SPIN THE BOTTLE, TRUTH OR DARE
By | December 15, 2017
A couple of teens kissing during a game of spin the bottle at a party. (Photo by John Phillips/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images)
When I was in Junior High School, what is now known as Middle School, being invited to a house party at a friend’s house was a thrill we looked forward to on the weekends. I don’t know how your parents handled things but mine were always skeptical of the ever-popular house party.
First, and foremost, they needed to know who was having the party. Ok… that’s a valid question. Next, they wanted to know if the parents of the host would be home. Again… a valid question. Then, they needed a complete list of all the other people who were invited and may also attend the party (also if boys were included). Now… to me, this was a bit much!
As if the interrogation wasn’t enough, I would have to be mortified when my mother would call the host’s parents to make sure I was telling the truth! UGH! By the time I was given permission to attend the party, I was too embarrassed to go!
Of course, I was still a child, but I didn’t see it that way. I argued with my parents about how I was growing up and that they could trust me. Besides... EVERYONE else was allowed to go!
Early on, the parents of the friend having the party were typically on board and responsibly chaperoned the event. As we got older, and my mother had been continually assured that all was well, she slacked off with the phone calls!
After a certain age, parents feel comfortable leaving their kids unattended for an evening or even a weekend, here and there. Well, in the 1970’s (and still now) we collectively said, “Yes, please… let the fun begin!” Just about everyone during that time had a “club room,” also known as a finished basement, complete with tacky, fake, wood like paneling.
Spin the Bottle was/is a party game where everyone sat in a circle, in boy/girl fashion. A bottle, often an empty liquor bottle, would be placed in the center of the group. The bottle was typically empty because it had been consumed by the party goers. If nobody was able to “steal” a bottle of alcohol from their parents, any bottle would do. Of course, it was more fun to play the game with a buzz on!
This game had been around for years, but for us, it was cutting edge. The game was played by a group of people. It started with a person spinning the bottle in a circular motion. Whoever it landed on (closest to the opposite sex) was the lucky (or not so lucky) one. As the game went, the lucky couple was to then either hug within 5 seconds or kiss within 10 seconds. If more than 10 seconds went by with no action, a French kiss was protocol. Of course, this was all carefully timed and in front of everyone.
The game was very popular because it fostered and encouraged sexual interactions which was a very popular theme at the time (and always for that matter). It was a way for boys to explore their glandular curiosities and for girls to gain popularity.
Truth or Dare? This game was the worst of the party games. If you were chosen, you either had to tell the truth to a humiliating and/or revealing question or preform a “dare” (an act of equal or greater humiliation). The other players dictated the questions and the answers. Usually, they knew exactly what would embarrass the other players. If you answered the question truthfully, you ran the risk of being embarrassed. If you chose the dare, you ran the risk of being embarrassed. There was no way to win this game… yet we played anyway!
Seven Minutes in Heaven was another popular party game. As it went, a couple was chosen to go into a closet or other secluded room and do “whatever” they wanted for 7 minutes. The idea was that they would kiss, make out or have sex (a quickie) during that time. Often times, the players chose to just talk and come up with a sensational story to tell their friends, as not to be thought less of.
Truth be told, we were all equally inexperienced at the time but didn’t want anyone to know. Now that I am a parent, I can totally appreciate the position my parents took. Hopefully, one day my kids will appreciate the injustices I imposed on them!
