December 16 – January 5 (2013 – 2014)

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

After posting a photo a few weeks ago of myself at the Oak Tree Gun Club, walking away from the target range with a huge explosion behind me (part of my “bad Photoshop” campaign), a friend downloaded it and enhanced it even more. “Now it’s complete!” said Terri. Indeed it is! The presence of the Gran Torino REALLY makes it! Thanks Terri!

Ever have a cool dream from which you wake up, and you’re afraid to go right back to sleep again for fear of losing the memory of it? That’s what happened this past Monday morning. I had a really cool dream about hanging with Bonnie Riatt, and discussing her music. She and I were singing my favorite part of this song together; “He’s like a boxer who had to retire, after winning but killing a man.” What a cool dream! Here’s Bonnie singing “One Part Be My Lover.”

AAAAAAND…WE’RE BACK! Because of an intense holiday schedule over the past few weeks I wasn’t able to do regular Wally’s Weeks in a timely manner. So here, for your edification, are all three weeks’ worth of adventures in one tidy offering. I hope your holidays were filled with joy, love, happiness and laughter. I know mine were!

Monday the 16th – HANGIN’ WITH THE CHIEF! – I slept til noon, then got my carcass out of bed and headed to a neighborhood store that sells all sorts of camera equipment and batteries. I needed a very specific kind of battery for my favorite Christmas necklace. It was a gift from my pal Mike at Windy City Novelties in Chicago, and it looks like a string of Christmas lights. But I wore it so much last Christmas that the batteries wore out. Once I replaced the little tiny batteries I was good to go! I grabbed a tuna on white at Subway and headed off to NBC to do the show. Paul Doherty, the head of my voice-over agency Cunningham-Escott-Slevin-Doherty, was coming to the show as my guest. Once I opened the show Paul and I had a great time walking around the old NBC lot, which hold a lot of great memories for Paul as well. We had fun looking at all the different soundstages and reminiscing about which shows taped in which studios. On our way out we saw a beautiful vintage white Rolls Royce (I think it was a ’65). What a treat! I picked up some mail at my mailbox and met Paul for dinner at Jerry’s Famous Deli in Studio City. I wanted to pick his brain about possible strategies for when I become available after “The Tonight Show” ends on February 6th. After four and a half years of being out of the loop on a lot of voice-over projects, because of my regular schedule on “TTS,” I am going to undertake a huge “reintroduction” campaign with the local Casting Directors and Producers of voice-over. We had a great dinner telling stories and remembering the days when TV was king. Like me, Paul’s a huge vintage TV fan. I came home and finished off Wally’s Week, recorded a bit for “TTS” for early Tuesday morning, did a quick session for a client, then did some auditions. The countdown to Christmas break was ON!

Tuesday the 17th – BAR-B-CUE THE ANNOUNCER! – The day started at Warner Brothers studios in Burbank doing some more voice work on an upcoming videogame. It was a short hour and a half session, but it was a load of fun nonetheless. I headed over to NBC to do a couple of bits for “TTS,” and had intended to grab lunch. But as luck would have it a Bar-B-Q truck was on the lot as a Christmas gift from our Director Liz. I remember this truck being here a few months back, and I remember I REALLY loved the food. I grabbed a pulled pork Bar-B-Q sandwich and headed inside. I was goofing around with my pal Troy Thomas, one of the writers, and doing Sean Connery impressions. I was cracking him up to the point of tears. Great fun! I sped home to walk Roxy and change shirts. My pal top notch Voice-Over Director Collette Sunderman was my guest at the show that day. She was bringing her son Blake along too, so I wanted to look presentable. Since I had just come from a videogame session I had a ratty old sleeveless shirt on. When I have sessions that are of a more “physical” nature (animation, anime, videogames) I like to wear sleeveless shirts to minimize the sleeve noise on the microphone. As I flail around doing my stuff in front of the microphone (yes, voice-over IS a physical business) sleeveless shirts are a benefit. Once I put on a decent, civilized shirt I headed back to NBC to meet up with Collette and Blake. After the taping I gave them a tour of the backstage area and Collette looked around and said, “So THIS is why I can never get you!” I told her all that would change after February 6th. Collette’s a big motorhead, so she and Blake enjoyed checking out Jay’s new Aston martin, and “Tonight Show” lead guitarist Paul Jackson Jr.’s 1966 El Camino, which is in impeccable shape. I got home and fed Spook, did a little work around the house, took a dip in the Jacuzzi and took some “Christmas Nappies” on the couch. I started calling it that years ago when my dog Sassie and I would nap by the fireplace while listening to Christmas music gently playing on the satellite. When I got up I did some auditions and finished watching the first season of “The Twilight Zone” on Blu Ray. It was a great episode where Rod Serling himself put in a cameo at the end of the episode. It was great!

Wednesday the 18th – MORE FUN WITH CONNERY! – My pal Edi came to meet me for lunch at Paty’s at 2, but they were closing at 2:45 for a film shoot. So we went to Bob’s Big Boy instead. When we finished up I headed to NBC to meet up with my friend Suzanne, a flight attendant for US Airways who is interested in getting into voice-over. After the taping I gave her the backstage tour, then headed home to walk Roxy and feed Spook. Suzanne and I went to Jerry’s Famous Deli for dinner, and we were joined by David Elkouby, the producer of the Hollywood Collector Shows. He was bringing me my signed Roger Moore items that I had sent off to France to be signed at a private signing Mr. Moore was doing there. I couldn’t wait! Some of those items I had been waiting to have Roger sign for decades! The original ‘Man with the Golden Gun” LP that I played over and over when I was 13. And the “Roger Moore’s James Bond Diary” paperback book I had since I was 12. I heard the girls at the next table quietly singing “Happy Birthday” to someone on their cell phone, so as a lark I asked who they were talking to. They said it was their Aunt Renee. I asked how old she was and they said 43. So I asked to speak to her. I went back into my Sean Connery impression and told her I was just passing by when I overheard the conversation. Then I told her Jay Leno was also at the restaurant and wanted to say Happy Birthday as well. So I ripped into my Jay voice and talked to her for a few minutes. The girls were laughing hysterically, but Auntie Renee wasn’t quite sure what to think. But it was great fun. I went home to take a dip in the Jacuzzi and do some auditions. My folks told me a weird story via e-mail. You may remember my 101 year old Grandma Hazel passed away Sunday night the 15th. My nephew Taylor works for an industrial cleaning service in Sioux Falls and was called in for a small assignment. Come to find out, the job was cleaning my grandma’s apartment. It must’ve been mind-boggling! I did some more auditions and retired to watch an episode of PBS’s “Pioneers of Television” featuring The Women of Television.

Thursday the 19th – R.I.P. GRAMS! – A hotline call came in at 11am telling me to be into “TTS” in 45 minutes! Gotta hustle! But a comedy bit showed up in my inbox so I recorded it quickly and headed to the shower. But before I could get in it ANOTHER bit arrived. So I turned that around quick, keeping my eye on the ever-moving clock, and headed back to the shower. Then a call came in canceling the 11:45 am call-time. Whew! Talk about anti-climactic! So since it was a rainy morning, I decided to head back to bed to get another hour of sleep. I got up and went to Voice Trax West to do some promos for ESPN, doing a 70’s-esque DJ that sounded a little bit like Wolfman Jack. When we finished I had some time before “TTS,” so I went over to Leet TV to pick up two mini-DV camera I had repaired. You can’t buy them new anymore, and I still have a ton of mini-DV tapes to dub to DVD. So I have to keep these two alive just a little while longer. I hit the Taco Bell drive-thru for some food. I called my folks to see how Grandma’s funeral went. It was at 11 that morning, and obviously because of work I wasn’t able to go. But they said the flowers I sent looked fabulous. I finished up my lunch in the “TS” parking lot, and then went inside and found a gift waiting for me. “TTS” had lovely jean jackets made up for the crew for Christmas. An awesome gift! My pal Officer Mark came to the show, but since all the tickets were spoken for he sat in the audio booth with me and watched the show from there. Sylvester Stallone was the guest and he was terrific. When we wrapped I headed home to meet up with my assistant Sara to do some work, then I napped until about 10:30. I got up and did some auditions, worked around the house, fed and walked Roxy, got my gifts ready for the “TS” crew, and watched another episode of “Pioneers of Television” featuring Prime Time Soaps. Then I hit the hay.

Friday the 20th – ‘TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS (VACATION)! – The hotline rang at 10:30 to let me know there was a bit in my inbox to be recorded for “TTS.” So I got up, recorded it, and sent it in to NBC. It was my final hotline call for 2013. And soon I’ll get the final hotline call for “TTS” ever, sometime in early February. Weird! When I finished it I went back to bed for a few hours with Roxy and Spook on the bed looking for cuddles. When I got up I loaded the presents for the crew in my car. For our director Liz I got a pair of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” pj’s. When I got a pair of original series pj’s for myself, I noticed that the website also had TNG pj’s. Perfect! For our associate director Angela I gave her a framed, vintage Looking Glass album. The first one they did, with Angela’s favorite song “Brandy” on it. I had it signed, of course, by my pal Elliot Lurie, the lead singer of Looking Glass. For my pal Patrick Smith who mixes the audio for the show I got a gift certificate for his favorite cigar website. And I got Amazon gift certificates for Scott, the head of casting, and his assistant Dave. FUN! But before I headed over to work I stopped by Enterprise to rent the SUV for my upcoming trip to Palm Springs. I rent a bigger vehicle to take there because of the immense amount of luggage and stuff I take along. I also need a goodly amount of space in the back because I take Roxy with me. And collies are big doggies. I got to work and redid the bit I did earlier at home. There was a line change that needed to be recorded. Then I opened the final “TS” for 2013. During the taping I took the presents around the office and dropped them off at the appropriate desks. My pal Troy Thomas gave me a signed “Skyfall” poster…signed by Daniel Craig! Apparently he had gotten it when Mr. Craig was on the show awhile back. AWESOME! We wrapped the show, and I headed off to run errands. I hadn’t eaten all day and I was starving! I was meeting Edi for dinner at 7 so I just grabbed something to munch on until then. First I swung by my pal Jim Pierson’s house to pick up a book and a new “Dark Shadows” calendar for 2014. I stopped by my box to pick up my mail, and then I drove to Burbank to kill some time. My 10 day waiting period for my new handgun was up at 6pm that night! But it was only 4:30. I went to Rocket Fizz, a store that deals in vintage candy and soda. I picked up a grape soda and a few candy bars. That took the edge off my hunger until the official dinner time at 7pm. I stopped by a store called Mr. Vintage and saw my buddy Fred Westbrook! He and I walked across the street to check out all the vintage lunchboxes at Burbank Antiques. Then I went over to It’s a Wrap to check on their clothes. When I headed back to my car, I stopped back in to Mr. Vintage to say goodbye to Fred. I found a 1976 Montgomery Wards Christmas catalog! From the photo on the cover I remembered having one exactly like it in our house in Aberdeen. I did what every 70’s kid did back then…turned right to the back of the catalog to the toy section. WOW! The color photos of all the toys for sale blew my mind! I immediately bought it for my collection. What a find! Speaking of Aberdeen, I found out a friend of mine from the city of my childhood had recently purchased quite a few original props from the show “Scrubs” from Mr. Vintage. Dr. Scott Hopfinger’s chiropractic office is in the exact location of KABR 1420 AM, the radio station that kept me employed during my 16th and 17th years on this planet as a disc jockey. During my visit to Aberdeen last July he was kind enough to let me in the office to look around. He said if I ever found anything from “Scrubs,” his favorite TV show, to let him know. So when I found out that Mr. Vintage had all sorts of original “Scrubs” props, I called him right away. And he bought a bunch of stuff. COOL! Glad they’ve found a home in my old hometown. But it was now 6pm and time to go pick up the newest member of my family of collectible handguns. I went over to Guns Direct to pick up my .40 caliber Sig Sauer model 226, called The Equinox. It’s a beaut of a weapon, with a two toned metal frame. I can’t wait to take it to the range and ventilate some paper! I drove by the Christmas House in Burbank, and their computer program was up and running again perfectly. Then it was off to the Coral Café to meet up with Edi and her daughter Ems for dinner. I showed them the catalog, and Edi remembered it perfectly. I had to explain to her daughter Ems that in the “olden days,” one had to look through an actual book made of paper to choose what they wanted for Christmas. They weren’t able to view items on a computer or telephone screen. I think she understood the concept eventually. But I detected a hint of sympathy for all of us poor unfortunate 70’s kids who actually had to read about the toys of their dreams on something made of paper. How archaic! Then I took them by the Christmas House and we enjoyed watching the program. I got home and walked Roxy, then took a dip in the Jacuzzi and napped on the couch. When I got up I did some auditions, which weren’t due until January 6th. It was a few weeks off, but I wanted to be virtually care-free until then. I fed and walked Roxy, and then went grocery shopping at 4am! I seem to get the most done during the night. I’m officially on vacation, so there’s really no need to get up early for anything on Saturday. WOO HOO!

Saturday the 21st – FINAL MOVIE NIGHT OF 2013! – I slept all the way until 2:30! I proudly put my signed “Skyfall” poster up for all my friends to see that night. Then I went to Floyd’s Barbershop to have my stylists Andie touch up my color. Then it was back home to clean up for movie night. After a quickie nap on the couch, Sara came over to help me clean up some more before the guests arrived. It was a fun movie night with lotsa gifts and food. My pal Scott’s wife Vickie brought over delicious baked goods, and my pal Brian brought me a “Wizard of Oz” movie poster from the recent 3-D IMAX release. He also gave me the British bulldog figure made famous in “Skyfall.” My friend Amanda had never seen “Love Actually” before, and she loved it. “Love Actually” has become a traditional viewing experience in Planet Wallywood every year around this time. After everyone left I worked around the house, and fed and walked Roxy. It was darn COLD outside! Since it was Saturday night, I watched the final episode of “Pioneers of Television” featuring mini-series’, and an episode of “The Saint.”

Sunday the 22nd – SQUIRREL OF STEEL! – When I woke up at 3 I took Roxy out for a walk. And just outside my front door, on my patio, was a plastic jar of peanuts that had been opened. I accidentally left the jar of nuts on my grill while feeding one of my neighborhood squirrels. My keen detective sense told me that the tooth marks on the plastic lid indicated they weren’t opened by a human. A squirrel had actually come by my house, saw the jar sitting there, and wrangled it until the lid came off. Then it had a feast of fresh, unsalted peanuts! WOW! Strong squirrels in my ‘hood! And smart! I was still pretty beat from being up all night working around the house, so the pets and I went back to bed and slept until 6:30pm. When I got up I walked Roxy again and fed Spook, then continued to do some work around the house. Since I was determined to stay mostly homebound over the holiday break and get some much-needed work done, I figured there’s no time like the present to get started. The type of corporation I have requires me to close it all out at the end of every year, so I prepared some final deposits for 2013, reconciled all my bank statements, and did some other paperwork. I need to get into my junky garage and start organizing and cleaning, but I just wasn’t in the mood quite yet. It’s a huge undertaking and I’ve really got to be psychologically prepped for such an event. I also found “A Clown’s Prayer” on the internet, something I’ve had taped to the side of my desk for years. But I found a much nicer version of it, so I downloaded it and did some tweaking on the artwork. It took quite awhile, but it was well worth it. There were more little jobs to do around the house, so when I finished those I hit the hay with a giant salad to watch the first episode of the second season of “Magnum P.I.” What a great show!

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Monday the 23rd – CHRISTMAS EVE EVE! – When I got up I headed to the bank to make a deposit, then I sped by Aaron Brothers Art Mart and got some frames. One was for my new “Skyfall” poster, and the other was for my pal Bruce Kulick’s fiancé Lisa. I would be giving her a framed “Wizard of Oz” 3-D IMAX poster for Christmas, since she loves “Wizard” as much as I do. In fact, when I first saw it at the IMAX theatre, it was with Bruce and Lisa. Then I got home to meet up with my contractor Terry. I had a ton of wood and stuff left over from the recent construction of my underground storage area, and before I could get really serious about cleaning up my garage all that stuff had to go. I met up with Bruce and Lisa and we stopped by the Christmas House so I could show them the amazing lightshow. We dined at the Coral Café, and then we came back to my house so I could give them their gifts. My pal Emily came by to go over the feeding routine for my cat Spooky. She would be caring for him while I was away in Palm Springs this coming weekend. I took a dip in the Jacuzzi then came back inside to grab a quick nap. Then it was work all throughout the night around the house. I fed and walked Roxy, and once again, I headed out in the middle of the night to get groceries. I’ve been making a lot of salads, and I love fresh cut pineapple, so that kind of appetite requires many more trips to the grocery store. Unlike a lot of the stuff I eat, those types of food items need to be purchased fresh. Their shelf life isn’t very long. I got settled and watched another episode of “Magnum P.I.” and enjoyed Christmas Eve morning. I didn’t actually get to sleep until 11am that morning! But what the heck? I’M ON VACATION!

Tuesday the 24th – LOVELY CHRISTMAS EVE & CHRISTMAS MORNING! – After a short four hours of sleep I woke up to take Roxy out for a walk. Then I did a few things around the house, and grabbed a few more hours of sleep on the couch so I could be fresh for the candlelight Christmas Eve service at my church. I woke up at 10:15 and got ready. I met up with my movie night pals Joe and Josh there, and we had an enjoyable time at the service. It all ended with the entire congregation holding candles, singing “Silent Night” on the steps of the church. It must’ve been quite a sound to the neighbors to hear a choir of people singing just after midnight on Christmas morning! Nobody threw eggs or rotten tomatoes at us, so I guess we did alright! Joe, Josh and I went over to DuPar’s to get some food after it was over and we ran into Chuck McCann! What fun! On the drive home I happened across a radio show called “Christmas Across the Lands” on AM radio. It was amazing and intriguing. I rushed inside and turned it on inside my house. It’s a 12 hour syndicated radio show all about Christmas. I couldn’t take my “ears” off it! Fascinating show! I told myself this was the night I would start on my garage cleaning project, but I wasn’t feeling it. I was feeling happy, peaceful, and mellow. And the last thing my neighbors probably wanted to hear on Christmas Eve was some jerk crunching up cardboard boxes in his garage. So I kept my work confined to the interior of the house. Far be it for me to disturb the peace of a nice Christmas Eve. I fed Roxy and then walked her around 5am on a quiet Christmas morning. Beautiful. I continued to listen all night to “Christmas Across the Lands” until I couldn’t listen any longer. I turned off the radio and headed to bed to watch another “Magnum P.l.” episode. Again, I didn’t get to sleep until 11am!

Wednesday the 25th – SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS. AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? – When I awoke a short five hours later I ran toward the radio and turned on “Christmas Across the Lands” again. Strangely enough, it sounded like I had rejoined the show in its repeat almost at the exact same point I had left it. I’m not sure how that worked exactly. But the 12 hour show was being aired in encore airings through the end of Christmas Day. By the time it was all over, I think collectively I heard the entire show, albeit in pieces. I got to hear my favorite Christmas songs, all on the magical AM band! There’s a certain charm to hearing those old songs on AM radio. Even though I own crisp, digital stereo versions of all the songs, hearing it on the mono AM signal like I did when I was a kid simply gave me chills. There they were…”Step Into Christmas” by Elton John, “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney, and my all-time fave “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” by Andy Williams! What a great, relaxing Christmas Day! Most all my friends had left town to visit relatives, so I enjoyed a quiet lowkey day of hanging out with the pets. When I finished up some work on the computer I started packing for my Palm Springs trip. I had a ton of stuff to do before I left on Thursday. But my last great act was to make a delicious Chef Boy Ar Dee pizza and watch another episode of “Magnum P.I.” before bed.

Thursday the 26th – SPEEDING (?) DOWN THE ROAD! – Late morning I hopped in the Mustang and headed to Regenix for a follow-up visit, and to pick up supplies. On the way home my little voice told me to drop by the car rental agency, pay for the rental, and drive the Mustang back home. Then I could walk back later and get the SUV for my trip. But I didn’t listen to my little voice (bad idea) and drove straight home. I walked over to the rental place to get my SUV, but I encountered the first snafu in a long line of snafus I would experience this trip. As the SUV was coming back to the rental agency to be returned, so I could acquire possession of it for my trip, it was in an accident and was undriveable. And the agency was all out of that type of vehicle! EEK! The closest thing they had was a mini-van that was at another location and would need to be delivered. This is going to put me behind schedule considerably. So they agreed to drop the mini-van by my house when they had it, and I would drive the Enterprise employee back to the office and drop her off. They wanted me to go with her to get the mini-van, but it would have been a waste of valuable time. I would rather spend the time finishing up my packing. So I walked back home. Since I hadn’t figured on doing that much walking, I didn’t wear the best shoes, and I developed a painful blister on my right heel. OUCH! Had I listened to my little voice and driven over instead, I would have saved myself a lot of pain and agony. My pal Officer Mark and his girlfriend Connie were already on their way to PS and he texted me that the traffic was awful anyway. The gal drove the mini-van to my house and when it pulled in I knew it wasn’t my thing. It was in pretty rough shape, but it was all they had and I wanted to go to Palm Springs! As we were singing the paperwork, two dogs came running down the back driveway in our complex. No leashes on, no humans in pursuit. One was a larger, older Golden Retriever, and his pal was a smaller malti-poo looking dog. They were having the time of their lives, running free and living large. But I got worried that they would run out in traffic and get hit, so I told the Enterprise gal to hang on a sec. It took me a couple of attempts, but I finally wrangled the pooches into my front patio area and shut the gate. It was the logical thing to do. That way they wouldn’t get clobbered by a car on the street, and if their owner was looking for them, it would be easier for him to find them if they stayed put in one place. Meanwhile, Roxy was inside my house and could hear that there were other dogs outside. She was barking like crazy and going nuts. It was quite chaotic. All this while the Enterprise gal was waiting for me. But it all worked out. Because the amount of time I killed chasing the dogs, was the exact amount of time it took for a customer to bring a beautiful Ford Escape back to Enterprise. So when we pulled up in the mini-van I saw the Escape sitting there. “I LIKE THAT!” I told the gal. So she reworked the paperwork and I took off in the Escape. Had we made it back to the agency a half hour earlier, I would have been stuck with the mini-van! Maybe those dogs were little angelic distractions! I packed it up and headed over to get my friend Brittney Powell for the trip. I had thrown in my new Bose QC-15 noise-canceling headphones in case I wanted to listen to music during the trip. They cost about $300, but the case wouldn’t fit in my overpacked luggage, so I threw them in the back with the rest of the luggage. Bad idea. More on that later. Officer Mark wasn’t kidding. Traffic was B.A.D.! Since I wasn’t used to the brakes on the Escape, I hit the brakes a little too hard on the freeway, sending a lot of the luggage tumbling over on Roxy in the back. She tried to escape the melee and attempted to come into the front seat with us…all while we’re driving down the freeway! Just what I needed. A 70 pound hairy beast trying to squeeze into a small space already occupied by two humans with a panicked urgency. Brittney helped me push her back while I looked for the nearest off-ramp. We pulled off on a side street and I opened the door to resecure the luggage and make Roxy comfortable again. We finally got to Palm Springs around 7:30 and the Thursday night Street Fair was already in full swing. We met up with Officer Mark and Connie and headed over to Ruby’s Diner for some quick dinner. Then I bought some cigars at my favorite cigar store, bought a ton of beef jerky at one of the Street Fair dealers, and I bought a really cool vintage-y looking Palm Springs cap and long-sleeved t-shirt. But the night was getting very COLD! Would it be too cold to do my usual all-night stargazing from the balcony of my hotel room? I got settled in the room and noticed that the aquarium video that’s usually always playing on the TV when I check in was missing. I love that video! I hope it didn’t go away! If so, I’m really glad I videotaped it with my camcorder the last time I was staying there! It also seemed like the AC wasn’t working. It was only blowing out hot air. Granted it was cold outside, but the interior of the room was getting hot and stuffy. Luckily, it was a beautiful night and I had a great time watching stars. Except for a group of noisy drunks on the street below my room who talked loudly from 2am until 3:30 am! That was kind of a buzzkill. At 4am I decided to close up the balcony door and get some sleep. But after an hour or two of sleep I woke up sweating. And Roxy was panting. It was waaaay too hot in my room. And I couldn’t open the balcony door again because it was morning and the sun had risen. My AC was definitely NOT working. I called the front desk but they said the engineer wouldn’t be in until 7:30am! YIKES! I tried to get back to sleep but kept waking up every hour because of the heat. At 8am I called the front desk and they sent the engineer up. He said their system would let them either do heat or cold, but not both. So he opened up a panel in the bathroom ceiling and switched a valve over to allow for cooling. Since it was winter time I guess they had already switched over to heat. But now the AC was working perfectly! So I ordered up some room service breakfast and I went back to bed. So far, this trip wasn’t turning out very well.

Friday the 27th – PALM SPRINGS BLINDSIDED! – Roxy and I slept in cool, quiet comfort until about 2 in the afternoon. When I’m on a break from work like this, my old nocturnal radio DJ habits return. For years I worked midnight to 6am in radio, and I feel best in the night time hours. I got showered up and Roxy, Brittney and I met up with Officer Mark and Connie in the hotel lobby. We drove over to the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway house to meet up with our friend Darlene (who gives tours of the house in character as Priscilla Presley) and the owners of the house Leonard and Ann Marie. They said Roxy was more than welcome to come visit too! We got to the house and took a ton of photos, and I had a great time getting to know Leonard and Ann Marie. We chatted for a long time, then headed back to the hotel to drop Roxy off in the room. We got back in the SUV and went to Rancho Mirage to eat at a place called Babe’s Bar-B-Q. When we finished dinner we stopped by Wal-Mart to get some supplies, and then drove into Cathedral City to see their version of Candy Cane Lane. There were a ton of beautifully decorated Christmas houses which all seemed to portray a particular theme. One particular house had accompanying music playing on their own FM radio station (like my favorite Christmas House in Burbank) and was dazzling. But unlike the Burbank house, this house was simply too much. Overkill. It lacked the creativity and charm of the house in Burbank. So after a few minutes, we headed back to the hotel. But not before as top at Rite Aid to get a scoop of Elvis’ favorite ice cream. Our friend Darlene told Officer Mark and I the tale about how Elvis would ride his motorcycle down Palm Canyon Drive in 1969 to the local Thrifty Drug store. Thrifty Drug stores in the Southern California area were always famous for serving the greatest ice cream. Apparently Elvis became infatuated with the coconut pineapple flavor. So it was our mission to go have some for ourselves. But the attendant behind the counter (strangely enough also named Wally) said they were out. And the tub they had in the back room was still frozen solid. Rats. So we went back to the hotel and settled in for the night. I took a quick nap, but when I got up I realized it was much too overcast to do much star watching. But I was hungry again, since hours had passed since dinner at Babe’s. I called NYPD pizza across the street at 1:30am but they weren’t answering. So I decided to get the car out of valet and drive over to Denny’s. I called in my order and went downstairs to get my car. But before I could get my car out, the lady behind the desk was trying to solve an issue with some guests. There were two couples with an enormous Great Dane named Reyna trying to check in. But because of a computer snafu there were no rooms left to honor their reservation. And all of the surrounding hotels were sold out. Apparently Palm Springs was completely unprepared for the influx of visitors this weekend! But because Christmas and New Year’s fell on Wednesdays this year, a lot of people had a weekend with nothing to do. So many of them figured to head to Palm Springs. I felt really badly for these people who had just driven 10 hours from San Jose and couldn’t get a room. No room at the Inn, apparently. The poor gal behind the desk was frantically trying to find them alternate lodging, and finally found a place for them. She gave them a voucher so their stay at the alternate hotel would be free, but clearly they just wanted to get inside and crash. And because they had such a large dog it was adding to the difficulty. After they left I told the gal behind the desk that there were several rooms on our floor unoccupied, but she said they were under repair. Again, I believe Palm Springs was totally blindsided by the influx of visitors this weekend. They seemed woefully unprepared. I got my car and got my food at Denny’s and returned to the room. I fed Roxy and walked her and we turned in. The overcast hadn’t cleared up, and based on how the trip was going so far, I was thinking of leaving a few days early and heading back home. At least that’s what my little voice was telling me to do.

Saturday the 28th – FOLLOWING IN THE “FOODSTEPS” OF ELVIS – Roxy and I were jolted awake at 11am by the hotel’s fire alarm going off. It seemed like a false alarm, but I stepped out into the hallway just to make sure. Sure enough, there were a lot of other guests standing out in the hallway waiting to see what other guests were going to do. But the evacuation order never came, so I went back inside. But now that I was up, it was time to start the day. I walked down to Ruby’s to grab lunch with my pal Ron Chaney. Officer Mark and Connie caught up with us there. We finished up and walked back to the hotel to get the SUV and head to the Palm Springs dog park. I saw my pal Kathy there with her dogs Daisy Mae and Lonnie. Kathy was the gal I met last trip who used to work for the Wrather Corporation promoting Lone Ranger and Lassie appearances. She gave me some cool promotional items from those days during our last visit. It was good to see her again. And her little dog Lonnie has one of the cutest doggie faces I’ve ever seen. But on our way back to the hotel I took a detour back to Rite Aid. Sure enough, the coconut pineapple ice cream was thawed and ready to serve! So just like Elvis did back in ’69, we enjoyed a few scoops of this taste sensation! We got back to the hotel and I grabbed a quick nap while Officer Mark took Connie and Brittney shopping. I really needed the nap, as did Roxy. She was literally pooped out after running around the dog park all day. I looked for my Bose headphones but they weren’t anywhere in sight. I guess I must’ve left them I the SUV under the front seat or something. After a short nap I arose and got ready to walk down to Las Casuelas Mexican restaurant to meet up with Officer Mark and Connie. This was Elvis’ favorite Mexican restaurant in Palm Springs and would eat there often in the same booth, and order the same thing. Mark got there early enough to secure the “Elvis booth” and we had a great time. We both ordered the #1 combo plate “Elvis style,” shredded beef taco, chili renello and cheese enchilada with pinto beans instead of refried beans. Fun! After dinner I broke out one of the cigars I had bought a few nights ago and walked down the street to watch the action. Brittney was cold so she went back to her room. But Officer Mark, Connie and I had a blast interacting with the locals on many different levels. We saw a bride-to-be with her bridal party singing karaoke during her bachelorette party, we saw some young ladies promoting samples of skin cream, and we met lots of cool doggies. I got a delicious Dole Whip (a slushie pineapple desert treat) at a local store, and I stopped into the cigar store to get my cigar relit. Because of the cool desert breeze it was difficult for me to light my cigar with my tiny matches. We saw some local PS police ticketing a guy for a traffic violation, and we headed back to the hotel to catch up with our pal Darlene. In addition to performing as Priscilla Presley at the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway, she also works behind the desk at the Hyatt. Luckily the skies were clear so I could star watch all night, but it was cold out! I got showered up and ready to watch stars…I popped my popcorn, turned on my star watching playlist on my i-Pad, and got an ice cold Coke in a glass bottle out of the in-room freezer. But when I got settled on the balcony I heard this loud and continuous buzzing sound. I wasn’t sure what it was but it was very loud…and harshing my mellow, as they say. Completely destroying the serenity I so desperately desired in my Palm Springs getaways. It wasn’t until about 4am when I realized that it was a generator on the street right below my room keeping an RV heated. I heard the generator sputter and die, and then a guy came out the RV and restarted it. It was then I realized what all the noise was about. So I called the front desk to ask if that was legal. Could somebody make that much noise around a hotel like this? Wasn’t there noise ordinances? They said they would have security check it out. But as I sat there on the balcony, I never saw anyone approach the RV to investigate. So I called the local Palm Springs police, whom I had just seen a few hours ago ticketing a driver. I asked about noise ordinances and they said they would send somebody out. But after a half hour of watching, nobody ever showed up. I made a note to tell Officer Mark that if he ever wanted to take a job with a police department where he clearly never had to do anything he should apply with the Palm Springs PD. I guess I should have listened to my little voice. This clearly wasn’t my week for relaxation. Between the noisy drunks the other night, and now the “street camper,” it wasn’t my usual mellow Palm Springs getaway. I got to bed around 5am and called it a night.

Sunday the 29th – “FISHTERY” SOLVED! – I enjoyed sleeping until 3pm and got up to join Brittney for lunch at Ruby’s. We got our friend Edi a t-shirt made at a local store on the way to lunch, but by the time the t-shirt store closed our food had just arrived. Luckily the nice gal at the t-shirt shop agreed to run over to Ruby’s and deliver it to me. On the way back to the room we stopped to get another delicious Dole Whip. This time I had them add chunks of pineapple and shredded coconut. HEAVEN ON MY TONGUE! I went back to the room and grabbed a quick hour nap with Roxy, then got up to go to the Spaghetti Factory in Rancho Mirage. We had spotted it the other night on our way to Babe’s Bar-B-Q, and since all of the Spaghetti Factories in my area have closed, it was a special treat! On the way back to the hotel we took a drive by Liberace’s house. When we got back to the hotel I ran into my old pal Jasmine, who used to work at the Hyatt a few years back. She had left her position there to go back to her homeland in the Phillipines for a while. But now she was back. I asked her what happened to the beloved aquarium video. For years I’ve been trying to figure out what it was, where it came from, and more importantly, how I could get a copy. Nobody seemed to know anything about this mysterious entity. I just couldn’t get any straight answers about it no matter who I talked to. She said a past general manager (a few managers ago) decided to run a DVD of an aquarium on the Hyatt’s closed-circuit TV system because he thought it was relaxing to the guests. He was RIGHT! I love that thing and always looked forward to it every time I came to the Hyatt. But I told her it wasn’t anywhere on the channel line-up on the TV in my room! And by the time I got back to my room, Officer Mark had texted me that the aquarium was BACK ON! Apparently Jasmine had gone to the office and restarted the DVD. Perhaps a power outage had stopped the player from playing it awhile back, and nobody ever thought to restart it. But there it was! But when I came back a few minutes later the DVD had stopped and it had reverted back to the main menu on the disc. Jasmine had started the DVD but hadn’t hit the REPEAT button so it would cycle through again. But this was my lucky day! Because on the menu, it gave me the name of the DVD that I had been searching for…for years! It’s called Aquaria: The Exotic Aquarium. I ran downstairs to the hotel’s computer and bought a copy for myself on eBay. My pal Edi will be elated! Finally a copy of my own! The Fishtery Mystery had been solved! When I was downstairs a lady named Diane had seen my new jean jacket with “TTS” logo on the back. She asked if I worked on the show and I told her I was the announcer. Then I cupped my ear and said, “It’s the Tonight Show with Jay Leno!” Her face lit up with instant recognition. I love doing that and seeing the looks on their faces. She said she had always wanted to take her mom to a taping, so I told her to contact me and I would try to get her tickets while she was in town. Diane walked away and said, “It’s a sign!” I like the way she thinks. Star watching on the balcony went very well, and it was very quiet. I loved hearing a hoot owl hooting in the distance. I loved watching the Elvis star system. Some choose to call it Orion, but I think it looks more like Elvis on stage performing than a warrior. So someday I’m going to petition the powers-that-be to rename the system the Elvis system. I guess the fourth night was the charm for star watching…but it was VERY cold! MUCH colder than previous nights on the balcony! I took Roxy downstairs to go potty before we turned in at 4am, and a gentleman was down there with his cute little Corgi. Though she didn’t seem to want to meet Roxy at all, she loved licking my hand. So I got some quality Corgi kisses!

This is why I think the Orion star system should be renamed ELVIS! I mean, doesn’t it make more sense?

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Monday the 30th – HEY BUDDY, WHERE’S THE FIRE?! – The answer is…IN OUR HOTEL! After only an hour of sleep, the hotel fire alarm rang again at 6am! This time it was no false alarm! At first it looked like it was, but then the evac orders came over the loudspeaker and I got dressed and grabbed Roxy and headed downstairs. I was still sleepy so I didn’t realize that it most likely would be cold outside. So there I was in a pair of shorts and a long-sleeved t-shirt, freezing my arse off in front of the Hyatt as it’s being surrounded by paramedics, police and fire personnel. Again, I should have listened to my little voice and either left early or not come at all. This trip was full of bumps. Come to find out there was a fire in the hotel’s laundry room. So after a half hour of standing outside, we were told the fire was under control and the danger had passed. Brittney had asked if we could drive back now since we were all awake, but I told her I hadn’t gone to bed until 5am and I wasn’t going to drive back on only one hour of sleep. So I went back up to get a few more hours of sleep. But note to self: if that ever happens again..BRING A COAT AND LONG PANTS! I got up at 11, packed my things and headed out. I still couldn’t find my expensive Bose headphones anywhere! What could have happened to then?! Oh well, just another one of those snafus that were so prevalent this trip. We hit the road about 12:30 and headed back to L.A. The traffic was much better heading back than it was heading in. I got home by 3 and unloaded all the stuff. Roxy sure didn’t travel very well this trip. She seemed nervous and uneasy the entire way out and back. She was constantly panting even though the AC was on high and pointed right at her face. She was glad to be home. I took Brittney home, and then returned the vehicle to Enterprise. I couldn’t find my headphones anywhere in the car or in my luggage. There goes 300 bucks. But it served me right for not paying closer attention to where I stashed them. I started to think that maybe they fell out when we pulled off the freeway to rearrange the luggage on the way to Palm Springs. Then I wondered if maybe they had been stolen at some point. Anyone who knows audio would instantly recognize those as top quality and VERY expensive headphones. But I refused to believe that. After all, it was Christmas week. What sort of Grinch would do that?! But I think next time I travel with Roxy I may get her a little tranquilizer pill from the vet so she’ll settle down a bit. Her constant panting was making ME nervous! I got home and got settled. It was good to be back. I napped until 9:30pm. Then got up to unpack all my stuff, do a few more auditions that had trickled in over the holiday week, wrote down some notes of my adventures for Wally’s Week, and then watched a two-part “Magnum P.I.” episode and made a salad. By the time I went to sleep it was 10am!

Tuesday the 31st – NEW YEAR’S EVE! – I slept all the way until 3pm and it felt darn good to be in my own bed! I got up to walk Roxy then cuddled with the pets on the bed for a while. Though Spook is a cat, he acts like a dog. And I honestly think he missed me while I was gone. Most cats are indifferent to your presence, but I think Spook really really missed me. He was being extra cuddly. I fell back asleep and didn’t wake up to start the day until 6pm New Year’s Eve. This year I hadn’t planned any events at Planet Wallywood for the transition to the new year, because I knew I would have tons of work to do. I hadn’t officially started on my garage project yet, as I had been constantly sidetracked by other stuff. So I organized some stuff around the house, and sent pics from my trip off to my webmaster and pal Scott Sebring. But all those pics of that delicious looking Mexican food made me hungry. So I was craving Mexican food. But in spite of that, I went to Taco Bell to hit the drive through. As I sat in the drive-thru line I rolled down my window to get ready to pay the guy at the window for my food. I heard a squeaking sound. I looked down to my left and saw one of those industrial mouse traps…the little plastic hut type where the mouse goes in but can’t get back out again. I’m not exactly sure what they do with the mice once they’re trapped in there but I doubt they’re set free in a pasture somewhere. Maybe I don’t want to know. But I was convinced that a little guy was trapped in there and was squeaking for help. I got out of my Mustang and moved the little hut with my foot, but the squeaking continued. I got back in my car and when I drove up to the window I asked for the manager. Oddly enough, the guy at the window WAS the manager. I guess all the employees had taken off for New Year’s Eve. I told him it was unappetizing to hear a panicking mouse caught in a trap as I was driving up to get my food. He laughed and said, “It’s not a mouse. It’s a squeaky gas valve.” I found that hard to believe, but he said others had complained about it too. He said after I got my food he would meet me out back and show me. Sure enough, I put my ear down by the trap and the squeaking sound was definitely coming from the gas meter on the back of the building, which was mere inches from the trap. Boy was I fooled! When I got home I started on the garage and got a ton of stuff done. I had completely filled up my garbage bins, both the one for regular garbage and the recycle bin. I had also run out of plastic storage bins to put stuff in so I could stash it in my underground storage area. So I was at an impasse and really couldn’t do much else. I enjoyed working in the garage as the clock struck midnight. Listening to Coast to Coast AM on the radio, hearing it turn into 2014 in all the time zones. When the clock struck midnight in LA I could hear fireworks going off all over the city. It was amazing. I went inside to feed Roxy, and then walked her. Our first walk of the new year! I made some Buffalo Mac and watched the movie “Lovelace” on Blu Ray.

Wednesday the 1st – HAPPY NEW YEAR! – Around 3pm I woke up and started working around the house again. Then I napped until 6:30. That’s kinda how I roll. I walked Roxy and fed Spook, and met up with Edi for dinner at Jerry’s Famous Deli. I hadn’t seen her in a long time so it was good to catch up. She was supposed to join us in Palm Springs but her daughter’s horse was in an accident at the Equestrian Center while they were away for Christmas in Arizona, so she had been dealing with that non-stop. I headed back home and did a little work. I napped for a bit on the couch. I was feeling really mellow and SO glad to be back home again. When I got up I fed Roxy and did paperwork all night. I couldn’t work on the garage because the garbage men wouldn’t be by to empty my garbage bins until Thursday morning. So I stayed inside and got stuff done. I scanned some checks and readied my first deposit for the new year. After I walked Roxy I drove to the bank and deposited my envelope in the night depository, then hit the grocery store for supplies. I got home and paid bills, went through my receipts and organized and filed them, and did a few other odds and ends. I didn’t get to bed until 11:30am! This break has totally screwed up my hours!

Thursday the 2nd – A CLEAN, CLEAN 2014! – When I got up around 4 I dashed out to get a car wash. I hadn’t washed my Mustang since it had rained a few weeks ago, and it looked filthy! Since the car washes close at sunset, and the sun sets now around 5:15 I had to hurry. With a sparkling clean Mustang, I stopped by my mailbox to get my mail, dropped off some dry cleaning, and went to Staples to get a few items for the new year…file folders for tax receipts, a calendar, etc. When I returned home I met up with my assistant Sara to give her some items to take to Goodwill. Then I grabbed a quick nap on the couch. I’ve just gotta get my routine back in full swing before we start back to work next week! It’s ALL screwy! I got up around midnight and did more work in the garage. Sara had brought over more plastic bins for me to fill to put stuff in storage. And though it doesn’t really seem to be improving that much, it really is. It’s just going to take a LONG time to get it the way I envision it. After all, it didn’t get junky like that overnight. It took years and years of neglect to get that way! I broke down the many cardboard boxes I had laying around and filled my recycle bin to the brim. I ran out of plastic bins again, so Sara will need to go grab some more. But since my underground storage area is vast, I’ll be able to fit another 8 bins in there! I worked solidly from 1am to 5am. Then I fed and walked Roxy and relaxed. I made some chili dogs on the grill outside and retired to watch another “Magnum P.I.” episode. I got to bed around 9am, which IS an improvement!

Friday the 3rd – THE FINAL DAY OF THE HOLIDAY BREAK! – It’s over so soon? Boy, the time sure flew by! I slept for 5 hours then got up to work on labeling my files for my 2014 tax receipts. I got a call from a guy named Wallace who does a “Dark Shadows” podcast. He wanted to interview me about my experiences as a “DS” fan. So he called at 4 and we chatted for about a half hour. Then I finished up my files and got ready for dinner with my friend Kelli Maroney. Her birthday was earlier in the week, but it took us this long to get our schedules to coincide. So we met at Miceli’s and had a wonderful dinner. I came home and did some more auditions that had trickled in. Apparently some producers didn’t get the memo that the entertainment industry was completely shut down for two weeks. But I was happy to record them in my home studio and send them to my agent. I ran around the house and gathered up all the items to have autographed at the Hollywood Collector Show the next day!

Saturday the 4th – LOOOOOOOOOOONG DAY! – By 11:30 I had arrived at the Loew’s hotel in Hollywood for the next Hollywood Collector Show. Lots of great people would be there and I had lots of stuff for them to sign. My friend Suzanne the US Airways stewardess…uh…FLIGHT ATTENDANT had flown in just for the show. I met up with her and took her around to meet the celebs. I told Mike “Mannix” Connors about how much Jay enjoyed meeting him when he came by “TTS” stage. I also got to meet Robert Hays from “Airplane.” Obviously, since Suzanne is a flight attendant, “Airplane” holds a special place in her heart. So I got a great shot of them in front of the “Airplane” movie poster, and got her a signed photo for her birthday. (By the way, her birthday was that very day!) My pal Barry Dennen showed up to hang out with us, and he walked around to talk to some of his actor pals there. It was also awesome to see Tim Conway again. I had worked with him a few years back on a Garfield direct-to-DVD movie. A true comedy legend! Barry treated us to lunch at Tin Horn Flats across the street from the hotel. What a great time. But it was time to go home and get ready for an even bigger event that night! My friend Bruce Kulick’s wedding! I got home and rested for a bit. I knew it was going to be a long night so I wanted to be rested. Suzanne headed out to a store to pick up her dress for the evening, but not being from the LA area, she misjudged the amount of time it would take her on the clogged LA freeways. By the time I was ready to leave for the wedding, she hadn’t even gotten back to her hotel room yet to freshen up. She was panicked! I just told her to get there when she could. There’s really nothing you can do about crappy LA traffic. I got to the festivities around 6:20, and Suzanne got there around 6:50. So she actually made pretty good time. The actual wedding didn’t start until 7:00 so it was all good. It was my first Jewish wedding, and though not completely orthodox, it was very fun and educational. The Cantor was very good at explaining to us “goyum” all of the Hebrew traditions and language. Fascinating stuff! Bruce’s former KISS bandmates Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were there too. What a fun night. And a really good opportunity to wear my new custom-made Tony Clifton tux! I got home just after midnight and was fairly beat. But I still continued to work around Planet Wallywood. One of the things I wanted to do was take the glass out of the Andy Kaufman display. Since none of the other figures in the house is displayed behind glass, it looked odd. Plus I didn’t like the glare it provided. Now the glass is about 6 and a half feet tall by 3 feet wide. And it fits into a groove in the front of the display case. But since bringing it down would be a lot easier than putting it up (thank you gravity) I figured I could do it myself. I planned it all out meticulously before I did it. So I brought up the ladder, got out the suction device for the glass and went to work. I brought it down nicely and safely and already the display looked much better. But now that he wasn’t confined behind glass, I could pose him any way I wanted. I dug out an old vintage record played from my collection and put it at his feet. I extended his left arm as if he’s in the middle of performing his “Mighty Mouse” routine. I liked it! Mission accomplished! I fed and walked Roxy then got busy with my traditional Saturday Night Saint and Salad night. I made a huge salad and went upstairs to watch an episode of “The Saint.” Since I was still fairly conscious when it finished (plus I hadn’t finished my popcorn or pineapple yet) I decided to run an additional “Magnum P.I.” episode as well. I was very much looking forward to sleeping late on Sunday!

Sunday the 5th – AND THEN IT HIT ME! – At 2 I got up to walk Roxy, then went back to bed for a few hours. I got up for evening church but my ass was dragging. The non-stop fun and excitement from the previous day had hit me. I was exhausted! I met up with Amanda at church, and my old friends Joe and Zandra Pendleton. After church we went to Little Toni’s for dinner. Bad idea. I knew that the heavy pasta meal would make me even more comatose. I could barely stay awake at the table. But I got home and started feeling better. I grabbed a quick nap and awoke refreshed. I did some auditions and prepped for a new week and a new year. We only have 23 more “Tonight Shows” to do before we’re done, and I aim to make every one of them count! On another chilly night I made some hot beef stew and watched a “Magnum P.I.” episode. By the time I was ready for bed around 6am, I turned on “The Garfield Show” on Boomerang and watched a few episodes of that. What fun!

And how were YOUR holidays???!!!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

Roxy patiently waits for me to give the “attack” command. Should I? Hmmm…

Lounging around on the seat where “The King” once sat in the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway!

Brittney, “Priscilla” and Connie outside the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway, with the beautiful San Jacinto mountains in the background.

Honeymoon Hideaway owners Leonard and Ann Marie said Roxy is welcome back to the house anytime. Me? Not so much.

The interior of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway in Palm Springs is particularly striking as evening approaches.

Elvis and Priscilla, the animatronic reindeer, welcome everyone to this Palm Springs landmark.

Is Roxy seeing the ghost of Elvis walking through the living room?

Roxy’s trying to convince us to start a fire in the groovy fireplace.

Officer Mark takes Roxy for a stroll around the grounds of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway.

In the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway, Brittney strums out a few Elvis tunes.

Roxy stands proudly at the front gates of the Elvis Honeymoon Hideaway!

Unsure of where we’re heading, Connie reassures Roxy that it’ll be someplace marvelous!

Roxy and I bid the gang farewell, with promises to visit again soon.

A marvelous panoramic view of the living room where the greats once walked.

Our old pal Ron Chaney stops by Ruby’s Diner on Palm Canyon Drive to join us for lunch and discuss all things Chaney!

Always on the lookout for food, Roxy and Brittney share a kiss at Ruby’s Diner.

In Cathedral City they go all out for Christmas on one particular street. Here are some of the houses on ‘Candy Cane Lane.’

At the Palm Springs Dog Park there’s always new friends to be made.

It’s always good to run into our pal Kathy and Lonnie at the park. Kathy used to work with Roxy’s grandfather back in the 80’s when Lassie would make personal appearances. Working for the Wrather Corporation also required Kathy to work with Clayton Moore…the Lone Ranger!

And here’s some video from the dog park.

Following in the “Foodsteps” of Elvis. Enjoying the #1 combo at Las Casuelas, Elvis favorite Mexican restaurant during his Palm Springs days. Gracias very much!

While strolling Palm Canyon Boulevard at night, you meet the wildest people! Like this karaoke-ing bridal party!

And a couple of ladies promoting body lotion!

There’s nothing quite like having your cigar lit by a professional!

As we continue on our quest to enjoy the food of the King, we head to Rite Aid to have some Coconut Pineapple ice cream scooped…his favorite flavor at this very location!

And what would a stroll down Palm Canyon Boulevard be without an “enclownter” with our old pal Harpo the Clown??!!

It’s always good to see my old pal Harpo the Clown wandering the streets of Palm Springs!

Harpo and Officer Mark flex their clowny muscles.

Connie joins the Harpo the Clown fan club!

The first night we tried to get Elvis Ice Cream at Rite Aid, they were out of Coconut Pineapple, so I settled for another flavor. Even though the server wasn’t able to accommodate our taste buds, he did have a cool name!

Our final night in Palm Springs found us once again at Ruby’s Diner for dinner. Here’s our favorite server Morgan, who always takes good care of us.

A friend of mine is now dating a famous musician, but her ex-husband wound up with his hair stylist. So I had this t-shirt made up for her so she can gloat.

After dinner it was off to enjoy a Dole Whip! It’s a pineapple-infused slushie thing with pineapple chunks and shredded coconut in it. I bet Elvis would’ve LOVED this thing!

I’ll bet you didn’t know that I’ve been saving my money and investing in a Palm Springs restaurant!

Of course we had to do a quick drive-by of Liberace’s house!

Before we scooted out of town, my pal Brittney poses with Roxy under the famous Marilyn Monroe statue in downtown Palm Springs. It’s particularly poignant since Brittney is wearing her replica Marilyn sweater to keep herself warm in the cool desert winter.

Monday morning, the day we were leaving Palm Springs, the fire alarm went off in the hotel at 6:30am! A fire broke out in the laundry room and everyone had to be evacuated from their rooms. Police and Fire units responded to the call.

But it left me wondering, “Is this the best way to end a vacation?”

Our friend Connie seems virtually unphased by the small fire at the hotel.

Many of the Palm Springs photos are courtesy of Mark Fullerton, with a few by Darlene Perez. Thanks guys!

After an ambitious night of working around Planet Wallywood, I singlehandedly took down the glass that covered my prized Andy Kaufman display. Since there wasn’t glass there any longer, I could get creative with the pose. So now he’s doing “Mighty Mouse” in my house! I even added a vintage record player to sweeten the deal!

My friend Suzanne meets Robert Hays from “Airplane.” It’s only fitting since Suzanne is a stewardess…ahem…’flight attendant’ for US Airways!

Bruce and Lisa stand before the Cantor and take their vows.

The happy bride and groom have made it official!

In a custom-made Tony Clifton tuxedo jacket I had made especially for the occasion (well, HALF of that is right), I pose with the new Mr. and Mrs. Kulick.