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Sunday, February 16, 2014

I Am Everyday People

As someone who has always appreciated a great song, I always feel great delight in doing a Sunday Jukebox entry.  And, I am hoping that today's song selection will be a good one.  It is a song that promotes diversity, belonging, and acceptance - all qualities that could best describe the spirit of "BLACK HISTORY MONTH", in which a lot of entries this February will feature.

And, as I explained earlier, this year I'm going to be doing something a little bit different.  Every song that will be featured in this Sunday Jukebox special will be a #1 hit of some sort.  I haven't figured out how I plan on making this happen during October's Scare-fest or December's Advent Calendar yet, but I have got months to plan something for those two months.

But why look ahead to the future now?  It's February, so let's focus on the here and now...by talking about a song that hit the top of the charts 45 years ago this week.

Yeah, somewhere in my brain, that made sense.

Yeah, today's song hit the top of the Billboard Charts on February 15, 1969 and it stayed there for a whole month, being unseated by Tommy Roe's "Dizzy" in March 1969.  The song is considered to be a perfect anthem for racial harmony, and as far as the artists who made this song popular go...well, let's just say that they practice what they preach!

Okay, enough blabbering on.  Let's just go ahead with today's song spotlight!



ARTIST:  Sly & The Family Stone
SONG:  Everyday People
ALBUM:  Stand!
DATE RELEASED:  November 1968
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  #1 for 4 weeks

So, who exactly are Sly & The Family Stone?  Allow me to tell you.



They were a band that originated in the San Francisco area in the year 1967 - a year of great social unrest and activism.  Headed by singer/songwriter/record producer Sly Stone (born Sylvester Stewart), the band was the very first band in the rock world to have a line-up that was fully integrated and contained members of both genders.

Now, this might not seem like such a big deal nowadays, but in 1967 it was extremely noteworthy.  This was during a time in which segregation was slowly becoming a thing of the past in some states.  A time in which women were beginning to have more of a voice in the world.  A time in which people protested America's involvement in the Vietnam War.  And, Sly & The Family Stone certainly were the perfect poster children for those turbulent, yet groundbreaking times.

The band Sly & The Family Stone was actually a merger between two different bands.  Prior to forming that band, Sly Stone was the frontman of "Sly & The Stoners".  His younger brother Freddie was the lead singer of another band, "Freddie & The Stone Souls".

The two brothers decided that separate, they weren't going anywhere.  Together, they could really make their music even more beautiful and powerful. 

Hence the name "Sly & The Family Stone".

(Well, that, plus the fact that three-sevenths of the band's most recognized line-up were all from the same family.)



When Sly & The Family Stone first started up in 1967, the line-up was comprised of the Stone brothers, bassist Larry Graham, trumpet player Cynthia Robinson, drummer Gregg Errico, and saxophonist Jerry Martini.  Approximately one year later, Sly and Freddie's sister Rose joined the group as a singer/keyboardist.

And, at the tail end of 1968, Sly & The Family Stone would record the single that would become one of their signature hits.

Now, as I was saying before, the late 1960s were a time of great confusion and activism.  Five years prior to this song being made, Martin Luther King Jr. issued his "I Have A Dream" speech.  Earlier in 1968, King was assassinated on April 4, and his death lead to major riots in several cities across the United States, and sparked many protests for racial equality all over the world. 



In short, "Everyday People" could not have come at a better time.

The idea behind the recording of this song was all about Sly Stone's desire to see peace enacted all over the world.  He wanted to live in a world in which people weren't judged by the colour of their skin, the place where they were born, the people whom they loved, or the religion in which they believed in.  The theme of equality and respect for all certainly symbolized what the band was all about.  After all, the inclusion of Caucasian members Gregg Errico and Jerry Martini was proof positive that colour lines didn't exist in the world of Sly & The Family Stone.

The song also marked a departure of sorts for the band as well.  Known for their funk and psychadelic flavour that they infused into their earlier singles, "Everyday People" was more mid-tempo, and a much better fit for the Top 40 music scene and Billboard Charts. 

The song was notable for having nearly every single member of the band contributing vocals to the song.  Of course, Sly Stone was the lead vocalist, singing most of the words in the song, but once the chorus began, Sly, Freddie, Rosie, and Larry Graham would belt out the words "I am everyday people".

And, according to Sly Stone, the phrase "everyday people" was used as a way to tell the listener of the song that they did not consider themselves a part of a smaller, segregated group of people.  Rather, they wanted everyone to see them as parts of a bigger picture.  A bigger, more diverse picture in which everybody played a positive role.

Sly & The Family Stone certainly hoped that the message would permeate through their fan base as well, as it was one that they truly believed in.

I suppose that in some manner of speaking, "Everyday People" could be considered one of the first anti-bullying anthems to be recorded.  Not only did the song proclaim that racism was bad, but it also illustrated a powerful message that hate of all kinds was an exercise in futility.  I mean, in the grand scheme of things, should we exclude someone from a party because they happen to be a few pounds overweight?  Absolutely not.  Should we deny someone the right to get married because they happen to be in love with someone of the same sex or opposite race?  Absolutely not.  Should we deny somebody a job opportunity because they happened to be born a different sex or practice a different religion from everyone else?  I don't believe we should.  So, why would we waste the precious time that we do have on this Earth letting hatred and discrimination poison us from the inside out?  It doesn't seem like it would be a very fun way to live life, does it?

TRIVIA:  There's a line in the song that says 'different strokes for different folks'.  Not only did that become a bit of a catchphrase for the late 1960s and early 1970s, but that line was the inspiration for the title of the show that would come to be known as "Diff'rent Strokes".

At any rate, the song spent a month on the top of the charts, sold three million copies, and became an anthem for the civil rights movement as well as the signature song for the group.

Unfortunately, shortly after this single was released, problems began to arise for the band...and these problems would permanently destroy the unity and harmony within the band - ironically while they were promoting peace and harmony all over the world.

You see, the 1960s were a time of great social upheaval and many people chose to cope with it in a bunch of different ways.  Some chose to express themselves with music - which many did during Woodstock in 1969.  Some chose to express themselves with protests and sit-ins at major university campuses.

And, some chose to use drugs and narcotics to get through the days.

Sly Stone was one of those who fell into a life of heavy drug use.  By the time the 1970s arrived, he was a functioning drug user - he spent every waking hour high on drugs.  In fact, there were reports that Sly Stone would have guitar cases filled with cocaine for his own personal use.  Because of Sly's increasing addiction to cocaine, it caused him to miss quite a few shows that Sly & The Family Stone were scheduled to play.  These missed shows caused people to stop attending their concerts.  By the mid-1970s, their concerts - which used to sell out five years earlier - only managed to sell one-eighth of what the concert venues could hold.  Stone's repeated drug use also caused tension within the band.  Gregg Errico would be the first to leave the group, and the others soon followed.  By 1975, Sly Stone was essentially a solo artist keeping the Sly & The Family Stone name going, but due to poor sales of his future albums and his dependence on drugs, Sly Stone checked into rehab in 1984.  He did attempt a comeback of sorts in the mid-1980s, releasing a few singles here and there, but after getting arrested in 1987 for possession of cocaine, he disappeared from the music spotlight for almost twenty years.

His last public appearance in the music scene took place in 2006 - thirteen years after the band's 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Sly & The Family Stone were supposed to play a special reunion performance at the end of the Grammy Awards, and organizers were worried that he would be a no show, as he missed many of the rehearsals.




He did end up making that performance...but he left after only three minutes on stage, making it one of the weirdest live performances ever shown at a Grammy Awards ceremony. 

Not much is known about what Stone is doing these days, but it was reported that in September 2011, Stone was reportedly homeless and living in a van near Los Angeles, California.  It's been two and a half years since then, and I have to wonder what is going on with him now.

Still...regardless of Sly Stone's personal problems, 45 years ago, he was a leading figure in making sure that all people were treated with dignity and respect...and that everybody had the power to become everyday people.

Saturday, February 15, 2014

My Little Pony - Friendship is Magic

I'm going to preface this blog entry by stating that I have absolutely no experience with today's topic at all.  I never did get into this particular toy - which later became an insanely popular cartoon series - when I was a child, and I certainly don't consider myself to be a fan of this particular topic presently.  I really had to do a lot of research on this show because I knew absolutely nothing about it, so I hope that I do it justice.

And, I suppose the reason why I opted to do this blog entry on something that I know very little about is because I was inspired to do so after reading a story that made the news recently...and this story is one that made me very sad.

Now, everybody knows that there are a variety of cartoon shows that have aired over the last six or seven decades.  And, most of them are designed for kids of all ages.  But, of course there were some shows that were designed specifically for target audiences.  And yes, sometimes those target audiences are gender specific.

When I was growing up, one of my favourite cartoon shows to watch was "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", and to be honest, you could tell that it was a show that was meant for pre-teen and teenage boys to watch - though I did know quite a few girls who liked it as well.  Come to think of it, when I was growing up there were quite a few television shows that were catered to those of a male audience.  "G.I. Joe", "Transformers", "Samurai Pizza Cats".  Quite a lot, now that I'm thinking of it.

Similarly, there were also lots of shows and toys that were catered towards the female demographic.  "Barbie", "Care Bears", "Jem and the Holograms", "Strawberry Shortcake", and "Rainbow Brite", just to name a few.

So, what happens when the gender lines become blurred?

Well, in a perfect world, absolutely nothing.  If a girl wants to watch "G.I. Joe" and "Transformers", then I see nothing wrong with it.  Similarly, I'll be the first one to confess that the very first movie I ever saw in theatres was the 1985 film "The Care Bears Movie".  And, there's nothing wrong with that either.

But, unfortunately, society seems to have drilled it into people's minds that liking something that is catered to the opposite sex is grounds for being made fun of or bullied.  And, that's not okay.  Sometimes I look at society and think to myself...are we really that screwed up?



Case in point.  That story that I read in the news that I want to share with you.  I don't know if you've kept up with recent headlines, but there was a tragic event that took place in the state of North Carolina, all because a little boy was bullied for being a fan of "My Little Pony".

The name of the boy is Michael Morones.  He's eleven years old, and he has been a fan of the "My Little Pony" toys and television series for as long as his parents could remember.  And, these days, it's not really all that uncommon for males to enjoy "My Little Pony".  In some social circles, these male fans are known as "bronies" - a term that I myself had never heard of before I started reading this article. 

But anyway, the constant bullying and teasing that this little boy had to endure at the hands of some classmates was too much for him.  And, just a few days ago, he tried to hang himself in his own bedroom.

Thankfully, his parents managed to stop the attempt from happening, but the extent of the damage is not yet known, as the suicide attempt did leave him with some brain damage. 



Now, if you've been following along with this blog over the last few years, you know that I have absolutely no tolerance for bullies of any sort.  And, what happened with Michael Morones should never have happened in the first place.  And, for what?  All because he was shamed by a few kids who lacked the maturity or empathy to realize that guys could be fans of "My Little Pony" too?  It's just such a sad story that makes me angry and sad all at the same time.  Angry that a little boy should have to feel shame instead of pride for something that he loved, and sad that he felt the only way to escape the pain of being bullied was attempting to end it all.  There's just no need for that.

So, I made the decision to do this blog on "My Little Pony".  I wanted to do it to show support to Michael and his family.  And, after doing a lot of research on "My Little Pony", I'm starting to understand why both girls and boys love the show.  While I can't say that I'll be buying the toys or DVD's anytime soon...I can say that I did learn a lot about the franchise just by reading up on it for a few hours.  And, what I learned is that it's a great toy and series for kids of any age and gender to watch.

Okay, so many people know of the current incarnation of the "My Little Pony" series, which is entitled "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic".  But the actual "My Little Pony" line started up long before that series debuted.  Truth be told, "My Little Pony" is actually as old as I am!



Debuting in 1982, the "My Little Pony" toy line was created by a trio of toy designers - Bonnie Zacherle, Charles Muenchinger, and Steve D'Aguanno.  Zacherle came up with the idea during the summer of 1981 when she was trying to create an ornamental design for a toy animal.  Who knew that when the first models of "My Little Pony" toys began appearing on store shelves in 1982 that it would grow to be the phenomenon that it currently is today.

Mind you, the "My Little Pony" toys of the early 1980s were far different than the "My Little Pony" toys of 2014.  In fact, I managed to find a commercial from the 1980s which featured "My Little Pony" dolls.  I bet some of the girls I went to elementary school will likely remember playing with these toys, and will maybe even remember this commercial themselves!



Yeah, when "My Little Pony" was first coming out, there were several different sub-categories of ponies within the main line.  They started out with "Earth Ponies" in 1982, and were subsequently followed by "Pegasus Ponies", "Unicorn Ponies", "Flutter Ponies", and "Sea Ponies".  Some ponies were even offered only through mail order, meaning that some varieties of "My Little Pony" figures were rarer than others.

This line of toys also inspired the original cartoon series of "My Little Pony", which ran during the 1986/1987 season.  Have a look at the old generation "My Little Pony" cartoon intro, if you like.  It's not like the "My Little Pony" you all enjoy today.



Now, just to give you an indication as to how successful the original line was, it debuted in 1983, and it lasted well into the mid-1990s.  It's estimated that millions of "My Little Pony" dolls were manufactured and sold at the peak of its popularity.  Mind you, they never quite became as popular as the Cabbage Patch Kid - which also debuted the same year that "My Little Pony" began to appear on store shelves - but it certainly could be considered one of the success stories of 1980s toy world.

But here's where the story gets interesting.  This toy line could be one of the very few in which its reboot became much more successful than the parent one.



Of course, I'm talking about the "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic" line, which debuted in 2010.

Now, as far as target demographics go, not much really changed.  Marketing campaigns still targeted girls between the ages of 2-12.  The difference is that instead of there being generic ponies that didn't really have much in the way of personalities, there were a core group of ponies that shared a lot of good times together and had some interesting adventures.

And, for those of you who happen to be fans of "My Little Pony", these ponies really need no introduction.  For people like myself who have absolutely no idea who any of these characters are, here's a guide.  First, a picture of the six main characters of the new series.



Okay, so going from the top left and going clockwise, we have Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rarity.  There are other ponies in the world of "Equestria" that appear on a recurring basis, but these six are more than likely to appear in more episodes than any of the other ones.  And, each of the characters in "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic" all share something special with each other.

The magic of friendship.  Hence the sub-title, "Friendship Is Magic".

So, obviously, in preparation for this blog entry, I had to actually watch an episode of "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic".  And, true to my word, I did.  The episode I watched was the fourth season episode "Pinkie Pride", in which Pinkie Pie throws a party in Ponyville for Rainbow Dash's 'birthaversary', but nearly has her plans spoiled by party planner "Cheese Sandwich".

I'm not lying either.  That's actually the characters name.

But here's the interesting story.  It turns out that "Cheese Sandwich" only became inspired to be a party planner because he was invited to one of the greatest parties that he ever attended was one that Pinkie Pie threw...and once both of them realized that they worked better as a team, they ended up throwing Rainbow Dash one killer birthaversary party.

Now, keep in mind, that was just one episode.  It wasn't really enough to convert me into being a 'brony' (a man between the ages of 15-40 who is obsessed with 'My Little Pony').  But, I will also state that after watching the episode in full, I didn't hate it.  Sure, I could have done without all the singing...but looking at the big picture, it's a good show for kids to watch.  It teaches morals, it has great dialogue, and it also emphasizes co-operation, teamwork, and friendship - all things that make for a happier life.

And, you know what?  I think it's a really good show for kids of all ages - and genders - to watch.  Seriously, I think gender lines are meant to be blurred.  After all, some of the greatest cooks in the world are men.  And some of the greatest mechanics are women.  I don't think there's any shame in boys playing with dolls or learning how to play store, and I don't think that there's any shame in girls playing with Tonka trucks or Iron Man action figures.

As long as the child is happy with what they are doing, what business is it of anyone else's what they do with their personal time, or what hobbies they like.

You know, I actually had a family member actually tell me that I should downplay my love of comic books because it would make me a bigger target for bullies.  Boy, am I glad I didn't listen to them.  Oh, sure, I used to get picked on for liking the adventures of Betty and Veronica...but I always saw it as them being jealous that they didn't have the amount of comics that I had.  Whether or not that was actually the truth, I can't say.  But if people choose not to like me because I like something they don't, that's their loss.

And, I should also note that since Michael Morones tried to kill himself a few days ago because he was bullied over his love of "My Little Pony", online communities have set up support pages for him, and I even read somewhere that a group of men who consider themselves true blue 'bronies' have all gone to tattoo parlours to get images of Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie tattooed on their bodies to show support for Michael, and to show him and everyone else in the world that it's okay to love whatever you want.

This is a post by Matthew Turcotte - a person who probably won't become a brony - but has mad props and respect for those who are.

Friday, February 14, 2014

Post #1,001 - "Good Times"

You know, I know that today is supposed to be that day in which everyone is supposed to be all about love and romance and roses and those lovely little chocolates in the lovely red velvet boxes.  But, not me.  I'm not in love, I have no romance, rose thorns cut your fingers and the filling in those chocolates taste like toothpaste.

So, for me, this is just February 14.  One of the 365 days of the year in which you can love and honour your spouse, significant other, casual date, or heck, even a one-night stand if you so desire.  Because, really...only devoting one day of the year to love?  That's just crazy talk!

So, if you're expecting to see an entry that is chock full of red hearts and gorgeous bouquets of flowers...well, it won't be today.  Besides, I'd rather do an entry that celebrates "BLACK HISTORY MONTH" instead.  And, if it happens to feature some people who are in love, well so be it. 

I'm going to say this though.  I was actually inspired to do this blog - blog entry number one thousand and one, by the way - because I saw a few of my friends on Facebook chatting about it in my news feed, and I was quite intrigued by it.

So, before I continue with this blog entry, I just wanted to thank
Cathy S., Sharyn D., and Jeri-Ann A. for providing the inspiration behind today's topic.  Thank you!

A few days ago (I think it was nearly a week ago, come to think of it), one of the people mentioned (I think it was Cathy) posted a link on her own page which celebrated the anniversary of a particular television series.  This television series began a little over forty years ago, on February 8, 1974.

(Or, in terms of my own age, when I was -7 years old.)

Now, I will say that the discussion about this show on the page was lively, and I think I remember both Sharyn and Jeri-Ann sharing their own memories of this show, in which all three of them seemed to enjoy it a lot.

But as much as I wanted to join in the discussion, I couldn't because I had never seen the show before.  The show ended its run on August 1, 1979 - nearly a full two years before I was born.  And, would you believe that it was one of the shows that never actually aired in reruns on any of the stations that I remember watching as a child?  I mean, maybe on some channels it was syndicated, but none of the ones that were a part of our cable package. 

So, imagine my surprise when I was stocking box sets of television series and one of the shows that was featured was the very show that my friends were talking about!  It was the first two seasons of this particular show packaged up in one convenient DVD package, and the cost was something like twelve dollars for the lot.  I thought to myself...what if I bought this and watched a few episodes of it so I could talk about it in an upcoming Friday blog?  And, that's exactly what I did.

My opinion?  Certainly a lot of good times to be had. 

By coincidence, that also happens to be the name of the television show that we'll be looking at this week.



We're going to be featuring the television show "Good Times", which ran for six seasons on CBS.  Initially a mid-season replacement show, the show garnered enough ratings for it to be renewed for a second season, which would air during the 1974-1975 season.  And despite some major casting changes, the show still managed to stay on the air for the remainder of the 1970s.

And, here are the stars of the show as they appeared during the first three seasons of the show.



Starting from the bottom and moving clockwise, you have John Amos as James Evans Sr., Ralph Carter as Michael Evans, Bern Nadette Stanis as Thelma Carter, Ja'net Dubois as Willona Woods, Esther Rolle as Florida Evans, and Jimmie Walker as J.J. Evans.

There were also some additional cast members who would appear on the show (including the youngest member of a very musical family), but we'll get to that a little later.

"Good Times" was a show that was created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans, and was developed by Norman Lear - the man who was most famous for "All In The Family" and "Maude".  In fact, you might consider "Maude" as being the direct inspiration behind "Good Times", as Florida Evans once worked as Maude's housekeeper.  But when Florida's character was spun off onto "Good Times", her entire backstory was retconned.  She now became the matriarch of a family that was living in the projects of Chicago.  Even her husband's name and occupation were changed to suit the theme of "Good Times", which saw Florida's firefighting husband Henry changed to a man named James who had great difficulty finding work.

But you know, despite the fact that the family really had to struggle to make ends meet, and despite the fact that the family never knew what it was like to have disposable income, they still managed to have "good times" together as a family.  And although the Evans family had their grand share of hardships, they truly loved each other, and every member of the family had their own hopes and dreams for the future.  For instance, a recurring theme of the show was that J.J. wanted to become an artist, as he was always drawing sketches and painting pictures.  It is assumed that the family portrait that appears in both the opening and closing credits was painted by J.J. himself.  Is that not dy-no-mite or what?



Seriously.  That was J.J.'s catchphrase.  Dy-no-mite.

The more episodes I watched of "Good Times", the more I realized just how great a show it was.  The writing was absolutely brilliant, and the casting was dead on...although one thing that I found quite interesting was that when the show began, the husband/wife team of James and Florida Evans had quite the age difference in real life!  Esther Rolle was fifty-three when "Good Times" began, which matched up with the age that her character was supposed to be.  But John Amos who played Florida's husband was only thirty-four (although he did look older than that for whatever reason).  Still, that's nearly a two decade age difference!  The only other couple who had that much difference in age were George and Louise Jefferson!

And to make the ages even more weird, there were only eight years difference between John Amos and Jimmie Walker - who played father and son!  But again, for whatever reason, John Amos looked much older than thirty-four when the show began, so it worked.

Anyway, back to "Good Times".  As I was saying, the show certainly did have its moments of laughter and hilarity.  And certainly there were dozens of moments in the show which had people laughing out loud.  Practically any storyline involving J.J. was guaranteed to have some funny moments present.  But the show also wasn't afraid to tackle serious issues either.  After all, the show was set in the middle of one of Chicago's poorest neighbourhoods, and the Evans family went through situations that not a whole lot of people really had to deal with.  They had to deal with trying to come up with enough money to pay their rent and keep the children fed.  They had to deal with serious subjects like racism, sexism, child abuse,  gambling, and alcohol abuse.  Heck, in one episode of the series, one of the Evans children ended up getting shot when he got too close to a dangerous gang, and the entire episode featured James debating on whether or not he should get revenge.

And, I think that in the long run, doing those types of shows really helped educate people in what life in the "projects" was kind of like.  I mean, I realize that those who really did grow up that way will likely state that "Good Times" did exaggerate the idea of living in the projects, but you know, you have to give Norman Lear and the show creators a lot of credit.  There weren't a lot of shows on the air that even attempted to make a predominantly African-American family living in a housing complex while walking down the fine line known as poverty, and I think that "Good Times" truly showed that no matter what your income was, and no matter how tough things were that if a family worked together, they could have good times.

And, certainly, the Evans family was one of the closest families to be showcased during the 1970s - and a lot more believable than the Brady Bunch!

Alas, behind the scenes of this popular show, it wasn't all good times.  Initially, the show was supposed to be a starring vehicle for Rolle and Amos, and the children were supposed to be supporting characters.  However, when Jimmie Walker's character of J.J. exploded in popularity during the show's first season, the show was reworked so that all of the storylines revolved around him.  Now, it should be noted that neither Rolle nor Amos had issues with Jimmie Walker himself.  Both loved working with him.  But both of them were quite annoyed over the fact that the writers and producers seemed to dumb J.J. down to the point that he appeared to be a moron.  And for Esther Rolle, that didn't sit well with her at all.  She felt that by dumbing J.J. down, it gave off the stereotype that all black Americans living in poverty were that way, when clearly that was not the case.  And, I can definitely see the validity of her argument.

As for John Amos, he too felt that they were making J.J. appear less intelligent for the purpose of cheap shots and filler material.  But at the conclusion of the third season of the show, Norman Lear and the show's producers had decided that they were going to take the show in a new direction, and that new direction did not include John Amos' character.  John Amos later confirmed in 1976 that he was, in fact, fired from the show.  As a result, when the fourth season debuted in 1976, James Evans Sr. was killed off in an automobile accident, leaving Florida to raise her three children alone.  Which lead to this memorable scene below.



A quick explanation.  After Florida heard about her husband's death, she did not show any emotion whatsoever, and she pretended as if nothing had ever happened.  But when all that emotion built up inside of her and she couldn't take it anymore, she took out her frustrations on a crystal punch bowl and finally allowed herself to grieve properly.  Quite a powerful scene.

And, by the show's fourth season, Esther Rolle herself had decided that she didn't like the way the show was going either, and she quit the series at the end of season four with her character getting married to someone else and leaving Chicago.  But, somehow, the marriage must not have lasted, as Esther Rolle returned to the series just a year and a half later at the beginning of season six, where she remained until the series was cancelled.

To make up for the departures of Amos and Rolle, Ja'net Dubois became the show's lead character, and she was the one who acted as a surrogate mother to the Evans children.  And, a couple of new characters were added to the show as well.  Recurring character Nathan Bookman (Johnny Brown) was turned into a contract role right around the time that John Amos departed the show.  Thelma's boyfriend, Keith Anderson (Ben Powers) also became a regular character towards the show's end.  And a little girl named Janet Jackson - the youngest member of the Jackson family which also included Michael, Jermaine, Tito, and LaToya - joined the show at the beginning of season five as Penny Gordon, a girl who becomes Willona's adopted daughter when her real mother abandons her after abusing her most of her life.

Still, all these changes didn't do much to stop the declining ratings, and the show was cancelled in 1979.  Though everyone in the show did receive a happy ending...well, I suppose everyone except poor James Evans Sr, that is.




So, my ultimate take on "Good Times"?  It was a great show, and a show that definitely showed that happy families can exist anywhere in the world...even in one of the poorest neighbourhoods of America.

Thursday, February 13, 2014

What Doing 1,000 Pop Culture Addict Blogs Has Taught Me About Myself

February 13, 2014

I never thought that I would see the day that I would automatically launch into a diary entry.  Usually what I would do is start things off with an introductory paragraph, describing what my thoughts and feelings are, and then launching into the actual bread and butter of the whole shebang.

But then again, today is far from being a typical day here on "A POP CULTURE ADDICT'S GUIDE TO LIFE".

You see...today is a sort of celebration of sorts.  And, it's a celebration that I absolutely have to thank all of you out there reading this for...because if it weren't for you, this moment would not be happening.

Today happens to mark the one thousandth post that I have made in this blog since I began this blogging venture.



Yes.  You're reading this correctly.  1,000 posts!

Mind you, these are 1000 posts over a period of 998 days.  When I first began this blog, I actually did two entries on two days within the first week of the blog.  One was an introductory post, and the other was a post explaining that I was having problems with my modem just three days into this blogging venture.

(I know...the blog nearly ended after three days because my modem was failing me.  Luckily, I managed to fix the problem rather quickly.)

The point is that over the course of nearly three years, I have typed out at least one post per day over 998 consecutive days.  You'd be hard pressed to find that in this day and age - especially in a world where instant gratification through 140 character Twitter postings seems to be the norm.  And, while most of these blog posts have had to do with how pop culture has evolved over the last sixty, seventy years or so, I have gotten extremely personal in this blog as well.  I've told stories that I have never shared with other people before until now, and I've talked about all sorts of emotions that I have felt over the last three years.

But one thing that I never really revealed to all of you was the reason why I felt compelled to begin "A POP CULTURE ADDICT'S GUIDE TO LIFE" in the first place.  And, you know, I'm actually kind of surprised that I haven't gone into much detail about that because I could have sworn that I did at one point.

Must've been just my imagination.

Okay, so here's the real story behind the founding of "A POP CULTURE ADDICT'S GUIDE TO LIFE".  And, by real story, I mean absolutely positively 100% the TRUTH! 

(Not that I've ever lied on this blog before.  I haven't.  If anything, this blog is probably where I feel the most comfortable to express myself without feeling any sort of repercussions at all.)

Okay, tangent over.  The story begins.



The date was May 24, 2011.  I had just turned thirty years old six days prior to that date, and I was kind of in a slump.  I had just gotten back to work after spending eight weeks off on sick leave after my gall bladder tried to kill me back in February 2011.  And, I'm not going to lie to you.  Turning thirty was a really, really hard age for me.  I know that most people will tell you that age is nothing but a number, but when I was comparing myself to other 30-year-olds that I knew, there really was no comparison.  Most of them already had their lives well on track (or at the very least they APPEARED to).  They all had found careers that they were proud of, they had married their one true love or were currently in a serious relationship, and many of them had children of their own.

Now, myself at thirty?  I had none of those things.  Granted, I did have a full-time job (one I currently work today), which some people would consider very hard to come by these days...but I didn't really have a whole lot of other prospects.  I guess in some ways, turning 30 was one of those moments in which all the insecurities that I carried along with me throughout my formative years reared their ugly faces.  At 30 years old, I didn't really have anything that I felt that I could be proud of. 

I can admit to it now.  I couldn't back then.  And, I think that's one of the main reasons why I made the impulsive decision to start up "A POP CULTURE ADDICT'S GUIDE TO LIFE" in May 2011.  I wanted to have something that I could truly call my own.  I wanted to have control of at least one thing in my life, even when everything else was anything but.  I wanted to have something that people could remember me for.

And, believe me, my expectations were really low when I first started this blog off.

I mean, just have a look at the very first logo for this blog, which debuted the same day the blog did, on May 24, 2011.

LOGO #1 - MAY 2011 - MAY 2012

Isn't that the most professional logo that you've ever seen?  Beautiful, isn't it?  You want to know what I used for the logo?  I used a couple of glitter gel pens that I just happened to grab from a nearby pen case.  As it so happened, the two colours I chose were pink and turquoise.  As for the triangle in behind...well, I like triangles.  What can I say?

But again, I sort of just came up with the idea to do a blog within the time frame of a half an hour.  I wasn't really thinking of spending a lot of time on a desktop program to design the perfect logo...I just wanted to start up a blog.

SIDE NOTE:  Do you remember the original look of the blog?  Well, it was almost similar to the look that I have now, only the main colours of the blog were blue and pink.  I chose the colours of the blog after I drew the logo...again, planning the design was the least of my worries as I really didn't expect anybody other than myself to read it.  The colour scheme only lasted a year anyway before it changed to this.

LOGO #2 - MAY 2012 - DECEMBER 2013

In fact, I have another confession for you.  Do you know what the very first blog entry that I did after my welcoming post?  It was a post entitled "WHAT RALPH WIGGUM TAUGHT ME ABOUT MYSELF", and you can click HERE to read that first blog entry if you want.  Well, that confession is that I actually wrote that piece as a note on my own personal Facebook page approximately two years prior.  I just updated a couple of date references to make it appropriate for 2011 standards.

But I'll tell you...there was a reason why I wanted to start off with Ralph Wiggum as the very first blog topic.  In many ways, I was a lot like Ralph.  Ralph certainly can be a rather interesting sort of character.  Certainly he used to eat paste, red crayons, and everything else that wasn't food.  His teachers all disliked him.  And, whenever he tried to find friends or whenever he fell in love with someone, he would always get his feelings hurt.

In all actuality, Ralph may be a lot of things, but I like the kid.  Because inside his obviously scatterbrained personality lies a heart that is pure as gold.  And, there's really nothing wrong with Ralph Wiggum for being who he is.

And, I guess re-reading that first entry, there's really nothing wrong with me being who I am either.  I'm really glad that I did start my blog off with an entry on Ralph.  I figure that if Ralph Wiggum wasn't afraid to show off his genuine, yet misunderstood self, then there's no reason why I should be afraid to show off my genuine, yet misunderstood self too.

Now, I'll be honest with you.  That first week that I started the blog, I only managed to get 307 page views total.  That's a little more than 43 page views per day.  Some might think that is pocket change, but I was proud of every single one of those 43 pages views per day - even if 27 of them were mine.

Flash forward to February 2014 and I now average 500 page views a day, and have amassed a quarter of a million page views total.  That's insane! 

(Here's a couple signs that your blog is doing well.  One, when you enter the title on Google, it's in the Top 5 search results.  Two, you start getting people spamming your comments section with promises to hock their wares.  Believe me, that was exciting to see spammers on the site because it made me realize that people were finding the blog - and I got just as much excitement deleting said spammers from the blog!)

LOGO #3 - DECEMBER 2013-PRESENT

Anyway, the point is that I've done a lot of growing in the last two and three-quarters years.  I'm not the same person now that I was at post #1, or post #100, or post #518.  And, who would want anyone to be exactly the same as they were?  I've done a lot of soul-searching over the past three years, and I am excited to share this 1,000th post with all of you.  After all, this blog wouldn't be at 1,000 posts if not for you checking this space out.  The colour scheme may have changed to purple and yellow, and the logo looks a lot more professional than it used to...but it's still got a lot of heart, and I will continue to do this project for however long I feel is necessary.

I still have lots to talk about, after all.  These 1,000 posts have only scratched the surface.  I plan to talk more about that in the next few weeks.

So, I'm going to close this blog entry off with a personal video greeting (short but sweet...)



...as well as a song that was recently released last month.  Listen very closely to the lyrics.  They could be considered my motto for the upcoming year.




ARTIST:  Kylie Minogue
SONG:  Into The Blue
ALBUM:  Kiss Me Once
DATE RELEASED:  January 27, 2014
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  TBD

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Actors Who Struck TV Gold...Twice, Thrice, and More!


Okay, so I have only a few hours to write this blog entry today, so I really tried to choose a topic that was quick and easy, but yet was still informative enough to get people talking.  And, I think I came up with one.



But first things first, I want to take a small moment here to talk about Shirley Temple Black, the actress who won over the hearts of millions during the 1930s as one of Hollywood's first child stars.  She passed away on February 10, 2014 at the age of 85.  She definitely was a class act the entire time, and through her lengthy movie career we watched her grow from child starlet to young woman.  And, Shirley Temple definitely had an impact on my own family as well, as one of my sisters happened to be named after one of the characters she played in one of the many movies that she was featured in (That movie being the 1936 classic "Captain January"). 

So, before I continue with today's blog entry, let's raise our glasses of Shirley Temples in memory of Shirley Temple.  



Now let's continue on with today's blog topic.  This is the "Whatever Wednesday" portion of the blog, which means that I will let the hands of fate decide what my topic is going to be about.  Now, I had already chosen the card before I left for work on Tuesday, and I can share with you now that the topic will have something to do with television, as I drew the Mrs. Peacock card.

And, here's the beauty of it all.  I was relieved that I had chosen the Mrs. Peacock card, because today's topic was heavily inspired by a conversation that I had with a co-worker of mine just yesterday at work.

Here's the situation.  Occasionally at my job, one of us is dispatched to the customer service desk to grab any and all recovery for our department.  What I mean by recovery are items that have been returned by customers, or items that have been left in other departments, or other similar circumstances like that.  Well, yesterday I went up to grab recovery, and there were a whole bunch of box sets of television series on DVD and Blu-Ray to put away.  And, my co-worker and I were discussing the various television shows that we were putting back on the shelf.

Well, as it so happened, I had a whole bunch of "The Big Bang Theory" DVD's to put away, and I made the casual observation "I can't believe that the guy who plays Leonard on this show used to be on "Roseanne" twenty years ago."

My co-worker seemed shocked.  "Really?"

I said, "Yeah.  Come look and see."

As, as luck would have it, we also happen to have the complete series run of "Roseanne" on sale in the same aisle.  And, then I showed my co-worker the picture of David on the "Roseanne" cover, and compared it to the cover of "The Big Bang Theory" season one edition, and sure enough, he noticed that Johnny Galecki had played both roles.

And, it got me thinking.  These days, it's very rare for actors to strike gold twice in two different roles on two different television shows.  Certainly Johnny Galecki has managed to join that club.  In addition to the seven seasons and counting of "The Big Bang Theory" he has filmed, he was also a part of "Roseanne" for, I believe six of the show's nine-year run.  That's a combined total of thirteen years on two different shows.  Very impressive.

But I'm certain that Johnny Galecki is not the only actor to have success like that.  There are hundreds of actors who have enjoyed a successful run on one show, and then had another successful show years down the road. 

And, that's what this topic is about.  Actors and actresses who have struck gold twice in the world of television.

Now, just for the sake of argument, I won't be talking about actors and actresses who have played the same role on a parent show and its spin-off.  So, as much as you really loved Estelle Getty on "The Golden Girls", I can't bring up the fact that she also played the same role on "Empty Nest" as well.

But, that's not to say that we won't have a couple of Golden Girls making an appearance on this list.  For now, let's begin by sticking with "The Big Bang Theory", as another star of the show struck it big twice.



KALEY CUOCO

Of course these days, most people will likely know her in the role of Leonard's on-again/off-again/on-again girlfriend, Penny on "The Big Bang Theory".  But that wasn't her first role in television.  When Cuoco was just seventeen years old, she had won the role of Bridget Hennessy in the ABC series "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter".  That show managed to run a total of three seasons before it was cancelled in 2005, but just a couple of years later, Cuoco would win the role that made her really famous.  Although, there is a part of me that wonders...had John Ritter lived, would "8 Simple Rules" had continued longer than 2005?  We'll never know, of course, but this leads right up to our next actress.




KATEY SAGAL

Now, Katey Sagal is an interesting case, because she is in an even rarer category.  She managed to have lighting strike not once, not twice, but thrice.  "8 Simple Rules" was the sitcom that was sandwiched in between her other two success stories.  The first one, of course, was playing the role of Peg Bundy on the FOX series "Married...With Children" from 1987-1997.  And, of course most people nowadays associate her with the show "Sons of Anarchy", in which she has played the role of Gemma Teller Morrow since the show's debut in September 2008.  I would also state that the three series in which she has really made the most impact have cemented Katey Sagal's status as a wonderful actress, as the roles of Peg Bundy, Cate Hennessy, and Gemma Teller Morrow are all so wildly different from each other.

(And, that's not even counting her turn as the animated character of Leela on "Futurama" either!  My goodness, everything she touches really does turn to gold, doesn't it?)



ED O'NEILL

Well, since we mentioned Katey Sagal as Peg Bundy, we may as well add her on-screen husband, Ed O'Neill, who played Al Bundy for the eleven seasons that "Married...With Children" aired.  These days, you can find Ed on the set of another successful sitcom, "Modern Family".  In that series, Ed's character is married to Sofia Vergara's character...who ironically enough was the woman that Al Bundy probably fantasized over in "Married...With Children".  It just took him...oh...eleven, twelve years to achieve that dream.  (insert winky face here).



SUZANNE SOMERS

Well, you could basically insert mostly anybody from "Three's Company" on this list with the exception of Joyce DeWitt.  After all, John Ritter did that show and "8 Simple Rules".  Don Knotts did that show and "The Andy Griffith Show".  Heck, even Jenilee Harrison was featured on "Dallas" for a couple of years after filming "Three's Company"!  But ironically enough, Suzanne Somers was the one who had two and a half successful sitcoms to air after she famously was fired from her role as Chrissy Snow in 1981. 

Now, the reason why I say two and a half successful shows is because while "She's The Sheriff" ended up lasting a couple of seasons, hardly anyone I knew watched it, and it didn't really take off.  But when Suzanne Somers was offered the lead actress role in "Step by Step", she stayed on for seven seasons - two more than she did when she was on "Three's Company"!



PATRICK DUFFY

And, since we're on the "Step by Step" train, we may as well include Patrick Duffy.  After spending twelve seasons on "Dallas" (minus the dream season, of course), Patrick Duffy won the role of Suzanne Somers' husband on that show just a few months after "Dallas" wrapped up in 1991.  Interestingly enough, Duffy is currently on the rebooted series of "Dallas" which began filming in 2012.



STACI KEANAN

And, hey, let's keep the "Step by Step" train chugging along with Staci Keanan.  She too stayed on the series during the show's entire run...but her first big break was on the NBC series "My Two Dads", which aired from 1987-1990.



KIM FIELDS

Okay, so I know most of you remember Kim Fields from her nine season stint as Dorothy "Tootie" Ramsey from "The Facts of Life".  But while Nancy McKeon moved to "The Division", Mindy Cohn became the voice of Velma on "Scooby-Doo", and Lisa Whelchel became a "Survivor" contestant, Kim Fields managed to be a part of a second successful sitcom.  Just five years after ending her run as Tootie, Kim Fields was cast as Regine in the UPN sitcom "Living Single", which ran from 1993-1998, starring in the sitcom alongside Queen Latifah, Kim Coles, and former Cosby Show actress Erika Alexander.



ANDY GRIFFITH

On "The Andy Griffith Show", Andy Griffith played Andy.  On "Matlock", Andy Griffith played...Matlock.  And, both roles lasted eight and nine years respectively.  Who says you have to be a certain age to achieve success?



RON HOWARD

Ron Howard is another one who proved that age meant nothing when it came to having huge success in television.  Not only did Ron Howard grow up on the set of "The Andy Griffith Show" for eight years playing Opie, but six years after the show wrapped, he would play the role of Richie Cunningham on "Happy Days" which aired between 1974 and 1984.  And these days, he's only one of the biggest movie directors in the world.  I'd say that boy did real good in his life, wouldn't you?



THE GOLDEN GIRLS

Seriously, with maybe the exception of Estelle Getty, all the Golden Girls were the queens of lightning striking twice or even three times.

Bea Arthur began her career in "Maude", playing the title character between 1972-1978.  Later, she would play the role of Dorothy Zbornak during the entire show's run from 1985-1992.

Rue McClanahan also had a recurring role in "Maude" as Maude's dingbat neighbour, Vivian.  And, Rue followed Bea Arthur to "The Golden Girls" as Blanche Devereaux.  But in between that, she also had a recurring role on "Mama's Family", playing the role of Aunt Fran in between "Maude" and "The Golden Girls".

But the real champion of success?  Betty White.  She had no less than four...count them...four successful runs on four different television series.  Of course, we all love her in "The Golden Girls" playing Rose Nylund.  But she also played Sue Ann Nivens in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" for a number of years, played the role of Ellen in "Mama's Family" for a couple of seasons, and is currently enjoying a four-year-run on the sitcom "Hot In Cleveland".  And, at 92, she shows no sign of stopping.  You go, Betty White!

So, that's just a smattering of actors who struck it big in television more than once.  Have any more to add?

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

February 11, 1990

It's time for another edition of the Tuesday Timeline.  And, even though this week is the week of the holiday that shall not be named (which isn't even a real holiday), this week's edition of the blog will not feature a single reference to that day in which you're supposed to give your girlfriend a box of chocolates so that she can dump you months later for making her fat.

(Sigh...I tried people.  I really did try.)

But that doesn't mean that we can't have fun along the way with this particular entry today.  A lot of interesting stuff happened on February 11 in the world of history and pop culture.  Just have a look at these!

660 BC - This date is believed to be the date in which Japan was founded by Emperor Jimmu

1531 - Henry VIII is recognized as the supreme head of the Church of England

1752 - The first hospital to open in the United States - Pennsylvania Hospital - is opened by Benjamin Franklin

1790 - The Religious Society of Friends (otherwise known as the "Quakers") petition U.S. Congress to abolish slavery nationwide

1794 - The first session of the United States Senate opens to the public

1826 - The University of London is founded under its original name - University College London

1843 - Giuseppe Verdi's "I Lombardi alla prima crociata" receives its first performance in Milan, Italy

1861 - The United States House of Representatives unanimously passes a resolution guaranteeing noninterference with slavery in all states

1903 - Anton Bruckner's 9th Symphony receives its first performance in Vienna, Austria

1916 - After giving lectures on birth control, Emma Goldman is arrested

1917 - American author Sidney Sheldon (d. 2007) is born in Chicago, Illinois

1919 - Actress Eva Gabor (d. 1995) is born in Budapest, Hungary

1938 - The BBC debuts the world's very first science-fiction program - an adaptation of a portion of the play "R.U.R"

1943 - General Dwight D. Eisenhower is selected to command the Allied armies in Europe during World War II

1953 - President Eisenhower refuses a clemency appeal for Julius and Ethel Rosenberg

1968 - The Memphis Sanitation Strike begins

1971 - A total of eighty-seven countries sign the Seabed Arms Control Treaty outlawing nuclear weapons on the ocean floor in international waters

1973 - The first release of American P.O.W.'s take place during the Vietnam War

1997 - Space Shuttle Discovery is launched on a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope

2006 - Author Peter Benchley (b. 1940) dies at the age of 65

2012 - Singer Whitney Houston (b. 1963) is found dead in her hotel room of a drug overdose at just 48 years old

There are also a number of people who have birthdays on February 11.  Here's just a sample of those who are turning one year older today.  Happy birthday to Tina Louise, Burt Reynolds, Gerry Goffin, Sergio Mendez, Jeb Bush, Wesley Strick, Catherine Hickland, Bradley Cole, Carey Lowell, Sheryl Crow, Diane Franklin, Sarah Palin, Ty Treadway, Jennifer Aniston, Kelly Slater, Shawn Hernandez, Isaiah Mustafa, Brice Beckham, Brandy Norwood, Matthew Lawrence, Kelly Rowland, Natalie Dormer, and Taylor Lautner.

So, what date are we going to go back to this week?  How about a date that is firmly etched into the pages of modern-day history?  A date that will forever be highlighted in "Black History Month" for years to come.



We're taking a trip back in time twenty-four years ago to February 11, 1990.  And, many of you probably already know what happened on that date because when this man passed away two months ago at the age of 95, this date was mentioned quite a lot in his epitaph and remembrances.



February 11, 1990.  The date that Nelson Mandela was freed from prison after spending over twenty-five years behind bars.

Certainly, it was one of the most important events to ever take place within the twentieth century.  And, although I was barely nine years old when the release took place, I do remember our teachers talking about it with us in class, and I sort of knew that what had happened was the end of a living nightmare for Mandela, who would later become the President of South Africa in 1994.  



And, I'm sure that everyone who was alive on February 11, 1990 was watching as Nelson Mandela walked outside of Victor Verstee Prison holding the hand of his then-wife Winnie as a free man.  It truly was one of those moments that made you stop and stare, and reflect on what he must have went through while he was imprisoned.

But why exactly was he in prison in the first place?  What did he do that constituted Nelson Mandela spending a little over a quarter of his whole life behind bars?

The story goes like this.

In the 1940s, South Africa was not a very nice place to be if your skin colour happened to be black.  Apartheid (a term meaning 'the state of being apart') was in full swing, and the racial segregation between people of colour in South Africa and white South Africans was out of control.  Similar things were happening in other nations of the world with racial segregation during this time, but one could look at South Africa as being at the absolute extreme worst case scenario.

Between the period of 1960 and 1983, for instance, it is estimated that close to three and a half million non-white South Africans were forcibly removed from their own homes and asked to leave the country for other parts of Africa.  If you think that was bad enough, citizenship for black South Africans were revoked beginning in the early 1970s and the South African government at the time segregated educational opportunities, medical care, and public transportation, leaving black South Africans with lesser quality services than white South Africans.

It was probably one of the biggest stains to ever be left in the history of the twentieth century.  You can see why so many people in the world look at apartheid as a disgusting part of modern day history.



And certainly Nelson Mandela was against apartheid in all of its forms. 

It's hard to say when Mandela's fight against apartheid really began, but many would believe that the catalyst took place in 1948.  1948 was an election year, and it was also a year in which the right to vote was only granted to white South Africans.  And, 1948 is the year that apatheid really began to show its ugly head when Daniel Francois Malan of the National Party took power. 

I suppose it is redundant to mention this now, but at the time, the National Party was absolutely pro-white rights and anti-black rights.  And, the year that Malan and his party implemented the new apartheid legislation was the year that Nelson Mandela began his fight against apartheid.

Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Nelson Mandela - with assistance from the African National Congress - launched a campaign to raise awareness against apartheid, and although he was a very charismatic speaker and had a following of people who listened to his words, he certainly did have his brushes with the law. 

It seemed as though every few months, Mandela would find himself in trouble with the law over his anti-apartheid sentiments.  He was arrested in June 1952 after holding a public rally in which ten thousand people showed up, and was briefly held in Marshall Square Prison.  But the net result of that arrest meant that the membership of the ANC grew from 20,000 members to over 100,000.  Of course, this also had a negative impact as well, as the government's concern over so many people turning against their laws that they arrested mass numbers of people on the streets and introduced the Public Safety Act in 1963, which promoted martial law.

Then came Mandela's arrest for high treason on December 5, 1956.  He, alongside with most of the ANC Executive members were charged with high treason following a series of protests and anti-apartheid movements, which the government deemed to be a threat to their rule.  Can't imagine why that would be the case.

A total of 156 people were arrested, and the trial lasted a grand total of five years, wrapping up in March 1961 with the accused being declared not guilty. - a verdict which completely embarrassed the government of South Africa.  But just because Nelson Mandela avoided serving jail time at the conclusion of the Treason Trial of 1956 didn't mean that it was all over.  For, Nelson's hardships would really begin in the year 1962, when he was arrested along with ten others on the charges of recruiting people for training in guerrilla warfare and committing acts of sabotage, conspiring to commit said acts, and soliciting and receiving funds from sympathizers in other African nations. 

It was at the beginning of the trial that Nelson Mandela stood up and gave a three-hour long speech from the defendant's dock, which explained the political positions of the ANC, as well as defending everything that they had done in an effort to rid South Africa of all things having to do with apartheid.  It was certainly an eloquent speech...and perhaps the most important statement of that speech was at the very end of it.  Here are Nelson's own words, as spoken at his trial in April 1964.

"During my lifetime I have dedicated my life to this struggle of the African people.  I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.  I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.  It is an ideal for which I hope to live for and see realised.  But, My Lord, if it needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."

Of course, we all know what happened after that.  We know that Mandela was found guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment in South Africa in June of 1964.  He spent the next two and a half decades in three different prisons undergoing many hardships, but refusing to back down on his dream that one day apartheid would be a thing of the past, and he hoped that he would live to see the day in which South Africans of all different backgrounds would enjoy equal rights.

Mandela's release from prison in February 1990 marked a huge turning point for the future of South Africa.  A new president (F.W. de Klerk) had just been elected not long before Mandela's 1990 release, and while he believed that apartheid was an outdated political system that did more harm than good and pardoned all of the prisoners who were a part of the ANC during the 1950s and 1960s, Mandela was not initially given his release papers.  It wasn't until November 1989 - the same month that the Berlin Wall came crumbling down - that de Klerk called his cabinet together to debate legalizing the ANC and freeing Mandela from prison.  Not everyone on his cabinet was keen to see Mandela released at all, but de Klerk stood firm in his stance that Mandela be released from prison, and in December 1989, de Klerk and Mandela had a formal meeting discussing the situation.

Mandela's release was granted on February 2, 1990...and nine days later, Mandela walked out of that prison a free man...with renewed hope for the future.

And, over the last twenty-three years of his life, Mandela certainly made his mark on a now apartheid free South Africa, winning the presidency and making the necessary changes that he had wanted made for decades.  His death in December 2013 at the age of 95 was the end of a life devoted towards bringing equality to all, and I think that he will always be considered one of the biggest freedom fighters of recent history.

February 11, 1990 was only the beginning...