DECEMBER BOYS
"GOOD EVENING AND
WELCOME TO FOCUS!"
WELCOME TO FOCUS!"
The act of killing time on the UW-Madison
campus, especially during the unforgivably bitter cold and nocturnal winter
months, is a delicate art. For some, imbibing some narcotic was a way of life,
in addition to spending some moments between one planned activity to another.
And certainly, there was the central hub of Memorial Union. For Craig Hughes
and Rhett Brazelton, the physical act of just walking worked best. Having just
departed from the Union, the two young men entered themselves into a cold so
pervasive the contents of their noses immediately began to involuntarily
trickle outwards and downwards (thank God, Craig always carried Kleenex with
him) and then began to silently walk up the steps by Helen C. White Library.
Within several painfully cold minutes, they found themselves at the four way
intersection located on Observatory
Drive
This particular intersection rested four buildings which chartered the
sea of higher education channels and if one were feeling a bit on the whimsical
side, it could appear as if the buildings were preparing for some kind of
architectural square dance. One side of the street housed the Social Science
building and campus carillon, while diagonally sat the wanna-be skyscraper, Van
Hise. Overlooking the grandness of Lake
Mendota
Even with a campus population of 40,000, everyone knew about Ember Fox,
the leader of Focus Films. Certainly, not every single person on campus knew
her by name or even remotely personally, but everyone, had at some point caught
the sight of the diminutive Fox, hurriedly scurrying around the UW-Madison
campus, either by foot or via her scooter, placing and re-placing film poster
advertisements on seemingly every solitary kiosk in the city. If the sight of
her hurriedly scurrying had been missed, all one would have to regard was the
tiny blond haired girl who wore the army green jacket, astonishingly sturdy
black flats and carried everything in an ancient brown satchel. Ember Fox never
smoked, yet drank copious amounts of caffeine, which combined with her feverish
activity, gave her an air of intensity students never braved to intrude as she
presented a forceful purposefulness with every staple insert. She was cute in
that tomboyish Peppermint Patty way, and truth be told, many students of both
genders would have to agree with the puerile statement once uttered by one of
Ember’s all too brief boyfriends, regarding her “heart shaped ass.”
Craig Hughes met Ember Fox the previous year during the mad-dash of
campus class registration while feebly on-line for a Communication Arts course
neither of them had any possibility of obtaining due to them both being first
semester Sophomores. Ember (who also hailed from Minneapolis Union for a few moments. And just
like every other student on campus, Craig chuckled to himself whenever he saw
her hurriedly scurrying around placing and re-placing movie advertisements on
seemingly every kiosk in the city. One day, he was brave enough to interrupt
her aforementioned intensity to ask her exactly what she was doing. She then
happily informed him about Focus Films and with an almost involuntary burst of
glee, she suggested that he join the club as well. It was as if all of her
activity had been proven to not be for naught. Someone had noticed! This is
what endeared Ember to Craig. Ember Fox operated as if in a vacuum, unaware of
the perception of the campus around her as she was lost in her love of cinema
and her tireless pursuit to bring any and everyone into her world, even if it
was for only one weekend screening. Her passion was pure, not through snobbery
or even with an ounce of elitism. She was the head coach, cheerleader and fan
all at once, making her devotion completely infectious to those who joined her
at Focus Films. Her “crew” wisely took her lead, followed all of her instructions
to the proverbial letter so as not to disappoint. While generally quite
friendly, once a person decided, like Craig, to intrude upon her intensity, she
was indeed quite gruff on the first showing of each weekend, as all of the
equipment was indeed archaic and prone to technical difficulties, which
frustrated Ember to no end. Every cinematic projector pop and crack was like a
knife in her heart.
As Ember raced back to the projector for one of her few more “final”
checks, she spotted Craig and Rhett, exhaled a welcoming breath of arrival and
waved them over into her inner sanctum.
“Hi Ember!” Craig began with an inviting smile. “I guess everyone really
needed a break and the semester hasn’t even gotten going yet.”
“You said it! But, I think it’s probably just winter blues. It’s so dark
and cold all the time,” said Ember, somewhat distractedly working on the
projector. Then, looking up from her work, she smiled warmly at Craig, sighed
and gazed around the bustling lecture hall like a loving Queen regarding her
loyal court. “But…WOW!!! Look at everybody!! You know, I do have a confession
to make to you,” she began covertly.
“What’s that?” asked Craig.
“For as much work as I do, for all
of the posters I hang, I’m always nervous that nobody will show.”
“Message sent. Message received,” said Craig eyeing the large audience.
“That’s true! But, it’s always about the movie and I’m thinking that
this week, people need a good romantic comedy.”
“What are you showing?” inquired Rhett.
“’When Harry Met Sally’” answered Ember.
“That was really, really good!” said Craig, mostly to Rhett.
“Yeah, it was. I mean, even though Rob Reiner really ripped off Woody
Allen to an almost plagiaristic degree, he did really capture something quite
lovely. Still don’t know about that Meg Ryan scene in the restaurant though,”
said Ember, compulsively offering up her review.
“I know what you mean,” countered Craig. “But, I think what
Reiner did was give an homage to
Woody Allen rather than steal from him. The good will was obviously on the
screen and he really did have a story to tell concerning the friendships between
men and women. I mean—really, the man behind ‘Spinal Tap’ is no hack. And yeah,
that restaurant scene…it was funny but when I think about that movie, it’s
definitely not the first thing I remember.”
“You’re right, Craig. Reiner’s no hack but I had wished he laid off the
Woody-isms a bit. I mean—Woody’s fingerprints were practically all over it!”
Ember countered, not willing to give too much of an inch when it came to her
opinions.
“I had no idea that Siskel and Ebert attended this school!” joked Rhett,
to which Ember and Craig had to laugh despite themselves.
“Yeah, we can really get going when we want to,” said Ember laughing.
“And even if we don’t want to!” chuckled Craig.
“So, are you guys gonna find a seat?” asked
Ember.
“Well…actually no. We’re just killing some time. We have tickets for
‘Say Anything…’ at the Union ,” Craig
explained.
The knife in Ember’s heart apparently twisted as her face transformed
briefly into a disappointed grimace. “Ugh! I tried so hard to get that
movie but they beat me to it!! I didn’t want to raise a big stink about it so
they’d be pissed at my suggestions for the free showings.”
“Are you involved with that too?” asked Rhett.
“Oh yeah!! That’s so much fun to almost predict what people may like as
those movies hadn’t gotten to theaters yet. I almost feel like a mogul when
something does eventually pan out at the box office!” she gushed. “Oh…what’s
your name?”
“I’m sorry, Ember. This is my friend Rhett. Rhett, may I present to you
the world famous Ember Fox,” Craig introduced as Ember gave Rhett a sheepish
grin while finishing her work on the projector.
“Are you the one who goes around the kiosks on campus?” Rhett asked.
“It is amazing to me that I get asked that question as many times as I
do. People in classes, the library and such. Yes, that’s me! Hey, back to the
movie you’re gonna see. Have you seen it yet?”
“No. When it was out last spring, you know it didn’t play anywhere near
campus and I didn’t know anyone with a car to get to the outlying theaters,”
explained Craig. “Have you seen it?”
An inexplicable moment occurred next as Ember Fox ceased to hold her
attention on the projector or even the evening’s event, which was due to begin
shortly, and her eyes glazed over as if she was about to swoon. It was as if
all of the sound that not connected to Craig’s question had suddenly evaporated.
A slow, warm smile, obviously engaged with a treasured memory, slowly formed
upon her face and with a released breath Craig and Rhett had no idea that she
had been holding inwards, Ember uttered in a voice that could only be described
as sated, “Oh yeaaahh! It’s wooooonderful!”
“Really?” inquired Craig, hoping for a taste of the movie to come. “I’ve
just been waiting to see my boy Cusack for a long time!”
“There is no Cusack. There is only Lloyd.”
“Huh?”
“Just you wait. This movie is really, really special. It’s so
special that the stiff seats, lousy screen to front row proximity, and third
rate sound system of the Play
Circle
Craig and Rhett regarded Ember Fox with a quizzical gaze, filled with a
complete lack of comprehension coupled with a curiosity for the movie they were
to witness in their very near future.
“Hey Ember!” called one of Ember’s compatriots as he politely tapped her
shoulder, still hunched by the projector. “I think it’s time!”
Snapping back to the present, Ember regained her General-styled command,
nodded affirmatively and tapped the projector in preparation for the night’s
work. “Gotta hit the stage, fellas. Have a seat back here for a few minutes
though. You’ve got time. Stay out of the cold.” And with a salute, the
diminutive form of Ember Fox charged down the middle aisle of the lecture hall,
and in a swift motion much like a gymnast, she placed both hands on the floor
of the lecture hall stage and hoisted herself to a standing position to face
the legion of anxious collegiate film goers.
“GOOD EVENING AND WELCOME TO FOCUS!!!” shouted Ember, with an
authoritarian chirpiness which was greeted with an appreciative roar from the
crowd. “TONIGHT’S FILM IS ‘WHEN HARRY MET SALLY…’ DIRECTED BY ROB REINER!!” More
anticipatory applause. “NEXT WEEK’S FILM WILL BE THE ROBIN WILLIAMS
BLOCKBUSTER, ‘DEAD POET’S SOCIETY’!!!” More anticipatory applause followed by a
few scattered whoops and cat calls signifying the more carnal pleasure of the
upcoming Hallmark holiday. “THIS ODE TO ENGLISH MAJORS EVERYWHERE WILL PLAY FOR
THREE NIGHTS ONLY, SO GET YOUR TISSUES AND SONNETS HANDY!” chuckled Ember to
which she was greeted with a healthy smattering of good natured laughs.
Ember Fox could read her audience as easily as she could read the
English language. The crowd, she knew was not exactly with her, but they
were, at least, momentarily accepting of her opening announcements. She knew
that it was only a small window before this momentary good will would transform
into something uglier. But, Ember was ready…like a whip crack she was always
ready. It was a skill that unfortunately was not innate, as she experienced in
her painful first stabs at leading the weekend movie screenings of Focus Films.
It was brutally learned as she quickly realized that a lecture hall armed to
the brim with college students that were mentally and physically fatigued,
anxious and sometimes emotionally anguished, carnally satiated or frustrated,
narcotically enhanced to varying degrees, psychologically unbalanced due to
chemical imbalances or collegiate strains or personal traumas, just plain sad,
euphoric, furious, impatient, inaccessible and unrepentantly so, happened to be
an audience impossible to tame and no amount of Ember Fox’s love of cinema
combined with her cute looks and small frame would endear her to almost any of
them. On her very first try, she was pelted with a soda can almost immediately
upon her arrival on stage. This was soon followed by frat house remarks of a
nastiness she had never experienced. She began to panic and left the stage in
shattered mumbles and a parade of tears. When she arrived the following week,
it was due to a concoction of bravery fueled by alcohol provided by a friend
combined with an unwillingness to allow anyone to break her spirit, especially
over something she loved. Her arrival on stage, especially after the still
fresh memory of her previous week’s pummeling was of a major surprise to the
audience and their stunned state at her re-appearance quieted them…to a
degree…allowing her to make her opening remarks relatively uninterrupted. This
small success gave her an inch of confidence. The third week, Ember Fox arrived
without alcoholic enhancement and while still possessed with quivering voice
and shaky figure, she remained unmovable. Over time, she realized that an audience
of this sort needed to be held by its reins, like the wildest of horses, and
whatever authority she harnessed would have to be utilized with extreme force.
That extreme force was seconds away from being released, like an ace
gunslinger, as Ember Fox briefly recounted the basic plot line of the night’s
feature film selection when yet another drunken, sexist, brain cell deprived,
frat house member vocally hurled through cupped hands a voluminous,
“SUCK ME!!!”
Which Ember Fox hurled back, without
quiver or secondary pause, and with a velocity only found in the suddenness of
a gunshot or a streak of lightning…
“FUCK YOU!!!!!!!”
If the audience was not with her
before, they were COMPLETELY with her now as the supreme roar of
laughter and applause rushed to the stage like a wave, lifting Ember Fox ten
feet off the ground while simultaneously vanquishing her vocal assailant
entirely. Surprised at her own level of volume and rage contained within her
vocal slashing, Ember Fox cracked up in laughter and took a bow, which was
greeted with even louder and more supportive applause. This was a moment to be
remembered by everyone in the room to witness it, forever.
“THAT’S Ember Fox, GODAMNIT!!” shouted Craig Hughes in support and
solidarity of his friend as Rhett Brazelton yowled in supportive applause.
“I CAN’T TOP THAT SO SIT BACK, RELAX, ENJOY THE SHOW AND THANK
YOU FOR COMING TO FOCUS!!” chortled Ember and she leapt from the stage and
raced towards the projectors.
As Rhett regarded the remaining hilarity of the scene with the swell of
applause, laughter and the defeated pride of a Langdon Street
Copyright 2015 by Scott Collins All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights.
Copyright 2015 by Scott Collins All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights.
