Well, dear readers, yesterday the rains came and boy are my arms tired. No, that’s not right. Yesterday the rains came and boy did we need them. It rained quite heavily in the morning hours, then abated for most of the day and early evening, then came back sporadically after that. It wouldn’t be bad to have a couple more days of it, frankly and frankly I hope we do. Also, I’m happy to report that all the excellent vibes and xylophones worked their wonders and I never got sick – I am completely to rights and feeling fine and dandy and also dandy and fine, not necessarily in that order. I hate when my throat is scratchy for there is no way to itch it. And normally it leads to congestion and a full-out cold, but thankfully I fought the good fight, sucked down endless Coldeez and took Alavert and Mucinex and now all is well and well is all.
I woke up about eight-thirty but stayed in bed and fell back asleep around nine-thirty and slept for another ninety minutes. I then puttered around the home environment doing things, and then I went out and picked up a couple of packages. I did some errands and whatnot, then came back home and got ready for rehearsal. The Family Hollis arrived and we began. We’re just getting back in the swing of things and trying to make the new material fit in seamlessly, which it seems to be doing. As we ran the show, I had Melody make notes about where some new patter will need to go and what it should be about – she’ll write it and I’ll then finesse it. The end of the act is now slightly different – it used to end with Tomorrow from Annie, but Melody had done my Annie song from What If at the BK Gardenia show and she really wanted to do that – so, she now does that, then tells a very brief story about her finally doing the show, and then we do just once through Tomorrow and that seems to work fine. Then she used to come back, do her thank yous and end with When You Wish Upon a Star. Now she comes back, does the very fast Tchaikowsky (And Other Russians), then her thank yous, then Star. It’s a lot of big singing toward the end but she can do it and it seems like it will play well. If, as we continue rehearsing, it seems like too much, we may move some stuff around.
After the rehearsal, we went to the nearby California Pizza Kitchen. I hadn’t been there in quite some time, and I always forget just how good the food is. We had a really nice meal and lots o’ laughs. They told me about a Showtime documentary they’d just seen about parents brining their kids to LA for pilot season and staying at the Oakwood Apartments near Warner Bros. Apparently, this has turned into quite the cottage industry for Oakwood and several bottom of the barrel agents and casting directors. They invited me back to view it and so that’s how I spent the rest of my evening.
The documentary was very dispassionate in its telling and therefore had no real point of view, which causes the thing to be a little dramatically inert, but it was very enjoyable in a sickening way. Some of the parents are truly frightening as are a handful of the kids. There are, of course, some success stories, but, as you might imagine, most of the kids don’t get anything out of it. It’s a very expensive prospect for the families, so someone is benefitting highly. One “agent” has a wonderful thing going on, because she also teaches acting and her husband just happens to be the photographer she always recommends when she tells the parents that their kids absolutely must have new headshots. It’s sad, and depressing, but a few of the kids seem genuine. For most, it’s a dream without wanting to work for it – they think if they spend all this money they might just get lucky. They’d be better off spending their money getting training for their kids – singing, dancing, acting, all of it.
After that, Melody tried on her show dress, but she’s grown so much since last August that it’s now too tight for her and there’s no room to let it out – so, it looks like they’ll be shopping for a new dress, although we all love the one she has. It’s simply too hard for her to breathe easily in it and she has to be able to with all these songs she’s singing. She then began a costume parade, trying on her other dresses, her mother’s dresses, and then a bunch of old costumes they keep in their basement. When Melody gets giddy, it’s really funny and it was like a good show at the Catskills. After that, I came home.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I hope to get another good night’s beauty sleep.
Today, I shall hopefully arise after a good night’s beauty sleep. Then I’ll prep our new releases, which may or may not announce tomorrow morning – if not then, then Tuesday morning. I’ll try to figure out the Kritzerland show order, too, and maybe even begin the contextual commentary. I’ll also begin watching the original Danish version of the US TV show The Killing, which I’ve heard is excellent and riveting. I also have a box set of Mizoguchi films to watch, and I’m quite a fan of his.
Tomorrow, I have an early morning meeting with the lady who helped publicize There’s Mel – she’s now read the new book and we’re going to see what we can work out. Then I have a bunch of other stuff to do. Tuesday, meetings and a dinner with muse Margaret and her ever-lovin’ Richard, Wednesday we tape a two-part Broadway Radio Show about the new book and Donald will be playing lots o’ stuff from my albums, Thursday I have a lunch and then am seeing a local production of Spring Awakening, then Friday it’s a meeting and then off to Pepperdine to see Liz Callaway and sister Ann Hampton Callaway – really looking forward to that.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, prep our new releases, figure out a show order, maybe start writing the contextual commentary, and then eat something light but amusing and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you get to ask me or any dear reader any old question you like and we get to give any old answer we like. So, let’s have loads of lovely questions, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland hoping for just a little more soothing rain.