Long Islanders

37 - Elton John and the Nightstick

Jimmy was excited. He was taking his girlfriend, Mary, to see Elton John in concert, his friend Charlie tagging along. He looked at the tickets in his hand as they stood in line to enter the concert hall in Madison Square Garden and smiled. He loved Elton John's music.

Finally, the couple and Charlie were admitted entrance and made their way to their balcony seats. In a short time, Elton John came out and began playing, Jimmy relaxing into the fabulous music.

As they sat watching the concert, Mary, in moving her arm, knocked her drink and spilled it over the girl sitting in the row in front of them. Her boyfriend immediately rose from his chair, turned, and, before Jimmy could react, punched Mary in the face.

She fell back in her seat with a cry, holding her eye, as Jimmy catapulted to his feet and threw a fist at the guy. He flew backwards, arms flailing as he fell over a row of people and almost toppled over the balcony railing.

Jimmy's heart almost stopped.

The guy regained his balance and stumbled forward, a hand to his face and moaning.

I almost killed that guy, Jimmy thought, horrified.

The guy left with his girlfriend, and Jimmy settled back in his chair after checking on Mary, who assured him she was fine. But he remained tense. He almost jumped out of his seat when Charlie leaned over and whispered, "I'm going to the restroom, Jimmy. Be back soon."

It soon proved Jimmy had good reason to be tense. Security guards started to enter the balcony, heading right for him. Jimmy prepared to go with them and explain himself, resigning himself to the fact that he would miss a good deal of the Elton John concert.

The lead guard came up behind him and grabbed Jimmy's arm. "You're coming with us."

"Careful with the arm," Jimmy requested. "I tore my rotocuff a while ago. Just be careful, please."

The guard only pulled harder on his arm.

All right. That's it.

Jimmy reached up, grabbed the guard, and pulled him over the row of seats.

The guard let go of Jimmy as he flew into the empty seats before him. Jimmy rose from his seat as another guard came at him with a nightstick.

Grabbing the nightstick, Jimmy twisted it out of the guard's hand and hurled it over the balcony railing down into the audience. The off-balance guard stumbled and Jimmy jerked him over the seats and sent him the same way as his buddy.

Eventually, however, the guards overpowered Jimmy and marched him and Mary out of the balcony and to a detaining room.

Meanwhile, the guards flocked to the bathroom where Charlie was finishing up. They came at him, too, going off of the wounded boyfriend's account that he was with Jimmy. Charlie threw several punches, knocking the guards back into the counter as he tried to break for the door, but the guards still managed to apprehend him.

Jimmy looked up in surprise as Charlie was dragged into the room and dumped beside him on the bench. "What happened to you?" he asked.

Charlie looked at Jimmy. "I could ask you the same thing," he retorted.

"You are being charged for assault and battery," the security guard announced, looking at Jimmy.

"Me?" Jimmy asked in outrage. "Then we are charging him. Look at her face." He gestured to Mary's black eye. "He punched her first."

They continued to argue until the other couple dropped their charges and the three were told they could leave.

"Leave, I said," the lead guard stressed. "I will have a guard escort you down to the subway station."

Jimmy, Mary, and Charlie were escorted down to the subway station and stood waiting on the platform for the subway. Jimmy looked at the guard and lifted an eyebrow. "Do you really feel comfortable standing here by yourself, buddy? I took out a good many of your friends."

The guard swallowed, then lifted his microphone to his mouth. "Backup requested down at the station."

Jimmy chuckled darkly as their subway arrived and the three of them boarded.

But we never got to finish listening to Elton John.