Well, dear readers, it is T-minus two days until the New Year, which is also known as 2009. And so, I continue to look back at the year known as 2008. After The Brain From Planet X I dove right into directing a new show for Mr. Kevin Spirtas and Mr. Sean McDermott. It was a lot of fun and the resultant show turned out very well after some nips and tucks and also some tucks and nips. Sometimes doing nips helps put a new spin on things but that’s only as it should be since nips is spin spelled backwards. I had the first of two New York trips in July, to put up the show in Great Neck. And while I was in New York, I began working with Miss Crista Moore on an act for her. And we’ve continued working long distance, but at some point in the next few months I’ll come back to New York to actually work with her in person. I finished proofing my book and it went off to the publishers. I also seriously went back to work on the stage version of The First Nudie Musical, as the LA Festival of New Musicals seemed very interested in having another show of mine in 2009. We did an informal reading at my house, after I’d reread what I did from 2002 – I wasn’t too thrilled with several things I’d done, and I rewrote about four of the new songs I’d written, come up with a new opening, and finessed a few things just prior to the informal reading. We assembled a fantastic group of actors, including Patrick Cassidy, Beth Malone, Alet Taylor, Sharon McNight, Barry Pearl, Michael Irish (who’d played the Narrator in the Chance Theater production of The Brain), Yvette Lawrence and a lot of other terrific folks. The reading went, I thought, very well – lots of big laughs and it moved right along. But I could tell that certain things were not landing the way I thought they should and the whole thing seemed a little jerky in pace, so afterwards I rewrote for a third time one song, did some more finessing, and gave the script to my friend David Wechter for his comments. He loved the script, but had several thoughts, all of which I thought were well taken. So, I asked him to come on board and do a draft of the script incorporating his thoughts and some other things we discussed at a few meetings. The result is a much smoother show (he’s still working on the last few pages), two new musical numbers that I’m really happy with, and it was absolutely the right decision to have him help. In the meantime, I was asked to help another singer out here in LA with her upcoming cabaret show, which I agreed to do. I ended up completely upending what she was doing, rewriting most of her patter, and giving her show a real point of view and a very strong structure. We could have used another week of rehearsals, but for a first time out she did very well, and the audience loved the show. At the same time, we put up the Kevin and Sean show for one night in Hollywood and videotaped it. We’re starting to edit this week, actually, for what will hopefully be a Kritzerland DVD release, as long as we’re all happy with the way it turns out. I know there were a few other things going on, including several Kritzerland limited edition releases which, I’m happy to say, all did pretty well. And that was the second part of the year. I did have some pretty spotty patches in there for various reasons but with lots of support from dear readers and friends I managed to circumvent any disasters. Tomorrow, a look back at the final part of the year. Speaking of the final part of the year, yesterday was a weird little day. I got up early, answered a bunch of e-mails, did some early errands and then did the long jog. After that, I had to deal with a little banking error – a check I was told had cleared last week hadn’t, in fact, cleared, which was very annoying. Luckily, it didn’t cause any problems, but I made sure that the lady who’d told me it would be cleared a week ago knew of the screwup and she took care of it right then and there. I had no mail, and no packages. I then got a foot-long Subway turkey sandwich and sat on my couch like so much foot-long fish.
Yesterday, I watched a motion picture on DVD entitled The Day The Earth Stood Still, not the remake, which I have 0 interest in seeing, but the classic original, which has just been issued on a special edition DVD. I always forget just how good the film is in terms of the writing and direction and acting, which is all superb. And Bernard Herrmann’s score is one of the best sci-fi scores ever written, and it’s been oft-imitated but seldom bettered. The transfer seems fine – I haven’t done a comparison with the older DVD but it didn’t seem all that much better. The new featurettes are a little boring, and I think I much prefer the 70 minute featurette on the making of the film on the older DVD (not ported over to this DVD, which seems a little odd to me). There’s an isolated music track, and also a commentary track featuring our very own Mr. Nick Redman and his usual cronies, which, for some reason, never includes me. I’m not a crony, commentary-wise, even though I’m quite delightful when it comes to that sort of thing. After that, I watched a couple of episodes of Mannix (coming to the end now), which were sub-par.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because, after all, it’s T-minus two to 2009.
Today, if I’m to do the long jog I’ll have to be up by eight-thirty and out the door by nine, as I’m going to an early matinee of Frost/Nixon, followed by an early-afternoon showing of Doubt, followed by something yummilicious to eat, perhaps at the Cheesecake Factory. I’m hoping to get some packages, as well, and I hope I have time to pick them up after the two movies and the meal. I think the mail place is open until six-thirty, although they might be closing at six this week.
Tomorrow is totally free, save for a visit to the editing room at two to say hello to my editor and just discuss the problems I know he’s going to run into as he edits. I’ll then be joining friends for a very early dinner at an Eyetalian restaurant, where I shall eat Eyetalian food, after which I shall come home and spend the evening with you dear readers as we have our annual New Year’s Rockin’ Eve bash, which is always the most fun and safe place to be on New Year’s Eve. So be sure to join us for the dropping of various and sundried balls as we toast in the New Year.
On New Year’s Day I’ll be attending a partay at the home of Mr. Barry Pearl. I went to his partay last year and it was quite fun.
Well, let’s put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, let’s break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks, let’s dance the Hora and the Swim, because today is the birthday of Dakota Celt. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to dear reader Dakota Celt. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO DEAR READER DAKOTA CELT!!!
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do the long jog (time-permitting), see two motion pictures, eat something yummilicious, and hopefully gather up some packages. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite 1950s science fiction films, the good, the bad, and the ugly, but the ones you love the most and return to the most often. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we continue our countdown to 2009 – it’s currently T-minus two to 2009.