PJI took a little nap from the blog. After we squeezed out a video (featuring the amazing Kevin Kelly), I figured it was time to roll over and soak up some warm winter sunshine (like the clementine, here for a limited time only!). By soak up warm winter sunshine, I of course mean working on paperwork indoors and watching more than the recommended daily allowance of Style Network’s “Ruby.”
Cecily and Gwendolyn took a much-needed “vacay” as well, during which they promised to stop using the slang term “vacay” forever and ever. Did you miss Cec and Gwen? We did. That’s why we are thrilled to have them come roaring back from the time stream and head-first into a media-filled January. I wonder which year they rang in this New Year’s?
Cecily and Gwen have also been mouthing off to the muckrackers employed at our City’s fine alt weekly paper. But darling, they wouldn’t be Cec and Gwen if they weren’t mouthing off to somebody. Read the CityPaper preview piece by Julia West here.
Cecily and Gwendolyn’s Fantastical Balloon Ride opens next Wednesday. Do you have YOUR ticket?
We sat for a long time thinking about what to write in this introduction. What do you write about Mary Carpenter that reflects both her onstage talent and her offstage grace, without making her uncomfortable with all this internet idolatry? Well, I guess you could pit it this way: when Chicago’s legendary Second City came knocking on Philadelphia’s door this past summer, it surprised no one to discover that they wanted to hire themselves a Carpenter. Name
Mary Carpenter
Hometown
Born in Villanova, currently living in Mt. “Hippie” Airy
Stage Name
Phantom Junior
Credits Include:
ComedySportz Philly, Suburban Love Songs and Disco Descending (1812 Productions), City Of Nutterly Love (Philadelphia Theatre Company) , Co-founder of Freefall Productions, Dazed and Amused: The 24 Hour Improv Marathon.
Favorite onstage moment?
Hitting on the cop who just pulled me over and later meeting in Applebees under the harsh light of reality.
Any good travel horror stories?
Going on a sailing trip with people who “Knew” how to sail, and having to be towed in twice.
Our next cast member is not a man to be trifled with. He was Batboy in Batboy: The Musical. . He’s the Philly Phanatics’ right-hand man. He knows several hundred forms of Boring Kung Fu. Who is this modern miracle? Let’s find out.
Last night I played a dead unicorn doing a trapeze act.
Any good travel horror stories?
I was on a national tour, going down a mountain in western Idaho in a TOTAL blizzard, and our driver was very inexperienced. She totally did great, but we were literally barreling down the road passing eighteen-wheelers that were pulled over to the shoulder, and couldn’t hardly see anything. It was hairy.
Why are you doing this show?
To have my name associated with PJI and Mike Connor. And I’m totes free Thursday night.
Why do you do comedy?
It’s better than sitting home watching John Carpenter’s Ghosts of Mars for the seventeenth time.
If we had to judge based on this picture, we’d have to go with … yes. But there’s nothing wrong with being insane- at least not the kind of madness that leads you to do improv, direct Color Guard, and star as Gwen Stefani on an episode of MTV’s Made. That’s the kind of madness we’d happily put into a clean luer-lock syringe and inject directly into our bloodstream. Say no to drugs, kids. And say “YES!” to the delightful psychiatry of the fabulous Kristin Finger.
In the interest of continuing our series of Travelogues cast interviews, we are continuing our series of Travelogues cast interviews! A bit “on the nose”, yes, but we like to think that an enormously large bullseye is still a bullseye.
This episode features one Sean Curran, Philadelphia-ish based funny man, ComedySportz Philadelphia player since 2005, and the Editor in chief of Gamervision.com.
It’s a tie between the time Dave Jadico kissed me on the lips, and the time I kissed him on the lips. Either way, kissing Dave Jadico.
Any good travel horror stories?
Once while driving back from Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio (home to the world’s tallest roller coaster), my wife and I stopped at a little motel somewhere off of route 81. The only room available was a smoking room, which meant that it smelled like a 70 year old musty ashtray. Also, the room’s bathroom locked with a deadbolt from the outside. Think about that – it locked from the outside of the bathroom. This means you can’t lock people OUT of the room, you can only lock them IN.
Why are you doing this show?
I wanted a chance to stretch my longform legs, as it were. I also need to show my parole officer that I CAN be around other people in a calm manner. One of those is true, one isn’t. Can you guess which is which?
Why do you do comedy?
Two reasons: 1. I’m very starved for attention of any kind. 2. Applause powers my pacemaker. Without the adulation of the masses, I would die. One of these is true, one isn’t. Can you guess which is which?
