Four Degrees

Do you guys remember that Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon game we played in college? And by we, I mean those of us who were in college in the late 80’s/early 90’s. If you don’t, it was a game where you’d try to connect say, Alec Guinness, to Kevin Bacon by tracing a link starting with one of Alec’s film appearances and ending with one of Kevin’s.

Alec Guinness was in “The Swan” (1956) with Van Dyke Parks who was in “He Said, She Said” with … Kevin Bacon.

It was a silly way to pass the time in a dorm and for me, it was a revelation. I so clearly remember the guys who taught me the game and how I thought they were SO COOL. At the time, I’m pretty sure I actually gave them credit for creating the game all on their own. The thing about them, and the game, was that they were different. C was this tall, long-haired slasher metal/hardcore gangster rap fan who collected Garbage Pail Kids cards and M was this great, bearded, super intimidating guy who was into industrial music and comic books - and was and is totally one of those gentle giant types. If you didn’t know him, you certainly wouldn’t want to run into him in a dark alley, but if you did know him and your kitten died, he would totally be the guy who would sob alongside of you while you buried it together.

They were unlike anyone I had ever met before and I spent every possible moment I could stalking them in their room, and a lot of that time was spent playing Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. Recently the actual Kevin Bacon appeared on an episode of “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!” and he revealed that he absolutely hated the game. He took it as offensive and thought the guys who made it up (not M and C, btw) were making fun of him and saying he was some obscure, crappy actor who had some unfathomable connection to the entire entertainment world.

Insecure much, Kevin?

Anywho, I loved it and thought it was so clever and inventive and, I dunno. Nobody in Fitzgerald, Georgia would have ever come up with something like that so being only four degrees removed from my hometown at that point (Fitzgerald to Tifton to Jacksonville to Gainesville to Tallahassee) I was quite impressed. Years later, I still hold a special place in my heart for Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, which is why I was so excited to hear on that same episode of WWDTM that there’s actually a website, www.oracleofbacon.org, where the game lives on. There’s even an app!

As soon as I found out it existed, I went to the site and checked my own connection and I am thrilled to announce that I am only four degrees away from the great, and unsure of himself, Kevin Bacon.

Susan was in Ratt’s “Round and Round” concert video with Stephen Pearcy who was in “Camp Utopia” with Patricia Anne Isgate who was in “Basic Instinct” with Peter Appel who was in “Sleepers” with … Kevin Bacon.

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