The Not So Private (But Still Personal) Diary of Jason Sechrest Host/Publicist/Manager/Journalist/Actor/Singer/Director/Web Entrepreneur/Liza Minnelli.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Diva Tube
Tori Amos rocks out to her 1998 song "Cruel" as Pip, one of her doll characters on the American Doll Posse World Tour. Weird to see her sing a song standing, isn't it?
Barbra Streisand is currently touring Europe with the show that took the states by storm last year and is now available on CD. The set list has changed a little bit from the CD and US shows to include songs more familiar to foreign audiences like "You Don't Bring Me Flowers," "I've Finally Found Someone" and "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" But the most unique addition of all was a little known Streisand fan favorite never before sung live, "The Summer Knows." ... Wow. Amazing. Somebody make me an MP3 please.
Oh, Liza. ... Yes, Liza Minnelli is also currently touring outside of America and one popular morning show televised a first look at the new show, a tribute to her godmother Kay Thompson. The good news is, here performing "I Love A Violin," she is dancing more than she has since the early 90's. The bad news is, it's hard to sing and dance.
Reading some of my "Diary" archives from a year ago.
I was such a mess. I mean, I wish there was a stronger word than that really. I was a freaking train wreck.
Poor Angel Benton had to listen to me ramble for hours on the phone every night until I could find some semblance of clarity. It's hard enough reading these! I can't imagine the phone calls where I reached the conclusions I would then write about. I have thanked him for that but need to again.
Funny thing is, reading over them, I'm not at all sad. I'm just shocked that I felt the way I did for so long -- the masks and the fear and the...
I need to devote a proper entry to this over the weekend, but it will take me time to construct it and do it justice. For now, let's just say it's amazing what a year can do. Until reading these, I honestly thought the most drastic change was having lost 13 pounds.
But that guy who wrote those entries back in the summer of 2006...
...the one who thought he would never find himself attractive, the one who was literally afraid of being judged going to the grocery store much less something like an audition, the boy with so many masks that when he decided to throw them all out he was completely lost...
I met director Frank Oz tonight and saw a very intimate screening (early version - not the final cut) of his new movie, Death At A Funeral. What an amazing talent. He's done The Dark Crystal, The Muppets Take Manhattan (which co-starred Liza Minnelli!), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, What About Bob? (one of my personal faves) and In & Out just to name a few. A lot of movies on my Top 50 list that's for sure.
And, of course, he is also Yoda. Not to mention a million other muppets from Fozzy to Miss Piggy.
I can't tell you anything about the movie, but I will say it's fucking hysterical and a very dark comedy. You can see the trailer on their official site at: deathandafuneral-themovie.com. I think it comes out in a couple of months.
He had some very good advice for me on the auditioning process. As a director, he is incredibly empathetic with actors because he started as one and knows the horrors of casting. He said what he always does is ask an actor in an audition to do it again differently. Even if the actor hit the nail on the head the first time, he specifies a way he'd rather see it done. Not because he wants a variation on the character, but because he wants to see if the actor can take direction. He said I would be shocked at the number of actors who say, "Sure, I can do that!" and then read the line the exact same way they did before.
But he said the #1 thing to remember is to keep having fun. A lot of times, we actors get so amped up with the "work" before going into an audition that it comes off in the performance. And if it looks like work, we're not doing our job. Boy is that warped!
One of the movie's star, Alan Tudyk was there with him. I had only seen him previously as the gay German character in 28 Days, the movie where Sandra Bullock goes to rehab. But I guess he was also just in the new movie, Knocked Up. He steals the show -- makes the show, in fact! -- in Death At A Funeral even though his role is only supporting. (And he has some hot nude scenes too that I pray won't get cut!)
So more interesting advice and warnings! When Frank was talking about how hard actors have it, Tudyk added that the unfortunate thing is there's no longer a such thing as "the middle class actor." This was the kind of actor who didn't have a lot of box office draw but was incredibly talented and often seen in many supporting roles per year. Ever since the independent film scene became huge, the bigger studios have started taking advantage of the fact that there are so many young actors out there willing to do anything to break in.
For instance, if you're a New York actor and the movie is based in Los Angeles, they used to offer to pay for your transportation, put you up in a nice hotel, give you a car, etc. and now they say something along the lines of, "We really want you for the part, but we are on a budget and you will have to pay your own way out here and put yourself up." Major studios are doing this apparently! And the actors do it because they have to. They know someone else will be willing to do it to get a part in a major motion picture release if they don't.
My lord, do I have a long, hard road ahead of me. I'm glad I'm finally on it though and I know it's not about the destination so I've started to enoy the journey.
Up until my senior year of high school, I was probably the most unpopular kid in every class, constantly picked on for being, well let's just say "different." And even as I grew into my own and into my own community, I felt like two or three really close friendships were all you needed. I was incredibly protective of myself and kept everyone at arm's length as merely acquaintances or associates with the exception of two or three. If anything, my circle of friends were all people who were involved in my work life as well. Which is fine, but those can get a little competitive and the line between work and play gets fuzzy and besides, one should just be well rounded, ya know?
All of that has changed in the past six months.
I don't really write much about the specifics of my personal life and the people in them anymore, but I wanted to take this opportunity to give a shout out to my friends. The old ones who came back to me when I needed them. The ones who stuck around with the "acquaintance" label until I was ready. The new ones who have introduced me to careers and lifestyles outside the bubble of West Hollywood and the porn scene. The readers who have become more than readers! And of course, the one or two true blooded friends who have stayed through thick and thin.
My friends. I don't think a lot of them really understand how much it means to someone who has never had them. I think you've all taught me how to love people.
I find myself wondering how I ever got by and how I ever thought I could really get anything accomplished without you??! lol
Love!
Song of the Week: "Friends" - Bette Midler, Experience the Divine
I will be performing a six-song set at The Other Side, a gay piano bar in Los Angeles on Friday, July 6th. Yes, there will be Liza. Yes, there will be Tori. No, it will not be all Liza and Tori.
Never underestimate the power of YouTube and MySpace combined! Two video clips posted to my blog on Friday and I get booked for a gig on Saturday... wow.
I will be accompanied by the incredibly talented pianist James Lent and lots of other talented performers will also be performing throughout the evening.
I have been informed that this may become a twice a month gig for me if the audience and "judges" (there's a bit of a contest involved between me and other performers that night apparently, fun!) enjoy it so the more people who come and cheer for me, the better.
The Other Side is located at 2538 Hyperion Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027.
The show is from 9:00 pm - 1:00 am. No idea when my set will be or if they will divide my songs throughout the night. Will let you know when I get more information, but please do plan to make a full evening of it regardless and email me if you're coming so I know to look for you there: jason@jasonsechrest.com.
Here are two new songs I recorded for the YouTube groupies over the past couple of weeks. They are super cool to me over there and I adore them so click on the videos if you can to see their comments and their own clips.
"Hey Jupiter" is another Tori Amos song and the first one I've done where I'm playing the piano entirely on my own, no backing track or instrumental. I don't know how to read music and don't speak piano fluently -- and on top of that, I find it really difficult to play and sing at the same time -- but this improv just sort of rode itself out so easily.
"W*O*L*D" is a song by the late, great Harry Chapin that my father used to sing a lot when I was growing up. I recorded it on Father's Day for him. I think I'm way too young to sing it, but it shows off my voice better in the bridge than anything I can think of to date.
One of my new friends is someone really special who lives and breathes Broadway musicals. And he should. It is his job. He has starred in them, he has produced them, he has directed them and has worked with everyone who is anyone in the process. (Edit: Celebrity names removed to protect anonymity. lol) But one of the coolest things about him is that he happens to be an obsessive collector of all shows, from Broadway to benefits, as well.
Most musicals are not released on DVD. Obviously. You couldn't go to Blockbuster and pick up a copy of Wicked. So what this brilliant man has done is snuck a camera into almost every show since the 1970's and shot from excellent seats the most amazing quality and well edited bootlegs you've ever seen in your life. I'm talking stuff dating back to Liza Minnelli and Chita Rivera in The Rink. Hell, he even has a copy of when Stockard Channing took over the role!
And he never sells them! He never lends them out. Never puts clips online. Nothing.
But he hosts screenings at his place. And he has transformed his entire living room into a theater with a huge screen and a projector with a great sound system.
I went over last night to watch the new musical Grey Gardens and clips of Liza from when she did Victor/Victoria -- I'm telling you, it is like I was flown to New York for the evening and had an all access pass to any theater I wanted from any era. It was fucking incredible. I was so sucked into the show with the big screen and everything, it felt like I was on 42nd Street. And with the zoom lens, the videos are better quality than if you'd seen them in the theater. Not to mention the fact that everything right down to the way the living room/theater was constructed was the kind of thing I have dreamt of building since I was like five! He even had popcorn buckets. (And four different kinds of popcorn, thank you very much!) Come on, I thought I was the only person who uses popcorn buckets.
Needless to say, I was on cloud nine and can't wait to go back and see more this weekend.
Last night's episode of Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List was the installment where her fabulous father unfortunately passed away.
One thing stood out. From a man who lived a lot of life from 1915 - 2007, when his daughter asked him about how to make a happy marriage last, he answered, "Well, dolly... the guy's gotta think the girl is just the greatest gal in the world. And the gal's gotta think the same thing about the guy."
Hmm. Isn't that something? After all, why would you partner for life with someone who you don't think is the greatest person out there? Otherwise, in your mind, there's always going to be the thought that there's something better you don't have.
I feel like I'm realizing more and more that sometimes the most sound advice on life doesn't come from psychiatry or spirituality or intense wisdom. It's usally just common sense.
Sometimes we're so blinded by those other things, the simple and the most obvious becomes lost. Simplicity is finding its way to my good side these days, in more ways than one.
How should a person react When faced with the fabulous fact A marvel like you might consent to appear?
It's not every day of the week And not every week of the year That someone as average as every day may meet Someone so special, so if I stammer... do you blame me?
Song of the Week: "Not Every Day of the Week" - Liza Minnelli & Bob Dishy, Flora the Red Menace
Despite the fact that it purports to be the most watched documentary of all time, I am amazed at how many people still haven't seen Loose Change.
Here is a link to where you can watch it free online.
Loose Change dares to question authority by giving a full analysis to the events that took place leading up to 9/11, the tragedy of that day and the tragedy of the days that followed.
I am not at all into conspiracy theories. In fact, when I was first given this documentary a couple years ago, I was pretty much rolling my eyes through the first half. But about 60% of the way into it, it's kind of impossible to not find some sense of truth in Loose Change.
Regardless of your feelings about it, there is one thing everyone walks away from Loose Change with: The knowledge that nothing adds up.
You'll be shocked at the info that was right under our noses that most of us didn't even seen to notice.
This morning, I awakened to an email from one of my readers, Shelby, who had copy and pasted an article on how Iran has decided to make it law that anyone involved in the production of pornography should be put to death.
Shelby added to the article: "Reading this may shed some light on why liberals like yourself may be wrong about the President and the war..."
Well, first of all, Shelby, thank you so much for sending this article along.
I had no idea things were so awful in Iran for the pornsters. Though I'm sure it's probably the least of Iran's problems.
You see, Iran is truly a corrupt area of the globe that has posed a legitimate threat to us by developing nuclear technology and refusing to give any information on what it is that they are creating. And despite the fact that we put their leader there, Iran has severely turned on us. Scary, right?
So yes, Shelby, it would make some semblance of sense that we be at war with Iran.
But we're not.
Instead, we're at war with Iraq. The two have nothing to do with each other.
So why are we there? Because Osama "might" have "a few" of his people there? (The words "might" and "a few" are in quotes because that's all we've been able to confirm from Bush or his staff. Those are their words, not mine.) So "might" and "a few" is supposedly our green light for killing tens of thousands of innocent civilians in Iraq? That makes very little sense to me. We invaded Iraq illegally and against the advisement of the United Nations. Why did they tell us not to? Why did even the U.N. consider it illegal?
Because Iraq never did anything to us.
They had nothing to do with 9/11. They had nothing to do with Osama. They had nothing to do with nuclear warfare. Iraq posed no threat to the United States of America.
Now, if you were an innocent Iraqi civilian who had your family killed and were fearful for your own life and the Taliban came to you and said, "We will help you in this war, if you join us," what would you do?
Before the Iraqi war, there were about as many members of the Taliban hiding out in Iraq as there are currently hiding out in the United States. But by invading a place that did nothing to us, we have managed to help the Taliban in recruiting people with hatred against America -- both out of honest anger and out of having no other choice for survival.
Find me a reason why we went into Iraq in the first place, Shelby. Find me a reason why we decided to kill 70,000 innocent civilans. Please. I am begging you. Please find me a reason other than that Iraq has oil and Iran does not. Because I have been searching high and low and would do anything to feel safe in my own country again.
I would love to be wrong about the President and the war. That is what I want the most.
Unfortunately, our government has yet to offer anything substantial to that affect. If I'm missing something that you could shed light on, it would be greatly appreciated.
My mom came to Los Angeles for the weekend. It was her first time here in a year, almost exactly to the week. It made us both think about where I was a year ago, when I called her in tears, asking her to please come help me pick of the pieces of my shattered everything as my entire perception of reality began its slow, tumultuous tumble.
It has been almost a year since the shit hit the fan, in pretty much every area of my life.
And so I am asked by close friends, "Can you believe it has been a year? How does it feel?"
And so I answer.
It feels like everything has changed and it feels like nothing has changed. I feel reborn and I feel I am who I have always been. It suddenly no longer feels strange, the void of individuals left behind and that in and of itself is the strangest thing ever. It has all been so very neccessary. I would say so very unfortunate but unfortunate becomes fortune, as I've discovered the line between the two to be more thin than we can usually see in a moment. The #1 thing I have learned in the past year is that everything finds its way in time and nothing can ever be forced. Life keeps happening for living every day but the details right down to emotions take their precious time to arrive when they see fit. One can not be something they are not meant to be and the greatness of what one is meant to be is found within more than anywhere else on this physical plane.
As Liza belts, "One day it's kicks, then it's kicks in the shins, but the planet spins..."
Song of the Week: "But The World Goes 'Round" - Liza Minnelli
Last week, Barack Obama posted an official statement regarding Gay Pride Month on his web site, BarackObama.com:
Pride Month is a reminder that while we have come a long way since the Stonewall riots in 1968, we still have a lot of work to do.
Too often, the issue of LGBT rights is exploited by those seeking to divide us. But at its core, this issue is about who we are as Americans. It's about whether this nation is going to live up to its founding promise of equality by treating all its citizens with dignity and respect.
It's time to turn the page on the bitterness and bigotry that fills so much of today's LGBT rights debate. The rights of all Americans should be protected -- whether it's at work or anyplace else.
'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' needs to be repealed because patriotism and a sense of duty should be the key tests for our military service, not sexual orientation. Civil unions should give gay couples full rights. And those who commit hate crimes should be punished no matter whether those crimes are committed on account of race, religion, gender identity or sexual orientation.
This Pride Month, let's make our founding promise of equality a reality for every American.
Would you believe I had never seen the movie An American President?
The movie came out in 1995, starring Michael Douglas as the President of the United States, recently turned widower, and Annette Benning as an environmentalist whose passion becomes contagious for him in more ways than one. It's really not meant to be much more than a romantic comedy and in 1995, when we were living in more peaceful times, no one probably thought anything of the political backdrop.
But in 2007, hearing Douglas as the President worry about the need to attack a foreign building late at night because a janitor might still be working in the building is kind of mind blowing. It is such a humane portrait of America and of the Presidency, spotlighting true leadership being good morals and a real regard for every individual's life and opportunity.
Take a look at this conversation from the movie and tell me if you can imagine our current "leader of the free world" having such a chat:
[Discussing bombing a building as a reprisal for an attack on US troops.]
A.J. MacInerney: Sir, it's immediate, it's decisive, it's low-risk, and it's a proportional response.
President Andrew Shepherd: Someday someone's going to have to explain to me the virtue of a proportional response.
A.J. MacInerney: We could use this to your political gain.
President Andrew Shepherd: What I did tonight was not about political gain.
Leon Kodak: Yes, sir. But it can be, sir. What you did tonight was very presidential.
President Adrew Shepherd: Leon, somewhere in Libya right now, a janitor's working the night shift at Libyan Intelligence headquarters. He's going about doing his job because he has no idea, in about an hour he's going to die in a massive explosion. He's just going about his job because he has no idea that about an hour ago I gave an order to have him killed. You've just seen me do the least presidential thing.
Lewis Rothschild: People want leadership, Mr. President, and in the absence of genuine leadership they'll listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. They want leadership. They're so thirsty for it they'll crawl through the desert toward a mirage and when they discover there is no water, they'll drink the sand.
President Andrew Shepherd: Lewis, we've had presidents who were beloved who couldn't find a coherent sentence with two hands and a flashlight. People don't drink the sand because they're thirsty. They drink the sand because they don't know the difference.
It reminded me, the person running our country is supposed to be a person we would want running our home.
Somewhere between 1995 and 2007, "we the people" changed as a whole.
Let's just think about the term "leader" for a minute and what that probably means to most American citizens. Take politics out of the equation for a minute.
What makes a leader to most people you know? Someone who is crafty, clever and manipulative enough to fight the fights that need to be fought and win at any cost, right? Well, that's what we've got, people. And it ain't doing us a whole lot of good.
When did we become so blindly ambitious that we forgot the things that make a good leader are humanity, selflessness, someone who can put the interest and protection of others before themselves and someone who does the right thing no matter if it is win, lose or draw.
If we want to change the world, we have to start with the self. Our country's leadership will change when our personal definition of it changes. The majority of the American public handles their confrontation, their career climb, their daily struggles in the exact same way that our President has handled this war -- with a blindly agressive nature that will stop at nothing for personal gain.
We believed whole-heartedly in 1995 that the President of the United States would lose sleep over a janitor working the late shift in a building he might have to invade.
In 2007, our troops -- bless their hearts, trained to do only as they are told and not ask questions -- have killed nearly 70,000 innocent civilians in Iraq with two thumbs up from the man atop an administration that has destroyed everything from the previous President's plans for the environment to the American economy.
70,000 civilians dead in a country that NEVER attacked us.
And in 1995, we thought we would all lose sleep over one.
It made me sob like a freaking baby.
Reality check: America was not always the super power of the world. It wasn't too long ago that it was Russia. And before that, it was someone else. Super powers change. And at the rate we're going, if something doesn't happen soon, we will in our lifetimes see that crown handed over to another country. We are not immune. We are failing miserably. It was one thing when the rest of the world just thought we were stupid, but now they think we're the enemy and how anyone thinks that won't lead to an attack on domestic soil I'm not sure. It's fucking scary. And I wish more people would join me in pulling their heads out of their asses and believing they could really do something about it.
Change the world. Change your definition of leadership. What's it to you in your every day life?
Song of the Week: "Yo George" (Speedbliss Remix) - Tori Amos
