When
Jovee and I were in Boston the other day, we wandered into one of the old graveyards on Tremont St. to check it out. I've been in there many times, but very few times as a photographer. Many of the headstones have this design on it.
Jovee pointed out that she was glad some PR person somewhere decided life would be better if angels weren't represented by skulls with wings. I'm not sure who that person was or when the change happened, but I thank them, too.
Okay, on to a different subject. Last night, the
SAG Awards were on and I want to talk about them, just in case there's no Academy Awards ceremony. First, I was amazed at how much I just enjoyed watching it all (and then of course I got mad that we missed the Golden Globes this year). I totally watched as much of the red carpet coverage as I could, because I'm a total dork. Doug was a great sport about it considering it meant he couldn't play with the Wii for most of the night. Here's a rundown:
1) For me, the biggest disappointment was that "The Sopranos" took home the awards in the TV Drama categories. I never realized the SAG voters were such a sentimental lot. I was really pulling for "Mad Men" and, really, any of the other women. I'm sure there are plenty of people who disagree with me, and that's okay, too.
2) Daniel Day-Lewis' speech about Heath Ledger was touching (especially since his In Memoriam tribute was lame), but it would have seemed wildly inappropriate and insincere had it come from anybody else.
3) I was happy Angelina Jolie didn't wear black or grey, but I have to say, she's only fueling the "pregnant with twins" rumor. Plus, she tripped on her own dress walking down the red carpet and almost flashed everyone. What do you think Brad would have done?!
4) Charles Durning is awesome.
5) Mickey Rooney is doing remarkably well but is clearly insane and jealous of Charles Durning. I mean, come on, the man was PRESENTING an award and still managed to thank his wife. And that crazy lady stood up and blew kisses to the audience! That's a bit of an overreaction considering he's had 7 wives before her to thank.
Now a note on SAG. Some people find the "My name is so-and-so and I'm an Actor" bits annoying; I like them. Doug is a member of SAG and he worked really hard to get that card. He earned it in 2001 by working on the film
Moonlight Mile. Most SAG members do not end up on any red carpet. They're working actors - people who make their livings by acting, but whose names you'll never know. Doug worked on dozens of movies and TV shows and I loved when he'd come home and tell me all the stories from the set - all the minor interactions with the major stars. What can I say? I'm a sucker for Hollywood. Without SAG, it would have been impossible for him to make a living doing what he was doing. That very first year, we (and by we, I mean "he") got to vote for the SAG Awards. We actually filled in the bubbles next to the names of the actors we wanted to win. We had a say. We got to go to the SAG nominated movies for free so that when the ballots came out, we could make informed decisions. Even though the winners of the show last night are talented, SAG exists to help those other actors, too. I remember watching the very first SAG Awards show (just another reason I dislike Jason Alexander, but that's a story for another post), but I had no idea what SAG was. Now I know, and knowing is half the battle.
