Today's regularly scheduled article about Morrissey has been pre-empted so I can bring you a true conversation that really happened.
Yesterday morning I was walking into work and realized that I was still holding my keys. That shouldn't be! They should be in my key pocket, but I couldn't put them in my key pocket, because my phone was in there. So I pull my phone out of the key pocket, put my keys in the key pocket, and then I happened to glance down at my phone. It was in silent mode, and it was blinking that Joejung was calling. What?
This is not normal. A phone call from Joejung at 2 a.m. is normal. A phone call from Joejung at eight in the morning means that someone is either at the emergency room or in jail. So I answered appropriately.
Me: "Joejung! Why are you awake and calling me at eight in the morning?"
Joejung: "It's Chubby Checker's birthday!"
Me: "Shut up! That's what you called for? That's awesome! I'm about to get on the elevator and lose the signal, call me later."
And that was the end of the phone call, but brief as it was, it changed my day for the better. I should have been aware of this happy day, because as near as I can tell, Chubby Checker is the most popular man in the whole world. Of course, I am gauging his popularity by how much attention he gets here at Rocksnobs. Anyway, as a belated birthday treat, I dug up some extra special Chubby Checker links.
This one was sent to me by a reader in Philadelphia after the first occurrence of Chubby Checker mania. She said that it might explain a few things. It's a really long article, but it's worth skimming so you can see just how much Chubby Checker thinks of Chubby Checker.
And then we have The Official Chubby Checker Web Site.
If you don't feel like browsing the site yourself, I will give you the highlights. Although the site had me weeping with laughter, so I would recommend paying a visit.
First of all, on the main page, he is compared to Thomas Edison and Henry Ford.
There are also many enjoyable pictures of smilin' Chubby. Enjoy my favorite, which is smilin' 70s Chubby wearing an outfit with not one, but two huge collars. And he's under an umbrella.
Then you may want to stop by the merchandise section.
Although he has many products for sale, the product featured on the main merchandise page is his beef jerky, which is available in five flavors. There is also a link to a place that sells the jerky by mail. I will give you the link, but beware. When you arrive at the site, a version of Let's Twist Again that sounds like it was recorded on a Casio keyboard set to Organ tone starts playing. Loudly. If you are at work, just say no to this link. I didn't, and ended up having another giggle fit. Consider yourselves warned.
And then there is the greatest link I found. I found a link to a site that has a picture of Debbie Harry and Chubby Checker doing the Twist. It isn't quite as horrifying as I would like, but at least I can give you a taste of the trauma that CEB and Joejung and the New Guy and I experienced. Enjoy.
