Happy Birthday, Bruce Dern!

"When you betray somebody else, you betray yourself."
_ Isaac Bashevis Singer, polish-born American Nobel Prize-winning author (1904-1991)

Happy Saturday! Today is Bruce Dern's 75th birthday! He has had a legendary career but my favorite movie that he appeared in is HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE. It happens to be one of the campiest most over the top films ever made. The ever reliable Bette Davis pulls out ALL the stops. Most die hard fans know that this film was supposed to be the follow-up film to the mega hit, Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?

Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte is a 1964 American thriller film directed by
Robert Aldrich, and starring Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead, and Bruce Dern.
Oh,those Bette Davis eyes.


In 1927, young belle Charlotte Hollis (Bette Davis)

and her married lover, John Mayhew (Bruce Dern), plan to elope during a party at the Hollis family's antebellum mansion in Ascension Parish, Louisiana.
However, after Charlotte's father intimidates him, telling him that John's wife had visited the day before and revealed the affair, John pretends he no longer loves Charlotte and tells her they must part.
An unusually long pre-credits sequence establishes the roots of faded Southern belle Charlotte's (Bette Davis) insanity; she'd been witness to the dismemberment murder of her fiance (Bruce Dern) and the suicide of the murderer, her own father (Victor Buono

ANOTHER AQUARIAN! My mom was born exactly one year later on the very same day!)

.
Born Victor Francis Buono in San Diego, California, he was a Vaudeville performer when offered a screen test at Warner Bros. in 1959. He soon became a regular on many TV series, most notable as the villain King Tut on "Batman" 1966 to 1968.

His other television credits included "77 Sunset Strip", "The Untouchables", "Get Smart", "The Wild, Wild West" and "The Odd Couple". He also had a successful career in films being nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?" (1962). His other films included "4 for Texas" (1963), "Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte" (1964), "The Greatest Story Ever Told" (1965), "The Silencers" (1966), "Who's Minding the Mint?" (1967), "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" (1970), "The Mad Butcher" (1972) and "Target Earth" (1980).

Director Robert Aldrich also did The Flight of the Phoenix- The Dirty Dozen-Apache-Vera Cruz- Kiss me Deadly-Hustle-The Longest Yard. One of my top five favorites of his.


"I wanted to be famous, just to make the kids who'd laughed at me feel foolish. I wanted to be rich, so I'd never have to do the awful work my mother did and live at the bottom of the barrel--ever. And I wanted to be a dancer because I loved to dance... Maybe the illusions, the daydreams, made life more tolerable, but I always knew, whether I was in school or working in some damned dime store, that I'd make it. (Funny, but I never had any ambition whatsoever to become an actress.)"
_Joan Crawford

(bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith)
Cause of death: Heart attack


Back to the movie...Charlotte remains a recluse in her decaying southern mansion, zealously guarding the secret of her father's guilt; she is cared for by her slatternly housekeeper (Agnes Moorehead). Directed and produced by Robert Aldrich, it was adapted for the screen by Henry Farrell and Lukas Heller, from Farrell's unpublished short story What Ever Happened to Cousin Charlotte?
When her house is targeted for demolition, Charlotte fears that this will uncover her lover's body parts and thus confirm that her father was a murderer.
She desperately summons her seemingly sweet-tempered cousin Miriam (Olivia De Havilland) to help her fight off the house's destruction. Miriam brings along the family doctor (Joseph Cotten) to calm Charlotte's frayed nerves. When Charlotte begins to be plagued by horrific visions of the homicide/suicide of so long ago, it appears that she has gone completely insane. But soon we learn who is behind these delusions...and why. Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte was intended by director Robert Aldrich as a follow-up to the successful Joan Crawford/Bette Davis horror piece Whatever Happened to Baby Jane (1962). Ms. Crawford was originally slated to play Miriam, but became seriously ill shortly before filming started. Davis, who disliked Crawford

intensely, suggested that the role of Miriam be filled by her best friend, De Havilland. On the first day of shooting, Davis and DeHavilland pulled a "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead" routine by toasting one another with Coca-Cola—a catty observation of the fact that Joan Crawford's husband was an executive with the Pepsi Cola company!
This was actress Mary Astor's final film.
The stories about Bette Davis and Joan Crawford's feud are now legendary. There are many stories and/or theories to the origins of this feud. One legendary story is that Bette Davis referred to her and Joan Crawford as "two old broads" when she appeared on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. Often referred to as "The First Lady of the American Screen," Bette Davis created a new kind of screen heroine. She was a liberated woman in an industry dominated by men.

She was known as an actress that could play a variety of difficult and powerful roles, and because of this she set a new standard for women on the big screen. Independent off-screen as well, her battles with studio bigwigs were legendary. With a career spanning six decades, few in the history of film rival her longevity and appeal.
Read her complete biography.
See for yourself tonight on TCM Sat, Jun 4, 10:00 PM Payment on Demand




A cripple lies slumped on the floor, helpless; while the other, a grotesquely made-up gargoyle with long blonde ringlets, stands over her, viciously kicking her from head to foot.


It was a scene from one of the most celebrated movies ever made, the 1962 classic What Ever Happened To Baby Jane?.
But the violence was mirrored by reality.

Bitter rivals: Joan Crawford, left, and Bette Davis in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane

For the two protagonists were played by the most bitter of enemies: Hollywood's rival queen bees, Bette Davis and Joan Crawford

, who had detested each other for 30 years and would do so to their graves.

Davis, the attacker in the movie, was supposed only to simulate violence.

But as she raised and swung her right foot, encased in a black ankle strapped shoe, she made contact with Crawford's head, gashing her scalp, which needed three stitches, and causing a lump the size of an egg.

It was the climax of Hollywood's most deadly feud.

The enmity had festered for decades, despite repeated public denials by both women that it existed.

Davis maintained this fiction even two years after Crawford's death.


Asked in 1979 by a reporter about the enemies she had made in the motion picture business, Davis replied: "Enemies? I have no enemies. Who?"

"Joan Crawford?" ventured the journalist.

In a tone of "sugared innocence", Davis insisted: "Miss Crawford and I weren't enemies.


The Official Web Site of Bette Davis has everything you want to know about this silver screen legend. Read her biography and learn about this talented and fiery actress.
Browse the photo gallery for pictures of Bette on and off the screen! Click here for more!





Joan Crawford (March 23, 1905 – May 10, 1977),born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre.
They made one film together. According to Bette Davis, they didn't know each other at all.

Do YOU buy that?
"Most of her rivals are now dead," Joan Crawford once mused, "and Miss Davis would like to present herself as just another little old lady in tennis shoes."

Is there question that Davis lied about their relationship?

Her hatred of Crawford was real enough, and away from the media, Davis heaped scorn on her rival's memory until the end of her days.
But what is less known is the reason for this antipathy. This is one theory I found on line. It is definitely open for speculation: On both sides, it was highly personal and sensitive, and was a case of unrequited love.

Crawford, a promiscuous bisexual, was in love with Davis but was rebuffed. Her co-star was firmly heterosexual.

Yet, an added dimension meant it was on Davis's part that the antagonism was most fierce.

This has remained secret for more than 70 years, but Davis, on her last visit to London two years before her death, the love of Bette's life was a man she could never marry because he became Joan Crawford's second husband.
"She took him from me," Davis admitted bitterly in 1987. "She did it coldly, deliberately and with complete ruthlessness. I have never forgiven her for that and never will."

When she uttered these words, Crawford

had been dead for ten years, and Davis, gaunt and wizened from a stroke and a mastectomy, was almost 80. Yet, the hatred remained intense.

This amazing saga of love and possession began in 1935 when Bette Davis was 27, and was cast by her studio, Warner Bros, in the role that was to win her the first of her Best Actress Oscars.

In the melodrama Dangerous, Davis played Joyce Heath, a neurotic, egomaniacal alcoholic actress, loosely based on the Broadway star Jeanne Eagels, who died from a heroin overdose aged 35.

Playing opposite her, as the architect who tries to rehabilitate the fallen star, was the tall, dark and attractive 30-year-old actor Franchot Tone, born into a well-off New York family and a graduate of Cornell University.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-566502/The-bitter-sexual-jealousy-Bette-Davis-wage-war-Joan-Crawford.html#ixzz1OJqkVTrx


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-566502/The-bitter-sexual-jealousy-Bette-Davis-wage-war-Joan-Crawford.html#ixzz1OJqGAXmC


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-566502/The-bitter-sexual-jealousy-Bette-Davis-wage-war-Joan-Crawford.html#ixzz1OJpUVtTZ

Sources: YOU TUBE, The bitter sexual jealousy that made Bette Davis wage war on Joan Crawford

By MICHAEL THORNTON

Read more


The Best of Everything: A Joan Crawford Encyclopedia


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Tomorrow's blog will be about YOU TELL ME!! I'm open to suggestions

Please contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/foundation.htm
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED SUMMER!
Richard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com

A TALE OF TWO LIZAs: Richard DeFonzo and Christine Pedi!

"It is best to act with confidence, no matter how little right you have to it."
Lillian Hellman, American playwright (1905-1984)
Happy Friday!
You may notice with today's blog that it is a new name and a new look! I want to thank all of you who are currently following my blog. I hope you like the new name and look. I'm always interested in getting your feedback.Please forward my blog to at least 5 people today and help me expand my readership.
Today, I wanted to present my friends Richard DeFonzo and Christine Pedi. We'll start with Richard DeFonzo!

Richard DeFonzo belts out live as he gives an exciting and fun filled performance as Liza Minnelli in LIZA'S BACK WITH TRUE CONFESSIONS! Funny and vulnerable, Richard bears more than just a resemblance to the legendary Liza. His show, a one-hour cabaret theater piece, gives you a taste of Minnelli at her best or should we say at his best. During the evening, DeFonzo pays tribute to Liza's famous mother and father along with some of the men in her life.

"One of NY's most glamorous entertainers."
-- Herald & Post, London

"DeFonzo is the premier Liza impersonator."
- HX MAGAZINE
The creative team includes Musical director Jeff Buchsbaum, costume creations by Michael Louis, make-up design and photography by Devon Cass. Orchestrations are by Gene Sironen of the Vegas strip, production supervision and publicity by David Fobair. The show includes some of Minnelli's signature songs such as New York New York, Cabaret, Some People, Old Friends and The World Goes Round. Mr. DeFonzo has performed in London, Holland and Brussels.

"Thumbs up! You were wonderful!" - David Gest

In the U.S. he's played The Tropicana Casino and Resort, and prominent New York clubs including Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, Tavern On The Green, The Plaza Hotel for Eloise and The Waldorf Astoria. In addition, he has also played some of the hot spots in New York such as The Cutting Room, The Triad and The Duplex. He performed for David Gest at his bachelor party and entertained at Bette Midler's Halloween Bash at the Marriot Marquis New York. He was featured in the VH1 special entitled Boys Will Be Girls.
Visit http://www.rdasliza.com for more information.
"DeFonzo does a rousing job as Judy's Daughter." -Time Out New York

"DeFonzo is the most fetching Liza impersonator." - New York Post

"One of NY's most glamourous entertainers." - Herald & Post, London


"You Were Incredible." - Brian Thomas (Liza's Choreographer)

Richard is also now appearing as Joan Rivers!
Richard first discovered Joan River's

when she sat in for Johnny Carson.
He loved and connected with her sense of humor, so much that he persuaded his Mother to let him stay up past his bed time to see her when she was on.

Not knowing that many years later he would be on the "red carpet" impersonating her.

Richard recently did the red carpet for Marc Ecko's birthday party and hosted the Gala for the "Stop AIDS" benefit in Cincinnati Ohio as well as the Marriage Equality Oscar Party in NJ.
Most recently he was seen working the red carpet in Atlantic City at Trump Taj Mahal.
He most recently went "Anchors Away"when he hosted and entertained on the Carnival Legend.
He also donates his time to many great causes like raising money for the homeless shelter and soup kitchen in the East Village.
At any given time, Richard will bring a splash of fun and humor to any private or corporate event from Fire Island to LA he'll make you'll feel like a STAR at your next event.

"One of NY's most glamorous entertainers."
-- Herald & Post, London

Please contact Richard using following info : E- mail rd10025@aol.com or Richarddefonzo@hotmail.com VM 917-667-5782.
At the age of eight Richard saw Cabaret for the first time and told his mother that he wanted to meet that lady, never imagining that he actually would one day be a Liza Minnelli female impersonator in New York City strutting his stuff as Liza some years later. He totally identifies with Liza Minnelli and when performing brings her electrifying stage personality to life when belting out such numbers as Cabaret, Some People and the show stopping New York, New York
.
When interpreting one of Liza's ballads, Richard possesses a sense of vulnerability that we have learned to identify with her legendary magnetic persona.

Richard got his start at West Chester University where he was a double major studying music and theatre.
But at the same time he was longing to be in the hustle and bustle of New York and wanted to study with the best.
He auditioned at the American Musical And Dramatic Academy.
After he graduated he went on to study acting with Zina Jasper for eighteen years.
At the same time he worked for many years in Musical Theatre, dramas, TV and Film. Twelve years ago Richard put on his first pair of eye lashes when he took the stage as the Legendary Liza Minnelli. Not long after that he started asking people "Who you wearing?"
Since then he has performed to a standing ovation at the 13th Annual Reel Awards at the Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles.

He was featured on the VH1 special “Boys Will Be Girls" which played for many weeks. He also did a commercial for A&E when Liza's Biography aired. Richard entertained at Bette Midler's annual Halloween bash, he received great press in several of New York's major papers for his performance at David Gest's bachelor party, and played at The Tropicana Casino and Resort. Additionally he has performed at various hot spots in New York such as Don't Tell Mamas where he did "The Dueling Diva's Show" with Devon Cass(as Cher), "Liza's Back! With A Vengeance" and threw Liza a 60th Birthday party as well. He's also played such places as FEZ, Danny's Skylight Room, The Cutting Room, Therapy, The Triad, The Duplex, Lips, The Supper Club on Broadway, Barracuda, Splash, Webster Hall and Helens.









Our next Liza is a real woman! And truly one of the best, Christine Pedi!
Christine's work as a musical theatre singer & comedienne in the off-Broadway satirical revues FORBIDDEN BROADWAY & FORBIDDEN HOLLYWOOD has earned her a Drama Desk nomination, an LA Ovation award & lots of frequent flyer miles (Tokyo, Singapore, Australia & London’s West End.) She spoofs a whole new stable of characters (real and imagined) this season in NEWSical the Musical off-Broadway, and her fun and festive annual holiday show THERE'S NO BIZNESS LIKE SNOW BIZNESS has become a beloved tradition at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.
On Broadway she appeared in Eric Bogosian's TALK RADIO starring Liev Schrieber, and LITTLE ME starring Martin Short and Faith Prince.
Other credits include FANTASY FOOTBALL at NYMF (NEW YORK MUSICAL THEATRE FESTIVAL) and PROJECT SHAW's presentation of GBS’s ON THE ROCKS at the Players Club. Other stage roles include several A TRAIN PLAYS, THE 24 HOUR PLAYS, Edith Wharton's XINGU, Fanny Brice, Audrey in LITTLE SHOP, DALLIANCE IN VIENNA at the American Theatre of Actors, A BROADWAY DIVA CHRISTMAS and Carlotta the Gypsy Cow (don’t ask.)
She is the proud host of THE BROADWAY BREAKFAST on SIRIUS/XM RADIO where she plays the music of the stage & screen and interviews show biz legends (Mon-Fri, 9a-3p ET.) She shares the mic with the “amaaaaahzing” Seth Rudetsky on Saturdays for DUELING DIVAS (9a-3pET.)

NOW I HAVE EVERYTHING: THE LYRICS OF SHELDON HARNICK

This is a master class in musical theatre acting and a heck of an entertaining night out....we get an actress who digs deep into her material to reveal unexpected moments of emotional honestly and empathetic humor ...

-Michael Dale - Broadwayworld.com

She's naturally funny, she's a thoughtful and resourceful actor, and she's got a sturdy belt she can modulate at will... so good that she conjures a world around the songs simply through her actions.Taking a Harnick quote having to do with the "vast and inconceivable affair that is the universe" as her mantra, Pedi made the hour a fast and well-conceived affair.

-David Finkle - Back Stage

Her cabaret show GREAT DAMES (2008 New York NightLife Award, Backstage Bistro Award, MAC nominaton and “Top Ten Memorable Theatre Moments of the Year” on BroadwayWorld.com.) has performed in South Africa (Cape Town, Jo'burg & Durban,) London's Jermyn Street Theatre and all over the U.S. SHOW BUSINESS WEEKLY named her 2007's “Best Female Cabaret Performer.”
She’s performed on the NY Cabaret stages of Birdland, The Metropolitan Room, The Beechman & The Algonquin Oakroom, earning a MAC Award award & several nominations, as well as a guest spot on John McD's Cabaret Corner on the Rosie O'Donnell Show.


"I can't imagine any cabaret lover not having an absolutely wonderful time so long as Christine Pedi has a microphone in her hand. ...what makes it work so beautifully is the range of artistry she shows as a song interpreter when the masks are lowered and it's just Christine Pedi up there. It's not the first cabaret show where she's sung "as herself," but her latest stint shows she's truly coming into her own in matters of showing maturity, vulnerability and sex appeal."

-Michael Dale - Broadwayworld.com

Guest appearances include Avery Fisher Hall, the Broadway by the Year series at Town Hall, Sardi's, the Palace Theatre, the Queen Elizabeth 2 & the Queen Mary 2 and the BROADWAY UP CLOSE series at The Kaufman Center.
She performed with Marvin Hamlisch & the Indianapolis Symphony as well as many other orchestras throughout the U.S. & Canada, and has sung for President and Mrs. Clinton (playing Hilary Clinton.)

"Christine Pedi's Great Dames at The Metropolitan Room was nothing but moments - every one a winner. If you missed it, you'll have to wait until fall to see her again unless she bows to pressure and provides an encore engagement. A veteran of Forbidden Broadway who co-starred in the revival of Talk Radio, Pedi is a deceptively versatile performer who's equal parts great actress and diva vocalist. Watch for her return soon!

-Next Magazine - David Hurst

SOPRANOS fans may recognize her as the dearly departed Mrs. Bobby Baccala (2 episodes, 4 scenes, 5 lines ... DEAD! But he loved her so much he couldn't defrost her ziti for months.)

Recordings include her soon-to-be-released studio album “Good To Mama,” as well as “GREAT DAMES: Live at the Metropolitan Room,” "Forbidden Broadway 2001: A Spoof Odyssey", "Forbidden Broadway Strikes Back," "Forbidden Hollywood," "Forbidden Broadway: Vol. 3," "Jekyll & Hyde," "Little Me," "Quel Fromage,” and “Broadway Musicals of 1962.”

Christine Pedi is one of New York's favorite performers, an accomplished singer and satirist who has appeared repeatedly in Forbidden Broadway. .... Pedi shifts gears as smoothly as a limo driver, from Garland to Merman to Katie Hepburn; from a saccharine- sweet When You're Good to Mama, to a chillingly vengeful warning to Henry Higgins, Just You Wait.

Check out http://www.christinepedi.com


Thanks for being a loyal reader of my blog! I wanted to give you heads up on big news coming on June 5th.


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Tomorrow's blog will be about YOU TELL ME!! I'm open to suggestions

Please contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/foundation.htm
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED SUMMER!
Richard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com

Celebrating The "M"s of Music: MacDonald, Matsuki, Miles, and Mimi!

"Vox populi, vox humbug." (The voice of the people is the voice of humbug.)-Gen. William T. Sherman, Union Military Leader (1920-1891), in a letter to his wife written on this date in 1863


In yesterday's blog, I wrote about how much I despise cell phone usage in the the theatre. I'll go a step further. I dislike it in restaurants, parks, when I go for my evening walk. Can you challenge yourself not to take your cell phone with you UNLESS you are in a situation where you are meeting someone. Logistically, it MIGHT be needed. Yesterday, a study came out that excessive cell phone usage causes cancer.
How did we manage 25 years ago? 1986! Not that long ago.
The internet and social media is a two edged sword. We are seeing that right now with Anthony Wiener. I guess no one is immune from "sexting" anymore! If you saw any of the press interviews yesterday, you saw a drowning man. Will be interesting to see what his next move is.


In recent years, chat boards sprung up all over the internet where people were constantly knocking each other and every other artistic endeavor that came down the path. And you didn't/don't even have to use your real name! Hatred can be spewed from an alias! One thing you can always say about me, I stand behind the power of my convictions. I will always sign my full REAL name. If I say it, I own it.
There are also MANY positives to social media. It IS connecting us on a level that we've never known before. Yes, some/most of it may be superficial to say the least. However, when someone like Mimi Hines accepts my friend request, it is very heady to me! This morning Lonnie Quinn "friended" me! Earlier this week,Jackie Josephs. I have the utmost respect for these professionals whose lives have been about their work and not about scandal. Joan Crawford once said, "People pay to see Joan Crawford, they're going to get Joan Crawford!".
Well today, once again, I'm writing about those that inspire me. Mimi, thank you for friending me. Now I have an opportunity to publicly thank you for all the joy you have given to me over the years. Your voice thrills me beyond end. I used to watch you Phil Ford on the talk shows and you always delivered the goods!
Check out Mimi's website at: http://www.mimihines.com
Mimi Hines is a singer and comedienne best known for her appearances on The Tonight Show and her work on Broadway. She replaced Barbra Streisand in the original production of Funny Girl. Hines was born July 17, 1933, in Vancouver, Canada, and resides in the United States.

Mimi Hines’s enduring career as a singer and a comedienne began August 28, 1958 when she and her partner, Phil Ford

, appeared for the first time on The Tonight Show.

Mimi sang “Till There Was You,” “Till There Was You,” cried, and Ford and Hines were in instant demand, frequently appearing on that show and many others.

Mimi Hines worked for a time in Anchorage, Alaska, where she met her partner Phil Ford, while they were working at different night clubs.

After headlining in all the top nightclubs and showrooms in the country, Mimi parlayed her career by replacing Barbra Streisand

on Broadway in "FUNNY GIRL", running this star vehicle for 18 months on her own star power. Following "FUNNY GIRL", Mimi starred in national touring companies of "I DO! I DO!" and "PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE", as well as star packages of "ANYTHING GOES", "NEVER TOO LATE", "PAJAMA GAME", "THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN", "NO, NO, NANETTE", "SUGAR" and many others. During this period, Mimi also recorded several very successful albums (recently released on compact disc by Harbinger Records) and appeared often on television.
Mimi Hines is a delight! In addition to tremendous talent, she exudes warmth, charm, and joie de vivre. She instantaneously connects with an audience; her look seems to say, "Aren't we having fun?"
In recent years Hines played at Feinstein's at the Regency in New York City

. She appeared with the Los Angeles Pops Orchestra and starred in national tours of "Sugar Babies" and "Nite Club Confidential" and on a recorded salute to Johnny Mercer called "Mostly Mercer". She toured the world for a year in the title role of "Hello, Dolly!" and starred in productions of "A Majority Of One" and "Can Can" in Florida and in revues featuring the songs of Alan and Marilyn Bergman titled "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" in Los Angeles, as well as the songs of Rodgers and Hart titled "This Funny World" at the Kennedy Center in Washington and the songs of Jerry Herman at The Schoenberg Theatre in L.A..
Mimi appeared as Mrs. Latimer on "FRASIER" and returned to Broadway in the Tommy Tune production of "GREASE", in which she kept the cast in line as the strict but loveable schoolteacher, Miss Lynch.
She also co-starred in the off-Broadway revival of Kander & Ebb's 70 GIRLS 70, with Jane Powell, Charlotte Rae

and Helen Gallagher, was a guest in the final week of "THE ROSIE O'DONNELL SHOW" and stopped the show nightly in two productions for L.A.'s REPRISE, as Letitia Primrose in ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY and as Pippin's wise Grandmother, Berthe, in PIPPIN (which role she recreated at 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle). Recently, she co-starred as Sister Mary Amnesia in the National Tour of the 20th Anniversary production of NUNSENSE, along with Kaye Ballard, Georgia Engel, Lee Meriwether and Darlene Love and starred in AND THEN SHE WROTE at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Springs with Peter Marshall and Christine Andreas. Most recently, she starred in THE FULL MONTY at the Maltz Theatre in Jupiter, FL and the City Center ENCORES production of FOLLIES, causing one critic to comment that "she rips into 'Broadway Baby' with comic ferocity resembling that of a lion at dinnertime, building a bridge between the musical theatre lost and the musical theatre yet to come" and another critic to call her "the living embodiment of show business". Mimi, who was born in Vancouver, currently resides in Las Vegas when she is not on tour.
And, yes, she still does her classic impression of the NBC Peacock upon request. (Source: Mimi's website) Love you, Mimi!

And now...the other 3 "M"s! Forget the three Bs of music. It's the 3 Ms: Jeanne & Sue & Miles at The Palace!

Monday, June 27 · 7:00pm - 10:00pm
Waterbury Palace Theater
100 East Main Street

This event happened because Sue Matsuki, who is now a blonde!, is teaching a Cabaret Class for Seniors through the Osher Learning Center for continued education up at UCONN in Waterbury affectionately called OLLI. Two of Sue's students will be appearing in the show as well. One of them is 93 years young. Sue is in love with her class. They can all sing like you can't believe!
Miles Phillips: Multiple Award-winning (MAC, Nightlife, Drama-Logue, Joseph Jefferson) actor, director, nightclub vocalist and recording artist with appearances in theaters, concert halls and nightclubs from Honolulu to London. He has countless leading New York and regional theatre roles, numerous film and television appearances, a popular solo album and a score of original and studio cast recordings to his credit. His leading man charm, glorious voice and passionate artistry have established him as one of New York's most celebrated male vocalists.

His latest solo show “…Reappearing In My Mind” recently played a triumphant engagement at Feinstein’s and has gone on to play to packed houses and standing ovations across the country.

"Miles Phillips is an actor/singer. He's also a very smart and perceptive artist. When he puts on a show you can expect an act as rich as a seven layer cake … He's comfortable singing in a variety of styles that segue easily from standards to pop and rock, but all of his material is lyric driven ... as a consequence, he often unearths fresh perspectives out of songs you thought you knew. He makes those new perspectives stick thanks to his skills as an actor. One of the - if not THE - most conceptually satisfying show of the year, it is performed with considerable charm, grace, and style."
Barbara & Scott Siegel / TalkinBroadway

For more information and performance schedule visit:
Miles' Facebook Artist Page: http://www.facebook.com/MilesPhillips.ArtistPage
Miles' Website: www.MilesPhillips.com

The Palace is a place that Tony Bennett and Linda Eder have played and it's HUGE (like 1200 seats) so this is a BIG deal for Sue to play her home town. It is also part of my Matsuki Production Company's New York Invasion Series (like we did in PA) but this one came about through her teaching. The guy who asked me to produce this show as part of this benefit knew Jeanne McDonald

and asked Sue to get her on the bill and then said to "bring a boy" and Miles is the perfect choice! Sue has a LOT to celebrate. She just retired from over 21 years at Slome Capital!
'An Evening of Cabaret at The Palace'
A Fundraiser to benefit the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Connecticut

Monday, June 27, 2011
7:00 PM – Reception • 8:00 PM – Performance

Tickets:
$100 - Front Orchestra (limited seats)
$65 - Orchestra
$45 - Rear Orchestra

Reserve Tickets at Palace Box Office
Phone: 203-346-2000
Online: www.palacetheaterct.org
Musical Director: Tracy Stark

Jeanne MacDonald: 2008 MAC Award Winner • 2008 New York Nightlife Award Finalist for Female Vocalist • Back Stage Bistro and MAC Hanson Awards • Julie Wilson Award for excellence in cabaret - Lincoln Center 2005
Join Jeanne's mailing list here: http://www.jeannemacdonald.com/mailinglist.html
Jeanne MacDonald
2008 MAC Award Winner
2008 NY Nightlife Award Finalist
“Watching a singer like Jeanne MacDonald, who brings an emotional balance; a subtle, goodhumored sexiness; and an originality to everything she sings, makes you realize the crucial role good instincts play...” NEW YORK TIMES - Stephen Holden


Jeanne MacDonald has earned a reputation as one of NY’s finest singers in cabaret today; an honest interpreter of the lyric in a genre that embraces a broad range of songs from the American popular music tradition. Peter Leavy of Cabaret Scenes Magazine calls MacDonald “a lyricist’s dream.” MacDonald often creates through her work a seamless blend between traditional standards from such songwriters as Johnny Mercer, Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne, and the music of contemporary songwriters, including Jimmy Webb, Randy Newman and Dar Williams. Most recently, in ‘Come Back To Me,’ her glowing celebration of Miss Peggy Lee, MacDonald proves herself an artist with both the sensibility and sensitivity to convey the essence of this legend, weaving her spell with finesse.

Sue Matsuki (née Trosell): Waterbury native and producer of this show • Eight-time MAC Award Nominee/Three-time Winner • Selected by Julie Wilson herself as the very first Julie Wilson Award Recipient, given by the Mabel Mercer Foundation.



Break a leg!

JUST SAY “TAKEI”by Shelly Goldstein

I love George Takei.

He’s the latest on a ridiculously long list of gay men with whom I’ve fallen madly in love during my life.

They were always symbiotic relationships. I’ve been the beard for so many gay men, my high school nickname was “Z.Z. Top.”

By now, I’m sure you’ve seen Takei’s marvelous video (below) in response to yet another piece of actual legislation that makes me think the Republican Party has stopped taking their moves from the Karl Rove Playbook and are now working strictly from the canon of Lewis Carroll.

In case you somehow missed it, the great state of Tennessee passed a law declaring that teachers can’t use the word “homosexual” in the classroom.
The logic there – if you can call it that – is that if children don’t hear the word, then “homosexuality” will magically disappear.



This is the kind of thinking that assures us of a generation of LGBT children who will grow up confused, ashamed, and bullied, spending their lives so deep in the closet they might as well major in Moth Ball.

But George Takei’s deft handling of this lunacy, done with his usual aplomb and humor, isn’t the only reason I adore him.

He’s a credit to the name George.
Like the great George Gershwin, he’s melodious. Every syllable he utters in his inimitable, mellifluous voice is as smooth as a snifter of 250-year-old brandy, as sweet as Tupelo Honey, as polished as a great mahogany table that’s been doused with half a can of Lemon Pledge.

Like the Father of our Country, George Washington, he cannot tell a lie. He lives his life openly, even when that choice has made him the butt of countless rude and cruel jokes. His dignity and humor make him both a great role model and a fantastic guest on Howard Stern.

Like George Clooney, he’s an eternal classic.

Like two of the great “Georges” of the '60s – Harrison and Jetson -- he brilliantly navigated the grooviest of eras, off-screen as an iconic symbol of pop culture, on-screen leading the Enterprise through the galaxies.
Kirk never could’ve “boldly gone” anywhere without Sulu telling him how to get there.

George FujimoriAnd he shares something else with a George I’ve loved all my life, a man you’ve never heard of named George Fujimori, the father of my oldest and dearest pal Wendy, with whom I’ve been best friends since we were 3.
George Takei and Fujimori were both among the 120,000 Japanese-Americans who, during WWII, were placed behind barbed wire in Internment Camps for the duration of the war.
Both remained loyal to their country.

George Fujimori left the camp to serve in the U.S. Army, to defend the country he loved, the country that had thrown him in prison.

During the Clinton Administration, George Takei served two terms on the board of the Japan-United States Friendship Commission. His dedicated service led the Government of Japan to present him with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette. The decoration was conferred by His Majesty, Emperor Akihito, at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo in November 2004.
George Takei and Brad AltmanI’m guessing George Takei is also the only recipient of that distinguished honor to appear on the Newlywed Game with his husband Brad Altman – the first gay couple ever to appear in the show’s four decades on the air.
They won the game and donated their $10,000 award to the Japanese-American National Museum (the same museum where George Fujimori, now 91, can be found several days a week speaking to school children about the Japanese-Americans who helped defend America in WWII).
George Takei, I love you.

Your entire life has been one of positivity and joy, even in the face of the most dire of circumstances.
Your response to this obscene and ridiculous legislation is inspirational.

You deserve a song. I like to write lyrics – often to other songs -- like this anthem to Gay Marriage, Stupid Callous Homophobic Hateful Legislation, which went viral and was played in more than 13 countries around the world.

Thanks to your video, this month all around the world, LGBT and PFLAG alike will all march proudly in our local “Takei Pride” Parade.

And I, for one, will march to this song:

HEY THERE, GEORGE TAKEI

(to the tune of “Georgy Girl”)

Music by Tom Springfield -- New lyric by Shelly Goldstein -- (Respect to Jim Dale’s original)

Hey there, George Takei

Taking on the law in Tennessee

Banning the word “gay” is lunacy beyond any doubt – it’s crazy!

Hey there, George Takei!

You spoke up for those who had no voice

And it was a noble choice.



For kids frightened to come out

You’ve proved yourself a hero on land and in outer space.

You’ve lived your life with class and with grace – and now we say
Hey there, George Takei!

You were there for kids who are afraid

Now in the Takei Parade we’ll march with our heads held high
And then we’ll cry

Hooray for Takei!

Shelly Goldstein is a writer-producer-performer who has written for every genre of television, film and stage -- and who has performed her one-woman shows to sold-out audiences throughout the US and UK. She has written special material for such performers as Steve Martin, Sharon Stone, Yoko Ono and Liza Minnelli. She has written song lyrics for G-rated children's shows and R-Rated comedy specials such as LOGO's ONE NIGHT STAND-UP. Her YouTube videos are known throughout the world.

SHELLY on YOUTUBE and FACEBOOK
MYSPACE: www.myspace.com/groovyshelly
TWITTER follow me @ groovyshelly


Thanks for being a loyal reader of Richard's Rants And Raves! I wanted to give you heads up on big news coming on June 5th.


GO SEE A LIVE SHOW TONIGHT!
Become A Facebook friend of mine!
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If you've seen one of my appearances/shows, add your thoughts to my guestbook at www.RichardSkipper.com



Tomorrow's blog will be about YOU TELL ME!! I'm open to suggestions

Please contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/foundation.htm
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED SUMMER!
Richard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com

June Is Bustin' Out All Over...and Life Lessons from Dee Wallace and Mary McDonough!

"March went out like a lion
Awakin' up the water in the bay;
Then April cried and stepped aside,
And along came pretty little May!
May was full of promises
But she didn't keep 'em quickly enough for some
And the crowd of doubtin' tonuses
Was predictin' that the summer'd never come"
Nettie in Carousel, Rodgers And Hammerstein
Happy June!
What great lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein! I got up this morning and as I was preparing my coffee, I put on this song. I get something new from these lyrics every time I hear them. That is a testament to good lyric writing AND music. I recently read that everything is happening as it should be. I feel that all kinds of lessons are coming my way these days. Maybe I'm ready. Maybe I'm more "in tuned". I don't know. I do know I'm ready to receive. Just look at my horoscope today:
"Relationships in general and affairs of the heart in particular will benefit from today's eclipse. In fact this is the ideal time to remind those you love that they will always be special to you. Yes, of course, Aquarius does romance!"
Also, I'm hosting a show with Dionne Warwick on June 8th! Details to follow! What should my opening number be?

There has been a very interesting thread on my wall on Facebook over the last few days.
It started when I posted an article from Michael Musto about Francis McDormand stopping the show over the weekend because a woman in the audience had a cell phone go off in the audience."Frances McDormand Stops The Show!by Michael Musto, THE VILLAGE VOICE Here is the article:
Literally.

And I'm proud of her.

At last night's performance of the Broadway play Good People -- right at a climactic plot moment, when the audience was on the edge of their seats, waiting for information about the baby -- a cell phone boldly rang in the house.

The audience gasped. The actors froze.

And the woman took the call!

Good people, indeed!
"Hello?" she screeched -- though she would have been more accurate if she'd said, "I'm the dumbest pinhead in history!"

McDormand stopped in her tracks, put her arm around co-star Renee Elise Goldsberry (above), and deadpanned, "Let's wait."

After the unwanted bit of audience business was settled and silenced, McDormand made a rewind gesture and said to Goldsberry, "OK, ask me the question again."

And they resumed the scene."

From that "thread", one person's response was "Well, you can't control an audience. Ignore it", one person defended his right to run out of the theatre as curtain calls were happening (and even declared happily that he booed a director at one show". I mentioned that a woman was knitting in the audience the other night at a show that I was in. The scene by the way was a very dramatic piece. See for yourself what that experience was like for the people behind her:
You can clearly see her knitting in the audience. Barbra Streisand in her last New York concert told someone in the audience to "Shut the f!@# up!", Patti LuPone has stopped the show, Hugh Jackman, and I am sure so many others. What has happened. I was brought up to believe, and still do, that the theatre is a sacred place.
There should be a level of respect for the actors on stage AND for those around you.

Here is what Carol Channing says about her first time on a stage, ""My mother said, 'Carol, would you like to help me distribute Christian Science Monitors
backstage at the live theatres in San Francisco?'
And I said, 'All right, I'll help you.' I don't know how old I was. I must have been little. We went through the stage door alley (for the Curran Theatre),
and I couldn't get the stage door open.
My mother came and opened it very well.
Anyway, my mother went to put the Monitors where they were supposed to go for the actors and the crew and the musicians, and she left me alone. And I stood there and realized – I'll never forget it because it came over me so strongly – that this is a temple. This is a cathedral. It's a mosque. It's a mother church. This is for people who have gotten a glimpse of creation and all they do is recreate it. I stood there and wanted to kiss the floorboards."
Carol still believes it is "hallowed ground". I still do! If you are not there to respect the sanctity of it all, everything that happened past, present, and future, to bring you to this moment, don't go!
I also believe it is a calling for me. Perhaps because it is not a calling for some, they can't see what it means to those of us who have been called to service.
There have been several books written about the fusion of art and spirituality.

Julia Cameron's "The Artist's Way" is a great start.
There are even classes being taught for "Shamanic actors".
Are YOU ready to receive?

Bright Light is an autobiographical tale of how the actor’s craft became a spiritual journey for her, and how she applied those lessons to her life. It is also a story of Everyman: how we lose our light and steps we can take to reclaim it. For Dee Wallace has discovered, like her co-star E.T., that the journey home comes from following the heart’s lead.

Dee Wallace IS a Healer. Love yourself beyond anyone or anything else. Love yourself so much that you can't doanything that doesn't make you love yourself more.
As a much sought after public speaker, Dee has spoken at numerous national and international venues including the Love and Harmony Forum in Tokyo, Japan; The Dillion Lecture Series, Unity Temple, Cornerstone Foundation, and the Kansas Film Commission in Kansas; The Sally Johnson Studio in New York; Spiritworks; The Sierra Madre Womenís Club; Energetic Healing seminars throughout England; and her own healing and teaching seminars throughout the United States. Dee has appeared on every major news and talk show and has been featured on E! True Hollywood Stories, Oprah and The O'Reilly Factor. On a weekly basis, Dee conducts numerous private healing sessions at her office in Woodland Hills, California.

As an author, Dee has written a book devoted to the art of self-healing. She conducts monthly workshops to introduce people to the healing techniques outlined in her book, Conscious Creation.

In addition to her ongoing work with fellow actors as an acting teacher and mentor, Dee devotes all her extra time to her beautiful daughter Gabrielle.
From Dee's website, I just read, "Just finished reading Bright Light. It was the most well written, identifiable, and healing book I've ever read. I laughed, cried, and healed by the time I was done. Truly an amazing piece of work."
I've been in love with Dee ever since I saw her in ET! I just ordered my copy. Cannot wait to delve in!

Dee Wallace (born Deanna Bowers; December 14, 1948),also known as Dee Wallace-Stone, is an American actress and comedienne. She is perhaps best known for her roles in several popular films. These include the starring role as Elliot's mother in the Steven Spielberg film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), her most widely seen role. She also played key roles in popular cult films The Hills Have Eyes (1977) and The Howling (1981)and appeared in The Stepford Wives in 1975 and 10 (1979). In total, Wallace has appeared in more than 85 films.
Thank you, Dee Wallace For the gifts you've given us and continue to give!

Another great actress that I grew up with Mary McDonough. Mary McDonough, who may be best known for the role of Erin Walton that she created and played for over a decade on the hits series “The Waltons,” has penned an exciting memoir and winner of the ELLA DICKEY LITERACY AWARD, entitled of Lessons From the Mountain: What I Learned From Erin Walton (Kensington Publishers), and taken it on the road.

(Mary McDonough with Dolly Parton at GMHF in DOLLYWOOD - Photo by Jason Gilmore)
After a reunion with fellow Walton cast members in Los Angeles and then an appearance in Washington DC at the Kennedy Center to sign the book, she headed South with appearances at the Gospel Music Hall of Fame at DOLLYWOOD, where Dolly Parton greeted her with “It seems like I have known you my whole life,” followed by The Country Tonite Theatre where the Coalminer's daughter, Miss Loretta Lynn, was over heard to say, “I just love you! You were my favorite Walton,” and received an invitation to join her at the ranch, Mary wrapped the tour up at The Opry Shop at The Grand Ole Opry.

(Loretta Lynn and Mary McDonough - Photo by Jan Barton) The one thing each location had in common? Not enough books. Not only did each location sell out the stock on hand, but also sent runners out to secure more from neighboring stores. The only sad note on an otherwise successful tour was Ms. McDonough's highly anticipated appearance scheduled for Sunday, May 22nd, at Barnes & Noble in Fresno that had to be canceled due to a non-disclosed threat towards Ms. McDonough, causing security concerns for the store. As often is the case, when a public personality is involved, there is an inherent need for additional security measures. Not only for the artists themselves, but the public that is gathering as well. Ms. McDonough, who had already arrived in the Fresno area, received word of the cancellation early Sunday morning, responded with “I appreciate the concern by others for my safety.” And although she still would have rather made the appearance, added “I have to understand and respect their decision to place priority on their customers safety.” Prior to Ms. McDonough's departure from Fresno, she accepted an invitation by Barnes & Noble to stop by and sign books in stock for any patrons that might still wish to acquire a copy of the book, despite the disappointment of the altered schedule.

(Mary McDonough signs book - Photo by Chelsea Claus Photography)
“If you're a fan of The Waltons, don't miss this book and the chance to re-visit Walton's Mountain.”
- Ellen Feld/Feather Quill Reviews.

(Mary McDonough presents book - Photo by Chelsea Claus Photography)
Ms. McDonough's memoir is the first from the cast of the perfect American family and is a poignant story of growing up on Emmy award-winning series The Waltons, playing the middle sister, Erin. The show is still being shown worldwide and has fans all over the world. At the age of ten, McDonough was cast as Erin Walton in The Homecoming, the movie of the week that inspired the dramatic series and overnight, her life as a normal kid in a working-class, Catholic family changed. As McDonough says, “It was bizarre, fun, tremendous, painful, wonderful and different. It was definitely not a normal way to grow up.”

"Mary is a whole lot more than Erin on The Waltons. This book shows how she's handled all the highs and lows with grace."
--George Clooney

In the book, McDonough shares intimate, behind-the-scenes memories of Will Geer, Richard Thomas, her two “moms,” Patricia Neal and Michael Learned, and all the other Walton cast, crew and guest stars.
She discusses what it was like growing up in front of America.
In real life she found it difficult to keep friends and as an adolescent she battled depression, insomnia, body image issues and experimented with drugs in an attempt to manage the pressures as she tried to be “Mary-not-Erin” while alternately embracing and rebelling against her good-girl screen persona.

Interesting anecdotes found in the book include: How her very first audition earned her the role that would define a lifetime; Alternately embracing and rebelling against her good-girl screen persona; Life as an adolescent battling depression, insomnia, body image issues and experimented with drugs; How her mother responded to Mary's auditioning for role of Regan in The Exorcist (that went to friend Linda Blair); Becoming a an activist/expert on health issues she personally faced after obtaining silicone implants and being diagnosed with Lupus; as well as recent career roles on Boston Legal, The New Adventures of Old Christine, ER, Will Grace to name a few.

"A fascinating look at what it's like to grow up in front of and beyond the cameras."
-- Eve Plumb

After the series ended, McDonough details how she tried to reinvent herself with artificial help and almost died. Over a period of ten years, McDonough's health deteriorated and she suffered rashes all over her body, headaches, chronic fatigue, sore joints, and severe allergy attacks. Following the birth of her daughter Sydnee, McDonough's health went up and down and she had low-grade fevers and flu-like symptoms for years.
She developed ulcers, began losing her hair, and developed lumps in her back and leg. Despite the various medications she was taking nothing seemed to help. After seeing doctor after doctor she was correctly diagnosed with Lupus, a connective tissue disease that affects the immune system.

Following her diagnosis, McDonough went on to become Founding President of Lupus LA and has for the more than fourteen years been a citizen activist for women's health issues. “I know the families - one famous, one real - that I grew up with, the unusual experiences, the good and bad choices made me who I am today. I'm happier than I've ever been, not by trying to forget, but by appreciating and learning that I wouldn't be who I am without my journey over and around that famous mountain,” says McDonough.

“… she (Mary) reveals the terrifying challenges that forced her to become more “Erin Brockovich” than “Erin Walton!”
--Alison Arngrim, New York Times Best Selling Author of "Confessions of A Prairie Bitch"
(Source: Harlan Boll)



Thanks for being a loyal reader of Richard's Rants And Raves! I wanted to give you heads up on big news coming on June 5th.


GO SEE A LIVE SHOW TONIGHT!
Become A Facebook friend of mine!
Follow me on Twitter
If you've seen one of my appearances/shows, add your thoughts to my guestbook at www.RichardSkipper.com



Tomorrow's blog will be about YOU TELL ME!! I'm open to suggestions

Please contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/foundation.htm
TILL TOMORROW...HERE'S TO AN ARTS FILLED SUMMER!
Richard Skipper, Richard@RichardSkipper.com