Teen Beat Super Stars ( September, 1980)

Why Jim Bray Doesn't Have time for Love-Maybe you can change that!

       He's 18 and a living doll. All the girls in his graduating class from Chaffee High School in Ontario, California, will tell you that. Even actress Linda Blair will heartily agree that Jim Bray of Roller Boogie fame is absolutely fabulous!
       Why, his soft brown eyes practically make you melt when he looks at you and word had it that co-star Linda Blair fell under his magic when they were making Roller Boogie. But despite all the massive publicity coming out of the film, Jim Bray and Linda Blair were anything but an item!
      The girls who went to school with Jim all knew that, because no matter how hard they tried to get Jim to notice them, he seemed oblivious to their charms! That's right, Jim is anything but a hot and heavy dater! He even admits openly: "I don't go out much. I'm more into my buddies."
       Now don't get the wrong idea. Jim is not a shy boy. He's just a very busy young man--a young man

who has a lot of responsibilities on his shoulders.
      Jim's dad, the president of a machinists' union died just last Christmas, leaving Jim to take care of his secretary mother. It was a shocking and sad loss  because Jim was very close to his dad. Jim is an only child so he feels that his dad would want him to take care of his mom. So Jim sticks by home quite a bit.
     His friends, of course, come over and the house is always full of laughter and joy--probably the best medicine for Jim's mom at this point.
      High school was also a major part of Jim's life and he was very, very active in sports and extra-curricular activities. Chaffee is the second largest high school in the United States, so you have to be pretty special to be well known there. No problem for Jim--he was "real proud because I was elected 'King of the Year,'" in his Senior year.
     As a student Jim was at the top of his class and remembers, " I had about a three-four average. I have a lot of good memories for high school. I was going to go to college, but then I won the role in Roller Boogie"
     Football and skating were Jim's two other passions in school and it was his skating ability that won him the role in Roller Boogie. He says: "I started when I was five years old. I've been doing it for thirteen years now. I first got interested in it from some girls who were neighbors. I was horrible at first, but I just kept doing it. I had a couple of coaches who liked me and encouraged me. They said I had a good appearance and could project really well, so I just kept on."
     Jim was spotted in a roller skating magazine by the producers of Roller Boogie and they contacted him about the movie. He says: "Originally I was just going to skate for the actor they selected to play opposite Linda Blair, but they couldn't find any actors they liked who skated, so they asked me if I could act and they gave me a chance. They liked me so they would give me voice lessons and teach me to act, so that's what happened. I was hesitant about it at first, but now I'm really happy because I'm getting other acting offers and I think I'm going to make a career out of it."
     And Jim's career seems to be starting out quite well. Jim happily says: "I have a TV show coming up called Rollout. I'm the host of it. I have special guests and I interview people like Erik Estrada, Loni Anderson and Valerie Bertinelli and then a group like Le Chic is on. It will air on Saturdays at eight PM and should be really fun. I did another TV show called *The Big Show*. I skated and acted in it. It had Steve Allen, Gary Coleman, Loni Andersen and Peggy Fleming as well as myself as the guests."
    So now for Jim, life is even fuller than before. He also plans on taking up his college plans again and wants to enter UCLA and study business this coming year.
   Now, what about girls--where and when is Jim going to fit them in? Well, he'll find a way, he claims--especially if she happens to fit his dream girl requirements. Says Jim: "I like a girl who has a lot of feeling for me, who dresses super neat. I like girls who have interests of their own. I don't like girls who hang all over me. I can't stand phonies. I like pretty girls, but I don't like that phony act a lot of girls put on to try to impress a guy. I like a girl who's fun when we go out, but I also like it when she can share some quiet and romantic times with me."
  Do you fit the bill? Maybe you can be the girl who changes Jim's isolationist life style? If you think so, maybe it would help to write Jim and tell him how you feel! We know he would love to hear from you!"