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A Tale of Two Movies, Thirty-Six Years, and One Top Gun
Top Gun: Maverick was worth the wait
I have always loved a man in uniform.
My father was a U.S. Air Force pilot and the first man to own my heart. An Army soldier will be the last.
I also love Tom Cruise in uniform.
Last weekend I went to the theater for the first time since March 2020 for the highly anticipated Top Gun sequel. The tickets were purchased a week in advance, and sitting in the packed theater, I could feel the excitement in the air.
The moment the Top Gun anthem started, a hush fell over the crowd, and I was immediately transported back through time to 1986.
I was in Blytheville, Arkansas visiting my father for the summer. My best friend had come with me — two fifteen-year-olds from New Mexico with no driver’s license and limited funds in a new town. We entertained ourselves with cheap activities that we could ride to on our ten-speed bikes.
Discount day at the movie theater was one of our favorite events. Every Tuesday for just $2.00, we could watch a new release film in an air-conditioned theater with low humidity and no biting bugs. If we had more money, we would have stayed there all day.