Wendy Has No Clue!

The following is my letter to the New York Post:

After John Minelli reported on the casting tour for Wendy Williams' biopic I really wanted to express my disappointment with what went down at the Hartford, CT call. Once she caught wind of the alleged registration fee of $20 Wendy told those auditioning to "leave their wallets at home". This comes rather late. New York was the last leg of the so-called tour. What went down there in CT was a messed-up! Simply put, those people are not going to see a refund anytime soon. Not only did I see many women pay $20 just to audition, the monitor of the audition was even charging $5 dollars for sides of the film's script. In all my years of auditioning for roles I have never heard of such a thing. Purely, it was a scam and I felt bad for alot of the young hopefuls. The casting call was poorly planned and a bouncer-type even allowed a well-known radio personality to jump the line ahead of me just so he could audition! Here's hoping that Wendy's next venture won't be so sheisty.

Don't know about you all...but I'm here to eat!

Monday my mother was in the hospital having surgery to remove fibroids. It was difficult to see my mother in pain but relief washed over me after she was released Yesterday. Amazing what today's technology and modern medicine can do. While out of state visiting my mother I was alerted by Darryl that the production company producing on-air personality Wendy Williams' bio-pic was in town conducting an open call. Seeing this as kismet I let my family know I had to business to attend to and that I would be returning after my mother's arrival home. Darryl told me that the auditions were being held at the Marriot and I thought that made sense because there is a huge convention center adjascent. I arrived an hour ahead of time expecting there to be a line of people already gathered. There was none. I called Darryl who then checked the Furquaan website only to find that it was being held at the Holiday Inn on the other side of downtown. A healthy 20 minute walk later and I was sitting in the hotel lobby. I waited patiently for nearly six hours to be seen by the director and producer before I did a snafu occurred. The pregnant woman who was the monitor told me that after the guy ahead of me went in and came out I would be next. A minute later some big guy comes up to me telling me that some douchebag radio personality from the radio station publicizing the event is jumping ahead of me to audition. No "please" or request was made on my behalf. It was just simply law. Of course, being diplomatic I didn't make an issue of it. I just waited for my turn. A few minutes later the first guy comes out and so does the monitor telling me that I'm next. So, I head down the hall expecting to run into the douchebag on his way out. I opened the door only to find that the radio announcer was still inside bullshitting with the producer and director. Two staff members of the radio station and the big guy who bumped this guy ahead of me to compete for a role suddenly appeared. I explained that the woman explicitly told me I was next so logically I went on down the hall way not knowing there was an audition in progress. Suddenly, the big guy is telling me I could listen to directions. I countered that I can do so very well and that if this had been New York I would have walked off. After 3 tries explaining myself to the staff members (people in Connecticut are sloooow) I finally revealed that this was a very unprofessional audition process. I explained further to the big guy that I was not blaming anyone just that they have shitty communication with one another. A few minutes passed and he asked to see my resume and headshot. He stood there examining my credentials. Returning it to me he said he could see why I felt the way I did. It's bad enough Furqaan Productions charged hopefuls $20 just to audition! The monitor explained it was to offset the cost of transportation and lodging while on location. The operation was unprofessional and very shady. They even charged $5 just for sides of the script if you didn't have a monologue already prepared. Well, not everyone can have their business run by incompetent splaboos like Wendy Williams does.

Keep on Movin'...Don't stop!

It's been six weeks since the Institute's contested my right to unemployment benefits but that doesn't surprise me. That Pratt Institute engages in unfair labor practices shouldn't surprise anyone. They have been doing it for years and it's time that they face up to their folly. I can't believe I used that word just now. The Institute doesn't have the sense to put the state's Department of Labor in touch with the people who knew my schedule and can answer the questions that come up in this investigations. Or do they? That's quite crafty and time consuming to put a separate company like Tellux, which specializes in payroll, in control of whether someone receives benefits. Simply put, no one should have to work 16 months without an arranged break. EVEN IF IT IS ON THE WEEKEND AND YOU HAVE LIMITED PERSONNEL! Therefore, you cannot fire someone for taking a break and leaving the premises if there was never such a person with equal or higher authority present to cover during the absence. Even day laborers get a lunch break and they aren't even legal citizens! The Institute is run by soulless, calculating criminals!
NUFF SAID!

Just wanted to get that out in the air. Above is a pic from my Getty shoot. I might have another photo shoot coming up soon. During the past few weeks I had to change my wireless carrier because T-mobile likes to overcharge and inconvienance their customers. Although I paid half of the bill with the intention of paying the remainder next week the douchebags blocked access to my voicemail and I could only receive incoming phone calls. As a result I lost a principle role in an uncoming featurette for a film festival.
FUCK YOU VERY MUCH T-MOBILE!


Good news! I'm working on set design and props for playwright Andrea Davis's staged production of "A Love Like Damien's". I'll be doing a reading of "Andre & Beckett", about Andre the Giant and Samuel Beckett's imagined relationship. I never knew they lived near each other and that Andre was afraid of horses. Who knew? On top of that I will be rehearsing for Happy Hour a weekly show about "Sex Relationships & Sometimes Love". Who needs love when you've got beer? Let's hope the "all you can drink" will do more than attract audiences. I'll keep you posted on showtimes at a later date.

Lately, I've been considering a brief foray into porn. Before you say anything I've heard it alrready. Yeah, I'm risking a legitimate acting career by considering such a thing. If you think people are going to notice me without clothing and a raging boner why couldn't they do the same when I'm wearing clothing at an audition? Is it my technique? Am I not right for the role? It's funny how society condemns adult performers for wanting to branch out -even if it's becoming a teacher. How many times do you watch a Jay-Z video or 50 Cent's "Get Rich" before you realize this person was in the business of destroying their communities and the lives within them? Did I miss some PSA or was being a drug dealer a much more respectable than laying pipe onscreen?

I've spoken to my bf, Darryl about this off and on since my current financial situation is looking dismal. It's not like I'm a prostitute. I've been reading the online blogs of performers like Markus Ram for a minute and I like their approach to the business. Plus, I like being adventurous and it's the best workout for you can get (squatting down to plug someones' ass can target those hamstrings and quads!). Of course, as much as I'd like to work with a seasoned pro I realize I'm a big guy and there's a market for that. Recently, Butchbear has African American performer Cole Brookes in a feature called "Truck Stop". He's every bit the black musclebear you'd find in your 'hood , complete with a little heavy metal in the right places. I can't tell you how many times you find attractive masculine hairy dudes who are white and not enough ones of color. We know you're out there guys, represent! Maybe it's time I took up that calling and became the first of hopefully many more to come (no pun intended). You know what they say 'do what you love and the money will come.' Guess it's time I used my other head and followed my dreams.