Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Halloween 2007!

Happy Halloween! Here's some pics of me and my boss Andrea in costume. (The only ones on the whole show who dressed up as always!) I'm a night time security guard for FAO Schwartz attacked by dolls and toys. Andrea is a haz mat employee for the building we worked in last time that had all sorts of bad chemicals and asbestos!


Its all for you Damien, its ALL FOR YOU!



Wow, has it really already been a year?! I'd like to wish a hearty happy brithday to my blog and pat myself on the back for not abandoning my poor fetus when it had just crawled out of my....wait this is sounding gross...ok... i'm just glad I didn't quit bloggin'! That's better... I digress... I was going to name this entry (my 350th) "Carrie White still eats shit!" but figured perhaps changing up the horror film of interest each year is more dynamic! Again, I am putting out a call to one and all, saying that once again you all have a year to come up with something to wear.....anything to wear.... I thought I made myself clear last time but this year we have the same lack of costumes all over LA. It's like wearing a costume on Halloween makes you some sort of alien life form! I remember back in Seattle, and up in SF, hell even Pittsburgh, there were tons of people in costume and pretty creative at that. Do I just live in a Halloween free city? Am I alone here?

I guess i'd just like to wish everyone a happy and safe Halloween today! Hope all your costumes came together well and that tonight is just as fun as you hope! See you next year.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

My waiting for Guffman moment circa 2000

Once upon a time, during the summer of 2000, I joined a group of artisans headed to a little town called Leavenworth, Washington. Our mission, and my paying gig, was to assist in costuming a cast of over 250 locals, in 5 days, for a single theatrical performance called "Icicle Times" that spanned the history of the area from early Native American beliefs to modern day. Basically you could superimpose the plot of "Waiting for Guffman" onto this experience and it wouldn't look all that different. "Red White and Blaine" and "Icicle Times" both made me chuckle and feel embarrrassed for the people on stage with equal amounts of gusto.

A little Backgound: Leavenworth is a small town located in the Eastern slopes of the cascade mountain range in Washington State. If I remember correctly it took us about 4 hours to get up there in my dad's Bronco II. The town had been slipping in tourism so they had a twon meeting and decided adding a theme to the town just might work. The town was reborn in the 1960s into a Bavarian Village theme, very much like a small German village you might find in your European travels. "The authenticity has attracted many people of direct German, Austrian and Norwegian descent who have made Leavenworth Washington their new home and livelihood." -According to the chamber of commerce. Really? I guess I did eat a sausage or two while I was there...so that must be true!



One-Reel was the group putting on this gigantic project, commisioned by Harriet Bullitt. (Sidenote: it was rumored that Harriet, longtime resident of Leavenworth and co-owner of King broadcasting in the Northwest, commissioned the piece to perhaps get a better local public image after it was found that her family's logging investment was one of the prime causes of the devestating fires in 1994 that nearly wiped out the town. But you didn't hear that from me....like I said...just a rumor...wink) Anywho, the production was intended to bring the town together by creating a theatrical history of the town, that could be done every few years and would incorporate as many townspeople as possible. Me and my friends Jen and Carrissa were all brought on by Ron the designer to assist him in pulling things, sewing hems, making special outfits like the cookoo bird costume for the giant clock scene....I'm not kidding...



The costumes varied through every period within the last 100 years and also included costumes like a "School of Salmon" and more.... We worked in the basement of the local church that sat across the street from where the tent was set up. The preacher's wife lived two dorrs down and just kept coming in and bringing us treats. Eventually that graduated to bringing us treats and trying on clothes like a little girl playing dress up. Then one day that dress up included a red feather boa....and then it was clear.... she HAD to play one of the prostitutes in the wild west scene! She seemed cautious, but she got the roll no prob and her hubby almost lost it when he saw her up there. He laughed it all off, but you know that night they had some serious fun a few doors down!



Peg Phillips from "Northern Exposure" fame was the narrator in the show. It was pretty cool having a tv personality in the show, I was impressed....and she really was the nicest lady on earth. She didn't even care if we expected her to go out there wearing nothing but a pasty, she trusted us. Sadly she died two years after this event, but you can always see her as Ruth in "Northern Exposure" now that dvds of television shows are so popular.



Here's the Salmon "Teacher" costume I ddesigned and built for the "School of salmon" scene. This woman drove me nuts. She was a local middle school teacher that was such a diva. She kept asking if it would be possible to just paint her face like a fish so she didn't have to "wear a costume." I kindly explained that the kids were wearing fish on their heads as the "Students" and if she wanted to comman some presence in a tent filled with 1000 people that this was the best way to do it. It took the director "schooling" her to get her to shut up and wear the damn thing. (I always liked the book in its mouth that flapped up and down when she walked.)



Um...I think we all know what I'm really taking a picture of here, but this was the local sherriff that played the sherriff in the wild west scene. I was his dresser and as a thank you, he gave me a really cool cowboy hat of his. ahhh swoon...his wife is one lucky gal.



I just loved this pic I got of one of the "Bavarian townspeople" heading into the port o potties in such a beautiful serene countryside. You can even see the church we worked in across the street.



Us playing with the costume accessories for the train sequence. (God I look so young...)



Me and Jen comparing the pregnancy bellies we had made that afternoon.



Pieces of the cukoo bird head used as falsies....you get the gist... we had alot of fun! I love looking through old photos and the memories they bring back.

Click HEREto see a short video about the show, with some great footage of the bizarre event, by our local PBS station. Made possible by viewers like you...

R.I.P. Robert Goulet



Peggy Lee and Robert Goulet on the Julie Andrews Hour

Ghosts of Halloweens past...

Here's a couple of pictures of my Halloweens past:

Zack, Halloween 1999

Yes, I am impaled with a toaster and toast....it was a real toaster...I cut it in half with a big saw....gutted it...made a very simple mounting plate and strapping system that attached to my midriff and then cut up some real toast I had shellacked and glued them on with some blood. Voila! I am not a morning person.


Evan, Jacob and Zack, Halloween 2003

Ok, this one pissed a few people off, but please know it was done out of love and respect... I went to a "come as your favorite Diva party!" My favorite at the time just happened to be Erykah Badu. "Where's my baby Seven? Oh on and on, and on and on...I need a rimjob I mean rimshot hey diggy diggy!" My friends were the Olson twins on their 21st b-day.

Monday, October 29, 2007

I want! I want!


I am jonesing for some of that great "Twin Peaks" action! I remember adoring this show and have been awaiting the day I could get the whole damn thing and then some! If it wasn't already past my birthday I'd be plugging the parents with images and emails about this box set every five minutes.

My mom is such a great mom, you wanna know why? She made me the coolest Twin Peaks cake for my 13th birthday complete with lodge up on the towering waterfall...rocks made of rock candy....little icons in the waterfall and water like a miniature cherry pie, voice recorder, cup of coffee and log.... and washed up on the shore? you guessed it...a naked blonde doll wrapped in plastic! She even drew the niplles on Laura! Gotta love my mom!

And don't forget my last post about "Twin Peaks"

The Cramps


I loved The Cramps as a kid. Bad Music for Bad People was probably the most used cassette tape I had aside from my Squeeze collection. My sister always had a profound influence on my musical tastes and she must be credited for my even knowing about these strange rockers. Enjoy the above video "Bikini girls with machine guns," and the video below made by a fan using paper cuts and some stop motion animation for the awesome song "Human Fly." This music always gets me in the modd for Halloween so come back to this page and crank it up before you go out a' haunting!

Now that's a pumpkin!


For all of you who attended our Grindhouse screening, I'm sorry I couldn't have thought of this first...

Its almost Halloween my friends!


I'm always looking forward to Halloween, but this year it also shares a second moment of significance! It will be my 1 year blogoversary! (My first post was titled "Carrie White Eats Shit!" on Halloween) Who knew I would actually stick to it and blog my little arse off throughout the past year.... and like it! True, more often than not, this blog is filled to the brim with weird photos, youtube findings, and general oddities, but sometimes that is more profound than some random story about how boring my day was. As I post this, my 343rd posting, I can't help but be amazed at the heap of crap I've found to laugh at, the great people I've met and reconnected with through this thing, and just the general amount of fun to had doing this! Thanks to one and all for reading, and for you dear blog i'm going to give you your present early.... a nice little sitemeter. Here's to one or more years, long live the blog!

Last minute group costume idea!

Thursday, October 25, 2007

The more you know....about designers


Did you know that Hugo Boss was responsible for making the outfits of both the soldiers and higher ups in the Nazi regime? True story.

"The all-black uniform of the Nazi Schutzstaffel paramilitary force from 1932 until 1945 was designed by SS-Oberführer Prof. Dr. Karl Diebitsch and Walter Heck (graphic designer) and made by the Hugo Boss company, some workers being prisoners of war forced into labor."-Washington Post Staff Writer Robin Givhan's article: "Zwangsarbeit in Metzingen (Forced Work in Metzingen)"

Who knew?

The Sweater



Ok, so some of you may remember this wonderful little song/ spoken word moment from Meryn Cadell in the early 90's. For those who don't remember or are curious and need a good laugh, here it is. (I never saw the video, I just remember having it on tape.)

mmmm....juice

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

The roof. The roof. The roof is on fire.

My allergies are wreaking havoc on my poor eyeballs. I think it's a combination of the smoke in the air, the heat (it was 90+ degrees here yesterday - isn't it almost November?) and the on-again-off-again Santa Ana winds. My eyes are so itchy! My nose won't stop running... maybe i'm dying of some creepy disease the terrorists have spread? Oh god, there was that suspicious package that sat on my desk for a while... oh wait that turned out to be some ink we ordered for plotter... Anywho, I'm not feelin' this burninating shit going on in SoCal! I am so ready for some rain, ya hear?!

Now that's a flyer!



I know Boing Boing already has this posted, but it is pretty great.... although be careful your dog doesn't see it or else they will start bitching about how you never put up flyers of their general awesomeness!

Monday, October 22, 2007

We rocked the East side

Thanks to all who came to our backyard screening of "Grindhouse." It was a rousing success and nobody called the cops on us for being too damn loud. Kudos us.

Next time, and there WILL be a next time so stay tuned, perhaps we can get even more fresh faces packed in those seats and hangin' in the yard. Feel free to suggest what you think might be a great double feature night, as we're always trying to outdo ourselves! For those of you who missed it, your bad... but we wish ya coulda made it.

Friday, October 19, 2007

Fun photo Friday...been a while

Are you there Vodka? It's me Zacki

Thank god for Fridays. It's time to grab a cocktail, have some fun, watch some Grindhouse tomorrow in the backyard, and get a haircut. These are the goals....well besides relaxing and having fun.

Last weekend was very fun filled, but oy the recovery day Sunday was harsh... The Bruning Man Decompression Party downtown was filled with lots of fun, and lots of ...well....stuff that you recover from... Needless to ssay, I was loud, obnoxious, drunk, petting people, laying on the ground watching "the monkeys" (see below), hanging with Megavolt's wife Victoria (You rock girly), and acting like "That guy" in the limo on the ride down and back testing all the buttons and just generally being giddy and ruckous. Ahhh too much fun. I do remember dancing in a dj tent with a really small person at one point.... a child, a dwarf? Lordy, the blur. I'll just chalk it up to fun.

Neuticles, Sagging and Choices oh my!

While I can be a little morbid at times, please forgive me for the following musings...

Last night my friend Jim and I began musing about what it might be like if we lost a testicle.....would we leave it as is? Would we get one of them "Neuticles" and have a fake ball rolling around in there? What would work best aesthetically or texturally?

I deduced it would be so much fun going shopping for a fake ball, that alone might be worth the price of admission to the "one ball gang." I imagine them bringing in a bunch of sets of satin pillows with small rubber based testicles on them, and instructing me to "pick them up, throw them like a spaceball, squeeze them, hell even roll one around in your mouth! You need to find the right model for you!" I'd first delicately choose the medium sized one and move from one to the other like goldilocks till I found just the right one... What exactly would a stesticle salesman look like anyway? Would he resemble a car or carpet salesman.... a little swarthy and untrustworthy? Or would he be sweet and gentle, bringing me hot chocolate and a blanket to warm myself while they parade the balls in front of me like some bad shopping montage? I hope its more like the latter.

I also began to think "hey, while they're in there, why not get three? All good design comes in threes?" You could move them around on a table top playing them like the cup hiding game and make people guess where the penny is now... ok, that might hurt if someone gets overzealous and slaps the table. Ouch.

Not sure why we were rambling about this, but that's just how we...ahem....roll.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

"Let's get some brains! Let's Party!"



Ok, this is kind of wonderful. This is a brilliant parody of Kelly's "Shoes" video (By now I hope ya'll have seen that one....otherwise what rock are you normally under and I'll come get you....) and it ups the ante for any and all that should dare do their own parody video....

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

What'll she do next?

("Try to kill herself?" someone whispers in the back....)

Monday, October 15, 2007

Grindhouse screening Saturday the 20th


Again, just a reminder that we're doing the backyard screening series at my place after sundown on Saturday... anyone who didn't get the email, let me know and I'll give ya directions! See you there!

"Kiss my ass Carol"

Keeping in line with my former made up names of shows I work on, to protect the innocent of course, I bring you "Kiss my ass Carol." Now I know "Have a tard" actually showed my great disdain for that job, don't let this name fool you... I just started and it was the most creative thing I could come up with by slightly altering the show's title. I assure you, this job has slightly better pay, some better hours, and much better health code adherence when it comes to the building we now inhabit. I still don't have my computer at work, hopefully that will happen tomorrow or Wednesday, then you'll see more blogging from me. In the meantime its been a nice two weeks off, I had a great time at Descanso Gardens where my roommate Claude snapped a pic of me I actually like:


Had a pretty great birthday that included a crazy weekend of depravity at the LA decom party... more on that to follow. Hope everyone out in the blogosphere is doing just dandy!

Saturday, October 13, 2007

I'm a sucker for a new Kylie video... and a damien hirst encrusted microphone!



Interesting... I dig it... what do you guys think about it?

Thursday, October 11, 2007

A coupla vids from my birth year 1978



No wonder I got some soul...



I'm not sure I'd keep comin' back if it really looked like that...



No wonder I'm a sentimental fool...



Because some crazy shit went down right after I was born...



No wonder I can be so corny sometimes!

Happy Birthday to me

So far so good! I got some delicious Dim Sum at DingTai Fung in Arcadia, was given a mormon boys pin-up calendar, watched a movie and have plans for a drinky or two tonight! oh also, happy national coming out day all!

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

WTF just watch...



Oh Telly Savalas! You kill me!

Bus Stop 1956

I just finished watching an old sentimental favorite of mine called "Bus Stop" starring Marilyn Monroe and Don Murray. It's a sweet film about a cowboy looking for his "angel" and finding it in a half rate chanteuse in a bar in Arizona. After proposing, he abducts her and sets off for home, a ranch in Montana. I much prefer the orginal stage play to this film as far as script and structure, but this is one of Marilyn's better performances and is not to be missed. Perhaps its my sentimental mood is setting in with Fall's arrival, or I have a need to settle down and nuzzle in for the long winter, or perhaps I even just want to be abducted a little myself, but I had a great time revisiting this movie.



"Isn't it wonderful when someone so terrible turns out to be so nice?!" -Cherie

Sunday, October 07, 2007

Chokin' on the sequins...

Thanks to Ryan for this amazing video/music combo he has uploaded to youtube! Who isn't in this night of 100 stars? I keep waiting for someone like Cloris Leechman or Bea Arthur to walk in!

Drive on in!

Well, the party/ screening last weekend was a huge success! Not a ton of people made it, but we still got a chance to try out our idea and see just how great it works. The large white wall in our backyard was where we projected both The Apple and Can't Stop the Music.... we even made it a triple feature by throwing in "Switchblade Sisters." (See the trailer below. Thanks go to Mark for a great last minute addition and fantastic projector.) For those of you who want to take part in our splendid backyard screening series, save the date October 20th, as that will be the day we screen the entire original showing of "Grindhouse" by Rodriguez and Tarantino complete with fake trailers by such gore greats as Eli Roth. We have plenty of seating and standing room, just bring yo'selves and maybe som licka! Poster and official email invite to follow...

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Finally, the real life of models is uncovered!

The "totally lame" 5

Kyle tagged me with the following fun meme created by playwright Marisa Wegrzyn..

List 5 things that certain people (who are not deserving of being your friend anyway) may consider to be "totally lame," but you are, despite the possible stigma, totally proud of. Own it. Tag 5 others.

So away we go!

1. I have a love of Nascar... typically this is shrugged of by many as a bit of a joke until they see me watching a race and hear me spout things about "Aero loose" and restrictor plates... I start to give stats and drivers names in quick succession and I always get that glazed over look of fear as a response. Go Tony Stewart!

2. When Deee-Lite or the band Squeeze are played at ANY bar or restaurant I shout with glee, dance like a fool, or sing along. Sometimes all three at once! This is uncontrllable and often done without a second of forethought.

3. I have a thing for guys with mohawks... I know... but there is just something so adorable about a guy who can pull it off. Maybe its the combination of strength of the statement and the fun fuzzy cap it creates you can run your hands along. (I've been tempted to shave my head into one just to see if I could pull it off.)

4. I like country music. More than just that, I could even sing a coupla Tim McGraw and Chris young songs to woo you. (Don't worry everyone, I would never use a country song to woo someone...I'd use bribery. hehehe I'm starting to sound like some sort of schizophrenic aren't I?)

5. If the possibility of gay marriage was there, I'd totally go for it with the right guy! (Just got to find him first...) I list this as one of the things because many in the gay community (and in my circle of friends) consider it "lame" and "trying to be just like straight people." I however love the idea of it based on equality of legal rights as well as equality of two people who love each other being able to share that in the eyes of their loved ones, god, and the state....regardless of sexuality. I can picture the over designed reception I'd totally go overboard with. hehehe can't wait.

Alrighty.... now it's your turn, I tag the following: Paul (Call Him Miss Ross), Michael (Beefy Cat Angus), Duane Moody, Scott (Sardonic Bomb), Dr. Sparky (On My Truth) alrighty boys... lets hear your 5!