Don Schmidt

I found the bat that turned Barnabas Collins into a vampire.

More than an idiot. He has a staff of dummies.

Such a big part of my childhood!!

Farewell to Penelope Keith (1940-2026), whose performances in GOOD NEIGHBORS (aka THE GOOD LIFE) and TO THE MANOR BORN made me fall in love w/ British comedy. #TVSky

Day 2 of the 31st Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, aka Bookchella. The day started with a panel of authors who have written books about unknown people who made a incredible efforts to win World War II. I also had a chance to get to the KUSC tent where LA Opera Connects were presenting 2 singers.

Day 1 of the 31st Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, aka Bookchella. It opened with a bang with the USC Marching Band and remarks by the Times executive editor and the USC president. The panels were amazing, as were the vendors. Talked to a lot of nice people. #LosAngelesTimesFestivalofBooks

After the the LA Times Book Prize ceremony was over, I attended the afterparty at the Town and Gown, a space normally used for high-end special events at USC. I think more people attended than last year, and they lingered longer. I love how they displayed the books nominated in different categories.

Attended the 46th Annual Los Angeles Times Book Prizes last night at USC's Bovard Auditorium. There were a lot of interesting books nominated, mostly ones that I wasn't familiar with. The acceptance speeches were great.

If we're going to stop "funding corruption," let's start with the destruction of the East Wing & building a gold clad ballroom. I'm okay with feeding & educating kids. (Also, a lot of that debt comes from the GOP's "big beautiful bill.")

youtu.be/dYDV9-8wm-k?... #DarkShadows #DanCurtis

youtu.be/xpT9tZem_A0?... #DarkShadows #GordonRussell #JohnSedwick #DanCurtis

@dsmaycollins.bsky.social I can sense your vibe from here, lol!

@dsmaycollins.bsky.social

youtu.be/bLH6gG9WKWU?... @usctrojan.bsky.social #DarkShadows #RonSproat #DanCurtis

Farewell to June Lockhart, who will forever watch over us from the heavens. #JuneLockhart #LostInSpace #FilmSky

The Gilded Age was just renewed for a 4th season. Ratings are up 20% over last year!

Seeing "Noises Off" at the Old Globe. #NoisesOff #MichaelFrayn #OldGlobeTheatre ##SanDiego #BalboaPark #California

Remember. www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCcd...

youtu.be/1tPGjej8eeQ?... #DarkShadows #FrancisSwann #LelaSwift #DanCurtis

youtu.be/U5DRwUOIGs4?... don't forget to ask your questions. #DarkShadows #DanCurtis

#DemocracyWatchNews X Space! Deep Shadows—In Service & Being Served in History & Fiction. Dean @salembard.bsky.social & Lynn Edwards @lynn_valepixi @mendosa1111 + @DonaldSchmidt @usctrojan.bsky.social Tue 14 May, 10 PM EDT, Class structure in society twitter.com/i/spaces/1Yp...

youtu.be/VKFIz8-m2tw?... #DarkShadows #JamesHall #JohnKarlen #WillieLoomis #DanCurtis

On our our way to see and have dinner with friends in Las Vegas. It's nice to be back in old Terminal 1. The Banker's Hill Bar is perfect and Bartender Rich is providing excellent service. #LindberghField #BankersHillBar #LasVegas #Terminal1 #BartenderRich #VivaLasVegas

Day 2 of Bookchella, aka The LAT Festival of Books. Panel topics included discussions on writing historical novels, film scoring, wildfires and short stories. I even got to meet one of my favorite writers and kindred spirits, Ben Shattuck! #LosAngelesTimesFestivalofBooks #Bookchella #BenShattuck

A full day a the 30th Annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books! #LosAngelesTimesFestivalofBooks #Bookchella #UniversityofSouthernCalifornia

Good Morning! #DowntownLosAngeles #CherryPickCafe

Attended the 45th Annual Los Angeles Book Prize at Bovard Auditorium at USC. The after party was at Town and Gown on campus. I included some photos of the set up for this weekend's set up for the Los Angeles Times Festival Books, the largest book festival in the country. #LosAngelesTimesBookPrize

All checked in. Staying on Hill St. Historic Grand Central Market and Angel's Flight only one block away. Getting read for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize ceremony at USC. #DowntownLosAngeles #LosAngelesTimesBookPrize #Bookchella

Attended a lecture regarding a composition by Marcel Dupré titled "Le Chemin de la Croix" (The Stations of the Cross) with accompaning poetry by Paul Claudel. Bruce Neswick lectured on the music, and Lucy Winters Durkin spoke on the art work that will be projected for each station. #GoodFriday2025

Opera Wednesdays, celebrating its 11th anniversary! #OperaWednesdays #LaJollaCommunityCenter #LaJolla

Had a great time at Silent Movie Mondays last night at the Balboa as they presented the original "The Mark of Zorro" from 1920 starring Douglas Fairbanks. The amazing Ken Double was again brought in from Atlanta to play the fantastic Wonder Morton organ. He also participated in the post talkback.

We had a great afternoon enjoying a presentation by San Diego journalist Dean Calbreath on his book "The Sergaent", which tells the incredible life story of Nicholas Said. It was a terrific lecture. The event was at a private home here in LJ, sponsored by the Yale Club of SD.

Just saw "Once" at Lamb's. Excellent show! #Once #LambsPlayersTheatre #GlenHansard #MarketaIrglova #EdnaWalsh #Ireland #Dublin

Seeing the Roustabouts Theatre production of Sam Shepard's "True West", at the Diversionary Theatre space. #TrueWest #SamShepard #TheRoustaboutsTheatreCompany

Dinner before the show. #ElZarape ##UniversityHeights

The San Diego Early Music Society presents Stile Antico at St. James #StileAntuco #SanDiegoEarlyMusicSociety #StJamesByTheSea #LaJolla

Forgot to mention we saw this show at North Coast recently. It was an excellent show that led by one of my favorite SD actors, Jacque Wilke. It was not what we thought it would be, it was more, with a broader discussion on the document that included audience participation.

DARK SHADOWS ended #OTD in 1971. The finale: -Didn't feature Barnabas, the vampire who became a pop culture icon -Focused on characters introduced 9 weeks earlier -So disappointed viewers, the writer had to pen a proper wrap-up for TV Guide And you thought your fav show ended badly. #DarkShadows

Dinner with friends. Happy Sunday! #KhyberPass #Hillcrest #SanDiego

A few photos I forgot to post from our recent Tucson trip. This is Picacho Peak State Park as you're heading towards Tucson. #PicachoPeakStatePark #Tucson #Arizona

We had a nice night cap with friends at the US Grant after the opera. It's been a while since we've been there. I also recently finished a book on Grant by John Reeves that covered his years of leaving the Army initially from 1854 to 1864. #Nightcap #USGrant #USGrantHotel

Attended the opening of Richard Strauss' "Salome" last night. The orchestra was outstanding. What a score!! #Salome #RichardStrauss #SanDiegoOpera #SanDiegoCivicTheater

Good-bye, Tucson! It was a great trip. See you next time! #Tucson

Relaxing on a Saturday afternoon. #Relaxing #Tuscon