Category Archives: Rom’s Blog

The Better to Mirror Life

Posted on February 19, 2013 by admin

By Rom Watson c. The late 1980’s I’ve seen many movies over the course of my life, and below is a list of my favorite comic film performances. Many of the films listed may seem at first glance to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Amy Adams in Enchanted, Anna Magnani in The Rose Tattoo, Barbara Harris in Who is Harry Kellerman and why is he saying those terrible things about me?, Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl, Buster Keaton in The General, Carroll Baker in Bad, Charles Chaplin in City Lights and The Circus, comic film performances, Diane Keaton in Baby Boom, Diane Keaton in Something’s Gotta Give, Dianne Wiest in Bullets Over Broadway, Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, Enrico Colantoni in Galaxy Quest, Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest, Gene Wilder in The Producers, Giulietta Masina in La Strada and Nights of Cabiria, Harold Lloyd in The Sin of Harold Diddlebock, Jack Nicholson in The Witches of Eastwick, Jean Arthur in The More the Merrier, Jean Hagen in Singin’ in the Rain, Joan Allen in The Upside of Anger, Joel Grey in Remo Williams, John Gielgud in Arthur, Judy Holliday in It Should Happen to You, Katharine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby, Kevin Kline in a Fish Called Wanda, Laurence Olivier in A Little Romance, Lee Marvin in Cat Ballou, Lena Olin in Casanova, Luise Rainer in The Great Ziegfeld, Madeline Kahn in Paper Moon, Maggie Smith in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and California Suite, Margaret Rutherford in The V.I.P.s, Marlon Brando in A Dry White Season, movies, Octavia Spencer in Dinner for Schmucks, Oliver Platt in Casanova, Paul Giamatti in Sideways, Peter O’Toole in Creator and My Favorite Year, Robert DeNiro in Bang the Drum Slowly, Robert Donat in Goodbye Mr. Chips, Steve Martin in All of Me, Susan Tyrrell in Fat City, Thelma Ritter in Pickup on South Street, Tom Hanks in Big, Whoopi Goldberg in Ghost | 1 Comment

It All Comes Out of the Piano

Posted on January 18, 2013 by admin

By Rom Watson c. December 22, 2012 Were anyone to ask me how I write a play, I would answer, “It All Comes Out of the Piano.” Which is the name of a song, music by Frank Lazarus, lyric by … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Dick Vosburgh, Donald Eaholtz, Final Draft, Frank Lazarus, Gwen Gillespie, It All Comes Out of the Piano, Malcolm Gladwell, Outliers, Subscribe & Save, ten thousand hours | 3 Comments

A Century of the Same

Posted on December 16, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. June 30, 2011 While perusing a list of the most popular films of 1921, (don’t ask), I was struck by how many of the titles were familiar. The list of 53 silent films included: Black Beauty … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Black Beauty, Camille, Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Disraeli, Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Kismet, Last of the Mohicans, Little Lord Fauntleroy, Mark of Zorro, Orphans of the Storm, Queen of Sheba, remakes, silent films, storytelling process, Three Musketeers | Leave a comment

Review: Coney Island Christmas

Posted on December 3, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. December 2, 2012 The Geffen Playhouse is presenting the world premiere of a new holiday play, Coney Island Christmas. Sure to be performed for years to come, it is funny, touching, and surprisingly moving. Playwright Donald … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Bart DeLorenzo, Coney Island Christmas, Donald Margulies, Grace Paley, Isabella Acres, Kira Sternbach, The Geffen Playhouse | Leave a comment

Tolerance: The Final Solution

Posted on November 25, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. November 24, 2012 The recent news has been full of political campaigns, political debates and political discourse. Whenever I wonder why some people are so stubbornly opposed to personal freedoms and so intent on imposing restrictions, … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Final Solution, genocide, Nazi Germany, personal freedoms, political campaigns, political debates, political discourse, tolerance, values | 2 Comments

Review: The Morini Strad

Posted on November 19, 2012 by admin

by Rom Watson c. Nov. 18, 2012 The Morini Strad belongs to that subgenre of play wherein a younger person is forced to spend time with an older person, they overcome their differences, and each ends up learning from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged David Nevell, Geneva Lewis, Grace and Glorie, Grace Notes, Mariette Hartley, The Colony Theatre, The Morini Strad, Willy Holtzman | 1 Comment

Shhh . . .It’s Not a Secret

Posted on October 26, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. June 29, 2011 It’s easier to appreciate a good song if it’s sung well. If it’s sung poorly, the singer becomes an obstacle between the listener and the song. “Bad singer, good song” is my assessment … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Change your thinking change your life, consciousness, Ernest Holmes, New Thought, Raymond Charles Barker, Real Magic, The Power of Decision, The Secret, This Thing Called You, Wayne Dyer | 1 Comment

The Myth of Angels

Posted on September 23, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. February 4, 2012 While strolling through The Louvre Museum in Paris, I noticed the angels in the religious paintings. Angels have been depicted in a certain way for centuries, and many people believe in the images … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged a band of angels, angels, Bridal Fair, City of Light, door prize, honeymoon in Paris, Louvre Museum, Musée d’Orsay, Musée Rodin, Paris, the myth of angels | 4 Comments

The Downside of Vanity

Posted on August 18, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. July 9, 2011 I’m bored with the entire concept of people trying to make themselves look more attractive. It’s shallow and a waste of time. You either know in your heart that your innate beauty is … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged addictions to beauty and strength, folly of the young, pampering oneself, physical attractiveness, vanity | 3 Comments

We All Become Everything

Posted on July 19, 2012 by admin

By Rom Watson c. February 23, 2012 In the January/February 2012 issue of The Dramatist, the magazine of The Dramatists Guild, Rich Espey’s column on the D.C./Baltimore theatre scene contained the following paragraph: Sarah Weissman of Glass Mind sums it … Continue reading →

Posted in Rom's Blog | Tagged Baltimore, Glass Mind, Oscar Wilde, Rich Espey, Sarah Weissman, The Dramatist | Leave a comment