For anyone who grew up at any point in the 1980s, there are few places on TV more hilariously familiar than The Goldbergs, which continues to craft some of the sweetest episodic pop culture homages imaginable. Wednesday night's episode was all about show creator Adam F. Goldberg's fascination with iconic author Stephen King, giving Goldberg the perfect opportunity to share an awesome little story about how far back his fandom goes.
Everything about this is pretty incredible. Adam F. Goldberg, as his TV comedy has proven time and again, has an affection for entertainment that rivals most people's affinity for food and oxygen, and it would be hard to find a better example of that unbounded joy than his prepubescent self attempting to loop Stephen King into the guest list watching him reach manhood at his Bar Mitzvah. That takes chutzpah, Constant Readers. And in case you can't read King's response too clearly on the Twitter post, he's what it says.
Dear Adam,Happy Bar Mitzvah, and thanks for your interest in my work. You sound like a really neat kid, and I'd be there if I could. Make your parents proud, and be happy!Stephen King
Being called a "neat kid" is almost laughable from an adult point of view, but I imagine not even the love of Adam F. Goldberg's parents meant as much to him at that time than Stephen King's opinion. Just getting an autograph would have been the bee's knees, but a three-sentence personal note is the stuff of legend, and I am so very envious that my desk doesn't have such an incredible adornment.
If Stephen King was anything like Bill Murray, he'd have definitely shown up for Goldberg's Bar Mitzvah, probably with a drink in hand. And then he'd have gone to a bunch of other Bar Mitzvahs and baseball games and pool parties and whatever else was happening in town. But then if King was more like Murray, I don't imagine the Master of Horror distinction would have come quite so easily.
It's too bad King himself didn't get to make an appearance on The Goldbergs, which has landed some stellar guest stars in the past. ("Weird" Al back in 1980s mode? Yes, please.) But even though the author isn't showing his face on the small screen too much in the near future, TV will still be filled with Stephen King adaptations, including the long-awaited Dark Tower series, as well as shows based on the creature thriller The Mist and the cat-and-mouse thriller Mr. Mercedes. (And that's not counting the handful of new movies in development that are based on his works.)
The Goldbergs airs new episodes and transports us back to our childhoods (and possibly to The Upside Down) every Wednesday night on ABC. No killer clowns allowed, though.
