Today's Birthdays, Tomorrow's Memories

As a morning dose of entertainment I eventually turn to Page 2 of the Tampa Tribune where the latest lottery numbers are printed in the center of the page, a column by Television Critic Walter Belcher at the top and a celebrity rag sheet to the right with all that’s going on with those beautiful people in the entertainment fields. (Tony Dow will have a spot in the Louvre displaying one of his original abstract sculptures!)

Just below the deeds and misdeeds of celebrities, there’s a daily listing of Today’s Birthdays covering well-known professionals from all walks of life. Producers, directors, actors, actresses, sports figures, politicians, etc. Only the birthdays of the living are listed.

It’s become a morning mind exercise that leads to personal memories of events that might help be make a thoughtful guess on the age of each celebrity.

Take for instance, on November 5, Bryan Adams and Ryan Adams, who aren’t related, shared the same birthday. A very unique coincidence and particularly of interest because both are listened to often. Let’s take Bryan: recollection puts one of this first hit tunes Cuts Like a Knife somewhere in the early ‘80s shortly after moving from West Chicago, IL, to Santa Monica, CA, in 1981. That was 27 years ago, so assuming Bryan may have been maybe around 20 – simply because he looked young and many artists make their initial entry into the music scene once they’ve entered adulthood. My guess added 20 + 27 to equal 47 years old in 2008. Not bad since he was actually 48!

Ryan Adams, of course, is much younger with just a few years in the limelight whith music I consider alternative-rock-folk music, although the paper referenced his work as alternative-country. Maybe, but on his 2007 CD Easy Tiger some of the music reminded me of Neil Young; similarly, I never considered Neil a country singer.

Although Ryan’s CDs typically hide his face either with hair hanging down, or his face directed away from the camera, I figured maybe five years ago he was probably 20 when he released Love Is Hell. So, 20 + 5 would put him at the age of 25. A fairly shy cry from his actual 33 years.

Walter Cronkite had a birthday on Election Day 2008. Going back to the 60’s with recollections of his emotions on the assassination of JFK (1963) and the landing on the moon (1969) that would be 40-45 years ago when he may have been about 40, so the guess was about 85 years old – a poor guess since he turned 92 this year.

[My thoughts usually revisit certain periods of time when there was a memorable personal event, such as Neil Armstrong’s moon walk in the same era as a lone movie date to see 2001: A Space Odyssey and the Beatles’s songs Hey Jude, Get Back and Come Together.]

For another instance, Prince Charles was born on November 14 but, since he’s never been a person of interest in my life and I really didn't care, I just figured he had to be close to a decade older than myself. My guess was 65 although he was actually 60. My goal is to be within 3 years of each person's age.

Too often there are names I don’t recognize, such as actor Josh Duhamel (who? movies? or TV?) – 36. Former UN Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali? 86 yrs. Rapper E-40? 41 yrs. Rachel Appleton? 15. Holly Valance? 25. Kip Pardue? 32. Whatever! They all get a “I don’t know that one.”

There's a personal interest when a person's age is close to my own. In addition to myself, others in the not-quite-sixty group including Elvira, Charo, Ozzie Obsourne, Jay Leno, Robin Williams, Jessica Lange, Cheryl Ladd and Dr. Phil.

Just a few minutes in the morning and the windmills of my mind get the brain a-stirrin', with reflections on people, places and events that mark the years leading up the this time in my life. As the day progresses, who knows, the day’s activities may be remembered years from now when I relate an experience to a name on Today’s Birthdays.