Gratitude

Happy Holidays everybody!!

I always remember to be grateful for the good things in my life, and I have a lot to be thankful for. In fact, thanks for reading this blog!

As a sign of my appreciation, I've recorded a little a cappella rendition of a recent Paul McCartney song that really caught my ear. Hope you enjoy!

Click the link below the hear the song. Windows users, right click and choose "Save As" to download the mp3. Mac users Ctrl+Click and choose "Save Link As":

Gratitude song!

"39 and Holding"

Thank you everyone for your warm birthday wishes! I've been quite surprised and touched by the huge number of greetings I received today via phone, email, and Facebook.

Some of you know I've been a little blue lately. Part of it is just the season, and the gloomy weather we've had lately, but a lot of it has to do with realizing my life may be half over and I feel like I'm just beginning to know how to live. I'm just not ready to be middle-aged yet!

However, a lot of wonderful and wise people have offered helpful words of advice and encouragement recently and I'm starting to feel better. I think once I get home for the holidays and visit my family things will be seen from a little happier perspective.

Jon Stewart Defends Gay Marriage

Did you see the amazing interview with Gov. Mike Huckabee on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart? It was an eloquent and passionate discussion by both men on the delicate, ever-more-urgent, controversy of gay marriage. Check it out here!

Jon Stewart (and his show) continues to astound, not only for his sharp satirical wit, but for the excellent journalism and thoughtful discourse on the important events of the day.

Thank The Troops

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the troops in our armed forces around the world protecting the freedoms and privileges those of us at home enjoy and take for granted.

I was just watching NBC's Christmas in "Rockefella" Center (welcome back Britney) and when the lovely co-hostess Jane Krakowski took a moment to thank the troops, I shared in a moment of high definition gratitude, for we do love our troops and we thank them and their families for their sacrifices, which we grieve together.

Then a thought startled me: we've been at war so long that it has become de rigueur to "thank the troops" at public events and on television broadcasts. We do it at sporting events, school functions, houses of worship, and holiday shows. It's practically expected nowadays.

Will it always be so?

Clint Eastwood Made My Day!

Wow, I just got home from another exciting Hollywood night. My friend Philip invited me to a guild screening of the new Clint Eastwood movie Gran Torino (his second film this season!) at the Writer's Guild Theater in Beverly Hills. The story is about an aging, racist widower who makes unlikely friends with the immigrant Hmong family who live next door. I won't spoil the ending, but there was not a dry eye in the house.

The movie was full of surprises and a great deal of off-color humor, which had the audience both gasping and laughing hysterically at the same time. After the film, Mr. Eastwood entered the theater to a standing ovation and sat on stage for a short Q&A. I was sitting in about the fifth row from the front, so I had a great view for both the movie and Mr. Eastwood's appearance.

He really seemed like a living Hollywood legend. Sharply dressed in tan slacks, brown shoes, a burnt orange shirt and matching tie, and a beautiful black leather jacket on top, Mr. Eastwood looked younger and more virile in person than he did in the movie. It's hard to believe he is 78 years old by his own admission tonight. Also his natural speaking voice is very clear and pleasant, not at all the gravelly mumble most of his characters use.

Occasionally at these events, I will muster up the courage to ask a question, so before the film started I considered what to ask and decided to ask if he planned to retire any time soon. It's extremely ironic that Mr. Eastwood's career has actually gotten busier as he has grown older, and he shows no signs of slowing down. He mentioned during the Q&A that he's already got another project about Nelson Mandela in pre-production and scheduled to start shooting next March.

I didn't ask my question, but I did have a brief exchange with the man. At one point, a person asked about his directing career versus his acting, and Mr. Eastwood explained that he had wanted to quit acting when he directed his first movie back in 1970:

"I was still fairly young at the time," he explained. "Well, I guess 40 didn't seem that young back then, but it seems a lot younger to me now. I was going to be a director and stop acting, but because I hadn't proven myself as a successful director, the only way I could get the movie made was to also act in it. I didn't expect to have to keep doing that, but projects kept coming along and I kept taking acting jobs. People ask me if I will ever quit and I guess I will if the good scripts stop coming."

Suddenly, I saw an opportunity and screamed out, "Don't quit! We love you!" The audience applauded and cheered while Mr. Eastwood (or Clint, as I like to call him now) laughed and looked me straight in the eye and pointed, "Let me guess, you've got a script you'd like to show me?" We all laughed -- it was a wonderful moment.