Tommy’s First Six Months

Click on the link above or image below to see a slide show of Tommy’s first six months.  There are nice photos of Katie’s as well as my parents and other family members.  The Medium version will load and play immediately.  If you would like to watch the Large version – depending on your internet speed – you may want to press the Pause button to allow the video to load first.

December 25, 2010

Christmas Day

Katie and I are spending a week in New York at our apartment (Christmas 2010).  We are so blessed to have Tommy, Yuki and Ryusei here.  We had a lovely Christmas day with our family.  Katie’s mother, Grace Tharp flew in from Florida.  Yesterday, on Christmas Eve afternoon, Katie babysat while Tommy, Yuki, Grandma Grace and I went to see  “A Little Night Music” which is the show Jessica is currently doing on Broadway .   What a fantastic show!  Then we all met at Jessica and Dan’s apartment for a lovely evening of fun and wine.

Today, after a lovely Christmas lunch at our apartment, all of us went to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall, then went to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, had dinner, and sent Jessica off to do her Christmas evening performance of the show.

This Christmas I have been particularly homesick for South Africa and my family there.  I put together a little slide show of photos I had on my computer from 1979 – scanned from our old photo albums.  There are pictures of Tommy’s very first days, of our American family and my Mom and Dad who came to America for Tommy’s baptism on my Dad’s birthday, September 2, 1979.  My father was quite ill, having suffered TIA’s for some time, even though he was only 62.  They made it to the USA okay, and we had a wonderful celebration of Tommy’s baptism with family and friends.  That evening my Dad was taken to Riverside hospital after another attack.  We made it to our apartment in Birmingham, Michigan the next day, and spent a lovely two weeks with my Mom and Dad, and the new grandson.  This was an important trip for my Dad, since Tommy was named after him, as was I.  He said to someone in South Africa just before they came to the States for the Christening, “I can now die in peace, since my grandson was born.  Once I have seen him, I can die”.

My father became very ill, but made it back to South Africa.  Two weeks later we were in South Africa, because the doctors advised us to come.  A few days after we arrived he passed away.

This Christmas I missed my South African family deeply, and particularly my Mom and Dad.  I am sure it is because of the wonderful time we are having with our kids, and with Ryusei, our grandson who reminds us so much of Tommy at that age.

Kathie Lee Gifford, John McDaniel, Dan Cooney

On Friday December 3, 2010 Katie and I had a most WONDERFUL experience.

Our son-in-law (that is Jessica’s husband), Dan Cooney has been working on a new Christmas Musical for his theatre in Dexter, Michigan, The Encore Musical Theatre Company, and we got to see the World Premier on Friday night.

Dan gained the support of the good people in this Ann Arbor, MI area community a couple of years ago, and raised the money to convert an old warehouse into a lovely, cosy theatre.  They are concluding their second very successful year, having performed highly acclaimed productions of musicals such as Evita, Oklahoma!, The Sound of Music, Little Shop of Horrors, Sweeny Todd, Guys and Dolls, Annie, Spelling Bee, Jesus Crist Superstar, Club Morocco.

Having had the good fortune to obtain the talent of two celebrities such as Kathie Lee Gifford and John McDaniel was a major boost.  Dan has performed with Kathy Lee in shows before, and has also been in shows music-directed by John.  Dan is currently in a new production of Bonnie and Clyde, The Musical, with music direction by John.

So, last Friday Katie and I had the priviledge of driving to Dexter from Columbus to “stand in” for Dan at the World Premiere of It’s A Wonderful Life.

But first, we were to pick up Kathie Lee, her assistant, Christine, John McDaniel, and Kathie’s husband, the football legend, Frank Gifford at the Willow Run Airport.  We were so impressed with these wonderful people.  Frank, a football Hall of Famer and a legend, could not have been nicer.  And Kathtie was an absolute hoot.  John, so imminently brilliant and talented, and gentle.

Katie filmed the curtain speeches… Dan asked me to say a few words.  At intermission Kathie asked if anyone was filming the production.  I just happened to have my small video camera!

The footage is what one gets from filming in a theatre without a tripod and with hot stage lights, but at least it is a record of the second act.  I was also able to film both Kathie and John’s comments.

Curtain Speech

It’s A Wonderful Life Act II

Talk-back with Kathie Lee Gifford and John McDaniel

Kathie Lee With the Cast

Kathie Lee and Hoda With the Scoop – Monday December 6, 2010

Kathie Lee Gifford reports on the world premiere of “It’s a Wonderful Life”