Pop Culture Curmudgeon

Kristen Stewart to Play Joan Jett in Movie about The Runaways

I have now been reduced to squeeing fangirl.

When I was in high school, poppy heavy metal was huge. I was a huge fan of Motley Crue, Poison, Joan Jett, and Lita Ford. One day, while reading a profile of Lita (I believe it was in Metal Edge, but it may have been in Circus, I don’t know), I found that she had been in a band with Joan Jett in the 70s. The next time I went to the record store, I grabbed the only Runaways cassette I could find, Little Lost Girls. I was treated to some great songs, including the title track and covers of the Beatles Eight Days a Week and Quiet Riot’s Mama Weer all Crazee Now. Later, I found a live Runaways CD which survived the post-cassette world we live in and continues to be in rotation on my iPod (mostly it’s Cherry Bomb, but occasionally some of the deeper tracks, too).

So, imagine the joy I felt when I was surfing through Google News and found this story: ‘Twilight’ Star Kristen Stewart’s Casting As Joan Jett Raises The Question: Who Were The Runaways?

Not only will a new generation of girls be introduced to the archetype girl punk band, I will have a chance to learn more about the Runaways.

If only movies were quicker to make. I’ve got a while to wait before I see this one.