Post-"Star Wars" everyone was rushing to make their own space epics and while a lot of things "failed" financially they're beautiful relics of a moment. Around this time Disney also had "The Black Hole" - another movie whose techniques nobody would follow up on but has such a gorgeous look.

These dead branches often coincide with epochal leaps in filmmaking technology. For awhile I was watching a lot of movies from the early sound era because every studio knew sound was a sensation but nobody agreed on quite what to do with it yet. From 1928-32 there are some remarkable experiments.

"Tron" is a perfect example of what I call a dead evolutionary branch in cinema, and I love it. No one rushed to make another movie that looks like this because the techniques involved at that moment of tech were so mental and yet so appropriate for this specific story, it's a unique treasure.

Last night a friend sent me a video he made on Sora. This morning I replied and told him it wasn't my thing. He said "I'm bored with it already."

Streamers trained people to want maximum entertainment with no effort. Crafting a prompt is effort that will produce an annoying, unsatisfying result.

One of the few legit examples was "Dog Day Afternoon," when Sonny's trying to convince Sal they can flee the country. Al Pacino asks John Cazale what country he wants to go to, Cazale brilliantly ad-libs "Wyoming," which was the perfect character touch for poor, lost Sal youtu.be/4ca0T6jbhHo?...

I've spoken unscripted lines in movies, but it was usually something I came up with between takes and held until after the director had a take they liked. Usually I'll ask "Hey, I've got something I want to try, is that ok?" So instead of ad-libbing I prefer to describe that as "fast writing."

It's one of the most inspiring things to me, the way actors in a live performance can take care of one another in these invisible ways. Nobody has to say that we're in this together. When the lights come up, we just know.

I still remember a performance where our Jo's voice cracked right before intermission and we managed to navigate the second act by transposing songs to lower keys and choosing moments to talk-sing so it would be less conspicuous when she did it. Audience never knew something had happened.

Saw a production of the musical version of "Little Women" on Saturday. I still remember most of Professor Bhaer's lines and melodies from the two times I played him. This pic is from the second time, back in '16 at the Chance Theater. I'm too old for the role now but I always loved doing it.

Thank you! Last week was heavy on real-life stuff I don't talk about here, so I get it. I don't require anyone's full-time attention :) In my time in the VA community I've already seen behavior both remarkable and profoundly hurtful/disappointing. I'll just keep trying to do what I think is right.

But hey, thanks for sticking with me as I continue to not behave the way people with fans seem to usually behave. I've hinted before that good things are coming soon; and soon is, well, increasingly soon. I look forward to sharing that joy with you.

I would happily make it my primary occupation and am working to manifest that, but I'll never stop making movies or doing Shakespeare or sharing odd thoughts about Doctor Who or Godzilla. Maybe if I worked harder to get "my brand" out there it would lead to more work, I don't really know.

So if you've followed me due to my voice acting, by now you've discovered that my work, life, and interests sprawl around in a lot of not-voice-acting places. I always joke that I'd do fewer things if someone paid me enough; and I adore voice work and the fan interactions that come with it.

Busy week on the personal front last week so I didn't get to share this - "Pizza Time Pizza" is coming back to the Midwest and back to Wisconsin and November's Weyauwega Film Festival! Hope this means Claire and I get to quest after more cheese.

The impact of 70's New Hollywood on cinema combined with the improbable number of those icons who are not only still with us but in some cases still working is like a time bomb of grief all film lovers can see ticking. When Gene Hackman passed I remember thinking "We've got some HARD years ahead."

"I tell the kid we all float down here, kid says 'with your belly I can see why!' I don't get no respect..."

Criterion Channel has added a bunch of Sammo Hung movies which I haven't delved into before. Caveat up front that there are WILD differences in what 80's Hong Kong pulp cinema considers culturally okay, but the final fights in "Eastern Condors" are absolutely 🤯 www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsCQ...

"Welp, can't wait for my next three months' worth of YouTube ads to be for this thing I already bought and don't need more of."

Mae West could have played Pac-Man in the arcade.

You made it halfway through the week *and* we still have free shipping? Sounds like the perfect time to treat yourself to a new book and support indie bookstores in the process. 📚

Cast/crew/friends screening tonight for a no-budget indie feature called "Cell" that I have a juicy part in. I shot my scenes 2+ years ago and finally get to see how they fit into the finished product. Lots of great feedback on my work! And the filmmaker gave me a little cartoon of my character.

I'm honestly glad fans have kept the torch lit for the legit virtues of "Tron: Legacy" - aka Daft Punk and Michael Sheen. But the reason no one is concerned whether or not "Ares" continues the story of Sam Flynn is that he was the Poochie of IP-extension blockbuster heroes, more checklist than man.

Oh damn and it would end with them running into the Professor and it turns out he's a Phantasm fan, too.

Well now maybe I'll need to write it.

The reason I don't roll to pick genre or prevailing tone is that I like those to be surprises. When I named the pop group "Phantasm" I wondered if I was opening the door to supernatural, but now I think if I kept going it would be a kind of slice-of-life, escalating-disasters romp with these sisters