JOKE JOCKEYS ON TOUR
The Summer of ’17 was utterly unforgettable. I went on a cross-country journey with four stand-up comedians – a black & white Jewish mom, an Aussie billionaire with a hangup about hookups, a maximum-security prisoner just released after aiding & abetting a robbery and attempted murder, and a psychotic psychologist with a hernia issue and a slew of other pre-existing conditions. I was shooting their adventures for a reality show – Sunda’s Straightjacket Comedy Tour – about how the owner of the LA School Of Comedy take a select group of students on a cross-country comedy tour. Only now am I finally able to show you what went down in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Reno, Vegas and god-knows-where-else. When you’re on tour, your cast & crew become your family. I love these guys. Continue reading JOKE JOCKEYS ON TOUR
29 YEARS LATER
This week we celebrate the 29th anniversary of the KTLA Morning News in Los Angeles – the Barbara-Carlos-Mark-Sam version was the highest-rated local morning show in TV history! This show provided me with so many life-long friends, a treasure trove of memories and videos, it brought me a mantle full of Emmy Awards and it bought me my first house and half a dozen cars! I’ve come across some scenes from the show I had locked away decades ago in the Raymond J Brune vault. Most of these clips are being seen here for the first time since they originally aired nearly 3 decades ago! Here’s to the Morning News and everyone “who held the show hostage!” Continue reading 29 YEARS LATER
THE KTLA MORNING NEWS JULY 8, 1991
This week we celebrate the 29th anniversary of the (original) KTLA Morning News in Los Angeles – the Barbara-Carlos-Mark-Sam version was the highest-rated local morning program in TV history! This show provided me with so many life-long friends, a treasure trove of memories and videos, it brought me a mantle full of Emmy Awards and it bought me my first house and half a dozen cars! A few years ago, I wrote a book about my phenomenal experiences starting up the KTLA Morning News – Personality Driven – The Secret Sauce For Selling News. On the off-chance that you haven’t read it, I’m posting the first chapter here – all about the little show that became a monster hit – completely by accident! Continue reading THE KTLA MORNING NEWS JULY 8, 1991
IN TINA’S ARENA
Back in the ’90’s, I “passed” on booking Aussie superstar Tina Arena on my show in L.A. cuz I’d never heard of her. Then fate intervened at the Virgin Record Store on Sunset (how I miss that place!) Now I’m in deep – a huge fan! All these years later, Tina has forgiven me on Instagram! Continue reading IN TINA’S ARENA
TO MY FIRST RESPONDERS:
Just know: If I show up at the ER complaining of pneumonia-ish symptoms and you are unable to test me for the coronavirus because you’re all out of tests, I realize it’s not you who failed to plan accordingly – and I genuinely thank you for being there. Continue reading TO MY FIRST RESPONDERS:
THE MONSTER AMONG US
Every so often throughout the course of history, a monster comes along – the kind our parents promised us don’t really exist – to put the human race back in its place. Its sole purpose is to remind us how small and truly insignificant we all are. This monster is among us now, lurking invisible to the naked eye but proving itself to be bigger, more adaptable and more powerful than any one of us. Ironically, it’s this very beast that reminds us it can only be defeated by “the whole” of us. Continue reading THE MONSTER AMONG US
MICROSOFT WINDOWSHILL
Here’s a fascinating piece of internet history from 1995. It’s two members of the cast of Friends, Jennifer Aniston and Matthew Perry showing us how to use the Microsoft software Windows 95. I suspect the one thing this hour-long program shows us more than anything else, is the importance of solid comedy writers. The sitcom’s writing was brilliant – but this little feature isn’t. Jennifer and Matthew seem to be partly acting/partly ad-libbing in a pseudo-sitcom that was written by Microsoft’s marketing department, not Friends Emmy award-winning writers. It’s bad. Really bad. Which is why it’s so fun to watch. I bet these two stars walked away with a cool chunk of change from Mr. Gates! Enjoy. Continue reading MICROSOFT WINDOWSHILL
THE LOSS OF A LEGEND
MY KINGDOM FOR AN EXIT STRATEGY!
Once upon a time, Shakespeare’s time in fact, performers and entertainers were considered the lowest forms of life. Dregs. Rabble. Back then, the elite in their haughty heels would step over such vermin like Americans now do their homeless population. Actors were the scum of the earth. Today, that scum sit atop the societal food chain. Take Meghan Markle. For all her social climbing, she keeps reaching newer lows. She’s an actor who opened up a couple of suitcases on Deal or No Deal, parlayed that gig into some cable TV show, and then catapulted into the arms of a spare heir who inherited his life – and spent all of it leeching off the British government for room and board. A fairy tale permeated with pixie dust if there ever was one! Continue reading MY KINGDOM FOR AN EXIT STRATEGY!
AROUND THE WORLD IN 30 MINUTES
I watched Bobbie Battista religiously on CNN Headline News back in the day. You see, it was my job. The weekend producer at WLWT had me, their intern, logging CNN newscasts for any video we could use from CNN on our shows. OMG! Lynne Russell, Lynn Vaughn, Gordon Graham, that anchorman with one leg, Toria, Chuck Roberts! I watched them all but Bobbie was always my favorite! Continue reading AROUND THE WORLD IN 30 MINUTES