I was dumbfounded to learn that Phil Hartman was killed today. Apparently by his wife, no less. Sheesh. Sinatra and even Chris Farley were not a shock, but this is totally unexpected.
Maybe there really is a curse on the SNL alumni.
If Hartman can go, then no one is safe. I never knew him personally, of course, but he seemed to be among the most rational and level-headed of the Saturday Night Live types. I was on my way to a Sound-on-Site performance at the Orange County Performing Arts Center when I heard about it on KFI, and even while we were onstage I couldn’t get it out of my head.
Phil Hartman was the voice-over king. If you really listen and know his voice, you’d realize it’s everywhere. Television, radio, commercials, cartoons, you name it. It seems that in today’s world of untalented “stars”, Hartman was a guy with a lot to offer. He was a trained graphics designer, a writer, a sketch comedy master, and voice-over actor. He seemed to lead a fairly normal life, too. I mean, when was the last time you heard of a Hollywood star living in Encino?
Anyway. Tonight’s performance of Pick Up Ax turned out nicely. Only three more performances to go! Some of the people I’ve been expecting to make it to the show are finally starting to show up. Tony, Steve and I decided to dedicate this performance to the memory of Springfield’s own Troy McClure.
Lately I can’t seem to keep track of all the work I’ve got going on site-wise. I made a list of all the web sites I’m working on in one capacity or another, and it comes to something like 25 projects. I’m starting to make a web-based project page so I can keep track of the status of each one. We’ll see how that works out. It’s not that I can’t get them all taken care of, it’s just a matter of efficiency and organization. Right?
The biggest project I’ve got right now is a dynamic database design/implementation and web interface for performing arts events in Orange County. It’s going to be part of the new O.C. ArtsNet site. A searchable, scalable database of all the Arts O.C. members’ events. I’m not quite sure how I’m going to do it, but once it’s done it’ll be Orange County’s single greatest source of information on the performing arts around here. Relational, dynamic, sassy, and always up-to-date. I get tired just thinking about it.