October 2016

In last weeks Newsweek, there is an article discussing whether Donald Trump is really Andy Kaufman, playing a trick on America. This is a pretty good supposition, except that Donald Trump is nowhere near as smart as Andy was. Andy was a brilliant performance artist who planned everything he did to the utmost degree.

In 1982, I was asked to shoot a performance of Andy’s at the Park West in Chicago. As was my usual MO, I stopped for dinner at a little Chinese restaurant called Lan’s just down the block. I was seated with my back to a table full of loud laughing people. Trying not to eavesdrop (impossible to do) I soon realized that it was Andy and his crew meticulously planning the show for that night. It was a brilliant meeting, (he should have worked for an NFL team- he would probably have a better game plan than the Bears have these days!!)

I felt like I was cheating, as I knew exactly what everyone was going to do before they did it! They performed the show brilliantly- Andy’s Elvis impression was spot on, and the audience went home happy.

Donald Trump is not smart enough to pull off anything this smart!!!

His new film, called “Mascots” is out on Netflix this week, and it continues his unrivaled genius for taking a small weird subculture of our society, and turn it into a hilarious mock documentary. This time, he sets his eye on sporting team mascots, using his usual cast of amazing comic actors.

He reprises his role as Corky St. Clair (From Waiting for Guffman) as a manager of a mascot

Jennifer Coolidge plays an escort who marries a client, who buys her a team, which allows her to cheer for the mascot for that team, while commenting on her husband’s (Bob Balaban) sexual idiosyncronies.

Parker Posey, hilarious as Alvin the Armadillo, is tragically felled by a bout of food poisoning (Bad Shrimp) and her sister has to step in to the competition.

The film takes place around the Fluffy Awards (9th annual) which is in the running to be picked up by the Gluten Free Network. A lot is on the line!!

Zach Woods, always hilarious in the HBO show “Silicon Valley” is followed around by his wife to make sure he doesn’t have another affair with Cindi Babineaux (Parker Posey). Of course he does anyway!!

Ed Begley, Jr. and Jane Lynch as the judges are hilarious

The film ends with the competition. Redemption was had as Owen Golly, Jr. did not follow his fathers advice, and instead, came up with a new twist to his act and ran away with the prize!! It was hard to keep from falling off of my chair, I was laughing so hard.

All in all a great way to spend 90 minutes waiting for the Cubs to kick the Dodger’s asses and qualify for the World Series!!! First time in my lifetime.

Cover of Time Magazine: Total Meltdown. I guess he likes assaulting women! Who knew? The only thing that matters in this election anymore is if the Republicans will Lose the Senate (good chance) and the House (probably not).

The Republican party seems to be over- thanks Donald!! Paul Ryan seems to be twisting in the wind- having to back his party’s candidate, as much as he doesn’t want to. If anything, Trump is unifying the country with it’s hatred for him.

Yesterday, Trump “suggested” that he and Hillary take a drug test before the next debate. That came way out of left field. She should call his bluff and agree to it. Would love to see how that works out for him.

It is easy to see how this all came about. The country is pretty dissatisfied these days. People are being shot down for the color of their skin (or just because they are standing in the wrong place).

John Legend has a great piece in the new Time. He says that people in America are finally seeing what Black people see every day- discrimination and racial profiling. If you are black you have less of a chance of getting the job you are going for, but more of a chance of getting stopped on the street because of the color of your skin.

Meanwhile, 7 people killed and 21 shot on the streets of Chicago this weekend, and it is only Sunday morning.

America the Beautiful!!!

Donald Trump is a moron. He had to know that all of that stuff about disrespecting women was out there. Nothing goes away in this world. Maybe it means that nobody can ever run for President anymore? So now the Republican Party is bailing and running away from him as fast as their little legs can move. People are predicting the end of the Republican party. And still, the “Basket of Deplorable People” still stands behind him! Many Republican leaders have now said that they know he cannot win, and are planning for 2020.

WOW, I have never seen anything like this in my lifetime. It is fascinating theater, better than any baseball or football game (although the Cubs are kicking ass this week!).

Newsweek has a cover story this week titled “Hers To Lose- Here’s why Hillary Clinton should win and may not.”

1. She is still perceived as a Washington Insider, making corrupt backroom deals.
2. She has lied under oath about her emails, saying she didn’t understand the word Confidential (kind of reminds me of her husband debating the word “sex” when he was getting impeached!
3. She has gone back and forth supporting and then not supporting trade deals.
4. Even the evil Koch Brothers have disavowed him.

I still think she has it in the bag, and as long as more dirt doesn’t come out in the next 30 days, she should be OK. John Heilman, of Bloomberg News, just said on television that so many shoes are going to drop in the next 30 days it will make Imelda Marcos jealous. Great Metaphor!!!

I have never voted for president, because in Illinois, my vote doesn’t matter (Electoral College) We always have a landslide for the Democratic candidate. I was taught in school that you should never vote for someone you don’t believe in. I don’t believe in either one of the candidates this year, but Donald Trump represents a “Clear and Present Danger” as Tom Clancy put forth. So I will go to the polls this week and vote for Hillary, as the alternative is too reprehensible to imagine.