England Dan wasn’t really from England. In fact, he was born in west Texas and moved to Dallas as a boy. “England Dan” was a childhood nickname he’d gained from his affected English accent and love of The Beatles.

In the 1950s a funny thing happened. A contemporary poem was lauded as wisdom from the past. That ancient wisdom turned out to be NOT so ancient after all…

It happened to Sue Thompson in the fall of 1961, and to Lesley Gore in the Spring of 1963. Sue was at the movies, and Lesley, at her own birthday party. It’s enough to make any teenage girl cry.