RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

My sister’s cute doggie Mondo is waiting for a treat. Look at the concentration on his face!

One of my favorites from my buddy Elliot Lurie and Looking Glass. “Sweet Somethin’!”

Monday the 17th – BLRBFFFBMPBLPBMMMB! – Early in the morning I headed to Mai Tai studios in Burbank to do a quickie session for a Hyundai radio commercial or two.  I’m sometimes called to do the “legal” announcement at the end of a commercial.  You know, the guy who talks really fast?  I had to do the session early, because at 11 I was due at my dentist’s office to have my six year molar on my lower left side prepped for a crown.  If you remember last week, that tooth broke off on Sunday evening while I was eating a frozen Milky Way candy bar.  It had a fracture in the filling and was in need of a crown for quite a while.  It just so happened that my appointment to have it prepped was the very next day.  The broken part of the tooth was on the edge toward my tongue.  So talking was painful, since every time I’d move my tongue to talk it would scrape against the rough edge of the tooth.  Thankfully the Hyundai session was short and I didn’t have to talk too much.  I always love going to Mai Tai because the owner Kevin always has his Aussie Shepherds there to keep me company.  When he first got Kona I got my fill of groovy puppy love.  But now he’s older, and has been joined by his younger sister Kilea; a beautiful blue merle puppy.  They’re a lot of fun to play with, but VERY difficult to get a photo with because they’re so hyperactive!  After the session I went to McDonald’s to get some quick lunch before my dental appointment. (It’s always difficult to eat AFTER the appointment with a numb mouth!)  I got to my dentist’s and he started working on me.  He started by removing the old filling.  A large chunk of the filling shot toward the back of my throat.  Had I not stopped it with the back of my tongue it could have very well ended up being devoured!  But it still made me gag!  He continued prepping the tooth and put a temporary crown on it.  It felt MUCH better than the scratchy, scrapey tooth that was there before.  On the way home I stopped to get some vitamins, stopped by Enterprise to get a receipt for the rental car I drove to Palm Springs, and stopped by the post office to mail some bills.  Then I headed home to wait for the Novocain to wear off and finish up Wally’s Week.  Since my mouth was still fairly numb, I really couldn’t do any auditions or talk on the phone, so I just made a pizza and went to bed to watch an episode of the old 60’s British TV series “The Avengers” and chill out.  Then I napped until 9pm.  When I got up I got busy and started entering my new DVD acquisitions in my database.  When I finished that I did my auditions, sent out my Thanksgiving invites, had a bowl of cereal and hit the hay!

Tuesday the 18th – I GOT RIPPED AT WARNER! – I decided to hop in the Gran Torino and head over to Ernie’s Taco House to meet my pal Ralph Garman for lunch.  Like me he’s a huge 1966 Batman fan, so I wanted to give him two of the Batcaps I made.  We chatted and had a fun time, and then I headed to Warner Brothers to prepare for my 2pm session for a videogame.  I was about an hour early so I texted my friend James (who works there in Post Production) and asked him to meet me to chat for a while and kill some time.  He was there to greet me when I pulled the Torino on to the lot, but the parking spaces there aren’t made for big, wide 70’s cars.  So getting out of the car proved to be difficult.  In fact, a strap on my shorts had gotten caught on the interior door handle of the driver’s side door!  RIIIIIP!  My going one way, and my shorts being stuck on the handle caused a huge 10” tear down the right front side of my cargo shorts!  HOW EMBARRASSING!  Obviously I couldn’t do a four hour videogame session with a huge rip in my shorts, so I excused myself and drove all the way back home to change!  Luckily I had another pair of shorts with a finished load of laundry in the dryer.  So I traded them out and was on my way back to Warner Brothers.  Even with the detour, I was STILL early for my session!  It was my final session for this videogame and it was a little sad.  I LOVE working on these games!  But, onwards and upwards…and on to something new!  On the way home I stopped at KFC to get a few chicken littles and a mashed potato bowl for later.  I got home and walked and fed Roxy and then grabbed a Jacuzzi.  After a short nap on the couch I got up to do some auditions.  Just before bed I enjoyed another episode of “Magnum, p.i.” and my KFC mashed potato bowl! YUM!

Wednesday the 19th – AW SHOOT! – Shortly after noon I headed to Voicecasters in Burbank to audition for an infomercial narration.  Then I headed over to Voice Trax West to do three hours’ worth of voice-over for US Airways.  We finished up around 4 and I headed back home to feed Roxy and Spook, and take Roxy out for a little stroll.  Then I changed clothes and drove over to Coral Café to meet up with my friends Caya and Alex.  After dinner and catching up, we drove over to Firing Line in Burbank to put some time in on the shooting range.  But Alex forgot her ID so she couldn’t shoot.  Caya and I shot my stainless steel Walter PPK-S (which kept jamming – I think it needs a good cleaning and lubing!) and my Smith and Wesson .45 model 1911.  When I got back home I met up with artist Mark Anthony to give him the head of my “Fats” replica figure (from the 1978 film “Magic”) so he could repaint the eyebrows.  Then my pal Brittney Powell came over to catch up. I hadn’t seen her in quite a while so we had lots to catch up on.  After she left I did my auditions, made some dinner and watched another episode of “Magnum; p.i.” in bed!

Thursday the 20th – COZY AND COOL! – The first stop of the day was Studiopolis in Studio City to record a few lines for a new Marvel cartoon.  It was only a half hour session, so I had time to go back home and do some work before my session for US Airways at 1.  I headed back to Voice Trax West, put in 3 hours doing voice work for US Airways, and then went next door to the bank to put some checks in.  I stopped at the grocery store to pick up some items. It was a beautiful, gray, gloomy and cool day.  I got home with the groceries and unpacked them.  Then I fed the “kids” and answered a few e-mails.  I turned on the fireplace and enjoyed a warm fire on a cool, cloudy night.  After a dip in the Jacuzzi I napped on the couch for a bit.  When I awoke I noticed it had sprinkled outside quite a bit. Lovely!  Because of Thanksgiving the following week, there weren’t any auditions to do.  So I did some work on the computer and started planning on how I was going to get my new 3 foot tall Pinocchio marionette over to the studios of Bob Baker Marionettes in downtown Los Angeles to begin his restoration process.  I went to Denny’s to get some food for the evening, and it was nice and wet out.  Nothing like a fresh layer of rain to brighten everything up and make it smell good.  After I fed and walked Roxy I got ready for dinner in bed to enjoy the first of three “Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman” TV movies on the DVD set from Time Life.  Unfortunately, it was really awful.  Bad 80’s electronic music, bad fashions and haircuts, and a dumb story.  There are two more to watch after this and I’m really hoping the other two are better.

Friday the 21st – FIXING FATS ON A FRIDAY! – It was awesome to sleep until noon!  When I got up I headed over to Voicecasters to do a call-back audition for the infomercial I read for the other day.  I stopped by my box to get my mail, got a bite at McDonald’s for lunch, and then headed to Voice Trax West to do three more hours of voice work for US Airways.  We finished up and I took off for Office Depot to get some office supplies for the Planet Wallywood studio and workspace.  I got home, soaked in the Jacuzzi for a bit, and then napped on the couch.  When I awoke I did some work on the computer, did laundry, washed dishes and sewed some holes in a few clothing items.  I’m not whiz with a needle and thread, but I did OK!  I had wanted to add some padding to the body of my “Fats” replica ventriloquist dummy for quite a while, but I hadn’t had the time until tonight.  I took the headless dummy (remember, my pal Mark Anthony was still working on repainting the eyebrows) and put him on my kitchen table.  I got a few sheets of foam rubber and started cutting and positioning the pieces of foam under his shirt.  Then I fastened it around his body with duct tape, and stuffed the foam rubber body with pillow stuffing.  He looks MUCH better!  I also place a hidden hook in his body under the foam padding so I could attach some fish line to it and secure him into place once I position him in the Puppet Room.  In earthquake country, you need to secure your valuables to the wall in case of a trembler.  I rewarded myself by making a delicious Chef Boy Ar Dee pizza in a box. YUM!  That sure brings back memories.  The second Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman TV movie was MUCH better than the first.  In fact, it featured a young Sandra Bullock as a paraplegic girl who gets bionic enhancements so she can walk again.  It was a BLAST to watch!

Saturday the 22nd – IT’S JOETIME! – Like a lazy slug, I slept in until 2pm.  I got up and did a little work on my dad’s 80’s birthday present, and then I got ready for my friend Joe Cranston’s memorial service.  Though he passed away at the age of 90 back in early October, the memorial service for his church friends had to be delayed for a while because of the conflicting schedules of his family.  Because he was a former Naval Aviator, three Naval officers were in attendance.  They did the folding of the flag ceremony (which is amazing to watch), and then they presented the flag to Joe’s son Kyle.  A lone trumpeter played “Taps” from the church balcony, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house!  But Joe’s son Bryan took the podium to tell funny stories about his dad, and how he gave him his first acting lesson as a kid.  Some of Joe’s early acting work was shown at the service, and he looked like a young Bryan!  The physical resemblance was amazing!  Then Joe’s son Kyle gave a heartfelt speech about their relationship, their estrangement, and they’re reconciliation.  It was an amazing service! The memorial service was a lot like the 5:30 Sunday evening church service that Joe loved so much.  That, in fact, is where I first met him. After the service I came home and cleaned up for movie night.  It was a fun evening watching David Lynch’s “Wild At Heart” on Blu Ray.  When my guests left I cleaned up around the house some more, and then made a huge salad for my traditional Saturday Night Avengers and Salad Night!

Sunday the 23rd – WOW! WHAT A WEEK! – When I got up at 4 I met with Mark Anthony who brought “Fats” back with his new eyebrow color.  Now I need to get my hair guy Sergio Lopez over to the house to finish his hair, as well as Dorothy and the Lion from my “Oz” bust collection.  Roxy and I went to evening church and met up with my friend Kathylynne.  After church we went to Chin Chin to grab dinner with my assistant Sara.  Then I came back home to rest, recalibrate and plan for what’s promising to be an awesome Thanksgiving week!  I hit the hay early for a morning session first thing Monday.
And how was YOUR week??!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK


I was doing some work in the Chaney Room recently and had to move some things around to make space temporarily. When I went to put Beetlejuice back in his place, I noticed (with great delight) that it looked like has having an in-depth discussion with Barnabas Collins. It even looks like The Phantom of the Opera is listening in!


At Mai Tai studios I cuddle up with Kona and Kilea, two great doggies!


At my printer’s, the owner’s dog Rocko looks like he’s an employee ready to serve!