Considering the Tribulations of ‘Parenthood’

Re Marilyn Brown’s Aug. 13 letter condemning the ad for the film “Parenthood” that depicts Steve Martin holding two children upside down by their ankles: Oh, thank the Lord! Yet another repressed individual with a pen and a stamp has done us a public service, demanding this ad be withdrawn because of the potential hazards of holding a child upside down.

Let me finish the list: If Rhett really held Scarlett as he did in the “Gone With the Wind” poster, she would have developed scoliosis; if Robin Williams had been dropped as he was being carried in the ad for “Dead Poet’s Society,” he could have knocked out a tooth; if Dennis Quaid had fallen off the piano in “Great Balls of Fire” he could have suffered a brain aneurysm, causing him to dress like a giant bat and fight crime.

It’s time to stop dropping our mouths over rock lyrics, to stop writing complaints to “Married With Children,” to stop being so uptight. As “Parenthood” suggests, roll with life; lighten up.

I remember when my father used to hold me upside down--and I smile.

BRIAN S. DAY

Temple City