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This re-run was also interesting because of what is happening today in regard to high profile black males and domestic abuse. It reinforces the claim about how it has always gone on but has been ignored or concealed because of the threat it represented to the careers of celebs. It also raises the issue of separating a person's talent from their flaws, and whether the public has a right to pass judgment on a celeb's private life. To me, being famous doesn't make you immune from criticism, and intrusion into one's private life comes with the territory of seeking fame. In the case of Bill Withers, his wife Denise Nicholas had a problem with what was going on in their marriage and she promptly divorced his "talented" ass. I stand by my position that nothing detracts from the fact that there were widely-circulated rumors that Bill Withers was beating up Denise Nichols during their marriage, and her leaving him gave credence to such rumors. Withers and his apologists are simply in denial. Contributors to this thread like Carey, ABM and Xeon advancing their rationales and specious arguments revealed where their priorities lie when it comes to domestic abuse. In regard to the complaints raised about people who dote on the affairs of celebrities, I say this: As someone who strives to be conversant on a broad range of topics because this makes me a more interesting person, I do keep up with what's going on in pop culture; not because I am a fan of its vapidness but because staying current on what's going on with these cardboard figures gives me material to use when ridiculing them during discussions I am informed enough to participate in. Elitists who restrict their awareness of what's going on in the world at large can be bores who take themselves too seriously.

wc. edwards, - or as Troy referred to you, "richard" - I, too, confess to just skimming your last post because of its length and my intent was to read it more thoroughly later; which I just did. Your treatment of this infamous incident made the most of the scenarios it made possible. Giving the racial slant to your interpretation made it compelling. The cigar references, however, were a stretch mainly because, 18 year olds don't really buy cigars for any reason other than to use as a holder for a "joint". (They smoke death-inducing cigarettes, as opposed to cigars which never stay lit and aren't inhaled.) Of course, we are allowed to deviate from the norm when imagining the surreal. A weed-smoker makes an equally interesting protagonist because marijuana cultivates a fertile imagination and being caught smoking it is a misdemeanor which could involve taunting a cop, which could set the stage for a confrontation. A black youth high on marijuana and a white cop drunk with power fill the roles in a drama where death becomes the final act. But, that's another story. Yes, Troy, the ranks among the Boardwalk cast of characters are dwindling. Guess Al Capone wanted to impress his guests, the 2 actors who appeared in the original "Scareface", a movie that starred Paul Muni and George Raft, and who Al introduced to his friends in the Boardwalk script. (Paul Muni played Al) In the other scene where the black guy got shot after bargaining for the freedom of his girlfriend and their daughter, I was singing right along when the song that she recorded played because it's an oldie that I'm familiar with.

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