LONELY BOY AND MR. LONELY IN LONESOME TOWN

The headline borrows (steals?) the title of three songs that were released during the “golden oldies” era of popular music. The first was a song recorded by Paul Anka, the second by Bobby Vinton, and the third from Ricky Nelson that describes the singer’s (supposably) status within their lives. It was showing to its audience of pop music lovers that life, especially with it comes to romance, is rather hard. This is true when you hold a desire for a second person, romantic or otherwise, and don’t have that second person due to the fact that that person isn’t available or just doesn’t exist.

Throughout domestic life, it’s been proven that human beings are social creatures. There is a need for having a person or persons around for anything and everything from conversations, sharing an experience of engaging in some activity or event, or to have that cozy time with the other and could include sex (*Gasp!*).

And when it comes to being lonely, especially when that person doesn’t necessarily desire to be isolated, then things can go array. Emotional outbursts could occur ranging from becoming worrisome to suffering a nervous breakdown. When one is isolated through circumstances not of their making, then that person “creates” a companion just for the sake of keeping one’s sanity in check, such in the case as the main plot of the feature film Cast Away, where the protagonist played by Tom Hanks survives a plane crash over the Pacific ocean and is washed ashore on a deserted island. In order to save his wits, he makes “friends” with a soccer ball that was washed ashore who he named “Wilson” (after the ball’s manufacture) for the period that he’s on the island.

Recently, the U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, released a report that states loneliness is a domestic epidemic, adding that the stress and anxiety of being alone when the person doesn’t necessarily desire such is equivalent to smoking up to fifteen cigarettes a day.

The report states that being alone has increased over the last few years. Its causes from people being isolated range from many sources and outlets. It could be that social media is a factor as one can have as many as 5000 “friends” via their Facebook portal, yet the person may know as many as none of these forks personally. Another factor was the rise and fall from the pandemic that began in March of 2020, and “ended” on May 11th of this year. (In theory anyway!!) And it could be the cause that people are too “busy” with keeping in contact with others for meet ups, or doing anything that is an in-person activity.

Once upon a time, people did get together for events that range from dinner parties at home, to group outings both indoors and outdoors, as well as joining clubs and social gatherings that deal with a specific purpose or not. Home entertaining in the 20th century here in this nation and perhaps in nations abroad starting out as dinner events. After the meal, perhaps there would be a sing-a-long around the piano. When Television came around, people were watching that device at home. In its early days, it was a group activity. When this writer’s grandfather bought an RCA television machine with a 12” screen, the neighbors gathered to watch these programs rather than radio shows with pictures. On Saturday night, my grandparents, along with a few others in the neighborhood, watched Your Show Of Shows and even made a party out of it by popping popcorn and serving bottles of Coke. Later, when others in the neighborhood got their one TV set, the gatherings faded off. Before long, TV watching was a solo activity. It would only be a group gathering for a special televised event, such as the annual Academy Awards program, to The Super Bowl.

Then social media started to kick in decades later. It started with chat rooms found on the American Online (AOL) portal, as well as other portal. Then other social media outlets such as MySpace and Facebook did their thing where folks can inform those interested (or not) about what they were up to. Soon, they would have others as “friends” sharing the same pictures, details on their lives, and other factors one could do in person. It was just more convenient to do these kinds of things online since one can engage these sharing moments whenever and wherever.

And there was the pandemic that forced people to hunker down. The only method they could communicate outside of the social media outlets were through meetings via “Zoom”. After things started to get back to a so-called normal, the Zoom meeting dwindled, although people still use this online platform to keep in touch because it’s easy to do, and because they just can do it!

But when it comes to isolation? According to the Surgeon General’s report, it’s not getting better. The report notes that among other elements, that adults eighteen years and up in the US have experienced being alone more than ever before. The report notes that the average time people spend in-person in the year 2020 (pre-pandemic) was around twenty minutes. In c. 1990, it was around sixty minutes.

And folks are not being involved with social clubs or activities. This could be the factor that such groups or groups are not available, or no longer available. Yours truly has seen this personally when a local church in this person’s neighborhood used to offer events that pertain through the church’s teachings. When attending such events, one can obtain acquaintances that may lead toward a possible friendship. Then the church cut back on these events, many folks became frustrated, only to leave to another outlet, sometimes taking desperate measures. This writer even took that opportunity to obtain a house in a small community in the midwest that was last visited by this writer in 1975 for possible relocation. And what was one of the inspiration factors to do such? Because a church in that area was offering loads of social activities and events, while the local church here in Los Angeles proper wasn’t! In other words, the local church wasn’t “putting out”!

Of course, there has been many reports and writings in the media that give solutions on how to overcome these aspects, such as reaching out to contact a person that one knows or even one may have known. However, sometimes that can even backfire when the person being contacted holds minimal interest in communication through reasons of their own. This has even happened to this same writer (“me”) when I tried to say “hello” and they said “hi” and nothing else more, or not responding. Again, they were just too “busy” to reply. Such as life!

Perhaps this report can be used as a wake up call to those that are going through the process of feeling isolated. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Using online portals such as Meetup.com, one can find a group or event to take part in and possibly find a person or persons to keep in contact with. There’s no guarantee, or it could help! And to quite a line that is attributed by Woody Allen, he stated something to the effect that 90% of success is by just showing up! If he stated this line or not, it’s great advice to follow. Just try to contact those friends you got on Facebook and ask them if they want to meet. You may receive a reply or not. It all depends if they are in the area, or if they are a real person. After all, A.I. Is here and it ain’t going away yet. But that’s for another story, and another article.

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Theatre Palisades presents John Van Druten’s BELL BOOK & CANDLE, a dramatic comedy whose main protagonist Gillian Holroyd (Jasmine Haver) practices witchcraft while living in New York City. (The Murry Hill district to be exact!)

Living in a unit on the second floor is Shepherd Henderson (Andrew Cereghino) He’s involved as a publisher that’s ready to publish a manuscript involving magic and the supernatural written by Sidney Redlitch (Michael Anthony Nozzi), a well seasoned gentleman and serves as her rival in magic. So Gillian, with the assistance of her black cat Pywacket, places a spell on Shepherd, or “Shep” as he’s known, to fall in love with her. However, those that practice witchcraft can’t fall in love as emotions are not allowed in witchcraft. That fact is backed by Gillian’s family consisting of her brother Nicky (Jeff Coppage) and her Aunt Queenie (Laura Goldstein). But is Gillian’s plot to use Shep as a love interest going to defeat her rival into getting his book published, or can those that practices supernatural spells can really fall in love just like a “real” human?

This play written by John van Druten dates back to c.1950, during a time where witches and warlocks were rarely depicted in media, let alone stage plays! And even when if did occurre, it was deemed as comedy rather than as stories and tales that reek sinister intentions. That is the notation of this play where its comic reactions are rather mild at best. There are no real belly laughs presented, but more akin to a post-modern romantic comedy, long before the idea of a “rom-com” could ever work out as a genre. In this Theater Palisades production, the setting is placed into more modern times as in this case, the later 1970’s where classic style telephones depict a minor plot point while the costuming by Maria O’Conner and Hannah Jackson more reflect to the era depicted.

As to the cast, Jasmine Haver as Gillian is a witch that is far from being ominous. In fact, she’s more of the pleasing leading type. Andrew Cereghino as Shep is more of the rom com-esque kind of guy that can get into a romantic situation holding a comical finesse. Jeff Coppage as Nicky is more of a low key warlock. He can conjure up a spell only when the need arises. The only real comedy comes from Michael Anthony Nozzi as Sidney as well as Laura Goldstein as Aunt Quinnie. They are the older over-the-top grains that remind those watching this production that it’s still funny to be magical, just as long as those spells are for some comical good.

Sherman Wayne, Theater Palisades’ long running set and lighting designer, is back at helm dressing and lighing up the apartment set where all of the magic takes place.

Although there is a black cat depicted as one of its characters (“Pywacket”), no cat is used in this production. Only a black cat figurine appears since cats themselves don’t make great actors! (They can’t take stage direction as well as not remembering their lines!)

Directed by Brandon Polanco, BELL BOOK & CANDLE is a stage play that still holds up even long after its seventy-plus year debut. It’s a piece that has humor, romance, and does show which witch is which!

BELL BOOK & CANDLE, presented by Theater Palisades and performs at the Pierson Playhouse, 941 Temescal Canyon Road (off Sunset Blvd.), Pacific Palisades, until July 8th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday matinees at 2:00 PM.

Ticket reservations can be obtained by calling (310) 454-1970, or through the Pacific Palisades Theatre website at http://www.TheatrePalisades.com

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As an entry for this year’s Hollywood Fringe Fest, Art Shulman appears in his solo show BEING 80: TOO OLD TO CHANGE? Where he speaks upon turning that milestone age of twenty years short of being one hundred.

In this hour long program, Art speaks on his life asking if he’s indeed ready for a change of idea. He speaks on his long life, and in spite of the fact that he’s lost a bit of his hearing, enough that he watches TV with the captions on, he can make the change.

Art Shuman is better known as a playwright. Many of his plays have been performed in various theaters in the Los Angeles region. His plays ran between comedy such as The Rabbi And The Shiksa, historical dramas as Not One More Foot of Land, dramities as Boxcar and Eugenia, and many other titles. But in his show, Art portrays himself as he emotes that he is eighty years of age, not just ’80 years old’!

That is one of the changes that Art, as well as others of his vintage, is stating for themselves. Morry Schorr directs his show with Art in charge, taking his octagonal period in life as his state of being.

But Art is not done yet. He still has other things to do. He get active, both mentally and physically. So he’ll be around for a while, getting ready for his tale of turning ninety. That won’t occur for another ten years. Until then, stay tuned!

BEING 80: TOO OLD TO CHANGE? Presented as an entry to the Hollywood Fringe Fest and performs at The Actors Company, 916 North Formosa (off Santa Monica Blvd). West Hollywood. Showtimes are June 11th at 11:00 AM, June 17th at 7:00 PM, June 24th at 5:30 PM, and June 25th at 2:00 PM.

Tickets can be ordered online at www.tinyurl.com/being80

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SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER VERSE (Sony Studios/Columbia Pictures) continues the story of Miles Moraler a.k.a. Spider-Man (voiced by Sharmelk Moore) who rejoins Gwen Stacy/Spider-Woman (Hailee Steinfeld) into the Multiverse, meeting up with a team known as the Spider Society, consisting of Spider-People Miguel O-Hara/Spider-Man 2099 (Oscar Isaac), Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman (Issa Rae), Peter B. Parker/Spider-Man (Jake Johnson), and Ben Reily/Scarlet Spider (Jake Johnson), where they hold responsible into protecting the Multiverse. But these Spiders clash upon one threat to the next as Miles is set out on his own to save those that he loves the most.

To present that plot point toward this latest entry into the animated version of Spider-Man is just scratching the surface. This animated feature takes many elements from its original 2018 release Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, graphic novels of various styles and formats, as well as the traditional comic book that’s been part of comic book fandom, and sets itself off as a feature that is wild in appearance, and hyperkinetic in style and substance.

The screenplay by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Dave Callaham shows how “The Spiders” meet up with those that fall in and out of the Multiverse and its mortal setting. Mostly, Manhattan and Brooklyn where Miles is based out of. What makes this movie stand out is its animation. It’s enough where three directors, Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson are in charge to keep this feature flowing from its first few minutes to its final climax some two hours later.

It’s also rather obvious that this movie is geared toward the younger demographics i.e. Gen-Zers that discovered “Spidey” many years after its creation in the early 1960s when the Marvel Comic Group, helmed by the late Stan Lee, entered the comic book industry where it was big enough to rival what later was called DC Comics, and far longer before the movie studios took over this form of media. (DC is owned by Warner Bros.-Discovery, while Marvel is owned by The Walt Disney Company!)

Although its style, pacing, and overall feel and look to it impressed this reviewer highly. However at the same time, it was somewhat headache inducing. But as a reviewer that became a first generation patron to the art of comics and its comic book art, it’s a rather far cry from the animation that was depicted in the decade of the 1960s, and through later animated interpretations. Nevertheless, one will receive more back out of one’s movie attending buck! Let’s see more animated films like this one. And with the box office gain this movie will rack up, there will be more down the pipeline. Just keep your Spider senses up and running.

This feature is rated “PG-13” for animation style violence, not-too-rough language, and thematic elements. (It’s also approved by the Comics Code Authority!) Now playing at multiplexes nationwide.

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Any fan of movies that within a genre called “film noir”, that consists of movie dramas, usually created in the 1940s and 1950s that consist of themes that are dark in nature, hold characters that hold sinister intentions, usually are down and out, and face a consequence that deals in corruption, revenge, and even murder (or two), one will note that one will see three special elements depicted: the use of firearms (mostly handguns), smoking, and the consumption of alcohol–lots of alcohol!

The first two elements on this list won’t be referenced for now as those are for essays into themselves. But the third notion of alcohol, also known as “booze”, “hooch”, “sauce”, ‘gigglewater”, and dozens of other names that this kind of beverage has been called that can be consumed to get one’s spirits up, (no pun intended), much of this kind has been served as a cocktail. That’s the mixing of other ingredients as something that’s downed quickly.

Eddie Muller, host of TCM’s weekly series Noir Alley that spotlights a movie that holds there dark aspects, has compiled a new book NOIR BAR: COCKTAILS INSPIRED BY THE WORLD OF FILM NOIR (Running Press), that features a collection of recipes of cocktails that are front and center to those that were consumed in these flicks, enough where one can actually taste how good they are, even when the settings and situations are anything but!

Muller roundup great ideas for such spirits as Barbados Rum Punch (inspired by the feature Alias Nick Beal, Pearl Diver (taken from the film The Blue Gardenia), Pisco Punch (extracted from the title Raw Deal), as well as drinks that are so powerful, their names are the movies themselves, such as Mildred Pierce (The movie of the same name that shows Joan Crawford as her best or “worst”), and a Lee Tracy, inspired from the film High Tide, that stars Tracy as one of the protagonists.

Also, Muller also creates a guide on how one can have all of the right tools of the trade to maintain the perfect bar setting, as well as suggestions of what to stock up in a bar that can have anyone ready to mix up a drink when the need arises for guests (invited or uninvited), to consumes, or even for drinking by one’s self. After all, when it comes to film noir, drinking can be for two, a dozen, or even places as a solo activity!

The author began his long career as a bartender in the San Francisco bay area where plenty of noir titles made their mark. (New York and Los Angeles also had their noir places set on the big screen!) And as “The Czar of Noir”, Muller knows how to set these dandies up for those to consume and enjoy, depending on how one’s sobriety stands out.

And for those tea totalers out there that enjoy the idea of cocktails but can’t (or won’t) consume one, this book has plenty of pictures of movie scenes and film ads that highlight the spirit (another, no pun intended) of these dark tales from not so long ago. And the art direction created by Paul Kepple, photography by Steve Legato, and prop stylist Kelsi Windmiller creates the flavor to what makes a dark film rather dark indeed!

It’s also fair to note that many of the cocktails may back a wallop!! (Sorry, no “Shirley Temples” or other related “kid drinks” are to be found here!) So enjoy the movies, enjoy the book, and of course, drink responsibly! And leave the keys to the ’46 Plymouth (or any motorized vehicle for that matter), in the hands of those that are stone sober as a judge!

NOIR BAR: COCKTAILS INSPIRED BY THE WORLD OF FILM NOIR, now available were better books are sold, both in store and online.

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

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VACATION TO WHERE??

Around this time of year, folks sometimes plan for their summer season that’s already here. (And never mind the fact that “Summer” officially begins on June 21st!) Some people will plan the usual summer antics. But one element always comes around when it comes to summer activities. Where will one go on a vacation?

The term “vacation” means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. A so-called traditional summer consists of heading off to some location be it based on nature, such as a beach resort, a camping trip to a national or regional park, or to some distant community that is far unique to the area where one may reside. Or it could be heading to a place that is familiar to the traveler, such as a cabin, or maybe a resort where one can grab that needed “R&R”. It could even be a virtual place that succeeded the need for the person, even if that person isn’t going to a specific physical place. The list can be endless.

As for this writer, I have been solicited (nagged?) in the recent past on where I should spend my time “on vacation”. These little reminder usually fall within the setting of advertisements from commercial companies that tend to toot their horn on why I should spend my time (and money of course), to their little place set off in some distant or not-so-distant land that could be my vacation spot for the year, and possibly for years to come.

First, I am rather honored to have these companies reach out to me to inform me about their little and perhaps not-to-little spot on the globe. It’s not often what these outlets can find me for these invites. And once in a while, these domains will call me by my real name, rather than a generic title such as “occupant”, “resident”, or no title at all. Just as long as they can tell me about their offerings, then maybe I’ll take a bite and actually visit these places even though they don’t necessarily know who they are reaching out to!

However, in spite of all of these notices I receive, I have been persuaded upon making my personal decision on where I want to go, when I will be going, and how it will all be happening.

So to let these folks know who will be the lucky winner of my choice for their vacation spot for the season, I will officially pick my choice.

And the winner is? Nobody! Plain and simple.

First and foremost, it’s not that I don’t enjoy what these places have to offer. From the pictures that these firms post, as well as the moving imagery (video clips) that showcase the best of what they have, complete with cheesy sounding production music beds, some testimonials from people that state to the video capturing device, as well as other forms of media one can cram into a website, an email blast, and even their social media portals, it appears that their places are great, wonderful, and will suit all of my needs to take that vacation of the year that will beat out all vacations here and now.

However, as wonderful as they appear to be, I just can’t fathom the idea of spending some time (and money) at their places and locations. It’s not that they are not great or anything, it’s just that I really don’t care to spend my days (or even a day) getting my R&R at these places and similar spots in so-called “paradise”.

So what am I going to do for a vacation this year? Perhaps I may take one, or maybe I won’t! Or at least not to spend the days at leisure.

When I do rave, it’s usually done for a specific purpose. And that purpose isn’t necessarily one that involves any leisure. It may be a trip to conduct some form of business. It may be a trip to attend somebody’s life milestone, and yes, one of those life milestones can involve a death! Or it could be for any reason that I must travel based upon a purpose that is based upon my making, or somebody’s else’ choosing.

In short, if I don’t have to be at a special place located far from where I hang my hat, I won’t and don’t go! Plain and simple!

So you folks with the vacation spot out there that would be pleased to see me there to spend that time and money at their sources, even though you don’t call me by my name, let alone that you don’t know my name, I will say to you a hearty “Thanks but no thanks!”

However, if you still insist on contacting me on what you have to offer, I’ll take a peek at it. I’ll read your ad copy, look at your staged(?) pictures, as well as glance at your video clips. However, don’t expect me to contact you folks informing you on when I’ll get myself out there. I may call to make that reservation, or maybe I won’t!

However, if you do insist in sending me the low down of your place, please keep the pictures to a minimum, as well as the video clips. And please find a better selection of stock music beds! Music dose matter of course, but the right selection of music is even better. Then again, I can watch clips with the sound off. But I won’t be able to hear the “testimonials” of the people on camera telling the viewers on why this place is the best place to spend time. Then again, if somebody was going to pay and/or comp me to give rave reviews to an unknown audience, perhaps I would also rave on how these places are the best spots to live those hazy crazy lazy days o’ summer, or summer-esque season. But that has let to happen, so I rest (and relaxation) my case!!

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

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REMEMBER THE MEMORIAL

This upcoming weekend in the USA, it’s the Memorial Day weekend where on Monday, May 29th, the nation pays tribute to those that served within the American Forces in battle or combat, but never came home to receive their glory, as well as telling stories on how it was like in the services–good, bad, or otherwise.

And for many years, this news service did pay tribute to that holiday as it’s an important one to take note. Of course, it’s also the unofficial start of the Summer season where many people will welcome the summer months that fall ahead.

This time around, we are going to remember our notes for this time of year as we reprint our notes on what we had to say, as we “Remember The Memorial” via Vol. 13-No. 21-Week of May 26th, 2008…

Memorial Day, taking place on May 26th of this year, is the traditional day to remember those that have perished in the line of military duty. The ones remembered are the fighting men (and in current times, fighting women), that have gone of to war or battle never to return participating in the conflicts that this nation has been involved in from the Civil War (when Memorial Day was created c.1866 by John A. Logan, a Northern Army general from Murphysburo, Illinois who served in the war between the states) to the current conflict that is for the time being, has taken a back seat position in the news headlines for other matters, such as the Democratic candidate battle, the recession, and other notes of importance.

In spite of all of the pomp and circumstance that this holiday has witnessed, this last full weekend in May has also served as the start of the summer season. This is the time where folks in the good ol’’ USA fired up their barbecues, went on a trip somewhere, and just took advantage of those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer until the Labor Day weekend.

We can’t state the status of the barbecues, but that trip somewhere? As long as that trip was taken by bicycle, on foot, or in some other motorized vehicle that didn’t use much fuel, it appeared that many people just stayed put. But even those trips that took place by only getting across town, people just didn’t want to use their cars and trucks–especially those trucks that at one time was the hottest thing on the roads–open or otherwise!

Since the start of this year (this writer will get back to the Memorial Day part of this essay in a moment), one of the biggest selling vehicles has been the motor scooter and the hybrid car. Sales of those lighter two wheeled motorized bikes have spiked! Many dealers that sell the line of Yahamas, Hondas, and the Vespas–those classic Italian bikes that one could find somewhere in a Fellini film, has made a comeback. According to dealers that sell these bikes to new riders, nearly 95% of those customers stated that current gas prices are the real cause to grab these bikes. And hybrid cars? Toyota had recently reported that the Prius, the car with the unusual name that were first introduced in Japan in 1997–around the time that the SUV in America was at its peak, sold 1.028 million of these vehicles around the world as of the end of April, according to a report filed by Toyota Motor Corporation.

Since getting around town isn’t just for pleasure per se, driving some sort of motorized vehicle that takes on little gas (or at all) is downright appealing! Sure, one should have something that’s fun to drive, but as long as it ain’t going to cost an arm and a leg, why not take advantage of something that is there? Sadly, because of the supply and demand cycle, one won’t necessarily find a whole lot of cost cutting bargains around. So if one is in the market for something of this nature, expect to pay in full!

So what does driving in an almost gasless car or bike have to do with Memorial Day? Nothing really! It’s just that in these current times, one has to get one self in gear to switch from one topic to the next. Call this way of progress as another method of being bombarded with too much media around! If one starts their morning checking their e-mail messages (even if 90% of those messages would be considered as “junk”) long before that person even speaks to a real person, then this is where the rub begins–or even ends for that matter! So as a word of caution, expect this publication to do the same thing in the near future!

This writer also believes that rocky road ice cream is long overdue for a major comeback!! But we will save that topic for another edition! Stay tuned!!

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Theatre 40 of Beverly Hills concludes their 2022-23 season with THE REVOLUTIONISTS, Lauren Gunderson’s play about four women dealing with a national revolution taking place in their country, each one handing it through their own ways and means.

The setting is France. It’s 1793 and there’s a “reign of terror” that’s going on where emotions are high along with a guillotine ready for action. Kat Kemmet is Olympe de Gourges, a playwright that’s starting out on her new venture, yet deciding on what play she should write about. Sami Stummanis is Charlotte Corday, who’s hell bent is plotting to assassinate one of the people connected toward the reason why the nation is in turmoil. Alana J. Webster is Marianne Angelle, a free Haitian who is fighting to keep her country of origin away from holding slaves in working the sugar cane farms so France can keep their sweets sweet. And rounding out this trio is Marie Antionette (Meghan Lloyd), the one time Queen keeping short of letting the peasants eat cake. It’s a mix of these brave witted women, each one out for their own causes as their county is handing out the affairs through their own methods, headless or otherwise!

This play written by Lauren Gunderson and directed by Melanie MacQueen starts off as a 21st century American sitcom set in 18th century France. The banter is witty while the cast of characters are as diverse as 18th century France allows. As the situations progress, so does the tone of the play. Things become rather serious as Olympe and company encounter how their flights for the cause costs them their own well beings in addition to their own lives. Although the times are sobering enough, some of the humor from the first portion of the play still remains. The notions as seen within this production shows that these female characters are strong witted and can take care of their own selves. All except for Marie Antionette that keeps her interest in check by her desire of fancy ribbons placed upon fancier teacups.

What makes this production a charm is its stage presence. Michael Mullen’s costuming has everyone decked out in period gear that shows 18th century France in fluffy outfits and powdered wigs. (Judi Lewin is in charge of the hair, wig, and makeup design!) And rounding things off, Theater 40 resident set designer Jeff G. Rack shows off the fancy furnishing along with a crystal chandelier that makes the era just as nice looking, although the revolution itself was far removed from that nicety.

This play is the ideal production to conclude Theater 40’s 56th year of existence. It’s 57th season will present eight different plays whose focus is comedy, mystery, along with drama. Those elements is what make live theater just what it is. It’s an experience that can’t be seen or appreciated through a video screen. More details on that 57th season will be available through Theater 40th’s website as posted below.

THE REVOLUTIONISTS, presented by Theatre 40 and performs at the Reuben Cordova Theatre, located within the campus of Beverly Hills High School, 241 South Moreno Drive (off little Santa Monica Blvd.) Beverly Hills, until June 18th. Showtimes are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 7:30 PM, and Sunday afternoons at 2:00 PM.

For ticket reservations, call (310) 364-0535, or via online at http://www.Theatre40.org

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A Noise Within of Pasadena closes out their 2022-23 season with THE BOOK OF WILL, Lauren Gundersen’s play that deals with two parties that fight for the preservation of William Shakespeare’s coveted plays before they become lost and forgotten.

The place is Great Britain. It’s 1619, and the nation’s greatest playwright, William Shakespeare has been dead for some three years. John Heminges (Geoff Elliot) and Henry Condell (Jeremy Rabb), two members of The King’s Men, the rep theater company that have appeared and performed in many of The Bard’s productions, seek to have some of these plays published, let alone written down, before time and tide creates these theater pieces to become faded and forgotten, never to be appreciated ever again! So with their team of fellow players, they seek to have many of the tattered manuscripts written down (by hand of course) so they can become ready for press in the First Folio. However, William Jaggard (Frederick Stuart) along with his son Isaac (Stanley Andrew Jackson) has published Will’s other portion of his works. The notion is to have the complete works compiled into one Folio, rather than to have those pieces separated and to become the “official” collection. So as time isn’t on their side and the world isn’t necessarily all the stage, the quest remains. Will The Book of Will be preserved for future generations to enjoy, study, reuse, reimagine, use and abuse? Or will these ever quoted sonnets and scenarios become lost for no one to enhance theater stages worldwide?

This work as written (not by hand, but through printed type) by Lauren Gunderson, is a behind-the-scenes play of how such stage plays were ever considered to be saved, rather than use then as a “yesterday’s newspaper” case as found as amusing one day and stale the next. The play itself (Gunderson’s, not Shakespeare’s), is depicted as a comical drama. It’s not really a madcap farce per se, although the cast of characters appearing show some form of humor into it all. It’s as much as a comedy (or “comedie”) that The Bard himself would have composed with a quill in hand and paper parchment ready to accept that quill dipped in ink.

The two leads, Geoff Elliot and Jeremy Rabb, take their characters into an amusing and serious node. What they do will become a favor to the English speaking theater world, even though they will never receive the credit for what they eventually did. Ditto for those that worked behind the scenes as well as the others that did recite all those lines that made W.S. famous or infamous, depending on how one accepts it all.

The rest of the cast appearing in Gunderson’s play, consisting of Nicole Javier, Kasey Mahaffy, Trisha Miller, Deborah Strang, along with Kelvin Morrales, and Alex Morris, do their part in keeping along with the pace of making sure that everyone can indeed brush up their Shakespeare. (Some of the noted cast members perform in multiple roles.)

And with a play that takes place in the 17th century, there’s the period costuming and setting that’s worth its mention. Angelia Balogh Calin’s costuming is right for the period depicted, and Frederica Nascimento’s scenic design is vast with floating and minimal sets with plenty of exposure of parchment around that is fit to ink down those words that The Brad thought of ranging from “Where Art Thou?” to “To Be Or Not To Be”, among many other lines.

Directed by Julia Rodriguez-Elliot & Geoff Elliot, THE BOOK OF WILL is an amusing production. It’s been noted that this piece is a “love letter” to The Bard’s stage pieces. It’s more as a “like letter” as Shakespeare plays can be loved or despised, depending on where one stands within the field of stage entertainment. And here’s the spoiler alert! Those plays were eventually saved! But you already knew that!

THE BOOK OF WILL, presented by and performs at A Noise Within, 3352 East Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, until June 4th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM with matinees Saturday and Sundays at 2:00 PM. Special Thursday night performances take place on May 25th and June 1st at 7:30 PM. Special “talk backs” with the cast takes place following every Friday evening performance as well after the Sunday, May 21st presentation.

For tickets and for more details, call (626) 356-3100, or via online at http://www.ANoiseWithin.org

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SHAMELESS PLUGS

Let’s face it! In this day and age of writing for pay, it’s been rather tough for those that are not “influencers” (whatever the real meaning of an “influencer” is) to make an actual living on composing written prose on a regular basis.

As of this writing, the writers belonging to the Writers Union via the Writers Guild of America (WGA) are walking the picket lines for (of course) better wages for writing for television and TV-esque projects. It seems that they are stating that they are doing their jobs that resemble a “gig economy” where they write their material as needed, among other concerns that range from minimum weeks assigned to write scripts for projects to being replaced by A.I. (“robot”) writers taking over!

Although this writer isn’t bound to any WGA contracts or agreements, the stuff that’s been placed here deserves better options for that writer a.k.a. “me” can create.

Of course, I can supplement these pages through advertisements, either as placing full blown ads, or providing “paid content” material by writing about some form of subject matter for the sake of selling a product and/or service.

Placing ads where ads would not normally be found is far from something that’s new or unique. In fact, this same writer a.k.a. “me” composed an article expressing that viewpoint.

This is what I wrote about these ads posts way back in the ALOL issue of Vol. 10-No.21 published on the week of May 23rd, 2005 under the banner YOUR MESSAGE HERE! (..BUT NOT FOR FREE!)

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Back in the so-called ‘good old days’ (whenever those days were), a company who had a product/service/name would place an ad in some soft of form where the public can be made aware of the product/service/name in question. In public places, there were billboards or message flyer. Then there was the newspaper. Later, it moved to radio and TV. Finally, it has progressed to the internet. One would think that those places to see that product/service/name would reach everyone somewhere. Maybe so, but read on…

It seems that within the last fifteen years, any company who has a product or service to see (or at least holds a ‘name’ to have it be aware with the public) desires to advertise the name/product/service on any form of space or element possible beyond the above noted ad spaces. However, since we live in an overloaded communications society, the traditional places to place an ad has seemed to have become lost and cluttered. So these big companies do their damnedest to find an alternative place to have that product/service/name reaching to the general public in a way where it would stand out in front of the other products/services /names that may be out there. So what were the places to go? Naming of public buildings and places, such as sporting arenas. Inserting names or packaging in feature films (since the 1980’s, thanks to the home video and cable TV boom), and TV shows itself (since the early 2000’s, thanks to people possessing digital video recorders that can bypass standard TV spots–the same way that viewers skipped through commercials back in the videotape days!) Of course, such placement has even expanded beyond that, good or otherwise!

A well known internet based action site (we won’t mention their name, unless they pay us for advertising space!) once had a man in Nebraska placing himself to make his forehead available for ad space. He was paid some $37,375 to put a logo of a snoring remedy on his forehead for one month. Another person in New York was paid $1,000 to put two permanent tattoos on his arms — one for a pharmaceutical company and one to promote a well known home economics “expect”. Now here is the kicker! A couple in Winnipeg, Manitoba offer to have their baby wear clothing advertising a product/service/name for an undisclosed period of time. Of course, the story hit the news service wires like wildfire, and even became the comic subject matter to those morning drive ‘wake-up’ radio shows. The couple realized that their proposal was in questionable taste, so the ad was pulled! (PS…it didn’t get any bids!)

We here in the media business knows how tough it is to conduct a successful ad campaign, especially if it’s for a new product and/or service. However, we do respect advertising. It’s a good way to keep those informed about a product or service, and has become beneficial to both the seller and the buyer. However, where one carries the ad and how it’s executed is another matter altogether! One can place an ad, but where and how the ad is place can backfire! If an ad is located in a place where the location itself may be questionable, then nobody would want to be associated with the product! We would give examples of this backfiring, but that would be for another column!

And one other element we can state on advertising. Since this publication made its debut back in ‘96, Accessibly Live Off-Line has never carried any paid advertising! There is a reason for this. Since we began to scope that wild and wonderful thing called the internet, we were one of the few smaller news services out there. Since that time, the competition has increased a thousandfold! Today, there are places where one can find sources for news and information (some for real, and others questionable) that are created every thirty seconds! However, most of those places carry advertising, from full page ads, to ‘informational’ articles that look and read like a legitimate column, but in reality, is just a thinly disguised press release, to ‘banner’ ads, to pop up ads that appear in a way that the viewer may find annoying and obnoxious! We offer an alternative choice of writing and reporting news and information that is totally unbiased. Nobody, outside of subscribers, pays us for anything! Our reviews are written as the writer find them. If the subject being reviewed is great, we’ll state that! If the subject matter sucks, then it sucks! In other words, no ‘informational’ pieces, no product placement, no bullcrap!

OK…so in the above paragraph, we were advertising ourselves. That’s expected in such a publication like ours! Many of you readers have stated to us that we do such a great job with our writing and reporting. Others have claimed that we are just “OK”, while the rest think that we suck! Well, you can’t please everybody. We try though!

So have a great day, and if anybody sells ad space on their rear end, we would like to know who the lucky advertiser is. Then again, maybe its best that we don’t know! ‘Nuff said!

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

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SUMMER HOLIDAY AT THE MOVIES

Around this time of year, it was traditional when the big deal movie studios would tote on their new(er) releases set for summer season, a time where folks tend to go out to their local multiplex (or in some cases, their nearby drive-in) to take part on what “Hollywood” offers to see on the big screen in a darkened room loaded with stranger that can react to what’s going on as screened.

This year isn’t an exception as those in “Tinseltown” will be offering content that should be viewed in a theatrical setting. And those movie houses are continuing to up the ante (so to speak) by offering plush seating, gourmet foods (or “gourmet” based on what one can find at a theater’s concession stand), and of course, alcohol. After all, what’s going to the movies with a plate of nacho chips served with real melted cheese (rather than “cheese food substance”) and a cup of wine/beer/hard liquor(?) while taking on a title such as Fast X.

Although more people have home theater setting within their living rooms, dens, or where one places their TV devices to take part in whatever one can find via streaming or through traditional home video (yes, it still exists folks!!) one can’t still beat an evening in viewing a flick in the above noted environment.

However, there are some things to keep in mind. Depending on where one dwells, one still has to take the time to trek on to their local multiplex. And there’s the price of admission. Again, depending on where one is located, admission prices for first run movies range from $10.00 up to $25.00–give or take! And that is per person!! Then there are the concessions one can deal with. Those can cost from $5.00 and up! So if one was going to the movies as a couple i.e. “a date”, the admission price is $18.00 per person. Then each person gets a small sized cup of soda pop at around $6.00. (Small sized is around 12 ounces). Then the couple can share a large tub of popcorn at $10.00 per bucket. (A bucket holds around 18 ounces, although one can get free refills on that same visit depending on the theater).

So if one dose the math, the admission price runs $36.00. Two sodas are $12.00, and the tub of corn is $10.00. That comes to around $58.00. This doesn’t count additional fees such as sales tax, and the cost of trekking to the theater by vehicle.

Of course, there are discounted days when movie admission prices are less, such as off days (Monday and Tuesdays tend to take on these discounts) Ditto for that “Senior discount” for those that claim they are of a certain age. (55 tends to be that minimum age), as well as arriving at the theater before a certain time of day, such as before 5:00 PM weekdays, and 2:00 PM on the weekends. But for the most part, evenings, especially on a Friday, Saturday, or perhaps a Sunday evening, takes on the bulk of the audience.

And there’s the choice on what to see for that time spent at the flicks. Again, it all depends on one’s interest. And with many summers of the last few years (decades), it’s the blockbusters that draw the crowds, such as a superhero feature, a family friendly animated feature, or something that is based on an existing intellectual property, or “IP” for short, usually in the form with something familiar to its audience, such as a TV series, a movie franchise, a video game, and even a brand name of a product or service.

As to those so-called “independent” movies that were one time all the rage? That’s mostly left for video streaming as those are more focused on characters and the aspects these same characters go through. These types of features, as well as other genres from westerns to romantic comedies have made their comeback through these channels. But for now, it’s the movies that make summer what it is.

In the meantime, we’ll just see how often people will trek to a movie house while it’s summertime and the livin’ is easy! There are always the other things to do in the summer to take advantage of the better weather! Here in ol’ Hollywood adjacent, we’re still drying out from the rains we had in the earlier part of the year. But we’ll discuss the weather in another article. We’ve got too many choices at the neighborhood multiplex!

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NETFLIX AND CHILL BY MAIL NO MORE!!

On April 18th, Netflix, the company that nearly “invented” the idea of offering video content via streaming, announced through its website and its social media platforms, that the company will phase out and eventually end its DVD rental service this end with its final mailing done on September 29th.

According to the “FAQ” entry on its website, Netflix stated …After an incredible 25 year run, we’ve made the difficult decision to wind down at the end of September. Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members, but as the DVD business continues to shrink, that’s going to become increasingly difficult. Making 2023 our Final Season allows us to maintain our quality of service through the last day and go out on a high note…

According to stats, Netflix shipped out some 5.2B+ DVD from March of 1998 (its first shipped out title was the 1988 feature film Beetle Juice a.k.a Betelgeuse to its most-requested title, the sports drama The Blind Side. Those red envelopes were seen stuffed in various mailboxes throughout neighborhoods where for a monthly fee, one can “rent” all the DVDs a subscriber could get away with, only to return the disk back to its fulfillment center stated on its pre-addressed envelope.

But thanks to the popular method of providing video content through internet connections, the notion of sending physical DVDs somewhat lost its luster. The notion of viewing media through a disk drive isn’t as practical as it once was, considering the fact that many subscribers receive their content through their phones where none of these devices have the capacity to play a traditional CD/DVD disk.

And within the last few years, Netflix didn’t even advertise that their service was still available. If one wanted to know about it, one had to inquire.

There was an advantage of getting content through a DVD disk. Many titles out there are available where Netflix does not have the streaming rights for the programming. So if one wanted to view back episodes of the TV series Friends and didn’t have or desire access to HBO Max (soon to be known as “Max”), then receiving a DVD of the series was the only way to go. Ditto for titles where no streaming service holds streaming rights for various reasons. That is why people still hold on to their DVD collection as well as prerecorded titles that were once available through VHS videotapes! One person this writer knows has a collection of these out-of-print titles ranging from silent movies once offered from Reel Images of Sandy Hook, Connecticut to commercial releases of movies long forgotten, such as the 1982 release of Partners via Paramount Home Video. (PS…Partners isn’t available and it’s just as well since it’s a stupid movie! This is the same writer’s opinion!!)

Although Netflix will no longer be shipping DVDs doesn’t mean that Netflix in general won’t go away! Far from that, considering that this company, as well as its rivals mostly Apple TV and Amazon are creating content to not only compete with streaming, but to compete with traditional television as well as theatrical movies once limited to “Hollywood” studios. (Amazon’s latest entry to the theatrical market is the feature film Air that’s still bringing folks into movie houses to see a film that will eventually be able for access through Amazon TV with first dibs for Amazon Prime members!)

This isn’t the first time a traditional source for viewing media came in as part of domestic life only to fade away as nostalgia. Perhaps the biggest player of the “here-it-comes-there-it-goes” line is Blockbuster where at one time, it boasted thousands of outlets here and abroad. And when Dish Network purchased this company a few years back, they even tried to compete with Netflix offering mail subscriptions. The major difference between the two? Netflix envelopes were in “Netflix Red”, while Blockbusters were in “Blockbuster Blue”.

Although there were other video rental outlets that competed with Blockbuster, such as Hollywood Video among others, HV never offered a DVD mailing service since those stores were on their last legs with the battle of the DVD mailers were just getting started.

So if anyone wanted to do the ol’ Netflix and Chill, one better get their smart TVs (as well as a few “dumber” ones), fired up because that will be the only way to chill out, and perhaps actually watch the content!!

For those with a really “dumb” TV (A CRT tube set created before 2006), get that ol’ VCR turned on (or DVD player), and program that long forgotten title one may have still laying around, such as that classic comedy feature A Guide for the Married Man, a 1967 release from Twentieth Century Fox and via Key Video. Its theme may be from another era, but provides lotsa laughs for its targeted audience. “Nuff said!!

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REMEMBERING NOSTALGIA

Nostalgia, a term that means “a longing for a past time, period, or era”, has been a favorite pastime, (if one desires to recall a moment past as a “pastime”) for quite a while. The elements from one’s past, be it a personal episode or one involving something extracted from popular culture, is something connected with a feeling of happiness, warmth (emotional warmth, not the physical kind), and calmness that goes through the hearts and minds (physical and emotional) of folks when encountered. It could be a recall of a person or people once known, a place where the nostalgia user once lived within or had something connected to this place, or from a time that its user recalls as elements of joy. In other words, this nostalgia is a good version of this emotional state, rather than something that is far from a state of happiness and amusement. Perhaps this is the reason why there aren’t any reunion committees that arrange such events from those that served time in a specific prison. (That last statement may not have been composed in good taste, but upon viewing programs that are appearing on selected streaming video sources as “sitcoms”, that last line may fall into that league of post-modern humor shifted toward the snarky side. But we digress!)

And speaking (or writing) about nostalgia connected to media, that element is perhaps the most common source of bringing back the so-called “good old days”. TCM, the video source once known as Turner Classic Movies, has been on the rise for a while as that source programs feature films created from the early days of cinema to recent times with the emphasis of the golden age of Hollywood as well as the years that followed. Some of the over the air sources such as MeTV, available in many markets as a “half-channel” place on the dial (i.e. channel “5.3”) schedules the better known television programs from the 1950’s through the 1980’s,. Many radio stations and audio sources feature music from a specific time and format, such as rock from the 1970’s and 1980’s a.k.a. “classic rock”, or any music from a specific decade extracted from the latter half of the 20th century and the early years from the 21st.

And there are comfort foods! These are editable dishes that do hark from another time and place that have not only made their comeback, but are being reintroduced into a new way to serve. Macaroni and cheese, a staple for kids from the good old days (1950s and 1960s, and maybe earlier or later), has been “reimagined” into dishes that can be called gourmet. Ditto for pizza, and even “mom” favorites such as pot roast. It’s all connected to “feel good” meals that could have been experienced from somebody back in the day.

Although nostalgia, for what it is, is really great to have and to hold, it’s not the real be-all-to-end-all state of mind, body, and soul. There are the times of now, and one can’t necessarily compare those elements of the past to the spirit of the present. The notions may be quite different to how they are received nowadays, but that doesn’t necessarily make these notions of the present time worse to how it was way back when. It’s just how one witnesses what was then to be better (or worse) that how it’s perceived today. That can be better or worse. It all depends.

But how does this writer, a person that is also a media archivist that works with media elements from the good ol’ days, find nostalgia? For starters, yes, this person does find such elements from the past to be comforting and brings back a sense of joy when viewed. When yours truly attends the TCM Film Festival in Hollywood every spring, I make an effort to view movies that came from an era I recall, as well as a few features that were created before my time. But I stuck to the movies that were around when I was around, even seeing some titles that I saw when these old movies were indeed new(er) movies!

And as to movie’s media companion, television, (this writer’s speciality), sometimes I can’t seem to get enough of watching a program that brings back memories I recall, or even memories that came back to me that were once formally forgotten! Such a case as the time I viewed episodes from the 1976-77 TV series Mary Hartman. Mary Hartman that I have in my collection that were recorded off the air from Los Angeles TV station KTTV-TV at the time owned by Metromedia Broadcasting. When that program first premiered in January, 1976, that program was a favorite of my elder sister and her best friend at the time–a person that I took a shine to. (They were in their teens while I was an adolescent.) That person who I experienced a “puppy love” towards was conceived as long forgotten about until I started to view the episodes of this series starring Louise Lasser. Both Lasser, as well as this BFF of my sibling are now lost in the fog. But it did trigger a nostalgic viewpoint of where I was in my life and how I treated it! (How would I treat that moment in today’s sense? That’s for another article!!)

But nostalgia for what it is, won’t ever go away. Movies and TV programs are coming back with new faces and situations based upon sources from the previous era. (The animated Super Mario Brothers Movie currently playing in movie houses was based upon a video game c.1983!!) Comfort foods will be tried and reinvented again, and the styles and notions from the periods past will return in one way or other. But again, this time of today is just as fine for what it is. And with everything, there are exceptions. (Remember, everything from the past isn’t necessarily traditional nostalgia!) But just as long as one keeps one’s senses in the now and soon to be now, then one is pointed in the correct position.

And to end this all, when I was starting out as an archivist, one person, a mentor of mind, once stated, “Live with the past, not in it!” I followed this person’s advice and used this sense of being as a tenant, not a landlord. And that’s OK with me.

Just remember folks. If you are driving down that virtual (AI?) highway, always keep your eyes on the road ahead. But once in a while, glance at that rear view mirror to know where you came from. As Hollywood keeps churning out movies and TV programs based upon programs of yore (and as they become profitable), then that’s nostalgia for you. Money was green then, and it’s “greener” now! And cyber currency may even make a comeback soon! Let’s see….!

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HOW DID I GET HERE..?

It was around this time (middle April) back in 1991 where I was able to make a change within my life to do what I desired to do: Relocate to where I was located to seek so-called “fame and fortune” within the media industry.

I have told my story within these pages a number of times, so I won’t go into the process of telling (or retelling) a chapter of the story of my life. (That will be included within a screenplay that I may or not write about!)

However, I will focus this topic on another story that I recently came across within the annals of cyberspace that ranks similar to what I went through back in the day.

There is a website out there called Quora at http://www.Quora.com where folks can post a question about nearly any topic, and have someone answer that question to the best they could. Generally speaking, it’s more akin to a classic online “bulletin board” that first came about during the 1990‘s era dawn of the internet.

Out of the many inquiries found on this site was a post where one asked How did you move out to California? This inquiry was posted some time ago and could have been moved up due to the recent results from the US Census Bureau reporting that California, among other states, lost a portion of its population between June of 2021 and June of 2022. (The reasons for this shift range from others fining opportunity somewhere else to escaping the state due to higher costs of living here.)

Out of the seventeen replies from this inquiry was an older post from c.2013 based upon the details posted by “Ken” that told his tale of relocating from his midwestern community. His story reads as similar to my tale. There are differences, but the reasons come pretty close to what I did back in the day.

But enough of my saga! Here is what Ken wrote as it appeared, including the bold letting Ken posted. You may take this episode for what it is. Read on…

I’m currently 37 years old.

My wife (then fiancé) and I moved to California in August of 1999 from our home state of Wisconsin.

I was 23 years old then, if I’m doing my math correctly. My dream had always been to move to Los Angeles and work in the film industry. Life got in the way right away after high school though.

I moved from my hometown of La Crosse, WI to Madison, WI right after high school, thinking that I would be in Los Angeles by the time I was 19. That was my goal.

I floundered in Madison for five years. Growing up. Making mistakes. I was studying screenwriting and reading every book on the subject that I could. But I just couldn’t save the money and couldn’t grow the courage to up and leave for California. I kept putting it off year after year. In retrospect, it’s the smartest thing I did because A) I would have likely been broker than a broke kid could be, and B) I wouldn’t have met my wife.

In 1998, my wife and I met and quickly fell in love. We were engaged within six months. She was/is my rock and she made it possible for us to be able to move out to California. What I mean by that is I finally had someone saying that I should go, leaving little to no doubt that I could do it. And better yet, she was coming with me.

We actually took a road trip with her brother and my two best friends to Los Angeles earlier on. We drove 2000 miles. We stayed in Hollywood in some dive hotel. We did the tourist thing. This was my very first trip to Los Angeles, so I was in heaven. This is where they made my favorite movies.

We checked apartments and such in Los Angeles and had a ball. Then we drove back to Wisconsin, ready to begin the process.

We wanted to move directly to Los Angeles. However, we decided that she should get her Master’s Degree in Microbiology. She ended up being accepted to The University of California – Riverside, which was about 45 miles or so away from Los Angeles.

Now in the land of Wisconsin, 45 miles is nothing. That’s a half hour drive. So we thought we’d be fine. Most people who know the area are probably laughing their asses off right now, but I’ll get to why in a bit.

We decided that she’d take the couple years she needed to get her Master’s Degree while I commuted from Riverside to Los Angeles for any job in the industry that I could get.

We went through an apartment search website and found a cool one bedroom apartment in Riverside, close to the university. And we obviously signed the lease blind, having no real clue what to expect beyond the handful of pictures we found online.

So it was a little scary in that respect. We didn’t know anything about Riverside. We didn’t know anything about the area we were moving into. We knew next to nothing about the apartment complex.

We spent a day with our family, packed our Saturn SL1 and the smallest U-Haul trailer available with next to no furniture (futon, bed, chairs and table), and headed west.

Riverside was great. It had its rough areas like many places in California.

The apartment was pretty big. Nice complex.

But then there was the commute. So, 45 miles in California from Riverside to Los Angeles isn’t like 45 miles in Wisconsin. LOL.

The commute was usually about two hours. Maybe an hour and a half IF I got lucky.

My wife went to school during the day and I was off trying to find film industry work.

Long story short on that front, I nabbed some jobs. Did a lot of movie extra work to get on sets. When push came to shove, I decided to return to retail sales management while my wife was at school. When she graduated, I quit without hesitation.

We moved to Los Angeles. I got into a movie studio, worked my way up a bit (See my bio), and rest is history.

We moved back to Wisconsin in 2006 after my wife and I had our first son, despite the fact that my career was based in L.A. The film industry. It was my decision.

We had no family in California. Our parents would had to fly in to see their grandchild. Or we had to fly out there. That wasn’t good enough for me. For my wife. For our family. For our son… seeing his grandparents a few times a year at best.

So one day I told my wife that I wanted to move home.

It was a tough move. We had made a life in Los Angeles. I was just starting to break through in my screenwriting career with many studio meetings.

It’s 2013 as I write this. We own a house. Something we could have never done in L.A. We have two boys now. They see their grandparents AT LEAST once a month… usually more.

And ironically, I had all of my screenwriting success happen AFTER I moved back to Wisconsin. I fly to L.A. when needed.

I don’t miss L.A. I miss studio life. That’s about it.

So if you’re wondering whether or not you should make the move, I’ll say this…

If we hadn’t moved to California, I’d always be questioning whether or not I should have.

Many great things came of it. I realized many dreams.

You can too. If life is compelling you to make the move, do it. Don’t question it. Don’t let the time slip away.

You can find an apartment online to start with. It doesn’t have to be THE ONE. Let the first year be your settling point.

And remember that you can always move back home, or anywhere else you’d like. Just as easy as it is to make out there.

Best of luck…

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Theater West presents the return engagement of Dina Morrone’s MOOSE ON THE LOOSE, a comedy about an Italian-Canadian family that’s slightly blended and a moose that’s loose in their frozen neighborhood.

The family is the Tappinos, a clan where Giuseppe (Steward W. Howard) and his wife Maria (Constance Mellors) arrived from Calabria, Italy many years ago and wound up settling in Way Up Bay, Ontario, a community where the summers are cold, and the winters are colder! It’s November, and the family consisting of their four adult kids, their grandkids, as well as a few friends of family gather together after their long leave of absence. One of their kids now as adults Gina (Erica Piccininni) comes from some distance with some news about her state of being. While the family of multi generations do what families of this ilk tends to do when in one place (bicker and fight mostly), there’s a crisis going on! A moose has been spotted roaming around their part of town. And Giuseppe decides to do something about it. He grabs his rifle to meet up with this moose, in spite of the fact that mooses can’t be shot at! As one thing leads to another, this family rolls out as one that may be a big one, but not necessarily a happy one! But are they indeed happy?

This comedy is loosely based upon true facts as first encountered by playwright Dina Morrone. She was from a small town “north of the border” where her parents, Italian immigrants, settled in their new adapted nation, where they did what all immigrants did back in the day. Worked hard, paid respect to those around them, and created a legacy that will last for generations more. (Or that was their intention!)

The play itself has plenty of laughs for sure. But it does focus upon the notion of immigrants and how they did blend into their new home while keeping the “old county” still in mind. Of course, their newer generations are far more progressive, perhaps too progressive than their parents had in mind. Those elements bring many of the humor injected into this play, while making this family of Italian roots showing their share of honor and respect, even if they bend the rules a little.

As with family comedies, their is a large number of cast members that appear in this production that includeNick McDow Musleh as Joseph Tappino, Rick Simone-Friedland as Bruno Tappino, Laura James as Pina Pupi, Richard D. Reich as Rodolfo Pupi, Darby Winn as Timothy Williamson, Deanna Gandy as Carmela Tappino-Williamson, Cicel Jennings as Darryl Williamson, Meg Lin as Honabigi Nickabone, with John Cygan and James Lemire as the Chief of Police and The Moose!

The set as seen on the Theater West stage consists of the Tappino family home, a well settled place where its kitchen has a large table enough to serve a great Italian meal. Jeff G. Rack dressed this set to make it all real and comfortable.

Directed by Peter Flood, this comedy can be called a “dramity” of sorts since it shows the success of how immigrants can arrive from their place of organ to live the Canadian dream, very similar to the American dream although the latter tends to get more recognition than the former. No matter though! It’s a play that holds enough laughs to make it all worth its while. And that’s no “MS!” (That’s moose poop in case one didn’t know!)

MOOSE ON THE LOOSE, presented by Theater West in association with Me and My Big Mouth Productions, performs at Theater West, 3333 Caguenga Blvd., Los Angeles (Universal City adjacent), until May 21st. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday afternoons at 2:00 PM. Special performances take place with a post program talkback session with cast and crew on April 16th and 30th, American Sign Language interpretation on April 21st, and a sensory friendly relaxed performance that is geared for those with sensory needs takes place with the April 23rd presentation.

For ticket reservations or for more information, call (323), 851-7977, or via online at http://www.TheatreWest.org

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

is a presentation of Linear Cycle Productions

Details@AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com

AccessiblyLiveOffLine@gmail.com

Details@LinearCycleProductions.com

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@AccessiblyLive (Twitter)

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WHERE IS YOUR PODCAST?

Recently, we received a message via email from a reader/fan/person out in the either, asking us a question that we’ve been asked ever so often..

Hey! Where can I find a podcast version of your blog..?

-Evan

Thank you Evan for writing to us. Although we are not a “blog” per se, we appreciate you calling us one. But let’s get to your answer.

We have been asked when we will be presenting an audio version of Accessibly Live Off-Line a.k.a. http://www.AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com? This version, better known as a podcast, would be generally a radio-type talk program where there would be a moderator, or host, and would talk about a specific subject, or to present a program that would be similar to an old-time radio program, complete with music scores and music beds (a musical interlude that would be played under any dialogue spoken to set the mood toward a specific scene in the program), as well as sound effects inserted in appropriate places within the program. Old time radio programs that aired on this medium before the advent of television, generally from the 1920’s well into the 1960’s, were created as entertainment and featured personalities that were from the entertainment world at the time, as well as a few people that began their careers in radio.

Examples of these types of programs can be heard on a series called Those Were The Days with host Steve Darnell on WDCB-FM in the Chicago area, and online on http://www.WDCB.org every Saturday afternoon from 1:00-5:00 PM (CST).

Podcasts, generally a radio show not found on the “radio”, are more akin to the National Public Radio series This American Life with host Ira Glass that speak on a specific subject using the same music and sound effects cues. TAL is more of an audio documentary rather than a program with a host that rambles on speaking upon a topic or topics

Sometimes the host of a typical show may have a co-host that talks among each other on the topic(s) in general. Once in a while, they may have a guest that is an “expert” on a topic or theory. Sometimes it would be the host and the guest(s) speaking for whatever length of time it would take to get their points across. It would be as little as five to ten minutes, Sometimes they could speak for an hour. Maybe even longer.

Podcasts, getting its name from the Apple iPod, a device that can play back and even record audio sounds and played back through an earphone device attached, gave birth to these type of programs that can be heard by anyone at any time.

Most podcasts are pre recorded, although a few “live” versions exist out there where people can even call in to make comments about the topics spoken about. This is how a traditional radio talk show was conducted. But for the most part, podcasts are transcribed. If one wanted to comment about what was being said, one had to do so via a text generation. (E-mail, phone texts, “tweets”, etc.)

But that is the general order of podcasts. This leads up to our involvement to creating a podcast. The question is, when will Accessibly Live Off Line product its first podcast?

That answer is, when we feel the notion to present a podcast. We can program a podcast, but it would be hosted by this writer reading off a column that would be limited to print, or text in this case.

That type of program would be limited in scope, and it would be just another “rip and read” show. Of course, I, as the host, would elaborate on the topics involved but that would consist of another podcast, one of many (and we really mean “many”) podcasts floating out there in cyberspace.

That is one of the double sword reasons on why people produce podcasts. The good notion about it is, anyone can do this. The bad notion is, anyone can do it.

If one uses their favorite search engine asking “How to produce a podcast”, one will receive dozens upon dozens of answers on how to perform this task. Some will give one details on how to set up a “studio” to produce a podcast that is easy to listen to sound quality wise. Others will give directions of what to speak about and how to speak, such as avoiding such speech patterns as not speaking clearly and to avoid a load of unnecessary pauses or too many “uhhhs”, “hmmms”, and “aaashs” that people say when they are talking, not knowing that they are fumbling through their words and phrases.

Producing a podcast is a whole lot easier than creating content for a personal channel via YouTube and there are no visuals to deal with. And podcasts can bring the same impact to getting one’s name out there, even if the said person isn’t looking for fame. All they wish to do is to contribute their notions to the world in general, even if that “world” consists of a few people in a small physical space.

However, when (or if) we ever produce a podcast, you can bet that we will report it within these very pages, just like we have been doing for the past twenty seven years (and counting!) So until then, I’ll just think about inventing a catch phrase to state to make my radio personality known in the same vain that the late “Real” Don Steele used to say after each of his on-air DJ shifts when he was active in radio in Los Angeles back in the 1960’s through the 90’s reminding his listeners that Tina Degato is alive!

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Adapting books and related written material as the basis for a feature film has been around since movie making began. But one inquiry remains. How faithful is the “movie version” to the book in question? In other words, is the movie just like the book’s story and vice versa?

Author Kristen Lopez who has been writing articles and essays on movies as well as for popular culture has brought this notion into focus in But Have You Read The Book? 52 Literary Gens That Inspired Our Favorite Films (Running Press), an edition that takes an example of the title number of books that range from the classics from Wuthering Heights, The Great Gatsby, and Little Woman, 20th century best sellers as In Cold Blood, The Godfather, and Jaws, lesser known titles as The Devil In A Blue Dress, Fight Club, and The Hunger Games, as well as a selection of books that many movie fans may not have know of an existence of a “book version” firsthand. (Clueless, using its basis from Jane Austin’s Emma, If Beale Street Could Talk, Crazy Rich Asians, etc.).

For each entry, Kristen reviels the inside scoop to what its original authors wrote and how the screenwriters in Hollywood (or writing on behalf of “Hollywood”) did their things to adapt the title for the big (and little) screen, making slight alterations to the plot, characters, and situations on hand, to creating a nearly new work that leaves its original source almost “in-title-only” from its orgins of source.

Kristen also goes deep into each original book title and gives the origin on how the story was first composed for the page, such as the back story reason for Mario Puzo writing The Godfather (he needed the money to pay off gambling debts), and how such terms as “Mafia” “Costa Nostra”, and even “”Mob”/”The Mob” are never mentioned by name in the film itself! The reason for that because Paramount Pictures didn’t want to hold any conflict with the Italian American Civil Rights League that was headed up by Joseph Colombo of the Colombo crime family. (It’s also assumed that leaving out those offensive names would avoid the notion of the possibility of somebody getting “whacked”!!)

When it comes to titles that were made into features a number of times, such as The Great Gatsby or Little Woman, only the most recent film version is deceased in this book. (For The Great Gatsby, the 2013 release is noted here, and the 2019 version for Little Women is only mentioned.) Perhaps the reason for these mentions compared to its earlier film versions is that these later adaptations brought these book titles up to contemporary times, considering that both Little Woman, and The Great Gatsby are in the public domain. (Gatsby fell as a PD title in 2023, around the same time that A. A. Milne’s Winnie The Pooh fell out of copyright, although this latter series is more associated through a re-imaging by way of The Walt Disney Company.)

And in moviedom fashion, Kristen warns the readers of her book with a spoiler alert, meaning that many plot points and issues with both the book version and its film counterpart will be relieved. If you want to know what happens in the book and/or film on your own, then skip the chapters related to the title(s) of choosing. You have been warned!

For those that desire to know how much the book was changed under Hollywood’s standards, or to see if a “re-imagined” version of a book could ever pan out, then But Have You Read The Book is your companion to discover one element toward the other. Or to sum this all up as this reviewer once saw in artist and writer David Berg’s The Lighter Side of Movies that once appeared in an issue of the long-running satirical magazine Mad, as a couple was exiting a movie theater, one turns toward the other in disappointment and says. “How do you like that? It was exactly like the book!”

But Have You Read The Book? 52 Literary Gens That Inspired Our Favorite Films is available at all leading booksellers, both in person and online.

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

is a presentation of Linear Cycle Productions

Details@AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com

AccessiblyLiveOffLine@gmail.com

Details@LinearCycleProductions.com

http://www.AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com

https://www.facebook.com/accessiblylive.offline

@AccessiblyLive (Twitter)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEHxSllfDItpWh3z8vuUb_w

(Accessibly Live’s channel on YouTube)

http://www.LinearCycleProductions.com

#AccessiblyLiveOffLine

(Look for us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and see us on YouTube!)

THE VALUE OF BRANDS REVISED

Nowadays, it’s important to be “branded” for something. This is even most important when it comes to what’s currently out in the open market. And many of these ideals were placed within these pages of ALOL that prove these points to a “t”.

Way back in 2009, we placed our opinions upon what makes a brand named item a brand named item. (Of course!) Although this report is some from fourteen years past, many of the details stated in our article have changed little, while other points have made a total turnaround.!

With all of that being stated, we present these elements that this humble writer jotted down way back in Vol. 14-No. 20, week of May 18th of ’09…

In this consume-it-all society that most of the domestic public lives in, getting one’s value based upon a specific brand of a product or service has increased its importance over the last few years. And in today’s current economic times, getting one’s value is more noteworthy than ever before! When everybody seems to be squeezing nickels so tight they squeak, a top price for something or another means getting top value over one’s dimes!

So with the value of what one buys or takes advantage of, what are the brands of goods and services that present more of its bang for its buck? According to a recent poll conducted by Brandindex, a daily measure of brand stature by the London-based firm YouGov, two cable TV channels, The History Channel (a.k.a History as to its on-air name), and the Discovery Channel were given the top marks by those polled asking what brands present the maximum value based upon one’s time using the product/service, what one expects from the product/service, and what one can received based upon any money spent of the same product/service. (63.8% of those polled gave History its top point, while Discovery came in a close second with a rating of 62.5%) This is why a cable TV channel can be added, since one won’t necessarily spend any money using the service in the traditional sense, but expecting what one would receive. i.e. “you get what you pay for”!

Other brands that present the best quality: Craftsman, Sears’ private brand for tools and hardware came in third with 61%, the search engine Google (a noun in this case) is number four with a 59.4% rating. Rubbermaid, a brand for plastic household containers holds fifth place with a score of 57.9%. Rounding out the top ten in the poll: Johnson & Johnson (over the counter medical and drug store products), Subway (franchised sandwich shops), Lowe’s (hardware stores), Whirlpool (larger appliances) and Target (discount department stores).

Those were the top ten. And what were the brands that finished last?? Going backwards from #10 to #1 were Nieman-Marcus (department stores), Citibank (banking), 7-Eleven (mini-markets), Abercrombie & Fitch (clothing and apparel), Perrier (bottled sparkling water), AIG (finances), Red Bull (energy drinks), Starbucks (coffee houses), MTV (cable TV channel), and the number one brand that gives the least value? Hummer (oversized motor vehicles–”cars” would not be the correct term to describe this product!)

This poll was conducted between January and April of this year based upon 300,000 responses conducted on-line by those aged 18 and up with an average rate of 5000 polled per day asking to choose from some 200 brands.

As stated beforehand, getting the most value over what one buys is crucial, if not trendy, in this current recession–or depression, depending on how tough things are! Although some brands were at one time noted to be “hip” and “trendy” (Starbucks, for instance and even MTV–but only in the 1980’s), nowadays, attitudes have changed! For instance, from the middle 1990’s to about 2007, a SUV was the biggest (literally) selling new vehicle on the market. Never mind the fact most people who bought ‘em used them as an overgrown station wagon, only to haul groceries and the kids to and from soccer practice! If one drove them, they were the kings (and queens) of the neighborhood!! The Hummer, the over-the-top version, outranked them all! Anyone behind the wheel of these trucks were kings (and queens) of the road. If these trucks were riding down the street, one moved over to let them go by! Thanks to high(er) gas prices and the trend of “going green”, driving ANY SUV, be it a Hummer or any other make, doesn’t cut it anymore! In fact, if one did have an SUV as their only vehicle, some people would boo and hiss at them! And with these current times, it appears that the party is over for these kind o’ cars! That is, unless a hybrid version is available! Even so, driving a Hummer won’t give anyone props as it once did! Pure and simple!

There are other factors on why some brands lost its luster (AIG as an example) but that’s another story as it is. As times change-for the better or otherwise, one will see new and old brands of stuff come and go. Some will be added to the marketplace over time, while others will be dropped, perhaps never to gain its share in the market as before. Zenith, an American company that made TV sets, was at one time the biggest selling brand on the market! Today, one would be hard up to even find a TV monitor carrying that name! In spite of the case, whatever is “hot” will be around. For the rest, it’s wait ‘n see!

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

is a presentation of Linear Cycle Productions

Details@AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com

AccessiblyLiveOffLine@gmail.com

Details@LinearCycleProductions.com

http://www.AccessiblyLiveOffLine.com

https://www.facebook.com/accessiblylive.offline

@AccessiblyLive (Twitter)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEHxSllfDItpWh3z8vuUb_w

(Accessibly Live’s channel on YouTube)

http://www.LinearCycleProductions.com

#AccessiblyLiveOffLine

(Look for us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and see us on YouTube!)

ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE is a news service reporting on the multi-media. This includes, but not limited to, news and reviews on the fields of television and radio programming, feature films, regional theater in Los Angeles, California, USA edited by Rich Borowy, Editorial Manager

Author: accessiblyliveoffline

LONELY BOY AND MR. LONELY IN LONESOME TOWN

VACATION TO WHERE??

REMEMBER THE MEMORIAL

SHAMELESS PLUGS

SUMMER HOLIDAY AT THE MOVIES

NETFLIX AND CHILL BY MAIL NO MORE!!

REMEMBERING NOSTALGIA

HOW DID I GET HERE..?

WHERE IS YOUR PODCAST?

THE VALUE OF BRANDS REVISED

ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE is a news service reporting on the multi-media. This includes, but not limited to, news and reviews on the fields of television and radio programming, feature films, regional theater in Los Angeles, California, USA edited by Rich Borowy, Editorial Manager

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