Tom O'Connor's Blog, page 5

July Updates

It has been a quiet lately. Sometimes Los Angeles is like that in the Summer time.

The biggest news is that one of my spec sitcom pilots “Ogre Stone” has been picked up by a small animation company and it looks like we’ll be developing it as a possible series. Obviously there is still a loooong way to go, but it is a nice start.

Ask A Punk continues to pull in new readers and friends. Sales of the ebook have been slow lately, but I can tell you that the whole ebook/self-publishing thing is definitely worth the effort and clearly the wave of the future. I’m working on another non-fiction title and dusting off a 1st draft of a ‘New Adult” detective-ish novel that I wrote some time ago.

I have been having trouble with the “Upcoming Events” calendar plug-in that, until recently, was visible in the right column of the website. When they say “works seamlessly with Google Calendar” …don’t believe them. I’ll get it straightened out soon. Then I’ll be able to post details about some upcoming shows in August, September and November as well as some upcoming “Improv for Writers” sessions that I’ll be teaching.

That’s all for now. Don’t forget the sunscreen.

Spring updates

It has been busy at Planet OConnor, but I wanted to let everyone know that I have been booked to do this month’s SIT n SPIN show on Thursday April 18th – 8:00pm at the Comedy Central Stage at the Hudson Theater. 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. LA CA 90038. As always, tickets to this show are FREE, but you have to call and reserve them in advance (the number is: 323.960.5519.)  oh, and there is even plenty of FREE street parking after 7:00pm

This will be my 5th appearance on this show. It is always a good time. Come on out. Did I mention that it is FREE?

In other news, sales of my ASK A PUNK eBook continue to come in, and readership of the relaunched weekly advice column is slowly increasing. Thanks and welcome to all new readers.

Resolved

So here we are, eleven days into the new year. I got off to a slow start, thanks to that same weird stomach-bug that seems to be crippling everyone else I know too… but these things always pass sooner or later. I’m feeling much better. I’m still piecing together both my plans for the new year and my thoughts about the old.

Like a lot of people, by the time mid-December rolled around, I felt like I was limping to the finish line. The unrelenting horrors I saw (and continue to see) every evening on the news were a stinging slap of reality. Silly me – I thought that once the ugly election cycle was over, we might have a little bit of Peace to wrap up the year. I was wrong. All of the complaints and personal disappointments I might have had during 2012 pale in comparison to an unbalanced madman gunning down a classroom full of children. In some ways it makes me feel like the things I’ve dedicated my allotted time on the planet to doing are, well, kind of frivolous.  …but then again, I also think that what is really missing at this time of incivility, horror and outrage that is as indignant as it is usually uninformed is, well… joy.

Sounds a bit weird for an old punk-rocker to say such things. And maybe it is a bit self-serving, since I’m a comedy writer and all, but it is stunning to consider how much of our ‘entertainment’ is based on murder, mayhem and violence. I know, I know… Tales of battles and blood are as old as humanity (ever read The Iliad? or the Bible? … Jerry Brukheimer would kill for source material like that.) I have some friends who are horror writers too, and they’re really good at it. They have legions of well-adjusted readers and fans who just happen to enjoy the macabre. That is awesome. Really.

…but for me, comedy is what we all need. Horror and violence as entertainment is really the choice of people and societies who are lucky enough to not have to deal with real horror and violence in their lives on a daily basis. I get it. People, who are relatively “safe” in real life crave a good scare now and then. I’m just saying that, if you showed up at a refuge camp somewhere (and there are plenty of them on every continent except Antarctica) and you said: “Here’s something that’ll cheer you all up – the entire collection of SAW movies… in high definition!” … the people there would think you’re insane. But if you put up something like, oh Charlie Chaplin… I’m pretty sure that would be more effective. Comedy is universal. Pathos is universal. Torture-porn is for the lucky few who know where they’ll be able to find water tomorrow and who have never seen a limb actually get hacked off. That is really all I’m saying, and I’m probably not saying it as clearly as I had hoped to.

So… onward. 2013. Sounds lucky, doesn’t it?

Personally, 2012 was a weird year. Overall it was much better, personally, professionally and financially than the previous couple of years have been, but there were definitely some down notes too. The closing of my theater (see previous post) has really started to sink in now… now that the holidays are over and everyone is back in town, and I would normally, on a Friday night like this be there – to see new students perform and to casually run into some of the dozens of lovely and creative people I’ve known for so long. But when the central hub (the theater) is no longer there, everyone spins out in their own directions. This is what always happens. This is what I knew would happen. …and yet it is still a difficult adjustment to make. On the other side of the coin, I also had to actively disconnect from a few projects and even a few close friends this year. Painful, but necessary for all sorts of human reasons that I hope will be clear to the people involved someday, sooner or later… but who knows?

Six hundred and thirty-five words into this post and it all seems pretty maudlin. I know. Luckily I also know that not many people are going to read this.

I promise I am looking forward to having a great year in 2013. I don’t make “resolutions” though… I make To-Do lists and I have plenty of new goals for the new year – here are just a few:

1) This week I relaunched my weekly advice blog: Ask A Punk. I admit I felt a little burned out when I put it on ‘hiatus’ last year, but it turns out that I really missed doing it and engaging with the many people who wrote in with questions and comments. I also created an eBook made up of the 1st year of Ask A Punk posts that is (of course) now for sale and compatible with all your ereading devices.

2) I am actively writing on two projects: a comedy feature and an animated cartoon series… by which I mean I’m writing them – no one is paying me for them. Yet.

3) I am finally compiling all of my “punk rock”-related stories and essays into what I’m hoping to turn into a feature length comedy/concert kind of video project.

4) I’m also working on a series of (written) short stories that I’m planning to use as source material for a new podcast – not necessarily all comedy. I’m thinking it might be my own spin on the kind of work that the amazing Joe Frank has done. We’ll see.

5) I’ll be updating this website with some of the cool new features that wordpress has added in recent months, including the long-awaited (and begged for) “upcoming events” calendar… another reason to book some gigs for the new year.

… and of course there are other script ideas (some already outlined,) Animated & youtube projects and other projects in various media that are still vague ideas floating in my head. Time is always the issue… I still have to earn a living after all, and most of the things I’ve mentioned here are, so far anyway, work I’m doing for myself. As I always say: Imagine how hard I would work if I was getting paid to do all this stuff!

So why do it all?

Because I can’t imagine not doing it. Because it helps me figure myself out. Because I don’t need permission to do any of it. Because I decided long ago not to let my hope and joy be stolen by the difficult and troubling times we’re currently living through.

Stay Strong everyone… and stay hopeful too. What have you got to lose?

Fade Out

A small but influential “Blackbox” theater in Hollywood closed its doors tonight for good. This isn’t an unusual happening here in Los Angeles, in fact, small theaters “go permanently dark” with alarming regularity. …but this time it was different. This time it was my theater.

By “mine” I don’t mean I had any financial stake in the place, I didn’t pay the bills. I just showed up there. A lot. For nearly 15 years. I had done some improv classes before, both in Boston and when I first got to LA. I had also done a tiny bit of stand-up in Boston, but not much. After a couple rounds of improv classes at some of the better-known LA improv venues, I audited a class at bang. that was being taught by the founder & creative director, Aliza Murrieta. Within ten minutes I knew that I had found the place I needed to find. I started as a student and went though the program & graduation like most people would but then — I didn’t leave. I stuck around for years of “Master Classes,” weaseled my way into more shows than I could possibly list here, became a teacher and even, for a little while, an actual “Board Member.”

Bang was special because they wanted “alumni” to keep contributing. No idea was too outlandish to pitch to Aliza. A 36-hour improv marathon? Sure! ….oh, you’ve never done more than 10 minutes of stand-up but you want to do a one-hour one-man show? We’ll give you a Saturday night slot! I couldn’t have asked for a better, safer place to really figure my shit out, to “fail epically” a million times and still feel welcome back on the stage to do battle again. As I said, I couldn’t possibly name all the shows I was a part of, or all of the great people I performed with… There is just too much to remember.

As often happens when humans congregate regularly, bang. became more than just a theater for many of us. I agree that the whole “family” thing is a cliche’ but one thing you do need in a big anonymous city like LA is a central place for your creative self that also gives you some real human connections. A “home field” kind of place. So bang. wasn’t just about the shows & the comedy. Some of the longest-enduring friendships of my life were started there. We’ve attended weddings, and funerals together. Nearly every paying job I’ve had in the past decade has come from a bang. connection. Heck, I even (accidentally) made my first, and I’m pretty sure only, real “enemy” there… a painful, but very useful lesson. What I’m saying is, okay, I’ll avoid the word “family,” but I’m going to have to go ahead with the word “community,” because that is what it was, a very family-like community. There is just one problem with being the “best-kept comedy secret” in Los Angeles…. No one knows you exist.

Tonight’s last show was, fittingly, a Student Group Graduation night followed by an alumni jam. Nothing fancy, just bang doing what it always did: Improv for Improv’s sake. I’ll miss it. It would be lying to say otherwise, but I also know that it would be doing all of my improv training a disservice if I didn’t keep looking forward and saying “yes, and…” to whatever is going to come next.  …because something always comes next.

Time for more BBQ.

I’m thrilled to report the latest great news: The good people at the Austin Film Festival’s screenwriting competition just informed me that not one, but TWO of my spec sitcom pilot scripts advanced in their annual competition… so it looks like I will be visiting that sweet, weird city again this October.

Regular PlanetOC readers will recall that I attended the 2011 festival because one of my scripts (also a spec sitcom pilot) called  “Mass MoCA” made it into the top 5%-10% of submissions last year. I had a great time at the festival, met some interesting and creative people and learned an awful lot, so I’m really looking forward to attending the festival again.

For anyone who isn’t a regular reader and doesn’t know what a big deal this is (to me, anyway,) let me explain. The screenwriting contest that the AFF puts on every year is considered the second biggest & most influential writing contest of its kind (it is generally agreed that the Nicholl Writer’s Fellowship competition is #1.) This year’s Austin contest drew nearly 7,000 entries, so having both of the scripts I entered land in the top 5-10% (again) is a pretty solid accomplishment… and when you couple that with last year’s strong showing, it demonstrates a certain level of consistent quality in my comedy writing – especially when it comes to sitcom pilots. As I said, I couldn’t be more thrilled.

Here are the quick loglines for both of the scripts. I might post them on this site for downloading at a later date, but for now I’m keeping control of the material and only sending it out to specific industry folks etc.

OGRE STONE

“‘Arrested Development meets ‘Game of Thrones’ in a sitcom of Epic proportions.”

I

“In the tradition of ‘I Love Lucy,’ a successful young musician and his totally loose-cannon of a wife, both madly in love with each other, take on the world.”

…now if you’ll excuse me, I have to continue my preparations for this Thursday’s big “Don’t Tell My Mother” show… and I have to book my flight to Austin.

Tell your friends, but…

I enjoy every show I do, but I’ve been especially looking forward to this one. DTMM is a new-ish addition to the “essay show” roster here in Los Angeles, having been around for a little less than a year, but it is already the talk of the town and a tough gig to land… so I am double-plus thrilled to be part of the upcoming show:

Thursday Sept. 13, 8:00pm at Club Fais Do Do.

Joining me will be a bunch of other great storytellers/writers/performers including:

(Saturday night live)

Tracee Ellis Ross (Girlfriends)

Margot Leitman (Moth Grandslam winner)

Dave Ross (Moth winner)

and music by Saucy Monky

Come on down. I’ll be doing a fairly story that you’ve probably never heard me tell. This is one of those rare shows where I can absolutely guarantee that it’ll be a great evening of entertainment and worth every penny.

Here is the official Facebook event page.

and here is the Club’s webpage: faisdodo.com/

Hope to see you there !!

A Quick Note.

Letting everyone know that my show at the Comedy Central Stage (at the Hudson Theater,) which was originally scheduled for the 16th has been moved up to Thursday August 9th. Still the same great show, just a little bit sooner. Click on the calendar on the right for full details. ALL tickets are (as always) FREE… but you have to call in advance to reserve your seats for this always sold-out show. 323.960.5519.

Meanwhile, I promise there will be a more substantial update posted here soon. There is definitely some worthwhile stuff to report.

“Read all about it.”

… and the Los Angeles Times.

I have been overwhelmed by the positive response and lovely comments that I’ve gotten for my funny/romantic essay (that was in Saturday’s newspaper.)

…for all the talk about “print is dead” I can tell you it has been a long while since something I’ve written has gotten this much attention so quickly. Newspapers (both in print and online) still have an important place in our media landscape.

…it is also nice to be reminded that people still do like stories with a happy ending.

I do like being right.

I ended my previous post by saying that I sensed some positive changes were on the way. Turns out I was right. I don’t want to turn this post into a brag or, worse yet – a “humble brag” but I think it is good to mention it when things start going well/better – if nothing else, it is a form of gratitude.

I’m in the final back & forth edits for a short piece that should be appearing soon in the Los Angeles Times – assuming it and I survive the editing process. Sure, it’ll be in the “online edition” for all the world to see – and which I plan to shamelessly self-promote, but it will also be in the print edition. I don’t care how old or young you are, there IS something special about walking to the end of your driveway, picking up a major metropolitan newspaper, opening it and seeing your name in a “by line.”  …and of course, on the slim chance that it doesn’t get published, I can always come back and edit this paragraph out.

I have finished the redesign of the Ask A Punk website. It isn’t a major overhaul and there haven’t been a ton of bells/whistles added but, since I do it all myself, it is still a bit of an accomplishment. I have delayed putting up the new posts and gearing up the necessary self-promoting etc. because I will also be putting out my first “eBook.” at the same time. I have turned the 1st year of Ask A Punk posts into an ebook that I’ll be giving away for free (at first) on every reading device known to man… and since I am doing that all by myself too, there has been a bit of a learning curve and several technical hurdles to overcome, but it all seems to be coming together now.

My weekly “LA Cartoon” is slowly starting to get some notice too.

Work. Paying work that involves a lot of thinking and the typing of funny things also appears to be in my near future again. and I should be teaching a new improv class soon. …and both of those things always makes me feel better.

…now if the Red Sox could only start winning.

Dawn of a new day.

This is what dawn looks like from my front door.

I’ve always been a nightowl. Even as a child, I preferred to stay up late and sleep in. I know this isn’t at all uncommon, especially for Americans. Lately though, my nightowly ways seem to have magically shifted and I find myself waking up before the alarm on a shockingly regular basis. I promise you this was not planned… but I have grown to like it. Stranger still, I find myself able to really focus and write in these early-morning hours, before coffee, before checking email and facebook etc. It is almost like discovering a new muscle. I’m not quite ready to start strapping on my sneakers for early AM runs just yet… but who knows?

Creative work has been going well, even if I haven’t gotten around to posting about it lately.

I’m five weeks in to teaching an improv class at bang. At our theater ‘level 2′ is all about “characters” – how to create them instantly and how to (hopefully) hang on to them for the duration of a scene, or even for an entire long-form set. I love teaching this stuff because I’m not an improvisor who creates a lot of big or cartoonish characters… but even “small” characters are insanely important to a good scene or set… more important than any “plot” or “conflict” you could come up with. Create a person with a point-of-view or a consistent attitude/worldview and trust me: The “plot” will take care of itself.
So far this calendar year, I’ve written two spec sitcom pilots and outlined two new comedy feature ideas. That would be bragging if I felt like I could take credit for any of it. I honestly don’t know where all this output is coming from. In fact, I’m afraid to over-think it, for fear it might evaporate…. so that sound you hear is me typing as much as possible, as fast as possible.
Still booking shows and doing readings around Los Angeles every chance I get. This Friday I’ll be returning to The PEZ Show at Actor’s Comedy Studio. A great show in an awesome little space. Some other shows are in the process of being booked for April and May. Stay tuned for those.

I sense that some positive and long-awaited changes are coming. Can you feel it?