A Little Bit of Love for Punky, Steve and A.C.

It is going to be on very rare occasions that I talk about television. I have a lot of anger toward that little devil box. But I can't negate the fact television is and was a part of our social fabric. More specifically for me, there is a nostalgia factor that comes to play whenever I think about the characters who passed through my life.

In today's edition I'd like to talk about some of those characters and ask the big, 'What if', or 'Where are they now?' I'm not talking about the actors who played the characters; no I am talking about the characters themselves. Where are they today?

Where is Punky Brewster? I'd guess she's about 30 years old now. My age in fact. Did Punky ever find her mother? Did she go to college and meet boys and get good grades? Or did life have a different path for her? Perhaps she found solace on the streets of Chicago and began turning tricks to support her meth addiction in the mid 90's. I don't want to believe this, but we will never know for sure. Maybe she went on to become a top notch Social worker striving for the justice of all downtrodden children everywhere. Was Henry at her graduation ceremony? I often wonder if she continued wearing her garb well into her teens and adulthood. If you crossed Punky's path today, would she be donning pigtails, mismatched shoes, a bandanna around her ankle, a heart on her purple jacket? If so, she might need some help, or she might simply be retarded. I'm sure in the streets of New York her appearance wouldn't cause any kind of a stir. But what if, just what if Punky, clad in aforementioned clothes was walking down Market Street in Lewisburg, PA. Would you walk up to her and ask her if she needed help finding her way back to the special bus? Or would you ignore her and then laugh as she skipped and galloped down the street. We will never know the answers for sure.

And what of Steve Sanders of 90210 fame. Now Steve would be a bit older than Punky today. I bet Steve would be in his mid 30's. We all know how troubled he was growing up in the drama of Beverly Hills. His mother was an actor. Kelly wouldn't take him back. He burned down the KEG house and almost killed Kelly in the process. He never really quite fit in with cool and suave kids: Dylan or Brandon. No, Steve was out on his own the whole time, making the best of the situations that were put forth in front of him. So where is Steve today? Is he a car salesman? Perhaps he got hooked on God and started preaching the gospel. No, I don't think so. I wish I knew though. There has got to be a way to find out. Steve, are you even alive? Did the hard core drinking just escalate into a world of pain and despair? Do you have children out of wedlock? Or did you inevitably become what everybody expected you to become: a corporate lacky? You are bringin' in the dough now, aren't you? You got yourself a new wife, a lovely house in the hills and a dog named, appropriately enough, Silver after your buddy David. Come on Silver, come on boy lets go for a walk, and I will call Kelly on my cell.

The biggest question mark for me is the fate of A.C. Slater. Now this boy was doomed for fashion failure the minute he stepped foot into the hallowed halls of Bayside High. From the stonewash jeans to the pink wife-beaters, to the awful curly-cue mullet, what has become of you today? Where is A.C.? Did he go back to Mexico to find his roots? Maybe, he went on to become a soldier just to make his daddy happy. I'd think not, because while A.C. is flawed in many areas of life most of them are materialistic and he's got a good heart. I'd like to think that he is working very hard to keep his family afloat. Perhaps he is working 2 jobs and going to school. He is really showing signs of a promotion from dishwasher to sous chef at Shoney's. And the second job is down at the Legion setting up poker night for the old boys club. The latter of course is only on Friday and Sunday nights. But because he has to sacrifice those 2 nights he is missing out on his family time. 8 little Slaters need to be fed though and A.C. will do what he can to keep the machine running. A.C. I wish you the best. When you finally told Zack to back off and get the hell out of your life, it really was the best thing you could have done. He was no good for you. His schemes just put you in so much trouble. Remember after college graduation when he convinced you to go back to Mr. Belding's house and sleep on his bedroom floor. Boy was Dick pissed off when he woke up at 3am to take a piss and tripped over you sitting there sound asleep. Oh A.C. good riddance to Zack and his lies. Good luck with the family though.

There are so many more characters that I often wonder about. Who else does this? We will never know, because once the show is cancelled or has run it's course the characters die. I don't want them to die. I want them to live on and on in my memory. And if I see Punky walking down Market Street I am going to take her out and buy her an 8 track tape. She will like that. I know she will. She likes music.

Latron,
Dee