Maree Cheatham - Lights, Camera, Action = Fun!

     There are thousands of actors in the world. Most dream of working on stage or screen but few actually succeed. Maree Cheatham has been a working actress for more than 50 years. You’ve no doubt seen her work if you were a fan of the soaps (like Search for Tomorrow and Days of Our Lives) or films (i.e. Beetlejuice and The Wedding Singer). Her credits are extensive.

     But there is so much more to Maree! She’s an excellent potter and avid gardener. Currently, you can watch her reach an entirely new (and youthful) fan base as Nona on Sam & Cat!

Hello!

Welcome to the MAREE CHEATHAM website http://mareecheatham.com/MareeCheatham.com/Welcome.html filled with fresh air and fun. I’ll share my career with you in pictures and film clips. You’ll get a glimpse of my family, garden and pets in the biography. See my demo reels and get a list of my credits if you like.

Have a good time!

                Maree

Q&A

         

1. Who are you? List 5 nouns that define you!

Actress – Wife - Good Friend (& Best Godmother) – Ceramic Artist – Gardener 

2. What have you done that you’re most proud of?

Buried both Mother, Father, Foster Mother with dignity.

     Sustaining a 50+ year acting career.

3. If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

     Wouldn't have married the second husband.

4. On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

     Unfair situations.  

     Hearing people laugh when I perform.

5. Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?   

  

     Go to Petra!

Maree's all smiles with Sophia Grace & Rosie

Sam & Cat offers fun stunts!

Great smiles all! Cindy Williams - Maree - Penny Marshall

Maree's work off set. "Great for holding jelly beans!

 

 

Sally Marks - Never Gives Up

          A friend asked me how I choose the people profiled on TAKING THE PLUNGE. “Are these people all your friends?”

         

          Well, no, although I hope they may be after their blog is published! The reality is that some are people that I’ve read or heard about and want to know, some are people recommended by readers, some are friends that I’d like to know better, two are even thoughtful teenage relatives who took the time to take the plunge!

          I met Sally Marks through a phone introduction by the wonderful Mary Roon who assumed (correctly) that as writers we should know one another. She was right.

          Sally writes non-fiction, sitcom scripts, and a blog. I write plays and books, and, ahem, this blog. We don’t compete – writers never should – but we do support and encourage one another. Meet Sally Marks.

 

Sally Marks

There is a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson that has been my credo - "Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail."

As a skinny, cross-eyed kid with big, buck teeth and straggly hair, I knew I wasn’t destined to be the prettiest, smartest, or strongest kid in town, but I am stubborn. I never give up on the things I believe are important.

I’m a social being, so as a kid I learned to tell jokes, create stories and imitate Alvin the Chipmunk to make friends.  When my voice changed and I could no longer impersonate my favorite chipmunk, I relied on tenacity.

In spite of more naysayers than I can easily count, I have won awards in journalism and screenwriting, been published in numerous magazines, and have successfully operated my own firm, Marks Public Relations during one of the worst recessions in history.

However, two of my biggest accomplishments (other than my wonderful daughters, Alicia and Brittany) happened in my 50s. I co-authored, published and publicized my first book, “Erase Negativity and Embrace the Magic Within” and I hit my first homerun in softball.  Now I’m trying to make my mark as a sitcom writer.

I get knocked down a lot, but as long as I get back up, I’ll always be ahead of the game.

       

1.      Who are you? List 5 nouns that define you!

Buddhist – Writer – Friend – Entrepreneur – Outfielder

2.      What have you done that you’re most proud of?

I’m most proud of earning my Bachelor’s degree. I was juggling a lot at the time (work, motherhood etc.), so the first 11 years I only took two classes a semester. The hiccup came when I became pregnant with my second daughter, Brittany. I planned to take a semester off after I had her, but learned if I did I would fall under tougher state requirements which included advanced math classes.

I decided to stay enrolled under the old system. I took one day off after giving birth and came back to class on Monday with my newborn infant in tow.

Two of my professors let me nurse Brittany in their offices after class. One classmate’s mother, Anna, who accompanied her visually-impaired daughter to school, offered to walk Brittany in her stroller so I did not have the distraction of having the baby in class with me.

In the end I was able to earn my degree, nurse my daughter and I eventually graduated with honors from both Scottsdale Community College and Arizona State University. Some people say it takes a village to raise a child, in my case it was a college campus.

3.      If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

This is shallow, but true. I would have taken more precautions regarding skin cancer. I grew up in Arizona and getting a sun tan was like a religion. We would lather ourselves up with baby oil and float in the pool for hours. I don’t think anyone wore sun screen. There were articles about skin cancer even then, but I, like my suntanned friends, thought we were invincible. We weren’t.

4.      On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

I abhor rude behavior. Some folks are ignorant, maybe even stupid, but there is no reason why they can’t be polite.

I find joy in nature, music, art, inspirational stories and acts of kindness.

5.      Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?

I would fly. Not in an airplane, not in an ultra light, just with my own power like Superman. It actually annoys me that I can only do this in my sleep.

Sally needs to up her rates (except for her daughter, Brittany).

Sally' girls: Brittany Robbins and Alicia Abel

LEARN MORE ABOUT SALLY!

Website is www.EraseNegativity.com

Blog www.erasenegativity.blogspot.com

My facebook page for the book is erasenegativity and link is

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Erase-Negativity/121845444506178

Alda Siebrands - Student of Life

        What is a student? Or better yet, what defines a student? From one of the myriad dictionaries available online the following: “A Student is a person engaged in study; one who is devoted to learning.”

        

        Meet Alda Siebrands, a product of Middle America and all its positive virtues. But she’s so much more. Alda’s thirst for knowledge, including the arts and wonders of nature, is constant. While others with her professional credentials might dominate a conversation regaling an audience with he  rescue adventures at sea or her  encounters as an attaché in the international world of diplomacy, Alda listens and learns.

         

        In a moment of peril, which heaven forbid I should ever encounter, there is no one I would rather have leading the way than Alda Siebrands, a leader, a humanitarian, a student. 

Alda Siebrands

Having lived and traveled as an adult in third world countries for years at a time, I know I am someone who has lived the ideal of what America can offer, something that most of the world’s citizens don’t have available.

I grew up poor (unaware of the poor part at the time) on a small Iowa farm. I went to public schools and received a tuition scholarship and a government loan that made college possible. I had my first full-time work experience in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica, traveled much of Latin America, and then made a career in the US Army and US Coast Guard. For most of my military career I was a helicopter pilot and flew in amazing places including South Korea, Australia, Antarctica, Venezuela, and, of course, all across the United States. What an opportunity.

Now retired, I live in a gorgeous place and enjoy fresh air and nature at its finest with my best friend and, thanks to a fair-minded citizenry, my same-sex spouse.

Sadly, I have observed America becoming more like many of the third world countries I traveled by lessening the contributions to the future for her poorer, less advantaged citizens. 

       

1. Who are you? List 5 nouns that define you!

Spouse – Friend – Nature-Lover – Observer – Adventurer

2. What have you done that you’re most proud of?

I have taken the positives and negatives that have come my way in life and used them all to make my life more interesting.

3. If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

I would have been more thoughtful to people in need who have crossed my path in life. 

4. On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

I am disappointed that people only seem to see how things in life affect themselves, seldom others.

Joy comes throughout the year walking around our property, and on larger scale, the Olympic Peninsula where we live, observing Mother Nature relentlessly at work.

5. Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?    

I would like to be a philanthropist. Every time I hear or read a story of local needs, I would love to be able to open my checkbook and not think twice about providing funds not only to help close the gap where needed, but to  make a positive difference in someone’s life.

Footage of sea rescue.

http://www.coastguardchannel.com/24_7_vid/CoastGuardHeroes_AldaSiebrands.php

Kyle Rosen - Asking Questions/Searching for Answers

       We live in a transient world. Few of us live in the towns we were born. Many of us travel and explore for pleasure. One of the joys of living in this era is that we can keep in touch with old friends and new via social media or one of the old-fashioned ways, telephone or post. (Alas, letter writing is a becoming a lost art.)

       Kyle and I lived together for a little over a year and spent hours together playing music, enjoying soccer and swimming, and sometimes in front of the television playing “Name That Tune.” Of course, that was forty years ago and he was 5! (Go ahead - do the math for me.)

       We live in different states and haven’t seen each other in years. We’ve reconnected and now he’s spending time with a 5-year-old and two more tots, but we still share the love of music and, I’m happy to say, letter writing.  

Kyle, George, Brooks, & Layne

Kyle Rosen

I have always been driven to solve puzzles, not just because I enjoy the challenge, but I need to understand how things work. As a child, I was mesmerized by the piano and spent much of my youth studying and writing music. Similar to mathematics, there are patterns, equations and riddles everywhere in music.  

When I became a teenager, I discovered the stock market. While some view it as a casino, I see it as a never-ending brain teaser. There are an infinite number of trends and cycles to be examined, and everything is constantly in motion so one can never truly find “the answer.” 

Though finance has been my profession for over two decades, I have spent many years trying to master some other great mysteries. With the development of modern technology, forensics and crime-solving has become a passion, as well as Freudian psychology and dream analysis. I’m also fascinated by cooking and how various ingredients interact with each other under various conditions.  A new field has emerged in the culinary world called “molecular gastronomy,” which deals with the physics and chemistry of food.  

As I’ve gotten older, I spend quite a bit of time thinking about the ultimate puzzle—life, death, the meaning of life, God, and the universe. I have a long way to go before solving this one!    

1. Who are you? List 5 nouns that best describe you.

      Truth-seeker – Artist – Father – Pleaser – Animal-lover

2. What have you done that you’re most proud of?

      I’ve had many professional successes, but my three children are my proudest achievements. Nothing else comes close.

3. If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

 

      If I could change one thing about my past, I would have been more social in college. I went to Princeton University where I was surrounded by brilliant, interesting, and well-connected people from all over the world. Although I had lots of friends, I rarely ventured outside of my “circle” and I probably missed out on developing some amazing relationships. 

     4. On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

      Hypocrisy, slow-moving people, traffic, and long, boring meetings drive me crazy. 

      Hearing my children laugh hysterically brings me incredible joy.

5. Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?

      If I could do anything, I would like to talk to God and ask him all the “unanswerable” questions: Where did we come from? How did we get here? Where are we going? Why are we here? What else is out there?  

Kyle's Boys: Brooks & George

Romy - The Newest Addition!

Heather Brewer – "Dream, Dream, Dream, Baby!"

Sometimes even casual meetings can leave a lasting impression. I met Heather Brewer years ago at a backyard barbeque where she grabbed her guitar and belted out Melissa Ethridge’s “Come To My Window” so powerfully, I kind of expected to turn around and see Melissa at the front door!

Phrases like “raw talent”, “lust for life”, and “bold troubadour” all apply to this talented musician. Living half the world away in Switzerland will not keep this woman from being heard. Remember her name and enjoy her song. [scroll down]

Heather Brewer

I was asked once “How do I define myself?” my immediate answer was, “Musician.” When I wake up in the morning I have music in my head, usually a ghost remnant of the dreams from the night before. When I go through my day everything I see, hear, interact with or observe filters through me like a frequency to my bones and creates a melody that I hear like a song from the radio in my mind. 

When I write it comes to me in a flash like a quickening and the song reveals itself in its entirety fully arranged and orchestrated and I try like hell to get it written down as fast as I can because it can disappear as quickly as it came with the slightest sound, movement or word.

I often write with my eyes closed and ear plugs in to try and avoid any outside stimulus. This can make me awkward at times for I will be sitting in a room filled with people and have a very intense look on my face and bobbing my head as I listen to the sounds inside of me. I feel them like they are coming from a large speaker that I’m sitting next to. This leads me to the belief that I am not a song creator I am a songwriter, I write the songs that I receive from something, somewhere else. Every time they come to me I leave this earth a little. I know it sounds strange, but that’s just me.

 

Heather?

1. Who are you? List 5 nouns that best describe you. 

Observant – Obsessive – Compassionate – Creative – Blessed

2. What have you done that you’re most proud of?

 

Taught myself to use Pro Tools in 24 straight hours. I just sat down with a manual and a bottle of Southern Comfort and wouldn’t leave until I recorded a whole song. I ended up recording 7, one of which I sold to Disney.

3. If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

I would have waited to cross the street with Rachel.

4. On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

What drives me crazy is when I’m trying to collaborate with a singer and they describe what they want then shoot down everything I present and then finally we go back to the first idea and they love it.

What gives me joy is when my students start to progress and you can see the excitement in their eyes. That is the best feeling in the world.

5. Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?

With no restrictions I would love to have a studio filled with amazing instruments and a SUPER CHARGED Mac. I would sit in there and finally write the musical I have always wanted to create. I have half of the songs in my mind and I would love to get them out and then find the others, arrange them and then produce the show. DREAM DREAM DREAM, baby!

Enjoy Heather's SHINE

shine-mix-1

Glenn Gaylord: Mercurial but Well-Intentioned Jerk/Sweetheart

          I love filmmakers, not all filmmakers, I love filmmakers with guts. Meet Glenn Gaylord, who in true directorial fashion, is “Taking the Plunge” on his terms!

Ignoring the suggestion of five words to describe himself (and yes, I asked for nouns in fear that people would list “sexy” or “tall” or “handsome”, all of which may be true, but ultimately insignificant), Glenn listed 13 descriptors.

          Even though we’ve never met, I love the fact that we both rescued dogs, skied Heavenly at Lake Tahoe, and admit to regrets. I also loved the fact that he’s in control. (I admit I Googled “A Confederacy of Dunces.”)

          But I’ll let him direct this segment of "Taking the Plunge."

         

        

Glenn Gaylord

Glenn Gaylord is an award-winning filmmaker, whose latest effort, I DO, has won 8 film festival awards and will be released theatrically and On Demand May 31, 2013. Prior to that, Glenn was the Writer/Producer/Lyricist of the indie musical, LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR, which played at such prestigious film festivals as the Toronto, Berlin, and Los Angeles International Film Festivals.

Glenn made his feature directing debut with the comedy smash, EATING OUT: ALL YOU CAN EAT, which became the first gay themed trilogy if you don’t count the LORD OF THE RINGS saga!

A graduate of the UCLA School of Film and Television, Glenn cut his teeth directing/producing reality and documentary television for Bravo, MTV, VH1, A&E, SKY TV, and Oxygen and made his initial mark with such award-winning short films as LOST CAUSE, BOYCHICK, LITTLE BFFs, and the sitcom, LEZ BE FRIENDS.

Born in the Sopranos-esque Youngstown, Ohio, Glenn credits his experience with mob mentality in preparing him for a career in Hollywood!

        

 Directing "I DO" at NYC's Highline Park

1. Who are you? List 5 nouns that define you! 

Five nouns that define me?  Not adjectives? – ok, I’ll give this a shot: 

Iconoclast – Survivor - Dog Lover – Often Inappropriate – Mercurial but Well-Intentioned Jerk/Sweetheart – Movie Encyclopedia. 

2. What have you done that you’re most proud of? 

Professionally, I’ve made films that mean something to me, that have showcased the LGBT community in all of its diversity, from the silly but sweet raunch of EATING OUT: ALL YOU CAN EAT to the struggling yet talented outcasts of the African American ball community in LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR to the plight of bi-national same sex couples in I DO. I have strived for a warts-n-all approach, since perfect representations are so boring.

Personally, rescuing a sweet, rambunctious Aussie Cattle Dog/Shepherd mix and giving her a truly fun life is one of my proudest accomplishments. 

3. If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be? 

The clichéd answer here is that I wouldn’t change a thing because everything that happened has made me who I am today. 

And while that’s true, I would have worn a condom back when I was 17 years old and I would have told a lot of my friends to do the same. It was a time when there was no such concept of Safer Sex Education for gay people, a time when prophylaxis was thought of only to prevent pregnancy, and when the stigma of even addressing gay issues prevented important, life-saving discussions. 

4. On a personal/client level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy? 

There’s so much that drives me crazy – bigotry, hatred, the way so much of the world treats its people as if we were all still in High School, but I honestly think things would go so much smoother if people used their turn signals and let others off elevators before boarding. Oh, and stop texting while driving! 

On the flip side, I get great joy from acts of generosity.  Even when I see a character on a TV show helping someone out, I become a blubbering idiot whose faith has been restored in humankind. 

In no particular order, the following also gives me a perma-smile:  Aimee Mann, Robert Michael Morris as Mickey in THE COMEBACK, the film PAPER MOON, a clean, uncluttered desk, typing “FADE OUT – THE END” in a screenplay, watching an audience laugh or cry as intended in one of my films, a dinner table filled with good friends, my ridiculously large, crazy family, the last line of A CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES (Google that one and it’ll make you want to read the rest), the trees lining Maple Drive in Beverly Hills, skiing Heavenly’s Ridge Run overlooking Lake Tahoe, NYC’s Highline Park, Runyon Canyon hikes with my doggy, and eating a sun-ripened Starfruit from a roadside stand in Oahu. 

5. Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to do?

Feed the hungry, promote world peace, blah blah blah. Pageant answers aside, I would eat your mother…no…I would eat my own mother for a vacation at the Four Seasons Bora Bora.  Each room is a private hut over the clear blue water.

I would want to bring back Jose Andres’ late-great Spanish restaurant El Bulli just so I could experience the molecular gastronomic delights for a night. 

I want to fly First Class on Singapore Airlines so I can have my own suite on a plane. I’ve wanted to ski at Whistler in Vancouver and in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and I wouldn’t be mad if I had the opportunity to go Zorbing in New Zealand, sing “I’m Going Down” with Bruce Springsteen onstage just so I can jump up on an amp.

And finally, I’d love to experience the impossible, which is to have my entire family of 10 all around a dinner table one more time, laughing and arguing and talking over each other.   

 

Hiking Runyon Canyon with his doggy.

I DO website:  www.twowordscanchangeeverything.com

My Script Consult business website:  http://glebborama.wix.com/from-page-to-screen

# Twitter:  @glenngaylord  

First day of shooting I DO.

Matthew S. Robinson - Ready to "Go Big or Go Home!"

One of the joys for me in writing TAKING THE PLUNGE is featuring interesting people of all ages, from all walks of life, from faraway places. I “met” Matthew when he interviewed me for his online radio show. His passion for movies came across the airwaves and I thoroughly enjoyed discussing SOFA CINEMA, my book of DVD reviews. 

Now it’s my turn to turn the tables and share what I’ve learned about him. In this cyber world you never know if you’ll eventually, physically cross paths with an online connection, but I hope so. I can only imagine how fun it would be to share a bag of popcorn with Matthew at the theatre and talk about the film afterwards. The only thing better would be if we were watching a film he wrote/directed/produced!

Matthew S. Robinson

I'm definitely obsessed with movies. At the age of twelve I've wanted to do nothing else but make movies. Since then I've never stopped writing scripts and making films every chance I get. I am also a stand up comedian and award winning radio show host. I like making people laugh, but at the end of the day what's most important to me is getting people to think. I have a lot of fun doing what I do and can't really imagine doing anything else.

 Matthew

         

1.       Who are you? List 5 nouns that define you!

Funny – Creative – Kind – Workaholic – Recklessly Cautious

2.      What have you done that you’re most proud of?

Oh man, that's a hard one to answer. I've done a lot of things I'm proud of. Graduating from Pepperdine University comes first to mind. But I think I'm most proud of having written, co-edited, and produced a feature length film called “Death Suspects a Murder.” It took a lot of hard work and sacrifice, but it was worth it.

  3.      If you could change one thing in your past, what would it be?

I think I would have tried harder in high school. I had to struggle to get into a good school by building up my GPA at community college for two years which was a real strain on me. There are honestly probably a few women I would have not bothered falling for either. But who doesn't have regrets like that?

  4.      On a personal level, what drives you crazy? What gives you joy?

I think one thing that drives me crazy is when you are working on a big project that everyone involved NEEDS to do, to do well in, to complete and you have people not pulling their weight. That really bothers me. I just feel it puts undue stress on everyone else and yet that person who does it halfway or with one foot out the door gets the same credit they would have if they really tried. I don't really believe in Karma, but I do hope that somehow they one day can't escape a large amount of work.

A lot of things give me joy. Maybe I'm an easily pleased person, but my family and friends definitely. I know that's cliché, but they really do. At the end of the day, most of all the major decisions I make are with them in mind. Movies and writing of course give me extreme joy as well. It's almost impossible to describe the bliss associated with walking out of a theatre having seen a great movie.

  5.      Given no restrictions (i.e. money/physical capabilities) – what would you most like to    do?       

With no restrictions I would definitely start making a bunch of movies. I'd probably make my dream project and hire my dream cast or as many as humanly possible. I'd just go for it! Put my secret script I've been working on for the past 10 years out there and see what people thought of it. Go big or go home!

      Follow Matthew on his blog site!    http://www.rfmp.net     

Love dogs? Love comic books? Matthew’s got them both in one spot!

                                                  
http://www.facebook.com/offtheleashcomic

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