Rolling On Back To The ‘60S

Sun., Jan. 24, 1999

By Susan English susane@spokesman.com

We guess it had to happen, what with the exploding popularity of pro wrestling. But still, Roller Derby makes us wince. It’s just so bad. And now it’s back. This time, these bruisin’ babes are on in-line skates, and like their pro-wrasslin’ counterparts, they rehearse all the moves.

In the ‘60s, Roller Derby was all the rage, popularized by Raquel Welch in “Kansas City Bomber.” Then, thankfully, interest faded in the early ‘70s.

Early this month, “RollerJam” debuted on TNN, a weekly ‘90s-style Roller Derby, trying to capture what producer Ross Bagwell calls “the NASCAR crowd.” And, we assume, the teenage male demographic. (From Jan. 18 Newsweek)

* In case you wondered: The per capita alcohol consumption in Washington and Idaho is 2 to 2.5 gallons a year; those in Montana drink 2.5 to 3 gallons a year per capita. Ranking by state in terms of per-capita alcohol consumption: Montana, 9th; Washington, 28th; Idaho, 36th. (From January George)

* Leisure-time trends: As we approach next Sunday’s annual mass bow to the god of football, ponder the fact that while 41 percent of Americans attended a sporting event in the past year, 46 percent attended a cultural event.

We will, though, consider the possibility these aren’t necessarily different people, rather, about half the population may go to whatever is going on, whether it’s a hockey game or an opera. (From October American Demographics)

* Get a reality check, pal: The leader of Russia’s ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic Party and the self-proclaimed “sexual knight of all the girls of Russia,” Vladimir Zhirinovsky, has a new book out.

The 222-page “ABC’s of Sex” proposes that all hotels maintain sex agencies “for guaranteeing the sexual needs of guests” and licensed prostitutes be launched into space to ease the stress of the cosmonauts.

So far, sales have been brisk and the publisher is talking about a second printing. (From Jan. 18 Time)

* Clearly, perspective depends on gender: In surveys conducted as part of the National Centenarians Awareness Project, men were asked what, in general, made the biggest difference in their lives. The automobile won, hands down. Women were asked to name the century’s greatest labor-saving device. Their near-unanimous answer: the washing machine.

The surveys included thousands of people ages 100 or older.

* Quote of the week: “Old hippies don’t die, they just lie low until the laughter stops and their time comes around again.” — Joseph Gallivan (From January The Sun)

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