(#2004-372) - Topics this issue: 1) Totally off topic at the moment, but still Bee Gees., ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 05 Oct 2004 21:05:44 -0700 From: tgflint Subject: Totally off topic at the moment, but still Bee Gees. Hi! I thought this would be fun reading for you all! It's from the "Daily Beacon", wherever that is. Enjoy! tg Animal House, disco serve as iconic hallmarks of 1978 Hilary Trenda Staff Writer Volume 97 Number 36 Tuesday, October 05, 2004 Beer guzzling frat boys and the immense popularity of the theme song to "Saturday Night Fever" made 1978 a banner year for America's pop culture. "Laverne & Shirley" was the most viewed television program, President Carter would raise the mandatory retirement age to 70 and the Dallas Cowboys spanked the often overlooked Denver Broncos, 27-10, in Super Bowl XII. But on to the really important things. Yes, "The Deer Hunter" would win Best Picture at the Oscars that year, but the movie that truly won the hearts of audiences: "National Lampoon's Animal House." With the tagline of "We can do anything we want. We're college students!" America was introduced to the completely deviant, always hysterical Delta fraternity. Directed by John Landis, this comedy would come to be regarded as a classic and is even still considered to be one of the ultimate college party movies. If the last time you saw the film, you chugged a beer whenever Bluto (John Belushi) did, your memory of the plot might be a little fuzzy. No worries, here are the basics. Faber College has one fraternity of absolute party animals. The Deltas are made up of an extremely diverse group of brothers, all causing a different form of mischief. Otter, (Tim Matheson), is the ladies' man, who manages to sleep with Dean Wormer's wife. Bluto is the token drunk and instigates all the most vulgar and riotous pranks. D-Day (Bruce McGill) rides a motorcycle, drives the DeathMobile, and is the general handyman. Boon (Peter Riegert) is struggling between getting drunk with his brothers and finding time for his girlfriend Katie (Karen Allen). The mayhem they cause is monumental, (i.e. the Homecoming Parade) and the parties are even bigger. If only one thing could come from Animal House, it would easily be the chant "Toga! Toga!" And thus, a fraternal dress-up party tradition is born. 1978 offered up another pop culture classic. Think lighted-panel dance floors. Think white leisure suits. Think John Travolta. Put it all together and you'll have guessed The Bee Gee's hit song "Stayin' Alive."? With one of the most famous intros ever, "Stayin' Alive" ran rampant on dance floors as 4 1Ú2 minutes of disco goodness. You either love it or hate it, but either way you do know it. Well now I get low and I get high, and if I can't get either, I really try. Got the wings of heaven on my shoes. I'm a dancin' man and I just can't lose. Who knew behind that falsetto voice one of the best disco anthems actually had interesting lyrics? Wycleff Jean sampled the Bee Gee's hit on his Carnival album in 1997, introducing the melody to a whole new generation. Proof for those slightly delusional fans who refuse to be believe that disco is, in fact, dead. What have we learned from 1978? Frat boys are an integral part of any college institution, and must be saluted for throwing parties for us. Remember: Even double-secret probation and imminent expulsion can be fixed by a good party. However, if bad luck that copious amounts of beer can not fix what befalls you, just hear that infamous so-'70s intro in your head. Thank the Bee Gees and go on with it, singing "You know it's all right. It's OK. I'll live to see another day" you're "stayin' alive, stayin' alive." ------------------------------ End words@brothersgibb.com Digest [10/06/2004 03:01] ----------------------------------------------------