Marcel

  I always wanted to be a Theatre teacher, but it wasn't in the cards.  I learned a lot from my several drama teachers.  Each had their own style, but they all had one thing in common:  their love for the stage.  Actors are a special breed, especially good ones.  I would like to say that I was one of the good ones.  If that sounds egotistical, then you are probably right.  People have told me all along that I was a good actor.  Sometimes, they said I was great.  There is a saying in the Theatre that you are only as good as your last part.  That is so true.  You might be great, but there is always someone wanting to kick you off of that pedestal.  I have my memories.

 One person who was truly great was Marcel Marceau.  He was the best actor as a mime.  Bip the Clown was his main character.  He could create a scene by just using his body and no words.  He was a genius in that field.  I went to see him perform at The Township in Columbia back in the 1980s.  The auditorium wasn't full, but he played to those of us there.  It was a magical night.  His use of classical music in his mime was so beautiful.  

 Mime is taught in most acting classes, and it is extremely hard to perfect.  To create a square box or pulling a rope with just using your imagination is very difficult.  To control the muscles in your arms and legs is a challenge.  Marceau made it look easy.  It was like watching a master artist at work.  It was a joy to behold.  

Clower

  Our church's Singles group went on a mission's trip to Smyrna, TN in 1982.  Smyrna was just outside Nashville.  We had a free afternoon and evening, so we went into Nashville to look around.  One of the places we went to was Opryland.  I wasn't a huge fan of Country Music, and it played all through the park, but I started tapping my feet to some of it.  

 We went into the Grand Ole Opry auditorium there and saw two acts.  The first was Tom T. Hall.  He sang a few songs.  I wasn't familiar with them, but he was a star.  The second was Jerry Clower.  I had heard of him as a comedian, but I didn't know he was THAT funny!!

 He came on stage and told a couple of funny stories.  One was about a guy who had gotten up into a tree with a wild animal.  I just couldn't stop laughing.  Then, he told a story about a guy on a bicycle who wore suspenders that got stuck on the outside mirror of a car.  I was literally rolling on the floor laughing.  My sides were hurting.  Some comedians make you laugh by something they say.  Clower was so descriptive in his stories, that you could visualize what he was talking about.  He had the audience in the palm of his hand.  

 After the show, we went on the rides and let our hair hang down.  A little strange for a church group or not.  It was a great day!  

George

  My parents and I took a trip to Anniston, Alabama for a wedding, after I graduated high school.  I found a store selling records, and I bought a George Carlin comedy record called "Take-Offs and Put-Ons".  It was very funny.  I had seen him on TV and really liked his humor.  My mother liked the record, too.  Although, I can't say the same for my father.  His sense of humor wasn't as off the wall as my mother and me.  During my days in college and on, I bought every Carlin album.  Yes, some of the language was pretty dirty, but most of it was still funny.

 When I moved to Ft. Worth, there were a lot of acts and theatre that came to that city.  One of them was George Carlin.  I was very excited, because I always wanted to see him in person.  I bought a ticket close to the stage.  He opened his act with some classic bits from his albums.  About 35 minutes into his performance, he excused himself and went offstage.  A few minutes later, a man came out and made an announcement that George couldn't continue.  Some said it was heart-related, while others thought it was drug-related.  I was bummed out, and they wouldn't give our money back.  I don't know the real reason he stopped performing, but it probably was a combination of both heart and drugs.  He was doing a lot of cocaine back then.

 About 30 years later, it was announced that he would be doing a show in Columbia.  By then, he had done several HBO specials along with more records.  It was 2007 at the Township Auditorium.  He had aged a lot, but he was clean of any drugs or alcohol.  Some of his act was very funny, but some was not.  He was having problems standing, so he had a stool for most of the show.  He died about nine months after that show of a heart attack.  He had really bad heart problems.  I have seen a lot of comedians perform.  George was the best.  He had a lot of demons throughout his life, as many of us do.  He overcame them, even though they took a toll on his body.  He was a survivor.

Carpenters

  I had just graduated from college and was trying to save some money to get a car to go to Ft. Worth, but an act was coming to Columbia that I couldn't pass up.  The Carpenters.  I had been a fan ever since "Close to You" affected my life in 1970.  Their music spoke to me, as I was secretly in love with a girl a few years younger than me.  I couldn't tell her how I felt, so the music did it for me.  I also loved Karen Carpenter's voice.  

 My friend Jimmy's brother-in-law invited us to go.  Our seats were on the floor about six rows back from the stage.  It was a magical night.  Karen sang and played the drums.  Richard played the piano.  One bonus was their other drummer.  He was Cubby O'Brien who was on the original Mickey Mouse Club TV show.  They even had some local schoolchildren come on stage for the song "Sing".  We sang all of their songs from the audience with them.  

 Another friend named Sonny was able to get one of Karen's drumsticks and the cup she drank from after the show.  He sealed them in a plastic bag.  I wonder if he still has them.  They would be worth a lot of money now.  

 It is hard to believe that Karen died less than 10 years after that show.  She was a natural talent.  It is too bad that she felt she was never good enough.  Perfectionism will do that to you.  I know from experience.  People will tell you how great you are, but you know the truth.  At least, you think you do.  Creativity can be a positive force, or it can kill you.  That was Karen Carpenter.  

James

  The shortest concert I ever attended was James Brown.  He was being honored by the State of South Carolina for his contribution to the Arts.  The presentation was on the north side of the State House.  There was a jazz band entertaining the crowd.  When James got up to speak, someone from the crowd yelled out to James:  "Give us a song!"  He said that he had to get paid first.  Everyone laughed, but I think he was serious.  After all, he was going through some tough times financially with the IRS.  The jazz band was ready to accompany him.  Everyone in the crowd started yelling for a song.  The band played the first bars of a song, and James belted out three words:  "I Feel Good!"  That was it.  

 On a side note, I was in Augusta, GA one Saturday afternoon.  I had just been to my favorite record store down there.  As I was driving out of town, I saw a bus off to the side in a parking lot.  The door of the bus was open, and a man was sitting on the bottom step of the bus.  I recognized him as James Brown.  He was all alone.  I honked the horn and waved.  He waved back.  I didn't have the guts to drive up to him and say hello.  He might have been in deep thought about another song.  At least, that is what I told myself.  Another regret of my life.  

4427

  I have only been admitted 4 times to the hospital.  The first was a hernia operation, when I was three.  I basically had to learn to walk again afterwards.  The second was to reset my broken thumb in the 4th grade.  They put a cast on it, but I had to stay overnight a few days later to have the thing surgically reset.  The third was for a chemical dermabrasion right after 12 grade to help smooth my skin from acne scars.  The fourth was for a blockage in my colon.

 I was throwing up on Sunday.  I couldn't keep anything down.  Not even water.  I was getting weaker by each passing minute.  That night, I fainted while in the bathroom.  When I woke up, I crawled on all fours back to bed.  I couldn't stand up.  I got back to the bathroom to throw up some more and then crawled to the living room to get my phone and call 911.  The ambulance came rather quickly, and they took me to Parkridge Hospital.

 They told me in the ER that I was going to be admitted, but they didn't have any rooms, so I stayed in the ER for almost two days.  Sleep was impossible.  They brought in a device that was shoved down my throat and into my stomach.  Except for kidney stones, that was the worst pain I had ever experienced.  It worked like a vacuum to suck up my insides.  No food or water.  I had a day nurse who was very nice.  Her name was Hannah.  She helped me get through the trauma of the ER.  When they told me they had a room for me Tuesday night, I was overjoyed.  

 I was moved to room 4427, which was on the top floor of the hospital.  A private room with a TV and a bathroom.  Even though I still had that tube down my throat, they gave me some ice chips which helped.  When daylight came, I could see trees outside my window.  Every two hours, somebody would come in to take my vitals or blood.  David was a soothing tech for the vitals.  My brother came to visit and brought me a phone charger, so I could keep up with the world.  I had two other friends visit me during this time.  Mostly, I watched sports and game shows on the TV.  I also figured out how to install Spectrum on my phone, so I could watch some things not on the hospital TV.  

 By Thursday, the doctor told me that they could pull the tube out of my throat.  The nurse came in and yanked it out.  No pain.  I could breathe again.  I had a hard time swallowing, but I was free of that thing.  I was put on a clear liquid diet, so I was able to at least put something in my stomach.  I am now not a fan of beef broth.  By Friday, I was put on a modified liquid diet, so I could have Jello and pudding.  Still not solid food, but just a little better.  That night, I was trying to sleep, when the nurse came in to check on me.  My right arm and swelled up to twice its size.  That was where my IV was.  I had been getting nutrients for those days I couldn't eat.  She pulled out the IV and had me elevate my arm with pillows.  The swelling began to go down some.  That was a little scary.

 Then came Saturday.  The doctor told me I could try solid food.  If I tolerated it, I could go home.  I had chicken pie.  No problems.  Even though I was still weak with no exercise, I was released and sent home.  Almost a week in the hospital.  I was voted the nicest patient on the 4th floor of the hospital by the nurses.  All of my nurses were great.  One told me that it was her job to be nice.  I hope that she was just kidding, because they were all nice.  I don't recommend you having to go through what I went through, but at least they made it bearable.  When I got home, I slept twelve hours for two days.  No real sleep for a week will do that to you.  

Rhythm

  Presbyterian College had some good shows, when I was a student there.  Livingston Taylor (James Taylor's brother), Lester Flatt, Mac Wiseman, John D. Loudermilk, The Mission Mountain Wood Band, Uncle Walt's Band, and The Atlanta Rhythm Section.  

 The country artists all came on one day for a picnic.  Lester Flatt was the headliner.  He was getting kind of old, but he could still play the guitar.  I fell in love with traditional country music from those acts.  There was a rumor that James Taylor was coming to PC in concert, so some folks were disappointed to find out that his brother was going to play instead.  It was still a good show.  

 The highlight of my years at PC was the Atlanta Rhythm Section.  They had just released "Doraville", and it was climbing the charts.  Their bass player was fat, whereas everyone else in the band was thin.  He sort of stood out.  Some people in the audience made fun of his looks, but he could really play the bass guitar.  Just because someone looks different doesn't mean they aren't talented.  All of that lineup is now dead.  They could really cook on stage as part of the Southern Rock genre.  We had a good time at PC.  The beer flowed, and the grass permeated the crowd.  Pretty good for a "religious" school back in the day.