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!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
In Case You Missed It
Sundance Channel did 10 Questions with folks like Robert Redford, Ted Nugent, & my husband. Read Christian's answers here.
Christian will be on The Today Show Monday morning during the 4th hour.
We put in an offer for a place on the UWS. I'm convinced there's no way we can buy anything so have no high hopes...only dread about the application process.
Multi-time Tony winner Lin-Manuel Miranda for In the Heights confirmed he'll be on the Nov 10th Freestyle Love Supreme show @ Comix. Hold on to your wig, or he'll blow it right off.
Julie Halston (The Women, Gypsy) and Tony nominee Peter Frechette will join David Rakoff (Strangers With Candy) and other greats for Tweed's send up of Woody Allen's Posteriors at Comix.
--Kambri Then there's Halloween, free theater tickets, dinner with an old high school pal, Tex in the City's next mixer and, good lord, when in tarnfu*kingnation am I supposed to write???
Link - 10:21 PM -
Monday, October 27, 2008
If you thought taping two shows in a 600 seat theater in Philadelphia on a windy, rainy night while the Phillies are playing in the World Series was bad timing, you'd be WRONG. Neither of those things mattered as fans lined the street around the corner waiting to see Christian tape his first one hour special. Between the director, audience coordinator and two managers from the Trocadero, I happily stepped aside and enjoyed the show as any other audience member. We even had a few friends and family show up for both shows so there were familiar faces in the crowd. It was fun to see the big swing camera swoop down next to Scott "Reverend" Ramsey's head...a big old smile plastered on his face.
Afterwards, we laughed and marveled at where our lives are now compared to when we met at 15 years old in Texas. My, how things have changed. We watched the rest of the Phillies game and partied with the crew upstairs at the Troc till 3:00 in the morning. Christian & I still managed to take an early train to Penn Station and, luggage and all, went to an open house. We figured if we're going to be in Manhattan on a Sunday, we might as well try to make use of it.
We liked the place we saw enough to put a bid on it this morning. In the description of the co-op board restrictions, it says "parents buying for kids okay." Heh. We wish. I can't imagine getting that kind of "gift" from a parent. BUT I can't imagine wanting it, because receiving such a huge sum makes you indebted. Fu*k that. It's like planning a wedding. Once you receive parents' money to pay for the ceremony, they suddenly feel entitled to have input on how it should be conducted, who is invited, etc. Our wedding was such a perfect, fun party, and blissfully stress free. Just the way we envisioned it. Now that we're in real estate mode, I'm sure the stress will be tremendous, but there is a sense of pride knowing we're doing it all on our own. Our hard work and diligent saving with minimal spending has paid off. We might not get the exact things we want in an apartment, but it will be ours 100%. That's pretty satisfying.
--Kambri But if Christian's Dad suddenly won the lottery and wanted to give us the 20% down payment you bet your biscuits we'd take it. Do parents ever get paid back?
Link - 9:39 AM -
Friday, October 24, 2008
Well, Now That That's Settled
After all that, they settled the case before we, the jury, could deliberate. Harumph. It was still a very interesting process, and I would do it again even knowing that I would never get to help decide the outcome. What it ultimately means is that I'm woefully behind on my email. Strangely, though, I don't care. I say "strangely" because I have an empty inbox 99% of the time. No joke. An email comes, I read it (or not if it's spam or a similar unwanted source) and answer, file or delete it as needed. I don't let it sit around and gather dust unless there is a significant reason.
Instead, tonight, I skipped the gym, dined at Cafe Bar, napped, painted my nails, and am now propped up on the couch with a glass of Shiraz and my laptop to look for open houses. In other words, things right now are unabashedly, selfishly mine. I work hard. Very hard. But jury duty reminded me that I work too hard. I haven't vacationed since Paris last Christmas -- not one single day truly "off" and tomorrow I'm taking one to celebrate my husband's success and infinite talent and charm during one of the biggest events in his career. He makes me tremendously proud, and I look forward to just sittin' there looking purty while he rightfully basks in the glory of this milestone.
--Kambri Proud wife.
Link - 9:23 PM -
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Pics by Anya I uploaded a few of the photos taken by the awesome Anya Garrett. My laptop needs some servicing, I think, because viewing the photos really exhausted it. Maybe I can load the rest tonight.
I'm on lunch break from serving as Juror #6 and, so far, I'm loving it. I guess it makes sense since I did earn a degree as a paralegal many moons ago. I can't talk about the trial, obviously, but I will say the plaintiff looks like Antonio Banderas' shorter, balding cousin. It's kind of weird.
Link - 1:10 PM -
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
They Call Me Juror #6 I guess this means I'll be busy at night trying to play catch up from what I've missed in the office every day. Bear with me!
I'm still performing tonight at Cornelia Street Cafe and still planning on going to Philly for the DVD taping. I hope to see you at one or both.
Meanwhile, enjoy "The Funny Page" from today's Metro.
Link - 4:12 PM -
Monday, October 20, 2008
Fun Times The lovely and talented Anya Garrett gave me a sneak preview of our recent photo shoot. She's a magician with a camera. A camagician if you will. (Won't you?) One of her photos is going to run in a magazine spread about me as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) that comes out Winter 2008. How fun!
Even more fun? I got a note from my favorite high school English teacher. She can't wait to read my book, and I can't wait to send her the galley. Sadly, her husband passed away some years ago. He was my history teacher and Whiz Quiz coach, and I know he'd be proud, too. (Yes, I was on Whiz Quiz and am proud of it!) Thankfully I'll have an editor, so I won't have Mrs. E reviewing my grammar again. Eek! She instilled fear in me. I so wanted to please her.
And almost as fun as all that, I've been called for jury duty. It was just over five years ago the last time I served and got booted off a jury due to my work in a law office. It was an intellectual property case of all things, and I had just worked with the FDNY and NYPD on all their IP issues after 9/11.
And then a quarter as fun as all that, I'll be telling a story at SpeakEasy Stories tomorrow night at the Cornelia Street Cafe. But don't come out just for me. On the bill is the esteemed James Braly, the lovely and hilarious Giulia Rozzi, and other amazing folks
--Kambri Seriously, they're hilarious and talented and will make me feel like sh*t about how great they are and how many more times I have to perform to become just a fraction of that awesomeness. (Please don't read that sentence, Mrs. E.)
Link - 10:36 PM -
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Au Contraire! and The Hysterical Festival
We're less than one week away until Christian's big DVD taping! I'll be bring my flip camera, video camera, digital camera and any other mechanical device I can lug along as back up and will be flitting about the Trocadero Theatre as the nervous and proud wife that I am. He's worked long and hard on developing an entire new hour of material worthy of broadcast and by Jove, I think he's done it. Get your free tickets to the taping of Au Contraire! by visiting www.starflowentertainment.com.
The inaugural Hysterical Festival was a smashing success, especially given the current economic and political climate. I really hope it becomes an annual event worthy of the gobs of press and hilarity that we received the first time out of the gate. Not only are women funny, they're worth the price of admission.
Christian had an all day press junket that I arranged for him in Philly yesterday. One station put the interview online, so I listened in and heard him talking about me and my book. (Fast forward to 8:26 for that.) There's just nothing really tangible to plug yet, but it's still awesome of him to mention it.
By the end of the day, Christian was feeling sick. Lack of sleep and all that talking will do that. But no rest for the weary, he got up early and just left for Tampa. Hopefully he'll get some R&R over the next few days and be in top notch shape for his taping. Which, speaking of, there are no more tickets available for the first show. You can still reserve a spot for the 10:00, though.
Yesterday was a blur with preparations for The Hysterical Festival kick off. It's off to a great start with plenty of other amazing shows on the bill.
--Kambri I'm on one more festival show Saturday night in Ochi's Lounge. Come on down and celebrate all things fierce, funny & female.
Link - 9:18 AM -
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
What a Great Week So Far!
The first ever Hysterical Festival kicks off tonight at Comix and Ochi's Lounge. We have four days of amazing women and comedy gracing our stages and the amount of press we've gotten is astounding. I'm so thrilled! I perform on one festival show tonight and another one on Saturday. Drop on by, wontcha?
My photo shoot was a load of fun. Can't wait to see the results. One of the photos will be used in a magazine article / profile about me but details are still in the works.
David Alan Grier stopped by Comix last night and did a surprise guest spot. The audience was delighted, of course. He had just screened his new Comedy Central show "Chocolate News" at Soho House and a fellow comedian walked him over to show him the club. DAG will be headlining Comix later this year, so if you're a fan no need to fret about missing him.
Christian's DVD taping in Philly is shaping up. I booked him on two radio and one TV show this morning, so he took a 5:00 AM train to be in studio. Ugh. But they went well and we have already seen the free ticket requests spike as a result. While he's in Philly today, he'll be passing out fliers and hanging posters around town. Plus, I have him meeting with a reporter with Philadelphia Weekly and another one with City Paper. We're really making use of his time there but, my lord, he's exhausted after getting up at 4:30 this morning with pretty much zero restful sleep. Poor guy.
With all the excitement, I completely forgot that I'm finally filming an ad campaign I've been sitting on for two years now. We do a walk through of the set and story board review on Friday and film on Saturday. I can't wait!
--Kambri Okay, gotta get cracking on the Hysterical Festival press list.
Link - 11:05 AM -
Monday, October 13, 2008
Busiest Week Ever
And so begins a gauntlet of events, performances, appointments and parties. I'm trying not to think of the whole week, otherwise I would get overwhelmed. So, taking it one day at a time, I will focus on today:
-- Blow out at the salon, -- Photo shoot, -- Finalize press itinerary for Maria Bamford, -- Tex in the City planning meeting and dinner, and -- Party for a bunch of comedians and industry.
--Kambri See, that's not so much. I can totally do all that.
Link - 8:42 AM -
Sunday, October 12, 2008
30 Rock on Location
Living in Queens near Kaufman Astoria and Silvercup Studios means shooting sometimes goes on in streets or area businesses. Two weeks back, I had to snake my way through a film crew that was setting up shop outside a few businesses which I frequent on a near daily basis.
Ugly Betty & 30 Rock are two shows that have been in the neighborhood as of late so I assumed it would be one of the two. Sure enough, as I flipped through this week's Entertainment Weekly's Photo Issue there was a series of pictures with Tina Fey and her stand-in (shown in this photo) shooting scenes at a local check cashing place decorated for Christmas.
That happens to be the same dumpy spot where I buy money orders for My Jailed Deaf Dad since it's right outside my subway stop and they cost only $0.69.
I don't know why it tickles me so much, but it does. I cut out the photos to send to Dad and will hope that the other prisoners will let him watch the episode when it airs in December. Something tells me 30 Rock isn't a top viewing choice for Texas inmates.
--Kambri View the rest of the pictorial online at EW.com Link - 12:33 PM -
My pal Rachel slipped me the actual issue ofPublisher's Weekly that reported my book sale. Reading it made me squeal like a teen. Seeing it online was cool, but in print? Priceless. Link - 12:26 PM -
Friday, October 10, 2008
The Pop Tub with Christian Finnegan
This interview with Christian was filmed at Comix in our coat room. Um, wtf? Anyway, the YouTube commentary Christian gives accompanied by clips is pretty well done. Enjoy:
--Kambri Link - 10:42 AM -
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Come See Me Read
There are plenty of shows to choose from since next week is a busy one for me on stage. I'll be performing twice on Wednesday (the first time I've been booked on two shows in one night), on Danny Leary's show on Thursday, The Family Hour and SpeakEasy Stories. I've updated my calendar page (see link at left) where you can get the juicy details.
Also, The Hysterical Festival kicks off on Wednesday at Comix and Ochi's Lounge as mentioned in this week's Time Out NY and Bust (with a little name check for moi). There are lots of fantastic women on the bill and some great shows lined up. Support women in comedy, people.
--Kambri DO IT!
Link - 9:36 AM -
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Latest Ballyhoo
October 7th:
September 30th:
September 23rd:
September 16th: Link - 3:32 PM -
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
October 3rd First Friday Roundup
You missed a fun party last Friday! See: Link - 12:58 PM -
Monday, October 06, 2008
Publisher's Weekly Blurb
"In a third deal, Chris Park held an auction for another memoir, this one by Kambri Crews and titled Love, Daddy; Bruce Tracy at Villard won North American rights."
If Publisher's Weekly said it, then I guess it's real and I can stop pinching myself.
--Kambri Link - 10:29 AM -
Saturday, October 04, 2008
Day One
Today is officially day one of my writing career. I had lunch with my editor (HEE! WOO!) on Tuesday after which he followed up with feedback on chapter one. His notes in hand, I'm off to a cafe to start writing my memoir. It's not as exciting as the first day of school -- I have no butterflies, am not wearing new clothes and won't be reuiniting with friends after a summer break -- but it feels like Fall, I have a new notebook, colored pens and a spring in my step.
--Kambri I want to write at least four hours a day four times a week. Does that sound right? Man, I wish there was a clear-cut guidebook for this.
Link - 10:55 AM -
Friday, October 03, 2008
Requisite Bucket List Post
I was 23 years old when my divorce from the sailor was finalized. After six years masquerading as a Midwestern housewife, I was free to be Me. Trouble was, the definition of "Me" had yet to be determined. I decided this huge upheaval of my life would not be for naught. I would reclaim my lost youth by creating a list oh-so-creatively titled "Things To Do Before I Die." However, I never had a plan on how I would accomplish a single thing.
First Friday Roundup
Howdy, y'all! We're expecting such a big crowd for the First Friday Roundup hosted by Tex in the City that I had to move it up into the main bar! Nice! We have free Sauza Hernitos Pomegranate Margaritas & the famous Rope Burn shot created by Serena Bass from 6:30 - 8:00. After 8:00, the Pom margaritas will only be $5!
There are other cheap drink specials, $4 draft beer, delicious food at a discount and down home hospitality will greet you at the door! We'll sell raffle tickets for great prizes and the proceeds will go to a Texas theater student in need.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3RD -- FIRST FRIDAY ROUNDUP 6:30 - 9:00 Comix 353 W 14th Street 212.524.2500
If you haven't RSVPd, please do so ASAP by emailing me at kc@texinthecity.com
The lovely and talented 
Ugly Betty & 30 Rock are two shows that have been in the neighborhood as of late so I assumed it would be one of the two. Sure enough, as I flipped through this week's 
