OK…there are some jobs to report, but for the most part - it’s the quietest - for the longest period of time - for as long as I can remember.  First it was the writer’s strike…and now it’s the possible actor’s strike. Ugh.  Still, I am blessed with good health and a wonderful family, so that’s all the complaining I’m going to do.

The Great Adventures of Walter Flunn is still alive and well.  As I mentioned in a previous blog entry, a major cable channel bought a pilot - so we are going into production sometime in July for a delivery in August. Very exciting indeed.  

Here’s a pic from a recent mini-shoot we had.  And yes, that is a camera mounted on my head - to film my reactions.  Talk about a pain in the neck!

A month or so ago, I shot a series of spots for OnGuard.gov.  OnGuard.gov is a company that provides practical tips from the federal government and the technology industry to help you be on guard against Internet fraud, secure your computer, and protect your personal information.  I played the guy ‘phishing’ for people’s information.  The time I spent on the prep for the shoot took longer than actual shoot itself.  There was suit shopping, an initial fitting for the ‘phish fin’ that was to stick out of the back of my suit, the final fitting for the fin, and then there was altering the suit to accommodate a huge fin sticking out of the back.  Here are a couple of pics of me at the special effects shop - Flix FX.  They do great work there and are a fun group of people.  

The pic above is me, at the special effects shop, with a couple of large nuts and some well hung bananas.  Insert your own gay porn title here.

Below is the initial fitting for the fish fin.

You can check out the final spots at OnGuard.gov. I think they turned out pretty good.  I’m told they’re going to appear on TV in the next couple of months.

In early May, thanks to a fabulous comedy writer/actor Steve Hibbert, I had the opportunity to work with Mike Myers on the MTV Movie Award promos.  What a blast!  We shot on the back-lot of Warner Bros. in Burbank.  I love working on a back-lot.  It feels like old Hollywood to me.  Mike Myers played an angel (like the angels in the movie WINGS OF DESIRE) who along with doing some good, was also a little mischievous.  Well, a lot mischievous.  He was dressed from ankle to neck in a body suit that made him look ‘cut’.  Over the body suit, he had on a small swimsuit (or were they underpants?) - and sandals with white ankle socks.  To finish the look off, he wore enormous angel wings. 

Lindsay Lohan and Seth Green were also on the shoot.  I didn’t really have a lot to do with Lindsay Lohan, but she came on with her mini entourage - and did her bit.  She seemed nice enough.  To be honest, I didn’t even recognize her.  When I realized who it was, I remember thinking “Is that the same girl from FREAKY FRIDAY?  From HERBIE FULLY LOADED??”  Oh, well.   Seth Green was very funny and very nice.  He played a guy who is innocently walking down the street talking on his cell phone.  Mike Myers, ‘invisible’ as the angel, walks up to him and kicks him in the groin.  Seth Green drops to his knees in pain - and has no idea what has just happened.  Both Mike and Seth were very funny doing this bit, and so professional - slick.  Thankfully they were not recording sound because there was a lot of laughter from people watching this filming.  Hilarious.

I was just ‘on avail’ for a series of Pepto-Bismol spots.  ’On avail’ means that you’ve passed the initial audition - you’ve done the callback (where you meet the director/producer/client) - and they like to enough to have you ‘hold’ the shoot dates and to confirm your availability.  Apparently it was down to three guys.  Hours ago I found out that I was released from ‘avail’.  That means they chose someone else for the role.  Rats!  Oh, well - as my brother-in-law says - that is the nature of our business.  And that it it…

For those of you who read BACKSTAGE WEST - they printed my ‘letter to the editor’ on page 6 of the recent June 12-18, 2008 issue.  If you get a chance, check it out.  I’m sure you can find it online, too.

Till next time…

Three auditions a couple of days ago.  Two today.  On ‘avail’ for a VISA spot.  For everyone I know out there, the last few months have been incredibly slow.  But if the last few days are any indication, things are starting to happen again. Great news on the reality show - THE GREAT ADVENTURES OF WALTER FLUNN front.  A very popular cable channel bought a pilot!!  They are very interested in the show - and if they like what they see with the pilot (which we’re going to shoot this summer), we’ll start shooting some more episodes.  We’re told they will air in the first quarter of 2009!  There’s a lot of ‘ifs’ involved, but at this point - it all seems very, very positive.  Here’s a sampling of some of the art work created after the sell.

Because there is not a lot of new news to report (other than what I’ve discussed above), I thought I’d go back in the ‘vaults’ and tell a few stories of my experiences working on some of shows I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with over the years.  I also want to share some of the behind the scenes photos taken on the set during the shoot for each particular project. The first show that comes to mind is STAR TREK: VOYAGER.  I loved working on that show.  I’m not a science fiction fan myself - and had never seen the show when I auditioned for it.  But I knew it was a popular show - and I also knew that the show was coming to an end.  So, when my agent called me to go in and audition, I was thrilled.  I was up for the role of Zet, a rather nasty character who, along with his side-kick Nar, kidnaps Captain Janeway.  I don’t get to play ‘bad guys’ very often - so this was a wonderful opportunity for me.  Thankfully, I booked the job and reported for work the next week. We shot on the Paramount lot.  Because the show had been running for a few years at this point, the set had a real family feel.  And since the show had two episodes left before it was over completely, everyone seemed that much close– perhaps not wanting the show to come to an end.  For my side-kick I was blessed to be partnered with the hilarious Andy Milder.  I love working with that guy.  As an actor, he offers so much - and is really there with you.  If you are an actor reading this, you’ll know what I mean.   Andy has gone on to do a great job working on WEEDS, but when we worked together on STAR TREK: VOYAGER, WEEDS was no where in sight (and neither was ‘weed’, but I digress).  

The make-up was rather intense.  Our call was 4:30 a.m., since it took so long to get us into make-up.  I think it was about an hour and a half to two hour make-up job.  As you can see, the final result made us look like big potatoes in clothes.  But being so covered up was very freeing as an actor.  I could play the ‘bad guy’ and really get into it because I knew I looked so darn ugly.  I remember Kate Mulgrew couldn’t have been sweeter.  She was so warm and welcoming.  In fact, since we were shooting around the time of St. Patrick’s Day, Kate had organized a big St. Patrick’s Day party on one of the other sound stages.  So as we broke for lunch on St. Patrick’s Day, the entire cast and crew made our way over to the other sound stage which had been all decorated for the big event.  One by one, we were greeted by Kate who handed everyone a bottle of Bushmills Irish Whiskey. And if that wasn’t Irish enough, everyone was then treated to a traditional meal of corned beef and cabbage.  I think that was my favorite St. Patrick’s Day ever.  I was employed on a hit show, and having a great time.  And I had just been given a lovely bottle of Whiskey.  Who could ask for anything more? Another memory of being on that show was that it was very hot being in that make-up and costume.  Every break we had, Andy and I would head out of the sound stage and get some fresh (and cooler) air.  I remember the secret joy of having Paramount backlot tour vans drive by and seeing the excited tourists all snapping pictures as Andy and I stood there pretending not to be as thrilled to be seen as the tourists were to see us. 

• Well, first things first, THE GREAT ADVENTURES OF WALTER FLUNN is being pitched to networks right now (that is, unless you are reading this in the middle of the night.)  It’s a very exciting time.  We have no idea if the show is going to be picked up - but the talk is very good so we’re keeping our fingers crossed.  We went up to iFly at the Universal City Walk a few weeks ago to shoot some additional footage for the teaser.  What a blast!  The iFly folks call it ‘indoor skydiving’.  It is as close as I have ever been to free-falling (but it’s all in a vertical wind tunnel).  Here are a couple of shots of our experience there.  Yikes!  That second shot is more than a little scary.  There really should be a wind joke in here somewhere, but I’m going to leave that up to the reader.  Check out iFly at www.iFlyHollywood.com for yourself.  It really is a lot of fun.   If you ever get a chance to go up to Universal City Walk - you should check it out.  I highly recommend it!
•    
• I’ve also worked on a few industrials lately.  One in which I was a guy recently back from his high-school reunion - with a bad sunburn.  The second one was for a company that protects you against people ‘phishing’ for your information on the internet.  The production company was Aperture Films and talk about a great group of people.  Very professional and just super to work with.  They had a fish ‘fin’ constructed at a wonderful special effects company in North Hollywood.  It fit on me with a kind of harness.  With that fin, we went shopping for a new suit and shirt that in the end had to be tailored to compensate for the enormous fin sticking out of my back.  The final look was very funny in that you couldn’t tell I had a fish fin sticking out of my back when they were filming from the front - but turn into profile and  - WOW - instant clown fish.  The production company and client own all images of me with my ‘fish look’, so I agreed not to show any here - but the whole thing worked like a charm.  When the spots get released on the internet, I’ll put a link on this website.
• I talked with my aunt tonight on the phone.  She is so funny to talk with.  I love her.  She told me that since I always tend to do comedic roles, maybe it’s time to try doing some more dramatic fare.  She went on to say that since she enjoys LAW AND ORDER and the C.S.I. shows…I should really try to get on those.  I told her I’d put in a call to my agent in the a.m. and get right on that.  She also said she’d love to go to the Academy Awards - so while I’m chatting with my agent I’ll be sure to mention that, too.  Funny. 

First of all, happy new year to everyone reading this. May your year be filled with joy, good health, happiness, much love and wonderful adventures. Secondly, as I wrote in a previous blog, I was contacted by a terrific writer named Michael Toole who has written many articles for TCM.com. He wanted to interview me about my experiences playing Oliver Hardy and Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle. Well, we did the interview and now you can read it on www.TCM.com. Just click on the following link and it should take you right to the interview www.tcm.com/movienews/index/?cid=189165

Michael is a multi-talented writer, who besides his skills as an interviewer, has a short film he wrote playing the festivals right now. Although it was a couple of years ago now, I had a great experience playing Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle in Theatre 40’s world premier of Kathrine Bates’s ROAR OF THE CROWD. I studied his movies, had costumes made identical to his, and even had my hair dyed blonde. I loved every minute of it. Here are a couple of photos from my collection of me as Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle compared to the real deal. 

Well, the strike has certainly slowed work down as far as film and television goes, but thankfully, the commercial world just keeps on ticking. That’s it for now. I’m off to another audition.

Hey everyone…this Thursday, December 6th ABC Family channel (channel 311 for Direct TV) is showing two Christmas movies in which I have a lead role.  ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS and its sequel TWICE UPON A CHRISTMAS.  They are fun family movies starring John Dye and Kathy Ireland.  I play John Dye’s very handsome brother-in-law - OK, I added the handsome part.  I had a great time filming these movies up in Vancouver, Canada.  John and Kathy couldn’t have been nicer to work with.  On my TIVO  it has the first one showing at 4 p.m., but on the ABC Family website, and my TV Guide, it says ONCE starts at 7 p.m. followed by TWICE at 9 p.m…..so check out your local listing or your TV guide and see what it says.  We had our first production meeting today for THE GREAT ADVENTURES OF WALTER FLUNN.  It really is becoming a reality.  We’re teamed with a wonderful production company who is completely behind the show.  It’s a very exciting time.    Much more on later….. 

The last couple of weeks have been pretty busy with auditions. But on a personal note, the best part about this week was that my birthday was on Tuesday, November 6th! I got fabulous cards, e-mails and phone calls throughout my big day. And hearing my 6 year old and my little 2 1/2 year old singing “Happy Birthday Papa!” warmed my heart to no end.
Besides some good commercial auditions recently, I had an audition for the wonderfully funny series UGLY BETTY. What a treat to be brought in for that show! The jury is still out on that one - and with the strike going on, who knows what is happening with all these shows. But I had a great time auditioning for it. Jeff Greenburg’s casting office could not have been friendlier and more helpful. It’s an office that really seem to like actors.
And here’s to the brave writers who are standing up for what they (and I) believe is fair and right. May the strike be successful and over sooner than later for everyone involved.
Michael Toole, a wonderful writer for Turner Classic Movies website, Las Vegas Weekly, along with some very successful short films, contacted me. He wants to write a piece about what it was like for me to play silent movie comedian Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle and half of the famous comedy team Laurel and Hardy - namely Oliver Hardy. We had our preliminary meeting today to discuss the piece and will follow it up with another meeting next week. Michael is a terrific guy who is truly a film lover with an encyclopedic knowledge of movies.
The article will appear on the TCM website in the next month or so, and might make its way into the NOW PLAYING monthly magazine from TCM. What an honor for me to be part of one of my favorite channels!! Thanks, Michael.
In preparing for the meeting today, I reviewed some material on Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle. First of all, he was such a wonderfully talented comedian. Truly funny and amazingly agile on his feet. If you ever get a chance to watch any of his films on TCM or rent the DVDs, you won’t be disappointed. But his life took such a tragic turn in 1921 with the death of a young ’starlet’ at a party he was hosting. Many considered him guilty of her death (even though he was aquitted after a third trial) and false rumors still persist to this day. If you want to read more about Roscoe and his downfall, my favorite book on the subject is called “The Day The Laughter Stopped” by David Yallop.
More on this later…

I just found out today that the Orkin Pest Control Co. decided to not to bring me back as their spokesman for 2008. They changed advertising agencies a few months ago, so the news wasn’t completely a shock. Every new advertising agency likes to make their mark and throw out the old campaign and start fresh with their own.
I loved working for Orkin and being their spokesman - Ned, The Orkin Man. And it wasn’t just the money. They are a super group of people and Orkin is a great company. We parted on excellent terms and I wish them all the best with their future campaigns.

The folks at Orkin flew me up to Whistler, Canada to make some personal appearances as ‘Ned, The Orkin Man’. They were having their President’s Club celebration, honoring the top employees of Orkin. The Orkin people did a fabulous job organizing this enormous event. I think it’s safe to say all 620 attendees had an outstanding time and the response to me being there as their spokesman, Ned, The Orkin Man, was incredible. Here’s a picture, taken on the last night - on the top of Whistler Mountain, of the line of people waiting for a picture with Ned. The line up was non-stop for over 1 1/2 hours - and then at least another 1 1/2 hours signing pictures. What a thrill for me to be included in this terrific event!

When I wasn’t working, there were endless activities to enjoy. I tried a ‘zip line’ and, although my heart was pounding, loved it. So much so that when my wife joined me in Whistler a few days later, I took her ‘zip lining’. That time we ‘zipped’ on the longest zip line in Canada - 2200 feet! Amazing.

All this week I’m doing personal appearances as Ned, The Orkin Man. The Orkin folks really are the nicest people you’d want to meet. Truly fun to hang out with. And a great company, too!

Last week I worked on the Disney Channel hit - “Hannah Montana”. Wow! The live audience, comprised mostly of young girls and their moms, screamed - and I mean really screamed when the regular cast of the show first appeared (and at the curtain call). It was like watching those old, black and white movies of audiences reacting to The Beatles. I had no idea the show was so popular - but now I know. And Miley Cyrus, who plays Hannah Montana, is a real hard working pro. If she wasn’t getting ready for the next shot, she was rehearsing or shooting. If she wasn’t rehearsing or shooting, she was having people take their pictures with her. A very hard working, talented young woman. And very sweet to work with.

I brought one of my daughter’s, Daisy, to the taping of the show. Although Daisy was new to the “Hannah Montana” phenomenon, she quickly caught on. I think she wanted a playdate with Miley.

I talked with some of the Verizon people today about the campaign I did filmed for them in June of this year. It’s in the final stages of being tweaked and should be everywhere early October. They say the preview audiences are really enjoying it.

“The Great Adventures of Walter Flunn” is going very well. We are in the process of making a deal with a production company right now - so more exciting news on that very soon.

Wow! In the last couple of weeks things have been going better than ever. I shot a funny spot for Charter Communications with the inimitable Sean Sweeney. I’ve seen this guy at many auditions…and never had the opportunity to work with him. He is very funny and a real treat to work with. But this is truly one of the weirdest Polaroids I’ve seen in a while. It kinda looks like one of those postcards you used to get from those cheap, family run motels - you know “Stay here at Yorke’s Motel and Apartments. COLOR TV in almost every room. My brother and I will look after you real good”. Or maybe it’s just that Sean didn’t have as good a time working with me as I did with him. By looking at this photo, maybe he has just two words for me….’breath mint’.

Then I shot a fun bit on a new TV show called BIG SHOTS with Dylan McDermott and Christropher Titus. It is the first ‘official’ episode of the new series. The set had the feeling of newness about it. Everyone was really great to work with, but being so early in their first season, it hasn’t quite found its rhythm yet. I’m sure it will - and I hope it’s a big hit for them. Then maybe they could bring the doorman back!

Just last Friday I shot a new, updated informercial for SMC. I did the previous one with Tom Bosley about three or four years ago…and now I’m back doing a brand new one. We shot it in a lovely Arts and Crafts home in Long Beach. Even my wife and kids got in the act. We shot a few scenes of my girls and I on the front porch swing reading stories and then with my kids blowing bubbles and my wife and I looking on, laughing. Really sweet stuff.
Bob Caudhill was the director. He is a terrific guy who kept all of us laughing and ‘up’ throughout the entire day. A real pro - and a very sweet guy, too. My favorite sound guy, Steve Hawk, also was working on the shoot. His very dry sense of humor kept me laughing all day.
THE GREAT ADVENTURES OF WALTER FLUNN has really started to take off. I can’t go into details for contractual reasons, but WOW! it’s really exciting. As soon as I get the green light to fill in the details…I will. Needless to say, my business partner and I are very excited.
That’s all the news that’s fit to print for now. Tune in later for more….