Trinity is the poor man's Ursa

Ahhh, Ursa. Don't you see? Your absolute hatred of men only made you hotter.


As an actor, I've come up with some interesting theories regarding how I've landed the jobs I've booked. For the first couple of years I'd always book the majority of commercials in August & December. So that meant those were my golden months. I was destined to book a load of work in those months. Then came the year I didn't book anything in those months at all. Last year I booked a promo before I booked any commercial work. Does that mean that this year I have to book a promo before I get any commercials? I just did pretty well at a TV Land promo audition, but I'm sure they're going to go for the guy with the wacky hair. I do not have wacky hair. I'm just me.

Sometimes it can be frustrating to try to make sense of a business not designed with sense in mind. I've booked jobs I had no right getting, and I've been shafted out of that perfect role. It has nothing to do with me, I know, but it still blows when you haven't booked anything in a few months. Which is my case now. Only so long one can live off residuals. You gotta keep the coffers fresh with income.

Lately I've been the callback king, but just not booking anything. That gets a little frustrating. Recently I got real close to booking a voiceover gig, and now the voiceover department at my agency is sending me out more often than the on-camera dept. I don't see myself as a voiceover guy. It's a very small world, and while I know a few of the people in it, I still feel like a guest. So I've been working with a coach to get over myself and my insecurities and just learn how to audition in front of a microphone. When you get right down to it, it's kind of the ideal job. No make-up or wardrobe to deal with, no insanely early call times. You go into a booth, work your vocal magic and leave. The longest v.o. job I've ever had was about an hour. And that was one of those History Channel narration things. My favorite part of that job is the saying of the person's name after reading their quote. Everyone's voice gets all low and self-important. "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. (pause, inflect gravitas) Franklin Delano Roosevelt."

Yesterday was a crazy audition day. I ran into so many people I knew or knew of. It was crazy. First there was Zach Galligan (most notably from Gremlins) at my audition. I used to have a crush on Phoebe Cates, and I thought Zach had the best job in the world because he got to kiss her. Now I didn't go up to him and tell him this because: 1. he's probably heard it enough, 2. how would you like to be remembered almost exclusively for something you did 24 years ago, 3. he was preparing for his audition and didn't need the interruption, and 4. how would my inane gushing help him through his day?

Then I ran into a friend of mine at a voiceover audition down the hall. You've seen Matt a bit on soaps and a few commercials recently. He's a dude. After I saw him, yet another celebrity from my youth came in. He knew Matt and Matt knew him. We all chatted a bit. The world became too small for my brain to comprehend. Then I see Kelly Coffield (from In Living Color, but also much more) at another voiceover audition down the hall. The I run into an actress I haven't seen in 10 years. I moved to NYC almost 11 years ago, and when I got here I hit the ground running by producing and acting in a play. She was in the cast. Very talented and nice to work with. It was 10 years ago this month that my first production went up in NYC. And here we were, 10 years almost to the day that the show opened. It was great catching up.

Finally, I'm at another audition, and I run into a guy I knew of because I had just seen his work. He had worked with some other people I knew as well, so I just went up to him (in the men's room) and told him how much I liked the project I saw. Awkward, yes. I'm kind of socially inept at times.

Which is why I blog.

And why you blog too.