Films/DVD Asylum

Posted by TAFKA Steve (i) on December 04, 2000 at 17:13:21:

In Reply to: Your star encounter posted by Victor Khomenko on December 04, 2000 at 15:35:23:

Victor, I wanted to meet Jennifer Connelly as much as you want Natalie Portman, but not based on her acting "talent". Hasn't happened yet.

The Annette Bening Encounter: she was the cook on a small charter fishing boat out of San Diego. Room service was definitely not possible under those conditions. We (my father and I) were a mess, covered with albacore blood and guts, so that probably didn't add any eroticism to the atmosphere. Nevertheless, Annie was easy on the eyes.

For AudioHead: my family's Thanksgiving regulars include actors Warren Stevens, the crew's doctor in "Forbidden Planet", and Percy Rodriguez, both poker enthusiasts. Warren is the only voting member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences I know personally. I take credit for Chris Farley not receiving a Best Actor Oscar. Warren lets us look at Academy screening videotapes he receives for voter consideration.

The Urinating Richard Dreyfuss Incident: try using the urinal during intermission at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion when Dreyfuss is next to you pissing and raving nonstop about the show.

The Bill Medley Entrapment: I was stuck in a malfunctioning elevator in the then-brand new MGM Grand in Las Vegas with Bill Medley of the Righteous Bros. for 75 minutes. I think he would have killed me if I started humming "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling".

The John Derek Breakfast: When I was very young my family rented a cabin in Yosemite. John Derek and a male friend were our next door neighbors (no sign of then-wife Ursula Andress). My mother invited them to a breakfast of hotcakes and sausage links (you haven't lived until you've tasted pancakes prepared at high elevation). Two decades later I met John and Bo at a store in Westwood and he remembered that breakfast vividly. (I always laugh when I see his "acting" as Joshua in "The Ten Commandments").

The David Bowie/Iman Day: David's son, Duncan, has been a friend and frequent guest at my "audio/video abode", so I was invited to his college graduation and spent the day with his father and stepmother. Somehow during lunch, our conversation drifted over to William Shatner's album and David and I laughed about the sheer awfulness of "Mr. Tambourine Man". Iman looked as us both and forcefully stated: "You're lucky, you just had to listen to him sing. I had to kiss him!" It took a second for us to recall her role in "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country", then we burst out laughing. Iman is a VERY funny lady. (P.S., anyone want to buy a pair of Grado SR-60 headphones once worn by David Bowie?)

My mother's Trump Card: two weeks ago my mother met "Iron Chef Japanese", Masaharu Morimoto. She got him to autograph one of his recipes for me. I've been saying: "I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!" ever since. Ever the nonconformist, he has dyed the front of his hair red. He has left DeNiro's restaurant, Nobu's, and is opening a pair of restaurants, one in Manhattan and another in Philadelphia.