Monday the 12th – GO GO POWER RANGERS! – I was up bright and early and headed to Santa Monica to a studio called Shoreline. I recorded three TV commercials for upcoming Power Rangers toys. Lotsa fun, and the crew was a real delight to work with! We actually finished a little earlier than expected, so I enjoyed spending a little time on the Westside of L.A. – my old stomping grounds. I got back up to my home area and got my car washed (it was about time!) and ran a few other errands. That night I got together with my pals Kristy, Chuck McCann, and Fred Westbrook for dinner at DuPar’s. But my sinus infection still wasn’t doing much better. I was on major pain-killers because the sinus pressure would make all the teeth on the right side of my face feel like they were being drilled into constantly. But I had only been on those antibiotics a few days so I was waiting for them to kick in.
Tuesday the 13th – BIG KID, BIG BOY, BIG PAIN! – I went to a dentist early in the morning to rule out the possibility that the dental pain I was feeling was just that…dental. After a detailed consultation and several x-rays Dr. Acosta completely ruled out that my pain could in any way be dental. No abscess, no decay…nothing. He said he’s had patients come in near tears asking for his help, but he said it was a sinus infection. I did make an appointment to get a chipped tooth crowned later, but he said it had nothing to do with what I was feeling. So…I wait for those antibiotics to kick in. Frankly, I was fairly worried about what he would find. Would I need to have a tooth extracted? A root canal? What? I felt so good leaving his office that I decided to meet my pal Chuck McCann over at Sardo’s in Burbank for lunch. They had a rockin’ Dixieland band playing there and it was a lot of fun. Then I stopped home, packed up my two Walther PPK handguns and headed for the target range to do some shooting. The pain in my mouth was being held at bay by some extra strength Ibuprophen, so I was feeling pretty good. After doing some target shooting I stopped by a store called Big Kid, a store specializing in vintage, collectible toys and all sorts of classic candy. After making several purchases I headed home. That night I met up with a bunch of pals at Bob’s Big Boy in Toluca Lake for our usual Tuesday night get-together.
Wednesday the 14th – AUDITIONS & ACCOUNTANTS! – I went to Voicecasters in the morning to audition for a radio commercial, then I stopped by Round Table for a delicious buffet lunch. Anytime I have an audition at Voicecasters near noontime, I like to drive a few blocks down and hit the Round Table Pizza buffet. Deeeelicous! Then I went to my accountant’s office so I could drop off my receipts for 2008. Then I hustled back to Studiopolis Burbank to do some voicework on a new anime cartoon called RoboDZ, being directed by my pal Jeff Nimoy. I think this is going to be on the new Disney channel called XD. Watch for it! The animation is amazing! After the session I stopped by my vet’s office to get some food for my dog Sassie. That night I slept, because I still wasn’t really feeling much better. Why weren’t these antibiotics kicking this sinus infection out? I hated to miss Wednesday night church, but I just wasn’t feeling up to it.
Thursday the 15th – THRILLING THURSDAY! – I was back at Voicecasters again just before noon for another audition, then I met with my friend Ken Dennis for lunch at Paty’s in Toluca Lake. He and I are discussing our strategy for pitching “Livin’ On a Prayer” to TV networks soon. After a delicious lunch, I headed over to Studiopolis Burbank to do another episode of the Avengers; Earth’s Mightiest Heroes! Today Mark Hamill and Lance Henricksen were playing roles. Lance looked like a kid in a candy store, he was having so much fun. And it’s always an amazing experience watching the great Mark Hamill work. In fact, that day was my friend Sara’s 21st birthday. She happens to be a huge Star Wars fan, and as I was on the phone wishing her a happy birthday after the session, Mark walked out. I asked if he would please wish her a happy birthday. He took the phone and had a great conversation with her and (I’m sure) made her 21st birthday memorable beyond belief! When he handed the phone back to me all I heard on the other end was Sara giggling uncontrollably! What a great birthday gift for her! Thanks Mark! That evening I went home to do some auditions in my home studio to e-mail to my agents, and then I went to bed. Why wasn’t I getting over this stupid sinus infection??!?!
Friday the 16th – RIDDLE ME THIS! – Well, I loaded up on Ibuprophen and headed to Salami studios. Today would be my second day as The Riddler in the upcoming “Batman; Arkham Asylum” videogame. Apparently the game designers loved what we had done in our last session as the Riddler so much, that they wrote new lines. I also played a few other incidental characters as well. But this game is going to ROCK! Collette Sunderman, the director, was a sweet as ever, and we had a monumentally great time! Then I drove over to It’s a Wrap and picked up some great new shirts and a jacket. It’s a Wrap is a store that sells TV and movie wardrobe to the public. I picked up some amazing shirts (which I’m sure would retail for around $100) for 45 buck (after the discount). They’re having a 30% off sale on everything. Plus, if you spend over $150, you don’t have to pay sales tax! So I ended up getting about $250 worth of clothes for a little over $150! Then I headed out to the offices of BCII, the production company that produces the Ed Begley, Jr. show, to have lunch with my friend Greg out there. It was fun catching up on all the latest stuff. But we talked so long I was running behind. I sped home, put Sassie’s leash on, and we walked to the vet. Sassie’s back legs are getting stiff and sometimes it’s tough for her to get up from a sitting position. I wanted to have her looked at to see what we could do. The doc prescribed some meds that should make her feel better. I’m also going to buy some stuff from Puritan’s Pride that should help if she’s developing arthritis. But I still wasn’t feeling any better. So I called my doctor and made an appointment to see him on Saturday!
Saturday the 17th – EUREKA! – Well, after seeing Dr. Patt in Santa Monica, I figured out why my sinus infection wasn’t getting any better. The stupid urgent care center in Burbank HAD ME ON THE WRONG MEDICINE! Dr. Patt said that the anti-biotic they gave me was for urinary tract infections, not sinus infections! UGH! I suffered for a whole week because some numbskull at the urgent care center gave me the wrong meds! And as a result, it probably gave the sinus infection a chance to get worse! So Dr. Patt gave me the correct antibiotics, with some other meds thrown in as well. Hopefully I’ll start feeling better soon. I told Dr. Patt he could never take another day off again! Ha ha ha. I went to get my prescriptions filled, and promptly went to bed!
Sunday the 18th – DAY FROM HELL! – I had gotten up early and was walking over to Studiopolis to do some voice work for a friend’s movie. But she called when I was half way there and said the studio was malfunctioning that day and they had to postpone. So I went back home and got ready to go pick up my friend Amanda from the airport. She was flying in from New York that day, and we had a full day planned. I popped another Ibuprophen and was on my way. I picked her up and she couldn’t believe the weather! (80 was a lot better than the snowy 27 she had just left in New York that morning!) We ate lunch at Outback, and then headed over to St. Francis Xavier’s in Burbank to see my buddy Dan Roebuck in “Arsenic and Old Lace.” It was an enjoyable afternoon, and the play was snappy and wonderful! But the last hour I started getting intense tooth pain again. So I took another Ibuprophen, even though I wasn’t really due to take another one for a few hours yet. Driving home, the pain was so intense I took two Tylenol as well. I didn’t think I’d make it to evening church. But luckily, just before church, I started feeling a little better. But it didn’t last long. After church I was feeling really tired and my teeth had that “drilled into” feeling again. So I took another Ibuprophen and a few more Tylenol. I was getting worried about all the medication I was taking, but NOTHING WAS WORKING! So I laid down briefly while Amanda unpacked her stuff and made herself at home in the Puppet Room. When I got up, we met my friend Chuck McCann for dinner at Jerry’s Famous Deli, but I was so out of it I’m afraid I wasn’t very good company.
Monday the 19th – MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY! – I promised Amanda I would take her shooting, as she had never shot a gun before. And after a rough night, I managed to get up and around. I was actually feeling pretty good. I e-mailed Dr. Patt about my day from hell and he left another prescription for better painkillers for me at the local drugstore. Amanda and I had fun shooting at the Target Range, and then headed over to my friend Fred Westbrook’s house. I wanted Fred to meet her because she’s a funny gal and he’d appreciate it. Also, both of them being from New York, I knew would be a topic of conversation. Then we were joined by my friend and webmaster Scott Sebring. Scott and Fred poured over Fred’s collection of Batman TV series photos that he had painstakingly arranged in several large binders. (Fred is the agent to Adam West). Much to Fred’s surprise, Scott was pointing out a few errors in the sequencing of the photos in the book, since Fred had put them all in, what he thought was, episodic order. It was fun watching Fred squirm as he realized his photos might not be in perfect order. Being meticulous in my organization of such things myself, I felt his pain. But it was time to get Amanda to her friend’s house, as she would be spending the night with them. It gave me a chance to rest and relax and try and get better. I stopped by the pharmacy, got my prescription and went home to sleep. I had been enjoying a relatively pain-free day so it was nice. But the nicest thing of all happened when I got home. I heard on the radio that President Bush FINALLY commuted the sentence of the wrongfully-convicted U.S. Border guards Ramos and Compean. (About time, Prez!) They will be released in March, after having spent two years in solitary confinement for shooting a known drug dealer in the ass as he was fleeing from his van (a van which was LOADED with drugs he was trying to get across the border into the U.S.!) So let me get this straight, the guards were trying to uphold the law, and our President and his administration side with the drug dealer and prosecute the guards? Is this bizarro land? After getting millions of faxes, phone calls and letters from congressmen and senators, ol’ Bushie finally acquiesced! In the eleventh hour! When you read up on the details of this case, you will realize that the administration’s legal counsel LIED countless times in this case, and even the jurors on the case said that, had they been provided with accurate information, they would have acquitted the guards. The lying Johnny Sutton, Bush’s Attorney General, lied and obfuscated the facts as he saw fit. I gotta tell ya…this is one nightmare I’m glad is over. The Ramos and Compean case, as well as this whole administration. I just wish I felt better about the incoming administration, but to be honest, it has me scared to death. Socialism frightens me, and our new President has espoused “spread the wealth,” and that philosophy is against everything American freedom and principles are about. In my opinion, it’s just not the direction we need to be going right now. But enough about that! Let’s all pray for our new President and his administration, that they’ll receive wisdom about how to lead and protect this great nation.
How was YOUR week?!!
