RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK
This is the late Jonathan Frid (Barnabas Collins from “Dark Shadows”) holding his silver wolf’s head cane. I’ll have news regarding this photo in the coming week, so stay tuned!
While driving to an early-morning meeting this past week, a radio station played this song. It gets played this time every year. I’ve always loved story songs (Rod Stewart’s “You Wear It Well,” Elvis’ “Kentucky Rain,” Harry Chapin’s “Taxi,” etc.) because it’s like a little musical movie. I had forgotten how much I love this song, and I relate to it on so many different levels. In fact, while listening to it on the radio I got a little misty-eyed. It’s Dan Fogelberg’s “Same Old Lang Syne.” Enjoy.
Monday the 10th – BOND HAIR! – I got a hotline call to be into “The Tonight Show” at 2 to record some comedy bits. I met up with my hair guy Sergio Lopez to start putting hair on my Sean Connery life-size figure. I had a nice walk with Roxy. I left Sergio to work in the Chaney Room with my assistant Sara in charge of the house. I headed to NBC to tape the bits, then got a salad at the world-famous NBC Commissary. Then we taped the show, and after we wrapped I stopped at my mailbox to pick up some mail. When I got home Sergio was just finishing up. He did a great job, but we have another hour or so of work to do before it’s finished and ready for the world to see. I took Roxy for a walk, fed Spook, and then we all took “Christmas Nappies,” (a nap on the couch by the fireplace with Christmas music playing softly on the satellite). When I got up I did some auditions, e-mailed them to my agent, then I hit the hay to be up early for the final voice session for Season four of “The Garfield Show.”
Tuesday the 11th – A SAD GOODBYE! – I woke up on my own around 8am (no alarm clock needed), walked Roxy on a chilly morning, continued working on my new Roxy book (a hardcover book I’m making through My Publisher of photos of Roxy), and then headed to Buzzy’s Recording in Hollywood to record the final episodes of “The Garfield Show” for Season 4. Laraine Newman was one of our guests, and I had her leave a message for my friend Geoff at NBC Photo. When I was over there looking for Andy Kaufman photos in his black Elvis costume, Geoff confessed that he had a huge crush on Laraine when she was on SNL. She was nice enough to leave him a very funny voicemail message! We finished the episodes and we bid each other farewell until (hopefully) we start Season 5. I got home and walked Roxy, then headed off to “TTS” to record a comedy bit and tape the show. Afterwards, I stopped at my mailbox and got some mail, and got my new car cover for my Gran Torino. The other one they shipped me was much too tight and it ripped out in the back. So I sent it back to get a (hopefully larger) replacement. I got home and took a dip in the jacuzzi. When I finished my pal Jim Ojala (special effects whiz!) brought my Oliver Hardy mannequin over to see if he was padded enough. We tried his costume on to see how it all fit, and it was perfect! It’s going to look great when it gets painted up and haired. When he left I took some more “Christmas Nappies.” NICE! I got up and did some auditions to e-mail to my agents, then hit the hay for an early meeting the next morning at NBC!
Wednesday the 12th – 12/12/12! – I had to be up really early to attend a mandatory meeting at NBC. Everyone has to take a sexual harassment seminar when you work at the company, and this was the last chance for the year to take it. It was a very inconvenient time for me, but it had to be done. Corporate stuff, ya know. As a self-employed Voice Actor I’ve forgotten how all that corporate stuff works, and I haven’t really missed it that much. But, it’s gotta be done, and I wouldn’t want to do anything to jeopardize my gig with “TTS,” since it’s by far the greatest job I’ve ever had. After the meeting I ran over to Mai Tai Studios (right down the street from NBC) to do an Old Navy session for their Double Christmas Cash commercials, featuring the “Christmas Vacation” cast! Neat! It’s always fun to work with my Old Navy pals. And Kevin, the owner of Mai Tai, has a gorgeous doggie named Kona. Last time I had seen him he was a puppy, but he’s now just over a year old! When the session was over I grabbed lunch at McDonald’s, stopped by Bed Bath and Beyond to get some supplies, and then went to Kit Kraft to buy some paints and supplies. For the first time in about 10 years, I’m going to paint some 1966 Batman cowls for friends. It’ll be fun! I also stopped by the vitamin store to stock up on some much-needed supplements. Then I met up with my electrician “Electric Bob” at my house. I need to have another lighting strip installed in the Chaney Room to accommodate all of the new figures I’m having put in. We had an early “TS” taping scheduled so I headed in early to NBC. While I was there, I got a call from my agent that the Old Navy folks needed me for another session after the taping was over. So I headed back to Mai Tai Studios to do some more work. As I drove home it started to mist. I guess it’s going to rain for the next four days off and on. Nice! I got home and walked Roxy, did some work and took a dip in the jacuzzi. Then, you guessed it, “Christmas Nappies.” I really love those because almost like magic, Roxy and Spook know what’s up. They figure when the fireplace is on and the Christmas music is on, it’s time to relax. Spook grabs a spot on a bean bag next to the fireplace, and Roxy settles into a beanbag in the middle of the living room. When I got up I did a ton of auditions, finished up some work around the house, did some laundry, walked and fed Roxy, then went to bed to start on the Sixth Season DVD set of “Mannix.” By the time I got to bed it was 7:30 Thursday morning!
Thursday the 13th – TWO WOLVERINES! – I got up at 11:30 (after only 4 hours of sleep) and I was rarin’ to go! I scanned some checks for a deposit, recorded a bit for “TTS” in my home studio and e-mailed it in to NBC, showered and headed out the door to run errands before the taping of the show. I went to the hardware store to pick up some items for the house, checked in with my printer (whose dog Smokey just passed away from cancer…very sad), saw his new Rotweiller puppy, went to Studiopolis to sign a contract (where I saw my pals Jason Marsden, Maurice LaMarche, and Steve Blum who voices Wolverine in all the Marvel cartoons), and then I headed to UPS to pick up my mail. My Oliver Hardy derby arrived and it looks fantastic! I headed over to Plastic Depot to pick up some custom made pieces for the Chaney Room. Two foot supports for my Jack Lord mannequin, and one sign support for my Sean Connery figure. I hit the drive thru at Jack In The Box for lunch, and sped over to NBC to tape the show. Hugh Jackman was on the show, and I laughed because that made TWO Wolverines I had seen in one day! After we wrapped the show I hit the bank to make a deposit, and visited It’s a Wrap. I bought a cool grey suede jacket, and a pair of Vans-type shoes. I saw my pal Randy Carver at the store, which is odd because I’ll be attending his “Bachelor Dinner” at the Smokehouse Friday night. He’s getting married on 12/21/12 (in case the world ends), and Friday is his bachelor get-together. I got home and walked Roxy and fed Spook, then settled in for a few hours’ worth of “Christmas Nappies” with the pets. I got up and did auditions, then hit the hay to watch another “Mannix” episode.
Friday the 14th – NOT SINCE 9-11! – I got a hotline call to be into NBC to record a bit at 1:15. I walked Roxy and then got ready to head in. But in the car on the way I heard the awful news about the shooting in Connecticut! Not since 9-11 had I felt so horrible and helpless. I have a lot to say on this matter, but this is not the forum for that. But suffice to say it’s very devastating, and my thoughts and prayers are with the families of the kids and their teachers whose lives ended much too soon! When I got to “TTS,” there was talk of canceling the show for the day. The show most likely was going to be pre-empted by non-stop news coverage anyway. Plus, Bette Midler, the scheduled guest, had canceled. I guess she figured it would be in bad taste to go on the show and laugh and joke around promoting her new film while the entire country was weeping. I went to the world-famous NBC Commissary and got a salad and ate alone in the dining area watching the news coverage. The only good news from the day was that my photos of Andy Kaufman doing Elvis on “SNL” had come in from the NBC photo lab. It was awesome, but rather hard to feel too joyous on a day like this. They decided to tape the show after all, as a way to keep people’s minds off the tragedy and perhaps make them smile a little. My friend Mark the Cop was there with some friends, so after the show I gave them the nickel tour. When I left the studio for the weekend I headed over to my chiropractor’s to get an adjustment. I’ve been feeling much better lately, so whatever he’s doing is working very well. I stopped by my mailbox to get my mail, then went to Rusty’s to pick up Roxy from her grooming. I got ready for Randy’s Bachelor Dinner and headed over. The food was great, and the conversation was fun and lively. I drove home in the rain and enjoyed some “Christmas Nappies” while listening to the rain outside. It doesn’t get much better than that! In fact, I enjoyed it so much I didn’t wake up until 4:30 in the morning!! I got up to feed Roxy a VERY late dinner, and then take her for a walk. The rain had stopped outside. I did work around the house, started painting the Batman cowls, then made some dinner and went to bed to watch “Mannix.” By the time I got to sleep, it was NOON on Saturday!!
Saturday the 15th – INTO THE VAULT! – I woke up around 2:30 and was ready to go. I had slept enough! I went out into the garage to tackle a huge task. My garage is very cluttered, and over the Christmas break it’s my goal to totally re-arrange and re-organize it. But I needed to find some old reel to reel tapes ASAP for Adam West’s son-in-law James Tooley whose doing a documentary on Adam. He wants to include the 1980 radio interview Adam and I did on KELO-AM. I have it on tape, but I need to dig through the junk and find it. I turned on the Christmas music and set about the task. I did darn good! I cleaned up one area pretty well, tossed a bunch of boxes and junk, and found the tapes! Now to get them transferred to digital! THAT’S the hard part! I went inside and cleaned the kitchen, cleaned the living room and got ready for movie night. We had fun watching “Octopussy” and “Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.” When my guests left I painted on the Batman cowls some more. Then I went to bed with some food and watched “Mannix.” I got to sleep around 7am Sunday morning. I really AM a nightbird!
Sunday the 16th – SUNDAY WITH FRIENDS! – I slept until mid-afternoon, then spent about an hour on the phone with my friend Edi talking about life opportunities. I got ready for evening church, but had to drive over because it was starting to rain. People at church were disappointed not to see Roxy, but since it was so wet out it was all for the best that I left her home. Then I met up with friends at Jerry’s Famous Deli for dinner. Emily, Amanda and Sara were there. Plus, my friend Mike Schrimmer from Chicago was in town for the Profiles in History auction. So he joined us as well. What fun! I got home to do auditions, walk Roxy and get prepared for a new week. The FINAL week before our 11 day break from “TTS.” Boy this year has gone fast!
And how was YOUR week??!!
