Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close up

Ok, that was hilarious and fun.

When I first heard about the documentary "Friends You haven't Met Yet" I knew I had to go to the Dances with Films film festival in Hollywood for the premiere.

I mean how often am I going to be in a move that's in a film festival. My original plan was to fly down there and back in the same day. I was going to have lunch and attend the premiere with Elizabeth who writes this wonderful blog.

My sister Joni decided that would not do and that she was coming with me and we were spending the night at our brother Eds place in the Valley and having some fun. I am so glad I listened to her because we had a blast. There were screw ups and miscues, like any whirlwind trip, but overall it was a hoot, made more so by Joni's presence and energy.

We arrived at the Burbank airport at around 11AM and Joni insisted I wave to the waiting crowds a we walked out of the plane. (Note, there was no one there)

Elizabeth did indeed pick us up and we had a wonderful lunch in Larchmont Village in LA. She told us it was a good place to see stars and though we stared at every passer by, we didn't see any celebrities. Elizabeth could not join us for the film but she dropped us off at the famous Chinese Theatre in Hollywood where the screening would take place. That is hilarious in and of itself. Throngs of people getting their photos taken with celebrity look-alikes and trying on the handprints for size.

When we entered the theatre we had to do the obligatory red carpet walk. At first it was Joni and I just fooling around,

then when Jesse, the director and Chris, the main focus of the film arrived, we did it for real.

Joni was taking our pictures and I was trying to tell her to turn around to see what was behind her, but she didn't notice that she was just one of the paparazzi.

The film itself was great. It was 33 minutes long an included about 6 bloggers like me who post frequently about their personal lives. (here's a link to the trailer that I posted the other day  Friends You Haven't Met Yet clip) I write the blog, I've seen the movie and frankly I'm still not sure why I blog so much or what my own expectations are for what people do with the information I put out there. But I do know it led to a great trip to Hollywood.

I will be getting a copy of the movie in the mail sometime soon. I was supposed to get it afterward, but that was one of our screw ups. We had to get our rental car before the place closed and then could not get back in time for the after party. That was our own stupid fault.

C'est la vie. I'm sure there will be dozens of other Hollywood movie openings for me.

I will do a follow up to include our visit with Brother Ed and trip around the beaches, and Beverly Hills. All in all it was 29 hours of fun. But I was T I R E D on Thursday.

I might have to talk to my agent and cut back on my tour dates.

Goin Hollywood

I am leaving on a jet plane....

Tomorrow morning my sister Joni is accompanying me to Hollywood to watch a movie called "Friends You Haven't Met Yet" about those strange people who blog about their lives.

People like me. People exactly like me.

In fact I am in the movie.

It is so strange to be able to do this. For so many years I just couldn't go anywhere, ever - and that was perfectly ok with me because that was my life. Though I would give everything to have that life back, it is different now. I can do things I couldn't do before. Ironically because of that change, I am free to go watch myself in a movie which involves me writing details about my former life when I didn't have the freedom.

Weird.

Maybe someone should make a movie about that.

Oh wait....

I will report back when I return on Wednesday.

Friends you haven't met yet

Friends you haven't met yet. I guess that's all of you who read this.  Hello friends. 

About a year or so ago I agreed to participate in a study/research project. The grad student Chris Wienberg, is a computer scientist and for reasons I still do not completely understand, was interested in talking to people who blog frequently about their personal lives, which I certainly do. It has something to do with accuracy of mathematically based predictions based on the data scooped up in these blogs by who knows who or what. 

I think my participation, and I suspect others, is based on the fact that we don't know or care what data is scooped up. We are the fallible - and I hope undefinable - humans behind the numbers. I pity the fool who thinks they can target me with any products based on the stories I tell/told about Maggie. Of course it's more complex than advertising, but it's way beyond my pay grade. Chris and his team arrived with cameras and conducted an interview. It was pleasant, but after they left I don't think I heard another thing besides a thank you for participating. I didn't really expect to either.

Then yesterday I received an email advising that the film they made from these interviews is complete. It is entitled "Friends You Haven't Met Yet"  and it has been accepted to premiere at the Dances with Films Film festival at the Chinese 6 theaters in Hollywood on June 3 (my mother's birthday).  He sent me a link to the trailer which is at this website https://vimeo.com/86141216  but of course I had to download it. Hopefully you can watch it below. You can see me opening my front door and hear my voice. 

I have no idea what the movie will reveal. Perhaps we are crazy dinosaurs and the meteorite is heading our way.  I am going to go watch it on June 3. I figured I better get down there for my Hollywood premiere, which will coincide exactly with my Hollywood swansong. 

I'm gonna load up the truck and move to Beverly. Hills that is. Swimmin pools. Movie stars.