When are we going to see an original Broadway show? Now there is a musical version of the popular movie Catch Me If You Can that was made in 2002. It was a great movie staring Leonardo Di Caprio who played an imposter pilot who wrote his own checks, and was an expert forger who literally wrote his own checks, he brought us back to the glamorized era of the bold and beautiful stewardess and pilots of the 1960’s. He was so good that after he was caught doing the crime, he was later offered a job played by Tom Hanks to work for the government to catch other forgers.

It is a great story and a great musical since it is already on Broadway and a Tony nominated production. It is very sexy and makes the uniforms remind me of why people used to look forward to flying anywhere. And if there was a delay in flight, they would put you in a hotel for your inconvenience. First class? No problem if available. Memories! Now I have to reminisce on how it used to be good to fly.

There were the big Airlines with names like TWA and Pan Am and Eastern. It all began before WWII. May 15, 1930, 81 years ago, was when a new travel concept began. The day Ellen Church flew from Oakland, California to Chicago as the worlds first Airline Stewardess. She was a registered nurse by profession and convinced Boeing Air Transport the original company that later became United Airlines that by having a nurse would reassure passengers about their air sickness and other issues. 81 years later, you’re luck if you can get a Band Aid for a finger cut!

Before long, stewardesses were on every flight performing all sorts of duties. They were hot!! Not the tired old rags gimping up and down the aisles. There are some great looking guys but they are all gay! Not everyone is gay yet! Stewardess had to be no taller than 5 feet 4 inches and weigh no more than 115 pounds and be no older than 25 years old. You would fly anywhere to get into the mile high club with one of those beauties. They had to take an oath to remain unmarried during their term of service.

It was known as the Golden Age of Travel. Flying was an elegant adventure with free meals on china plates, silver forks and spoons, blankets, pillows, nuts and peanuts etc.

81 years later I am stripped, fondled, have no shoes, no liquids and my luggage raped or stolen and I am left on the tarmac for many unexplained hours to be finally thrown off my flight sleeping in a airport chair desperately wishing to be anywhere else.

These smartly uniformed angels wore cute hats, let me smoke on the flight and passengers would dress up too for the flight. When the crew arrived at the gate, everyone just looked at the handsome and beautiful and wished they were a pilot or stewardess. It portrayed a sexy world traveled group of fun elegant people. Today flight attendants can be men or women. There are fully packed planes with no leg room and no food. You have to smell the crushed spoiled sandwich some guy pulled out of his pocket next to you. There are plenty of extra fees and charges that you could put your credit card in and let them charge away right at your smelly seat.

Oh! Broadway! It is filled with revivals and overlong commercials of the bands and voices of the 60’s with Frankie Vale called Jersey Boys, or the 80’s in Rock of Ages with Dee Snyder of Twisted Sister, or the show about the Beetles or the Supremes. We need fresh stories with new music and original choreography that originated on Broadway and later were made into movies. Shows like South Pacific, Damn Yankees, or West Side Story. That is what Broadway should be. Must I miss everything?