HOW TRULY BLESSED WE WERE IN 1969

HOW TRULY BLESSED WE WERE IN 1969
Swami Satchinanda's Mass Blessings would have been MASKED Blessings!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Earthlight Girl

I procrastinated and agonized over the title of this blog. I'm a double Pisces with my moon in Gemini which means I'm very good at procrastinating and agonizing.

I just love the idea of "The Tie-Dyed Diaries." It gives me such a rush. But then I'm easy that way.......that's how we folks from the 60's are. Notice that we're the only generation that says "I'm from the 60's" rather than say "I'm from Boston or L.A."......which is where I'm actually from. Born in Boston and I have lived in LA for the last 40 years. Three weeks after I performed with Earthlight Theatre at the Woodstock Festival in '69 , we bought a bus with the one-thousand dollars we received as payment and moved out to California,
and, of course, we painted the bus with blue and turquoise clouds.

"The Missing Woodstock Stories" refers to the obvious.....and then again "missing" could refer to parts of stories that hippies who were at Woodstock can't remember because it was too long ago, we were too stoned, and we're just too old. You know that cliche slogan, "if you remember the 60's you weren't really there।"

I feel I'm beating this "missing" thing into the ground, but there's no one to stop me. Missing are the people that never made it to Woodstock and had important things to say about it; like Joni Mitchell who wrote the festival's national anthem "Woodstock", and a guy named Ed bicycling on Venice beach last week that I met, who claimed "Woodstock changed the universe."

Lastly, "missing" are those that are no longer with us and have moved on to that great never ending summer of love in the sky. O.K. so, missing also refers to the fact that I'm only represented in Ang Lee's feature film "Taking Woodstock" as "Earthlight girl". Can you imagine... Me? S. Rachel Lovey, veteran actor, stand-up comic & producer, who was honored and roasted at the Friar's Club, elder states person of Woodstock (hell anyone who was at Woodstock is now an elder states person except for the babies that were born there.) is not actually in the movie. I'm missing! The Earthlight Theatre troupe was an integral part of the organization of The Woodstock Festival, and I'm missing?

17 comments:

  1. intersting stuff..I wasnt at Woodstock, but I'll keep checking back to see the stories..looking forward to the movie!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey Rachel:
    You may remember me as the guy who asked you to perform at Woodstock. I've been looking for you and other Earthlighters, hoping to connect up to find out what's been going on since we went seperate ways after doing the show off Broadway. I've been hooking people up for interviews, etc. in this anniversary year. I've felt the abscence of an Earthlight spokesperson. Send me an email with tele info or just an email address and I'll supply my #'s. Stan Goldstein (stanmail@aol.com)

    ReplyDelete
  3. It's me! Darlene DiDomenico. I was there! I was on the bus. I wore the saffron and got muddy. Remember me!? I was the singer with the siamese cat. Gawd can't believe I've found someone from Earthlight Theatre. email at: dadidom1@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Rachel, Ben Manuel. We spoke by telephone a few days ago. I have found this web page that you described. Is there any way I can enlarge the photos on the right of the screen? I tried clicking on them, but no. ...

    I'm too young to have been at Woodstock physically, but I've been reading about people's memories since the 1980s. Some former hippies have become devout Republicans. A Republican likes the individual instead of the masses. At my next open mike, I plan to call myself a John McCain supporter. Then to prove it I will direct all my jokes at just one audience member.

    When you did the "L-O-V-E cheer," you were supporting the idea of the individual, right? You weren't into the politics of the masses that were popular in Cambridge, Mass., Madison, Wisconsin and Berkeley, Ca. Somebody has to get that idea across at a comedy club. Play the entire show to ONE audience member. After explaining why, of course. Bye for now.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I wasnt there, I was 14 years old at the time, living in Central America. Since then I`ve been collecting everything related to Woodstock, got the original albums, movies, the 20 anniversary cds, and now the 40 anniversary director`s cut dvds, plus books, magazines, etc,etc. I saw you there, later on a read your article in the magazine: "life after 50".I am gonna keep this article as a memento next to all my other memorabilia. Thank you for the good memories, and again, what a pity I wasnt there.next to you. erfa55@sbcglobal.net

    ReplyDelete
  6. HELLO,,It is PETER GEORGE(zorba was my great dane}
    MY NAME NOW IS AUGUST PETER GEORGE SPINICELLI............AUGUSTSPIN@COMCAST.NET

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Rachel,

    I don't think my first email worked, so I am trying again. I don't know if you remember me, but I'll always remember you as the girl in the bird costume who squawked, or some such review in the papers. I was Tylar's girlfriend for about 3 years, meeting you guys in California and joining you in New York, living in the dressing rooms of the theatre on Bleecker. Tylar moved to Sweden at least 25 years ago.

    Ellen

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hey Sheila, Ellyn Diskin here. How exciting to see this. I helped start the company on Mulberry St with Wendy, Alan, Paul Johnson and Roy Arenella and then flew out to California to visit you there when I graduated. Your bus broke down and I cashed in my plane ticket,gave you guys the money to help fix the bus. By the time we got east I was a company member. Back in LA, there was this great band that lived on my sister's block-Pure, Love and Pleasure.Then the magic began. Is this the best way to reach you. Great pictures here.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Ellyn Diskin's email-ediskin@mac.com

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Lovey,

    It's Carolyn from the class last Sunday. It was really cool meeting you and learning about your experiences & Blog here. :) I forgot to write my number down w/my email, so here it is: 323-836-2023

    I will see you @ The Improv!! Cool Blog!!

    hugs~

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi I was not at Woodstock in 69 but a couple of years after probably 71 or 72 I was driving through the area in my VW micro bus and the engine blew in front of a house on 17B in Bethel (White Lake)that had a large barn/garage structure with bleacher like seating and a loft towards the back. A big sign outside the house said on one side "Life is a Trip Tonight" the other side said "The Wacky Way Out-- ViVa La Don Juan" Well we knocked at the door of the house that was adjacent to the barn which was lived in by a rock band from NYC. We wound up taking refuge in that barn/theater for the summer --we used the loft area to sleep and live the band used the space below to rehearse. I was told that this is where the Earth Light Theater lived and the billboard out front were plays they did. We wound up living for 5 years just down the road from the structure and got to know the local folks including the Vasmers (the general store owners) and all the locals you see in the Woodstock Movie. Anyway I just saw the "Taking Woodstock Movie and realized I was there in the principal setting of that movie but the movie location is not what I remember so I'm looking for validation of my memories. I jokingly have thought about writing a short story about the aftermath of Woodstock because there was a culture in the years I lived there of artists and musicians that were sort a true roots of the Woodstock Nation. I would appreciate any history about the days before the festival and how the Earth Light Theater came to be there-Thanks Greg Utter gutter@twcny.rr.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hello Earthlighters & fellow travelers.

    Wopuld like to hear from Earthlighters & audience members.
    Am preparing response to "Taking Woodstock" film.

    Maybe revival, documentary, book.

    Love,

    AllanHMann@Yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hi, Rachel and all Earthlighters, we just had thand freinds of Earthlight. I've just retuned home from our most magnificent reunion. It was so wonderful seeing friends I haven't seen or even talked to for 40 years. The hugs were probably the very best part. So much love, and joy, and creative juice among us all.
    I'm too tired to same more now. But I'll be blogging about the reunion and Earthlight on my blog soon. BarbaraWildertheadventurecontinues.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hi, not sure if you still keep a blog here or not. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I agree with you on your comment about "Taking Woodstock". I enjoyed the movie (has one of the most realistic acid trip scenes I've seen in a movie), but it WAS delusional and turned the whole thing into a farce in many ways. Someone needs to do a movie that is much more accurate. But nothing beats the original documentary, I suppose.
    Of course, what do I know? I wasn't even born when it happened.
    But I was introduced to Woodstock at a very young age and was obsessed with understanding it. I think I have a pretty good grip on it now. I just want to see its legacy live on and not be polluted with the silly hippy dippy exploitation typical of Ang Lee's film and other portrayls over the years.
    How can I help?

    Raceyboy@Hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. I am Alan Marlis Ph.D. who with Roy Aranella & Paul Johnson built the storefront theater Treehouse II (named after Bauhaus - Tree in English") to perform my play(s) "Malone's End" that I wrote at Yale Drama school in 1967-8.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hi, I performed with Earthlight in June-July 1969, and left to join the cast of Oh! Calcutta! in NYC. I've often thought about those times with Earthlight and wondered what became of everyone! I was in The American Dream and The Balcony. Nice to see the photos and faces and memorabilia.
    Kathrin King (Segal)
    Los Angeles

    ReplyDelete
  17. Hi, Allan Mann is trying to do a revival project for earthlight theatre and he is looking for some help and stories of people who were there or ex-earthlighters. Please feel free to contact rishabh@earthlight.show or call 6572819146. Any help or information is appreciated. Waiting to hear from someone.

    ReplyDelete

Please comment on my Blog, whether you were at Woodstock or not..All comments are welcome!