Saturday, September 27, 2008

Fare the well Reggie Dunlop...

One of my family's favorite movies is "Slapshot." Hard to believe because with the language, it's not a family friendly movie. But because of the language, and the silliness in which it is used, if you mention just one line to any member of the Dent family, we start laughing.

Every time I watch the movie I am reminded of how I miss watching hockey...and to sound like the film "old time hockey." You remember good hockey, right? When there were not a zillion teams in the NHL, the talent wasn't watered down, and the games were actually competitive and enjoyable to watch. The last game I saw was in 2000 in Chicago, the Blackhawks played Colorado. Unlike Blackhawk games of the past, the place was only half full. It was nothing like hockey in Chicago used to be. It was depressing. I haven't tried to go to a game since.

Like my mother, I enjoyed watching Paul Newman. That's right...we liked his acting...forget those beautiful blue eyes or the sexy confidence, right? Right! Even if the movie tanked, he was still awesome. I suppose most people will write about his performance in Cool Hand Luke or in Butch and Sundance however, for me, Reggie Dunlop is still one of the funniest anti-heroes Newman ever protrayed.

In our family, whenever we go grocery shopping, my brother and I will say "want some of that Reggie Dunlop sauce?" Or if we speak of Florida, my brother will say "here's to all that gorgeous...."(you can complete the sentence if you have seen the movie). If someone gets a penalty, both of my brothers break into a Strother Martin imitation concerning the guy who would purposefully get penalities so he could sit in the aptly name penalty box.

Throughout his life, Newman kept his private life private. Unlike many aging celebrities, he didn't spend time confessing his "sins' of the past or reminded us who he was; instead, he was able to point back to his work and just walk away, nothing needed to be said. Even in the end, when people were trying to push him to talk about his illness, he refused. More celebs could emulate his behavior instead of parading their personal lives in front of all of us.

Newman will be missed but I hope he left our realm of being realizing that he touched the loves in a positive manner of so many others he never met.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

YOU SUCK COCK! lmao

Joyce said...

"All I can get!"
-Reggie Dunlop

HA! Another great line from the movie. I also should have mentioned "Bleed all over them, let 'em know you're there!"