Lilian Tyrrell (1944-2007)

from the archives

at my Twin Lakes home with Lowell Nesbitt in the summer of 1976

Dad's kimono

during my visit Billy showd me the computer prints he's been doing. I was surprisd & pleasd to discover he used this photo of my father as image source for one of his kimono series.

eating

on wed Billy pickd me up at my motel & we were off for pizza at Patsy D'Amore's which has been in Farmers Market since 1949. his other restaurant Villa Capri (a James Dean haunt)has been bulldoz'd. then it was on to Beverly Hills where we had to wait in line at Sprinkles. but their famous cupcakes are worth the wait. Billy took me holding some in front of his Wayne Thiebaud print.



on thur we collaboratd (well Billy did most of the work)on a splendid dinner:

busy day

on tues I walkd from my motel on Western down Hollywood Blvd to the Roosevelt Hotel. I was going to get a quick breakfast before the unveiling of the Munchkins star on the Walk of Fame. breakfast wasn't to happen because I walkd right into the gathering of 7 of the 9 surviving actors who playd Munchkins in the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz."



lively Mickey Carroll signd a poster for me then turnd it over to write "may the magic of Oz always be with you. follow the yellow brick road." Joey Luft was there. I told him I last saw him when he was a boy performing with his mother Judy Garland at the Palace. he'a a gracious man. I also had a few words with 98 y/o Carla Laemmle who had bits in the silent "Phantom of the Opera" as well as the original "Dracula."

then it was across the street to Grauman's Chinese Theater where I shot this quick video.



on hand to greet the Munchkins for the ceremony was a contingent of former stars -- from GWTW's Ann Rutherford to Hitchcock heroine Tippi Hedren. when the festivities were over I walkd back down Hollywood Blvd but soon found it closd for a demonstration of striking Writers Guild of America.



I spottd a zoftig Connie Stevens among SAG members showing solidarity before I found a Thai restaurant for a small sald. a quick rest & then I was back down the boulevard in the direction of Boardner's. in the '30s this had been the site of the famous gay bar Cherokee House. later it became a watering hole for everyone from Elizabeth Short to Charles Bukowski. I met James Robert Parish & T. Allan Taylor for homemade ravioli.

shaking hands with a Munchkin

with Meinhardt Raabe (the Munchkin Coronor) at Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

Hollywood

is an industry town. & for years the place to be on monday nites was Morton's. I'd never been there. so when I heard it was closing at year's end I askd my buddy Craig if he wantd to do a monday nite dinner at Morton's.



food was excellent   service ordinary.

what a diff 2 hours makes

when I left LA it was 70.
when I got to Albuquerque it was 38.

going viral?

I'm on my way to LA for the week. if you miss me   watch one of my videos. I don't think a poetry vid has yet to take off. but you can make it happen by watching me again & again.

Barbara Cook at 80

"What I aim for, and what I think most actors and singers aim for, is those moments when you fly. They’re unexplainable. The feeling is so, so deeply wonderful. But that doesn’t happen all the time. So the rest of the time you depend on your technique. You depend on your experience. I think very often when I don’t think I did very well, people come back and say, 'This was your best performance.' It’s just how we perceive it ourselves. You lay the groundwork, and you always hope you’ll fly."

at today's screening

of Joseph Losey's "The Boy With Green Hair" I askd Dean Stockwell if he was wearing a wig. he sd the green hair was a wig made of women's hair from France that gave him a case of impetigo which took a year to clear up. when he was bald he wore a skull cap.

an old friend

good to see Tom Shales on Charlie Rose. he's always been an astute observer of television. & even tho he was battling some rather demonstrative fellow critics he was able to zing (calling Marie Osmond's collapse a "great career move").

here we are abt a dozen years ago:



it isn't a very good picture but the only one of us together. yes that's me on the left. it was taken at Kennedy Center Honors. yes that's one of JFK's sisters right behind Tom. & coincidentally at the dinner following the award show Charlie Rose stoppd at our table to hello Tom.

film historian David H. Shepard introducd me to Tom. we've laughd a great deal over the years. I don't see the Washington Post with regularity so I don't read him as often as I shd.

evening with Herbie

Hancock surrounds himself with young musicians of quality. makes for an invigorating experience.

new to me is a singer of some eccentricity: Sonya Kitchell. good to hear her so early in what promises to be a major career.

Hancock solo is a mixd bag. when he's farting around on the synthesizer the result is thin   akin to the soundtrack for a made-for-tv movie. but when he finally switches to pure piano the talent doesn't just return it leaps from the stage.

sources

haven't been able to locate the Brainard pose online. it's a photo by Ron Padgett which appears in his Joe: A Memoir of Joe Brainard.

the Meyer photo is by Reuben Cox.

Pin-ups

1
Joe Brainard at Veronica Lake (1983)

white towel       black speedo

sun shines on oild body
in shape of an M

I imagine him
making the rest of the alphabet
in my bed

2
Tom Meyer in Middle Creek Falls (2000)

suds
          slink
down chest
        & into pubes

I become dirty
contemplating him clean

happy birthday

  Todd Moore turns 70 today

Senator Feinstein

isn't it time for her to change parties? I haven't lookd at stats but surely no other Demorcrat supports the policies of President Worst Ever as frequently. when not shoveling contracts to her husband she's voting for questionable judges. maybe she's angling to be Guiliani's veep choice?

"The Beloved Rogue"

this is one of the images from Daniel Blum's A Pictorial History of the Silent Screen that was burnd into my memory when I was a boy. at that time most of the films of John Barrymore I'd seen were from late in his career. I knew him as a dashing sexy man only from such photos.

last nite I saw this Alan Crosland film from 80 years ago. I have no idea of the historical accuracy of Paul Bern's script   but any poet wd love to be rememberd this way. Barrymore plays Francois Villon with panache.

Crosland is rememberd mostly for helming "The Jazz Singer." Sarris doesn't even consider him in his classic study of directors (but possibly because Crosland's major work was in the silent era). but he does a fine job here. & the cast is up to supporting Barrymore with style. of special note is the Hollywood debut of the legendary German actor Conrad Veidt.

Savage Canticles

1
how many times
has yr intention
been toward here
but a detour
took you there

how many detours
have brought change
to the narratives
that become history

2
unwritten code
bludgeons pigeons
in that park
where squatters
squat

a nurse
shoots up
forsaking
footlight glamour

3
portfolio of malice
spiders into
every century
sans invitation
or strategy

lost pastry chef
discovers
physique model
trimming roses

4
dance in Manhattan
or die in Winnipeg
yr life cradles
crackers
broken by bandits

archive
each crumb
in redwood
coffins

on the bus

to town yesterday I was reading Joe Brainard. in "A Special Diary" he mentions Aldo's: "The Italian restaurant I always eat at when I eat out alone." the only time I ever saw Brainard eating out alone it was around the corner at Duff's.

but in this piece he writes abt beautiful waiters & a good juke box & always ordering the same thing. "Most of the waiters don't even have to ask what I want. They just bring it to me."

the memories that brought back were staggering. at abt the same time Brainard wrote those words Aldo's was one of my favorite restaurants when I visitd NYC & I always orderd the same thing. in my case it was lasagna.

Aldo's was at 340 Bleecker. later it became Clyde's & lost its magic. I think I was there only twice. once just for drinks with Richard Martin. now it's a 24-hour Greek diner.

but Brainard allowd me to return to a long-gone past of a comfortable place with good food & waiters with whom one flirtd.

Anne Waldman's in town

I snappd this just before her talk at CCA.

like all good teachers she disperses seeds.

I just wrote a poem abt George Fisher

I met George Fisher 30 years ago at the legendary restaurant Scandia. a new friend Jay Parsell knew I was enthralld by the history of Hollywood. so he arrangd for me to meet the legendary broadcaster & his charming wife Ruth.

I knew George primarily for his small role in the Judy Garland version of "A Star is Born" & his announcing on the television coverage of the movie's premiere at the Pantages. all of Hollywood (even an awkward James Dean in a tux) had turnd out for Judy's triumph.

Jay had told me that George had become famous for illegally broadcasting the Academy Awards for the first time. later he had his own radio show "Hollywood Calling" in which he interviewd the legends of the day   Bette Davis & Humphrey Bogart   Barbara Stanwyck & Betty Grable   (as well as many of my personal faves such as Gloria Grahame & Keefe Brasselle). his best known interview took place just before Xmas 1949 with Joan Crawford & her children. Christina uses a 7-page transcript verbatim in her bestseller. & it gets pickd up in the cult film "Mommie Dearest" in which an actor portrays George conducting the interview.

I've always sd when it comes to regrets I'm an Edith Piaf person. but I do feel bad that I never kept notes on my conversations with George. he knew where all the skeletons were. & he was a superb storyteller. for years a trip to Hollywood wasn't complete without dinner with George & Ruth.

one nite we were attending the taping of a tribute to Bing Crosby to mark his 50th anniversary in show business. at the end of the show Crosby fell into a hole on the stage. a stunnd audience didn't know what to do. George   forever the journalist   jumpd out of his seat & ran to the edge of the stage to look down.

I hope that the tapes of all of George's shows are in an archive somewhere.

from the archives

          Barcelona (1989)

you go Mr. B

the importance of poets blogging becomes concrete in the current reportage of Tom Beckett's Cambridge reading. I've been going to readings for a half century now & most of them are forgotten. but bloggers have made this reading I wasn't at almost as vivid as some for which I've had a front seat.

& let me add how happy I am for Tom. he's been toiling in the vineyards for many a decade & deserves attention.

blood orange valentine

Andrew Kelly sent me a package of his work as a thx for me sending him mail art. it was so long ago I cdn't remember what I'd sent. so I went to Ignition & found an old friend.

once at the site click on "projects" & then on "mail art" & then on the 1st 2 images. it's a piece from 2001 that also serves as a background for that page of Andrew's. I can't figure out how to copy it so I can't reprint it here.

thank you Anna May

when you see as many films as I do you develope true affection for some performers. one of many for me is Anna May Wong.

last nite I was depressd by the time change so I knew I had to work to forget abt it. so I poppd in a DVD of a film I knew nothing abt -- Robert Florey's "Dangerous to Know" (1938). it turnd out to be a small gem. a quiet script -- to which Horace McCoy contribut'd -- & intelligent use of close-ups goosed up the quotidian of the B feature.

but what made this film experience all the better for me was Anna May Wong looking exquisite in a series of Edith Head creations. it's one of her best performances. & she certainly rivals Sylvia Sidney as that decade's Close-up Queen.

change

as long as I had to deal with clocks

why not a new look here?

dia de los muertos

so many who
have sat in
Gertrude Duryea's rocker
are gone but
their syllables tumble
in sacks both
velvet & burlap

all my years
kiss & cut
cover my pages
each is other

words from the grave

not long ago I was "organizing." that's a polite term for dealing with piles that seem to accumulate around the house. in one was a 2-page typescript Paul Metcalf wrote in 1978. as far as I know it's never been publishd. it's a review of my New Notes. Paul never shared it with me. I found it a couple of years ago in a catalog from Second Life Books which featurd a big chunk of Paul's personal library.

today is the Day of the Dead which always puts me in touch with memories of dear ones no longer here. so in the spirit of the day I offer the opening paragraph of Paul's review:

After the plethora of talky, hippie, self-conscious, self-puffing, even "pleasant" poems, that fill so many small press volumes, it is a pleasure to come on something like NEW NOTES, by Alex Gildzen. Gildzen has no cosmic pretentions, he is not a wise guy, and he is not simply passing the hours in the Pleasant Practice of Poetry. What appeals here is a mind, an intelligence at work, in direct attack on the substance, the language of the poem.

unmaskd

Montgomery Maxton reveals the identities of this year's ghostbloggers. & I was happy to have been askd to be one of them.

Emily Dickinson Paper Doll

Halloween is the dressing-up holiday. so it was quite lovely that Stathis Orphanos wrote to me today abt his friend Donald Hendricks's site which features Legacy Pride Paper Dolls.

Emily is one of a lively list of personalities who you can dress by clicking a cursor. others range from Michaelangelo & Nijinsky to Lizabeth Scott & Mamie Van Doren.

screw the Pulitzer. I'd rather have my own paper doll.

Republican family values

"I'm not gay."
  Ted Haggard

"I'm not gay."
  Larry Craig

"I'm not gay."
  Richard Curtis

"don't look at me. all my hookers are ladies."
  David Vitter

Robert Goulet (1933-2007)

      I took this at the Tony ball (1984)

pillow(talk)book

blood on the accordian
squelches glissando
of my past

dare I tell
the launey
who mouths me
in a dark labyrinth
that I can't forget
an actor's ass
before a fireplace
in a winter
long ago

nibbling at the corolla
of my ladhood
I think I taste
a boy who was pecans

each one returns
is that what
death is

or is this
a bad poem

maybe
death is
the worst poem

I look down
at his hair
a launce of macaroons
touching that corona
keeps me alive
one more nite

I write
in the morning
waiting for dark roast
to run over
my white keys

take cover

the vice president is going hunting today...

from the archives

my desk in 321 Stopher Hall my first term as a freshman.

I don't think a single thing in it still exists -- including the actual room which Kent State destroyd a few years ago. but I remember that room in which I lived for 3 years. I remember the tile floor. & even tho they're long gone I still see that clock/radio & the scotch plaid file box.

here I am in 1993 on my final visit to my old room:

the Lawrence issue

passing thru Kansas many years ago I spent a nite there. so all I really know of Lawrence is its history. as rich as that may be I got a fresh sense of the place from Harrington's intro.

it's always good to see work from such familiar names as Kenneth Irby & Jim McCrary.

altho I've been hearing the name of K. Silem Mohammad being kickd abt the blogosphere for some time it's only recently that I began reading his film blog. wonderful to find another poet who's seen "Blonde Ice."

of the new voices I discoverd in this collection the one I most want to hear more of is that of Cyrus Console.

Charles Jensen is a joy

he's a good poet & a readable blogger. altho I haven't met him   his photos certainly reveal that he's more than easy on the eyes. & he's providing a valuable service as editor-in-charge of Locus Point. he picks someone in a specific city to guest edit a section of his online magazine which focuses on that city. the new issue is abt Lawrence. I've just dippd into it so will withhold commentary but will advise everyone to look it up.

I shd say that some time ago Charles askd me to edit a Santa Fe issue. to please him I acceptd immediately. but with time I realizd for once he'd made a bad choice of editor. in days past I was part of a community -- in Kent -- & wrote abt that history in the intro to the anthology A Gathering of Poets. but in Santa Fe I'm an outsider. at first I was happy to be away from an active poetry scene. & then when I felt a need to belong to something I faced what seemd a community of cliques. now Santa Fe has a rich literary history (read Lynn Cline's Literary Pilgrims)but it's less than inviting to newcomers these days. so I've become a bit of a recluse when it comes to being part of something. I feel much more a part of that larger online poetry community & that serves me well. however I had to withdraw from the list of Jensen editors & hope that Charles doesn't think less of me for my inability to serve.

however I know how strong poetry communities can be & congratulate Charles on picking people like Joseph Harrington who offers us an inside look at Lawrence.

more mail more books

when r.j.s. gave his paper stock to Bree   he wasn't just being generous. he was passing the torch.

yesterday I got a batch of Green Panda Press books -- including r.j.'s no rest for the wicked. it was like visiting Jim Lowell when the Asphodel was in the Arcade & picking up the latest from the Cleveland scene.

there was work by oldtimers like r.j. & Kent Taylor as well as poems by current Cleveland stars   Mark Kuhar & Matthew Wascovich & Bree hersef. one wonders how she does it: all that writing while also hand-producing so many handsome chapbooks.

a friend's book

this book came in the mail yesterday:



it's a study of how a forgotten novel (The Entailed Hat) by a forgotten writer (George Alfred Townsend) may have been an influence on the writing of Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby & also on Demigods   a novel by his longtime friend John Biggs.

normally not my kind of reading. but in this case   I made an exception because I've known its author for more than 30 years.

David Meredith & I know enuf of the other's secrets to be dangerous. over the decades we've been traveling companions on both sides of the pond as well as all over New England -- but primarily Provincetown where we stayd with Peter Burnell & Gerald Mast   & the Berkshires where the homes of Jean-Claude van Itallie & Nancy & Paul Metcalf welcomed us.

when I return to Kent these days I always stay in the charming guest room at David's cozy house where we jabber into the wee hours every nite. he is one of my dearest friends & the kind I hope everyone has been fortunate enuf to have.



with David in Budapest (1985)

R. B. Kitaj (1932-2007)

a character to remember

I saw Paul Leni's "The Last Warning" because of my affection for Laura LaPlante. altho she's the only cast member to receive billing above the title   she's part of an ensemble in this 1929 backstage mystery.

the film is memorable for the imaginative photography of the great Hal Mohr. LaPlante is adequate in one of her "scream queen" parts but it's not one of her great roles. the most notable cast member is Torben Meyer who is totally over-the-top but gets away with it because he plays a looney.



the character actor began in silent films in Denmark in 1912. he appeard in nearly 200 films in a career that lastd over 50 years. a regular in the pictures of Preston Sturges   Meyer workd for such directors as James Whale & George Cukor   Max Ophuls & John Ford. he often playd comic roles (appearing in films of Chaplin & Bob Hope) but also did a spate of famous horror flicks. altho it's been years since I've seen "Judgment at Nuremberg"   his performance in that lingers in my memory. he even has a bit in "Casablanca."

it feels good to discover a gem of a performance like Meyer's in "The Last Warning." too often character actors live in a foggy world. we see them so often they're familiar but many times we don't know their names or the extent of their careers. tonite I ate some chocolate in honor of Torben Meyer.

celebrities

they have always fascinatd us. but am I the only one to find their proliferation unreasonable & their coverage silly.

one expects the tabloids to be full of such non-talents as Brittany Spears & Ann Coulter but the current lead story on the CNN Political Ticker is that Chuck Norris is backing Huckabee for president.

come on.... Norris? I can't name a single movie he was ever in. why wd any news organization release such a story? what's next? "Rula Lenska Supports Kucinich"?

I don't read enuf

esp fiction. in my pile are unopend novels I bought a year or more ago.

so while it coold down today it felt good to snuggle up with Jim Provenzano's latest Cyclizen.

splendid fall morning

Rita & I took Cinco up to the national park to gambol along a mountain stream. when we got back I walkd up to the high school field to watch A. J. Zuniga play a bit of soccer. now I'm fixing lunch: penne with turkey   mushrooms   red onion.

Duane

Duane Hartzell is one of the contributors to the "My First Movie" section of my new book. he was my first Kent State roommate. it was only for a week -- a freshman orientation during the summer before officially enrolling in the fall.

the only class I remember being in with Duane was fencing. at that time I was theater critic for the student paper & he was a frequent actor & director. so I think he'd let me win when we faced each other with swords.

after graduation Duane went to Hollywood where he became a film editor. among his features were "Black Samson" (1974) & "Jennifer" (1978). he also editd television movies for such directors as Wes Craven & Tony Bill.

as so often happens we lost touch. but in 1995 we arrangd to brunch at Mirabelle on the Sunset Strip. as a surprise he invitd one of our Kent professors -- William H. Zucchero -- to join us. Dr. Z made the move west after retiring. he taught at other schools & did voiceover work.



it was the last time I saw either of them.

memorial art

Vietnam wall

AIDS quilt

now "Identity/Identidad." this moving 1998 piece by 13 Argentinean artists is currently at SITE Santa Fe.

like water on a beach

my head was full of "put another nickel in..." as I walkd in a chill wind to the post office. one of the items I was mailing west was to Linda Lyke. I haven't been in touch with the printmaker for a couple of years. so my mind was all over the place -- from that long ago music to fun meals with Linda.

then I got home to find e-mail from several friends informing me of the death of Deborah Kerr. the only time I ever saw her in person was 30 years ago in "Long Day's Journey into Night." & I went with Linda Lyke.

"Music, Music, Music"

the death of Teresa Brewer brings on a flood of musical memories from growing up in the '50s. it was a time when "girl singers" were important. besides Brewer there was Doris Day & Rosemary Clooney & Sarah Vaughn & Patti Page & Jo Stafford & Peggy Lee & Debbie Reynolds. altho they weren't popular in the chart-topper way   Billie Holiday & Judy Garland & Dinah Washington did some potent recordings in that decade as well.

I can still see those worn 45s. some remain with me. others are scatterd around the country as part of this 2002 piece from Mail & More:

45s FROM THE 50s


Sarah Vaughn   “Make Yourself Comfortable”   Mercury
sent to Daniel W. K. Lee   New York NY

The Chordettes   “Mr. Sandman”   Cadence
sent to Fred B. Binckes   Laurel MT

The Tracey Twins   “Tonight You Belong to Me”   Reserve
sent to Tom Shales   McLean VA

Billie Holiday   “Don’t Worry ‘Bout Me”   M-G-M
sent to Judy Henske   Pasadena CA

Peggy Lee   “Crazy in the Heart”   Decca
sent to Roberto Marquez   Weehawken NJ

Al Hibbler   “Unchained Melody”   Decca
sent to Kent Taylor   San Francisco CA

Bing Crosby & Grace Kelly   “True Love”   Capitol
sent to Garold Gardner   Las Vegas NV

Jo Stafford   “It’s Almost Tomorrow”   Columbia
sent to Martha Braun   Shelburne Falls MA

Steve Allen   “Lola’s Theme”   Coral
sent to T. Allan Taylor   Los Angeles CA

Elvis Presley   “Hound Dog”   RCA Victor
sent to Howard Erlichman   South Euclid OH

The Andrews Sisters   “The Three Bells”   Decca
sent to Gary Herb   Salisbury MD

Debbie Reynolds   “Tammy”   Coral
sent to Roy Blakey   Minneapolis MN

a shout out

thx to my Palm Springs buddy Izayah Jeffrey for the salute.

"Kobe says he'll 'strap it up' and play"

I know zilch abt basketball but I remember this guy from his rape case which makes this LA Times headline sound salacious to me.

making Mom happy

when I got home from my boys nite out there was a message on the machine from my mother. she just got her copy of my new book & immediately read straight thru it. so I calld her back & she was absolutely bubbly. she was esp pleasd that I used this photo I took years ago of her with Bob Hope:

digging into "get"

every tues nite I'm in town I dine with a group of fascinating men. one of them is Richard Balthazar. you mite know his novels. well he has a new book that's quite different -- Getting Get: The Glossary of a Wild Verb.

the book investigates the multiple meanings of this common verb. references range from Shakespeare to Arlo Guthrie. I read it in bits   gleaning what I think I can use. early on there was a noun I didn't know -- "getling" which means "brat."

you don't have to be a linguist to learn from this study. & you'll have fun along the way.

from the archives

with Daniel Thompson at our 1992 reading at Mac's Backs in Coventry

to order work by the late Poet Laureate of Cuyahoga County check Green Panda Press

beautiful autumn morning

so I ran to Farmers Market to give Stan Crawford his copy of It's All a Movie. the world's most famous garlic grower is a contributor to the section "My First Movie."

I confess

the only Doris Lessing book I've ever read is Particularly Cats. so I have no opinion on the Nobel Prize.

when I was younger I was an awards junkie. but now that I'm on the precipice of antiquity I find them silly. Tennessee Williams never won the Nobel. Hitchcock never was got an Oscar for Best Director. & Frank O'Hara never claimd a Pulitzer. awards are political things. I'm not saying all winners are asskissers but it helps.

I heard on the news that Harold Bloom isn't happy with this choice. Bloom -- the Alan Greenspan of literature -- thinks he's smarter than the rest of us. maybe he is. but why he thinks anyone besides his grad students shd listen to him is beyond me.

the best part of this award was watching the paparazzi descend on an elderly writer as she got out of her taxi. when told she'd won Lessing mutterd "christ" & turnd her back on the cameraman. now that was priceless.

dogs

family history says that Dad bought this dog in Germany during the war & brought it back to me. & that that was the start of a collection. yes. I do remember having many ceramic dogs as a boy. but the odd thing was that I grew to dislike dogs. & when they were big or snarly it grew to a fear. I was always a walker. & I remember when walking to school or town if I encounterd what I took to be a ferocious canine I'd cross the street to avoid confrontation.

eventually I grew into a cat person. it began on Willow St in Kent with a stray I calld Anastasia & continued thru my beloved Melina. so it's become quite a surprise to me that I've come to like a dog. my neighbor Rita recently got a Bouvier puppy with the moniker Cinco. from our first meeting there was a real attraction. now I'm his uncle. the only gift I brought back from Seattle was a box of bagels from Three Dog Bakery for Cinco. this isn't the best picture -- because he's always in motion & hard to photograph -- but you can see that I'm at ease enuf with this dog to put my hand in his mouth.

Screen Stories (june 1957)

thx Jim

my buddy Jim Szakacs in Toronto

e'd me this morning to say he already got his copy of It's All a Movie. Jim is a major film buff with an amazing collection of stills & publications. & he's quite the sleuth. later in the day he e'd again to inform me he'd trackd down my long-ago contribution to Screen Stories.

Rain City

friendly people. polite motorists. supreme restaurants. lively cultural life. exciting architecture. but dear lord... that weather. Seattle was the coldest city in the nation on my visit. & the precipitation was off & on the whole time. when the sun was out & the wind down it was glorious. but I also was walking in a 28 degree wind chill. & I walkd so much I developd blisters. but I felt I got to know at least the downtown section.

& thx to my college friend Suellen I got to spend a day seeing other parts of the city & even Kirkland. we hadn't seen each other in so many decades that there was a great deal of territory to cover & covering it was often bittersweet.

Roger's show lookd wonderful & he sold 6 paintings before its official opening.

Michael took me "backstage" at Seattle Art Museum where he's been designing exhibitions for 33 years. & I finally got to meet his lovely wife Ann with whom I want to spend more time.

had a short but fun conversation with Jenny McPhee before she read from her new novel which she inscribd for me. went right from there to a coffeehouse to hear Paul Rucker. also took in a concert by Tom Paxton & Tom Rush. & a musical review with Martin Charnin who I saw in the national tour of "West Side Story" a hundred years ago.

Seattle

      Michael McCafferty & R. B. Sprague at Patricia Rovzar Gallery



      Suellen Sweany Adams & Christine Pramuk



      Jenny MePhee at Elliott Bay Book Co

"great bloody archives"

splendid way to wake up: read Jean Vengua on Paul Metcalf. I'm waiting for the Metcalf Revival to begin. it's shocking to me that there isn't a whole shelf of books abt him yet. he has a short piece in my current It's All a Movie.

in a couple of hours I'm off to the Pacific Northwest. yup. I packd a bumbershoot.

from the archives

it's spring of 1987 & I'm at C. C. Brown's. for years it was a regular stop on my visits to Hollywood Blvd. the hot fudge sundae was inventd there. in the '40s & '50s its wonderful wood booths held the bottoms of Elizabeth Short & James Dean & Katharine Hepburn.

on one trip I lunchd at the Brown Derby on Vine. I was too full from the Cobb salad (which was inventd there) to have the famous grapefruit cake. so I prowld some bookstores & made my way down past Grauman's Chinese Theater for a hot fudge sundae. to my shock C. C. Brown's was gone & the tackiest of fast-food joints was in its space. I suddenly felt old & depressd.

a while ago the Brown family startd a small version of the place next to what is calld Schwab's but really isn't. I went once with my buddy Craig. the famous fudge sauce was servd hot in a cruet just like in the old days. but the spot had no ambiance. it didn't last long.

it's official

Mark Young has announcd the lineup of new Otolith titles.

if you want to see what It's All a Movie looks like click on "preview this book" for sample pages.

I'm thrilld.

another centennial

Gene Autry was a better singer than an actor & a better businessman than a singer. in the annals of film he lacks the stature of John Wayne. Autry's oaters were strickly kiddie matinee material. but over the decades his fan base has includ'd Sonny Rollins & Harvey Pekar. & he holds a special spot in my personal history.

Gene Autry was the first movie star I ever saw in person. I was abt 5 when Uncle Tom took his daughter Regina & me to see the cowboy perform in Cleveland. I don't remember a thing abt it. many years later I'd see Autry at the American Cinema Award dinners in Beverly Hills.

so today I tip my Alta Calidad hat to the memory of Gene Autry on his 100th birthday.

JRP

when I met James Robert Parish in a theater bar in NYC in 1976 I was already a fan of his books. volumes such as Paramount Pretties & The Fox Girls were frequently consultd. over the years we became friends. the peaks & valleys we've both been thru wd easily make a book.

there are many things I admire abt JRP. he's a loyal & generous friend. & one of the hardest-working writers I know. that work has paid off. the shelves of books he's producd make an essential show business library.

the other day he sent me a copy of his newest -- The Hollywood Book of Extravagance published by John Wiley & Sons. the cover features Hollywood's most legendary hotel   Chateau Marmont (where I stayd for years till the rates soard to the ridiculous).

here we have short chapters covering "extravagant" stars from the silent era (John Barrymore & Gloria Swanson)to today's headlines (Lindsay Lohan & Paris Hilton).



      with JRP & T. Allan Taylor in Weho (1992)

dinner out

I missd seeing weaver James Koehler get the Governor's Award because it was on my mother's birthday. so we made up for that with dinner tonite at Espiritu. it's alwys good to catch up.

James' all-black pieces are enchanting but don't always reproduce well so here's one that will.

"Gymnast of Inertia"

in 1992 -- crouching toward retirement & the move west -- I did a series of 5 sculptures under the umbrella title "Au Revoir Ohio." I gave away 4 but kept this one. the piece of wood was barnsiding brought back from Jean-Claude van Itallie's farm in the Berkshires. & the bowtie is a clip-on (damn   I'm guilty) that I actually wore in the early '70s.

I'm dancin'

Theron Moore has put up 2 of my poems on St. Vitus.

Laura LaPlante

altho I hadn't seen that many of her films I always liked LaPlante. so it was a thrill to see her on the vast stage of Radio City Music Hall for one of the "Nite of 100 Stars" events more than 2 decades ago.

last nite TCM showd one of her rarer films "Man of the Moment." she was so charming I had a smile on my face thruout. she's best rememberd today for her work in silent pictures. but she had a good voice & her gift for comedy shd've guaranteed a major career in talkies.

here's Imogen Cunningham's famous 1931 portrait of her:

"In Iran we don't have homosexuals"

one of those days

in the morning mail: a friend informs me of the death of his cat.

in the yard: fresh gopher mounds.

then: coffee machine malfunctions   spewing brown stuff all over the kitchen.

then: I discover the hot water tank is leaking.

Vikki

in the movie star scrapbooks I kept in the '50s there is evidence of a pretty even division between cheesecake & beefcake. in fact there's one page which I labeld "Male and Female Pinups." at the top there's a color photo of a smiling George Nader in one of his ubiquitous swimsuits beside a b&w shot of Richard Egan in his underwear combing his hair in front of a mirror. the lower half of the page features Jane Russell in that scandalous pose from "The French Line" & Esther Williams with her back to a grindstone   boobs pointing skyward & chiton partd to display ample leg.

I rememberd all this last nite as I watchd "The Rebel Set." this minor heist film from 1959 featurd Vikki "The Back" Dougan in a small part. she made only 6 films in her 7-year career. none of them establishd her as an actress. but she must've had one hell of a press agent. her pinup pictures were everywhere -- even on a 1953 Life cover. she dated the likes of George Raft & Porfirio Rubirosa. but she got the most ink for a gimmick. while Marilyn & Jayne & Mamie were showing more & more breast she became famous for "reverse cleavage." yup... just look at this typical photo of her:


there's only one clipping of her in my scrapbooks. she's wearing either this same dress or a duplicate -- along with a to-the-floor fur stole.

she disappeard from public view years ago. however many of her cheesecake photos circulate on the internet. & folkies remember her for 2 reasons: Malvina Reynolds wrote a song abt her for the Limeliters & her final screen appearance was in "Hootenany Hoot" which also featurd the legendary Judy Henske.

in a black bowl

pieces of roastd chicken

baked potato forkd into strands

some slivers of Tillamook butter

scatterings of curry & sea salt

cheddar cheese

a whisper of olive oil

hard to believe

        Melina died a year ago

back in front of the cameras

since moving here I've been an extra in 2 movies   "Santa Fe" (1997) & "Maniacts" (2001). today I did it again.

neighbor Rita & I went to the Rodeo Grounds where a young director by the name of Joshua Michael Stern was shooting "Swing Vote." we were in the stands as a helicopter shot down on us. finally the film's star Kevin Costner came out. he askd for a mic & gave a short but heartfelt impromptu speech abt how great movies are.

Costner was seatd near the stands & across the way was a stage on which presidential candidates were to debate. the candidates were playd by Dennis Hopper & Kelsey Grammer. altho we heard Costner say the same speech for several takes   the other actors performd in mime.

to entice the audience to remain till the wee hours prizes are being given away & later tonite Costner will appear with his band. but Rita & I escapd after a while.

young & foolish

I live across the arroyo from the football field of a middle school.

right now there's a pelting rain. the baby players are out in it.

I can imagine the roar against their helmets.

another sad Hollywood tale

30 years ago I was working on a suite of poems calld Visions of Jan-Michael Vincent. Michael Milligan did some drawings for the book including this one of Vincent. at that time he was Hollywood's golden boy.

now he's a 63 y/o alcoholic who sat for an interview with "The Insider"   an irritating rip-off of "Entertainment Tonite." to say he looks awful is understatement. his voice was forever changd after an auto accident years ago which he no longer remembers. he doesn't even know how old his daughter is. probably the interview shd never have happend. but one suspects he needs whatever money he got for submitting to the humiliation. he's sort of the male Barbara Payton.

from the archives

I took this picture of Frank Green at my 1984 brunch for Ira Joel Haber.

"It's All a Movie"

Otoliths will be bringing the book out shortly. it's a collection of poems & prose & photographs. as soon as ordering info is available I'll post it.

we're in the final proofing stage. I have to say that working with Mark Young has been a joy. as both editor & publisher he's the best. kudos as well to Ray Craig for both front & back covers. even Harry K. Stammer offerd production assistance.

give me a drum roll

filmmaking in Ohio

while in Elyria a crew was filming on Ely Square for an indie feature to be calld "Make Me Popular."

then on the plane today I startd reading Les Roberts' A Shoot in Cleveland   one of the Milan Jacovich mysteries which centers on a murder on a film set.

back to Ohio

to celebrate Mom's 86th birthday

the party of family values delivers again

Senator Craig barely has his pants pulld back up & the GOP is facing an even bigger gay sex scandal. this one includes murder & an escort service & a Congressman with multiple male roommates.

I don't want my face on a cereal box

but one of my poems embossd on a bar of Godiva chocolate wd be swell.

?

will these undies


make it into this piece

hot quote

"I think I was nominated in 1951 for the most promising newcomer. I'm glad I finally realized my potential."

Leslie Caron on winning an Emmy for her guest spot on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"

I have a fondness

for the Poverty Row period of Evelyn Brent's career. in "Daughter of the Tong" she was cast as an Asian. the film is the typical low-budget programmer   down to the visible microphone shadows. Brent has little to do until a fight scene with Dave O'Brien which is as ordinary as the rest of the picture. you feel sorry for her until you think of what Anna May Wong cd've done with the part. I suspect that by this time in her career dive Brent was only interestd in the paycheck.

"Street of Poets Tucson"

so I cd tell
Mark Young
I walkd Congress
to Cafe Magritte

it isn't
anymore

so I went
down the block
to Hotel Congress
where Dillinger
was staying
when he got caught

I thot abt
Todd Moore
as I ate ahi

sorry Mark




what was Cafe Magritte: the clouds remain



Hotel Congress lobby: southwest deco

getaway

as I prepare to leave town for a few days   McAfee is giving me a pain by blocking sites because of some security certificate business. I've overridden it so I cd post before I depart. maybe when I return my whole computer will be a mess. there are times when technology makes me cringe.

Field on Schneebaum

new visitor

after Melina died   I startd filling her food & water bowls & putting them on the back portal. several neighborhood cats now visit frequently. one -- a skinny white one -- is the most regular.

yesterday I heard loud birdsong. when it stoppd I lookd out to see a large scrub-jay eating dry cat food from Melina's bowl.

Broadway diva

Bernadette Peters has never been to Santa Fe before. last nite she brought her act to the opera. besides performing standards she creatd in "Mack and Mabel" & "Sunday in the Park with George"   she debutd her sultry version of "Fever." she also did a delicious interpretation of "There's Nothing Like a Dame" & brought the audience to its feet with "Rose's Turn."

SFO has a roof but open sides. at one point it began to rain & a startld Bernadette got peltd. "is this snow?" she askd   adding "I thot it was supposd to be dry here." but like the trooper she is she put on a rehearsal sweater over her elegant gown & went on with the show.

the opera is so strict with its non-photography policy I didn't dare bring a camera. but here's a photo with Bernadette taken at Kennedy Center in 1993:

many Marilyns

just when I was feeling really shitty I got quite the pick-me-up from Ray Craig.

there is a story to be told abt this but not just yet.

greed

for years Sandia Shuttle has been picking me up & leaving me off at a motel a short walk from my house on almost monthly trips to the Albuquerque Airport. on the phone today I attemptd to make a reservation for next week. I was informd that they would no longer do this if I wasn’t registerd at the motel. I went to the website. it clearly shows this motel as a pickup location. it says nothing about this being only for visitors.

this seems clearly discriminatory to residents & perhaps illegal. I understand the owners of this service want to make more revenue by having me pay for a taxi – which they also own – to a downtown hotel which they now claim is the ONLY pickup place for locals. I've just written to the mayor & Better Business Bureau. to put it bluntly I'm pissd off.

milestone

yesterday this blog had its 40000th visitor. we're a little more than 2 months away from a third anniversary. I know there are blogs out there that get that many hits a day. but geesh I'm just an old poet. so for me this is big time.

thx to that small band of regulars. you keep me going.