The Weight

1. Of relevance to my October 17th blog: On approximately October 21st (give or take a day) Billy Joel drove by me. My experience in such things, in terms of a pre-existing context, suggest the possibility of his having been dispatched by Paul McCartney to drive by me.

2. In mid-2006 I began posting videoclips on YouTube (as Zoomsteinhoff) regarding the fact that every episode made of the TV show "Monk" (give or take a few) includes inside references to my material. I attribute this to the fact that the first person who told me of the college I went to (CalArts) used to run USA Networks, which makes "Monk". "Monk" continues these references in every episode to this day. Meanwhile, where I am employed at Kaiser Permanente's Southern California regional headquarters, this is the second year I am in charge of (organizing) the providing of an opportunity, for all Southern California employees, to spend two full days in December watching a special rebroadcast of a two-day satellite broadcast of an IHI (Institute for Healthcare Improvement) event. The relevant thing here is that this year this IHI broadcast will include a play performed specially for this event by three actors: F. Murray Abraham, Tony Shaloub (star of "Monk") and Brooke Adams (Shaloub's wife).

3. Last night's "Saturday Night Live", as usual, included references to my material, though this time not in the opening (see my October 19th blog). Specifically, the "Vincent Price's Halloween Special" sketch referred in several ways to my SNL sketch idea, "Peek-a-Boo, ICU" (see my September 28th blog and the last paragraph of my October 17th blog). In my sketch idea, to improve onscreen visibility someone is asked to move something to the left but instead that just makes it worse, as in last night's SNL sketch. Furthermore, last night's SNL sketch has the Kristen Wiig character stopping in front of the camera, irritatingly blocking the view, as in my sketch and the resultant moment in the second presidential debate. To understand why I am certain on this, one might need to have experienced the long history of such things, wherein the first similarity tips one off that another similarity to the same material is on its way later in the sketch, and sure enough, without fail, there it is.

4. My new SNL sketch idea, entitled, "The Weight":

THE WEIGHT

A comedy sketch idea by Jonathan D. Steinhoff 10/26/08

This sketch is designed to be presented throughout the show in one-minute segments, in the same way that the SNL “McGruber” segments are presented throughout the show in short segments.

It is Election Night and, as we eventually hear in Wolf Blitzer’s rationalization to one of the guest political pundits for all of the bruises he’s receiving, CNN had to come up with a gimmick, as competition for viewers on Election Night is tremendous. With all of the mishaps, however, Wolf eventually wonders publicly if it really was such a good idea. The space capsule circling the Earth, causing the political pundits to be floating around in a weightless state while having their discussion, that was good. But maybe the trampoline floor, walls and ceiling might have been going too far. James Carville is complaining that he feels like he’s a pinball in a pinball machine, and Andrea Mitchell was knocked unconscious when she was dramatically catapulted across the capsule into a sink just as she was explaining why it was the economy that was making Florida look increasingly like it was going with Barrack. Andrea Mitchell continues floating around after this, only is now unconscious for the duration. Wolf occasionally calls to her to see if she’s revived yet, then says, “Nope, she’s still out. I wanted to ask her…. Oh well.” Periodically John King floats by as if he has mastered the trampoline-enhanced weightlessness, coming out of the bottom left corner of the screen, floating towards the upper right corner, while simultaneously calling out a new state going for Obama with each appearance: “And CNN is now projecting Iowa for Obama.” Wolf, off-camera, says, “Does it say that? Because I’m upside-down right now, but I thought it might be saying that.” John King, off-camera now, says, “That’s right, Wolf.” For a while no one is on-camera. Wolf, whispering loudly, says, “I’m being told no one is being picked up by the camera right now. James, do you think you can fling yourself over there? How about you, Hitchens? Hitchens! Hey, has anybody seen Christopher Hitchens? I’m trying to get there myself but I keep somersaulting around, I’m not quite sure where I am, I’m a little dizzy in fact.” James Carville, also speaking in a loud whisper, says, “Don’t ask me, Wolf, I’m like a pinball in a pinball machine, absolutely no control where I’m going. I would, however, like very much to say something about McCain’s dirty tricks backfiring during the campaign. Can I do that without being on-camera?” “Sure, go ahead. You know, I thought this would work, the space capsule idea, and then Campbell kept saying, ‘And with trampolines! With trampolines!’ I told them that would be overdoing it, nobody listened. Had to be a HUGE gimmick, right?” John King flies by on-camera announcing another state for Barrack. Wolf resumes, “And we all know how fierce the competition for viewers is on Election Night. I should have argued more.” James Carville says, “I’m getting all bruised up here, Wolf. Maybe if they had let us practice just with trampolines before they put us here.” Wolf says, “Sorry to hear about your bruises, James. Okay, well, let’s return to Campbell Brown in the studio for now. We’ll be returning up here a little later on in the show. And we’re out. There’s no way Christopher Hitchens could have accidentally floated out of the space capsule, is there? Good, no, I didn’t think so, I was just checking, because nobody’s seen him for a while. Look behind where?” James Carville says, “Ouch!” Wolf asks, “Are you okay, James?” “Nothing. I just banged my head again. I think it says Wisconsin went with Barrack. Of course, we all expected that.” Wolf says, “Yeah, that was pretty much predicted.”

They've Got Me Surrounded They Think

Here is the story of a camp counselor I met in 1971 named Sean, who once headed the film company David Geffen had before DreamWorks. I've edited it down to focus on the part of his story that connects to me and my first 29 billion trillion dollars:



And of course it doesn't end here.

Talk Is Cheap Unless You Leverage The 5% Rate Increase On 83% Of Stuff

For those who look to me to help them keep track of Saturday Night Live's inside references to me/my material, and/or make these inside references and seek acknowledgement that I noticed them:

In my September 30th blog, I described (with checkable references) how the SNL September 27h opening (I emphasize the word "opening" because these SNL presidential campaign- related show openings all become instant repeatables, clips airing on all of the news shows as part of that week's presidential campaign news) contained something that started with me. My September 30th blog also described how, for several years, there has scarcely been an SNL without something that started with me. How, for the most part, the things they used were pre-designated by me for the very same night's show in which they were contained.

In my October 1st blog, at the end of the second paragraph, as part of a description of something I wrote to McCartney in 1975 that contributed to a 1975 Laine/McCartney song lyric, I wrote:

"if he should ever wish to visit my school, CalArts, I would be delighted to show him around"

With the Vice Presidential Candidates Debate occurring on Thursday, October 2nd, the following SNL, October 4th, opened the show with a sketch containing the Joe Biden character saying:

"I'll show you around some time"

The following Saturday, October 11th, SNL broadcast a repeat, and so the very next new SNL was October 18th (last night). That show opened with Alec Baldwin saying to (the actual) Sarah Palin:

"let me take you for a tour of the studio"

SNL Clips, 10.04.08, 10.18.08:



I'm not sure what this might say to you out of context (by which I mean, the context of SNL and others regularly referencing me/my material, which serve to reinforce my conclusions regarding from whence cameth these). With the election two weeks from this Tuesday, would it sound self-centered for me to wish my 9-5 wasn't sapping my energy, diverting me from focusing on this little matter of an election that could seriously change the course of humanity and our planet?

I Now Pronounce This Ring Open

On October 1st my blog asked that Paul McCartney and Denny Laine (McCartney’s main musical collaborator after John Lennon) reunite for Billy Joel's and Bruce Springsteen’s concert for Obama on October 16th, which was to be (and was) attended by Obama. The day following my blog, October 2nd, the “What Goes On” Beatles website carried an article about an October 11th Denny Laine concert. That article offered several email addresses that might easily lead to Denny Laine, and so, being handed this the day after my Denny Laine blog, I emailed several people, under the Subject line, “Laine Help In A Specific Way,” a paraphrase of the line from the title song of the Beatles movie, “Help”: “I never needed anybody’s Help In Any Way.”

At the October 16th Billy Joel/Bruce Springsteen concert for Obama, according to an Associated Press article, Laine and McCartney did not appear. The article did not state this specifically, however, we will assume that it would have mentioned this had it occurred. Okay, I can see that.

What the article also did was to mention the fact that Billy Joel played the title song from the Beatles movie, “A Hard Days Night”. The Beatles have created a substantial number of songs. I therefore find it noteworthy that from all of the Beatles material to draw from (or not), I referred to the title song of one of the two Beatles movies in my efforts to make something happen at that October 16th concert, and the title song from the other Beatles movie was in actuality performed at that same concert.

This is far from the first time I had an influence on Billy Joel, who once sat next to me on an airplane in 1978, several weeks before Paul McCartney sent me a letter, which was several weeks before I graduated from CalArts.

Changing the subject, but remaining on a related topic, some may have noticed that my September 28th blog announced a new Saturday Night Live sketch idea of mine, “Peek-A-Boo, ICU”, including a link to where one could read it. This is also evidence of when I wrote it, because archive.org indicates, in a non-transmutable way, the date when things are posted there. My sketch was about the then upcoming presidential debate hosted by Tom Brokaw, and more specifically, about people’s views being blocked. In the actual debate, McCain’s actual blocking of Brokaw’s actual view became the actual source of much actual humor. Nor was this the first time McCain helped himself to my material, his last appearance on The Daily Show being another example. Are you ready to consider that it was deliberate when McCain blocked Brokaw's view? Okay, well I can appreciate how difficult it must be to accept the idea that at times my influence, at least on a certain, secret track, should be as powerful as, say, Paul McCartney’s. As for me, I've been seeing the extent of my influence in an unobstructed way for most of my life.

Paul McCartney and Denny Laine: Give Barrack Obama Your Vote

Let’s suppose that those who have been keeping an intelligent, careful eye on American politics would not be completely convinced by the current polls, which at present indicate that the election is Barrack Obama’s. Things continue to change at the drop of a hat, in spite of each new configuration of the way America “feels” being initially perceived as written in stone. And so, let us suppose that, just as a McCain presidency would place Palin dangerously close to the highest office in the land, perhaps the world, so McCain is dangerously close to winning the presidency. To sit back with the sense that nothing need be done about this, were one in a position to do something, might therefore be the highest form of irresponsibility.

In 1975-76, Paul McCartney and Denny Laine did a song called, “Must Do Something About It,” which was based on a communication I had sent to Paul McCartney at a time when, like now, I was of significance to Paul McCartney. My communication immediately followed a McCartney radio interview, in which he said that on his upcoming concert tour he was likely to do his songs note perfect to the version heard on the recordings, as that’s what the people wanted. My communication stated that it (the communication) should be regarded as my vote, that it would be more real if he felt at liberty to change the notes, and that if he should ever wish to visit my school, CalArts, I would be delighted to show him around (i.e., “hold your coat”).

When one considers that Denny Laine became Paul McCartney’s main musical collaborator following John Lennon, it seems something of a contrast to, in any manner, juxtapose that song’s “must do something about it…. or not” persona within proximity of Lennon’s “I sure as hell will do something about stuff” outward persona.

And that brings us to the stage that has now been set. Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel (who sat next to me on an airplane Easter Sunday 1978, the year the Pope would have wanted to be sitting next Billy Joel, owing to his recent hit about a Catholic girl hiding behind a stained glass curtain counting on her rosary; Easter Sunday 1978, three weeks before I received a letter from Paul McCartney regarding my upcoming graduation from film school; Easter Sunday 1978, six weeks before Rolling Stone Magazine’s June Random Notes piece about Lennon considering a part in a movie called “Street Messiah”, which I followed up on, and might have succeeded in working on had it ever been made) will be performing for Obama on October 16th, with surprise guests.

There is a great, wise expression: “It ain’t what you do, it’s the way that you do it.” I would not want McCartney publicly supporting Obama if it were to be done clumsily, in a run of the mill fashion, as a typical celebrity endorsement, or tainted by seeming like an upstaging, or as something pointedly alienating to anyone not of like mind. But what I would love to see would be if McCartney could find a good way to fuse a Beatle-like feeling (from when they suggested the group persona of a social movement) together with the kind of support for Obama that is like being part of the rising spirit of a new social movement.

The suggestion I would like to make, as simple as it may sound, would accomplish a lot, in addition to meeting the only real criteria – it feels “right”: I would like to suggest a reunion of Paul McCartney and Denny Laine as part of the Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen Obama event. It would provide the perfect proximity to present times for the “ghost” of John Lennon’s activist spirit; it would contain the promise of musical chemistry yet unexplored; it is the right time, as Denny Laine’s new book about Paul McCartney could be seen as implying that their famous relationship could now finally be in the right place for such a musical reunion.

Obviously, I am far outside of the real inner issues McCartney and Laine would have to address in making such a decision. So: let this opinion of mine just be seen as.... one vote.