The London Garcia Radio Show BLOG

Whenever a comic leaves us, I always shed a few tears.  These are my heroes.  Comedy is how I planted roots in the entertainment industry.  It’s the most frightening place to be in that industry.  I am SO not kidding.  Nothing will make you face your fears like stand-up comedy.

So I’m reminded of how absolutely magical and healing comedy is when I hear that one of my heroes has passed on.  And Dom Deluise was one of those special contributions of comedy to people all over the world for SO many years.

I can tell you that since I can remember, all I ever wanted to do was make people laugh.  And I mean LAUGH!  Like make some people laugh so hard that their stomachs hurt or they just straight up wet their pants (hey, better them than me).  Isn’t this every parent’s dream for their child?  HA HA HA…

Dom Deluise:  August 1, 1933 - May 4, 2009

The dates really don’t matter.  The dash in between does.

Good night Dom.  You’re a true sweetheart.

In lieu of flowers, his family has requested that donations be made to one of the following charities:

• The Elixir Fund www.elixirfund.org
• The Lily Sanctuary www.lilysanctuary.org
• Hydrocephalus Foundation, Inc. www.hydrocephalus.org
• The Pearl S. Buck Foundation www.pearl-s-buck.org

Tune in this Saturday, 1/10 @ 5:00pm (PST) on “THE LONDON GARCIA SHOW”!   To listen, go to www.latalkradio.com  ~  you can listen online, through an iPhone or Blackberry, or through a wi-fi radio.

*****  Please read this entire blog all the way through to the end.  It’s worth it.  As usual, “I have so much to say”. *****

On the show is Michael Ubaldini and “Dr. Joe”.

MICHAEL UBALDINI

Rock n’ Roll rebel, poet, philosopher, hopeless romantic, storyteller, guitar slingin’ outlaw in black are only a few of the diverse descriptions of singer/songwriter Michael Ubaldini.  The L.A. Times stated he is better than Bruce Springsteen at probing the national soul.

Michael started picking out tunes on guitar at the age of seven playing Hank Williams and Ray Charles songs his father taught him. Influenced early on by the likes of Otis Redding, Elvis, Creedence Clear Water Revival, The Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Gene Vincent, Muddy Waters, The Beatles and Bob Dylan, as well as other writers and poets.

A journalist once dubbed Michael “A Jack Kerouac in a black leather jacket”.  He toured across the United States and inked a record deal with EMI in 1994. His debut CD ‘Mystery Train’ produced by Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats which featured Michael’s original material and guest guitarist Brian Setzer, who invited Michael to open several shows.  Michael’s inspired passionate live shows have been attended by the likes of Joe Strummer of the Clash and the legendary John Fogerty. In 1999, Michael abandoned his electric guitar and released the indie classic ‘Acoustic Rumble’, a haunting disc that received rave reviews in the U.S. and was the LA Times pick for #1 Disc of the year (1999) as well as 10th best of the entire decade.

In May 2001, after releasing the artistic follow up ‘American Blood’, the ‘Rock N Roll Poet’ strapped on his electric guitar and toured the United States, Canada, Europe, and Japan.  When arriving home he formed a new band and the result was 2002’s ‘Rock N Roll Saloon’. Critically acclaimed in the United States and Europe it was picked by the Orange County register as “One of the top records of the year!”

2005 would turn out to be a big year for Michael with the release of “Avenue of Ten Cent Hearts”, an impressive mix of 15 solid Ubaldini originals showcasing Michael’s wide range of musical styles. A favorite of fans and critics alike, it earned Michael five star reviews in the U.S. and Europe. He also won two Orange County Music Awards for Best Roots Rock and Best Live Male Performer. In 2007, Michael won the Los Angeles Southern California Music Award for Best Live Male Acoustic Performer.  He then toured the American South and the United Kingdom which finished at The Cavern Club in Liverpool England, home of the Beatles.

Michael also contributed a “blistering” version of I’m a Believer for a Neil Diamond tribute record on Delirium records. He also starred in a supporting role as the rockers motorcycle gang leader, in the live rock opera musical version of the Who’s Quadrophenia. Michael has toured the world and shared the stage with…..Lucinda Williams, Brian Setzer, Leon Russell, Jerry Lee Lewis, Southside Johnny, John Hammond Jr., Peter Case, Billy Zoom, John Doe, The Stray Cats, John Waite, Al Stewart, Johnny Rivers, The Cramps, and Dave Alvin.  In 2006, Michael recorded tracks for his Empty Bottles and Broken Guitar Strings at the legendary Sun Studios in Memphis, TN.  He has headlined his own shows either with his band, or merely a lone solo with nothing more then his acoustic guitar, harmonica, masterful lyrics and his grainy honest singing voice.  Michael’s live shows are must see.  Filled with passion, integrity and raw power. His book “Lost American Nights:  Lyrics & Poems” has been released and published by Moontide Press.

And, is there a doctor in the house??  Why, yes there is!

DR. JOSEPH LADAPO

I kept hearing about this amazing doctor and the work that he’s doing.  He hasn’t been practicing long but he sure is making it count from the beginning!  Dr. Ladapo received his M.D from Harvard Medical School and his Ph.D. in Health Policy from Harvard University, is a well-published author with articles in several medical journals and publications, and is currently a doctor in his internal medicine residency at the Beth Israel Hospital in Boston.  A few months ago, he had a series of articles published on his ground-breaking cardiac CT research.  Saturday, the good doctor will be sharing more about his work, his inspiration in medicine, and his take on the future of the medical world.  Look forward to the outstanding conversation with Dr. Joseph Ladapo.  I sure am!

*** LONDON PAYS TRIBUTE ***

 I am paying tribute to 2 people this week:  one from the business world and one from the entertainment world.

From the business world, I’m paying tribute to CARLY FIORINA, one of the most groundbreaking women in business.  I started following Carly’s career around ‘97 or so.  She started out “carrying a bag” (if you don’t already know, it just means that she was a salesperson having to hustle door to door) and went on to AT&T and Lucent Technologies, then took over HP.  In 1998, Fortune magazine named her the “#1 Most Powerful Woman in Business”.  She was responsible for the Compaq and HP merger which caused the biggest corporate battle in U.S. History.  It was her against those HP boys.  She won (ya!!!).  She has sinced left HP (alot of stories out there about what really happened…I have my speculations of course).  I just knew that she was known for making it happen HUGE, so much so that she always made the lists of most powerful women in business in Fortune, Forbes, etc.

I can’t say I know absolutely everything about Carly Fiorina but I can tell you that for a good while, she inspired me to keep going and going and going in business.  She was a huge influence on me.

I am also paying a very special tribute to an AMAZING entertainer:  GILDA RADNER 

Interesting week this week.  I chose Gilda Radner as one of the people to whom I would give tribute this week before a couple of things happened.  First thing…I saw the interview that Barbara Walters did with Patrick Swayze.  What a spirit…what a fighter.  Whew!  I just love this guy.  Then I got a call from one of my very best friends, Brenda.  Her mom, Karen, died of cancer on Monday.  This was Brenda’s stepmom but she was Brenda’s mom 100%.  Brenda’s biological mom also died of cancer about 24 years ago.  Brenda’s stepmom, Karen, had cancer once before about 6 years ago.  It came back about 4 1/2 months ago and moved very quick this time.  And I honestly cannot say enough about the magnitude of human that Brenda is:  generous, loyal, humble, extremely serving, loving, simple, steadfast……   I really don’t know how I got to be so lucky to have the number of friends that I have and how amazing they are as humans.  If I told you how close I am to how many and where they are all over the world, I swear it would sound like I’m making it up.  It’s just incredible to ME.  I’m so grateful.

Ya know, I don’t know what the best thing is to say or do about cancer.  The first thing that comes to mind is to say something TO cancer:

“Dear Cancer, you came to the planet a long time ago.  You wanted to say something.  We heard it.  We’ve all heard it.  Loud and clear.  We know who you are.  There is nothing else you need to say.  We’ll never forget you.  You made sure to leave your mark all over the planet and through multiples of generations.  We respectfully ask that you please leave….and don’t come back.  We promise to hold onto the lessons we learned from your affects:  live life fully every moment, love each other, forgive…“

GILDA RADNER - truly one of the funniest women in the history of entertainment.

I haven’t felt this melancholy since the passing of Merv Griffin.  We all know that when we got into this life, it was a one-way ticket……..but it’s still hard.

“Tim, I hope and wish and pray that I can have even just a little of the impact on the world that you did.”

To those reading this:  We all have one life.  Let’s every single one of us make it matter.  It doesn’t mean more because he was famous.  It means something because he made it count.  I’m certain he’s looking at all of us right now asking us to live with no regrets and knowing he didn’t.

xo

London

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/06/tim-russert.html

(the picture above is my mom, dad, sister to the left, and I’m the child to the right with the crazed look - I swear, my sister was the cutest kid in the world - I would just look at her and think, “How did you get to be so damn cute?)

So what started out as a casual conversation with my mom turned into an interview.  I’ve known for quite awhile that my mom was responsible for taking an entire transportation department in one of the school districts and doing a lot of work so they could “go green.”  I’ve asked her about it before but recently I was really curious as to how and why.  So right there in her living room, I interviewed her.

LG:
Did the school district tell you that you had to change all of the school buses to be CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) for the district or is it something you just wanted to do?

Mom:
I just wanted to do it.  It was a way to save a lot of money for the school district and there is zero pollution from the gas that the new buses use so it was good for the environment.

LG:
Could the other school districts have done that?

Mom:
Oh, absolutely.  But most of them are lazy.  They don’t want to do the work it takes to make that kind of change.  The government would’ve helped them too.  The government gave all of us about a 2 year window to make the change and it certainly didn’t take anywhere near 2 years to do what was required.  They just didn’t do it.

LG:
What did you have to do?

Mom:
I had to use a chunk of money out of my department budget to hire a consultant and do all of the paperwork required by the federal government.  Then we had to figure out a new system for filling up the gas tanks so I hired a company that installed an entire gas station on our premises.  Then I asked him to make some adjustments so all of the buses could do a “slow fill”.

LG:
What do you mean?

Mom:
Well, if you set it up to do a slow fill, you get 20% more out of your gas.  It saves more money for the district.  I also had them restructure the whole system from underground to above ground.

LG:
What did that do?

Mom:
It’s safe and effective and saves the district alot of money over the long run.  (She’s getting ready to retire.  She really doesn’t have to care about the long run for them.)

LG:
How many districts have made this kind of change (getting all new buses)?

Mom:
Only about 10-15% of the school districts in California have made a complete transition like this.

LG:
Did they give you any bonus or compensation for doing all of this?

Mom:
(CLASSIC!)  Ah, hell no!  They give me a paycheck.

It wasn’t a complaint, but I knew what she meant.  She’s pretty damn funny.

So she really didn’t get anything special for making such a huge change in California.  She just wanted to because it was a good thing to do and it made a difference for a lot of people.  She never did it for attention or for any selfish reason.  She just felt good about doing the best job she could do as a Transportation Director.  Oh, and technically her title is Transportation Manager but this is an interesting story.  The title was Transportation Director for decades while they had men in that position.  Then they hired a woman (my mom) and changed the title to “Manager.”  NO COMMENT.  It is what it is.

She started out as a school bus driver and the only reason she took that job was because it was a way for her to work and be with my sister and me at the same time.  She worked her way up in seniority so she could choose the best bus trips so she was able to drive us to all of the football games when we were cheerleaders and on the Drill Team.  My sister and I were always the motivation for whatever she did.  And we always had so much fun during that time.  I guarantee you, my sister and I know what she did (and does) for us and will never forget it.  My mom knows that she just says the word and we are there.  The only reason she took on the job of running the department was because my dad had just died and she wanted to make sure we all had security.  You just can’t imagine how grateful she is for every little thing.  Truly, she is the bomb.

There are miraculous people all around us.  As much as possible, take a minute to stop and listen.  We are surrounded by the most amazing people in our day to day lives.

One of my favorite movies of all time is “Hope Floats.”  Yep, I’m a sucker for the ‘feel-good’ movie.  But this one was definitely more than that.  I remember when Sandra Bullock and Harry Connick Jr. were talking about the movie on interviews and when asked about the title, Sandra Bullock said something like, “After all is said and done, hope floats to the top.”

It sure does.

Most of the time, it is very hard for me to put into words how full my heart feels.  I have my ‘days’ for sure.  However, I can assure you that if there is a miracle close by, even far away, I feel like my heart is a sponge and it soaks it up immediately.  That’s how it feels.

Throughout the years, there have been more than a few times when my life has fallen apart.  I can’t count how many times my heart has been broken or how many times things seemed so desolate.  Last year, my life started to unravel quicker than ever and things fell apart in a very big way.  What I didn’t see then (but do see now) was life was starting to fall into place.  And I had the opportunity to forgive people over and over, one by one, and just let go.  I started to really grant people their humanity and honor their freedom to choose however they live their life.  Oh, and by the way, I actually started to give that to myself.

I wouldn’t want to experience all the heartbreaks, dark places, or unbelievable challenges again.  But you can count on this:  I’ll give my heart to other humans over and over again still and for the rest of my life.  I’ll open it even wider than before and be joyful in doing so.  I have the absolute peace of mind that the universe serves my highest interest.  I’ll be just fine.  Actually better than that, I know that I live life with every fiber of my being and the miracles keep coming.  Everybody has that gift.  Very few use it.  I am so grateful that there has always been that thing burning in me telling me to go ahead and do it, to go ahead and LIVE.

I’ve had a few conversations lately that ironically seem to be a repeat of the last.  A friend will ask me, “So how have things been?”  And I find myself continuously saying, “Life is amazing.”  And they assume that all of my previous challenges have all gone away.  And I try to explain that the greatest miracle I experience with more intensity as time goes on is that some or all of the challenges can still be there and life can STILL occur as the most amazing experience.  You can’t put a price on that.  If I could bottle that and give it to every one of you, my God I would do it.

Every compliment, every little sweet thing any of you say to me, every good thing you think about me, I have gotten it all over here.  I have felt it.  And I am grateful for every bit of it.  Everything.  Grateful for every good thing.

So, like Bernice, the young daughter in the movie, said at the end of the movie (Hope Floats), “My cup runneth over.”

I cannot express any words that would be worthy of the angels that serve us all over the world - the United States military.  I love and honor these amazing humans for who they are for people they don’t even know.

I just happened to come across this story and the least I can do really is help direct more attention to someone I wished I had met and to his cause.

Sergeant Merlin German (USMC) was born in Manhattan, New York on Nov. 15, 1985. He enlisted in the Marine Corps on September 08, 2003 and received a meritorious promotion to Private First Class out of boot camp.  In April 2004, Sergeant German transferred to his first permanent duty station, 5th Battalion, 11th Marines, 1st Marine Division where he served as a Field Artillery Cannoneer.

From that time, he just soared in his duties and achievements, over and over.

On February 21, 2005, Sergeant German’s squad was on a mission to recon an unknown route from Jordan to Baghdad. While en route to Camp Ramadi, Sergeant German spotted an IED while standing in the turret at his Mk-19 machine gun. With no time to alert the driver, their HUMVEE was hit on a left side by a gas-fed shape charge explosive. Sergeant German was blown clear of the vehicle, and his fellow Marines helped extinguish the flames that had quickly burned 97% of his total body surface area.

Sergeant German was immediately transported to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany where doctors stated Sergeant German had NO chance of living. He had a quick turn-around flight to the burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio and he arrived on February 25, 2005. He was cared for as an inpatient for 17 months, and then resided as a guest of the Fisher House before purchasing his own home in San Antonio.

He fought bravely for more than three years but died in the hospital on April 11, 2008 while recovering from his most recent operation.

Take a minute to visit the website he created during his recovery:  http://merlinsmiracles.com

Regarding his cause, you can also send donations to the following address:

Merlin’s Miracles
4319 Medical Dr., Ste 131 - 352
San Antonio, TX 78229-3325

The donations would be used to assist burned children and their families to take vacations, trips, outings or anything the families needed to make life a little easier. Merlin loved to travel and knew how difficult it was for him to endure long lines at amusement parks or the frustration of not being able to do certain things because of the heat or being able to go to certain places because of special transportation needed.

It was his dream to be able to grant these families their wishes no matter what the request was. The grants would not be limited to trips and outings but also to help the families in their own homes to make it more comfortable for the burn children.  Merlin’s friends and family ask for your donation, to make Merlin’s dream come true, to grant miracles to burned children and their families.

So here’s how today’s blog came about…

I had a conversation with my friend who has this book project (the one for whom I’ve been seeking writers).  I was expressing some of the roadblocks I’ve been experiencing.  Simply put, he kept telling me that my perception is giving me either everything I want or keeping me from everything I want.  So I did a search on the word “context”, a word he used.  What it lead me to was a story about a man who is currently in his late 80’s.  And I was suddenly so filled with gratitude for everything I’ve experienced in my life, who I’ve met, who I know, and what is all around me.

That man is Sidney Rittenberg.  He wrote a book called, “The Man Who Stayed Behind.”  This man was in a China prison twice many, many years ago.  I believe his stay in prison totaled 16 years.  Both times for crimes he did not commit.  One of those times in prison was because he was thrown in there directly by Joseph Stalin, one of the most powerful and murderous dictators in history.

Mr. Rittenberg has been and is now still known as the #1 man to know if you want to do business in China.

And I got to meet him.

It was about a year and half ago.  I was in an audience of about 200 but I also got to go to the front of the room and speak to him directly and in front of the room.  Talk about surreal.  It was hard for me to speak and actually I was trying to talk through tears because I was so amazed by someone who appeared (and is) so human and approachable, yet is a historic figure and makes a huge difference for people all over the world.  I can’t remember exactly what I said, but I told him that hearing him speak made me think that truly any regular person could actually do something that would change the world.

While I was researching this word “context” and what it could mean to me, I came across something written about Sidney Rittenberg.  I LOVED what I read.  Here’s an excerpt:

“I’m reminded of Sidney Rittenberg, an American who lived in China with his wife for 35 years.  In his book, “The Man Who Stayed Behind”, Sidney writes that one night at the height of the cultural revolution a group of soldiers came to his home and dragged him away. He was imprisoned for 16 years in solitary confinement. Every morning, he came slowly awake with the crushing realization that he was still in prison. And yet he chose to make a contribution even to the jailers who were suppressing him. Each morning he cleaned his cell meticulously—so well the guards took notice. Then he began to talk to the guards—about anything and everything—and even more importantly, he listened.

Sidney Rittenberg lived in the “circumstances” of not being free, and yet he had the experience of freedom. For him, freedom was defined as the ability to develop a rational course of action based on facts and aimed at human happiness. In his situation, Sidney chose to create a context that would empower him. That was the secret of that man’s life. The circumstances he was in would have destroyed many people, but he had the ability to create a context for his circumstances—to take a stand.”

During that evening, I heard Mr. Rittenberg say something that I’ll never forget…..he was talking about being in the prisons in China.  Then, he said very calmly and peacefully, “Then in 1953, Joseph Stalin did the only good deed he had ever done in his life.  He died.”  That statement did not occur to me as sarcastic at all.  I truly believe that he was able to find redeeming qualities in anybody, even in Joseph Stalin.  At least the man could die and stop hurting anyone.  And consequently, after he died, Mr. Rittenberg was released from prison for good.

After his speaking engagement was over, I overheard Mr. Rittenberg chatting with another man, Larry.  He asked Larry about his last name and asked him the name of his father.  Then, Mr. Rittenberg said that many years ago he was roommates with Larry’s father (can’t remember if it was the Midwest or the South part of the U.S.) and was working on some project at the time.  That project happened to be the Civil Rights Movement.  I mention this because it pays to hang around and listen to people chatting.  It just depends who is doing the chatting.  I purposely put myself in those situations and I feel like that evening was probably one of the most important nights of my life.  I experienced history and I had the opportunity to share time with people who fully live a worthwhile purpose.  Miracles happen in some of the most unexpected places sometimes.

These are the kinds of experiences that just rock my world.  And it reminds me that normal people like me, like YOU, can have the same kind of impact on the world.  I think it takes 2 things:  ownership and choice.  Own who you are and choose to do something about it.

When I feel like I want to whine about life, I think about Sidney Rittenberg.