Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2007. We took Mattie to one of his favorite museums in Los Angeles, the George C. Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits. The Tar Pits is one of the world's most famous ice age fossil excavation sites, and the museum then houses the fossils which are unearthed. There is even an active pit in which archaeologists are still actively digging up fossils. As you can see, Mattie was standing in front of a tar pit and as we all know very well.... tar has an awful smell! Which was why Mattie was trying to cover his nose and mouth and was making a funny face! The stench from behind him was remarkable! You can also see the models of prehistoric creatures they placed in the tar pits, to give visitors an understanding for how these creatures may have wandered into the pits looking for water, but then got stuck in the tar unable to move. Which is how these prehistoric creatures died and were preserved throughout time in the pits.
Quote of the day: We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained. ~ Marie Curie
In its California premiere The Fabulous Lipitones by John
Markus (who is well known for his comedy script writing of the Cosby Show and A Different World) and Mark St. Germain sounds like a silly promo for an overrated medical ("lipitor") product and with its initially corny lines could easily fall into
the category of 'sitcom onstage' comedy. Lipitones is a funny and substantially reflective take
on what might happen if a traditional barbershop quartet inducted a culturally "un...suitable replacement."
As the play opens up you understand that longtime tenor Andy (a member of the original quartet) has passed away and the group
is considering the possibility of closing up shop. After all, they say...who sings
barbershop anymore? It's a dying art. They were a barbershop quartet - four men with
perfect harmony. But the songs they sang are by and large very old: "Wait 'Til the Sun Shines, Nellie." "After
You've Gone" or "Grand Old Flag." Anyway, remaining members
Howard (John Racca), Wally (Steve Gunderson) and Phil (Dennis Holland) admire
Bob or Baba Mati Singh's (Asante Gunewardena) vocal ability, it's just that
he's from Afghanistan, or India (they aren't sure!)? To avoid the label "illegal," his auto-shop boss has been resigning him up for employment every 6 months
under a different alias and country. If anyone squeals, he'll be deported, and
Phil might just have dropped the bomb, as he's the most opposed to Bob joining
the group. Each of the three guys has an issue of his own to contend with. Phil
owns a fitness gym and is about to be ousted by younger co-management, who find
more mature men sexually unappealing; Wally is a pharmacist more into getting a date
with his female "pharmacettes" than into filling prescriptions; only
Howard is the most devoted, as he is taking care of a sick wife who once left
him for another man. Hardly saints, these men must learn to compromise and
adapt their feelings to Indian Bob.
Bob, by the way, does not at all understand their choice of
songs. "I'm Only a Bird in a Gilded Cage" or "I Want a Girl,
Just Like the Girl That Married Dear Old Dad" give him a horrible image of
Americans as he interprets the lyrics literally. His culture will not allow him
to accept anyone or anything caged and certainly not a woman who marries her
father. Funny, funny misunderstandings concocted by Markus and St. Germain! Bob
admires Howard for his devotion to his wife, and when she dies, everyone rallies
... even Bob, who still has not been arrested by the feds. One terribly amusing
sight gag is Bob's turban that he somehow manages to reduce in size to fit
under the boys' costumed straw hats. In the midst of this hilarious comedy, is great meaning! The show enables four men to find themselves and to develop tolerance, appreciation, and cultural sensitivity for one another. Which through this special bond is what ultimately produced their great harmony and music together!
Here is a clip of the last song they performed together ("The Little Bunny") and after the song, the actor who portrayed "Bob" did a short interview:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt-qepQk_T4
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