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JMurphy
White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation
White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation
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If you liked ‘Grease’ and ‘American Graffiti’ and especially ‘Jersey Boys’ you will love ‘A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation” This is more than just a story about a High School crowd and a drag race, more than exposure to youthful experiences while driving around town and certainly more than a string of popular songs strung together.
Yes, the setting is about high school teenagers coming of age while being subjected to the rigidity of Catholic School regimentation, certainly there is a sub plot or love affair with the sexiest cars ever built in Chrome USA; and yes it takes place against the backdrop of the fabulous ‘Do Op’ era.
It is more than “Young love’. It is coping with the rigidity of daily life in a Catholic School High school where the girls and the boys are segregated at the school and the violent response to those that dare question or have the temerity to go against the rules laid down by doctrine. Uniforms are in, individualism is out. What happens to the boys at the school stays there. One doesn’t dare bring it home because more punishment would be meted by the parents. There are only two rules; rule number one is the ‘Brothers’ who run the school are always right and Rule number two is when in doubt refer back to Rule Number one.
How do you tell your parents that you have just been ‘punched out’ by a Brother; not slapped but punched out? You don’t, you grin and bear it. How do you explain that you were hit by a clenched fist and not an open hand? How do you explain the use of an Iron rod against your open hand or your ass? You don’t you move on.
What about the stirrings one has for a beautiful girl at that time? A mortal sin and go to confession where you will receive three ‘Hail Mary’s’ and five Our Father’s. Today no one would believe you. Narcotics, what the hell was that? Something used in a hospital. Girls couldn’t wear Patten leather shoes because boys could look at the reflection of their panties off the shoes. Would anyone believe you today if you told them this?
Boys being red blooded American boys would find more ways to break those barriers than ‘animal’ in Stalag 13 painting a white line to get to the Russian women taking showers. Look outs would be posted at windows in the shower room, after baseball games, to warn the athletics in the showers that certain brothers were coming and all would run like hell out of the shower room; like rats being hit by a pesticide attack. Or what about the brass balls to greet a notoriously liked Brother with Nazi helmets, Nazi flags and Hitler-like moustaches knowing they were going to get the Hell beat out of them
And then of course, the brass of a small group of boys, on a cold wintry night to bring a barrel of beer into the school cafeteria, which was located under the nun’s convent and proceed to drink the keg amid chaos, break-ins to the Chemistry lab and the reaction by the good nuns. A Rape must be surely going on so they called in six squad cars from the forty third precinct and well…..you just have to read this hilarious bitter sweet non-fiction story as told by one of the ringleaders of that misadventure
The boys and girls of that era were just following a blue print of life set out by society in general at the time. A regimentation, if you will, from cradle to College to the military, in some cases, with no one advancing their individualism. What happens when you grow up and get married, have children and then when they grow up become empty-nesters; what happens then? ……read this book and others written by the same author and for the first time in a bitter-sweet way discover what this former CEO/ University Professor has to say about life growing up and the here after in story book, fast moving, enjoyable and educational fashion. No one has ever done this before!
Yes, the setting is about high school teenagers coming of age while being subjected to the rigidity of Catholic School regimentation, certainly there is a sub plot or love affair with the sexiest cars ever built in Chrome USA; and yes it takes place against the backdrop of the fabulous ‘Do Op’ era.
It is more than “Young love’. It is coping with the rigidity of daily life in a Catholic School High school where the girls and the boys are segregated at the school and the violent response to those that dare question or have the temerity to go against the rules laid down by doctrine. Uniforms are in, individualism is out. What happens to the boys at the school stays there. One doesn’t dare bring it home because more punishment would be meted by the parents. There are only two rules; rule number one is the ‘Brothers’ who run the school are always right and Rule number two is when in doubt refer back to Rule Number one.
How do you tell your parents that you have just been ‘punched out’ by a Brother; not slapped but punched out? You don’t, you grin and bear it. How do you explain that you were hit by a clenched fist and not an open hand? How do you explain the use of an Iron rod against your open hand or your ass? You don’t you move on.
What about the stirrings one has for a beautiful girl at that time? A mortal sin and go to confession where you will receive three ‘Hail Mary’s’ and five Our Father’s. Today no one would believe you. Narcotics, what the hell was that? Something used in a hospital. Girls couldn’t wear Patten leather shoes because boys could look at the reflection of their panties off the shoes. Would anyone believe you today if you told them this?
Boys being red blooded American boys would find more ways to break those barriers than ‘animal’ in Stalag 13 painting a white line to get to the Russian women taking showers. Look outs would be posted at windows in the shower room, after baseball games, to warn the athletics in the showers that certain brothers were coming and all would run like hell out of the shower room; like rats being hit by a pesticide attack. Or what about the brass balls to greet a notoriously liked Brother with Nazi helmets, Nazi flags and Hitler-like moustaches knowing they were going to get the Hell beat out of them
And then of course, the brass of a small group of boys, on a cold wintry night to bring a barrel of beer into the school cafeteria, which was located under the nun’s convent and proceed to drink the keg amid chaos, break-ins to the Chemistry lab and the reaction by the good nuns. A Rape must be surely going on so they called in six squad cars from the forty third precinct and well…..you just have to read this hilarious bitter sweet non-fiction story as told by one of the ringleaders of that misadventure
The boys and girls of that era were just following a blue print of life set out by society in general at the time. A regimentation, if you will, from cradle to College to the military, in some cases, with no one advancing their individualism. What happens when you grow up and get married, have children and then when they grow up become empty-nesters; what happens then? ……read this book and others written by the same author and for the first time in a bitter-sweet way discover what this former CEO/ University Professor has to say about life growing up and the here after in story book, fast moving, enjoyable and educational fashion. No one has ever done this before!
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