Entries by Bo Bryan

Poem of Colored Lights

Christmas comes as a regular visit From a magical being in a red suit. A large, white-bearded man Driving a vehicle meant to go in snow, Pulled through space and time By four legged, flying animals with horns.   Pagan celebration Takes over the Earth, All become gift-givers, Love makers, bakers of cookies, Believers in […]

Tantalizing Petesy

Petesy liked a small rod, easy to manage close to the pier. He lowered the bait to just above the water. Then he swung the baited hooks above the ocean, to tantalize the fish, as if schools of them waited for treats, like seated dogs. He never tired of explaining himself to curious fishermen, especially […]

Striking a Chord

The first intimations we got of the atmosphere in beer joints and nightclubs came around make-do dance floors at school. One night in the basketball gym, at a “sock hop” social dance, when we were in the ninth grade, the band was a revolting surprise. One of the players, with all-over long hair, combed back […]

Goot Knew

The main thing that kept us boys in line at school was the threat of corporeal punishment.  Any man old enough to remember when it was legal for school teachers to swat trouble-makers, probably recalls a teacher, usually a man, who carried the biggest stick.  In my case, he was the baseball coach, who also […]

Thanksgiving Rhyme for the Road 

I remember having Thanksgiving dinner. Once at a bus station lunch counter. The turkey breast Tasted like tennis shoe rubber. The gray, coagulated Giblet gravy was stiff as jello. The bus station smelled Like cigarettes and bacon grease. I was eighteen years old. It was my first Thanksgiving Away from family. The romance of the […]

S.O.S. Origins

Gene Laughter, an ex-lifeguard from the Fifties—nicknamed “Swink,” was a mischievous and creative man. He used to entertain his family on summer vacations by writing notes and putting them into bottles, then casting these into the ocean. This practice became elaborate and got out of hand in 1978. A note on an aged parchment found […]

Hard-Core Cadre

SOS is in full swing in Myrtle Beach. The faithful and hardcore come together to dance. The crowds pack a six-block area of North Myrtle Beach. The Shag joints are jumping. There are no fights in the streets nor even a serious frown in the crowd. The overriding emotion seems to be love. Always in […]

Hurricane Unanimity

As Irma approaches, I offer the observation that loosing everything must be more than anyone can bear alone. Let us all be spiritual victims of hurricane destruction. Oh God of Light Let all survive The fury Of the wind And the rage Of the terrible Sea

Big Apple, Little Apple

Most Southern kids who became Shaggers, had been previously influenced by a “circle” dance called the Big Apple, and its first cousin, the Little Apple. Both were fad dances that came and went with great flourish and popularity among white kids in the late Thirties, prior to the arrival of the Jitterbug. The Spivey brothers […]