Of light hair, 80s gymnastics, and Mrs. Gretzky

The 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles was the United States' time to shine. Because of our boycott of the 1980 Olympiad in Moscow, the Russians and the Eastern Bloc boycotted the LA Olympics in retaliation.

The US Men's Gymnastics team won quite a few medals that year including a team gold. But Mitch Gaylord stole the show with his perfect 10.0 on the horizontal bar. He didn't medal because he blew it in the compulsory round, but it set the stage for a few years of Gaylord celebrity.

In 1986, a movie was made about a young gymnast who injured himself with a radical move on the high bar and was battling to get back in the game. Along the way, boy meets girl, and so on. Not a great film, but it did feature Janet Jones, the future wife of hockey great Wayne Gretzky. She's sporting a rare female mullet. Well, it wasn't so rare in those days.

But what about the music? It's Andy Taylor. Not the sherriff, but the guitarist from Duran Duran and, later, the Power Station. Andy isn't really hair metal, but he had hard rock chops and looks. This is a pop tune, and like quality pop-metal, it uses crunchy guitar chords and a catchy chorus to keep the hands clapping. If it wasn't for Andy Taylor, Duran Duran would've sounded like every other New Wave act. He helped them become pop stars as much as Simon Le Bon.

The song is Take It Easy, from the American Anthem Original Soundtrack (1986) and yes, I once owned it...on a cassette way back in the late 80s. It has long since disappeared.

I started to go with another song today, but that song was somewhat melancholy and the gray dark rain continues and I thought that maybe I was responding to the weather. So, I chose a song that I know makes my toes tap and keeps me smiling. The fact that we get to witness bad acting at the very beginning makes it all the more charming.

Does anyone remember this movie? If I said Gaylord, Daggett, Vidmar, and Conner would it help you recall the '84 Olympics? What about the guy from China, Li Ning? He was the essence of cool athletic excellence. I think the rain is making me nostalgic.