MARVIN'S ROOM

It's been almost a month since I went to New York and I have to say, I think I laughed the entire time I was there.  I met my friends Wendy and Elane that I haven't seen in thirty years, and it was as if no time had passed.  My friend Beth picked me up which made things so much easier than taking a taxi, and Elane was there waiting in front of the hotel.  We screamed when we saw each other and then Wendy and I screamed again when I saw her in the hotel room.  This screaming thing had to stop, but I just didn't give a shit.   I couldn't move after the plane ride so I rested while Wendy and Elane went out to dinner with one of Wendy's friends.  Wendy knows so many people in the "biz", as she was not only a professional stage manager but also a talent agent in New York.  So, this friend was stage managing "Hamilton" that evening.  Ya, "Hamilton".  We don't mess around people.  Elane brought me back food and it was delicious.  We stayed right in Times Square and I highly recommend the Knickerbocker Hotel where you can go up on the roof at night and have drinks and hors de'oeurves.  We met our friend Barry from college who is now a talent agent in New York.  He was just how I remember him.  Very funny.  He had many stories to share.  When we got back to our room, there was a bottle of champagne waiting for us.  The "Hamilton" stage manager was also a concierge at this hotel. He was actually filling in for another stage manager that evening.  But I mean "Hamilton". Just sayin'.

The next day we had breakfast in Tribeca and then we went to see our friend's play, Marvin's Room.  It wasn't a long walk, but Elane got a wheelchair from the hotel for me.  It was great.  I had not been in Times Square in years and to me, it's like Disneyland for adults.  Wendy was annoyed with how things had  changed.  There were so many ads for things like, Subway, and Dunkin Donuts.  I mean big huge, ridiculous lit up signs.  We saw the play and we were disappointed.  I mean, thrilled that Scott's play finally got on Broadway.  But the execution wasn't as good as we hoped.  Something was missing.  One person said that the set was too big for the performance.  Wendy thought maybe the energy was low because it was a Saturday afternoon and they had a performance the night before.  Lily Taylor, Janine Garafalo, and Celia Weston are all performers that I have loved for years.  Wendy said the director should be shot.  I wouldn't go that far.  It was still fun to see our buddy Scott's play on Broadway.  

That night we met our friend Barry again along with Jon Miller for dinner.  Of course, our waitress was an actress and she caught Barry on his way to the restroom to tell him about her showcase.  She found out he was an agent from me and she also overheard us talking.  When I knew Jon in college, he was a kind, respectful man.  I got to know him a little bit that summer before I broke my back.  It was great to see him.  He read us a funny letter that Scott had written to him.  Barry told us that when Scott's brother died in Sept. 1980, Scott sat outside of his parents house and talked to his friends.  Then he wrote a play about his brother's passing at the encouragement of our dear professor, George Sherman.  Barry said everything he shared at the picnic table was in the play.  Then Barry called our friend Steve Apostolina in California.  He does a ton of voice overs and he is always writing plays.  It was great to talk to him.  He was a good friend of Scott's.  He saw Marvin's Room many times all over the country and spent a great deal of time with Scott when he got really sick.  I am embarrassed to say, I did not see Scott before he died.  I just didn't have the money to go to Chicago.  But I did talk to him.  I loved sharing the viewing of his play with my dear friends.  It was one of my most memorable vacations. I said goodbye to these two crazy women and  Wendy did her signature "goodbye" to me as I got on the taxi to take me to the airport which is to lift her shirt up and expose her breasts.  Only this time she didn't have a bra on.  Scott would have loved it.  

We love you Scotty

I laughed, I cried and I went into labor.

SCOTT

                                                                                                              May, 19, 2017

     I am very excited about going to New York to see the play, "Marvin's Room" written by Scott McPherson. I am lucky that I got to know Scott in college.  I had a terrible crush on him and it didn't take me long to realize that he didn't feel the same. It was fine by me.  I loved being friends with him.  He was writing when we were in an improv group the summer before I broke my back, but at the suggestion of our professor, he wrote a play about the death of his brother which happened that fall.  I couldn't figure out why he was coming to Columbus so much to visit me in the hospital and here his brother was in a motorcycle accident and he was killed.  So Scott was going back and forth to Columbus to be with his family and would stop by and see me.  One thing he used to say after he saw a play was, "I laughed.  I cried.  I went into labor."  He was so cute and so sweet.  After he found out I was paralyzed and in the hospital, he immediately sent flowers.  My mother met him and could not get over how kind he was.  The first to call, the first to send flowers.  When I found out from other friends that his brother was killed, I felt horrible.  Then he called and I asked about it.  I was depressed myself and this just about sent me over the edge.  I didn't know what to say except if there was anything that I could ever do to help him, to please let me know.  He said the same thing back.  I told him that I was so sad, that I didn't want to see anyone, and Scott said that maybe I didn't need to see them, but they needed to see me.  For some reason, that made me feel better and I could accept visitors a little more graciously.  He told me that so many people came to his parents' house with food after his brother was killed and they really didn't need anymore food, but their friends needed to bring it.  What a sweet thing.  One time when he was visiting, he asked me if I ever heard about the man who had a horrible illness and healed himself with laughter.  I said yes and he said, "Well....", and he started making faces at me.  It was very funny without being funny.  He told me years later why he came out of the closet.  He said that after his brother died he was making tea and looked at the teabag with two sides.  He said he could either look at it as a bad thing or look at it like a great reminder to live life to the fullest.  He said that he was always attracted to men, but would never tell anyone. He didn't know what people would think of him.  He said he realized that we could die tomorrow, and it wouldn't matter what people thought of him. So that was it.  He came out.  And after college moved to Chicago.  Then came Marvin's Room.  And then he got sick.  When I spoke to him, he seemed to manage his illness so well.  Then it really escalated and his boyfriend, Daniel Sotomayer died from complications of AIDS. Right after Daniel died, Scott was in the hospital and  I asked how he felt about everything.  First he said, "Well there is that new fall lineup happening on ABC."  Always a joke.  He then said how lucky he was and most people don't get to have such love in their life like he had with Daniel.  Scott was only 33 when he died in 1993.  Too young.  

     I am meeting two friends that knew him.  Wendy and Elane.  I haven't seen these two in 30 years.  Wendy was much closer to Scott than I was. Elane and I did stand up comedy together in school.  They are as crazy as I am.  It will be quite a reunion.  Hopefully, I will laugh, I will cry, and I will go into labor.

  

BREAKS

     A few months ago I was coming off the freeway and a woman was holding a sign.  I couldn't read it but I assumed she needed money.  I thought about it and turned into a gas station right there and honked.  She walked up to my car and I asked if she needed money.  She said yes.  I looked deep into her eyes.  I handed her a few dollars and asked if she was going to buy alcohol.  She didn't say anything, but I am pretty sure that's what she did with it when she walked into the gas station.  I knew that this wasn't the best thing for her but I just wanted her to know that she mattered.  As I drove away, I questioned myself and what I had done.  I wondered if I just helped her keep a bad habit.  As I was praying about this, I drove into Dunkin Donuts and ordered a toasted cheese on a whole wheat bagel with a small decaf. One cream on the side.  The sweet lady who worked there only charged me $1.49 and I knew this wasn't enough.  I asked her if she was sure I wasn't underpaying her.  She said, "We're giving you a break, and we all need a break sometimes."