You'll Always Be the Early Cher To Me

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Today is Cher's birthday. She turns 65.

So why would I care?

Well, when I was a randy sixteen-year-old, and she was a gorgeous nineteen-year-old, I was in love with her. There, I've said it.

It's hard to find words to describe what powerful effect that long hair and those dark eyes had in the mid-Sixties, but they worked their magic on me.

I never could understand what she saw in Sonny.

For awhile after that early Cher disappeared I forsook her. Then Moonstruck came out. I thought she was great in that. I was in love all over again.

But I never could understand what she saw in Nicholas Cage.

Now wait. Before you complain that this has nothing to do with fishing, consider the Cher-nobyl Ant.

Such flamboyance and gaucherie is right in line with the later Cher's fashion sense.

And, for that matter, I'll bet if you dressed a #2 salmon hook the way Cher is dressed in the above photo, you'd catch Steelhead with it.

There's an even more direct link between Cher and fishing. Did you know that there's a River Cher in the Loire Valley of France? Yeah, I know. Who doesn't?

It's a good-looking piece of water.

It's famous as the location of the Chateau Chennonceaux, which completely spans the river. There is a long gallery with many windows overlooking the flow.

My first thought was that the original builder, way back in the 1400's, was a fisherman who wanted to sit at home and fish out of the windows.

Why else would you build a house that spans a river?

I was disappointed to discover that wasn't the case. It was the home of a series of royal wives and mistresses who wanted only to dress up and have lavish parties there.

Sort of like the later Cher, maybe.

But the River Cher is a trib of the River Loire, and this is a photo of someone actually fishing in the Loire.

He says on his blog that he caught "skimmers," bream, and a roach, but what he really wanted was a chub.

Sort of like the later Cher, maybe... No, I won't go there.

Happy Birthday, Cher. You'll always be the early Cher to me.