The year was 1986. I was five years old. Births included my personal favorite, Lindsay Lohan, the Olson twins, Amanda Bynes, and Tahj Mowry. Deaths included jazz legend Benny Goodman, Scientology guru L. Ron Hubbard, and Desi Arnaz, spouse of Lucille Ball. Elie Wiesel (author of “Night”) won the Nobel Peace Prize. (Twenty years later, Oprah has finally read “Night” and it’s now in her “Book Club.”)

It was the year of “Hands across America.” Geraldo opened Capone’s vault only to find a bottle of shine. The New York Mets won the World Series. Pan-Am flight 73 was hijacked. Halley’s Comet soared by planet earth. Speaking of space, NASA had a year of milestones but also suffered the loss of the Challenger crew. And Chernobyl blew up causing the world’s worst nuclear disaster.

Yes, 1986, a historical year indeed. Oh, and The Bangles, released a number one song … “Walk like an Egyptian.” (Ay oh whey oh, ay oh whey oh.) What exactly was “walking like an Egyptian?” I’m not really certain, I grew up in a small Kansas town, and nobody to my recollection did any such walking. None the less, we shall try to shed some light on the subject and apply some personal history as well. Perhaps by the I complete today’s column, I will know for certain what “walking like an Egyptian” was all about.

Liam Sternberg was riding the ferry one day and noticed his fellow passengers having a hard time keeping their balance as they walked about, and the rest, as they say, is history. Keep in mind, this was before Sternberg wrote the theme song to “21 Jump Street,” and was still coming down from his high on the Akron scene, so it can be assumed he was certainly looking for a muse. Apparently, the passengers reminded him of … brace yourself … Egyptian reliefs, similar to those we associate with the artwork adorning the ancient pyramids.

Thus the birth of Walk like an Egyptian’s opening line: “All the old paintings on the tombs, they do the sand dance don’t you know, If they move too quick, oh-way-oh, they’re falling down like a domino”

The “sand dance,” also known as the “King Tut Strut,” was made popular in the early twentieth century by Wilson, Keppel, and Betty. It was somewhat revived in the later part of the century by comedian Steve Martin. But what exactly is this “sand dance?” According to the Bangles, everybody was doing it … but, as I said before, not where I came from.