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[Matt H.]

Elmore, was it you who wanted a DVD copy of SUNRISE? If so (or whoever it was), here's where you can buy a used copy:


http://www.secondspin.com/buy/search.cfm?SID=120463328779

[mrkdl73]

Yes, I will confess there are times I've felt like committing crime, but I would like it to be noted here that never did.  Nothing major; I would have just liked to have slashed a certain ex's tires or key his car, but I refrained.  And I've moved on.  Though sometimes when I pass his place of biz, and I see his vehicle there, it does give me pause...

With regards to the JFK assassination, I hadn't been born yet.  Sorry.  The first national tragic event I recall was when I was in 6th grade spelling class and we were watching the Space Shuttle take off and then it happened.  We really didn't get much spelling done that day.  I just remember my teaching breaking down into tears and all of us knew it was sad, but were still too confused and young to process.

[PennyO]

And I've been scrambling to get ready to leave for New York on Saturday morning. Finally got a hotel, West 73rd. Friends have already been picking evenings for dinners, and i finally decided yesterday which "best-8-bars" I'll sing for my audition. This best 8 will either shatter their eardrums, and therefore any chance I have to be called back at any future time, or so intrigue and delight them that they'll ask for 16 bars of 'something else.' Plus ca change...

Huzzah, that the hotel room studio has a kitchen and microwave and toaster and laundry and a gym, and last-minute booking gets me a break on the price. And it's a 20 minute walk to the Equity office, and 5 minutes from Lincoln Center, and just across the street from the 72nd St. subway. That has made me feel so sunshiney on this rainy day.

And, not only that - my water is once again running hot and cold IN THE HOUSE at the turn of a tap. I'll try the washing machine later today. Then it's dye the roots and pack. Tomorrow night I have an interview for directing a show in Sept. And I still have to copy music scores and get them to actors. I guess I have no time for getting Botox shoved into my frown lines...

Scramble, scramble. See Penny hop and dance and scurry!

[George]

-Well, since the "Goldberg Variations" were written for an insomniac.... Hmmm...  -Although the last time I tried "them", I ended being so enthralled by the piano playing... When I heard the Aria being repeated (after the quodlibet)... Ah, well...

This reminds me, one of my most favorite selections in my Quodlibet CD series (I've actually named my CDs "Simultaneous Songs") is "The Goldfarb Variations" from The Magic Show.  It's on my first CD.

[Jason]

mrkdl: Yes, I love Bill D.! He's such a sweet guy...and very talented. Please send him my love. He was my best friend during the travesty that was my summer at Bucks County Playhouse. DR Jose knows Diggle, as well. Will he be doing SHOWBOAT with you? I need to email him... Too bad DOLLY is closing this weekend--I'll be in Chicago at the end of June--how close is Circa '21? And why don't they have a cast list on their website? Diggle must like it there...he's worked there quite a bit. Perhaps I'll audition for them next season.

[Panni]

Good morning. Good questions... Re crime: When I lived in Toronto one of my apartments was just up the street from Shoppers Drug Mart - a huge drug store. I was working on a sitcom at the time and would often come home very late after rewrite sessions. Those were the good old days when a woman could take the subway alone late at night and walk to her apartment without fearing for her life.(If I was really tired, I took a cab. Otherwise, the subway was great.) Anyway, on any number of occasions, as I rounded the corner towards my building I'd see someone running out of the drug store with plain clothes security in hot pursuit.
As for committing a crime... Well, I suppose in the eyes of the Hungarian government I did. My mother and I were arrested and put in jail for trying to cross the border into Austria in 1957.
The third part - No, i don't think I could live with myself if i committed a (serious) crime, even if I had the "Do Not Go to Jail" card.
As for the Kennedy assassination. I was putting something in my locker (or taking something out) in the hallway in high school, when I realized something weird was in the air. Just the way the adults were talking to each other, looking secretive and upset. Asked around and found out that way. There was a strange emotional connection to my father's death when I was five. He'd been in the hospital and was supposed to come home that day. I was playing in the corridor outside our apartment - a European open courtyard arrangement - riding my scooter, I think. I saw my horrible (adult) half-brother across the courtyard, talking to a neighbor. They looked very intense and serious. I went over and they stopped talking. And for some reason i instantly knew what had happened. Anyway, that's how I felt that day with Kennedy. Not the loss of a father - but just that feeling of knowing something was really off, that something BAD had happened - then discovering what it was.

[MBarnum]

At the time of the Kennedy assassination I was in my mother’s womb. My sister (who was 13 at the time) was home watching a soap opera when the news came on telling what happened. I am trying to think now what the reaction was from her and my mother. I will have to ask them again.

As I had worked in retail for 13 years I witnessed numerous shoplifting incidents, but no major crimes. A guy with a rifle did try to threaten us in the pharmacy once, but the security guy tackled him. It did shake us up a bit, however.

[Dan (the Man)]

Here's a question for BK and any other DR who might like to answer: Have you ever witnessed a crime? [I witnessed a crime once--it was called BIG: THE MUSICAL. Remember, there's no groaning allowed here at HHW.com.]  Have you ever perpetrated a crime? The third part to my three-part question about crime: If you could commit any crime with no fear of repercussions, what crime would you commit?

Crime I have witnessed:  I've seen people shoplifting a number of times, but nothing like what I once witnessed in a mall department store.  I was browsing near the men's Polo department when, from out of nowhere it seemed, there were about ten teen-agers all grabbing armfulls of t-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets and then running for the nearby exit.  There was one lone saleswoman at the Polo counter who just kept screaming "Stop!".  These kids were well organized--it all happened so fast that they hit and were out in about thirty seconds and were gone before the first security guard came running.  I just stood there like a stunned ninny not believing what I saw.  (This turned out to be one of many in a rash of looting sprees in malls in my area.  I don't recall hearing or reading if the perps were ever caught.)

Crime I committed:  About ten years ago, I got lazy about getting car insurance after being dumped from a company that left the state. I was stopped twice in one week for driving an uninsured vehicle (a huge no-no in New Jersey.)  My lawyer managed to get this cut down to just one offense, but I still lost my license for a year.  What really pissed me off about that was that my neighbor at the time was stopped for DUI and lost his license for only six months!

Crime I would like to commit:  Murder most foul (but clever and witty, too!)

[Ron Pulliam]

"American Idol" -- I personally think Fantasia is the best entertainer the show has ever had.

Last night, though, they were not being harsh with Fantasia about her first song, they were being critical of the arrangement -- in the middle of that criticism, they praised her for the fact that she made it good anyway.

Diana did not sing her last song very well -- she got way off key and it took her a while to bring it back around.

My main criticism of Diana is that every song is a screaming song -- it's always uptempo and written to throw one's vocal cords into ultra-shock.  Third time, last night, was the charm.   She simply could not sustain that type of song three times in one hour. (Another irritant is that she always starts these songs by rushing onstage and yelling, "Come on, y'all..."  Gimme a break!

Fantasia mixed it up, and she's been doing that throughout the competition.  Diana hasn't except on Big Band night when she did a surprising "Someone to Watch Over Me."

In regards to how America voted, I don't think the judges' comments will have been very favorable for Fantasia.  Every time they've ever been up front about her (or LaToya) being the best or pre-annointing her as the next Idol, she's ended up in the bottom two.  Simon will go on and on, praising Fantasia by degrading everyone else.  He cannot give a compliment that doesn't demean someone else.  I think the public lashes out for that reason.  I know I do.



I tried and tried and tried to call last night and could not get through but once -- EACH -- to vote.

I don't care which one gets it.  I think they both deserve it, despite the judges who, once again, sounded pre-rehearsed in their commentaries.

On a sour note, has anyone else noticed that the judges always seem to think that each performance is about "them"?  As soon as a performer has sung and the audience is cheering, Randy Jackson exhibits little patience in letting the applause die down until he can be heard, and thus we get, "Fantasia!    Fantasia!  Yo!  Yo!"....meant to grab her attention away from her fans and to shut her fans up.

Simon, on the other hand, when he led off the critiquing a couple of weeks ago, just told the audience to "Shut up."  (Overheard many weeks ago after Jasmine finished a song, Simon was caught on an open mike saying, "They would stand up for THAT, wouldn't they!")

Some things cannot be controlled.

[Ron Pulliam]

Horrid sandwiches can be very harmful.

I've had a horrid sandwich or two in my life -- it was usually the mayonnaise, though, that made them horrid.

I've also encountered a wretched omelet that had far too many peppers and onions in it.

And I've a livid roast beef in my refrigerator that needs tossing out next time my trash bag gets full.

[George]

I've been the victim of a crime:  Once, about 8 or 10 years ago, I left my apartment, but forgot to lock the door.  Actually, I left the door open.  Anyway, I got a phone call from the apartment manager and she asked if I had meant to leave my door open.  I said no.  When I got home, my apartment was its usual complete mess, but something was wrong.  It took a while to notice (it was that messy) but one of my two VCRs had been taken (the one on the bottom, and the better one...and the correct remote!) and the receiver of my stereo system.  I had a brand new copy of the (original) Star Wars trilogy right next to my TV but that wasn't taken.  I had a lot of other junk that wasn't taken as well.  I did call the police and someone came and took information (and he was very polite and nice...as well as nice to look at) but nothing really could be done.  I didn't have serial numbers for the items.  Oh well.  Live and learn.

[Jennifer]

DR Jennifer, I would have been even harsher with Fantasia over that lousy first song. Letting the backup singers do all the singing while she did some improvised riffs just didn't do it for me AT ALL. After the first round, I was sure Diana had it, not because of the judges' negative reaction to Fantasia's singing so much but just because Diana seemed to put everything she had into that first rendition, and Fantasia didn't.

Yes, I also thought it was strange that the backup singer seemed to sing most of that first song.  But given the influence of the judges, I was still very surprised that they criticized her so harshly.

Although that said, what they did to Diana at the end of the show was much worse. And because they did it at the end, it will have much more impact.

I do wonder though if people voted based on last night's performances, or merely for their favorite.

[Jennifer]

I also wasn't born when Kennedy was killed.  But like DR Jason I remember where I was during the space shuttle tragedy.  I was at rehearsals for Hello Dolly (high school production) and we were getting ready for one of our entrances when we were told the news.

[Jrand73]

MRKDL73....Frank is one my favorite parts that I have ever played....the songs and dances are fun...and you get to be a bit dramatci as well!

Break a leg!

[Dan (the Man)]

This leads me to my Ask Dear Readers question (for Dear Readers over a certain age).  The one new song in ASSASSINS (added initially in London) is "Something Just Broke" with the Ensemble remembering where they were when they heard of the Kennedy Assassination.  Where were you when you heard the news.  

I've only the vaguest memories--I was only about five years old.  I rememeber that my dad was home from work, which struck me as odd.  I remember my one sister coming home early from school and telling my parents that the President was shot.  For some reason my dad turned on the radio to listen to the news and it wasn't until hours later that the TV was turned on.  I remember my mom yelling at my oldest sister for not coming home from high school at the same time my other sister did and her crying back that the nuns made all the students go into the church to pray and wouldn't let them go home.  My mom didn't make dinner that night--my dad went out and got us hamburgers.  I remember that my aunt and uncle and our neighbors coming over that night watching the TV (which seemed to be on all the time during the following week.)   But what I remember most about that day was all the crying.  My mom, my sisters, my aunt and the neighbor lady all crying or red-eyed.   I think that, even though I somehat understood that something horrendous had happened, that the crying upset and frightened me more than anything else.

I do not like "Something Just Broke" in ASSASSINS.  I can understand why Sondheim might have wanted to insert it when the show played London and why he might feel that it's still valid to include in the revival, but I think it stops the show cold.  I have yet to see it staged, so maybe my opinion will change once I see the show, but as of right now I prefer the way the original production ended.

[William E. Lurie]

Very interesting answers on the Kennedy assassination.  Thanks to all.

Dan (the man) - Something just broke doesn't end ASSASSINS.  It comes between the Oswald scene and "Everybody's Got the right' which still ends the show.  It is staged very well in the current production, but I could imagine it might not be staged as well in other productions.

[elmore3003]

DR Jason, the biggest crime I ever saw onstage was either CARRIE, because it was criminal that so many talented people had screwed up something so epically, or THE NEWS, a punk musical about a serial killer, in which I kept wishing he'd come down from the stage, kill me, and put me out of my misery.  Around 1980 or so, around noon, I saw an act of violence at 50th and Broadway in front of the building tyhat has the Circle in the Square:  several young thugs were beating up an older man pretty badly, and that was the day I decided that whenever I saw a gathered crowd I would avoid it.

DR WEL, I was in economics class in my senior year of high school, when the principal announced on the loudspeaker that we were dismissed because President Kennedy had been shot.  I don't think I knew he was dead until I got home.

Dear Friend BK, I'm sorry I called you so early but I wanted to tell you the news!  I hope you got the message.

[elmore3003]

Elmore, was it you who wanted a DVD copy of SUNRISE? If so (or whoever it was), here's where you can buy a used copy:


http://www.secondspin.com/buy/search.cfm?SID=120463328779

Thank you!  Yes, it was I!  What a great film.  It was my late friend Bill Tynes' favorite, if I remember correctly.

[Jennifer]

DR RLP, I still think the judges were pretty harsh with Fantasia on her first song.  Simon's only comment was that it was a mess.  Yah Paula did say that she could sing through a messed arrangement.  But to me at least, i was shocked.

Btw, all 3 lines for each were busy?

[Jason]

I think Jennifer was shocked and she thinks they were too hard on Fantasia.

Elmore: It may have been a travesty, but I envy you for having the opportunity to see CARRIE. I love musicals, but I REALLY love BAD musicals. I saw DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES five times because I knew it would rank (and boy, was it rank) up there with shows like CARRIE and MOOSE MURDERS and I wanted to be part of it. I saw URBAN COWBOY for the same reason, but that wasn't fun bad theatre...that was just plain ole' bad. I'm starting a collection of really bad and/or tacky musicals on CD--a collection that already includes DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES, THE SCREAMS OF KITTY GENOVESE, PRINCESS DIANA: THE MUSICAL, POOP: THE MUSICAL, THE BLACK TULIP ("Tulip Madness! Tulip Fee-vah! Tulip Madness! Too-lip Loon-ah-see!!") and I'm waiting for my copies of MAMELEH! and UGH: THE CAVEMAN MUSICAL. It's a sickness that I can't explain, but I love it.

[bk]

elmore, tried to call you back, but just got ringing, no message or voice mail.  New Juliana will be up in about ten minutes and then I'll get to your questions.

[JoseSPiano]

Good Afternoon!

-I would have made it to "Good Morning" had I gotten up about 30 minutes earlier, but, alas... (see my last and first posts from earlier today)...

As for where I was during the Kennedy Assassination... I, too, was not born yet, but I do remember where I was during the Space Shuttle disaster.  (Which, unfortunately, is now the first Space Shuttle disaster.)  I was in grade school, and the principal come on over the PA system and announced what had happened.  Some of the classes in the school had been watching the launch on TV, but not mine.  We all started shifting to classrooms with TVs and watching the coverage...

The one image that sticks in my head:  One of the networks had a camera on the teacher who was the runner-up for the "teacher" slot...  They were covering him in his classroom during the countdown that morning... Well... The cameras wanted to keep rolling, but he eventually pushed them away...  The amount of different emotions in his face...

[bk]

My question for ask BK day - do you have a webcam?  Do you ever use it?

No, I don't have a webcam.  I probably wouldn't use it if I did except to take revealing photos of me taking off my socks.

Juliana's Journal entry is up.

[Jason]

I remember where I was for the second shuttle disaster--I was in Washington, DC with my friend, Diane. We were there for a weekend of theatre-going, and we woke up to the news on TV. Later that afternoon I met DR Jose for the first time at Arena Stage's production of SOUTH PACIFIC.

[JoseSPiano]

As for crimes...

I've seen someone shoplift some wine coolers from Safeway...  And I remember being in an ice cream shop when some idiot came in and just started knocking things off the counter while yelling at no one in particular - but you could just feel his rage.  Someone ran after him, but I don't believe he was caught.  Thankfully, the damage was mainly confined to some broken plates and some spilled condiments.  I know I've witnessed some other crimes, but they're not coming to mind right now.  -And since I worked for the government for a five summers, I'm sure I witnessed some "white collar" stuff.  -Heck, even I used the office copier to copy scores from time to time.  -Your tax dollars at work!

I will also admit that I've shoplifted before.  Magazines.

Oh, and I remember the first time I saw someone shoplift... I was with a group of friends in high school, and we were at the mall.  One of the girls saw this hair scrunchy she really liked... So, she just took it off the rack, said, "Hey, I like this!", and stuck it in her pocket.  WOW!?!?!  And I went to a Catholic high school!  -That Catholic girl did not start much too late! -to paraphrase Billy Joel.

[Panni]

JR - I meant to say earier that I liked your story of turning the hose on the fleeing criminal. Great picture!

[elmore3003]

And I've been scrambling to get ready to leave for New York on Saturday morning. Finally got a hotel, West 73rd. Friends have already been picking evenings for dinners, and i finally decided yesterday which "best-8-bars" I'll sing for my audition. This best 8 will either shatter their eardrums, and therefore any chance I have to be called back at any future time, or so intrigue and delight them that they'll ask for 16 bars of 'something else.' Plus ca change...

DR Penny O, have we set a time? date? place?  I believe DR Ben wants to join us, and I would be very happy with that.  West 73rd just a skip from my neck of the Upper West side!

[bk]

Here's a question for BK and any other DR who might like to answer: Have you ever witnessed a crime? [I witnessed a crime once--it was called BIG: THE MUSICAL. Remember, there's no groaning allowed here at HHW.com.]  Have you ever perpetrated a crime? The third part to my three-part question about crime: If you could commit any crime with no fear of repercussions, what crime would you commit?

Part one: I witnessed someone get caught at Tower for "stealing" a CD.  The person denied it, though, said he'd just been absent-minded.  Whether that was true or not, the way the security guard almost shoved him through the glass entrance door, screaming at him as if the man were a murderer or rapist was one of the most disgusting things I've ever seen.  I demanded the guard's name (and got it), called the Tower corporate offices, and reported it and said if they didn't fire him I would report him to the police.  As far as I know they did.

Part two: PennyO has already spoken of our game of "fleeing" restaurants - we thought it was funny.  In retrospect, nah.

Part three: Well, I think everyone here probably knows the answer to this question, but for anyone who doesn't my new book might just provide a clew.

[Panni]

Funny - I don't remember where I was for the Shuttle disasters. have very little memory of the whole thing. Weirdly enough, I do remember where I was when I heard Princess Diana had been killed.

[JoseSPiano]

DR Jason - Circa '21 is on the other side of the state of Illinois from Chicago.  It's in Rock Island (part of the Quad Cities), and you're right on the Mississippi River - the only place it runs east to west - or is that west to east.  And right across the river is River City, Iowa!  -Really, it's just like The Music Man!  -I had a gig there a few years ago.  Had a good time.

*And you can actually run across the Mississippi on the Centennial Bridge - it's just a mile long/wide there.  Such a natural high when you realize that you've just crossed the Mississippi!!

DR mrkdl73 - Please give my best to Diggle too!  Is Amanda there too?  -Or is Amanda out of the picture?  (Again...)

-And please say HI to Denny and the gang for me!!!

-And have you started the "beer tour" at the Rock Island Brewing Company?

-Oh, and is there a chance that I've played for you at SETCs or UPTAs?