I Coulda Been Somebody

Church bells ringing, weed eaters buzzing, and a guy saying, "Good morning, beautiful."

That's the way to walk to Bowtie on a Sunday morning.

I was taking care of another glaring omission in my film viewing, this time of 1954's "On the Waterfront."

And while I'm really not a fan of crime dramas, the film had two things going for it, at least as far as I was concerned.

Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 100% critical rating and it was written by Budd Schulberg.

After discovering Schulberg's iconic "What Makes Sammy Run?" in a used book store years ago, I devoured the insider's story about the harsh realities of Hollywood.

That led me to read his second book, "The Disenchanted," an imagining of why a handsome, talented post-WWI writer (a thinly veiled F. Scott Fitzgerald) would end up a dissipated alcoholic.

Geek that I am, knowing that the same author wrote what is considered a film masterpiece had me walking down Leigh Street this morning.

I'll be honest, it didn't hurt that Leonard Bernstein did the score, either.

Eight other people and I watched the gritty black and white story about the corruption of NYC's longshoremen and the violence that accompanied those who dared to speak out against it.

As always for me, the period details were a draw.

All-male "saloons," pigeon coops on building rooves, women in full slips.

And a very handsome 30-year old Marlon Brando to boot.

So it was that I finally heard him say, "I coulda been a contender."

I coulda been sleeping in, but I'm better off for not.