It came to me as the muffled sounds of laughter and music. A large crowd of people singing and laughing together. So out of place in this dark city.
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“LIPS!!”
“LIIIIPS!!”
“LIPS, LIPS, LIPS…. LIIIIPS!!”
The voices are coming from this small neighborhood movie theater and I just HAVE to see what is in there.
Omaha, Nebraska. Late January (or was it early February?) 1979. Just before midnight. I’d been walking back to my dingy little dungeon of a room, much earlier than usual. Dissatisfied by my night walking, sick of seeing all the dark, night, non-life.
Perhaps I was inspired a bit by that group of women in the downtown diner. Those women who I was imagining to have found a vibrant life within a toxic lifestyle by discovering a healthy distraction.
I had (and still have) no way of knowing any of that, but the thought must have distracted me enough to have led me away from all that dark, non-life and towards something very much alive. I enter the theater from which all those fun, happy sounds are emanating. The sounds of many people enjoying themselves.
The place is PACKED!
Everyone seems so happy. They are talking and laughing. Laughing and pointing up in the direction of the screen. The curtain is closed. Several people are going around to the side and starting to come up some stairs. Up onto a stage in front of the curtain.
I sit down, mesmerized by the spectacle of the bustling people. I’d just smoked a small roach before entering, so I’m not completely clear headed. I still have yet to see any detail. What I’m seeing is more like a mass of of colors and shapes. Moving, colorful shapes. Sometimes random, sometimes synchronized.
I can’t possibly know that I will NOT get clear headed at all this entire evening. I can’t know that I won’t care. I’ll deal with that later. I already don’t care. This is fun. I’m not at all sure of what I’m looking at. But it sure is mesmerizing and it sure is fun.
“Here ya go Brother.”
I turn and accept a can of beer from the guy in the seat next to me. For a moment, I think I’m to pass it along to someone and so I try and see who that might be. The guy sees my confusion and says…
“It’s for you my friend.” I’m still confused. “It’s ok man, have a beer. It’s cool.”
“Thanks.” I smile and turn back to look at the people on stage. They’re dancing around and now that I see some detail, I can see that they are all wearing costumes of some kind. Nothing like mine. They’re colorful, fun-looking costumes. As they dance, small groups of people in the seats near them occasionally applaud.
Then the curtain begins to open.
Those on the stage quickly run down the steps and take seats. A few stay standing and clapping from the side. The crowd is chanting again, this time in total unison.
“LIPS, LIPS, LIPS…. LIIIIPS!!”
“LIPS, LIPS, LIPS…. LIIIIPS!!”
“LIPS, LIPS, LIPS…. LIIIIPS!!”
The curtain is completely open now and what appears on the screen is something that I will later think I should have been expecting but… how could I have possibly expected any of this? I’m so caught up in this fun spectacle of color and sound and laughter, I’m completely caught off guard and memorized by the appearance of the HUGE red lips that fill the screen.
The crowd goes wild!
The lips start to sing and the crowd is singing along with them but I don’t hear a thing. I am completely awed and dumbfounded by the movement of these lips.
Oh this will have to be…
to be continued…
