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Time for the annual review for 2024. I was lucky enough to be in a short film in which I cast as one of the leads; when we filmed my role became even larger. In February I auditioned for a friend's (Javier Bonafont) "Introduction to Filmmaking" class at St. Edward's University. There were about thirty-two students; after hearing nothing for several weeks, I assumed I wasn't chosen. Then I was contacted in April by Bryan Lopez. Filming was scheduled on campus on a Sunday. When I arrived at the location, all the doors of the building were locked. I looked for someone who could let me in and noticed a young woman seated nearby and asked for her help. It turned out to be Alyssa Nicholes who was also in the cast and also waiting to get in. She phoned the director who came down and let us in. It turned out that not only the other three actors had failed to show up but his crew as well. We discussed what to do and decided to adapt the script to fit the two actors and create a "documentary" style film. We modified the script to fit the changed status and did three takes. That provided Bryan with enough footage to create his film. I don't think that he completed the film in time for the end-of-semester screening, but he did finish it shortly after. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OLnJjdnbIs) I was in one other film in 2024, a UT RTF pre-thesis film, Donor, which will likely screen in May, 2025. I was an extra, appearing in two scenes as the uncle of a pregnant mother at the gender-revealing event. In 2023 I was in a student film by Aidan Alcala and I didn't get a link in time for last year's newsletter. I now have that film (In My Brother's Footsteps) on my Youtube page (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QezgoXRj3nY) along with a trailer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8Uh8zjGFCY) for that film. There's a link to Aidan's Youtube page if you want to see more of his work. He's currently in his second year in UT's RTF program. In January I noticed that a loaf of bread had a hole near the bottom and realized that it might be a mouse. It started a months-long battle against mice. I first used mouse traps, which initially were very successful, with dead mice in January, February, March, and May. In June a mouse set off the trap, but escaped. Somehow the mice seemed to learn how to get the peanut butter from the trap without setting it off. They also started chewing on the edges of the plastic bins I bought to protect the bread and were even able to start chewing on the peanut bar jar lid while it was stored on the second shelf up in a cabinet that was five feet above the floor. One also chewed part of the lid of a bottle of lemonade and another chewed part of the lid of a container I store potato chips in. More dead mice in June, August and October. In a few cases I saw the mice in the kitchen, but they were very fast and moved too quickly to stop them. One time I saw one and was able to catch it after a short chase, since it was moving more slowly, no doubt due to the poison. I also used three different types of mouse poison, which helped some. I detected no more mice until late December. I spotted that mouse in my bedroom in early January and was it moving so slowly (due to the poison) that I was able to stomp him before he got away. In March I visited Pease Park to see an eighteen-foot-tall troll made of local and repurposed wood. It’s head took about one hundred hours to build in Denmark.The rest came together in Pease Park over several weeks. The sculpture cost around $300,000 to install and was funded by private donors, They have a license to display the troll for 15 years. I had cataract surgery in 2022. This year I learned that my right eye had posterior capsule opacification, also known as secondary cataract, a clouding of the eye's lens capsule that can occur after cataract surgery. I had it taken care of in June in a procedure that went relatively quickly and painlessly. I had believed that the appointment was only a consultation, but was glad to be able to drive home safely since my vision was okay, only reduced by dilati
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2023 video
just found the film i was in on youtube. The highlight of 2023 was being cast as the star of "In My Brothers Footstep", a short twenty-minute film which was shot over several weekends in the spring by Aidan Alcala (a senior at McCallum H.S.). The film was great and even concluded with a drone shot on the Ann Richards Bridge. Pictures are at https://albums.memento.com/nap95557. The film is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2rQ9SkOZw8
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January 2024 Hope all is great with you. Happy new year. Here is my annual newsletter for 2023. It's time for the annual review and once again I was surprised at how much I did. The highlight of 2023 was being cast as the star of "In My Brothers Footstep", a short twenty-minute film which was shot over several weekends in the spring by Aidan Alcala (a senior at McCallum H.S.). The film was great and even concluded with a drone shot on the Ann Richards Bridge. Pictures are at https://albums.memento.com/nap95557. I hope eventually to have a version online. In 2022 there was a massive statewide power failure during which my power was off most of one day. In 2023 there was a smaller failure in Austin, but I was without power for 85 HOURS in February. I was very grateful that I don't rely on electricity for heating. Some neighbors stayed elsewhere during that week. In May the city trimmed branches on the power lines on my block, which should reduce the odds of a future power failure. I had a lot of repair work done on my home. In March, I found a repairman, Juan Medrano, (just a bit older than me) who does great work. My side porch roof needed replacement and he also fixed my front door, kitchen sink problems and my bathtub drain. In May my bedroom ceiling was repaired by a crew Juan supplied. In November he installed a new toilet. After a three-year pause, starting with the Covid shutdown, "Overheard with Evan Smith" finally resumed in April with Kathy Valentine. There were only four more tapings during the year with Jake Tapper and Martin Baron being especially great. Hopefully there will be a full season's worth in 2024. In March I saw a very good talk by John Avlon and Chris Whipple, about their books: "The Fight of His Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House" and "Lincoln and the Fight for Peace". In April I saw a great talk by Natasha Lance Rogoff about her fascinating book "Muppets in Moscow: The Unexpected Crazy True Story of Making Sesame Street in Russia." I also attended a lecture by Susan Ford Bales (President Ford's daughter) and Richard Norton Smith. In June I saw a great lecture: "Designs on Film: The History of Production Design in the Cinema" at the Ransom Center. The host, Steve Wilson, had just retired after working there many years. I met him decades ago when he helped manage the great Varsity Theater, where I saw many movies. In October I attended a great lecture on democracy by Heather Cox Richardson. That month I was astonished to see about a dozen vultures in my backyard and discovered they were feasting on a large dead rat. In November Robert M. Gates, former Secretary of Defense and CIA Director, gave a great talk at the LBJ. My health was good. In August I got my third Covid booster. As usual I walked a lot and logged 6,203 miles (the most ever), an average of 17.00 miles a day. I had twenty-one twenty-mile days. I walked at least twelve miles every day except one (only eleven that day). I only drove my car thirty-five days and needed to fill up the tank only once. In March my large left toenail went black after I apparently banged it into something. In May the nail finally fell off, but it was only the end of the year when it finally completely grew back. The last few days of the year I had a serious case of the flu. I saw only six plays; two of them were great. "It's Only a Play" by Terence McNally was great fun as was "Miss Lulu Betts" which had the added feature of a very dear friend, Bethany Harbaugh, as the title character. As always it was a delight to see some of my former students and I saw an amazing twenty-six during the year. I got to visit with Iris Carson (at an open house), Dria Davis (helping with the financials at the garage I pass by most days), Angela Jordan (at an HEB), and Stacey Johnson (at her new workplace). Shametra McGregor (as a cashier at Target), Travis Johnson (delivered part of my new toilet). Mario Aleman grew up on my block and I found that he'd moved back home. At the funeral of three former students' step-mom, I saw Stephanie, Letitia & Heather Olson. At a memorial se
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Hope all is great with you. Happy new year. Here is my annual newsletter for 2022. It's time for the annual review and once again I was surprised at how much I did. One of the highlights of the year was in May when I met Lech Walesa* (see photo) the winner of the 1983 Nobel Peace prize. In 1980 he led Poland's Solidarity movement and was elected president a few years later in Poland's first free election. After he spoke (in Polish) for an hour, he allowed all who wanted to have a photo taken with him. It was a thrill just to see him and the photo was an unexpected bonus. I've seen three others from a distance who won this prize: Jimmy Carter, the Dalai Lama and Mikhael Gorbachev (a bit of his talk at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_9cKyIFqmQ). I'd seen Doris Kearns Goodwin three times before and have read eleven of her books, so it was wonderful to see her again. This time she was interviewed by Don Carleton about her amazing life, having helped LBJ write his autobiography, met numerous times with Obama and dined with Queen Elizabeth at Obama's invitation. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dEMuO5TSTQ) I read a Pete Souza books two years ago and seeing him speak at the LBJ was another highlight. He was Obama's white house photographer and shot 1.9 million pictures during those eight years. He also was one of President Reagan's photographers. It was a fantastic presentation with lots of his pictures and a few short videos. The library's podcast is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2PFFb-meew. Before Peter Baker and Susan Glasser's great presentation on their new book "The Divider" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2lbEvvNPxM) a familiar-looking old man arrived who was getting lots of attention. I thought he was a Texas politician, but learned it was Dan Rather. I'd seen and spoken to him twice before, many years ago, and did so again this time. He's 91 and his hearing is no longer very good, but he looked great. It was a relatively slow year for acting roles. I had a role in Melanie Hinostroza's video, "Who Am I" (https://whoamisong.shutterfly.com/) and spent several days over a few months acting and helping her with it. It should be complete early in 2023. In April I was a religious fanatic in an RTF short, "Godhead." (https://godhead.shutterfly.com/). It screened in December and my part was small but effective. In October I played a priest in "God, Golf, and Glory". Again, a small part but fun to see at the screening, also in December. I was reacting to a five-year-old girl mini-golf wiz and collecting my successful bet on her. (https://photos.shutterfly.com/album/1747795497911238) The last day of the year we lost Donise Hardy*, who was a major part of the Austin acting community. I met her about twenty years ago after I started my casting list and she was a good friend. She cast many films and taught classes on acting technique and helped start the Austin Network mixer many years ago. In August I had a very scary experience. I was waiting for the bus; a man was sitting on the bench with a backpack. I placed my backpack at the other end of the bench. The guy walked away for a while looking at a creek. When the bus finally arrived, I noticed he had moved my backpack next to his. I tried to pick it up but he fought me knocking me to the ground two or three times claiming that the backpack belonged to his buddy (who got off the bus). The bus drove off since I was pulled back by the guy holding my backpack. I finally was able to get it back and pick up my billfold, camera, earbuds, and the fat library book (the only thing inside the backpack) which had all fallen off during the fight. The buddy asked the guy how old he was (the guy didn't answer) and suggested that he had serious mental issues. I then walked to the next bus stop to get away from this crazy asshole. The next bus was late to top it all off. I had bruises on my forehead, elbows and knees, but otherwise was okay. I was able to walk the two miles back from the library with no problem. Sadly, there were no "Overheard with Evan Smith" tapings; the last one was
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2021 letter
Annual newsletter for 2021 Time for the annual review and once again I was surprised at how much I did during Year Two of the Covid pandemic. In January we got an inch of snow, the most in Austin since 1985 when we got a four-inch snowfall. This was topped in February when we got a FIVE-inch snowfall (the most since a six-inch day in 1949). We also got 144 CONSECUTIVE HOURS OF FREEZING temperatures (the most ever; in 1983 we went 140 hours). With millions in the state losing power, I was lucky enough to ONLY lose it one day for eighteen hours. Luckily, I have gas heating, not electric, so that was not a problem. The temperature that week dropped to 11 degrees with a wind chill of -3; very, very rare for Austin. Once again, I was unable to see any concerts in person, but there some great ones online. Chorus Austin had a wonderful one (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA1w6rSs3OE). I saw Freebo perform twenty years ago. This year he had a gig with David Amram (who I got to see twice in the 1970s). Amram composed for the New York Philharmonic and is a jazz French hornist, and is still strong at age 90. Conspirare had a wonderful and unique madrigal concert with self-accompanied singers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzunozYj_9g. I also added five wonderful King's Singers albums to my music collection. In October I saw my first in-person play since the lockdown began in March 2020 ("Wonder of the World" - very enjoyable). And in December I saw my first in-person event (Luci Baines Johnson and Stewart McLaurin at the LBJ Library - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La3Bwk6-d6s). Sadly, due to the pandemic, there were no "Overheard with Evan Smith" tapings. They might have resumed near the end of the year, however, PBS Austin is in the middle of moving to new studios which will be at ACC Highland and reportedly won't resume before late Spring. Luckily, I was able to see several lectures online. One was with Ben Barnes (Lieutenant Governor 50 years ago.) In March I saw Walter Isaacson (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4QnmcfFPLI) and in May I saw a great talk by Carol Leonnig, whose new book on the secret service ("Zero Fail") made my best of list https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn39Zm0pfFQ. In September I saw the LBJ's fantastic interview with Chris Wallace. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww_3FFyNzfA). In May I was part of a zoom meeting for Pem Day, the Kansas City boys prep school I attended for three years. The headmaster and three staff members talked about the school and showed the massive modifications to the campus in progress. Two of the twelve who took part recognized me: one man from the class of '62 (I was '64) and one woman from Sunset Hill, though I have no idea if I knew her back then. I can't remember knowing many from Sunset at all. The two schools merged years after I left. In May my block had its water and sewer lines replaced; it only took one week. It's part of a fourteen-month project and some blocks were tied up for two weeks. The busiest street, 51st Street will be replaced in January, 2022, and will likely take three to four weeks. In July I saw Bita Ghassemi at a gathering for her studio. She was named the top RTF student when she graduated two years ago. She planned to use me in a music video she was preparing, but so far it has not moved beyond planning. In May I saw Nevena Bentz at an exhibit of her art. For several years I've been trying to find more Dobie Middle School yearbooks to post on the Facebook page I created. Just before shutdown, after four visits to the school, I was promised three books to borrow and scan. AISD shut down on the day I planned to pick them up. The books' conservator delayed pickup until April this year. I hoped to get more after summer vacation, but was only able to get the next three by getting former Dobie students to email the principal. Near the end of the year about a dozen books were reported to be "missing" limiting me to only two books. I suspect I will recruit more former Dobie students to send emails in 2022 to try to help find the "missing" books. I now have po
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2020 letter
What a year. I'm so glad 2020 is finally over. It was the strangest year that we all have ever experienced: The year of the Coronavirus pandemic. Before the shutdown, I was in four films. I was an extra in "Evinced," which was shot at the Capitol in January. I haven't been able to find anything about the film, which as an indie, faces extra challenges in a pandemic. I was in three sensitivity training videos for Dunkin Donuts, a fun, paid gig. In one scene I played a homeless man acting very belligerently (in order to train servers how to react in such a situation). In a second scene, I was sleeping and the server learned how to wake me and get me to leave the store in order to provide space for other customers. In a third scene I was part of a group of book-lovers (with my face hidden, since I was used so prominently in the other videos.) I was in three films just before SXSW was scheduled to start in March. "With Pleasure" was shot in the party room at the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar. I was part of an extremely weird scene in which a killer enters, and is dispatched in a strange manner. As with "Evinced" its status appears to be up in the air. The following weekend I did extra work on a UT film, "Hospice." Two of the actors on "With Pleasure" joined me for a chapel scene. This was very fortunate since there were very few extras. One of the two, Sheila, has become a very dear friend. We were supposed to work on a funeral scene later, but that weekend the Covid shutdown started. They finished filming, but is still being edited. I play a librarian in the last film: "Run Boy Run" (an ACC student film shot in Leander). It was a total delight. A young man is frantically trying to return a book to me before it is overdue, knowing that the price he will pay is very high. See it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFepX_caycc. In January I attended two funerals for former students' parents. Marnie & Shane Martinets' father started and then ran the food concession at Dart Bowl for fifty years. Marnie was one of my favorite students at Lamar. Lynne Whiteley sat in the row behind me. I didn't see Shane at the funeral but saw him twice later in the year. Bernadette & Michael Buchko's mother's funeral was a week later. Lizette Morgan was at the funeral. It was good to see these and provide comfort for them at a difficult time. As usual I saw all of the Overheard with Evan Smith tapings, but due to Covid, there were only four. Two were great: Bill Bradley and (a double) Carol Leonnig & Philip Rucker (co-authors of a great book on Trump: "A Very Stable Genius"). Taping stopped in March and I hope they'll be able to resume sometime in 2021. To find out when they will be you can subscribe at /g/UpcomingOverheards. In June I was cast in a small role in "The Photographer," another UT project. Filming was scheduled to start in the summer, then postponed to autumn, and is currently set for February, 2021. I had lunch with Erica de la Garza in January. I met her in 2003 on "No Pain No Gain" but hadn't seen her in years, since she'd been living in LA & Houston. In June we had a fantastic bikini photo shoot on the Greenbelt. (https://ericadelagarza.shutterfly.com/) I saw Carolyn Cohagan at BookPeople in January. She had interviewed my friend Amy Edwards there two months earlier which sparked my interest in her books. I'd read and loved her first two Time Zero books and was able to borrow the final volume from a friend who had won a copy at the book signing. Bill Bradley delivered an amazing ninety-minute autobiographical speech in February at the LBJ. Bradley was an all-star with the New York Knicks, a U.S. Senator from New Jersey and a candidate for president in 2000. Shortly after that, I saw Bill Broyles deliver a similar speech. Broyles was the first editor of Texas Monthly, an editor at Newsweek for two years, and the script writer of "Apollo 13", "Castaway" and more. He spoke of his method of writing thru telling his autobiography. I told him that his talk reminded me of Bill Bradley's lecture. It turned out that he a
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Jenny Grow - great math teacher i worked with at Lamar Marnie Martinets - one of my best students at Lamar Bernadette Buchko - great student at Lamar Maria Salazar - great student at Lamar Erica de la Garza - dear friennd - did a great photo shoot with her Dan - in Dunkin Donuts Training Video
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2019 letter
Another decade has passed and it's time to review my life in 2019. While going over the past year it's enjoyable to discover things that I had completely forgotten about. I opened the year in January with a delightful role in a music video for the local band Wrongbird, "Leap Year Birthday." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qySLQP91zTs). I portrayed the father of a "little" girl who's celebrating her 6th birthday (at the age of 24). It was a paid gig filmed over two days in Lakeway. In February, Blair Bomar (a dear friend) was in town filming a short, "My What A Lovely Vase." She needed a large restroom for a location and I was able to hook her up with Ken Rogers, the head of the film program at McCallum High School, where they were able to film. The following month I was in my fourth film shot at McCallum, written and directed by Emma Lindsey (who happens to be the step-daughter of Beth Sepko, one of Austin's top casting directors). In the film I play a custodian who is killing off students. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOia1tvu80Q) In April I saw Robert Caro speak on his new book, "Working." I've been a fan of his great books for decades, have read all of his books and loved his latest, a short one (in contrast to his usual books). His first book "The Power Broker: Robert Moses" has 1336 pages, and the publisher had to omit about a million words, since that's all they could fit in one volume. Caro hopes that the omitted sections can eventually be published. I've heard Maria Hinojosa's voice countless times over the past twenty-five years on NPR, so it was a delight to see her talk on campus that month. In May I did some background work for my friend Bita on "Latecomers" (the film is not finished, since its director's time has been tied up in his move back to the UK). After the filming, I got to see one of my best former students, Lisa Bush, who's now an associate superintendent for middle schools for AISD. In June I saw several former students at their 30th McCallum reunion: DeSean Roby, Kelly Spain Hensen, Amber Banks, Sherwynn Patton, Scot McCann, Shannon Davis, and Keith Bradley. I'd seen some of them at their 20th reunion. In March I saw Erin Rosales at an art exhibit which included her work. Austin Moore, LeAnn Roberts and Devon Brown were at AFS Cinema (Devon was there for a screening of his film). I ran into Dave Wiginton several times since he works near the Overheard tapings. Lisa Brannan-Blair was at a capitol rally. Yvonne Kinnibrugh was at a UT concert. Lisa Slater, Ryan Clarke and Sato Nishimura were at a pre-game McCallum gathering. Cliff Collier, Samantha Riegler, Tim Riegler and Geoff Zeis were at a post-funeral celebration. Melanie Fetty was at the preview screening of the Ken Burns Country Music film. Denise Ashley saw me at a bus stop. Stephen Layne was at Seaholm. And I saw Dena Kyser, Tanya Sandoval and Shametra McGregor in Elgin when I visited there for Shametra's graduation celebration. Throughout the year I saw Stephanie Acosta several times since she's in the same part of town. In July was in a short film, Green (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOyIhWMMU-Q), in which I played a PA (production assistant), attending an academy which teaches students how to be PA's. It's an amusing satire and was fun to shoot. In August I had the most unusual audition of my life. Each of us, in a group of four, was asked to laugh together as a group; nothing more. I got a callback and again we had to laugh in a group but this time also individually. I was cast and later that month we gathered at a Gamestop store in south Austin to film a commercial. I was dressed as a basketball player with a tie-dye shirt and shorts. By the time we finished the scene after multiple takes of laughing my throat was sore. The ad was scheduled to run for six weeks starting in late August and was extended another six weeks (earning me a second paycheck). A friend saw it on a Hulu show, but I only found it, eventually, on the store's twitter account. A friend found the extended 30-second version for me. (https://www.youtube.com/watc
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Susan Rice - United Nations ambassador from 2009 to 2013 and as the 24th United States national security advisor from 2013 to 2017. and to run the White House Domestic Policy Council for Biden Robert Caro - great author - of a book on Robert Moses & working on a 5th volume on LBJ Arturo Ripstein - great Mexican film director Gloria Steinem - iconic feminist - 3rd time i'd seen her Lisa Bush - great former student - now head of middle schools for AISD Tanya Sandoval - great former student Blair Bomar - dear friend whos an actor iN LA me in a Gamestop video
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2018 letter
2018 Newsletter Another year in the book. More memorable events. This year I was the initial speaker for a new group, the Austin Entertainment Business Mixer, which meets monthly. I was also the featured guest on a local cable access show, Da Big Daddy G Show (my segment is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdG6r_ZXar4). I've been sending out annual newsletters since 1992, continuing a family tradition my parents started which they ended in 1988. I got to see twenty-one of my former students, ten at a McCallum reunion. It was a delight that some were my favorite students Alice Rodriguez, Ashley Doyle Darnell, Heather Murphy, Kristina Acuna, and Kimmy Robinson. My health is still good. I walked 5864 miles, the most ever. One day I walked 22 miles and never walked less than 12 miles. I only needed to fill the tank on my Honda hybrid twice this year and am averaging 53.6 mpg so far. I avoided driving 96% of the time, either walking or taking the bus (I drove on twenty-six days.) In 2017 I tracked down five Dobie Middle School (where I taught for two years) yearbooks Sadly, the yearbook sponsor at Dobie refused to help, which makes it more of a challenge. I found ten more in 2018 and there are now fifteen posted on Facebook. I was quite active on Facebook and now have 1989 friends there. I added some new BBC shows to my collection (courtesy of a friend back east) with works of literature now the focus of the additions. And there is an enormous collection of Shakespeare (with multiple versions of some plays). I've greatly enjoyed listening to these shows and have many more hours of them to listen to. Among the new ones is a collection of many of the wonderful Terry Pratchett Discworld books, the James Herriot books, Robert Sawyer's great "Rollback" and Peter O'Toole's "Loitering with Intent." I continued listening to "Quote Unquote", "I'm Sorry I haven't a Clue", "Just a Minute", "The Navy Lark," Alistair Cooke's Letters from America" and "Jean Shepherd". Maybe I'll complete some of these series in 2019. I also discovered a great podcast on BBC, "Composer of the week" (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006tnxf/episodes/player). As always, I saw tons of movies. The best feature films were "The Green Book", "A Hard Day's Night", "Mary & The Witch's Flower" (Japanese animated film), "The Hate U Give", "Wolf Children", (another animated Japanese film), "The Favourite," "Eight Hours Don't Make A Day" (Fassbinder's mini-series), "Underground" (Yugoslavian), "Closeup" (Kiarastami), "The Insult" (Lebanon). The documentaries, as always, were some of the best. They included "My Journey Through French Cinema," "Fierce Love Parents," (a local documentary, in progress, on autism, http://www.fierceloveparents.com/), "Brimstone & Glory", "Three Identical Strangers", "Operation Odessa," "Bisbee '17," "Garry Winogrand: All Things Are Photographable", "Science Fair", "Served Like A Girl", "RBG", "Leaning into the Wind: Andy Goldsworthy", "Brimstone & Glory" AFS Cinema continued to screen the best movies in town and I saw 154 films there this year. My best acting role during the year was for an ACC film: "Life's Student" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V_tVHFF-3c). When I auditioned, I was recognized from a film I was in ("Tovarich Ulyanova") from the previous year that had been shown in class (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT1k7JU1fAY). I had a great role in a UT production, "Mall Walking Olympics" but sadly my big scene (being propelled faster by flatulence) had to be cut due to time constraints. I was filmed in an episode for the end of season 4 of "Fear the Walking Dead." I played a rabbi in an abandoned temple. There were four other bits with extras filmed that day and mine was the only one filmed inside and not in the heat outdoors. (And I was in a dark suit). Maybe they'll use it in season 5. I did extra work for a few projects. The Alamo Drafthouse had a theater full of folks for bits that they use in their party screenings. Deanna Wheeler shot a video for her song "Wasted Space" and my dear friend Natali Jones (down from Dallas) h
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Terrence McNally, the legendary playwright Jake Tapper - the CNN news reporter Julian Castro Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017 Ashley Doyle Darnell - one of my all-time fave students Natali Jones - very dear friend in the acting community Zira Amunet - another very dear friend, who i met on set and me as a rabbi in Fear Of The Walking Dead
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Katy Tur - NBC news Jeff Nichols - director of Mud, Loving, Take Shelter Joaquin Castro - Congressman Amado Pena - artist. his mural for ACC Highland just completed (in 2020). went to college with him Danny Greenup - dear friend - met her on Betta in 2009 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSwbFaD02II me as a crab in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioNeLBdtKI4&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2o6VsKE4g9EkCPLLV-mS52X5rOvCtq_BZeO0Wizn-ezH09gkDtZhQHw4g
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2016 letter
2016 newsletter Another year has passed; it's been a good one for me, (other than the disastrous election results). Perhaps the most notable event was playing a small role in a pilot episode for a Comedy Central show, "Power Couple", which stars former Saturday Night Life comedian Noel Wells. The network has not scheduled an air date for the show yet. The project was the best-paid acting gig I've ever done. Other acting work included a local TV series, "Professor Isle's Laboratory", in which I play a cafeteria worker (my scene is at https://youtu.be/i0yqvbyKyJw; the copy on Facebook got 700 views in 2 days). In "Fashionista" I played a postman (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_I-5Pxus5c&feature=youtu.be). I completed my work for "American Zombie" (green screen work) after a year's delay. And I had a fun bit in the RoosterTeeth Series "Million Dollars But" (https://youtu.be/YPqB7X0nJFc) I attended three great acting workshops, two by Will Wallace and one by his wife Sara. The feature film "Greenbelt", in which I played Leslie is now on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5OrGfYK_8Y Sixteen years ago (while working on Miss Congeniality), I started a yahoo group to post casting calls. This year I was surprised and honored when the Austin Chronicle named me and the group as part of their Best of Austin issue. (http://www.austinchronicle.com/best-of-austin/year:2016/poll:critics/category:arts-and-entertainment/dan-eggleston-austin-film-casting-yahoo-group-best-austin-film-scene-tipster/) I saw some notable people this year. Bob Schieffer (CBS) was fantastic. Doug Brinkley spoke on our National Parks (his book on FDR & the parks is fantastic). The LBJ Library had an excellent two-day summit on the Vietnam War in April. Participants included Country Joe McDonald, Peter Yarrow, Peter Arnett, Dan Rather, Tom Hayden, David Maraniss, and Robert Schenkkan. Bryan Stevenson's lecture was one of the highlights of the year as well as the decade. He's an amazing man and I finally read his book, "Just Mercy", which is a must-read. For many years I've loved Story Corps, (which NPR's Morning Edition carries Friday mornings). So it was a treat to see its creator, Davis Isay. The documentary "Jump Shot" (see below) was actually inspired by a Story Corps broadcast (https://storycorps.org/listen/kenny-sailors-and-anne-brande/). Lawrence Wright spoke on "The Terror Years", his latest, and was brilliant and fascinating as always. I saw some great authors at the Texas Book Festival: Carl Hiassen was very funny, as usual. I've loved five of David Cay Johnston's books; he spoke on his new book, "The Making of Donald Trump" (which likely will be on next year's best of list). Jane Alexander is best-known as an actor, but she spoke on her new book. Clint Hill was an unexpected treat. He was a secret service agent under five presidents and is the agent who leapt onto the back of JFK's limousine in Dallas after the president was shot. I loved Maria Semple's first two books ("Where'd You Go Bernadette" is her best-known title) and am looking forward to reading her latest. Skip Hollandsworth gave a talk about his book, "Midnight Assassin," which is about the world's first serial killer (in 1885 Austin). Press coverage in 1888 London (while Jack the Ripper terrorized that city) mentioned the Austin killer. The speaker at the annual Frank Deford (the sports writer) lecture this year was Andrew Zimbalist, an economist. He gave a fascinating lecture on the economics of the Olympic games. In the past fifty years, due to IOC restrictions, only two times has there NOT been massive losses for the host cities. I saw three of my favorite authors: Lauren Oliver (YA author, I've read 12 of her books), Stuart Woods (I've read 66 of his), and Erik Larson (three of his books have been on my best of list, including "Lethal Passage" this year and "Devil in the White City" and "Dead Wake" in earlier years. I've read seven of his books). Forty years ago I wrote my master's thesis on Shawn Phillips. Steve Wixon is preparing a documentary on Shawn and in July he sent
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Jane Alexander great actor, at the texas book fest Lauren Oliver great author Stuart Woods one of my fave authors, i've now read 84 of his books. at this time he was writing 4 books a year Woody Harrelson wonderful actor Rachel Dolman one of my fave students, at the time in the hospital Linda Taylor one of my students from san antonio's jeff davis in 70/71, my 3rd year of teaching me in prof isle's lab, a fun scene shot at mccallum - https://youtu.be/i0yqvbyKyJw me honored at lamar during its 60th anniversary celebration - Mayor of Scottietown and the Austin Chronicle's honoring of me
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2015 letter
2015 newsletter Once again, time for the annual newsletter. I got to see some notable people this year: In January, Hall of Famer Hank Aaron spoke at the LBJ Library emphasizing his civil rights work over his baseball achievements. Robert Reich delivered of the best speeches I heard all year (his film "Inequality for All" was one of the best docs in 2013). I'd seen Penelope Spheeris in 1998, but this time I got a photo with her. She was in town screening all three of her The Decline Of Western Civilization documentaries. (Her best-known film is probably Wayne's World). It was a thrill to see Judy Blume (in June); I've read twenty-two of her books. Her latest ("In the Unlikely Event") is set in her childhood town of Elizabeth New Jersey (where three planes crashed in an eighty-day period in 1951-52). At that time my family lived in Roselle Park (one block from Elizabeth). Five months later Judy replied to an email I sent. I'd seen John Irving ten years ago and he was just as amazing this year (I've read all but his latest book). I saw several additional authors whose books I've enjoyed including Dave Zirin, Taylor Branch, H. W. Brands, John Burnett, Colleen Hoover, Lemony Snicket, Amy Stewart (one of the best in-store appearances), David Levithan, Lawrence Wright, and Bill Crider (I've been Facebook friends with Bill for eight years and have now read forty-eight of his books (eight this year). It was nice to finally meet him, though I discovered I'd gotten his autograph back in '98). As usual, I saw all of the Overheard with Evan Smith tapings (21) and they continue to be a great delight. Two of the democratic presidential candidates (Bernie Sanders and Martin O'Malley) were on the program (both were great). Other highlights were Salman Kahn, Barney Franks, Cokie Roberts, Taylor Branch, and Robert Reich. I found about five hundred old family photos (mostly taken by my dad) in two file cabinets. In addition, cousin Jim Wiegley found about two hundred and fifty. We digitized them and I've been posting them on Facebook. One album is at https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10153642241976838.1073742847.503441837&type=1&l=d785f2ff3a and there's a link at each album to the adjacent albums. So far, I've added over eight hundred family photos, with less than one hundred to go. I saw fifty-nine former students this year. From 1969-1976 I taught at Jeff Davis Middle School in San Antonio. In July I attended a Sam Houston High School reunion in San Antonio. Ten of the students I taught at Davis had indicated they'd attend (via Facebook), so I thought I might see five or six. I saw TWENTY & got photos with all of them. I saw eighteen more at three McCallum reunions in the summer. I met two more at their workplace & had lunch with four. I got to see two of my favorites this year: sisters Myriam and Catherine Perales I helped another favorite Dawn Mann set up an interview with KLRU which aired a news story about her Dance Another World program, which she pioneered in AISD. The Statesman published an article about it on Christmas (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10153788662766838&set=o.692016530845142&type=3). The program, which has expanded this year to five elementary schools, teaches English through dance to students with limited English-language skills. Another favorite, Kerry Wallin, treated me to lunch. After I'd found her on Facebook she sent me a wonderful note: "I've always remembered when you taught us how to make moving characters on those old school computers by using math! Mine was the apple falling out of the tree and the squirrel taking it away! Can't remember much from that long ago, but I remember you and that assignment! That was the first time I really enjoyed math, and it was all because of you being the teacher. You really impacted my life and made me feel I could learn and do it! I have never really been that good at math, but you and my 9th grade math teacher really impacted my life and one English teacher in 9th grade also. I struggled a lot in school; later in 11th grade found out I was dyslexic - nu
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Penelope Spheeris, great director. Wayne’s World, and the 3 Decline Of Western Civilization films are her best-known works. her brother Jimmie, was one of my fave singers Myriam Perales was one of my fave students Catherine Perales is Myriam's sister Dawn Mann was also a great student Kerry Wallin another great student and me as god in filming of The Waiting Room
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2014 letter
It was an especially good year for me as an actor with several paid gigs and some excellent roles. I had four paid gigs in January; an extra in a Verizon spot, a diner in the reality show "Mystery Diners", and as an extra in Jason Reitman's film "Men, Women & Children". (The "bad waitress" on "Mystery Diners" turned out to be Ali Meier, a friend who I hadn't recognized. She was my doctor on the Reitman film.) I also had a great lead role in the "Ticket Out of the Game" episode of "Street Stories". Seven episodes of that series are complete and I am also in the seventh, "Intersection," shot later in the year. Episode eight will be filmed early in 2015 with more planned. I discovered that Brian Burns, the director, is the father of Angela Burns, whose film "Betta" I was in several years ago. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSwbFaD02II) I was an optometrist in "Not Right Eye" filmed in a real eye doctor's office (view it at http://youtu.be/i2kbAsTUz6c). I played Schmuyle in an episode of "Pictures at an Exhibition" (based on the Mussorgsky composition) and a motel clerk for the indie Hollywood feature "Hot Air." I was an extra in a Bob Byington project and was delighted to see a dear friend, Blair Bomar, who has moved to LA. I was in a Longhorn Network spot featuring UT's Heisman winner Ricky Williams which can be seen at https://youtu.be/P5K_itQzjRM. I reprised my role of Leslie in "CriminAL"; played a 90-year-old member of the Board of a stock broker's firm in "The Sauce" (https://youtu.be/6TOBeLbGebY), and played the future version of the lead in "On Time" (by use of a magic time-travelling watch). I also had my second voice-over, recording about 170 thermostat commands. In July, we finished shooting my role in "Dawn" (my second Deb Abbott film, which was started in 2013). I received the DVD at the end of the year and it's great. She plans to enter it in film festivals, so it won't be online for a while. (https://youtu.be/GQ-h-Fm72EA). My final film of the year was a short film by Ken Johnson, "The Waiting Room," in which I'm God. After several hours of rehearsal and two cast changes, three days before shooting one actor was pulled out by her parents (too much time rehearsing and not enough time doing her home-school homework). My part was mostly voice-over until I'm revealed at the end (like the man behind the curtain in "The Wizard of Oz"). We filmed my scene but, sadly, Ken told me the film will not be completed. I attended all twenty-four tapings of "Overheard with Evan Smith". Highlights include Rick Linklater (whose "Boyhood" is racking up awards and rave reviews), Lawrence Wright (a friend and always wonderful), Bob Woodward, James Ellroy (one of the all-time best), Nicholas Kristof (whose books are highly recommended - see my list below) Katha Politt, Jeffrey Tambor (another gem). You can view any of these at https://www.overheardwithevansmith.org/watch/. If you're interested in attending future tapings, subscribe to /g/UpcomingOverheards. I had three photo sessions this year, and all resulted in lots of fun and great photos: Julie Cude Eaton, Patricia Eakin, and Karen Jager. Once again, for the eighth consecutive year, I read 365 books (the grand total is 9105. The best nonfiction books: A Path Appears (inspirational - Nicholas Kristof / Sheryl WuDunn), Half The Sky (about the mistreatment of women – just started an earlier book by these two which is going to be on next year's list - Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn), The Real North Korea (amazing account of what life is like there - Andrei Lankov), Manson (met the author, who also used to be a middle school teacher in Austin - Jeff Guinn), More Harm Than Good (Alan Zelicoff), Ninety Percent Of Everything (that we buy is sent by ship - Rose George), No Ordinary Time (FDR & Eleanor - Doris Kearns Goodwin), Drama High (should be required reading by all drama teachers - Michael Sokolove), The Good Nurse (ironic title – about a nurse who killed - Charles Graeber), People Who Eat Darkness (another murderer, this one in Japan - Richard Parry), Red Ma
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Bob Woodward, the great reporter, part of the team that covered Watergate Shawn Phillips - great singer, subject of my master's thesis Ricky Williams - winner of the Heisman when he played at UT Nicolas Cage - the great actor Michael Morton - an innocent man who spent 25 years in prison Hal Hartley - the great film director Blair Bomar - a dear friend i met 9 years earlier & is now doing great work as an actor in LA and me in a film
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Marissa Meyer, author of the Lunar Chronicles books Catherine Keener, great actor, i've now seen 43 of her films Edward James Olmos, another great actors, i've seen 28 of his films Susan Sarandon, another great actor. i've seen 78 of her films Jordan Strassner, a dear friend i met on set. did a great photo shoot with her and me as i was costumed in the play 9/11- the Al Qaeda Press Conference
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