I don't have any gossip or "behind the scenes" Hollywood stories for you on the last day of 2012.
I do have a heartfelt "Thank You" for reading my blog...And for being so supportive of The Artist and his leap into the unknown in California.
I'm very proud of the kid for having the courage to follow his dream of becoming a professional actor. I'll admit to some moments of doubt and concern. It's all worth it when I see the joy on his face while he's working on his craft.
I also have to thank his mom for doing something many mothers would never dream of doing...Letting her 13-year-old son move across the country with his (sometimes more immature) dad to chase his dream.
I need to thank you for letting me ramble on about child actors, stage parents, an entertaining but weird apartment complex, L.A. traffic and various other topics on a regular basis.
If you like my blog, please feel free to share it with your friends. I'll have more Hollywood stories in 2013 and it's always fun to connect with new readers.
Have a safe and Happy New Year!
Monday, December 31, 2012
Saturday, December 29, 2012
A Final Hollywood Story For 2012
Zach finished 2012 with a "nice get" as he was asked to audition for a part on “General Hospital”.
Auditions are normally held at a off-site casting office far away from the main production of a shoot or movie. The Artist was asked to audition at the production offices of GH.
The front gate of the studio home of General Hospital.
It’s still an odd feeling to walk up to a major television studio to find Zach's name on the guest list.
Mark Teschner is the casting director for the show. He's cast thousands of hours of television in his career.
The Artist and I made our way across the lot and were wondering if we should turn left or right to find the set. We looked to our left and found the answer when we spotted this sign:
The front of the hospital is really on the side of a studio set. The sign is next to a loading dock made to look like a hospital emergency entrance.
We entered the building and it was like stepping into a real hospital. The security guard gave us directions to the elevator. The sign below is the first sight you see after exiting the elevator:
The current cast of "General Hospital".
The Artist signed in at the casting office desk. I could tell by the look on his face that he was nervous at the sight that greeted him. There were three other actors in the room and all of them were in the 18-22 age range.
A cute sign we spotted as we left the audition. It's next to the ambulance parking lot on the set.
It turns out GH is auditioning two different age groups to determine which direction they want to go with the character. As always, it’s a case of “hurry up and wait” before we find out any further news from the producers.
Auditions are normally held at a off-site casting office far away from the main production of a shoot or movie. The Artist was asked to audition at the production offices of GH.
The front gate of the studio home of General Hospital.
It’s still an odd feeling to walk up to a major television studio to find Zach's name on the guest list.
Mark Teschner is the casting director for the show. He's cast thousands of hours of television in his career.
The Artist and I made our way across the lot and were wondering if we should turn left or right to find the set. We looked to our left and found the answer when we spotted this sign:
The front of the hospital is really on the side of a studio set. The sign is next to a loading dock made to look like a hospital emergency entrance.
We entered the building and it was like stepping into a real hospital. The security guard gave us directions to the elevator. The sign below is the first sight you see after exiting the elevator:
The current cast of "General Hospital".
The Artist signed in at the casting office desk. I could tell by the look on his face that he was nervous at the sight that greeted him. There were three other actors in the room and all of them were in the 18-22 age range.
We looked at each other but didn't say a word about the age difference.
Out of the three guys in the waiting room, two of them were blonde and bland while the third guy looked like the wrong version of Taylor Lautner.
Out of the three guys in the waiting room, two of them were blonde and bland while the third guy looked like the wrong version of Taylor Lautner.
He had the Taylor Lautner look from the first “Twilight” movie. He was long haired and skinny with clothes that were too big for his frame.
If you’re going to try and look like Taylor Lautner you should go for the buff version/popular version of Taylor Lautner.
Zach waited his turn and went in for his audition. He was in the casting room for a good 10-15 minutes. He walked out to the sight of two actors his age in the waiting room. The Artist was relieved to see kids his age trying out for the role.
A cute sign we spotted as we left the audition. It's next to the ambulance parking lot on the set.
It turns out GH is auditioning two different age groups to determine which direction they want to go with the character. As always, it’s a case of “hurry up and wait” before we find out any further news from the producers.
Monday, December 10, 2012
What Happens During An Audition?
A few blog readers have asked me to describe the audition process.
The process varies depending on the source of the audition. An audition can come from your agent or manager, a direct message through a casting website, Craigslist, trade magazine ads, a recommendation or pure luck.
Having said that, here's a “typical” audition
process timeline:
***An audition is posted on one (or more) of the major
casting websites.
***Hundreds of actors are submitted for the audition. An actor might submit himself or the
submission could come from an agent/manager.
There were two girls that lived at The Plaza (our
old home) that didn’t have an agent or manager.
They were relentless in their submissions and chasing down casting
directors. They weren't super
successful at booking gigs but it wasn’t for lack of trying on a daily basis.
***The casting directors and/or the project producers
go through all of the submissions to choose who they want to audition for the upcoming part.
It’s not an exaggeration to say there are thousands
of submissions for every open role in Hollywood. You can almost consider it a victory to be called in for an audition. The odds
of your headshot, demo reel or resume standing out enough from thousands of
other submissions are hard to quantify.
***The actor is notified of the audition via email or
a phone call.
The actor confirms the appointment and is told
the details of the audition. Are there
sides (script samples)? Is it an improv
audition? What part is the actor playing during the audition? Is
there a specific style of dress or a certain accent needed for the part?
***The actor rehearses and memorizes the sides and arrives
at the audition ON TIME. The casting
director wants the lines memorized before you enter the audition. It doesn’t hurt to have a copy of the
script as a “fall back” but it’s best to have the script committed to memory.
***We always bring the sides, a headshot and resume
(attached to the back of the headshot), his current work permit and paperwork
to prove he has a bank account to protect his money until he turns 18 years
old.
***The actor waits his turn until he is called into
the audition room. The room could have
one casting director OR it might be filled with casting agents, producers,
directors and screen writers.
***The audition itself could be anywhere from
30-seconds to 5-minutes depending on the material and the interest of the
casting director. The actor might have
to do different line readings, improvise new lines, answer questions about his
take on the character or read the words EXACTLY as they’re written on the page.
***After the audition, actors get to second guess
their performance, wait for a call or email with info about a callback/booking
and work on getting the next audition.
It's a luxury to get a couple of days notice before the actual audition. We've had auditions come up anywhere from "can you audition NOW?" to "later today" to "see you tomorrow". It's the same way with many job bookings. It's always easier to jump in the car and run when it's for a paying job!
It’s a never ending process. The odds of hearing “thanks but no thanks” if
you don’t book a gig are about one-percent.
The casting directors don’t have time to contact everyone that didn’t
book the job. You have to learn to keep
moving on to the next audition and not obsessing over jobs you didn't book.
It’s not easy but it’s totally worth it when you get
a booking!
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Various And Sundry Stories From Hollywood
The holidays are here but auditions and jobs don’t
take a break in Hollywood. The Artist
has booked a gig or two and been on plenty of auditions, and adventures, since my last post.
I couldn't get a decent shot of The Artist on my camera phone. Instead, enjoy this random shot of the crew at the high school parking lot.
2. Zach had one audition that required him to wear his football uniform (jersey, pads, football pants, helmet, etc.). The producers of the spot made him demonstrate how he would fire off the line. He also had to tell them about his greatest game of football.
4. Dana and I attended the Christmas Tree Lighting
at The Grove in early November. The
event was hosted by Mario Lopez and featured music from Michael Bolton, Colbie
Caillat, Far East Movement, The Backstreet Boys, Scotty McCreery and Philip
Phillips.
Cut to…Thanksgiving Weekend!
One television is showing the Saints game. The other TV is showing the beginning of a Christmas special. It’s The Grove Xmas Special!
1. Zach did a day job on the set of a movie for The
Hallmark Channel. The stars of the movie
are Eric Mabius (“Ugly Betty”) and Stefanie Powers (“Hart To Hart”). Zach’s scene was shot on a high school
campus. I didn’t see much of Eric Mabius
but I did see one great moment with Stefanie Powers. She was making her way to the set in the
afternoon while walking with a production assistant. The PA’s main job was shielding her from the
sun with an umbrella. Whenever she was
outside and not filming a scene, this guy was next to her like he was Diddy’s
umbrella man.
The call time was 10am. Zach finally went on set to film his scene at
7pm.
The shot took three takes to get the scene from
different angles.
We were on our way home by 7:30pm. Zach got a full day of pay for (maybe) 30 minutes of work.
I couldn't get a decent shot of The Artist on my camera phone. Instead, enjoy this random shot of the crew at the high school parking lot.
2. Zach had one audition that required him to wear his football uniform (jersey, pads, football pants, helmet, etc.). The producers of the spot made him demonstrate how he would fire off the line. He also had to tell them about his greatest game of football.
Two hours later, we received an audition notice for
the next afternoon. What was the main
requirement for the spot?
The Artist had to show up dressed in full football
gear.
I might have cursed a time or two as I took all of the equipment out
of the bag.
3. I was sitting on the tailgate of my truck bed
(Hello Redneck!) eating lunch when I was approached by two film guys. They asked me if they could shoot a quick
shot for their student film with the main character leaning against my
truck. I agreed with two stipulations:
*They had to be done in 20 minutes so I could get to
my next appointment.
*They had to give me $10 to cover my lunch and my
wait time. I really just wanted them to
cover the money I spent on lunch but $10 sounded like a good number.
I left 15 minutes later with $10 in my
pocket!
The show was filled with fake snow, 60-degree temps
and a giant Christmas tree. The musical
numbers were taped for broadcast over Thanksgiving Weekend.
The 8-story Christmas Tree at The Grove.
Cut to…Thanksgiving Weekend!
One television is showing the Saints game. The other TV is showing the beginning of a Christmas special. It’s The Grove Xmas Special!
The bar owner turned off the special after 5
minutes. It’s hard to be in the mood to
listen to holiday songs when it’s 80-degrees and sunny!
5. The Artist attended a red carpet event at
Infusion Lounge at Universal’s City Walk.
The event was also a benefit to help feed the homeless on Thanksgiving
Day. 
The Artist dressed to red carpet impress.
I’m sure Zach had a good time. I even saw some of the folks from “Community” at the Lounge. I can’t really tell you anything about the event because of the new friend I made that night.
I’m not really sure how it happened but I got
trapped in a conversation with a medium-to-full-on-drunk actress. I guess I should say I got trapped listening
to her for a LONG TIME. Here are a few of the topics we covered:I’m sure Zach had a good time. I even saw some of the folks from “Community” at the Lounge. I can’t really tell you anything about the event because of the new friend I made that night.
*She asked me how many credits I have on IMDb.
*She wanted a copy of my head shot.
*She was thrilled to learn I'm helping my child with
his acting dream.
*I learned her parents didn’t support her acting
dream.
*I discovered her parents still don’t support her
acting dream.
*She asked if I had any projects looking for “her
type”.
*She asked if she could play Zach’s mom in any
upcoming projects.
*She wanted me to buy her a drink.
*She told me that kids make her nervous.
*She consider herself a “Superman 3 Annette O’Toole”
and not a “Smallville Annette O’Toole”.
*She asked me to buy her a drink (again) since she didn’t
remember asking me the first time.
Zach came over to rescue me and she fawned all over
The Artist. We finally escaped her and
found Dana calmly enjoying a glass of wine.
We grabbed Dana and got out of there!
6. I have more to share but no more time to type (tonight). I'll share more from Hollywood ASAP!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
6. I have more to share but no more time to type (tonight). I'll share more from Hollywood ASAP!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Monday, November 12, 2012
Odds And Sods From Hollywood...
***The Artist has been a busy boy the past few weeks with a combination of auditions, school and his social life.
His auditions have included:
1. TV commercials.
2. A film about an abused altar boy.
3. Having to dance Gangnam Style for a video game spot. The Gangnam Style audition was funny because there were no lines to learn, no character motivation and no back story to learn before the audition. The only thing Zach had to do was prove he knew how to perform the worldwide dance craze.
***School has been moving at a normal pace. He’s working on his math units at the moment. He has five units to finish and each unit is 70 pages! I have the feeling he’ll been working on math for the rest of the month (and maybe part of December).
***Halloween night was the most memorable trick-or-treat night I've experienced as an adult. We went to Toluca Lake because all of the families we're friends with told us it's "the place to be on Halloween". We decided to trust them and took Zach to the neighborhood. The place was crawling with kids and adults dressed in costume and enjoying the amazing Halloween displays. The houses I can remember at the moment featured:
1. A yellow brick road (driveway) leading to the garage of a home with an image of The Great & Powerful Oz projected on the garage door. "The Wizard" was out of sight but he was on a loud speaker asking the children to grab some candy and then go home and get some rest. "The Wicked Witch" was in a tree by the driveway telling everyone to ignore "The Wizard" and keep gathering candy.
2. One family turned their home into a 3-D Maze.
3. A police car crashed into one yard and medics were working on helping the victims. A zombie would leap out of the trash can to scare kids. The windows of the home featured scenes of ghoulish families.
4. A monster dance party in one front yard with not-so-scary music and dancing zombies.
5. A creepy home featured a hillbilly theme and two guys playing the banjos. (Yes. it was "Dueling Banjos")
Toluca Lake is the home of many current Hollywood stars and some old Hollywood money. They're not afraid to spend their money on making sure Halloween is fun for families of all ages.
1. A yellow brick road (driveway) leading to the garage of a home with an image of The Great & Powerful Oz projected on the garage door. "The Wizard" was out of sight but he was on a loud speaker asking the children to grab some candy and then go home and get some rest. "The Wicked Witch" was in a tree by the driveway telling everyone to ignore "The Wizard" and keep gathering candy.
2. One family turned their home into a 3-D Maze.
3. A police car crashed into one yard and medics were working on helping the victims. A zombie would leap out of the trash can to scare kids. The windows of the home featured scenes of ghoulish families.
4. A monster dance party in one front yard with not-so-scary music and dancing zombies.
5. A creepy home featured a hillbilly theme and two guys playing the banjos. (Yes. it was "Dueling Banjos")
Toluca Lake is the home of many current Hollywood stars and some old Hollywood money. They're not afraid to spend their money on making sure Halloween is fun for families of all ages.
***He also took part in a Red Carpet Event on Hollywood Blvd. to benefit "The Shoe Crew". They donate new shoes to needy kids and their families. It was a Halloween Red Carpet Event so he teamed with a buddy to go as The Blues Brothers. Zach was Jake while his partner was Elwood. They got to walk the Red Carpet on a Saturday night in Hollywood. It was great fun to watch the faces of every kid at the event because for that moment they were Hollywood superstars at an event near the Hollywood Stars Walk Of Fame.
***The Artist spent a recent Saturday morning playing kickball for a new film. It's funny to think of the various jobs everyone has to do in order to make a living. I'm not sure if anyone would even think of getting paid to play kickball as a real career option.
He spent three hours kicking the ball, trying to throw out opposing players and running the bases. I'm always happy when his bookings also involve a good amount of exercise.
We went to lunch with one of his fellow actors after the shoot. Dana and I had to move to another table when their conversation turned to cheat codes and Halo 4 game strategies. I'm okay with video games but I don't want to discuss ways to find hidden power and weapons. I just want to play the game!
***For the moment, that's the latest from Hollywood. Have a great week!
Monday, October 29, 2012
Bonding Time With The Parents
My favorite parents from various auditions:
***The stage mom who likes to look at your headshot.
I've met plenty of stage moms that want to look at the headshots of every child actor in the audition. They enjoy offering friendly advice on how to improve the look of your kid and point out "tiny flaws" with your current photo. It's fun to watch them try and psych out the kids waiting for their turn to audition.
It's also great fun to see the look on their faces when I tell them I'm not going to show them our photo. I reply with this phrase, "I'd love to show you but according to the beliefs of my religion, I can only show the photo to a certain number of people per week to avoid being guilty of the sin of vanity".
I get such joy out of watching them try and process that phrase for the rest of the audition.
***The parents that tell you everything they're doing for their child.
These wonderful/loyal/selfless parents are sacrificing everything for their kids....And they want to make sure everyone knows how wonderful they are at every moment! I had one mom tell me she can't wait to be thanked from the stage of the Oscars in the future!
***The parents that always take a nap.
You never see these parents because they bring their kids to the set and head back to the car to catch up on their sleep. There are plenty of times that I'm wondering if they're sleeping or dead.
***The parent that checks out the competition.
I was at an audition last week where one parent was emailing the names and agents of the other kids on the audition sheet to himself so he could check out the IMDB credits of the competition later that evening.
Wait...That was me...Forget I said anything about that incident!
FYI...I'd do it again!
***The parents that always take a nap.
You never see these parents because they bring their kids to the set and head back to the car to catch up on their sleep. There are plenty of times that I'm wondering if they're sleeping or dead.
***The parent that checks out the competition.
I was at an audition last week where one parent was emailing the names and agents of the other kids on the audition sheet to himself so he could check out the IMDB credits of the competition later that evening.
Wait...That was me...Forget I said anything about that incident!
FYI...I'd do it again!
Friday, October 12, 2012
A day at "Modern Family"
The Artist was booked for a day of background extra work on "Modern Family". I'd say that's a gig not to be turned down for any reason!
The casting office called us to book Zach around 6:30pm on Tuesday night. The call time was 7:30am the next morning. The casting office asked if I also wanted to be on the show as a background person. Why not??? I had to be on set with Zach so why not get paid while I was there?
The casting office was looking for "real dads" to be in the scenes for Wednesday. I was standing on Cahuenga Boulevard when they called so I wasn't near a computer to email a photo for them to decide if they "liked my look". I told them I'd send one in about 30 minutes but they were hopeful they would book someone before I got home. I sent them the photo about 45-minutes later and they replied back with an instant "Yes...Please be on set for a 7am call time".
We've been on a ton of shoots but never on the set of a major prime-time comedy. The email we received from the casting office told us everything to bring on Wednesday morning. We had to bring Zach's social security card, current school records, homework for the school teacher, a valid work permit, clothing options and a copy of his birth certificate. I had to bring my driver's license and my social security card. They also sent us the address of the Fox Lot parking garage, a map of the studio lot and instructions on parking without having to pay.
The Fox Lot parking garage is around the corner from the studio. You have to park in the garage and then go to the top of the garage to the walkway. The walkway leads to The Avenue of the Stars. You take the Avenue to Olympic and then to Galaxy Way. The walk on Galaxy Way leads to the security guard gate at Fox. The security guard checks you in and then you have another nice walk through the lot until you reach Stage 5. Stage 5 is the home of "Modern Family" AND it's also the home of "Dexter". You can find items from America's #1 family mixed with items used by America's #1 serial killer.
We checked in with the casting person and filled out our paperwork for the day. I was put in charge of the pay vouchers for the two of us.
We made our way over to wardrobe so they could approve our clothes. The email from the casting office told us what kind of clothes to bring to the shoot. The scene was outside on a fall day so long sleeves, jeans, sports clothes and jackets were the order of the day. None of the clothes can have any visible logos because production companies and networks would have to pay the companies if they don't have a deal already in place to use their products.
I didn't own any t-shirts without logos or superheroes on them so we went shopping on Tuesday night and bought two (money-wise) cheap solid color t-shirts. I had to change into a second shirt and The Artist had to wear another pair of shoes but those were minor wardrobe changes.
With a few minutes to kill, we made our way to craft services. The breakfast selection included cereal, donuts, oatmeal, fruit, bagels, bacon, hash browns and custom made omelets. I went with oatmeal (because eggs are disgusting) and Zach had some cereal.
Breakfast didn't last long because it was time to hop in a van and head to Beverly Hills for location shooting at a park.
I'll admit I was afraid to be part of the show. I wasn't afraid of the cameras or the work. I was afraid the show would be ruined for me for the rest of my life.
I haven't watched Cheers since the late-90s. We were living in Memphis and Dana was doing an event for the American Diabetes Association. The "celebrity" at the event was one of the stars of Cheers and when he finally arrived (30-minutes late) at the event he didn't think the crowd was big enough for a person of his fame. He started yelling at Dana since she was the person standing next to him.
Did I mention Dana was 8 months pregnant at the time?
The "celebrity" was such a jerk yelling at a pregnant woman in front of the entire crowd that it ruined the TV show for me.
(A quick note to my Memphis friends...the jerk in question is not Woody Harrelson from his time in the city shooting the Larry Flynt movie)
I didn't want to see any of the Modern Family cast acting like jerks to the extras or the crew because it would prevent me from watching the show.
I'm happy to say they couldn't have been a nicer group of people.
The cast on set at our shoot included Ed O'Neill, Ty Burrell, Nolan Gould and Rico Rodriguez. It was interesting watching the actors interact with each other. It's obvious the "father" actors have a great deal of love and respect for the "son" actors. The kid actors really enjoyed working with the guys that play their parents.
Zach's background scenes were with the two main child actors and 7-8 background kids. He was placed in the first shot of the day with 4 of the other kids.
About 5-minutes before the first shot of the day another child extra and his father arrived (late) to the set. We knew this kid and his dad from various auditions around the city. The dad is always going on about how much his kid has worked and how his son is beyond "simple background work". I laughed out loud (for the first time) when they walked up to the set. I laughed out loud (for the second time) when the father loudly announced to the crew his son had arrived to shoot his background scenes. I laughed out loud (for the third time) when the PA looked him and said, "So?" The dad attempted to argue with the crew member that his son should be included in the shot. The PA told him they should learn to show up on time and to take his kid to the on-set teacher.
It was the first highlight of my day.
The child too good for background work is not in this photo. The kids are hanging out between takes of the first scene.
The dad extras were good guys and almost all of them were professional actors. There was only one other "real dad" on the set with me making extra money while we had to be on set with our kids. The professional extras were union guys and were happy to make the money and complain at the same time. They complained about:
***The working conditions of past jobs
***The way studios try to "cheat them" out of a full lunch hour (we ate for over an hour)
***The small number of shuttle vans back to the studio
One extra complained to me about having to park at the Fox parking garage. He tried to convince me that Fox has too many employees and a professional (such as himself) who has been an extra on so many shows on the lot should be able to park on the lot like any name actor.
Fake label beer on set to avoid having to pay a name brand.
I was in four scenes during the shoot. I don't know how much, if any, I'll be in the show. I was glad to find out these guys were not jerks so I can continue to watch the show.
The day ended with the kids finishing their three hours of school (state law), signed pay vouchers and validated parking. I'm not sure if I'll do any background work in the future but it wasn't a bad way to spend the day!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
The casting office called us to book Zach around 6:30pm on Tuesday night. The call time was 7:30am the next morning. The casting office asked if I also wanted to be on the show as a background person. Why not??? I had to be on set with Zach so why not get paid while I was there?
The casting office was looking for "real dads" to be in the scenes for Wednesday. I was standing on Cahuenga Boulevard when they called so I wasn't near a computer to email a photo for them to decide if they "liked my look". I told them I'd send one in about 30 minutes but they were hopeful they would book someone before I got home. I sent them the photo about 45-minutes later and they replied back with an instant "Yes...Please be on set for a 7am call time".
We've been on a ton of shoots but never on the set of a major prime-time comedy. The email we received from the casting office told us everything to bring on Wednesday morning. We had to bring Zach's social security card, current school records, homework for the school teacher, a valid work permit, clothing options and a copy of his birth certificate. I had to bring my driver's license and my social security card. They also sent us the address of the Fox Lot parking garage, a map of the studio lot and instructions on parking without having to pay.
The Fox Lot parking garage is around the corner from the studio. You have to park in the garage and then go to the top of the garage to the walkway. The walkway leads to The Avenue of the Stars. You take the Avenue to Olympic and then to Galaxy Way. The walk on Galaxy Way leads to the security guard gate at Fox. The security guard checks you in and then you have another nice walk through the lot until you reach Stage 5. Stage 5 is the home of "Modern Family" AND it's also the home of "Dexter". You can find items from America's #1 family mixed with items used by America's #1 serial killer.
We checked in with the casting person and filled out our paperwork for the day. I was put in charge of the pay vouchers for the two of us.
We made our way over to wardrobe so they could approve our clothes. The email from the casting office told us what kind of clothes to bring to the shoot. The scene was outside on a fall day so long sleeves, jeans, sports clothes and jackets were the order of the day. None of the clothes can have any visible logos because production companies and networks would have to pay the companies if they don't have a deal already in place to use their products.
I didn't own any t-shirts without logos or superheroes on them so we went shopping on Tuesday night and bought two (money-wise) cheap solid color t-shirts. I had to change into a second shirt and The Artist had to wear another pair of shoes but those were minor wardrobe changes.
With a few minutes to kill, we made our way to craft services. The breakfast selection included cereal, donuts, oatmeal, fruit, bagels, bacon, hash browns and custom made omelets. I went with oatmeal (because eggs are disgusting) and Zach had some cereal.
Breakfast didn't last long because it was time to hop in a van and head to Beverly Hills for location shooting at a park.
I'll admit I was afraid to be part of the show. I wasn't afraid of the cameras or the work. I was afraid the show would be ruined for me for the rest of my life.
I haven't watched Cheers since the late-90s. We were living in Memphis and Dana was doing an event for the American Diabetes Association. The "celebrity" at the event was one of the stars of Cheers and when he finally arrived (30-minutes late) at the event he didn't think the crowd was big enough for a person of his fame. He started yelling at Dana since she was the person standing next to him.
Did I mention Dana was 8 months pregnant at the time?
The "celebrity" was such a jerk yelling at a pregnant woman in front of the entire crowd that it ruined the TV show for me.
(A quick note to my Memphis friends...the jerk in question is not Woody Harrelson from his time in the city shooting the Larry Flynt movie)
I didn't want to see any of the Modern Family cast acting like jerks to the extras or the crew because it would prevent me from watching the show.
I'm happy to say they couldn't have been a nicer group of people.
The cast on set at our shoot included Ed O'Neill, Ty Burrell, Nolan Gould and Rico Rodriguez. It was interesting watching the actors interact with each other. It's obvious the "father" actors have a great deal of love and respect for the "son" actors. The kid actors really enjoyed working with the guys that play their parents.
Zach's background scenes were with the two main child actors and 7-8 background kids. He was placed in the first shot of the day with 4 of the other kids.
About 5-minutes before the first shot of the day another child extra and his father arrived (late) to the set. We knew this kid and his dad from various auditions around the city. The dad is always going on about how much his kid has worked and how his son is beyond "simple background work". I laughed out loud (for the first time) when they walked up to the set. I laughed out loud (for the second time) when the father loudly announced to the crew his son had arrived to shoot his background scenes. I laughed out loud (for the third time) when the PA looked him and said, "So?" The dad attempted to argue with the crew member that his son should be included in the shot. The PA told him they should learn to show up on time and to take his kid to the on-set teacher.
It was the first highlight of my day.
The child too good for background work is not in this photo. The kids are hanging out between takes of the first scene.
The dad extras were good guys and almost all of them were professional actors. There was only one other "real dad" on the set with me making extra money while we had to be on set with our kids. The professional extras were union guys and were happy to make the money and complain at the same time. They complained about:
***The working conditions of past jobs
***The way studios try to "cheat them" out of a full lunch hour (we ate for over an hour)
***The small number of shuttle vans back to the studio
One extra complained to me about having to park at the Fox parking garage. He tried to convince me that Fox has too many employees and a professional (such as himself) who has been an extra on so many shows on the lot should be able to park on the lot like any name actor.
Fake label beer on set to avoid having to pay a name brand.
I was in four scenes during the shoot. I don't know how much, if any, I'll be in the show. I was glad to find out these guys were not jerks so I can continue to watch the show.
The day ended with the kids finishing their three hours of school (state law), signed pay vouchers and validated parking. I'm not sure if I'll do any background work in the future but it wasn't a bad way to spend the day!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Wipeout!
I was able to attend an open audition for Wipeout in the middle of September. Here are some random observations about the experience:
***The line was HUGE for an open casting call. The doors opened at 11am and there was already a line around the block by 10:30am.
***90% of the people at the audition had a gimmick. They wanted to be the "nature loving contestant" or the "crazy pumped-up player" or even "the four fingers on both hands contestant".
***Almost every guy (and some of the girls) were disappointed that Jill Wagner wasn't at the casting call.
***The casting folks had an attitude that was a combination of wanting to see how weird people were willing to act to get on the show and tired of the nut jobs willing to embarrass themselves on national television.
***More people seem to like John Anderson over John Henson.
***The "Vanessa Lachey Season" of Wipeout will not be fondly remembered by the crowd of potential contestants.
***My favorite question of the interview? "If we pick you to be on the show, can you provide us with current proof of health insurance?"
***At least 70% of the crowd seemed convinced they will be the magical person to make it through the whole day without a wipeout.
***The guy in front of me had a hole in his pants showcasing his lack of underwear for the interview.
The show is holding two more open auditions (one in the OC and one in San Diego) before they call anyone back for a second interview.
I'd love to be on the show and Zach would love to watch me slip, slide and get nailed by various objects on national TV!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
***The line was HUGE for an open casting call. The doors opened at 11am and there was already a line around the block by 10:30am.
***90% of the people at the audition had a gimmick. They wanted to be the "nature loving contestant" or the "crazy pumped-up player" or even "the four fingers on both hands contestant".
***Almost every guy (and some of the girls) were disappointed that Jill Wagner wasn't at the casting call.
***The casting folks had an attitude that was a combination of wanting to see how weird people were willing to act to get on the show and tired of the nut jobs willing to embarrass themselves on national television.
***More people seem to like John Anderson over John Henson.
***The "Vanessa Lachey Season" of Wipeout will not be fondly remembered by the crowd of potential contestants.
***My favorite question of the interview? "If we pick you to be on the show, can you provide us with current proof of health insurance?"
***At least 70% of the crowd seemed convinced they will be the magical person to make it through the whole day without a wipeout.
***The guy in front of me had a hole in his pants showcasing his lack of underwear for the interview.
The show is holding two more open auditions (one in the OC and one in San Diego) before they call anyone back for a second interview.
I'd love to be on the show and Zach would love to watch me slip, slide and get nailed by various objects on national TV!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Road Trip Part 2
We planned to leave Denver early in the morning so we could get to Las Vegas in time for Zach to take in the sights of the strip. Instead, I was standing outside the hotel at 7:30am with the front desk clerk jumping our dead battery so I could drive to a store to get the battery replaced.
We were waiting at 8am as the battery store opened its doors. The battery had to be shipped across town from another location (of course it did) so were stuck for at least 90 minutes.
I bought some plastic wrap at Home Depot while we were packing in St. Louis. I didn't use all of it but I also didn't have time to return the rolls before we hit the road. The car shop was within walking distance of a Home Depot so I set out to get a refund.
I walked up to the return counter and handed the cashier my receipt and the merchandise. She took one look at the receipt and asked me, "Why did you come all the way to Denver to return your stuff?". I replied, "I heard the cashiers in Denver sing a song when you return items." She gave me a VERY odd look as I repeated my answer.
She took the items and started to sing "would you like the refund on your card or cash back today?" I kept from laughing as I asked for the cash. She handed me the money and sang "Have a nice day!" as I walked away from the counter.
We finally hit the road at 9:45am and rolled through Colorado, and a small part of Utah, on our way to Las Vegas.
We arrived a bit after 8pm (about three+ hours behind schedule) and checked in as quickly as possible. We left Vegas around Noon the next day. In that 16-hour period, we:
***Watched the Forum Shoppes "Fall Of Atlantis" show
***Rode the roller coaster on top of New York New York
***Watched the "Sirens of TI" show
***Ate pretzels and donuts at 1:30am
***Watched the 3-D M&M movie at the M&M Store (duh!)
***Gambled
***Walked the strip
*** Ate at Chipotle
***Watched the dog process the sights and sounds of the casino
Our Saturday afternoon road trip to Los Angeles was interrupted when we approached Primm, Nevada. The sight of a roller coaster will always make us pull over and check out the location!
Desperado is a hypercoaster located at Buffalo Bill's Hotel and Casino. It was WAY too hot for the dog to be outside so Dana and Zach went on the coaster while I stayed in the air conditioned car with Doc. Dana switched with me after her coaster ride so I could take a turn on Desperado.
I noticed a couple walking into the casino with their dogs as Zach and I were leaving the building. I asked the security guard and she told me dogs were welcome at the casino.
THREE HOURS LATER....
***Dana finished shopping at the Outlet Mall next to Buffalo Bill's
***Zach wrapped up in the casino game room
***Doc and I finished talking to a good 20-25 people over the age of 80 who wanted to
stop and say "hello to the cute puppy"
We hit the road (again) to make our way to Los Angeles. Finally, after some breaks for...
***Gas
***Food for the road
***A stop at the border to declare if we had any fruits, vegetables or animals with us
...We arrived in Sherman Oaks shortly after 10pm!
We took Dana through the lobby of The Plaza apartment building so she could see 3G and his posse holding court on a Saturday night. A evening of rest was necessary because Sunday would be filled with improv, showing Dana the route to her new workplace, getting the keys to our new place and laundry.
I'll have more to talk about soon with new Zach audition stories and my audition for Wipeout.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
We were waiting at 8am as the battery store opened its doors. The battery had to be shipped across town from another location (of course it did) so were stuck for at least 90 minutes.
I bought some plastic wrap at Home Depot while we were packing in St. Louis. I didn't use all of it but I also didn't have time to return the rolls before we hit the road. The car shop was within walking distance of a Home Depot so I set out to get a refund.
I walked up to the return counter and handed the cashier my receipt and the merchandise. She took one look at the receipt and asked me, "Why did you come all the way to Denver to return your stuff?". I replied, "I heard the cashiers in Denver sing a song when you return items." She gave me a VERY odd look as I repeated my answer.
She took the items and started to sing "would you like the refund on your card or cash back today?" I kept from laughing as I asked for the cash. She handed me the money and sang "Have a nice day!" as I walked away from the counter.
We finally hit the road at 9:45am and rolled through Colorado, and a small part of Utah, on our way to Las Vegas.
We arrived a bit after 8pm (about three+ hours behind schedule) and checked in as quickly as possible. We left Vegas around Noon the next day. In that 16-hour period, we:
***Watched the Forum Shoppes "Fall Of Atlantis" show
***Rode the roller coaster on top of New York New York
***Watched the "Sirens of TI" show
***Ate pretzels and donuts at 1:30am
***Watched the 3-D M&M movie at the M&M Store (duh!)
***Gambled
***Walked the strip
*** Ate at Chipotle
***Watched the dog process the sights and sounds of the casino
Our Saturday afternoon road trip to Los Angeles was interrupted when we approached Primm, Nevada. The sight of a roller coaster will always make us pull over and check out the location!
Desperado is a hypercoaster located at Buffalo Bill's Hotel and Casino. It was WAY too hot for the dog to be outside so Dana and Zach went on the coaster while I stayed in the air conditioned car with Doc. Dana switched with me after her coaster ride so I could take a turn on Desperado.
I noticed a couple walking into the casino with their dogs as Zach and I were leaving the building. I asked the security guard and she told me dogs were welcome at the casino.
THREE HOURS LATER....
***Dana finished shopping at the Outlet Mall next to Buffalo Bill's
***Zach wrapped up in the casino game room
***Doc and I finished talking to a good 20-25 people over the age of 80 who wanted to
stop and say "hello to the cute puppy"
We hit the road (again) to make our way to Los Angeles. Finally, after some breaks for...
***Gas
***Food for the road
***A stop at the border to declare if we had any fruits, vegetables or animals with us
...We arrived in Sherman Oaks shortly after 10pm!
We took Dana through the lobby of The Plaza apartment building so she could see 3G and his posse holding court on a Saturday night. A evening of rest was necessary because Sunday would be filled with improv, showing Dana the route to her new workplace, getting the keys to our new place and laundry.
I'll have more to talk about soon with new Zach audition stories and my audition for Wipeout.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Monday, September 17, 2012
Back In Action
It's been a few weeks since my last post but there hasn't been a slow moment since Labor Day.
The Artist and I flew to St. Louis on Labor Day. Our airport shuttle arrived at 4am so we were up and moving at 3am. The first thing I felt after I got out of bed was an earthquake centered in Beverly Hills. I like to think of it as California's way of making sure we wouldn't forget it while we were out of town.
We landed in St. Louis at noon and were packing our belongings by 2pm. Why did we fly to Missouri to get out stuff?
Dana accepted a job in Los Angeles so we went to St. Louis to help with the move and ride with her to California. The trip also involved a visit to the dentist to get the rest of Zach's "trays" for his invisible braces, time with his friends, making sure the car was ready for the road trip, packing the moving truck and Dana wrapping up her job at KEZK.
I tried my best to have lunch with some friends but time was not on my side with everything else I had to accomplish before we left town.
We left Thursday morning at 5am and headed for California. Dana, Zach and the dog were asleep within an hour as I rolled through Missouri. We hit Kansas around 10am and were stuck driving the entire state for the rest of the afternoon.
It didn't matter if we were in the middle of nowhere or in an urban area....All of Kansas smells like a herd of cows took care of their business in the last hour.
We decided to spend the night in Denver so we found a hotel and unloaded our suitcases. It was around 8pm and we were starving. We got back in the car and NOTHING HAPPENED! The battery was dead.
Yes, it sucked the car battery died. But, on the plus side:
***It died in the hotel parking lot and not in the middle of Colorado or (shudder) Kansas.
***We have 24-hour car service so they came out to jump the battery.
***I got a good local pizza delivered to the hotel.
The car service company arrived at 10pm. They jumped the battery and started instantly! They also charged me ZERO dollars and ZERO cents for the call.
After 20 minutes of running the battery, I turned off the car and attempted to start it one more time. It turned on with no problem so we went to bed to get ready to hit the road around 5am.
I woke up the next morning at 4am and decided to load the car. I went out to the vehicle and hit the button to open the car doors.
Nothing happened.
I tried it one more time....AND...Nothing happened.
The battery was dead again.
I've rambled on for awhile so what do you say we make Day 2 of the road trip story (and the saga of the dead battery) a post for another time?
TO BE CONTINUED
The Artist and I flew to St. Louis on Labor Day. Our airport shuttle arrived at 4am so we were up and moving at 3am. The first thing I felt after I got out of bed was an earthquake centered in Beverly Hills. I like to think of it as California's way of making sure we wouldn't forget it while we were out of town.
We landed in St. Louis at noon and were packing our belongings by 2pm. Why did we fly to Missouri to get out stuff?
Dana accepted a job in Los Angeles so we went to St. Louis to help with the move and ride with her to California. The trip also involved a visit to the dentist to get the rest of Zach's "trays" for his invisible braces, time with his friends, making sure the car was ready for the road trip, packing the moving truck and Dana wrapping up her job at KEZK.
I tried my best to have lunch with some friends but time was not on my side with everything else I had to accomplish before we left town.
We left Thursday morning at 5am and headed for California. Dana, Zach and the dog were asleep within an hour as I rolled through Missouri. We hit Kansas around 10am and were stuck driving the entire state for the rest of the afternoon.
It didn't matter if we were in the middle of nowhere or in an urban area....All of Kansas smells like a herd of cows took care of their business in the last hour.
We decided to spend the night in Denver so we found a hotel and unloaded our suitcases. It was around 8pm and we were starving. We got back in the car and NOTHING HAPPENED! The battery was dead.
Yes, it sucked the car battery died. But, on the plus side:
***It died in the hotel parking lot and not in the middle of Colorado or (shudder) Kansas.
***We have 24-hour car service so they came out to jump the battery.
***I got a good local pizza delivered to the hotel.
The car service company arrived at 10pm. They jumped the battery and started instantly! They also charged me ZERO dollars and ZERO cents for the call.
After 20 minutes of running the battery, I turned off the car and attempted to start it one more time. It turned on with no problem so we went to bed to get ready to hit the road around 5am.
I woke up the next morning at 4am and decided to load the car. I went out to the vehicle and hit the button to open the car doors.
Nothing happened.
I tried it one more time....AND...Nothing happened.
The battery was dead again.
I've rambled on for awhile so what do you say we make Day 2 of the road trip story (and the saga of the dead battery) a post for another time?
TO BE CONTINUED
Thursday, August 30, 2012
The Artist Goes To An Adult Club! (Kind Of...)
The Artist received a last minute job booking last night. The turnaround was tight but we decided to go for it since the job was only a 15-minute drive and it was already after rush hour.
The job was for kids between the ages of 8-18. They were instructed to put on their best club wear for the shoot. Zach quickly changed clothes and we headed for the set.
We arrived on time but parking was an issue near the set. I told Zach the name of the project, the name of the casting director and sent him to the set as I left to find a place to park.
I was on the set in about 5 minutes. I walked over to a pop-up tent where a casting person was having an disagreement with an actor who wanted to leave for the day but still expected his full pay. She decided to ignore the actor and turned her attention to me.
I told her I had just dropped my son off and could I have directions to his location on the set. She asked Zach's age and I replied, "14". She looked at me like I was out of my mind and told me to head inside the giant set of black doors.
I walked in as Zach was walking to the doors to find me. I could tell by the look on his face that he also found the situation rather odd. We went over to the check-in table to find out where Zach needed to go for the shoot.
We got another odd look from the casting lady at the table. I explained about the last minute
e-mail, club wear, be at this address, etc. She looked at the two of us and sent Zach over to the doors leading to the set. She handed me some paperwork to fill out for his payment and continued to give me a "are you sure you're supposed to be here?" look. The casting woman asked if I was aware there would be some adults on set wearing skimpy outfits. She wanted to know if I was okay with that AND had my son ever been to a place with half-naked women.
There is no scenario where "YES" is the correct answer to that question.
After I finished the paperwork, I checked on Zach by the set doors. The first thing I noticed was him staring at a woman in a cheetah outfit. I should say it might have been a cheetah outfit. It might have been a naked woman wearing body paint to look like a cheetah. We couldn't tell and it seemed rude to ask her while she was in character.
The door to the set would swing open every so often and all we would see is strobe lights, smoke, barking security guards and interesting dance moves.
We were on set for around 30-minutes when another woman from the casting office came over to find out why were at the shoot. I showed her the email from the casting site asking us to come to the set by a certain time. She looked horrified because the email was meant for a portion of the shoot that occurred earlier in the day.
Zach and I started laughing and told her not to worry about the casting notice confusion. She kept apologizing to us and we kept telling her that it was no big deal.
I didn't say anything to Zach until we were in our truck. I looked over at him and told him all of his paperwork was filled out and put away with the forms from the other actors.
He might get paid since his paperwork was put away before we spoke to the final casting person.
And even if he doesn't get paid...It was worth it for the free night of entertainment!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Wednesday At The Beach With Nickelodeon
With 2 hours of sleep under my belt (and about 6 hours for The Artist), the Nickelodeon "Worldwide Day Of Play" promo shoot started at 9am in Malibu.
The first thing I need to mention is the amount of paperwork I had to sign when we arrived at the set. The promo crew had to see and/or have copies of his work permit, birth certificate, Coogan Account paperwork, emergency contact numbers, agent and manager numbers and school info.
We arrived at 9am and finished the paperwork at 9:50am.
Zach went to wardrobe as the crew looked through the various outfits we brought to the set. He looked great in his outfit for the beach.
I sent Dana a photo of the outfit with the caption, "Here is Zach wearing nothing I raced to Target to buy last night".
The kids were walked to the set on the sand at Will Rogers State Beach. There were about 50 kids on set that day playing volleyball and soccer on the beach.
The idea behind the promo is to get kids outside for fresh air and fun with their friends.
With 50 pre-teens and teens on set, the promo should have been called "Nickelodeon Hormone Fest Beach Party".
The beach shoot lasted until 1:30pm and then it was time for lunch. We were expecting pizza or hamburgers or hot dogs for lunch (since it was a giant group of kids). I guess Viacom (the owner of Nickelodeon) saved a lot of money after their fight with DirecTV because the menu included:
I ate one of everything on the menu!
We moved to a state park after lunch. Zach spent the next three hours throwing a football with another kid as the cameras continued to roll.
I split my time between watching the promo shoot and walking the trails at the park. I tried to hang around the shoot but I finally had enough of the usual on-set "listen to everything my actor does better than your actor" conversation.
My favorite was the mother who made sure to tell everyone that her child does a great Ronald Reagan impression. I'm not sure if there is a big market for a 12-year-old Reagan clone.
We got out of there (with light sunburns) around 6:30pm. The drive home took 45 minutes on the 405. We exited on Ventura and headed home for the night.
I'm REALLY happy the shoot was on Wednesday. The next night (at the exact time we were driving home on Wednesday) a truck overturned on the 405 at the Ventura exit. The accident happened at 4:30pm and involved a gas spill and all lanes being closed on the 405. There were people stuck in their vehicles on the 405 for 4+ hours.
I guess we can consider the traffic accident (and traffic backup) a preview for "Carmageddon II" in September!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
The first thing I need to mention is the amount of paperwork I had to sign when we arrived at the set. The promo crew had to see and/or have copies of his work permit, birth certificate, Coogan Account paperwork, emergency contact numbers, agent and manager numbers and school info.
We arrived at 9am and finished the paperwork at 9:50am.
Zach went to wardrobe as the crew looked through the various outfits we brought to the set. He looked great in his outfit for the beach.
I sent Dana a photo of the outfit with the caption, "Here is Zach wearing nothing I raced to Target to buy last night".
The kids were walked to the set on the sand at Will Rogers State Beach. There were about 50 kids on set that day playing volleyball and soccer on the beach.
The idea behind the promo is to get kids outside for fresh air and fun with their friends.
With 50 pre-teens and teens on set, the promo should have been called "Nickelodeon Hormone Fest Beach Party".
The beach shoot lasted until 1:30pm and then it was time for lunch. We were expecting pizza or hamburgers or hot dogs for lunch (since it was a giant group of kids). I guess Viacom (the owner of Nickelodeon) saved a lot of money after their fight with DirecTV because the menu included:
I ate one of everything on the menu!
We moved to a state park after lunch. Zach spent the next three hours throwing a football with another kid as the cameras continued to roll.
I split my time between watching the promo shoot and walking the trails at the park. I tried to hang around the shoot but I finally had enough of the usual on-set "listen to everything my actor does better than your actor" conversation.
My favorite was the mother who made sure to tell everyone that her child does a great Ronald Reagan impression. I'm not sure if there is a big market for a 12-year-old Reagan clone.
We got out of there (with light sunburns) around 6:30pm. The drive home took 45 minutes on the 405. We exited on Ventura and headed home for the night.
I'm REALLY happy the shoot was on Wednesday. The next night (at the exact time we were driving home on Wednesday) a truck overturned on the 405 at the Ventura exit. The accident happened at 4:30pm and involved a gas spill and all lanes being closed on the 405. There were people stuck in their vehicles on the 405 for 4+ hours.
I guess we can consider the traffic accident (and traffic backup) a preview for "Carmageddon II" in September!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
Thursday, August 16, 2012
One Injury, Two Flights & Three Donuts
The Artist took a quick break from his acting to visit St. Louis for his birthday. The weekend was filled with his friends, grandparents, presents, lots of food and time with the dog.
The "highlight" of the trip?
Zach broke his finger on Monday night when he didn't make it through a sliding glass door before it closed. A quick visit to the emergency room at 11pm produced this:
.jpg)
While Zach was in the emergency room, I started to receive requests via text to submit him for a Party City spot. The spot doesn't shoot until next week BUT the casting office needed all of his info by Tuesday morning.
Dana decided to handle getting the info to them because I still had to wash clothes and pack after we got back from the hospital.
The broken finger looked awful on Tuesday morning but it didn't hurt as much after a night of rest.
We spent our final morning in St. Louis going to GameStop because a new game came out that Zach HAD TO BUY before we left for California.
Zach and Dana went into the mall to buy the game because I was busy on the phone trying to get him booked for a Nickelodeon promo scheduled to shoot on Wednesday morning.
I spoke to the casting director at Noon St. Louis time. He was going to let me know if Zach was cast in the spot by 2pm. My flight to Los Angeles was at that exact time so Dana had to be the contact person for the Wednesday promo shoot.
We landed in Salt Lake City at 5pm and I turned on my phone to get the latest casting updates:
***Zach got the Nickelodeon promo
***I got the wardrobe list for the promo
***The Party City casting director wanted to see an audition for the spot so Zach and I would have to tape it once we landed in Los Angeles
Did I mention I haven't seen our video camera in weeks???
We landed at LAX at 9pm, got to our vehicle at 9:30pm, raced down the 405 and went straight to the Target in Van Nuys (my only option at 10:20pm).
Zach and I ran through the store for 30 minutes and walked out 10 minutes before closing time with a new video camera and two shirts with no logos for the promo shoot.
After a quick fast-food run (my only option at 11:15pm), we went home to charge the camera and learn his lines.
The audition recording started at Midnight and finished around 12:20am.
I made him go to bed because of the 9am call time in Malibu (a 17-mile drive in rush hour traffic). I sent the video to the casting director, got his wardrobe together for the Nickelodeon gig, went to the gas station, ate three donuts and jumped in bed at 3:30am.
I set the alarm for 6:45am with the intention of getting him showered, dressed and out the door by 7:30am.
Did I succeed? Did he have a good time at the video shoot? Did his finger still look horrible? Did I drink way too much Diet Coke to stay awake and alert all day?
I'll let you know in my next post!
To Be Continued...
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
The "highlight" of the trip?
Zach broke his finger on Monday night when he didn't make it through a sliding glass door before it closed. A quick visit to the emergency room at 11pm produced this:
.jpg)
While Zach was in the emergency room, I started to receive requests via text to submit him for a Party City spot. The spot doesn't shoot until next week BUT the casting office needed all of his info by Tuesday morning.
Dana decided to handle getting the info to them because I still had to wash clothes and pack after we got back from the hospital.
The broken finger looked awful on Tuesday morning but it didn't hurt as much after a night of rest.
We spent our final morning in St. Louis going to GameStop because a new game came out that Zach HAD TO BUY before we left for California.
Zach and Dana went into the mall to buy the game because I was busy on the phone trying to get him booked for a Nickelodeon promo scheduled to shoot on Wednesday morning.
I spoke to the casting director at Noon St. Louis time. He was going to let me know if Zach was cast in the spot by 2pm. My flight to Los Angeles was at that exact time so Dana had to be the contact person for the Wednesday promo shoot.
We landed in Salt Lake City at 5pm and I turned on my phone to get the latest casting updates:
***Zach got the Nickelodeon promo
***I got the wardrobe list for the promo
***The Party City casting director wanted to see an audition for the spot so Zach and I would have to tape it once we landed in Los Angeles
Did I mention I haven't seen our video camera in weeks???
We landed at LAX at 9pm, got to our vehicle at 9:30pm, raced down the 405 and went straight to the Target in Van Nuys (my only option at 10:20pm).
Zach and I ran through the store for 30 minutes and walked out 10 minutes before closing time with a new video camera and two shirts with no logos for the promo shoot.
After a quick fast-food run (my only option at 11:15pm), we went home to charge the camera and learn his lines.
The audition recording started at Midnight and finished around 12:20am.
I made him go to bed because of the 9am call time in Malibu (a 17-mile drive in rush hour traffic). I sent the video to the casting director, got his wardrobe together for the Nickelodeon gig, went to the gas station, ate three donuts and jumped in bed at 3:30am.
I set the alarm for 6:45am with the intention of getting him showered, dressed and out the door by 7:30am.
Did I succeed? Did he have a good time at the video shoot? Did his finger still look horrible? Did I drink way too much Diet Coke to stay awake and alert all day?
I'll let you know in my next post!
To Be Continued...
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/
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