Nostalgia

<p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>Now in the twilight of my writing career but still ambitious I decided that writing a third book following Blind Journey: A Journalist's Memoirs and its sequel Insomnia: Two Wives Childhood Memories and Crazy Dreams would simply be too much work.                                                                       </span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>Wow! That word work suddenly reminded me of the time I was among a theater-full of struggling members of the Writers Guild attending a movie preview. The scene was an exchange between two old friends who hadn't seen each other for some time. It's so good to see you Jane one said. Where are you working these days or are you still writing?</span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>The dark theater exploded in bursts of laughter.</span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>So what's this got to do with Nostalgia: Stars of Yesteryear?</span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>After ten years of covering sports at the Times I transferred to the Calendar section as a copy editor and freelanced writing features about former superstars in the twilight of</span><em style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> their </em><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>careers. Robert Hilburn the Times' former rock music critic and author of his riveting book about the life of Johnny Cash'' soon realized the old-timers'' deserved space in the section along with rock stars. Hilburn dubbed me the Nostalgia Editor.</span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>My filing cabinet is filled with features about superstars of yesteryear published long before this era of tattoos weird hairdos and the universal acceptance of the adjectives </span><em style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>cool</em><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> and </span><em style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>awesome.</em><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)> Among the first folders I opened was an in-depth article about Dick Contino a somewhat forgotten accordionist whose thriving career went into hibernation when he deserted the army after being drafted. Necessarily trimmed but virtually unedited Contino's story plus those of Cassius Clay/Muhimmad Ali Sammy Davis Jr. Rosemary Clooney the Andrews Sisters and scores of others make up untouched chapters in Nostalgia.</span></p><p class=ql-align-justify><span style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0); color: rgba(0 0 0 1)>They span decades. Turn the page to stroll down memory lane. It may spark many of your memories.</span></p><p><br></p><p><br></p>