Jaq Greenspon's Blog, page 68

40 Years of Improv Comedy: An Oral History of the Groundlings | Vanity Fair

40 Years of Improv Comedy: An Oral History of the Groundlings | Vanity Fair. One of the first jobs I got when I moved to Los Angeles in November 1987 was working here, at The Groundlings. The first week I was in LA, I was walking along Melrose when I came across a sign proclaiming […]

Review: Edge of Tomorrow

I heard a rumor flying around Hollywood years ago, that Beverly Hills Cop was originally written for Sylvester Stallone. As the story goes, Stallone liked the basic story well enough but, you know, being an Academy Award nominated writer, he felt he had to put his own take on things and so re-wrote it extremely, […]

25 Words That Are Their Own Opposites | Mental Floss

I love this stuff! 25 Words That Are Their Own Opposites | Mental Floss. These are the kinds of words which make English such a fun language to play with. Interpretation is everything. This is also what makes communication difficult sometimes. I always tell my students that as long as I can understand what they […]

Margaret Talbot: How the Y.A. Novelist John Green Built an Ardent Army of Fans : The New Yorker

  Margaret Talbot: How the Y.A. Novelist John Green Built an Ardent Army of Fans : The New Yorker. I think the title doesn’t do justice to this piece but it’s a fascinating read nonetheless. And if you haven’t read The Fault in our Stars yet, click the title and do it before the film comes […]

The Audition

So last week I get a call from a number I don’t recognize. The problem here in the LT with screening calls is that, well, you can’t. There is no answer-phone system easily discernible (which is to say I can’t access it. I think one exists but the instructions are in Lithuanian and besides, I […]

DAVID • Think: What’s Next Kids?

DAVID • Think: What’s Next Kids?. Here’s my latest piece for David Magazine. My thoughts on what a commencement speech should say and do. For all of my students who are graduating, for anyone who is in school or university now and looking forward to the day when they can wear the cap and gown […]

Review: Godzilla

While Godzilla isn’t necessarily a good film, it’s not a bad film either. In fact, I’d venture to say it’s not even just one film. I’d say it’s two films, each serving a different purpose with a different result. The first film, the one with the character development and real story, is at the beginning. […]

Review: My Life as a White Trash Zombie

My Life as a White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland My rating: 4 of 5 stars I know it’s weird to get a book you don’t think you’re going to enjoy but we all do that from time to time, don’t we? Like going to see a bad movie specifically so we can tear it […]

Going once…

A couple of months back, I was approached by my friend Aiste about helping out at a charity auction. Aiste is a writer and filmmaker. She’s also one of those people who knows absolutely everyone and is involved with all sorts of great causes and events. Through her I’ve had a couple of interesting adventures here […]

Dropped

Dropped. This is a great piece on the difference between art, skill and performance. As someone peripherally involved in the world of magic, I can agree with a lot of Jason Fagone is saying here. There’s something to be said for having a skill set, for being able to do something better, faster, higher (and […]