Article

CLICK HERE to read the article I wrote for the Daily Record. It is about the owner of one of my favorite LA hang outs. He wrote a fantastic book, so click above to read all about it!:)

Happy Holidays

I will not be able to update my blog for a few days. Here's wishing everyone a warm and wonderful holiday season. Blogs to return December 30th!

Zoo

Today I went to the zoo with my family. It was so much fun to spend time with my parents and sister, just the four of us. We pretty much had the whole place to ourselves and the animals were all really active. Even the koala bears that sleep for about 22 hours a day were up and moving! My favorite exhibit was the reptile house. Above is a picture of one of the exotic goats we saw.

After the zoo we went to my grandparents' house and hung out with my aunt, uncle and cousin who are in for the holidays. My grandma and I made a gingerbread tree, which is also pictured above. We had dinner and then shopped for a little bit. We are going over there again in the morning for breakfast and to spend the day. So far this has been a nice relaxing vacation full of family:)

Home For the Holidays!

I made it to my parents house for the holidays and I have already seen my sister, my parents, and both sets of my grandparents! I'm so relaxed to be out of LA away from all of the striking!

Tea Garden

One of my favorite places to hang out in LA is Dr. Tea's Tea Garden, and there is great news for all of my readers on the East Coast! Mark "Dr. Tea" Ukra, the owner of Dr. Tea's Tea Garden has written a book called The Ultimate Tea Diet and it is awesome! It comes out in bookstores January 1st. It is a great book to read even if you are not trying to lose weight, as it describes many health benefits of tea and give an interesting history lesson on the subject. There are also many great recipes in the book!

Dr. Tea will be at the Borders Bookstore in Columbus Circle at 1:00 PM on January 8th for a book signing and tea tasting! I highly recommend that anyone who can make it goes to meet him, as he and his book are very interesting.

There will be a full article on Dr. Tea and The Ultimate Tea Diet in the Daily Record the first week of January. When it runs in the paper, I will link it to my blog.

Writer's Strike

I found a video on youtube today that deals with the writer's strike. It is a spoof, made by an independent production company but it is very funny because a lot of it is true. Also, it deals with both sides of this issue. If you'd like to see in a satirical way what is going on in Hollywood right now, watch this four minute video. A word of caution, there is a little violence in it. CLICK HERE TO WATCH

Ya snooze...

Yesterday morning, my sleeping roommate got a call that the agency that he works for was looking for someone to work the front desk, starting immediately. They asked if he happened to know anyone who might be interested. I was interested because it is a flexible paid position and they said they were fine with working actors who had to leave for auditions. He got the call around 10AM but didn't give me the message until noonish.

Within two hours, they had filled the position! He put my name in anyway just in case the new person doesn't work out, but we'll see. That just goes to show how even during a strike how quickly this industry moves. If you aren't always running to keep up, you will get left behind.

College

This weekend with my sister was awesome! I met a lot of my sister's sorority sisters and I finally met her boyfriend. Friday night, Matt, her boyfriend, had his fraternity date party. It was at their fraternity house and was really cool. The upstairs was kind of the "chill area" with one of the brothers singing and playing his guitar and Bob Saget was doing stand-up on the TV.

The basement had two ping pong tables, strobe lights and black lights, a DJ and a dance floor. The funniest part of the whole evening was seeing all of the girls dressed up in heels slipping around on the ice that was everywhere outside. To get from the upstairs to downstairs, walking outside up wooden ice covered stairs was required so that's where most of the slippage happened. One of my sister's nick-names is "Mom" because she was pledge mom semester after semester for awhile so her friend Tony started calling me "Mom 2" and it stuck for the weekend.

Saturday afternoon I went with my sister and one of her best friends, Carly to see the movie "Enchanted". I thought it was really cute and was exactly what I expected from Disney. My favorite part was a huge live musical number that took place in Central Park.

That evening I went to my sister's sorority formal at a restaurant. They had really great food and they gave their "sister awards" away for the semester. Her sorority "little" Steph, who came with her to visit me in LA last Spring Break, kicked off the awards with a dumb blond joke. My sister won "Most Likely to Bleed the Sorority Colors" and her friend Carly won "The Golden Crutch Award" which is one of the most coveted awards they give away.

After dinner there was an after party which was also a lot of fun. It went on from 11PM until about 4:30 AM. At the beginning of the night everyone was still in their dresses but as the night progressed, everyone ran and changed and by the end of the party most of the girls were in sweats.

One other thing that I found really funny was one of the slang words all of her friends use. They use the noun Dump Truck as a verb to describe eating a lot of food quickly. For example,
"wow, Steph just dump trucked a whole pizza", is a phrase that would not be uncommon to hear.

The first picture above is of Natalie, Laura, and Steph. Steph is Laura's sorority "little sister". Natalie is Steph's sorority "little sister" making her my sister's "little little".

The next picture is of Laura's boyfriend, Matt, Laura and me.

The last picture is of Laura and me before Matt's date party.

Weekend

I'm going to visit my sister this weekend at college and I'm so excited. Her sorority is having an awards dinner/party that she has invited me to on Friday. Saturday afternoon we are going to see "Enchanted," that new Disney movie, with a bunch of her friends and then there is a big party Saturday night. I always have fun when I go to visit her, college is more fun when you don't have to worry about class :) Check back in Monday to see how the weekend was!

Superbad

The movie "Superbad" goes on sale tomorrow. If you happen to get it, enjoy me as the cashier in the scene where Jonah Hill's character first goes to buy beer at the Good Shopper grocery store. I'm there for about 3 seconds so you have to watch quickly:)

Commercial

One of my roommates, Cazzey, shot a commercial today. He said that he spent 5 hours in make-up, as he was playing a caveman. Although he has grown his own beard, he said that they used some prosthetics on his skin and he needed additional hair on his head. After shooting the commercial for about 45 minutes, he was finished with his part and then he spent another hour in hair and make-up getting all of the fake stuff off!

Ah, the glamour of Hollywood. When the spot gets put online, I will post it.

One Down, One to Go

The Broadway strike is over!:) Hopefully the WGA strike will end soon and everything will get back to normal. CLICK HERE to read about the resolution.

Funny

My really good friend, David Mawhinney from New York City just shot an episode of a webisode. He is the guy playing the fake Mike Torpey in this webisode. I also know the guy playing the real Mike Torpey because we all used to work together. Enjoy!

Fantastic

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was fantastic. It was really nice to see all of my family who I don't get to see very often. We played cards and shopped and had a wonderful time. The funniest part of the trip was the rain. I am not used to rain anymore because it hardly ever rains in LA. My mom just doesn't like the rain. It was quite a sight to see us with huge umbrellas trying not to step in puddles and trying to get the purchases to the car safe and dry.

I also got to hang out with my good friend Ryan Mann, who I know from when I lived in NYC. I see him about once a year and don't talk to him much the rest of the year since we are both busy, but every time we hang out, we remember why we are such good friends. We traded must watch TV show ideas and must read books.

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. :)

Thanksgiving

To me, Thanksgiving means a time to share with family and friends. I visit with relatives who I only see once a year. My grandmother cooks a huge feast and my aunt brings her signature sweet potatoes. It has been a family tradition that after dinner we take two family pictures on my grandparents' staircase; one of all of the "kids," and one of the parents. Even though I am still in the "kids picture," I have graduated to eating at the big table:)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL OF MY READERS!

Karaoke

Last night two of my friends and I went out for Karaoke. We went back to that Ireland's 32 bar that my roommate's friend's band played at last week. I had so much fun again! That place is such a cool atmosphere and the people that hang out there are young and hip but not snobby. The people who sang karaoke all picked really good classics that the audience sang along. We all had a great time:)

Ratatouille

I went to a special screening of "Ratatouille" sponsored by SAG last night that was held at the ArcLight Cinema in Hollywood. It was really cool because after the movie there was a question and answer session with Brad Bird and Patton Oswalt.

One thing I learned, that I didn't know about animated movies is that most of the time the actors don't meet the rest of the cast until the screening parties because everyone goes in and records their part when they have time in between other projects, and then it all gets edited together even though it was recorded separately. Also I didn't know that actors record the script and then the animators listen to it over and over and over so that they capture every expression in their animation. Since it is called voice-over, I always assumed it was animated first and then the actors tried to match the animation but it is actually the other way around. Bird wrote/directed/acted in this movie and he was a wealth of information. Oswalt played Remy, the main rat, and he is clearly a stand-up comic. All of his comments were really funny.

The question and answer session was moderated by the lovely Bonnie Gillespie,who is one of the most accessible casting directors and speaks at many seminars in Los Angeles. She also writes a column called The Actors Voice on Actors Access and has written many books for actors.

The picture above was taken on my cell phone over the balcony of the marquee at the ArcLight. The theater is said to have the best sound of any theater in Los Angeles. It is very bright and everything is state-of-the-art. Tickets to movies are about $14.00. There is a gift shop and a bar in the lobby and instead of just plain old movie posters they actually have costumes from up coming movies displayed in glass cases and walls of photos from sets of movies.

Wedding

My first set of friends got married yesterday! It was a beautiful wedding down in Orange County at a country club. It is so strange when your friends start getting married. It is a lot of fun though with weddings and showers and parties. Also, then you know that you can really be friends with people without fear of getting stuck in the middle of your original friend and their boyfriend/girlfriend when they break up. Christine, the bride, wore a BEAUTIFUL dress that looked at the bottom like Belle's from "Beauty and the Beast". Her sisters were her bridesmaids and they wore really cute green dresses. All of the flowers were yellow.

The first picture is of Justin and Christine, the bride and groom, in their limo after the wedding.

The second picture is of the cake. It looked like a stack of wedding gifts.

The third picture is of my roommate Daniel, Justin, Christine, my other roommate Cazzey, and myself at the reception.

That's my roommate juggling. And that little girl doesn't actually get hurt. It is a Samsung campaign in Russia.

Good Deed

I got a letter from the Screen Actors Guild last week inviting members to come fill an audience seat at the Dr. Phil Show because for every seat filled yesterday, $500 was donated to the Starlight Children's Foundation. I volunteered to be an audience member and it was a lot of fun. When I first got there, I ran into a girl I know from several of the union seminars that I have atteneded. We chatted until the show started and then we watched Dr. Phil teach people how to deal with troubled children.

In the evening I went to a really cool pub called Ireland's 32 to watch my roommate's friend's band,STONE HONEY play. They are a great band and they always give a really good concert. I met some good people and had a wonderful time. It is one of the few bars that I've been to out here in LA that have a cool dive bar vibe.

Commercial

The audition yesterday went really well but really quickly. They had a HUGE list of actors to see during the day so everyone got two minutes to do a monologue, and they said if they needed to see anything else, they would have callbacks. There was a pannel of about 7 directors for the 7 different touring groups through Kaiser Permente sitting in a row and it was just in, monologue, out.

I ran into a girl who I did a play with when I first moved out here and she said she has been working with this company for awhile and really enjoys it. The company that she is a member of was rehearsing. I also found out that a friend of mine from New York City had auditioned earlier in the day for one of the company spots, and it would be really cool to work with her! I will keep posting any updates.

Also, they haven't run my commercial in awhile but it is still on the website. I was hoping that if all of my readers went and watched it online, they might bring it back soon if it is generating web traffic. CLICK HERE

Thanks for your support:)

Audition

Yesterday I went with three friends of mine to a local golf course to hang out. The three of them golfed and I went along for the ride, as I have never played before. I mostly pretended to be their caddy and it was a lot of fun. They even let me hit a few balls. It was a really nice day and being out on the quiet, beautiful course was really relaxing.

Today I have that audition for the touring theater company that I posted about a few days ago. I am really excited. My new monologue came together well last week and I am prepared with a song in case they ask me to sing something. I would love to work for a children's theater company so wish me luck!

...

So now there are two entertainment stikes happening. Patrick Page, who has been one of my favorite Broadway Theater actors since I saw him as Lumiere in "Beauty and the Beast" on Broadway, had an awesome quote today in an article on www.playbill.com. This is the paragraph about him from the Playbill Online article:

"The first show affected by the strike was the 11 AM performance of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas on Nov. 10. Patrick Page, who stars in the title role of the limited Grinch engagement, told Playbill.com, "I'm heartbroken by the faces of all these kids. . . I've just gone around to give them a hug, maybe sing a little bit of a song for them, and make them feel a little better [about the show being canceled]." When asked about his opinion of the strike, Page said, "My only opinion is that these guys are the backbone of Broadway. I've worked with some of these guys on four or five Broadway shows, and they are amazing craftsmen and workers, and I have absolutely no idea what goes on in those contract negotiations back and forth, but I do know that Actors' Equity Association supports Local One 100 percent, and I'm a member of [Equity]."

Whatever happened to the old saying "THE SHOW MUST GO ON?"

Another Strike?!?!

We do not need this...CLICK HERE to read:(

Puppy

Yesterday I took my building manager's adorable new puppy for a walk. It is the cutest little Chihuahua-mix ever. She weighs three pounds and she is so sweet. Then last night, three of my friends came over and both of my roommates were home so we played an intense game of Apples to Apples and watched the movie "Night at the Museum" on DVD.

One of the girls who came over last night works for her dad's clothing company and they are having a sample sale tomorrow. She is in charge of the LA showroom, and she asked me to come work tomorrow and help her with the sale! Today we set up for it and got the showroom all cleaned. I even got three tops as a bonus!

Then I went to a REALLY informative meeting at the Screen Actors Guild about agency contracts. It was similar to the commercial contracts seminar that I went to a few weeks ago in that there was so much information that I wish I already knew!

Tonight I am going over to my friend's apartment for dinner and then I have to be up bright and early for work! I haven't said that in awhile:) The writer's strike is still on and unfortunately it looks like it might be long.

Audition

I got a call for an audition next Monday! I submitted myself for a theater company through the LA insurance company, Kaiser/Permanente that tours around Los Angeles doing theater to teach children about health, fitness, and wellness.

I don't know a whole lot about it, other than it pays really well for theater. I was asked to prepare a two minute contemporary monologue, and rather than using the one I normally do, I found one that is more kid oriented and I'm really excited about it. I spent time last night and today memorizing and I will spend free time the rest of the week tweaking it.

I will post more after my audition on Monday. Wish me luck!

Writer's Strike

The Writer's Guild of America (WGA)went on strike at midnight yesterday and it is not just the writers whose income will be affected. Actors, casting directors, and crew members are going to suffer with the industry missing a vital link. For example, my income has already been affected. Usually I am the female reader each week at the table reads for "The Riches" but unfortunately, with no writers, there will be no rewrites, hence no need for a table read. This week's table read has officially been cancelled. "The Riches" is still in production and has scripts finished to complete about half the season.

Day and nighttime talk shows and soap operas will be the first to stop production and go into re-runs. Hopefully the strike won't last long. There was a meeting today and I really hope that everyone involved was able to negotiate and come to an agreement that is fair for both sides.

Something else that is interesting is that WGA members who write for shows but also help produce the shows, are in essence on strike against themselves. This industry is so interconnected that if the strike lasts very long, we could see another shift in television programming.

Bachelorette Party

The Bachelorette Party last night was so much fun! There were 8 of us girls and we started the evening with dinner at a restaurant called The Melting Pot. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this place, it is really cool. Each table has two little stove burners built right into it. If you order cheese fondue, they bring shredded cheese to the table and melt it in a fondue pot on the table stove burner. If you order meat, they bring raw meat to your table and you cook it over the stove burner. We got several different types of fondue cheese to share, everyone got salads and then we shared a small chocolate s'mores fondue between the eight of us.

After dinner we went to a bar/club/pool hall across the street called Club 330. We danced and talked and Christine, the bachelorette, opened her sexually based presents, mostly from Victoria Secret. Her sisters had asked her fiance a series of questions that he answered how he thought she would respond, and then she had to answer them and see how many they matched on. It was a riot to see what she thought she knew and to see her reaction when she was wrong.

The last phase of the evening was at a bar called Pow Wow. It was a little dive bar that had karaoke. Everyone in our group sang and she knew several people at the bar so we danced while they sang. The whole evening was a blast:)

Someone requested pictures in a comment on yesterday's blog, but unfortunately I don't have any. We took TONS of them but they are all on Christine's camera. She said she would e-mail them to all of us, so hopefully she will and then I will post them:)

It is now 2:00 in the morning and I just got home. Brea, where the party was, is over an hour from where I live. I made it safely inside, but I just heard a ruckus downstairs, and looked out my window to see two police cars parked out front of my building. I have no idea what's going on...Gotta love LA.

Bee Movie

I went to see "Bee Movie" yesterday and it was really cute! The funniest part was all of the little kids in the movie theater. A few minutes into the previews the little girl in front of me turned to her dad and said "Daddy, where are all the bees?" There were three kids ages about 2-5 behind me who took turns crying for no apparent reason throughout the movie.

The movie itself was good. It had a cute plot and was full of celebrity voices. Also, it is one of the first children's movies in a long time that is actually for children. There were not adult jokes that "the kids won't get", it was actually a clean family movie for once!

Today a friend of mine is having a bachelorette party, which I am really excited about because I have never been to one before. Remember to turn your clocks tonight and I will post about the party tomorrow:)

Writer's Guild of America strike starts Monday.

Writers Strike

The Writers Guild of Amercia has been in negotiations as their contract expired at midnight on Wednesday. Now the strike, which has been a threat for months is about to become a reality. I don't yet know to what extent actors will be affected, but I do know there will be a lot less work. With no scripts, there will be no roles. I do know that the Screen Actors Guild (the actors union that I am a member of) supports the strike and is encouraging all of its members to do what they can to support the WGA members who will be at the picket lines. CLICK HERE to read a detailed article about the strike.

Halloween

I had so much fun last night! I went with a group of people to West Hollywood for the big Halloween celebration all along the Miracle Mile. There were bands playing, people dancing and lots of creative costumes. We walked from one end to the other and back again and just hung out and talked to people we met. Everyone was taking pictures with everyone else and it was a really great time.

Happy Halloween!

Ouch

I always have a lot of readers comment to me amused when I injure myself, so I figured I might as well write about my latest shenanigans. Last night I was cooking dinner with my roommates and I was cutting up fresh jalapeno peppers. When I was done, I washed my hands, put the meal in the oven and when to read. While I was reading, I had an itch in my eye, which I proceeded to rub. Somehow, I must not have gotten all of the hot pepper off my hands when I washed them because let me tell you, it BURNED.

I wear contacts and immediately removed them. I flushed my eye with water, but it wasn't helping, it was getting worse. My whole face felt like it was on fire. My one roommate suggested rubbing milk on my cheeks to neutralize the pepper acid. It helped a little and about an hour later when the burning stopped, I tried to put my contacts, which I had rinsed, back in my eyes.

BAD IDEA! The burning started all over again! My eyes feel much better now but I am still wearing my glasses. Not my brightest moment :/

Fire/Table Read

Yesterday I drove up to Santa Clarita for a "Riches" table read. It is really fun reading the scripts before they are shot and seeing how they develop. Also, the cast is funny and talented so the reads are always a lot of fun.

On my way, I noticed how grey the sky was from all of the fires that we have had lately so I took a picture, which I posted. The picture was taken at noon in "sunny" California. Apparently the winds have changed so instead of blowing out to sea, the smoke has blown inland. Unfortunately, just when fire fighters though things were under control, another part of Orange County caught on fire last nigh. :(

Post Red Carpet

CLICK HEREto check out the Mega TV post event article. I got mentioned again:)

FIRE

It has been a tough few days for California residents. There are 14 fires, over 400 homes have burned down and thousands of people have been evacuated. It is really sad and this is quite a national disaster. The fire fighters are starting to get some of the fires contained but they have had a hard time because we have had 108 mile an hour winds.

Party

My birthday party/autumn fest was a lot of fun yesterday. Everyone that attended had a great time. My friend and I threw the party in Griffith Park and we carved pumpkins, bobbed for apples and smashed a pinata.

There were a lot of people having various parties in the park. There was a group of people having a family reunion, a family that had a jumping machine rented for their child's birthday party and group of people having a metal detector party to see what they could find.

One thing that was really cool was that a hawk perched directly above where we were having our party. It was beautiful and none of us had ever seen one so close up.

We got really lucky and had a great day weather wise, unfortunately in several other areas of California there are major wild fires causing evacuations, power outages and homes being destroyed.

The top picture is of my good friend Josh Sussman and me carving a pumpkin together. The picture below it is of the hawk.

R Bar

Last night I got invited to a party at this really cool place called "R Bar". It is in an unmarked building and the door stays locked. A doorman peeps through a slot just like the Emerald City in the movie "Wizard of Oz" and asks for the password.

Once we gave the correct password, the door opened and the doorman asked to see our IDs. We headed inside and the inside is pretty cool. It kind of reminded me of a mixture between a haunted mansion and a pirate ship. We made it a short night as the two people I went with and myself all have a lot to do today.

Today is my birthday party so I'm prepping food this morning and then heading to Griffith Park around noon to set up.

More on The Red Carpet

I did not get the chance to talk with Eva Longoria at the Mega TV event. I did, however, chat withBenito Martine who plays Captain David Aceveda on the TV show, 'The Shield'. He was really nice as was Oscar Torres from the new television show, "Cane". It was fun for me to meet him because I watch that show weekly. He is a bad guy on the show but a very nice person in real life. He attended the event with his wife, who is also very sweet.

The picture on the left is of Chuck Lamb a.k.a. The Dead Body Guy and me. He is a friend of mine and was featured last week on TMZ for all of the publicity he has been getting. The picture on the right is of two of the dancers from the event and myself posing in front of the roof-top pool.

Red Carpet

I walked my first red carpet last night and it was amazing! They announced me and I was escorted to the middle of the red carpet by a Mega TV back drop. I paused there while a bunch of photographers took tons of pictures. It was such a cool feeling! Then I went into the event which was on the rooftop of the Standard Hotel. It was a beautiful event with entertainment, opened bar and delicious food. I chatted with a lot of really interesting people and was invited to a Red Carpet movie premiere next weekend! At the end of the evening, I was given a gift bag that contained a candle, key chain, CDs, DVDs, several Mega TV items and pedicure lotion. It was a really fun event!

The picture is of my friend, actress Jody Raymond, and myself in one of the cool water-bed chairs at the rooftop party.

Press Release

I went yesterday morning to get my nails done for the first time since my senior prom! I figured after I read the press release that I posted below, that I should look my best on Wednesday night for the Red Carpet event.

CLICK HERE!

Movies

There is one movie theater in California that gives free movie tickets to members of the Screen Actors Guild, so today I went and saw "Across the Universe" and "Heartbreak Kid" for free. Both movies were good. "Across the Universe" had beautiful cinematography and the music was awesome. I would recommend it if you are a fan of musicals or of the director, Julie Taymore

"Heartbreak Kid" was really funny but really raunchy. On a raunchy scale from "Aladdin" to "Superbad" I would rank it about 2 notches under "Superbad". Put it this way, a family with 3 kids about ages 7-13 got up and took their kids out about 8 minutes into the movie. I enjoyed it until the last minute, but I was not a fan of the ending.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my cousin ANNE:)

Duel/Benihana

So I got a call yesterday from the casting director of "Duel"! She said that I was one of the favorites and that she had a few more questions for me. I answered her questions and she said that "we would be in touch", whatever that means. It made me feel good to be one of the favorites.

In the evening yesterday my friend took me to Benihana's for a pre-birthday dinner. He was going to come to my party next weekend, but he booked a job doing lights on a cruise ship and leaves in a few days, so I got to celebrate a few days early. It was a lot of fun. The picture is of the onion volcano that is a staple at Benihana's.

Commercials

Yesterday I went to a seminar at the Screen Actors Guild about commercial contracts, payments, residuals and rules. It was very informative. One thing that many actors forget is that their career is a business. They are often either not informed or mis-informed and depend heavily on agents and managers for the business side of things, but I like to know what is going on. I learned many things about negotiation tactics and what is okay and not okay to request when a job has been booked. I am very glad I went and I feel it was very productive. It is nice that the guild offers seminars like this for its members.

After the seminar I went to invited dress rehearsal of my roommate's play. Invited dress rehearsal means that it is the last rehearsal before previews start and the cast is aloud to invite friends and family for free. It is also usually advertised in the community. The play was great and the whole cast did a great job. There were a lot of older people in the audience so couples who couldn't hear were repeating lines to their spouses which was really funny commentary. Afterward the audience left and the cast got notes. I'm going to see it again in a few days on opening night and I can't wait to see what is different!

Dance

Yesterday I felt like I was cramming for a dance quiz. I took a really intense ballet class followed by a really intense jazz class. It felt good to be back in dance and I hope all this prep helps me with my audition on the 17th. After three hours of dance, I work up this morning with sore muscles. It is a good sore, though, the kind that makes you feel like you are accomplishing something.

The other cool thing is that the woman who taught my jazz class works at ABC in LA by day and she knows a lot of people that I know from when I worked in ABC's casting office in New York! Such a small world!

Duel Interview

The Duel Gameshow interview yesterday was crazy! I had no idea how specific of a "type" of contestant they were looking for. They wanted really energetic, competitive, cutthroat people. All of the questions they asked were very pointed and leading questions that garnered responses that were what they wanted the feel of the show to be. Also, there was a fairly difficult trivia written test, which I passed:) There were questions about science, health, history, politics, pop culture, wine, theater, and other random things. It was all in all quite a fun experience.

Then I drove up to the table read for episode 101 of "The Riches" and when I got to the production office, I was handed the scripts for episode 101 AND 102. SURPRISE, a double table read! It was the first time we had ever done that, but it was kind of cool, because it is a two part episode and at the end of 101 I wanted to know what happened in 102:) I am really hoping to get a part on the show this season!

Interview

I have an interview today for a brand new game show called "Duel". I know that it is trivia based and that there are cash prizes, but that is all of the information that I have. I will write more afterward. This afternoon I am driving up to the studios where "The Riches" is filmed for a table read during crew lunch. It is actually a great gig being the table reader and I really hope it lands me a role on the show:)

Great Week

This was a great week for my apartment. One of my roommates booked an international Samsung Internet commercial. He is also in a production of "Crimes of the Heart" at the Long Beach Playhouse which opens this weekend.

My other roommate signed a contract to Salmon Fish in Alaska next fishing season as part of a Deadliest Catch type show and got a REALLY nice advance for signing in addition to the money he will make for doing the show as well as back-end residuals.

I not only got invited to my first red carpet premiere but I also was called to audition for the role of the Magic Carpet in Walt Disney's 30 Minute Aladdin show that plays in the California Adventure Theme Park. I've seen the show and it would be a GREAT role for me. The audition is on the 17th, earlier in the day than the red carpet event, so next week is going to be filled with brush up dance classes and such. Even though the park is a little far from where I live, it would be awesome to be doing live theater for a good living every day!:)

When it rains it pours! We all had really slow summers, but now that LA is back in full swing, we are all doing well.

Red Carpet

I got invited to my first red carpet event! When I first moved to LA I auditioned for a movie called "Horrorween". I got cast in it but the release date has been moved back a year and in the mean time, all of the cast members have been invited to several really cool events, and this is one of them.

On October 17th I will be attending a red carpet event as a Spanish Television station goes national to Direct TV. It is a formal event and I don't know much else about it except that I was aloud to invite two guests whose names also got put on the event list. (Normally it would be my name +2, but since this is a big deal, they have to make sure everyone there is supposed to be there)

I will write more about it after the event!:)

PARTY!

My birthday is in 15 days, so my friend Jody Raymond and I have been busy planning a birthday/fall party. It is going to be held in a park (I'm scouting parks tomorrow) and we plan to carve pumpkins, and play Halloween themed games. Yesterday I made a pinata and bunch of lollipop ghosts. It is going to be on October 21st and we are both super excited:)

Set Sunday

One of my roommates is in a production of "Crimes of the Heart" and yesterday was set Sunday. Set Sunday is when the theater carpenters tear down the set from the previous show and build the set for the show that opens next. The whole cast and family and friends were all helping move, remove, clean and organize. It was a lot of fun. Every time I am in a show or even just helping a friend with a show they are doing I know why I'm an actor and I remember how much I love the theater.:)

Hollywood!

Last night my friend Jared and I went to a bar by where he lives in Hollywood. We met a friend of his there who invited us to watch the Florida/West Virginia game. His friend is an actor who took some time away from the business to work as a sports agent. If it is possible, he is a more outgoing person than I am!

I am used to being to one in the group of friends I'm with to initiate conversation with other tables if we all seem to be cheering for the same team or if they keep looking over like they want us to share the food we ordered etc. This guy, talks to EVERYONE. And not just talks to them, he goes and sits at other tables, invites random people to our table and even poses for tourist pictures as if he is someone famous!

It was a really fun night and I met a lot of cool people. By the end of the evening, our party of three was a party of eight!

The Riches

Yesterday morning I got a call at 7:40 to go to a last minute table read for season 2 of "The Riches". It was really fun and a lot of people from Fox and FX were there. Since I am not going back to stand-in now that I have an agent and have worked as an actor in LA, I am really hoping to get a speaking part in an episode of "The Riches" this season.

Check Engine Light

My check engine light is on AGAIN! I have to drive all the way back to the mechanic's today to see what's wrong with the car. It is most likely just a connector on what he fixed last week, but I really thought it was fixed! When I called my mechanic to see what he thought could be wrong, he said "well, if I can't figure it out, I will just get rid of your check engine light!" He was kidding but at this point since I just got the car fixed I'm hoping it is nothing!

Ellen Degeneres

Last week on the Ellen Degeneres show, she had a five year old actor named Pete Riggins on her show. He is in a Kaiser Permanente commercial. I would really like to be a guest on her show so I sent her the link to my commercial and reasons why I would make a good guest.

If anyone happens to know some of her people, let me know and I will have my people call her people! :)

Friends/BURN

Yesterday was a lot of fun for me because I got to see three friends who I haven't seen in awhile. I got up this morning and had juice with a friend that I met recently, but don't see often. He is a film maker and an actor so we always share success stories.

After that I went and had tea with my friend Jody from the writing class that I used to take. We had girl talk for about an hour and a half.

By the time I drove back to my area, it was about dinner time so I met my friend Sasha, who moved here a week ago from New York, at a restaurant. She and I interned together at CBS in New York several years ago and I gave her all the information I could think of that might help her get started in Los Angeles.

Then I came home and I was cleaning the kitchen with my roommates. I was washing dishes from yesterday and one of my roommates decided to help out by heating water in a pan of yesterday's grease. I didn't know the burner was on so right after I finished the dishes and he started to wash out the pan, I grabbed the burner tops to wash them and one was scalding hot. I burned three fingers and my thumb! I don't think I've ever been burned that badly, even with a curling iron. I had my fingers in a bucket of ice for awhile but now they are good enough to type with, hence this blog:)

YOGA

When I lived in New York City I used to get up in the morning, especially in the winter and take a Bikram Yoga class. Bikram Yoga is also called Hot Yoga because the room it is practiced in is heated to a dry 110 degrees. It used to wake me up, get my blood flowing, and help keep me warm against the city winter.

Since I have been in LA I have not done yoga for two reasons. Reason one is that it is so hot out here that if I get my blood that warm in the morning it is just too hot. The second reason is because the studios out here aren't the same atmosphere as the ones in New York City and they are not nearly as relaxing.

Yesterday I realized that my local gym has regular yoga in the mornings and so I went to class to see how I liked yoga outside of the heat. Turns out, I have really missed yoga a lot and it felt really good to get back into it. I went again this morning and it just feels great to stretch and release all of the bad energy that we carry from traffic and stress.

Car is Fixed!

So after I spend two days at the mechanic's getting my catalyst converter, oxygen sensors and latch to my glove box fixed, I went out to my car yesterday morning and it would barley start! I drove all the way back to the mechanics and he said "oh. you're battery is dead." 20 minutes later my car was fixed and I was back on my way :) He has been really cool about charging me pretty much just what the parts cost and now my car is as good as new. If anyone in LA needs a mechanic, let me know and I will give you his number!!!!!

Weekend

My mom was in town visiting me this weekend so Saturday I took her to the mall in The Valley. She and I made an interesting observation that I think a lot of people know is true, but never really stop to think about.

We were not looking for anything in particular so we went into several different types of stores. At the clothing stores, we didn't get great service, as we were both wearing jeans and t-shirts. Even though mine was a Lucky Brand T and hers was from Macy's, apparently we didn't look like "buyers". We did end up buying clothing and once at the register we were asked if we found everything okay, but most of the stores we were shopping usually give better service. During the shopping process you have a salesperson nearby getting you different sizes and telling you how you look when you are trying on clothes, but we only had each other. It is like that scene from "Pretty Woman."

When we went to make-up stores and the make-up counters in the department stores, we had salespeople all over us, as my mom always wears pretty eye make-up and I wear pretty eye make-up when I go out. Since we both had it on, we must have looked like potential buyers.

Sunday we went to an expo at the Anaheim Convention center and Suzanne Somers was the Keynote speaker. My mom is a big fan of hers so she was excited to hear her speak. After the speech, Somers was in her booth signing autographs so we got the chance to talk with her. She was really nice and took time to talk with all of her fans. Also, she is really passionate about the causes she speaks about. My favorite part of the expo was this all woman's gym that gave salsa class demonstrations and hula hoop class demonstrations that you could participate in.

I had a great weekend with my mom and I hope my family has the opportunity to visit me out here more often!

P.S. ONE MONTH UNTIL MY BIRTHDAY! :)

Power Outage Article

Here is the promised power outage article. It is in the Daily Record Today:)

http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070916/LIFE/709160340/1004

TV/Radio

I was at a house party last night in Hollywood and the Television was on mute and the Radio was playing full blast. Before a lot of people arrived, everyone was sitting around watching the TV but singing along to the music. Finally I asked the host why both pieces of electronic equipment were in use at the same time and he said, "I do this all the time. The radio is boring without something to watch". I still don't know how to take that explanation because if what is on TV doesn't go with the music, it doesn't make any sense to me! If anyone has an opinion about this, I would love to hear it because I am at a loss!

Updates

Mouse update: So after the first night we saw the mouse in the bedroom, we found little mouse "gifts" in the bedroom the next day but we haven't seen or heard from the mouse since then. I think he heard my wish to go away and ran back out the way he came:)



Slim Jim update: I haven't heard anything about my Slim Jim audition. Unfortunately, my agent has been MIA for the past few days and there is something wrong with his phone system. When I call a phone company recording says "all circuits are busy, try again later". Basically, I am still waiting as I have gotten no feedback, good or bad.

Bed, Bath and Beyond

Bed, Bath and Beyond is officially my new favorite store. A friend of mine is getting married in two months and the couple registered for gifts at Bed, Bath and Beyond. When I went to Bed Bath and Beyond in the Beverly Center to buy their gifts, every employee there was friendly and helpful.

I went to customer service to find out the process for buying off the registry and she printed a copy of it for me, told me to take it to the front with me when I make my purchases so they can scan it so the couple won't get 2 of the same gift and she offered to gift wrap the presents in wedding paper for free.

I set out through the store with the registry in my hand and before I even rounded the corner, a sales associate asked if I needed help finding anything. I told her which items on the registry I was looking for and she not only told me where to find them, she escorted me to where they were.

After she left me, a manager came over and asked if I had found everything okay since I had the registry in my hand and he said the he wanted to make sure that I knew they would gift wrap the items for me if I wanted!

Then waiting in line, a cashier from the next register walked over and said directly to me, as I was the next guest, "I can help you over here". Most store the cashier shout from the register "next guest" and then there is a mad dash by the people near the end of lines who clearly aren't next.

I am not a huge fan of shopping so when the experience is this pleasant and the associates are very kind and helpful, I think it is worth mentioning. I would highly recommend BED BATH AND BEYOND for anyone's bed, bath and beyond shopping needs.:)

September 11th

In Loving Memory.

We Will Always Remember...

Mouse In My House

For real:( I have not had the pleasure of having a mouse inside since I was a young child. I remember the one time a mouse got inside my mom pulled my sister and I onto a table with her and we waiting there until the mouse ran away. That was when I was about 4. Since then, no mice, until last night! The worst part, it is in the bedroom of my one bedroom apartment and I sleep on the bottom bunk. Hopefully it will find a way back out the way it came.

Theater Audition/48 Hour Movie

Yesterday morning I auditioned for a production of A.R. Gurney's "Post Mortem" in Los Angeles and the best part of the show is that the play runs in Los Angeles for 3 months and then goes on a tour to Germany, France, and the UK! I would love an all expense paid trip and a chance to perform in Europe at the beginning of 2008! :) I really hope I get it.

After my audition I went to help a friend of a friend as a production assistant on a film project for a 48 hour film competition. It is sponsored by a credit card company and this production team is one of the finalists so they have to make a 3 minute short in 48 hours.

I met a lot of really cool people and I learned a lot about being a crew member. Not only did I PA, I worked with two other PAs to set one of the location rooms so I had experience as a Set Dresser. I helped change up a Jib Camera, which makes me a Grip, and I learned how to coil a cord during the wrapping of a room as an Electrician would. That's the fun of working on independent films: everyone pitches in with anything that needs to be done, even if it isn't in their job description.

All in all it was a really fun, successful, exhausting day:)

Slim Jim audition

My agent called me at about 11:45 this morning to tell me that I had an audition for a Slim Jim commercial today at 1:45. I was at the gym so I ran home, showered, got dressed and drove to Santa Monica, where the audition was.

The audition was two lines of dialogue and we had partners. It was a lot of fun and I think it went really well. Monday and Tuesday are the callbacks so keep your fingers crossed! I would love to shoot another commercial:)

MEXICO

FINALLY got power back after about 84 hours! The fridge was messy to clean out but it was wonderful to take a warm shower. Now, as promised, my San Diego/Mexico blog!

My roommates, our friend Jamie and I all went to the Dodgers/Padres game, which the Dodgers won in a 5-0 shut out. After the game we drove to the border.

We parked in a lot specifically for people who wanted to walk across the border, and that's what we did. As we were about to cross over we saw a teenager who had thrown a rock at some man's car get tackled to the ground, which was pretty scary.

Once that excitement was over we walked into Mexico. We shopped and looked around right across the boarder and then we went a little way into town. We sampled some food and I bartered for a few souvenirs. Right now 11.5 Pesos = 1 American dollar. There were a few stray dogs and we saw a donkey painted to look like a zebra.

The thing that amazed me the most was how children who looked to be about 7 years old were both skilled street performers and excellent sales people! I had a lot of fun in the few hours we were there. As we were leaving the boarder guard asked me where I was born and before I knew it we were back in California.

The First picture is of Jamie and Me in Tijuana:) The Second is of Jamie, Daniel, Me and Cazzey at the Dodgers/Padres Game:)

Blackout Continued

First I would like to say thank you to my Florida (formerly Morris County) reader for the nice comment about my 200th Blog:) That made my day:) :) :)

Now, blackout update. I am again at the library writing this as we have now been without power for almost 41 hours! There are thousands of people in California without power and DWP (the division of water and power) has said they "hope to have the problem fixed by Friday!" That's at least 5 days of cold showers, canned food, 96 degrees inside my apartment and pitch black nights! (the emergency lighting system ran out of battery about 5 hours into the blackout) It really makes you appreciate the little things.

I will have a full article with more details published in the Daily Record as soon as the lights come back on. Also as promised I will post pictures and have a full report of my spur of the moment trip to Mexico!

BLACKOUT

Welcome to my 200th blog entry!:)

I turned on my computer yesterday to post a blog about my trip to San Diego and the power went out! I have been without power in my apartment now for about 15 hours. Without power there is no Internet, no place to charge my cell phone, no television, no lights and worst of all in the 112 degree heat, no fans! The electric company is not sure when the power will be restored! I am at the library right now writing this blog and charging my phone. I will save the San Diego blog for when the power comes back because after the Padres/Dodgers game we went to Mexico and I have pictures and lots to write.

In the mean time, my Labor Day was a lot of fun. I went to a BBQ with one of my roommates and a bunch of our deaf friends. We grilled and talked (in sign language) and then played an awesome game softball in the park. The BBQ was in Pasadena and the park was beautiful. My team won 14/13. I hope everyone had an awesome Labor Day and I promise as soon as the power comes back I will post another blog.

Swimming

Yesterday I decided to combat the California Heat Wave by SWIMMING! I haven't been swimming in forever! The best part was who I went swimming with. I went with fellow Randolph High School attendee, Sean Finn, who just moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in Music Producing. He is temporarily living in a really nice apartment complex with a really nice pool so we swam and chilled by the pool for hours. It was like deja vu and we reminisced about the old days of being 16 and in high school.

I'm going to San Diego for the Padres/Dodgers game today with my roommates and our friend Jamie. More on that tomorrow.

Responses/New Audition

In response to the comment about checking my gas cap, I did what you suggested and the light is still on. Any other ideas?

In response to the comments about my commercial, that's awesome! I'm so glad it is running on a lot of stations. Also, the answer to "did you get a sidekick for doing the commercial" is unfortunately, no. I hear they are really cool phones. I think it is funny because friends of mine call me and ask about certain features and pricing and I know nothing about them because I had to give the one that's in my pocket in the commercial back to the props master at the end of the shoot!

I had an audition yesterday for the theater that is inside of a HUGE American Girl Doll store out here! It went really well. I sang and chatted with the casting director and theater manager for awhile. I think it would be a lot of fun to get back into musical theater, especially for kids! I heard from a friend of mine who worked as an actress in the one in NYC that they pay REALLY well. I hope to hear back from them. I haven't heard anything about my audition from Monday.

T-Mobile Commercial

So I saw my T-Mobile commercial 3 times last night!:) That means it is running again. Watch for it and let me know if you see it and what station it was on! I'm super excited because it has been on hold for the past 13 weeks, meaning it was only running on the Internet. I was as excited to see it again tonight as I was the first time it was running. I'm so happy!

Audition

My audition for "The Mousetrap" went really well. Now it is just a waiting game.

Unfortunately last night when I was driving back from the audition, a check engine light came on in my car. Nothing seems to be wrong with it but I'm going to have to take it into the shop on Friday anyway.

Today my roommate's friends from home will be in town so we are going to take them to do touristy things like the Walk-of-Fame and the Chinese theater.

Rest

Today I am spending the day catching up. I have a few friends to see and I am going to get errands run and I plan to get some reading done.

I spent all day yesterday at a dance audition that was a lot of fun and I learned a lot from. In the evening friends of mine from Costa Mesa came to LA and my roommates and I took them to our other friends house and we played board games and had a BBQ!

Tomorrow I am auditioning for a play called "The Mousetrap: a play in two acts". Wish me luck:)

Super Busy!

This summer was so slow and then suddenly this week everything is happening at once! My roommate got cast in "Crimes of the Heart", so he starts rehearsals this weekend. Next Monday I have an audition for "The Mousetrap: A play in two acts" so I will be reading the play and working on my British accent this weekend. Also this weekend I have a really big dance audition that I have to prep for and I have several important meetings this afternoon!

Also, EVERYONE keeps calling me to say that they saw me in the movie "Superbad," which is awesome because I haven't talked to some of them in ages. Huh. This must be what famous people feel like!:)

Crimes of the Heart

Last night I went to audition for the play "Crimes of the Heart" at the Long Beach Playhouse. I thought my audition went really well and I really like the play, but unfortunately, the play runs during the Thanksgiving Holiday. I will be home for the holiday, so I won't be able to take a role, if offered. It was a good experience and I met some cool actors. One of my roommates went with me to the audition to try out for one of the male roles. He said that his audition went really well too! Hopefully he will get a part.

Dedication

Last night a friend of mine who works for the Academy took me to a screening of Mandy Moore's new movie, "Dedication". Billy Crudup is also in the movie and he gives an amazing performance. I am usually not big on romantic comedies, but the movie was really cute.

I also went and saw the movie "Superbad" yesterday, which I am in for about three seconds! There is a scene where the three boys go to The Good Shopper grocery store to buy alcohol and I am the first cashier that you see! I totally thought I was going to get cut out so I didn't tell anyone that I worked on it, but a friend of mine, who I haven't talked to since college called me and said he saw me in it! I went to see it and sure enough, there I am:)

Thunder Road Productions

Yesterday I worked all day in the office of a photographer friend of mine. He owns his own business and from time to time I go do some data entry and filing to make some extra money and help him out.

In the evening, I went to a party. My roommate works at Thunder Road Production company, which is an independent contract company for Warner Brothers. They had a going away party for one of their employees at the Cornet Pub in Hollywood. It was a lot of fun meeting all of the people he works with and talks about. Also, the pub was a super cool little dive bar!

T-Mobile Commercial

Somebody posted my T-Mobile commercial on YouTube and one of my friends showed me how to take the link for my myspace page and my website! Now you can watch my T-Mobile commercial directly on my website! Go to www.jaclynfriedlander.com and it is right there on my home page:) ENJOY!

CSI: Miami

When I first got to Los Angeles, I worked on the TV show CSI:Miami so even though I've worked with the regular cast, I can still get lost in the episodes, except for last night. The episode was about a scalping murder, and the murderer ended up being Matthew Morrison, who I worked with when I lived in New York City. He is a friend of one of my old bosses in New York and he was singing at a benefit that I stage managed. It was a little hard for me to believe that Matthew Morrison, a guy who I hung out with for a day who was super sweet and really nice was a scalping murderer!

Health and Fitness Expo

Yesterday I attended a Health and Fitness Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center. It was sponsored by Channel 4 and Telemundo in Los Angeles and it was a lot of fun. I entered several drawings to win Disney tickets, a cruise and an XBox.

There were "Days of Our Lives" actors signing autographs, ballroom and belly dancing shows, and Turtle Talk from Disney gave performances every hour. There were health testing booths for blood pressure and lung capacity and booths about every ailment giving away curing products. There was also a pharmacy booth and I got a free thermometer:)

Several gyms were there recruiting people and I threw a football, kicked a soccer ball and tried my luck in a $10,000 virtual golf tournament. Expos at the convention center are always a great way to spend a day.

Reno 911

Yesterday I went to lunch with a friend of mine and we went to a trendy LA cafe called 'Toast'. At one point during the meal my friend leaned over and whispered "that guy from Reno 911 is at the table behind us." I casually looked back and sure enough there sat Cedric Yarbough the actor who plays Deputy S. Jones on the show!



In the evening I went one block farther in my neighborhood than I usually go to meet a friend for coffee and I discovered that there is a Jamba Juice near my house:) My friend works behind the scenes on the TV game show 'The Singing Bee' so I heard stories about the show and happily drank Jamba Juice!

Earthquake

So apparently last night around 2AM there was a Level 4 Earthquake in Los Angeles that not only rattled and shook my building but was large enough to knock objects off shelves in home and stores. The reason I say 'apparently' is because I managed to sleep through it! My roommates felt it as did several of my friends who were awake at that hour, but I was fast asleep and didn't even wake up. As far as I've heard, there were fortunately no injuries.

Last Class

Last night was the last night of my scene study class. My partner and I did well in our scene and the whole class has come a long way since the first week. Richard Robichaux, the teacher, is wonderful. He taught me a lot and I can't wait until his class starts up again.

Cold Case

My agent submitted me for a role on Cold Case yesterday. That means that in a few days we will find out if I get to audition for the show:) Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Odd

Yesterday my roommate's shark-fish, Duff, who has been living in this apartment for over 3 years tragically passed away unexpectedly. The cause of death is unknown, possibly old age, as 3 is pretty old for a fish. The really crazy thing is that my sister, not knowing that our shark-fish was dead called me to tell me that a real shark's tooth that she got when she was in Florida fell off her desk and worked it's way into her foot after she accidentally stepped on it. I found it to be an odd coincidence that both shark related incidents happened on the same day.
Anyway, RIP Duff!

Last night was my friend Jared's birthday. I know him from working on "The Riches" last season and I attended his beach themed house party. It was a lot of fun and my friend Megan and I beat our friends Josh and Daniel 3 out of 4 games of Foosball! Not that many people participated in the beach theme, which seems to be a trend for LA theme parties. It has been my observation that 1/2 or less of theme party attendees actually dress for the theme. It was a good night regardless.

The Key of Be

Last night I was involved in the first table reading of a new script by an author named Laura Shamas. It was a lot of fun and the script was really good. It was the first draft of a script about a rock star and his two 40 something backup singers. It was very inspiring and empowering for older women. I met some very talented actors and had a wonderful time.

Scene Study

I spent a good chunk of yesterday working with my scene partner for the scene study class that I have tonight. We are doing a scene from David Mamet's play, "Speed-the-Plow". It is a really challenging scene because a lot of it is wordy but we talked about character intentions and all that fun acting stuff.

I am waiting to hear back about the audition that I had last Friday. I got an e-mail from the director on Monday night saying that he just finished auditions so he would be making his decisions by Friday of this week. I really hope I get the part. The script reads well and the part that I auditioned for fits me. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

His Girl Friday

On Saturday night I went with a bunch of the girls I worked with on "The Riches" to see "His Girl Friday" at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Every weekend the cemetery invites people to come with blankets and snacks and watch a classic under the stars. It was a lot of fun.

Yesterday I went down to Costa Mesa for a BBQ and hung out with a bunch of friends and played cards and a game called 'Apples to Apples'. If you've never played it, I highly recommend it! My dad surprised me because he came in town for business and called me to meet up so he came along with my friends and me.

It was a very relaxing weekend and I hope to have a busy week!

Audition Update

My audition yesterday went really well. I read the scene once and then the director gave me an adjustment and I did it again. He said that I did well and asked me if I had any questions. I would really like to work on the film, as the character is someone who I can relate to and the project seems like it would be a lot of fun.

Last night I went to the largest remaining drive-in movie theater in the country, which is located in East LA with an SUV full of my roommates and friends. We saw 'The Simpsons Movie', 'Transformers' and 'I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry'. They were all good movies. That drive-in is a great deal because it is $7.50 per person in the the car and they encourage you to stay for 3 movies! Also, they have a concessions stand but you are also permitted to bring your own snacks/drinks!

Audition

I have an audition for an independent film today. Wish me luck!:)

Not So Glamorous

A good friend of mine was involved in a serious accident on the set of "The Unit" yesterday. The scene involved broken candy glass and the firing of blanks from hand guns. During one of the takes, when the gun was fired the blank exploded and he got shot in the hand.

He said that he felt a sharp pain in his hand, which was fortunately covering his head, and when he brought his hand down to look at it, it was gushing blood in 3 places. He called for the set medic who helped slow the bleeding and advised him to get his hand x-ray ed to make sure there was not a piece of the shattered brass casing inside.

Sure enough, the x-ray showed that he had a C-shaped object embedded in his hand. He got a shot and has to have surgery tomorrow or Friday to have it removed!

The moral of the story is that just because someone tells you something is safe, still take precautions to protect yourself.

Still no word. . .

I am still waiting to hear back from two people about potential opportunities. In my opinion, that is the hardest part of this business. You have something big that may happen, but you don't want to talk about it in case it doesn't. Secretly you hope it does and while the hoping is fun, the waiting drives me crazy!

While waiting, yesterday I had lunch with my friend Athena, who I worked with on a film for the Hallmark Channel. It was really nice to see her, as we haven't worked together in awhile.

As I was leaving, my friend Sean Finn from when I went to Randolph High School called to see what I was up to because he just moved to LA and is working at becoming a music producer. We went and got things for his new apartment and then looked at pictures from his trip across the country.

I wonder which of my friends will be next to move to Los Angeles...

Busy Week

I have a lot of stuff going on this week; an audition for an independent film that I submitted myself for, a training seminar, acting class, and I am supposed to hear back about two things that would be potentially HUGE for my career. Keep your fingers crossed for me and as they come to be definite opportunities, I will post more details!

Day Off

Yesterday was a "play day" for me. My friend Justin, who I used to work with in NYC, moved to Las Vegas about the same time I moved to Los Angeles. He was in Orange County yesterday for a ballroom dancing competition so I went down there to watch. It was so amazing to watch him compete. The dancers were all so good. It was like watching the movie"Take the Lead," but for real.

In the lobby there were tons of dance costumes for sale along with jewelry and shoes for the competitors to buy. Let me just say that those outfits and accessories are NOT cheap!

He had some free time throughout the day so we hung out by the pool at the hotel where the competition was and we went to lunch and played cards. It was a really nice, relaxing day.

You Tube

Somebody has posted my T-Mobile commercial on YouTube! It's really cool because I was able to add it to my myspace page. Also, I read the message board about what people thought of the spot and all of the people that it encouraged to buy a sidekick phone! :)

Busy

It has been a busy few days for me. I have had a lot of coffee/lunch meetings with friends and I met with a manager last night. The scene study class I have been taking starts back up tonight too. Since I've been back from my week vacation things have really picked up. Hopefully more news to follow...

Flight of the Conchords

I was hanging out at my friend Scott's house last night playing 'Guitar Hero' and watching films he's working on editing. He told me that a girl we used to work with in New York City is on a really funny TV show called 'Flight of the Conchords' so we watched an episode and as usual, she is so funny. Her name is Kristen Schaal and you can even tell by her IMDB picture what a cool, funny person she is. If you have HBO and get the chance, watch it!

Today I have a meeting with a manager and I am supposed to be getting a copy of the independent film that I'm auditioning for in a week to read over. It's only Tuesday and it's already been a good week!

TOGA PARTY

My roommate and I hosted a toga party last night and it was so much fun. The first picture is of my friends Jody and Jennifer on either side of my roommate, Daniel and the second picture is of Jodi and me.

SAG President

I had to drop something off at the Hollywood branch of the Screen Actors Guild today and on the way out I ran into the president of the Screen Actors Guild! He wants to run for reelection so I signed his nomination petition. He was really nice and it was cool to meet the man behind the 'letters from the president' that are in issue of the Screen Actors Guild Magazine.

Also, I got an audition for an independent film that I submitted myself for! The audition is in two weeks, but I'm super excited. More details when details come:)

Fun and Discovery with Bubbles

I found a breakdown today looking for replacement actors in a show called "Fun and Discovery with Bubbles". It performs at hospitals, libraries, schools and public events. I would love to be a part of a show like that because when I was young I used to be in a group that performed whatever show we had just finished rehearsing at the local children's hospital. I loved that experience because it brings theater to people who can't go out and see it. Also, this is a children's show, so it would be a way to introduce kids who usually don't go to the theater to a show that they may love and then develope a love for the art. I REALLY hope they call me in for an audition!:)

Casting Director Workshop

The Screen Actors Guild has a program called the Casting Access Project where actors sign up for free cold-reading workshops with casting directors. I attended one yesterday and it went really well. I got a cute scene that I could relate to and my partner was pretty good. We did the scene twice and the casting director seemed pleased. I always like it when I've done at least one productive thing for my career per day.

Residual Check are Fun

I got my first set of residual paychecks from my T-Mobile commercial in the mail today. I felt the envelope and though, "this is really thick". When I opened it it was because there were 5 checks inside!

One check for Industrial use, one for regular TV usage, a check for one year of Internet usage, one for class A network use, and one for cable use! Besides the industrial and cable, these checks are to from now until 8/27 when if they play the spot I will get more money!

It is crazy how much money you can make from one job, but at the same time, I have not even had another audition since my callback for this commercial. It feels really good to be a working actor!

Two things. One is that my commercial is running all over ABC.com! If you are trying to watch Grey's Anatomy or anything like that on ABC, every couple of times it is my T-Mobile spot that they show during the "limited commercial breaks". Also, sometimes when you go to ABC.com right now my commercial loads on the home page!:)

The second thing is that last night I threw an impromptu dinner party with the girl in the apartment upstairs for a few new people who just moved into my building. We ate, played games, and it was a lot of fun. The building as a whole is getting younger and younger so my roommates and I are making some friends our age and it is really cool!

You know the feeling you get when you've had an awesome vacation but ran around the entire time seeing people or seeing the sights and then you come home so tired? That's the place that I'm at right now. I had such a great trip that now I need a vacation :)

Today I plan to do all the catch up errands like the bank and the grocery store because I've pretty much been sleeping, going to the gym and unpacking since I got home. Starting tomorrow I have seminars and things to go to and hopefully I will start having a bunch of auditions this week. Supposedly everything starts back up after the 4th of July!

Back in LA

The rest of my trip was great. I went to see "Spring Awakening" which won the Tony for Best Musical this year and it TOTALLY deserved it! It was so well done. The music was great, the acting was great, the lighting design was fabulous and I love it!

I hung out with all of my old friends and I visited all of my old favorite places and I even got to see my old doorman! :) I wanted to go to the Hell's Gate Bridge in Queens but I ran out of time so I will have to go there first next trip. I am super relaxed and ready for things to get busy acting wise in LA. Everything starts back up after the 4th of July and I'm ready to go!

The picture above is from the new M&M store in Time Square.

Les Miserables

I made it safely to New York City and last night I went to see Les Miserables. It was so magnificent. I have wanted to see that show on stage since I was in 8th grade so I really enjoyed myself. Earlier in the day I met up with a friend of mine who I met doing the play "Hair" years ago and I went out for coffee with another friend of mine. I spent the late evening at Mr. Bigg's bar on 43rd and 10th singing karaoke. When I lived in NYC I went to Bigg's every Tuesday night. It has been slightly remodled but it is still a great place.

Today I spent the 4th of July with my best friend from high school at my best friend from college's BBQ. We got up to the rooftop to watch fireworks over the East River just as it started raining really hard. It has already been such a great trip and I have two more days to enjoy:)

HAPPY 4th OF JULY!

Blast from the past

After spending a wonderful day with my parents I went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse with my grandparents. After dinner, we drove through my old neighborhood in Ohio and I saw the house that I used to live in! We also drove by the elementary school that I attended until the end of 4th grade. It was really weird seeing everything and I had a strange sense of deja voo. Some things were changed but other things looked exactly the same. I leave my parents house at 3AM to go to New York City:)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY

I flew to Ohio to visit my family for my Daddy's birthday. I hung out with my sister, both sets of my grandparents and my parents. We had a great day, went to lunch, my Mom made an AMAZING cake and then we saw some fireworks off in the distance.

I will be in Ohio for one more day and then I am spending the 4th of July week in New York City. I will post blogs every chance I get!

Acme

One of my roommates works at ACME Literary and Talent Agency in LA and he is currently on a fishing trip in Alaska. A fishing trip just like one out of the TV show, "The Deadliest Catch." Anyway, he is up in Alaska and called us from a pay phone and to make a long story short we (my other roommate and I) were asked to deliver something to ACME to be taken up to Alaska for him.

When we went into the office I was pleasntly surprised. Usually going into an agency is a tense, high pressure situation but the ACME office was SOOO friendly. We met a couple of our roommates co-workers, sat and chatted for awhile, hung out with one of the employee's adorable 2 year old daughter, delivered the stuff and then left. It was a fun little delivery trip and it was cool to put faces with names of the people he works with that he refers to when telling office stories!

SimpleTruths.com

I got this video sent to me in an e-mail and I think everyone needs to watch it. (It takes a minute to load and about two minutes to watch). It is truly inspiring and very touching. It is one of those things that reminds us that a little bit goes a long way and sometimes we get too caught up in our own lives to think of other people.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH IT and then leave me your thoughts!

Have a wonderful day:)

PBS

Yesterday I volunteered to be a phone operator or host during the PBS fundraising drives in Los Angeles. They happen four times a year and I used to help host the PBS drives in Ohio when I lived there. The volunteer coordinator sent me a really nice e-mail and said that they will be having interviews soon to choose who will work at the one in August. I really hope they call me to interview and pick me because working the ones in Ohio was one of my favorite short-term jobs.

So Excited

I can not wait to visit New York City! It looks as though I picked the best week for a vacation. Things have been very slow acting wise because most shows are on hiatus. I have been doing a lot of writing and sending out resumes for the few jobs that there are. Who knows, I may keep up the tradition of not being able to leave LA without booking a job that conflicts with the trip.

There is an impending strike for the writers guild right now that would halt most productions completely in the fall, as without scripts there are no words for actors and without actors there is no need for directors. Hopefully negotiations will go well and things will be busy again after the 4th of July.

Silent Movie

Last night I went to the only remaining Silent Movie Theatre and saw 'Peter Pan' (1924), 'The Inheritance'(1911), and Charlie Chaplin in 'The Adventurer.' It was a really cool experience because it is the only theatre left in the country that plays exclusively silent films. Also, they have a piano and an organ that are played by a gentleman who is 90+ years old and has been playing accompaniment for these films his entire life! He was amazing. He just watched along with the film and changed his piano/organ playing appropriately to what was happening onscreen.

Silent movies are amazing because for being so early, they are extremely well made. The special effects are very advanced and the acting is AMAZING. The actors of that time had to be so precise with their actions, facial expressions and internal life to have the audience understand what was going. It was a very cool experience.

Seminars

Last night I attended a free seminar at the American Film Institute and the guest speakers were Donald Petrie, and John Putch. They are both very interesting directors and I leared a lot. Today I attended another seminar that was part of the same series and the speakers were a commercial casting director and a commercial director.

Things in the business out here are really slow right now for the summer but hopefully everything will start back up in a few weeks. In the mean time I've been working on my writing, meeting up with friends in the business and going to seminars like these. These are the days when being self-motivated as an actor is VERY important.

Daily Record Article

Scott Ginsberg has been wearing a nametag 24/7 for the last 7 years to make the world friendlier. He was recently featured on 20/20 and this week he is featured in my article! CLICK HERE TO READ IT!

Warner Brothers Lot Sale

The Warner Brothers Lot Sale was AWESOME! They were selling props, costumes, furnature etc., all that have been used as props in movies and on TV shows. It really made me wish I had enough money to have my own condo because they had some cool furnature that I would have loved to have but I couldn't get because it wouldn't fit in my one bedroom apartment that I share with two roommates! I did pick up a few cool things, I think the coolest being two prop beer mugs. They are sealed at the top and tinted tan to look like they are full of beer. My roommate got a $450 suit for $45 dollars.

After the sale I had lunch with a friend and when to the Grove/LA farmers market for dinner with another friend! Talk about playing catch up. I had such a great day and I feel like I made up for staying in at least three of my sick days.

Today I am temping for a friend of mine and then attending a seminar at the Amercian Film Institute.

Warner Brother's Lot Sale!

So what I learned in spending most of the last two days trying to organize the alumni meeting is that it is SOOOO hard to get people together in Los Angeles, especially in the summer. Out of all of the invites I sent and reminded and phone called, I got 5 RSVPs and 2 were regrets. That's not so good out of about 25 potential attendees. The event is officially postponed until I get back from New York:\

First thing this morning I am on my way to the first 'Warner Brothers Lot Sale' in 16 years! Apparently there are 2 whole sound stages filled with old movie memorabilia, props, costumes, books etc. that Warner Brothers Studios is selling! It is exclusively for Warner Brothers employees and one guest. One of my roommate is working at a production company at the WB studios so I get to be the guest:) If I see anything cool (which I'm SURE I will,) I'll post about it tomorrow.