"Lucky Me" a short review of the latest mommie dearest book

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“Lucky Me: My Life With - and  Without – My Mother Shirley MacLaine” by Sachi Parker.

A short review:

First, Shirley MacLaine says she's devastated about the lies in the book and doesn’t know why her daughter would say such things. Really? Did she really think there would be no payback for abandoning her daughter?

Second, the book is not well written but the content is fascinating. (Maybe she should have written it herself without help.) When questioned about the truth of her claims, Satchi said in an interview that everyone in Hollywood knew everything that is in the book.  If so, MacLaine should be in jail for child abuse and others who knew and didn’t report it, as well.

I am neither a lover or hater of Shirley MacLaine but I did read her autobiographical book “Out on a Limb” many years ago. I knew something was amiss (it’s dripping with narcissism) when there was more in the book about her Russell Terrier than her daughter. So now we know why. She never saw her. Sachi says she still loves her mother, (and that’s her right) but shouldn’t children be allowed to hate mothers who abuse or abandon their children for art?

According to Parker, MacLaine left her with her father who lived in Japan at the age of two (really!). She went on to make more money than anyone needs. Instead of using this money for her daughter (she gave her nothing, wouldn’t even pay for college) MacLaine sent $65,000 a month to the father, (who sexually abused Parker) for over twenty years. MacLaine believed that the man she left her daughter with was not the real father, (even worse) but rather was a clone of her husband who was on a secret government mission in space (which cost $65,000 a month.) When MacLaine found out – after 23 years apparently – with the evidence Parker showed her that the man was a con, MacLaine divorced him.

As they say in art and life: you can’t make this stuff up.
Bravo to Sachi Parker for having the courage to tell her story.

** photo credit: Creative Commons Attribution-Share Photo

No "free use" photos of Sachi Parker on the internet. However, she looks exactly like Shirley MacLaine before she got really big.

Don't Pimp Yourself

NYTimes Article by Tim Kreider today is an important reminder to writers and artists to not work for free. "Slaves of the Internet, Unite! in the Sunday Review section.

Kreider laments how often he gets ask to write, create, and perform for free. Common, but when he mentioned the Huffington Post, i was really pissed. This publication makes millions in profits, enough money to pay its writers but chooses not to, so I choose not to read the HP, especially when they can't even recognize their own hypocrisy when they chastise fast food corporations for not paying a living wage to their workers. HA HA HA HA HA.

I agree wholeheartedly with Tim albeit that I have submitted my work for publication for free: this year I am published in Grisly Shorts, and in the forthcoming "Ultra Short Memoir" and a 20 year anniversary issue of poets from the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Since I was the first runner up (to winner Paul Beatty) in 1990 in the very first Grand Poetry Slam I was happy to be invited to be included in the publication. For that I will publish my poem/song "Lose the Day, The Rose Bordello Song". I wrote it when I was living in New Zealand after my partner told me that going to a prostitute in his country didn't count as a betrayal because it was legal there. He had a five year old son at the time and I asked him  how he would feel if he ended up in the brothel and  unbeknownst had sex with  his daughter.

But I digress, as words lead me away from the point, as they always do, I wrote a response to the NYT article, impulsively, unable to stop my disdain for corporate greed:

Great! But sorry you didn't mention how writers are now expected to pay submission fees to have their work considered by literary magazines. A quick look this morning shows fees at some literary publications at $22 per story, poem, etc., which also publish on the internet. Some use a submission app for which you have to pay to submit! Shame on the Huffington Post, the queen, that says let them eat cake. Will she also require a fee to submit? She's probably wondering how she can get in on that action. Artists need to keep their integrity. Don't work for free and don't pimp yourself in social media.

Well! this posting is all over the place. How many times can I say I hate FB? I guess there is no end. Especially since the radiator is cold for the seventh day in a row and I waited for the three maintenance guys to return to fix it. Instead they argued about the source of the problem. I'm still waiting.

Internet Dating: Blind Date at the Gallery

The reading at TheaterLab was a huge success. Produced by Vincent Marano, the six plays were read by professional actors who brought the plays to life. Reading part of the EstroGenius Annual Festival.

Link to my play

Link is page on home page. 

Estrogenius Festival: Internet Dating: Blind Date in the Gallery

My play, "Internet Dating: Blind Date in the Gallery" will be presented tonight as part of the EstroGenius 2013 Xtended Reading Series. It's free. See synopsis below

Diane Spodarek’s play “Internet Dating: Blind Date in the Gallery,”
has been chosen to be presented at the EstroGenius 2013 Xtended
Reading Series, on Friday October 18, 2013 at 8 pm (with three other
short plays) at Theaterlab, 357 W. 36th St., 3rd Floor.

Manhattan Theatre Source presents (4 short plays)

EstroGenius 2013 Xtended (Reading Series)
at Theaterlab
357 W 36th St, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10018
Betw. 8th and 9th Aves
A/C/E, 1/2/3 to 34th St Penn Station or N/Q/R to 34th St/Herald Sq

Producer: Vincent Marano
www.estrogenius.org

Blind Date at the Gallery

Synopsis

A mother and son attend a gallery opening to meet their respective blind dates from an internet dating sight. Be careful of who you meet on the internet. Those sexy anonymous chats may just be with your mother.