Jeff Greenwald's "Strange Travel Suggestions"

In a world where TV, film, and the Internet give us access to anywhere in the world, it’s nice to get out of the house once in a while and explore something in real life. You don’t always need to get on a plane to travel the world. Sometimes, you just need to get in a car and travel to a little known venue in West Los Angeles, located beneath a piano store, called Steinway Recital Hall.

Tonight, Parlor Performances at Steinway Hall hosted award-winning international travel writer Jeff Greenwald, whose books include Shopping for Buddhas, The Size of the World and Scratching the Surface: Impressions of Planet Earth from Hollywood to Shiraz. Greenwald’s show, “Strange Travel Suggestions” is pretty much that. He has his audience members spin the “Wheel of Fortune.” Where it lands determines which story he will tell.

In the course of the evening, Greenwald had an unfortunate food mishap in Nepal (Meals of Misfortune), which lead to his becoming a travel writer—he figured such stories should have a purpose, an audience. He also discussed Star Trek with the Dalai Lama (Bird Bath of Memory)—yes, that Dalai Lama—and traveled the Atlantic in a cargo ship (Dark Waters). He capped off the evening with Left Luggage (Full of Complaints), where in Calcutta they have a truly inconvenient (understatement!) system for storing luggage.

It’s not just the subjects of the stories that are engaging, it’s Greenwald’s way of telling them. He has a command of the language—the English and I can only guess how many other languages—that few can claim. Greenwald is witty and intelligent, and his tales unfold in an easy and effortless manner.

Sometimes the best travel stories are the ones from someone else’s experience.

Live performances seem like a dime a dozen in Los Angeles—musicians, performance art, open mike. Quality presentations, like the one I saw tonight, not so much.

For more information on Jeff Greenwald, go to http://www.jeffgreenwald.com/.

For those who live in the area, Greenwald will be performing tomorrow night as a part of Parlor Palooza Mega Showcases, which will benefit disaster relief charities. For more information on this and other Parlor Palooza events, go to http://www.frankentertainment.com/.

Steinway Recital Hall at Fields Pianos is located at 12121 W. Pico Bl. (one door W. of Bundy under Fields Pianos, level P2).

(Pictured: Jeff Greenwald, Jeannine Frank of Frank Entertainment, and Jeff's Wheel of Fortune.)

Old TV Friends in New Places

I am so relieved that my "friends" from other shows got new jobs. Just today it was announced that Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) was cast on Heroes. Guess I'm going to have to start watching that one.

Kristen is the third Veronica Mars cast member to secure work for the upcoming season--Logan Echolls (Jason Dohring) will be seen on CBS's Moonlight and we already got a sneak peak at Piz (Chris Lowell) on ABC's Private Practice.

The prize for the show with the most actor relocations goes to The Nine. Detective Nick Cavanaugh (Tim Daly) is joining Piz on Private Practice. Lizzie (Jessica Collins) and Felicia (Dana Davis) are joining Ronnie on Heroes. (Btw, Davis did a 2-ep stint on Mars in its second season). Bank manager Malcolm (Chi McBride) will be Pushing Daisies on ABC. And Franny (Camile Guaty) is moving to NBC's Las Vegas.

Come midseason, Lucas (Owain Yeoman) is in the pilot of Fox's The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Kathryn (Kim Raver) will joining NBC's Lipstick Jungle, while dearly departed Eva Rios (Lourdes Benedicto) will be on ABC's Cashmere Mafia.

Although Egan Foote (John Billingsley) doesn't have a permanent new home, we've seen him on a variety of TV guest spots, as well as the big screen. I'm not so concerned. Egan seems to always land on his feet.

The only other main character not jumping into a show for the new season is Dr. Jeremy Cates (Scott Wolf). But, dry those tears. Wolf signed a development deal with ABC over the summer. We'll be seeing him--and his dimples--again real soon.

America's Favorite Dancer

Another season of So You Think You Can Dance has come to an end.

Few things in life work out the way you want them to. Thank you, America, for voting with your hearts for your favorite dancer: Sabra.

When Danny and Sabra were standing up there as the top two, I decided I would be happy if either of them won. Danny's grace, style, and talent are unparalleled. We will be seeing a lot of him.

Sabra was my early favorite. Her spark, her style, her passion came through--along with her talent--right from the start.

www.fox.com/dance

The Nine - Number's Up

I have accepted the fact that The Nine has been canceled. I get that I may never know the complete story of "What Happened in There." But I was very disappointed when I came home last night to see racing something-or-other when I should have seen my Nine being tracked by the feds. This whole bait and switch was completely uncalled for.

ABC did announce today that the rest of the eps will be shown online. Fine. Whatever. I will take what I can get. But at least let them leave with some dignity. Haven't The Nine, who have been trapped in that bank for nearly a year, suffered enough?

www.ABC.com

Hair Care at the Movies

Now available on video, DVD, or at a theater near you.

- Hairspray (1988, 2007) - a campy musical about integration in the 60s
- Grease (1978) - a musical--where boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl--in the 50s
- Shampoo (1975) - Warren Beatty, Goldie Hawn, and lots of product

There's Blow Dry (2001), Barbershop (2002), Beauty Shop (2005). The list goes on and on.

Coming soon(er or later):
- Mousse
- Gel
- Conditioner

When and where did our obsession with tresses begin? Hair (1979), When Harry Met Sally (1988), The Tortoise and the Hare (1935).For more information on these films and other hair-raising titles, go to http://www.imdb.com/.

So You Think You Can Dance: The Final Six

So You Think You Can Dance is by far my favorite summer reality show. Watching these young dancers on the path to realizing their dreams is fun, exciting, and delightful.

I was annoyed as anyone about the massive nepotism at the start of the season. Siblings and a "friend of the show" took 4 of the top 20 spots: Travis' brother, Benji's sister/Heidi's cousin, a choreographer's assistant from last season, and Stanislav's sister. Stas's sister—Faina—was voted off the second week (lasted one week longer than big bro), but the other three—Danny, Lacey, and Lauren—are in the final six.

As six becomes four, I can only hope that one of the aforementioned woman (preferably Lacey) gets kicked off the dancing island to make room for Sabra, the 20-year-old contemporary dancer who has been dancing for just 4 years. Sabra has heart, but more than that, she taps into her passion every time she steps out on stage. And that's the kind of energy that transcends the TV set and goes into the audience's living room.

Speaking of amazing dancing, Danny has certainly earned a place in the top four. Words cannot describe the beauty and power of his movement, his seemingly effortless talent. Is it enough for him to win? Maybe, maybe not.

Which brings us to Pasha and Neil. As far as I'm concerned, the final four can be the three boys and Sabra. (No offense, Lauren, but it has taken you a long time to come into your own in the competition, and you are not quite there yet.) Pasha looks good, but has versatility issues. On the other hand, Neil, who was not my favorite, to say the least, has proven himself over the past few weeks. He has shown the most growth, which is a big part of what this competition is all about.

This week we get SYTYCD overload: results Monday, Finale part 1 on Wednesday, and Finale part 2 on Thursday. I'm sure Benji would be happier than anyone to pass the torch to his sister, who has talent but is lacking the maturity befitting a professional. She clearly isn't ready for the crown.

The final four should be Sabra, Lauren, Pasha, and Neil. And in my heart, Sabra's already won.

For more on So You Think You Can Dance, go to: http://www.fox.com/dance/