Neurotics

I've recently been occupied with tracking down the underground cult of Newsies followers. Although the Disney movie flopped when it came out in theaters in 1992, it has acquired a modest following through the web. What does that mean, you might wonder? It means meticulous lists, puzzles, endless fan vids, and unapologetic fan sites about their mild "obsession."

I recently found this website, "Mush's Goil," devoted to everything Newsies, with a new quotation updated every week:

http://mushsgoil.tripod.com/index.html

My favorite thing about this site is the "You know you're obsessed when..." list. Here are some of my favorites:

5. You and your friends go by your newsie names
13. Whenever you see "Fe" on the periodic table you immediatly think of Santa Fe and have a sudden urge to kick up dust
26. You have a Newsies outfit
27. You wear your Newsies outfit regularly
42. You think you see the Newsies in the most random places (I thought I spotted Trey Parker in WalMart one time.. but of course it wasnt him)
73. You've spent over 100 dollars on Newsies memerobilia.
88. You've had at least one one hour long phone conversation with a fellow newsie freak of just singing the songs. (I know I've had more than one!)

There's an entire page devoted to the hatred of the heroine in the movie, "Sarah," because she gets to kiss Christian Bale (aka Jack Kelly) at the end of the movie. The complaints? "She sounds like a man." I finally figured out that the maker of the site is an 17 year old self-proclaimed "RENThead" (that word gives me the creeps) who apparently grew up with Broadway coming out of her rear. She states:

"My dream roles are to be Glinda in Wicked, Velma in Chicago, Christine in Phantom, Amneris in Aida or Mimi in Rent."

Shoot big, there, kiddo.