YOU GOTTA BE NUTS!

There have been a number of articles and essays appearing in print and throughout cyberspace (more on the latter platform than the former, although there’s been loads of print elements around) that speak upon mental health. These notions deal with everyday feelings ranging from anxiety to stress within the workplace, the domestic homestead, or other sources where people in this day and age place themselves through the standard periods of time and tide.

Now, when the issues of mental health are expressed, it’s usually based upon natural or organic enverements and rituals. These emotions are not to be confused with feelings or moods based upon outside substances, such as alcohol, drugs, or related methods where said moods can be altered comparing themselves to the same feelings when such substances are not involved. These are coming through standard and rather “normal” settings brought upon a routine method of life and living.

Being in such a state is far from something that’s new or different. People have been experiencing such feelings since the human race evolved throughout the years, decades, centuries, and other millenniums. It’s just within the last few years, these topics were starting to be expressed out in the open, down to a point where it was considered common to feel such emotions, especially if these emotions are not causing some sort of hazard or danger to one’s self or to others within the person’s domain.

When the pandemic hit in the early spring of 2020, these feelings of stress and anxiety blew themselves out into domestic society. When folks were huddled inside to avoid the virus that was sweeping the nation and through the world in general, folks were reporting through social media on how they were feeling and coping against an invisible enemy that few even knew about. Stories such as taking in animals as pets for comfort, starting new hobbies or bringing back old hobbies once long abandoned were part of the ordeal. People started to realize they were not the only ones out there to feel a fear of the unknown as well as to the anxiety that came along with it. And once those expressions were blasted through all of the social media portals, these same people not only realized that they were not alone, but started to believe that they could do something about getting out of the stress they were trapped in. In other words, people gave themselves permission to say something to the effect of “I’m OK, but not at this moment!” And everyone (or almost everyone) near, far, real, semi-real, or otherwise, totally agreed.

It’s been three years (give or take) since this declaration has been declared. And after the smoke has cleared and everyone is back to what it should remain to be, these same folks have stated that they are just as they were, but now equipped with the tools and knowledge to make themselves stable. To place these revisions in tech speak, it’s the program of “Me-2.0”, or even “3.0” if they wanted to proceed that farther out.

And perhaps the best part of this mini “doom and gloom” is the fact that they desire to remain aware of what they can feel, or how they can control their emotions. There is already an emergency number known as the suiside hotline (“988”), as well as the presents of emotional well-being places one may get access to to keep their feelings in check. Many college campuses placed within their standard list of amenities available are places that students and administration staff can visit for mental health. Ditto for workplaces where employees, both working in a physical location as well as a remote work option, can check in for stress awareness.

Although access is made more available, the “crisis” is far from over. However, it’s always best to seek out help if the need calls for such, or to visit everyone’s favorite search engine to check “hacks” on how to keep emotions at bay, and to live a near stress free lifestyle.

And the old joke that once read “Ya gotta be nuts to see a psychiatrist” isn’t that humorous as it once was, but now is seen as a new method of domestic life.

And to sum it all up as this writer once spied this message placed on a bumper sticker affixed on the real of a vehicle, “Experts Agree-Everything Is Fine”.

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Terrance McNally’s IT’S ONLY A PLAY, a comedy about a group of theater people among the backside of an opening night party to Broadway’s latest opening and the drama behind it all, performs at Theater 40 of Beverly Hills.

The setting is at theater producer Julia Budder Manhattan townhouse where her latest stage show The Golden Egg is hosting an opening night party where a slew of celebrities are in attendance. As the party continues, many of the people involved in the performance are holed up in a back bedroom. These folks are playwright Peter Austin (Fox Carney), theater critic Ira Drew (Jeffrey Winner), play director Frank Finger (Peter Henry Bussian), leading lady Virginia Noyes (Cheryl David), Julia Budder (Mouchette van Helsdingen), the producer, along with James Wicker (Todd Andrew Ball), an actor who had a change to perform in this show but took on a sitcom rose, and Gus P. Head (Joe Clabby), who is a budding actor but for the moment is the hired help working as an assistant. There are jitters going on on how the play held up and if the reviews for the local critics will be cruel or kind. As the party continues with its showcase of celebrities in one room, its real drama is in the back bedroom where everyone challenges themselves on how well they did, or how good the show will pan out. It’s one thing after another on what will be the next big hit appearing along the Great White Way, or if The Golden Egg will indeed lay its name object as a brass version.

This play is one of the many works written by the late Terrance McNally who held a number of hits as well as a few near misses. Of course, the characters that are depicted in this play are rather stereotypical and somewhat cartoonish. But that is what makes this play amusing for what it is. The six performing players as seen in this Theater 40 version fit that cartoon aspect to a grand “T”. It also shows how the New York theater world still falls on its “hoidy-toidy” side of things, proving to the entertainment world that live stage shows are far superior than movies or whatever is on electronic media, even if that reach for theater is far smaller and more expensive that the latter choices.

Larry Eisenberg directs this show giving it its fast pacing attitude akin to a British comic farce. The cast doesn’t necessarily run in and out of doors, and nobody is scantily clad. But it comes rather close.

Among the visuals of this show, Theater 40’s residential set designer and dresser Jeff G. Rack dresses the set in a semi cosmopolitan motifs, along with some traditional pieces that show of a bit of the “hi-hat” aspects to what becoming involved on the Broadway landscape is what it’s all about.

It’s always amusing to see what it’s like to peek behind the scenes at a source of entertainment, even if it’s not what it’s really like. But that is why it’s only a play!

IT’S ONLY A PLAY, 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 April 23rd. 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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Performing at the Two Roads Theater in Studio City is HEAVENLY COUNTRY, a “jukebox musical” about a man who seeks the cowboy lifestyle, and the woman that desires to treat him as a gentle man than what a traditional cowboy would encounter.

Michael Reese Shald plays Nehemiah Sloavikozlowski, better known as “Nemo”. He works for a moving company where he and his fellow co-workers, Albert Ross (Ray Buffer) a.k.a. “Boss, and Danielle “Danny” Morris (Isabella Urdaneta) take part at a local karaoke bar singing along with classic country tunes. At one of their moving jobs, Nemo meets Lily L’Amoreaux (Jennifer Anne Grimes), who he takes a shine toward, in spite of company rules of socializing with clients. Nimo desires the way of life of a cowboy. Not roping and riding, but participating in the hard drinking as many of the country songs speak of. Lily, also having feelings for Nemo, drafts the aid of a pastor she knows of, Pastor James Roberts (Ashton Jordan Ruiz), and his spouse, “Sister” Ruth Roberts (Facilcia Taylor E) to get Nemo to accept a straight and rather sober life.

This theater production, written by Joel Russell and directed by L. Flint Esquerra, is a play with songs consisting of established tunes from the country & western songbook that are sing in appropriate segments into the storyline that are used to express what the characters are going through in the same vein as what one could pick through in a karaoke setting. The entire production itself from the sets by JC Gafford to Paul Cody’s transcribed musical direction and choreography are rather elementary. What this program’s focus is really on the performers on stage, and the selection of tunes of well known country hits from the 1960’s through the 1980’s as sung by the cast on cue.

Although the notion of demise is hinted upon, the story itself does sport an upbeat and rather happy conclusion. That is what a cowboy’s life is really all about. It’s enough to take on the tumbles of life, only to get back into the saddle again and to ride off into the sunset just like what Gene and Roy did back in the day. And that is what Heavenly Country is all about.

HEAVENLY COUNTRY, performs at the Two Roads Theater, 4348 Tujunga Avenue, Studio City, until April 22nd. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, with a Saturday matinee at 3:00 PM.

For online ticketing, link to https://www.eventbrite.com/e/heavenly-country-tickets-440764718137aff=ebdssbdestsearch

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

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THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH REVISITED

Now that it’s almost Spring, or at least to what the calendar says (and not the local weather report), this is the time where people would take part in places to visit for what’s called Spring Break.

Spring Break tends to float sometime as early as St. Patrick’s Day (March 17th) to around Easter/Passover week. (This year, Easter falls on April 9th while Passover begins at sundown on April 5th).

And many folks head out to where the weather is warmer and dryer, such as the Sunshine State of Florida. And from all of the attractions that exist in this state that people either love it to pieces or hate it with a passion, there’s that location plopped right smack dab in its middle. Yep, we’re writing back going to the house of the mouse a.k.a. Disney World

This humble news service has written dozens of articles and notes about that spot that for some is the be-all-to-end-all place to go. And one of those articles we churned out occurred within these pages back in Vol 18-No. 11-Week of March 18th of 2013.

So to make sure we are recycling properly, placing our old goods within the proper bins to pick up, we’ll revisit what we stated within this article we titled I’m Goin’ To Disney World..

This article is NOT about this writer heading over to the other “Happiest Place On Earth” (that original one resides in Anaheim), but these notes tell about the another person’s journey to the location that makes the Sunshine State the place to go while ol’ man winter takes its last gasp in most parts of the nation.

A friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend is planning to take a little getaway for spring break, around the time where Passover and Easter make its annual clash. (This year everything falls in late March rather than its traditional month of April.) The person who we’ll call Jodie (we are using this name not because this person wishes to remain anonymous, but because we don’t know the person’s real name!!) attends a community college in Los Angeles proper. She, along with her “girlfriends” (or this writer assumes that these fellow people are indeed “gal-pals”) will be heading off to central Florida to take advantage of what’s going down at the spots operated by the gang headquartered at 500 South Buena Vista Blvd.

Jodie has been planning for this little trip since the end of last year. As a high wired Millennium aged person, she’s been going on-line using many of her hand carried electronic devices taking care of the planning, from booking rooms, grabbing tickets, and checking out notes and reviews on the other spots outside of the Mouse House’s domain on what’s worth seeing. She’s been also letting others know through text and tweets on her trip, asking and receiving advice, tips, and other bits of news on what she should know about. And on her Facebook page, she’s been apparently posting bits and pieces on her plans. It will also be assumed that once she and her best buds are down there, there will be plenty of more news, including a load of photos for anyone to gawk at. Oh yes, on her Pinterest account, she will “pin” a lot of other pix from her trip that will be posted as time progresses.

It seems that when one arranges a trip to somewhere worth noting about, the urgency to let anyone and everyone around one’s domain about the itinerary is a “must do ” for people. Perhaps this desire to “tell the world” so to speak comes from the theory that the attendee is taking off and doing all of these wonderful things while you (or anyone else for that matter) isn’t going! And after the trip is done and over with, there’s the bragging of the little tales and episodes of what you did on this journey about the exotic places you set foot in, from running slideshows on your trip to fill-in-the-blank, or doing the same presentation using moving imagery in the form of home movies, and later, home videos. The old joke that when somebody would say “Have you seen my pictures of my trip to France?” to their friends, all of a sudden, many of the friends would say they were “too busy” to take the time to gawk at these pictures (or view the movies), are somewhat true. But now thanks to social media, one doesn’t have to ask anyone. They just do it!

It appears that with the height of privacy and all of the issues it presents, many people take the vast steps of not letting their personal information get to the wrong hands, while other notions of their life are wild, free, and nearly for the taking! As recently as three years ago, it was quite possible for anyone to get personal details from one’s Facebook “friends” without the notion of prompting those people for the details. Since then, a combo effort of Facebook and the zillions of those listed are a bit more careful to let the wrong details out. On another site called Meetup.com, where one can find out details of groups and gathering of various topics and interests in places across that nation and the world, post pictures and member profiles that are not overly careful privacy wise. Many of the domestic home lifestyle magazine titles (print and online) that cater to a female demographic both encourage their readers to post all of this kind stuff online, while giving a bit of caution on what the post and what not to post, both before the event in question and after the fact. (i.e. “Never let anyone know when you are going on vacation. This will attract burglars”-states one blurb in a recent back issue of Redbook) But these trips people take once a month, once a year, or perhaps once in a lifetime, is enough to give them bragging rights, notwithstanding the notion that people may care about these or not!

So as Jodie and her gang make the plunge to visit everything and anything in central Florida, perhaps we’ll get a taste of what she and company took advantage of. It’s not often where one can take a week off or so and soak up the sights and sounds of one of the biggest tourist places existing in the USA, so it might be outright amusing! Perhaps many years from now, one will look at those old digital photos with both amazement and confusion, wondering just what the big deal in going was all about!

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

is a presentation of Linear Cycle Productions

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WORKIN’ 5 TO 9

There has been a lot of news going around within the social media circles that speak/write/post/tweet about the results from an experiment taking place in England a.k.a. The United Kingdom a.k.a. the “UK” where 2900 workers employed by 61 companies that held a small amount of paid employees within their roster. These companies had their employees work on a four day schedule where they would be on the job, either in-person or virtual on a shorter schedule, meaning that they would have a three day weekend-so to speak. The results came in to where the employees were less stressed and were able to get their assignments done in a proper manner. And those employees were able to do the things outside of work that they either had to do (keeping their homes in order, etc.), or things they just wanted to do. (Go to the beach, etc.) The experiment was so successful, these same companies would continue this method of employment with happier employees as part of their roster.

For many years, companies, both big and small(er), were on a schedule where their employees were expected to work harder and longer with minimum benefits. They were expected to be within an office domicile for so many hours a week. And thanks to technology, that meant their employers were expected to have their employees to remain “on call”. As long as they had access to electronic devices that sported a video screen and were able to connect to the ‘net one way or another, that meant that they were on duty far beyond regular office hours.

Thanks to the results of the pandemic now “celebrating” its third anniversary of its start, folks were mad as hell and weren’t going to take it anymore! They realized that they were getting overly stressed within their jobs. And thanks to the work attitudes as experienced by these same set of employees, they don’t have to kiss the a$$es of their bosses just because they said so! The pandemic’s results gave these employees permission to speak up. And they spoke!!

This description of work and working is usually limited to those employed within a traditional office-type setting. There are other occupations where this described episode doesn’t apply, such as those in the service industry (restaurant servers, etc.), or those that work in the medical field such as nurses, caretakers and the like. But if one is part of a firm that does embrace this form of arrangement, then a four day a week schedule makes a whole lot of sense.

This feeling of job related burnout has occurred with this humble writer as well. Once upon a time, I was in the media production industry, working for a well respected cable TV franchise that at one time was the fourth largest of its kind in the nation in terms of coverage and subscriber reach, and was the biggest franchise that was built from the ground up! I did everything from operate cameras for local events from local high school sporting events from city council meetings–shooting talking heads mostly!! I later became a producer of a weekly live talk/variety program for a number of years. Although it had its moments, it was a lot of work and I was getting a lot of stress. So I finally said using the colorful term, “F this S!”

Years later, I shifted my time and efforts toward this newsletter, hacking out articles each week as well as writing various bits of news and reviews of various events deemed fit for publication. Much of what I was doing involved attending events or various aspects just so I can get a review created. While making attempts to attend events in order to get the job done so to speak, I was starting to feel agitated and stressed, although I wasn’t sure why I was feeling this way. When things began to shut down in 2020, I was able to get myself together, finally realizing why I was feeling this way! I once again experienced burnout.

Although I didn’t give out the same “F this S” exclamation as I did back in the day, I noticed that I was working too hard and too long. So I cut back drastically. The results? I have been getting my act together while getting the same amount of work done. I also was able to get more things accomplished that I never thought I could even get done. I allowed myself to do what I did. And guess what folks? It worked!

It is quite possible to have some employers do less and get more. Perhaps this is the reason why these big companies in tech and media are indeed laying off staff. These companies are not necessarily hurting as far as income and profits, although a few firms did report a loss in some elements while gaining on other things.. They realized that they could do more with less. And those that were laid off are finding other sources for work, while others are looking for something else that doesn’t necessarily hark the same attitudes that their former employers expected them to be or to do.

Yours truly will keep an eye out over this new(er) method of work and working. Again, it doesn’t apply to everybody and everything, so the results may vary. But it shows that this is a victory of sorts for giving people what they want from a job: honor and respect. That is what I was looking for when I began my career back in the “good old days”. One thing I never looked for was one element expressed by those getting started in today’s landscape: fame! If anyone offered me fame, I would take it but that wasn’t something that was part of the itinerary. Mr DeMille never gave me my closeup, but what I did receive was the method of doing things and the way out I was secretly looking for. I could punch a clock, or that clock can punch me! Take yer pick!!

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On Sunday, March 12th, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences presented the 95th Academy Awards presenting the Oscar for the best films of the 2022 calendar year, held at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.

Brendan Fraser won Best Actor for the feature release The Whale. Mechelle Yeoh won Best Actress for Everything Everywhere All at Once. Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert won Best Director(s) for Everything Everywhere All at Once, and Everything Everywhere All at Once won as Best Picture.

For a list of all nominees and winners, visit the official web site at http://www.Oscars.com.

The day before, March 11th, the Golden Raspberry Foundation presented the 44th Razzie Awards awarding the Razzies for the worst films released in the 2022 calendar year.

Jared Leto won Worst Actor for the feature Morbius. “The Razzies” awarded itself for Worst Actress as it added and later removed Ryan Kiera Armstrong’s nomination for the feature Firestarter because Armstrong was underaged. (Armstrong is 12 years old.) Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) & Mod Sun won Worst Director(s) for Good Mourning, and Blond won as Worst Picture.

Special awards went to Colin Farrell appearing in the feature The Banshees of Inisherin was awared the Redeeemer Award, an award given to a performer that used to appear in “bad” movies to later appear in a “good” film.

For a listing of all nominated films and people as well as its “winners’, visit the official Razzes web site at http://www.Razzies.com

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ACCESSIBLY LIVE OFF-LINE

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ALWAYS “ON” THE AIR

It seems that if one wanted to impress others, one had to follow a series of guidelines (or “rules”) that would bring some kind of success by the user-the person that wants to make a good impression with others to those that same user is looking for.

There have been dozens of self-help books that discuss the ways one can use to make that desired impression. In today’s high tech landscape, just a simple search asking the question “How to Impress People ” (or something to that effect) will bring hundreds of sources on this advice. Some are spot on, while others are there to accept for what its worth.

The rules are rather straightforward. One has to be authentic, live an impressive life(style), impress people where one works and/or attends school, using social gatherings as a background, etc. But long before Google searches became the norm, one could turn toward those for noted self-help books that were available, especially those published during the so-called “me” decade of the 1970’s, extending through the years well into the turn of the 21st century. But as a person starting out in life, I had to figure all of this out on my own with various methods of success.

I didn’t start the method of impressing people until I became an adolescent. As a kid, I really didn’t have to impress those around my domestic domain as I wasn’t worth a person who desired respect. A kid for the most part was taken for what the kid was worth. Of course, parents of the kid (or in this case, I am writing for myself as I was that “kid”), would accept me because I was their child. And parents, or at least at that time, always say their kid(s) as their number one. That was a given. But for others around me, I was taken for what I was worth to them. The adults were mostly those involved in my school situations, teachers and so on. My peer accepted me as part of the group, or “gang” so to speak. Besides, I wasn’t aware that I had to impress anyone, unless that someone was somebody I was seeking attention to.

That didn’t kick in until I became the age of the demographic known as “tweeners”, the age between eight and fourteen years old. Its sweet spot is around ten to twelve years old. This was the age where I was becoming aware of my situations that were outside of the home I lived in. There were more school connected adults and my peers.

As I became part of my “gang” within my school setting, this is where I felt I had to make a good impression to become accepted. Although I didn’t necessarily know it at the time, the adults I encountered outside of family didn’t need me to impress them, although I did make an effort to try. They, as adults, knew more about adolescents and how they behaved themselves that I expected them to know about. However, they were a tough audience. So I knew I had to cover all of the bases around me.

So I had to think of a method for making an impression. I was aware of those self help book titles that were available. But I didn’t care to read about the ways to impress. Because those books were not written for my kind as those were geared toward “grown-ups”, and I had yet to reach that point.

So I turned toward my most trusted source where I can learn about the world around me. And that source was television, the place that I “visited” for many hours per day through its many programs that were available at that time. I didn’t know what I saw on TV was “real” or “fake”. It was there at my disposal, so I accepted it. Besides, I didn’t have much of a choice in their matter, outside of those self-help books that didn’t impress me in the first place.

I began to notice the time where people would react to others in a positive light, and that was through the many talk shows that were on the air at the time. One program was The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. On his program, they had a bevy of personalities as guests, mostly in the entertainment field. I noted that when Johnny would speak to a guest, mostly actors and stand-up comics, they always had a banter going on. The guest, let’s say a comedian, always had something funny and interesting to say. When the person spoke, (s)he had laughs from the audience as well as for Johnny. Johnny would reply with some more witty banter, and so on. Their conversation never slacked, always having something interesting to say to make this talk as funny and amusing as it could get.

I was rather impressed with this form of communication. So I learned that in order to be accepted by others, one had to be witty and funny with something amusing to say and react. In other words, they were always “on”, never letting their pace fall into a lull.

So that is what I did. I always had to be turned “on” when I was with others with the notion that I would be accepted. So I always got into what others were saying around me, and had to follow up with a witty remark. If the situation was slow or even somber, I had to wait until the situation was enough where fast paced banter was fitting,

At first, it was rather easy with my gang. They were at the same level as I was. They were able to keep up the pace with me and vice versa. The adults were a little tricky to maneuver. They didn’t have the same pacing as I did, but were enough where I could be upbeat with them. Some did accept it, while others didn’t–something that I didn’t necessarily know about. When they didn’t respond to my patter the way I wanted them to, I learned that I should do one of two options. I should either keep my patter going until they were able to catch up, or I should slow down if not stop entirely until they gave me the “signal” to continue. I can’t recall what was more common, to proceed or to quit. But I didn’t know that those adults knew more of my routine, or “act” as one adult person now long forgotten once labeled my schtick. But for my group, their acceptance served me well.

As I grew older, the method of ever being “on” grew along as I did. I was still trying to be fast paced fully, making sure that that invisible “on” switch was in the right position.The audience I was connected to changed, but not the methods. Keep “on” and stay “on”. That was the rule.

To make a longer story short(er), this continued through my so-called “young adult” days where there were less “grown ups” to deal with replacing those older adults with many more of my peers. I was still at the age where as an adult, I could still get away with what I was doing, being the person who always had something to say and knew how to react.

This form of appearance did help me out quite a bit toward my career choices. I was able to impress professionals working in the media where I was able to get jobs (one that actually pay money) without formally applying. They just liked me because I was doing something right. And when I later became the host of a public access talk program called Accessibly Live, I was able to speak to the camera (and my audience) in the same method as many a late night TV show host could do. I was able to do such because of my “on” switch being in the right position.

As time progressed, I still had that switch in the “on” position, although I wasn’t as conscious of keeping the switch in its right position as my act was more as a given than a personality choice. I was so “on”, I didn’t necessarily know it! Just keep up the banter and the wit, and I would be fine. I did know when to turn on the charm and when to place it on hold. But when the time is right, then “on” I go!

Right around when I became middle aged is when I realized that being “on” all of the time didn’t cut it as it once did. I didn’t have a “middle aged” crisis per se, but I knew that things were a bit different. However, old habits die hard, so I kept on going, although I didn’t place much effort toward it as I once did.

What made the major change toward this form of attitude came around when the pandemic started to take hold. If one desires to be precise on when that occurred, one can use the weekend of March 13th-15th of 2020. It was around that time when this strange disease that has the name of COVID-19 started to make its rounds. Before long, everybody was hunkering down. And while I was part of that hunker down notion, this is when I realized that being “on” had more side effects, but not as a good kind. I realized that being “on” was causing me to move at such a fast pace, I didn’t know when (or how) to stop. I was going so fast, I was encountering burnout. And that burnout was even killing me.

So while others were staying home cooking foods they never cooked before, getting any kind of animal they could grab as a pet, and learned that ZOOM wasn’t a name of a sound effect or the title of a nearly forgotten TV series aimed at adolescent kids that was produced by WGBH-TV in Boston Massachusetts (02134!!), I then got the invisible memo informing me that it was no longer necessarily to be in the “on” state at all times.

As I see all of this, I did note that being “on” all of the time wasn’t as easy as it once seemed to be. At times, I sometimes had to try really hard to stay witty, especially if those around me weren’t reacting as I thought they would or when I just didn’t feel up to being a wit. I also had to plan just what to do when I could cross a tough audience. That just meant to work harder and faster, and that wasn’t a sure success. When it didn’t work, I knew I had to stop. When this occurred, I became a failure.

But one thing I didn’t know when I started taking the lessons on how to make an impression. When those Tonight Show guests were appearing on TV with their chatter, I didn’t know that the reason they were being witty and funny was because they were being paid to appear on those programs! (They were receiving the minimum pay scale that AFTRA, the labor union that covers television performers, required at the time.) So it was part of their job to be upbeat, and Johnny did the same although he was earning more than his guests would be making.

So what did I get out from all of these sessions with my “on” switch? I learned that one can impress others with one’s ability to community without being a fast paced comical genius. One would have to play the game of “give and take” by allowing others to communicate along the same lines as I would have to. And if one doesn’t have anything to contribute, then so be it. Sometimes actions speak louder than words. They may be the case for reality, although saying nothing doesn’t make great entertainment on TV.

Maybe this is the reason behind this as I am no longer that adolescent kid that had to learn all about life through TV. And perhaps I learned the difference between reality and what one views on a video screen. This separation between being real and what’s not still exists in the present day. Social media portals have proven this fact as well as the stats that came out with studies created by those that look upon these portals. But I do have to thank those long line or actors, comics, and others that graced the stages of late night TV, as well as through a few programs that aired during the daylight hours. And I am sure that there are other folks out there that did the same things that I did. This time, their audience came from social media outlets. They even were made “famous” while appearing through social media. The rest are still seeking their spot of fame. All I was doing was looking for respect. But to use a phrase spoken by a stand up comic whose name was forgotten, the older one gets, the less they even care about what others say.

Are these facts true? I must be because I read all about it on the internet!!

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Open Fist Theater Company presents Catherine Butterfield’s TO THE BONE, a comedy about a family reunion that reunites a mother and her daughter, but not for the intended purposes of anything in the traditional sense.

The setting is in a working class neighborhood of Boston. Tisha Terrasini Banker is Kelly, a middle aged widowed mother of a nineteen year old son Sean. (Jack David Sharpe) who spends much of his days playing video games and reading graphic novels. Kelly lives with her sister Maureen (Amanda Weier) in their humble flat. Kelly also has a daughter named Geneva (Alice Kors), who she gave away for adoption many years before. Kelly made an attempt to contact her long lost daughter. Geneva, now attending Emerson College not too far away, is excited to finally meet her birth mother after all these years. She even brought along her roommate Darcy (Kacey Mayeda), a media major, to capture Geneva’s reunion with her mom as part of a documentary. Once arriving at Kelly’s home, Geneva discovers the real reason why her birth mom summoned her. It’s the start of how a family once torn apart is finally getting together bringing all of the dysfunction that goes along with reunions made for an intended purpose.

This play, written and directed by Catherine Butterfield, is a production that holds a blend of genuine laughter that spark the feistiness and “street tuffs” of what gritty Bostonians are really like, and even shows a bit of heart to these matters. Tisha Terrasini Banker as Kelly and Amanda Weier as Maureen (“Mo”) show those true colors of what make those Boston folks tick, as long as those colors are red as their sox! Alice Kors as Geneva is a young woman that was raised with a silver spoon in her mouth, being raised from a well-to-do family living in a tawny midwest community. She’s honored to be respected in spite of her circumstances. Jack David Sharpe as Sean is also one of her hard types, but due to his condition, he’s getting by rather well. And Kacey Mayeda as Darcy is an eager student that receives more from creating her future documentary than she expected.

Jan Munroe’s scenic desire of Kelly’s home reflects her working class roots. It shows that she can create a home making do with what she holds accessible.

Overall, this play is funny for its stereotypes depicted as noted, and holds a happy ending of sorts where everything and everyone receives their revision. The entire production takes the overall persona ‘to the bone’. Let’s all wish for the boys in red to make their season count this year at Fenway!

TO THE BONE, presented by Open Fist Theater Company and performs at the Theater 68 Arts Complex, 5112 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, until March 26th. Showtimes are Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, Sunday evenings at 7:00 PM, Saturday matinees at 2:00 PM, and Friday night, March 10th at 8:00 PM.

For more information and to obtain tickets, go online at www.theatre68artscomplex.com

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AI AIN’T A1!

Back in 2001, Warner Bros received a feature film entitled Artificial intelligence: AI, also known as AI: Artificial Intelligence. (It’s assumed that the latter title was used so movie theater marquees can list that feature as “AI” rather than “Artificial Intelligence”.)

The movie itself was about the creation of a robot sporting the likeness of a young white boy that can show human emotions, and the problems that this “boy” created when a young couple adopted this boy to replace a son they lost. This movie was supposed to be the next feature directed by Stanley Kubrick based upon a short story written by Brain Aldiss entitled Super Toys Last All Summer Long. However, Kubrick died when the feature was getting ready for production. Steven Spielberg stepped in to create the screenplay set for his style in directing, and was released as another science fiction vehicle that was geared to show an emotional affect.

I was invited to attend a screening of this title for press review. When I received the notice from the WB publicity department in the mail before the time that the studios would use electronic means to send these kinds of notices to those on their mailing list, they listed the title as AI: Artificial Intelligence. At first, I read the title as A1: Artificial Intelligence. Of course, the name “A1” means one of two things. It means that this is a description of something that is at its peak (“A1” representing the first letter of the alphabet and as “number one”, versus something at the bottom of the heap as in “Z26”), or it described a brand name for steak sauce with a spicy flavor that was more liquid in form than the type of sauce offered by Heinz that ran more like its ketchup.

At first, I wasn’t too keen on seeing this movie as I was partial to sci-fi features, as well as the fact that Spielberg was attached to the movie as I found his film making as a bit over-the-top. I didn’t even like Kubrick’s previous movie Eyes Wide Shut, released by the same studio two years before. I decided to go since I could hack out another review for this news service, and the fact that I didn’t have anything else to do on the day and time of the screening.

When I showed up to the screen room location (It was in a dedicated screening room that could be rented for the evening rather than at a regular movie theater such as the old Avco Theater, a multiplex once located on Wilshire Blvd. In Westwood), the folks at WB eventually overbooked the theater. They couldn’t find a seat for me and the person I was with at the time. I was told that they would host another screening sometime soon and would let me know about it once that’s scheduled. So I walked away, never having a chance to see that flick and thus, no review to write. I never received any other notice for another screening that the woman from the Warner Bros. PR department said I would get! And it was just as well I didn’t see the film as I later learned that it wasn’t very good for what it was supposed to be!

I can see why the folks at WB rearranged the wording for this movie. It was known to the public at large what artificial intelligence was all about. (Robots mostly, but other forms of machinery and computer-based programming that acted like a human were behind this form of creation and “life”.) But its moniker “AI” wasn’t as known, if at all! Perhaps it was part of the lingo used to those within that kind of industry and its related connections. But for the most part, “AI” could be mistaken for “A1”, the same way that I saw it.

But that was back some twenty plus years ago. At that time, this form of robotics was more science fiction than science fact. Over time, robotics had been created in the same style it was depicted in sci-fi features of yore. They either worked with humans, or were working against them! But AI creating conversations through written and verbal means were at its infancy. There were reports in such publications as Popular Science and other sources that perhaps one day, it was quite possible to have a conversation with a robotic figure only to have that figure reply back in the same way that a real human being could.

Within the past year, it appears that “AI” is indeed a reality. If one scrolls through the media portals out there, there have been reports that many software companies are creating methods of communications that are based on AI. Many of these methods are in the form of “chat boxes”, a place found on a website where the user can type in a message seeking some information and having the “person” on the other end of the chat reply through the input from the human user. AI has even gone beyond chat boxes lately. A few newspapers, even the ones that do not use “paper” as their prime medium, has created news articles with AI based robots, or “bots” instead of a human journalist writing the same news story.

There are other factors that AI is the given choice, from the creation of new and tested(?) food recipes to writing songs using music with desired musical tones with lyrics that almost make sense. But from the AI formatted songs that this writer heard, they do need a bit of work!

These methods of AI do open ideals where these robotic sources hold a sense of intelligence to work along humans to get their jobs done. The notion of robots taking over to replace humans is always a factor to resolve for many reasons. Perhaps the most obvious reason is costs. One doesn’t have to give an AI source a salary, as well as offering health benefits and a 401K option plan. It could do the work as a human once did while working 24/7/365 on the same pay scale. No overtime or even bathroom breaks! It these robots do need to “go”, there are other methods that they can do such a deed. But this is all besides the point!

And thanks to technology that strives upon the rule of “smaller faster cheaper”, methods of AI can indeed take over. This is more true to jobs that could be quite dangerous to a human, such as search-and-rescue teams looking for those lost in the woods or stuck upon a mountain top, or on jobs that require a bomb being deactivated. Those operations can work well without a human risking a life. But for tasks that could be performed by a real person but can be taken over through AI? Those are the issues that need pondering upon.

But time, tide, and technology are the factors here. It will be a long time (if at all) when AI will work along with the human race. So when it comes to doing a task that is indeed “A1”, leave it to a real person to get the job done. That’s the real “secret sauce”!

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City Garage theater presents Stephen Greenblatt & Charles L Mee’s CARDENIO, a comical play about a group of friends attending a wedding in Italy while they go through a test of love, and attending a “premier” production of a newly found work that may have been written by The Bard himself.

The setting is the region of Umbria, located in the center of Italy. A group of Americans from the New York region are gathered to witness the wedding of Anselmo (Anthony Sannazzaro) and Camilla (Devin Davis-Lorton). After the ceremony, Anselmo speaks to his best friend and best man Will (Gifford Irvine) stating that he isn’t sure if his now wife actually loves and desires him. So he asks Will to make an attempt to seduce her. If she takes on Will, then Cardenio really doesn’t love Anselmo. Before that “test” is executed, there’s others in the wedding party to deal with, consisting of Edmund (Jason Pereira), Sally (Angela Beyer), Doris (Kat Johnston), Simonetta (Loosema Hakverdian), as well as Anselmo’s parents Luisa (Martha Duncan) and Alfred (Bo Roberts). As part of the reception, Lucia suggests that they perform a play that was once lost, then found, then lost, and then found again that was supposedly written by one of the world’s greatest playwrights, William Shakespeare. The play is called “Cardenio”, yet only fragments have survived over the many centuries. But there’s enough of the material where a few lines can be read from the scripts they provide. But there is more to this story where others in the wedding party take this test to discover who may fall in love for whom. It’s a challenge that can lead toward bliss or another tale of love and devotion–with laughs throughout.

This play that was actually written (for real) by Shakespearian scholar Stephen Greenblatt and playwright Charles L Mee takes upon the idea of this Shakespearian piece that was first composed in the early 1600s as attributed to W.S. and John Fletcher who served as a co-author. The original piece was based upon the idea found in Cervantes’ Don Quixote. (The seduction parts of the storyline anyway!) However, the original manuscript was “found” during the 18th century and re-written by Lewis Theobald and later retitled as The Double Falsehood. To make things more complicated, that original manuscript that Lewis “found” was destroyed in a theater fire in the early 1800s.

Although the original Cardenio no longer exists, this version as seen at City Garage is a comic farce that consists of a group of friends spending the time in Italy’s wine country attending a wedding and testing their devotion to each other, ending with a load of comical settings. The cast of characters appearing in this program perform their roles with high paced wit and slapstick comedy. The pacing of the said performers never let the action fall into a drag, even when two characters (man and woman of course) are discussing their “tests”, passing them all with flying colors! All of this is thanks to Frederique Michel’s stage direction. She also choreographed all the dance scenes as well as the wedding group going through the motives that celebrate the bride and groom, in addition to the notions of what The Bard wrote about–or not! What presented, let alone performed! The original piece only consists of a few of the characters reading off lines (as a cold audition) with scripts in hand! So this play is more akin to a group of friends at a wedding, leaving the work of Willy S. as an afterthought.

In addition to the cast that also features Troy Dunn, Andy Kallok and Natasha St. Clair Johnson as “Susana”, there’s the visuals as seen on stage. Charles Duncombe’s set and lighting design shows that the backdrop is Italy, but to its right sized minimum. And Josephine Poinsot’s costuming has everyone at their finest during the first act (post wedding), and in more of a casual vibe in the second act. (Around the time of the testing!)

It’s been stated that one should brush up their Shakespeare before one take a performance of The Bard’s time tested classics. For this play as written by Greenblatt and Mee, it’s best to brush up on spending an evening (or afternoon) experiencing a very amusing and witty play that is easy to understand as it’s spoken in contemporary English, with plenty of humorous scenes to boot! And if one day where the entire script of Cardenio is found, one can guess that City Garage, or any other finer theater out there, will have that work grace the stages again. Until then, just enjoy this piece and have a great laugh or two in the process!

CARDENIO, presented by and performs at City Garage, 2525 Michigan Avenue (Building 11), Santa Monica, until March 26th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday afternoons at 4:00 PM. Special question and answer session with the cast and crew takes place following the Sunday, March 19th performance.

For ticket reservations and for more information, Call (310) 453-9939, or via online at http://www.CityGarage.org

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YOU REALLY WANT TO GO TO THE MOVIES?

Over the past few years, especially around the time that the Pandemic made its mark around the end of the first quarter of 2020, having people going out to attend events with others present has seen its share of ups and downs.

Of course, things have changed since that same Pandemic and all of its emergencies and cautions have faded into memories that can either be seen as nostalgic or harrowing, depending on how one lived through all of that mask wearing and overall hunkering down–for its better or for its worse!

One element that has seen a shift in activity is the simple task at going outside of one’s home for visual entertainment. Among the many things one can do for that overall amusement is going out to a local or regional movie theater to take part in watching content, or as most commonly known as watching a feature film on the big screen.

Of course, this form of entertainment has been around for over one hundred years. But for a long time, that was the only method to do that if one wanted to see a new(er) film from Hollywood, unless one is parting with an “art” movie made in some country where English isn’t the primary language or in a nation that isn’t the USA.

Recently, people who were forced to stay home during the lockdown found alternative methods to experience a movie going experience. They set up theaters of their own inside of their domains. Thanks to the drop in prices in big screen TV devices, especially one that boasted screen sizes of 60” or more or projection devices that can project a screen size of 100”, as well as having a booming sound system hooked up to their visual companions, having a movie house setting at home was not only great, but just a lot better for the user. It was cheaper to view movies at home than going through the elements of trekking to a movie house! One didn’t even have to be at a theater at a certain time to catch whatever may be playing there. You can start the movie up anytime, be it at 3:17 PM, or 3:17 AM. If one was inside of a movie house, there was the chance of experiencing annoying patrons talking (rather loudly at times) during the flick, and even having others play with their phones during the feature! If you do that at home, it’s not as bothersom!

But perhaps one factor to note was the price of admission. Here in Los Angeles, one would have to pony up anywhere between $15.00 and $23.00 per adult person depending on what movie house one is attending. If anyone wanted concessions, it would cost one as well. At a local theater near this writer’s homestead and run by the AMC movie chain, admission to a standard feature cost $18.50 per adult. The smallest sized container of popcorn runs around $9.00, and the standard size cup of soda pop is around $6.00 with unlimited refills. So if one wanted to do the math for a single person for a movie, small popcorn and soda, that would run at $33.50. And one had to get to the movie house in the first place. One has to drive their vehicle there. If there was a bus line running near the movie house, one could do that just costing bus fare. If you were walking distance, one can use their feet. At least that method of transportation is free.

AMC recently announced that they will have “tier ticket pricing” in the same vein as getting a ticket for a live event appearing in a larger theater or stadium. The better view seating would be more than a seat father away from the stage setting. The “cheap seats” are usually located on a balcony, or the farthest away from where one views the action on stage/screen.

In a movie theater, it’s rather different. The choice seats tend to be in the middle of the theater about halfway between the front to where the screen is and the back to where the projection booth would normally be located.

Starting later this year and rolling out through the next few weeks, AMC will add a dollar or two to its ticket price if one wants to grab a set in its “sweet spots”. (Middle-center) If one wanted the lower price, one has to sit farther back or within the front rows to where the screen is located.

This is rather true since yours truly has seen this method of seating when attending a screening of a feature inside of a movie house. This is even noticed further when the screening is rather sparsely attended. Everyone tends to cluster in the middle center. A few watch from the far back rows. However, the seating within the first three rows are at little to none in attendance. People tend to watch a flick in the same manner as watching it on a TV device. That is, in the center of the screen within a rather comfortable distance from the screen where the visuals show the viewing area in a rectangular viewpoint–a screen size at 1:85:1 in ratio dimension viewed within a darken border around the screen.

AMC hopes that this surcharge will make up for the loss of attendance many movie houses are experiencing due to the backlash of the Pandemic, as well as the companionship of home theaters and the available content provided through various video streaming services out in the field.

This is even more true for specific demographics who attend movies houses. Those aged 30 and younger have been flocking back to theaters. Middle aged people (aged from 30’s and 40’s), are also coming back, but not in the same way as their younger cohorts. Those that are aged 50 and up are the ones that are staying away. This is the age where one would most likely have a home theater set up and are the most frustrated from the content available, as well as not being able to put up with the annoyances.

Generally speaking (or writing in this case), the age known as the latter “Gen-Xers” and just about all of the “Baby Boomers” only go to the movies as a special occasion. And once they stayed away due to the Pandemic lockdowns now long lifted, they ain’t coming back!

This may have been connected toward the reason why AMC, as well as other theater chains, offer special discounted admission prices for the recent Paramount release 80 For Brady, since this feature’s targeted audience are of those that are baby-boomer age. This is even true since Paramount teamed up with AARP to market the movie through social media (Facebook mostly as many boomers are on Facebook), as well as their print publications. (The cast consisting of Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno made the cover of the February/March, 2023 issue of AARP The Magazine, pushing the notion that this movie was about “…(Female) friendship, fun and why they’re crushing on–guess who?” (An actual quote of the byline for the cover story article.)

But even with this pricing going up or down, one has to ask if anyone is going to the movies? The answer is a simple “yes”! As of this writing, Disney’s Avalon: The Way of Water is already the sixth biggest worldwide grossing movie of all time, and may surpass the biggest domestic grossing movie released in the 2022 calendar year. (Top Gun: Maverick, also from Paramount, holds that title as the movie that racked in the biggest bucks from theaters in the USA and Canada.)

Again, it’s all going to depend on the movie that people desire to see, especially if it’s a remake/reboot/re-imagining, a sequel, or another superhero/comic book picture. Ditto for family friendly animation. A comedy can withstand depending how funny it is and who’s making it comical. As for drama? One may be better off taking an appearance on somebody’s home theater as that genre is better suited for viewing through those means. Then again, just about any movie can be at its best at home. And if one wanted to “Netflix and Chill”, one can do that as well without heading toward the balcony and hope that an usher won’t catch you two NOT watching the movie! Or so it seems that way….

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Performing at the Odyssey Theater as a visiting production is THE DREAMER EXAMINES HIS PILLOW, John Patrick Shanley’s one act play about a shivved young man, his ex-girlfriend, and the girlfriend’s dad that form an odd triangle of sorts as they all look upon their current state of being that they are all facing at the moment.

James Liddell is Tommy, a twenty-seven young man that lives in a run down flat somewhere in New York City. He is an artist of sorts, but spends much of his time sitting in a run down lounge chair that is ready for a space in the alley, unless that chair was pulled from there. His only companion is a run down mini-fridge full of canned beer. He just broke up with his girlfriend Donna (Pamela Portnoy), a street smart woman from “The Heights”. Donna’s rather upset with Tommy. Not from his being a no talent artist, but he’s been “doing” her younger sixteen year old sister! Tommy’s lifestyle is rather reflective of Donna’s father (Eric Larson), who lead a life similar to Tommy’s. He cheated on his wife, spent too much time drinking, and quit painting when his wife finally died. Now these three are coming to terms with one another as Tommy and Donna are completing their full circle with the somewhat aid of dear ol’ dad!

This play written by John Patrick Shanley (his fourth) is loaded with dialogue that makes up for its minimal action that appears on the stage. The three speak not to each other, but at each other, the way that so-called dysfunctional families should act. But this isn’t a play about families, and it’s far from being a romantic comedy even though the humor is rather unique for what it holds. (It does offer a terrific punch line!!)

The three players appearing in this program mesh rather well. James Liddell is the slacker that is lucky enough to live in an apartment in New York based on what he did to deserve the life he presently leads. Pamela Portnoy is Donna is the sassy hardass type from the mean streets that NYC is famous (or infamous) for. And Eric Larson as “Dad” is a man that knew of his faults. But those same faults were in the past, and he’s willing to go forward for what he has left.

Anne Kathryn Parma directs this show as a tight seventy-five minute stage piece that consist of the three actors that bicker yet they don’t fight per se, although they don’t join forces as a whole until its last scene.

THE DREAMER EXAMINES HIS PILLOW is a play that isn’t a nightmare, but is a play that is funny in nature and its climax may be of a happy one. Whatever the case, it’s a program that holds its wit as well as its drama. And how Tommy got away with dealing with somebody underage isn’t the stuff that dreams are made of. It’s the stuff that makes stage plays something to behold.

THE DREAMER EXAMINES HIS PILLOW, performs at The Oddsey Theater, 2055 South Sepulveda Blvd. (between Olympic and Santa Monica Blvds.) until February 26th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday matinees at 1:00 PM. For tickets and for more information, visit the Odyssey Theater’s website at http://OdysseyTheater.com

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A Noise Within of Pasadena presents MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, William Shakespeare’s “rom-com” about false impressions, double dealing, and of course, love!

The setting this time around is Messina, Sicily c. 1943. It’s the period of World War II, and Sicily has just been liberated by the allied forces. Frederick Stuart is Don “The Prince” Pedro, a film star that’s doing his part in the war effort as an enlisted soldier. His companion Claudio (Stanley Andrew Jackson) and Hero (Alexandra Hellquist) appear as one of a pair of romantic couples. Its second pair between Claudio’s pal Benedick (Joshua Bitton) and Hero’s cousin Beatrice (Erika Soto) forms at this tale’s core. The romances between its one and all goes on and off as both of these four carry on with its astons and wordplay! Many episodes leads into others as these romances carry on with their own version of the “merry war” while the rest are out battling in a real war (of sorts) connected with humor, intrigue, high powered comical action, and of course, love!!

This new take of a time tested classic holds many of these honored truths and then some! The back theme to this version of one of The Bard’s beloved creations of jest brings its theme to the middle 20th Century, loaded with characters and situations that range from slapstick farce, zippy hilarity, and comical situations with touches of drama and of course, love! Much of what appears on the stage is very reminiscent to a Hollywood production that was created around the WWII era that could have been done by MGM (in Technicolor) or Universal (in back & white.) Yes, the entire play uses the words and phrases by its playwright as originally composed, but is geared toward a contemporary audience always playing off a good laugh along with its leads going through their romantic conflicts. They keep their place in gear with the ever desire quest for love!!

The cast that appear in this production includes Rafael Goldstein as Don John, Jeanne Syquia as Margaret, Nick Perroccione as Balthasar and Ursula, Tony Pasqualini as Leonato, Westley Mann as Dogberry/Antonio, Randy Thompson as Conrade/Friar Francis, Michael Uribes as Borachio, along with Alejandro Hernandez and Arely Vianet in ensemble spots. (Some of the players appear in double roles!)

Guillermo Cienfuegos directs this program as a theater piece that is not only comical in nature as well as fast paced in spirit, but brings the notion that Shakespeare sagas are not as stuffy as one may realize. Of course, one may get a bit lost in who is who and where its all going. But fear not! Good ol’ Willy won’t leave anyone off in a loop. Just let the characters carry on to bring its many climaxes to where they lay as there is always a happy ending within a comedy scripted through the pen (quill?) of squire W.S.!

Along with the performers as seen on stage, there are other elements to make note. Angelia Balogh Calin’s scenic design consists of a series of floating pieces that bring the theater audience throughout various locations of this part of liberated Sicily. Christine Cover Ferro’s costuming is also reflected in the period. (Middle 1940’s in this case.) And Joyce Guy’s choreography enhances the spirit of all of the banter that this program brings out. This even includes the musical interludes that are played between scenes that use a mix of the transcribed tuneful sounds of Glen Miller, Benny Goodman, and Raymond Scott. (Chris Moscatiello is in charge of sound design.)

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING isn’t about “nothing” as the title term came from a phrase that once meant “gossip”. But one will get plenty of that “nothing” as this ANW stage piece has it all: Comedy, fast paced action, and of course, love!

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, presented by and performs at A Noise Within, 3352 East Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, until March 12th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM with matinees Saturday and Sundays at 2:00 PM. Special “talk backs” with the cast takes place following every Friday evening performance.

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

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WE DON’T NEED NO STINKIN’ PASSWORDS!

In media news that may be considered as “boring but important”, Netflix, perhaps one of the be-all-to-end-all media streaming sites found in the video world, recently announced that they will finally crack down on subscribers domestically that have been sharing their passwords for others to gain access to their subscriptions.

Some five years ago c. 2017, Netflix used the line “Love is Sharing a Password” suggesting to those same paid subscribers that sharing a password was indeed showing their signs of “love” to those that considered it as “OK” to ride on their account.

However, it appears that “love” is starting to turn into a breakup. Netflix is now giving a line something to the effect of “..a Netflix account is for people who live together in a single household”. This means that you can still share your password with your Uncle Looie or Auntie Muriel, just as long as your Uncle Looie and Auntie Muriel are shacking up within the same place one hangs their hat.

But if you want to share your passwords with your “BFF”s, and those BFFs live somewhere else, then Netflix won’t seem to like that idea. So if they want to keep up with the latest installment of Stranger Things, they either have to watch those shows in the same house the subscriber lives in, or the BFFs better pony up with their own subscribing antics.

This notion of watching content on somebody else’s subscription used to be labeled as “theft of service”. This was a long time concern with cable TV companies who once dominated the TV programming services industry that thrived from the late 1970’s well into the 2000s.

When yours truly used to work in the CATV domain, we used to be trained on theft of service, or “TOS” as is was called on occasion even through TOS was always confused with a cable channel that used three initials such as HBO, USA and TBS, long after Turner Broadcasting dropped the “W” from their channel nmae. Employees within Group W as well as other CATV companies were taught on how to spot folks stealing cable. And there were ways that they did this bit of thievery.

The way it was done was through a process of connecting a coax cable from a junction box that was located inside of a metal box placed along neighborhoods that was usually placed on the ground surface. (A few were placed on an electric line pole high above the ground, but most were on the surface for easier access.) People would tend to break into these boxes assuming they were locked up, but most were not as locks were either previously broken in or missing from the door assemblies. These same folks would connect a cable that was formally unconnected by screwing the coax head into a coax outlet. This would give them access to the basic services. The pay or “premium” channels, such as HBO, Showtime, and the like had their signals scrambled, meaning that one would see a scrambled video picture, but were able to hear the audio portion of the video.

But in order to “steal” those scrambled channels, there was another method to do so. There were these mail order outlets that sold electronic descramblers that one can connect with a cable TV box between the box and the TV set. These descrambles would sell for around $100.00 through many companies that advertised them in small classified ads appearing in such magazines as Popular Mechanics, Popular Science, and other publications that dealt in electronic gadgetry.

Anyway, each descrambler would work based upon the cable distribution operating system that the CATV company used. Group W Cable, the outlet I once worked with, uses a system run by Scientific Atlanta. There were other companies such as Blonder-Tonge and Zenith to name a few that CATV companies used to get their coax signal through, but SA was Group W’s choice to serve their communities.

Considering that it would cost $12.95 per month to get let’s say HBO. For a year’s time, one would have to pan out $155.40 (give or take) per season. With a return of investment (or “ROI” since we seem to be initially happy within this article), the cable descrambler would pay itself off in a few months. And considering that there was more than one pay TV channel to deal with as Group W offered HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, The Movie Channel and The Disney Channel with DTV being a pay service at the time, one can get five or six channels for a fraction of the cost. And when Group W offered Pay-Per-View services, one can see WrestleMania for the same price (‘free”) as the World Wrestling Federation would charge some $59.95 to see those 1980’s-era WWF stars have at it on the mat–if they didn’t take their grudges outside of the ring!

All of these episodes as described above flourished for a number of years. The gig was up when the CATV companies switched their coax cable signals from analog to digital around the 2010s. This was also around the time when streaming services started to become available with Netflix leading the way. Nowadays, many of the existing companies that dealt with TV services (Spectrum for one) still offer traditional cable TV, but are now pushing for video services via streaming. So those descrambling boxes one once paid $100 for back in the day to steal HBO are now deemed worthless. But it was all fun (and “free”) while it lasted!!

But then again, Netflix isn’t the only player in town. Within the last ten or so years, other outlets have spring up offer their set of programming for those to take advantage of. So if one wanted to “Netflix and Chill”, one can do so without the Netflix. However, using the term “Paramount + with Showtime and Chill” doesn’t seem to have the same ring to it!

And did yours truly ever “steal cable?” Yes and no. When I was with Group W, they did give me free basic service, but I did get one of those descrambler boxes from an electronics firm located in Receda, California operating out of a mail drop service as I learned from looking for the address once located on Receda Blvd. many years later. So for a few years, I did get HBO, etc. without the higher ups at Group W knowing I was getting pay TV without paying for it. And I still have the original descrambler box as well as the cable box that I should have returned to Group W way back when. They are both sitting inside of a cardboard box with other forgotten electronic devices that I store inside of a storage area found inside a crawl space. They both still function (I think!) But with so many video programs to watch, who has the time to watch TV? I’m still holding on to videotapes I have yet to view. I’ll get to looking at those video programs when I get around to it maybe!

-Stay tuned!

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The Sierra Madre Playhouse in Sierra Madre continues its mini series of solo shows with Kayla Boye starring as Elizabeth Taylor in CALL ME ELIZABETH, focusing on the time of her life when she was a star on the big screen and to take on a role in a big epic picture as a queen on the Nile.

The setting is a modest suite at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Elizabeth, as she wants to be referred as, is speaking to a writer that is creating her autobiography. It’s c. 1961. She just completed her marriage with Eddie Fisher who took off for a gig in Las Vegas. She speaks about her life as it stood at the time, telling about her moments as a child star at MGM playing roles that showed her youthfulness. She continues to wallow about her professional life appearing in notable features such as National Velvet (about a girl and her horse) opposite Mickey Rooney, Father of the Bride (playing the bride) opposite Spencer Tracy, A Place In The Sun, opposite Montgomery Clift who she adored, as well as a few film vehicles she had to do because her film contract demanded it. Then she speaks about her series of marriages. Her first one was with Nicky Hilton, heir to the hotel chain. That partnership ended right away since Nicky wasn’t as kind to her as expected. Her second with British film star Michael Wilding came and went. Her third marriage go round was with film producer and engineer Michael Todd that ended with his death from a plane crash. Her fourth one (so far) was with vocalist Eddie Fisher. But Elizabeth wanted to divide herself between being Liz as the press knew her as, and as Elizabeth that is more toward her personal side. Her health was also on a flux as well, still recovering from an horse riding accident while shooting National Velvet a few years back, and nearly dying from a bout of pneumonia. Thus, Elizabeth has experienced more in her life within her first thirty years as others experienced for longer periods. So the time is ripe to create an autobiography!

This solo show features Kayla Boye as the younger version of Elizabeth Taylor, a product of was would be later called “Old Hollywood” where film stars were indeed stars created by an industry that treated these movie folks as protected property, always making sure that they looked and acted (for real) as appealing to their fans and the media alike. In this production, Kayla holds the same mannerism that Elizabeth had while she was still in her younger days, always being robust while keeping her youthful side up. Using her extensive research about the life and times of Elizabeth, Kayla expresses her title character as the “poor little rich girl” that had her many ups and downs in her life as a professional in the “biz”, while experiencing as many emotions that the cameras didn’t capture.

Erin Kraft directs this show as a seventy minute bio tale of Elizabeth and what she mastered so far. Of course, there will be more about her life that she will face in her second half as this stage tale concluded with her (future) appearance in the epic production of Cleopatra, featuring British film stars Rex Harrison and Richard Burton, her next suitor. This may be the focus of a follow up show that brings Elizabeth far beyond her post Old Hollywood era. But for now, it’s just plain ol’ Elizabeth!

CALL ME ELIZABETH, presented by and performs at The Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 West Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, until February 19th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday afternoons at 2:00 PM.

For ticket reservations, call (626) 355-4318, or online at http://SierreMadrePlayhouse.org

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GARBO’S CUBAN LOVER, Odalys Nanin’s play about the hidden affair between screenwriter Mercedes de Acosta and film star Greta Garbo during the glory days of Hollywood, performs at the Casa 0101 Theater in east Los Angeles.

The setting is Hollywood in the 1930’s. At Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios, Mercedes de Acosta (Odalys Nanin) was employed as a contract screenwriter churning out scripts for this movie making factory. At MGM, she gained access to many of the stars that were connected to this studio. With the suave and grace she had inherited from her Cuban born father and mother of Spanish heritage, Mercedes had a series of romantic flings with these stars, or to be precise, starlets! These romantic affairs ranged from Pola Negri, Eva Le Gallienne, Talulah Bankhead, and Ona Munson to name a few. But one star that held an attraction was with Greta Garbo. (Lydie Denier). With her Sweetish roots, Greta was more of a leading lady with a stone face rather than another “girl” appearing as a pretty picture. This attraction between Garbo and Mercedes continued through an on again-off again basis. Mercedes pitched story ideas to her boss, MGM head executive Irving Thalberg (Skip Pipo) with Greta in mind as its lead. Their relationship fell into rough patches, especially with Mercedes’ new fling with Marlene Dietrich (Kate Patel). But with Hollywood as it was, this affair didn’t stay too far from the glamour of Tinseltown, though it was something one didn’t hear about through the columns of Hedda or Estelle, or the fan mags of Modern Screen or Photoplay.

This play, written by its star Odalys Nanin and co-directed by Angelia Nicholas and Nanin, takes a look of one of the many hidden aspects of Hollywood where studios protected their stars as they were valuable property just because they were considered as “property”, especially at MGM where this industry custom was pronounced. If any of their stars were involved in these forms of situations, their careers could be ruined. But as depicted, Mercedes in her approach was attracted to Garbo and vice versa as the two worked professionally and personally. (The only one who was “ruined” was Mercedes due to her choice of multiple lovers of the female persuasion!) It’s a story that can be called a love story far from one that’s traditional. Yet it shows the impact of how a relationship could develop, even if it’s one that is a bit out of the ordinary.

This play has been part of the Hollywood circuit for a little over twenty years. This version as seen on the Casa 0101 Theater stage is a reimagined production, meaning that it features additional theatrics with more music, dance, and multimedia visuals. These elements enhance the story and the program that takes its lead character Mercedes into a romantic spiral with a woman who didn’t desire to be let alone.

Marco de Leon’s set design shows its stage backdrop as an appealing art deco setting. Angela Nickolas’s costuming dresses its cast with outfits from the period. The character of Mercedes is the best dressed one of them all, sporting at times a fitting white tux while she holds a cigarette in its holder that shows as striking a pose. And its choreography of tangos were created by Cate Caplin and Monica Orozco, giving this stage piece its fluid and sexy flavor.

In addition to the above named cast, this production also features Kesia Elwin, Bruna Bertossi, and Saige Spinney/Myeva Surjic.

GARBO’S CUBAN LOVER is another untold tale about Hollywood at its peak. It wasn’t a Hollywood for every life and style in its real life. It was one that was for make believe. But this tale is just as thrilling and melancholy as any picture of this style. It’s just another love story that makes its match not too far away from the bright lights and greasepaint.

GARBO’S CUBAN LOVER, presented by MACHA Theater/Films and performs at Casa 0101 Theater, 2101 East 1st Street, Los Angeles, until February 25th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday afternoons at 5:00 PM. For tickets, order online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/garbos-cuban-lover-tickets-467303747087

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THE WEBSITES OF THE WORLD

Visiting a website nowadays is equivalent to breathing for air. One does it, but doesn’t give it much thought.

Alter all, high tech as this domestic society knows of is part of modern life. The “Gen Z” demographic that ranges from those born from 1996 onward is the first “real” generation that can’t recall life where cell phones didn’t exist and having access to an electronic device that connects to the internet was always a given. The same way that other generations have access to whatever modern connivence thrived.

As a person over the age of sixty, this writer doesn’t remember life before television access. As a kid, I was surprised that TV was once “not around”. I can recall asking those much older than me (any adult over the age of twenty-five, give or take a year) what life was like before one could turn on the TV to watch whatever was available. When I learned from these “grown-ups” that for amusement, they listened to the radio. I thought they only had a “top-40” station to tune in on as that was my choice for audio sounds coming in from my Ross eight transistor AM radio device. But they had radio shows just like what was on TV, except there were no pictures to look at. And they had the same stars to listen to as I saw on TV such as Bob Hope, Jack Benny, even Dinah Shore singing her hits such as “Button and Bows”. (I recall Dinah singing this song on her daytime TV talk Show Dinah’s Place that aired on NBC.) But over all, life was rather different back in the day.

But in today’s landscape, the web is all over and available at all hours of the day at just about anyplace where net access is at your fingertips. And with net access, there’s the websites to make it all worth its while.

Similarweb.com, a website that tracks media (and one of the 2 billion and counting) websites existing in cyberspace land, surveyed the top fifty visited websites that are there within the world wide web world. And the count isn’t much of a surprise to know who visited who and when.

As one can guess, Google ranks in on the top as number one. Even the term “google” serves as both a noun and a verb. (“Just Google It!”) It counts for 85.1 billion visits per month and is based in the good ol’ USA (Thirty of the top fifty sites are based in the USA, and half of these thirty of operated by big tech companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Netflix.)

Number two is YouTube, (33.0 billion visits per month) also operated by Google aka Alphabet. And others state that this site is one of the most helpful places to be on the ‘net, as well as the biggest time wasters to spend (too) much time in cyberspace. Of course, one can find almost anything and everything via YouTube. (Its exceptions range from content that may pose a threat to a group of society, and stuff that’s porn!) This writer can’t speak for the former listed content as that tends to come and go as fast as some source and upload it or delete it from a service. But for the latter (porn), those sites are in the top fifty, such as XVideos.com (#11), PornHub.com (#13), Xnxx.com (#14) XHamster.com (#26) and StripChat.com (#49).

Number three on the list is Facebook (“Meta”), (17.8B) the be-all-to-end-all for social media posts. Facebook has changed its style and demographic over its years. At one time, it was populated by a younger crowd. now much of its base is older Millennials (born 1980-1995) that first embraced this site as young kids, Gen-Xers (born 1965-79) that were young(er) adults to use for content, and the Baby Boomers (born 1946-64) that used this site to keep their kids in check, as well as to use to look for other people lost-lost to rekindle a friendship that may have fallen over through the years.

Ranking in at number four is Twitter (6.8B), where one can post a short(er) comment of whatever is worth a comment. Within the previous year, Twitter has seen its share of slack recently. (“Google it for more details!) But those that didn’t bail out are still tweeting to their little heart’s content.

In fifth place is Instagram (6.1B), a place to post photos that is worth posting. Instagram is operated by Meta, the parent company that also runs Facebook, so the two sites have their connection with each other. It’s another site that has its own verb, to “insta” another post.

In sixth place is Baidu.com (5.0B), a search engine site based in China. Unless one can read and write in a Chinese dialect, it doesn’t get much traffic from the USA. However, China is the second leading place in the world for top websites outside of the USA. (Russia has five top fifty websites as China has four).

Number seven is Wikipedia.org (4.8), known as an online encyclopedia, created and edited by volunteers around the world. This means that just about any subject can be found through this site, yet one has to do some fact checking to see if the information placed is true and accurate.

Eight place is Yandex.ru (3.4B), a search engine site based in Russia, and another site that isn’t in english. Unless one can read and write in this Russian based language, most of its traffic comes from areas that write and speak this form of communication.

In ninth place is Yahoo.com (3.3B), one of the earliest sites that ever grace the cyberspace universe of noteworthy interest. It also had a unique sound effect, a voice of a male “hillbilly” yelling “yah-hooo”! Its logo once consisted of comical looking fonts, adding to the humor it once brought. But that was back in the 1990s when the web itself was just as fun as it was mysterious.

And rounding out the top ten is Whatsapp.com (2.9B), another outlet for social media.

It was noted before that the USA leads in American based websites with thirty, followed by Russia with six, China with four, Japan with three, and South Korea with two. Asia is also the place where one can find the fastest internet worldwide, with Singapore and South Korea leading the pack.

For more details on the top fifty websites (along with infographics to make it all easier to understand), vist https://www.visualcapitalist.com/top-50-most-visited-websites/

This is proof that the ‘net as it’s known isn’t going away. It’s going to be here forever. When I was a kid, I thought that TV may go away as it once did long before I saw the first light of day. I was worried that one day, TV would totally disappear. All of my favorite (and not so favorite) programs would be gone forever! Of course, that didn’t mealitize. However, TV, as well as the web, has changed over the years. It changed for its better, and changed for its worse, depending on who you ask. And one day, another form of media will arrive to change how humans live on this earth. It may be in the form of artificial intelligence where the robots will finally take over. That may occur before one realizes. And in case you aren’t too sure on that notion, you can always google it for the results.

See? We warned you that the name of the number one search engine found in the universe is also a verb!! But you already know that! Right…?

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PERSONAL REFLECTIONS FROM YOURS TRULY

Every once in a while, apparently to muse over people, places, or things that hold some significance with this writer, I as that “writer”, will create some commentary about some notion that reflects me that is worth a share or two within these pages of ALOL. These insights give a bit of personality over the elements that are part of my life that may be comical to give out a “LOL”-esque worthy of a laugh, as well to present a bit of soberness that balances everything off.

And we are going to bring up the latter part of that theory. This week marks the tenth anniversary of the passing of Leslie McCarthy Frankenheimer, a four time Emmy winning set decorator, the mother of two kids (a boy and girl), and most important, was my sister-in-law.

Shortly after when she passed away on January 22nd, 2013, I took the time to write the leading column that gave insight over her life, and how that life reflected upon me.

So, to commemorate Leslie and what she meant to me, we will reprint that tribute that appeared in ALOL, Vol. 18, No. 4-Week of January 28th, 2013 under the headline A Death in the Family…

This writer (from this point forward will be referring to himself in the first person) usually doesn’t comment upon personal episodes occurring in my life. However, I will step out of my so-called mysterious shadow to compose an article that speaks a bit of my background. This time around, this tale involved the passing of a mentor, a good friend, and a loved one.

My sister in-law, Leslie McCarthy Frankenheimer, a professional set decorator and four time Emmy winner, lost her battle with leukemia in the early morning hours of January 22nd. She was 64.

I won’t necessarily get into details on her professional career as that may be viewed via her listing on IMDB.com. (Type in “Leslie McCarthy Frankenheimer” in the search window). But I will state upon some of the events that took place since the last issue of this newsletter.

Of course, I had the opportunity to get in contact with many of my in-laws, from immediate siblings of my spouse (there were a total of nine in the family), as well as cousins, first aunts, second uncles, step-laws, and other folks I never knew existed. And there were her many friends, coworkers, and others that knew her and knew of her. Clearly, it was a kind of reunion that only takes place during times of deep emotion; joyous and/or sorrow.

And there were the traditional events to attend that occurred over the weekend of January 25-27, everything from an “Irish” wake to a memorial service at the Westwood Village Memorial Park, located among the shadows of the high rise buildings that line Wilshire Blvd. in the community of Westwood. This memorial park is known to be the final resting places of those that were involved in the popular media, from big name stars (Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau), character performers (Don DeFore, Jim Backus), film and TV producers, (Darryl Zanuck, Merv Griffin), comedians (Bob Craine, Rodney Dangerfield), writers (Billy Wilder, Ray Bradbury), as well as a host of others known to just a few. If anyone that was involved in TV and movies as Leslie was, she was defiantly in good company!

During all of the meetings of the many that knew her, there were multiple exchanges of “Leslie” stories that people were swapping back and forth. Most were comical in nature, a few were sobering, and the rest told about how she brought a little light into somebody’s domain–the same kind of actions that just about everyone has within their invisible possession.

Although I never had the change to swap such tales during the events that occurred over that long three day weekend, I’ll step aside a tell a small yet amusing tidbit that did involve her name and glory.

Last month, I had the opportunity to attend a special screening of the independent feature film On The Road, based on the novel of the same name written by Jack Kerouac. Some of the people involved in this feature were present, making a token appearance before the film.

After the screening, there was a reception taking place at the Chateau Marmont Hotel, about a block away from the theater. At the event, Francis Ford Coppola, the Executive Producer of the film (and who purchased the film rights to this novel many years ago, never doing anything with those rights until recently) was present. He was seated in an overstuffed chair while resembling Old King Cole sitting on a royal throne and holding court. I was watching him from not too far away while a number of people were coming up to him, shaking his hand and engaging in small talk. After this was going on for a while, he was just sitting there all alone, watching the others standing around within a darkened room eating finger food and drinking various concoctions of beverages. So with a wild hair idea, I left my post (literally as I was leaning against a pole guzzling on a class of tonic water), went up to him, leaned forward (I was standing and he remained seated) and said to him, “Do you recall a set decorator by the name of Leslie McCarthy Frankheimer?”

He looked up to me, gave a small smile and stated with a twinkle in his eye, “Yes I do! She’s a really nice lady! How’s she doing?”

I just answered that she was still working on a TV series-the Fox sitcom Ben & Kate. (Note: She did the sets for the first six episodes of this series before she had to step down due to her illness.)

“How do you know her?” he then asked.

I replied that I was her brother-in-law.

“Well tell her I said hello!” was his response.

Then I shook his hand stating it was an honor to speak with him, and then left him alone for him to meet others that stared to gather around.

(For the record, Leslie was the set decorator for Coppola’s 1982 release One From The Heart–the film that put his Zoetrope Studios into near financial ruin!)

Summing things up, this entire juncture gave me a bit of a reminder to the theme to one of the most beloved features ever to come down from the pike, It’s a Wonderful Life. The theme of that flick (or perhaps to state, one of its many themes), is that the lead character George Bailey, in spite of believing that his actions to make good for himself and the community he lived in-Bedford Falls-didn’t create any impact, he learned that through his so-called worthless deeds, he had touched the lives of so many people, far more that he could ever envision.

This is what I witnessed on how Leslie conducted her life. She indeed touched the hearts and souls of many, and those that were within her domain from near and far had returned to pay their respects thanking her for all that she did and were ever grateful for all of her love and kindness. Now it was the time to say goodbye for the moment, perhaps holding on to the notion of joining her again in the hereafter or its equivalent.

And by the way Leslie–you are right! The chairs do look better spread apart!

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) announced their nominations for the 95th annual Academy Awards on January 24th

The following titles and names received the nomination for the following categories:

Best Picture
All Quiet on the Western Front (Netflix)

Avatar: The Way of Water (20th Century Studios)

The Banshees of Inisherin (Searchlight Pictures)

Elvis (Warner Bros)

Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24)

The Fabelmans (Universal)

Tár (Focus Features)

Top Gun: Maverick (Paramount)

Triangle of Sadness (NEON)

Women Talking (United Artists Releasing/Orion Pictures)

Best Actor
Austin Butler-Elvis

Colin Farrell-The Banshees of Inisherin

Brendan Fraser-The Whale

Paul Mescal-Aftersun

Bill Nighy-Livin

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett-Tár

Ana de Armas-Blonde

Andrea Riseborough-To Leslie

Michelle Williams-The Fabelmans

Michelle Yeoh-Everything Everywhere All at Once

Best Director
Martin McDonagh-The Banshees of Inisherin

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert-Everything Everywhere All at Once

Steven Spielberg-The Fabelmans

Todd Field-Tár

Ruben Östlund-Triangle of Sadness

Jimmy Kimmel will host the awards ceremony, taking place on Sunday, March 12th at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Hollywood, and airs on ABC.

For a complete listing of all nominations, visit the official AMPAS web site at http://www.Oscars.com

On January 23rd, The Golden Raspberry Foundation announced their list of nomination for the 43rd RAZZIE Awards for the worst in feature films released in the previous calendar year.

The following titles and names has been selected for the worst in the following categories:

Worst Picture

Blonde (Netflix)

Disney’s Pinocchio (Disney)

Good Mourning (Open Road Films)

The King’s Daughter (Gravitas Ventures)

Morbius (Sony)

Worst Actor

Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly)-Good Mourning

Pete Davidson (Voice Only)-Marmaduke

Tom Hanks (as Gepetto)-Disney’s Pinocchio

Jared Leto-Morbius

Sylvester Stallone-Samaritan

Worst Actress

Ryan Kiera Armstrong-Firestarter

Bryce Dallas Howard-Jurassic Park: Dominion

Diane Keaton-Mack & Rita

Kaya Scodelario-The King’s Daughter

Alicia Silverstone-The Requin

Worst Director

Judd Apatow-The Bubble

Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) and Mod Sun-Good Mourning

Andrew Dominik-Blonde

Daniel Espinosa-Morbius

Robert Zemeckis-Disney’s Pinocchio

The RAZZIE Awards will take place on a date and location to be announced shortly.

For a complete listing of all nominations, visit the official RAZZIES web site at http://www.Razzies.com

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AMERICA’S BASEMENT

There is a website called Quora.com, were folks can ask questions on various topics, and perhaps somebody out in cyberspace land will take the time to answer that question. The form of questions vary and deal with topics ranging from cooking (“What’s the best way to boil noodles?”) to history (“Did the James Gang attempt to rob a back in the wild west only to come out empty handed”?) to true crime. (What was the most difficult murder case that was ever solved”?)

One post that covers none of the above topics was Why is Florida called “America’s Basement?”. That is a phrase that this writer never heard of, but many of Quora’s readers and subscribers have. And one reader even went through the notion to present a rather complete answer as posted below:

…Two things happen in basements. Either you store stuff you aren’t particularly interested in keeping up with your nicer things, or it’s where you go to have the type of fun you don’t have in certain company.

Both are very relatable to Florida. Between old people and their less than stellar offspring, Florida has become a hot spot for our cast offs. The existence of adult only subdivisions and trailer parks has created an ideal place for sex offenders to reside as well. There are very few places that are far enough away from schools or playgrounds for these people to go. Florida has an abundance of opportunities to live in relative peace.

Florida has Disney, beaches and a wide variety of opportunities for recreation. I can remember my friends basement up north. It was the home to the “rumpus room.” We would watch videos, mostly Disney. His dad had an awesome model railroad down there.

Florida is also strip club central. Las Vegas is a virtual Puritan colony compared to Tampa. I would wager that there are more strippers in Florida than people in Las Vegas. When we got older, my friend’s basement went from home of innocent good times to a den of iniquity. We watched dirty movies (his dad also had a prodigious collection stashed among the hills of of his tiny railroad kingdom.) We brought girls down there in hopes that they were of low moral turpitude. We rarely got past second base, but beggars can’t be choosers.

If you’ve ever watched That 70s Show, know that the basement was where the friends explored the philosophy of life, assisted by the devil’s spinach. Guess where the point of entry for a great deal of our drugs is? If you said Florida, you’d be right. Getting high in the basement is synonymous with adolescence and early adulthood.

So there you go, the Sunshine state, more like your basement than your actual basement.

Side Note: Basements have always been a novelty to me. I grew up Florida near the coast. Not a lot of people have them in Florida, and out near the coast they’re nearly non-existent. Those who had them either had the kind that were built into a hill (also far and few between) or eventually owned an indoor swimming pool come the next hurricane. So the idea that Florida is America’s basement holds a certain level of irony…

So there you have it! However, if you the readers wish to comment upon the post, let us know by sending us an email message. (Contact details are posted and the end of this newsletter). We’ll compile the replies we receive and post it in a future issue.

“See” you in the “basement”!

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Theatre 40 of Beverly Hills presents its fourth play of their 2022-23 season with Katie Forgette’s INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP, a comical “memoire” of the life and times of an almost middle working class Irish Catholic family, and their feeble attempt to live their lives in the most progressive way they can while living under an invisible drape of guilt.

The year is 1973, the moment of so-called change in domestic society. The place is the O’Shey residence located somewhere in the middle of America, or perhaps in the northeast section of the country, or somewhere in between the two. Ivy Khan plays Linda O’Shey, the narrator of this story. She’s a nineteen year old child of an adult age. She lives with her mother Josephine a.k.a. “Jo” (Allison Blanchard), who does everything in this homestead from cooking, cleaning, paying the bills, and keeping the household in a method of order. She’s married to her husband Mike (Patrick Skelton) the real breadwinner of the house who works twelve hour days seven days a week as the provider he’s expected to be. (Both Jo and Mike grew up during the Great Depression where everything was saved and used up no matter what it was!) Along with the immediate family is Jo’s sister Theresa a.k.a. “Terri” (Milda Dacys) who is a bit more progressive than her sibling, but not by much. Living upstairs as a permanent invalid is Mike’s mother (and Linda’s grandmother) Grandmother O’Shea (Theresa O’Shea) who’s never seen but is heard when she wants help and assistance in just about everything. And Linda has her kid sister Becky (Danika Hughey) who’s current hobby is playing with her dolls (at age thirteen) and has an obsession with old movies she watches on TV’s Late Late Show. Her favorite is old Humphrey Bogart pictures that’s mostly in the film noir category. Linda tells the audience on how they live their lives that are far removed from the early 21st century where what went on was limited to their home, the neighborhood, and their local Catholic church they belonged to as social media was yet to be invented. The situations Linda tells about are mini family tragedies, ranging from her mother asking Linda to explain to Becky the details on “the birds and the bees” including the story of menstruation and how to make babies. Linda even gets into trouble when Becky as “Sam Spade” uses a hidden tape recorder to record Linda’s sex tape lessons, only to “accidentally” play the recordings to Father Lovett, the priest at church. One element leads to another where this family becomes dysfunctional, long before such dysfunctional families became trendy, if not used as a status symbol in later post-modern life!

This play written by Katie Forgette could pass off as a story that could be based on the playwright’s own life and times growing up in a family stuck between remittance of the 1930’s where children were seen but not heard, the 1950’s where one must be perfect and as WASPish as possible, and the 1970’s where among other things, Women’s Lib was either a blessing, a curse, or a cruel joke depending on what or who wanted to believe in or trust! The humor falls being just a bit snarky and cocky with good nature. But its protagonist Linda sees it as that, even admitting to note as just what the hell everyone was thinking when looking at all of these episodes occurring from back in the day.

The cast of performers play their roles with these rules as suggested. Alison Blanchard as mother Jo is humble and living as the ever pleasing mother and wife, though she knew that she could have been a contender. Milda Dacys as Aunt Terri is the voice or reason, yet knows when to stay out of the way of her sister and family when necessary. Patrick Skelton plays out a number of roles from Mike the father, Father Lovett, as well as Mrs. Henkenback, a nosey neighbor that gets into the family’s life more than she should. Danika Hughey as kid sister Becky is more of a tomboy, even though she still keeps her troll tolls if not donning a 1940’s era trench coat and fedora imitating Bogie. Theresa O’Shey as Grandmother is only heard through a muffled voice, but is never seen and perhaps just as well. And Ivy Khan as Linda is the lead who knows that everything that occurred some fifty years before is a past that should stay in the past rather than another period time ready for a reboot.

With such period plays comes the period dressings. Michele Young’s costuming with Judi Lewin’s hair, wig, and makeup design also harks toward that era that is post 1960’s with hints of hippy-era mood and flavor. And Theater 40’s residence set designer Jeff G. Rack dresses the set of the O’Shay home that looks and feels like the middle class life of the time.

Directed by Ann Hearn Tobolowsky, INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP is a stage comedy that recalls a moment where living as a Catholic family was a struggle between pushing for pain while pulling for pleasure, as well as when family members had to live under the unwritten rules that placed them to where they stand. It’s a comedy production that also has charm and heart. Call this nostalgia that did happen, or perhaps not. Then again, times do charge for its better or for its worse. But never mind the worst as this theater piece is at its best!

INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP, 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 February 19th. 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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SOUTHERN GIRLS, a drama by Sheri Bailey & Dura Temple about six women living in the same small town in Alabama that grow up and mature over a thirty year period, performs at the Hudson Backstage Theater in Hollywood.

The six girls consist of Naomi Hurdle (Ash Saunders), Ruth Hurdle (Jessica Sade Ward), Katie Spokely (Dolly Granger), June-Adele Taylor (Maria Jimena Gastelum), Wanda Sue Johnson (Swisyzinna), and Charlotte Cecil Martin (Arianna Evangelia). These half dozen live within the same community in a small town in Alabama, not too far from the larger city of Montgomery. The story begins in the early 1950s where the town was divided between the white community and the “negro” section of town. Three of these girls are white, two are black, while one is a mix of both, the reason for her being lighter skinned. From their girlhood, they know where they stand in their status class. But over the years, the situation of race becomes profound as they experience it one way or another. These issues establish their friendships, while other factors strain their meaning toward each other. Over time, a few will leave their community while a the rest will remain. It’s a story that crosses the notion of what was going on in the nation as a whole, and the personal “nation” that exists as part of their own shape of being.

This play written by playwrights Sheri Bailey & Dura Temple, take a hard look of the perception between living as a white person and an African American individual as expressed by the writing team that is both of the black (Bailey) and white (Temple) race, giving their dialogue a sense of honesty and truth, from their youthful innocence to their peak of maturity. The six performers that appear in this play show that honesty as their portrayals beginning as kids to being grown up women existing in their midlives.

The stage set shows simplicity through the complex set of episodes as depicted in this production. Mylette Nora’s costuming displays the maturity that the characters go through, and Fritz Davis’ production design assists within the elements that are taking place in their town and outside places through the eras of time for their better and through their worse.

Directed by Zadia Ife, SOUTHERN GIRLS is more than a sense of American “southern living”, but an example of where there were as two methods of living in the American south. A divide that in many ways, still exist in the present era. But through all of what is told on stage, there is a presence of hope and progression to make it a reality. And as a phrase notes, there is a change that’s gonna come, and it will arrive soon.

SOUTHERN GIRLS, presented by All the Way West Productions, and performs at the Hudson Backstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., (one block west of Wilcox), Hollywood, until February 26th. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 PM, and Sunday matinees at 3:00 PM.

For online ticket orders and for more details, visit http://www.Onstage411.com/SouthernGirls

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