LaLaLiving

Frost/Nixon May 25, 2007

We saw Frost/Nixon tonight.  Spectacular.  When I bought the tickets I knew it had been a smash in London, and the Broadway production was getting rave reviews, but I still had doubts as to how they were pulling off all this brilliance about nothing more than a series of interviews.  Would it just be two men on stage recreating hours of transcripts?

Well, a beautifully orchestrated plot, combined with an outstanding cast, blew us away.  The play even elicited sympathy for Nixon…quite an achievement, eh?

Ode to Kitch

After oversleeping (trying to recover from my flight), I finally got over to my grandmother’s for a visit. Grandma Z’s apartment is a study in genuine, non-ironic kitch, and I thought I’d post some highlights here because it really is a thing of wonder.

Butterfly wallpaper in the bathroom:

Wall of Birds:

Painting with Improvements:

Rotary Phone (she won’t let me replace it):

Box in a Box (you didn’t think they still existed did you?)

Neck Cramps and Icky Seats

A few travel notes:

Neck Cramps: JetBlue has stopped offering pillows on their red-eye flights. How is that possible? I was wary after Brian’s red-eye on Delta a few weeks ago had nary a pillow on board either. JetBlue did thankfully still have blankets, but that’s a small consolation. Thank goodness for my trusty inflatable neck pillow.

Grimy Cushions: Given that every subway train in NY has durable, long-lasting plastic seats, I wonder why the Port Authority went with cloth seats for the AirTran shuttle that services JFK. It’s been in operation for a few years now, and on this trip I noticed that the seats are looking pretty worn and icky. Hadn’t anyone on the selection staff been on the London tube, where all the locals I know refuse to sit on the cloth seats…ever?

Water Hostage May 24, 2007

I’m heading to NY for the holiday weekend to grab some quality together time with the beau. We blissfully made very few plans, so we can just relax and not run around trying to cram in too much. So I’m hanging out in the Burbank airport waiting for my red-eye flight.

Speaking of the ol’ Burbank airport, there is a monopoly on beverages here.

And every other airport I’ve ever been to, you can buy water at the newsstand or bookstore or whatever. At the Burbank Airport, the only stores selling drinks of any kind are the restaurants. And they charge at least $1 more than any other airport shop.

It’s weird. I’m just sayin’.

Heroes May 23, 2007

I finally watched the season finale of Heroes last night. It was hard avoiding talking to people about it for that twenty-four hour period. There was a lot of “lalalalaI’mnotlisteninglalalala” on my part.

Anyway, I’m a bit concerned about the future of Adrian Pasdar on the show. This man should be on TV, and I have thought so ever since the short-lived Profit aired on Fox in the ’90s. I got excited when he had some guest spots on Desperate Housewives, and then—BAM!—he’s a superhero every week on my television.

I’m not sure how the writers will get around his blowing up in the upper reaches of the atmosphere tho’. And they certainly haven’t shied away from killing off other characters (albeit less important ones). So I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

You aughta’ be on Broadway? May 20, 2007

A juicy nugget from today’s New York Times: Michael Eisner things his life should be made into a Broadway show.

He makes this remarkable statement in Laura Holson’s story about what retired and/or booted entertainment moguls do when they’re effectively put to pasture. And I quote, “I’m looking for a way to tell my story…I would love to tell my story on Broadway.”

Given that Broadway only seems to be able to produce musical versions of 1980s musicals these days, I’m not sure that’s going to happen for Mr. Eisner, but I wish him well.

My Debut May 18, 2007

I filmed my first episodes (plural!) of Life After Film School yesterday—pfew!

My call time was 8:00 am at Sony Studios, where I trudged from my car with about seven outfits (including five pairs of shoes) for the producers to choose from. Then I went off to hair and makeup where the lovely makeup artist Lygia performed her magic on me (we love her because she kept complimenting my eyes and hair). I had to go back into makeup three times to add more because apparently I am translucent on camera. I mean, I knew I was pale, but come on!

The two interviews I was assigned to were scheduled back-to-back, so it was just a tad stressful trying not to get the questions mixed up and/or wrong, especially since both interviews pertained to The Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. (Note: All the cast members suggest questions, email them to the producers, and then get then regurgitated back to us after approval and additions. Most of the time you don’t get the questions you suggested, and given the short turn-around time, we all have about two days to memorize everything. Aack. So, if you see me asking a lame question it’s totally and absolutely not my fault. Totally.)

First up: writer Don Payne. Don is actually an old friend of my dear friend Cindy’s (he was her boss at the UCLA media lab when she was an undergrad), an incredibly nice guy, AND a fellow UCLA alum, so great sigh of relief that he was “my first” (I think he was just as nervous as we were). Don has been a writer on The Simpsons for about nine years, and wrote the script for Silver Surfer (he also wrote My Super Ex Girlfriend). He’s a self-proclaimed geeky fanboy, so we had a good time chatting about his career and how influenced he was by his hero Stan Lee. For the big slam-bang finale we brought Stan out to meet Don in person—according to Don, they’d met only twice before: once at a book signing (where Don was one of several hundred people standing in line), and once on the Simpsons, when Stan did a guest spot, but Don was still one of about twenty writers. It’s awesome to see grown men get gushy.

Speaking of Stan, he was interview number two. What a charmer, that guy! I wonder if he’d adopt me. Sharp as a tack, and an amazing storyteller (I know, I know…shocker). I couldn’t do his stories justice here, so you’ll just have to watch the episode when it premieres June 3.

I really hope I didn’t make an arse of myself and/or look fat.

Molto Benne May 15, 2007

The beau was in town, and we finally got to try Pizzeria Mozza, the new(ish) restaurant from Nancy Silverton, Mario Batali, and Joseph Bastianich. We were joined by the lovely Margy and Robert, who are always down for a good meal. Lucky for us they are also long-time friends of Nancy’s, and I finally got to meet her after hearing so much about her all these years.

We tag-teamed the ordering so as to get a wide sampling of the menu. We started with chicken liver bruschetta, an artichoke, corn on the cob, and broccoflower, all spectacular. I have no idea how they prepared the corn, but Margy’s guess was in the pizza oven, which would explain its awesome crispiness (the being drenched in butter part certainly didn’t hurt either). And I’ve never been one for chicken liver, but this one was hard to refuse.

Next we moved on to the main dishes. We got three pizzas (Salami Piccante, Mozzarella & Hot Chilies; Squash Blossoms with Burrata & Tomato; and a special Pizzette with Fresh Peas) and the regular Tuesday special, crisp duck leg over lentils and saba. Each pizza was spectacular in its own way, but if I had to pick a favorite I’d go with the hot chilies. It was such a unique flavor, not overpowering at all.

And, please, if you go, save room for dessert. The Butterscotch Budino was to…die…for. Seriously. There’s a recipe for it in last week’s New York Times (accompanying a profile on Nancy and the restaurant). I am afraid to even attempt it, because I know mine will pale in comparison.

Thank goodness reservations are so hard to come by or I would gain fifty pounds and be broke within the month.

Pushing Daisies

A big congrats to Bryan F on getting his show, Pushing Daisies, picked up by ABC for the fall season!!  It will air Wednesday nights at 8:00.

There’s been a big void in my life since Wonderfalls was unceremoniously yanked from the airwaves, so I am SO looking forward to a weekly dose of Bryan TV again!

Happy Mother’s Day May 13, 2007

A happy happy mother’s day to my mom.

When I was home visiting a few weeks ago we talked about the time we lived in South Korea for eight months, while my dad was stationed there. My mom said she looked at the whole thing as an adventure, which it certainly was given that we had no running water and there were rats the size of dogs running around. But she would pack me up and grab a bus to the city or the countryside and explore. I can barely remember anything from that period, but I have lovely fuzzy memories or rice fields and Yos (the foam mattresses we slept on, and kept for years afterwards - they were the best sleepover tools ever).

At least I know where I got my travel gene from. Thanks mom. And I so wish you’d kept that coat for me.