A telephone conversation with filmmaker Tommy Avallone the day before the October 26, 2018 VOD premiere of his (reviewed) Gravitas Ventures documentary "The Bill Murray Stories: Life Lessons From A Mythical Man" aptly was mythical. "Murray' and an earlier Avallone joint "I Am Santa Claus," which chronicles the off-season lives of men who play St. Nick, show that this guy has equally strong imagination and curiosity levels that he exercises in a manner that enriches audiences in the same manner that Murray popping up at a kickball game or a college party enhances the lives of those who are there.

The titular urban legends in "Murray" are seemingly purely random visits by the titular star of "Saturday Night Live" (a.k.a. "SNL") and cult-classic '80s film comedies such as "Stripes" and the original "Ghostbusters" films. Hearing about those encounters puts the idea of "Murray" in the head of Avallone; obtaining the coveted toll-free telephone number that Murray uses in lieu of an agent or a manager created hope that the man the legend would participate in the film.

First Contact 

Scenes throughout "Murray" depict Avallone either rehearsing a message for the voicemail of Murray or recording and deleting one. We also see his mother get into the act. This illustrated the challenge of summoning Murray; he is like a cat in that he ignores those who attempt to entice him but literally or figuratively jumps in the laps of people who ignore him. 

Of course, speaking with someone who had the highly sought-after number required asking Avallone to share it, His denial of that request was less surprising than if he had divulged that information. Avallone added that "I can't tell you how I got it; it was a friend of a friend." Avallone emphasized that that friend was not a celebrity. 

Avallone added that he regularly called the number for a year-and-a-half to no avail; these calls continue at less frequently.

Truth or Fiction

Avallone stated that a reported Murray sighting that he included in the cold open of "Murray" was the first one that he heard. He then speculated that it was partially true.

This tale involved Murray coming up behind a man who was using a urinal at a bar; the rest of the story was that Murray put his hands over the eyes of the man. Avalllone opined that Murray did walk up to someone at some time and put his hands over the eyes of his "victim."

This led to discussing people making up Murray stories in reliance of limited documentation of many true one. Avallone provided a perfect response in stating that "I know people who do that; I don't like that. I am a documentary filmmaker; I like the truth."

This final word on this topic was that "What's great about the Bill Murray stories is that 99-percent of them are true."

Murray on Murray

Avallone shared that he has no indication that Murray has seen the film; he added that Bill's brother Joel has seen it and likes it a great deal. The documentarian added that he likes to think that Murray would like "Murray."

Avallone expressing the fantasy that Murray would show in the back of a theater and give him a thumbs up during a post-screening discussion expresses the thoughts of Murray fans everywhere. 

Another expressed desire regarding the impact of "Murray" was that viewers "start to think more like Bill Murray." he added that Murray reminded him of Santa in that "he comes in and leaves them smiling." 

Waldo on Weed 

Only knowing that the latest project of Avallone is titled "Waldo on Weed" prompted asking if the title character was either a cannabis expert or a stoner. It turns out that Waldo is the son of a friend of Avallone; the title refers to the boy using cannabis oil to treat cancer. 

The statements that "Brian and Waldo are really fun characters," and that the film is about "what a father would do to save a son" provide to good reasons to discover where''s "Waldo" when it is released.

Final Word

The similarities between Avallone and Murray extend beyond sharing a great offbeat sense of humor; they both passionately pursue their bliss and seek to provide the rest of us with the same. There is no doubt regarding the truth of the tale that they both awesomely succeed. 

A telephone chat with '70s child star/current working actor/successful director Moosie Drier confirmed that puberty is not fatal to every classic sitcom kid. Our talk as Drier drove from a voice-over session for the Fox series "The Gifted" to pick up 12 year-old son Clayton from school was a genuine pleasure. The downside for folks seeking dirt is that there is very little to begin with, and the kind and sweet nature of Drier required not pursuing ANYTHING potentially embarrassing about his personal life. 

The proverbial "how it all began" was the (reviewed) recent Time Life DVD release of the sixth and final season of the truly pioneering  edgy mid-60s to early '70s fast-paced sketch-comedy show "Rowan & Marti's Laugh In." This series that carefully straddled the line between vaudeville and burlesque personified the philosophy that sacred cows make the tastiest hamburgers. 

Drier moving up from regular appearances to being a featured member of the "Laugh-In" ensemble the final season prompted my dubbing him the "Cousin Oliver" of the series. The kismet began with a tweet to that effect along with an interview request coinciding with a rare occasion on which Drier checked his Twitter account. The next part of the story was that Drier had been friends with the real Cousin Oliver Robbie Rist and still playfully teased him about that role. The ONLY regret regarding the interview was forgetting an intent to comment that Rist was a jinx.

Drier agreed to an interview despite not granting many journalists that privilege. An initial nice surprise was learning that a surprisingly large overlap existed between his friends since childhood/celebrities of all ages and my childhood idols who have been just as terrific as Drier regarding speaking with me. 

Spirit of Tab Hunter Lives On 

The most striking impression of Drier is that a warranted comparison with '50s matinee idol Tab Hunter extends beyond the enduring all-American boy good looks of both men. These actors who grew up without a father have positive outlooks and loving natures that put 99-percent of us to shame. The simple fact is that Drier not getting one red cent from sales of "Laugh-In" DVDs and not promoting any project makes speaking with me a purely selfless act. 

An interview in which Hunter thanked this operator of a "boutique" website for taking the time to talk with him cemented the sense that I would personally mourn his passing when it occurred. His death  this July showed that that prediction came true. That loss still is felt. The better news is that 50-something Drier likely will be with us a few more decades. 

A Child Star By Any Other Name 

A desire to avoid asking Drier questions that he has answered a million times before prompted an online search for his real name; the failure to find anything reinforced that he is selective regarding interviews. 

Drier shared that Moosie was not his God-given name but said that he has never been called anything else. He added that he had his legal name changed to Moosie and that it was on his driver's license. 

The origin story of the name is that former New York Yankee Bill "Moose" Skowron was a friend of the father of Drier. 

Bewitched, Newhart, and Jeannie

Drier, who mostly does voice-over work and directs plays and television (including an episode of the sitcom "Reba"), stated that he stopped acting roughly 20 years ago. He then noted that his girlfriend of five years Erin was a child actor.

Clues that included Drier sharing that the early acting career of his highly significant other was more high profile then his led to correctly guessing that her last name was Murphy. The subsequent gushing about Murphy by Drier included calling her "one of the coolest" and "one of the sweetest" people alive awesomely reflected the spirit of the '60sfantasycom "Bewitched" in which Murphy played young witch Tabitha. The kismet this time was watching a "Bewitched" episode on DVD right before speaking with Drier and without any knowledge of his relationship with Murphy.

Drier stating that "Erin and I kind of laugh about it" in reference to growing up as child stars males one happy that these kids have someone who can relate to their relatively unique growing pains. He also shared that he "wasn't seeing many child actors in my adult life until he started dating other child actors." 

The discussion about Murphy led to my expressing sympathy related to a moderately high social-media profile making her and Drier easy targets for assertive fans of hers. He laughed and said that he was surprised how many times that someone asked her to twitch her nose. He pointed out that an amusing aspect of that was the twitch was the magic trigger of series lead Samantha, and that Tabitha would rub her fingers together to perform her spells. 

Drier expressed the practice of fans associating child stars with their roles by stating that "people really identify the actor with the character if they played it long enough." He added that "for better or worse that actor will always be identified with that one role."

A personal association regarding Drier is his role as the young son of divorced wacky neighbor/best friend Howard Borden (Bill Daily) on "The Bob Newhart Show." The below photo shows Drier playing his part in that classic  sitcom.

The first bit of kismet this time is that good Midwestern boy Daily is another star who has granted your not-so-humble reviewer an interview. His kindness extended to giving me a signed genie bottle from his '60sfantasycom "I Dream of Jeannie." This experience was consistent with Drier identifying Daily as one of his favorite people.

The inability of fanatics (rather than fans) to distinguish between the actor and the role led to discussing Daily "Jeannie" co-star and fellow awesome Unreal TV interview subject Barbara Eden. Drier started this conversation by stating that he knew the son of Eden and still occasionally visited her, 

Drier then stumped the chump in sharing that he played the son of Eden in a May 1973 TV Movie that was the failed pilot for the sitcom "The Barbara Eden Show." This show played homage to "The Dick Van Dyke Show" by having Eden divide her time between dealing with egos and other problems as the head writer of a soap opera and family-oriented problems on the home front.

Laugh-In

Drier stated that he did not recall his role on "Laugh-In" expanding in the final season; he did remember the producers bringing in child actress Mona Tera to perform with him. A related memory was appearing with Tera on the cover of the L..A. Times television listing supplement. The following photos are "Laugh-In" ones of Drier and Tera. 

Drier did have many fun behind-the-scenes stories. The sweetest was the habit of Lily Tomlin using down times to invite him to join her in the over-sized chair used in the skits in which Tomlin played precious five year-old Edith Ann. Tomlin sometimes speaking to Drier in her Edith Ann persona and sometimes in her own voice made this story even better.

The most scandalous tale was that Drier constantly smelled marijuana smoke around the dressing-room door of star Alan Sues. Murphy being special to Drier and the campy and flamboyant style of Sues required mentioning "Bewitched" star Paul Lynde. Drier spoke for every child of the '60s and the '70s in saying that "Paul Lynde was my hero as a kid; how frickin' funny was that human being." Learning that Murphy shared those sentiments was an interview highlight.

Richard Nixon was the first name that Drier cited as someone who was exciting to meet on "Laugh-In." He rattled off several more of the seemingly infinite roster of A-Listers who made appearances. That series landing Drier an appearance on a Sammy Davis, Jr. television special was the provided example of "Laugh-In" stars recruiting Drier to appear on other programs. 

Drier lacked any memories regarding the seemingly abrupt cancellation of "Laugh-In." He did comment that "it [sudden cancellation] is common in the industry. There is so much red tape."

Drier had more insight regarding "Bewitched" packing it in after eight years. He shared that the series was set for a ninth season but that a reason that he provided off the record prompted abandoning that plan. One clue is that any speculation regarding the story behind ending things most likely will be inaccurate. 

Oh God Cousin Oliver

Our discussion about Cousin Oliver portrayor Robbie Rist began with Drier expressing his childhood love for "The Brady Bunch," which added Oliver in response to the Brady kids getting older. Drier added that he was not up for that role and that "Robbie and i have been friends forever and still are." 

The bromance between Drier and Rist really came through in discussing Drier guest-starring on the "Bully For You" episode on the mid-70s Saturday morning sitcom "Big John Little John" in which Rist played the 12 year-old version of an adult who alternated between being a kid and a grown-ass man. Memories of playing the bully tormenting Little John until that target became Big John clearly delighted Drier. 

An awesome modern note regarding all this was the story of Drier hosting a Hollywood Hills mini-reunion for child stars of the '70s five years ago. A highlight for Drier was meeting Murphy at that event; a highlight for "Brady" fans was the group surprising Rist with a "Jump the Shark" award for playing Cousin Oliver. (I believe that Drier stated that some Brady kids were present.) The neglected opportunity this time was whether the presence of Rist jinxed the gathering in any manner. 

I also learned that Drier and Rist were up for some of the same roles but did not compete for the Rist role as the adopted son of Ted Baxter on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show."

The Big Join Little John theme also applied regarding Rist and Drier competing to play the son of the character whom actor/country singer John Denver portrayed in the 1977 Carl Reiner comedy film "Oh, God!." Drier rightfully thought that the straight blonde hair and glasses that made Rist look like "a little John Denver" made that kid a sure bet to play his kid.

Drier getting cast was only the beginning of the story. His mother calling the mother of Rist to share the news prompted that woman to cry over her son not getting the role. The rest of the story was that mother then speaking to Drier and telling her that she was glad that he was the one who got the role if Rist could not have it.

The following photo of Rist as Cousin Oliver shows that the comparison to Denver is highly warranted.

Kids Incorporated 

Discussion of Drier playing soda-fountain worker Riley on the pre-"Saved by the Bell" "Bell" style '80s live-action Saturday morning kidcom "Kids Incorporated" prompted the most surprising reveal in our hour-long conversation. He volunteered that he did that series to pay off a tax debt about which he learned when he was emancipated at the age of 16. The rest of the story was that Drier learned at the time that his mother had not filed or paid taxes regarding his earnings.

The exceptional nature of Drier particularly came through in this portion of the conversation. The aspect of "Kids" that had a singing group comprised of kids that seemed to range in age from 10-to-15 treat 18-to-20 year-old Riley like a doofus and their house boy prompted jokingly asking Drier if he ever felt like slapping  (early 21st century singer) Fergie of The Blacked Eye Peas. He took this is stride and stated both that Fergie is Stacy Ferguson to him and that he has the honor of being one of the few people allowed to call her by her birth name.

The praise continued with Drier describing Ferguson as "an angel" who was "not like a Hollywood child brat in any way." He added that she is "super talented."

An especially fun moment came in telling Drier about watching part of a "Kids" episode to prepare for our conversation. The plot revolved around Riley pretending to own the club where he worked in order to impress a visiting high-school rival. That guy showed up in an expensive car and wearing haute couture. My telling Drier that I did not watch the entire episode because I predicted that Riley got caught in his lie and 'fessed up and that his buddy then admitted to being as big of fake prompted Drier to laugh and reply "You're probably right."

Say Good Night Moosie

"Bob Newhart" being the only known exception to Drier being directly or indirectly closely associated with a series in which it is easy to imagine the characters continuing to go about their daily (no pun intended) business after the sets go dark for the last time seems very apt for this righteous dude. He simply continues the habit that has persisted for 40 years of showing up when called to act or direct and does not stress when the calls stop coming regarding a particular project. 

On a larger level, it is nice to think that 100s of people have probably benefited from small kindnesses (such as his likely putting a quarter in soon-to-expire parking meters) by Drier without having a clue that he is the kid from the HILARIOUS ice-cream shop scene from "Bob Newhart." 

The blessing regarding the (mostly) guys who make indie films is that knowing their work provides a cool one-percenter feeling of being one of the elite relatively few who are in on the awesomeness; the curse is that the appeal of these labors of love and the men who make them elicits righteous indignation that the studio systems prevents them from making widely distributed films that have the integrity to which every director and writer should aspire. This particularly is true regarding young lion Lithuanian auteur Romas Zabarauskas.


The (reviewed) semi-autobiographical Zabarauskas film "You Can't Escape Lithuania" discusses the extent to which this triple threat producer/director/writer will go to get his vision in front of audiences. The reel-life Zabarauskas refers to the real incident of his sire offering a nude photo of himself as a crowd funding premium to make a movie. One cannot imagine Affleck and Damon issuing similar "junk" bonds if faced with a lack of funds for "Good Will Hunting."


On top of this, Zabarauskas uses both the media of film and the exposure (no pun intended) that his movies provide to further his cause of shedding light on the government-supported rampant discrimination against homosexuals in Lithuania. This is particularly so in the (also reviewed) superb 2011 film "Porno Melodrama," which is light on the former and moderately heavy on the latter.


Logistical considerations required conducting a recent interview with Zabarauskas over email. The American tradition of doing everything in a half-assed manner requires mostly just pasting the submitted questions and received answers below with minor editing.


1. You “escaped” the repressive culture in Lithuania to attend film schools in Paris and New York; why did you go back?


Think global, act local. As a filmmaker, I need to work with the context I know best, and at least for now it's the Lithuanian one.


It's also not a selfless choice. I feel happy by meaningfully contributing to positive changes here. And despite many challenges, LGBT+ community and culture is getting stronger and more colourful here in Lithuania. It's exciting to be part of it.


2. Can you provide any sense of challenges related to dating a more reticent man in such an oppressive culture considering your activism, your films, and posing for widely circulated nude photos?


My boyfriend accepts me for who I am, so it's all fine. And although our culture is indeed oppressive, I consider us both very privileged – we don't face any danger or abuse, we hold hands in the middle of Vilnius and rarely receive any insults for it. As for my "nudes", ya wish – it was only one photo and not widely circulated, simply sent for the backers of my last film to make the crowdfunding campaign more fun and eye-catching.


3. Your films address the above; to what extent are they auto-biographical?


It would spoil my secrets if I'd tell you which things are real and which aren't. Some of the craziest things in You Can't Escape Lithuania are true, I can tell you this much... And the shooting of this film indeed became surreal when reality and fiction started to mix. But perhaps that's a subject of another movie to make.


4. Your films indicate that your parents strongly support your art; has that enthusiasm waned regarding the controversial and explicit nature of your films?


No, my family stays truly supportive. But do you really think my films are that controversial? Rather tame I would say, by today's standards. At the same time, it's hard for me to imagine a film without some sexual exploration. Filming other people's feelings, thoughts, intimate moments – that's somewhat erotic in itself.


5. Speaking of which, have you had any concrete sense of your films (especially “Porno” and “Escape”) impacting reform in Lithuania? 


I don't consider my films educational or trying to make a straightforward point for tolerance and equality. But they certainly did contribute [to] promoting LGBT+ visibility and culture in Lithuania. Otherwise, I take credit for pushing some famous people to voice their support for the LGBT+ equality, and others – to come out. I do some social initiatives aside from my movies which might have contributed to changing attitudes more directly. For example, a year ago I published a book "Lithuania Comes Out: 99 LGBT+ Stories". That was truly groundbreaking – never before there were so many Lithuanians coming out so openly, and from such different backgrounds.



6. Do you think that a fear of being outed prevents gay politicians in Lithuania from being more supportive of reform? 


Might be! I think that in general most of our politicians are either truly backwards, or pretending to be – in order to be elected. Not much hope here, but it will still change for the better sometime in the future.

7. As a citizen of a repressive country, what do you consider the purpose of Pride? Is it to too show that there are many mainstream gay men and lesbian women who simply want equality and mean straight people no harm or is it an excuse for hairless 18 year-olds to roller skate only wearing Speedos and overweight hairy middle-aged men to parade in dresses? 


Well, I see nothing wrong in people expressing themselves in different ways! For me, the purpose of Pride is to commemorate [the] Stonewall Riots and continue the global campaign for LGBT+ equality. We need to remember our history and keep writing it further.



8. What are you working on, and what does your future hold? 



I'm currently working on my upcoming film The Lawyer. It will only be ready in 2019, so there is not much I can share with you now, but if you're curious – follow our page on Facebook and be the first to know!

Wrap Up

As the above responses demonstrate, Zabarauskas is a bright and committed guy who is committed to the cause and providing inspiration and a voice for his repressed brother. One can be sure that he will be an influence if the Lithuanian government fully joins most of the world in the 21st century.

A recent telephone conversation with '50s-era actor/singer Tab Hunter in conjunction with his recent (Unreal TV reviewed) documentary "Tab Hunter Confidential" positively (and aptly) proves the Chinese adage regarding being careful what you wish for.


Hunter is as friendly and endearing as many of his roles convey, and that sincerity and warmth makes one want to respect his wish to treat him as an ordinary bloke. Such a desire requires tremendous restraint regarding wanting to portray him as the golden boy whom we all know and love from his films before meeting the awesome real man who detests labels.


The clear and understandable position of Hunter on the subject is "People always want to label people; I hate labels." In this case, this sentiment extends beyond the non-issue 60-year discussion of the sexual orientation of Hunter to early promotional nicknames that include "The Sigh Guy."


This respect also is behind our conversation focusing on the interesting life of a man whose own blessings and curses included natural movie star looks and charm combined with incredible shyness and being born gay at a time that knowledge of that orientation ruins the lives of most people who fall on that end of the Kinsey scale. This is in contrast with discussing those who dun him wrong.


A respect for folks who enduere the world-at-large identifying them as fictional characters and feeling free to accost them every time that they step out of the door always prompts asking if they prefer being addressed by their birth (rather than studio-given) name. The awesome response "The only people who call me Art know me as Art"  this time got things off to a great start.


Hunter showed his further exceptional nature in politely expressing a desire to not discuss the highly public circumstances regarding the death of his former co-star Natalie Wood. He went on to express gratitude for Wood's widower Robert Wagner participating in the "Confidential" film and described that pair as a "fabulous couple" then stated that he felt "fortunate to work with exceptional people" throughout his career.


Hunter was equally sincere in discussing his shy nature and (well-compensated) discomfort in being thrust into the limelight based on (with sincere apologies for the label) being dreamy, The extension of this was his discussing being far outside his "comfort zone" regarding discussing such intimate aspects of his life.


The reason for his coming-out is discussed below and does not involve a desire for either fame or fortune. Like fellow (more apologies for the label) Hollywood royalty Greta Garbo, Hunter largely just wanted to be left alone.


Horsing Around

A shared love of horses prompted asking Hunter about his filly Harlow, who appears in the "Confidential" film. Hunter responded she's fabulous" and shared that she's a new mother. Hunter added that he named this foal Skylark because he heard Hoagie Carmichael singing the song "Skylark" on the car radio when Hunter was was driving to meet the new arrival.


A question regarding whether the appearance of Hunter's mare Swizzlestick in three of his early films earned the horse a SAG card lead to learning that she was better on screen than performing as a show jumper. The sad reason behind the latter was that she had an ovarian cyst.


The horse talk continued with asking Hunter if he had wanted to guest-star on the talking horse sitcom "Mister Ed." He replied that he did not but that he called a mare whose mouth went  a mile a minute while eating her mid-day treat "Mrs. Ed."


The subject of horses also provide the first of several opportunities for Hunter to share a philosophy that can be considered horse sense. He noted that he thinks of working with a horse as "educating," rather than "training," him or her. He added that "shoveling shit" and doing other horse-related chores "was where I got a touch of reality in the unreal world" in which he found himself regarding his acting career.


Confidential Informant

The conversation turning to the mid-50s article in Confidential  magazine that gave the documentary and the autobiography their name started with asking Hunter if he thought that the magazine would have written a completely false story about him if it had not learned of his arrest essentially for the "crime" of associating with homosexuals at a "limp-wristed pajama party." Hunter responded that he did not know.


Hunter then shared a little of the enormous amount of wisdom that his mother had imparted to him. That advice noted the importance of "accepting things as they are, not as I want them to be." Related wisdom was "don't pay attention to that, remember the masses are useless" in the context of tabloid journalism.


Reason for Coming Out When He Did

Asking Hunter about deciding the timing of deciding in the mid-2000s to write "Confidential" prompted more wonderful wisdom. He shared that Ellen DeGeneres told him during appearing on "Ellen" that someone else was planning to write a book outing him. The awesome Hunter response (which presumably he did not share on the air) was that he preferred that the public got the story "from the horse's mouth, not some horse's ass."


Hunter further stated that "what you are as a person (rather than as a label) is the most important thing.


Allan Glaser


The private nature of Hunter appeared again when asked for the secret of maintaining a more-than-30 year business and life partnership with "Confidential" producer Allan Glaser. He did not share information regarding their personal relationship and stated "I leave the film work to Allan," whom Hunter described as "a damn good filmmaker."


Hunter amended his answer in stating that he and Glaser worked together on the HILARIOUS 1985 Hunter film "Lust in the Dust." A very proud Hunter further volunteering that Glaser single-handed raised the money for "Dust" provided a clue regarding the love that remains strong much longer than most straight marriages.


Pure speculation that the dislike of Hunter both for labels and the despicable treatment (including a horrendously maliciously false report of animal lover Hunter beating his dog in the late '50s or early '60s) of him by the press is the reason for Hunter not marrying Glaser.


What's Next?

The response of Hunter to the question "what's next" prompted the Huntersque response "I don't know."


Hunter next shared his interest in making a film about the "beautiful love story" regarding blind Irish harpist Turlough O'Carolan. The Wikipedia entry on O'Carolan supports the conclusion of Hunter.


Great Knight Hunter

Hunter concluded our conversation only after the publicist who coordinated the interview validly pointed out that we had run quite a bit over time.


The concluding portion of this conversation with this (final apologies for one last label) chivalrous horseman involved Hunter thanking your humble reviewer to speaking with an actor he has adored since seeing him in the 1981 John Waters film "Polyester" and who considers the Hunter musical "Damn Yankees" one of his favorite films.


The natural response to the thanks of Hunter was that he had no reason to thank me and that I had every reason to be grateful to him. This reply (almost certainly with his trademark smile) was that "We should all be thankful.