RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK
If I could find a suitable Roger Moore facial likeness, I’d love to do this as a mannequin. It’s the mannequin that Scaramanga had in his funhouse in “The Man With The Golden Gun.” I would even make it with the ‘shot off’ fingers for authenticity!
Every time I hear this song I flash back to a specific night in the early 80’s when I was driving my 1974 Chevy Nova down the highway in the middle of the night. I was listening to the AM radio (the only thing I had in that car) and I was trying to get to my friend’s house in a town that was about 4 hours away. It’s one of those moments that will always stay with me. “Slow Hand” by the Pointer Sisters is magical!
Monday the 29th – “FANTASTIC” SESSION! – Bright and early I did the final set-up for my home recording studio and waited for the producers of a really cool project to join me on-line. I can’t say what the project is for, but it’s for a character I’ve voiced many times before, and a character I ALWAYS love revisiting! The session only lasted for an hour, and when we finished I cleaned up and headed to Paty’s for a salad on the patio. It’s going to be a lot cooler this week than it has been of late, so I’m going to enjoy it. It’s also a little bit breezy, which is kinda nice. I headed over to Alex In Wonderland’s studio in Burbank and they were getting set for their big move to a better studio location in North Hollywood. I took Alex my leftover plastic pupil pieces for my traveling Cookie Monster puppet, and asked her to paint them the same way she did for the puppet we just completed. I also handed off “Travel Cookie” so she could do a little “plastic surgery” with the face to bring the eyes more in alignment. I got the Gray Ghost gassed up and got her washed. I picked up a package at my box and headed home to relax. Later I did my nightly auditions. I’m still having a few problems with my voice (which I believe to be acid reflux issues) so I think I need to swap out my antacid. I believe my body has become immune to the one I’ve been using for a while. That will happen with medication. I typed out Wally’s Week and then went on my nightly WOG (walk/jog). The cooler weather has brought out the wildlife! I saw cats, rats, raccoons and lots and lots of spiders! As I sat in the anti-grav chair and relaxed after my WOG I was amazed to see a few really great shooting stars! We’re in the midst of not one but TWO meteor showers, so I’m going to enjoy it as much as I can! I talked to the guard on duty at our complex and he said he had seen several great meteors too. But I didn’t stay out long because, believe it or not, it was getting kinda chilly! I wish it were warmer, but I think plenty of those nights are still ahead. I came back inside and finished up Wally’s Week.
Tuesday the 30th – SHUT-IN! – Even though the weather was great outside, I decided to stay in most of the day and get stuff done. I took care of a lot of emails, recorded a few auditions, and did a short session for one of my regular clients. Wednesday I’ll be back at Igloo in Burbank to continue dubbing the foreign show for Netflix we’ve been working on, so I did a little prep for that session. I took my nightly WOG and spent some time in the anti-grav chair, but sadly it looks like our meteor shower is over.
Wednesday the 31st – THE SIGN OF A TRUE PROFESSIONAL! – It’s really hard to believe it’s already August! WOW! Soon it’ll be October, and time for another Christoween season! I got up early and worked on-line for a while, and then I hit Paty’s for some lunch. Then I headed back to Igloo for one of the final sessions for the Netflix foreign show we’re dubbing. When we started season one of this series back in 2022 I was the first one in to record, since I was voicing the lead character. As I watched the show in its original language, I started “casting” the English actors in my mind who I felt would be great for certain roles. One of those was my good pal (and incredibly versatile and ubiquitous actor) Daniel Roebuck. Dan, like me, just loves to work. I suggested him for the role to the producers and they sent him an offer right away. We had a great time working on the first season and he did a fantastic job. Now that we’re into season two, once again Danny has to make time in his super-busy schedule to accommodate the recording sessions. For the most part everything worked out perfectly, but he’s starting a new on-camera film project and he had to jet out of town. The producers panicked, as they have a deadline to meet with this show for Netflix. However, when I came into record, the Voice Director and engineer were RAVING about what an absolute professional Danny was! Knowing that he had to jet out on the first of August, he stayed in the studio for 8 hours on Monday the 29th, and stayed in the studio for 11 HOURS on Tuesday the 30th! The Voice Director said Danny never complained once, and never tired; always giving them top energy for the scenes. THAT, my friends, is how a professional does it! Amazing to hear! After I completed my session I went home to do some work, relax, and later I did my nightly auditions, took my nightly WOG, and spent some relaxing time in the anti-grav chair.
Thursday the 1st – HALFWAY GONE! – Once again I woke up much earlier than I needed to, and did a little work on-line. I even recorded a few auditions. It was cloudy out and not very hot, but it was pretty humid for Los Angeles. So far we really haven’t gotten much of that “brutal” summer weather, but I fear it’s coming soon. I headed over to Chick Fil-A to get lunch before my Netflix dubbing session, and it was a huge, long line. However, I got my order in good time and headed to work. We started in on the final episode of the 8 episode series, and we got over halfway done with it! And listening to Dan Roebuck play his drunk scene was cracking us all up. Hilarious! The next time I’ll be working is early next week, and that will probably be the last session. There may be one final “pick-up” session after that (to record little things we may have forgotten, or things that have been changed) but that’s almost a wrap on the second season of this show for me. On the way home I picked up some packages at my box, and then got back to my house and did some work on-line. Later I took my nightly WOG and spent some time in the anti-grav chair looking at the sky and thinking and meditating. I got to see TWO really cool shooting stars, and the second one was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The meteor itself was big and bright, but after it burned out the wake of its trail was still visible in the sky for another 3-4 seconds! It was beautiful!
Friday the 2nd – PUPPET PALZ! – The maids came over early in the afternoon to clean Planet Wallywood, and after the left my pal Steve Troop dropped by so we could talk about the “Travel Gonzo” he’s going to make for me. I gave him two yards of Sherpa fur for his body, and he took copious measurements of the Gonzo I had made several years ago by a very famous builder. Then we drove over to Paty’s to meet up with my pal Isaiah Ferguson to chat about all things puppets; particularly the stop-motion project I’m planning for this year’s Christoween celebration. I came back home and did some more work, and then relaxed all night as I headed into the weekend. Later I took my usual WOG, and spent some time in the anti-grav chair. Since it was so warm out I decided to enjoy a nice cigar. It was a lovely summer evening!
Saturday the 3rd – BIRTHDAY BABE! – My first (and most important) task of the day was getting some flowers. It was my gal Angi’s birthday a few weeks ago, and with all the chaos with canceled flights, lost luggage, etc (not to mention HER crazy schedule) this was the first opportunity we had to get together to celebrate it. So it was her one-year-and-two-week birthday celebration! I picked up some supplies at CVS, a gift card for Angi, and then I headed over to the market to pick up a bunch of gorgeous red roses, a new vase, and some baby’s breath for a lovely accent to the arrangement. Angi arrived and we promptly headed out to Paty’s for her birthday dinner (her choice!). But first I had to stop off at my seamstress Shelley’s to pick up the new pair of Laurel & Hardy pajamas she made for me! I had some custom fabric designed by my pal Scott Sebring, and then I sent it to Spoonflower to have it printed. The pj’s turned out amazing! Shelley also had my Laurel & Hardy bowling shirt finished, which she made out of cotton sateen fabric with the same design. She did a great job! As Angi and I sped over to Paty’s she spied something on the street. “There’s a Randy’s Donuts over here?!” I told her they had just opened up a few months ago. She said how much she loved the bear claws and chocolate donuts. Fearing that they would be closed by the time we had finished dinner at Paty’s, I pulled the Gray Ghost around in an emergency Bat-Turn and headed back to Randy’s. While I decided what to have, Angi noticed that they had milkshakes on the menu. But she was looking forward to getting one at Paty’s later. However I told her, since it was her birthday celebration, she could have as many as she wanted. The gal behind the counter said, “It’s your birthday? I’ll give you one for free!” She made her up a chocolate milkshake, but I gave the gal a tip that was the equivalent of the cost of the milkshake. So we got our donuts and Angi’s milkshake and headed to Paty’s. Just our luck, our favorite server Nicole was working that night. Angi met Nicole when we had our first dinner date at Paty’s well over a year ago. So they’re fast friends. It was a gorgeous, gorgeous night outside, and it was (as my pal Officer Mark likes to say) “weatherless.” It wasn’t hot, it wasn’t cold, it wasn’t windy. It was perfect. Angi referred to it as “Garden of Eden” weather. I agreed. But she stopped short of letting me strip down to a fig leaf. Later I took my nightly WOG and spent time in the anti-grav chair. Since the weather was still so wonderful, I took the opportunity to enjoy another nice cigar. It was fantastic! And, to make matters even better, it was the first Saturday of the month, which means I get to watch some Laurel & Hardy short films! I call these little monthly treats to myself “Laurel & Hardy Theatre,” named after the Saturday night presentation on channel 9 back in my hometown of Aberdeen, South Dakota in the early 70’s. In order to capitalize upon the nostalgic feeling of those days, I like to make a Chef Boyardee pizza-in-a-box (the taste of my childhood!), pop some popcorn, eat a banana Twinkie (a suitable substitute for one of my favorite snack foods of the 70’s the Banana Flip!), and I had some ice cold Pepsi in the Oliver Hardy mug my mom made for me in her ceramics class back in 1973. (Yes! I still have both the Ollie AND the Stan that she made for me in my collection!) To make the event even more special, it was the maiden voyage for my new L&H pj’s! As they are made from a heavy “minky” fabric they’re very soft, but VERY warm. I believe they will be more suitable for winter nights than summer nights. I also like the event to be random and unpredictable, so I put strips of paper containing the titles of all 40 sound shorts they made into a “Sons of the Desert” fez. (“Sons of the Desert” is a film they made in 1933 about a fraternal club, and that’s the name of the L&H appreciation society of which I’m a proud member!) I call it the “40 Shorties Fez!” I get all set up for the viewing, and draw out the first time from the fez – “THICKER THAN WATER!” This is the last short film the boys made before they embarked on a career of doing exclusively feature films. I don’t want to spoil the ending, but you get to see Stan & Ollie performing as each other’s characters! It’s hilarious! The second film was “The Chimp,” about a chimp (that really looks more like a gorilla) that they inherit from a circus that went out of business. And the third film of the night that I drew was “Their First Mistake.” Stan suggests that Ollie adopt a baby to fix the strife he’s having with his wife. And you can guess how the rest goes. I love going to bed laughing myself to sleep!
Sunday the 4th – COYOTE COUNTRY! – This past week I got nostalgic and ordered several boxes of the candy called “Now and Later” that my sisters and I used to enjoy as kids. Angi partook of some on Saturday night, but she said the wax paper was stuck to the candy. I just laughed it off, as that used to happen all the time. But I decided to try a few pieces and YOWCH! It was really difficult peeling all the wax paper wrapping off the candy. Apparently during shipping, the candy must’ve gotten stuck in a hot warehouse somewhere and everything melted together. I’m sure as kids we didn’t much care and probably just consumed the wax paper along with the candy! Later I did the auditions that were due first thing Monday in my agent’s office, and then I went outside to take my nightly WOG. It was a good one, and I felt great! Nice and fast! I’m sure glad I started doing this. I relaxed in the anti-grav chair with a cold iced tea, and then chatted with the guard on duty for a while. He said he had spotted two coyotes who were near his location. I told him they come down from the hills late at night in search of water and something to eat. They’ll eat rats, cats, virtually anything they can get! He said they looked pretty skinny and were easy to scare off. I went inside to do some work around the house and pet my lovely cat, who will never get outside to confront any coyotes! From this standpoint it looks like a fairly mellow week, but ya never know!
And how was YOUR week??!!
PIX FROM THE WEEK
Angi loved her flowers!
This is the second year in a row where we’ve taken a shot like this on her birthday.
Angi tried to engage Spook for a photo, but he wasn’t having it!
The Oliver Hardy mug is full of ice cold Diet Pepsi, I have my Sons of the Desert fez on, and I’m wearing my slick new L&H PJ’s! I’m ready for some laughs and “Laurel & Hardy Theatre!”
