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[bk]

I haven't had any problems modifying.  Anyone else?

Re reported grosses - As I pointed out yesterday, there are many cases of inflated reporting, all well-documented in the trade papers at the time the mis-reporting happened.  Obviously, that isn't the case with Michael Moore's film, but if it HAD been the case it would just as obviously had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with the distributor trying to put on the best face possible (which is why they inflate grosses in the first place).  The mis-reporting slowed down a couple of years ago because they were really looking for it then and catching distribs every week.

[William E. Lurie]

Re: DE LOVELY... if the Soundtrack is any indication, see it as soon as it opens because it is not going to last.  While there are a couple of good tracks, on the whole the album is an insult to any Cole Porter fan.  I haven't seen it yet, but I understand one of the highlights is "Cole" and "Linda" walking out of a theatre showing Cary Grant in "Night and Day" and making fun of the way it portrayed them.  At least that film had Mary Martin singing "My Heart Belongs to Daddy".

[DearReaderLaura]

I don't know from 60's off-Broadway shows, so I can't add to today's topic. But here's my post.

[Ann]

Good morning all!
I'll have to think about the topic for today, see if I know any to list.  I'll ask DR Jed, he'll know
It is a beautiful day here in Tacoma.  I'll be spending a lot of time outside with the kids today.  
Don't have much to say, but just wanted to put it a post before I get going to work.

[Panni]

I haven't had any problems modifying.  Anyone else?

Nope. I just modified my earlier listing of The "Fantastics" - which is actually a musical lost in Boston about these two old fathers who misunderstand each other because each has a tic that the other thinks is a wink and there's a wall and two lovers and a lot of winking and misunderstanding and...

[Ron Pulliam]

Ver-r-r-y In-te-rest-ing!

And very strange.

I've discovered "why" I've been unable to modify.

Yesterday afternoon, it was "suggested" by some folks here that we re-set our PC security settings to "high" as a precaution against the new virus going around.

I did this.  And forgot.  And one of our information technology folks issued a statement saying it was unnecessary to set at "high" because of our firewall.  It was suggested that "high" might hamper some functions.

LIGHT BULB LIT UP!

And I am now on "medium" security and have full access to "modify" capabilities.

Sigh.

[MBarnum]

Now here is a topic of discussion! Where in tarnation are some of our DRs...for instance Lulu! She seems to have been absent for quite an extended period of time! Once she was here and now she is gone!

[Jennifer]

Wow we are moving so slow today!

I was just about to try to modify, but now I see there is no need.

It looks like it is going to rain.

[Jrand73]

Oh....hmmmmmmm....I too am NOT familiar enough with OFF BROADWAY in the 1960's, but I will add A MAN WITH A LOAD OF MISCHIEF with the lovely Virginia Vestoff.  I only have the LP, but I love it.

More recently, I will go with the Kaufman duo of GROSS INDENCENCY and THE LARAMIE PROJECT.

[Jrand73]

Hmmmmmmm my birth certificate arrived today and yes, I am real.....

I liked LOBBY HERO which was produced in Toronto by my friend Jeffrey Marshall - although most people find it somewhat lacking as DRJOSE pointed out.  I have only read it, so I need to see a production before I can comment.....

I think DR WEL, I quoted the musical director of DE LOVELY from an interview in MOVIELINE magazine and was a bit dismayed at what he said.  I can repeat the quotes if anyone is interested.  Because I read that, the disappointment in the soundtrack CD is not a surprise to me.

[Panni]

I'll just add a post to help the posts along. Am organizing my working space. Ugghhh.

[Jennifer]

Question: have any DRs seen wild bunnies?

There is this one little guy here who is really precious.  But he seems so out of place in the suburbs.  He has a cute little white tail.  But today when I tried to give him a carrot he ran off.

[Jennifer]

Another question.  Is it tacky for a local theatre company to ask you to fill out your name to win tickets to their next show, and then use the information to bug you to BUY a subscription for their entire series?

I must say, I didn't see it coming.  But they've called twice now, and I think it's slightly tacky.  And they didn't even try to hide it.  They were like, "hey you filled out to win tickets to this show, would you like to buy a subscription?".

I felt like saying, "why would I need to buy tickets when I'm going to WIN them"

Actually when I told this guy that I'd already been called he was very sorry.  AND he actually asked me something which sort of made up for the call.  He asked if there was any reason why I had put "satisfactory" in the customer service column, and he wanted to know if there is anyway he could improve their service.

I should have said "stop calling".

But actually there was a reason and I explained it and he wrote it down and said he'd look into it.

But I still felt a bit annoyed that they went through all those contest stubs and used it as their mailing list.

[bk]

It looked like it was going to rain here, too, but naturally, this being LA and all, the sun just pushed the clouds aside.  I'd prefer the rain, frankly.

[Jennifer]

I don't want rain, because I want to BBQ!

[Stuart]

Sorry for being so E & T, as of late....had a houseguest; had a few days off, etc.

On the TOD:

My off-Broadway days only go back to the mid 70s, but definitely LARAMIE PROJECT.  Also JEFFREY.  Sorry BK, I was a fan of DINNER WITH FRIENDS.  Also Anne Meara's AFTERPLAY.  A LIFE IN THE THEATRE with the late great Ellis Raab, and the late, great (and cuter) Peter Evans.  Some -- but not all -- of the Charles Ludlam pieces.

I may have missed a discussion of off-Broadway musicals, but my votes are for GETTING MY ACT TOGETHER..., which in its time, and with the right cast, was powerful.  But a favorite was TRIXIE TRUE, TEEN DETECTIVE, with the very funny Marilyn Sokol.  (She became less funny as her career progressed...)  And the wonderful Miss Phyllis Newman in THE MADWOMAN OF CENTRAL PARK WEST.  And LITTLE SHOP, in its original incarnation.

[DERBRUCER]

The Zoo Story, The Sandbox, The Death of Bessie Smith;

You left out the best of the Albee batch:

The American Dream

And my favorite from the 70's



The Dark Shadows web site adds the following fun details:

Denied the chance to wear fangs on Dark Shadows, Chris Bernau became Count Dracula in an off-Broadway play called The Passion of Dracula, which opened in September 1977.

The play fittingly opened at midnight followed by a Bloody Mary cocktail party, and got mostly solid reviews. Some reviewers took it to task for mixing humor into the Gothic story, but most loved the retelling--especially Bernau's turn as the blood-thirsty count.

In his crushed velvet clothes and cape, the actor spoke in a Transylvanian accent (which one reviewer found "too Russian"), and captured the spirit of a sexy, slightly funny vampire.

"Mr. Bernau, pale as a candle and dressed all in black, achieves a fine balance between the awesome and the ridiculous," wrote Richard Eder in the New York Times. "His sudden entrances and exits, accompanied by clouds of steam, work very well."

On Dark Shadows, Chris played Phillip Todd, co-owner of a Collinsport antique shop-and foster dad of Leviathan Jeb Hawkes.

In 1977, he told the Daily News he enjoyed splitting his time between the parts of Alan Spaulding on the CBS soap The Guiding Light, and Dracula. (He'd signed on to GL just prior to getting the stage role.) "Really, the Count is a marvelous fellow to play," Bernau said. "He's the only role I ever had in which I can not only chew the scenery but the rest of the cast as well."

Bob Hall and David Richmond's humorous script gave some good lines to the vampire's naïve victims: "Look at the size of that bat!" one exclaimed, looking out a window just before being fanged. The play was directed by Peter Bennett and staged at the Cherry Lane Theatre.

The Passion of Dracula is a revamped version of Bram Stoker's classic. It takes place at a sanitarium, where the mysterious Count Dracula has recently set up housekeeping at a rundown mansion next door-and local village maidens have been dropping like flies. (Flies and spiders are dropping too, as a sanitarium inmate named Renfield pops them into his mouth throughout the play.) The 1977 production was full of special effects, including an impressive transformation from man to bat. In another scene, a cross burst into flames when grasped by the Count.

That fall was a good time for vampire fans in New York City. Shortly after Chris began breathing undead life into Dracula, Frank Langella started playing the same part in the Broadway production of Dracula, at the Martin Beck Theatre.
John Hirsch of The Villager compared Bernau and Langella in a just-pre-Halloween review. While he found Bernau's performance "lecherous, often funny, and ultimately sympathetic" (a lot like Jonathan Frid's Barnabas), he thought Langella's Count Dracula was "sinister and never pitiable" and animalistic-crouching and growling his way across the stage.

Langella's interpretation was committed to film in 1979, in the movie Dracula. Bernau's play was taped by Showtime and broadcast in January 1980.

These shows all played in the village at the Cherry Lane Theatre.

der Brucer (the bar/lounge at the Cherry Lane had a small passage at the rear that was curtained off from the man area - and going thru that curtain was a real eye-opener!!!)

[DERBRUCER]

Question: have any DRs seen wild bunnies?

Besides the ones at the Playboy Mansion?

der Brucer (who long ago posted his tail tale about raising bunnies)

[DERBRUCER]

If you want a cheer-up smile for today:

Frist read this article excepted form FNS

Mini-Motorcycle Trend Zooms Across Nation
Tuesday, June 29, 2004
By Catherine Donaldson-Evans
 
NEW YORK  — If you liked the movie “Big” about a boy-turned-man or just want to relive your childhood, you might find yourself caught up in a wacky craze over pint-size motorcycles.
…
The bikes are smaller, lighter and cheaper than their adult-size counterparts, with price tags in the $200-$3,000 range, as opposed to the regular motorcycles that cost a minimum of several grand. They are also illegal for street use in most states, but enthusiasts who are attracted by their low cost and cachet can't get enough of them.
Howard Wu, a partner at Fancy Scooter, said he and Ma suggest that buyers ride the pocket bikes in the park or at the beach, advise them of the state laws and warn them to wear helmets and proceed with caution.
“We don’t encourage small kids to ride,” Ma said. “They’re built for speed and if you go very fast, it’s going to hurt you.”
The larger versions of the mini motos hit speeds of 20 to 25 mph, but the smaller ones can go up to 50 mph.
“Of course they’re dangerous,” said Robertson. “You’re going 25 miles per hour and run into a car or a wall, you’re going to come away with some scrapes and bumps and bruises. They’re so small and low it’s possible that a driver in a vehicle would not see you and just run over your ass.”
…
A recent test drive of a Fancy Scooter mini proved that the toy-sized cycles are zippy, fun, loud and fairly simple to learn to ride — but are likely to cause leg-cramping for anyone who isn’t ultra petite.



Now...imagine your favorite Dear Reader driving one!

der Brucer (the ultra petite leaves me out)

[Jennifer]

I just lost 20 minutes!

[Jason]

Yes, the cold chicken was fried. We had my traditional "coming home" dinner, per my menu, and now I am enjoying some fried whitefish and hush puppies from the local fish shop up the street. My parents were kind enough to leave me a car to tool around in (they just recently acquired a used Jaguar, which has been my mom's dream car her whole life, but they haven't sold the third car yet, so my dad's driving that one and I'M driving the Jag--woohoo!) so I went out shopping for my dad's birthday and picked up a couple of things for myself, including the just-released Original Cast Album of CAROLINE, OR CHANGE. I really enjoy the score, and it's wonderful to hear Tony Kushner's lyrics again and really have a chance to focus on what they're saying. Tonya sounds rough, but I'm starting to wonder if part of that is intentional.

I will begin my search for mom's recipes this afternoon and will start posting them as I am able.

[Jennifer]

I want one of those mini putts!

But if you cannot drive them in the streets then where do they want you to drive them?

[DERBRUCER]

BK and other DRs who have a jaded view of the American Political Scene will find little surprise in this gem I pulled from a newsletter:

SALEM, Ore. - Two conservative groups have been phoning people around Oregon this week, urging them to attend Ralph Nader's convention Saturday in hopes of putting Nader's name on Oregon's presidential ballot.

The groups make no bones about their goal - to draw votes away from Democrat John Kerry and help President Bush win this battleground state in November.

"We disagree with Ralph Nader's politics, but we'd love to see him make the ballot," said Russ Walker of Citizens for a Sound Economy, a group best
known for its opposition to tax increases.

The Oregon Family Council also has been working the phones to boost attendance at Nader's event - with the idea that it could help Bush this fall.

"We aren't bashful about doing it," said Mike White, the group's director.
"We are a conservative, pro-family organization, and Bush is our guy on virtually every issue."

Even if it comes from an unusual source, Nader can probably use the help,given that this will be his second attempt to win a spot on Oregon's ballot.

In April, Nader held an evening rally in Portland that was intended to attract 1,000 people needed to sign petitions to put him on the ballot. Only 741 showed up.

Nader placed some of the blame on supporters tuning in the NCAA basketball championship game, which occurred the same night, rather than attend the rally.

The 70-year-old consumer activist plans to travel to Portland for the second convention, which will be held at a local high school.

The move by the Republican-leaning groups to boost attendance at Nader's mini-convention is legal.

State law says that for Nader to qualify for the ballot as independent candidate, he need only draw 1,000 registered votes - regardless of their party affiliation - together in one place to sign petitions for him.

The head of Nader's Oregon campaign, Greg Kafoury, said he's had no contact with the two conservative groups that have been calling people this week. But he said he's not bothered by their actions, either.

If Nader qualifies for Oregon's ballot, polls suggest that he could be a factor in whether Kerry or Bush wins the seven electoral votes of this swing state in
November.

der Brucer

[Jennifer]

Yes, the cold chicken was fried. We had my traditional "coming home" dinner, per my menu,if

I love it. You make your own menu!

Cool about the jag. Can we see a pic?

And I cannot wait to see your mom's recipes!

[Jrand73]

My answer to both of your questions DRJENNIFER is yes.  We have a few rabbits living under a large fir tree in our yard...and now and then the little bunnies hop out looking around and then immediately hop back under the tree.  I am hoping the neighborhood cats don't spy them

And yes....those tickets were for a raffle NOT the mailing/contact list.  We ask for people to sign up for the mailing list, but we don't make calls.  I know the Indiana Repertory Theatre does....they used to use their AUDITION lists to make calls.  Like someone who was never cast was going to spend money to see a show there.

And "don't call" would have been a good response.  

[Jrand73]

Next time when you are in the audience and they make the pitch for the raffle, you might raise your hand and ask:  If I give my telephone number, are you going to call about a season subscription?  

Everyone in the audience will be interested in the answer.

[Ben]

Oh, yes, I forgot Jeffrey! I loved that show.

[Ben]

I don't see bunnies here in the city but there are a couple of full-sized rabbits who eat the strawberries in Anthony's mother's garden. Maybe this year we will get to eat some of them before they get to them. Last year they also ate some of the peppers. Never the cucumbers strangely enough. We got plenty of those.

MacGregor, Rose's West Highland terrier loves to chase the rabbits, though I don't know what he would do if he caught one. Actually Rose makes sure therer are no rabbits in sight before she lets MacGregor out the door so there isn't much chance of him having lapin for a mid-afternoon snack.

[Jay]

...there are a couple of full-sized rabbits who eat the strawberries in Anthony's mother's garden. Maybe this year we will get to eat some of them before they get to them.

The rabbits or the strawberries?

[DERBRUCER]

I want one of those mini putts!

But if you cannot drive them in the streets then where do they want you to drive them?

More extract:

Pocket bikes are ubiquitous in California, where police have been cracking down on riders after a number of recent accidents. On the other side of the country, in New York, the little motorcycles are illegal on public streets, but the laws aren’t heavily enforced in many jurisdictions, according to those in the know.

“A lot of people ride them,” Li said of pocket bikers in his Brooklyn neighborhood, Bensonhurst. “The cops have other things to deal with. They have real criminals to deal with.”

Howard Wu, a partner at Fancy Scooter, said he and Ma suggest that buyers ride the pocket bikes in the park or at the beach, advise them of the state laws and warn them to wear helmets and proceed with caution.