Hey Philly, Get A New Thing

Rocky. This film first came out in 1976, followed by three good sequels and two that never happened. Just go with it. Ever since then, every pathetic lugnut and ham-and-egger from the greater Philadelphia area has been getting an erection whenever they hear the first few bars from that seemingly inescapable theme music. The Phillies' recent run to the World Series has made that song even more prominent. I propose that they get over it and find one more lousy thing about their city to latch on to outside of some fictional heavyweight boxer that was conceived and portrayed by a guy whose entire film resume up to that point consisted of porn.

Never mind that Philly is home to one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. He's black. In Philly, that doesn't count. Does anyone else find it a bit sick that a city would sooner build a bronze statue of a fictional boxer "from" that city before they build a statue of a real boxer who happens to be African American? Bill Burr does, and he has a lot more to say about this fine little city. It's long but worth every single glorious second. Not convinced of Philly's dirty little prejudices? How about this Philly institution. That's not to be confused with the other Philly institution of giving endless shit to Donovan McNabb.

The cruel irony of it all is that Frazier was considered an Uncle Tom when he was in his prime and was often derided by African Americans and, specifically, his rival Muhammad Ali. Looking back, you can see that Frazier was OJ before OJ was OJ and killed two people. When he's in the ring or on the field, he's good as gold, but once that's over, he's just another... you get the point. 

Anyway, with the Phillies clinching a World Series victory as I type this, perhaps once their obnoxious celebrations settle down a bit, Philadelphians will no longer feel the need to cling to the one good thing that ever came out of that God-forsaken city. But probably not.

Casting Call

Creepy. I'm looking for some 14 and 15 year old girls. The younger looking, the better. Yeah, that's right, I'm rounding up extras for a classroom scene in a short film being shot next week at the school where I work.

Two weeks ago, a former classmate of mine who is now at film school at Columbia University, wanted to know if he could use our school for a short film he is producing. Titled The Sage, the film is about a young woman who is failing at her job as an 8th grade history teacher. The ghost of Frederick Douglass visits her one day and inspires her to become a better teacher and a better person. The End. Did I mention that Don King - the Don King - is cast as Frederick Douglass? You have to admit, the resemblance is a bit striking.

The director, Alexandra, came by yesterday to scout classrooms. She is very professional, organized, and enthusiastic, and she couldn't be more grateful for letting her use our building. Being the nice guy that I am, when she mentioned the need for extras, I volunteered my casting director services. Now I'm looking for 10 kids, mixed gender and ethnicity, that can pass for 8th graders. Since I work at an all-boys school, I've got plenty of candidates that I can turn to. Not so much with the girls. I don't know too many teenage girls. That's probably a good thing in the grand scheme of things, considering the people who do, but that doesn't help me out with this situation. Help would be appreciated.