JCS in Hollywood: Day Four

The countdown is on! It's one day before the show and we still have much to prepare before the performance. Ben Vereen arrived in the afternoon and worked on stage for a couple hours with director Gary Goddard and our Caiaphas and Annas, Chris Carey and Larry Friedman. We also worked through the Last Supper with Ben and Ted.


Scotty with Ben Vereen

Ben seems like a nice fellow, very talented, but it was surprising to note that he doesn't really know the part! Sure he played Judas on Broadway, but that was 35 years ago and he hasn't touched the material since. Our Judas cover, Chuck DiMaria, was shadowing Ben on stage and feeding him every line during rehearsal. Ben left during dinner break to go rest at the hotel and to study his script.


Gary Goddard, Barry Dennen, Ted Neeley, Ben Vereen

Outside the theater, beautiful show posters were displayed with every cast member's name and photo included! They look really great and I'm sure they were very expensive. Gary Goddard does everything first class. For a few minutes most of the cast was outside taking pictures and then a few media photographers and fans saw us and it turned into a real photo shoot of the cast on the red carpet!


"Look Ma, I made it!"


Da Boys and the paparazzi

Gary also gave us each a show poster and a souvenir program for the show, and my goodness they are so cool. The program has photos and bios of everybody involved in the production, plus a memorial page for Carl Anderson. It's a wondeful keepsake. All the cast members signed one another's posters; these will look great framed.

Inside the theater, the set has really come together. It looks beautiful with all the lighting and dressing. The crew has been working 24-hour days non-stop to get everything just right. We also have big TV cameras at the back of the house and on the balconies. They will record the performance in HD with direct sound and video feeds to the trucks outside. Then they can mix it down for the DVD release. Gosh, I hope they really do that 'cause it would be cool to have this recorded, especially since none of my friends or family will be at the performance.


Gary directs "Damned for all Time" on stage

During the afternoon staging rehearsal, I was positioned downstage when I suddenly saw the theater manager positioning a very elderly man in a wheelchair right in front of the stage just a few feet from me. This frail old gentlemen seemed very interested in observing the action on stage and he had several assistants around him with water and snacks, making sure he was comfortable. The old man looked vaguely familiar and then I recognized him as Ricardo Montalban! Of course - he wanted to see what was happening in his theater.

During a break in the action I sneaked down to take a picture with him. I told him my favorite movie of his was the Planet of the Apes movie he did. "Oh yes, I remember that one," he replied in his familiar Spanish accent. He was a very kind gentlemen and gladly posed for pictures and signed autographs for people throughout the afternoon. I was surprised that he stayed for several hours, sitting and watching everything. The house manager told me later that Sr. Montalban really enjoyed himself. He felt invigorated by all the activity. It made me sad to think that this once vital actor/singer/dancer from Mexico City who has performed in hundreds of movies, TV shows, and stage productions is now reduced to an elderly invalid. Getting old sucks.


Scott meets Ricardo Montalban

One very cool addition to the production today was the musicians. We rehearsed with the rock band in the evening and they sound awesome. I'm delighted that our old guitarist from the A.D. tour, Kim Norton, is playing the gig. Kim knows the show so well, I noticed at one point didn't even have the right music on his stand while he was playing! The band is actually upstage of the set so the actors have to be very careful not to disturb any equipment or instruments as we make our entrances and exits. The conductor and musicians got quite frustrated though since their music stand lights are controlled by the lighting designer and he kept dimming them during scene changes. "We can't see the music!" screamed the conductor many times during the rehearsal. I can't wait to hear the full orchestra with strings and brass on Sunday.


Scott hangs with Yvonne Elliman

During dinner break, I had a chance to hang out with Yvonne Elliman, our Mary Magdelene. Yvonne is such a clown and she had us all in stitches. She's also quite a flirt! She introduced us to her lovely daughter Sage, whom Yvonne obviously adores. Sage has completed a Master's Degree and is planning to go for her PhD. Yvonne told us that as a little girl Sage loved school and would come home and finish her homework and then ask her mommy for more! Smart young lady.


Jack Black as Herod

The evening rehearsal saw the return of Jack Black as Herod. He ran through his number about four times and all the cast sat in the house to watch him work. All I can say is: genius at work. Jack is amazing and hilarious at Herod. He is perfect and his scene will undoubtedly steal the show. If you don't know the show, Herod's Song sounds like an old ragtime vaudeville burlesque number with Herod mocking Jesus and taunting him for performing miracles. At one point, Ted was away from the stage so Larry Friedman, Ted's cover, stepped in and Jack played the whole number to him! Larry said later, "I can't believe that actually happened -- Jack Black was right in my face!"


Jack Black as Herod gets close to Jesus

Gary finally finished blocking all the scenes late in the evening, and then we tried a full run-through. It was rough, but we got through it and the cast members haven't done the show before got a better sense of the overall picture. It was so funny, after each scene I'd have about four or five people come up to me backstage and ask, "What's next?" Luckily, I could always tell them the right answer. This is exactly why Forbes and Ted needed me and other Superstar veterans: to help the newbies along.

The only major component still missing is Clint Holmes as Simon Zealotes. He has only one solo number in the show, but it's a big one with a lot of movement and choreography. I sang the song during the run-through -- damn, they should just give that solo to me! I also helped conduct the cast during the chorus numbers since without video monitors we can't see Craig Barna conducting since he's behind us upstage. Shoot, I could do this whole show by myself, couldn't I? (hee hee)



Not to toot my own horn too much, but I had a realization last night on my way home: I'm a pretty talented guy! I can sing, act, and move on stage. I understand stage production, I read music, I'm a conductor, and I'm a pretty nice guy, to boot. Shit, what am I doing teaching English?! I hope Gary Goddard recognizes my talents and remembers me for future productions. He is one of the most talented and successful artists in the entertainment industry, a good guy to know in this business.

It's been a long time since I've had these creative juices flowing and I really miss it. Teaching English is a fine job, but it does very little to feed the soul. Perhaps something will come of this to inspire me back into peforming more regularly. Ted has already connected me with some of his friends who run the successful Rubicon Theater in Ventura and they said they would love to have me on their team. That's a real nice thing to hear in this town.

Well dear reader, there's not much left to say. Tomorrow, the show!

JCS in Hollywood: Day Three

The Ricardo Montalban Theatre marquee

Another whirlwind day in Jesus-ville. Today we had the addition of Deep Voice Guy, Chris Carey, who was born to play Caiaphas. It was so funny at the afternoon music rehearsal when we practiced the "Jesus Must Die" number and Chris opened that basso profundo mouth of his -- all the kids in the chorus nearly fell out of their chairs with surprise! I'm so used to hearing Chris sing the role that I had forgotten what a shock it is to hear that deep, deep voice.

We rehearsed music for a couple of hours in the afternoon, then there was a one-hour break when Jack Black secretively arrived for his private rehearsal on stage. You would have thought the President was in the house or something because all entrances to the auditorium were blocked by velvet ropes, chairs, and burly stage hands keeping everyone out. Signs were posted reading: Absolutely NO Admittance. I guess some people take themselves too seriously.

During the break, Larry, Chris, Chris' friend Trish and I walked down the street to get a sandwich at Caffe, Etc. It was really delicious food -- now I know why their sandwiches cost $10 a pop!


Larry, Chris, Ted, and myself

Back at the theater, Jack Black surprised us by popping upstairs to the rehearsal room to meet the cast. Turns out he's a pretty nice guy. He was rather humble and softspoken, and he looks exactly like he does in the movies: longish hair, scruffy beard, and chubby belly. Ted told me later that Jack requested a private rehearsal because he was so nervous about making mistakes in front of the cast. I guess it's difficult when you become a big star because everybody expects greatness from you at every moment. As a kid, Jack participated in the YouTHeatre organization, which is the beneficiary of this charity performance, hence his involvement.


A young Jack Black on stage for YouTHeatre

The cast was sent on dinner break from 5:00 - 7:00 pm, but just as I got home and was about to nod off on the couch for my afternoon nap, the telephone rang. It was our stage manager Phil Rahn asking if I could come back to the theater because the director, Gary Goddard, wanted to work with me, Ted, Yvonne, Barry, and a few others. Well certainly I snapped to attention and rushed back to the theater.

Unfortunately when I got there, no one else was around except Ted. So Ted and I went up into the balcony and sat down together. It had been so long since we had had the opportunity for a nice, private chat. We talked about the show and the upcoming tour he's preparing for. He was frustrated with the tour production company because they hadn't hired any of the people he recommended for the cast or crew, mostly because the company didn't offer enough money for people to leave their day jobs.

Ted also spoke about his wife and kids. They came with him from Houston to see this production, and in fact I saw them at the theater later in the evening. My god, I couldn't believe how much the kids had grown! The last time I saw them, ten years ago, they were both little kids. Now they are beautiful young adults. I can't believe how tall Ted's son Zach has grown. The kids want to go to school here in California, so Ted is seriously considering moving back here.

Finally Ted called Gary on his cell phone and said, "Scotty and I are sitting in the house. Are you ready for us yet?" Gary was on stage with Yvonne Elliman, who had just arrived and was singing with the musical director (the excellent Craig Barna), so we went down and Ted introduced me to her. She's a funny and charming lady and we had a nice meeting together. After Yvonne sang her solo, we practiced "Peter's Denial" and and as Gary promised, I get to be Man by the Fire: "But I saw you too/it looked just like you." Barry Dennen was also there so I snapped some pictures.


Barry Dennen and Yvonne Elliman


Scotty Spalding and Barry Dennen

The evening staging rehearsal got started over an hour late, but we finished most of the second act. I'm proud to say I'm on stage singing and moving in every chorus scene. We had a nice moment with Ted during the lepers scene when we all grab at him and drag him down and beg him to heal us. Ted really gets into the part at times and his body was quivering with energy during that moment leading up to his scream, "Heal yourselves!"

Afterwards, he asked the cast to sit close with him on stage and he told us in his soft whisper of a voice how much he depends on and appreciates the emotional and physical connection between the performers on stage. Ted's a touchy-feely kind of guy and a real sweetheart, and in that moment he bonded with the cast. Everyone was instantly smitten with him -- it was a classic Neeley moment. Like one of the young chorus girls told me later, "He's so cuddly!"

I started to get a little choked up at two point during the evening. The first time was when Yvonne and Ted were on stage for "I Don't Know How to Love Him." I was standing in the wings next to Barry Dennen, and we were both watching and listening to Yvonne sing to Ted and I suddenly thought, "Is this a dream?" This music and these people have been such a strong part of my life for so many years; it was a surreal experience to be standing in the same space with them instead of watching them on screen or listening to the records.

I also felt the tears welling up during the Last Supper, during which I play one of the Apostles. Gary has staged it nicely so that as we sit down for the meal with Jesus, we recreate the poses Leonardo da Vinci used for his painting of the Last Supper (I'm third from the right). I think they did that in the movie too, right? It will be a really nice moment for the audience. I started to get really sad when Ted started singing about "the end" and then his argument with Judas ensues and I flashed back to all those great moments between Ted and Carl during this scene. I was often on stage as an apostle during the tour and it was always an emotionally-charged moment because those two guys really let it rip.

I miss Carl a lot, but I'm eager to see what Ben Vereen will bring to the role. I don't think Ben's performed the part since the original Broadway run more than 30 years ago. He's supposed to join us Saturday, so stay tuned!

JCS in Hollywood: Day Two

Thursday was another whirlwhind 18 hour day for yours truly. After teaching my morning class at UCLA, I had to run out at noon for a costume fitting at Universal Studios. It was my first time to be on the actual lot, not just the theme park. The costume department is housed in the appropriately named Edith Head building.



Although I wanted to drive around and explore more of the studio lot, my presence was expected at rehearsal so I quickly made my way over the hill to the theater in Hollywood. The afternoon was spent in a music rehearsal. There are a few lyrics which are different from any version of the show I've been aware of, particularly in the Temple scene and in the Trial Before Pilate.

In the Temple, the last verse before the instrumental break has been replaced by a completely different lyric: "What you see is what you get/No one's been disappointed yet/Don't be scared, give me a try/There is nothing you can't buy."

And in the Trial, just after Pilate's line "He's a sad little man/not a king or god/I need a crime" the chorus suddenly breaks into a syncopated spoken section: "Kill him/he says he's god/he's a blasphemer/He'll conquer you/and us and every Caesar/(random shouts)/Crucify him." Then Pilate continues, "Behold the man/behold your silent king..."

Whacky, huh? I think it sounds stupid, but maybe that's just 'cause I'm not familiar with that section. Is it from the Broadway verion? Perhaps the movie? They did add some different things for the movie. In fact, we are singing the extra verse in Hosanna where Jesus says something like, "Sing out your song, but not for me alone..." and I can't remember the rest of it. That was written for the movie, I think. Oh well, it just means I have some new lyrics to learn, but more likely I'll just be lipsyncing in those new parts!


Music rehearsal with the Priests

I sang Pilate's lines for the Trial music rehearsal, but Barry Dennen arrived for the staging rehearsals and he did a fine job. He's a surprisingly small man, but he's very sweet and I had a chance to chat with him several times throughout the day. I reminded him of the time we met at the Egyptian Theater for the JCS movie screening.

During the evening rehearsal, Teddy arrived and walked on stage to give me a big hug. He rubbed my cheek with his hand and said, "Scotty, I'm glad you're here." HE's glad?! That's just the kind of generous, loving man Mr. Neeley is. Watching him mill amongst the cast with greetings and hugs for everyone, it struck me anew what a unique individual he is -- so warm and kind. He truly embodies all the great things about the character he plays.

Ted's a very nervous flyer and today was doubly bad because of the terrorist plot foiled in London, which has made airport security even more oppressive than before. Ted phoned the producer and said he was going to skip the flight and drive to L.A. from Houston instead. It's a three day trip, which would have placed his arrival just about show time on Sunday! Rather than risk it, they hired a private jet to bring to Ted to Burbank airport. He was much happier with that, I'm sure.

Ted didn't rehearse this evening, but he did meet with the producers and went for his costume fitting. Larry stood in his place and wowed the cast with his pyrotechnic vocals. The man can sing REALLY high! We rehearsed the Temple scene and the Lepers all evening and finally broke a little after 11:30pm. It was so hot in the theater, everybody was drenched.

It's a little scary to think we haven't even finished blocking the show and we go on in two days' time. Our director Gary said we'd finish blocking on Friday so that we can add the stars in Saturday and Sunday. I'm not sure when Jack Black is arriving, but I've already heard negative things about him, or more specifically his representatives. Don't know many details but it seems some diva-esque attitudes have been copped: insisting on a private rehearsal before joining the cast, and something about balking over the contracts regarding video and audio recording of the show. The cast signed contracts for that yesterday. Seems Universal wants to film the performance for possible distribution on CD and DVD, plus a PBS broadcast. That may be in jeopardy if Jack or any of the other stars decide not to sign.

I'll keep you posted, dear reader! In the meantime, enjoy some pics I took with my new camera.


Larry Friedman (Annas) and Phil Rahn (stage manager)


The stage


The cast gets psyched for the Simon Zealotes number


Who's that sweaty guy?

JCS in Hollywood: Day One

Today was my first day of rehearsals for the special one-night-only performance of Jesus Christ Superstar at the Ricardo Montalban Theatre in Hollywood. The cast is mostly young and hot (I love LA) and pretty talented as far as I can tell.

I was expecting a music rehearsal today, but in fact the music director is out of town until tomorrow. There was an earlier music rehearsal last weekend before I was cast, so today was a staging rehearsal. We got through most of the first act of the show, skipping a few sections that will depend on the star actors in the lead roles. Most of them won't be here until closer to show time....which is only four days away!

Today I was reunited with a couple guys from the national tour I did ten years ago. This afternoon I saw Chuck DiMaria, who was our Judas replacement when Carl Anderson was away from the show. And this evening Larry Friedman, our wonderful Annas and Jesus understudy, arrived with his lovely wife Debbie. Larry is a darling man and we were quite close buddies during the tour, even roommates for a while. We laughed all evening remembering some of the funny stories from that time.

Things will get even better tomorrow when Chris Carey, our Deep Voice Guy who plays Caiaphas, arrives. I think Barry Dennen, as Pilate, arrives tomorrow as well. It's pretty crazy to put together a show in only a few days, especially when we won't have the full cast together until show day. It's pretty exciting, though.

I like our director Gary Goddard. He's a very talented man and he obviously loves this show. I think he likes me too, 'cause he's keeping me on stage and up front for most of the stage blocking so far. Because I joined the show after it was cast, I wasn't assigned any particular roles, but Gary told me tonight I can do the "Man by the Fire" character who recognizes Peter after he denies his association with Jesus.

The set design is really cool. It's all welded iron railings with stairways and platforms reaching three levels high. They're also adding video screens to show clips of the original movie during some of the sequences. This is turning out to be a rather involved production, all for one night, and I think it could be a really good show. Besides the talented cast on stage, we will also have a 30-piece orchestra playing Sir Andrew's original orchestrations, and the producer announced today that we will be joined by the choir from the Agape Church, Carl's house of worship. I attended his memorial service at Agape and the music was incredible.

I'll post some pictures here in the next day or two. I bought a new digital camera just for that purpose. It's after 12:30 AM so I must get to bed....another long day tomorrow!

Jesus is coming to Hollywood!

And I'm gonna be singing with him! Along with Yvonne Elliman, Barry Dennen, Jack Black, and just added, Ben Vereen as Judas! Oh my god, this is going to be fun. Gotta get some rest now. More details to come....

Jesus Christ Superstar in Hollywood!

Donnie Darko: The Director's Cut

I'm so glad I finally got to see Donnie Darko at the New Beverly Cinema this evening. I've been wanting to see this one for a while and it was worth the wait. What an unusual film!

I won't reveal many details of the plot because I had no idea what the film was about before seeing it and it was a wonderful mystery to see the story unfold. In a nutshell, the title character Donnie Darko, played by the talented Jake Gyllenhaal, narrowly escapes death in a freak accident. He also suffers from psychological instability and often sees dark, hallucinatory visions. Besides his therapist, Donnie communicates with an imaginary character named Frank, who always wears a scary bunny costume.

This odd, suspenseful, and often funny film follows Donnie's perilous journey through high school and his struggles to understand his supernatural view of the world, leading to a shocking climax. The supporting cast includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jenna Malone, Patrick Swayze, Noah Wyle, and Drew Barrymore, who also executive produced the film.

The story is set in October 1988 during the Bush-Dukakis presidential election, so there are many humorous references to the Eighties and the soundtrack features some great songs by '80s bands such as INXS, Tears For Fears, Duran Duran, Joy Division, Echo & the Bunnymen, and Oingo Boingo.

The version I saw was writer/director Richard Kelly's 2004 Director's Cut, which is a full 20 minutes longer than the original 2001 theatrical release. From reading about the film on IMDB, the new version includes a lot of visual effects not included in the original, plus some added character development scenes and changes to the soundtrack. I recommend this one if you enjoy off-beat, quirky films in the vein of David Lynch's Blue Velvet and Mullholland Drive.

PS: My favorite scene is where Donnie takes his girlfriend to the movies...at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica where I often see films with my friend Heidi!!

Shine On You Crazy Diamond

Painting by George Underwood

Syd Barrett, founding member of the rock band Pink Floyd has died at age 60.

CNN story

Barrett wrote and performed the band's early psychedelic hits in England, including "Arnold Layne" and "See Emily Play." However, due to mental illness and drug use, Barrett left the band in 1968, replaced by David Gilmour who stayed with the band through their rich 1970s period, including the albums Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall.

One Barrett fan, who was highly influenced by him, was rock star David Bowie. Here's is what Bowie had to say today:

"I can't tell you how sad I feel. Syd was a major inspiration for me. The few times I saw him perform in London at UFO and the Marquee clubs during the sixties will forever be etched in my mind. He was so charismatic and such a startlingly original songwriter.

Also, along with Anthony Newley, he was the first guy I'd heard to sing pop or rock with a British accent. His impact on my thinking was enormous. A major regret is that I never got to know him. A diamond indeed." - David Bowie, July 11th 2006

Yahoo Answers

If you haven't seen it yet, check out Yahoo Answers. It's fun to read the questions whether or not you read the answers.

I found out about the website today via this fascinating CNN article about Stephen Hawking.

Enron's Ken Lay Dead at 64

Facing a possible life sentence in prison for committing fraud and conspiracy in the collapse of Enron, the largest corporate scandal in American history, Kenneth "Kenny Boy" Lay had a massive coronary today at his luxurious vacation home in Aspen, Colorado.

CNN.com article

Lay, who helped build Enron into the seventh largest company in the nation, famously funded George W. Bush's political career. Because of Enron's collapse after an accounting scandal, thousands of workers lost their jobs and their life savings and billions of dollars were lost by investors; meanwhile Lay and his cronies enriched themselves with millions of dollars in sold stock.

Nice guy. If only Dubya would follow his lead and drop dead.

TV's Aaron Spelling Dead at 83

Big loss this weekend for the entertainment industry. If you've watched television anytime in the past 40 years, you have no doubt seen at least one of the 3,000 (that's right, three THOUSAND) television programs produced by the prolific Aaron Spelling.

His most famous hit series include Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Dynasty, Charlie's Angels, Starsky and Hutch, Hart to Hart, Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place, and more recently, Seventh Heaven.

If that weren't enough (and that is just a small sampling of the successful programs he produced), Spelling also produced 140 made-for-TV movies, including 1976's The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, starring a very young John Travolta.

Now, I am not particularly a fan of Mr. Spelling's work, though I certainly have seen many of his programs over the years. But I have to give credit to a guy who was born into poverty from immigrant parents and found success in the cut-throat entertainment industry. I'd say he did pretty well for himself.

Also, I have something of a personal connection to the Spellings since I often drive by their huge estate in Holmby Hills on my way home from UCLA. If the traffic on Sunset Blvd. is bad, I often cut through the neighborhood (which also includes the Playboy Mansion on the same street). Every time I pass the gigantic Spelling mansion (over 50,000 sq. ft.) I'm tempted to ring the bell at the gate and ask if Tori can come out to play!

We're not likely to see a media mogul quite like Mr. Spelling again. In today's multinational corporate comglomerate culture, individuals rarely have the clout and sheer creative force demonstrated by Aaron Spelling. TV programs today are produced by committees that conduct extensive focus group marketing tests and are overseen by large corporate entities endebted to advertisers and shareholders. It's hard to think of big television networks and movie studios as "middle management", but that's basically what they are.

Aaron Spelling died yesterday of a stroke at his home in Los Angeles. He was 83 years old. Rest well Mr. Spelling. You've earned it!

Read the CNN article.

"The Widescreen Scam"

Came across an interesting article written by Guy Wright about the history of film and TV aspect ratios, the widescreen vs. full-frame debate. His thesis is that the widescreen format is simply a marketing gimmick that studios started in the 1950s to compete with television (true), even though most filmmakers and audience members prefer the full-frame 4:3 ratio (debatable).

Personally, I much prefer a widescreen aspect ratio because it is closer to recreating actual human vision. Because our eyes are placed horizontally across our face, we can see a wider range of vision horizontally than vertically.

Mr. Wright's article is very informative and entertaining, if you are interested in such things.

Madonna Rocks

WARNING: SPOILERS!

Wow, was I blown away to see Madonna in her last performance at the Forum in Los Angeles last night. Thanks to my great friends Frank and Benny, I got to attend the show.

Madonna was absolutely incredible, as I surmise she always is. I'm sorry I haven't seen her in concert before, because her disciplined athleticism, her strength of personality, and her experienced eye for creating a spectacle are simply unrivaled in popular entertainment today.

Compared to role model Cher's casual, raunchy banter, Madonna disappointingly spoke very little to the audience between songs. And she ended the show abruptly with no encore. It was sadly jarring to have the spell broken so quickly and with no curtain call. At least some lucky fans in the $350 floor seats got to take home one of the hundreds of shiny gold balloons that fell from the rafters during the finale. Anyone remember the moon balloons from Bowie's Serious Moonlight show?

Unsurprisingly (to this Bowie nut), moments of The Confessions Tour show were highly influenced by David Bowie's performances in the 1970s and '80s, including the diva's reveal from within a glittering disco ball. Bowie had a similar appearance out of a mirrored hand opening up in his Diamond Dogs show of 1974. Madonna's team of aggressive, athletic dancers created mouth-dropping moments of shock and awe, much like Bowie's 1987 Glass Spider entourage did with their dramatic vignettes and dialog sequences, which Madonna has stretched in to full narratives. Don't get me started on Bowie's groundbreaking use of stage video in 1990's Sound + Vision, to which every subsequent pop show owes a debt!

Madonna's multiple video displays perfectly complemented the live action on the various stages, runways, and platforms stretched across the width of the arena. There was so much going on: cages, trap doors, strobe lights, roller skates...I can't spoil it too much, but there were so many astonishing images created during the performance that I can barely remember them all.

Madonna's physical prowess on stage never ceased to amaze. At times, I felt nervous about the physical risks she was taking with some of the choreography. She's going to break a hip someday, throwing herself across the floor like that! At age 47, she possesses an extraordinary muscular strength for so lithe a body, combined with a contortionist's flexibility. If there's a black belt in yoga, Madonna must be 8th degree!

Pardon all my gushing, but I'm someone who generally considered Madonna "my little sister's music." I am certainly nostalgic for some of Madonna's early hits, but I never took her very seriously as a musician, and never appreciated her often crass behavior. Her body is still in great shape, and her singing has matured, though she was plagued with the Forum's muddy arena sound.

I loved all the costumes and set changes, and the phenomenal dancing by some very talented and pretty young people. The guys doing flips on the monkey bars for "Jump", and the roller skating sequences both spring to mind. My favorite segment of the night was Madonna-as-leather-rock-goddess jamming on her black (Les Paul?) guitar for "I Love New York", one of the best and most rocking tracks off Miss M's current Confessions on a Dance Floor album. Madonna obviously relished the opportunity to rock out on stage and it was great fun to see her enjoying herself.

She played most of the songs off the new album, to which I am currently addicted. The quality of song writing is generally good, and the production kicks ass. The beat never stops and neither does the guilty fun. Folks, if you can afford a ticket to see this show, it's totally worth it. Madonna, I tip my hat to you.

The LA Times review describes the show much better than I can here.

P.S. Much has been said about Madonna's appearance on the cross. She stole that from our 1990 dinner theater production of Evita directed by David Armstrong.

Dump the Bitch, Paul

Excuse me, I mean SIR Paul.

No doubt you've all heard about Sir Paul's marital troubles. Sorry about that, Paul. It happens to the best of us. Personally, I never thought Miss Mills did anything for him.

Here's a reason why they broke up.

Driving Without Oil

It's taken 30 years, but Brazil has switched from gasoline to ethanol and has become completely independent from the foreign oil market.

ABC News: Out of Gas -- Brazil Replaces Oil With Homegrown Alternative

Warner Bros. to sell films via BitTorrent

The Digital Revolution is on!

Read the MSN Story.

Original "Star Wars" coming to DVD

I'm so happy to hear that the first Star Wars trilogy (now called Episodes I - III) will soon be available on DVD in their original, unedited versions.

George Lucas has a habit of revising and updating his old films with "enhanced" visual effects, new characters -- he even changed the Ewok celebration music at the end of Return of the Jedi.

To please fans like me, this fall Fox plans to release 2-disc sets with the original theatrical versions and the new, restored versions together.

May the Force be with you...always!

'Star Wars' goes back to basics - Yahoo! News

Your next CD deck may be a PC

Dear Santa Claus,

Here's what I want for Christmas:



Your next CD deck may be a PC - Tech News & Reviews - MSNBC.com

TomKat has spawned

Thank god. At long last, TomKitten is here!

CNN.com - Cruise, Holmes welcome daughter Suri - Apr 19, 2006

Happy Easter

Celebrity Sighting: Samuel L. Jackson

Hey, I saw one of my favorite actors, Samuel L. Jackson, driving in his brand new, black Mercedes convertible this afternoon in Beverly Hills.

Traveling west on Santa Monica Boulevard, he made a right turn on to Palm Drive. I was waiting at the red light at Palm and Santa Monica and he turned right past me. Unmistakably him, in his black Kangol hat.

Amazingly, Samuel L. Jackson has appeared in over 100 films. And in case you haven't heard the news, he recently surpassed Harrison Ford's long held spot as the biggest box office star in the world.

Yep, he's one bad mother-f*cker.

Pooh turns 80! (Hef too)

Hard to believe that Winnie the Pooh is officially 80 years old. He doesn't look a day over 70 to me.

To celebrate, he got his very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony today happens to coincide with the release of "Pooh's Grand Adventure" on DVD.

In other octogenarian news, Playboy founder and publisher Hugh Hefner also turned 80 years young over the weekend. How does he manage to maintain his vast publishing empire AND satisfy three hot young women while staying in his pajamas all day? He gets by with a little help from his friends, of course, and LOTS of Viagra.

Happy Birthday, Hef! You lucky bastard.


Hef gettin' jiggy with Paris Hilton

Jake Gyllenhaal Gets Drunk!

Oscar nominee Jake Gyllenhaal appears to be feeling no pain in these hilarious photos of a pre-Oscar bash with Brokeback Mountain director Ang Lee and other celebs, including Uma Thurman and William Hurt.

Jake Gyllenhaal gets drunk at Pre-Oscars - The Superficial - www.thesuperficial.com

Tom Tancredo vs. Illegal Immigrants

"They are 'a scourge that threatens the very future of our nation,' he says."

Border War: Immigration Debate Heats Up - Newsweek Politics - MSNBC.com

Germs: Dangerous or Not?

If you're a germophobe like me, you will find this article from MSN quite interesting. Some good news, and some suprises!

Germ and Bacteria Hot-Spots: 12 Things You Should Know-MSN Lifestyle - Mind, Body & Soul

More Oscar Fun Results

Well, there weren't many guesses for the mystery IDs of these past Oscar winners. Although Cary Grant and Julie Andrews were featured in the major publicity materials for this year's Academy Awards ceremony, these secondary images feature slightly less "vintage" performers than the previous two.

It's pretty easy to guess the male figure is Sidney Poitier, although this photo was from his recent honorary award from 2002, not his 1963 Best Actor award for Lillies of the Field.





The female is another recent winner, Renee Zellweger for 2003's Cold Mountain. The odd ring on her forefinger triggered my memory and hinted that this was a more recent winner.

Plan to Save the Airlines

This open letter has some great ideas.

A Plan to save bankrupt airlines:

Replace all female flight attendants with some good-looking' strippers! What the hell? The attendants have gotten old and haggard-looking. They don't even serve food anymore, so what's the loss?

The strippers would double, triple, perhaps quadruple the alcohol consumption and get a "party atmosphere" going in the cabin. And, of course, every heterosexual businessman in this country would start flying again, hoping to see naked women.

Muslims would be afraid to get on the planes for fear of seeing naked women.

Hijackings would come to a screeching halt and the airline industry would see record revenues.

Why the hell didn't Bush think of this? Why do I still have to do everything myself?

Sincerely,

Bill Clinton

March Madness in Los Angeles

Today was one of the most unusual days I have ever experienced. Little did I know as I made my way to the Metro station this morning to catch the train to downtown Los Angeles that today I would witness one of the largest public demonstrations in U.S. history!

My first clue that something was amiss was when the train arrived at the Hollywood station. Our Metro system is widely used, but Saturday mornings usually have pretty light passenger volume. Not today. The train arrived completely packed with people. I ran to several different cars looking for space, but they were all full, so I had to dive in with the crowd in hope of getting to work on time.

The train was stuffed with mostly Latino people. They were smiling and engaging in polite conversation, and they were all wearing white T-shirts. Despite the cramped quarters, everyone was in a friendly mood and several people spoke to me reassuringly since they could see I was flabbergasted by the unusually large crowd, and I was the only gringo in sight.

"You OK, man?" one gentleman asked. "You look a little nauseous."

"What's going on?" I asked. "Are you all together?"

He said they were all going downtown to participate in the immigrant rights demonstration in downtown Los Angeles. I hadn't heard a thing about it.

"Where is the protest going to take place?" I asked him.

"We're gathering at Olympic and Broadway, and then marching down to city hall," he replied.

"So you'll be marching down Broadway?"

"Yeah, you can join us if you want," he offered with a smile revealing his gold-lined teeth.

"Oh, thanks. I wish I could, but I've got to get to work today," I said. Inside I was thinking "oh shit" because Broadway is where I work part time on the weekends giving tours of downtown Los Angeles. I knew that any public demonstration on Broadway would definitely affect my tours.

We arrived at the next station to a large group of people who somehow squeezed onto the train with us. The crowds of people waiting on the station platforms got larger and larger at every station. There was simply no room left on the train for more people, and yet they kept crowding on again and again. Luckily everyone was in good spirits, but we were literally packed like sardines together. I couldn't even reach a hand bar so I had to lean on others to keep from falling when the train stopped and started. It was extremely uncomfortable. Beads of sweat began dripping from my face.

"What station are you all getting off at?" I desperately asked my Mexican friend.

"Pershing Square," was the answer. Great, I thought, that is my station as well.

There was no relief from the growing crowds at every train station. At one point it was so bad that the train conductor asked some people to get off and wait for the next train since the cars were so full some of the doors wouldn't close. It was like Tokyo at rush hour, and the train was running several minutes late because of the delays in getting people on and off at each stop. The conductor announced that MTA was ordering more trains into immediate service to accommodate the high volume of passengers.

Finally, we arrived at our destination and everybody got off. I made my way upstairs out of the station and on to Broadway. Sure enough the street was closed to automobile traffic, but there were many Latino people in white shirts congregating. Many of them had banners and flyers with mottos in both Spanish and English, mostly supporting immigrant rights.

"Viva la raza!" someone yelled. Others were cheering things in Spanish I couldn't understand. I was like a complete stranger in my own town. One man said to me, "Good morning, sir." And another gave me a white t-shirt decorated with an American flag and the words "Stand and Salute" eblazoned across the front. "It's free!" he cheerfully explained.

I learned later that although the march had not been well publicized in the mainstream (i.e. white) media, the event had been heavily promoted by Spanish-language radio, and all participants were encouraged to wear white shirts as a sign of peace and solidarity.



Amazingly my morning Historic tour customers made it to the office on time. They were upbeat and very Anglo. The protest march was just officially getting underway as we started our tour. A horse-mounted officer blew his whistle and shouted, "Let's go!" The people started cheering. I took my guests around the neighborhood as best I could through the masses of people. It took some navigating and I had to cut a few things from the tour because of limited access, but we made it through and the folks had a great time.

After the tour, I struggled to make it back to our tour office at the Bradbury Building at 3rd & Broadway. This was almost impossible because by now the crowds were peaking (over half a million people by some estimates) and not only had the march taken over Broadway, it actually was spilling over to side streets and parallel streets like Hill and Spring streets. These streets had not been closed to traffic, so there were hundreds of cars logjammed among the throngs of people who swarmed through the boulevards, effectively shutting down the streets. Horns were blaring, protesters were cheering, helicopters were roaring overhead.



I had to swim against the tide of humanity to make it across Broadway to the Bradbury building. I got as far as the sidewalk and then the momentum went against me and I got swept into the crowd. I couldn't get back to the Bradbury entrance way. Instead I navigated into the Sprint cell phone store at the corner of the building. All the store employees were standing at the windows watching awestruck the scene outside. "Are you OK?" one of them asked me.

"I'm fine thanks, but I'm trying to get to my office inside the Bradbrury building. I got cut off outside," I explained.

"No problem, man. We got a back entrance to the Bradbury building. I'll show you." And he took me through the employees-only area of the store and showed me out through their back door which led to the back door of my tour office just across the hallway. Actually, I knew of the rear entrance from the Sprint store, which is why I went there in the first place, hoping they would help me get inside.

I finally made it back to the office, never expecting the single tourist booked for my twelve o'clock Contemporary tour to actually show up, but he did. Fifteen minutes late, but he showed up. He was a nice man from Toronto, a retired television producer, and he actually offered to reschedule the tour for another day for my sake. But, being the true professional that I am (and a bit of a masochist), I said I would gladly give him the tour since he had worked so hard to get here.

Back out into the streets we went. This guy I gave a special tour since he was the only participant and in fact he had booked also for the ealier Historic tour but couldn't make it in time, so I gave him a hybrid tour including elements from both the Historic and Contemporary tours. He was a friendly fellow and we had a pleasant tour despite the continuing crowds downtown. He took literally hundreds of pictures and had to keep changing the memory cards for his camera. It was bit too much like Austin Powers' as the fashion photographer, if you know what I mean ("Yes, yes, yes! NO!")

By this time, the official march was starting to wind down so not only did we have the end of the "parade" following down Broadway, we had marchers going back in the opposite direction on Hill Street. Police were out in force trying to manage the crowd and the traffic, which was gridlocked beyond belief.

To add to the confusion, there were at least three different film crews trying to shoot downtown today. It's extremely common to see film crews downtown on the weekends shooting movies, TV shows, and commercials. You see their white trucks lined up along the curbs and they often close the sidewalk for filming. Today I'm sure those guys lost their whole day of shooting. Beside the crowds, the noise was unbelievable.

I left my customer at the Cathedral at the conclusion of the second tour and made my way back to the Bradbury building. It was a lot easier this time since the herds were thinning, but there were still many, many people roaming the streets, cheering and waving American and Mexican flags. The street was a mess, littered with all kinds of paper and garbage.

Two hours later now, and things are starting to calm down. Broadway is open to traffic again, but I still hear sirens and helicopters buzzing around outside. I just hope the trains are running with extra capacity by the time I go home.



The picture above shows Broadway Street in Los Angeles where I was trying to give walking tours!

I still can't get over how many people there were in the streets. I've never seen anything like it before in my life.

P.S. MSNBC has an updated news article about today's march. It delves a little deeper into the motivations behind the controversial and emotional immigration issue, which will likely top the agenda for this fall's congressional elections.

More Oscar Fun

Remember those photos of vintage Oscar winners the Academy used for this year's promotional materials? Here are two other photos from that set. These are scans from postcards.

I don't know who the people are yet. See if you can guess!

Are Your Cats Old Enough To Learn About Jesus?

Funny piece from The Onion:

Are Your Cats Old Enough To Learn About Jesus? | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

SI.com - Soccer - Galaxy prez dies on plane returning from match - Friday March 10, 2006 12:09AM

Sad local news.

SI.com - Soccer - Galaxy prez dies on plane returning from match - Friday March 10, 2006 12:09AM

It's Julie Andrews!!

Remember last week when I posted about the photos of vintage Oscar winners in this year's promotional materials? I recognized Cary Grant, but for the life of me I couldn't figure out who the female in the white gloves was.

Well, river selkie is the winner! It is indeed Julie Andrews, as can be confirmed by the photo below. She won the Best Actress Oscar in 1965 for Mary Poppins.



See, I knew she was "close" to Audrey Hepburn!

I Won the Oscar...

...voting contest at the party where I watched the show!



It's true -- I had 13 correct picks for this year's Oscar awards. I was surprised Brokeback Mountain didn't have a stronger showing, though I'm glad it won the awards it did, especially Best Director for Ang Lee. It's very rare to split the awards between Best Director and Best Picture, but Crash was also an excellent film and worthy of the award. This makes two in a row for Paul Haggis, who last year scored with Million Dollar Baby. He's definitely going to get some great phone calls tomorrow.

I'm shocked that the "Pimp" song won instead of Dolly Parton or the Crash song, but I guess the Academy has to skew to the younger crowd to keep the ratings going. Another unusual thing was the use of music to underscore all of the acceptance speeches. Rather than interrupting the speakers to play them off, the orchestra played some cheesy lounge music behind the speeches which psychologically kept the pace of the show moving.

Jon Stewart did a serviceable job but some of his jokes didn't quite play with the stuffy Academy crowd, who were being mocked by Stewart half of the time. It's always weird when the Academy chooses an outsider to host the awards ceremony. I guess they enjoy a little abuse with their praise.

My friends and I got thoroughly drunk on champagne thanks to the great drinking game created by my friend Heidi. This year's "Dead Celeb Montage" really put me over the edge. Luckily a delicious steak dinner helped absorb some of the booze. Wolfgang Puck, eat your heart out.

By the way, that's a real Oscar I'm holding in the photo above. The Academy had all 50 of tonight's award statuettes on display at the Hollywood & Highland shopping center next to the Kodak Theater where the ceremony is held. For the first time, they also had one statuette available for the public to hold and you know what? They are surpringly heavy!

Thanks to The Saint for the photo and the excellent dinner.

Oscar Picks 2006 (hey, that rhymes!)

OK, here are my picks for the winners of the 78th Annual Academy Awards this Sunday, March 5th. I've included only the major categories and my favorites such as Best Original Score. I also offer my prediction for the winners and my personal choices.

If you don't have your own ballot yet, here are a printable PDF version and an html version.

It was a rather weak year for films, until the late fall season when a flood of really excellent films hit the marketplace. Or could it be that the first part of the year was so lame that even a mediocre movie released late in the year seemed good in comparison? Only time will tell.

BEST PICTURE

"Brokeback Mountain," "Capote," "Crash," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Munich."

Will win: "Brokeback Mountain"

My pick: It's a "Brokeback" year without doubt. If any other movie wins the award, it will be a major upset. The momentum behind this film is indomitable and besides that, it's a darn good film. Great acting, directing, cinematography, music; it tells a heartrending, epic love story set in the American west; there's nothing not to love about this film. "Brokeback Mountain" is more than a movie -- it's a cultural phenomenon.

BEST ACTOR

Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Capote"; Terrence Howard, "Hustle & Flow"; Heath Ledger, "Brokeback Mountain"; Joaquin Phoenix, "Walk the Line"; David Strathairn, "Good Night, and Good Luck."

Will win: Philip Seymour Hoffman, and rightly so because he was and is always awesome! I admire Hoffman, especially for his work in P.T. Anderson's Boogie Nights and Magnolia. He's one of the best in the biz.

My pick: Heath Ledger. He dominated this film. What a wonderfully understated performance. He was so real and truthful that I'm actually a bit surprised the Academy even noticed him since there wasn't a lot of "pyrotechnics" in this type of role.

BEST ACTRESS

Judi Dench, "Mrs. Henderson Presents"; Felicity Huffman, "Transamerica"; Keira Knightley, "Pride & Prejudice"; Charlize Theron, "North County"; Reese Witherspoon, "Walk the Line."

Will win: Reese Witherspoon

My pick: Reese. This is not really fair since I haven't seen all the films in this category, but Reese is so popular in Hollywood for being a talented actress and an adorable person. She's consistently good in everything she does and she was great holding her own against Joaquin Phoenix in "Walk The Line."

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

George Clooney, "Syriana"; Matt Dillon, "Crash"; Paul Giamatti, "Cinderella Man"; Jake Gyllenhaal, "Brokeback Mountain"; William Hurt, "A History of Violence."

Will win: George Clooney

My pick: Matt Dillon. This I think is the hardest category because all five are wonderful actors who gave excellent performances. Each of them deserves to win, but I think Clooney will walk away with it because he's a favorite in Hollywood and he's an actor who is also finding success as a director (nominated this year for "Good Night, and Good Luck") and that is a huge aphrodisiac to Academy voters. Giamatti was robbed last year for "Sideways" which he should have easily won. But that was last year. Jake won't upstage Heath for "Brokeback" and William Hurt's already won the Best Actor award for "Kiss of the Spider Woman" way back in 1986. First time nominee Matt Dillon is one of my all-time favorites and he's always been something of an outsider (no pun intended!), so I'm going with him. (Huh, I wish I were!)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Adams, "Junebug"; Catherine Keener, "Capote"; Frances McDormand, "North Country"; Rachel Weisz, "The Constant Gardener"; Michelle Williams, "Brokeback Mountain."

Will win: Rachel Weisz.

My pick: Rachel Weisz. She's becoming the "It Girl" of the moment and she gave a standout performance in the mesmerizing "The Constant Gardener". Keener and Williams gave fine performances in their respective films, but nobody blew me away. I haven't seen the others, though Frances McDormand is always amazing.

BEST DIRECTOR

Ang Lee, "Brokeback Mountain"; Bennett Miller, "Capote"; Paul Haggis, "Crash"; George Clooney, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Steven Spielberg, "Munich."

Will win: Ang Lee

My pick: Ang Lee. How can you have the best film of the year without being the best director of the year?! I know it's happened before (remember the Saving Private Ryan - Shakespeare in Love split back in '99?), but I'm not sure this is the year for an upset, especially considering how popular and respected Ang Lee is. Having said that, Paul Haggis is a contender because he won the screenplay award last year for the Best Picure "Million Dollar Baby." Miller did a great job with "Capote" and again Clooney is a Hollywood favorite. I haven't seen "Munich" yet, but considering it's a Spielberg film, it can't be that bad!

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, "Brokeback Mountain"; Dan Futterman, "Capote"; Jeffrey Caine, "The Constant Gardener"; Josh Olson, "A History of Violence"; Tony Kushner and Eric Roth, "Munich."

Will win: "Brokeback Mountain", Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana

My pick: "Brokeback Mountain" All of these screenplays are worthy of the award, but I think "Brokeback" will continue its sweep of the major categories. Plus McMurtry is a long-time favorite (Lonesome Dove, Terms of Endearment, The Last Picture Show, Hud) and it was a notable achievement to take a short story, albeit an excellent one, and flesh it out into a full-length drama without spreading the story too thin.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco, "Crash"; George Clooney and Grant Heslov, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Woody Allen, "Match Point"; Noah Baumbach, "The Squid and the Whale"; Stephen Gaghan, "Syriana."

Will win: "Crash", Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco

My pick: "Crash". A really tough category! I saw all of these except for the Woody Allen film and again each of them are deserving of recognition. But I think "Crash" walks away with it because the film did create a big splash and has had huge legs in Hollywood terms. The film was released almost a year ago and yet people are still discovering the film and talking about it. It impressed a lot of people. Plus, as mentioned above, Paul Haggis is hot now for his success last year with Million Dollar Baby.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Gustavo Santaolalla, "Brokeback Mountain"; Alberto Iglesias, "The Contant Garndener"; John Williams, "Memoirs of a Geisha"; John Williams, "Munich"; Dario Marianelli, "Pride & Prejudice"

Will win: "Brokeback Mountain"

My pick: "Memoirs of a Geisha" As much as I loved the music in "Brokeback Mountain" (I loved Santaolalla's work in The Motorcycle Diaries and Amores Perros), I have to go with my favorite John Williams and his wonderful score to "Memoirs of a Geisha." Williams is the best at enhancing character development through thematic music. In fact, no one can touch him in that regard. And although he's the hardest working man in movie music, with no less than FOUR feature scores this year (!), his music is always sincere and appropriate. I thought he did a wonderful job of blending western orchestrations with traditional Japanese instruments and themes.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Michael Becker and Kathleen "Bird" York, "In the Deep" - CRASH; Paul Beauregard and Jordan Houston, "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" - HUSTLE & FLOW; Dolly Parton, "Travelin' Thru" - TRANSAMERICA

Will win: "In the Deep", CRASH

My pick: "In the Deep", CRASH. This is mostly because I haven't seen the other movies! It's a big step for Oscar to recognize hip-hop music as a legitimate art form, but I don't think the Academy is quite hip enough to actually award a song with the word "pimp" in the title. Dolly Parton is a long-time popular favorite and previous Oscar nominee ("9 to 5") but she's never won an Oscar so this could be her year.

OK, that's far more information than anyone deserves to suffer through, so if you actually read this far you owe yourself a stiff drink! So break out the bubbly, get your ballots and pencils handy, and let's hope for an entertaining broadcast regardless of who wins or loses.

In the words of a dear friend, "Oh Oscar, who will your golden light shine upon tonight?!"

Who's Holding the Oscar?

Surely you've seen these posters advertising the 78th Annual Academy Awards coming up this Sunday, March 5th. What hasn't been revealed are the identities of the two "vintage" celebrities holding the Oscar statuettes in the photos.

Well, I thought immediately that the man in the black tux was Cary Grant. It just looked like his tanned, manicured hands. And the French cuffs were a giveaway. Here's a more complete photo to compare (check out the cuffs):



I'm still not sure who the female in the white gloves is. At first I thought Audrey Hepburn, but a subsequent Google image search shows a different dress on Audrey when she won. Second choice Grace Kelly is close; she wore the white dress and gloves, but no necklace.

Anybody want to guess who she is?

Neil Diamond: 12 Songs

If you haven't heard the great new album 12 Songs from Neil Diamond, do yourself a favor and get it. ND fans especially will love it, but casual listeners will certain appreciate the simplicity and sincerity of Mr. Diamond's songs and performances (he plays guitar on every track) and the stripped-down production by Rick Rubin.

The songs are also pretty fun to play on guitar.
It's classic Neil Diamond circa 2006!

Mine's Bigger Than Yours

Yes! The Milky Way kicks ass!

SPACE.com -- Milky Way vs. Andromeda: Study Settles Which Is More Massive

Dubya and Rummy

This is a bad joke, but I just couldn't resist republishing it here:

President Bush and Rumsfeld are sitting in a bar. A guy walks in and asks the barman, "Isn't that Bush and Rumsfeld sitting over there?"

The bartender says, "Yep, that's them."

So the guy walks over and says, "Wow, this is a real honor! What are you gentlemen doing in here?"

Bush says, "We're planning WW III."

And the guy says, "Really? What's going to happen?"

Bush says, "Well, we're going to kill 140 million Muslims and one blonde with big boobs."

The guy exclaimed, "A blonde with big boobs? Why kill a blonde with big boobs?"

Bush turns to Rumsfeld and says, "See, I told you no one cares about the 140 million Muslims."

A Thief With Taste and A New Guitar

I just discovered one more thing that poor crook took from my apartment. As I mentioned before, since he didn't find very much of monetary value in my apartment, he took the item with the most cultural value: my beloved Yamaha guitar.

Today I realize he took not only the guitar and its gig bag, he also took my Beatles music book. That was a huge book with almost all the Beatles songs in full piano score with guitar chord symbols. At least he had some taste. No doubt he's probably some starving musician in need of creative expression. Or maybe he thought, "What can I do with all my free time as a homeless person? I need a new hobby. Hey, I'll take up the guitar, and what better place to start than with the Beatles?!" More power to him.

The good news is, I invested in a new guitar last night! I chose an Ibanez acoustic-electric (model AEL20ETRS) and it is beautiful. I spent several hours on Friday at Guitar Center with my bandmate Frank, but I just wasn't satisfied with anything I played there. My price limit was about $200, and there are some decent models available in that range, but nothing that felt like an improvement on my last instrument and it is definitely time for me to step up a level so I can continue growing as a musician.

So Saturday evening, I met my friend Heidster at Sam Ash on Sunset and we spent several more hours playing various guitars. We were there so long, we went through two or three salesmen. But the staff at Sam Ash were very considerate and allowed us time to play with the instruments until we found the Ibanez (ridiculously pronounced AY-ban-nez, with the long "I") that felt right.

And I got a good deal on it. The guitar lists for $500, but it was marked down to $350. I bought it for $300. It's more than I wanted to spend, but I don't mind a bit investing more to get a better quality instrument and I feel very about the instrument I got.



Actually the financial investment is not only in the guitar, it's really an investment in ME -- and damn it, I'm worth it!

Special thanks to Frank and Heidi, and all those suffering guitar salesmen who have to endure the wishy-washy nature of rookies like me.

I Got Robbed

It's no joke. My apartment was broken into today. Not to quote the Beatles, but they came in through the bathroom window -- cut right through the screen with a sharp blade of some kind.

Fortunately, they didn’t get away with anything of significant value. They took only a handful of things like spare change and a few things that are probably easy to exchange for cash. Based on the circumstances, I would guess the person is homeless.

The items missing include:

-- a collectible silver dollar my Dad gave me for Christmas. It was in my desk drawer (they left the case)

-- a huge amount of loose change that I deposit daily into a giant plastic cup on my kitchen counter (they left the cup and took only the change! )

-- a blue knit cap that was hanging on my closet door (they left the scarf and sweater which were also hanging there)

-- something from the closet (I can see the circular dust ring where it sat, but I can't recall yet what I put there.)

-- a bowl's worth of pot stashed in my bathroom drawer (they left the pipe, screens, and lighter)

-- Worst of all, they took my guitar and its gig bag (carrying case). However, they were kind enough to remove my music book and from the gig bag and throw it on the floor before they left.

Strangely, the thief left something behind. I found a dirty sock, not one of mine, sitting crumpled up on my bed. No idea what that's about.

Here’s the irony of the whole situation: my front door was completely unlocked since I was expecting the plumbers to arrive to clear out a clogged drain. The plumber was actually working in my apartment when I arrived home and noticed some things missing. After interviewing the plumber, I don’t think he had anything to do with the robbery.

What a day, huh? Because of the clogged drains, I haven't been able to use the toilet or take a shower for two days. And I thought it was bad enough to have raw sewage backing up into my shower and bath tub, but to get robbed on the same day.... Talk about adding insult to injury!

So lock your doors and windows, kids. Although my neighborhood is generally very safe, we are clearly vulnerable to theft at any time.

Happy Birthday, Wolfgang!

You may know that today, January 27, 2006 is the 250th anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Most folks are at least vaguely familiar with Mozart's life as a child prodigy, his adult life as a professional musician and composer, and his tragic death at the age of 35 years old.

It's hard to believe that in his short life, Mr. M. composed over 600 compositions, many of them masterpieces. He was proficient in all forms of classical composition: keyboard sonatas, chamber music, concertos, dance and ballet music, songs, marches, operas, oratorios, and sacred music such as Masses and his infamous Requiem. Oh yes, he also wrote dozens of symphonies -- at least 30 of them by age 20!

I had the great privilege during my early musical career to sing tenor with a professional orchestra for Mozart's final and most haunting composition, the Requiem. It was an extremely challenging and emotional experience, considering that Mozart wrote it for himself during the illness that would end his life. Although he was unable to finish the piece alone (a student of his completed the orchestration), it remains one of his most inspiring pieces.

For more information about W.A. Mozart's life and music, check out the Mozart Project.

Why Not, "Emily"?

CNN.com - Why did ABC cancel 'Emily' after 1 show? - Jan 23, 2006

TV executives make me sick. They must be the stupidest people on planet Earth. Why else would they spend millions of dollars on a new sitcom and then cancel it after only one airing? Could it be they hadn't even read the script before OK-ing the huge publicity campaign for the new show?

That is exactly what happened, according to ABC entertainment president Stephen McPherson. Six episodes of "Emily's Reasons Why Not" starring super-cutey Heather Graham were filmed, but only one episode aired, to poor ratings. Once the powers that be finally bothered to watch the show, they decided they didn't like it so they pulled plug. That takes balls. It takes even more balls to flagrantly waste your corporate shareholder's money and then casually admit the fact without batting an eye.

Actually, I don't give a crap about network television, but I did watch the first episode of "Emily" and although it was not Shakespeare, it certainly wasn't any worse than the rest of the garbage polluting the airwaves. Besides, I really like Heather Graham and I was hoping the show would be a big hit for her, especially since her face is plastered on dozens of billboards advertising the show all around Los Angeles.

Oh well, I guess it's a big disappointment for everyone concerned and not a nice birthday present for Heather, who turns 36 on January 29th. Happy Birthday, Heather!

War's stunning price tag - Los Angeles Times

War's stunning price tag - Los Angeles Times

Oh my god, we must be the stupidest country on Earth. This LA Times op-ed piece reveals the economic results of the war in Iraq, estimated to cost somewhere between $1 and $2 trillion, with no end to the conflict in sight.

It's a very interesting and well-written article. Free site registration may be required to view it.

King Day

"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thank you, Dr. King, for sacrificing your life so that the rest of us can have an extra day to rest and shop.

He'd be turning in his grave.

Iraq IS in a Civil War

At last someone has finally admitted that Iraq is already in a civil war, not just "threatened" by one as the administration keeps warning, and it's no surprise that the brave soul who has admitted the truth is Rep. John Murtha, who last year blasted the Bush-ies and called for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

Murtha is now blogging on The Huffington Post and you can read his statement here.