Behind The Mic

Too Much Weird Al in Your Playlist?

Yes, we love Weird Al. We don't think that's a bad thing. He's really nice. Here's a photo from CES.

A True Hollywood Experience

Visiting the set of Joey was fun, and sitting in the front row was even better! Who knew it could take 8 hours to film a half hour episode? But thanks to the silly (and often not ready for network TV) screwups of the cast, and the comedy and magic of veteran warm-up guy Jim Bentley, there was never a dull moment.

Drew Carey hangs with Vic and Max...

We recently met Drew Carey, thanks to David Lawrence. We were running late so we missed dinner, but drinks afterward was a blast!

Be sure to catch Drew as the voice of Crank in ROBOTS!

An Anniversary

20 years is a long time... Just ask Max, who is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the day he got his SAG card. He was just a youngster when he got into the business, and he's still a cutie!

Anyone out there interested in booking Max for acting or voiceover work, please feel free to contact him.

Congrats, Max!

E3's Got Game(s) and Bunnies!

Many thanks to all the wonderful people we met at E3 last week, but mostly to our friends at the David Lawrence Show and IGN/GameSpy. We broadcasted live from the show floor on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. We interviewed a lot of heavy hitters in the gaming industry, including Will Wright, the creator of the Sims, and J Allard, Vice President of Xbox. Thanks also to the Fear Factor people and the Playboy Bunnies who were there to promote the Playboy: The Mansion game. We had a lot of fun and spotted a few celebrities. Vic met Gallagher, but apparently he wasn't interested in being on the show...

will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas

Tony Hawk (taken with camera phone - sorry!)

David puts his hand in a tank full of cockroaches. Where is Max? Far away!

Honey, there is a fire in the backyard

Special thanks to the men and women of the Lake Elsinore, Riverside County, Kern County and many other fire departments battling fires in the Southern California area. This one was near the Smart Family house. We would have gone to the studio not too far away (or a relative's house farther away), had we been asked to vacate. Luckily the helicopter drops helped a great deal.

The Dual Xserve G5 Has Arrived

Special thanks to Doug Brooks, Server Product Manager, at Apple for all his support and making an excellent product. The Dual Xserve G5 should go online soon and will be the beginning of our streaming audio system. Check back in the next few weeks for details on when LIVE streaming will be available.

Happy Birthday to Vic!

We made a day trip to Palm Springs today to celebrate my birthday. The weather was rainy, but we thoroughly enjoyed our day.

First stop was Capra's for lunch. It's an Italian restaurant owned by the late Frank Capra's youngest son, Tom. The place is full of movie posters and stills, and even though it's only 5 years old, it is filled with old world charm. The food is great, too! If you like your pasta really "al dente," like it's supposed to be - this is the place for you!

Here we are posing with one of Frank Capra's Oscars (It's the REAL THING):

We then took a ride up the mountain, on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. It was too foggy to see the view, but we had a wonderful time playing in the snow at the top, and even got to experience some snowfall while we were there! We had a lovely dinner above the clouds in the Elevations restaurant.

A fitting celebration to mark the anniversary of the beginning of a wonderful life...

Who Replaced Janet?

We mentioned last week that the Janet Jackson designed Mickey Mouse statue had been replaced in the 75th anniversay lineup. I've done my homework and determined which statue replaced it.

The lucky artist is... David Willardson!?! Dave is an airbrush artist who has created well-known images like the Raiders of the Lost Ark movie logo and the American Graffiti car hop. Coincidentally, he has been doing images for Disney for over 15 years, including movie posters for Aladdin, The Little Mermaid and the Lion King.

Photos are of "Mickey's Nation 1928" by Janet Jackson and its replacement, "Flying Colors #3" by Dave Willardson. (Both photos are copyright Disney).

Princesses and the Queen of Trash

The family got a holiday night out with some of Jennifer's close friends. We attended the Disney On Ice performance of Princess Classics. It was an excellent show. We had Jen convinced she was going to a hockey game (she loves those too BTW). "Will 'Sharkie' be there?" Jen asked often on the way there and all through dinner.

During the performance, Jen noticed the Queen of Trash from Elmo in Grouchland, sitting in the front row, and was going to go speak with her. The adults will know her as the former Miss America, actress, an excellent singer etc. etc., Vanessa L. Williams. She was in the row in front of us with her husband and daughter.

We decided not to bug her about being on the show during the performance and will have someone contact her people in the near future. Anyone in Ms. Williams' camp, drop our producer a note....