Plastic Alto with Mark Weiss

Bernie and The Believers featuring Essence Goldman pka Essence

BLUF: “Fair play to those who dare to dream…and never give up!” Glen and Marketa ten years ago but the same muse courses thru Essence and Bernie, stay tuned. Stay strong! Frisco song-strong!!

edit to add, an hour later: my first instinct was to post this immediately with just the headline; old newspaper-writer trick, or ad agency flunky. Then I did send a link to Dan Navarro, who likewise sent an email to his list today about a gig in Phoenix; Dan’s musical partner of many years, Eric Lowen succumbed to ALS a few years ago. I texted Essence — who I met on a plane to New York 14 years ago — and she called me right back and gave me the skinny: Hollywood wants to make a movie about she and Bernie Dalton, the surfer and father who started with voice lessons and then entrusted her teacher to flesh out his songs once he lost his ability to use his arms, hands and mouth the way we all do. If Lou Gehrig considered himself “the luckiest man in the world” then Essence and Bernie at least rolled a 7 at their mutual crossroads. Stay tuned.

an old Essence flier, popped out of my email archive:

Sixth generation San Franciscan, nine lives in the entertainment world: meow.

I’M SERIOUS: if you watch the 20 minute film on NPR “Tiny Desk Concert” you’re first thought — if you are at all a media-savy sucka mc like me — will be “this should be a movie!!” This is way better than Brad Cooper and Lady Gaga sleep-walking the labyrinth of four previous versions of Judy Garland/Barbara Streisand “A Star Is Bored”. (although now I’m kinda curious of seeing — maybe at David Packard’s Stanford Theatre — four versions back to back).

Also calls to mind — if you are thinking the meta-thoughts of the media/industry – “Breathing Lessons” by Jessica Yu — Academy Award for Short Documentary 1997 — about Mark O’Brian who was a journalist and essayist despite living in an iron lung. Later made into a so-so movie in Hollywood with John Hawkes I think his name (unless that is the footballer for U.S. and Sheffield Wednesday).

Also: Charles Mingus dictating his notes via whisper to Jack Walrath circa 1976;

Laura Chavez researching cancer cures and better health insurance deals for Candye Kane “the toughest girl in the world” circa 2015;

“Brians Song” with James Caan as NCAA rushing leader from Wake (!) Brian Piccolo.

Heck, Soupie Campbell the best athlete to ever play 3 sports (two with Staubach) for U.S. Naval Academy 1964, the year I was born. Never met him but he lives on with a shrine at Old Pro; met his brother Bill Campbell, the Columbia Football champion, first in 1983 when I sold him a maroon Chevy Celebrity. Good be with ye both!

I’m jonesing to see Errol Morris “Brief History of Time” about Hawking, which pound for pound (L4L?) is better than the Chris Redmayne version, methinks.

There’s a guy named Arguello like the street whose catalog was shopped posthumously by his beautiful ex-girlfriend.

Eva Cassidy.

Buddy Holly.

Barry Simons recommends the Queen film. Oddly, I re-watched parts of “Wayne’s World”.  Looking for Stan Mikita reference, near “Bohemian Rhapsody”.

I’ve known Essence for 14 years now and truly believe her heart is in the right place apropos of Bernie Dalton so I do hope the industry and dem have a win-win. Beware force majeur! (I do recall the guy who wrote an essay about finally getting his big break as an actor and then realizing they only brought him into a meeting to help an established actor learn to play a Rufus Pupkin type hack — also “Swimming With Sharks” an indie film about a Hollywood wanna be getting revenge on industry types. Which is also a Raymond Carver joint?

The universe is a story, people.

Just ask the song.

andand: I minute ago I was posting something about Rupa Marya video “An American in Paris” and a quotidian four-frame move-e I shot of the marquee here for the Gene Kelley movie tonight of sim-same name.

Jerry Hannan doc about his brother, who died of the same vote cancer as did Bob Marley.  (Jerry Hannan whose song from a Sean Penn movie was covered by a first-time pol in Vermont, in duet with her red op.).

and1: Mz Goldman, soon to be “essential viewing” perhaps at NY Film Fest, forwards these mo better accretions of pixel but not necessarily narcissistic-cisms if you know what I meme:

Edit to add a couple days later: since the last several posts have been mostly about photography I thought I would update this to add my portrait of Essence: