Show Biz And Marriage
I must confess that it is really difficult to describe some of the wacky commercial shoots I work on to the average civilian, let alone my wife. I have been on sets where we: stuffed […]
Author: Forrest Brakeman
Forrest is a former stand-up comedian, half of the ancient comedy team of Proops & Brakeman. After training with the Groundlings, he founded the improv comedy group Los Angeles Theatresports where he performed and served as Co-Artistic Director. Forrest has performed at The Comedy Store and The Laugh Factory in Los Angeles, The Punch Line and Cobb's Pub in San Francisco, and has appeared on The Tonight Show and The Sunday Comics. His essays have been published in the Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post, Scary Mommy/The Mid, Boomer Cafe, the Los Angeles Daily News, NPR's "This I Believe," and the Chicago Cubs Yearbook (you heard me).
The Speed Of Hollywood
I was working on a commercial on the grounds of CAA’s World Headquarters, marveling at how many stories of glass and concrete a small group of people could afford who make their living off the […]
I’m Packin’ So You’re Wrong
An election year is truly a polarizing event. Actually, it’s more like Halloween. Because people you see every day, people you usually get along with, suddenly appear before you wearing the ghastly costume of reactionary […]
Hollywood Habitat Hell
Holy smokes did we have a dilemma at the Brakeman household. It started a few days ago when the kids found out that I would be working on a PetSmart commercial. I had tried to […]
Show Biz Chimps
I have worked with many famous people during my many years of employment in Show Business. Oh sure, I could drop names like Beyonce, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Kevin Bacon, Charlize Theron, Bruce Springsteen, Jennifer […]
Just How Long Is That Beach?
As the unofficial long-winded, self-proclaimed expert on all things lengthy in Southern California, I feel it is long past the time to address the elephant in the Basin: Long Beach. Ahh, Long Beach. The […]
What’s Up With The Greek Thing? (A Primer)
With so much talk about the problems with Greece and the European Union, I’m sure a lot of you have done something like me: glanced at the headlines and figured that the problem is about […]
Why Are We Spying On The French?
An international furor was sparked when WikiLeaks released it’s “Espionnage Elysee” report, which showed extensive spying on the French by the NSA that included recorded eavesdropping of French President Francois Hollande and his two predecessors […]
The Redondo Beach Pier
As the Unofficial Chronicler of all things Southern California, I recently had the pleasure of spending a day at the Redondo Beach Pier, or the Land That Time Forgot. Let’s get some business out of […]
Giraffes And Zebras, Oh My!
Oh my God, on a commercial shoot the other day we got to work with wild animals! I have to tell you that every time we work with something unusual and unique, like this time […]