Well, dear readers, it’s Friday, the final Friday in the final week of June. Soon July will be upon us like a gazelle reciting Ode To A Tree in Bengalese. I actually don’t think June happened. Oh, I mean June began and now it is over, as if it lasted for three days instead of thirty days. It was a busy month, what with the Brain closing, doing to back to back readings of new musicals, getting the book ready for publication, doing a recording session, staging the Kevin Spirtas/Sean McDermott show, and having lots of meetings, meals, and merrymaking, not necessarily in that order. I don’t know about you, but now I really want to hear a gazelle recite Ode To A Tree in Bengalese, don’t you? I love Ode To A Tree by Miss Joyce Kilmer – was she the mother of Val Kilmer, who is a bit of a tree himself?
I think that I shall never see
A poem as lovely as a tree
That is so simple, yet so simple. Frankly, I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as me knee – and I’m not even related to Val Kilmer.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast
Now we’re getting a little racy, aren’t we? That tree is getting awfully familiar with the earth’s boob, isn’t it?
A tree that looks at God all day
And lifts her leafy arms to pray
Now wait just a darned minute – let me get this straight: The tree is a she? And this she tree has her hungry mouth on the earth’s sweet flowing breast? This is suddenly a Lesbian poem? Frankly, I don’t like the thought of leafy arms, do you?
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robbins in her hair
I never have a nest of robbins in my hair when I’m wearing summer wear, do you? I don’t know, a nest of robbins is so gaudy.
Upon whose bosom snow has lain
Who intimately lives with rain
Okay – the Lesbian tree is feeling up the earth while she’s living intimately with rain? Tree – it’s either earth or rain; you can’t have it both ways because someone is going to get hurt. I’m not even going to talk about the snow who’s laying on the bosom.
Poems are made by fools like me
But only God can make a tree
And there you have it – Ode To A Tree by Val Kilmer’s mother, Joyce. What the HELL am I talking about? Shouldn’t I be writing notes right about now? Speaking of Val Kilmer, yesterday was sort of annoying and then not annoying and then annoying. I got up, did some early errands, jogged, shipped some packages, did two more hours of errands, and then sent music fixes to the music guy – I sent him about half the stuff. I then made myself a nice steak and had some low-fat cottage cheese with it, and that was my meal o’ the day. Finally, I sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched four count them four episodes of Perry Mason from the Best of Perry Mason set. As always, it’s great fun to see all those wonderful character actors – Olan Soule, my muse Margaret’s daddy, Dave Willock, Willis Bouchey, Roy Roberts, Mike Mazurki, S. John Launer (frequently the judge), Les Tremayne, and a whole slew of others. The guest stars were interesting – a very young Leonard Nimoy, Margaret O’Brien, Julie Adams, Burt Reynolds – but the best was the episode that starred Bette Davis. At the end of 1962, Mr. Raymond Burr had to go to the hospital to have an operation – rather than shut down production for a month, they did four episodes with guest stars filling in for Perry Mason (he appears for two minutes – those scenes were shot just before he went in to the hospital). Miss Davis receives billing up front, a first for a guest star on this show. She plays a lawyer trying to help a young man (Michael Parks). She gets to do the whole courtroom bit, and it’s grand fun watching her spar with William Tallman’s DA.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below – we should call that Ode To The Unseemly Button.
Today, I have to finish sending music fixes, and then the rest of the day is mine all mine. I shall do a couple of errands and I do have a couple of packages to ship. At six, I’ll be joining Mr. Barry Pearl and some of his pals at some Eyetalian restaurant in the Pacific Palisades. After our Eyetalian meal, we’ll be going to see a production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change at a nearby theater. I haven’t seen the show since I recorded it soon after it opened, so I’m looking forward to it.
The weekend is pretty clear, and I’m very happy about that. I shall, as Jake Gittes would say, do as little as possible. I’m hoping to keep jogging, and eating reasonably so that I can lose thirty unwanted pounds. And then I can write Ode To A Me.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, send music fixes, ship a few packages, do a few errands, eat an Eyetalian dinner, and see a show. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/video player? I’ll start: CD, the three CD set of Outer Limits music – lots of fun. DVD, more Perry Mason. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we all recite Ode To A Tree in Bengalese.