Wave Hill, the gardens

Today I visited the the gardens at Wave Hill. It is a beautiful place for relaxation and contemplation. In the distance, the George Washington Bridge over the Hudson River is visible... with the tall buildings of New Jersey and the lofty hills in the horizon.

keep it all about ME!

DoubleHelix says: "When people love you for your heaping bowl of crazy, and then they stop dropping by, how is one to get some attention without piling on even more crazy?
As you take a spin through the last couple months' worth of posts, please keep in mind that this is the woman who scolded us for not using our time productively."

Don't ya just love "crazy?" You've been eyeballin' the wrong blog, darlin'! I don't need internet attention. I am out there interviewing interesting people and making my real life more interesting.
Go to: marjorie-digest

And to lee who says: "She really is the female equivalent of Robert, the fabricated tales of persecution are just so similar."

These were JOKES... I repeat: JOKES!!!!
I wrote:
Here are some more recent bans:
banned in the diner on 13th Street for cutting wind during luncheon
banned in the carpet store for yelling at a woman whose dog was on a long leash (a trip hazard)
banned from the ice cream store for complaining about people who put their feet up on the computer keyboards
banned from a department store for singing "Tip Toe Through The Tulips" at the Estee Lauder counter
banned from a shoe store for wearing socks with holes
banned from a salon for laughing at a jerk talking on her cellphone during her shampoo
banned at another salon for laughing at another fool texting during her shampoo
So many bans: so little time
Please go to marjorie-digest for some interviews in places where I have not yet been banned.

They were not funny? awwwwwwwww... sawwy! I demand equal time with RobertBlue! I am that forum's wackjob and train wreck, and I got enough batshit crazy to keep it goin' for months.

Well, well, well... I, a "pathetic old loon" with a "miserable lonely life," managed to get the writer/director Robert Siegel (writer of "The Wrestler") to sit down with me for a dinner and an interview. Imagine that! And his new film "Big Fan" recently opened to rave reviews. Robert has given me credit for casting Marcia Jean Kurtz in the role of Theresa Aufiero in "Big Fan." Put THAT in ya pipe and smoke it my dopey anonymous blog commenter. You are the puppet in a joke that predictably keeps on giving, asshole.

Here is an interview I did which appeared originally at the digest:


This interview with Robert began on a Thursday evening at a Chelsea diner. And we concluded the interview the following day, on a muggy Friday Manhattan night in the same diner. So, this was my first two-part interview. I was excited and happy.

Robert was editor-in-chief of "The Onion" from 1996 to 2003... when it was in it's original phase as a Madison, Wisconsin publication. The editor of "The Onion" when Robert arrrived was Ben Karlin, who later left to join "The Daily Show" as executive producer. He was followed by David Javerbaum, who is still the executive producer of "The Onion" and he wrote the music for the Broadway show, "Crybaby."

In 2001, "The Onion" moved to new headquarters in New York City. And shortly thereafter Robert began writing "The Wrestler." Robert explained that the process of creating a film is a long one. It can sometimes take five years from "script to screen." But Robert knew from the beginning that Mickey Rourke was "ideal" for this film and he wrote "The Wrestler" with Mickey Rourke in mind. Robert knew he would be just perfect for this part. Robert wanted to create a compelling character and story. Yet, he realizes the story is both sad and emotional. And throughout, there are many scenes in the film that show the character's great and extreme loneliness with moments of so much sweetness.

The audience knows at the end of the film that "The Ram" will not last long after he makes a decision to go back into the ring. He has made a decision to die. It was the director's decision to end the film with a freeze frame... to perhaps leave the final moments without a closure.

I think there are huge emotional moments in "The Wrestler" and it was Robert Siegel from whose fingers this heartbreaking film began and... he indeed created the film which gave Mickey Rourke his "comeback." Robert was nominated for a WGA award in the category of "original screenplay" for the film.

We moved on to a discussion of "Big Fan," the film which Robert wrote and directed and which will premiere at BAM on June 19th as part of the Next Wave Festival. In the film, Patton Oswalt plays Paul Aufiero, a loner who is obsessed with the Giants and he spends much of his time calling in to a sports radio show. For this role, Patton Oswalt won the award for "Best Actor" at the Method Festival. Robert describes Paul as a "Marty" or "Rupert Pupkin"... and perhaps "Big Fan" is the "King of Comedy" of sports movies. I asked Robert if he personally knows any of these "obsessive nerds" and he said he based the character on his imagination. But we have all had experiences which make us lonely and we all share basic human emotions and it is those feelings which Robert hopes to bring to film. "Big Fan" will open on August 28th.

Well, another interview had ended. As darkness was falling, the sidewalks were still packed with people and the streets were crowded with busy traffic congestion. I started thinking as I began the walk home. People weave in and out of our lives.... but I have known Robert for several years, and tonight I continued to be impressed by Robert's sincerity, integrity, openness, and warmth.

Now back to me:
Please direct your eyeballs to my preferred blog:

marjorie-digest

(I pasted below a few interviews from my blog, marjorie-digest... so go here to view MORE!)

THIS BLOG IS SO YESTERDAY!


ME, at 26... 'twas a long shoot; a girl's gotta eat!

Howard Feller, actor/comic

I have known Howard Feller for over twenty years. What can I say about Howard? Plenty. He is one of the dearest and sweetest people I know. I met him for lunch on this Tuesday, and he spoke in a very direct and open manner about his comedy career.

He calls himself a "movie and comedy freak" who enjoyed listening to Lenny Bruce, Bob Newhart, and Robert Klein. He liked "old comedy." In about 1982, Howard took a comedy class with Mark Jacobs that was given on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, and soon after he started doing clubs with open mic nights. He says he "looked weird" and on stage he played off that. Silver, the owner of the Improv, passed Howard in an audition during those early 80s. He did stand-up three or four times a week and he kept getting better. He began to get many opportunities and consistent work. He played in diners and places where he began to make money. At that time, comedy was "hot" and he got road work and Jersey gigs in late night spots.

He worked at the Boston Comedy Club and met Barry Katz. He worked in the Comedy Cellar and at Stand-up NY and these spots led to a "Caroline's Comedy Hour" on A & E and as he built credentials he got better spots and this led to an "MTV Half Hour" comedy show. And when the MTV "Jon Stewart Show" was looking for a "weird geeky guy" as a sidekick for Jon, Howard got the job. Jon sat at a bicycle bar and Howard sat in a tractor chair and the show became an off-beat talk show with a small but very devoted fan following. That original "Jon Stewart Show" ran for one year on MTV and it ran for another year in syndication throughout the country. It was a "work in progress," as Howard describes it.

Howard has appeared in several films. Penny Marshall gave Howard a line in "Awakenings" because Howard says he "looked crazy." Howard recently appeared on "30 Rock" as the super in Tina Fey's building and in a "Law and Order" episode he played a homeless guy who brings a dead guy into a check cashing place as part of some scam... which was based on a real NYC incident. Howard will be on Howard (Stern) TV in an episode of "Show in the Hall." And he is also in the upcoming Nia Vardalos film, "I Hate Valentine's Day." In that film, he plays a homeless guy who lives outside her building. He says he is always called to play "the homeless guy" and he has no idea why.

Howard recently filmed an NBC pilot called "off Duty" in which he plays a junkie. I am wondering if he plays a homeless junkie. And he is up for several other parts... in which he plays a homeless guy.

Howard invited me to visit him in his brand new apartment with "a great view of the Manhattan skyline." He told me it was a basement apartment. I am still wondering about that.

Gladys Simon, comedy booker and manager

I met with Gladys on Sunday, April 26th, at the Silver Star Diner for a late lunch. Gladys and I have known each other for more than twenty years. We met in a comedy class given at the Manhattan Punchline by Gabe Abelson. Gladys had taken the class before, but she suffered from stage fright and she believed taking the class a second time would improve her level of confidence.

We began the interview. I asked Gladys to describe what brought her to a comedy class back in 1987. She said she had just gotten a divorce and she was writing for a soap opera and she gave that up because she was too depressed to write. She wanted a career in show business. Her goal in Gabe's class was to finish and commit to the class. She remembers her horrible stage fright. She was determined to stick it out and do the best she could. She attended every week until the comedy class graduation.

I asked Gladys if she believed stand-up could be taught in a class. She said you cannot be taught the gift of timing. She said you have to want to do the work. It's either in your gut and organic or it becomes intellectual... which is writing jokes. It is another story to be a great performer. Gladys said a comedian needs to have a passion and be driven and do "the process." She says comedy is not the destination, but the journey. It's a whole ball of wax and it is not just about the applause and making money.

We started to discuss "bringers." "Bringers" are defined as only allowing comics on stage if they bring in a required number of paying customers who at the door have to say they are there to see the specific comic. Gladys feels comics need to be clear about what they are getting out of bringers. She believes that comics who do bringers should feel they have received something from the experience... such as working for a larger and supportive audience. Her room is a development room; a booked open mic which provides a place for comics to have fun and to improve.

We moved to a discussion of ageism in comedy. Gladys says it is a business. The reality is the industry is looking for "young and edgey." Of course, there are exceptions to the rule such as Rodney Dangerfield... if you are that good. She feels it is the same in all fields. In industry, when you reach a certain age, "they don't want you." I agree; it is sad, but true.

Gladys went on to add that funny is funny at any age and if you can get people to laugh and pay a $20.00 cover and a two drink minimum to see you... you can be Grandma Moses. "So do it for yourself and forget the industry, they have been wrong!!" We ended the interview with Gladys saying it is all about having a good time. Then our food came and it became all about eating.

Gladys was the booker and MC first at Coldwater's and years later at Hamburger Harry's. Gladys now books the open mic shows at The Comic Strip. Gladys has real class and style and the comedy experience at her room is unique because Gladys creates a family of friendship and emotional support. Her shows hits the mark and she gets a standing ovation every time.

hey, anonymous putz?

I got a bite! We may be turning part of this blog into a book. And we are going to include your hilarious taunts in comments. So, lil darlin'? In order to collect your royalties, you will have to surface and rip off your mask and PROVE you were the anonymous scribe!


Ay! There's the rub!

Putz!
Surface and collect ya .0000000000000000000001 cent you are thinkin'?
I beat ya to that thought, schmuck!

moderate THIS!

The TWoP mods have real intellectually stimulating jobs, lmao. Can you imagine sitting and monitoring a forum board and chastising members for placing comments in the wrong thread! "It belongs in the other thread!"

hahahahahahahaaha....
No wonder the top cheeses left. Their brains were fried and their fingertips were raw from typing: "TOPIC!"

Topic, lmao.
Blow it outta ya asses.

whoa, nellie!

Are you still checking this blog you anonymous commenting horse's ass? I think it is YOU who is pathetic and needs a life, lmao.

hi, schmuck!

Yes, YOU my anonymous commenter! You are some schmuck! What a jerk. You are totally clueless as to how your comments provide material for me that my canasta group finds absolutely hilarious! You are the putz that keeps on giving. I wrote a poem which I dedicate to YOU: ONE MAJOR HORSE'S ASS! LOL

Roses are red and violets are blue
You think I am a pathetic and lonely old loon?
Boo hoo hoo hoo hoo.
Is that nice? LMAO

just askin'

What happened to Glark, Wing Chun, Sars, and Miss Alli after they quit TWoP? Enquiring minds want to know. They seem to have had excellent jobs at 30 Rock and well.... who would leave a good job to be unemployed? Even if a corporation bought their site, I think it would have made the job better. That was all so strange.

Well, I hope they all went on to happy horizons.

readers

Please note: the interviews that appear here originally appeared at one of my other blogs: marjorie-digest.blogspot.com

Please go there to read all of the interviews. The few that appear here are just a small sample of the rich and wonderful interviews that I am gathering and building at that blog.

"Big Fan" opens Friday

Good luck and congratulations to Robert Siegel on the opening of "Big Fan," a film he wrote and directed. My interview with Robert appears below.

Dana Parish, singer/songwriter

I met with Dana on a rainy Monday afternoon, and she arrived for the interview looking impeccable and gorgeous. Since Dana was a little girl, she has been fascinated with music. She grew up outside Philadelphia and as a young girl she listened to the music of Earth, Wind and Fire, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, and Regina Belle. She was 10 years old when she began singing lessons. She studied with the opera singer, Paul Adkins, from whom she received a great eclectic musical experience. She went on to the New England Conservatory of Music and then transferred to the Manhattan School of Music, from where she was graduated.

Dana is an accomplished songwriter and I asked about her inspirations. She explained that she listens to people's conversations and stories and draws from her own life and experiences. Her late night anxieties are layered and infused with her feelings about her personal loves, breakups, and agonies. The result is a message in music about togetherness, pain, and the joy of life. Her songs come from a very personal and private place. Dana explained that she takes time to live with her songs and because they are so personal they take some time to be revealed.

Dana has received a beautiful response from her fans. Her songs have helped them get through some of life's difficulties... and she feels very gratified when she can help listeners with her music. "Helping somebody is a beautiful thing," she feels.
The artists that Dana admires are Danny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Sheryl Crowe, Patty Griffen, and Damien Rice.

Dana's goals are to touch as many people as possible. She hopes to create timely music in songs which evolve from an artistic and organic path to reach a consciousness.

Dana's CD is called "Uncrushed." I adore and am moved by so many of the songs, but a personal favorite is "Let It Go By."
Dana's sound is pure and focused and grounded. And, like the artist... impeccable.

Thank-you, Dana, for sharing a part of the rainy Monday afternoon. Dana Parish on MySpace

my own personal anonymous coward weighs in...

LMAO. The president of my fan club crawls out from under her rock and makes a guest appearance:

Anonymous said...
Sh*t or get off the pot already. If there was any way you could determine my identity you would have done so by now.
Liskula's case in no way resembles yours. She's a successful model who did nothing to encourage the online attacks against her. You're a pathetic old loon who has begged me -- over and over again -- to continue commenting because it is the only attention you receive in your miserable lonely life.
August 24, 2009 7:59 PM

Marjorie said...
I would have done so by now? Darling, I don't give a sh*t. You are not worth the legal fees. You are just some internet schmuck. You sweat me and refuse to take a hike, even when I have told you to blow your dopey comments out of your ass. You are so stupid you cannot even realize I am being tongue-in-cheek. You think I care who a pisher like you is? I wipe my fat ass with your dopey comments, LOL.
Your comments are not the only attention I receive. Obviously you have not read marjorie-digest. LMAO.
You are better than a valium. Some things never change, jerky jerk. LOL.
Your insults would not even be appreciated on The Gong Show. Not even a Howard Stern roast would hire you.
But glad to see I still have you fixated... I am honored.
August 24, 2009 8:38 PM

Marjorie said...
Yes, I do adore your comments. Because it validates that somehow someway I got to you. I did something to incur your wrath. And I believe it was my letters to TWoP that got you so angry.
And it does give me some sense of satisfaction to know my letters did not go unnoticed and that my actions somehow impacted that site.
Your anger that appears in childish insults speaks volumes.
I missed ya darlin'. Glad to see ya back. But, be careful; ya head may explode from all that anger. LOL.
Awwww, only Google bloggers comments allowed. Thwarted much?
August 24, 2009 8:39 PM

added: This stupid fool who surfaces in cameo appearances has some obtuse form of sick logic going on. I agree: I am pathetic and I am a loon who begs for attention. So this gives this idiot the green light to go ahead and attempt to insult me. I think the one who actually has no life is this anonymous coward. What person in their right mind would engage in such activity? Only a person who got real real mad at something I did. All paths lead to THE BANS!

And idiot? I do NOT want to know who you are. Seriously. I think you are one major asshole. And I don't suffer fools. So actually not knowing who you are suits me just fine.

my anonymous commenter, be warned!

I printed every one of the E-mails when I received a notification that a comment arrived for moderation. Each one contains your IP address in an internet path, buddy-boy!

So you too can be exposed... if I gave a hoot.

Liskula rules!

Now tell me about your great love for TWoP and narrow down my short list of suspects. How did your association with TWoP impact your life? Did my ban and subsequent rant about TWoP spoil your fun?????? Rip off your mask, cyber-coward... Crawl back out from under that rock.

bravo, Liskula!

Well, well, well, it seems my anonymous commenter may soon be unmasked. My own personal coward has been revealed to be TWoP connected. Perhaps a mod or a little TWoP fan who needs the mods' approval. Take a hike, anonymous jerk. Even Rosemary Port laughs at you, lmao.

hey, my anonymous commenter?

Did you read about Liskula Cohen's court victory? Keep off my blog, you idiotic cowardly freak! Or I will pull a Liskula Cohen. You are tracked through your IP address, idiot... and I print the "internet path" every time I receive an E-mail for comment moderation.

Go read marjorie-digest. It sorta-kinda negates the personality profile you drew for me. Jerk, lmaoooooooooooooooooooo
I OWNED YOU!

You go, girl! Liskula rules!

to my own personal internet commenter

Well, well, well, congratulations are in order for Liskula Cohen. You go, girl!

Liskula wins!

"Model can unmask blog boor":

"A Manhattan judge ruled yesterday that a blogger can't hide behind a web of anonymity while flinging the ugly words "skank" and "ho" at somebody online. The sternly worded ruling orders Google to give up the identity of an anonymous blogger-assailant who inexplicably devoted an entire blog -- titled "Skanks in NYC" -- to maligning beautiful blond model Liskula Cohen."

I am thrilled for Liskula. I had my own personal anonymous internet boor. I say "had" because he crawled back under his rock. The stupid fool should realize I printed out every E-mail announcement I received telling me a comment was made at my blog and needed comment moderation. Each E-mail contained the logged internet path from which the comment came. I suppose I could find out my anonymous commenter's identity too.

But there is one major difference. i don't give a shit. I miss my own personal freak. Waaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Sniff, sniff!

hey, anonymous commenter?

Cat got ya tongue? You drew a personality profile for me that was a total zero. And now you clammed up? Hoisted on your own petard? Get back. I miss ya. Ya see, that old tired and stale 'c' word doesn't daunt ME. I am an old battleax. But, get back and try harder. Ya never know what comment you might make that could send me running for the smelling salts. Freak.

hey, anonymous commenter?

I opened comments. Where'd ya go? Oh, wait! You saw the "digest" and realized your script and personality profile you created for me was not correct? LMAO...
I probably do more in a week than you do in months. AND I probably have triple more friends. AND I had the same job for almost 35 years. Bite me! Get back! Wanna be interviewed? LOL

Happy Birthday, Nelson Mandela!

Big Brother 11

Big Brother has to be the biggest and most asinine show ever aired on network television. It'a a game of human dominoes. "He goes, then she goes, then he goes, then you may go." That is what the show has morphed into after season 1, when the viewers decided who was evicted. When the viewers made that decision, it was about the interactions of people living in a house without this unending discussion of game and alliance strategy. I said it before, and I will say it again: Bill Paley would be spinning in is grave if he knew how his once named "Tiffany" network had deterioriated.

And over at TWoP, members are discussing the show as if they were on the Warren Commission. No, that analogy is not right. But, I wil leave it in because I think it is sort of funny.

And the moderator, TWoP Mars, is putting big black bars through what I assume is egregious commentary. Well, I will give him/her? this. He/she seems a bit less angry and nasty than that Miss Alli. She really had a bitter edge. She thrived on her dopey power at TWoP. She was always scolding me for putting a comment in the wrong thread. Whatever happened to her?

All those mods must have discussed my banning. I know they did. How do I know? Barnes once made a comment at my blog and revealed my TWoP login name. She could only know that if they all had been well aware of my TWoP ban rants and researched my TWoP history. So let me wave to any of them who may still read this blog. I hope they read the "digest." Any mods want to be interviewed for that blog? LMAO.

Three Shorts

(Atlantic City boardwalk)

"Rube and Mandy at Coney Island" (1903)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WComm4hr6gg

"What Happened on Twenty-third Street, New York City" (1901)
with A.C. Abadie and Florence Georgie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1DKrHN10zc

"Luna Park" (1903)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygOO0i1_jR4&feature=related

Oh, what times they were!

Good-bye, Diesel Wall

This was the Diesel Wall as it was painted in the spring of 2008.



This is what was going on at that wall this afternoon. They are painting over it... buh-bye pretty wall.

Third Cemetery of the Spanish-Portuguese Synagogue, Shearith Israel

Third Cemetery of the Spanish-Portuguese Synagogue, Shearith Israel, is located on 21st Street in Manhattan, right off 6th Avenue. In it are graves which date back to 1829. I had to stick my camera through the iron gate to get a few photos.

I sometimes pass this cemetary at night. Sometimes, long after darkness has fallen, I wait... almost expecting some apparition to appear in the moonlight.

July 4, 2009

I watched the Macy's fireworks high up on the 44th floor of a Manhattan building. As the crowd gathered, the sun set and revealed a technicolor sunset, rich with deep orange tones. Then, all of a sudden the fireworks began and we were so high up, they were eye level and seemed close enough to touch. The night was perfect... as the full moon created just the right touch in the evening sky.

manhattan phone booths

check out this great site:

Scouting NY

then read this article in today's NY Post: CITY'S OLDEN 'RINGS', LAST PHONE BOOTHS

TWoP and me

I am back at TWoP and posting there like an energizer bunny. BTW, check out marjorie-digest, please. It brings new meaning to my life, which prior to the launch was empty and pathetic. Now, it is rich and full.

"Stunning," my review

SPOILER ALERT
I went to see this play with great anticipation after reading the glowing review by David Cote, in "Time Out New York."

"Stunning" is about a married couple who lives on Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn. The protagonists are a 40ish Ike who is married to a 16 year-old Lily, who is a Syrian Jew. And there are a few other assorted characters who are supporting players in Ike and Lily's sterile and immaculate home. They exist in an attempt to bring high drama and comedy, thereby complicating the marriage.

My first reaction was that the actors seem to be playing stereotypical caricatures of their roles. Now, this may be the problem of the direction, but I do know that an actor in both drama and comedy must come from a place of truth. There was never any moment that I believed Cristen Milioti as Lily. She is working so hard at "being 16," that she seems silly and false in her efforts. And she uses a cloying whiny voice as a device to appear young. On stage, she appears absurd. She makes wide-eyed facial expressions to the point where she seemed like Sarah Silverman doing a character as part of some comedy club stage shtik. And the voice she uses is almost offensive. I did not believe for a minute that Lily's husband would be with her.

And when the play sharply turns direction and expects the audience to believe Lily would have the confidence to fall in love with Blanche, I was surprised. Blanche would never have wasted her time with such a foolish Lily.

Charlayne Woodard, as Blanche, is an amazing actor. She did bring nuances of believable emotion to the stage. So did Danny Mastrogiorgio, who played Ike. His performance was chilling in parts and he has a very strong stage presence. He reminded me at times of a menacing Eric Roberts.

Jeanine Serrales, as Shelly, also seems a caricature of a personna. She is so mean and nasty and loud that she chews up the scenery. She is trying too hard to "be funny"... and in comedy, that is a mistake.

The end was dramatic... but again not believable. And also at the end, the character of Lily just seems to have gone totally insane.

Well, it is what it is. It is "satisfactory" if you do not analyze it and watch it like it is comprised of performances in a scene study class. And the first scene? Get a grip, ladies. You are on stage, not on Mad TV.

please visit marjorie-digest

thank-you

where are they now?

This was my fourth grade class at PS 33 in 1986. The next year, when they were in the fifth grade, these students were chosen by Eugene M. Lang for his "I Have a Dream" college scholarship program.

Over twenty years later... I am wondering: "Where are they now?"

well?

Did you go over to marjorie-digest? So nu? How come no anonymous comments about my "empty and pathetic" life? Go over there and GET BUSY! I miss ya, darlin'! I do, I do! Oh! I disabled anonymous comments.... Ay! There's the rub! Did ya head explode?

"hold it!"

"I think you're going to like this picture." That was the opening line to the Bob Cummings show. And here are a few photos of me, taken earlier today in my building's lobby.

"Only in New York, kids, only in New York"

Yesterday, I was walking over to Whole Foods and as I got closer I could hear screams and see the students (who had just been dismissed from the school up the street) running and laughing and screaming louder. One student was banging the sidewalk with a cardboard tube.

I approached and asked what the commotion was all about. One student screamed again and laughed and pointed: "It's a rat over there." I went into the store and informed security. A few workers left armed with equipment to trap the rat.

About 15 minutes later, I exited the store and asked one of the students who was still standing around: "Did they catch the rat?" Without missing a beat, she replied, "Yes. The guy from Whole Foods got it and took it over there across the street. This lady told him to give it to her. He asked her why she wanted it. She said, none of your business. It was in a bag and he gave it to her and she put it in her pocketbook and walked away."

"Only in New York, kids, only in New York."

please visit marjorie-digest

I have up new interviews with: the Wegman dogs, Billy Cunningham, and an entry about "the interview that got away." Shall I open comments? Perhaps...

a visit to the High Line Park

In NYC, there is a brand new elevated park. It is the only elevated park in the country. It was built on the old railroad tracks. I went over there today and took a walk though the gardens. As Cindy Adams says in her sign off, "Only in New York, kids, only in New York."

new at the "digest"

Please go to marjorie-digest to read a new interview and the story of the interview that got away.

Jacob and Gertie's son, Ruby

Here is some more about my family: my father's first cousin, Ruby Lazarus...
Ruby

He was also mentioned in Ed Reid's 1969 book, "The Grim Reapers."
He died in 1991.

I have an audiotape that was transposed for me from three very old records. It was made by a sound specialist who works at Lincoln Center. The records were created by my father for his parents during a stopover in St. Louis as he headed to the Aleutian Islands during WWII. In one of the recordings my father mentions Ruby, who was with him in St. Louis as he also waited to be shipped out.

take a detour

Take a detour over to marjorie-digest. I have up some interesting interviews and many more are soon to be posted. My days in retirement are so full I hardly have time to eat.
Today, I got tickets for three Broadway shows, including the play that President Obama and Michelle Obama saw last week: (Joe Turner's Come and Gone). I am glad I got a ticket for that since it is closing on June 14th.
I saw the Teddy Roosevelt House, the Louis Armstrong House, the Valentina exhibit at the Museum of the City of NY and I saw the Lois Wright "Grey Gardens" exhibit at the National Arts Club. I took a backstage tour of Carnegie Hall, and a tour of the Waldorf Astoria. I love being retired.

Women of Washington Square, the tour

Today, I went on this tour with The Transition Network. We saw the homes of Eleanor Roosevelt, Emma Lazarus, Edith Wharton, Ida Tarbell, Dawn Powell, and Mabel Dodge. This was a walking tour organized by The Transition Network as part of the "Explore NYC" series. And while I was not able to interview these interesting women whose homes we saw on the walking tour, I learned much about them from our guide, Jane, who said:

"Greenwich Village is renowned for the extraordinary women who’ve lived in this historic area over the decades....Eleanor Roosevelt, Emma Lazarus, Edith Wharton...to name just a few. On this hour-long walking tour we’ll see where these women, and other notable feminists, lived and worked and we’ll talk about their lives."

These are some of the photos I took along the walk.

letters, we get letters....

After I retired, I wrote many pieces on education that were published in "Letters" in the "New York Sun."

Here's one:

"The Stepford Teachers"

I will add more when they are located online.

updates

In today's Philadelphia Inquirer, there is an article about Jerry Torre going to see the musical "Grey Gardens." You can read it here and then go to marjorie-digest to read my interview with Jerry Torre.

BTW, if any of the dudes who banned me at forums want to be interviewed for the "digest," please E-mail me. lmao...

please visit the digest

Please read my interview with Robert Siegel, the writet of "The Wrestler." It appears in the month of May. Also, please read my interview with Jerry, the Marble Faun. He was in the documentary "Grey Gardens."

more, more more

Please go to: marjorie-digest.blogspot.com to read my interviews with Mary Engel and Eva Deutsch Costabel.

new entry at "the digest"

Please go to marjorie-digest to read my interview with Howard Feller.

stay tuned

Please stay tuned to marjorie-digest. I have interviews coming up with so many interesting and creative people. I just booked a doozy. 'Tis it not amazing how a delusional retired teacher with an empty pathetic life can go from zero to a hundred and find activity? Gotta give me credit...
Maybe the interviews are all in my daft head? Ya think? Nah....

In the coming weeks, many of my friends will give credibility to this new hobby of mine. Should I enable comments? LOL
I do more in one week than my anonymous commenter does in a year.... right LL? I should join that "kook watch," lol

"anonymous" comments, say wah?

What kind of coward visits a blog and leaves insults in "anonymous" comments? lmao... If I say something, I sign my name. Also, what kind of fool draws a personality profile based on nonsense from a blog? The idiot calls my life "empty and pathetic" and I probably do more in one week than this anonymous jerk does in a year. How do I know? You have to be pretty pathetic to leave at a blog anonymous comments that are designed to insult a total stranger. And you have to be such a loser to constantly think using that tired and played out "c" word would have any impact.

Go read "marjorie-digest." I have five interviews I am preparing soon to be posted. Does the anonymous poster feel thwarted that comments are disabled? Awwwwww. And not to worry. I have printed every comment that the jerk has sent. They all arrive in E-mails for moderation. And they include the internet path details. For identification ya know. An IP address is included in the E-mails I receive. Ya know. It's harassment (ya know) to keep attempting to denigrate. I would follow-up... if it actually did not provide a form of exceedingly low level entertainment for my readers. Yep. I really do have readers. Ya know. Hairflip.

Blog restraining order. Keep back 20 blogs. lmao.

Robert Siegel, writer of "The Wrestler"

Please go to marjorie-digest to read my interview with Robert Siegel, the writer of "The Wrestler" and the writer/director of the soon to be released "Big Fan."

marjorie-digest, the interviews

In an effort to make my life less "empty and pathetic," I launched a new blog: www.marjorie-digest.blogspot.com
Check it out!

Please go to: www.marjorie-digest.blogspot.com and visit my brand new blog. It is my interviews with NYC personalities... and in the coming weeks and months it will feature interviews with filmmakers, authors, artists, and interesting creative people who I admire.

goody, bans!

Here are some more recent bans:

banned in the diner on 13th Street for cutting wind during luncheon
banned in the carpet store for yelling at a woman whose dog was on a long leash (a trip hazard)
banned from the ice cream store for complaining about people who put their feet up on the computer keyboards
banned from a department store for singing "Tip Toe Through The Tulips" at the Estee Lauder counter
banned from a shoe store for wearing socks with holes
banned from a salon for laughing at a jerk talking on her cellphone during her shampoo
banned at another salon for laughing at another fool texting during her shampoo

So many bans: so little time

Please go to marjorie-digest for some interviews in places where I have not yet been banned.

the "c" word?

Ouch! lmao. Can you imagine some pathetic bored person who comes to this blog and constantly drops that dopey "c" word in an attempt to insult me?

Roses are red and violets are blue,
Dopey fool? Try calling me something new!

The lame brain doesn't even "get it!" I once replied, "My students called me worse names" and the jerk took that literally!! and said, "So your students hated you as much as everyone else."

Can we all say: IQ check?

Get lost! Stop coming here if you think i am such a "train wreck." Go play with your peers at some internet TV forum where this idiotic snark goes on all day...

alas, poor me!

In a comment in the entry below, I was called "nature's error." The photo below of me should confirm that opinion, rofl. I love to validate and enable the weak minds of anonymous internet commenters who come to this blog to insult me!!! They are so thick-headed they STILL don't get that I love it! I reply to them and they become my charity work. Then, I make them a tax deduction. I always close comments to thwart the dopey vitriol, and then I miss it so much I open comments. I lick my chops when they fly in. Time shall tell regarding comment status....

the "droolers"

A guy receives in an E-mail a photo of another guy's cousin at a party. He replies, "I'm drooling." (I guess she was a va voom) A woman shows up for a dance audition and after she leaves one choreographer remarks, "I was drooling."

What asses. What complete fools. They "drool" over the hot babes who arrive in photos and for auditions. Suppose an old fat tub of shit arrived for a job interview? How would they respond after she left? Would they groan, "I vomited?"

These idiots see everything in terms of the visual. They really hate women who are not visually stimulating. They do not respect them and have no use for them. They see their whole world as limited to cultivating the "hot babes."

Well, all "hot babes" get old... if they live. If they age fat, they need less juvaderm and botox as they grow older. If they age skinny, their necks are a nightmare. They need more fillers than my 40 year old pillow.

The "droolers." They drool! "I am drooling," is their mantra. "I was drooling" is their knee-jerk reaction to "pretty" women with good bodies. They are pathetic.

Here's a poem for them:
Roses are red and violets are blue... did you drool today? I am glad you had something to do.

A short story: Years ago, I asked a guy in the library how to locate a book. He basically gave me a disinterested look and ignored my question. I walked behind a shelf and applied some bright red lipstick. I returned and apparently he did not even realize I was the same woman. I asked a similar question and his face lit up and he walked me over to the area where my book was waiting.
I told him I had just asked that question and wondered why he had ignored me the first time. He replied, "That was you?" I said, "Yes it was. Now take a hike, putz. Schmucks like you are never on my radar." I then pullled out a tissue from my handbag and removed my lipstick and handed him the tissue. "A souvenir," I said. "You look so different," he exclaimed.

Which beings me to another story. In about 1974, I returned at night for parent/teacher conferences without make-up. A student arrived to the classroom with his mother. They looked around the room for the teacher. I saw their confusion and said "I am here. I'ts MIss Levine." Without missing a beat, my student replied, "No offense, Miss Levine. But, this is an excellent disguise."

boo!

I guessed the identity of my two anonymous commenters and they ran like greased lightening! I knew they were TWoP connected, realized they were no longer with TWoP... and the list of suspects were placed on a short list.

So, off they ran when I outted them as the once dynamic duo who fell from grace, either voluntarily or with pink slips. Maybe they will be interviewed for my new blog....

Now THAT would be so fun!
They will be in phenomenal company. I have a list who have stepped up and have asked to be included. But this retired woman is very busy, so the process is quite slow.

"House of the Devil," a review

I go to the Tribeca Film Festival. I look forward to it every year. I have seen some films that were quite good. But, last night I saw one that was so bad I think it could replace "Plan 9 From Outer Space" as perhaps the worst film ever made. Yes, it was THAT bad.
It is sort of "When a Stranger Calls," (2006) meets "The Mephisto Waltz," (1971) with a sort of "Rosemary's Baby" (1968) shtik thrown in at the end. Good grief!
The scenes were so predictable they were good for some laughs. The babysitter's friend stops her car on a desolate road to smoke. She rolls down the window and of course, her lighter doesn't work. Then, from out of nowhere a "scary looking dude" quickly appears to light her cigarette. The stock "scary sound effect" is designed to make you jump out of your seat. Yawn.
Yes, it is THAT bad. It is so bad it is "camp."
The poor director, Ti West, seems clueless. He was there last night. "House of the Devil" was just not original. It seemed the product of a first year film student. He got lucky that his film made it to the prestigious TFF. So many talented filmmakers struggle for years and never get any chance.

By the way, the audience was so obnoxious and self-contratulatory... all hooting and hollering and applauding when their screen credits appeared. It brought 'being supportive" straight to the Twilight Zone.

query me... yeah, right

I gave up on queries. It is asking somebody else with more power to help you in your endeavors. There are so many other options that allow a writer to share his work.
There's a guy in my neighborhood who plays his guitar on a street corner. Maybe it is because he never was signed by a record company. There is an artist who displays his paintings on the sidewalk. And there are singers who are fantastic and they sing on the subway train. And this dude I know self-published his poems. Many people might consider his work mediocre at best, but seeing his work in print helped him find his smile.
I admire their creativity. They are not querying another person and waiting for another person to give them permission to share parts of themselves.
Life is short. It may be a one-shot deal.

and I miss YOU scarecrow... most of all!

Hey! Where did Wing Chun, Glark, Sars, and Miss Alli go? I miss the vitriol. I am sure they do, too. That must be hard: to have so much power and then to be like cheeses who stand alone. What happened there? I think that would make such an interesting interview. Call me, guys. We can talk over lunch at Le Sing Vert. I would of course ask you to respond to my letter to NBC/Bravo. And then I would ask you this: So how much fun were all those bans?



caption time!
the year: 2030
place: a TWoP convention in downtown Pittsburgh

question: This is a question for one of the former moderators. Can you please tell us what it was like to ban so many people?

answer: During my best year, I seriously banned at least 40 people a day. We used to laugh like crazy over those bans. I mean... we knew everybody knew we did it for the power, but the fun was in never admitting it. We could actually with straight faces tell TPTB that members were violating the rules, the dos and dont's. But we knew we were being like Beavis and Butthead over there. It was our little inside joke and it was a secret to be protected at all costs. Honestly, those years were the best years of my life. Now, all I have to look forward to are these cons. You guys are the greatest.
I heard that outside at one of the tables that old hag Marjorie is trying to sell her stuff: her letter to NBC and her page with her warnings and notes. Seriously, how old is she now? Do you guys think she knew who was leaving those comments at her blog? Nah... TOPIC! Whoa.. sorry, I had a flashback.

side height and volume

Keep sweatin' my blog. I dig the hits. My blog draws eyeballs. And I get people nuts. One kook needed smelling salts after a visit to my blog. Maybe it was my hair?