Many of you are on our mailing list. Many of you have changed your email addresses since joining our mailing list. Many of you received this year's Extravagant Holiday Card. Many of you did not. For the did nots, please see below, and take a moment to send us an updated address.


Now then: You'll remember that Chet, our long-serving intern, left us in June for "greener pastures". Literally, greener pastures: He's now the second-in-command at a farming co-op in Guatemala. Coffee beans and sorghum. In the intervening months, while I was away, our office manager Carolyn hired a new guy, some one who could fill Chet's shoes and perhaps improve those areas in which Chet was lacking. (That's a lot of leeway, Chet having average sized feet and a healthy dose of ineptitude). Kevin and Jimbo, our tech guys, introduced me to him on conference call: "Doug, this is Lenny; Lenny, this is Doug, your boss. Go away now." I was glad to hear that we'd found somebody, and thought no more about it, confident that the floors of the Compound would once again be polished to a high gloss, and that the pool would be kept at a constant temperature. December rolls around, Jimbo sends me the draft of the Extravagant Holiday Card, and I approve it. Kevin sends it out. Last night, I get an email from Carolyn, asking why they didn't pass it along to her for approval. No big deal, I write, it looks fine. Well, one thing, she writes: The new kid's name is Larry. Larry, not Lenny.

Look, I can't be expected to keep track of this stuff. Kev and Jimbo obviously thought his name was Lenny, and have been calling him Lenny since day one, and when he was introduced to me, Lenny/Larry didn't correct them. So, I ask you, how'm I supposed to know?
If you have received one of our Extravagant Holiday Cards, or if you download said card, do us all a favor and dab a little white-out over the "enn' and change it to "arr", okay? Good help is hard to find.

Enjoy the holidays.

Tags: Pagan Rites, Site Stuff

The Beatnix present Stairway to Heaven. Awesome.

Tags: Musik

I don't use the Dashboard function on my Mac for much. I keep a few widgets open, though: weather, dictionary, calculator, and Slothcam, a webcam checker. One of the cameras is outside TGI Fridays in New York, just around the corner from the Actors Equity offices. Tonight, while I was crunching a few pitiful numbers, the webcam showed a young couple clearly aware that an active camera exists.
I grabbed this shot at 7:07 pm. They were still there at 7:15.


A while later around 8:55, I checked the weather widget. The webcam now showed another couple
on the phone, no doubt to somebody who could see them on cam.

The conversation (s) continued for about 10 minutes, with the kids passing the phone back and forth.
About an hour later, at 10:06, a group of 4 -also on the phone:

About 5 minutes later, another guy appeared (the red hat)...and he, too, placed a call and waved.

This bunch stayed around for another few minutes.
I'm not surprised that people are aware of the camera, but I am surprised that these folks a) know somebody who has a webcam viewer up and running, and b) that they were able to get them on the phone.

Also, that I was fascinated enough to check in at three different times on a random Sunday night and see this speaks volumes about me. Loudest: I need to get out more.

Tags: Orwellian

Something is very, very wrong with the Bengals. The season tone was set in week two when they couldn't beat the then-lowly Browns, despite scoring 45 points. (Because Cleveland scored 51). The following week, a narrow loss to the Seattle Seahawks apparently so devastated the team that they decided to give up for the remaining games. It seems as if the wins they've had this year, against the Jets, Ravens, Titans, and Rams have been surprises to the team. Last night's 'contest' in San Francisco was viewed as a gimme for Cincinnati by most, and that's the kiss of death to this squad.

Result: Cincinnati 13, San Francisco 20.

The game gives the Bengals their first losing season under Marvin Lewis, who maybe should've stayed a defensive coordinator.

Tonight, the Bobcats finally won another game, ending a 7 game skid by defeating the (LeBron-less) Cleveland Cavaliers 96-93. It wasn't easy, and the 'cats did it in un-Charlotte like fashion by hitting their last 14 free throws, 10 of those were by PG Raymond Felton. Good thing, because the Cavs hit about 6 more in the paint than did Charlotte, keeping the game close in the second half after a 51 tie at half time.
The Bobcats needed this win, bringing them to 7-11 on the season, and heading to a likely defeat in Detroit on Sunday. Cleveland is in the midst of their own rough patch, now losers of 6 in a row. Something is up with LeBron James, though. A sprained finger keeps you out for six games?

The other drought in Charlotte continues, as it does throughout the South East. We've lost a few plants to the lack of rain (and the resulting water restrictions), and this past week had to have a crew in to take down a large diseased pine tree from the front yard, two small trees and several bushes in the back. They also topped the huge Oak next door, which means we won't have a bajillion acorns beating down on the roof for a few seasons. The crew didn't stack the remains to the correct city guidelines, leaving me with a five by fifteen foot high pile of branches to separate for pick up, and a few massive logs that I hope will be scooped up by neighborhood marauders. There is also the matter of a thick carpet of brown pine needles that covers most of the front yard...

Tags: Basketball Jones, Home

I've been in Boston since the beginning of August; first, as associate director of two touring companies for my pals at Chamber Theatre Productions; then a return to Stonehill College as Guest Director for the fall production. I chose to present Frankenstein Virtuoso, a play by Louis Phillips that I've had an itch to do since staging a reading of it at FirstStage in Los Angeles about 15 years ago. Incredibly, it had not been produced in the interim. Thus, the Stonehill production was technically a 'World Premiere'.

I had a grand time, as I did in 2006 when I last directed there. The students are eager, talented, helpful, and cooperative, and the in-house design staff are amazing. I'm deeply appreciative of both Kevin Brown and Joan Halpert who were able to translate my garbled description of a 'Steampunk influenced mid-20th century' into a highly fluid set (Kevin) and stunning costumes (Joan). Kevin and his crew (headed by Chris Kingston) accomplished a near miracle in completing the set after a few changes of concept along the way. Joan commands a large crew of students, and each one performed the job beautifully. Our make-up and wig designer was Joe Rossi, who has an impressive list of film, TV, and theatre credits and is one of the nicest professionals I've worked with. Joe supervised our student designer and made sure the trickier aspects of the show encountered no difficulty. Kathleen Branigan also endured me tinkering with her poster concept, and delivered a beautiful, evocative one-sheet.

I was ably assisted by not one, not two but FOUR stage managers, which made working around various class schedules a relatively stress-free affair. And all four (Sarah, Kiera, Kait, and Zukowski) were helpful, hard working, and patient. I hadn't worked with our lighting designer before, but he stepped in for a colleague at the last minute and gave the show a boost, despite several changes of plans along the way, and he was aided by Richie, the crew chief and the efficient, fast-moving duo of Chris and Evan.

As with almost any show, I wish I had more time in rehearsal and more performances, but I think the audiences 'got it'. They seemed to enjoy the show, including some of the more ...esoteric...references and certainly got caught up in the escalating weirdness.

So I'm now back in Charlotte, and next week I'll get a chance to check in on the first of my Chamber Theatre groups, who are in town for three days of performances. I haven't seen this bunch since early September and I'm looking forward to hearing their road tales.

***Click the poster for a Frankenstein Virtuoso photo gallery.***

Tags: Theatuh

Despite the major wattage provided by Audra McDonald in 110 In The Shade, the "I'm going to a cocktail party and I guess I'll bring along my bassoon" version of Company took the Tony for Best Revival of a Musical at the 2007 Antoinette Perry Awards. You can get the freshly minted cast album from iTunes here. There were no major surprises in last night awards, but for some reason I'd missed the news that Naomi Watts is very, very pregnant.

Tony Soprano may or may not have survived. The ending was ambiguous, the screen fading to black just as the mobster looks up to see his daughter coming through the front door with...We don't know. At least we didn't have to see another scene with the grating shrink, Dr. Melfi.

Tony Parker, the little Frenchman that could, hurt the Cavs to the tune of 30 points, and it almost wasn't enough, as Cleveland erased a huge half-time deficit, pulled close, then lost by nine.

Tags: TeeVee, Basketball Jones, Theatuh

After 14 years, Emilio Estevez finally gets his team the Stanley Cup.
The President must be very proud.

The Ducks did it with the support of these folks, The Power Play.

It turns out that the Ottawa Senators, recently returned to the NHL, forgot to hire a similar group.
So, the fans had to watch hockey instead.

Now it's on to the NBA Finals. As luck would have it, both teams have seen the error of the Senators' ways and have employed their own secret weapons for this contest. First, Western Conference Champs, the San Antonio Spurs:

The Silver Dancers, in this photo anyway, look like refugees from the IceCapades.

Eastern Conference Champs, the Cleveland Cavaliers, have to work harder because...well, because they're in Cleveland.

The dance team doesn't appear to have a clever moniker of their own, going by the collective name of 'Cavalier Girls".
They also don't appear to have access to much clothing.

My prediction: Spurs in 6.

But the Silver Dancers will be knocked out in 3.

Tags: Bare Midriffs, Basketball Jones

Christopher Reeve once told of his father's pride when informed that Chris been cast in Superman. Turns out his Pop thought it was Shaw's Man and Superman.

My initial reaction last year to the news that there would be a musical version of Happy Days was along the lines of "I don't know that Beckett lends himself all that well to musicalization."

My other thought was "Dear God, no".

But sure enough, Garry Marshall and his gang were going to turn the seminal sitcom into a stage musical. And have done so. It premiered last year at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank, CA. It played to decent houses and almost unanimously negative reviews. (They did claim that the show was a 'work in progress', (albeit one with a $37.50 ticket price). The Falcon is owned by Mr. Marshall, so he may book whatever he pleases, but now comes word that this concotion will continue to iron out it's kinks at the Goodspeed Opera House, en route to a September opening at The Paper Mill Playhouse. Given that the Papermill has just gone through a very public meltdown, this may not be a bad thing, if crowds turn out. But if they don't, expect that the State Theatre of New Jersey will have another brush with death.

I have no reason to think that audiences won't show up. We've all slowed down to gawk at highway accidents, after all, and I expect that there are a few die-hard fans of the series that can't wait to see Fonzie and Richie and the rest sing and dance up a storm. There are more than a few of us, though, who just ask why. Why bother? The potential for big money is there, sure...but this is stage money, not TV money. Garry Marshall can't be hurtin' for cash. Were there really people clamoring for this to happen? Couldn't you just tune in to Nick at Nite and make up songs to sing to yourself while watching reruns?

I have the same question, but trebled in intensity, for the producers of Lord of The Rings: The Musical. Why? why? WHY?Never once, while reading the books, or while watching Peter Jackson's films, did I wish that Aragorn would burst into song. I did not long to have Hobbits sing and Black Riders dance, nor render Middle Earth, Rivendell, and Mordor into series of hydraulic lifts, turntables, and computer controlled leikos. And I did not wish for Sarumon to have a curtain call. But it has happened already in Toronto, and now in London. How does anyone condense these epic tales into 3 hours of stage time, and do them justice. Even fleeting justice? The answer is that it cannot be done. Or rather, it cannot be done well.

To be fair, there are an awful lot of musical adaptations out there: South Pacific (based on James Michener's Tales of the South Pacific); Peter Pan, after J.M. Barrie; Cats, after T.S. Eliot,...and many, many more. Note that Legally Blonde: The Musical has recently opened on Broadway, and that Trevor Nunn (!) is slated to direct a musical of Gone With The Wind next year. It seems that every film ever made is ripe for the musical treatment, deserving or not (witness Evil Dead: The Musical, and Reefer Madness). But again I wonder: Who really wants some of these projects, and would they be interested in what I'm working on?

Cause, y'know, I could make it happen......

Tags: Theatuh

My dear friend at Shotgun Productions, Linda Nelson, along with her Co-ArtisticDirector Patricia Klausner are presenting The 10th anniversary celebration of Other Voices, their fundraiser for OAR: The Organization for Autism Research. Other Voices stars: Kristine Zbornik (2007 MAC & Bistro Award winner, Mamma Mia!), Chester Gregory II (Tarzan, Hairspray) and comic Jessica Kirson (J.A.P. Show, Jay Leno), Hosted by Todd Alan Crain. Directed by Stewart M. Schulman, Musical Direction by Michael Rice at Caroline's on Broadway, Monday, June 4, starting at 6 pm. Details at the Shotgun web site.

I can't be there, so I need you to make up for my absence. Click the OAR link above, or on the OAR graphic on the right side of this page and make a donation. Any amount will do, really (but remember that all this research eats up money). You'll get that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from doing a good deed. And while you're there, check out the other ways that OAR is raising funds and awareness around the country, and around the world.

Congratulations on 10 years. Thousands have benefitted from your good work. Here's hoping that there won't be a need for an Other Voices 20th Anniversary.

Tags: Theatuh, Peeps

In this "21 Questions" Interview with New York Magazine, Martha Plimpton gives this description of a (working) actor's life:


NY Mag: In one sentence, what do you actually do all day in your job?

MP: I put dead people's hair on my head and speak loudly in front of hundreds of strangers while pretending they are not there.







Well said, Martha.

And where can I get some of this "dead people's hair" of which you speak?

Tags: Theatuh, Name Check

Thanks to an overzealous opthamologist, I spent the morning looking like this.
Amazingly, I drove home with no complications. Once here though, I managed to open a gash over my left eye by smacking into the door to the sun room. Oddly enough, I was closing said door, but I was apparently disoriented by the strong contrast between the dark kitchen and the very bright porch and bounced the sucker off my own hand and into my brow. This takes extraordinary skill and is not for the faint-hearted.

Need I remind you that I rock?

Tags: Eyesight

My friend Glenn has given memorable performances in many films over the years, and he's remained the same guy I first worked with in 1981: Funny, charming, generous, and outrageous. One of his appearances, previously limited visitors at the Venice Biennale and the Whitney Biennale, is now surfacing on the interweb: Trailer For A Remake of Gore Vidal's 'Caligula'. (NSFW)


Michelle Phillips, Karen Black, and Glenn Shadix (as Claudius)

Of course, there is no such film. The trailer is by Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli, and to get a bit of background, see this article. I urge you to watch the 5 minute film first, though, as the are a couple of surprises in the casting. It must've been a hoot on the set.

Tags: Peeps, Semi-Porn, Name Check

In Los Angeles in the early 1990's, I appeared in a play called To Be Let Alone, at the old Burbage Theatre on the West Side. Directed by Paul Gillette, it was a docu-drama/fantasy, set in the Reagan years, in which a group of 'radicals' kidnapped the conservative members of the Supreme Court and put them on trial for their decision in the infamous Georgia sodomy case. The radicals, as it turned out, were all homosexuals who'd been persecuted for being gay, or in the case of the Prosecutor, the father of a young man who'd killed himself after the decision was handed down.

The play starred Don Galloway as the prosecuting attorney, Denise Dowse as the Judge, and Dennis Safren as the boy's psychologist. I played the bailiff, who was put on the stand to reveal he'd been disbarred for being gay. As trite as the premise sounds, it was actually a powerful piece of theatre, wholly of it's time. I think audiences enjoyed watching William Rehnquist, 'Whizzer' White, Sandra Day O'Connor, and the others, squirm and defend their thinking as they attempted to justify the decision. The cast was quite wonderful, with Galloway particularly effective as a father who realized too late his son's anguish.

We played to full houses, and the show had decent reviews. There was quite a buzz in the gay community, of course, and some nights the audience were very vocal, giving the whole enterprise a feeling of a 'call and response' church service. One night toward the end of the run, after curtain calls and the crowd had mostly cleared out, I walked back out onstage to cross to the exit (this was a very small theatre), I was approached by Roscoe Lee Brown, who'd been in the audience. He shook my hand, and said "Thank you for your performance. So often we're portrayed in a negative light, or with unfortunate mannerisms and speech. You had none of that, just a simple dignity that was very real and honest." Well. As I'm not black, his use of "we're" could only mean that Mr. Brown had just outed himself to me, and further, that he was including me in that "we're". It didn't occur to me to correct his assumption, because I had just been complimented by an actor who I'd long respected and admired. We chatted a bit more, with me asking about, as I recall, his work on The Cowboys, (he found John Wayne easy to work with, with a working-man's sense of humor) and then, in an instant, he was off speaking with other cast members.

Roscoe Lee Brown died yesterday in California, aged 81. He was a consistent, if not ubiquitous, presence in American film, television, and theatre throughout his long career, and I found him to be gentle man, and a gentleman.

Tags: Theatuh, Name Check

The American Heart Association is a national voluntary health agency to help reduce disability and death from cardiovascular diseases and stroke.

Why am I telling you this? In bolded text, no less?

As it happens, two of my dear friends had heart and/or vascular related, life-threatening episodes last year. Mark (of whom I've written in the past) had a medicated stent implanted in the left anterior descending artery in his heart in September of last year, after a visit to his doctor (he was feeling sluggish) revealed his ticker was on the verge of shutting down entirely. Shutting down within a matter of hours, in fact. I saw him in October, and was floored when he told me, because he looked so blasted healthy, just weeks after the procedure. And he continues to do well, thanks to medical intervention. That, and the fact that he's now bionic.

An old friend from Los Angeles, Kimit, who now resides in 'Indifreakinana', suffered a stroke last April. Awful for him, his wife, and family, and awful for his friends who are so far away and get the news much after the fact. He, too, is on the road to recovery, but his has been a longer route than Mark's.

Mark is working with the American Heart Association for their 44th Annual American Heart Gala and Auction on Long Island on May 4. According to Mark (who knows of which he speaks), when the AHA reaches their impact goal by 2010,

"we will have 115,000 fewer cardiac deaths, 40,000 fewer stroke victims, 13.2 million fewer smokers, 12.5 million people with lower cholesterol and 20 million people becoming physically active."

I haven't seen Kimit and his lovely wife Samantha in years, and yet they both loom large in my heart (!), for their various kindnesses, condolences, and comforts they freely gave my struggling self during the dark days in the City of Angels. I've seen Mark a bit more frequently, and he has been - and remains- open, wise, funny, generous with his time and his resources; all of those things that friends are supposed to be but rarely are. Mark is that, and more.

A world without Kimit and Mark would truly be a lesser place. Really, I'm in no rush to experience it.

So, the pitch: You have a heart? Make a donation, any donation, to The American Heart Association. Every dollar counts. And check out the AHA website for further ways to contribute. Go ahead. I'll wait.

I leave you with this tidbit from one of Samantha's emails:

"If there is even a hint of high blood pressure among you and yours, take care of it. It is fucking scary."

So, Bob in Louisville asks how I have time to listen to all those podcasts I wrote about. Well.

I wrote that I subscribe to them, not that I listen to them. But I quibble. It's reasonable to expect that I'd listen to them, since I went to all that trouble to add them to my subscription lists, but the fact is, I download them to give myself the option of listening. And I do eventually listen to most of them. It helps that some of the pod casts (such as The Bitterest Pill, The Jazz Show, and Urban Dharma) are 'cast-as-'cast can, so they're not on a regular schedule. Studio 360, This American Life, and The Science Show are once a week affairs, at about 45 minutes to an hour each. I generally listen to This American Life and Studio 360 the day they show up in my iPod, wherever I happen to be. I listen to The Science Show and Downstage Center on walks through the neighborhood, and The Jazz Show at the gym. I sometimes listen to Urban Dharma as I drift off to sleep, and The Bitterest Pill when I'm driving. Mr Deity is a video-cast, and requires all of about 8 minutes, so I can watch it anytime I'm at the computer.

I've also started downloading NPR's Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me, the weekly comic news quiz, and KCRW's The Treatment, critic Elvis Mitchell's conversations with film folk. Again, about 30 to 45 minutes. I have tried listening to Wait,Wait as I'm falling asleep, but my giggling disturbs Jo....

Tags: Peeps, Podcasts, Time Sucker

Updates are coming soon. I'll answer all those pesky questions that you ask, and reply to a few more that you don't ask but want to know about anyway. (You're very polite, mostly.)

Be patient. I'm a slow typist....

Tags: Laziness

Saturday afternoon was spent in the Russian countryside, courtesy of The Metropolitan Opera's production of Eugene Onegin. I've never been to the Met (well, not inside for an opera, anyway), but this was the next best thing. Hi Def video feed from New York as part of the "Metroplitan Opera Goes To The Movies" Series, direct to our local cinema. Renée Fleming was inspiring as Tatiana, the spurned country girl who becomes a princess. I enjoyed the performances of Elena Zaremba as Olga and Ramón Vargas as the doomed Lenski, but baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky as Onegin, while very, very good, bears more than a passing resemblance to a mix of Chad Everett and Tom Wopat, and I had a difficult time getting past it.

Tags: Theatuh, Name Check

The Science Show
• There are loads of reasons to admire Australia: Koalas, 'Roos, Bondi Beach, The Sydney Opera House, and The ABC's terrific line-up of radio shows. The Science Show is in it's fourth decade with host Robyn Williams. The reporting is smart, Williams is wry, and the net is cast wide...there's an emphasis on Oz science news, of course, but almost every show also includes stories from around the world. Bonus: The transitions between stories are often bridged with excerpts from Philip Glass' Einstein On The Beach.

This American Life
• From WBEZ in Chicago, one of the classic NPR shows. Sure, you could listen to it on your FM radio, if your local station carries it, but as a podcast you can have it whenever you want it. Host Ira Glass (coincidentally, Philip's first cousin once removed) has just the right air of bemusement in his rapid deadpan, and contributing writers such as David Sedaris and Sarah Vowell regularly make this one of the best shows on public radio.

PRI's Studio 360
• From WNYC. Kurt Anderson and his group of reporters and writers put their own spin on current events. The full 60 minute episode is available each week, which wasn't the case a couple of years ago. Always interesting, occasionally brilliant, Studio 360 is Mutt to This American Life's Jeff. Yes, another program you could listen to on terrestrial radio if you're so inclined. Again, I prefer to listen at my leisure.

The Jazz Show
• This podcast had been infrequently updated, but recently resumed production. Host Thom Allen serves up several compositions on each episode, and I'm happy to report that the state of new (to me) jazz - classic to bop, funk to fusion - is in fine form. All of the music is available through links on the TPN Jazz site.

Tags: Podcasts, Time Sucker

American Theatre Wing Downstage Center
• All theatre interviews, all the time. This is the podcast version of an XM Radio Show of the same name, and because of rights restrictions, they can't include musical performances. Still, the stories told are terrific. My favorite recent shows are Blair Brown, Matthew Broderick, and Alfred Molina. Least fav is Daphne Rubin Vega, who must've been having a lousy day, and comes off as a moron. Somebody, though, needs to tell co-host John Von Soosten that the phrase 'that's a wrap', with which he closes each show, is a film term. In all my years in theatre, I've never heard it used to end a day or session unless it was used ironically.

Mr. Deity
• Smart, snappy, very funny, well produced, exceeding well cast, and catchy theme music. This video pod cast, still only six episodes so far, does religious humor just right. Be offended if you must....it's funny 'cause it's true. When a joke from Episode #2 was repeated, silently, in Episode #6, I laughed at how beautifully it was delivered.

The Bitterest Pill
• Dan Klass has been doing his show since the early days of podcasting, making him one of the pioneers. (He claims otherwise, putting himself in the 'second wave'). He's an old friend from my Los Angeles days, and I am hooked on his very amusing tales of the city, his family, his career, and his adjustment to being a stay at home dad.

Urban Dharma
• Kusala Bhikshu is a Wisconsin born Buddhist monk living in L.A. Kusala "shares his understanding of Buddhism in a simple, non-technical way through stories, humor and personal insights." I like his approach, and he plays a mean blues harmonica.

Tags: Podcasts, Time Sucker, Name Check

At what point does this become illegal?

a report by the Pentagon inspector general has finally confirmed that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s do-it-yourself intelligence office cooked up a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda to help justify an unjustifiable war.

At what point do we actually have the onions to impeach the boy president?

Tags: Govmint

So, yes, I've been a wee bit neglectful of you again. Sorry. Sorry. Look, just...sorry, ok?

The Super Bowl:
Sure, happy for Payton Manning, the Colts, and Tony Dungy. I didn't expect the Bears to win it, but given the history of mediocre quarterbacks in this game (Trent Dilfer, I'm looking at you) I did think anything was possible. Rex Grossman, though, is mediocre on a whole different level. (Like if I were playing QB...) Honestly, I'm still completely gobsmacked that the Chargers weren't playing.

The presentation of the Lombardi Trophy was pure cheese. Shula managed to look uncomfortable and arrogant at the same time, and he was taking mincing baby steps so he wouldn't trample the cameraman who was walking backward. And the Colts scrubs who lined the 'trophy walk' and reached out to stroke it as it went by looked like so many blue-and-white Gollums, clutching at the ring. Whatever happened to giving the trophy in the locker room?

Super Bowl Commercials:
The Sierra Mist 'Comb Over' made me laugh, as did the Robert Goulet Boogey man thing (what was the product?). And the Bud Light Axe Guy is my friend Lorin McCraley, so I'm partial to that one. On the whole, a poor showing. Further Disclosure: Several years ago, I was in a Super Bowl ad. It was the year of 'Braveheart' and Budweiser decided to spoof it. We shot the thing over two days in the muck, rain, mud, and cold, cheek by jowl with oxen, sheep, horses, and Ad agency weasels. Having made it to the final four in consideration to deliver the big 'they can never take away your Bud Light' speech, I was hired and told I'd be a 'featured' player....not 'the man', but the guy standing next to 'the man'.
Well, I was paid for that bit, but the idea of using me for anything other than a muddy body was scrapped by a few of the suits and 'the man' delivered his speech from a scaffold, unencumbered by supporting players. The spot itself was forgettable; it looked rushed and unfinished because it most certainly was: we shot it the preceding Tuesday and Wednesday for airing during a Sunday game.

Because I'm a member of the Screen Actors Guild, I get to vote for the SAG Awards™ each year, and some studios, anxious to be awarded something, send screening copies of their films on DVD to the voters. Sweet. This year, I received The Departed, Little Miss Sunshine, and Venus. The catch? They came in the mail last week, well past the voting deadline, well past the Awards Ceremony, even.

The birthday (which I share with Nathan Lane, Horace Greeley, and Lorin's son, Destry) passed uneventfully. No trauma, no drama. Safe for another year.

Tags: Football, Name Check, Peeps

So, remember when all y'all were whining about the paltry selection of goodies available?

"Please, man...I so want to commemorate my visit to your site by purchasing some trinket or piece of clothing, but all you're pushing is books, movies, music, and iPods....What's up with that? Everybody else and their brother have this stuff for sale. Get on it, dude!"

Sound familiar? (Yes, I'm talking to you, T.) Alright, so check it out. Click the picture. And don't say I never sold you anything. Dig?

Note: We're hosting this a CafePress for now. If there are enough sales, maybe we'll bring it into the fold on these pages.

Tags: Branding

Learn about it here.

Tags: Holidays

I don't know why this hadn't occurred to me until this morning: Among the tens of visitors to this site, two of my favorites reside in the fair city of Louisville, KY. And they don't know each other. So...Bob, meet Al. Al, Bob.

Other news of note: I'll be visiting the old haunts in New York next month. Perhaps we can get together and I can watch you drink.

Tags: Peeps

This bother anybody else?

Season opener for 24: terrorists assemble their nuclear device, the wacky lawyer from Ally McBeal is double-dealing in Washington, CTU agents scramble to catch Kumar before he offs that kid, Tad Allagash has a breakdown after killing one of his own to protect Doctor Bashir and suddenly, the revered, late President David Palmer shows up to pitch auto insurance.

Tags: TeeVee