Mr. Monk and the Odlands...

After working on the hit USA series Monk for the last 3 seasons I was honored to attend the show's final wrap party. Here are a couple pictures of Tony Shalhoub with me and my mother. Yes, I'm a good son, I take my mom to fancy schmancy Hollywood parties.

This made me _______ in my pants...

If you missed SNL last weekend, here is the HIGHLIGHT!

SNL Digital Short - Jizz in my pants - 12/06/08 - watch more funny videos

SNL + Paul Rudd= Pure Hilarity!

Dying to meet Dexter...

Today I sent my parents, aunt and uncle to the Tonight Show. As I went to pick them up we got the chance to meet Michael C. Hall out in the NBC midway. He was on the show promoting the new season of Dexter. The "parentals" got a REAL kick out of meeting Dexter himself. I don't often get star-struck, but would it be out of place to say that it was "killer" to meet the man behind Dexter Morgan (I know cheese ball line, but what else could I have said?).

Triumph at Comicon...

I'm so glad Triumph the Insult Comic Dog wasn't around when I was perusing around at Comicon this year. This is hilarious...



And then there is the full length speech Triumph gave at the TV FUNHOUSE panel. Enjoy...

Like Horror Movies? Mark your calendars...

In a similar fashion of "Masters of Horror", NBC brings us a series of 1-hour Horror movies for network television, Fear Itself.

The 13-episode suspense and horror anthology is supposed to push the boundaries of the horror genre. Each episode is directed by award-winning, sought-after directors John Landis ("An American Werewolf in London"), Darren Bousman ("Saw II, III and IV") and Ronny Yu ("Freddy vs. Jason").

The series was created by Mick Garris, who also executive produced the highly popular horror series Masters of Horror.

Be warned, I fear this series may not live up to the genre's violent expectations, no thanks to network television censor guidelines. I mean when was the last time you saw a horror film (or series, for that matter) that was rated suitable for all ages? NBC is making an interesting attempt to draw horror fans, lets hope they don't fail, the series could have potential.

Series premieres Thursday, June 5 (that's tomorrow!).

Massive Blaze at my work (Universal)

As many of you may or may not have heard, Universal Studios caught fire this weekend and left most of the back lot in ruins. This is a sad thing for a lot of us here on the lot. Not only was the famous set from Back to the Future completely destroyed so was New York Street and our beloved King Kong exhibit. To every one's benefit no one was severely hurt, and most people weren't even working the day the fire broke out.

Turns out the fire was accidentally roofers using blow torches started the massive blaze.

R.I.P. King Kong 1986 - 2008

Here is what no one will ever get to see again while visiting Universal Studios

Tricia Helfer: The most beautiful NUMBER...

*Me and Tricia Helfer (known best as the super sexy Cylon "Number Six" from the SciFi series "Battlestar Galactica")

SEE MORE OF MY CELEBRITY SIGHTINGS!

Conan O'Brien's replacement?

Most people know that Conan O'Brien will be taking over for Jay Leno next year, but it hasn't been completely clear as to who will take over the reigns for Mr. O'Brien's current Late Night Show.

A report on IMDB.com had this to add to the burning question:

Jimmy Fallon has been tapped to replace Conan O'Brien on NBC's Late Night when O'Brien takes over hosting duties on The Tonight Show from Jay Leno next year, Fox.com entertainment columnist Roger Friedman reported today (Thursday), saying it was "a done deal." Friedman, who cited no sources, said that NBC plans to make a formal announcement around May 11th when it presents its fall schedule to advertisers.

The choice of Fallon for "Late Night" has a certain logic to it. Fallon did at one time fill in for Letterman on the "Late Show" in 2003. He's an established comedian and is said to be a favorite of "SNL" producer Lorne Michaels, who took a chance on O'Brien for "Late Night" in 1993 and who likely will play a key role in picking O'Brien's replacement. Stay tuned for NBC's official announcement.

Scared of Plants? Don't Read this...

In this day and age we, as Americans, are used to hearing about major threats to our well being everyday in the media. Everything from Terrorism, Global Warming, and even Obesity are supposedly plaguing the nation. But there is a bigger issue at hand, an invasion of GLOBAL proportions, that needs to be addressed...PLANTS.

There are about 350,000 species of plants on this planet we call earth. Of those, there are about 625 IDENTIFIED species that are considered to be carnivorous. Keep in mind this just means that there are still hundreds of thousands of species that are still in limbo, "sleeping" if you will, waiting for the official order to attack. It sounds crazy, but they are just waiting to take back the planet.

Recently there has been an underground effort* to educate the world on the many dangers that plants pose to human kind. Sure they seem motionless and docile, but I have two bits of video that prove otherwise. This organization has funded a major motion picture and a few television spots to get the word out.

The first would be "warning," funded by the anti-plant organization*, The Ruins, is about a group of college teens that run into some unforeseen trouble while visiting a set of ancient ruins. Their seemingly harmless Mexican trip turns deadly when local villagers refuse to let them leave the eroded temple. Turns out...the Pyramid is really covered with killer, flesh-eating plants.


This movie is actually pretty good. Despite the cheesiness of the trailer, I can honestly say that it will keep you on the edge of your seat. I recommend it. In fact, here is a little fun you can have with this. Take a date and somehow sneak a small twig in with you and while in the theater tickle the back of her neck with it. Guaranteed shriek!! I will admit that I will never look at a plant the same way again after seeing The Ruins. I do have a bit of a plant complex now, so bad in fact, that I find myself suffering from mass paranoia whenever a plant is in the vicinity. And it wasn't until recently that this TV spot gave me a solution to my problem...thank you Christopher Walken.

Damn your Googly Eyes!!*The Anti-Plant organization is completely made up. Just thought you would like to know...just wanted to present these two plant-themed items in a creative matter.

New Page Uniform Selected...

As you know America was given the chance to decide what NBC Pages will wear from now on. Well, the decision is in and it all went down on the Today Show this morning...



Not my favorite choice, but a good one. I think it is a very sharp look for the pages. I will miss the old and ugly blues. I am only disappointed that future pages will not have to lead tours dressed like a Mall Security Guard. Hey, if I had to do it, so should they!

If it Bleeds, we can PAY it...

I had an interesting experience this morning on my way to work. Many of you may know, that I donate my blood plasma one to two times a week, for a little extra money to help pay the bills. I started doing this when I was a poor NBC Page trying to survive in the expensive city that is Los Angeles. The process is a pretty simple one. I show up, sit down, they stick a I.V.-looking needle in my arm, and a machine pumps out my blood. It then separates the plasma from the red blood cells and returns the red blood cells to my body and stores the plasma in a plastic bottle. And they pay me for that. It might sound kind of gruesome, but it is actually VERY easy.

Now you're probably wondering what Blood Plasma is exactly? It is the liquid component of blood, in which the blood cells are suspended. It makes up about 55% of total blood volume and let me tell you, it is valuable too. If our bodies had anything in it that could be compared to gold, plasma is it. They pay me $75 dollars a visit, and I can go up to twice a week. So I can potentially pull in about $150 a week for doing nothing.

Anyway, with that explanation out of the way, let me get to my experience. After my plasma appointment today, as usual, they wrapped up my right elbow with gauss and tape and sent me on my way. As I was driving to work, I felt an unusual sensation on my right arm. I looked down and my elbow was covered in blood. The strange sensation I was feeling was the warm, sticky fluid oozing out and running down the length of my forearm. My initial reaction was panic (but that was only because I didn't want to get any on my white shirt), but after further investigation, I found that whatever was bleeding had stopped. It didn't help that I noticed all this while I was driving on a busy LA highway, in heavy traffic to boot. Thankfully, I have suffered several horrendous injuries in my life time, so I am not weakened at the sight of blood and this experience was not traumatic, just more of an inconvenience. The bleeding had stopped long before I noticed my arm, so bleeding to death was not the concern, keeping the life-sustaining-fluid off my clothing was. Apparently fortune was smiling upon me today, for I did not get one single drop of blood on my nice white shirt. After all, the last thing I want to do is show up to work looking like I just gutted a cow (for you Megan). I did however learn a valuable lesson today, don't bleed and drive. It's too distracting to focus on the road.

You can see a bandage covering the spot on my elbow that was the source of my little episode.

Page Uniforms on NBC's Today Show...

If you missed it, here were the nominees for new NBC Page Uniform...


Personally, I think they should stick with the blue suit.

Changing the look of the NBC Page Forever?

There is a change that will be taking place in the next couple of days that I haven't decided if I like of dislike yet. Apparently, NBC has decided to change the traditional uniforms for the long running NBC Page Program. Since NBC began the Page Program in 1933, the uniform has for the most part remained unchanged. But that could all change next week (March 24, 2008). During a segment on the TODAY Show, America will vote on what the next Page uniform will look like. Apparently, Brooks Bros. has designed three different uniform variations for the east and west coast Page programs and America will get the chance to decide which outfit they like best. So be sure to tune in and do your part.

The reason I am torn on this event is mostly because of the rich history behind the Page Program. I am a purest and I would like to see the current uniform remain. It is such an honor to be selected as a Page. Thousands apply to be a page every year, but only a select few are given the opportunity to be a page. And I feel lucky to be included in this fraternity of sorts. And you know that deep down I really won't care what Pages are wearing, I will always remember my year as a page and all the wonderful experiences and people I met in the program. I just want future Pages to have the same amazing experience that I had. Long live the NBC Page.

Phil, Tom, ME and Larry Working the ROSE BOWL PARADE 2007

SNL is back and There will be Blood...

For those of you who didn't see the return of Saturday Night Live this weekend, you missed some pretty funny sketches. The Milkshake sketch, which pays homage to this years Best Picture nominees, was by far the highlight of the night. Properly titled "The Will Be Milkshake for Old Men." Check it out...

Off With His Beard...

As you read a few blog entries below, the time has come for me to officially take off the old beard. As stated, I have been growing my facial strands of protein since just before Thanksgiving. And besides a bit of trimming on the sides, I have not stopped or hindered the development of the facial bristles since then.

So last night, much like a surgeon does in preparation for an intricate operating procedure, I laid out my tools to tackle the challenging feat. A trusty pair of hair clippers and a fresh unused Gillette Mach 3 Razor was all I needed to get the job done.


A few exhausting hours later, the job was done. It was strange, seeing myself for the first time in months with a hairless chin. It freaked me out a bit, I didn't recognize myself. Well, see for yourself...


I don't think I realized just how dramatic this change really was until I got to work today. Right off the bat I was getting comments from people like I was wearing a T shirt that said "Tell me what you think about my face." I was getting good and bad, actually MOSTLY bad. Here are a few that I recall:

"That's much better!'

"Oh you look so cute, like a 12 year old boy."

"Wow, your face is REALLY pale."

"Wow, I didn't recognize you, your chin looks so much smaller."

"Why did you do that? You look way better with a beard."

"You look freakish!"

"EW!"

That's right someone I work with actually put there hands up in there face, as if to block me from their line of sight, while exclaiming "EW!" You would think I was the Elephant Man based on that reaction alone. Not exactly what I was expecting, but I will say that at that point I was beginning to regret ever trimming my whiskers in the first place. And I am also beginning to wonder what will be in store for tomorrow since I cut my hair down to a very short length tonight. Hopefully, I don't get any shrieks . But alas, I am certain that it will only be a matter of days before everyone is over the shock and I will be recognized for the "handsome young man" that I am.

*photo does not reflect recent haircut.

Can it be.....Writer's Strike OVER?

I have been on edge for the past few months and for good reason. As many of you know the Writers Guild of America has been on "strike" since November 5th 2008, virtually shutting down all TV and feature productions overnight. For me this strike was extra nerve-racking because picketing began on the VERY same day I started my new job as a Production Coordinator at Universal Media Studios. So you can see why I thought coming into this job that I could very well be out of work in just a matter of months. That idea was awful knowing that it took a considerable amount of time and effort to finally get the Production gig.

So in defiance of the strike, that possibly meant the utter demise of my new career, I decided to grow my facial hair to symbolize my struggle to survive. I compare it to Tom Hank's same struggle in the film Cast Away. We are both stuck in a situation that we didn't choose, but are forced to survive. No, I didn't find myself talking to blood-stained volleyballs, and I did keep the sides of my man-mane trimmed (for shallow narcissistic reasons), but I was driven to similar extremes a la the strike. The killer was not knowing how long the studio would go until starting to lay people off. But now, the end of the strike is finally in sight, like a passing oil barge for Tom Hanks, and it's time to think about losing the face fuzz.

Although its not officially 100% over, rumors of the strikes end have been all over the news in recent days. Today, the membership of the Writers Guild of America is expected to vote (Tuesday) to end the strike. But nothing is guaranteed. Apparently an organizer for the WGA-West told the Daily Variety that the tables, canopies and thousands of red-and-black picket signs have not been put away yet. But on the brighter side, several showrunners started working on Monday and ABC renewed nine series for the fall (yes, including Lost). As far as my beloved NBC goes, Daily Variety says the peacock is expected to bring back "most of its Thursday laffers," namely "My Name is Earl," "The Office," "and "30 Rock." All good signs that these horrid three months could be well over.

With all these encouraging rumors (and some pressure from an uncountable number of females) I will officially be removing the beard in a matter of hours. That's right, the time has come, to say farewell. And lets hope for the good of my cause and the entertainment business that the WGA follows through and finally puts this strike to bed.

KITT is coming....this weekend!

We are only days away from the NBC reincarnation of Knight Rider. Set to air this Sunday at 9/8 Central, the 2 hour movie (that's right, it hasn't become a series yet people. If you want it to be a series, tell all your friends to watch.) stars Justin Bruening as our hero, Mike Tracer, Sydney Tamiia Poitier, the beautiful Deanna Russo, and Val Kilmer as the voice of KITT.

Having been a part of this project from the beginning, I must say that I am VERY excited for the show. Initially, I assumed it would be loads of fun, but when I attended the Knight Rider publicity event I knew it was going to rock. I urge you to tell all your friends, family and coworkers to tune in. You WILL have fun watching...in the meantime check out this BRAND new segment from Jay Leno's Garage featuring our very own KITT.

Don't forget to set your DVRs or park your rear in front of your TVs this Sunday, and enjoy...let me know what you think!

Afraid of "Failure?"

I had a major failure today, and it was hilarious. I was supposed to set up a conference call for my boss and I accidentally sent out the wrong phone number late yesterday. Out of sheer habit I put an 818 area code instead of the 866 area code. And this morning, one minute before the call was to begin, I dialed the number, and some guy named "Victor" answered. A wave of panic came over me as I realized that ten other people were about to make the same mistake. I took a deep breath sent out an apologetic email to all attendees saying that I sent out the wrong number and added the correct one. I then dialed the correct number and everyone joined the line in a matter of minutes. Just as business was about to begin, one of the attendees mentioned poor old "Victor." My boss then joked that we might as well ask him to be on the show since we had all called him. Everyone on the line was laughing by this point, including me. Although the whole experience was quite embarrassing, I was relieved that everyone had taken my ROYAL FAILURE so lightly. I am really lucky that my boss is so great. He is by far one the best Executives in my department.

After that moment of great dignity, I realized that I am not being so good with my goals this month and I know it's mostly because I have not written them down. This is proof that an integral part of accomplishing any goals is actually writing them down. I'm not about to make excuses, but part of the reason is because of my recent move. Things have been pretty hectic, but I am still doing my best to keep up on my goals.

We all fail, in fact some of the funniest stories of our lives come from our own major screw ups. Coincidentally, I stumbled across this website today that is nothing but examples of people failing at life. The Fail Blog is a collection of photographs of undignified moments from others lives. It will be sure to pull you out of any bad mood. Even in the wake of one of the biggest failures in NFL history, this could even help Patriots fans realize that it's not over after failure. You can always get up, dust yourself off and try again, right? Kind of like this guy....