I had another Zoom reading of one of my plays as a benefit for the Actors Fund. This is OUR TIME, and it's loosely autobiographical. For many reasons it's one of my favorite plays and I'm thrilled to be able to share it with you.
1975 was an amazing year for comedy. It was a golden age of sitcoms (MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW, ALL IN THE FAMILY, MASH), the Comedy Store was flourishing and comics like Letterman and Leno were getting on THE TONIGHT SHOW, and personality radio was still very much in vogue. For a kid wanting to break into comedy in Los Angeles, LA was a magic place.
This is the story of four young Boomers coming of age and trying to find their place in this inspiring new world. I'm blessed with an amazing cast. Eddie Kay Thomas, Jonah Platt, Noah Weisberg, and Laura Schein, with additional voices by Kevin Pollack, Madeline Franklin, and me. With cool graphics by Howard Hoffman. Thanks to New Works Theatre for hosting it. The Actors Fund does great work and I invite you all to support them.
Okay, So now for a limited time, enjoy my comedy about comedy, OUR TIME.
Ken, I thought you might be interested to learn of a new radio station in the UK, Box Office Radio, which the owner says is dedicated to "all things Stage and Screen". Of particular interest, I thought, would be its weekly Centre Stage show, which will focus on amateur theater across the UK. AIUI there are playwrights who make their living licensing their work almost exclusively to such groups.
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Two FRASIER-themed Friday questions...
ReplyDeleteCan, or should, anything be inferred from the decision to name Frasier's agent Bebe?
Kirstie Alley is the only CHEERS regular who did not appear on an episode of FRASIER. Were there plans for her to be a guest star on an episode? Of all the CHEERS characters, Rebecca seems like the one that would be the most difficult to integrate into the FRASIER universe, given that the character seemed like a bit of an outsider on CHEERS (e.g. her early departure in that show's final episode). On the other hand, Frasier and Rebecca's almost-tryst, and her desire to marry a rich man, might have made an interesting springboard for a guest appearance.
I really enjoyed this. Semi-embarrassed to admit I got teary when Doug, the radio guy was talking to Sara about how she wants to have her own hat tossing moment. This was my coming of age time and MTM show was my guidepost for being an independent woman in my 20s.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to you Ken and the cast for capturing the time and the angst and sentiments of a group of young people wanting to 'make it after all'.
BethS
Friday Question: On shows like All in the Family the episode title was pretty much the synopsis, such as "Archie is Worried About His Job" or "Gloria Poses in the Nude". Other episodes were titled "The Saga of Cousin Oscar" or "The Man in the Street". Was there any rhyme or reason to why some titles were more straightforward; was it the writer's choice or did some simply believe the title was irrelevant since we didn't have online episode guides back then?
ReplyDeleteI loved the play. I know this is a little nit picky, and maybe it's just me, but I got all confused when they started talking the Rubik's cube from the 80's, I had to back up the video and see if I missed something. It took me out of the zone and it took a bit to get reengaged.
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