Because I was waiting for Adelphia, I was unable to make it to a screening of Ladder 49 that I was invited to. However, I was able to make it to the reception afterwards! I went with Pete, who I hadn’t seen in years, so it was nice to catch up with him as well. The shindig was held at Vibrato Grill & Jazz – a swanky joint in Bel Air. Apparently Paul Allen (who was hosting the event) rented out the whole place – which meant open bar, appetizers, and even dinner! Woohoo! Got to chat very briefly with Joaquin Phoenix, who seemed like a pretty nice guy, and saw (but didn’t get to talk with) John Travolta and Warren Beatty.
The main event was Robbie Robertson performing his new song from the film, “Shine Your Light”. It’s a really good song, and we’ll see how it plays with the critics. Pete and I spent most of the time on the 2nd floor terrace, seated at a table, chatting and catching up – when this elderly couple asked if they would mind if we shared the table. We didn’t mind, of course, and the guy looked very familiar. Turns out that it was Oscar winning composer and songwriter Richard Sherman! So we spent the rest of the evening just talking about the industry, getting interesting stories about Walt Disney, and things like that. I’ll most likely do an interview with him in November, just before the Mary Poppins 2-disc DVD comes out. He was a really friendly and open person, so I look forward to talking to him again.
By then time we were ready to leave, the wine and apple martini had gone through my system, so I was okay to drive. It was also at that point that the film’s director, Jay Russell, was jamming with Robertson’s band – he’s a pretty good guitar player! I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures, but should be able to get some from the publicists, so I’ll put them up on SoundtrackNet later on!