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Go easy on your heart and start cutting back on foods that are high in saturated fat and cho lesterol. The change'II do you good. __ . WE'RE FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE V American Heart Association K Decades owners Bill Krout and Barry Shulman. B efore he was in the nostal- gia business, Barry Shul- man had a knack for collecting kitsch. With cur- rent market fads for retro fash- ions, reruns and reunions, his timing could hardly be better. His business in Royal Oak, Decades, which he owns with partner Bill Krout, is undeniably a 1990s bonanza. While most re- tailers found sales unexpectedly slow for December, Decades recorded a healthy 27-percent in- crease from a year ago. Not only were there increased sales of 3D cards, lava lamps and Barbie dolls, but widespread media at- tention elevated Decades to the national spotlight. During the week of Chanukah, just before Christmas, Decades was either featured or mentioned in nearly 200 newspapers around the country. Over the last four years, Decades' sales have increased at 30 percent per year. Mr. Shul- man, who teaches decorative arts and design at Wayne State and Henry Ford Community College, credits Decades' appeal to under- standing the baby boomer psyche. "Most baby boomers grew up with television, movies and mu- sic," he said. 'They're attempting to relive their childhood." According to Gary Shepherd, professor of sociology at Oakland University, the particular nostal- gia for the 1960s is a reflection of the inclination to resurrect the "happy past," a way for many baby boomers to identify with the cultural forces that shaped their attitudes. "Nostalgia has always been a distortion of the past," he says. "The scale of nostalgia has been created by the sheer number of baby boomers who look back as a way to make comparisons to where they're at now." The business of nostalgia seems to be more about con- sumers' fascination with escapism and entertainment. Images of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis and James Dean have been elevated to a mythic realm. Lost in the idola- try, says Dr. Shepherd, is an un- derstanding of their life and times. "There's not a lot of critical re- flection that goes into nostalgia," he says. "Problems tend to be glossed over." But shoppers, according to Mr. Shulman, are not looking for so- cial commentary. "The appeal is the familiarity and a 'feel good' feeling," he says. "People identify with characters (from) television, movies and car- toons. A gift of one of these (nos- talgic) characters is just fun. It's not like buying a shirt that doesn't fit." Eight years ago, according to Mr. Shulman, the price for nos- talgia items began to skyrocket. A Beatles doll that cost 69 cents in 1964 is selling for $150. Today, just as at the height of Beatle- mania, the Fab Four have their faces on watches, posters, pock- et calendars and magnets. Since the Beatles' documentary and An- thology CDs were released in No- vember, Decades can barely stay ahead of the demand for mop- heads memorabilia. Other manufacturers of nos- talgia items — Graceland, Coca- Cola and the estates of famous deceased celebrities — regularly issue new items. At Decades, a young, swivel-hipped Elvis figure clutching a microphone is not far from ....eprints of '60s concert posters ofJimi Hendrix, the Doors and Grateful Dead. Apparently, the oxymoron