Junior DJ Batty

Junior high, that is. As a trusted member of the AV club (NERD!) I was occasionally pressed into service as a DJ for the lunch hour "Dance Hall". In nineteen sixty-four that was OK, especially if you attended an integrated school. The box 'o tunes that I would check out with the record player contained some real classic soul and R&B tunes: Fingertips, Pt. II, Loop-de-loop, The Monkey Time, Dancing in the Streets, and plenty of Motown. There was an unused hall near the band room and there was always a small crowd. Once in a while there would even be some action.

Cookie and Johnny had something going on, everybody knew it. Johnny was B-A-D, and Cookie was T-U-F-F. One day, Johnny was being especially bad, the "dirty dog" was one dance not allowed in school, and Johnny and Cookie would get pretty close to the line. Johnny was behind Cookie and whispering in her ear. Cookie exploded: "You want me to strip? You want me to strip? Just say the word and I'll do it." She was seething. The record player blasted "I got him back in my arms again...so satisfied...oooh!" And Bad Johnny, the always cool Johnny, looked like he had just opened a box of scorpions. Which he had.

Soon, alerted by the shouting, a group of teachers were on the scene. I took the Supremes off the box, and everybody had to go back to the lunch room (lock-down!) Dance hall was canceled for the rest of the year.
Cookie remained tough. Johnny left school (years later he was caught pulling a loaded gun on a policeman.) I went on to Senior High, and instead of listening to tunes on a record player I played tunes in bands. And the same scene, with different actors, was played out again and again. It was all downhill from 9th grade.