Jorja Fox, co-producer of "Stay Together: The Life and Music of Dusty Springfield," which opens on Feb. 7
Book I'm reading: "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell. I'm reading it in a flash.
Total number of books I own: I don't really like to collect stuff. I try to pass them on. That line also hides the evidence that I don't really read that much...
Last film I saw: "Mad Money." It was great!
Who do you think was the brightest star of the silver screen? I don't know if she really fits the bill of 'silver screen', but I've always really admired Lucille Ball. Comedy is such a gift. And she starred in her own show and ran a studio at the same time.
If you could play any real-life person in a movie, who would it be and why? I'd love to play any real person in a movie. Almost every character I've ever played has been fictional which does have its upside, of course. I think it's easier to invent someone than to manifest someone.
Song currently playing in my iPod: Dusty Springfield's 'Dusty in Memphis' The whole album. I can't get enough of it.
Ever feel that certain song lyrics were written with you in mind? What are they?: Well, over the last eight years or so, two songs play in my head often:
They say I'm crazy but I have a good time. I'm just looking for clues at the scene of the crime. Life's been good to me so far'- "Life's Been Good To Me," Joe Walsh
She said I know what it's like to be dead. I know what it is to be sad. And she's making me feel like I've never been born.- "She Said, She Said," the Beatles
Lately I'm humming 'The Best is Yet To Come' the Tony Bennett and Diana Krall recording.
Concert that changed your life: Coachella. Every year like clockwork.
Guilty pleasure TV shows?: "The Daily Show," "The Colbert Report," and "Lost"
Guilty pleasure Web sites: Spindaily.com, Secretfuntime.com
What's the biggest upside of the Internet and what is its biggest downside? Upside: Instant and spontaneous gratification.Downside: instant and spontaneous gratification, especially at three in the morning when you've been on line for eight hours.
Do you have a dream project?: I have two. I'm doing one right now. I'm producing a musical about the life and music of Dusty Springfield called "Stay Forever" in Los Angeles at the Renberg theater. It opens February 7th and I'm really proud of it. If you like Dusty's music, you will love this show.
The second one is a script I wrote a few years back about ARMY nurses serving in Vietnam in 1967. I'd love to act in that one. No singing required.
What helps you get out of bed in the morning?: Cake. I like to eat cake for breakfast. I strongly recommend it.
Who was your celebrity crush growing up? Johnny Depp. Still is. Guess I'm loyal.
Jorja was on KTLA's "Morning Show" to promote her play "Stay Forever", and to drop some news about "CSI:"
Interviewer: All right, we're gonna talk all about this play and everything Jorja related, but you, you made sort of a conscious decision - you know, you've been on this very successful show, and then, you left. What, what, what --
Jorja Fox: (laughs)
Interviewer: --was that real soul search, or was it 'gee, it's time'?
Jorja Fox: Oh, yeah. Yes, yeah, very very much. It was harder to leave than it was to stay, for sure.
Interviewer: Oh I'm sure.
Jorja Fox: And I will be, there will be a moment, I will return. (gasp from somebody off camera) I can't tell you when or why or how...
Interviewer: Oh like in a box, or what's the first thing...
Jorja Fox: Uh, I can't tell you, very secretive... (comment from someone off camera)
Interviewer: But in terms of that, and I think there are many people who weigh in on the discussion, working as a successful actress such as yourself, there's a, a manager or an agent somewhere, maybe an accountant, did they say 'Are you outta your mind'?
Jorja Fox: Yeah. A lot. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I, I have been so incredibly blessed, I did eleven and a half (voiceover) straight years on prime time TV at night.
(video clip of "Too Tough To Die")
Interviewer: (voiceover) Okay, yeah.
Jorja Fox: (voiceover) It's amazing, it's an amazing run, I feel so lucky and, and grateful for that, and I felt like, 'okay, here I am, I'm, I'm coming into, you know, very soon sort of the second half of my life', and I just wanted to take a breath for a minute and, and think for a minute, 'what would that look like? (clip ends)
Jorja Fox: What does that look like?'. It might really look like nighttime TV drama--
Interviewer: Right.
Jorja Fox: --but I needed to just get off the ride for a second to evaluate it and pro-grade (?), and the violence, I needed a break--
Interviewer: I was gonna, I was gonna do a little projection, you almost answered the question for me. The show's very good, but it's very grim,
Jorja Fox: Yeah.
Interviewer: incredibly dark.
Jorja Fox: Yeah, very dark.
Interviewer: Do you think if you were kinda working on a happy sit-com, you might've had a different thought?
Jorja Fox: It's possible... I really never had the, I've never been able to work on a, I'd love to check out a sit-com, see what that's like. I did one comedy many many years ago, and it was single-handedly probably the most fun I've ever had doing a movie. And it's just because the goal of the day really is to laugh, and hopefully everyone will laugh, and yes, I'd love to exper-, I'd love to, I'd love to let you know. (comment of 'Uh-huh' from off camera, Jorja laughs)
Interviewer: Well something that's obviously very graitfying to you, it's a theater company called HoneyPot Productions, and, uh, tell us about this whole thing.
Jorja Fox: Well, it's a, it's a life and music of Dusty Springfield, going up at the Renberg Theater in Los Angeles for definitely three weeks, and uh, we do about thirteen Dusty songs in the musical. She had an amazing, interesting, colorful life and a very amazing, interesting times. Uh, her career kinda started in the early Sixties, ran almost to the late Nineties, she felt, you know she was up, she was down, she dealt with substance abuse, she was one of the first women in the business that was producing her own music, she had a, a, just a really dynamic life. So if you like her music you will love the show, and you'll get to learn the--
off camera voice: But you're not Dusty Springfield.
Jorja Fox: No, I so wish I was-- (laughs)
other anchor: What do you play?
Jorja Fox: --I've, I've no talent for singing or dancing, in any capacity. So I am simply producing--
other anchor: Oh, so you're not even--
Jorja Fox: --I'm one of three producers. So, uh, Johnny Prado is our head producer with Leslie Brockett, and uh--
Interviewer: We're gonna look at a clip in a second of the woman who does play Dusty--
Jorja Fox: Yes. Kirsten Holly Smith, she's breathtaking. And really,
Interviewer: So you and the other producers are involved in that casting, did you think not with envy, but 'gosh I wish I could do this'?
Jorja Fox: Oh I so wish. One of my dreams in my life actually is to be a rock star. And Kirsten also wrote this script, uh, with a little additional material by Patricia Cotters. So,
Interviewer: Here is a little bit of the play that Jorja is, uh, behind the scenes on and wants to encourage you to see, so watch this.
(clip from "Stay Forever")
Interviewer: Gosh, she really, she obviously, does that take you back to your bedroom playing your brother's 45s?
Jorja Fox: Yes. My brother's twelve years older than me, and uh, when he went off to college he left me his 45 collection. So I was very acquainted with the music of the Sixties at a young age. Uh, it wasn't--
Interviewer: Did you have a Close And, did you have a Close And Play?
Jorja Fox: Yeah. (laughs) (off camera voice "Close And Play, I remember those") I had many dance parties-- (off camera voice "Nice") --for a few years.
Interviewer: Okay.
Interviewer 2: Was it more important for you in casting, uh, for Dusty's role that the person sound or look like her? I mean...
Jorja Fox: I think the sound is, is, is really quite an quintessential. This show is really about the music of Dusty, so that, that would've, that was the single-handed, most important thing, putting it together. Kirsten Holly Smith not only plays Dusty in this piece, also wrote this piece, and it came out of a grant from USC. They did one night at USC, and, ah, we've taken it from there. There was interest, there were a couple of theaters interested, we sort of worked the script a little bit, and here it is, it's a first run, so...
Interviewer: You can see "Stay Forever" at the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center's Renberg Theater, it's February 7th through the 24th. Ticket information is on your screen at 323-860-3200. KTLA has got more information as well. It's really nice to see you Jorja, come back.
Jorja Fox: Thank you so much, guys.
Interviewer: It was a pleasure...
Jorja Fox: ... weekend in Los Angeles...
Interviewer 2: Enjoy marinating too. I'm excited what you're not substituting.
Jorja Fox: Thank you. Oh, yeah, I didn't even talk about that.
Interviewer 2: Oooo... you gotta come back then.
Jorja Fox: Yeah, a couple later, yeah...
Now that there are no new CSI episodes left to air, CBS has come up with a new way to draw viewers in to watch reruns. They've sent out publicity images named:
Behind the Crime Scene: Ten things you didn’t know about this week’s episode of CSI.
Below is the publicity image containing the ten things we didn’t know about ‘Go to Hell’.
