Before reaching its incendiary ending, Over the Edge drags us through Lord of the Flies on suburban streets, from a basement party to criminal mischief, accompanied by a nearly-perfect soundtrack. The low-budget film touts its inspiration in "true events" at a planned community in CA, Foster City. The excesses of the alienated youth there were documented and perhaps amplified by the San Francisco Examiner in a 1973 piece, "Mousepacks: Kids on a Crime Spree" (November 11, 1973). By the time the film was made it was the late 70s, Blank rising, and the film firmly plants itself in those years. Released in 1979, given limited distribution-- pulled from many theatres-- it would take a few years to reach its audience, but that audience would include ill-fated rocker Kurt Cobain and filmmaker Richard Linklater, both of whom would cite its influence.

We're in New Granada-- "New Granola"-- a fictional and faltering…

A place where bears are kept.

In Elizabethan times, where bears were kept for sport, that is, bears were pitted against each other, or in default of that, dogs, humans, or any other kind. In the Winter's Tale, a character is pursued by a bear, this was supposed to have been supplied by the Garden immediately adjacent to the Theater.

In centuries hence, a Bear Garden is supposed to be a place of noise and tumult, and therefore to be shunned.

Bill died.

So it goes.

Now we know why he missed writer's group last week.  Best excuse humanity has to offer for missing an appointment. 

His writer contributions were modest.  He was a good humorist.  Wrote a lot about being a kid, breaking windows with baseballs, crashing bicycles, pulling the girls's hair on the grammar school playground. No cursing.  No anger.  A regular "Leave it To Beaver" life.

Meanwhile, he got married and had kids of his own.  Meanwhile he…