Today could be the unluckiest day of the year…if you believe in superstitions that is. Friday the 13th aka day of bad luck aka JASON in a hockey mask coming to ruin your slumber party has been known for the day of bad things to happen. I for one believe in bad omens and if you have been doing wrong to people or animals, karma might come bite you in the ass today. So here’s my list of things to do to avoid your unlucky day.
1. At work, keeping the same routine is always the way to stay lucky. For instance, when I was working on set on Fast and Furious I would always start my day finding a new trailer of an actor/producer/director/AD truck whatever to do my morning ritual of “droppin off the kids”. Read more...
You think you’ve got it made. You finally find a nice home in Corcord, CA, a nice suburb of the SF Bay Area served by BART and great warm weather. You’ve got two sons almost fully grown, 19 years old and 13 years old. You live on a street called Trailcreek Court. You have a few dogs in the yard. American dream accomplished, check.
What is your earliest memory? What is that first thing you can recall that graces the cover page of the mental history of your life?
With each passing day, passing year, passing decade, etc. we continue to add page after page of experiences and memories into our minds. But if you go back far enough, through your library of life, there has to be that first thing. That first thing that marks the beginning of your time.
I will be hitting Manhattan next week to attend the Asian American International Film Festival and promote our short film contest – Interpretations. My first priority is to answer your questions about Interpretations and my second priority is to eat well and that is something you can all help me out with…
In New York one is spoiled with choices from Michelin star restaurants to pushcart vendors all serving up great stuff. And sure, I could seek the counsel of yelp, chowhound, food critics, etc. But I’m giving these third parties a break. Read more...
I get crushes on the most unlikely of ladies. While most of my hetero wolfpack tend to lust for the likes of Megan Fox (of Transformers 1 – pre boob boost), Tea Leoni (in Bad Boys 1 – how her lips and legs look wet 24/7 defies science), Jessica Alba (idealized on the poster of Honey), Tamlyn Tomita (of The Karate Kid 2 with hot Okinawan tan), Sandra Bullock (in faux sex scene with Stallone in Demolition Man), or Halle Berry (idealized in the unnecessary topless scene in Swordfish), I, on the other hand, have consistently crushed in a much different direction…
A fan of all things deep fried and sweet, I just had a churro experience this past weekend that tops even my Spanish churro and chocolate experience in Barcelona. After watching multiple episodes of Anthony Bourdain’s ‘No Reservations’ and Andrew Zimmern’s ‘Bizarre Foods’ on the Travel Network, I’ve been reminded that some of the most tasty, soulful, and inexpensive food can be found on the street. So on Saturday night, I dashed out to the heart of Koreatown on 8th and Irolo where a handful of taco trucks and food vendors hawking everything from homemade tamales, beef rib tacos, and hot dogs abound, to satiate my craving. And there, I saw a man selling his churros at his humble cart. Five for one dollar, the churros were a bit thicker than your average, skinny, soulless pre-fab churro usually seen at amusement parks and county fairgrounds. These were substantial churros. A crunchy, deep fried shell encasing a delicate, spongy center that teased the palate with a faint egg custard-like aroma, these churros reminded me of the best French-style crullers I ever had. 24 hours later, I went back to get my churro fix but saw no sign of the truck. Perhaps next time… Read more...
In calling up our favorite songs that get our spirits up if not, help us muster the will to face the day, I can think of none other than Jimmy Cliff’s ‘The Harder They Come’. Recorded for the 1972 Jamaican crime film of the same name, the song has the characteristically upbeat rhythms of reggae. And yet, the lyrics don’t hold back from expressing the inequalities, hopes, and frustrations of the lead character, Ivanhoe Martin – a poor Jamaican man who has his brief rise as a reggae singer and then falls hard when he submits to a life of crime and violence. Here’s a music video of the song with clips from the movie. Read more...
If some alien race decided they wanted to learn about humanity by studying our movies, no doubt they would get an interesting picture of who we are. And if the particular area of study was the topic of “love,” the aliens might come away with this one overriding “fact” about what humans believe when it comes to this subject–that out there somewhere is that one person we’re all meant to be with; the one and only person who will indeed complete us. Granted, this notion isn’t a Hollywood invention. You can go as far back as the ancient Greeks to find a similar philosophy. In The Symposium, Plato wrote how the god Zeus, fearing man’s potential power, split each human into two halves so they would be weaker. Those two individual halves would never be complete or know true happiness until they found their other “soul mate”: “These are the people who pass their whole lives together; yet they could not explain what they desire of one another.”
However, the movies have definitely taken this idea to new heights. From films like Bram Stoker’s Dracula (“I have crossed oceans of time to find you”) to When Harry Met Sally (two people are meant to be together from the start but it takes them 15 years to realize it) to the Korean hit Il Mare and its American remake The Lake House (where even the inconvenience of existing in different time periods can’t stop true love), it’s clear what side the movies are squarely on when it comes to the question of fate and love. But is there any sort of proof in our real world that such an idea is real—that there is indeed one special person we’re all meant to be with? Well, today I present one possible bit of evidence for this via the story of Alex and Donna Voutsinas. Read more...
About two months ago, I wrote about the first (and only) time I ate a dog. Which got me thinking…why is eating cat, kitty, or pussy not a more regular or common staple of the Asian diet? Seriously. Yes, I’ve “heard” in legend that somewhere, deep within the moist folds of the Asian bush, some obscure tribe eats cat meat everyday. But seriously, have you or someone you know ever eaten a cat before? I think not. I find this beyond confusing because Asians have eaten just about every other creature known to mankind. They’re kind of like the yellow vultures of the human race. So why not the cat? One of the things I love doing every time I visit Asia is to make a bee line over to the local meat market to see all the raw and bloody disgust that the locals consider casual dining. Sheep brains, monkey penis, snake hearts, pig labias, deer anus, falcon testies, and more can all be found at these Asian meat stalls across the Pacific Rim. If it walks, swims, flies, or waddles, you can bet your bottom dollar that an Asian has eaten it many times over. So why not the cat? Why is there not a stereotype of asians loving to eat the pussy. Why? Why is it more plausible for an Asian to eat his/her own child before they indulge in the feline? I am vexed…
I was once told that I express longing and wistfulness when recalling memories of my favorite food much like an unrequited love or past flame. It is true. Nothing compares to…food that steps up to make an impression on the taste buds whether it’s five-star molecular gastronomy, home-cooked from a mom and pop, or some genetically modified, chemically generated packaged concoction with a shelf-life that challenges your mortality. To paraphrase Prince/Sinead O’Connor “I can eat my dinner in a fancy restaurant but nothing, nothing can take away these blues…(except for an amazing hole in the wall in Monterey Park).”
Here are my favorite foods from childhood – from the gourmet to hyper artificial:
I could barely remember anything that transpired at my college graduation much less the words of inspiration uttered by the commencement speaker (at the time, it was former U.S. Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright). I was too sleep deprived having come out of final exams, papers and an extensive bout of purging and packing. Also, I was still immersed in the intensity of those last few weeks of college, that for me symbolized the end of adolescence (like many Asians, my adolescence was aptly delayed…or repressed until college when I was outside of parental jurisdiction.) – the stress of finishing on time, figuring out how I was going to live, and negotiating all the various relationships from those I wanted to preserve and others, I was ready to end. Read more...
I had an audition in Sacramento yesterday. That’s 2 hours one way from San Francisco and another 2 hours back after my 5 minutes of dazzling them with my monologue work. So 4 hours total in the car. As a regional theatre actor, you get used to these long mileages… one will travel far for a chance at work. But I did something I hadn’t done in a while: I just rolodexed thru my contacts list on my cell phone and just called anyone I haven’t talked to in a bit. I got four valuable conversations with various friends: “JESSE”- a fellow actor since we were starting out, “DAISY”- a high school friend who’s now a high-powered vice-president of a national corporation, “MICHELLE”- who’s now an award-winning journalist/freelance documentary maker, and lastly “TRINA” -my college roommate who still sings in an indie band. Just a bunch of thirty-somethings talking about love, sex, career. Trajectory and dreams. Decisions and hopes. Read more...
Have you seen this ad campaign from GOP candidate, Dan Fanelli? Obviously it’s designed to speak to and ask for support from a certain segment of the American population. Some people will like it, some people will have no opinion of it, and some will be totally offended by it. Check it out. I know there’s a lot of deep intellectual discussion and debate to be had regarding this ad. But since I am not feeling very intellectual today, I will not attempt to add to the fray. What I am wondering about (and a bit guiltily so) hinges on the more trivial and perhaps superficial. But I have to ask… How the heck did Dan Fanelli’s camp convince these two Arab speaking dudes/actors/guys to do this spot? What was their pitch? That’s some serious Jedi mind trickery. If you have a theory, please chime in. Enquiring (and superficial) minds want to know…
If you loved the ad above, stop reading right now. If, however, the ad made you a bit sad and salty, take solace in the fact that Rima Fakih, an Arab American woman from Michigan, was just crowned Miss USA 2010 (Phil wrote about it in his most recent post). The face and persona of an Arab American woman will be referred to as “Miss USA” at the upcoming Miss Universe pageant. At a time when the images of Arab Americans are so overwhelmingly one-sided, it’s certainly a breath of fresh air to see something totally different and unexpected being presented as an American ideal. Again, some people will like it, some people will have no opinion of it, and some will be totally offended by it. That being said, Rima’s abs may hold the key to world peace. They’re amazing… Read more...
If you can see the video preceding this sentence, that means youtube has yet to discover it and yank it off their site…. AGAIN.
There’s a huge uproar about this “Little Girls Going Hard to Single Ladies”. Basically, the girls dancing are about 9 years old and they’re performing at the World of Dance competition which touts itself as ‘the world’s largest urban dance competition…with focus on the art of street dancing and today’s new age choreography’. People are up-in-arms about the sexualization of these little girls (the girls are wearing fishnets and gyrate on the stage)… and etc. I’m sure you can google the rest and come to your own conclusions. Read more...
My parents used to screw with me as a kid. If I misbehaved, my folks would give me a stern warning that if I didn’t listen to them and be a good boy that I would return as a cockroach or a boll weevil upon my demise. wtf? I know it’s a time-tested, Asian parenting tradition but still, why would my folks say such things? Especially my mom? It was so mean and scary. How can the woman who allowed me to suckle on her breasts for 5 years straight come up with such an absolute and terrifying punishment? ”If you don’t go to bed right now, Roger, you’ll be reborn a tick! You want to spend your life latched to the side of a rhino’s anus?” Whatever happened to a simple slap on the tush or a good lashing with a belt? How about just sending me to bed without dinner or unplugging the TV for a week? There are countless punishments in the human realm that a parent can impart upon a defiant child that are proven to be safe and effective. So why would they so quickly and easily default to the spiritual and metaphysical to keep me in check? Why would mom and dad invoke visions of death, karma, reincarnation, and rebirth as their corrective method of choice? It’s like using a tactical nuke to take care of an ant problem. Yeah it’ll work but it’ll fuck up a whole lot of other shit in the process.
The Shanghai Expo, a.k.a. the biggest and most expensive fair in earth’s history, opened last week to much fanfare and also with its share of controversy. It seems that some people think that Haibao, the Expo’s blue mascot, bears a striking resemblance to Gumby, the classic green claymation creation of the late Art Clokey. Here are the two characters side by side:
The issue erupted at a news conference on April 23 when Louisa Lim, an NPR reporter, made that accusation against Haibao’s creator, Wu Yongjian. Wu denied the charges, saying he had never even seen or heard of Gumby before. However, in recent days, speculation has arisen in the Chinese blogosphere that Wu may have been introduced to Gumby via the 1980s sitcom Growing Pains which is popular in China: Read more...
That was the question a good friend of mine asked me the other day. He has nothing to do with the entertainment industry (that’s why he is sane) and was curious to know if I saw movies differently since I work in entertainment. I imagine the fascination of the question stems from the same logic that if someone spent their entire life as a car designer, does he/she think, feel, and perceive the environment around them differently than the average driver every time he/she steps into a car. I imagine this logic would also apply to painters attending an art show, off-duty chefs dining out, porno stars regarding sex, etc.
Ah, teenage rebellion. We, as a society, are so blase to it now. We expect it. We expect our children to want to commit suicide, to listen to music that we dislike, to cut themselves, and to want to have wanton sex while they suffer under low self-esteem and a quaking identity. ‘Parents just don’t understand’ has been artfully repeated from “Rebel Without A Cause” to Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff’s 1988 teen anthem. Teenagers are angry. And don’t we know that???? Read more...
In my junior year of high school, I got invited down by some church friends to have a jam session on Monday nights. Being barely five foot tall at the time, I played the stand up bass all of middle school. So they said converting to a bass guitar should be cake. Of course they didn’t warn me that we wouldn’t be playing Mozart or Canon D. But when I started learning Smashing Pumpkins and REM, my taste in music evolved. Of course we’d balance it out with Jars of Clay but STP and Red Hot Chili Peppers replaced my hobby of baseball cards. I learned to read tab music in the Guitar magazines. We’d all try to rotate around instruments to keep things fresh and fun. So I started to teach myself the drums and failed horribly at the guitar. But when it was my turn to sing, it was that moment when I fell in love with Green Day.
If you loved the ad above, stop reading right now. If, however, the ad made you a bit sad and salty, take solace in the fact that 
My parents used to screw with me as a kid. If I misbehaved, my folks would give me a stern warning that if I didn’t listen to them and be a good boy that I would return as a cockroach or a boll weevil upon my demise. wtf? I know it’s a time-tested, Asian parenting tradition but still, why would my folks say such things? Especially my mom? It was so mean and scary. How can the woman who allowed me to suckle on her breasts for 5 years straight come up with such an absolute and terrifying punishment? ”If you don’t go to bed right now, Roger, you’ll be reborn a tick! You want to spend your life latched to the side of a rhino’s anus?” Whatever happened to a simple slap on the tush or a good lashing with a belt? How about just sending me to bed without dinner or unplugging the TV for a week? There are countless punishments in the human realm that a parent can impart upon a defiant child that are proven to be safe and effective. So why would they so quickly and easily default to the spiritual and metaphysical to keep me in check? Why would mom and dad invoke visions of death, karma, reincarnation, and rebirth as their corrective method of choice? It’s like using a tactical nuke to take care of an ant problem. Yeah it’ll work but it’ll fuck up a whole lot of other shit in the process.
