Hollywood & Show Biz

It's more than black-and-white vs. color, standard screen vs. widescreen, classical music vs. rock soundtrack. There's something else that makes films of yesteryear feel very different than modern films -- something about the rhythm and texture. But what?

New research suggests that modern movies are more engrossing — we get "lost" in them more readily — because the universe’s natural rhythm is driving the mind. Really.

Hollywood movies and TV shows are almost never filmed in the real Hollywood, a neighborhood of the City of Los Angeles. Some studios used to be there, but many years ago most production companies moved to other parts of the greater "LA" area. This is why tourists who go to the corner of Hollywood Blvd. and Vine St. rarely see anything interesting. But I do ...

I enjoy CBS TV show "NCIS". There's a spark, an energy, that makes it appealing even after several years on the air. The NCIS characters are intelligent, the dynamics are interesting, and it is well-played by strong actors, The storylines are usually engaging and often quite clever. But I'm not sure the new spin-off "NCIS: Los Angeles" has any reason to have "NCIS" in its title.

How did a young San Francisco radio station DJ go to Washington, sit in the President's chair in the White House Oval Office, then play rock 'n' roll piano with a dozen legendary performers?

It all happened to ME -- one week in 1972, and especially one amazing night. Here's my Boomer Years experience.

More than 1,000 San Diego County residents attended the "Vital Aging Conference: Caring for Yourself and Others" in June 2007, which featured information on important health concerns for older adults and family caregivers on topics, such as diabetes, nutrition, fitness, legal issues, and stress management. The conference also featured inspiring keynote speaker and vitally aging Boomer himself, Edward James Olmos.

Ahh, the glamor of Hollywood, the excitement of film-making... Unless the movie crew has filled up your street and you just want to get home! It happened in my neighborhood (again). Here's a report.

San Diego might not be known as a hotbed of film production, but one day the one block street leading to my house once again filled with movie-making trucks, equipment, people and even actors who aren't people.