Media 101: Do not eat a poppy-seed bagel before a TV appearance!
“There I was, ready to appear on TV with little black seeds between my teeth. Couldn’t dislodge them with my tongue or my fingernail or by sloshing water around in my mouth. Fortunately, a roll of dental floss magically appeared and, voila, no more poppy-seeds. My guest appearance on RAGE, the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Company) long-running weekend music show is considered an honor. “You’re programming Rage? Wow, that is so cool – can’t wait to see your show.” With its large reputation I expected to find myself in a high-tech studio with all the bells and whistles of contemporary television broadcasting. Not the case. The RAGE set, such as it is, is in one of the ABC windowless offices and kind of looks like a teenager’s bedroom. One low-tech video camera, a sound boom, a wireless microphone and a single light comprised the show’s equipment. In advance I had been given a list of literally thousands of music videos, told to pick 63 of my favorites, and of those, to select 13 which I would personally introduce on camera to the audience wherever they happened to be throughout Australia. It was a memorable experience…
Then back to Blender for an afternoon of more video taping and sound recording, a full day of media appearances on behalf of my book. At the end my brain was fried, I was all talked out. Still, in its own way it’s a singular experience, especially noting how the various interviewers approach the same subject, namely, my classic rock photos and my new book. I’m not complaining, just sayin’…
Tomorrow more media and the first of three illustrated presentations, my “soon-to-be-famous” talk about living in the Haight-Ashbury during the Summer of Love and the early days of Rolling Stone. Pictures and stories coming to a bookstore near you; lots of pictures, lots of stories.”
