Winter 1977. In a year of disco dancing and “Stayin’ Alive,” Bobby Trudeau, 15, a popular kid from the white suburbs of Oklahoma City leaves home for Washington, D.C. to spend eight months as a U.S. Senate Page. While his mom, rock-n-roll brother and pot-smoking sister stay home, the boy with David Cassidy hair lives with his dad, Tom, in a basement apartment of a Capitol Hill townhouse.Bobby idolizes his father, who works for powerful Senator Holbrook. He thinks of Senators like Republican Leader John Steadman as rock stars. But Bobby's notions ofheroic men begin to change when he sees Tom with another woman. Tom tells his son, now going by “Bob,” that he misinterpreted what he saw and to placate him, Tom says he plans to run for Holbrook’s Senate seat. Bob likes that.Also taking his mind off his dad is page leader Mark Roman’s summer departure. When Roman leaves, his job will be open and a long race ensues to win Roman’s job. Competing are Bob, black student activist LaWanda Watson of Texas and Peter Pontiac, a Utah kid with Indian blood. Further distracting Bob from thoughts of his dad is Bob’s new girlfriend, “Georgia Peach” Melinda Parsons and his best friend, Buddy Boll, who is like his friends at home and much cooler than fellow freshman Gilbert. But Bob is dealt several blows, first when he sees his dad again in the arms of the same woman and then when he arrives at work his boss yells at him because an envelope he was supposed to deliver is missing. When Bob says he gave it to Peter, his rival denies it. LaWanda laughs at him, and only a few days later, Melinda dumps him because, she says, because Bob is a bad kisser.Over time, Bob regains his footing. He befriends Gilbert with whom he shares a love of music. Mark Roman is helping him in the lead page race and LaWanda helps lift the young man’s spirits when they find they have things in common, including philandering fathers. But just when life returns to normal, Buddy advises Bob not to play in a punk rock band formed by Gilbert and Peter for senior assembly. Buddy tells him he won’t be “cool,” and he’ll never get Roman’s job. Bob needs to reflect the status quo, not the voices of a new generation.When curtain pulls back at senior assembly, everyone including his mom, brother and sister in the audience, see that Bob has betrayed his new friends. His shame, however, seems trivial after he sees Senator Steadman sitting with his wife who, Bob recognizes, is the woman Tom was kissing months ago. But even this revelation is trumped by news that his best friend, Buddy Boll, really stole the envelope his boss thought Bob lost. Moreover, Bob finds his brother kissing Mark Roman. Life could not be worse, he thinks, until the next week when he learns LaWanda has been picked to be the lead page. After all he has learned, his brother being gay isn’t such a big deal. After all, it is the ‘70s, his sister points out. His mom acknowledges his dad’s philandering. She saw Mrs. Steadman, too. And, in the end, LaWanda proved to be the best one for the lead page job. Over the summer, he patches things up with Peter and Gilbert. The Indian and the class nerd become his best friends. Not only does LaWanda become a friend, but she’s a good kisser too. And when the summer ends, the boy from white, suburban, Oklahoma City has been replaced by a young man with a mind of his own and a desire to speak up.He returns to Oklahoma to run for class president on a platform of change, but is beaten by his former best friend who wins votes by giving away candy. But after the election, class brain Mary Majors reassures him that he is not the only one talking about a new generation. “They are out there,” she says. “Somewhere,” he agrees. She hops in his car and puts a tape in the stereo. It blares. Punk rock!
