Taxing Times

In case you hadn't noticed, today marks the day that many Americans dread most. Yes, it's the day when it's time to pay the piper, when it's time to put up and shut up, when the pain of IRSitis (that's pronounced ur-si-tihs) hits most Americans and no amount of aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen will help. Ever since the U.S. Tax Code, which identifies the Internal Revenue Service as the official tax collecting arm of the govenment, went into effect has the plight of the American taxpayer ever been made more stressful and the careers of H. and R. Block more profitable. For those that use Turbo Tax or any of the other computer programs that attempt to help figure out what is owed and what can be deducted safely, the old adage "garbage in and garbage out" has probably never been truer. Regardless if you've figured it out correctly or not, it's time to submit your check because if you don't pay what is owed today, you may be liable for penalties and interest which can turn a small oversight into a major headache. My advice is get a good accountant and maintain a healthy friendship. Accountants can be lifesavers on the sea of taxation. And in the meantime just take a deep breath. The next quarter will be due in just another 90 days.

Wild Weekend

This last weekend was a whirl for me and I apologize for not having time to write a blog yesterday. Despite the draw of the French Quarter Festival and the V-Day celebrations in the Central Business District, my place was out in God's country with the Chilankatoba Lodge of the Order of the Arrow, an honor society of Boy Scouts and selected adult leaders. While the Boy Scouts of America will be 100 years old in 2010, the Order of the Arrow will mark its centennial five years later in 2015. For its entire history the group has dedicated itself to cheerful service work both in and out of the BSA. This coming weekend the Southern Region Section 1 of the Order of the Arrow will be gathering at the Salmen Scout Reservation maintained by the Southeast Louisiana Council . It was the job of the host lodge to make sure the camp was well-prepared for the other lodges who are expected to attend with nearly 500 Arrowmen, as members are known. Substantial repairs to the existing facilities were made by dedicated Scouts and Scouters and I can report with pride that the camp is in tip-top shape. This next weekend will mark the first time in 30 years that the Southeast Louisiana Council has played host to the Conclave. It should be a wonderful time.
Kudos to Cabaret Le Chat Noir for the past two weekends of shows as they hosted the All Kinds of Theatre production of Amanda McBroom's show with pianist Joel Silberman. It was a spectacular show consisting of most of her own penned material. McBroom's performance culminated with her special rendition of "The Rose" that was used in the film of the same title featuring Bette Midler. McBroom's husband, George, a former star in the San Francisco production of "Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris," came on stage for last night's final encore to sing a duet of "Some Enchanted Evening" with his wife. McBroom, considered one of the very finest cabaret singers in the world, was overwhelmed with New Orleans and all of its charms. She stated she had to leave because her clothes no longer fit. A fine tribute to New Orleans' fattening cuisine.

French Quarter Festival, V-Day kick off; Dr. Kroger kicks the bucket

Wow! It's been 25 years that the New Orleans French Quarter Festival has been in full swing, starting initially as a very small attempt to beef up attendance from locals into the French Quarter, which had acquired the unseemly reputation of a dirty, dingy and dangerous area of the city. When it first started, a few local artists played some traditional jazz selections and several French Quarter restaurants sold a few of their menu items to the anxious crowds. Over the years the caliber of artists has been raised and the number of stages for performances has increased substantially to 17. The number of participating restaurants and the variety of menu offerings has, likewise, leapfrogged. It is possible to even bring kids to the very family-friendly events that occur from today through Sunday. Special events include a "second line" parade this morning, a battle of the bands, and an oyster eating contest. Local luminary and pianist Ronnie Kole's brass statue was unveiled in ceremonies at the Legends Park on Bourbon Street. Add to this the celebration of V-Day down at the Superdome with stars like Oprah Winfrey, Jane Fonda and "Vagina Monologues" author Eve Ensler and there's lots of stuff happening way down yonder in New Orleans. For those who want to get out of town, this is also the weekend for the Pontchatoula Strawberry Festival. Surprisingly, Pontchatoula's most famous daughter, Irma Thomas, is not appearing at the French Quarter Festival. So who knows? Maybe that's a good spot to hang out this weekend, away from all of the hubbub and traffic of the downtown and Vieux Carre areas.
Sad news for "Monk" fans: Those who know me well know that I am a particular fan of TV's "Monk." I note with sadness the passing of Stanley A. Kamel, the gifted actor who portrayed the obsessive compulsive detective's overtaxed psychiatrist, Dr. Charles Kroger. Kamel, 65, was found dead of an apparent heart at his Beverly Hills home. He was a veteran of TV for decades having played a number of roles on TV soaps like "Days of Our Lives" and prime time fare like "Beverly Hills 90210." As Dr. Kroger, Kamel had a marvelous part, which he played to perfection opposite Tony Shaloub's quriky Adrian Monk. He will be missed by "Monk" fans across the globe.

A gathering of Eagles and Blue Dogs

Last night I had the pleasure to attend a gathering of several hundred area Boy Scouts and adult leader called Scouters at the New Orleans Museum of Art. The reason was a special exhibit of Norman Rockwell and Joseph Csatari paintings that were on display as a special traveling show with the new Chief Scout Executive Robert Mazzuca visiting New Orleans for the first time in the position he accepted last May. Norman Rockwell was one of my favorite painters and many of the wholesome Americana images he captured on canvas dealt with Scouting. Csatari was his pupil and has carried the torch proudly since Rockwell's death. Many of the paintings, like Rockwell's "The Scoutmaster" have become icons in and of themselves. It was unbelievably moving to see these paintings and drawings up close and all together. Also on display was an incredible retrospective on the hallowed career of George Rodrigue, the Cajun artist whose "Blue Dog" paintings have become world famous. Many will note that the very popular Blue Dog was at first based on the Cajun legend of the loup garou, a Cajun werewolf legend. Rodrigue based the image on his former pet who had died four years earlier. At first the eyes burned red with anger and menace. Later, though, as the animal appeared more frequently in Rodrigue's paintings along with other famous personages like Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, Pete Fountain, Al Hirt, Huey Long, Earl Long, and others, the eyes became a softer, friendlier yellow. The exhibitions were wonderful, but the highlight of the evening was the speech by Mazzuca, which noted the incredible progress the Southeast Louisiana Council has made since the devastation from Hurricane Katrina. At one point, the former 16,000 youth members of BSA units in the council had ebbed to 3,600. At the end of 2007 the council had regained to a level of 11,000, but approximately one-third (similar to the loss of population across the city) has been lost. I was proud to accompany my Eagle Scout son David, who like all Eagle Scouts in attendance pledged to continue to help Scouting in future years. We were fortunate to sit with our troop's Scoutmaster, Gene von Rosenberg, who has been Scoutmaster of Troop 48 (charter-partnered with St. Andrew's Episcopal Church) for the last 25 years. Tonight, a similar event at the New Orleans Museum of Art will be held with George Rodrigue also in attendance.

Black Jew Dialogues, Part 2

Ron Jones, yours truly and Larry Jay Tish after last night's performance at Le Chat Noir

Following publication of yesterday’s blog about “The Black Jew Dialogues,” I attended the performance at Le Chat Noir last night. The sparsely attended crowd was treated to nearly an hour and a half of scripted fun followed by a ten minute question and answer period. Both co-creators and stars Larry Jay Tish and Ron Jones were clever in their approach to the material, which was hysterical for most of the night. There were underpinnings that dealt with issues of anti-Semitism and racism against African-Americans, but the message was delivered through the veil of humor. It was a play within a play with the two stars breaking character to become themselves only to revert into other characters. “This play within a play thing, we didn’t start,” Tish remarked prior to the performance. “Actually, Wiliam Shakespeare did it originally.” The whole performance was quite hilarious and there the party next to me, neither African-American or Jewish, were having just as much fun as the others in the audience who were. Following last night's nearly hour and a half long show, the crowd thinned out and I found myself enjoying a late night with the two stars. We ended the morning at the Carousel Bar at the Monteleone Hotel, not exactly on my diet. But what the heck! It was fun and I hadn't had anything alcoholic earlier at Le Chat (much to Barbara Motley's chagrin). Tonight's the final performance, but I don't think either Ron or Larry will make this their last trip.

The Black Jew Dialogues

Ron Jones, left, as "Mabel" and Larry Jay Tish as "Esther" in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Larry Jay Tish is probably one of the most genial fellows one would ever want to meet. He calls himself a "Bu-Jew," meaning he believes in both Buddhist and Jewish traditions. His diet is fairly strict, but he is being tested while in New Orleans. Somehow, it is hard to pass on a shrimp po-boy from Domilise's or to sample from some of the swank eateries found in the Crescent City. Larry is the co-writer and co-creator of "The Black-Jew Diaglogues," premiering tonight and playing again tomorrow night (Tuesday) at Le Chat Noir. Le Chat's comely proprietress, Barbara Motley, was contacted by Tish a few weeks back when he learned that he was going to be presenting his show at nearby LSU in Baton Rouge on Wednesday. Trying to piggyback on the other date, he offered Motley an opportunity to showcase the original comedy starring fellow Bostonian Ron Jones and himself. The series of vignettes runs nearly an hour and a half and is being co-presented by Anthony Beane Acting School and Community Theatre. Proceeds for tonight's show will benefit Le Chat Noir, while tomorrow night's proceeds will benefit Anthony Beane. Due to the nature of the show, Motley says she was insistent that Beane be brought into the mix as a sign of working with the diverse New Orleans theatre community and the importance of the message of Tish's "The Black Jew Dialogues," which stresses similarities between the African-American and Jewish communities. Throughout the performance, Tish and Jones will play characters not unlike themselves and will explore many of the issues that have strengthened and divided the two diverse communities. They even get into drag for the appearance of "Esther" and "Mabel," two older "ladies" who meet in a park. "At first they don't like each other," Tish explains, "but then they end up singing about the joys of food -- Jewish and soul food!" The multi-media presentation has lots of funny video bits too. As an example, Tish conducts man on the street interviews about a range of issues that turn out to be quite hilarious. Both Jones and Tish will employ the use of puppets for another segment of the show. Tish says the show has been playing well on college campuses, since its inception a little over a year and a half ago. The biggest break came when "The Black Jew Dialogues" was chosen to appear for 27 straight nights at the Edinburgh, Scotland Performing Arts Festival, which Tish describes as the world's largest. Based on its initial success, the show has been booked into other European venues like Leeds, England and has criss-crossed the country for most of the last year. Both Tish and Jones have had experience in improv theatre: Tish, who originally hailed from Brooklyn, had lots of experience acquired in Boston as did Jones, who was a native of Washington, D.C. "I wanted to do more and wanted to bring people together, especially after 9/11," confides Tish. He and Jones brainstormed in a hotel room to get the creative process started and that's the basic genesis of the material in the show. "We wanted to show the absurdity and stupidity of racism and hatred, especially between our groups," Tish notes. He acknowledges that there was a growing rift between blacks and Jews and he found that incredulous given the history of Jews being at the forefront of the battle to achieve civil rights. Tish promises an evening of fun and laughter, but with an underlying message. For ticket information, contact Le Chat Noir at 504-581-5812 or drop by tonight or tomorrow night at 715 St. Charles Avenue.

Moses is dead and I'm not feeling well either

I went to bed late last night after working at a very nice party, providing music for the guests who were celebrating two major events at one time. The first was a 60th birthday party and the second was an official housewarming for his sister-in-law, who was hosting the event. After well over two years, she was finally free of architects and contractors whose job it was to restore and repair her house following the damage from the Hurricane Katrina related flooding. The party took place no more than eight blocks away as the crow flies from my home, so I know the house received at least four to five feet of flooding. When I checked my e-mail, I found a notice that noted actor Charlton Heston, 84, the star of "The Ten Commandments," "Ben Hur," "The Agony and the Ecstasy," "El Cid," "The Greatest Show on Earth," "The Planet of the Apes," and "Touch of Evil" (to name just a few) had succumbed, probably due to the effects of Alzheimer's disease with which he had acknowledged having consistent symptoms in 2002. For me his greatest role was that of Moses, the central figure of Cecil B. DeMille's retelling of "The Ten Commandments" in 1956. I remember seeing that film in the theatres as a child with my grandmother dragging me by the hand. I recall the pivotal scene where Heston's Moses sees the burning bush and hears the words of God for the first time. To a young, impressionable kid, especially one who was coming to grips with his Jewish heritage, this was a very awe-inspiring film. To me Heston was the definitive portrayal of Moses and I used his performance to consider what the real prophet would have been like. Later, in Hebrew school, I learned that Moses used his brother Aaron to communicate to the pharaoh because he was slow of speech. I found that concept implausible when I thought about the movie, because Heston was a speechwriter's dream, a stoic figure with a booming baritone to match. The other major movie role I treasured growing up was Heston's Judah Ben Hur in William Wyler's epic "Ben Hur." Although this was a Christian tale, there was Heston playing the role of another Jew. With his hawk-like, chiseled features, I should have known that he wasn't Jewish, but the illusion was convincing because, after all, wasn't he Moses? The chariot scene in the Academy Award winning film still ranks as one of my favorites and it probably helped secure Heston his only Oscar. Here in the Crescent City, some will recall Heston portrayed Andrew Jackson, the hero of the Battle of New Orleans, in the Hollywood send up "The Buccaneer" in which Yul Brynner played privateer Jean Lafitte. But most will recall Heston's role in "Number One" in which he played the improbable role of a great quarterback (Billy Kilmer did most of the throwing in cutaways), who had brought his New Orleans Saints to a Super Bowl. Whatever role he played, Heston was usually over the top. Consider his "El Cid" opposite Sophia Loren or his circus master in "The Greatest Show on Earth," de Mille's only Academy Award winner for Best Picture. Heston chose to ignore the historical record when he took on the role of Michelangelo, a gifted artist acknowledged by Vatican scholars as having been homosexual. But it didn't really matter. Heston was larger than life and like John Wayne, he cast such an enormous figure that he made the pictures ever so much stronger by his appearance in them. Heston was a six-time president of the Screen Actors Guild and presided over the American Film Institute. He loved community theatre and helped found the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Theatre in Wolfe's hometown of Asheville, North Carolina, not far from where I attended summer camp for seven years. Many will remember his TV role on "Dynasty" and "The Colbys," but Heston was a movie star. The small screen never seemed to capture his true essence. There were the forgettable pictures too like "Soylent Green" and those disaster flicks like "Airport 1975" and "Earthquake," but fans were forgiving of Heston, even when he became highly politicized late in life. As a president of the National Rifle Association, he devoutly defended the right of Americans to bear arms, even if he took heat for it from the liberal wing. He and Ed Asner, TV's Lou Grant, got into a series of public imbroglios over restricting gun ownership and documentary filmmaker Michael Moore ambushed Heston in his own Beverly Hills home in "Bowling for Columbine." It was probably not a well-advised move for Heston to have an audience with Moore, who used the opportunity to personally impugn Heston's integrity and sensitivity in holding pro-NRA rallies in Flint, Michigan and in Columbine following gun tragedies there. It was a low point for Moore, but Heston showed his mettle by leaving the interview after six minutes of haranguing by the porcine interviewer. Heston leaves behind his wife of 64 years, Lydia, adopted daughter Holly Heston Rochell and director-producer son Fraser, who made his screen debut as the infant Moses in "The Ten Commandments." It is a shame, but Heston's famous chant at NRA conventions with rifle raised above his head ("From my cold dead hands!") can now be played in earnest. I much prefer "Let it be written. Let it be done!" Don't you?