As someone with more than a passing interest in that name, I found the entire premise fascinating. It wasn't until I read a review of the play that I realized the impact Charlies have on the world. In the play there are characters representing mass murderer Charles Manson, Charlie's Angels, Charlie the Tuna, Charly (the retarded man from the book "Flowers for Algernon,") and the Charlie girl from the Revlon ads.
I don't know much about the play's plot except that it turns out that the mysterious Charlie behind "Charlie's Angels" turns out to be Charlie Manson who sends his beautiful minions out to assassinate Hollywood fur-wearers.
It got me thinking about the Charlies who are with us today, having an impact on our lives. Or at least, commanding a lot of our attention.
The first one that comes to mind is Prince Charlie, who apparently is nothing more than a bookmark of history. This waggy-eared Brit will never become King of England, but he has earned a spot of King of the Kooky Royals. It was his falling out with Princess Di that began the sleazy domino effect of fallen royal marriages. Poor Queen Elizabeth. Talk about a bad heir day.
It's not a good decade for Charlies, really. Other than Charlie Kuralt, the distinguished television commentator, Charlies have not been behaving themselves.
Charlie Sheen admitted to being a regular customer of Hollywood Madame Heide Fleiss. It's disheartening to under-capitalized Charlies everywhere to think that a Charlie as well off as Sheen would have to purchase his lovin' on the open market.
Another disgraceful Charlie is Charles Taylor of Liberia. He's one of the warlords who have turned that country into a pool of blood. A friend of mine who was stationed there with the U.S. State Department described a scene he saw where Charlie Taylor arrive at the U.S. Embassy in a long motorcade of stolen Mercedes. Charlie was driving the first one and Dolly Parton was blaring from the stereo. The entire trunk was filled with ice and beer. He's been responsible for turning what started out as a free country for former American slaves into a killing field.
Other Charlies who have been hurting the cause of Charliehood include actor Charles Grodin, with his creepy talk show. Having to see his smug mug on television and hear his silky, milky voice makes you want to throttle him.
Then there is the bad boy bolo-head basketball player Charlie Barkley who KO'd some third-world hoop opponent in the last Olympics. Real classy, Chassy.
I don't know. As a Charles, I'm a little embarrassed. There was a time when there were all kinds of cool Charlies around. There was Charlie Lindbergh, the first guy to fly solo across the Atlantic. There were the likes of anthropologist Charlie Darwin, baseball legend Charlie Fenway and country music crooner Charlie Pride. There was Sir Charlie Chaplin and Charlie Dickens. Charlie Schultz began drawing his on little Charlie (Brown). Those were the golden days of Charlies.
Our more recent Charlies leave a lot to be desired. We've had the likes of Nixon Watergate weenie Charlie Colson and savings and loan-looter Charlie Keating.
We Charlies have got to try to do better, to show that although we are not angels not all Charlies today are womanizing, inconsiderate, thieving, arrogant jerks.
Charlie de Gaulle once said, "How can anyone govern a nation that has 246 different kinds of cheese?" I don't know how that ties in to what we are talking about but I'll say this: You can call me Charles, Charlie, Charley or Chaz, but if the Charlies of the world don't start to clean up their act, I'm changing my name to Chuck.
