Tobin's Blogs

Highway 61

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 20:31:00 GMT

...Currently working on a cookin'-good rock-n-roll comedy called Highway 61, based on a legend about blues icon Robert Johnson. A bungling, inept LA rock band hits the road for Clarksdale, Mississippi to visit the famous "crossroads" that spawned the birth of rock-and-roll. See the band's mode of transport below. Tell you more later...

Food for Thought

Thu, 10 May 2007 19:28:00 GMT

The Lord’s Prayer is 69 words, the Gettysburg Address is 272 words, there are 1,323 words in the Declaration of Independence, but government regulations on the sale of cabbage total 26,911 words.

"The Kill Point"

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:33:00 GMT

"The Kill Point" - Pittsburg

"The Flip" - Derek Jeter

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 05:32:00 GMT

I was asked recently by the LA Times to cite my “most amazing sports moment”. I didn’t have to think more than a moment. Here it is:

My Favorite TV Show

Thu, 18 Jan 2007 00:36:00 GMT

CBS Sunday Morning

PBS Charlie Rose

NFL Replay

My Most Recent Book

Sat, 13 Jan 2007 00:48:00 GMT

The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx

Legion Memorial Field

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 19:16:00 GMT

When the 3 p.m. bell rang, I’d run out the door, down Church Street, up King Oak hill, arriving 20 minutes later at Legion Memorial Field where Weymouth High School football practice was already under way. I made myself valuable by sneaking milk bottles (glass at the time) full of water to thirsty players. Water was a no, no in those days. The need for hydration was a distant concept, just implying weakness and lack of fitness. Those were happy afternoons. The team was under the tutelage of renowned coach Harry Arlenson, now a member of the High School Football Hall of Fame. He was firm, knowledgeable, but kind, speaking softly to the young men in his care. I can't tell you how old I was, but I can tell you what size. The players lifted me onto their lockers after practice so I didn’t get cleated. Legion Field is still swampy by Commercial Street and the stadium where the maroon and gold played is now called Arlenson Stadium. (click "more" to see photo)

Fenway and My Friend Donnie

Wed, 30 Aug 2006 03:08:00 GMT

I love baseball. My team, the Yankees, are in first place, ahead of Boston in the A.L. East…and yes, I know, it’s a long way to October. Which reminds me…Donnie Wahlberg…”Detective Mathews” in Saw 2 was a fan of the original Saw. It motivated him to become part of Saw 2. I didn’t know anything about Donnie before we met on the set of the film. After spending an hour working on dialogue with him in Jigsaw’s “kitchen”, I sensed he was a no-bullshit kind of guy who didn’t mince words. You got what you saw. I like that. On top of everything else, it’s time-efficient. A Massachusetts boy like me, he has a wry sense of humor, never gives up. He has a tenacious sense of what feels right for him. Takes his craft seriously. Donnie’s generous. He set up a tour of Fenway Park for my ten-year old and me that we’ll never forget. We walked the whole storied property, stood on the warning track in left where “Yaz” played and Bucky Dent hit the homer into the net. My son tossed a hardball high up against the "green monster". CLANK! Sheet metal…in case you didn’t know. Thanks Donnie, for the great experience.

Jigsaw Trivia

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 17:00:00 GMT

The Key to the House

Gregg Hoffman

Thu, 03 Aug 2006 22:00:00 GMT

Gregg Hoffman died last December at the age of 42. He was a producer of all three SAW films. This is Tobin's tribute to him.