15 Worst TV Shows Ever
When the topic turns to the worst series ever, one is walking a tightrope of wet tissue.
Celebrating ‘Pol Pot’s Birthday’
The Goodwill store outlets are a treasure trove for the adventurous DVD hunter. After extended practice I can breeze through the stacks of offerings like I was Summa Cum Laude at the Evelyn Woods Speed Reading University. My practiced eyes are trained to waft over the glut
The War On Our Election
These days, every comedian and commentator seems to be paraphrasing Bette Davis in All About Eve: “Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy election.” For 2016, I would add: cinch up your Kevlar vest and tighten the chin strap on your battle helmet.
The Rise of a ‘Baby Doll’
Well, what with the solid production at the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble of the seldom seen Kingdom of Earth, and now the Fountain Theatre’s staging of Baby Doll, hard core fans of Tennessee Williams must be thinking they’ve died and gone for gumbo in the bayou. Now
D Deb Debbie Deborah: A West Coast Premiere
I hate writing bad reviews. Honest. I’d rather write glowing reviews, pouring forth accolades and singing praises to high heaven. I truly would. Now there are two exceptions to this ‘I hate,’ etcetera business. If the play is a deceitful con job that has duped the innocent and the ignorant,
Los Angeles History—The Backbone of ‘Blueprint for Paradise’
Playwright Laurel M. Wetzork has filled Blueprint for Paradise, now playing at the Hudson Theatre, with fascinating tidbits plucked from Los Angeles and Southern California history. The ruins of Hitler’s California “White House,” the first African-American to be granted membership in the American Institute of Architects,
Wicked + Glee = One of the Nice Ones
Do not be fooled by the title, One of the Nice Ones. There is nothing “nice” about Erik Patterson’s play. Point of fact, it is relentless in its anti-niceness. Think your typical office politics row only with Robert De Niro and Christopher Walken taking turns holding a
Tennessee Williams’ “Kingdom of Earth” Calls Out
Never start off your career with a masterpiece. Where do you go from there? Known in some circles as the Joseph Kesselring Curse (as in Arsenic and Old Lace which was then followed by ten flops), Tennessee Williams compounded on this by starting his career with a
Life, Art and Musical Theatre — Grey Gardens
It amazes me what a higgledy-piggledy of sources have served as inspiration for musicals. Little Shops of Horror, Cats, Sunset Boulevard are three examples of successful adaptations from odd starts. Stephen Sondheim has made a career crafting shows from subject matter that hardly seems suitable for
Four Chords and a Gun — The Ferocity of Musical Genius Mined
Four Chords and a Gun at the Bootleg Theater, which relates the stories of when The Ramones worked with Phil Spector on recording their End of the Century album, is scary. Now the story of anyone working with Phil Spector, (legendary music producer of “Be My