JERSEY BOYS

I meant to see JERSEY BOYS on Broadway before it even opened. I've dug Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons from the minute I first heard them. Not only because they're from my part of Jersey so seemed like home boys in my mind and heart, but because they were making their own music before The Beach Boys or The Beatles had their breakthroughs, and they were neighborhood guys. And like those two other groups who all hit the charts around the same time, The Four Seasons were not some corporate creation.

But I missed the chance to get a ticket to the Broadway musical before it became a smash hit and tickets became hard to get. Then I heard the movie was coming out and planned to catch it in the theater, but whatever got in the way I never did. Now it's on cable so I finally watched it, and though it misses some beats—and frankly I think I could have written a better book, as they say, for this show—

still, it's directed by Clint Eastwood, so it's pretty well cast and any miscues in the plot soon pass because the rhythm of Eastwood's direction keeps the story moving, even when it's playing fast and loose with what are, or may really be, the facts. Hey, it worked for me, and I have to say it was worth it just for the ending credits.