One of the advantages of growing old is the chance to reflect on moments in your life that impact others.

This is especially true for journalists. I was thinking about this recently when I heard a radio ad promoting the Beach Boys' 50th anniversary reunion national tour.

I was always a Beach Boys fan; I guess from the very moment they had their first hit. Even though I grew up just outside of Manhattan (that's New York, not Manhattan Beach, Calif.), I just loved those guys from Southern California. Their music made me want to visit L.A. and cruise Colorado Boulevard looking for that little old lady from Pasadena.

I have probably seen the Beach Boys in concert more than any other musical act. I would estimate I have seen them perform at least a dozen times in my life. Their music pulled me to Southern California throughout my early life. And I finally got a chance to move there in 1979, when the Los Angeles Herald Examiner hired me. I eventually became a senior news editor there at the age of 26.

One of my beats was entertainment. (Another became the Middle East.) During my entertainment-writing days, I put my interest in the Beach Boys to work. I wanted to know what became of "the lost Beach Boy," David Marks.

David Marks grew up across the street from Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson, the three brothers who formed the core of the group, along with Mike Love and Alan Jardine. At 13 years old, the guitar player became an original member of the group when it was signed by Capitol Records.

But after recording a couple albums and the huge success that followed and the demand of nationwide tours, David Marks had to leave the band.

Around 1981, I decided to try to find him for an interview on how he felt missing out on the (pardon the expression) "wave" of success that followed the group.

I found him. I interviewed. He was, indeed, somewhat morose about what he had missed out on. I wrote a compelling feature story about "the lost Beach Boy." Shortly after it appeared in our paper, he got an invitation to appear on stage with Mike Love, who was playing locally in Southern California with his own band.

Apparently, they hit it off.

I remember David Marks called me up excitedly to tell me all about it. He had been kicking around in the music business for years, but had missed the limelight. He thought the reunion with Mike Love might lead to a break.

Shortly afterward, other members of the original group reunited as the Beach Boys. And now, 50 years later, they are all back.

David Marks later authored a book, "The Lost Beach Boy," on his experiences. I plan to get a copy and read it. I'm interested to see if David Marks recalls how the article I wrote led to the first step in a historic music reunion that is still going strong all these years later.

In any case, I remember it. And I'm glad for him. That's one of the nice things about being a journalist. It's not all muckraking. It's not all turning over rocks. It's not all exposing the dark secrets. Sometimes we actually get to help people and just tell interesting stories. It's also nice being a small part of the story.

Having grown up as a Beach Boys fan, I later had the opportunity to play a role in the group's future.

That's just one of the many reasons I love my job.

To find out more about Joseph Farah and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.