An Ego booster!

My friend Radio Man is doing a short film. The director wanted to do a little rehearsal, but one of the actors is coming but of California for the shoot, and thus, isn't available before hand. RM asked me if I would come out with him and be his reading partner for rehearsal.

Sure, why not.

We were a little early by mistake, and waited while we watched a couple of scenes worked on their feet with a little pre-blocking.

Then another actor came in to play a transient for a couple of scenes. I was playing Jack, a middle aged, worn our number cruncher giving a stranger a lift from a local diner. RM was the stranger, I will call Hal since I can't remember his real name. Jack and Hal exit the gas station to find the bum peeing on Jack's car.

The actor playing the bum was, how shall I put it, committed. He was ready to pull down his pants, "pee" with a saline bottle, and even vomit on cue. I reminded him that I was only a stand in. Please don't vomit on me.

So, as we finished up that scene, and RM thought it was a table session and not memorized on anything, we moved on to that. This helped keep the bum actor from dropping trou, but it was all anyone could do to prevent a vomiting demonstration.

Finally, bum was done and we moved on to the Jack/Hal scenes.

After working through those, two other actors came in for their work, but they could not find a Jack to fill in, so I agreed to stay and work with them for a bit too.

When we were done the director asked if I would be interested in doing the film should something happen to the Cal. actor. That's not likely to happen, I am sure, and since RM and I work together on a schedule that has been prepared to allow him the time to do the movie, I don't know that I could do it, but it was real fun to get a request like that just out of the blue!

And his impression came back to me through other mutual channels. I have spent all these years trying to impress stage directors. Maybe I oughta be in pictures!

It just feels nice to get positive reinforcement when least expected.