Friday, March 30, 2007

It's 5 o'clock in the morning and I'm on the elliptical sweating my a** off. Why? Well, I'm trying to lose this last 2.4 pounds to get back to my fighting weight. The other day it was 1.4 lbs., then 1.8 and now 2.4. What is going on?!?!?! I think I'm going to have to reduce my food intake to one meal every other day. Or I could sell my car and start walking to my auditions.

I'm kidding. Actually, the reason I'm in Culver City on the elliptical @ 5am is because I have a free 50 minute massage scheduled in Encino @ 9am. I figured I'd do some cardio, weights, sauna and swimming before getting my body worked on. My friend Jan is an instructor at the National Holistic Institute/College of Massage Therapy and she needed some willing bodies for her students to work on. I was ready and willing for the 50 minutes of bliss - correction, free bliss. "Free" is key because messages aren't really in my budget; at least my Quicken program says so. Hard to believe I still have a gift certificate that an ex gave me 5-6 years ago for a full body massage @ Burke Williams. What the heck am I waiting for?

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Thursday, March 29, 2007

Audition: "Audi" @ Jeff Rosenman Casting. Why wouldn't I, at least, get a callback for this one? I'm perfect for it! At least in my mind. Well....I'm sure there are several reasons. Not being good enough isn't one of them. I refuse to accept that as the reason. I'll book again sometime soon....maybe this one... Getting ahead of myself? I should probably hope for a callback first.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Audition: "Miracle Whip" @ Skirts Casting. I had fun, but I think I might be too young for it. That's okay; it was just great to have an audition for anything. It had been more than a week since my last one.

As soon as I got home Caleigh called with a last minute appointment for a series regular role on a pilot - straight to producers. Cool!

She gives me all the info along with the script. It was a quick, fun read and I am perfect for it. I can SO do this role!

So it's time to get it on its feet. I walk down my street reading the material, making choices and guess who was behind me when I looked back? The Six-Million Dollar Man...seriously...Lee "freakin"' Majors was walking behind me! Why? Well this is Hollywood.

Actually, they were shooting his pilot "Me and Lee?" on my street today. Silly I know, but when things like that happen it really makes me feel like I'm on the right path and that this career thing is working out.

The more I worked on the material the more I felt the role was perfect for me or I was perfect for the role. I ran over to a friend's house to run lines with and he agreed that this role was written for me.

Later, as I made my way onto the lot at Paramount Studios I couldn't help but reminisce about when I booked my first "Frasier" episode. It was one of those fairy-tale situations that you hear about from a "friend of a friend"; the kind were you are booked and go immediately to set. I smile when I think of that experience.

Audition: "Dash 4 Cash" @ Meshel/Scott Casting. I was told that they are way behind in casting this and one other role and when I arrived that was very clear.

Every actor in front of me was in and out in a flash....and this was for a series regular role! The casting process is an amazing beast and fortunately I don't take it personally - at least not usually.

When I got in the room the casting director, whom I hadn't met previously, greeted me with a warm handshake. He immediately started talking about where he recognized me from; he knew I was the stage manager, "Robby" from "Good Morning, Miami". He also happened to see the recent episode of "Brothers & Sisters" I appeared in (little did I know that that would be the highlight of my audition.

Jeff then informed me that we'd only be doing the last of three scenes I'd been told to prepare.....it was over before it began. I hardly even remember what happened.

I learned a valuable lesson today; that I should have taken more control of "my" audition. It was nobody's fault but mine. Next time I'll do my best to slow things down so the CD and I can work on it. I had nothing to lose if I would've taken that approach. At any rate it was a pleasure meeting Jeff and getting into a casting office that I had never been in for…hopefully I’ll get back in soon for something else.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Sunday, March 25, 2007

I MADE IT! Or more accurately "I'm making it"; because as we all know it's a journey not a sprint. Nevertheless it's another milestone for the books. Today marks 6 years since serving my last medium-rare burger, asking my last customer whether they wanted salt for their margarita and my last day getting off at 7 o’clock in the morning from the graveyard shift. Yup, on March 25th 2001 I took a 3-month leave of absence; which eventually turned into my resignation from waiting tables at The Hollywood Standard Hotel on Sunset Blvd…and I hope to never return.


I saved my work beenie from The Sandard as a reminder - 6 years and counting!

I left the job on a leap of faith and nothing more. I didn't have much money saved or any big jobs pending; I just felt that I needed to cut the safety net. I wasn't making that much money at the job and I felt my time was better spent doing what I came here to do. There were 4 specific things I wanted to do after I left the job; take a v/o class, a dance class, start my own website and finally start writing what has turned into this Long Ass Bio. I did all 4 things, but I never follwed through with the v/o stuff - might have to re-ignite that department. It makes it seem that I’m into this “acting thing” for the long haul huh? Looks that way…and I feel really good about it. I mean you never know, but every year is another year invested and the more acting I do the more I wanna do. It’s been a great ride thus far and I have every reason to believe it’s going to get even better.

I admit that I’m not completely thrilled with the big city life anymore. Actually, I often have serious conflicts with it, but I realize that it comes with the territory of my career choice. I have a great future in this business and it feels good to have something to show for it.

Speaking of my future; I’ve been thinking a lot about mine lately. Since I don’t work for a company in the traditional sense I have to be that much more aware of what tomorrow may or may not bring. A couple of weeks ago I attended an investment seminar sponsored by the AFTRA-SAG Federal Credit Union and last week I opened an investment account for myself. One of the best investments I’ve made has been investing and believing in myself when I started my pursuit as an actor in 1993.

Something else I checked into was my SAG Pension and where I stand as far as the earning of pension credits. I currently have 9 Regular Pension Credits and I need 10 to earn a pension at the normal retirement age of 65. Getting the 10th one shouldn’t be too much trouble, but I need to earn more every year to maximize its value in the years to come. I think I need 20 pension credits to qualify for continual health benefits at retirement. That is so far away that I don’t really wanna think about it, but in fact you kinda have to prepare for it. If I don’t do it nobody is going to do it for me. Trust that.

It’s weird thinking about things that are so far in the future when I have things on my plate TODAY that I’m trying to accomplish and even that stuff seems impossible at times. I know these things are anything but impossible, but it’s just hard to fathom sometimes. I shall keep the faith.

Last week I was on the elliptical at the gym, ya know, gotta work on keeping my girlish figure in tact…..that was a joke. Actually, I am trying to lose this last 1.8 lbs. I gained when I didn’t work out for 7 months straight…all the while others were telling me that I looked like I lost weight; go figure. I don’t care about the 1.8 lbs. it just gives me something to do. Who cares; I only “really” go to the gym to keep busy and it makes me feel like I accomplished something.

Anyway, while on the elliptical I saw the “Michelin” commercial that I booked last fall, but was left on the cutting room floor. When I saw it I just laughed and said “so close, yet so far”. I don’t know how I keep such a healthy attitude after so many things like that happen; especially with the whole “Ocean’s Thirteen” dealio. I think it’s because I’ve had so many great things happen thus far in my career. I’ll continue to soldiering on, making things happen and enjoying the ride.

Last week was really quiet. I haven’t had an audition for an entire week. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen too often; I’m sure it’ll pick up soon. Right?

Look what I found; this is timely. It’s an interview that was in The Virginian-Pilot, my hometown newspaper, September 20th 1997. It was while I was still living in New York. Now that I think about it I’ve been interviewed twice by the local newspaper. It’s a tough thing; this one was pretty accurate, but the second time made me wonder who they were talking about because it didn’t seem like me. It made me sound like this desperate actor that just couldn’t get anything going. I’ve never been that. I haven’t been in too much of a hurry to go through that again.


ACTING ON THEIR DREAMS YOUNG ENTERTAINERS FROM HAMPTON ROADS ARE SEEKING FAME AND FORTUNE FAR FROM HOME.

By Lorraine Eaton
LOUISE FULLER knew life in New York was going to be tough for Bryan, but she never expected to see her son crawling around the back of a trash truck. And she just knew he wasn't going to get into trouble with drugs.

But he did both, and she couldn't be more pleased.
Bryan S. Fuller of Virginia Beach is making a living in a business that is notorious for breaking humans in half. And he's doing it at the speed of light.

Bryan, who goes by the stage name Stephon (accent on the first part, thank you very much) is a familiar sight on television in Spain, where he plays a garbage collector in three widely played Pepsi commercials. He was one of the guys eating a Whopper in ``The Lost World'' Burger King commercials played in the United States this summer. He's acted in public-service announcements with New York Mayor Ed Koch, and later this year he'll appear on cinema screens for a few brief moments as a drug addict in ``Hells Kitchen,'' a film that stars Roseanna Arquette.

``Coming to New York, for me, it's been the best decision in my life,'' Bryan said from a phone booth at the corner of 56th Street and Sixth Avenue, with horns blaring in the background. ``I have to pinch myself, I just can't believe this is happening.''
Bryan, left Virginia Beach for New York in 1996 with $200 in his wallet, 18 months of evening acting school under his belt and totally unrelated experience in sales and in making subs at Philadelphia Cold Cuts, his family's business.
``My back was against the wall when I got here,'' he said. ``It forced me to perform, deliver and do what I had to do to survive.''
Unlike many filmland wannabes, Bryan has not been haunted by dreams of acting all his life. He graduated from Kellam High School without ever having joined the drama club - and got a job selling a line of surf wear as an East Coast rep. Later, he worked as a manager in his parents' stores and could have stayed on. ``For a time they expected it, but I never felt that,'' Bryan said. ``It's a great business, but I knew it wasn't my calling.''
Bryan had been ``interested in entertainment'' all his life but had never done any acting when he signed up for acting classes.

``Tenacity,'' said Sylvia Harmon, Bryan's teacher and owner of The Actors' Place in Virginia Beach. ``I can spot it when they walk in the door. This is a tough business. Work is limited. If you don't have tenacity, there's the door. It's 90 percent tenacity and 10 percent talent.''
Tenacity by the ton is Bryan's biggest asset, and that equals a non-stop life. It's why he has to call from a phone booth - he's in between auditions.

When Bryan arrived in New York City, he landed what he considers the worst job of his life - busing tables at the Harley Davidson Cafe. His new bedroom was so tiny that when he showed his parents a video tape of the apartment, they had to keep rewinding it to catch a glimpse of his space. He had to schedule auditions, acting classes and any jobs he got around his work at the cafe.

Now, Bryan's a waiter at the cafe and can schedule his work around his auditions and jobs. He lives in a $2,000-a-month Upper East Side apartment with two roommates he never sees. He's not even sure what they do for a living.

A call to his agent sets Bryan's week in motion. He goes to as many as three auditions a day. In August, he auditioned for a part in ``New York Undercover'' and for commercials for AT&T, Sprint, Western Union, Kodak, Federal Express, Mountain Dew, Burger King, Claritin and Aleeve.

Sometimes the auditions take an hour, sometimes they take seconds. He recently tried out for a Pepto-Bismol commercial. It went like this:
Casting director: Look like you have indigestion.
Bryan: Makes a distressed face.
Casting director: OK, look relieved.
Bryan: Looks relieved.
Casting director: Thank you. Next.
In between working, auditioning and classes in such things as improvisation and voice-overs, there are thank-you notes to be written for auditions, mailings of resumes and head shots to casting directors, and auditions for live theater, something that rarely pays but can get an agent's attention.

``Creating a buzz,'' is how Bryan puts it.

And, finally, there are the acting jobs, which, thankfully, are becoming more frequent. His five-day gig in Spain for the Pepsi shoot made him eligible for a Screen Actors Guild card, a plum for aspiring actors. A signal of real experience, SAG members are eligible for union wages, which can be double those of non-union workers.

Still, nearly 90 percent of SAG members make less than $5,000 a year acting. About 3 percent make $100,000 a year.

In 1996, Bryan made less than $2,000 in front of the camera. So far this year, he's made more than $20,000.

Right now, Bryan is in New Jersey rehearsing for the play ``The Darker Face of the Earth,'' a period piece about slavery. It opens in October and then moves to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., in November.

The play should up the buzz about Bryan and prepare him for the next level: January auditions for next fall's television pilots.
========================================================

Wow, how things change, but somehow remain the same! Happy anniversary to me!

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Monday, March 19, 2007

Audition: "PetSmart" @ Ross Lacy Casting. This was fun and the woman who played my wife was so, so sweet….so sweet.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Friday, March 16, 2007

I gotta tell ya; faith is a beautiful thing. I say that because today is the birthday of something green. Not "green" as in "cash"; green as in "cash money" aka "the green hornet" also known as my '98 Honda Accord Coupe.

Yup, it was 3 years ago today that I brought her home. My previous Honda, an '89 Accord, carried me 231,223.4 miles and was in serious need of rest, relaxation, rehabilitation and a new beginning with a new family.

I held out so long because she was getting the job done, I ain't no baller AND she had been paid off long ago. Plus I detested the thought of a car payment, but the situation was starting to be a serious drag on me in several ways. My driver-side door wouldn't open from the outside, the A/C wasn't working and it often ran hot among other things. Fortunately, I was still able to listen to my AM Talk Radio stations; without AM Talk I might have abandoned ship much sooner.

So I HAD to do something. The problem was that a couple hundred dollars in car payments was not at all in the budget...at all. I was running a really tight ship financially, but without a decent car in LA my ship was sure to capsize and THAT was not an option.

This is where faith really showed itself; I decided to go to SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union and get a loan to get a car. I was immediately approved and found the perfect, used vehicle within days. The only problem was I had no idea how I was going to pay for it…I mean not even the first payment; it just wasn't in the budget

I thought I'd have 45 days until the first payment was due, because that how it was with my last car. I soon found out that I only had 30 days....30 days to figure out how I was going to make this happen and 60 days until payment #2….90 days until #3 and so on…

It's funny how things usually work out if you give them a chance. I don't mean everything in my life, but a lot of things. I'm proud to say that I've been able to make each and every payment on time....and it’s almost paid off.

Audition: “Lowe’s” @ Craig Colvin Casting. This was fun; there was more dialogue than usual with a bit of improv thrown in. My partner and I bounced things off of each other nicely.

Later one of my theatrical agents called with an appointment for a small co-star on an AFTRA show. I'm still not a fan of the whole AFTRA dealio, although I know that one day I'll probably have to bite the bullet and join - that day ain't today.

My agent didn't feel it was a good idea for me to audition for it. I agreed and passed without too much of a thought. Saying no to the wrong stuff is becoming easier and easier - I think that is a sign of growth.

I also never forgot how great it is that I get to actually have conversations with my representatives about these "what to do and what not do" things. I know it sounds simple "in theory", but "in practice" most actors aren't so fortunate - Thanks Caleigh, Alicia, Donn, Rose, Erin, Brooke, Marie, David, Josh, Steven, Jenny and Steve - you gals and guys rock!

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Audition/Pilot/Tape: “Chuck” @ Patrick Rush Casting. Originally this was supposed to be for producers, but Patrick told me they had been shooting really late last night so they would book from tape. Fine, it went great I felt. I found some extra little quirks for the character on my way to the office in the car. It’s a possible recurring role and I think I could be in the running to book. We’ll see. At any rate, it was a very respectable showing for this casting office that has hired me twice before. It’s all good.

Audition: “Kings of the Evening” @ Phaedra Harris Casting. This was the first audition I’d ever had that said “Star Names Only” – wow. There were definitely some “names” in attendance and I was right there with them. I didn’t get a callback. My agent said that there may have been an age issue, but I felt I did what I went there to do.

I originally had another pilot producer session for a casting office that has cast me in the past scheduled for today, but it was cancelled this morning. I’m not sure why, but I hope it gets rescheduled.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Audition: “Nabisco” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This was kinda interestingly cool because when I arrived there were gorgeous women all over the place….and me. I thought I was there for the wrong spot. Even when I read the copy; there were 5 women and not one man. So I asked if I was in the right place; they confirmed that I was. Cool. I’ll hang out with these women all day if needed to. They were funny, interesting, smart, had beautiful hands and they smelled great. There is nothing like the scent of a woman!!!

Anyway, when I went to actually auditioned I ended up being “Woman #4”. What! I’m not sure how or why that happened because if you met me you would know that I’m very comfortable as a man and prefer it, but this was a national commercial. Heeeyyyy! LOL! I sure hope I get a callback for “Woman #4”.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Monday, March 12, 2007

Callback: “AirTran” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This one didn’t start out so great. At the callback they made me the “hero guy” instead of one of the regular dudes and I did the same thing the hero dude did in the original audition. Well…it had changed and nobody told me; so take one did go so well. Take two and three were butta so we’ll see what happens. I’m glad I’m so empowered by auditioning better and better, because this “not sealing the deal” stuff gets old, but I hang in there and trust.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Friday, March 09, 2007

Audition: “McDonald’s” @ Craig Colvin Casting. Another really good one for the books; it’s a promo for the new “Shrek” movie I think. One of these days I’m gonna book for Craig. Right?
http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Okay, so I call my agent this morning too let her know that I wanna go in on the LL Cool J pilot. I tell her “it’s LL, I’m a long-time fan and I would love to pull a gun on him, yell at him and arrest him in a scene”. She says, “I don’t blame you; I’m a big fan too!” Cool. The only question now is “will I be able to actually make it to the audition”. I guess time will tell.

So I arrive at the location, check-in with the 2nd AD and she takes me to my room. The location is an old hospital so it’s a nice sized room with a couch, TV, bathroom, 2 25 pound weights, TV with DirecTV AND a desktop computer….with a high-speed connection! WHAT! Are kidding me? I’ve had some nice accommodations like being fully reclined flying over the Pacific on a Korean Air jumbo to Tokyo while enjoying a 4-course meal and staying at the 5-star Grand Bay Hotel in Miami, but I’ve never had an PC with an internet connection for a day job. Cool. So I filled out my contract, got into wardrobe/hair/make-up, checked my email and then opened MS Word and started writing.

I had asked Pamela, the 2nd AD, about the chances of being released to get to my audition during our lunch break. It didn’t seem likely since lunch was only 30 minutes and at the actual shooting location which is not at the hospital. So I called my agent and let her know. A moment later I got a call asking if I was available tomorrow if we don’t finish today – I am.

After 45 minutes or so I was shuttled to the set for lunch and then a rehearsal of the scene. I got to work with Ken Jenkins AKA “Dr. Kelso”. What a great guy!! He was funny and cool from the very start and made me feel totally at home. The director is Mad TV star Michael McDonald. It was fun to watch the machine that is “Scrubs” in action. After several hours, mostly waiting and laughing, we finished. I won’t be working tomorrow. So I missed my audition today, but that’s okay. Having a TV job on a top show is a good reason to miss it, plus with all the back and forth calling from my agent they know I tried to make it. It’s another casting office on my list that I’ve been trying to get into for a good while; this confirms that they know who I am and that’s a great place to be for starters.



Finally!!!

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Audition: “Scrubs” @ Romano/Benner Casting. When my agent called with the appointment we had the usual “co-star conversation” of what to audition for and what to pass on; we discuss every situation as it comes; if it warrants a discussion. It depends on what show, what casting office, size of the role, which union, do I need the money or do I just wanna go in on it. “Scrubs” definitely a “Blue-Chip show”.

The role is that of 3 different salesmen, but in the audition they wanted it read as the same salesman. Personally, I think they are just doing that for audition purposes and will still hire three salesmen. Who knows. Who cares! It’s “Scrubs”.

I haven’t auditioned at this casting office since going to producers for “What I Like About You” on January 7th 2003. Wow, 4 years! I felt like that session went great and I’d eventually get back in again. I’ve been doing drop-offs and sending postcards ever since.

The audition was scheduled for 3:45 and it goes well except for the fact that I totally flubbed a word in the joke; I think I recovered pretty well, but still. I admittedly beat myself up over that for a little while afterwards. How does happen? You rehearse, rehearse, rehearse and then something totally different comes out of your mouth when it counts most. Oh well.

My agent asked that I call her after I was finished to let her know how it went. I left a message and she returned the call 25 minutes and it went like this:

INT – APARTMENT – DAY

Cell phone on table begins to emit the familiar “theatrical agent ringer” which is Metallica’s “Enter Sandman”. Stephon picks it up and sees the SCAW logo on the screen.

Stephon:
Hey Caleigh; how are you?

Caleigh:
Great, how did it go?

Stephon:
I think it went well. I flubbed a line, but I think I recovered pretty well.

Caleigh:
Okay, good.

Stephon:
There were any producers there; just Debby, Brett and Blyth. Matt wasn’t there.

Caleigh:
Oh really?

Stephon:
Yeah, so I guess we’ll see what happens.

Caleigh:
Did they have you read it all as one character?

Stephon:
Yeah, we read the two scenes separately, but as the same character.

Caleigh:
Okay. Would you even want to do it if they hire 3 salesmen instead of one?

Stephon:
I mean…….ya know…I uh...IT’S SCRUBS! I just wanna get on the show.

Caleigh:
Good! Because you booked it!

Stephon:
What? You’re kidding. Really?

Caleigh:
YES! And they hope you wanna do it.

Stephon:
Uh yeah I wanna do it!

Caleigh:
Great! It works tomorrow...

Caleigh totally tricked me. I told her that she’s getting a callback for her performance in tricking me! Within minutes of getting off the phone with Caleigh wardrobe and production from the show starting calling for sizes etc. Yeah!!

Oh yeah, it’s all over the press that series lead Zach Braff is reportedly getting a raise to $350,000 an episode if the show returns to schedule next season. They can’t possibly afford to pay him AND me so my agent opted to book this one under a “no quote”. That’s so if another casting office or production company wants to know how much I was paid for this job; the answer is “no quote”.

Twenty minutes later one of my other agents calls with an appointment for a co-star role in a pilot. I wasn’t at home so I couldn’t see the material and tell her yes or no. My gut was saying “no, I’ll pass”, but of course I wanted to read it first. She said to just let her know in the morning.

When I got home hours later and read the material I saw that it was LL Cool J’s new CBS drama pilot entitled “The Man”. The role I was to read for was that of a cop who pulls a gun and yells commands to LL’s character. Are you kidding me? Heck yeah I’m going in on this! I’m an LL fan for real! Oops, I almost forgot that I’m working tomorrow. Hopefully I can make the appointment.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Audition: "AirTran" @ Ross Lacy Casting. Nice, nice nice! Another one in the bucket. I'm so overdue commercially it's not even funny, but I have a feeling I’m gonna hit soon. Yeah, I've been saying that for YEARS!! Faith and confidence is an amazing thing. Hopefully they’ll bring me in for round two.

I received a note yesterday from Alicia, one of my commercial agents, which totally made my week. It was in reference to the article I wrote for Backstage. Alicia is the one who recommended me to someone who recommended me to someone else in New York to write the article. Wow, it almost seems like I'm starting to "know people who know people".

Alicia wrote:

=====
That article should be required reading for every actor - I am sending it to the rest of the agents to show that some actors do indeed get the big picture - and it's no coincidence you are as successful as you are.

It's a pleasure being your agent.

Alicia
=====

Wow! That means a lot coming from a partner at one of best talent agencies in the business.

Audition: "Kellogg's" @ Lisa Fields Casting. This is a Canadian national spot; I don't think I've ever read for a "Canadian National Spot" before, but there's a first time for everything huh?

This one was a little weird. I was portraying a runner who was running in slow motion. Before we slated our names, the female runner was instructed to spray me with water that was supposed to be sweat….like in a sweaty runner. Yo! That was kinda sexy. I mean here is this attractive woman in great physical shape; wearing some kinda form-fitting outfit spraying me with water…I don't know where that came from, but I would love to do it again at callbacks and again on-set. Yup, you've got it right - hot, shapely, strangers of the female persuasion, in running attire, spraying water in my face drives me crazy. Anything for a check huh? Or a potential check. It went well; I ran really, really slow.

I left this audition feeling so strongly about how fortunate I am to do what I do for a job. I mean it has to be one of the greatest ways to make a living in the world. I really look forward to bigger and better things while enjoying what I have today…and I have a lot. And I’m looking to get more.

Tonight I went to a dinner for the family of Eric Gelman. Eric was a great, funny actor friend I used to work with in New York at The Harley-Davidson Café. He was super talented and just a joy to be around. At the dinner were 10-12 people that I also used to work with 10-12 years ago in New York. That is amazing in itself that so many of us are still in touch from a seemingly "random restaurant job" from a decade ago. I have to say that this was anything but a "random restaurant job"; it was one of the greatest jobs I've ever had and Eric was a part of that.

Ironically, we had been loosely planning a get together for the coming weeks, but then got word that Eric's parents were in town. At that point everything changed and we HAD to get together. Why? Because Eric Gelman, that wonderful son, actor, friend and funnyman was murdered on April 17th 2005. His parents are in town for the trial. We wanted to show support to his family.

This is and continues to be a heart breaking situation. His parents and other members of his family that I've met are the greatest…and truth be told……I hate that I know, first-hand, just how great they are. I hate that I've shaken their hands, hugged them and have cried in front of them. I wish I'd never met them; it tears me apart to see them go through this. I wish I could continue to see Eric and just “wonder” what his family is like. It's very clear as to where Eric came from; I see him in them. The only reason I know his parents and any of his extended family is because of this tragic situation. I don’t want to meet anymore of my friends extended family because of a situation like this. To the Gelman Family – you are forever in my heart and my mind.

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html

Thursday, March 01, 2007

Included in the new issue of Backstage, on stands today, is an article I’ve written on….well, check it out. Imagine that. Me, a writer?!

http://www.stephonfuller.com/consultations.html