My beloved Lakers were playing on the east coast this evening (beating the Knicks), so the game started at 5pm PST. When that happens, I end up listening to the majority of the first half in my car on the way home. I have some issues with the radio broadcast team (that Mike Honcho or I could spell out in great detail at some point), but I put up with them because…well, I want to listen to the game. Today, something different happened: I rather enjoyed an interaction between the play-by-play guy and the analyst:
Spero Dedes: Lamar Odom is sporting a different look tonight, wearing a purple headband.
Mychal Thompson: Like Donatello.
Spero: (confused silence)
Mychal: At least I think he was the Ninja Turtle who wore the purple headband.
Yes, Mychal, you were right. Donatello was visibly identified by his purple headband (or headband-like thing that also covered his eyes), and his weapon of choice was the bo staff. I know this because when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ comics came out in the mid 1980s, I was a young boy at summer camp who found their antics amusing (especially the orange-masked Michelangelo and his love for pizza).
I turned 10 years old when the cartoon of the Turtles came out, following the success of the comics. That same year, Mychal Thompson turned 32 and was traded to the Lakers to help them win the first of two consecutive championships. Why then did this reference come so easily to him? His oldest kid is currently in college, so he was too young for their heyday. I’m at a loss, but that’s fine with me. Regardless of why he has that knowledge at his fingertips, I certainly enjoyed the comment. Keep up the random pop culture references from my childhood, guys, and maybe you’ll win me over yet.