I miss Life magazine. A friend had a copy from 1988 and, as I paged through it, I discovered just how much was dropped in our laps on a regular basis.
This edition had an extensive story on the women writing a sequel to “Gone With the Wind” (remember that?) and the pressures involved. It also declared Steven Seagal “the new Clint Eastwood” and updated readers on the life of the girl who was trapped in a well and where the film account stood. Rescuers were quarreling over rights issues. (It arrived in 1989 as “Everybody’s Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure.”)
The magazine also detailed the search for a new cast of “Charlie’s Angels.” The series never happened because there were delays from the 1988-89 Writers Guild strike. Tea Leoni, however, was one of the women selected. This fall, she’ll be the star of a new series on NBC, “Newlyweds.”
People are also reading…
Everything old is new again.
Off-Broadway was buzzing with a new comedy, “Tony ‘n’ Tina’s Wedding,” and an audience participation show, “Tamara,” that included “a lavish champagne supper” for $135. Today, you’re lucky to get a good seat at a Broadway show for that price. Dinner not included.
Life touched on George Bush (senior) and talked about his ability to lead. Could he be president? “Captain Enigma,” he was called. Cartoonist Gary Trudeau pictured him as invisible.
Looking back, it’s interesting to read the perceptions before we discover the reality.
Over the years, I’ve interviewed a lot of celebrities and, occasionally, when one pops up in the news, I’ll head to newspapers.com and read what my encounter was like. The moments flash back quickly, and I can feel like I’m in the room again.
That’s Life in a nutshell. It’s a time capsule that reminds us what we once were thinking.
Bring it back. Or dig through your attic. I bet there’s a copy just waiting to be reread.
Bruce Miller, former editor of the Sioux City Journal, has covered entertainment for more than 40 years.
Bruce Miller
Entertainment writer
