| Dan Fiorella: Writer @ large |
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 The Florida Radio Project produced the radio adaptation of "Space Case recently and I took audio clips from the show to create this new promo for the book. Through the wonders of the internet I was able to find free stock footage and sci-fi music to fold in. I think it gives a good feel to the book, and even though it has a spoiler or two (if the title didn't already give it away) I'm happy with it.
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 I submitted this to Prairie Home Companion in 2002. Garrison Keillor liked to do these bits, "aural landscapes," I called them, where it wasn't really a sketch, not really a song, but weave in and out of music and characters, painting a sound picture of the time. I guess it's basically a series of black-out skits with music bumpers, but done with a more mellifluous tone. I thought I nailed the style. PHC didn't. And it's a quirky bit, hard to re-purpose. Too long for ACN or All Star Radio. Too fluid to be a stage skit. I would point out that much of Uncle Al's rant wound up in a prose bit I had, (which I posted here), so, again, never throw anything out. I now present this skit for the first time... But it is Thanksgiving time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! To Grandmother's House We Go This premise has been a running joke idea in much of my work since I ripped it off from Peanuts ("Have you come to sing Pumpkin Carols?") It's always something I would drop into conversations they way I always push to avoid the "Arbor Day Rush" or decry something a "Halloween Miracle!" (I did that a lot before commercials jumped all over it. I also was the first people I know to announce during bitter cold days that "at least it's a dry cold.") So, I hunkered down and wrote up this for Prairie Home Companion but it was rejected. The version below was from a re-do I did for TMI: Hollywood (hence the little intro before the sketch to fit in the show's format style). But they don't do music much. It's a cute bit and I do enjoy writing song parodies. And, of course, this whole celebration of Thanksgiving is to help remind folks that my book, Space Case, is available over at Amazon. It sure beats stepping on a rake! Turkey Carols Originally written for PHC in 2011 (hence the tagline "in business since 2010!"), it was passed over and I re-did it for my other radio people, who also passed. Part of my "Inappropriate Stores" series, it's just a silly premise carried out in a silly manner. I like these things. I even attempted to link them together as a series of running gags for one venue. Didn't fly there either. It's not strictly Thanksgiving, but it does fall under the category of "holiday food," so here it is, fresh from the slush pile. But it is Thanksgiving time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! Sid’s House of Glaze This bit goes back to PHC days, where it was rejected. It's kicked around a while and a couple of years ago I rewrote it for TMI: Hollywood, where it was also rejected. It was a shorter bit for radio, but I padded out a little bit to make it more stage-worthy. It's not really topical at all, and I certainly could keep sending it out. But's it's been through the wringer. Man, I just remembered that a bunch of these bits were submitted to some Texas comedy troupe. A goodly bunch. For naught. So, for sanity's sake, let's just post it here and be done with it. Happy Thanksgiving! But it is Thanksgiving time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! Debbie’s Free-Range Accidentally-Killed Turkey Farm Back in 2001, we were looking at the first post 9/11 Thanksgiving. So naturally, I started to roll out my silly side. The "Inappropriate" Store has been a grand source of comedy for me, heavily influenced by Monty Python with these, like the Parrot Sketch or the Cheese shop. As mentioned elsewhere on this blog, my first sketch of any merit was "The Pet Rock;" that was my pet store sketch. I've done plant shop, a travel agent and a cheese store (which I even repurposed for movie script) and then there are the commercials for Inappropriate Stores, such as this one, the House of Stuffing. Also part of a grand tradition, well mined by SNL. Much like the shops themselves, it's a niche field. But perfect for people who really, really like stuffing. Anyway, PHC didn't use it. I thought I really captured his voice and pacing and spirit in this bit. Oh well. I pitched it elsewhere until it wound up here. And, of course, this whole celebration of fall is to help remind folks that my book, Space Case, is available over at Amazon. It sure beats stepping on a rake! House of Stuffing This is one of those bits I wrote up that I really, really enjoy but no one else seems to. It's been bumping around awhile. It's not really topical but I've submitted it in one form or another to every venue I've been a party to over the years. It's a deep dive into my sarcastic passive-aggressive side that rarely gets unleashed in my bits but when it comes to watching pandering politicians who promise the moon but are just so insincere about it, I can go there very easily. Very. But it is election time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! The Sarcastic Party A quickie song parody from 2008. Remember back in the day people had to make up shortcomings about a president? Good times. I actually had a run of these type of songs back there, it was a weird, weird time. But it is election time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! Barack be a Muslim Tonight
 Ah, the excitement of of a new administration! The comedy troupe is always looking for female-heavy skits and I try to fill that niche. Sometimes. But the idea of a First Ladies Club seemed an obvious choice. So obvious, SNL did one as well, only more supernatural, with long-gone ladies appearing to Melania. Dated in certain ways, I note Barbara Bush is gone now. I don't know why I didn't have Rosalyn there. But there's stuff beyond the topical which still works. There's some snappy lines in there. The line about being the first lady but not the last is one I came up with for a political comedy play I wrote once. Nice running gags and character moments. It's not a classic, but it would have been a slick bit of comedy of its time...which has passed. But it is election time, and autumn is here, which means falling leaves, a nip in the air and UFOs... Yes, we're here to plug my Nick Flebber mystery, Space Case, a X-citing investigation for all you X-philes out there. Available over at Amazon! The First Ladies Club Remember a time when Clinton and Trump were arguing about when to hold debates? Remember when when Trump looked like an idiot and we all thought Hillary was going to win? Boy, did this skit get dated! I mean it was bad enough that we were starting to inundate TMI Hollywood with political sketches, since they were mostly dealing with pop culture, but then 2016 was the first pop-culture presidential election. Hillary here is so confident. Trump is flailing. OK, so maybe not all of it dated. The biggest trick in these things is trying to find you're own take on a character and not just do an SNL sketch the way they were defining them. It's hard. I often find myself writing in the voice of the SNL version of the person. But the sketches were now better fleshed out, there was a decent POV and a good closing gag. So, there's that. And now it gets to see the light of day... And, of course, this whole celebration of fall is to help remind folks that my book, Space Case is available over at Amazon. It sure beats stepping on a rake! Debating Debates |
Dan FiorellaFreelance writer, still hacking away. 
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