The Past Several Day's Highlights

I just wrote my blog about one of my all time favorite films; Murphy's Romance. Perhaps I'm a dork about how things in the universe connect, but three things today gave me pause. On the way to dinner, the other half found the cover to an old VHS tape; in great shape, sitting on a newspaper box. It was for one of my other all time favorites; Big Business. I took it and will keep the pictures w/ the rest of the crap I keep/collect. Then, as I was writing about Murphy's Romance, a few short moments ago, the other half was flipping channels. He stopped on Star Trek: The Next Generation. It was an episode I was not familiar with, but did recognize one of the guest actors; Howard Sherman; "Bub" of my all time favorite Day of the Dead. Finally, as I finished the second round of Murphy's Romance, I went upstairs to get some lunch. I turned on the TV and one of the first things I saw? Sally Field's new osteoporosis ads. I thought that this was all interesting, so I wanted to share. You can wake up now...

The two preview shows on Saturday went quite well, both audiences were very responsive. The Trib writer was there, but I've yet to see the review. I hope it's positive.

Opening night was a great success; with a very fun audience. No word on the Jeff recommendations. I can assume that we didn't receive any, since we usually would have heard about it by now. Oh well. The whole cast; including myself, are ecstatic to have this on its feet and to finally be through with rehearsals. Come see my show dammit! I did have several friends there, so thanks to all who showed. I guess since I have so few readers, I could just thank Bob personally. Thanks Bob! Sorry I missed you afterwards. The Griffin gave us each a photo from the photo call we did on Thursday. I got a picture of me as the pig w/ Leah (Jane). All of the pictures turned out great, and I will be getting a disk from Dylan with all of them. I will then put them on my site.

My interview/meeting in Milwaukee went quite well. I did a scene and monologue, as well as some improv for their on-camera department. I filled out all of the paperwork, did a mini-interview, and listened to the introductions/rules/regulations. I'm on board, so I technically have two agents now. Super! They seem to be completely on the ball (almost anal) and quite professional, so keep your fingers crossed that I get some work through them. Of course, there will be several auditions/bookings in Milwaukee, so the travel will be a pain, but we'll wait to see. On the way up, I stopped to say hi to friend Serena. Haven't seen her in a while. Five minutes doesn't suffice, but it's better than nothing, right? Miss you!

Sunday, the other half and I went to the day's first showing of Poseidon. Awesome, awesome, awesome! No crappy filler, just out-n-out disaster action! Disaster movies have always had quite an effect on me; and this was certainly no exception. I suppose it's the horrendous, on screen, huge loss of life, or perhaps those things solid suddenly leaving regular folks with "thin ice" beneath their feet. My chin was quivering all the way through, sometimes resulting in complete teary breakdowns. A great cast, particularly Richard Dreyfuss. I was impressed with the stunts he performed. Isn't he mid 60's? Wow! His character started out a bit cliched, but ended up being someone I was really rooting for. Of particular interest to me, the fact that the diverse characters actually helped one another. Perhaps I (we) have become so jaded, that anytime we see people bonding together in a "situation" (fictional or not) and doing selfless acts, it stands out. I loved that they didn't make a big deal out of it though. Everyone helped everyone; no questions asked (with the exception of Kevin Dillon's character). Also, I found it odd that Josh Lucas received top billing over Kurt Russell. As the movie progressed, I could see that the film was more of the Josh Lucas character's journey, but still, Kurt Russell's the 40 year veteran. Dreyfuss got his "and" credit, so that was okay. Don't expect much character development. However, I did find myself caring about the characters anyway. I don't get it. The effects were outstanding and several of the set pieces were a cut about the rest of the brilliance. Let me just say this...poor Freddy Rodriguez and the craziness he got caught up in. And scene. See it, love it. Oh, and take a deep breath. Ugh. Also, Josh Lucas is hot and a good actor. Finally, Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson looks like my friend Callie, which will be a bit odd, cuz I'm about to add "Fergie" to my "Stew of Sin" list. The first girl to be added. She was stunning in Poseidon.