The Podcaster Met The Listener

Sometimes, getting what you want, getting exactly what you want, is dangerous. We all know the old saying, "Be careful what you wish for," but sometimes, getting what you've wished for is exactly what it should be. Last night, as mentioned in the post under this one, Mike Schmidt, the former third baseman, the 40-Year Old Boy, came to Phoenix to do a workshop of his new one-man show, Success Is Not An Option, and it was great. It was exactly what I had hoped it would be, and from the reactions of the crowd, it was exactly what they hoped it would be.

Bringing Mike to Phoenix--and I say that figuratively, since the amount of work I put into the show existing really only amounted to being pointed in the direction of an appropriate theater and putting down the money for Mike to perform--came from my general frustration with the lack of a good culture scene in Phoenix. Now, I'm no fool: Phoenix, and Arizona as a state, could be seen as a cosmic joke to people from other places in the country or the world. Our immigration fights, our lax gun laws, and more do not paint the city in the best light. But here's the thing: Phoenix is the fifth-biggest city in this country. Fifth-biggest. I don't know why, since it's so damn big and diverse (and it is, believe me, in more ways than just people of different races), we don't get better culture. Want to see a restored print of a classic film such as The Red Shoes? Save up on gas to drive to L.A. or Austin, friend. Are you a fan of stand-up comedians who might not always show up on Leno or Letterman? Don't look in the direction of the Tempe Improv.

When I heard, via Mike's stellar podcast, The 40-Year Old Boy, of Mike performing a workshop of his one-man show in San Francisco, I wondered what it would take to bring him to Phoenix. He wanted to keep doing workshops in the next 12 months, preparing for performing at the New York Fringe Festival this summer. Mike made it clear: create a Facebook group, find a space and be willing to put the money down, and get enough people interested. That's what it would take to make this a reality, and that's what happened.

I mentioned yesterday that I wasn't sure how awkward my interactions with Mike would be. Meeting someone who you listen to each week, someone who tells you personal stories from his past and present, could be filled with long, painful pauses. I shouldn't have been worried; within about five seconds of meeting Mike in person, I came to a realization that seems a bit too obvious to any of his fans: "Mike is EXACTLY the same in person as he is on the show." This put me at ease; if anything, within a few minutes, I felt like I was watching a live version of the show--mind you, before the actual show happened; this was during the sound check--and I was just along for the ride. Mike, as he mentioned almost immediately after the show began, was nervous about performing, and about whether the crowd would enjoy what he was serving up. As I told him beforehand, he had nothing to worry about. Everyone--including the generous folks at Space 55, the theater where Mike performed--loved what Mike had to say. For those who listen to the show, there were some new stories and some old favorites (though, because we had some time constraints, we didn't get to revisit Mike's time as a 7-11 clerk, one of the very best stories from the show). The final story, a brand new one, was a perfect example of what makes Mike so funny and such a great raconteur: he made us laugh, he moved us, and he could turn on a dime from being witty to being realistically intense and scary. I won't spoil the story--you're going to have to hope the one-man show gets recorded for posterity, because if you know Mike, you know that his stories are best told by him, not his fans.

When it was over, I realized that I'd spent my money well reserving the space; I want Mike to come back to bigger crowds, and I cannot wait to help make it happen again. If you don't know much about Mike, you should be listening to his podcast. You may balk for one of many reasons: it's too long; it's one guy talking; I don't have time for podcasts. You do have the time, folks. We all have the time for this kind of storytelling, the type of which isn't equaled anywhere else these days. The 1990s had David Sedaris. We, thank God, have Mike Schmidt. He visited Phoenix last night, he blew the roof off the place, and I can't wait to see him live again.

The Podcaster Meets The Listener

I'm about 90 minutes away from forever destroying a barrier that seems a little surreal to consider. OK, we're not talking about anything major here, but meeting someone whose work you enjoy and are entertained by on a weekly basis doesn't always happen. Most times, it's only going to happen by chance; a random encounter with a celebrity, for example. In this case, I'm talking about someone who I'm essentially bringing here. Now, I haven't done it all by myself, but the circumstances are still unique. I'm talking about comedian and podcaster Mike Schmidt, of "The 40-Year Old Boy" show, which you should be listening to if you're not. And, if you're not and you haven't read my praise-filled piece from December, why haven't you?

Anyway, he's coming to Phoenix tonight to perform a one-man show, in hopes that he can perform it again later this year at the New York Fringe Festival. And I spearheaded the Facebook group that is bringing him here. He's going to be at the Space 55 theater tonight at 8--tickets are still available. But I'm not sure how awkward the night is going to be. Will we move past the halting phase akin to a first, blind date? This post is short, because I'm sure to have a lot more to write once the show is over. Suffice to say, I am nervous. Am I in for 2 hours of long pauses before the show begins? Deep breath...here we go. Check with me on the flip side to find out how it went down.

Oscar Dust-Up

First of all, wow, time flies by. I didn't realize the last post I had up here was about my computer's issues with its USB port. As a note to that post, while I haven't had those ports fixed, I am stupid enough to have not realized that I have four USB ports on my laptop; the two on the right side are screwed, but there are two bright, shiny, new ones on the left side, and I'm using those to my delight. Moving on.

You may or may not know who Melissa Leo is. In the last few years, she's moved up the ranks of the film, TV, and stage actor from being a "Hey, I just saw her in something last month, didn't I?" performer to a "Ah, she's in this, too, huh?" performer, if that makes any sense. Her first big splash in Hollywood was as a regular on Homicide: Life on the Streets, but these days, she's in the middle of an Oscar campaign, hoping to take home the prize for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in The Fighter. I'm not a huge fan of the film--and the more I hear people say, "But those people are EVEN crazier in real life," the more I want to shout at them that the movies aren't real life--but Leo's performance is at least energetic enough to gain merit. I also think that her co-star and fellow nominee Amy Adams was better, but Leo's been the frontrunner in a packed category.

In the last few days, though, she might have shifted the category because of an odd choice she made: to create "For Your Consideration" ads...for herself. Yes, Melissa Leo bought ad space in the industry magazines advertising herself. What's odd about the ads isn't just that she bought them (which is not common), it's that the ads aren't really for her work in The Fighter. The typical ad features her, dressed fashionably, posing for the photographer, with the word "Consider" emblazoned on the top of the photo. No mention of the movie, the nomination, nothing. Leo's said that she's doing this because she wants to keep her presence in the race, something she feels isn't being done well enough by the studio's promotional materials. Being fair, the posters for the film do not list her name above the title; what's more, she claims that her being a 50-year old woman does her no favors in an industry obsessed with good-looking young women.

There's no question that it can be hard for actresses of a certain age, and that Leo's time in high-profile roles may not be for more than a few years (with or without this snafu), but I don't think it explains why she'd waste her resources on this strange campaign. Now, mind you, I'm not one of the traditionalists who thinks that she doesn't deserve to win because of this; some Academy voters have sticks wedged way up their asses, and have said they won't vote for her. If I had a ballot, I wouldn't either, but not because of this. I'd pick Adams or Hailee Steinfeld, for her work in True Grit, over Leo. I'd vote for the work, not the campaign. Obviously, being one of the millions of people in this country who, you know, doesn't vote for the Oscars, I'm looking at things differently. But please, voters, vote for the work. We don't care--and many don't know--about this so-called controversy. I think it's a baffling thing to do--and somewhat self-absorbed--but it's not a reason to make me dislike her performance. This is one of those times when people in Hollywood need to remember that they may make movies, but they're people. Some people need a big reality check.