Two Brilliant TV Women

So I was thinking about Denise Richards the other day. No, you're right, shouldn't have wasted the time, but I guess she's on Dancing with the Has Beens or something so she's getting some media. Anyway, what I was thinking about was that she was in a Bond movie in which she played a scientist of some sort, I think. I'm not sure, I never saw the movie, but it struck me as one of those Bad Casting Decisions. Like Tara Reid put on some glasses and a lab coat for some movie or another. Didn't see that one either. So those who don't actually watch can't throw stones, or however the saying goes. But really. Could those ever be Good Casting Decisions? So then I arrived at the question, who really can pull off the smart scientist roles?
For your consideration:
Ravi Nawat as Amita Ramanujan. I heard an interview in which she admits that she doesn't fully understand all the mathematics behind what's going on in Numb3rs, but she looks up all the relevant concepts, just to get a basic idea. Love that! A wise person knows that what they don't know is more than what they know. (Somebody said that better, somewhere). She can deliver her lines credibly, and has enough presence to hang with David Krumholtz, Rob Morrow, and Judd Hirsch, the ostensible powerhouses of the cast. I also love how she is written. At one point the chair of the department, Millie, warns her to have her own career, not Charlie's, and I think she does. She has her own committee responsibilities, but most importantly, she is deferred to. When genius boy says, "I better call Amita, this is really her area of expertise," it is so satisfying.

Next up, Abby Sciuto as played by Pauley Perrette. This may be a cheater, because Pauley actually studied forensic science before becoming an actor. So when she says that her mass spectrometer is acting up, she can do it unironically. She rules the roost in her lab, and does so in her own way. Of course she's goth girl, but what does it mean for the writing? It means that Abby can be exactly who she is because she is so incredibly talented. No need to make nice here, although she's a sweet thing. She's too valuable to mess with. Not only can she handle trace evidence, she's a techie, too, so she handles all kinds of science. Much love for the interdisciplines.


So that's my shout out to the tv scientrixes, may they live forever in reruns.

Book Club

I've been thinking of Book Club recently. It was my best chance at a really real, recurring gig, but it seems to have fizzled. I haven't heard from the showrunner at all, except for being sent a couple of DVDs (which tells me it's not selling.)
I've heard people say that they haven't had a chance to watch it, which is disappointing. I've also heard lots of people say they'd like to see more, but nobody's willing to fund more. We can't make more episodes without the money to pay for the gear and the salaries and locations.
It just is kind of sad that all kinds of Youtube stuff gets massive hits but when you try to put together something worthwhile, nobody's interested. That's not really fair, I guess a better analogy is all the dreck on TV that actually gets produced...the rehashing of the same ideas, the poorly written, etc.
Another possibility is that I'm just down because I have another rotten cold and I have homework to do, plus I can't audition for anything new because I'm working full-time and pursuing a degree. It just seems that the really big thing is just around the corner, and just out of reach.
www.bookclubtheshow.com

Back in Black

I don't know if anyone even reads this, but since it had been so long, I thought I'd try to post. First of all, I've been cast in Driftwood Players' "The Grand History of the Andy Landy Clan" opening Dec 2 and playing thru Dec 11th. I suppose this is also a way to procrastinate on working on my lines. The show is set up as a series of monologues, so the line load is harsh.

Second, I caught the show Next American Band or whatever it's called, and heard a band called Sixwire that I thought was quite good. I looked up their Myspace page and it turns out these fellows were touring musicians for the likes of Faith Hill, Lee Greenwood, and more. Now, I'm all for any talented artist getting the attention they deserve, but the producers of these show make it seem like it's Joe Q. Public who is getting their shot at the bigs. It's just not the way it works. Joe Q. Public just isn't ready.

Last, I'm finally taking a crack at "The World is Flat" after having read "The World Without Us." I'm just at the second chapter, but I'm curious about how education plays a role in this flat world of ours, as well as the social implications. I'm thinking primarily about the example of the kid with an online tutor for Geometry based in India. I think the quote was about $20 an hour for the tutor. What about the kids who don't have $20 an hour? Are the school resources so bad that the kid needs an online tutor? What about the classroom teacher? Where's mom and dad?