Saturday 9

Saturday 9: Ghostbusters (1984)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Number 1 on the charts in August 40 years ago, "Ghostbusters" was written quickly. The Ghostbusters producers originally approached Lindsay Buckingham to write the movie theme. Buckingham took a long time to say no, and the film's production date could not be changed. That left Ray Parker Jr. only a few days to come up with a song. Do you work well with a tight deadline? Yes. I was in advertising for 43 years. Tight deadlines and strict budgets were the guardrails to creativity.

2) Parker recalls he got his inspiration from a late night TV commercial that kept encouraging viewers to call, call, call. What's the most recent business that you phoned, and why were you calling? Well, the plumbing company called me, not the other way around. They encountered an emergency and had to reschedule replacing the J-bend and p-trap under my sink.

3) The music video (linked above) was directed by Ivan Reitman, who also directed the movie. It features a variety of celebs saying "Ghostbusters!" None of them were paid for this, they all did it as a favor to Reitman. Have you more recently done or received a favor? I don't know if this counts as a favor, technically, but my blogging buddy Snarkypants sent me a greeting card in a pretty blue envelope to lift my spirits. It was much appreciated.

4) In 2009, Ray Parker Jr. made the Ghostbusters theme available as a ring tone. What's your phone's ring tone? The generic Motorola ringtone. I never bothered to change it. When my phone (in my purse) rang during a recent dental appointment, my dentist thought it was his phone. He has a Motorola phone, too, and never bothered to change the ringtone, either.

5) This song is so enduringly popular that a 2020 documentary about Parker is titled, "Who You Gonna Call?" If you were to write a memoir or authorize a documentary about your life, what would you call it? "The Thing of It Is ..." I say that a lot.

6) Early in his career, Ray was in demand as a session musician. He played guitar on the records of some of the 70s most successful female singers, including Tina Turner, Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and Diana Ross. Of those ladies, which is your favorite? It has to be Miss Ross. Ooooh, yeah! This is my favorite from my favorite.

 

Let's look at the summer of 1984.

7) Released in June, the original Ghostbusters was a huge hit throughout the summer. Have you seen it? Did you see the sequel that was released this past spring? I love Chicago's own Bill Murray, so I've seen it a time or two. (Favorite line: "Human sacrifice! Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!") I've seen parts of Ghostbusters II on cable but none of the subsequent films in the series.

8) Beverly Burns became the first female captain of a Boeing 747. She was a pilot for People Express Airways, an airline which later merged with Continental, and Continental then merged with United. Do you recall which airline you flew when you took your first flight? TWA. ORD to FLL.

9) Ronald Reagan joked about bombing Russia during a mic check for a radio interview. He was embarrassed when the comment was leaked and broadcast around the world. Have you recently felt embarrassed? Oh, sure! I'm always messing up.