background first…

Both Bryan and I grew up in New Orleans. I first met Bryan back around 1981 when we were "groupies" to a local pop band called "The Cold". I remember pogo-ing up and down with him and dozens more to the music. Fun times… As it turns out, Bryan was finishing his degree at Tulane at the same time I started mine. I got to see him in a couple of plays, but I forget the names. I remember Bryan because back then I was coming out to myself and my gaydar picked up that Bryan was like me. Also, Bryan's family owned the city's only amusement park, Pontchartrain Beach, which made him part of New Orleans royalty.

So this past Friday at NYC's LGBT Center (the Gay Center for short), Bryan was interviewed as part of the series Out Professionals hosts each year. Much of the Mad Men cast was in town to attend Elizabeth Moss' opening night in Speed the Plow. (By the way, I'm sure everyone got to see her, John Slattery and Jon Hamm on Saturday Night Live last night). Bryan talked about his acting journey which included encouragement from Helen Hayes who visited New Orleans while he was tasting the waters with local theater. Miss Hayes years later sent him a telegram on the opening night of his first Broadway show, Starlight Express. Bryan also appeared in Cats. He got the coveted part of Darius in Paul Rudnick's play and film, Jeffrey. He appeared as the DJ in Saturday Night Fever, the musical. He started getting offers to be the understudy to lead roles in major shows like Sunset Boulevard, but in accepting these gigs he began to get type cast as "the understudy." Eventually his partner Tom and he decided to open a home design store Hazelnut in the trendy shopping district of Magazine Street in the uptown part of New Orleans http://www.hazelnutneworleans.com.

Getting the part of Salvador was destiny, since Bryan turned down the first audition to keep a commitment he made to his God daughter in gratitude for all that she did for his family when Katrina hit. About the show, he repeated much of what we already know from reading the blog. Bryan said that he personally doesn't follow the blogs but that Matt Weiner and some of the others do. He says tonight's finale is in his opinion the best show of the season. It will turn some situations upside down. Apparently January will have an amazing scene.

A) Weiner has been saying for awhile that this is his vision. However his vision is not set in stone. He said really recently (maybe even in one of the interviews linked in this post, but I make no promises) that he hasn't decided when S3 will begin.

B) Bryan Batt spoke in NYC last night? I'd be all mad for not knowing if I wasn't out meeting Elisabeth Moss and shit. But, do tell.

I'm not going to read every blog to see if this has been posted or not but last night Brian Batt spoke in NYC and said that Matt Weiner plans to skip 2 years from season to seaon, hoping to make it to 1970 where we will see the world of 1960 turned updside down. Imagine Joan in a pantsuit!

Kind of like how The Sopranos simultaneously glamourized and denounced the gangster lifestyle.

Coop, we've had Basketcases say exactly what Weiner said; that the Kennedy assassination has been SO DONE, it can't be anything but trite anymore.