By Thomas Willett
For those that don’t know, the Danny Boyle production of the Olympics Opening Ceremony was amazing last Friday. I am sure it is more because it felt like a Boyle movie than a ceremony, but it was a great celebration of everything British. As the games have gone on, I have found myself in an odd state. I am yelling at judges, betting on Italians, and finding myself watching two hours of sports a day. I am surprised as you, especially since none of it is the equestrian. However, this isn’t the crossover blog where I talk about sports. This is the one where I share my favorite pop culture memory about the Olympics.
The Olympics have been around for several centuries and remains one of the biggest international competitions. It isn’t that farfetched to believe that someone would have lampooned it since then. In fact, many people have. Many more than those who parody Vangelis’ Chariots of Fire score (National Lampoon’s Vacation being the best). I will admit that I haven’t seen too many that have created a valid, everlasting memory for me. Even the Simpsons haven’t done an episode with substantial satire on these sports.
I don’t love the Olympics, but I feel drawn to them. The first one I remember was 2000’s Sydney, Australia Olympics. I don’t remember the games, but I do remember seeing exterior shots of the Sydney Opera House and just being blown away by the sight. In truth, most of these athletes are expendable for me. I watch for the competition. As technology improves and I’m able to watch more events, this seems to be the year where I feel more tapped into the games than normal. Either way, I am going to watch some horse running at some point.
Before I dive into my entry, I want to give some back story that carries significance for why this moment sticks with me. Without fail, my mother shares this story every Olympic year. I keep forgetting about it, but it only fills me with more pride. In 1984, the Olympics were held in Los Angeles, CA. My family remembers it well, and they can point out where everything took place. However, of everything that happened that year, nothing seemed more special than my mother. She didn’t compete, but what she did instilled a certain amount of awe and respect I have for torch runners.
I regretfully cannot find a picture or video of this, but she was a torch runner. While I would love to see a visual, I take her word for it. My family isn’t known for athleticism, which makes the story all the more interesting. She didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. She ran with the torch and made the evening news in the lead story. She pulls out the uniform and torch from time to time to revel in this once in a lifetime experience.
This brings me to my favorite pop culture memory. On February 17, 2002, King of the Hill premiered their episode “Torch Song Hillogy.” At the time, I wasn’t fully able to grasp why this show was one of my childhood favorites, but as time went on, I discovered why that is. Creator Mike Judge made characters with morals and standards. They could be absurd and stupid, but there was humanity to them. Over the course of the many seasons, he fleshed them out and made every little quirk have significance. Come to think of, this may have been my foray into more complicated narration.
This episode dealt with the subject of the 2002 winter Olympics, which were taking place in Salt Lake City, Utah. The story goes that the torch is passing through Arlen, Texas and there is a write-in contest to determine which Arlen citizen gets to carry the torch.
We have two parallels that have run through the entire series. We have Bobby Hill (Pamela Adlon), who perceives his lack of awards to make him a failure. His father Hank (Mike Judge) was a successful high school quarterback who almost made it to state, but broke his ankle on what could have been the winning touchdown. While mother Peggy (Kathy Najimy) tries to cheer Bobby up by entering him into the contest, Hank’s friends do the same by hyperbolizing the broken ankle story. When Hank wins, it causes a rift between father and son.
Bobby gets over his grief and decides to help his father train. Through this experience, we discover a lot about Hank. He doesn’t want to run because of the broken ankle story. He believes that he cannot boast and be happy because it will only lead to failure. Bobby tries to encourage him to have fun, which he eventually does. When he finally gets the flame, he is very happy and even runs backwards. However, he falls and the flame disperses.
It is eventually relit with a cigarette that Dale (Johnny Hardwick) is smoking that was lit with the original flame. This was Bobby’s idea. After transferring the flame to a man who is a hero for losing 500 pounds (Phil LaMarr), they return home to celebrate Bobby’s ability to save the Olympics. The episode ends with Bobby getting the Olympic torch in honor of this achievement.
There are a lot of reasons that I love this show, and most of them are encapsulated in this episode. Most of all, I think that this episode defines what makes the Olympics so significant to Americans. There is a pride in running with the flame, a desire to not ruin the ceremony by exterminating the flame. It also just captures how a community celebrates these moments by trying to highlight their small town’s recognition.
Most of all, it just captures what makes us human in a vastly clever and original way. It may be controversial to light a torch with a cigarette, but it works here. It also serves as a game of its own, where Bobby is competing for Hank’s approval as well as an award to prove his merit. This is like the Olympics of everyday life. They built towards that moment, and then worked as a team to solve everything. This episode manages to weave both stories together where everyone achieves their goal.
It may have little to do with the actual ceremony, but I have never seen the ceremony in my hometown. I am simply proud of people that have made it from California to become the best internationally. There is pride in having your town known for something positive. As it stands, I am rooting for McKayla Maroney in gymnastics simply because she is from Long Beach. That is what this episode is about. Trying to maintain the honor that the flame went through Arlen and every man Hank Hill managed to not screw it up.
It also addresses how to let your past go and enjoy the moment. While history did repeat itself, Hank managed to move on and succeed. He may have ruined the flame, but at least he completed his goal with honor. It is also humorous that the Hills care so much about the flame while the next town manages to overlook this error quickly and move on. The Hills may be an ethical family, but sometimes they care too much about things. And besides, isn’t that what town pride can be sometimes?
I try to watch this episode whenever I am reminded of my mother and the Olympics. I am convinced that she did better than Hank, but at the same time, to know that someone you know actually participated in a ceremony like that is an honor. In some regards, I see Hank as my mother’s surrogate for this episode, if just because I am proud of her. No amount of sports coverage will ever compare to her stories, if just because it makes her yelling at the TV during the opening ceremony (she really hated Bob Costas) seem more valid.
What are your favorite Olympic pop culture moments? Did the Simpsons actually do a whole episode dedicated to it and I just overlooked it? Are you a non-sports fan who finds yourself engulfed in this year’s events as well? Isn’t it a beautiful story that Missy Franklin managed to give Aurora, Colorado something inspirational with a gold medal in swimming after the city’s recent tragedy? Why not share your thoughts and let’s get a dialogue going. If you’re interested, this and all King of the Hill episodes are available on Netflix Watch Instant. I recommend it.
You can read Thom’s blog every Wednesday and hear him on Nerd’s Eye View every Tuesday and Thursday at nevpodcast.com. Send your thoughts to nevpodcast@gmail.com. You can also read Thom’s movie reviews for Cinema Beach at cinemabeach.com.
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