Well, dear readers, what kind of a Monday was it? Well, I’ll tell you what kind of a Monday it was. It was a Monday, that’s what it was. Neither good, neither fish nor fowl or even fish nor foul. It was a day that happened and that’s about all I can say and yet if I just say that these here notes will be very short and we can’t have that because it would be most unseemly. Unseemly, do you hear me? So, if something is neither fish nor fowl does that mean it’s beef or vegetables? I gotta tell you. In any case, I am sitting here like so much fish trying to recall a single thing about Monday other than it was neither fish nor fowl.
I’d intended to sleep in, but the telephone rang several times, both home and cell, so, worried it might be important, I got up at ten after about six hours of sleep. I attended to the telephonic call, which was about a meeting this morning for the Sherman event. I told them they had to give more warning than a day, but we discussed what needed to be said so all that will be handled by Richard’s son, who’s producing. Then I answered scads of e-mails and I know some other things happened – maybe I did some work at the piano and on the computer, but if I did I don’t remember any of it.
Then I went and had a chicken salad sandwich and a side Caesar salad, both very good. Then I picked up no packages and came home. Grant is back in town, so we had a nice visit and we think we figured out why the earthquake thing was being tripped. Turns out that device is right under the living room floor and in this Kritzerland show there was tap dancing and movement – we didn’t tap on the floor with taps but he did in his shoes and rather vociferously and we think that’s what must have triggered it. Go know. He scanned a couple of LP covers of upcoming releases, and then I came back home. I did some work at the piano that I do remember, and then I did some work on the computer – doing a blurb for our new show release that we’ll announce this very week at some point (it’s a goodie). Then I had a long telephonic conversation, going over a chart for the musical, just correcting notes and lyrics and talking about the layout. This is the second half of our long opening number. Then he went off to create the track – that music currently runs over 165 bars and we’re adding about five more today. This is a really fun way to work, actually, and I’m enjoying it. Then I sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I went back to The Outer Limits and watched a good episode called The Invisibles – very atmospheric, with wonderful direction by Gerd Oswald, a good script by Joseph Stefano, and great photography by Conrad Hall, although this particular episode wasn’t quite up to the others in terms of transfer quality. Don Gordon, Tony Mordente, and Neil Hamilton starred. Mr. Hamilton was, I must say, absolutely fantastic in his role. Oh, and I forgot the great George Macready. The only performance that was, how shall I put this, less than stellar, was Mr. Mordente, who was great as Action in the film of West Side Story (and he played in the original Broadway cast, too). He was, in this episode, a schmacter and he was wise to give that all up to become a competent TV director. At the time of this episode he was married to Chita Rivera. Then I began the next episode, entitled The Bellero Shield, starring Martin Landau. Here’s what’s interesting about it so far – Neil Hamilton is in it, which makes back-to-back episodes for him, and Chita Rivera is in it, which makes back-to-back appearances for husband wife Rivera and Mordente. Fun little factoids, that’s what we’re all about here at haineshisway.com.
After that, I got the track for the second half of the opening number – orchestration is great, but lots of tiny note mistakes so we’ll fix those this morning and then he can move on to the six other songs he has. Then I listened to some music, finally put up some audio samples for Demi-Dozen, and did more prep work for our new release.
Today, I’ll be up at eight-thirty because the plumber man is coming to move the earthquake thing so that it’s not going to be so close to the floor in the living room. That means he’ll shut the gas off at nine and hopefully he’ll be done by eleven because I’ll need to shave and shower because I’m speaking to some high school arts students at one. Then I’ll have a meal after that, then I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, then come home. I’ll do some work at the piano and on the computer and then relax.
The rest of the week is meetings and meals, writing, planning the Kritzerland June show, seeing a new musical or theatre piece on Thursday night, and more writing, trying to finish up the last four or five songs. I have a good start on two of them.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example speak to some high school arts students, eat, hopefully pick up packages, write, finish prepping our new release, fix the errors in the track, and then relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite performances of that marvelous actor, Martin Landau? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy that these notes were neither fish nor fowl, but beefy notes.