Birthdate: September 21, 1952
Astrological sign: Virgo (on the cusp of Libra, which means I get a little of both)
Chinese astrological sign: Year of the Dragon. I am a Water Dragon.
People born in The Year of The Dragon: Bruce Lee, Martin Luther King, Shirley Temple, Grace Kelly, Oliver Hardy, Christopher Reeves, David Byrne (The Talking Heads), Robert Zemeckis, George Straight, Mr. T, Sybil Danning, Liam Neeson, Parker Stevenson, Isabella Rossellini, John Goodman, Dan Aykroyd, Stewart Copeland (drummer for The Police), Robin Williams, Patrick Swayze, Elaine Boosler, Clive Barker, and Florence Nightingale
People born on September 21st: H.G. Wells, Gustav Holst (composer of "THE PLANETS"), Chuck Jones (creator of The Roadrunner & Coyote, director of "WHAT'S OPERA, DOC?" ["Kill the wabbit!"]), Caleb Deschanel (cinematographer, "THE BLACK STALLION", "FLY AWAY HOME", "THE NATURAL"), Bill Murray, Larry Hagman, Henry Gibson (LAUGH-IN), David James Elliot (JAG), Faith Hill (C&W singer), Harold "Casey" Case (former film teacher and sound recordist for NAT'L GEOGRAPHICS documentaries), George Pappas (a friend), oh, yeah, and some guy named Stephen King
Military service: November 1971-November 1975. SeaBees (Construction Battalion (CB)) Utilitiesman (plumber for you civilian types). Stationed in the Bahamas from June 1972-November 1975. Real tough duty... The base in now closed down.
Education: Graduated: 1971 School: Cabrillo Senior High, Lompoc, California. Took classes at Allan Hancock Junior College, Santa Maria, CA starting in 1976.
Favorite films: "STRAW DOGS" ( Sam Peckinpah (1) (2)) ; "A CLOCKWORK ORANGE" ( Stanley Kubrick); "THE WILD BUNCH" (Sam Peckinpah); "HAROLD & MAUDE"; "CITIZEN KANE"; "THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY" ( Sergio Leone); "THE SEVEN SAMURAI" (Akira Kurosawa); "THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN (Jack Arnold); "AIRPLANE". The first three are my favorite favorites, films I could watch again and again, anytime, anywhere; From there the list is up for grabs. And my real passion lies in Black & White films!
Favorite composers (Film): Ennio Morricone (1) (2) (composer of over 450 scores including "THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY" "THE MISSION" "THE THING" "LOLITA" (1998) "ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST" and "ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA". His beautiful score for "WHAT DREAMS MAY COME" was rejected by the producers and director), Bernard Herrmann ("PSYCHO" "VERTIGO" "THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL" "CITIZEN KANE"), Jerry Goldsmith ("PLANET OF THE APES" "PATTON"), Elmer Bernstein ("THE GREAT ESCAPE" "THE MAGNIFICENT 7"), John Barry ("ZULU" "THE LION IN WINTER" Most of the James Bond films
Favorite composers (Classical): Beethoven, Mozart, Handel, Bach, Stravinsky
Favorite authors: Richard Matheson (1) (2) (3) (HELL HOUSE, DUEL (TV movie and short story), SOMEWHERE IN TIME (BID TIME RETURN is the book's title), WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, Several of the original "THE TWILIGHT ZONE" episodes (including "NIGHTMARE AT 10,000 FEET", where William Shatner is the only one who sees a creature on the wing of the airplane), and my favorite, I AM LEGEND (about the last man on earth in a world of vampires), Ray Bradbury (THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES, SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES), Harlan Ellison (A BOY AND HIS DOG "CITY ON THE OF FOREVER" (a STAR TREK episode), Louis L'Amour (too many westerns to name)
Favorite animals: Snakes, dogs, cats, almost all animals really
Favorite foods: Hawaiian pizza, chicken, turkey, Miracle Whip, peanut butter & jelly, chocolate chip cookies (which I make & bake myself), chocolate cream pie, Oreo's
Favorite cars: Corvette Stingray (especially 1967-71's), Jaguar XKE
Favorite saying: "Keep smiling; it makes people wonder what you've been up to."
