At the beginning of May, I worked my first tv job since being diagnosed - the "Alma Mater" - a golf match play competition pitting famous coaches and alumni athletes from the same school against each other. Marshall Faulk, Cornelius Bennet, Del Curry, Eric Dickerson and Chan Gaily all represented. The show was strangely appropriate for me as my first one back because the Executive in charge of Production was Mike Pithey (in the red below), my very first client. Now a good friend, Mike has flown me all over the world and treated me to such special treats as safari's in South Africa, driving a Nascar at the Brickyard in Indie and ascending the China's Great Wall. Mike knows how grateful I am for these experiences. He also has formed a tight tv crew which he gathers for his shows every so often. This show was a big reunion of some of my best and oldest friends in tv. Being my first show back I was given some special treatment - no heavy lifting and a later call time. I was touched by all the concern. To be honest, I did not know what to expect from myself and I remember having a strange feeling being back in the real world and not being the hospital or horizontal on a couch. But, despite being a bit tired at times, my show went well and I loved being with all my friends again. The show will air on Christmas day (CBS) and, sorry, I can't say who won - you'll have to watch! I think you can tell from these photos that we had a lot of fun.
« May 2007 | Main | July 2007 »
June 2007
06/27/2007
TV Family 1 - Alma Mater
This is John Delveccio and Jim Walton, our Director and Producer. I've known them over 10 years now and they've helped me a lot in my career. They watched me coming up as a utility and gave me opportunities to run a camera for them - for which I am grateful. You don't often see a director stepping behind a camera....
Cousin Sean worked the 17th hole. I took these photos with an iso of 400 accidentally, which is why they are so grainy, I think....
Cousin Jim (Bear) worked on the spider, a platform that rises for height.
Mike and I 10 years ago!
this creek on 16 was full of cool critters.....
06/16/2007
Jay Coyle brings me some Wilmington, NC Spirit
My good friend Jay Coyle flew across the country to visit his sister, Parks, her husbund, Ed and moi. Jay is a great Ultimate player and we played together for a long time, most recently on a Master team named Hoss. Jay is mister consistency on offense, rarely turns the disc over, and is not afraid to go or throw long which helped create some of the excitement that characterized our teams. He is also known as the downtown ambassador of Wilmington, where he knows everyone and never pays full price. You don't know intensity until you've played latenight foosball with Jay - especially after a pint of guinness and a shot of yeager. It's always a pleasure seeing Jay Coyle.
I went to a nice gathering at Parks and Ed's apt. Ed is fighting cancer as well. We had much to talk about. I wish him the best in his fight. He has a strong personality, quick wit and great spirit - all the attributes he needs to beat it.
of course, Jay joined me for a frisbee therapy session......
of course, Jay joined me for a frisbee therapy session......
06/13/2007
May brings Bryan and Michelle Debbink and friends....
My camp friends Bryan and Michelle Debbink came to visit in May. I was Bryan's camp counselor when he was a young lad and I've watched him grow up to be a great person, a good friend and a dynamite Ultimate player. We all gained another good friend when he married Michelle and brought her to camp. She fit right in our little community and I feel fortunate to have met her. Much like I did at his age, he caught "the fever" from camp, played Ultimate in college and now plays club in Michigan. It's all I can do to keep up with him at camp.
This past year was interesting as we both had serious illnesses unbeknownst to us as we covered each other. Doctors found a brain tumor in Bryan's head a few months ago. They quickly removed it and now he's undergoing radiation and chemotherapy to clear any lingering cancer cells. As you can tell from these photos, he's doing great and is recovering well from his procedures. And, as usual, I still struggled to keep up with him as we threw the frisbee at Delores Park. :)
I appreciate you coming by, Bryan and Michelle. I enjoyed meeting your friends. I hope we can throw again soon....
