Friday night at the Fenix

While it was painfully slow night at the club, the evening was not lost to some classic moments while I entertained the patrons who were there. One of these moments occurred while I was entertaining two middle age women. It's not uncommon when someone wants to bust my balls and put their card somewhere other than the spot where I am asking them to. Normally I will accommodate them and use a alternate control. Tonight was different. The woman said, "Why do I have to put it there?" I answered her, "Because if you don't, I'm gonna slap the fuck out of you." She looked at me in disbelief. She said she was old and cynical. After I finished performing for her and her friend, she paid me a high compliment by saying she was no longer cynical. I gave her a high five on that one!

Another moment occurred while I was performing the card on the ceiling. I don't know what happened but after the card stuck to the ceiling, there was a rubber band malfunction. All the cards showered us as they descended 18 feet. They hit the floor, scattered all over the place. All I knew, was that I wasn't going to be the one to pick them all up. Before I knew it, several staff members scurried around and picked up every last one of them. I felt like I should have tipped them out.

One last comment of my evening at the Fenix, I don't completely relate to the music. The techno beat blares and I try and find my groove. Tonight I heard a song (if you can call it one) that I had never heard. The hook went. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . this went on for several minutes before I realized the genius of it. How brilliant is that!!?? What a great metaphor for real life Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . Fuck the same old way. . . I get it completely!!! Does that make me hip? I didn't think so. . . but I can always hope.

When I got home I left a message on Megan's machine asking her when can we go out. I hope to hear from her soon.

Pike Place Market

Worked the market this afternoon. Felt good to be back out on the streets. Between all the rain and the chilly/cold (mid 40's) weather we've had over the last couple of weeks, I haven't done much street performing. Making me a little worried about next months rent. Anyway, it was nice to be there on a nice day making some money. Pitched a few trick decks as well. Sold two Mental Photography Decks and two Stripper Decks. . . at $20 a piece. . . got to like that! Did a few shows and got home in time to make dinner for Buster and me. Now just chill'en a bit before going to work the Fenix Underground from 9:30 - 11:30PM

The Metropolitan Grill

Last night I performed at the Metropolitan Grill. They threw a party for the local concierges to thank them for sending business their way. It was a delightful affair. Nothing wrong with free booze and food. . . especially at the Met! (Thank you Julie Wilson for the gig. . . and the dancing). Julie also booked Micah to play the keyboard for the party. We worked this party together last year as well. Here is the room we worked. It's one of the smaller private dining rooms availibe at the Met. They removed the dining tables and replaced them with a few cocktail tables. This room also features a full bar which is not in the picture at the end of the room and to the left. The room is L shaped.



I was surprised how many people remembered me from last year. I remembered some of the guests, but not many. I used to worry about repeat gigs and having new material, but then I woke up and smelled the clothes I was wearing. I think magicians flatter themselves to think that someone remembers what tricks they did a year ago. There was a guy who remembered that I did something with silver dollars last year, but was amazed (again) at the 6 tricks I do. I love working The Met! I decided to sport white tie and tails for the event. A good time was had by all, so much so, that they had trouble clearing the room when the party was over.

In my "In Box"

Hey, reading your blog and saw the dream you mentioned. Heavy stuff... possums represent nurturing and strong family ties but depending on the context could also represent the need to let go of a familial burden you carry on your back. The ferret is a representation (typicaly) of hidden meaning and deep explorations of the mysterious sides of life. they are nocturnal and more curious than a kitten. It could also mean minor confilct in the right context. Anyway, it is rare that a gift is given and received in a dream and rarer still that it is an item as powerful as a knife from a shaman (which I think in our world McBride qualifies as). I would like to hear more about it sometime if you feel like talking and remember some details. Hope dancing was fun... give me a call or stop in and say hi.

Wil

Friends from the Owl & Thistle

These shots were taken around 2AM at the end of a very fun night of music, dancing, cocktails, friends and a little magic. I was a dancing fool. . . . or maybe just a fool. God I love this scene! Here is Billy Joe from the Dusty 45's and the Vinyl Avengers with Magen one of the waitresses. I like Magen and although she says she doesn't dance I've coaxed her out on the dance floor. I finally got up the nerve to ask her out. . . and she said yes!! I lack confidence in my dancing and I lack confidence in the world of dating. I love dancing and I think Magen and I will have a good time when we go out. She doesn't work Monday or Tuesday nights so I guess it will be one of those nights.



This is Tawnya the other waitress. She's also a massage therapist.



Here we have the dynamic duo of Jason Baily the bartender and Ian the bouncer. All great folks that I've gotten to know over the last year and a half or so. I got in plenty of dances with Julie, Lauren, and a couple of girls I've never danced with. I joke that I'm the worst golfer I know and the worst dancer I know. I don't really seem to get any better at either activities, but I sure enjoy them both. Fuck it, I'm gonna keep on keep'en on.



The band was excellent as usual. CT is no longer the drummer. Now there's a fellow named Kelly who plays great drums and a mean harmonica. I encourage anyone in the Seattle area to join us in the fun every Wednesday night at the Owl and Thistle in Post Alley near Pioneer Square. The Vinyl Avengers go on around 10PM and play 3 ROCKING sets of music that ranges from Honky Tonk, to Lounge with Micah on keyboard and Billy Joe on Guitars, Lead Vocals and trumpet. I shot some video last night, as well as having Zak tape Julie and me dancing.


Video Clip Click Here

Cupid by Sam Cook

Cupid, draw back your bow
And let your arrow go
Straight to my lover's heart for me, for me

Cupid, please hear my cry
And let your arrow fly
Straight to my lover's heart for me

Now, I don't mean to bother you, but I'm in distress
There's danger of me losin' all of my happiness
For I love a girl that doesn't know I exist
And this you can fix, so

Cupid, draw back your bow
And let your arrow go
Straight to my lover's heart for me, for me

Now, Cupid, if your arrow make her love strong for me
I promise I will love her until eternity
I know, between the two of us, her heart we can steal
Help me if you will, so...

Cupid, draw back your bow
And let your arrow go
Straight to my lover's heart for me, for me

Cupid, don't you hear me calling you?
I need you, Cupid

A Jitney Elopement

Tuesday Night

Philemon and Steve talk about the finer points of the crazymans handcuffs.


Last night I made steak and potatoes for me and Buster. It was nice to sit at the table, eat a good meal and talk about our day. A lot of the time we just eat while watching TV in the living room. I think were gonna end that. I really like my boy, and I like the one on one time that dinner provides. Tonight I'll be experimenting with an improvised version of chicken curry over rice. Last week at the grocery store I got some fresh garlic and some ginger to go with our curry powder.

After dinner I headed out to Renton where the parenting classes that I've been taking are winding down. Two more and I'm done. I talked to Family Court Services where Moira and I will start mediation to try and resolve my our issues. They should schedule that in Dec. or Jan.

After the class I headed home. Tuesday nights mean session night at the Alki Beach Magic Studio. Another fun evening. Philemon (my right hand man from my shop Seattle Magic) joined us for the second week in a row. He's take up pipe smoking and said he doesn't have too many places that he's welcome to some his pipe indoors. The Alki Session is a smoking session. Randy brought me a nice cigar again and as cards, coins and slips of paper were manipulated smoke swirled around the room like child imp.

David Rudd Joined us and showed the gang some of the card routines he's been working on. Nash was there as well. He did a nice card under glass routine with two selected cards that he came up with on the spot. Others in attendance: Tim, Steve, Alex (psychic healer) brought his friend Betty a (psychic longshorewoman), Becky joined us as well as Jose. A good time was had by all

David and Nash left around 2AM. We had a nice discussion about the blatant whoring and selling out of our art as well as the lack of discretion with regard to talking about and sharing secrets. A topic I've been thinking about a lot lately.

Jose back from NYC where he ran in the New York City Marathon. Good job Jose!! Thanks for the pics!

Made my rounds at the market today

Stopped in at Phoenix Rising Gallery, here we have Solomon, April & Brian



Ruben looking pensive at Market Magic



Not much happening



Do I really need to explain

A lady opened her refrigerator and saw a rabbit sitting on one of the shelves.

"What are you doing in there?" she asked.

The rabbit replied, "This is a Westinghouse, isn't it?",

to which the lady replied, "Yes."

"Well," the rabbit said,

"I'm westing."

Hate and anger. . . good or bad?

I met my first wife Cricket in high school, at the School for the Creative and Performing Arts in Cincinnati. After dropping out I left town for for 5 or 6 years, coming back occasionally to visit. I always made a point to visit with Cricket and her twin sister Annie who also went to SCPA. After living in LA with Sylvester the Jester, I moved back to Cincinnati. Cricket and I got married and toured the festival and comedy club circuit for a couple years or so before Buster was born. By the time Buster was two, we had been in marriage counseling for 8 months. Cricket was finally able to utter the words, "I don't want to be a wife, or a mother". That's all I needed to hear. I fired her. After our divorce she put me through living hell. . . or maybe I put myself through it. I was consumed by hate and anger for 4 years. It ate me up inside and took me to a deep dark place I'd rather forget. I remember getting to a point where I finally decided to let go of all that hate. It felt good.

That was a long time ago. Cricket and her boyfriend Larry are coming to Seattle to visit over Thanksgiving. She has not seen where Buster lives or the environment I have created for our son. I invited her and Larry to Thanksgiving dinner at my home. I like to think that we're good friends again. We talked for 45 minutes on the phone the other night. We laughed, talked about Buster being in high school. We shared memories of our own checkered academic past. It was nice.

After my divorce with Moira, I vowed that I would not go the hate and anger route. This has been good to some extent, Although I went into a different deep dark place in my heart, it wasn't the same. You see, I still love her. Lately I've been wondering If I haven't done myself a disservice. What I mean is, perhaps hate and anger is a powerful healing tool that allows one to move forward. I ask myself why I haven't been laid in 2 and a half years. Believe me, I'm one horny mother fucker. So, what's the problem. Is my love for my ex (who is still running me through the wringer) preventing me from moving on. . . . or what!

Fuck, I don't know. What I do know, is that I don't put any pressure on myself in that department. I do the best I can every day, with love in my heart and a smile on my face I face the challenges of my life.

I hope that somewhere down the line Moira and I can be friends again. It's ironic that one of the reasons that Moira fell in love with me was that I was an excellent single father raising a toddler on my own. I was always an excellent parent. Now I fight to see my kids because she says I am a dangerous drug addict. In fact she just modified the restraining order again to include the house she bought in Ellensburg.

For this I love and forgive her. . . . . why?

Chaplin Story on Nightline

LONDON, Nov. 13, 2005 — Ninety-one years ago, Charlie Chaplin was a skinny music hall actor from London, trying his luck on the big stage of America — no script, no lighting, no direction, just Charlie Chaplin in the raw.

"Kid Auto Races at Venice" was Chaplin's second film, and he simply improvised in front of a crowd watching a kids' auto race in Venice, Calif., in 1914.



"They drove down that morning, set up a camera and started to improvise," said Mike Hammond of the University of Southampton in England. "There's a camera in the frame, where it shows a director trying to film the races, and then this tramp keeps getting in the way of the camera. It's a moment in film history where [Chaplin's most famous character] the tramp appears fully formed on the screen."

The birth of Chaplin's most famous character may seem like an historic event now — but at the time, people in the crowd at the races probably were just wondering who on Earth the guy was.

"All these spectators around think this guy's just a jerk, is just, you know, sort of — 'What is he doing?'" said Andrea Kalas of the British Film Institute, which is restoring Chaplin's earliest films. "They had no clue that they were watching this superstar in the making."

Even after Chaplin's early films came out and were successful, they did not always get treated with respect. In the haste to get the films out, negatives were destroyed, and perhaps 20 prints were made and duplicated. Those were then copied, and so on, so the films quickly got degraded and damaged.

What's more, movie theaters or other interlopers often would cut the films down to save time, so whole scenes were lost. Some films even had different endings, and there could be dozens of different versions of the same film.

Nine decades later, the British Film Institute and Cineteca of Bologna, Italy, scoured the world's archives and private collections for as many different versions as they could find. Then, they painstakingly reassembled new master copies from all the different permutations to bring the films back as close as possible to the original versions.

ABC News' "Nightline" recently showed scenes from the restored versions, including "Kid Auto Races at Venice," for the first time on U.S. television.

"He's immediately graspable because he is so extraordinary," said Tom Gunning, a cinema and media studies professor at the University of Chicago. "It has to do basically with the style of performance, with his control. He's both an acrobat and a dancer and a comedian, all at once."

Getting Ahead by 'Goofing Off'

Nobody is certain how Chaplin settled on the tramp character that day at the races.

"It wasn't something he'd been planning," Gunning said. "There are various stories, all kind of legendary. But he put it on, the baggy pants, the too-small hat, the tight waistcoat, the large shoes. And of course, the addition of his cane is a would-be dandy. He adds this kind of sense of flair."

The character helped Chaplin reach the top of the movie industry — to the point where he was able to co-found a major studio, United Artists, with Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith.

"He was almost immediately popular," Hammond said. "The meteoric rise, it's hard to underestimate it. He went from $150 a week in 1914 to $10,000 a week in 1916."

Ten years ago, a worldwide survey of film critics voted Chaplin the greatest actor in movie history. But admittedly, his earliest films for Keystone Studios aren't usually considered among his most finely crafted.

"There's a sort of drama to film restoration that it must be a great film," Kalas said, that "it must be 'Lawrence Arabia' you restore, that it's a great work of art, like a masterpiece. That we're actually going back and restoring this incredible sort of gravitas is a little ironic. It's just, yeah — it's a bunch of guys at the Keystone Studio goofing off."

Chaplin was under contract to Keystone and cranked out more than 30 comedies in a year — sometimes one or two a week. Nobody paid attention to who was copying them or how.

Restoration After 91 Years

For instance, in Chaplin's 21st movie, "The Property Man," an old man talking to Chaplin leaves the room earlier in the shorter, un-restored version. Viewers ultimately will be able to witness the full extent of Chaplin's treatment of the old man in the restored version, and his triumphal reaction. Overall, two minutes have been recovered, one-tenth of the running time.

"They weren't re-cut by some genius who could improve on them," Gunning said. "They were re-cut usually by people who were almost doing it by happenstance, and maybe even accidentally — something had fallen out and, you know, they just sliced it back together. The Keystone films have always been kind of neglected, partly because they are the younger films. But also because I think nobody's seen the original versions."

Sometimes, a film was reissued with a new title. Versions of "The Property Man" were released as "The Roustabout" and "Charlie's Vamping Venus."

Bringing the Keystones back into shape will take another three years.

"We'll always know there's more material out there than we're ever going to discover," said Kalas, of the British Film Institute. "The Chaplin material was duplicated so many times that there's no possible way we're ever going to be able to say, 'We have actually got every single film that ever existed on these Keystone films.' But we think what we've got is some of the best surviving material."

The material collected from multiple sources often dramatically improves the quality of images, so that the difference between old and new often is like night and day.

"What people have seen from Keystones before are very bad quality, difficult almost to watch, almost assaultive kind of images because they've been so badly taken care of over the years," Kalas said. "And it's really hard to actually enjoy a film when you're squinting. And so, what we're doing is bringing the best possible quality back to those films.

In "The Property Man," Chaplin manages the props at a small music hall, a jack-of-all-trades behind the scenes. A rehearsal starts off badly and the acts get muddled up. He gets to flirt with the girls and annoy pretty much everyone else. And there were different endings, too.

In one version, the film ends with Chaplin spraying the cast, as the audience claps for more. The restored original shows they did indeed get more — more than they bargained for. Chaplin turns to apologize, and aims the hose by mistake at the audience, bringing a scene of classic, full-blown Keystone mayhem.

"Keystone was just a kind of a madhouse," Gunning said. "So it's very exciting to see this kind of freedom — which actually contrasts a lot with Chaplin's later, very controlled films — at this moment where kind of almost anything was possible."

Modern Audience?

Of course, the experts at the British Film Institute who are doing the restoration work already know and love Chaplin. But what about today's movie-going audiences? Neil Brandt, a composer who is one of only a handful of pianists in Britain who specializes in accompanying silent movies, believes they will respond.

"Up until now, these films have just been looked at as museum pieces for interest only to the couple who were interested in Chaplin," said Brandt, who is setting the films to music. "Well, no way. Now, we see that these are valid films for a modern audience. Great comedy. Doesn't matter they were made in 1914.

"If you get an audience sitting in front of that screen, with the right music and projected at the right speed, they're going to work just as well as they did then," Brandt said.

Brandt wasn't a big fan of Chaplin's early comedies until the British Film Institute began to restore them.

"These movies, when I first saw them, were kind of cut to bits," Brandt said. "Basically, [the films meant] watching a lot of people running around very fast, falling over and hitting each other. And there wasn't any kind of real structure to them or any sense of subtlety.

"Now," he added, "you can see very small changes in facial expression, which actually Charlie does himself. He'll do tired looks to the camera, for instance. There will only be a glance. But that is something you would never have been able to see in an earlier version. It had to be restored for you to be able to see that."

The restored version of Chaplin's 10th movie, "Mabel at the Wheel," got its first public screening in London's Trafalgar Square. For the film experts who worked so hard to re-create Chaplin's vision, it was a milestone. It was the silver screen at its simplest — no special effects, no popcorn, but instead, a chance to see if Chaplin's comedy stands the test of time.

"By actually restoring that quality to the image, we give the next generation a whole new chance to actually discover Chaplin and discover why he became this international phenomenon," Kalas said. "So, if we don't do this, we don't give people an opportunity to really understand Chaplin."

"The significance of these films is that we get to see what we think they might be the way that people saw them at the time," said Hammond, of the University of Southampton. "But also, it shows us how the performance works. We have Chaplin from the English music hall. Fatty Arbuckle from American vaudeville. There are a number of different kinds of traditions that are coming together."

The Process

But the development of the art of film wasn't the only thing in flux. For instance, when projected simultaneously, it doesn't take long before four collected versions of one Keystone comedy, "A Film Johnnie," Chaplin's fifth film, are out of sync.

Then, as today, movie theater owners apparently were keen to sell as many tickets as possible.

"I think by and large, the cuts that were made to these would seem to be commercial," said Kieran Webb, one of the technicians at the British Film Institute breathing life into the old comedies, revealing the artistry and Chaplin's skills as performer. "They just wanted shorter versions, shorter running times, maybe."

Putting them back together the way the filmmakers intended is a process.

"Initially, we'll just be examining it to establish the continuity, as far as we can, of the original film," Webb said. "But [we'll] also be looking at how long each individual shot is, so we can build up an idea of the shot list. And that way, that will provide the cutting notes for our finished version."

"There's clues that we look for when we're actually trying to restore these kinds of films, especially when you have multiple sources," Kalas said. "There's codes on the edge of the film that will tell you the date that something was printed. That's a clue. There are certain slice marks that we know came from the original studio."

It may be intense work, but it often brings moments of great reward.

"There was a thing that was bugging me for days because I seemed to be missing a shot," Webb said. "And yet, all the copies were telling me the same thing. When I finally found that we had another copy with the missing shot, I realized that all the reissues, since they were missing that shot, had simply cut one of the previous shots in half and moved it along a bit. It's sort of a eureka moment when you're putting the jigsaw back together again."

Webb believes the films are funnier when they're restored.

"The people who worked for Keystone were very skilled comedians and knew exactly what they were doing and didn't really waste a lot of film," he said. "It's ironic that people felt they could re-edit their films to make them better."

For modern audiences, Chaplin's comedy seems quite tame, chaste even. Not in their day, though. The Keystones were hugely popular, but some critics found fault.

One reviewer of "The Property Man" wrote the following in the magazine Moving Picture World in August 1914: "There are very few people who don't like the Keystones, but they are thoroughly vulgar, and they're not the best pictures for a parlor entertainment. There's also some brutality in this picture, and we can't help feeling that this is reprehensible."

The review may suggest something else about Chaplin's films besides the reviewer's opinion.

"Chaplin created almost a sense of film that we've never lived up to again, I don't think, of it simultaneously being worthy of intellectual scrutiny and aesthetic discussion, and belly laughs from the common public," Gunning said.

"He's so important and yet, he's taken for granted," he added. "And for, I think, many people, even including some scholars, he's almost more an image than somebody whose films they know very, very well."

Now, about 90 years after they first came out, it's easy once again to get to know Chaplin's earliest films and judge them for ourselves.

ABC News contributor Sue Ellicott originally reported this story from London for "Nightline" on Nov. 8, 2005. ABC News producer Paolo Marenghi also contributed.

Dreaming my life away

Had crazy dreams last night. Lots of different bizarre, vivid colorful dreams. I love that, when I wake up and think, what was that all about! I'll give you the Readers Digest Condensed Version. One of the dreams, I was living in some dump on the lower east side of Manhattan. Someone had given me a ferret and a baby possum. I was carrying them around in my coat until they got uncomfortable and heavy. I put them on the ground and they followed me around. I went back to my skid row apartment where Jeff McBride gave me a knife he had made out of a piece of metal. He told me that it could kill someone. While we chatted in the dream he mentioned something about a witch, I told him about my pal Wil who is a witch, a magician and also can make a knife out of a piece of metal.

Next we jump to what used to be a reoccurring dream where I go back to high school (as an adult) to get my diploma. That dream usually ends up they way it did when I was a teenager, by walking out of the school, thinking it was stupid. This one transmutated into me talking to one of Buster's teachers at NOVA. Oy.

I felt great when I woke up. I love dreaming. While laying in bed, I thought about what I needed to do today. As the list got longer in my head, I knew I needed to get in the shower and start my day.

So here it is 10:39AM, I've put my prioritized daily task list into iCal and I'm ready to start knocking off the tasks!

Later Gator

Buster and I go to the movies

Another rainy day in the mid 40's kept us in the house all day. I'm not complaining as there was plenty of football to watch on TV. Seahawks kicked ass! Did some laundry and some cleaning. This evening Buster and I went to see Flight Plan at the cheapies. Remember when the cheapies were a buck! Back in Cincinnati, there were a bunch of Dollar Cinema's. I haven't seen any out here. The Admiral Theater is about as cheap as I've seen for $4.50

The movie was OK.

Missing Home

Harvey said he would instant send us some dinner tonight through the internet!

Wet, Cold Weekend

Congrats to Chris and anonymous on the correct answer to yesterday's Trivia Question. It was indeed a young Charlie Chaplin! You guys score bonus points for that one!

It sure was great seeing the kids on Friday. It was Veteran's Day and the kids were off school. I left a message for Moira on Thursday asking If I could see the kids since they were off school. Strangely enough she said yes. She said I could see them from 11AM - 4PM. She was 20 minutes late picking them up, but it didn't matter to me. . . . she could have been two hours late and that would have been fine.

Buster and I hit a snow storm coming back over the mountains. Nerve racking tension as I fought the low visibility in the dark with lots of snow falling. Cars sliding off the road and hitting the concrete dividers on either side made me pay even closer attention. Once we got down to North Bend the snow turned to rain and it was smooth sailing for the rest of the trip.

We got back in time to have dinner, chill out a bit and go work the Fenix Underground. It was a light night at the club, but I did the best job that I could. Business wasn't all that much better on Saturday night but I stayed a lot busier. Had groups of people surrounding my table for most of the evening.

I love it when guys identify themselves as card players. Texas Hold'em has propelled card gambling to new heights. I love doing a nice gambling demonstration. I do an eight handed poker deal stacking the aces in any hand named. Gets quite a reaction! What really sells it, is the false riffle shuffle sequence and letting them cut. I love it.

Before the Fenix I did a 10 minute stage set as part of a Variety Show put together by the Brothers From Different Mothers. Also on the bill were "Steve The Pretty Good", Bob Baily III, The Brothers, A Music Act as well as a couple others acts.

I had to leave after my set as I had to be at the Fenix by 9:30PM

After work I went to Emily's party. I did a little show there for an appreciative audience. I featured "The Deans Box" both at the Fenix and at the party. Went over very well. A real fooler!! Got home around 2:30AM and went to bed