April 9 – April 15 (2012) – Wally On The Web

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

Here’s that adorable little Ruby I met this week!

During the crazy rainstorms this past week I just started singing an old song that popped into my head from the 60’s. It’s “Stormy” from Dennis Yost and the Classics IV.

Monday the 9th – BUSTED FLAT! – I got up and got on my bike and headed to Studiopolis in Burbank. It was a great day for a ride! Though I got there a little late I was greeted by my old pals Daran Norris and his wife Mary Elizabeth. I had worked with them both extensively back in the old “Beetlejuice Graveyard Revue” days at Universal Studios. Daran and I are both working on a new anime cartoon which I’ll be able to tell you more about later, but suffice to say I’m one of the title characters and Daran plays my boss. Neat! First though, Mary grabbed me and threw me in the “Naruto” studio so I could voice an old wizard character. Then I took a short break and then worked 2 hours on the new anime. After that it was back on the bike and off to NBC for the taping of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno!” We were taping early so one of our guests could catch a flight. After I did the show opening I went over to the world-famous NBC Commissary and grabbed a chicken salad. I was feeling great, but halfway home my pedaling became labored. I thought it might be because I hadn’t biked in awhile and I was out of shape, or I was going uphill. But neither was true. MY BACK TIRE WAS FLAT! I had hit something that punctured the inner tube. THANK GOD I was about 4 blocks away from Metropolisk, the store where I originally purchased the bike in June of 2010! I walked the bike to the store and they changed out the inner tube in about 20 minutes. FANTASTIC! I was back on the road and headed home. I came home and finished up Wally’s Week and then took a nap. When I got up I went out to get some groceries, then did some auditions and continued working around the house until the wee hours. I’m SO much more productive during the nighttime hours!

Tuesday the 10th – IT’S RAINING IT’S POURING (DON’T YOU DARE FINISH THE REST OF THAT!) –I went to Voice Trax West for my usual US Airways session and Ralph, the guy who had directed all of our sessions for the past year via ISDN line, was actually in town! I hadn’t seen him in a long time, though we spoke every week. So we finished the session and he and I (along with a few of the guys from VTW) went downstairs to eat lunch at Al Dente, a great italian restaurant. I dropped by my assistant Sara’s house to give her some money for errands, then I headed into “TTS” a little early to record some comedy bits. I stuck around until the taping started, and when that was wrapped I stopped by UPS to get my mail. I got home, did some work around Planet Wallywood and then took a little nap. When I got up I tackled a TON of auditions in my home studio and e-mailed them to my agents. I sent Sara out to Denny’s for some take-out food, and by then it started to rain. The next few days were going to be monsoon-like, and I loved it! We watched Kojak, and then as I settled down in my bed I opened my windows wide and fell asleep to the sound and smell of a spring rain! NICE!

Wednesday the 11th – IT’S DEAD, JIM! – I got up early and headed to Santa Monica to do a session for Old Navy. It’s always a blast working for those funny, creative folks, and we always have lots of laughs. In the reception area, as I was leaving, was a beautiful little Malti-poo puppy named Ruby. I fell in love! She was beautiful and cuddly! The drive home wasn’t bad and I pulled my Mustang around to where my Gran Torino is parked to unload some stuff of Paul Glaser’s. He had been keeping some of his spare banners and photos in the Gran Torino trunk since the Burbank autograph show. But I would be seeing him that afternoon, and I knew he needed his stuff. Unfortunately when I got into the Torino, IT WAS DEAD! Not sure why, so I immediately called my pal Bodie to see if he could come get it Thursday morning and look into it. I met up with Paul at Voice Trax West where he was continuing work on his audio book for “Chrystallia and the Source of Light,” a kids book he’s written. I gave him the stuff, and we got caught up on news and updates. Then I drove to NBC to tape “TTS,” then I went back home to feed Spooky and grab a nap. When I got up I did some auditions and then watched another episode of “Kojak” from the season 1 DVD set.

Thursday the 12th – IT’S THE DOME LIGHT, DUMMY! –When I woke up just before noon I had several panicked calls from the homeowner’s association. They said the garage my Torino was parked in was being powerwashed and it needed to be moved asap. But the gal I rent the space from didn’t say anything about it so I thought it was odd. I called the gal and come to find out, she hasn’t been living on the property in awhile because of water damage to her unit. So she never got the memo. I told them it couldn’t be started but I would move it as soon as I could. I called the ever-reliable Bodie and he sent his minion Mitchell out to fix me up. He brought another battery and installed it. He told me to get in and see if it would fire up. But just before I unlocked the driver’s side door I noticed the dome light was on! Could it be that I left the dome light on and it ran the battery down? I never use the dome light, but since it’s an old car maybe I accidentally twisted the knob and turned it on when I was shutting off my lights last time I drove it. I don’t know, but I was a little angry at myself. Now that the car was running well, I got it the heck out of the garage so they could continue with the powerwashing. I drove over to Studiopolis for another anime session, then it was off to NBC to tape “TTS.” While we were taping the show I was on the internet getting my reservations for my Palm Springs trip the following week. We’re taking another hiatus from taping so I’m off to Palm Springs once again. But unlike my trip in March, the weather in April will be a little more pleasant. Warmer nights for unending stargazing! And the moon will be small too, so it won’t flood the sky with light. I love nothing more than chilling all night in a chair on my hotel balcony with popcorn and a Coke and watching the sky for falling stars, listening to screech owls, watching the raccoons play and the bats fly. It’s very relaxing, and there’s a calming spirit about Palm Springs. On the way home I got Taco Bell for dinner (LOVE those Doritos tacos!) and then headed back to the newly powerwashed garage to put the Torino to bed. I got back home and checked my e-mail. I had an audition from my agent that needed to be returned right away for a videogame trailer. So I recorded that, sent it in, and settled in for a quick nap. (I seem to sleep so soundly in the evening hours!) When I got up I met my friend Edi at Jerry’s Famous Deli for a late dinner, and then headed home to record some more auditions.

Friday the (dum dum DUM!) 13th – THE CURSE OF FRIDAY THE 13TH! – Normally Friday the 13th passes with no problem, but this one sucked! I woke up late morning with rain pounding my roof and thunder. I got up to let my maids in so they could clean Planet Wallywood, and I left them in the care of my assistant Sara. I headed off to my accountant’s office to settle my taxes. (OUCH! I’m STILL walking funny!) I parked my car on the street in front of my accountant’s office, but when I returned my poor car was in the middle of a raging river! I wasn’t sure how to get into my car. Plus I was holding two folders full of tax papers, and two full boxes of receipts. I didn’t want them ending up in the drink, so I threw them gingerly in the passenger side of my car. But I couldn’t get to my driver’s side, because the water was completely covering the parking lane, the lane next to it, as well as partially covering the next lane over. It was too far to jump and I didn’t want to wade through and get my socks and shoes wet. So I went to the end of the block where the water thinned slightly and leapt over the river. No luck! I still landed in deep water and my shoes and socks were soaked. At this point I was running back down the street, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET, IN THE MIDDLE OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC, to get to my car. It was pouring. Cars were wondering what I was doing. As I was running to my car I heard a K-TACHK behind me. My cell phone had fallen off my jeans pocket and landed face down on the wet street. It wasn’t totally immersed in the water, but the street WAS wet. Sure enough when I got back to my car, the phone wasn’t working. I drove into NBC to record a comedy bit and then participate in the early taping. (We always tape early the Friday before a week-long hiatus) I was glad this all happened on a Friday before a hiatus, because the most important thing I need my phone for is being on call for “TTS.” But we’d soon be done for awhile so I wasn’t worried. My NBC co-hort Patrick Smith said to let the phone dry out a bit, and it may come back on. I really liked that phone and was hoping it would revive. I don’t want to change phones. I got home and got a call on my house phone from Sara. She texted my friend Edi about going to Monsterpalooza that night. Monsterpalooza is a wonderful 3-day convention every April in Burbank. Edi came over and we drove to the convention and found a parking space about a hundred miles away. Though the show had just opened at 6:00, the line at 6:30 was already wrapped around the building filled with folks who wanted to buy tickets. Why, oh WHY didn’t I buy my tickets on-line??!! I walked a little ways down the line and say my old pal Phil, who used to produce shows like “Astro Boy” and “Blood +” and he asked if I wanted to butt into line with him. I told him thanks but no. Edi was waiting for me at the end of the line, and besides I didn’t want to be “that guy.” A little further down the line I saw my old pal Dave. He asked me if I wanted to butt into line. Again I told him thanks but no. But when I saw my pals Larry and James a little further down the line, I said, “What the heck!?” If fate is trying to throw me a bone on this horrible day, I was going to accept. I ran to get Edi and she joined us in line. I saw a lot of great friends there, terrific displays and wonderful merchandise and collectibles. Then Edi and I drove to Lassie Land to pick up my doggie Roxy for the weekend. The rain had pretty much stopped by later in the day but it was still very wet out. Some streets were still flooded. I got home and got Roxy settled, then sent Edi out for take-out food from Little Toni’s. Neither of us had eaten in many hours so it sure tasted great! We settled in with our pasta and watched “Kojak.”

Saturday the 14th – THE CURSE IS OVER! – Well, Roxy was so excited to be at my house that she didn’t let me sleep much. She constantly kept jumping up on my bed and watching to cuddle and kiss. I got up early in the morning, walked her and then waited for Sara and Edi so we could go back to Monsterpalooza. When we got there we found a great parking space just a few steps from the front door! We had already bought our Saturday tickets the night before, so we just waltzed right in past the ever-lengthening line. In fact, I held the door for the great John Landis and I said hi. He sure is a happy guy! We saw my friends the Chaneys (descendants of Lon Chaney Sr. and Jr.), photog Chris Ameruoso, sculptor supreme Mike Hill, the lovely Kelli Maroney, and I bought Edi a cool wallet from Bela Lugosi Jr. with his dad in character as Dracula on the cover! I was waiting to meet Steve Johnson, the special effects guru who designed and created a creature called the “Loafer Alien” for a Disney film called “Can of Worms.” I had bought some conceptual art of this character on eBay from Steve’s studio. This character was one of the first voice-over jobs I ever did, so I wanted to meet him, have him sign it, and tell him I was the voice for the Loafer Alien in the film. But he was very hard to find, and the crowd was growing! In fact, the end of the line was almost touching the front of the line! It wrapped almost completely around the building! Next year they’re going to need a bigger venue! Edi was wearing a dress I loaned her with a monster theme on the pattern. It’s really cool and got a lot of comments. We saw our old pal Paul Glaser who was signing his books for fans. He was sitting next to the lovely Kathryn Leigh Scott and Lara Parker from “Dark Shadows.” In that one room was a good portion of my childhood all together! Starsky, Maggie Evans and Angelique! WOW! I finally saw Steve Johnson coming into the building and had him sign the artwork. I introduced myself and told him about the Loafer Alien job and he said, “You sound just like him!” I don’t think he quite understood the concept I was trying to convey that I in fact WAS the voice of the Loafer Alien. But oh well. This convention is such an overload to the senses I’m not surprised he’s a little foggy. Off he went to find a beer, and off I went to find Sara so we could take off. Just as I was about to pull out of my really cool parking space I heard a voice say, “Wally Wingert!” I turned to see my old pal Special Effects/Make-up whiz Robert Hall! I hadn’t seen him in years! We caught up quickly and I told him he could have my parking space. The curse of Friday the 13th was truly over! Sara and I drove to get lunch at Wendy’s and then went to Verizon to have them look at my phone (which still wasn’t working!) I wasn’t eligible for an upgrade quite yet so I had to pay full price for a brand new phone! I didn’t want to wait the 4 days for the insurance to replace my phone, since I was going out of town and all, so I just bit my lip and paid up. This new Casio phone looked good, rugged and had big easy to see letters. And the best part is…it’s waterproof! There are only a few things I don’t like about it, but I’ll get used to them in time. We headed over to Fast Frame to pick up a framed piece they were working on for my new Robo-Elvis display. It’s a photo I took of Elvis when I saw him in concert on June 22, 1977 along with my ticket stub. While I was there I noticed a large piece of cardboard, and asked if I could have it. I scored it in several places so it would fold up and fit into my car. This would provide a perfect barrier between Roxy’s bed on the floor and my bed. So that way she wouldn’t be able to jump up on my bed all night. I got home and put the Steve Johnson piece back together in the frame and hung it up. Then I grabbed a quick nap before movie night. We watched the Laurel and Hardy classic short “Brats,” followed by “Puss in Boots,” and then the original “Phantom of the Opera” starring Lon Chaney on Blu Ray! It looked amazing! After everyone left I took Roxy on a 40 minute walk around the neighborhood to tire her out and then went inside to finish up some work and hit the hay!

Sunday the 15th – YOU AIN’T NOTHIN’ BUT A ROBOT! – My special effects pal Jim Ojala came by mid-afternoon with Robo-Elvis. We had been working on it for a long time and today was the day we’d be setting it up! Terry my contractor came over, as did Sergio my hair and make-up guy. While Terry and Jim set up the bottom half of the robot on the pedestal, Sergio took the top half into the Chaney Room and styled his hair. He used several reference photos of the real Elvis from some of my photo books. When he was finished it looked terrific! Sara came by to take our lunch order and stepped out to get us Subway sandwiches. Jim and Terry were running wires down the length of the mannequin, down through little holes in the platform and then we started dressing him in the jumpsuit. I figured they could do all that while I went to evening church, but the jumpsuit wasn’t going on easy, so I helped out. We got him all set up and we turned him on. It was amazing. Especially when I added the original Elvis glasses and scarf to him! I also added a Maltese cross necklace (just like the one Elvis used to wear) and a bracelet. Though it’s not completely done yet (still waiting to attach Velcro to the inside of the belt and the waistline of the jumpsuit so it will never move, as well as some artwork on the speaker grilles) but it was amazing! The animatronic Elvis will say random stuff when he’s idling and it’s great. He’ll be quiet for a bit, but then say the oddest things. I was looking all over for Roxy (who was trying to constantly get in the middle of our workspace to get pets and love) but she wasn’t around. I said, “Roxy!” Just then Robo-Elvis blurted out “Where’d you go, honey?” I looked at Terry, he looked at Jim, Jim looked at Sergio and Sergio looked at me. A chill ran down our spines. It was one of those coincidental things that you could never plan in a million years! When we stopped being weirded out, we laughed out loud! We had Robo-Elvis sing “Hound Dog,” and halfway through the song Roxy started barking along. It was very funny! Sara and I took Roxy back to Lassie Land for another week’s worth of training, then we ate at the Coral Café. I dropped my Mustang off at Ford for early bird service the first thing Monday morning, and Sara gave me a ride back home. I did a bunch of auditions, then watched Kojak. What a week!!

And how was YOUR week??!!

PICS FROM THE WEEK

Edi’s enjoying a good old fashioned B-movie scare!