The Speed Of Hollywood

I was working on a commercial on the grounds of CAA’s World Headquarters, marveling at how many stories of glass and concrete a small group of people could afford who make their living off the work of others, when the first A.D. yelled, “That’s lunch! One hour!” I queued up to the catering truck, eagerly…

Christmas Starts After Thanksgiving, Dammit!

­I saw my first Christmas commercial ten days before Halloween this year. Well, okay technically it wasn’t a “Christmas” commercial. It was a “holiday” commercial with lots of red and green decorations, decorated fir trees in the house, snow on windows, stockings over fireplaces, presents, squealing children, Menorahs near the ham . . . but,…

The Bright Lights Of Bowling

I went downtown to L.A. Live the other night to try out a cool nightclub called Lucky Strike that promised to be the “most exciting foray into chic entertainment,” but instead became a head-on collision with my past. It was a bowling alley. That’s right, that thing you used to watch on Saturday morning after…

I Saw The Apocalypse

I caught a frightening glimpse of the apocalypse, and it’s worse than you think. Yesterday our power was out all day and we were plunged into a darkness beyond what light can illuminate.  I have read many post-apocalyptic novels in my day, but they couldn’t begin to prepare me for a world without power. At…

The Realist’s Workout

At first blush, it seemed like my boss had done me a huge favor by letting me off early last week. What a great opportunity. I could catch up on some errands, do some banking in person, maybe finally weed the garden (or garden the weeds), wash the dog, clean the baseboards, make something real…

Lawyers For The Little Guys

For the first time in my three hundred seventy five years in Show Business, I worked on a commercial for lawyers. Usually the only lawyers who advertise on TV are the bottom feeders that want to profit from your denied disability claims, ancient asbestos exposure, or your, gulp, vaginal mesh debacle. But this was for…

Hot? Again?

  Here is something that happens every October in Southern California that I’ll bet most of the country never has to experience: a heat wave. Temps are forecasted to be in the 100’s by this weekend. Oh goodie. Everyone else has already broken out the winter wardrobe, and rotated the liquor cabinet to bring those…

Get That Bear An Agent

Okay, by now you have probably gathered that I am highly impressionable and easily swayed by what I see on TV, which is dangerous since I work as a sound mixer on commercials. I recently worked on the Energy Upgrade California campaign that makes use of a live action animatronic bear to encourage Californians to…