Stand By Me - 25 years later

Stand By Me was an adaptation of one of Stephen King's short stories and it became a monster hit in our household many years ago. At some point, I taped it off the television and for about two years, it seemed that every time I looked, one of the kids was watching it. I'm not sure what it was that fascinated them so much, but they were hooked.

It's been a long time since I've seen it, but this week, one of the child stars, Wil Wheaton, wrote a moving article on his blog, called "Though I hadn't seen him in 20 years, I knew I'd miss him forever."

It tells a story (Will is a writer himself now, just as his character in Stand By Me became) about joining the other cast members and director (Rob Reiner) from the movie for the first time since the movie was released. They were taping interviews for a just-released Blue Ray special edition. Notably absent from the reunion was River Phoenix, who died of a drug overdose a few years after the movie appeared and who had been a friend of Wil's.

Even if you haven't seen the movie (which I recommend you consider renting), take a look at Wil's post. It's a wonderful, honest view of what it's like to watch your life wind by and the mystery of how we end up where we are.

Link to Though I hadn't seen him in 20 years, I knew I'd miss him forever