“I WANT YOU”

... And some hot pastrami with mustard and a bowl of matzoh ball soup wouldn't suck too bad either. And it Didn't!!

(Hope the subject line of this E-mail doesn't land me in the spam folder with those ads offering giant hard penises to all who are lacking.)

If you haven't been to Katz's Deli, you ain't a New Yorker! And if you AIN'T a New Yorker, (well, you should consider becoming one) then you're excused.

Katz's Deli was started in 1888 by a Russian immigrant family in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, a place that, at the time, was quickly becoming home to many millions of newly emigrated families. The success was (and still is) attributed to Katz's recreation of "Old World" flavors using the real deal traditional methods (smoking, pickling, etc.) which predated refrigeration.

During WW2, the owner of Katz's had 3 sons in the armed forces serving overseas and the family tradition of sending food over began and sealed the slogan "Send A Salami to your boy in the Army." The original poster is still there.

There is also the never-ending wall of fame where the owner has a picture of himself with infamous politicians/crooks, celebrities and foreign dignitaries. Now I will be on that wall. I don't know what category I'd fall under unless they create one for binge eating actresses (and we know there's more out there!!)

You see, I got busted eating the props and when the owner saw me, he groaned and a look of panic seem to wash over his face. I was certain it was sheer annoyance at having to dole out more free pastrami and matzoh ball soup for the shoot, but he was really just incredibly concerned that my first taste of his pastrami (and actually pastrami in general) was not fresh! Well, since lunch was pushed back to 7pm and I'd only had egg whites at 9:30 and it was now 3, I was ready to let him lavish me in cured meets. I can't believe I was EVER a vegetarian. Then again, hours later when that dearly departed cow, possessed like the devil my gastrointestinal make-up, I was wishing I still was.

Anyway, I suppose my enthusiasm for his deli delights won his heart, and when I asked if the picture we'd all just taken with him could go on the wall of fame, he said, "Of course!" Hope he remembers.

By the way, the famous Meg Ryan fake orgasm scene from "When Harry Met Sally" was shot here as well as the Katz's scene in "Donnie Brasco" with Johnny Depp and Al Pacino. We are the 3rd film to shoot and keep it "Katz's." Very cool. Each film portrays a different decade as well.

This was, I think, my favorite scene yet. It was the six of us having a late night snack after Sadie's gig (first one with JoJo) at the Cafe Wha?

In this scene, Lucy (Evan) has just handed her brother Max (Joe, aka the blond-blue-eyed-brit who can do anything, and with an American accent to boot) a draft letter she brought from home (Massachusetts).

Knowing Max is desperate to dodge the Vietnam draft, we start coming up with all kinds of crazy ideas as to how he might do so.

The great thing was that Julie just let us riff on this. As we've all seen each other just about every day since June and it’s now October, it wasn't hard to keep the banter and the silliness rolling.

This short little scene took about 8 hours to shoot. (That's nothing, believe me!) This was the first of many scenes relating to Max’s draft. Most of which will be done to the "I Want You". However there is one part in Sadie's loft where I'm seducing JoJo (singing the line "I Want You") for our first night together and our dear Prudence is sitting out on the fire escape singing the line to herself about Sadie! (to be shot and journaled soon). The bulk of the tune is sung by sergeants with giant square-jawed faces (made of latex), young soldiers and new recruits, all surrounding Max as he goes through the induction. Whew!

We are all often wondering which of the many incredible, incredibly weird, incredibly powerful and all-at-incredibly-varied-angles, scenes will actually make it on the screen. (And which of those, will be ours--okay, mine!)

It almost doesn't matter (almost). This whole crazy experience will be with me always (and hopefully in many people's DVD collection for years to come).

Here's hoping...