The Poor Guys Head is Spinning

 Ain't it a fine life carrying the banner through it all 

I've probably talked enough about how obsessive I can get, but there are a few obsessions I still haven't divulged, one of those being my newsies phase. 

Before you ask, I was obsessed with the 2016 stage show and NOT the 90's movie which I actually considered to be somewhat offensive to the beauty of the Broadway musical. Anyways, I was so obsessed with this show, in ways I truly cannot describe. I reached a point where I was talking along with the proshot. No, not singing along, TALKING ALONG. Yes, I still have much of the dialogue memorized, and even two years later, you can still catch me talking to myself like a psychopath, muttering about the price of papes. 


Perhaps the only thing that could get me to leave my house was the overwhelming desire to go to Santa Fe. Honestly, 'Newsies' is just excellent, what's not to love? It's got catchy songs, hilarious moments and extremely loveable characters (look me dead in the eye and tell me Crutchie isn't the definition of golden retriever, that's right you can't). 

Anyways, the reason I was randomly inspired to write about this musical that defined my life for a year is because I JUST FOUND OUT THAT MANY OF THE NEWSIES WERE BASED ON REAL PEOPLE? Don't get me wrong, I was fully aware that the Newsboys strike was a real event, and I also knew that Pulitzer and Hearst were real people (by the way, people who know me know that I literally snarl like a crazy person every time the Pulitzer prize is mentioned). However, I assumed that many of the characters were fictionalized. So imagine my surprise when I'm reading the Wikipedia page (sorry teachers) for the newsboys strike and find out it was headed by a man named DAVID Simmons. Yeah that's right, Davey isn't just a diva made up by Disney and bought to life by Benonce, but a REAL PERSON. 

benonce <3

Furthermore, Jack Kelly is based off Annie Kelly, one of the few newswomen loyal to the strike. Should we talk about how Disney changed her gender to male a century after the strike because they thought young boys wouldn't relate to a female main character? Well, we probably should but this isn't the article for that. At any rate, that is the one thing I like about the stage musical. Katherine is a fully fleshed out character, she has her own 'I want' song, she has clear motivations and is an inspiration. I know lots of fansies think the romance between Katherine and Jack is lackluster but they have not seen the movie, the romance between Jack and Sarah is so lacking it genuinely feels like they added her in last minute to hide the Javey relationship. 

Now, finally, the moment you've all been waiting for. ED 'RACETRACK' HIGGINS WAS REAL. That's right, everyone's (okay maybe just my) favorite newsies was a real boy who hogged up the Sheepshead Racetrack so much he basically took the name. 

they protect, they attack, but most importantly they get your pay back with some payback

Anyways, if you haven't seen Newsies already, WHAT ARE YOU DOING GO WATCH IT NOW ITS THE BEST. It's really worth the watch, it covers a very interesting historical topic and most importantly, its fun, catchy and has some emotional moments that land well. 

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