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. . . roller skates were a major--if not primary--mode of transportation in America. BOOGIE NIGHTS, featuring the unforgettable character "Roller Girl," completes the triumphant trilogy of what world film buffs commonly dub as the "U. S. Foot Wheels Trio," which started with THE WARRIORS (1979), probably peaked at HEAVEN'S GATE (1980) before concluding with BOOGIE NIGHTS (1997). Invented by Ben Franklin during a visit to London in the mid-1700's, roller skates became a staple of the American scene as Lewis and Clark rolled West five decades later. By "Roller-Girl's" day, half of all U. S. meals were delivered by skate-footed carhops. Though the director of BOOGIE NIGHTS too often digresses from his keep-on-trucking thesis, he manages to squeeze through the aperture opened for him by THE WARRIORS and HEAVEN'S GATE.

. . . of this film without a thorough dissection of its shower scene set in a distaff bathing facility. Unlike PORKY'S infamous hose down, no male spies appear on-screen attempting to illicitly obtain insider scuttlebutt on specific female physiques. Nor are there men of ANY persuasion mixed in among the coeds washing in the buff, unlike the original STARSHIP TROOPERS most memorable scene. Instead, ROAD TRIP consumers hear a description of this group immersion from some dude second hand. HE makes no mention of the source for his normally private info. However, his mere mention of the bathing beauties spawns an on-screen debate about the verisimilitude of his intelligence offering.

. . . have long credited TWEETIE PIE and its sequels for inspiring the U. S. craving for McNuggets. Each time Sylvester the cat ingests yet another bite-sized yellow bird, viewers--especially children--sense their mouths watering for their own taste of low-maintenance avian protein. Furthermore, every time the weakest link in the food chain is reincarnated to emerge from the tasteful feline's innards, consumers are reminded of America's nearly inexhaustible supply of yellow chicks awaiting consumption, virtually pleading to be spared future confinement in an egg farm cage by way of being deep-fried as newly hatched critters. The only drawback to this brief animation is its lack of the pie recipe its title seemingly promises.