Well, dear readers, I believe this will be one of those times when I cannot figure out a good way to open the notes. There, that took care of that problem – it may not have been good but it opened these here notes, which is better than me just staring at the computer screen like so much fish. This is just about the first time I’ve come up for air today, that’s how busy it’s been. Nothing that important going on, but just thing after thing. It didn’t help that I’d gotten to sleep at one and then awakened at two, not able to fall asleep again till three. So, I slept till ten-thirty, which was later than I wanted to sleep. I got up, printed some orders, answered some e-mails and then spoke to the company that is crating and shipping the Follies poster. These people do not instill in me confidence, but they get very good ratings, so I know it will arrive in safe and sound condition. It’s just they have no communication skills whatsoever. I wrote the lady there yesterday. No response. Today, the seller told me the shipping company had probably already been in touch with me. They hadn’t. I called and got the lady on the phone and got a timeline (next Tuesday or Wednesday). I began to ask about uncrating and taking away the crate, but that’s an extra cost and would take an extra day as it’s handled by a “white glove” company here in LA. The upside of it is they give you a very short window of delivery time rather than making you sit home all day. They were supposed to get back to me with the extra cost. They didn’t. I called again several hours later and the lady was away from her desk. I was told she’d return in fifteen minutes and I asked that she call me back as promised. She didn’t. I called back a bit later but she’d gone home. She probably won’t like talking to me this morning, and I may just go over her head to someone higher up, because I want this to run smoothly and I want to be communicated with every step of the way.
The only time I actually got out of the house was to do a two-mile jog and to pick up a couple of packages, one of which contained the very early draft of Vertigo, when it was called Darkling, I Listen. It came with an onionskin copy of a four-page letter to writer Maxwell Anderson, which has incredible content. In fact, it’s quoted in its entirety in Dan Auiler’s book on the making of Vertigo, because a copy like mine resides in the Hitchcock papers at the Academy library. I read through some of the script and it is completely fascinating. At that point, the character names are still resembling the names in the original French book. The dialogue is horrendous – stilted and truly unspeakable by any good actor. It has endless two-character scenes (the James Stewart character and the character of the husband of the Kim Novak character). It’s no wonder that Hitchcock had already hired another writer to work out the structure and story details – that’s all outlined in that great four-page letter to Anderson. Soon after the letter was sent, Anderson was completely off the project. It’s just grand fun to see the development of a classic like Vertigo, and in that letter you can see the sheer genius of Hitchcock as a storyteller and craftsman.
I wrote three blurbs and one combo blurb that contains all three upcoming releases so that I can do one big eBlast for all three. That took a really long time. Then it was time for an early supper with the musical director, his wife, and their cute daughter. We went to Daily Grill. They have a new section of the menu with about ten items that are under 600 calories. I ordered a salmon dish from that, along with a small Caesar salad. We all had a really fun time. For dessert, the table split some strawberry shortcake.
Then I came home and had to prepare the audio samples and get them to the web guy. That took awhile. Then I determined that Follies will probably be sold out by tonight, so if you know anyone who is silly enough to have procrastinated you’d best tell them they’d better get off their butt cheeks and order. You know that the minute we hang up the sold out sign I will get a ton of e-mails from the usual sorts who will cry in anguish, “I just heard about this.”
I also had a long and good telephonic conversation with my guy at Capitol, about many things. I never had one minute to sit down and finish The Seven Year Itch – that can now not happen until tomorrow night. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I really need a good night’s beauty sleep because I’m starting to look like a demented Jiminy Cricket.
Today, I shall do a jog, I shall do errands and whatnot, hopefully pick up some packages, and then we have our second rehearsal, which I’m looking forward to. Then we have to kill some time, after which Adryan Russ and I will meet Doug Haverty at Vitello’s to see my pal Stacy Sullivan’s tribute to the great and grand Peggy Lee. I will, of course, have a full report.
Tomorrow, I have a few things to do, but I’m hoping for a relaxing day. My plan over the next few weeks is to jog almost every day then go to the Daily Grill and have one of those six hundred calorie meals. I’ll have already jogged off some of those calories, and that will enable me to snack in the evening on four hundred more calories – if I can stick to that five days a week, I know I will lose weight quickly. That is my plan and I’m sticking to it. Saturday is our stumble-through, and Sunday is sound check and show.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do a jog, do errands and whatnot, hopefully pick up some packages, rehearse, and see a nightclub show. Today’s topic of discussion: My three favorite kinds of what is it, fish to eat are halibut, filet of sole, and salmon. What are your favorite ways to eat and/or prepare those three what is it, fishes? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, like a demented Jiminy Cricket.