I MAKE YOU FAMOUS OVER NIGHT!

My friend and model, Theda, sent me this message today without not even the slightest little tiny bit of explanation. My guess is that it was the title of some spam she got and she thought I would dig it. Well, I do.

Random Stuff:

In the downtime here, I've been shooting less and working on retouching more, slowly whittling down the backlog I've created for myself - Backlog!

I think the editorial that Rich and I shot last-last summer (2005) is finally going to see the light of day on Iconique, an online fashion thing-a-ma-jig. Their debut editorial was the one that Rich shot (with me assisting and lighting) of Marzena from Spring of 2005. It’s where I first met Bonnie, who I hope to shoot with Rich in a few weeks, and Martha and Luis. God, how time flies.

Mark (see link to right) came down this weekend from Western Mass. with Greg (of Yummy Mummy fame) and the three of us attended King Geo's 40th birthday Extravaganza - a surprise party at the Park Slope American Legion Post on 3rd Avenue and 9th Street. Of course we wore out Monster Cereals Crew shirts and Mark even brought the Frankenberry head for George to wear (if he wanted to - it being a surprise party, it would have been really bad form to ask him in advance). Bud on tap, Sabret Hot Dogs (water floaters) and a 12-foot sub sandwich kept things moving throughout the evening (and the next morning too, I might add) and a joyous time was had by all. I met Theo from The Lunachicks, after all these years of moving in the same circles and Sean from the Toilet Boys. I also met a bunch of American Legion dudes. Who do you think was scarier? After making our farewells, we stopped by Jackie's 5th Amendment, a bar that really should have been included in the lyrics to X's "The Have Nots." Before I knew what was going on, Mark ordered a "bucket" of Bud "ponies" and as soon as they hit the bar, I was informed by Mark and Greg that they had had enough. So I drank them. Back home, we intoxicatedly interrupted my girl, who wisely had declined her invitation to the American Legion and was indulging in one of her most guilty pleasures - watching full blown weeping bout feel good the underdog always wins sports movies. By the time we showed up, she had barely survived "Invincible" with Marky Mark (you know the Eagles thing) and was almost through "Glory Road" (the first all black team thing). Mark passed out.

Sunday morning, we awoke, rather roughly, to a full-page article in the New York Times Arts section about the Iggy and The Stooges Reunion. Have I lived that long? Amazing...

Then our annual Academy Awards Party, which we've been doing 6 years now. We always run a ballot pool (no money, just bragging rights) and I always win, which is goofy. "Hi, want to come to our party and have a contest that I will always win?" Not very appealing...even though I always make my Dad's famous Crock-Pot chili, which seems to placate most of the grumbling come tally time. I always explain to everyone that they can't put down the ones they want to win, but the ones that THE ACADEMY will vote for - which is a hard mindset to channel, but obviously, I'm pretty good at it. Well last year, my girl unseated me, although much to the chagrin of our guests, the trophy did not leave the premises. This year however, Michael (see link to the right) beat Kelli and I (who were l literally neck and neck throughout the broadcast) by two picks. Dark horse, that Bierman...

Tonight, my friend and model, Sarah (see the Detroit entries), emails me from Raleigh where she is doing that modeling thang, and I INSIST that she go to THE CHAR-GRILL. I could write a book on The Grill, as I basically ate there every night of college at NCSU and then three times a week until I moved to NYC for good. There's nothing like it in the world. A real, old '50s burger stand that is just amazing. It's entirely glass encased and you have to order by writing on a menu pad with a little pencil, checking off what you want and what you want on it. Then you stick it through a little hole in the glass, it slides down a shoot and one of the college students/ex-cons makes your shit.

Sarah, it's worth the drive...it make you famous over night!

Years ago on a foggy night I took some great color film time lapse shots of the Grill, all smoky and spooky, but damn if I know where they are...

The photos are of The Char Grill and were taken by Philip Lambert. I stole them off a th' Internet...