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Grin and Tonic
The turnout of local media personalities at The Pick & Grin was impressive. Erin Donovan, Jamie Lynn Drohan, Sarah Herron, Tyler Ivens, Ashley Johnston, Whitney Kent, Michele Silva and Tearsa Smith all briefly put their credibility on hold so they could get laughs to benefit Guitars Not Guns. They had all responded to Taz Cable’s invitation to participate in the event on Thursday night at Latitude 35.
I helped organize the comedy portion of the evening. Rather than leave the local celebrities hanging out to dry, I invited some experienced improvisers to help. Brad Bumgardner, Todd Covert, Dave Fennell, Greg Huff, James Newport and Krisha Newport all donated their time and talent.
I found myself in the role of emcee, although I would have loved to perform with the newscasters. At least I did get to do one scene with Ashley Johnston while Todd and Krisha provided our Inner Thoughts. Earlier, as the leader of the Conducted Story, I accidentally hit Michele Silva’s face when she leaned too far forward.
Tearsa Smith killed when she danced like MC Hammer in a game of Lassie. She played a dog who could only bark and pantomime to explain who was with Little Timmy and what they were doing. The suggestion was that Hammer and Timmy had somehow lost his famous harem pants.
Before the Name Goes On
In the movie “Mother Ghost,” Garry Marshall and Charles Durning play two old guys who seem to enjoy griping at each other. They sell baseball memorabilia to raise money for their grandchildren’s Little League teams. In a key plot point, they are listening to a radio show hosted by Kevin Pollak’s character when Mark Thompson’s character calls in. I watched the whole movie yesterday after seeing a little bit of it on Sunday.
Their retro transistor radio looks similar to one I received as a gift this summer. My lovely daughter was antique shopping in upstate New York when she sent me a photo of an expensive table-top model. I told her it cost too much for me. When I saw her a week later, she surprised me with an authentic Zenith Royal 500 transistor radio.
I imagine that in its heyday, the
radio’s original owner may have carried it to the pool or the beach to hear surf classics by The Fantastic Baggys or other such groups. It may have been to few baseball games too, perhaps delivering the words of Lindsey Nelson, Ralph Kiner or Bob Murphy to a loyal Mets fan like myself.
Hootie Hoo
Normally I don’t turn on the TV when I am getting ready for church on a Sunday morning but this week was an exception. I wanted to see the weather report before the big outdoor Mass at All Saints Church. I also would not normally look at the program guide for non-HD channels but I knew that there was a local weather channel somewhere on that grid. While searching for it, I found something that interested me more.
One of the Showtime networks was airing a film called “Mother Ghost.” I knew the title and put it on for a while. I had missed the beginning and had to leave before it ended. A quick search of the listings revealed that it would be repeated later in the week. I set my DVR and went about my business.
The movie stars and was written by Mark Thompson of Mark & Brian on KLOS. What really impressed me was the all-star cast: Kevin Pollak, Dana Delany, David Keith, Charles Durning, Garry Marshall, Jere Burns and James Franco. Every scene has a recognizable face. It was also fun for me to watch the scenes that were filmed at the KABC/KLOS studios on La Cienega Boulevard.
Mark plays a man having difficulty dealing with his mother’s death. He gets help from a radio psychologist played by Kevin Pollak. His wife, played by Dana Delany, and his father, played by Charles Durning, are tuned in. Knoxville’s David Keith plays the program director unhappy with the shrink’s shrinking ratings. Keith often includes an acknowledgment of his favorite college team in his movies. This time, he is wearing an orange and white tie. In fact, the Tennessee Vols are thanked for the tie in the closing credits.
Fry Day Night Lights
Billy insisted that I sample one of his deep-fried Oreos. He was selling a variety of deep-fried treats during the Carter High School football game on Friday night. The menu also offered deep-fried Twinkies and fried green tomatoes.
Coincidentally, I had been thinking about DFOs since a Twitter conversation I had that morning with the Tennessee Valley Fair, Dave & Thomas and Overtly Trite. However, Billy didn’t use actual Oreos. From the glimpse I got of the packaging, it appeared to me that the cookies were Great Value brand. I have to give Billy credit. The DFGVDFT&SCSCs (deep-fried Great Value Double Filled Twist & Shout Chocolate Sandwich Cookies) tasted fine.
It’s a Sunshine Pray
“All Saints Coming Together” was the theme of the outdoor celebration at my parish yesterday. Catholics who normally attend one of five weekend Masses were asked to all gather for the same liturgy and to bring their own chairs. The Mass was the culmination of a week of prayer, which was preceded by home visitations.
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To supplement the photos I took with my own camera, I asked a few friends in the congregation if they would each send me a picture or two to share here. I wanted to see which they chose as their favorite. Gary Loe, Kathy & Keith Ely and Kim McCready all were quick to respond. The photo credits are included within the alt text for each picture.
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The Mass also received coverage on WBIR. Right before he was about to be interviewed, I shouted “say something clever” to my pal Fr. Michael Woods. On camera, he quipped that the idea was inspired by a Baptist tent revival, even though it may have had more in common with the Sermon on the Mount.
Capelli d’Angeli
Personalities from WVLT bookended my Saturday. I started the day by helping out at the Shoney’s KidCare Photo ID Program. Star 102.1 and WVLT are the media sponsors. Allison Kropff and Sara Shookman worked the same shift as me. David Aldrich showed up to relieve them. Of the three, I had previously met Allison. She told the others that I regularly watched their noon newscast. They wanted to know if I downloaded Chef Walter’s recipes. That got me started on a mini-rant about how the cooking segment spent too many precious seconds showing the floral centerpiece instead of showing the food.
I didn’t know until I arrived that Chef Walter Lambert would be one of the other judges along with Missy Kane, Tony Spezia, Marilyn Roddy and others at the Pasta Cook-off benefiting Family Promise of Knoxville that evening. I had voiced a TV spot for the event a couple of months ago and was asked to be a judge when Kim Hansard had a scheduling conflict. My choices for the top three pastas were the same as most of the other judges. I liked a buttery three-cheese ravioli, a spicy Cajun penne and a refreshing pasta salad made with grapes, nuts, celery and chicken.
Know What I Mean?
Vern Lindsay invited me to be a guest on his cooking show about a year ago. Then his kitchen flooded and everything was put on hold while it was rebuilt. We finally taped the show on Thursday. Once it is edited, it will appear on the Charter Main Street channel.
I could choose to cook anything I wanted. Of the things I like to cook, I thought chili and BBQ would take too long. Omelettes would be ideal. Vern said to buy whatever groceries I needed and he would reimburse me. With that caveat, I decided to kick things up a notch with a pound of Benton’s Bacon.
The famous bacon was in short supply when I stopped in at the Strawberry Fields Market on my way to Vern’s house. I bought the last pound they had. Robin Wheeler told me that demand was exceeding supply and that it might be a while before she got more in stock. You can’t rush the dry-curing and smoking process.
Once the taping started, I showed Vern how to bake the bacon. I first tried and liked the method after my field trip to Benton’s in March. Then I cooked some omelettes, describing how each person could customize the ingredients. The choice of sauce and cheese determined if it was a BBQ, Italian or Mexican omelette.
At the end of the show, Vern made a baked French toast with a maple and raspberry sauce on top, using fresh bread from the Old Mill Bread Company. It made my sweet tooth happy.
Deluxe Apartment in the Square
After 16 years in the Old City, the challenge facing Einstein Simplified is getting the word out about our imminent move to The Square Room on Market Square. Our first show there will be on August 31. On Thursday afternoon, Aaron Littleton and I were interviewed by Erin Donovan live from Market Square on “Live at Five at Four.”
Dave Snow has a contact at the News Sentinel, who interviewed some of us during a technical run-through at the new venue. Greg Wood’s article appeared online Thursday and is supposed to be in the paper on Friday.
The Square Room is a performance-centered venue. It has a larger capacity than the group’s recent home in Sullivan’s third floor Great Hall and a more extensive sound system (with more microphones) since the majority of the venue’s shows consist of live music.
“It comes with all sorts of bells and whistles,” member Paul Simmons adds, pointing out the dual projector screens on either side of the stage. The group says this will allow them to incorporate new aspects into the show.
Troupe member Frank Murphy explained that the TV screens and high-quality PA system might allow them to introduce a game where two performers narrate dialogue over video clips, whereas Sullivan’s setup didn’t provide them with such an opportunity.
The publicity tour continues next week when most of the group will be on Tuesday’s “Bowl of Oh!” on Knoxivi.com. I also gave it a plug while taping a guest appearance on a cooking show on Charter Main Street. More on that tomorrow.
Symphony for the Devil’s Food
Somebody at my wife’s office will get a nice surprise for their birthday today. Last night my wife whipped up a batch of brownies for the staff party. They have one-and-a-half Hershey’s Symphony bars in the middle. The candy was supposed to be for my grandmother but I got the wrong kind. Grandma now prefers to only eat the bars without nuts and toffee.
My wife used Duncan Hines brownie mix with three eggs for the cake-like consistency, as opposed to two eggs for fudgy brownies. After pouring half the batter into a pan, she placed the chocolate bars on it and then covered them with the remaining batter. If the Symphony bars hadn’t broken in transit, she could have just dropped them in there whole. After it cools, she will frost the top with Pillsbury dark chocolate frosting.
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Goodbye Mellow Brick Wall
If you add up all the Tuesday nights I have performed at Patrick Sullivan’s over the past eight years, it would work out to somewhere in the neighborhood of 365. Einstein Simplified celebrated its 16th anniversary and its final show at Patrick Sullivan’s on Tuesday night. Next week we begin performing weekly at The Square Room.
The old joint has quite a history as a saloon, a boarding house, a bordello, an upholstery shop and a saloon again. To me, it’s distinctive architecture defines Knoxville’s Old City. I took a few pictures on Tuesday night of things that I want to remember about Patrick Sullivan’s, starting with the wall I would see during countless games of Blind Freeze Tag.
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Cancer Sucks
Why do I go to funerals? I go because I remember how comforting it was when people showed up for my father’s funeral many years ago. He was 50, I was 21. It meant a lot to everyone in the family when a large crowd filled St. Patrick’s Cathedral for my cousin’s funeral in 2001.
If I still lived in New York, I would go to the funerals for my classmates’ parents, which I occasionally hear about via email. If I still lived in Burbank, I would attend the funerals of fellow parishioners at St. Finbar Church. It’s the way I was brought up. I’ve been to more than a few funerals in Tennessee too.
On Monday, I went to the funeral for Holly Pichiarella at All Saints Church. She was only 43 and the mother of three kids. As I arrived, Holly’s husband Larry asked if I was there for Holly or if I was there to do my hour of prayer. He didn’t realize that Holly had friended me on Facebook. She was a Star 102.1 listener. When I saw her with her head scarf at Lenten suppers and other parish events, I would greet her with, “hello, Facebook friend!”
Through her Facebook page, I learned of Holly’s setbacks in her fight against cancer and her last hope for a clinical trial at Vanderbilt. I knew that she and Larry celebrated their 17th wedding anniversary in May and that their youngest child turned 10 in June. I also knew that Holly’s 43rd birthday was the day before she died. Rest in peace, Facebook friend.
Trigger Fingers
The obvious perk of doing endorsement commercials for Massage Envy is that I get to go in for a massage every so often. Shoulder muscles sore from swimming and a twinge of back pain prompted me to call for an appointment on Sunday.
The staff members at the front desk were very kind. They told me that they regularly book new clients who were prompted to call by my spots. Business is so good that they hired additional therapists. Even with the expanded staff, I was lucky to get the last available appointment of the day.
While I filled out my paperwork, one of the therapists opened the door to the lobby. The file for her next appointment was in her hand. She looked at it, then at me and asked, “Are you Adam?” I told her no and then said the easy joke to the front desk staff, “She doesn’t know me from Adam.”
The therapist I had on Sunday likes the steady work at Massage Envy. Previously she had worked at spas and had her own practice. Nowadays she can focus on the work without having to recruit clients or pay overhead costs. I was impressed with her knowledge. I can use a lot of what she told me as fodder for upcoming radio commercials. She takes continuing education programs, most recently to learn trigger point massage, which she used on the knots in the muscles above and below my shoulder blade. She also learned to gently “pinch” the sternocleidomastoid muscle for relief of some headaches and neck pain. Now all I need to do is practice pronouncing sternocleidomastoid.
Manumatic
A couple of the guys in Einstein Simplified have day jobs at Charter Media. When they asked me to do a tire commercial for them four or five years ago, they wanted me to raise my eyebrows on camera. Last week when they asked me to spoof a newscaster for a transmission commercial, I gave them the signature eyebrow move again.
Chocolate Chips
An innocuous comment of mine on Twitter and Facebook generated an unexpectedly huge response on Friday. We’ve all heard the expression “do fries go with that shake,” however I didn’t realize that people put their fries into their shake, specifically their Frosty at Wendy’s. Was it a Southern thing? Even Wendy’s responded on Twitter. “It’s global,” they said. After nearly 100 responses on Twitter and my Facebook accounts, I decided to go to Wendy’s and try this taste sensation for myself.
- Christina Silvers: I’m from Ohio and everyone there dips the fry into the Frosty
- Mary Green: Better than coffee and oatmeal! Lol!
- Wes Hope: Fries have to be hot, crispy and salty for best results. Don’t know if it’s Southern or not… I wasn’t born here.
- Janet Delaney Elliott: Did it all the time when I was on the nest!
- Zane Hagy: I was a manager at Wendy’s during my college years. Would be safe to say I saw them eaten that way every night. NEVER tempted to try it.
- Betsy Pickle: Which came first: Deep-fried ice cream or Frosty fry-dipping? Both sound disgusting.
- Lori Tucker: My daughters used to do that in high school. But then, they would dip fries in just about anything.
- Patrick M. Tallent: Dave Thomas got his start at Regas in downtown Knoxville. You could technically say that Wendy’s itself is a Southern thing. And yes, I do Frosty fries.
- Denae D’Arcy: Dang you @FrankMurphyCom I’m craving fries dipped in a Frosty now.
- Kathi Dougherty: and I love to put M&M’s in my popcorn at the movies!
I didn’t know that dipping french fries into a Frosty was such a big deal. Over 98,000 people have “liked” the concept on Facebook. Unfortunately, it didn’t do anything for me. Don’t get me wrong, I usually like the combination of sweet and salty but I thought that the fries were not that salty and the Frosty wasn’t that sweet. My wife makes great cracker candy with Flipsides and dark chocolate. I love Benton’s bacon covered in dark chocolate. Maybe it’s that a Frosty barely has any chocolate in it.
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