Tommy Curry @ The Pig n' Whistle and the Great Apartment Hunt of 2010

This weekend started out at 8PM at the Pig n' Whistle on Hollywood Blvd. My friend Tommy Curry (check him out here).

After a wonderfully folksy set, a few drinks and plenty of back and forth with the enthusiastic audience of about 25, Tommy played his last song (which was featured in his sister's short film) and called it a night.

Mikey and I, however, did not.

To Fiesta we went where we ran into a friend of Mikey's and his friends.

Cut to it being 4 in the morning and I'm finally pulling myself into bed. It was an epic night of too many drinks (I blame you, Jeremy! Sweet Tea Vodka is the death of me).

And then there was the pizza, networking, and hanging out in an apartment talking.

I'd be remiss if I didn't share this story though: Jeremy and I are walking to my car and are stopped by two teenagers (1 male, 1 female). The conversation went something like this:

Teenage Boy: Can we ask you kind of a weird question?

Jeremy: Sure.

Teenage Boy: How much would you pay my friend or I to blow you?

Marcus: Nothing.

Teenage Girl: Okay, what if it wasn't us. How much would you pay someone?

Marcus: Nothing.

Jeremy: I don't know.

Teenage Girl: We asked that other guy over there and he said 60 bucks.

Jeremy: We wouldn't.

And with that we walked away. Did we just get solicited by prostitutes? Because I think we did....

I pulled myself out of bed Saturday morning to begin

The Great Apartment Hunt of 2010.

Here's some pictures of what we found.

Notable highlights:

-Mr. Bess, an elderly landlord who lectured Denny and I on the trouble with America today (it was credit cards)

-A landlord who described the tenants of her building as "kids that belong on a TV show"

-Denny starving

-Passing the Fat Burger on Santa Monica 17 times

-Running around LA with Denny

-The apartment that smelt like cat pee

And this gem, the potential future home of Denny and I....

and that was just Friday and Saturday....

Writing is Rewriting

Many of you know about it, but the Internet has not been graced with my tales of rewriting this script for RKO. The title and premise shall at this time remain nameless but let's just say the original was something like this....

and we want to make it more like this...

It was at first an exciting endeavor. I quickly got over that. Shit, rewriting is hard. Like really hard. Luckily, I'm not personally invested in any of the previous material. My own feature, sits untouched after the first draft because of this challenge. It is a challenge all writers face. So I quickly got over my excitement to make a gem and stared at 100 daunting pages of terrible dialogue and action blocks. The only thing this script had was a premise... and even that needed work. How on Earth was I going to do this?

What works for me:

DEADLINE: If I don't have a deadline it will never get done. My boss said "as fast as possible." Those words literally meant nothing to me. It wasn't until I told myself that I needed to be done June 1 that I actually got my ass in gear and started working.

SPACE: If it's my own work, I've got to put it down and separate myself from it for a while. If my story as-is is what's running through my brain, I'll never be able to look at it in a new light.

PLACE: I will never, ever, ever be able to write something in my apartment. I have to go somewhere else, with the simple purpose of writing. Solar de Cahuenga usually serves that purpose, but every now and then I'll change it up.

MUSIC: I currently have a playlist for the project I'm working on. Things that fit thematically, or tonally to whatever it is I'm writing at the time. Things on this project's playlist-

"Before He Cheats" - Carrie Underwood

"Irreplaceable" - Beyonce (spellcheck doesn't recognize her name as a word. How dare they!)

"Love Kills" - Little Boots

COFFEE: Must have it to write. If it's late I'll drink decaf. It's a "setting" thing.

DELETE: I took the original. Read a scene. Deleted it and then rewrote it. It's much easier for me to do it that way then to try and change things in the document. It's slightly more work, but the work feels more like my own AND I'm less likely to let things slide, or just leave certain things that aren't working but I don't know how to get around sitting their on the page.

Now I just need to finish this. I'll be at Solar de Cahuenga tonight. And tomorrow night. And This weekend. And so on and so forth.

See you in the credits.

I Have Savage Love

Without even turning down the house lights, she comes onto the stage and begins adjusting her tits. Lady Gaga's Telephone has just faded away and I'm sitting in Chapman University's Waltmar Theater about to watch Savage Love by Sam Shepard and Joseph Chaikin and directed by Brian Drummy.

The play, traditionally presented as slam poetry by one actor, has had new life, young life, my life breathed into it by Brian Drummy who delivers a sexy and moving version of "Love." A relatable version, as Drummy points out "I took it as a challenge to interpret the play and bring to it some kind of relatable-ness for our generation (aka the people who would see it). We have to work from a playing of showing what we KNOW."

Set to thumping club beats, we are thrust into a dim lit bar, not unlike the bar down the street. The attractive cast takes the stage and begins primping for a night on the town. The dialogue of the play is interrupted by dance breaks, drunken ad-libbing and general merriment. Drummy seamlessly blends the abstract dialogue of the play with the party atmosphere.

Each of our good-looking twenty-something cast members is on the lookout for love, or at least - what they think is love. Bumping and grinding, alcohol and flirting. It all leads to sex, and as Drummy and his cast will have you believe, heartbreak.

Drummy cleverly breaks it up though. They've all got motives and it doesn't stay in the bar. With simple lighting tricks, Drummy takes us from the bar to the bathroom to a one-night stands apartment. The set is sparse, decorated with the players, as opposed to a bulky set.

The design is cool and vibrant. It's a place I want to go, I have been. The nameless actors are me. All of them. Their relationship is my relationship. It hit home, which was scary. Rarely does theater put me on the stage. I sit back as a third party observer, but Drummy tapped into my psyche - and based on the rest of the audience's reaction, their psyche too.

The cast is, with one exception, perfect. They were, after all, playing extended versions of themselves. Drummy on his directing process, "I told them to come from more of a place of what experiences they've had in love." Liza Dealey-Thomason is a stand out, capturing the voluptuous and wounded lover in such a way that I couldn't take my eyes off of her. According to director Drummy, she received a Kennedy nomination for her work. No one is more deserving. Drummy commended her on being uninhibited physically, which opened her up emotionally.

Overall its an absolutely phenomenal piece of theater. The best thing I've seen on the Chapman main stage. The choices by both director and cast were commendable and I wish I could watch it again. It's the type of play you could watch a hundred times and see something new each and every one. It's the type that changes depending on your mood, age and relationship status. It ends on a sour emotional note, suggesting we never learn, but if we watch this version enough, we just might.

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.

Areas I Love: Melrose Avenue

Time for Part II of "Areas I Love"!

You all have heard of the street, most of you probably have even watched the TV show at one point in your life. Recently, I've started to actually spend time on Melrose (in part because friends live close, in part because I need clothes and in part because it's awesome)

The part of Melrose I frequent lies between La Brea and Fairfax, and if you ignore the Ed Hardy- I really like most of the stores and restaurants. Melrose is the go-to street for wardrobe and fashion.

But as you'll see, the food isn't half bad either.

Here's a rundown of places on Melrose I enjoy:

Kazuyo Sushi

Nora and I first stumbled upon this when searching for a Sushi restaurant near us. It's incredible and kind of classy. The sushi is gigantic and delicious. Their popcorn lobster roll is to die for. I'd call it my favorite sushi place in all of L.A.

Urban Outfitters

Don't act surprised that this is on the list. I love myself some Urban. My closet can testify to that. This is the closest one to me, so naturally it enhances my opinion of the area. Not to mention that a few streets down is-

American Apparel

I don't think I need to say any more. I basically can get all of my shopping done on this stretch of Melrose.

American Vintage

In addition to Urban and AA, there is American Vintage which is hands down my favorite second hand store in the area. So many clothes. So many time periods. It's great for costuming, and even greater when I get to find stuff for myself.

This is where I found the giraffe costume that lead to a stellar Halloween. American Vintage is by no means the only vintage store on the block as well, so wander around. You'll find what you need.

Melgard

I just went here today, but can guarantee I'll be back. The beer variety is huge (not that I'm a huge drinker) and the outdoor patio is great. If this hasn't won you over already, happy hour will: Buy a beer (6 bucks) and get a free pizza. Yes. An entire pizza. Not just a slice. Make sure you do it on separate tabs though. It's one pizza per card.

8 0z

Another great place for beer, but even better for burgers. You can build your own burger and anything you could possibly want on it is available. Fried pickles? Not for me...but hey - you might like them. Get the garlic fries. Trust me.