Sounds Funny

When I was 13 years old, I used to sneak into the dollar movie theater near our apartment in north Dallas. This was a common occurrence for me back then; my middle-class version of juvenile delinquency. Memories of that time are now mostly vague smudges, but I do remember one...

By John Freeman

November 6, 2008

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When I was 13 years old, I used to sneak into the dollar movie theater near our apartment in north Dallas. This was a common occurrence for me back then; my middle-class version of juvenile delinquency. Memories of that time are now mostly vague smudges, but I do remember one Sunday afternoon when my world was rocked hard. The movie I saw that day was something called Police Academy. I thought it would be a real cop movie, but I was wrong...dead wrong. Police Academy became a rite of passage for me. It had everything going for it: boobs, dirty jokes, Steve Guttenberg. But the thing that etched itself permanently upon my impressionable young brain was the performance of Michael Winslow. As "Cadet Jones," he seemed to me like some kind of incredible robotic sound effects machine. Winslow's ability to emulate more than an estimated 1,000 sounds using only his voice and his incredible powers of impersonation are mind-boggling. Winslow isn''t just a "human sound library," however. His unique comedic sensibility and bizarre delivery make what he does a one-of-a-kind show. So get in your "vroom vroom screech" and go check out Michael Winslow Friday and Saturday at Hyena's, 2525 E. Arkansas Lane in Arlington. Visit hyenascomedynightclub.com/arlington for showtimes and tickets.
Fri., Nov. 7; Sat., Nov. 8, 2008

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