I know it's been a while since I've posted, and a while since I've seen the show... but I feel NOW I can post. 9/11 has a special mark on me... a few special ones. I knew people in New York, I had a show cancelled (and I was called back to hours later), and have had the writer work for me...
I went the first preview with some people 'from the rock' and the second time with a good friend of mine. I cried each time! I NEVER do that... I work in a lot of emotional work...but just seeing this was almost too much. Seeing this beautiful show, feeling the feelings I felt that day, and the compassion of those who helped that day that had NO obligation to do what they did was... healing and compassion...
What my friend David and his wife Irene did with these stories was fantastic.... 16000 stories, 12 actors, 100 mins. All pulled off flawlessly.
As many of the actors have said... the people coming have been saying :"this is where I was..." Well...this is where I was, and I know many people I know where there too...
Where I was... On a GO train home to Oakville when it started. The second plane hit about 10 mins after I got home. I saw it live on CNN. I got a call back to go an load out the show which was cancelled because we were noted as a TARGET! I...for more reasons than one said no... I was awake for more than 24 hours that day...
I knew many people in NYC, given my business, this is a daily occurrence for me. David and Irene were there...but I didn't meet them until later... This was the first of many hard days in theatre and entertainment for me... Not only people passing (as I was afraid of at the time, and after), but also doing things that were legal at the time, but also NOT a good idea! I've also had days where things have happened that I've seen on hte news, but not had information on until much later.... and not having a lot of access to press conferences...
Fast forward... I was also doing a sound design and rehearsing a show that was going on tour to BC...We were on the plane making edits with the MD as we were on the flight...
Once we landed, we got a limo to take us to our destination. The driver asked us if we wanted to know what happened while we were in the air... we found out that the US declared (though, really, they didn't) declare war.
Literally...we were in the air when the US went to war! We Left Pearson with NO armed guards and landed at Vancouver with army personnel with M16s... Though...the worst part was the breaking of one of my cases (though marked fragile) and it being broken and an adapter missing (that I needed).
This was my 9/11 story (continued)....
Not NEARLY as bad as others for sure, but a shareable moment...
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Proposed Menu 2015
Cold Cucumber Soup - with or without vodka. Cucumber, cilantro, green bell pepper, vidalia onion and mild jalapeno. Served in Black Salt rimmed glass.
Stuffed Braised Squid - braised in tomato 'sauce' served over handmade papardelle, roasted lemon on the side.
Coleslaw with fresh mayo, cilantro, cucumber, onion, pepper...
Tomato Soup - Braising liquid from squid, reduced and creamed to make a soup, with added onions, roasted peppers, bacon, garlic, and fresh tomatoes. Served with a dollop of plain yogurt with dill/mint/basil and crispy guancale and fried squid tenticals...
Fresh Ground Pork Meatballs in a butter cheese sauce... This one I might change... the meat course for me is always hard since I really LOVE to cook meat...and change my mind constantly!
"Rum Balls"...I'm not going to give too much of this away, but, lets say, I'm experimenting here... it's a 'rumball', but looks...NOT like one.
It DOES have alcohol (and for someone, I will make a non alcohol version), but will still have the rum flavour. The rum flavour, being an extract, will have an alcohol content, but very minimal, about the same as a peppermint extract.
Stuffed Braised Squid - braised in tomato 'sauce' served over handmade papardelle, roasted lemon on the side.
Coleslaw with fresh mayo, cilantro, cucumber, onion, pepper...
Tomato Soup - Braising liquid from squid, reduced and creamed to make a soup, with added onions, roasted peppers, bacon, garlic, and fresh tomatoes. Served with a dollop of plain yogurt with dill/mint/basil and crispy guancale and fried squid tenticals...
Fresh Ground Pork Meatballs in a butter cheese sauce... This one I might change... the meat course for me is always hard since I really LOVE to cook meat...and change my mind constantly!
"Rum Balls"...I'm not going to give too much of this away, but, lets say, I'm experimenting here... it's a 'rumball', but looks...NOT like one.
It DOES have alcohol (and for someone, I will make a non alcohol version), but will still have the rum flavour. The rum flavour, being an extract, will have an alcohol content, but very minimal, about the same as a peppermint extract.
Saturday, May 30, 2015
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
X Company
X Company... wow...
Well... I NEVER write posts about TV shows...at least no usually...
Sometimes there's a diatribe on Facebook, or multiple posts on Twitter...but...not...this...
First off... thank you to Mark Ellis and Stephanie Morgenstern for creating this WONDERFUL, beautiful, and heartbreaking show. I was fortunate enough to be able to see it before everyone else did, so thank you to the Writer's Guild for that as well! I also got to see the preview of it with the cast a few weeks before the premiere on top of that... can you say I was looking forward to it?
I'm not going to talk much about the show itself... I think more than enough people have done that. I want to focus on something a little different. And I need to get a few things of my chest first...
1. The cast. Holy hell you guys are great...individually, and as an ensemble! Hugh, Evelyne, Jack, Warren, Connor, Dustin... You make a team a team...and you show it. (Well, okay, Hugh is 'away'...but still intricately connected...) I'll get back to this later...
Torben... Man...great job... every episode you showed something that...well... I'm NOT SUPPOSED TO LIKE NAZIS! But...somehow...you did it... and the final scene... I wanted to both hug you and kill you... (or, at LEAST your character...)
2. Directors: David, John, Jaime, Craig... what you brought to the 'stage' was... amazing. You could see each individual 'personality' in the episodes, while keeping to the overall tone set in the first two episodes. You didn't try to make it your own, but kept it as true to the story itself.
Finally...
3. Mark and Steph... dear god you guys are great! I met you guys at the Writers Guild event, so I'm not going to re-hash to much since this is for you...but... the first episode meant a lot to see it with you, and talk to you after... Steph... I haven't been able to do anything more on my grandfathers story since we talked, but I CERTAINLY saw a lot of him in the plot lines of ALL the characters this season. And for that...I thank you and Mark and any other writers on this immensely. As you know, he passed in 1995, and obviously I miss him. Walk With the Devil premiered on the 20th anniversary of his death... so... ouch... I don't know how long Steph and I talked...it felt like an hour... (Even being in the entertainment business myself, I can get nervous talking to people I admire and respect...) Talking about my grandfather chokes me up sometimes because of many things... Mark, I wish I had more time to talk to you that night, but... well... next time my friend!
Now... to what I really want to say...
This is a WELL researched show... while of course there are 'not real' people, I can easily say this is one of the best shows on TV right now... it's hard hitting in EVERY scene, and is so close to reality (based on historical things I've read) that it might as well be a documentary! If it weren't for the quality of the shooting (and, well, colour) it'd be hard to say some scenes WEREN'T shot during the war...
The real reason I'm writing this... my Grandfather... where I'll bring the cast, and my chat with Stephanie back into it...
My grandfather may (or may not) have been a commando during the war (same as the cast are playing). Trained as a medic, joined underage, and was 'in theatre' for the duration of the war... pay records indicate he was in the most dangerous places in the most dangerous times during the war... not associated with a single company at all (which was common practice). A year into his deployment (shown as a nurse or medic) his pay records go silent for 3 months. I have it on good authority (not verified) that he was in Scotland at the time...training for new missions. As with many...he never talked about his time in the war... Others, who have talked...have mentioned that something like the pre-cursor to CampX trainees did train in Scotland to be deployed... not in the same thing as like in the show, but for the same purpose... to disrupt, destroy, and eliminate Nazi infrastructure and soldiers. He was in Amiens when it fell back into allied hands, and his best friend died in his arms (the ONLY thing from the war he ever mentioned...) This reminds me of Rene from the first episode... though he was hanged for what he did...it still triggers an emotional response...
I seriously don't know what else he did during the war since he never talked about it, and, since he died when I was 15, I don't know if it was due to me not being 'old enough' to handle it or other reasons, my guess is the latter... he never talked about it in detail with anyone really... was it what we now call PTSD? Who knows...but...likely... I say that since there were many things found upon his death that even my Grandmother didn't even really know about. There were a few German bullets found hidden in a chest, a star emblem which is NOT allied affiliated (which I have now), and a ring which I wear EVERY DAY which is (as confirmed by a former British Officer) an authentic WW2 officers ring which is ONLY handed out to Officers and Allied Commandos (who, apparently at the time were ALSO considered officers within the British ranks...no matter their actual rank...). All of this, combined with the stories from some of his close friends who came home and spoke after his death lead me to believe that this is true. He was a "commando" ...one the FIRST ones in the war...
This makes XCompany hard to watch. Every single episode evokes his memory to me...
Steph and I talked about the OSA, the Official Secrets Act, which keeps British secrets classified for 70 years (so next year will/should release a TROVE of things) and other things.... things that have...for all intents and purposes have kept them from many other things that have happened during the time they are trying to tell in the story. It's not clear whether anything WILL be open to the public, or how we'll be able to access it...
So...to end this, I want to say, THANK YOU Mark and Steph, from the bottom of my heart for bringing this to the screen. Many have, and many have failed. You have not! And to the actors (not just the ones I've mentioned, but to all involved... thank you... You've been SO amazing...
All in all...thank you everyone...
Well... I NEVER write posts about TV shows...at least no usually...
Sometimes there's a diatribe on Facebook, or multiple posts on Twitter...but...not...this...
First off... thank you to Mark Ellis and Stephanie Morgenstern for creating this WONDERFUL, beautiful, and heartbreaking show. I was fortunate enough to be able to see it before everyone else did, so thank you to the Writer's Guild for that as well! I also got to see the preview of it with the cast a few weeks before the premiere on top of that... can you say I was looking forward to it?
I'm not going to talk much about the show itself... I think more than enough people have done that. I want to focus on something a little different. And I need to get a few things of my chest first...
1. The cast. Holy hell you guys are great...individually, and as an ensemble! Hugh, Evelyne, Jack, Warren, Connor, Dustin... You make a team a team...and you show it. (Well, okay, Hugh is 'away'...but still intricately connected...) I'll get back to this later...
Torben... Man...great job... every episode you showed something that...well... I'm NOT SUPPOSED TO LIKE NAZIS! But...somehow...you did it... and the final scene... I wanted to both hug you and kill you... (or, at LEAST your character...)
2. Directors: David, John, Jaime, Craig... what you brought to the 'stage' was... amazing. You could see each individual 'personality' in the episodes, while keeping to the overall tone set in the first two episodes. You didn't try to make it your own, but kept it as true to the story itself.
Finally...
3. Mark and Steph... dear god you guys are great! I met you guys at the Writers Guild event, so I'm not going to re-hash to much since this is for you...but... the first episode meant a lot to see it with you, and talk to you after... Steph... I haven't been able to do anything more on my grandfathers story since we talked, but I CERTAINLY saw a lot of him in the plot lines of ALL the characters this season. And for that...I thank you and Mark and any other writers on this immensely. As you know, he passed in 1995, and obviously I miss him. Walk With the Devil premiered on the 20th anniversary of his death... so... ouch... I don't know how long Steph and I talked...it felt like an hour... (Even being in the entertainment business myself, I can get nervous talking to people I admire and respect...) Talking about my grandfather chokes me up sometimes because of many things... Mark, I wish I had more time to talk to you that night, but... well... next time my friend!
Now... to what I really want to say...
This is a WELL researched show... while of course there are 'not real' people, I can easily say this is one of the best shows on TV right now... it's hard hitting in EVERY scene, and is so close to reality (based on historical things I've read) that it might as well be a documentary! If it weren't for the quality of the shooting (and, well, colour) it'd be hard to say some scenes WEREN'T shot during the war...
The real reason I'm writing this... my Grandfather... where I'll bring the cast, and my chat with Stephanie back into it...
My grandfather may (or may not) have been a commando during the war (same as the cast are playing). Trained as a medic, joined underage, and was 'in theatre' for the duration of the war... pay records indicate he was in the most dangerous places in the most dangerous times during the war... not associated with a single company at all (which was common practice). A year into his deployment (shown as a nurse or medic) his pay records go silent for 3 months. I have it on good authority (not verified) that he was in Scotland at the time...training for new missions. As with many...he never talked about his time in the war... Others, who have talked...have mentioned that something like the pre-cursor to CampX trainees did train in Scotland to be deployed... not in the same thing as like in the show, but for the same purpose... to disrupt, destroy, and eliminate Nazi infrastructure and soldiers. He was in Amiens when it fell back into allied hands, and his best friend died in his arms (the ONLY thing from the war he ever mentioned...) This reminds me of Rene from the first episode... though he was hanged for what he did...it still triggers an emotional response...
I seriously don't know what else he did during the war since he never talked about it, and, since he died when I was 15, I don't know if it was due to me not being 'old enough' to handle it or other reasons, my guess is the latter... he never talked about it in detail with anyone really... was it what we now call PTSD? Who knows...but...likely... I say that since there were many things found upon his death that even my Grandmother didn't even really know about. There were a few German bullets found hidden in a chest, a star emblem which is NOT allied affiliated (which I have now), and a ring which I wear EVERY DAY which is (as confirmed by a former British Officer) an authentic WW2 officers ring which is ONLY handed out to Officers and Allied Commandos (who, apparently at the time were ALSO considered officers within the British ranks...no matter their actual rank...). All of this, combined with the stories from some of his close friends who came home and spoke after his death lead me to believe that this is true. He was a "commando" ...one the FIRST ones in the war...
This makes XCompany hard to watch. Every single episode evokes his memory to me...
Steph and I talked about the OSA, the Official Secrets Act, which keeps British secrets classified for 70 years (so next year will/should release a TROVE of things) and other things.... things that have...for all intents and purposes have kept them from many other things that have happened during the time they are trying to tell in the story. It's not clear whether anything WILL be open to the public, or how we'll be able to access it...
So...to end this, I want to say, THANK YOU Mark and Steph, from the bottom of my heart for bringing this to the screen. Many have, and many have failed. You have not! And to the actors (not just the ones I've mentioned, but to all involved... thank you... You've been SO amazing...
All in all...thank you everyone...
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
'Twas the Night Before Halloween - Forded
Twas the night before Halloween, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even the louse.
The arrest warrants were hung by the mail slot with care,
In hopes that the Emergency Task Force would soon be there.
The lawyers were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of search warrants danced in their heads.
Mama in her kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down after a rather LARGE nightcap.
When out on the lawn, arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window, and in came a flash,
Blew open the window, and made the glass smash.
Police lights flashing cross new fallen snow,
Gave the lustre of mid-day to a new bag of blow.
When what to my wandering eyes should appear,
But my own police chief...not bringing me beer.
His little loud lapdog, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment, it must be that dick.
More vapid than Douggie, the curses they came,
And he gestured, and shouted, and called them by name...
"Now Jonesie, now Blair buddy, now Mark and Sue-Ann!
On, subways, on buses, on taxpayers and the man"
To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall!
Go away, go away so I can save you all!"
Not a creature was stirring, not even the louse.
The arrest warrants were hung by the mail slot with care,
In hopes that the Emergency Task Force would soon be there.
The lawyers were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of search warrants danced in their heads.
Mama in her kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down after a rather LARGE nightcap.
When out on the lawn, arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window, and in came a flash,
Blew open the window, and made the glass smash.
Police lights flashing cross new fallen snow,
Gave the lustre of mid-day to a new bag of blow.
When what to my wandering eyes should appear,
But my own police chief...not bringing me beer.
His little loud lapdog, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment, it must be that dick.
More vapid than Douggie, the curses they came,
And he gestured, and shouted, and called them by name...
"Now Jonesie, now Blair buddy, now Mark and Sue-Ann!
On, subways, on buses, on taxpayers and the man"
To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall!
Go away, go away so I can save you all!"
Monday, January 14, 2013
So...I shot a few cops today...
Today I had the pleasure of attending my first media launch at Police Headquarters.
Here are a few photos:
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
So here's what I'm thinking for Sunday.
Arrival at 3:30 - 4pm
Start dinner around 4 - 4:30pm
Drink from then until we're done. : )
Meal:
Roast Rabbit
Roasted potatoes and carrots with sage and rosemary
Mango Ice Cream
Cookies
Argue among yourselves in the comments for the following.
A few people should bring booze of some sort.
I also need someone to bring a salad. I'll have some homemade "ricotta" cheese to go with it...
Anything else you want to bring is also fine!
So far, the guest list includes
- Paisley
- The Pope
- probably Chef Wendy
- and someone I KNOW I've forgotten about...but can't figure it out...
Arrival at 3:30 - 4pm
Start dinner around 4 - 4:30pm
Drink from then until we're done. : )
Meal:
Roast Rabbit
Roasted potatoes and carrots with sage and rosemary
Mango Ice Cream
Cookies
Argue among yourselves in the comments for the following.
A few people should bring booze of some sort.
I also need someone to bring a salad. I'll have some homemade "ricotta" cheese to go with it...
Anything else you want to bring is also fine!
So far, the guest list includes
- Paisley
- The Pope
- probably Chef Wendy
- and someone I KNOW I've forgotten about...but can't figure it out...
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