Adult fans of HSM? You’re not alone

Time for some shopping
Speaking of buying things, if I’m going to be a “High School Musical” devotee, I have a lot of catching up to do in terms of merch. Dan recommended I get the remix version of the soundtrack, and also suggested I check out the YouTube video that shows how “Bet On It” from “HSM 2” synchs up perfectly with Julie Andrews singing “The Sound of Music.”

Carlos loves his “HSM” toothbrush that plays “We’re All in This Together” while making sure that you brush for a full two minutes. “Shockingly,” he said, “I’m still not sick of that song.”

But my friend Ted takes the cake when it comes to showing his pride with products. “In my office, I have their giant milk ad,” he explained, “the ‘HSM’ poster, the giant bus ad for ‘HSM 2,’ my sing-along dolls of Troy and Gabriella that look nothing like Zac and Vanessa, my framed Zac Efron autographed East High T-shirt, my ‘HSM’ lunch box, mouse pad and my ‘HSM’ TV set that’s shaped like lockers. Did I just admit to all that?”

Yes, you did Ted. You rubbed it right in my face. The good news is I got to the prom just in time to celebrate the big screen release this week of “High School Musical 3: Senior Year.” The question now is when do I go and whom do I go with? I don’t think I’m man enough to go it alone but I don’t want to wait for the DVD either.

What's next? Hannah Montana?
“You gotta go opening night and you can come with me,” insisted Denise, adding that if this goes well maybe we can catch “HSM on Ice” together over Christmas. “I was going to find a teenager to take or pretend that I’m chaperoning someone, but now I can take you. Like the song says, we’re all in this together.”

Yes, we are but it’s still new to me and to be honest, it’s all a bit scary. Am I on a slippery slope here? Could Hannah Montana be next? “No way,” Diana assured me. “I can’t stand Hannah Montana, man, and you wouldn’t like her either.” Whew, that’s a relief.

Now that I’m an official “HSM” devotee counting the minutes till opening night, Tony told me that I should keep my eyes peeled because he recently had a Zac Efron sighting right in my neighborhood.

“I was driving to the Koo Koo Roo chicken place in Toluca Lake,” he recalled wistfully, “and this kid on a skateboard went flying in front of my car in the crosswalk. The light had already changed and I went to gun it and I was like, ‘Oh my God, that’s Zac Efron.’ His hair was blowing in the breeze, of course, and he was holding a smoothie cup from Robek’s juice and I almost ran him over. I almost killed the franchise.”

“That would have been horrible,” I lamented, my heart sinking at the very thought of it.

“Yeah,” he agreed, “but it would have left a beautiful dent in my car.”

Dennis Hensley is the author of Misadventures in the (213) and Screening Party and a co-host of the radio show Twist. Reach him at www.dennishensley.com.

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