It’s a wonderful life

I know a man who’s zest for living both humbles and annoys me.

Good tasting food is “fabulous.” Pretty women are “gorgeous.” Parties, sunsets, balmy afternoons and gentle breezes … they’re “incredible.”

He’s self-describedly “passionate” about any number of things … Christmas, his wife, his kids, his neighborhood, city and country. Brussels sprouts.

He’s an organizer and a joiner and an indefatigable booster, a willing teacher and an enthusiastic student. From dawn to dusk, he chomps at the bit, ready to lead, follow or get out of the way. Whatever’s needed. Whatever does the most good for the greatest number of people.

Sometimes when I’m around him, I feel like that woman in the famous restaurant scene, the one who overhears Meg Ryan’s orgasm, then says to her waitress, “I’ll have whatever she’s having.”

I know a cat, too. It purrs constantly. It purrs while it eats and it purrs in its sleep. It even purrs when you take it to the vet. I used to wonder if maybe there was something wrong with the cat, but it’s fine. The cat is happy and so is the man. Go figure.

On an unrelated topic …

There’s an article at CNN.com today about a recently cancelled FX series called “Terriers” that never caught on. I was unaware of the series, but was pleased to read that industry analysts are saying that the show’s title and advance publicity contributed significantly to its demise. Though a hit with critics and its very small fan base, “Terrier’s” title was enigmatic and its marketing unreflective of the show’s content. Good content + bad promotion = empty seats. Even in Hollywood.

My two favorite anti-ticket-sales stageplay titles are Mauritius and W;t, (Yes, that really is a semicolon in the middle of the second title. It’s what makes a title that would have sucked merely like a vaccuum cleaner suck instead like a black hole.)

If I were king of the forest, playwrights would not be permitted to title their own plays. They’d be allowed to suggest titles, which is only fair, but the final decision would rest with the marketing department of whatever theater produces a play first.