PaleyFest 2013

Can you spot us here?

Not only is The Big Bang Theory one of our favorite TV shows, it’s also the #1 sitcom on television. It’s so popular, in fact, that the event celebrating Big Bang at this year’s Paley festival sold-out immediately. Luckily, we got our tickets as soon as they went on sale. We attended the event last Wednesday night.

As I’ve explained many times before on this blog, PaleyFest is an annual film festival that brings together the creative teams of some of the most popular TV shows on the air today. We’ve been going probably 27 of the 28 years we've known each other. This year we attended events honoring Parenthood, The Newsroom, New Girl, and Big Bang. An entire episode or select scenes of the show are screened at each event, followed by an hour-long moderated Q&A with the show's cast and creators. Toward the end of the hour, audience members are invited to ask questions as well.

For the first time this year, Hulu live-streamed the Q&A sessions, which are now available online for free. We could see the Hulu stream as it was being taped. Can you find us in the clip below? Hint: we're sitting in front of the guy standing and asking the question. Halfway through the clip, Tim nudges me and, out of the corner of his mouth, says, “We’re on screen!”—which to him, of course, was far more important than the guy’s question!

You can watch the entire Q&A here. Enjoy!

February/March

It’s been an incredibly busy two months, in both work and play, hence the recent dearth of blog postings. I won’t bore you with the work stuff, but here’s a sampling of some of the fun things we’ve been doing:

Lots of Theater

In early February, Tim and I went to a reading of a two-person work-in-progress play called The Opponent, featuring TV stars Dulé Hill and Donal Logue as a pair of washed-up pugilists. Extremely intimate venue—one of the rehearsal rooms at Culver City’s Kirk Douglas Theater—and interesting performances. Not a bad way to spend part of a gloomy Sunday afternoon.

Two days later, Karen and I saw Sting and his wife Trudie Styler perform in a benefit reading of Twin Spirits, a short play chronicling the highly romantic (and ultimately tragic) love story of German composers Robert and Clara Schumann. John Lithgow narrated while violinist Joshua Bell and others played music from both composers. Judging by the ovation he got before the play even started, Sting was the evening’s big draw. But it was truly Trudie’s night as she gave an emotionally moving performance as Clara who, as a teenager, falls in love with the older Robert and remains faithful to him long after his untimely death. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

Karen and I also saw Jane Fonda play a Beethoven scholar dying of Lou Gehrig’s disease in the Tony-winning drama 33 Variations. The entire cast was terrific, but it was Fonda whom everyone was buzzing about as we left the theater. Her performance was great, plus she looked absolutely fabulous.

Paley Festival

A big part of March is always spent at the Paley Fest, the Paley Center for Media’s star-studded annual celebration of television. Although the two-week festival used to honor the TV shows of our youth, in recent years it’s become mainly a showcase for the most popular programs of the moment. We attended four events this year: Parks and Recreation, Glee, Raising Hope, and a reunion of Judd Apatow’s Undeclared and Freaks & Geeks, two cult favorites that aired in 2001 and 1999.

Parks and Rec was, of course, very funny, with nearly all the cast present. (Though Rob Lowe was absent, everyone insisted he’s staying on the show.) The actors obviously all have great affection for each other and acknowledged that Amy Poehler is their leader.

Glee was the same: lots of cast love and joy about being on such a mega-hit program. I was disappointed that Lea Michele was back-east filming a movie, but almost everyone else was there. Jane Lynch is very attractive in person.

Disappointed, too, that Cloris Leachman didn’t attend the Raising Hope panel, but enjoyed the rest of the cast. We did get to sneak-preview the final episode of the season: a flashback to before Hope was born—very funny!

And speaking of funny, the Apatow reunion was, of course, crazy and profane. Neither Charlie Hunnam, who now stars on Sons of Anarchy, or Oscar-nominated James Franco were there, but they both sent cute videos, which the audience loved. Lots of affectionately funny stories about Franco, in particular. It was wonderful seeing the “freaky” and “geeky” kids (Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jason Segel, Busy Philips, Linda Cardellini, et al.) now all grown-up . . . and, for the most part, extremely rich and famous.

Food!

As an early birthday present, I treated Karen to a Moroccan cooking class at the Beverly Hills Williams-Sonoma a couple of weeks ago. We learned how to make a savory chicken stew (which I made this week at home—yum!), couscous with almonds and apricots, carrot and parsnip salad, and orange-cardmom ice cream. The point of the class, of course, was to get us to buy Williams-Sonoma products; but the food was just amazing, so we easily ignored the sales pitch and concentrated on the meal. I highly recommend trying other cooking events there—some of which are even free!

And, of course, Disneyland

Tim has a ton of vacation time to burn-off at work, so we went to Disneyland one rainy Friday morning, just because we hadn’t been there in a while. The crowds were light and we were in-and-out all within four hours. My kind of TGIF!

March Madness

As often happens, we’ve been having so much fun this month that I haven’t had time to write about it. Here are some highlights. . .

PaleyFest: Like they have every year since 1983, the Paley Center for Media held its 10-day PaleyFest, celebrating the best and most popular shows on television. And just like we’ve done almost every year since 1983, Tim, Karen and I attended several events, including: Modern Family (ABC’s hit sitcom about three distinct yet interrelated L.A. families)--the love among the actors was palpable (a wonderful evening); FlashForward (the SF thriller where everyone in the world sees his/her future during a 2-minute blackout)--love the show, but not so much the cast (lots of science, but no chemistry!); Men of a Certain Age (about three 50-something guys who’ve known each other since college)--Ray Romano had a death in the family and so wasn’t there, but Scott Bakula and André Braugher were terrific (can’t wait for season 2!); and Curb Your Enthusiasm (the insane ramblings of Seinfeld producer Larry David)--absolutely hysterical.

As if that wasn’t enough, the Paley honored the detective show Castle, starring the ever adorable Nathan Fillion, the following week. “I think everyone is here to see Nathan,” an older woman (i.e., older than me) whispered in the ladies room. “Well, that’s why I’m here!” I announced, declining to mention that I’d seen him several times already in other venues. Fans even flew in from Australia! Nathan and the rest of the cast did not disappoint.

Bob Newhart: And speaking of TV celebrities, the ageless Bob Newhart was interviewed at the Grammy Museum, March 9th. His first comedy album, The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart, won Grammy’s album of the year in 1960. The sold-out crowd hung on his every word. Newhart was witty, fascinating and still highly entertaining.

Plays: One of my all-time favorite TV shows is The West Wing, the dramatic series about a fictional Democratic president, Jed Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen. I was such a huge fan of the show that one of students gave me a bumper sticker, “Martin Sheen is my President,” which I proudly displayed in my office during the Bush years. No surprise then that I immediately bought tickets when I heard Sheen was going to star in The Subject Was Roses at the Mark Taper Forum. He and costar Frances Conroy (the mom on the HBO series Six Feet Under) were wonderful. But even more exciting was Brian Geraghty, who starred in The Hurt Locker, Oscar’s best picture of the year. Every time the camera panned over to Geraghty during the ceremony, I felt so proud after seeing him just the night before at the Taper. Ya gotta love theater in L.A.

I also saw the musical Dreamgirls at the Ahmanson, last weekend, as part of my season tickets. Tim didn’t want to go, so I went alone. “If I don’t like it, I’ll come home at intermission,” I told him as I left the house. But there was no way in hell I was leaving the theater after Effie’s big number, “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” one of the greatest torch songs in American theater history. My seat companions (complete strangers) and I were hootin’ and hollerin’. If the production of Dreamgirls, starring Moya Angela, comes your way, rush out and buy a ticket, even if you have to see the play by yourself!

UCSB: Karen and I spent all day Saturday visiting old haunts as part of the Society of Architectural Historians’ tour of UC Santa Barbara, where we met and both went to college. I warned Karen I might get creeped out reliving the past. But the campus had changed so much, I barely felt a twinge. Although we had fun, we were both discouraged by all the disparate architectural styles that now define our alma mater.

Up next: Portland, OR, and a local tour of the city of Downey, where the Apollo spacecraft were built. So stay tuned!

The Paley Festival

For the past eighteen years, Tim, Karen and I have blocked-off the first two weeks in March for the Paley Festival, a multi-day film-and-panel-discussion event sponsored by the Museum of Television and Radio (MTR). Although older series, like “Hill Street Blues” and “The Odd Couple,” are occasionally honored, the Festival is mostly about the hottest new shows of the season. Over the years, we’ve attended events celebrating “Lost,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Boston Legal,” “24,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Everybody Hates Chris,” “X-Files,” “The Wonder Years,” “Freaks and Geeks,” “Friends,” “Bernie Mac,” “Deadwood,” and “China Beach,” to name just a few. In 1990, we sneak-previewed “Twin Peaks” a week before it aired on TV. I remember going to work the next day and proclaiming that I had seen the future of television!

A typical Paley event begins with the screening of an episode of the show being honored, followed by an extensive Q&A with the series’ cast and creative team. If a single personality, such as Jack Parr, William Shatner, or Carl Reiner, is being honored instead of an entire series, then a clip-reel is shown recapping that person’s career. A moderator then launches into an “Actor’s Studio” type of interview that is often very funny. Shatner was a revelation—one of the best raconteurs I’ve ever seen—and Parr, of course, was brilliant. But, by far, one of the most memorable evenings was listening to Reiner and his pals talk about the golden age of television. The festivities take place at the smallish Director’s Guild of America (DGA) theater, so it’s always an intimate affair.

In the old days, Karen and I would get up at the crack of dawn to stand on line for six hours to get tickets. This year, however, the Museum decided to outsource its ticket sales to Ticketmaster—a big mistake! By the time I logged on (9:05AM), “The Office,” “Heroes,” and “Ugly Betty” were already sold-out! Never in eighteen years had we been sold-out of shows we wanted to see! I was furious and made a trip to the Museum (in Beverly Hills) to air my displeasure. When I told the volunteer at the reception desk I wanted to complain about how the Paley tickets were handled, he laughed and said, “You and everyone else!” I was offered a million apologies along with promises to do better next year, but there was nothing more they could do this year.

Although we didn’t get tickets to the three shows we really wanted to see, Karen and I were able to attend the “Brothers & Sisters” event on Monday, March 5. The lobby was a frenzy when we arrived. Photographers madly waved their arms and yelled as the show’s stars walked the short red carpet outside the theater. I headed toward the ladies room and was almost wrestled to the ground by a bodyguard who evidently thought I was going to rush the red carpet. “I need to get some water and then I’m going to the bathroom. Is that all right?” I asked indignantly.

The event itself was pleasant, but less than memorable. Sally Field, who plays the widowed mother Nora, got the biggest applause even though the show is supposed to belong to Calista Flockhart. Field looks exactly like she does on television and had no trouble playing the elder spokeswoman on stage. The other big crowd pleaser was Jason Lewis, who plays the gay brother’s love interest and was Samantha’s much younger hunky boyfriend in “Sex and the City.” Although he wasn’t part of the on-stage entourage, he caused quite a stir when he stood and waved to the audience.

Flockhart, who plays Kitty, is only slightly less skinny in person than she is on TV. Still, she’s obviously adored by her male costars (don’t ask me why!) She sat between Rob Lowe, her on-air boss/boyfriend, and Dave Annable, Kitty’s youngest brother, and affectionately flirted with them the entire time. When asked why he auditioned to be part of “Brothers & Sisters,” Annable quipped that he wanted to meet Harrison Ford (Calista’s very famous significant other).

And speaking of significant others (beware: spoiler alert!), it was revealed that Nora is about to get a new love interest: Peter Coyote, who just happened to be in the audience.

With that, our one Paley evening was over...

That is, until two days later when Tim miraculously got a phone call from MTR, saying two tickets had been returned for “Ugly Betty!” Did we want to go? I can only guess that my little chat with Museum staff had left an impression! So the following Monday, Tim and I headed back up to Hollywood to see “Ugly Betty,” even though I had been home sick all day. There was no way I was missing this!

The entire cast, except Tony Plana (the father) and Ana Ortiz (the sister), were there. Vanessa Williams is simply gorgeous and Rebecca Romijn is statuesque. Ashley Jensen, the frumpy dress designer, is a lot more beautiful in person—as is, of course, America Ferrera (Betty), for whom the show was written. The happy chemistry among the actors was palpable and everyone seemed genuinely humbled to be part of such a hugely successful show. Ferrera cried when she described what an honor it is to play Betty. But the evening truly belonged to Michael Urie, Wilhelmina’s gay assistant, and Mark Indelicato, Betty’s young fashion-savvy nephew. Urie is as flamboyant as his on-air character and Indelicato is wonderfully self-assured. All the cast members talked about how liberating it is to be part of a series that celebrates individuality and uniqueness.

I can’t wait to see which shows are honored next year...

3/19/07