David Bowie

I was saddened to wake up this morning to the news that David Bowie had passed away from cancer at the age of 69. However, news of his passing brought back a precious memory of my mother. 

Betty Nelson absolutely LOVED to play Trivial Pursuit. She was a master at this game and almost never lost. One particular night, we were playing the Baby Boomer Edition. In this edition, the sports and leisure category was replaced with a category for pop music RPM. 

Mama was a Broadway baby. She loved classical music and show tunes. Her pop music knowledge pretty much began and ended with Barry Manilow and The Carpenters. So, when she ended up in the center one evening and the rest of the players were allowed to choose the category we thought would most likely stump her, of course we chose RPM. 

The question was "Which pop star played John Merrick, also known as The Elephant Man, on Broadway?" 

Mama just looked at us with a smug smile and hollered DAVID BOWIE! Unbelieving, we looked at the card, and, sure enough, that was the answer. She basked in that victory for years. 

Rest in peace, David Bowie, and thanks for the memories.