If you like comedy, PR or the occasional inside scoop on the entertainment world,
then drop by for a daily dose written by me, Kambri Crews, producer and publicist to comedians and more!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
RIP Marvin Zindler....Eyyyyyewitness News! I hadn't fallen asleep yet when, "WHAM!" The front door flew off its hinges. Dad came charging straight towards me as I held my rotary phone in my hands -- nine really is a stupid number to start out with for an emergency number when time is of the essence.
--Kambri Thank God for digital phones, huh? Am I right, people?
Link - 12:56 AM -
Monday, July 30, 2007
Introducing: LIVE WIRE!
I'm producing a live mash up of comedy and music at Comix! I'm super excited to get this off the ground and am happier that DJ Cipha Sounds is on board to host. Tickets are only $12 and there is NO MINIMUM. Buy tickets here: comixny.com/event.aspx?eid=236&sid=710. I'm giving you over a month's notice, people!
Danny Bonaduce Redux
For those who may have missed him the first time around or for those who couldn't get enough of him, he's baaaacckkkk! Danny Bonaduce, that is. I just started working on his press tour and can't wait to see him again. He'll be at Comix on August 10th & 11th hosting some pretty stellar NYC comedians and telling his crazy Hollywood tales. The dude is not a "phone it in" kind of performer but is a bundle of high energy so any of the four shows promise to be good. Click here for tickets and line up info. Save $5 with the promo code "DBVIP".
--Kambri Never really watched the Partridge Family.
Link - 8:41 AM -
Sunday, July 29, 2007
The McCaulay Culkin Tidbit Will Have to Wait
Some day I'll tell the story about the small McCauley Culkin gathering in Montreal where a very drunk writer for a very popular TV show was aggressively lunging after my butt. But today, I'll just tell you some news I've kept from you: I officially have a literary agent.
--Kambri I'm super excited! But now I must write day and night.
Link - 2:29 PM -
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Caroline Waxler on "Cash Cab"
Check out this video clip of Le Chuckle Hut co-producer Caroline Waxler on "Cash Cab":
--Kambri Link - 9:10 AM -
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The Latest Ballyhoo
-- Christian Finnegan was the surprise celebrity guest on "My First Time" at New World Stages. View the photo of Christian with the cast backstage.
-- Danny Bonaduce returns to Comix August 10th & 11th for a weekend to host some of the best comedians New York has to offer. Click here for info.
-- The Comix Academy is accepting enrollment for a four week intensive "4 Weeks to Tell the Story of a Lifetime" taught by Margot Leitman at Comix beginning September 8th. Click here for info.
--Kambri Read the rest of the newsletter here.
Link - 8:34 AM -
Monday, July 23, 2007
State of the Industry 2007
Greg Fitzsimmons reported for MySpace this year like Christian did last year which also was MySpace's first time out to the Just for Laughs Festival. I just caught some video of Andy Kindler's annual "State of the Industry Address" -- a must see event for anyone in the comedy industry -- and realized that I'm in the clip. Greg tells me and a few others not to walk on the red carpet because we're not celebrities. Watch the video and catch some interviews with just a few of the comedians we were hanging out with all weekend and learn about this annual roast of the people we know and love or love to hate.
--Kambri Link - 9:15 PM -
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Why Am I Still Awake?
I love not waking up to an alarm clock. Just my internal commotion wakes me up and that's a lovely blessing. It also means that some nights, like tonight, I browse the same five sites over and over and refresh only to find that nothing has changed since the last five minutes I checked it and no new email has graced my inbox. I love getting mail.
If I knew my alarm clock was ringing soon I'd probably discipline myself instead of what I've been doing the last three hours.
--Kambri Drinking wine and checking ticket sales on the benefit show I'm producing starring John Oliver from the Daily Show. Did you buy your tickets yet?!?!
Link - 2:17 AM -
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Anyone Have LexisNexis?
Thanks to the eagle-eyed Stacy (who I just happily met at the Laff Stop in Houston), we know the name of the murdered bartender from Conroe that my mom silently wondered if My Jailed Deaf Dad killed. Stacy actually found the info through the very link I provided in my earlier entry:
Anyone know how I might research such a thing? I Googled 2854 San Jacinto River Murdered but it yielded other results. The possible hit & run is too broad to even begin a search.
Turns out that link wasn't useless. Third result down is this site. You have to scroll down the very bottom before coming across an article from the 6/25/85 Houston Chronicle that includes this excerpt:
Eason said his office is also investigating whether Ward could have been involved in the strangulation of a Conroe barmaid in September. The body of Brenda Maureen Hackett, 25, was found under a railroad trestle near FM 2854 by a train conductor. Hackett had been sexually assaulted before she was strangled with a stocking.
So there it is. Pretty much exactly as Mom remembered minus the San Jacinto River part since the SJR doesn't actually run under that bridge or road that I can tell. The "Ward" in the article was a man who was suspected in her murder but killed himself in Las Vegas. According to my Mom, though, Hackett's ex-husband from California was charged.
So, I feel confident* that the police investigated the matter thoroughly enough to have excluded Ward and pinned it on the Ex Mr. Hackett. Dad just happened to know her.
I'm Exhausted
I'm spent. Emotionally and physically spent. It was a GREAT time spent with Christian. One night we hung out with Stacey (pre-order her book!) and an old family friend. My mom used to babysit him and he and his sister used to babysit me. Then there was the mini-reunion of me and a few friends from Elementary/Jr. High/High School. That was a load of fun and a nice reminder of just why I love Montgomery so much.
And then yesterday, of course, there was the four hour visit with My Jailed Deaf Dad followed by a nearly three hour dinner "interview" with my mom. Yesterday was overwhelming emotionally -- a lot of painful memories and domestic violence mixed in with such fond memories of my life there. A complex oxymoron. Just as I was thinking I need a few days to recover before I get back to the business of writing, I get a phone call from a literary agent. There's no rest for the weary.
Maybe when I get back from the "Just for Laughs" comedy festival in Montreal I'll be back to myself. That's a lot of amazing comedy and networking with the biggest big wigs in the business in one weekend. If I can't recover after a trip there, then I'm a lost cause.
--Kambri Feeling confused and melancholy and motivated and excited all at once. I'm a mess.
Link - 7:07 PM -
Friday, July 13, 2007
Christian in Current Magazine
Christian is really funny in the "3 Questions With" segment in this month's Current Magazine. I especially liked his answer to the bonus question. Read it here.
--Kambri Pluto's Plaything. Har.
Link - 11:50 AM -
I Told You So
When you get married at 17 no one really expects it to last. I didn't. Even when I was repeating the vows administered by the judge one frigid January evening after school.
--Kambri Link - 12:30 AM -
Thursday, July 12, 2007
John Oliver from The Daily Show Saves the Day!
Sadly, Michael Ian Black had to bail on The Onion benefit for Greenpeace this Thursday. Another time perhaps. Meanwhile, John Oliver from The Daily Show did us a major solid by filling in at the last minute. John headlined for us at Comix a while back to packed, happy audiences. If you've never seen John, now's your chance all in support of saving our Earth.
THE ONION BENEFIT FOR GREENPEACE WITH JOHN OLIVER, AZIZ ANSARI, TOMMY TIERNAN & MORE Comix & The Onion are proud to present a comedy showcase to benefit the efforts of Greenpeace on Thursday, July 19th. Be one of the first 100 people to arrive and you'll receive a Comix tote bag filled with great gifts like an Admit 2 pass for a future show at Comix, a 2007 Not for Tourist Guide & MORE!
Comedian Jordan Carlos hosts: * John Oliver (The Daily Show) * Aziz Ansari (Star of MTV's Human Giant) * Tom Tiernan (Edinburgh Festival, Just for Laughs Montreal Comedy Festival)
--Kambri Or, better yet, come out to a show!
Link - 9:15 PM -
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Private Dick
Tons of friends old and older are coming out to the Houston Laff Stop this weekend to hang out to see Christian headline, and I truly only have fun planned. And perhaps a light hearted interrogation in a prison yard. You know, your typical family vacay.
I've been wearing my private dick hat (very loosely, mind you) and have found a few things regarding possible murder and mayhem by My Jailed Deaf Dad. Thank you to everyone who gave awesome and most useful ideas, many of which have actually led to other things. But I still need to gather some basic info from the "perp" (heh) that will help in the investigation.
I always wanted to be a PI. So much so that my brother and I even (briefly) talked of going into business as such and I actually "stalked" a couple of people (more in the paper sense of the word) to hone my "skills". I was collecting on multi-million commercial dollar loans and in a toxic personal relationship at the time and kind of got addicted to just how much time I could spend to find out about someone and how to turn that obsession into a $$$ making business. Always the entrepreneur, I guess, but ultimately it's a lot of time spent alone.
The scenario below might actually be real and it's making me DIZZY with the possibilities. Unfortunately the internet hasn't fully caught up with us, but I know all about microfiche and hours at the library. I'm not afraid! Hear me, potential falsely convicted person murder case?
I'll let you know what Dad has to say about the Donna, her dead bartender and the like. I expect a tall, "I once caught a fish this big" kind of story. It's the same kind he's told me about how he didn't try to kill my mom. (He was only arguing with her because she was letting the 16 yr old me have a man {my future husband} sleep over. I guess when he was telling me this big fish version he forgot that I WAS THERE and was the one who called 911! First rule of lying: Don't lie. Second rule of lying: If you do lie, don't lie to the person who was there in the fu*king room!) Or like how he didn't try to kill his 3rd wife "G" she was actually trying to kill herself. Never mind that the cops stone cold busted his ass straddled on top of her while he was stabbing her. Doh! Third rule of lying: Don't try to kill people in front of the police.
So don't hold your breath that any truth will come of it -- maybe just some leads. I'm going to ask him a crap load of other questions so rather than smuggle in a What-A-Burger, I might aim for a pencil and paper to take notes.
--Kambri It's freaking hot as balls out anyway, where the hell am I going to stuff a sizzling cheeseburger?
Link - 11:59 PM -
Sunday, July 08, 2007
Cold Case File?
I just had the longest phone call with my mom which included some re-hashing of stories past and a few new revelations. I was so excited about these new gems when Christian came through the door that I launched into a diarrhea-of-the-mouth episode before I even thought to ask how his night was.
"How was your set?" I asked since I knew he was trying out some jokes he had written just this afternoon.
"Awful! Not because of the jokes themselves but more because I hadn't committed them to memory. I talked about Paquita."
"You did?! What? About how she's God's mistake?" I asked, using one of Christian's favorite derogatory descriptions of our Chihuahua.
"Yes, about how I wish Darwin were alive so I could hold her up and ask how she eeked through. How God must have been drunk when he created her since she's essentially a four pound eyeball and ear caddy. The dodo bird must be pissed up in Heaven. 'I was wiped out as a species for this?'"
"But she's smarter than a dodo bird! See? Be cute, Paquita, be cute!" I argue to which Paquita flopped on her back and rubbed her eyes in the cutest possible way. I showered her in kisses and said, "Yes, you're sooooo cute! You're soooo cute!"
"Oh, so I guess since the topic isn't on you we're done talking now?" Christian said as he walks out of the room.
"I'm sorry!" I pleaded after I realized my high adrenline has given me a late night bout with A.D.D. "But did your dad possibly murder a woman with a nylon then dump her off a bridge?"
Yes, tonight I just learned that Mom suspected Dad of maybe killing another young woman. A woman who worked as a bartender at one of Donna's other bars. A woman Dad obsessively teased and hovered over. She was found strangled with her own nylon stocking and dumped over a bridge on Hwy 2854 down into the San Jacinto River. When her body was found, Mom wondered if Dad had anything to do with it but she didn't ask. She didn't want to know. The dead bartender's ex-husband from California was blamed.
I'm gonna ask Dad about this when I see him in the clink on Sunday. Stay tuned for some interesting "spin" since I don't know if he knows that I know about Donna let alone some young, dead bartender. Oh yeah, and he may have and struck and killed a pedestrian in a hit & run in Ft. Worth with our Thunderbird.
Anyone know how I might research such a thing? I Googled 2854 San Jacinto River Murdered but it yielded other results. The possible hit & run is too broad to even begin a search.
Long time readers will know that I'm obsessed with (a) forensic science, (b) mysteries, (c) Court TV, (d) solving puzzles in general, and (e) I was such a fanatic that I was the first fan interview for Court TV's newsletter. Read my original blog posted interview here. And while I'm at it, how does one go about getting transcripts of 911 calls and/or recordings?
--Kambri Going to write my Court TV pals for some assitance.
Link - 11:10 PM -
Saturday, July 07, 2007
Holy Mother
I took a kick boxing class at 12:30 today. It's only 3:30 and I can barely move and I have a horrible headache. Wow. But the good news is Boggle was delivered today. Me thinks I'll be enjoying some wine and Boggle sitting very, very still tonight.
--Kambri Seriously out of shape.
Link - 3:23 PM -
Friday, July 06, 2007
Yesterday
I left the house calling out to Christian, "Bye, honey. I'm off to go fail upwards!" It's a quote from a little pep talk he gave me a long time ago when I was just forming Ballyhoo Promotions. "Life is full of frustrating disappointments, lost opportunities and little failures but the key is we keep failing upwards." Basically meaning that sure he might not get the part but the point is he was up for a role in an Eddie Murphy movie. Or I might not yet be able to snag a big client like say, Ri*hard L*wis, but Ri*hard knows who I am and would vouch for my work.
Turns out, I didn't fail yesterday. I just have a lot of work ahead of me. After discussing my memoir proposal, the literary agent said, "Let's get this ball rolling!" The publishing industry is virtually dead in the summertime so I am going to spend the next two months trying to write like a mad woman. I certainly was not in the position to meet with book agents 10 years ago or even 5 years ago. So even if I do fail at that and nothing ever comes of the proposal, I will have failed upwards.
With another visit to My Jailed Deaf Dad right around the corner, I hope to have some fresh new perspective and inspiration though I will NOT be smuggling in any more contraband. Yes, Dad, I am a "pussy" as you declared the last time I saw you.
Later I enjoyed wine on the roof of the Hotel Gansevoort with some lovely PR women who have some clients that could work well for future collaborations with me and Comix. If you haven't been there, I recommend it for the amazing view, and I don't mean the wet men walking around in open bath robes after having taken a dip in the pool. Eew. Ick.
I bolted from there over to the Barrow Street Theater with my friend Julie who was reviewing a rock operetta about the last year in the life of MLK, Jr. No, your eyes do not deceive you. I won't say more and will instead direct you to her review when it hits the Associated Press' wire. I liked being her plus one. She had a reporter's pad and a copy of the script. I'm jealous.
--Kambri I want an AP reporter pad!
Link - 11:22 AM -
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Happy 4th of July!
The summer I turned 13, I worked at a Fireworks stand on the side of the road in Montgomery, Texas with my mom. I didn't know it then but Donna, the woman who owned the stand, was Dad's mistress.
