Kabuki is a traditional form of Japanese theater that dates back to the early 1600s, known for its highly stylized performances, elaborate costumes and makeup, and dramatic staging. To begin with, there is an all-male cast where even female roles are played by men (onnagata), a tradition that emerged after women were banned from performing in the early 1600s. There is striking makeup (kumadori) with bold, colorful face paint that conveys a character’s nature (red…
I will write this story and plan to publish it on Monday morning. That’s when we will be bouncing along on the 5 in a van on our way to the Royal Caribbean Terminal in San Pedro. That ride should take about two hours, so we should get there by about 11am, right on time for our special early boarding privilege (we apparently bought some package for preferential boarding and full internet usage that allows…
There is a line from a favorite movie that has always stuck in my mind. The movie is The Way written and directed by Emilio Esteves and starred in by his father, Martin Sheen. “The Way” follows Tom Avery, a California ophthalmologist who travels to France after learning his adult son Daniel died in a storm while walking the Camino de Santiago, the historic pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. Rather than simply bringing…
July is turning out to be the month of theme parks for me. Disney, Eagle Gold Mine (a stretch…but sort of), Santa Monica Pier and today, Warner Brothers Studio Tour. We did the Universal Studio Tour and Park last summer so this will complete two of the three suite (Carolyn tells me that next year we have to do Paramount). It’s nice and warm here in LA, not oppressively hot, but still sunny and warm.…
With Kim away in Wabash this weekend and me taking the family (Carolyn, John, Charlotte & Evelyn) up to L.A. for the weekend, there remains the issue of “What About Buddy?” We are very attached to this little 7-pound fur-ball that can’t keep his yap shut. Our Buddy program consists of flying in Natasha to sit for long vacations, taking Buddy to Colean’s doggy day and overnight care and local kids who are looking to…
Back in 1971 when I was living in Rome, one of my good pals was Tom Wohlmut. Tom’s father was a top executive at getting oil, effectively running Getty Italiana. Technically, John Paul Getty Jr., J. Paul Getty’s dilettante son was the President, but Getty senior leaned on Wohlmut as one of his trusted lieutenants. This is also the same period covered by the tragic events of 1971 when his second wife Talitha was found…
Cathexis is a psychoanalytic term meaning the investment of mental or emotional energy in a person, object, idea, or activity. It originates, like so many words, from the Greek kathexis (which means “holding” or “occupation”). To “cathect” something is to invest psychic energy in it, to become emotionally attached to or fixated on it. The term is largely confined to psychoanalytic and academic psychology contexts today and you won’t hear it much in everyday speech,…
San Francisco has always enjoyed the reputation of a highly desirable city. It seems forever that I’ve heard people say they would love to live in San Francisco. If only there were the kinds of job opportunities that could keep them here. Back in the day, San Francisco was the big West Coast commercial city from which trade with Asia and the East Coast of the United States took place. We know that the state…
I’m 72 years old, started riding motorcycles in Rome, Italy at the age of 14 (legal for any motorcycles up to 50 cc’s) and have been riding more or less continuously for 58 years now. Like most activities in our lives, the level of my engagement with motorcycling has ebbed a flowed a bit over the years, but mostly it has been my favorite and most engaging activity that gives me pleasure and, dare I…
Disneyland came into existence just when I was born. Disneyland opened on July 17, 1955, in Anaheim, California, and is the only Disney theme park personally built and opened under Walt Disney’s direct supervision. Walt got the idea in the late 1930s/40s while watching his daughters play at amusement parks and wishing there was a place parents could enjoy too. He wanted something clean, family-friendly, and immersive, unlike the seedy carnival parks of the era.…