Crimson & Clover

Betty, Julie & The Starlight Club

The Starlight Club was one of those typical sixties party joints where they played psychedelic tunes, the drinks came with swizzle sticks and umbrellas; and they always had plenty of that other stuff that I never cared for. You know what I mean; the sort of stuff that made the 60's famous like marijuana, acid, and magic mushrooms.

Aside from the atmosphere and the aforementioned illicit house goodies, what made this place special was the clientele. Not just anyone was allowed entrance; you either had to be somebody or know somebody. Thanks to Tom's dad, we could pretty much get ourselves into any club. Before he was even old enough to drink, Tom's dad would take him to clubs with famous sports figures and movie stars.

Tom told us stories about partying with the likes of Natalie Wood, Donovan, and what he believes were two members of Them. The truth is he probably just said hello and then watched as everyone had a good-time except him, but either way once you get a reputation for hanging out with the stars the doors to the hot spots are permanently open. The funny part was that neither Tom nor I knew exactly what his dad did for a living or how he knew those people - strange.

There was a line up of at least twenty people standing outside the Starlight Club waiting patiently. Tom and I, on the other hand, walked right up to the bouncer who waved us directly in. Beyond the entrance doors women were dancing behind semi-translucent screens showing off their splendid, curvaceous silhouettes. Intimidated guys were scattered in groups, planning their strategies of attack. Hues of orange and pink lights reflected off the flowery walls with multicolored lights shining down from the ceiling. The doors closed behind us. We were in.

Tom went straight to the bar and ordered us two Zombies. Things were going about as well as could be expected for two guys having a night out until Tom noticed a crowd of people forming at the bar. Tom was the kind of guy who had to know everything. If the phone rang and he missed a call it would drive him insane. He would actually phone people up asking them if they were the ones who called, so it came as no surprise that Tom had to find out the reason for the crowd at the bar.

"I don't care who's here," I told Tom, "unless it's a very attractive and available girl."

Tom gave me a crooked grin.

"Alright," I told him, "she doesn't have to be available."

Tom pushed his way through the crowd. If Tom were to write a book about his life, this is where it would begin. What he saw shook him to his core. There was Rock Hudson pulling off his charms on the ladies. On closer inspection, there was his beloved Julie, sitting on Rock's lap. Tom glared at her until Julie noticed his angry stare. Their eyes met. They shared an incredibly awkward moment until Tom turned away and ran out of the bar, dejected. I tried to stop him, honest, but he would hear nothing of it.

Julie saw the way Tom left the bar and came up to me, fairly upset. I'm sure it was because she left Rock Hudson because of him. Julie wasn't the sort to be anybody's lap girl but this was Rock Hudson. Nobody would ever blame her, except Tom.

"What was that all about?" she asked me furiously.

"Nothing," I told her. "You know how Tom hates Rock Hudson."
Julie didn't know how to react. I think the problem was that she felt guilty and couldn't understand why.

"That definitely was not nothing," she replied," and he loves Rock Hudson. He begged me to go with him to that war movie Tobruk. I sat through two hours of Tom saying, "that's so cool". She paused briefly for a moment as she looked back at Rock Hudson who now had two other girls on his lap. "Come on Adam tell me what's really up with Tom."

"You can't stand here and tell me you have no clue what's going on with Tom." I said to her.

"A clue about what?" she asked.