Having finished the two-volume memoirs of Neil Simon several days ago, I was anxiously awaiting the arrival of Brighton Beach Memoirs. I'd ordered the play, via Amazon--to be fulfilled by others, and somehow ended up with another book from the BB trilogy which I already had.
What I actually got was a sort of cool-looking, older paperback of Biloxi Blues but, since I was focused on reading the trilogy IN ORDER, lol, I complained about the error and received a prompt refund. Which was nice, expected really, but left me empty-handed with respect to my next read.
So I went ahead and re-ordered Brighton Beach Memoirs but harbored little hope that I'd see the book anytime soon--given pandemic-related problems in the supply chain as well as Donald Trump's dangerous and self-interested tampering with the USPS.
Imagine my surprise when, yesterday, I found in my mailbox not only my paperback copy of the play but, in a separate mailer, the movie adaptations of Brighton Beach and Broadway Bound! Yay!
The coolest thing, though, was when I flipped open Brighton Beach and found, at the front of it, a reproduction of the Broadway playbill. And, listed among the original cast members, a former classmate of mine at SUNY Fredonia, Peter Michael Goetz!
I'm not sure whether I was a freshman or sophomore but, as a requirement for one of my classes--either Speech or Oral Interp, I'd had to attend one of the plays staged down at Old Main Auditorium by the Speech and Drama department that year.
The play that I chose, to fulfill this requirement, was Moliere's Imaginary Invalid. And starring in it were Peter Michael Goetz and his then-girlfriend Connie Fleurat.
I remembered Connie from my first week on campus, during Freshman Orientation, when we were all required to wear those ridiculous green beanies with our first names scribbled, more or less legibly, on their white brims.
She struck me then as a diminutive yet forceful young woman and, though I never got to know her socially, I noticed that her warm smile and cordial manner went wherever she did on campus.
Later on, I read that she and Peter had married, following graduation in June of '66, and that he'd gone on to an impressive career in supporting roles on stage, screen, and television. Including as Eugene's father Jake in Brighton Beach Memoirs.
However, given what we know about "Show Biz," and considering what some of us have learned about life since college, I'm inclined to think that his biggest accomplishment is that he and Connie are still together...
LPK
Dreamwidth
8.16.2020
What I actually got was a sort of cool-looking, older paperback of Biloxi Blues but, since I was focused on reading the trilogy IN ORDER, lol, I complained about the error and received a prompt refund. Which was nice, expected really, but left me empty-handed with respect to my next read.
So I went ahead and re-ordered Brighton Beach Memoirs but harbored little hope that I'd see the book anytime soon--given pandemic-related problems in the supply chain as well as Donald Trump's dangerous and self-interested tampering with the USPS.
Imagine my surprise when, yesterday, I found in my mailbox not only my paperback copy of the play but, in a separate mailer, the movie adaptations of Brighton Beach and Broadway Bound! Yay!
The coolest thing, though, was when I flipped open Brighton Beach and found, at the front of it, a reproduction of the Broadway playbill. And, listed among the original cast members, a former classmate of mine at SUNY Fredonia, Peter Michael Goetz!
I'm not sure whether I was a freshman or sophomore but, as a requirement for one of my classes--either Speech or Oral Interp, I'd had to attend one of the plays staged down at Old Main Auditorium by the Speech and Drama department that year.
The play that I chose, to fulfill this requirement, was Moliere's Imaginary Invalid. And starring in it were Peter Michael Goetz and his then-girlfriend Connie Fleurat.
I remembered Connie from my first week on campus, during Freshman Orientation, when we were all required to wear those ridiculous green beanies with our first names scribbled, more or less legibly, on their white brims.
She struck me then as a diminutive yet forceful young woman and, though I never got to know her socially, I noticed that her warm smile and cordial manner went wherever she did on campus.
Later on, I read that she and Peter had married, following graduation in June of '66, and that he'd gone on to an impressive career in supporting roles on stage, screen, and television. Including as Eugene's father Jake in Brighton Beach Memoirs.
However, given what we know about "Show Biz," and considering what some of us have learned about life since college, I'm inclined to think that his biggest accomplishment is that he and Connie are still together...
LPK
Dreamwidth
8.16.2020