Temptations "My Girl"

When you think of a mad-as-hell-and-not-gonna-take-it-anymore George Banks having a meltdown in the hotdog bun aisle at the grocery store, you immediately think of the 1991 movie Father of the Bride. Upon first watching this heartwarming movie in 1992, I was 15 years old and immediately connected with the character of George Banks: he loves his family, doesn't like letting go or major life changes, and holds in his anger until it inevitably explodes over something silly (like hotdog buns). Plus, the beloved Steve Martin stars as George Banks in the remake of the 1950 classic. What 15 year-old boy can watch a movie like Father of the Bride and immediately connect with a middle-aged character who's struggling to let go of his first-born daughter? Me, that's who.

When you meet someone with a shared love of family, baseball, radio, and the movie Father of the Bride, you're pretty lucky. When that same person also happens to have a heart of gold, laughs at all your stupid jokes and impressions and stares at you in a way no others have, you're pretty damn lucky. Add in stunning good looks and you feel like Brian McKenzie upon meeting Annie Banks.

This weekend, I'm celebrating Stephani's birthday by flying her favorite airline into her beloved Sky Harbor Airport followed by a tour of her former Phoenix haunts: Oreganos, Fossil Creek, and her old stomping grounds of ASU (where they apparently wore bathing suits to class). Throw in a visit to Comerica Theater to see the messiah himself (Rob Thomas), and you have yourself one heck of a birthday weekend. If we're lucky, maybe we'll even watch Father of the Bride on the plane...

Happy birthday, Stephani!
xo 

Sonny & Cher "I Got You Babe"

Harold Ramis asked Chicago radio legend Steve Dahl to play the role of the radio disc jockey in Groundhog Day, but he passed. Instead voiceover artist Richard Henzel played the iconic role. As far as casting goes, Ramis also considered Tom Hanks and Steve Martin for the role that ultimately went to his friend Bill Murray. Unfortunately, Ramis and Murray's friendship took a dump after filming the movie. At the time, Murray was going through a divorce and seemed to bring that pain onto the set each day by being hostile and habitually late. Things got so bad, the pair didn't speak for nearly 20 years after the film wrapped. Murray finally buried the hatchet when Ramis was on his deathbed in 2014.

The Righteous Brothers "Unchained Melody"

How did a popular song from 1965 return to the charts in 1990?  You can thank Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and the movie Ghost.  The movie's soundtrack put the love song back on the radio and even induced The Righteous Brothers to record an updated version of the tune.  "Unchained Melody" topped the Adult Contemporary Chart for two weeks during the summer of 1990.  Ditto.

Phil Collins "A Groovy Kind of Love"

Unless you spend your free time watching reruns of The Brady Brunch, you don't hear the word groovy too often these days.  That didn't stop Phil Collins from turning the word into a hit song in 1988.  Technically, The Mindbenders first made the song a hit in 1965, but Collins turned it into a #1 hit for the Buster Soundtrack.  Collins pulled double-duty for the film both singing and acting in the movie. He's since admitted it's the one song that he wishes he'd never have to perform again.