Forget the DeLorean. Ditch the flux capacitor. Without Eddie Van Halen Marty McFly would never have stood a chance.
Syfy writer Adam Pockross found a very clever way to connect his tribute to the greatest guitarist of all time with the greatest sci-fi film of all time: 1985’s “Back To The Future”. He posted an opinion piece on Syfy’s website titled “If Not For Eddie Van Halen, Marty McFly Wouldn’t Have Existed At All”.
Pockross points to a specific moment in the film when the music of Eddie plays a pivotal role in Marty’s very existence.
He writes:
If you’ll recall around the halfway point of the first film, George is far from convinced that he should be courting Marty’s future mom (Lea Thompson). First off, he probably couldn’t take that kind of rejection. And not for nothing, she’s showing serious Florence Nightingale Effects for her dreamboat future son, Calvin. And Bully Biff thinks he’s in the running too (much to Lorraine’s dismay). So as far as George is concerned, he’d just as soon hang out solo watching his favorite show, Science Fiction Theatre.
But if Marty and his siblings are going to exist… or is it, cease to exist? Or never have existed at all? Anywho, if they’re going to survive, they need George to step up and win the love of his future wife, aka their future mom. But how do you motivate a man who so easily already talked himself out of the fight of his life?
With rock ‘n’ effing aliens, man.
Preying on his father’s geeky predilections, Marty takes advantage of the 1985 tools that made the DeLorean trip to the past with him. With a handy Edward Van Halen tape, a Walkman, and a radiation suit, Marty guitar solos his would-be pa into submission, and turns George from a boy seeking shelter in his own imagination to a man hoping to make his mark on the world. Or at least Lorraine’s world.
You can read Pockross’s entire opinion piece on Syfy’s website HERE.
And if you’d like to dig a little deeper into Eddie’s “Back To The Future” appearance, check out this recent video posted by Grunge, which includes a VHND mention. Thank you Grunge!