SHELLY BERMAN'S BIRTHDAY

Today is Shelly Berman's 86th birthday. When I was a kid, Shelly Berman was my all time favorite comedian. I used to play his records over and over gain and then I would imitate him for friends and relatives. His bits on an imaginary telephone were absolutely priceless pieces of robust comedy. Today some of the phrases he used to use are simply not around any more. Like on an airplane there is no longer a stewardess. It's a flight attendant. And when was the last time you heard one of those guys ask you "Coffee, Tea or Milk". There is one monologue where he is trying to call a department store head office to inform them that "there is a woman hanging from your window ledge." It's hysterical because none of these stoops can find a woman hanging precariously from their very own window ledge. I got to meet Shelly once at the Jewish Home for the Aged in Woodland Hills where we doing a benefit. What a sweet man! Berman started as a straight actor, receiving his training at the Goodman Theater in Chicago, honing his acting skills in stock companies in and around Chicago and New York. In the mid-1950s, he became a member of Chicago's Compass Players which later evolved into The Second City. While performing improvised sketches with Compass, Shelly Berman began developing solo pieces, often employing an imaginary telephone to take the place of an onstage partner. In 1957, Berman landed his first job as a comedian at Mister Kelly's in Chicago, which led to other nightclub bookings, and a recording contract with Verve Records. His comedy albums would earn him three gold records and he'd win the first Grammy Award for a non-musical recording. He was the first standup comedian to play Carnegie Hall. Berman would go on to appear on numerous TV specials, and all of the major variety shows of the day.Berman's success as a comedian enabled him to continue with his first love - acting. He starred on Broadway in A Family Affair and continued to do stage work in productions of The Odd Couple, Damn Yankees, Fiddler on the Roof, I'm Not Rappaport, La Cage aux Folles, and Guys and Dolls, among many others. He still teaches comedy at USC where Danny Simon did the same. If you want to be really moved (and laugh) listen to the dialogue stand up bit he that he does about talking to his father Nathan sometime. It's an absolute classic. It will move you to tears and also make you laugh like hell. Happy Birthday, sir. Many more years for you!

ADAM AND EVE IN A NEW SPOOF

ADAM AND EVE SPOOFED

Everyone who knows me knows full well just how much I love spoofs. I adore "The Book of Mormon" now on Broadway and find it to have the very best opening of a musical devised in a long time, but also some of the best songs ever created. So with that in mind, my writing partner and friend John Nugent sat down to write a musical comedy spoof of the "Adam and Eve" story. I am a cradle Catholic, but I firmly believe that Almighty God must have a grand sense of humor. Don't believe that? Think of the poor Platypus. Think of the sow bug. So our spoof asks the question "Wouldn't it be crazy if Eve ate of the tree of Knowledge but was a blond in every aspect that we know blonds today? Suppose that when Eve went to Adam, he was less than over joyed over what she had done and even less thrilled about losing paradise? Suppose that Adam (trying to find a way out of his problem) balks at the fact that he never had any creative input as to what his mate should have looked like. Suppose he said "Maybe, I wanted someone just like me." So John and I set down a title and started working from there. We called it (drum roll please) "Adam and Eve and Steve" (When the Devil Wasn't Enough!) So in this spoof Eden's plum tree becomes Adam's new mate Steve as poor Adam discovers the other side of the sexual coin. We of course make the Snake a real blond charmer and we've added Magnolia, the Peach Tree and Limey, the only lemon tree in the Garden of Eden. Eve is thrown out of the garden with the lemon tree made human (who is a lesbian) and we add God's voice and a couple of heavenly archangels. The result we've just finished and the songs are some of the very best that we've ever written. In other news, our recording date is this Saturday at 1pm at our new studio The California Recording Company in Van Nuys. David Holmes, Lindon Von Warren, Jessica Budha, Jonny Wexler and Travis Hunt will join us at 1pm. WE hope it will really turn out well. We're also re-writin "Little Bit Of Broadway" and we've just finished a new children's musical called "The Box of Robbers" based on the L. Frank Baum fairy tale. Busy. busy always.

SO MUCH IN SO LITTLE TIME

This remarkable man you see on this page is the manager for our company Creative Horizons. This year marks the 20th anniversary of our friendship. We were introduced by another mutual friend at the time and bar none this has been one of the most remarkable friends I have ever had in my life. The other being the amazing and incredible David Holmes. Jimmy has always supported what I was doing whether it was being an agent myself, a songwriter or any kind of writer. I retired four years ago in 2008 and in these four short years, I have never been as creative as I have in these four years. Of course finding my partner, John Nugent was absolutely the best present from Almighty God other than my parents and my eternal soul. And I certainly would have little or nothing accomplished without him. But now Jimmy Chapel has taken the most active role of all times and is representing twenty musicals (you read right) and nine original sit com pilots with additional episodes already created. Jimmy is both a gentleman and a scholar. Not only can he be a great reader on scripts, he's an excellent proofreader to boot. We started with a sit com called "First Mother" which I actually first created in 1992- about the same time that I met him in Orange County. The pitch: "The most eligible bachelor in the world becomes quite suddenly the Jewish president of the United States and his Brooklyn mother moves in the white House, lox, stock and bagel and takes Washington by storm." Back then, the idea of a Jewish president under any circumstances, would have been as impossible as a Mormon becoming president. So last July, Jimmy called me and told me that he had Lanie Kazan interested in portraying the First Mother and could we possibly get it together. Now remember, it had been twenty years since I had touched this material. We had a teleplay, but it was in the wrong format. The wrong format in Hollywood, today is the equivalent of being a bride's maid in jeans and a halter top. So out we went to get FINAL DRAFT an extraordinary software program and re-typed the original. It went to ABC and ABC thought it was too philosophical and not funny enough-- but invited us to submit other stuff. Then a strange man who was a former stunt man had a connection to FOX and with his advice, he said we needed a series bible and at least three additional episodes. We went back and wrote six more episodes. We then started writing more and soon we had SENIOR HIGH DROPOUTS, BREAK A LEG, TAXING LAUGHTER, IRISH LEFTOVERS, PROFESSOR CHUTZPAH, THE GOLDILOCKS BOYS and ZORRO'S DELI. That's what he's amazingly representing today. The funny thing is that the stuntman turned out to be a flake who actually knew no one, but had all this great CORRECT advice. Isn't that crazy?It just goes to show you that a blessing in disguise can hold more benefits than the fraud he represents. Jimmy Chapel is our hero, bar none. God love you, Jim for all your efforts!

OUR WEBSITES AND BETTY WHITE'S BIRTHDAY

Just in case you've never seen it, my creative company's endeavors has not one, but two web sites. The first is http://www.creativehorizonsmusicals.com/ which shows off our many musicals by subject matter and the other sister web site is similiar but is a bit simplier . It is : http://www.showbusinessmusicals.com/ which lists all of our many musicals by title. The first also shows off our ever growing list of Television sit com pilots now completed and available including "FIRST MOTHER" which has Lainie Kazan attached, "TAXING LAUGHTER" about two twin Italian men who hate one another but are now forced by their parents will to live together for five years as well as SENIOR HIGH DROPOUTS, IRISH LEFTOVERS and the newest of them called "BREAK A LEG"-- that title comes from the good old show business term one uses when you wish to offer a performer grand good luck. Take a look at them. John Nugent and I continue to seek new ways to market our many shows. Our agency sends out lots of queries but theatres today are less and less inclined to answer these even with a stamped self addressed envelope enclosed. The results from the ASCAP-DREAMWORKS musical theatre workshop that will be held the first two weeks in February were announced and we didn't make the cut, but so didn't many of writer friend's efforts. We all wonder just what these guys want as we have been trying many many years to get in here. Today is also Betty White's 90th birthday. We watched her birthday bash on NBC last night and it was simply terrific. Even Jerry Herman got into the act by altering the lyrics to "Mame" to accomodate the name "Betty". Big shock on how badly Mary Tyler Moore looked. Tank God for creative camera work. Diabetes is a real lady killer. And Ed Asner looks absolutely ancient these days, but we all must get older. So a new marketing campaign begins for the New Year and we hope for the best. Big laugh today as I read that a poor guy who had pneumonia in a New York Hospital last summer finally got his hospital bill. It was for forty-four million dollars and change. Now that's enough to make you sick all over again and for the real fellow it did. I laugh because my friend Tim Doran gets so many of these unexpected surprise bills, many for meager amounts, but some really substantial. I can only imagine what his reaction would be had he been the one who opened this one. Of course, it was an error. The hospital's computer had accidentally put the invoice number in front of the actual amount due and put a dollar sign in front of it. Ah, our dear computers: we can't live with them and we can't live without them. It's a cold, but beautiful day here and the stret is very quiet here once again. That makes a nice change from the usual.

It's a brand New Year: 2012 and already things with big changes have started with a bang! Our first surprise came from the Westfield Fashion Square mall and the little free community room that we used for absolute ages dating back at least four years for rehearsals and parties in countless numbers. This great "free little room" with a kitchen and restrooms stopped being FREE as of January 1st. That nice little room now costs $150 a day to rent. Unbelievable. It was designed and built to be of service to the community and I can only guess the Westfield Fashion Square Mall folks have no more community service spirit. Everything is about the buck: the almighty dollar. This is the same room that just had mold cleaned out of its bathrooms at our multitude of requests. Oh well, I guess I won't be using their room any more, but I also will NOT be shopping at that mall anymore. It's too expensive anyway. I should know. I ran a retail store there upstairs next to Macy's. The second big shock came when we were told that our beloved sound engineer, Mr. Robert Roth is no longer an associate of Smooth Sound Studios in Van Nuys. We've been recording there since 1999 and I just can't imagine that Robert is not a part of this any more. He tells that he has his own place now and so John and I are quite eager to discover what the new venture will be at a new address, I'm told. Well, one thing for sure is we won't won't miss the parking congestion the dear studio had. We also wait for the results of the winner to be announced for the ASCAP-DREAMWORKS Musical workshop. It changed sponsorship this year from DISNEY and the results were supposed to be announced on Friday, January 6th, but there's not a word heard YET. The year began badly when the power supply went out the second time on New Years Day at 8:19 am. I was without a computer for an entire week. What a bummer! Let us hope that the rest of the year fares better than it began. Beautiful summer like day here the first of January is encouraging. We can finally turn the heater off for a while. And it's a quiet morning here for once on Fulton Avenue-- not the usual endless stream of cars. trucks and sirens. Have a great day this 10th day of January 2012.

THE END OF ANOTHER YEAR

Today is the last day of 2011. It's been a strange and odd year: a year in which I've officially retired from work but certainly not from real living. I think since I've retired, I've written more creative things with my amazing partner John Nugent than at any point in my life. I call John "The Gift" because he truly is. He is bar none the most creative and kindly soul of all time. I have written many songs, but I write so much better with him. He is patient, kind, incredibly romantic and he brings things out of me that no one has ever brought out of me before. Together we've revitalized the television pilot for "First Mother" and created the pilots for "Senior High Dropouts", "Irish Leftovers", "Taxing Laughter", The Goldilocks Boys" and just in the the last three days a new comedy pilot called "A Muse- Ing- Ly Yours" which as they say in the trades "ain't bad." We've completed four musicals and have entered four musicals in the ASCAP- Dreamworks competition. We produced a stage show called "We Are Different Now" that was an artistic success( the picture from which you can see on this page.) My dad used to say "Don't let the moss grow under your feet." Well I can honestly say that we haven't. This is the year also that I re-discovered a cousin (Randy Parole) and found out just how supportive they are. My incredible friend Tim Doran I think has finally battled his last health conflict and it looks like he's going to go forward with a great year. I will always be grateful to this amazingly talented and kind man: without him I simply would not be a songwriter today. I look forward to 2012 the year in which we may have a new president and a year in which my status with John Nugent may finally change and God will allow us to enjoy a few years of success and prosperity. I am grateful to God for all of his many blessings. he is the center of my life and the King of my heart. We had a quiet but lovely Thanksgiving and Christmas and I know that the Dear Lord is right by my side at every single moment. John and I have made some very lovely new friends because of "We Are Different Now" and learned some great life lessons. So come forward New Year: do your best and shine like a diamond. It's Leap Year after all!

Today is a very special day. It's a birthday celebration for our dear friend Judy Egan and we are holding a party in her honor in Sherman Oaks today. We met Judy while doing "We Are Different Now" in September and most of the cast from that show will be in attendance. There are still a few I haven't heard from, but I'm sure we'll have a wonderful time. Christmas was private but lovely this year. I had to delay it a bit because the money wasn't in the bank until Social Security came in on the 28th. I did learn that I'll be getting a cost of living increase. starting in January 2012. My dear friend David Holmes turned sixty on December 27th. What a very special friend he has been: a friend who literally changed my life for the better. He had tried out and auditioned for a part I had advertised back in the old DramLogue paper back in May of 1981 in a Wizard of Oz type musical that we would be recording in Orange County and was living in Van Nuys (where I live now) He was of course wonderful as the Cowardly Lion and we thought we had a wonderful new personality. But at that time I was living in Rowland Heights and even with a freeway help that was still a very long forty-five minutes away. In these days before the internet, he phoned me and said the next day that he had enjoyed the audition but the distance was simply too far away.

Something inside me told me not to let this man go. I wanted to impress upon him how much I liked him. Believe it or not, I sent this relative stranger what Western Union called a "Night Letter" It was just like a telegram but because it was mailed and not physically delivered, it was much cheaper-- one hundred and twenty-five words for $75.00. That was a lot of money back then, but I used those one hundred and twenty-five words to the very best of my persuasional best and encouraged him not to worry about the distance: that distance was what you made of it. It worked. And the result has been a thirty year friendship that has been simply incredible. He turned out to be the director of "Skylark" and "The Invitation" as well as the original version of "A Moment With Mister "C". I had some nice presents from John: a bathrobe, a $40 movie pass and some beautiful roses which I cherish. My writing partner John Nugent and I entered the ASCAP- Dreamworks competition with four entries. So we shall see what happens there. Well, on to the party! Have a great New Year!

ON A CLEAR DAY GETS A BRAND NEW LOOK

The new version of On a Clear Day includes most of the original Tony Award-nominated Broadway score, adds songs from the film version, and interpolates Lerner and Lane numbers from the M-G-M film "Royal Wedding."Tonight on Broadway, a classic Broadway show gets a second chance and a new look. The show was written by the late greats Burton Lane ("Finian's Rainbow") and Alan Jay Lerner ("My Fair Lady." The original production in 1965 ran only 280 performances (from October 1965 to June of 1966) Boy, have these guys turned this story around. Harry Connick Jr. plays the lead. The new version of On a Clear Day includes most of the original Tony Award-nominated Broadway score, adds songs from the film version, and interpolates Lerner and Lane numbers from the M-G-M film "Royal Wedding.". Originating producer Liza Lerner (Alan Jay's daughter) joins with Tom Hulce (the voice of Quasimotto in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and Ira Pittelman and Broadway Across America (John Gore, Thomas B. McGrath, Beth Williams) to bring the show to Broadway.

The creative team includes American Idiot Tony Award winner Christine Jones (sets), five-time Tony Award winner Catherine Zuber (costumes), American Idiot and Spring Awakening Tony Award winner Kevin Adams (lighting), Peter Hylenski (sound), Tom Watson (hair), Lawrence Yurman (music director and arrangements), and three-time Tony Award winner Doug Besterman (orchestrations).

Here's how the producers characterize the romantic musical comedy: "Love blooms in unexpected places in the delightfully reimagined world of On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. Still in love with his deceased wife, Dr. Mark Bruckner (Harry Connick, Jr.), a dashing psychiatrist and professor, unknowingly takes on the case of his life with David Gamble (David Turner), a quirky gay young florists' assistant. While putting David under hypnosis to help him quit smoking so he can move in with his perfect boyfriend Warren (David Gehling), Dr. Bruckner stumbles upon what he believes to be David’s former self — a dazzling and self-possessed 1940s jazz singer Melinda Wells (Jessie Mueller). Instantly intrigued by Melinda, Dr. Bruckner finds himself swept up in the pursuit of an irresistible (and impossible) love affair with this woman from another time and place, who may or may not have ever existed."

The score includes the songs "Come Back To Me," "What Did I Have That I Don't Have Now?," "She Isn't You," and the title song, plus "Love With All the Trimmings" and "Go to Sleep," as well as "Ev'ry Night at Seven," "You're All the World To Me," "Open Your Eyes" and "Too Late Now."

I love the title song and many of the others and I congratulate the team and wish it so much success.! Now the show has real conflict that it never had before. The score will take some songs from the film version and also from Lerner and lane's musical movie "Royal Wedding that starred good old Fred Astaire who also starred in Burton Lane's film version of "Finian's Rainbow"

My friend Tony Westbrook confirmed to me yesterday that he did indeed go for the audition of chorus in the new musical "The Book of Mormon." There's another show I absolutely love" That opening number is absolutely classic. It's a beautiful fall day here and this coming Saturday, we're having a re-union holiday party for the cast of "WE ARE DIFFERENT NOW". We also have started the process of a recording session that we'll hold the third week of January 2012. We're getting some pretty amazing singers who are applying this time. Yesterday, I finished the re-wrirte of the pilot script for my newest TV effort "SENIOR HIGH DROP OUTS". This is going to be one hell of a funny show.

SOMETHING" FANTASTIK", SOMETHING FLOP

REMEMBER "The Yearling"? Not the novel by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Pulitzer Prize, 1939).Not the M-G-M motion picture which starred Gregory Peck, Jane Wyman and, in an Oscar-winning performance, Claude Jarman Jr., 1946).But the Broadway musical version (that lasted two days and three performances, back in 1965). It opened on this fateful day at the Alvin Theatre where the musical "Annie" played so many years in te same venue. The show was produced by Lorre Notto, the famed producer of the Off-Broadway champion "The Fantastiks" with all of its many hit songs. This show had a score by Michael Leonard who also wrote the tunes to "How To Be A Jewish Mother" which ran only twenty one performances in 1967. Loree Notto after this disaster vowed that he would never again produce a Broadway show and he didn't.. This composer was reportedly the uncredited composer of songs that were associated with Duke Ellington's melodies in "Pousee Cafe" Only One song from the score became famous and that was Barbara Streisand's standard "Why Did I Choose You? With a Broadway track record like that, it's no wonder that Mr. Leonard is referred to as "one of the entertainment world's best kept secrets in advertisements for a revue of his songs. The young star of this fiasco was Jody Foster later to become a presidential press secretary for Ronald Reagan. I find it amusing that this composer wrote a score for "How To Be A Jewish Mother" and I am writing a TV series about a Jewish Mother who becomes the "First Mother" of the United States when her vice president son suddenly becomes the next president after the elected president dies of a heart attack. John Nugent and I have now constructed seven episodes and I've already done a re-write of the first three punching them up and maker them any funnier than they were. My training of five years with Danny Simon back in the 1980's is really paying off this time. Christmas is fast approaching and John and I really cleaned up the kitchen so that we can do some baking of cookies and bunt cake. We put light all over the outside and as the great old Meredeth Wilson song goes "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas." That great old Christmas standard actually comes from an obscure Broadway Musical called "Here's Love" even though it's based on the classic Macy's story "Miracle on 43rd Street" Also enjoying Christmas this year with two cats: our beloved Joshua: a rag doll Siamese mix and Dusty an older tabby cat. Boy are these guys characters in every sense of the word. I was amused at reading the story of the guy who faked his mother's funeral so that he could get some paid bereavement time off from work. He even put the notice in the paper where it was read by guess who-- that's right his very alive mother and her friends who all went down to the newspaper office to show off that mom was very much alive. As Mark Twain used to say "I think God created man because he was disappointed in the monkey!" So now this guy faces criminal charges, a lost job and the consternation of his mother all in one Christmas. I don't know about you man is the amusing guy of all creation.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAMMY DAVIS JR AND POOR OLD NICK AND NORA

Today would have been the 86th birthday of one of the most remarkable singers, dancers, comedian and genuinely amazing human being. His name was Sammy Davis Junior. I found this remarkably sharp picture of him photographed in a pensive mood, but pensive or not, he was simply a talent whose excess in drink and drugs were his mighty downfall. But let's not dwell on what brought him down. Instead let's focus on what he was and what he meant to others. His great good heart was legendary. Here then are some quotes by this remarkable man many of which I found fascinating:




"I wasn't anything special as a father. But I loved them and they knew it."

I'd learned a lot in the Army. I knew that above all things in the world I had to become so big, so strong that people and their hatred of any one black could never touch me"

". If you want to get known as a singer you hire five sexy chicks and let them fight over you onstage and for the cameras. That's publicity, man."

" Marilyn Monroe and I were rumored to be an item. We were friends. Nothing more. Marilyn was one of the sweetest creatures that ever lived."

" My wife May was young and beautiful, we were legally married, but she was caught in the prison of my skin."

"My home has always been show business Part of show business is magic. You don't know how it happens."

Also on this day in 1991 after 71 lumbering previews in New York City, the musical "Nick and Nora" finally opened on Broadway at the Marquis theatre, During all the preview time the poor musical underwent extensive script rewrites, multiple song replacements, and a major cast change. (It was surpassed by a record of 15 weeks of previews for the Broadway musical Spider Man: Turn Off The Dark which finally opened on Broadway in June 2011.)

The Broadway production, directed by Laurents and choreographed by Tina Paul, was simply unable to overcome the bad publicity and brutal reviews, it ran for only nine performances. The cast included Barry Bostwick (Nick Charles), Joanna Gleason (Nora Charles). The show was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Original Score. An original cast recording was released on That's Entertainment Records and was re-released on Jay Records in 1997. In his memoir Original Story By, Laurents confessed he didn't realize until the show was in previews that the characters of Nick and Nora Charles were identified so closely with William Powell and Myrna Loy that the public would have difficulty accepting anyone else in the roles. He also felt the lengthy preview period, during which theatre gossips and newspaper columnists spread largely unfounded rumors about the show's mounting problems, helped destroy any chances of success it may have had. Charles Strouse (the composer of "Annie and "Bye Bye Birdie" has had more flops than hits on Broadway.

REMEMBERING PEARL HARBOR AND HARRY MORGAN

Well besides the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941, we also remember the late great Harry Morgan who passed from this life at the grand old age of 96. He was of course the co-star of Dragnet with Jack Webb and the loving but strict Col. Harry Potter on the classic television series MASH. He was an amazing character actor who got sidelined from becoming a lawyer in Santa Barbara in the 1940's and wound up being one of the busiest actors in Hollywood who was able to learn an entire script in one night's study at home. I used to always enjoy watching Harry's performances on both television and the big movie screen. He leaves three children one of whom became that lawyer that Harry didn't quite make. I want to remind readers of my blog that I've release a double CD album on CD Baby that has forty-seven songs from my songwriting career, all remastered and sounding as good as ever. There are songs from "Skylark" and "A Moment With Mister "C" and "The Invitation" which has a new improved libretto that can be purchased at LULU press. Go to www.CDbaby.com, for the CD and www.lulu.com for the new libretto. look under Creative Horizons. I'd sure appreciate friends picking up a copy of each. In conclusion, God keep the memory of our lost servicemen lost at Pearl Harbor: a senseless tragedy that led to the fiercest world war of all times, so far. and oh yes, almost forgot-- happy belated birthday to my cousin Sue Alan in Texas. This was a day of some accomplishment as well. I finished the second episode of a "First Mother" episode called "Martha Monovitz Saves The World." Can you imagine? I created this wonderful story and character back in the early 1990's and just now we are getting some interest from the networks? The second thing I accomplished today ? How about seventeen loads of laundry. I think I washed every shirt and pair of pants that myself and John Long owns. Wow! That laundromat guy surprised me today, I must say. For the very first time since I've been going to his place since he bought it seven years ago he actually said "Thank You". I guess it must be Christmas, after all.

WALT DISNEY'S BIRTHDAY

Today, the amazing Walt Disney would have been one hundred and ten years old. He's now officially been gone more years than he was ever here guiding his company. I called Walt Disney Studios and Disneyland today just to remind them. They had no idea what today was. Well, I'm not surprised. I worked for Disneyland because it was on my bucket list-- something I wanted to do before I died. I loved my fellow cast members. They were all friendly and kind and thoughtful. Disney managers? Well, poor things they are far too absorbed in what i call "the business of magic." I traveled forty-three miles one way to get there. I worked all of the grad nights in one year. I loved waiting on the guests because I know so much about Walt and his company. The highlight of my day came at the end of that work shift when I would briefly stop at the base of Walt's old Disneyland apartment on Main Street and I would look up at his window on main street and say "Goodnight, sir, thanks for starting all the magic." This was especially wonderful during the Christmas season when the small lamp was always replaced by a small Christmas tree. All of Main street was deserted. It was after two o'clock in the morning as we cast members on the late late shift were all going home. I was the only one ever there. Was I the only one who cared? Walt Disney was one of the greatest gifts God gave this weary planet. He was very special to me for many reasons some of which I've shared in this journal since June of 2006. I really wonder sometimes what he might say if he were alive today. They're still guessing what he would have done. Imagine that: a simple boy from the Mid-West without a high school diploma who was so intrinsically connected with every creative step of this company that he knew when a song worked for a movie. He knew what the public would love in entertainment. He knew everything. Sure, Walt made a few mistakes in his days on this planet: a few pictures that flopped. But not like the studio does today. I happen to respect Bob Iger. He really tries. He seems to keep Walt's memory alive. I know that Walt's current Imagineering stagg really tries, but there is far too much politics in the Disney organization today: far too many "sharp pencil boys". Disneyland was not created for that, ladies and gentlemen and while the word "profit" is not a four letter word, it should not also be everything that you hang your hat on, While I worked at the Emporium and The Candy Palace cash registers (among others) I watched people spend money in a bad economy with money they really didn't have. But they seemed to spend it as if being loyal to the creations of this most amazing man. Walt used to say "We never do anything twice" and "You can't top pigs with pigs!" Those were the first philosophies the Disney organization threw out. Imitation is rampant in the company and big attractions (like the new "Little Mermaid") on which lots of money is spent just don't fufill Walt's legacy. It just disappoints. Please, Mr. Iger, you'll make lots of money-- Walt taught you how-- but please don't make money everything. There's no magic in that.

NOTABLE EVENTS AND DIZZY GILLESPE'S BIRTHDAY

Happy Birthday to a wonderful musician of our past: Mr. Dizzy Gillespe: American trumpeter, composer and band leader . And on this day in 1879, dear old Thomas Edison first saw the light by inventing the first workable light bulb in 1879. It's been an interesting few days. The world has lost a blood thirsty dictator (thank God) The President has decided he's going to keep a campaign promise he made in 2007 and bring home the troops from Iraq and end this senseless war. It's interesting that the president made this decision or declaration of this decision on the same day that our troops first saw action of World War One. Interesting coincidence ninety four years apart. And I'm quite sure that God had a good laugh today because the promised rapture didn't happen ether. Mark Twain was so right "Man is the only animal that blushes or needs to". Oh yes, its also the birthday of one of favorite poets: Mr. Samuel Coleridge. He lived only sixty one years, but he wrote enough poetry like the "The Rhine of the Ancient Mariner" that certainly taught me a lot about poetry and eventually all the lyric that I've written in my life. Eight hundred songs and counting and my three sisters probably couldn't name one of them. They just don't understand creativity and the certainly don't understand what I do and the special gift that God has given me all of these many years. Maybe we can get Edison to come back to earth on a future birthday so that he can make a larger light bulb so that they can. Oh well, I love them. And good to hear that Zsa Zsa Gabor has made it out of the hospital alive once again. She may be down to one leg, but she's got some real ballsy spirit-- you gotta admit that one. I find it amusing that Ghadaffi's family is demanding his body back. Hey guys, I'm pretty sure he's dead already. I'm sure he and Bin Laden are walking the streets of hell right now. Oh well, so much for that promised reward of forty precious virgins!

NOT SO HAPPY HALLOWEEN

I found this really cute picture on the Internet and i thought I would share it with you all. It looks like the poor pumpkin had way too much to drink. But I really love creative expression like this. It's the kind of picture that could replace that proverbial thousand words. John and I are hoping that this is our last holiday in the same place for eleven years. John Nugent and I really are so eager for "First Mother" to be accepted by Fox Network. It's so crazy, but this property actually dates back to the early 1990's back when everyone we talked to was saying that it was impossible for a Jew to become President of the United States. Well that was long before Obama and here we are! I find the presidential debates absolutely fascinating. The Herman Cain 999 plan sounds very problem solving, but here's the big wicket in the plan: Herman Cain says that it will be an even 999 plan or twenty-seven percent. The national sales tax is an interesting idea but what about the states (like Oregon, Nevada and New Hampshire) who at this moment don't have a sales or income tax. All of a sudden they are going to have one. You can't count that the lack of payroll taxes will make up for that because you shouldn't be using that money anyway. You are going to pay 9% income tax and 9% national sales tax. It's like spending the money you have saved for property taxes which aren't going away ether or your kids college funds And remember, friends the interest that you pay on your home or condo now WILL NOT be deductible under Mr. Cain's plan. Only charities. Now that sounds wonderful for charities, but there's only so much that you can give away. It's interesting also that the plan excludes used goods. That means the sale of used cars, boats, furniture and clothing is going to sky rocket. But what about new cars whose sales are sluggish today at best? Now consider states like California. Do you really think that the Golden State is going to give up it's precious sales or income tax? ADD IT UP 999 plus 8.75% plus 8-10% personal income tax? That's almost 46%. Now lets say that the states get 50% of the national sales tax. That's cool. Maybe California will lower it's sales tax? It's only a maybe. Now here's a solution that would penalize only the folks who break the law. If you're a resident of North Carolina you may already know about this because it is currently the law there. Suppose that every time you got a ticket for speeding (let's say we give a first timer a break) that you owed the same money to the United States government? Or even 50%. Imagine if you will just how many actual speeding (not parking) tickets are given daily throughout the nation? In California, it's six hundred thousand per anum. The average ticket is $330.00. Add just 50% of that amount due to the Federal Government and you wouldn't need 9% national sales tax. And only those who break the law are penalized. Your insurance goes up every ticket that you get. Nobody howls about that changes anything. Amazing just how simple that would be. The state would collect the money for the Federal Government. Justification-- who supplied most of the money for the interstate highway system in the first place? You choose to break the law? You endanger lives on the highway? You clog up the courts appealing your cry baby amount that you pay and guess what you bear the tax burden. The Post Office can't pay its costs-- the solution is to charge a $25.00 per anum delivery tax. Don't want to pay the tax? Go to the post office rent a post office box. Better yet, use the Internet to pay bills on line-- all FREE. It's time that each American pays a fair share to run the country. This is the greatest country on Earth. But freedom isn't FREE. Only blue sky and sunsets and rainbows. We need to stop cry babying about what things cost and do our best to contribute to it. Otherwise we're like the guy who goes in for a group lunch or dinner and the dining place only takes a maximum of three credit cards. This happened at my own birthday party. The attitude with four of the invited guests was "Well, it's not my fault that they only three credit cards per group. I don't carry cash any more. " I actually had people who "snuck out" without paying using this as their justification to do so. Thank goodness the tip was already included in the bill or the poor waitress would have made damn little. Let's concentrate on sharing the weight and not sitting down on the weight while the poor country tries to move it along!

ELEVEN YEARS TOGETHER

I can't believe that soon John Long and I will be celebrating our 11th anniversary together. That date is October 31st. Halloween Day. We had a formal ceremony with a big party and Rick Carlson and Jimmy Chapel and Mara were there. And it was a grand event. This picture was taken that day. John has been my true soul mate and friend and partner and the odds against our meeting were one jillion gillion to one. After all my last man in my life turned out to be a disaster and was from Arizona. John was from Arizona and had just broken up with his current boy friend. What amazing progression the Gay movement has made in eleven years. John is my perfect partner and is the most

amazing balance. I turned sixty four on September 24th and I've been writing this blog for six years. I haven't written for a while. The WE ARE DIFFERENT SHOW was an artistic success, and did make a $500 profit, but the theatre (THE CAP THEATRE) turned out to be a very crooked and cheatful experience. They took over my box office, wanted a cut of my caterer's fee (which we made no profit on in the first place) and were unbelievably rude to my actors, staff and manager. I had a mild heart attack because of the bad experience and as my partner has said he wouldn't walk back into that theatre with a Molotov Cocktail-- it will spoil the reputation of the Molotov Cocktail. These guys are so slick they could grease a cake pan without Crisco. Stay away from these people in Sherman Oaks, Ca. I am going to try and write more here from now on as this represents a great therapy for me. John Nugent and I are awaiting word on our "First Mother" TV series which has Lainie Kazan attached to star. We've written seven episodes of the series together. Also on the creative menu is four episodes of a new series idea called "SENIOR HIGH DROP OUTS". The idea is simple. A gay third grade teacher is fired for spanking a little girl after she sets fire to a picture of George Washington. He begs for a second chance and finally gets one teaching senior citizens so that they can get their long neglected high school diplomas. Funny stuff. Great potential.

A MUSICAL MIS ADVENTURE THAT NOW FLIES

Thank goodness for the great people of theatre like dear Judy Eglan here. She and husband Kevin and their grandson Harley, Grant Measures and all the others still in the cast of our "We Are Different Now" are such joys to work with. I haven't written on this blog for awhile because John and I have been so absolutely consumed by this 9/11 tribute musical and our first independent production where we have been the producers. It's been a downright roller coaster of the century ride. You can not believe the egos of actors and wannabee musical directors who have done the things they've done to stop us. The first director named Bruce whom we thought was our friend of four years turned into a controlling monster who had no respect for authors. The second named Paul who had a medication issue and literally went off the deep end. Good old Jay was another nightmare who was an absolute control freak and knew nothing about musical theatre and equally nothing about staging. Our next director was struck by a sudden illness and stress and Tatianna simply had no idea what actors would accept or not and treated them mostly like children. And then I took over and employed a cast member's help and we turned it around. And yesterday, finally it began to breathe on its own and just may survive and be strong. I have learned that some actors will say absolutely anything to get out of a show and to make excuses why they can't be there for rehearsal. Things were different back in 1983 when we cast our first show, Skylark. Then there were over a hundred actors in line for audition. And this was Equity-Wavier back when Equity didn't even have a minimum per day stipend . Nobody quit. Nobody put money over their art. Nobody used a million excuses or had more problems than a daytime soap opera. Nobody tried to betray you. And not everybody thought themselves to be a director. But all the problems, I hope seem to be behind us now. And now this little show at the Cap Theatre at 13752 Ventura Blvd can finally go on on the 9/11 weekend (Fri, Saturday and Sunday nights) at 8pm

with a 4pm show on Sunday afternoon. It's a dinner theatre presentation with Yankee Pot Roast, Liberty potatoes, Colony vegetables, rolls and butter, Boston Baked Beans and dessert.

I want to thank the good and noble members of this cast who have gone out of their way to smooth the path. It's been one hell of a ride. I think I could write a book about John and my misadventures. Wow! So thank yopu Vicki M and Vicki C. Thank you, Buddy and Kaye and Robert and everyone for holding on for dear life and making "We Are Different Now" fly.

A NEW THEATRE AND NEW POSSIBILITIES

Well, it's been a month since I have written here and so much has happened. With the grace of God, my writing partner and I have found a theatre to perform our musicals in the city of Sherman Oaks. It's a really beautiful theatre and no, it's not the grandeur of the stage in the picture,but it is a stage that is twenty four feet wide and thirty feet deep with an electronic curtain, spots, special effect lighting and amazing beautiful cabaret seating. This theatre is a little gem and the Good Lord led us to it and I am so grateful to Him. The rental is modest and we have a an amazing publicist named Bill Hooey for whom we are turning his novel into a musical for a trade in services . It's an unusual tale let us just say that and its a great irony that we are turning this type of subject into a musical show, but we already have forty-five pages written and several songs. Our plans is to turn this venue into a self contained dinner theatre utilizing a caterer serving well drinks and wine and rewarding the cast with our profits. Our dinner theatre price will be thirty-three dollars ans will include a main course like Yankee Pot Roast, potato, veggies, bread, salad, dessert plus bottled water or ice tea and one well drink. We're thinking of adding three or four four dollars for a second helping option. All in all, with God's help we will put on a 9/11 Memorial show plus a review show with many of musicals in that show being previewed. And now also we are very close to making a deal for our TV series "First Mother" with Lanie Kazan set to star as the title character. I want this so much to happen and finally make my sisters proud of me. It's tough being related to a dreamer, especially when these same three sisters (two older, one younger) never really had a big dream of their own. Raising a family is wonderful, trust me, but the gift of having a dream and sticking with that dream until it has been realized is a joy I can not begin to describe to you. When God gives you a special talent, He expects you to carry through with that talent and see it trough to it's grand big conclusion. My manager Jimmy Chapel understands this and my partner John Nugent certainly understands this. We've been plugging away for the same amount of time. So now with God's guidance and help, we can get these first two projects cast and staged. This time John and I are not trying to direct. Thank goodness! We heard yesterday that a big TV director is interested in our musical "Brothers Laughter". So everyone who reads my blog (it's been going on for five years and a month) say a little prayer that things go right and smooth. If we can sell some ads and get a corporate sponsorship, we will really be ahead. And belatedly may I wish Neil Simon a Happy Birthday. He turned eighty-four on the Fourth of July. Amazing guy. Complex-as he brother Danny called him, but amazing.

FAREWELL WALLY AND BETTY AND ED SULLIVAN'S LAST SHOW

We lost two Disneyland icons last Friday and they both died on the same day. The show was "The Golden Horseshoe Revue" and the performers were Wally Boag (my comedic hero) and his lovely and wonderful co-star, Betty Taylor. I used to love going to see this show every time I went to Disneyland. When I was a kid, I had written a Walt Disney tribute poem and got to know a man by the name of Robert Lilienwall. Bob was always so super to me and he always would call down to the Horseshoe to get me reserved seats for that day's performance. Without those reservations, guests would wait for two hours in line. Wally was a brilliant comedian who had the most amazing comic timing of all time. Walt Disney personally signed Wally for a two week contract way back in 1955. That grew to a gig that lasted until 1982 or almost thirty years. Betty was a beautiful and amazing entertainer who can really sing a wonderful song. In the show Wally (who played Pecos Bill) was supposed to Betty's boyfriend. The routine was as flawless and Abbott and Costello's classic "Who's on First!" Wally was also the voice of Jose, the parrot in Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room", the very first Audio animatronic attraction at Disneyland. We've created a new poster for our latest musical "Father Dreamer" which joins our incredible roster of thirty original musicals in our Creative Horizons catalog. Today is also a milestone in entertainment because forty years ago, today, the last "Ed Sullivan Show" was broadcast on CBS.Sunday nights, 8:00 pm, CBS. Ask almost any American born in the 1950's or earlier what television program ran in that time slot on that network, and they'll probably know the answer: The Ed Sullivan Show. For more than two decades, Sullivan's variety show was the premiere television showcase for entertainers of all stripes, including borscht-belt comedians, plate-spinning vaudeville throwbacks and, most significantly, some of the biggest and most current names in rock and roll. Twenty-three years after its 1948 premiere, The Ed Sullivan Show had its final broadcast on this day in 1971. In its first eight years of existence, there was no such thing as rock and roll to be featured on the program originally called Toast of the Town, yet even its first broadcast made music history when Broadway composers Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II gave the world its first taste of the score from their upcoming musical, South Pacific. Over the years, live performances of new and current Broadway shows were featured regularly on Ed Sullivan, including Julie Andrews singing "Wouldn't It Be Loverly?" from My Fair Lady and Richard Burton singing "What Do The Simple Folk Do?" from Camelot. Classical and opera performers also made frequent appearances, but of course The Ed Sullivan Show is now remembered most for providing so many iconic moments in the history of televised rock and roll. Elvis Presley's first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, in September 1956, was actually one of his most restrained and least thrilling. It was notable, however, given Ed Sullivan's assertion earlier that year that he'd never allow "The King" on his show. By the time the Beatles rolled around, Sullivan was far more comfortable with the hysteria young Elvis had caused. In fact, it was Ed Sullivan personally witnessing Beatlemania up close at London's Heathrow airport in 1963 that led the Beatles being booked for their historic February 1964 American television debut. Through the rest of the 60s, The Ed Sullivan Show continued to host the day's biggest rock acts: The Rolling Stones, The Supremes, The Doors, The Mamas and the Papas, Janis Joplin and more. Gladys Knight and the Pips were the musical guests on the final episode of The Ed Sullivan Show, which was cancelled shortly after its rerun broadcast on this day in 1971.

PHIL SILVERS 100TH BIRTHDAY AND WONDERLAND TO CLOSE

One of the greatest natural clowns and incredibly funny men would have turned one hundred years old today. His name was Phil Silvers: the absolute master of in your face, but honest comedy. His Sgt. Bilko character was the best and I'm sorry to say can not be imitated-- even though dear Steve Martin tried. Funny funny man. Known as the "King of Chutzpah" Phil was born on Thursday, May 11, 1911, in Brooklyn, New York where he was the eighth and youngest child of Russian- Jewish immigrants, Saul and Sarah (née Handler) Silver. His brothers and sisters were Lillian, Harry, Jack, Saul, Pearl, Michael, and Reuben Silver. His father was a sheet metal worker, helped build the early New York skyscrapers. Dear Phil Silvers started entertaining at age 11, when he would sing in theaters when the projector broke down (a common occurrence in those days). Two years later, he left school to sing professionally, before appearing in vaudeville as a stooge. He then landed work in short films for the Vitaphone studio, burlesque houses, and on Broadway where he made his debut in the short-lived show Yokel Boy. Critics raved about Silvers, who was hailed as the bright spot in the mediocre play. He then wrote the revue High Kickers, until he went to Hollywood to appear in films.He made his film debut in Hit Parade of 1941 in 1940 (his previous appearance as a 'pitch man' in "Strike Up The Band" was cut). Over the next two decades, he worked as a character man for MGM, Columbia , and 20th Century Fox in such films as Lady Be Good , Coney Island Cover Girl and Summer Stock. When the studio system began to decline, he returned to the stage.

Silvers wrote the lyrics for Frank Sinatra's "Nancy (With the Laughing Face)". Although he was not a songwriter, he wrote the lyrics while visiting composer Jimmy Van Heusen. The two composed the song for Van Heusen's writing partner Johnny Burke, for his wife Bessie's birthday. Substituting Sinatra's little daughter's name Nancy at her birthday party, the trio impressed the singer to record it himself. The song became a popular hit in 1944 and was a staple in Sinatra's live performances. Silvers scored a major triumph in Top Banana , a Broadway show of 1952. Silvers played Jerry Biffle, the egocentric, always-busy star of a major television show. (The character is said to have been based on Milton Berle. .) Silvers dominated the show and won a Tony Award for his performance. He repeated the role in the 1954 film version that was originally released in 3-D. Phil Silvers became a household name in 1955 when he starred as Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko in You'll Never Get Rich, later retitled The Phil Silvers Show. . The military comedy became a huge television hit, with the opportunistic Bilko fast-talking his way through one obstacle after another. Most episodes of the series were filmed in New York . The series ceased production in 1959, not owing to any decline in popularity, but because of the high production costs of a show with a huge ensemble cast.

Throughout the 1960s he appeared internationally in films such as It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and 4o Pounds of Trouble . He was featured in Marilyn Monroe's last film, the unfinished Something's Got To Give" . In the 1963–1964 television season, he appeared as Harry Grafton, a factory foreman interested in get-rich-quick schemes, much like the previous Bilko character, in CBS's 30-episode The Phil Silvers Show. Today is also the birthday of Irving Berlin: the father of American music. Amazing guy. He never read a note of music and he could only play the black keys on the piano. One of his early arrangers was George Gershwin. Early on, Irving sent him away saying "George, you are much too talented to be regelated as a note taker for me. Sorry alsdo to hear about Frank Wildhorn's musical "Wonderland" which will be closing after only thirty-three performances on May 15th. It's sad: Frank hasn't had much success lately on Broadway in the last ten years. but somehow I knew intrinsically that this musical was just not going to make it. It wasn't "large" enough in the high concept department and in my humble opinion just didn't pass the public's "Who Cares?" test that we've talked about here. It cost an average of $125.00 and $150.00 to see a Broadway show today-- so guess what? Today's Broadway musical has to be really top of the hill in high concept. Movie titles help, but are no guarantee. That pitch has got to contain the who, what, where, when and how in two sentences-- and those are the two sentences that need to resonate in the minds of the public. John and I continue to write as many high concept shows that we can. We're writing one on Saint Valentine and Jack The Ripper that looks at the story from Jack's Point of view. By the way, I found some funny signs that you might enjoy also. It's crazy how people don't realize what kind of message they are delivering!

REMEMBERING BEA ARTHUR

Bea Arthur was an amazing comic actress, singer and Broadway star. We lost her to cancer two years ago today. She could deliver a line like Bob Hope, Jack Benny and many other comedians combined. Her portayal of "Maude" was classic and incredibly funny as Dorothy on the Golden Girls. I was priveleged to have written one episode for the Golden Girls show many years ago. Dear Bea was married twice.

Her first marriage took place during her time in the military, when she married fellow Marine Robert Alan Aurthur, a screenwriter, television, and film producer and director, whose surname she took and kept (though with a modified spelling). Shortly after they divorced, she married director Gene Saks from 1950 to 1978 with whom she adopted two sons, Matthew (born in 1961), an actor, and Daniel (born in 1964), a set designer.
In 1972, she moved to the Greater Los Angeles Area and sublet her apartment on Central Park West in New York City and her country home in Bedford, New York. Bea Arthur was a committed animal-rights activist and frequently supported People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals campaigns and joined PETA in 1987 after a Golden Girls anti-fur episode. She appeared on Judge Judy as a witness for an animal-rights activist, and, along with Pamela Anderson insisted on a donation to PETA in exchange for appearing on Comedy Central. In Norfolk, Virginia near the site of the PETA headquarters, there is a dog park named (Bea Arthur Dog Park) in her honor. Arthur's longtime championing of civil rights for women, the elderly, and the Jewish & LGBT communities—in her two television roles and through her charity work and personal outspokenness. Arthur died at her home in the Greater Los Angeles Area in the early morning hours of Saturday, April 25, 2009. She had been ill from cancer,and her body was cremated after her death. Her ashes were given to either a friend or relative.On April 28, 2009, the Broadway community paid tribute to Arthur by dimming the marquees of New York City's Broadway theater district in her memory for one minute at 8:00 P.M. Bea Arthur's co-stars from The Golden Girls, Rue McClanahan and Betty White, commented on her death via telephone on an April 27 episode of Larry King Live as well as other news outlets such as ABC. Longtime friends Adrienne Barbeau (with whom she had worked on Maude) and Angela Lansbury (with whom she had worked in Mame) released amicable statements: Barbeau said, "We've lost a unique, incredible talent. No one could deliver a line or hold a take like Bea and no one was more generous or giving to her fellow performers"; and Lansbury said, "She became and has remained my "Bosom Buddy" I am deeply saddened by her passing, but also relieved that she is released from the pain".
Arthur bequeathed $300,000 to The Ali Forney Center, a New York City organization that provides housing for homeless LGBT youths. Dear Bea won the American Theatre Wing's Tony Award (The Tonys) in 1966 as Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance that year as Vera Charles in the original Broadway production of Jerry Herman's musical Mame. Arthur has received the most Emmy nominations for Leading Actress in a Comedy Series with 9. She later received the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series twice, once in 1977 for Maude and again in 1988 for The Golden Girls. She was inducted into the Academy's Hall of Fame in 2008.
On June 8, 2008, The Golden Girls was awarded the Pop Culture award at the Sixth Annual TV Land Awards. Arthur (in one of her final public appearances) accepted the award with co-stars Rue McClanahan and Betty White.