single, attractive/cute and up to date with the latest styles and trends. Pat DiNuzio knew about Jean Shrimpton and her legs: And David Bowie had Twiggy aka ‘Twink the Wonder kid’: Laugh-in spawned several ‘It’… Continue reading Those ‘IT’ Girls

Once you finished elementary school, Mad magazine somehow slipped into your brain. Parents didn’t like it, but older brothers had been reading it in the 50’s. In those days, ‘funny books’ (aka comics) were only for little kids. No ‘book-length’ comics. Marvel was just getting on their feet–Spidey, F4, Daredevil. No X Men yet. Batman… Continue reading Mad Magazine and Laugh-In