Willy Wonka and the Hollywood Forever Cemetery

"It's the most fun I've had in L.A."

That's what I'd heard. Of course I'm going to go in slightly skeptical and full of the highest hopes. I'd been pumped up to believe that evening movie screenings in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery were not only great, but a quintessential part of the Los Angeles experience.

I can now stand behind everything I'd heard and assure you that it is absolutely, 100%, positively true. If you get one Saturday in LA during the summer, and only one, this better be what's on your list to do.

Screenings in the cemetery are a fantastic way to spend a summer evening. Sure it sounds creepy (and it a little bit is) but as Megan put it as we were gallivanting through the gravestones - "It's kind of cool to be here and be really a live. You know? We're living in the moment with friends. we're not here for death. We're here for life." I might have paraphrased a bit - but that's the gist of what she was drunkenly rambling on about after the movie.

Yes, I said drunkenly. You see, it's not "public" in there so drinking.... TOTALLY ALLOWED.

Several bottle of wine, a shit-ton of snack, two bags of candy and a sushi platter later - we have a successful, drunk picnic in the cemetery for last night's movie: Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. (No not the shitty one - the good one.)

Gates open at 7, so Nora, Kate, Mikey, Megan and I got there at about 5:30 to get in line. Kevin and Alex and Ashley soon joined us. Followed by Janove and Julie and Jordan. What a crowd! Apples to Apples passed the time (Kate and I are kindred Apples to Apples spirits)...and so did the wine. I was hammered before I even got through the gates into the cemetery.

500+ people crowded onto the lawn for one of the greatest cult movies ever. There was yelling. There was singing. There were snarky remarks. There was quotes. There was so much candy.

It was a ton of fun- but admittedly would have been less so had it not been for the amazing weather, great friends, and campy, fun movie.

Jeb & Jeremiah: Alive in 2010

There is a problem with indie theater today- not enough show times. They just don't have the money. They go up, they close and if they are lucky enough to have a reviewer attend, it does little good when the review comes out. It gives readers and potential theater patrons about two shows to see before the show is rushed out of the theater. This year's Hollywood Fringe Festival is no exception-

That is why I, here at Old Hollywood Calls, have opted to do a pre-show, completely biased, review of Jeb and Jeremiah: Alive in 2010!!!!

Written by David Janove, with music by Collin Martin, Jeb and Jeremiah's opening could be right out of Singing in the Rain. The world famous silent comedy duo of Jeb (Clay Keller) and Jeremiah (Russell Ford) are on the verge of smashing success and the verge of "talkies."

At the request of their producer Marcy (Annie Chernecky, channeling her best Kate Hepburn) they move forward on their first "talkie," a musical about love. The best friends brain storm, and shortly after they learn that all love doesn't end in pedophilia, something strange happens: TIME TRAVEL!

In the future (our present) we quickly scoot past some off-color jokes to a bevy of strange characters (including, but not limited to): a hyper-sexual Rachel (played with a childlike intensity by the lovely Kate Alden), the elderly Francis (Craig Shields), a chorus of library singers and the least threatening gangsters you've ever met.

In a Wizard of Oz-esque fashion, our characters journey to find their way home (stopping of course, along the way, for a handful of musical numbers).

Ladies and gentleman, this show is funny. Aside from some stand-out one liners written by Janove (who also directs) the cast is on top of their game when it comes to improv and comedic timing. A challenge anyone to watch Russell's comedic idiocy without laughing, especially when paired with Clay's stone faced Jeb.

Vocally, Britt Keller, as young Francis is the stand out. Her solo during the opening number is gorgeous, and I couldn't help but wish for her to sing more in the show. That's not saying the rest of the cast is something to plug your ears for. Their all perfectly capable singers, who thanks to Martin's gorgeous music - are made to sound extraordinary. The songs are yet another high point of the show, ranging from the gorgeous, with "Someone to Sing With" to the wildly comedic "Train to Ohio" (which is young Kimmy Shield's time to shine as a puppy drowning gold-digger).

So what I suppose I'm trying to say here is COME TO THIS DAMN SHOW. It's funny. The cast is talented (and good-looking) and it's an all around good time. Come for the fun that you'll have in the audience and that feel-good feeling when you leave.

The costumes look fantastic (shameless plug! I did them) but the credit has to go to the extremely passionate, dedicated, talented and ballsy David Janove and Collin Martin.

Showtimes: Click here!

Tickets: Click here!

See you in the future/past/theater!

Playing Dress Up: A Blog About Costumes

My current Hollywood excursion has involved a lot less alcohol and a lot more money. What could I possibly be spending money on that isn't booze and rent? Costumes.

Have no fear, it's not MY money, but rather that of the production JEB & JEREMIAH: ALIVE IN 2010.

I wouldn't exactly call myself new to the costume scene, but this is only my second costuming excursion in LA (the others, all being for short films in Orange County). Don't get me wrong, there was certainly a high frequency of trips to LA when we needed things we couldn't find in the thrift stores/costume stores/fabric stores in Orange County - but now... now it's all LA, baby.

Costumes are important to any production because they do a fascinating trick. Acting aside, they take a person you could see on the street and make them someone else. It does this not only for the audience, but also for the actor. Costumes are important to actors to find the character inside themselves. Inside the clothes.

Prepare yourself, this is going to be a long one (you wish that what she said. or he. I don't judge). Items of discussion in the most important costuming blog: Design, Film, Theater, Colors, Stores & Jeb and Jeremiah

Lets get into this then, shall we?

DESIGN

I'll admit to you now, I don't sew. It makes being a costume designer difficult. It's on my list of things to learn. So for now, I design and then find the pieces to match my vision. It's difficult, but it works for now. If I had an arsenal of seamstresses my life would be much easier. Design is important though. You've got to know what you want. Walking into the stores I shop at can be an overwhelming experience and if you don't know what you're looking for- you'll quickly get lost in blazers and trench coats and sweaters. that being said, sometimes you stumble upon a piece that throws your design out the window. Be prepared to let it go. The piece you find is better than the one in your head.

FILM

You can get away with a lot less in film, because sometimes the camera is closer to the outfit than you'd ever want. It's for THIS reason that I find pre-made pieces, as opposed to try and make them myself. For S.S. HUMANITY we needed white jumpsuits that we then ended dying light blue for camera. How I wish we could have simply found light blue tops to begin with. The end result was fine, but I was terrified that my uneven bucket dye job would show on camera.

THEATER

Much more freedom, and much more room for fun. It might just be a misguided notion in my head, but I feel like you can get away with so much more on stage because it doesn't need to look as real. You can be extravagant. You can play with color. You can be surreal. I know you can do this in film, but in my opinion you can get away with stylization so much more in theater. Unless you work for Tim Burton. The thing about theater costumes, more than film, is that they need to look like they belong together. Lots of characters on stage need to look like they're from the same world. That's why, when it came to costuming DOG SEES GOD, Anna and I used American Apparel for all our base colors.

Well that... and the fact that we fucking love American Apparel.

COLORS

I love playing with color more than anything else. Sure, you can learn things from fabric and cut, but COLOR, my goodness. I really love colors. All of them. It's my high school background in art, I think, that makes color so important to me. Never just put someone in a color. Every color means something. Every color means multiple things. And what about color combinations? And what about when there's a change in color for an actress? What internal change does it represent? There is a simpler character in JEB AND JEREMIAH who I am costuming in primary colors to illustrate her simple nature. Things like that... things that NO ONE will EVER notice- those are the types of things I love in costuming. In THE SPRINKLER we transitioned the old man from Velcro shoes to lace up to illustrate his gained mobility. Do I think anyone caught it? No. But they registered it subconsciously. (That last bit.... not about color. Sorry!)

Jumping back to the primary colors real quick - if you ever work with me you will quickly learn that primary colors are my signature. It's how I leave my mark on things. I try and incorporate them somewhere in everything artistic I do.

STORES

Squaresville- I first came across Squaresville when costuming A VISIT OF CHARITY. It's a vintage store tucked away on Vermont Avenue. It's phenomenal and I make trips out there often (especially since Ozzie Dots it right over there). Most of the stores I hit up are vintage stores, since most of the things I end up costuming are vintagey feeling, if not set in the past completely.

Ozzie Dots- Part costume store, part vintage store. What more could you ask for? Props? Okay, it's got them too. It's amazing and I could spend HOURS in there. Lesley and I have. Mikey and I have. Alison and I have. It's terrific.

American Vintage- It's on Melrose. It's great and the cheapest of all the vintage stores mentioned here.

Jet Rag- It's huge. The biggest of all of these by far. Two stories of excellence. Sundays they have a 1$ sidewalk sale. Check it out. Also vintage.

American Apparel- I swear I'm not endorsed by them. The plain colors and standard pieces are great building blocks to costumes.

JEB AND JEREMIAH

One of my most daunting challenges yet. A play that starts in the 1920's and then time travels to the present. I needed to be able to create not just one world with costumes - but two.

Here's a look at the two most opposite costumes in the show: Jeb and Jeremiah's and the sexy dancers. If that doesn't make you want to see the show, I don't know what will. Check it out. I had a lot of fun with this one. Hitting all the aforementioned stores. It's gonna be a good one.

The reason I end on Jeb and Jeremiah is so that I can urge you all to see it, as its coming soon. There will be more on Jeb and Jeremiah in the weeks to come. Stay tuned.

Can't Take My Eyes Off of You: A Blog About Karaoke

Who doesn't love karaoke? Janove and I went to the Little Bar on Monday for Nora's birthday and I sang "Can't Take My Eyes Off You." It's a fun little diddy, and I'd like to think I sang it well (except for that time I came in early from the "instrumental break." I hate those things....)

Anyways, I looked around and found myself surrounded by two types of people. There were the ones that came to have a good time (have a couple drinks, slur a rendition of "I've Got Friends in Low Places") and then there are the regulars. They're the ones who come every week. They're the ones that have an ARSENAL of songs at their disposal. They know the DJ. They're good. Like really good. Like I'm a white guy crooning Beyonce's "Listen" good. But they're not having fun. No, no. They're singing to be DISCOVERED.

NEWS FLASH: Karaoke bars are full of drunk friends and tools like you. The Hollywood myth of being discovered by an off duty record producer who happens to stumble into a Karaoke bar...ISN'T TRUE. Who is the last singer out there that you can think of that comes from this type of a background? Oh right... NO ONE. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET DISCOVERED AT A KARAOKE BAR. So shut your trap, make fun of the drunken idiots and have a good time.

Don't get me wrong, you are still allowed to sing well. Sing well for your friends, sing well for your colleagues, for the strangers at the bar and for that cute guy or girl that you've had your eye on all night.

It's not a good place to be discovered professionally, but karaoke is a PERFECT place to be discovered by your next boyfriend or girlfriend. There you are, spotlit on the stage, singing an off key version of "I Just Can't Wait to Be King." Three minutes and twenty-three seconds of all eyes on you, including his/hers. Come on people, seize this opportunity. Smile, have fun, make eye contact. So much easier than meeting him/her at a regular bar.

Karaoke was MADE for getting all eyes on you. Just not those of a music producers.

So it begins...

My life in Orange County is slowly drawing to a close, and the next logical step is LA.

My lease here is up at the end of May, and then I'm off to LA. I began the apartment hunt with Lauren and Janove. We hit up a few places in Los Feliz and North Hollywood. Later that night, Nora and I went on a spontaneous adventure back to LA. We were trying to see Cake Eaters, but missed the movie and ended up eating at Du-Par's (best Raspberry Pie, ever) and driving around La Brea, Hollywood and WeHo looking at apartment buildings. Somewhere in there is probably here I'll end up. I'm only young once, might as well be in as much of a city as my industry will let me. I'm not ready for suburbia. I hope we all end up close together, though.

I'm super excited. Dreading the finances of it all. I made it this far up the mountain, now I'm looking over the edge. Getting ready to jump.