H A I R S P R A Y ?

Sorry for being so negligent in keeping this blog up, but I have been working on the “My Name is Lloyd Thaxton – So What” DVD. Finding just the right material takes a lot of viewing time. The good news is that we’ve managed to put the rough cut together and are now in the music clearance phase of the project.

I've attached a picture (above) that illustrates one way a show is put together. The bits are put on 3x5 cards, pinned to a cork board, and are then switched around to create a well-rounded presentation. I’ve rubbed out some of the routines on the cards. Two reasons: (1) I want it to be a surprise (2) Some music might not clear and we will have to pull the song out. I’m biting my knuckles over this. I don’t want to have to cut ANYTHING.

For those who aren’t aware of music clearance, all the music that was licensed to use for the show 40 years ago, has to be licensed again for this “new media” (DVDs were not around in the 60s). We have to get two licensing permits for each song: one from the publisher (music rights) and one from the record company (sync rights). Both licensing fees have to be negotiated for each song. The biggest problem (besides the cost) is getting to the right people and getting answers back (Remember, over 40 years has gone by). There are over 26 complete songs on the DVD. This process takes a lot of time and effort, but we are gaining on it. The target date is still set for October 2007.

The good thing about this phase is that it has given us time to screen a 30 minute version for friends, relatives, and anyone else who will give us 30 minutes of their life. This gives us feed back to see if we are on the right track. One thing that thrills all of us is the reception we have been receiving from the 20-something group; People who were not around when the show aired. It’s very satisfying to know that they don't see it as something scraped up out of the past. It holds up. They laugh and applaud at all the right places. That means that all you wonderful Baby Boomers out there can show it to your own kids and proudly proclaim, "That's what I watched as a kid."

One interesting comment we get from the younger crowd is “Why is everybody lip-syncing? What is the point of that?” We explain that this was before the MTV revolution. There were no music videos in the 60s, so artist had to lip-sync their records on dance shows all across the country. James Brown once tabbed me, “The Godfather of Music Videos.” Meaning that the show did more than just have people dance to the music, or have recording artists lip-sync
their hits. The kids on the Lloyd Thaxton Show made the music visual by lip-syncing the hits themselves, or by being supplied instruments so they could actually "air-guitar” the music and make the music entertaining to WATCH; just what a music video tries to do. Most of the younger crowd who asked the lip-sync question didn’t realize that, even when MTV came on the scene, the artists on their music videos were, you got it, LIP-SYNCING.

There is ONE BIG DISAPPOINTMENT in the timing of all this. I can’t help but wish that the Lloyd Thaxton Show DVD was ready to go RIGHT NOW. I mean ... Look what just opened in theaters all across the country ...

Wouldn’t it have been fantastic if the MNILTSWDVD and HAIRSPRAY had been released on the same day? HAIRSPRAY is not only a smash hit with great reviews (Starring John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Queen Latifah, and a fantastic cast of talented dancers and actors), it’s all about those fabulous dance shows of the 60s. That would have been a marketing dream. Damn!

Well, let’s face it, it's too late for that. However, here is how we can still make it work. All you Mouse Cliquers go see HAIRSPRAY, OK? In fact, see it several times. Then buy the HAIRSPRAY DVD when it comes out and view that several more times. That way you will all be ready and eager when THE REAL THING comes out in October.

Stay tuned.