I was on the Tavis Smiley Show



Well, for a few seconds anyway. Henry Rollins was on the show, talking about his work with the USO. During the interview, they played a clip from the DVD of his new talking show and there I was in my beige sweater, sitting in the front row. Neil was behind me, but I didn't see him. I don't think the light was right. In a way, he was lucky. I have never liked any picture of myself, whether on film or video. Like Harrison Ford, I've always thought I looked goofy on the screen. I was actually afraid they were going to stop the tape so that Smiley could ask who the weird looking guy in the sweater was, to which Rollins could reply, "I don't know, but there are some silly looking motherfuckers out there. It was all I could do not to break down and laugh during my bit on George W. Bush's Mars Speech."

Occasionally you see pictures of people who went on to be famous in crowds watching a show or a speech, and the reason you see them is that each of these people found, cut out, or videotaped the image. They stare at it, thinking, "Jesus, I looked fucking goofy right there. Who'd have figured this goofy looking motherfucker would someday be allowed on the stage?" They point it out to a few people until someone gets a hold of it, puts the caption "A Face in the Crowd" underneath it, and publishes it in a newspaper somewhere.

Anyway, it's a damn shame. When they bumped me into the front row at Rollins's concert, I had a great time, but now I'll never be able to watch the video or listen to the record for fear my face, form, or laugh will embarrass me. If I'd known, I could have gone as a character. That would have made things so much easier. Oh, well. Spilled milk.

Posted: Sat - August 21, 2004 at 03:02 AM        

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