MORE SENSELESS ACTS OF BLOGGERY

I’ve been wondering how I should wrap up Roller Skate Week, since there are plenty of angles we haven’t covered – the Playboy Mansion angle, the Heather Graham angle, the carhop waitress angle, and – it goes without saying – the Shanghai Disco angle.

But then after the previous post, a lot of people complained that comic book superheroes portrayed roller disco skaters in a negative light, and that I should be more fair and balanced.

So I should be clear – roller skates, like any technology, are neither good not evil. It’s how you use it. Indeed, plenty of superheroes have used roller skates in the name of justice. Some even specialized in skates.

Like Dazzler.



She even had a roller disco angle.

Then there’s, um, Skateman.



Oh, and don’t forget the time the Justice League Of America started a roller derby team.



And so much for Roller Skate Week.

Rock and roll over,

This is dF

Roller Skate Week rolls on, and some of you may have seen this before, but that’s okay, because you can’t see ninjas on roller skates too many times.


That’s how ninjas roll,

This is dF

Continuing our coverage of Roller Skate Week, roller skating is largely associated with competitive disco dancing, but it’s also the source of one of the greatest concepts in sports entertainment: roller derby!

I used to watch roller derby on TV as a kid. It was like pro wrestling on wheels. So naturally, I liked it. But by that time it was already starting to die out a bit. Interestingly, though, it’s one of those things that keeps coming back. There are still a number of active pro and amateur leagues and teams – mostly women. Which is also interesting – it’s the only contact sport I know of that’s dominated by women.

Which means we have the perfect excuse to post some Raquel Welch.




DISCLAIMER: This is one of those cases where the trailer is better than the film. Rent with caution.

Over the railing,

This is dF

Good morning, and welcome to Roller Skate Week.

Why a week’s worth of roller skating posts? You can blame WFMU, which reminded me that once, circa 1979, the most popular craze in America was ... roller disco.

Here’s what’s worse: Hollywood noticed and tried to cash in.

Witness the spectacle that is Roller Boogie. Starring Linda Blair!


It gets better. Released the same year: Skatetown USA. Starring Scott Baio, Flip Wilson and Ruth Buzzi!


Have fun spotting Patrick Swayze in hist first motion picture performance.

If there’s a demarcation point anyone could choose to pinpoint just when Western mainstream pop culture jumped the shark, this just might be it.

FUN FACT: We had a roller rink near where I grew up. We used to go every Saturday. It wasn’t disco, but they played lots of Journey, Skynyrd and Kansas, as I recall. I was so bad at it I managed to roll over my own finger. On the other hand, I rather enjoyed wiping out. So much so that they eventually barred me for life.

And yes, in fact I DO have a week’s worth of material for this.

PRODUCTION NOTE: There will be no in-line skates featured during Roller Skate Week. Fuck in-line skates. I have spoken.

Skate or die,

This is dF