Well, dear readers, this month is flying by, like a gazelle getting a partridge in a pear tree along with two turtledoves, which someone thought was a good idea – making a mutant out of a turtle and a dove. In any case, let’s continue our look back at the year I like to call 2015. When last I left you, we’d just started the Indiegogo campaign. It was exhausting, but I found a way to keep it moving along and to be fun, and I guess that kind of worked because while we didn’t get to our goal, we did come within spitting distance. So, thanks to all who partook.
Then we did our one performance workshop of Welcome to My World. It went reasonably well, I learned some things, and I knew Sami had a ways to go before either of us would be satisfied. So, I began making revisions – nothing huge, but smoothing out some stuff, cutting some repetition, adjusting lines, focusing a couple of the monologues more, and then Sami came and read through the revisions and I was pleased with all the changes. Then she went off to summer camp, under instructions to at least think about the show every day – the goal was for her to know it by heart by the time of our first rehearsal. Of course, that didn’t happen, so she had to buckle down, Winsocki and get that part all together, which she did with the help of our line producer, Greer Geissman.
At some point in the summer I had an “aha” moment and got the idea to make a new musical revue about Los Angeles and began gathering writers to work on it, and also I began writing some material as well. Then we went into rehearsals for Welcome to My World. We had our ups and downs during that process, mostly to do with an overtired young girl trying to retain a lot of material, learn new blocking along with the old blocking, trying to unlearn earlier versions of monologues and implement the new lines and cuts, but each week I saw growth and everything coming together. I actually had it blocked and into run-throughs in just a few days. Finally we opened and everything just came together. The first week’s performances had fumfers and Sami was still getting used to where laughs would happen, or where she needed not to rush. I gave notes after every performance. By week two she was smoother, but the final performance of week three was the real turning point for her – she went to a whole new land, owned the stage, and was comfortable and funny and touching. The final week’s shows were all great. I was very proud of her and the show.
Two days after the first weekend of shows we were in the studio making the cast album. That was fun, and we turned it around in record time and had it in the theater for sale for the final two weeks of the run. We’ll wrap up this little reverie tomorrow.
Yesterday was a day in which I missed the morning entirely. I was very tired, fell asleep around two, woke up for about ten seconds at nine-thirty, and fell back asleep until one-thirty. I guess I needed it. Once up, I answered e-mails, did some work at the piano, and then I rustled up some grub – some chicken, mushrooms and onions in my wacky noodles sauce over rice. It was most yummilicious. Then I sat on my couch like so much fish.
Yesterday, I watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Broken Lance, starring Mr. Spencer Tracy, Mr. Robert Wagner, Miss Jean Peters, Mr. Hugh O’Brien and my neighbor, Earl Holliman. The film is a remake of House of Strangers, this time set in the west. I’ve not seen it many times, but I always enjoy this film, thanks to its excellent cast, pretty photography and a story that always holds interest. It was released in 1954 and was in the then-new Cinemascope process and it looks quite handsomely handsome. The movie has a terrific score by Leigh Harline and good direction by Edward Dmytryk. The transfer is excellent, boasting lovely color and clarity (save for the opticals, of course) – it looks terrific. Of course, the usual wags are out already proclaiming it’s been “tealed” to death. Well, no. Note to wags: There is no teal in this transfer – at all. None. Squat. Teal is just the little catchphrase for people, but it is a very specific hue. Does the transfer have blue? Of course? Too much blue? No. These people are either looking at screen caps that compare the previous DVD (very green), which was a transfer made off a fading internegative, to the new, which is based on color timing notes – they just assume the previous transfer was right. Why? Who the HELL knows? These Fox transfers of these early scope and color films are all wonderful. The wags are wrong. Period. I had dye transfer prints on a lot of these films and this is what they looked like. But here’s the thing – for an amusing little test, I put on another Twilight Time Blu-ray western, one from Sony/Columbia – The Man from Laramie. LOADED with blue. Blue everywhere. No comments from the wags on THAT transfer, not a one. No cries of teal on that transfer, but they’re of a piece and made relatively close to each other.
After that, I relaxed, did more work at the piano, watched the first ten minutes of something from this year on Netflix called Checkmate – surely one of the most ineptly written and directed movies in history – I haven’t seen anything this inept since those late 1980s cable movies that were all the rage – you know the ones – lots of lingerie, girls kissing, and synth music. This is worse than any of those. I couldn’t even tell you what it’s about – there’s a bank robbery in process, then a chess game between what I’m sure will turn out to be God and Satan (I’m not making this up), and of course after the first totally inept scene (the in progress robbery) we get the ubiquitous “One year earlier” card. I don’t know how these yahoos get money to make this crap – it doesn’t get released, loses its entire investment, ends up on Netflix and why? But the real mystery is why Danny Glover would do something like this. Well, we know why, but really can the money be that good to have something like this on your resume. An embarrassment of the highest order.
Today, we ship The Pick-up Artist. Other than that, I have to continue choosing songs, locking up the last of our cast (about ten kids for this show, but only a couple get more than one song), and I must find a musical director. My plan is to get all the kids their music by the end of the week so they have a solid month to learn it. I’ve really only chosen about four of the sixteen songs at this point. I’ll eat, hopefully pick up some packages, write, and I know at least one DGA screener is arriving at some point – have no idea what it might be other than the studio is Twentieth Century-Fox.
The rest of the week is meetings and meals and stuff – I want to wrap up as much as I possibly can so that I really do have the final two weeks of the year to myself – to do book stuff for the new book, to clear my head, to organize, and to have a nice holiday.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, ship CDs, choose songs, eat, hopefully pick up packages, write, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What were your favorite films of 2015? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, enjoying this look back at the highlights of 2015 whilst avoiding the stupid lowlights.