GETTING KIDS HOOKED : VIDEO USES MUSIC, COMEDY TO TEACH FLY FISHING.Byline: Daryl Gadbow The Missoulian What do rock 'n' roll rock 'n' roll: see rock music. , rap, comedy and fly-tying have in common? Kids, figured Les Rutledge of Missoula, Mont. So he set out to bring those seemingly disparate elements together in a video designed to teach youngsters to tie flies, and at the same time, to get them excited about nature and the outdoors. The key to getting kids hooked on fly-tying and fly-fishing, Rutledge decided, was to make their introduction to the sport entertaining. A professional rock 'n' roll drummer for more than 25 years, Rutledge knew instinctively that rock and rap music rap music or hip-hop, genre originating in the mid-1970s among black and Hispanic performers in New York City, at first associated with an athletic style of dancing, known as breakdancing. were sure ways to appeal to kids. And comedy, the more slapstick slapstick Comedy characterized by broad humour, absurd situations, and vigorous, often violent action. It took its name from a paddlelike device, probably introduced by 16th-century commedia dell'arte troupes, that produced a resounding whack when one comic actor used it to the better, was another. A year after starting the project, with no previous experience at video production to guide him, Rutledge came up with ``Buzzy & Charlie Tying Flies with the Fish Guy.'' Aimed at youths between the ages of 9 and 15, the video features Rutledge as the Fish Guy - kind of a wacky Mr. Rogers. Into his neighborhood come Buzzy and Charlie, played by James Winn and Michael Lujan, also of Missoula. The two boys, having just wrapped up a practice session with their rock band, decide to go fishing and stop by the Fish Guy's house for some advice. The Fish Guy soon has the boys sitting at fly-tying vises and following his directions to make a basic fly pattern - a woolly wool·ly also wool·y adj. wool·li·er also wool·i·er, wool·li·est also wool·i·est 1. a. Relating to, consisting of, or covered with wool. b. Resembling wool. 2. a. worm. The Fish Guy explains that the simple pattern can be used to imitate a variety of aquatic bugs that fish like to eat. But the instruction is interrupted when Fish Guy remembers a fish story involving a woolly worm. Cut to a pond scene, where Fish Guy and friend (Missoula's Craig Sweet) are casting away madly mad·ly adv. 1. In a crazy way; insanely. 2. In a wild manner; frantically. 3. In a foolish manner; rashly. madly Adverb 1. in unison to a rock beat. Suddenly a gigantic fish leaps out of the water to attack the woolly worm in Sweet's hat, providing the startled star·tle v. star·tled, star·tling, star·tles v.tr. 1. To cause to make a quick involuntary movement or start. 2. To alarm, frighten, or surprise suddenly. See Synonyms at frighten. pair of anglers with their prize catch of the day. The tying instruction resumes with Fish Guy warning Buzzy not to lean too close to the vise with his tongue sticking out Adj. 1. sticking out - extending out above or beyond a surface or boundary; "the jutting limb of a tree"; "massive projected buttresses"; "his protruding ribs"; "a pile of boards sticking over the end of his truck" or he might lash it to the hook with tying thread. Whoops. Too late. ``I had to justify 35 years of watching cartoons,'' Rutledge said of the video's comic scenes. The boys learn to tie a series of four fly patterns, each building upon techniques used in the previous one. All the while, instruction is mixed with running gags The running gag is a popular hallmark of comic and serious forms of entertainment. A running gag is an amusing situation or line that reappears throughout the work. They are often unintentional at first, but familiarity or popularity of such gags among viewers encourage their , skits, clever sound effects sound effects Noun, pl sounds artificially produced to make a play, esp. a radio play, more realistic sound effects npl → efectos mpl sonoros and pop music. The lively rap music, in particular, seems to fit naturally with the rhythm of fly-tying. While there is plenty of goofiness thrown in, the instruction by Rutledge, who ties professionally for Orvis, is excellent. Techniques he prescribes are explained simply and precisely. And the demonstrations performed by the two boys, shown in video close-ups, provide clear illustrations of the step-by-step process. The tying of each pattern is demonstrated from beginning to end, followed by a review of the most important steps. Then Rutledge describes the types of insects and other food organisms the pattern imitates in nature. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Rutledge, one of video's main goals was to remove the mystique mys·tique n. An aura of heightened value, interest, or meaning surrounding something, arising from attitudes and beliefs that impute special power or mystery to it: the cowboy mystique; the mystique of existentialism. of fly-tying and fly-fishing as being too difficult, complex or expensive for many people, especially youngsters. ``I tried to put a spin on it so kids could get interested in it,'' he said. ``My own feeling is that fly shops make it far too complicated. And the shops are fueled by money, which kids don't have.'' Another motivation for the video, he said, was to involve youngsters in nature and outdoor activities as an alternative to drugs, TV and crime. ``I was a professional musician for 25 years, and I've seen what drugs can do,'' he says. ``It's not a pretty sight. I wanted to do something to save a kid or two and give something back to a sport that's a lot easier and simpler than it appears.'' Initially, Rutledge had a hard time finding a market for his video. ``It isn't for fly shops,'' he said. ``We don't catch any fish and don't kill anything.'' But he has landed a national distributor that plans to sell the video in department stores This is a list of department stores. In the case of department store groups the location of the flagship store is given. This list does not include large specialist stores, which sometimes resemble department stores. . His fly-tying connections with Orvis and Cabellas also may help him develop a mail-order market. National distributors marketing his video have told him that a series of videos on the same theme would be easier to sell to large store outlets. So he plans to produce more. ``The next one would be more advanced tying,'' he says. ``Then I'd like to take them out fishing and apply the flies they've tied to catch some fish.'' Although Rutledge's video, which sells for $19.95, may end up being a financial success, he says that wasn't his motivation in producing it or in continuing the series. ``My hope is that kids will learn to appreciate the outdoors and nature, and they will be our future conservationists. Maybe sometime, somebody will call me up down the line and say, `You were the one that got me started.' '' CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (color) James Winn, 13, and Michael Lujan, 14, star in a new video about fly fishing created by Les Rutledge, left. Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion