Tartar Dodgely, Private Eye - Scene 1
July 26, 2008
Intro "Flowercast Productions presents: Tartar Dodgely, Private Eye"
I stumbled through the elevator door into my office lobby that morning in a haze. My head was still pounding from the punches I had traded the night before with one of Silver City’s finest body guards.
I didn’t know the body guard’s name, but he spotted me staking out his boss and got the jump on me. I gave as well as I got, but it wasn’t good enough - I woke up that morning in a dumpster behind Chuck’s Diner on 32nd Street.
It could have been worse.
Kathina: "You look rough."
A woman with bright red hair and more curves than a baseball was sitting in the lobby outside of my office.
Dodgely: "Who are you?"
Kathina: "Kathina Trent."
Kathina Trent. It was a hell of a name. One of those names that rolls around in your mouth and flips off the end of your tongue.
I knew who she was. You couldn’t live in Silver City for more than a week and not have heard of her husband, Marcus Trent. From the brothels stippling 18th street to the children’s radio shows, TrentCo ran every entertainment business in town, and it’s owner, Marcus Trent, was the richest man in the State.
Dodgely: "What can I do for you, Mrs. Trent?"
She smiled slowly. It was a predator’s smile, but seductive.
Kathina: "I’ve got a job for you, Mr. Dodgely."
Dodgely: "Just call me Dodgely. What makes you think I’m for hire?"
Kathina: "Aren’t you?"
I started past her to my office. I wasn’t interested. My head was killing me and I wasn’t in the mood for a new job. Especially if it was a jealous housewife trying to trap her cheating husband. Those jobs were a dime a dozen, and more often than not you never got paid.
Dodgely: "Sorry, ma’am, I’m on a retainer."
Kathina: "I’ll double it. Up front."
She sounded desperate. I stopped, of course I stopped, who wouldn’t stop?
Dodgely: "It’s an awfully big retainer, Mrs. Trent."
Kathina: "Of course it is. Name your price."
Dodgely: "What’s the job?"
She looked around the lobby before pointing her gloved index finger at my office door. This was for my ears only.
[Sound: Door Closing, footsteps]
Dodgely: "What’s the story?"
She lit a cigarette and laid it all out for me in one sentence.
[SFX: Ligter]
Kathina: "My husband’s trying to kill me."
All of the daring had gone out of her eyes. She wasn’t laughing about retainers and grinning slyly at me anymore, in fact she looked a little scared.
Dodgely: "Why don’t you call the cops."
Kathina: "Because my husband is a famous man, Mr. Dodgely, and I need proof before I accuse him of anything."
Dodgely: "And, you want me to…"
Kathina: "Find proof, yes."
(Pause.)
Dodgely: "Sorry, sweetheart, I can’t do it."
I didn’t have to think about it too much. It wasn’t that I couldn’t do it, I didn’t want to do it. Domestic affairs are always risky for a middle man, and regardless of the paycheck, a man with Trent’s money could ruin my entire life - or worse. I didn’t want to get involved.
Kathina: "He’s gonna kill me, Dodgely."
Dodgely: "Call the police."
She blinked, and suddenly her eyes were sparkling with tears. I knew the routine. This was the type of dame who was used to getting her way, and she could probably turn the waterworks on like flipping a switch.
Dodgely: "Listen, ma’am,"
I stood up and limped to the wall cabinet. There was a bottle of aspirin there right next to my flask. I opened the cabinet and fished out the aspirin bottle.
[SFX: Aspirin bottle]
Dodgely: "Go to the police…"
Kathina: "But…"
Dodgely: "I know it’s not the most discreet option, but it’s the best one. They’ll protect you if you need it."
Kathina: "I can’t. Don’t you see, he owns this city."
Dodgely: "Then why come to me?"
She smiled again, but it was a tired smile.
Kathina: "You’re not the police."
Dodgely: "Why would your husband try to kill you?"
Kathina: "Five million dollars. That’s how much my life insurance policy is worth. He wants the money."
I had to get her out of my office. I didn’t want the case, and this was none of my business.
[Sound: Footsteps, Door opening]
Dodgely: "Go to the police, Mrs. Trent. It’s the only way to protect yourself."
Her eyes narrowed and she looked away from me.
Kathina: "I should have known you couldn’t help me."
It was a jab and it stung. For a moment I wanted to reach out to her, to apologize and tell her that everything was going to be all right, that I’d take care of her problems and that she shouldn’t worry about a thing. But, then I came back to my senses. If I went up against someone like Trent, someone who owned the city, I’d be the one who went to jail. There was no question about that.
Dodgely: "You gotta go."
She stood slowly and walked toward me, her red hair shining under the ceiling lamps and her eyes brimming with tears. As she walked past me and into the hallway her perfume, like a bouquet of freshly picked flours, filled my entire head. I watched her climb onto the elevator and press the down button. She never looked back at me.
[Sound: Elevator Bell]
End Scene
Blue Snowball
July 26, 2008
I wrote in my more proper blog today about my recent obsession with, and subsequent decision to create a radio drama, and I didn’t want to go anywhere until I did a short review of the new microphone I’m using.
I’ve been using the same microphone (a cheap logitech headset with a microphone) for over a year now to do all of my various projects, and while it’s worked okay for me, its constant hum and ability to pick up the one sound in the room that I don’t want it to pick up has just recently started to get on my nerves.
And, when I decided that I wanted to produce a radio drama, I knew that I had to replace it.
So, I started looking for a USB microphone that could do everything I needed it to do. Eventually I found one model that I liked a lot: The Blue Snowball Microphone.
It’s a USB condenser microphone that works wonderfully for me. I might be a bit easier to please because of the low-end mic that I’ve been using for so long, but I think the Snowball is an excellent addition to my computer sound studio.
It worked wonderfully straight out of the box and it is dead simple to use. There are three settings: omni-directional, cartioid (one direction), and cartioid with a -10db.
The sound is crisp and clear, it looks sexy on the desk, and with its relatively low price tag ($99 US for the mic and desk stand) I can’t give it higher marks.
Upcoming Radio Drama
July 25, 2008
A couple of weeks ago I got really interested in radio dramas. Whether it was a result of the podcasting I do, or because it was a new interesting medium that I’d never had the opportunity to dabble with, something about it pulled me into the idea. I searched the interwebs looking for old scripts, and found a couple of really good sites. The best one was Generic Radio, which has a truly amazing compilation of radio dramas.
But, when everything was said and done, and I decided that I had learned a lot about radio drama, I still felt the need to write my own. The format and the appeal of doing big budget things on a small budget had, and still has, a very delicious appeal for me that I just couldn’t resist.
It’s a short script, all in all it would probably only run about 25 minutes on-air; and it’s completely unpolished at this point - although not sophomorically (unless, of course, you ask my friend Jerame).
I had a lot of fun writing it, and realized all at once that unless I keep it fresh, no one else would ever even know about it. So, I decided to publish it here. Over the coming 7 weeks, I’ll publish one scene per week. By then, I hope to have time to work on the script, and clean up some of its problems, and then actually produce it with the help of some of my actor friends (I’ve already cast Dana as Kathina). When the final product is finished, you’ll see the audio file on this site as well.
So, starting tomorrow, and for the next 7 weeks, look for updates to the script. You can find them on the website under "radio" on the main navigation bar, or if you’re subscribed to the rss feed, you’ll get the updates automatically.
Update: I realized that in 7 weeks I may be a new father. So, the production of the radio drama might roll in a little later. Heh.
Busy with babies and plays (With a special message)
July 24, 2008
Hello again. It’s been a little while since I’ve written an actual blog post and I thought I’d let everyone know why I was neglecting you.
Work has been a little hectic with quite a few things changing recently, and out of the blue I was called to audition for an understudy role at Circle Theatre for their next production Unnecessary Farce.
The actor who was doing the role (a very good friend of mine, and an excellent actor, David Fluitt) came down with an inner-ear infection and couldn’t work. The director Robin Armstrong cast me as the understudy, and after it was confirmed that David wasn’t going to be able to come back to the production, the role was recast with me.
That was the Sunday before last.
Since then I’ve been in rehearsals in the evening and at work during the day, including the all-day parenting classes Dana and I attended on Saturday and Sunday as well as the baby shower we had the Saturday before. The only time I’ve had off was Sunday night after 5.
Not that I’m complaining. But, now you probably have a better idea of where I’ve been.
Unnecessary Farce is a contempary american farce. Picture one of those old commedies where seven or eight people chase each other into a motel hallway ,everyone runs into a different room and then they switch rooms, throwing up their arms in surprise everytime they run into the person chasing them. That gives you an idea of the flavor although it certainly isn’t indicative of the actual plot.
Here’s the description of my character from the Unnecessary Farce website:
TODD (male, speaks with a Scottish accent): a professional hitman. Cool, quiet, and perceptive when at his best, but more frequently an angry Scotsman — and the angrier he becomes, the thicker his accent gets, until he is entirely indecipherable.
It’s a lot of fun and I hope you get a chance to come see it.
Also, I mentioned the baby shower earlier. It was amazing and Dana and I were both overwhelmed by how many people came out. We got a lot of great stuff that’ll help with starting our little family, but we’re still short a few important things.
We still need a stroller, car seat, crib mattress, and all of those little things that it’s easy to over look. We’re going to be buying these things over the next couple of weeks, but they’re extremely expensive for a young art couple, and I wanted to provide a way for friends/family with a little spare cash to chip in.
We would really appreciate any help you can give, from pennies to million-dollar bills. I’m going to set up a page on this site, but I wanted to mention it here too.
So, thanks if you can and we still love you if you can’t.
Where Did these Zombies Come From?
July 18, 2008
A reader, Chelsie, recently wrote:
Okay, so, I always read about people, constantely talking about “how to survive a zombie attack”, and I always ask myself, and anyone I am currently talking to on AIM, the phone, etc, (haha) how people surmise that eventually there will be an army of the living dead.
In Dawn of the Dead, they use “proof” of a priest saying, “When Hell is full, the dead will walk the earth.” and whether you’re a believer of the Bible or not, it says nothing of the sort. in “The Book of Revelations” it says nothing of zombies, only the pleagues, etc.
I’ve read on zombie spoof sites, and have conversation with people, about how they “think” zombie storys have “came about”, and most people have agreed with this theory that I’ve read multiple times..
Back in like, well, some long ass time ago.. and this is no joke. People use to “use magic” and make people “die” and then “bring them back to life”. Also, back when they didn’t have high tecnology, and they weren’t able to tell if a person was actually dead when burried them, and a lot of the times people wouldnt be, and would awake in they’re coffin of doom and would tripp out and claw at their casket trying to get out.. and when people would see this, they’d assume “oh shit! zombies!”
and I just ask, because I’m HORRIFIED of zombies.. like, if there’s a phobia name for “fear of zombies” I have it.. I can’t even look outside at night ’cause I’m too afraid. =(
so what makes people “have proof” of zombies? other than people using “voodoo”, because that’s all I’ve ever came across.
Chelsie brings up a few very valid points: What makes a zombie?, Where did they originally come from? And what is truth (this one is pulled out of the "proof" question)?
There are only a few of these I can answer. I’m not the expert on everything, and even if I were - several of the questions were somewhat objective.
The ones I can answer are about the origin of zombies.
Zombies themselves stretch backward into history as far as human beings do, with reported zombie attacks all the way back to the ancient Egyptians.
The "magic" zombies you are referring to, and popularized by the 1988 Wes Craven horror film: The Serpent and the Rainbow, are actually a constuct - and possibly a true one - of the Voodoo religion in Haiti.
The Serpent and the Rainbow is based, loosely, on Wade Davis’ non-fictional account of his investigation of Clairvius Narcisse, a man who claimed to be a Voodoo Zombie.
The problem with the Voodoo zombie is that the "zombie" is alive.
Scientifically, the "potion" that the Voodoo "bokor" creates in order to create a zombie has, as one of its chief ingredients, a powerful neurotoxin (found in the puffer fish) that forces its victim into a hibernative, comatose state that closely resembles death. The bokor can then claim his zombie (now a brain damaged person) as a slave.
But, because the Haitian zombie is alive and cannot create other zombies, it’s not the type of zombie that we typically think of when speaking of the zombie apocalypse.
Solanum, a deadly retrovirus, is also sometimes pointed to as a cause for zombification.
The horrible truth is, outside of the transfer of body fluids, we aren’t really sure what causes a perfectly normal corpse to rise from its peaceful end and kill.
And, as for proof of zombie attacks, it all depends on how you look at written history. The history of mankind is riddled with proof of the dead rising from their graves and attacking the living. The true stories are quite naturally "spun" to divert public outcry.
In the United States alone we can look back at multiple zombie attacks: The Salem witch trials were incited by a zombie attack, The multiple outbreaks of the "bubonic plague" in early colonial North America, The Donner Party, and the events in Vicksburg, Mississippi in 1863.
As for a name for "fear of zombies" you can use "necrothanatophobia," broken down it means: "irrational fear of walking corpses." Of course, I would subtract the "irrational" part… It sounds very rational to me.
Keep your eyes open Chelsie, and I suggest maintaining your healthy fear of the undead.
The Kid, in 3-d
July 2, 2008
Well, it’s not 3-d, and I stand by this regardless of other opinions and regardless of whether or not it means I’m an a-hole. It’s a 2-d photo with "relief." Hehe.
Dana and I went to a specialty sonogram clinic this morning called "Window in the Womb." And, while the name is an unfortunate choice, the service they provide is pretty cool (if slightly over-priced). It’s a "4-d" sonogram.
They call it 4-d because it’s a video, and probably because it makes it a little easier to sell. Time is the 4th dimension in this case. Unfortunately, even with time, it’s still only 3-d… Sorry, I digress.
I’ve included a 2 dimensional photo below and, because I’m feeling generous, I’ve excluded the "inspiring" elevator music they had playing on the video.
Without further ado, here’s my child, in 2 dimensions… I mean 3… No, I mean 4!
I realized all at once that you might not be able to make it out. Its face takes up the entire right side of the image, and it is turned to the left side of the image. Its little nose is just below the center of the pic.
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About
Justin Flowers
Mad Scientist
Zombie Expert
Fort Worth, TX -
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