My disease, the silent disease, that is, type II diabetes, is cramping my social calendar. I probably have a host of other health issues but that's the one in charge of me today. I have to go over to Cedars-Sinai to get some blood work done at the behest of my doctor. The last time I was in for my check-up, everything, all the 'numbers', as she says, were incredibly good. At least the ones she could read without the help of bloodwork. She was very encouraged. Remarkable difference, she said, from when I first came to see her nine months or so ago.
But I don't wanna go to a hospital and sit around for a few hours waiting to get my blood drawn. I wanna be free and run like the wind in the park and dance complicated Pakistani swivel-hipped dances under the stars.
Well, I don't want to be stuck in the hospital, that's certainly true.
Anyway.
I really can't go into too much detail with what I'm about to write next, but it bears mentioning. A screenwriter/producer (well known, with film credits out the ying-yang) type came to see the play I'm doing awhile back. He sent a message to me via our director that I was to contact him. Left his home number, etc. After a bit of confusion in getting the message to me, I finally called him a couple days ago.
He really liked my work, apparently. I won't go into what-all he said, but it was embarrassingly nice. Suffice to say, he really liked it. So we talked for quite awhile. Turns out this man is close friends with Jack Nicholson. In fact, he said he spent Sunday at Nicholson's house watching the Superbowl and he spoke to 'Jack' about 'this terrific performance onstage he had just seen.'
That's all well and good, but of course, it really means very little in terms of getting work. I learned long ago that actors rarely get other actors work. It happens, but not often. Yes, it was nice to know that somebody told the legendary Jack Nicholson about my work, but realistically, that's not really legal tender out here in Lala land.
But what IS legal tender is that this gentleman's son is a major casting guy out here. In fact he's in the middle of casting several pilots at the moment. So he said, "Send over your pic and res and reel right away. I want to personally hand it to my son with a verbal recommendation." Nice.
So I did. Angie, who's been in the wild and wacky film and tv business out here for many years, was tremendously excited. To me, regardless of this guy's stature in the film world (natually, being a dummy about this stuff, I immediately googled him...he's the real deal), I figured it was just another case of someone paying lip service to something they happened to like. But Angie didn't feel that way and consequently now I don't either. She said, "You don't understand. I've been in casting out here for twenty years. This is how things happen." Hm.
There's a lot more to the story, but that's really all I can relate at this point. As a buddy of mine, a very successful tv actor, said when I told him all about it, "It's a very good thing, a no-lose situation. It could turn out to be a small thing or a very big thing, but it's good no matter what." Whatever it turns out to be, at this point it's simply a wait and see kind of thing. More on that if and when it pans out.
It's another stunningly beautiful day here in Southern California. Franny and Zooey are staring at me wondering when the walk will commence. Angie and I have been taking them over to The Equestrian Center and Griffith Park (both literally around the corner from our house) and letting them run free. They love it, especially Franny. They completely ignore, for the most part, the horses and riders we encounter on the trails over there, which is a good thing. It's what I worried about most when we decided to take Franny (who is 13 months old now). He's, uh, easily distracted.
It's all good.
See you tomorrow.
