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Today’s entry in #52Stories is “A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune” by Chris Crutcher, recommended by my buddy James on Facebook. This 1989 short story was published in a collection called “Athletic Shorts” and would go on to be the basis for a film adaptation (called Angus), which I believe is James’ favorite movie. Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories is a young adult fiction short story collection by Chris Crutcher.Most of the stories are related to Crutcher's early work. This book also contains the short story A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune which first appeared in Connections, edited by Donald R. Gallo, published in 1989 by Delacorte Press.

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• Sep 15, 2016  Ms. Monaco English Grades 8 & 10. Search this site. Browse My Site. Week of March 19 - March 23. Bio/Contact Me. Coming of Age Short Stories. Lord of the Flies. Short Story Project/Letter From the Fringe. 'A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune'.
• Father, he also visited his stepfather), and his name would be Angus Bethune. I had waited years to use that name. It was my first attempt at writing a short story, so I felt I had nothing to lose. My ego was not wrapped up in getting it published. What happened next was magical for me. The short story form.
• As the overweight son of divorced, gay parents, the protagonist Angus Bethune hardly meets his classmates' definition of 'normal.' Yet the theme of Chris Crutcher's short story 'A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune' focuses on the damage the standard of 'normality' can inflict and extols self-acceptance as a liberating force.

Chris Crutcher's ' A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune' is a short story that is full of comedy. The main issue that arises in this book is the bullying that students endure. The main character and narrarator is Angus Bethune and he is an overweight teenager who is an Indian School boy. If you've ever felt like a misfit, the short story 'A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune' is for you. Written by Chris Crutcher, this delightfully witty story places the reader inside the generous skin of Angus Bethune, a hilarious hero whose humor enables him to overcome even.

Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories is a young adult fiction short story collection by Chris Crutcher. Most of the stories are related to Crutcher's early work. This book also contains the short story A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune which first appeared in Connections, edited by Donald R. Gallo, published in 1989 by Delacorte Press. It was adapted into the film Angus.

Short stories[edit]

A Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune

Angus Bethune (narrator) is an overweight football player at Lake Michigan High School who, through dubious means, is nominated the King of the Winter Ball. The crush of his life, Melissa Lefevre was nominated Queen, and Angus is forced to either show up and risk embarrassment, or stay home and face humiliation. Angus goes to the dance and Melissa not only handles the situation with grace and kindness, but admits that she has her own body image issues and is in treatment for bulimia. Body image and social perception are strong themes in this short, upbeat story where the guy does get the girl. Advice from Crutcher through Grandpa Bethune is, “Screw ‘em. Anybody who doesn’t like the way you look, screw ‘em.” ^[1]

The Pin

Johnny Rivers is a wrestler at Coho High school, Coho Montana. His father, Cecil B. Rivers, was also a champion wrestler. Conflict between Johnny and his father leads Johnny to challenge Cecil to a father/son wrestling match. Johnny wins and instantly regrets humiliating his father in front of a crowd. Cecil loses control and slaps Johnny to the ground in front of everyone, then walks away. Later Johnny finds his father weeping in his den, and realizes that Cecil’s father was also a hard man, and that Cecil has some regrets about the type of man he is to his wife and children. Later, during the Winter Sports Award Banquet, Cecil frames somewhat of an apology to Johnny. (Johnny Rivers (narrator) and Petey Shropshrire (briefly mentioned) were originally featured as characters in Crutcher's YA novel The Crazy Horse Electric Game.)

The Other Pin

Petey Shropshrire wrestles junior varsity for Coho High School mostly because he is encouraged by his friend, Johnny Rivers. Chris Byers is the best wrestler at the 119 weight class at Spring Hill High, and is also a girl. She is one of the best wrestlers in the state, and the ridicule that Petey faces as he prepares for the match is almost unbearable. He talks with Chris, who he has met with Johnny Rivers before under unfortunate circumstances. He discovers that the ridicule she faces as a female wrestler is something that she is tired of as well. They hatch a plan, and when it comes time for them to wrestle, they put on a World Wrestling Federation type performance that is entertaining but faked, and it costs the entire match for Coho High. Petey and Chris are possibly more than friends at the end of the story. (This story is in third person, and features Petey Shropshrire as the protagonist. Petey and Johnny Rivers were originally featured as characters in Crutcher's YA novel The Crazy Horse Electric Game.)

Goin' Fishin'

Lionel “Lion” Serousek is a swimmer for Frost High School. His parents and little brother were killed in a drunk driving (boating) accident by his best friend Neal Anderson which he has never been able to forgive. Neal, riddled with guilt over his actions, has been living on the streets and Lion spurns a heartfelt plea from Neal’s mother to forgive her son so that he can come home again. After three years of hating Neal, his friend Elaine Ferral convinces him that her friendship might be more important that his hatred for Neal. The story concludes with Lion finally going in search of Neal, who has an emotional breakdown upon finding him. Lion invites Neal go fishing with him in the hopes that they can finally reconcile. (Lion (narrator)and other minor characters are originally featured in Crutcher’s YA novel Stotan!. An older Lionel is also a minor character in his novel, 'Ironman')

Telephone Man

“It is a story about how racism and bigotry are passed down through innocence. Telephone Man’s father is a racist at home, but quite civil in public. Telephone Man (so named because of his single-minded fascination with telephones) is an adolescent borderline autistic boy with no internal editing function. If he thinks it, he says it. His father’s racial slurs come out of his mouth fast and furious when he is angry, or sometimes when he is simply talking about any people of color. By the end of the story, with the help of a black classmate, he comes to some small recognition of his father’s errant thinking. Because of the incendiary nature of the language, I wrote a preface to the story stating among other things that ‘racial slurs mean nothing about the people at whom they are directed, everything about the person using them.’” – Chris Crutcher ^[2]

In the Time I Get

The final story, 'In the Time I Get,' explores Louie Banks's encounter with a young, gay man who is dying of AIDS. Again, Crutcher is dealing with a controversial subject, but as with 'Telephone Man' and all of the other stories in Athletic Shorts, he is doing so to teach the importance of acceptance. The man suffering from AIDS, Darren, divulges to Louie that since his diagnosis, no one, even people with whom he shares a close relationship, will touch him. This makes his life very lonely. At first, Louie, too, is afraid to be around Darren and avoids him at all costs, but after some reflection he decides to give Darren a chance, and eventually Louie goes as far as holding Darren's hand in the hospital. Louie understands the risks involved in daring to care for someone who is different, and even loses his best friend as a result. In the end, though, Louie knows that he has made the right decision in choosing to be there for Darren when he most needed a friend.^[3]

Awards[edit]

• 1992 – American Librarian Association (ALA) Best Books for Young Adults
• 1992 – Michigan Library Association Thumbs Up! Best Young Adult Book Award ^[4]
• 1992 – School Library Journal Best Book of the Year

References[edit]

1. ^Crutcher, Chris. Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories. New York: Dell, 1992. Pg.8.Print.
2. ^Cole, Pamela Burress. Young Adult Literature in the 21st Century. Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2009. Pg.77. Print.
3. ^Michon, Susan. 'Athletic Shorts: Teens CAN Handle the Truth'. Grand Valley State University. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
4. ^'Thumbs Up! Winners'. Michigan Library Association. Archived from the original on 2009-07-28. Retrieved 2010-03-03.Cite uses deprecated parameter deadurl= (help)

External links[edit]

Angus is a 1995 comedy film directed by Patrick Read Johnson. The majority was filmed in Owatonna, Minnesota at the Owatonna Senior High School. It stars Charlie Talbert and James Van Der Beek in their first film roles, as well as Chris Owen, Ariana Richards, George C. Scott, Kathy Bates, and Rita Moreno. The film is based on the short storyA Brief Moment in the Life of Angus Bethune by Chris Crutcher, which is collected in his book Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories.

• 1Plot
• 6Soundtrack

Plot[edit]

Angus Bethune is a teenage boy living in Minnesota who, despite his talents as a football player and in science class, holds deep insecurities about himself. Since kindergarten, he has been regularly harassed by handsome but cruel Rick Sanford and his complacent cohorts, for not being 'normal' due to being overweight and is, in their view, 'named after a cow'. His only friend is Troy Wedberg, who is also a social outcast. He also has feelings for Melissa Lefevre, though he is fearful of expressing it because she is dating Rick. Eventually, tired of the abuse from Rick, Angus applies to a magnet school where he hopes to be free of the constant humiliation. However, well aware of his feelings for Melissa, Rick rigs an election so that they will dance together in the upcoming freshman Winter Ball as King and Queen, respectively. While confronting Rick about the stunt, he is ordered by the principal not to lay a hand on Rick or he would be expelled and lose his chance to go to the magnet school.

To get ready for the dance, Angus gets help from Troy, his mother, Meg, and his narcoleptic grandfather, Ivan. Angus fears that his largeness makes him an inept dancer and would embarrass both him and Melissa. To fix this, Ivan takes him to Madame Rulenska, where despite his best efforts, he comes out worse than before (and injures her in the process). Later on, despite his request for a black tuxedo and wanting to be normal, Ivan purchases him a plum one and tells him that he can be normal and an individual at the same time. He tells him that running away to another school will not solve anything and that he needs to stand up against Rick. He also mentions that he doesn't let anyone tell him that his relationship with April is a mistake because she is 30 years younger than him and they see each other as perfect.

One day after football practice, Angus opens his locker and sees that his favorite pair of boxers is missing. He and Troy later discover that Rick hoisted them up the flagpole for the school to see, which then fly squarely onto Melissa's face as she passes by. Angus storms home in anger, but Rick and company quickly kidnap Troy. Outside the school, they ask him for anything that would embarrass Angus at the Winter Ball. He refuses their request and tries to escape, only to break his arm as he trips to the floor while Rick gives him an ultimatum. At home, Meg tells Ivan that having Angus transfer to a magnet school would be for the best. Ivan accuses Meg of over-mothering Angus and warns her that letting him run away from his bullies is a mistake. He points out that he never let Meg run away from her problems and admires how strong she is today.

Meanwhile, Angus helps Ivan prepare for his and April's wedding. As Angus waits outside Ivan's room on the day of the wedding, he confides with him about his love for Melissa and how wishes he could stand up to Rick and tell Melissa how he feels. When he tries to wake him, Angus quickly discovers that Ivan has died and tells the wedding guests there. Distraught, Angus opts to stay home for a few days trying to cope with Ivan's death. By that time, fearful that Rick will hurt him even more, Troy gives him a videotape containing footage of Angus practicing his dancing with an inflatable doll while confessing his feelings for Melissa. Troy then visits Angus at home to offer his condolences, and an argument ensues. When Troy calls him out for not understanding how it felt to be ostracized by Rick, Angus snaps and tells Troy that he knows better. He also tells Troy that he won't go to the Winter Ball mainly because he still plans to transfer, to escape both Rick's humiliation and to better cope with his grandfather's death.

Later that week, Angus receives a box from April and opens it, revealing the plum suit that he had earlier rejected. She wishes him luck in the future and leaves. In that moment, Angus realizes that Ivan was right all along: he needs to stand up for himself and face Rick or nothing will change. Resolved to follow Ivan's advice, he rejects an interview from the magnet school, wears the plum suit, and marches to the dance in the school gymnasium. Outside, Troy warns him that Rick has a terrible prank planned for when he comes out with Melissa. He advises Angus to turn around and return home at once. Angus rebuffs his warning, stating he's fed up with taking abuse from Rick and will heed Ivan's advice to stand up for himself. He meets Melissa inside, and they converse for the first time. As they are introduced to the students, Rick plays Troy's videotape on the monitors, and the students laugh. A humiliated Melissa punches Rick in the face and runs out in tears and Angus follows her, infuriated with Troy for betraying him to Rick.

Angus apologizes to Melissa, but she does not blame him. Instead, she reveals her disgust with Rick and confesses to Angus that she is bulimic. She also mentions that Rick is very controlling and also abusive towards her and the other students. Angus learns that Melissa likes him more than Rick because he is kind and respectful of others. Finding common ground, they go back inside and dance, even as she helps him out with some of the steps. After they receive a mild reception from the students, Rick scolds her, while Angus comes to her defense. Rick begins aggressively shoving Angus and follows up with a hard punch to the face, breaking Angus's nose and sending him crashing through a table. Angus defiantly rises to his feet and furiously shouts back, 'I'm still here, asshole!' Angus then repeatedly pushes Rick until he falls to the ground, telling him that no matter how many times Rick knocks him down, he will always get back up. Angus petitions him to realize that there are many people that don't fit his idea of 'normal,' and are unwittingly ostracized for it, and are fed up with the humiliation. He gives Rick a choice to join them and accept them as individuals or continue to think of himself as normal. Rick selfishly replies, 'Whatever I am, it's something you're never gonna be,' to which Angus retorts 'Thank God!' The students congratulate Angus and even Rick's former friends abandon him. Melissa dances with Angus again and Troy enacts revenge on Rick by breaking his nose with his cast and impressing a girl upon whom he has a crush.

In the end, Melissa asks Angus to walk her home, and they kiss before Melissa retires for the night. Angus rejects the offer to transfer to the magnet school, realizing that his grandfather was right and that he doesn't have to run away anymore. Angus mentions that Rick was suspended for his video prank and for breaking Troy's arm. He also mentions that Rick's popularity with the other students suffered since Angus stood up to him and thus they have no reason to fear him anymore.

Alternate cut[edit]

Early in production, the film contained scenes wherein Angus' father was gay, reflecting the original story. Producer Dawn Steel at first approved the idea, but upon seeing a test screening she asked director Johnson to cut it. Hence, it is said early in the film that he died when Angus was born.^{[citation needed]}

In addition, deleted and extended scenes are integrated into the cut-for-television version of the film to make up running time.^{[citation needed]}

Cast[edit]

• Charlie Talbert as Angus Bethune
• Chris Owen as Troy Wedberg
• Kathy Bates as Meg Bethune
• George C. Scott as Ivan Bethune
• James Van Der Beek as Rick Sanford
• Ariana Richards as Melissa Lefevre
• Rita Moreno as Madame Rulenska
• Wesley Mann as Mr. Kessler
• Robert Curtis Brown as Alexander
• Anna Thompson as April Thomas
• Kevin Connolly as Andy

Reception[edit]

Some critics consider the film as a superficial after-school special for its familiar underdog story and inherent preachiness. As such, it scores a 40% 'rotten' rating on Rotten Tomatoes.^[1] It was released in a wave of other obesity-related films that came out at the time, notably Heavyweights (1995), which went for mostly comedy, and Heavy (1996), which was a strong drama. It straddled the fence between comedy and drama, at points to its detriment to some critics.

Some reviewers conclude that it more accurately portrays high school life than similar films about adolescence, since it takes a critical view of obesity, bullying, self-esteem, and high school inclusiveness, while highlighting the importance of assuring oneself in an ideologically competitive world. Reviews of note in this camp is Roger Ebert's 3 star review, starting 'Here it is at last, at long last, after years and years and years: A movie where the smart fat kid gets the girl and humiliates the football hero.'^[2]

The film's lead, Charlie Talbert, was also given mixed reviews. Rita Kempley of the Washington Post said 'Charlie Talbert, a 16-year-old discovered in line at an Illinois Wendy's, brings neither experience nor charisma to the title role of this stock tale of petty adolescent cruelties.'^[3] Emanuel Levy,^[who?] while giving the film a 'C', conceded Angus was 'played by newcomer Charles M. Talbert with a certain charm.'^[4] Ebert's review of the film concludes with 'Charlie Talbert is a good casting choice for Angus, because he isn't a 'sort of' fat kid, like those models in the King Size catalog who look about 12 pounds overweight. He is fat. But he is also smart, likable, resilient and engaging. And he has the gift of deflecting his shortcomings with humor.'^[2]

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Box office[edit]

The film was released theatrically in North America on Friday, September 15, 1995 on 1,154 screens.^[5] It debuted in eighth place amidst the crowded box office. It opened against Hackers and Clockers, while To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar, Dangerous Minds, The Usual Suspects, and Braveheart were still having a strong showing in box office numbers.^[6]To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar ultimately won the weekend with $6,544,960 as it expanded to 1,448 screens.

In its second weekend, Sept 22–24, the film slipped to twelfth place with $1,314,839 from 1,156 screens, its widest release (a percentage drop of 31.3%). Se7en opened on this weekend and won the box office with $13,949,807 from 2,441 screens.^[7]

Availability[edit]

The film was released on VHS on August 27, 1996 but is currently on moratorium. It was later shown in an edited-for-television form on Turner owned cable television stations.

On December 17, 2009, Warner Archive released the film as an official DVD.

Soundtrack[edit]

The film's soundtrack accurately reflects the melodic ideas prevalent in the alternative rock scene at the time. Most of the bands perform songs that closely resonate with its themes while keeping a fast yet upbeat tone, a sharp departure from the age of grunge, which had just reached its twilight. Weezer's initial offering, a song entitled 'Wanda (You're My Only Love)' (or sometimes just 'Wanda'), was written specifically for the film but rejected for being 'too much of a strict interpretation of the movie' and for not sounding enough like what was expected of Weezer at the time. The previously written, more uptempo 'You Gave Your Love to Me Softly' was used instead, and the rejection of the former song was known to have hurt Weezer's singer and songwriter Rivers Cuomo at the time. Though Weezer never properly recorded 'Wanda', Cuomo released his 1994 demo of the song (along with the story of the song's submission and rejection) in 2007 on the album Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo.

The unique version of 'Am I Wrong' by Love Spit Love, mixing marching band horns into its original version which interplay well with Richard Butler's raw vocals. Green Day contributed 'J.A.R. (Jason Andrew Relva)', a song written by bassist Mike Dirnt about his friend who died in a car accident when he was 19. It peaked at number one on the Modern Rock Billboard charts of 1995. It was later released on their 2001 greatest hits album, International Superhits. Meanwhile, Green Day singer Billie Joe Armstrong co-produced 'Back to You' by the Riverdales with producer Mass Giorgini, which was featured during the dance sequence at the high prom in the film. Fully pc games.net gta.

The music supervisors for the film were Elliot Cahn and Jeff Saltzman, who, at the time, also managed two of the soundtrack's artists: Green Day and The Muffs.

Track listing[edit]

1. 'J.A.R.' - Green Day - 2:52
2. 'Jack Names the Planets' - Ash - 3:13
3. 'Enough' - Dance Hall Crashers - 3:01
4. 'Kung Fu' - Ash - 2:17
5. 'Back to You' - Riverdales - 3:33
6. 'Mrs. You and Me' - Smoking Popes - 3:34
7. 'You Gave Your Love to Me Softly' - Weezer - 1:59
8. 'Ain't That Unusual' - Goo Goo Dolls - 3:18
9. 'Funny Face' - The Muffs - 3:21
10. 'White Homes' - Tilt - 2:09
11. 'Deep Water' - Pansy Division - 2:10
12. 'Am I Wrong' - Love Spit Love (Marching band version, similar to its appearance in the film - not labeled as such) - 3:34

References[edit]

1. ^Rotten Tomatoes' Angus page.
2. ^ ^abRoger Ebert's review of Angus - Chicago Suntimes September 15, 1995.
3. ^Review, Washington Post, September 15, 1995.
4. ^Film review, emanuellevy.com; accessed December 27, 2015.
5. ^Box Office Mojo's Angus page.
6. ^Box Office Mojo - Weekend Numbers, Sept 15-17.
7. ^Box Office Mojo - Weekend Numbers, Sept 22-24.
8. ^McDonald, Steven. Angus at AllMusic

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External links[edit]

• Angus on IMDb
• Angus at Box Office Mojo

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